CHAP. IV.
Whilst Poggio was living in a kind of exile in England, the sovereign pontiff was in a manner banished from his capital. On his arrival in Italy, Martin V. found the states of the church in the hands of troops of banditti, who had taken advantage of the disorders of the times, to spread ruin and devastation through every quarter of the pontifical dominions. The passes, and places of strength, were so generally occupied by these adventurers, who were in the pay of a noted chieftain, named Braccio di Montone, that the pontiff did not dare to expose himself to their outrages, by attempting to establish himself in Rome. The inhabitants of Bologna also, espousing the cause of John XXII., had shut their gates against him. He was therefore reduced to the necessity of taking refuge in some friendly territory. In this extremity, the Florentines offered him an asylum, and Martin accordingly removed his court from Mantua to their city, into which he made his public entry with extraordinary pomp, on the twenty-sixth of February, 1419.[127]His residence in Florence did not, however, produce within his mind any friendly sentiments towards his hosts. The Florentines indeed, by theirbehaviour to their illustrious guest, greatly diminished the value of the favour which they had conferred upon him, in affording him a place of rest. At this period, they were elated with the self-confidence occasioned by a long series of almost uninterrupted prosperity. Filippo, who upon the death of his brother, Giovanni Maria, had succeeded to the ducal throne of Milan, disclaiming the hostile views of his predecessors, had lived in a state of friendship with his Tuscan neighbours, and did not even interpose to prevent them from reducing the district of Pisa under their dominion. In the year 1408 the repose of the Florentines had been disturbed by an invasion of their territories by Ladislaus, king of Naples, who had taken possession of a considerable portion of the ecclesiastical states; but with the assistance of Louis of Anjou, they had discomfited the usurper, and had expelled him from the dominions of the church. By his death, which happened in the year 1414, they had been freed from all fear of hostile incursions, and for the space of five years from that event, they had enjoyed the blessing of peace. During this period they had extended their commerce, and greatly encreased their opulence and power. In the insolence of their pride, they looked upon the wandering pontiff with contempt. Insensible to those delicate impulses which prompt man to regard the unfortunate with respect, they wantonly published the sentiments of their hearts; and Martin was irritated and disgusted by hearing his name made the subject of ridicule, and the burden of contumelious songs.[128]The Florentinepopulace were betrayed into these violations of decorum by their attachment to the interests of Braccio di Montone; and this undisguised partiality to his enemy exasperated the indignation of the pontiff. Yielding, however, to the pressure of circumstances, he was persuaded, by the solicitations of the Florentine government, to agree to terms of pacification with Braccio, whom he invested, in quality of Vicar of the church, with the government of the cities of Perugia, Assisi, Jesi, and Todi; in return for which condescension, the rebellious chieftain gave up to the pontiff the towns of Narni, Terni, Orvieto, and Orta.[129]Braccio being thus reconciled to the head of the church, and being encouraged by the promise of an ample recompense for his services, turned his arms against his late brethren in rebellion; and reduced the Bolognese to submission to the Roman see.[130]
During these transactions, Cosmo de’ Medici, who had been united by the strictest ties of friendship to Baldassare Cossa, the deposed pontiff, was very urgent in his petitions to Martin V. to liberate his unfortunate predecessor from confinement. Martin at length graciously assented to Cosmo’s request; and despatched the necessary orders to Heidleberg. But the impatience of Baldassare, who was weary of seclusion from the world, had already stimulated him to purchase his freedom from the CountPalatine, (to whose custody he had been assigned) at the price of thirty thousand pieces of gold. Having thus obtained his liberty, he crossed the Alps, and arrived safely in Italy. The well-known turbulence of his spirit led many to expect that he would reclaim the pontifical honours, and distract the Christian church by a renewal of the schism. But to the surprise of every body, he repaired with all convenient speed to Florence, where he arrived on the 13th of May, 1419, and there, kissing the feet of Martin, he acknowledged him as the only true and legitimate successor of St. Peter. The spectators of this extraordinary scene were melted into tears, and the compassion and generosity of the pontiff were excited by this unexpected act of submission. Deeply affected by the serious instance of the instability of human greatness, which was thus presented before his eyes, Martin received his humble predecessor with kindness; and endeavoured to alleviate his sense of the degradation which he had experienced, by creating him cardinal, and bishop of Toscolano. The haughty spirit of Baldassare did not long undergo the mortification of witnessing the pomp and splendour of which he had been so rudely deprived. He died at Florence, on the twenty-second day of December, and was interred with much pomp in the church of St. John. Cosmo de’ Medici erected to his honour a magnificent monument, on which he caused to be engraven the following simple inscription:BALTHASSARIS COSSÆ IOHANNIS XXII. QUONDAM PAPÆ CORPUS HOC TUMULO CONDITUM.[131]Platina asserts in hisLives of the Popes, that Baldassare, at the time of his death was possessed of immense treasures, which were inherited or seized by the family of the Medici; and in this assertion he has been copied by subsequent writers. But Muratori maintains, on the contrary, that it is clearly proved by his last will, that the deposed pontiff died poor rather than rich.[132]
The territories of the church being restored to peace by the active exertions of Braccio di Montone, and no obstacle remaining to prevent the pontiff from visiting his capital, he departed from Florence and proceeded to Rome, to which city he was welcomed by the enthusiastic joy of the populace, on the twenty-second of September, 1420.
