406 P A 
held in Germany, for the purpofe of terminating the re¬ 
ligious difputes, and tire divifions arifing from them 
among the members of the empire; the refult of which, 
r.otwithftanding the oppofition of the papal legates, were 
various conceffions to the Proteftants, equivalent to a 
kind of truce, which fufpended all profecutions carried 
on a gain ft them in the imperial chamber, and left them in 
the full poffeffion of all the privileges which they had 
ever enjoyed. To thefe conceffions the emperor had been 
induced to accede, in order to obtain their confent to li¬ 
beral fupplies towards carrying on the war with the 
Turks, Thefe proceedings, however, gave great offence 
to the pope, who complained of them during a fhort in¬ 
terview which he had with the emperor at Lucca, in 
1541, when he fuggefted various things relating to the 
proper method of putting an end to the difputes about 
religion, and to the extinguifhing of thofe mutual ani- 
mofities between that prince and the king of France, 
which threatened to break out again into open hoftility. 
In the year 1542, Paul, finding it impoflible to avoid 
any longer calling a General Council, fent John Morone, 
biffiop of Modena, to announce to the diet of the em¬ 
pire at Spires his determination of affembling fuch a 
council without delay, and to propofe that Trent fhould 
be the place of its meeting. This propofal, after fome 
difcuifion, met with the approbation of the catholic 
princes in the diet; but the Proteftants unanimoufly ex- 
preffed their diffatisfaftion, protefting that they would 
pay no regard to a council held beyond the precinfts of 
the empire, called by the pope’s authority, and in which 
l;e affumed the right of prefiding. Without taking any 
notice of their remonftrances, Paul immediately publifhed 
the bull of intimation, nominated three cardinals to pre- 
fide as his legates, and fixed the day for opening the 
council on the firft of the following November. His le¬ 
gates repaired to Trent at the time appointed, where they 
remained feveral months; but as no perfons appeared 
there, except a few prelates from the ecclefiaftical ftate, 
the pope, in order to avoid the ridicule and contempt 
which this drew upon him from the enemies of the church, 
recalled them and prorogued the council. Being about 
this time informed, that the principles of Luther met 
with a favourable reception in many parts of Italy, he 
appointed a congregation of fix cardinals, with full power 
to aft as inquifitors of the faith at Pome. 
During the fummer of this year, the pope, hearing 
that the emperor intended paffing into Flanders by the 
way of Italy, with great difficulty obtained an interview 
with him at Bufetto, a frnall town between Parma and 
Placentia. His profeffed objeft in taking fo long and 
fatiguing a journey was, that he might mediate between 
the emperor and the king of France. When, however, 
he found Charles fo inveterate againft Francis that he 
would not liften to any terms of accommodation, Paul 
fhowed that he was alfo powerfully influenced by a re¬ 
gard to his own intereft, and to the aggrandizement of 
his family. The former motive prompted him to en¬ 
treat of the emperor the reftoration of Parma and Placen¬ 
tia to the holy fee, but without fuccefs. With a view to 
the aggrandizement of his family, knowing the empe¬ 
ror’s great want of money to carry on his war againft; 
France, he offered him a hundred and fifty thoufand du¬ 
cats if he would bellow the duchy of Milan on his grand- 
fon Oftavio Farnefe ; which propofal the emperor re- 
jefted. Difappointed in what he had much at heart, 
Paul returned to Rome, mortified and foured ; and his 
ill humour was not a little inflamed by the intelligence 
which he received from Germany, in the year 1544. This 
informed him, that the emperor had courted the Proteft¬ 
ants, and granted them extraordinary indulgences at the 
diet at Spires, in order to fecure, as he by that means 
did, their concurrence with the other members of the 
diet, in declaring war againft France, in the name of the 
empire, and granting extraordinary aids in troops and mo¬ 
ney. He alfo learnt from it, that Charles had confented 
U L. 
to call a council, and to admit of public deputations in 
Germany, with a view to determining the doftrines in 
controverfy between the Proteftants and Catholics; and 
that he had even contracted a profane alliance with an 
excommunicated heretic and rebel againft St. Peter, 
Henry of England. To fo high a degree was Paul offend¬ 
ed with thefe proceedings, that he addrefied to the empe¬ 
ror a long letter on the occafion, written with fuch acri¬ 
mony of language, and in a ftyle of fuch high authority, 
as feemed to intimate a defign of drawing on a quarrel 
with that prince. To this letter Charles made no reply, 
knowing that he had been governed in what he had done 
only by motives of temporary policy, and being defirous 
of concealing the fchemes which he had formed for hum¬ 
bling the proteftant party in Germany, and for reftoring 
the catholic religion wherever it had been aboliffied. 
In the year 1545, the popefummoned the Council of Trent 
to aflemble anew in the month of November; but before 
the time fixed for the meeting, Paul took a ftep which the 
Proteftants hoped would have produced a rupture between 
him and the emperor. Finding that he could not bring 
Charles to approve of his ambitious fchemes for the ag¬ 
grandizement of his family, he ventured to give his fon 
Peter Louis the inveftiture of Parma and Placentia, 
though at the rifle of incurring the difpleafure of the em- 
peror. This indecent grant of fuch a principality to a 
fon of whofe illegitimate birth he ought to have been 
aftamed, and whofe licentious morals all good men de- 
tefted, gave general offence, and the emperor perempto¬ 
rily refufed to confirm the deed of inveftiture, upon the 
pretext that Parma and Placentia were part of the 
Milanefe ftate: but at length, the emperor and the 
pope being now intent upon one common objeft in 
Germany, they mutually facrificed to it their emotions 
of jealoufy or refentment, that they might the more ef- 
feftually purfue what each deemed to be of greater im¬ 
portance. On the 13th of December, 1545, the General 
Council was opened at Trent with the accuftomed fo- 
lemnities, though no more than twenty-five bifhops had 
yet arrived, who were either Italians or Spaniards; nor 
were they more than forty in number, when, in oppofi¬ 
tion to a motion that their attention fiiould in the firft 
place be direfted to the reformation of abufes, it was 
agreed, that the forming a Confeffion of Faith, in which 
fhould be contained all the articles that the church re¬ 
quired its members to believe, ought to be the firft and 
principal bufinefs of the council; but that, at the fame 
time, due attention fhould be given to what was necef- 
fary towards the reformation of manners and difeipline. 
In the fourth feffion, having begun with examining the 
firft and chief point in controverfy between the Church 
of Rome and the Reformers, concerning the rule which 
fhould be held as fupreme and decifive in matters of faith, 
the council, by its infallible authority, determined, 
“ that the books to which the deiignation of Apocryphal 
has been given, are of equal authority with thofe which 
have been received by the Jews and primitive Chriftians 
into the facred canon ; that the traditions handed down 
from the apoftolic age, and preferved in the church, are 
entitled to as much regard as the doftrines and precepts 
which the infpired authors have committed to writing; 
that the Latin tranflation of the Scriptures, made or re- 
vifed by St. Jerome, and known by the name of the Vul¬ 
gate tranflation, fhould be read in churches, and ap¬ 
pealed to in the fchools as authentic and canonical.” 
Againft all who difclaimed the truth of thefe tenets, ana¬ 
themas were pronounced in the name and by the autho¬ 
rity of the Holy Ghoft. The decifion of thefe points, 
which undermined the main foundation of the Lutheran 
fyftem, was a plain warning to the Proteftants what judg¬ 
ment they might expeft, when the council fhould have 
leifure to take into confideration the particular and fubor- 
dinate articles of their creed. 
By the increafing apprehenfions of the Proteftants, 
Charles faw, that he would be foon obliged to declare 
openly 
