ITALIAN GARDENS OF THE RENAISSANCE 
to the Belvedere that Alfonso’s son, Ercole the Second, 
brought his bride, Renee de France, to spend the night 
before she made her triumphal entry into Ferrara. 
The rejoicings that day were worthy of a king’s 
daughter, and when the bride set foot on the deck of 
the Bucentaur , the sound of the Duke’s famous guns 
was heard as far as Bologna. 
But the most brilliant fete held in Renee’s honour 
was that which Monsignore Ippolito, the young 
Archbishop and future Cardinal, gave his sister-in-law 
at the villa of Belfiore. After partaking of the most 
delicate viands and sweetmeats, Renee and her ladies 
fell to dancing, an accomplishment in which the French 
princess excelled, in spite of her short stature and plain 
face. Suddenly the sound of martial music was heard 
in the garden, the ladies stopped dancing and rushed to 
the windows, where Don Ippolito himself appeared 
riding up the central avenue at the head of a 
splendid troop of cavaliers in armour. After bowing 
low to Renee, the gallant company drew up at one end 
of the terrace, and the ladies were admiring the 
prancing horses and rich attire, when another blast of 
trumpets rent the air, the great gates at the other end 
of the garden flew open, and a single knight, mounted 
on a white charger and clad in white and gold from head 
to foot, rode forth and challenged all comers to fight. 
“ Of the brave deeds that followed and the lances that 
42 