The Pontifical household being once more regularly established in the capital of the church, Poggio, as it has been before observed, was induced, by the invitation of the cardinal of St. Eusebius, to accept the office of Secretary. The time of his arrival in Rome may be fixed sometime in the spring of 1423,[133]and it appears that his first care, after his re-establishment in the sacred chancery, was to renew with his friends the personal and epistolary communication, which his long absence from Italy had interrupted. The unfortunate quarrel of Leonardo Aretino and Niccolo Niccoli also engaged his early attention. Nothing is more painful to a man of an ingenuous mind, than the occurrence of dissension between those for whom he entertains an equal degree of friendly regard. Poggio, therefore, embraced the first opportunity which presented itself, of exerting his utmost endeavours to effect a reconciliationbetween the angry disputants. A long letter, which Leonardo had dispatched to him during his residence in London, with the view of giving him a full account of the cause of this disgraceful strife, had never reached him; but soon after his arrival at Rome, Leonardo supplied this deficiency by sending him a copy of this letter, which he had kept for the inspection of his other friends.[134]Poggio soon found, that in his endeavours to terminate this unhappy difference, he was likely to experience as serious obstacles in the wounded pride of Leonardo, as in the infatuated wrath of Niccolo.[135]In this difficult affair, therefore, he thought it advisable to avail himself of the assistance of the common friends of both parties. Ambrogio Traversari had already, indeed, interposed his good offices to bring about the desired reconciliation, but without effect.[136]Poggio however conceived great hopes, that the mediation of Francesco Barbaro, for whom Leonardo entertained a high degree of respect, would have considerable weight; and when that eminent scholar, being vested with the office of ambassador extraordinary of the Venetian Republic, paid a visit to Rome,[137]where he was met by Leonardo, he flattered himself that the reconciliation which he so ardently wished would be effected. Francesco was equally desirous with Poggio to discharge the duties of a peace-maker; but hefound Leonardo so determined upon requiring from his antagonist a very ample apology for his conduct, that he was almost induced to give up the cause in despair: and Leonardo, being perhaps apprehensive that at the time of his departure from Rome his friends would renew their efforts to shake his resolution, withdrew from the city in so sudden and secret a manner, that Poggio had not an opportunity of taking leave of him. For this conduct the latter gently reproved his friend in a letter, in which he stated to him his opinion, that in his affair with Niccolo, it was by no means advisable to use recrimination, or to demand an apology, and that nothing was requisite but a mutual oblivion of the past. “Remember,” says he, “that it is the characteristic of a great mind, to forget and not to revenge injuries, and that the duties of friendship are paramount to all other considerations. You seem to me to attach too much importance to trifles, which it will be more conducive to your glory to despise, than to make them the subjects of serious concern.”[138]In a second letter on the same subject he informed Leonardo, that he could not, without the utmost vexation, witness the interruption of a friendship which had been established on the best foundation of mutual esteem, and which had continued for so long a period; and that his concern was much increased, when he observed that their disagreement was detrimental to the good fame of both parties.[139]In this letter he grants, that Niccolo has his failings, but remindshis correspondent, that imperfection is the common lot of mortality, and that it is our duty, according to the instructions of the apostle, to bear one another’s burdens.[140]
The obstinacy of Leonardo for some time withstood the solicitations of his friends. But Francesco Barbaro, proceeding from Rome to Florence, laboured with such earnestness and prudence to allay the heat of his resentment, that he at length consented once more to enrol Niccolo in the number of his friends. The news of this event drew from Poggio a letter of thanks and congratulation to the mediator, and the following prudent and friendly admonition to Leonardo.
“I have just received intelligence of an event, the most delightful which could possibly have occurred at the present time; namely, the reconciliation which has taken place between you and Niccolo. This circumstance inspires me with the greatest pleasure, especially because it proves that you do not belie the promise of your former years; but that you support the consistency of your excellent character. It must now be your care to act with such prudence, that this reconciliation may be improved into a renewal of friendship. It is not enough that your hatred is at an end. Love and kind affection must succeed in the place of animosity. These are the indications of an upright, ingenuous, and virtuous mind.Reassume then I beseech you, that familiar and friendly intercourse with Niccolo, which I have for so long a space of time witnessed with so much pleasure. Carefully avoid every thing which may tend to impair your mutual good will; and act in such a manner that this reconciliation may appear to have been effected, not merely by the interposition of your friends, but by your own free will, and with your hearty concurrence. By your conduct you have obtained the greatest glory, and I trust you will find it the source of the most exquisite pleasure. I can assure you that this event has given the utmost satisfaction to all our friends at Rome—I sayourfriends; for I have the happiness of being connected by the bonds of friendship with all your associates in the pontifical court. The reputation which you have acquired by your conduct in this affair, you must support by perseverance and firmness of mind; for your late enmity would soon have injured the reputation both of yourself and of Niccolo. By your reconciliation however you have maintained your dignity, and conciliated the esteem of the virtuous and the learned. I have written a short letter to Niccolo, and am anxious to receive his answer; for I am surprised that neither you nor he should have given me the least intimation of this event; especially when you were both fully sensible how much I was interested in it.”[141]
In the thirty-ninth session of the council of Constanceit had been decreed, that for the suppression and prevention of heresy and schism, at the end of five years after the dissolution of the existing council, another should be summoned; a third at the expiration of seven years from the breaking up of the second; and that after these extraordinary meetings, general councils should be regularly held once in every ten years. At the expiration of the prescribed term, therefore, Martin V. according to the tenor of the first head of this decree, summoned the representatives of the different nations of Christendom to repair to Pavia. [A. D. 1423.] Nothing however having lately occurred, particularly to interest the Christian powers in the proceedings of the Roman hierarchy, the inconsiderable numbers of this assembly formed a striking contrast with the multitudes who had a few years before this time flocked on a similar occasion to the city of Constance. The plague having made its appearance in Pavia, the council was removed to Siena, where it began to be more numerously frequented. Alfonso, king of Arragon, took this opportunity of supporting, in opposition to Martin V., the pretensions of Piero da Luna, who still assumed the name of Benedict XIII. and maintained a sort of pontifical splendour in the fortress of Paniscola. Alfonso was prompted thus to trouble the peace of the church, by the resentment which he felt against Martin, in consequence of that pontiff’s refusing to acknowledge the legitimacy of his pretensions to the throne of Naples. On the death of Ladislaus, the crown of that distracted realm was inherited by his sister,Johanna II.,[142]who soon after her accession married Jacques, count of La Marche, a prince of the royal blood of France. The ambition of Jacques, who, not contented with administering the government in the name of his wife, wished to be acknowledged as sovereign paramount of the kingdom, occasioned serious disputes between him and Joanna, which terminated in his being obliged to quit the territories of Naples, and flee to France. Soon after his arrival in that country he renounced the pursuit of secular concerns, and assumed the habit of the Franciscan order. In this conjuncture, Louis III. of Anjou revived the claims of his house upon the throne of Naples, and marched into Italy, at the head of a considerable army, with the intention of prosecuting his rights by the sword.[143]Seeing the necessity of opposingagainst this invader an adversary of distinguished abilities, Joanna adopted as her son, Alfonso, king of Arragon, a prince of great courage and military skill, by whose active exertions, Louis of Anjou was soon driven from the Neapolitan territories. The adopted son of Joanna being unfortunately influenced by the views of her late husband, and wishing to rule by his own sole authority, that princess was justly disgusted by his ingratitude, and in the year 1423, she annulled the act of his adoption, substituting in his place his rival, the duke of Anjou. This circumstance gave rise to an obstinate war between the two parties, in the commencement of which Martin entered into an alliance with Louis, and by bestowing on him the investiture of the kingdom of Naples, supported his claims, in opposition to those of Alfonso. Prompted by the spirit of revenge, the Arragonese monarch exerted all his influence to raise a party against Martin in the council of Siena. Thepontiff, alarmed by the intrigues of Alfonso, hastily dissolved that assembly early in the year 1424, summoning another to meet at the end of seven years, in the city of Basil.[144]
But the dissolution of the council did not shelter Martin from the consequences of Alfonso’s indignation. Braccio di Montone, taking advantage of the embarrassments of the pontiff, again invaded the states of the church; and after making himself master of several towns in the ecclesiastical district, laid siege to Aquila. Alarmed by the loss of these places, and apprehensive, that should Braccio make himself master of Aquila, he would in fact keep Rome itself in a state of blockade, the pontiff applied for succour to Joanna of Naples, and by the assistance of that princess raised a considerable body of forces, which he sent to stop the career of the invader. In this expedition the army of the church was signally successful. Braccio quitting a most advantageous position, advanced to give battle to the pontifical troops in the open field, on the second day of June, 1424. The encounter of his cavalry was fierce and impetuous; but in consequence of his rashness, his army was defeated, and Braccio himself, being mortally wounded, was carried prisoner into Aquila, where he died in the course of a few hours after his arrival. His body was conveyed to Rome, and buried without the walls in unconsecrated ground. By the death of Braccio, the pontiffrecovered Perugia, Assisi, and the other cities, which the successful rebellion of that chieftain had compelled him to yield to his dominion. The states of the church were now restored to tranquillity. The roads were cleared of the banditti by which they had been so long infested—the traveller journeyed without molestation or fear—the laws were respected, and peace and order succeeded to anarchy and rapine.[145]The quiet of the church was also further secured by the death of Benedict XIII., who in the beginning of this year closed his earthly career at Paniscola, at the advanced age of ninety.[146]In the summer of this year, the Pontiff having retired to Tivoli to avoid the plague, which was raging in Rome, Poggio went to Rieti, where he remained two months, entirely occupied with literary pursuits. This appears from a letter addressed by him to Niccolo Niccoli after his return to Rome, in which he laments the loss of a brother on whom he had depended as the support of his family, and especially of his mother, who was then labouring under the evils of old age and sickness.[147]
About this time Martin had an opportunity of gratifying the animosity which he entertained against the Florentines, by secretly fomenting certain disputes which had taken place between the administrators of their republic andthe duke of Milan. Encouraged by the connivance of the pontiff, that prince declared war against the Tuscan state, the territories of which he menaced with a considerable army. In the course of this contest, which was singularly obstinate and bloody, the pontiff had the satisfaction of retaining in his own hands the balance of power; and of beholding the supercilious Tuscans, humbled by disasters and defeats, suing to him for assistance, and entreating his mediation for the restoration of peace. Martin, though he professed the strictest impartiality between the hostile parties, not only refused to assist the Florentines, but still continued secretly to stimulate the ambition of their adversary. Being thus disappointed in their application to the pontiff, the Florentines had recourse to the Venetians, whose dread of the growing power of the duke of Milan induced them readily to enter into an alliance with his antagonists. Animated by this accession of strength, the Florentines prosecuted the war with renewed vigour, and with such success, that the duke was glad to accept of the mediation opportunely proffered by his friend the pontiff, under whose auspices a peace was concluded at Ferrara in the year 1428.[148]
When the pontiff had declared his readiness to interpose his good offices between the contending powers, for the restoration of peace, the Florentines sent Leonardo Aretino to the Roman court, invested with the dignity of embassador of the Tuscan republic.[149]In the nomination of their representative, they gratified the wishes of Martin V. who had long entertained a great respect for Leonardo, and had in vain attempted, by the offer of considerable preferment, to induce him to enter into his service.[150]So highly did Leonardo’s constituents approve of his conduct in his diplomatic capacity, that immediately after his return to Florence, in the latter end of the year 1427, they appointed him to fill the honourable and lucrative office of Secretary or Vice-chancellor of the Florentine state. If credit may be given to his own assertion in a letter to Feltrino Boiardo, he accepted this dignity with reluctance, and lamented the imperious necessity, which compelled him, from a sense of duty, to relinquish the pleasures of literaryretirement, for the cares incident to a public station.[151]His reluctance is, however, otherwise accounted for in an epistle which Poggio wrote to him on this occasion, and from which it appears, that when the office in question was first offered to his acceptance, it was proposed that the marks of dignity usually attached to it should be withdrawn; but that on his refusal to accept it on those conditions, the administrators of the government agreed to confer upon him the full honours which had been received by preceding Vice-chancellors, to which terms he acceded. When Poggio was informed that his friend was established in his new office, he congratulated him by letter on this accession to his civic honours, which, however, he observed, was, like matrimony, likely to be attended with considerable difficulty, trouble, and uneasiness.[152]
The satisfaction which Martin V. experienced in witnessing the peaceful and happy condition of that portion of Christendom, the civil interests of which were intrusted to his immediate care, was not a little lessened by the contumacy and rebellion of the Bohemian reformers. These high-spirited men had been fired with indignation, when they were informed of the sad catastrophe of their beloved apostles, John Huss, and Jerome of Prague. The censuresof the church, which were fulminated against their opinions, they treated with contempt. Taking advantage of the weakness of Winceslaus, their king, they possessed themselves of several churches in Prague and its environs, where they caused the communion to be administered in both kinds, and openly defied the pope, the emperor, and the council of Constance. Upon the death of Winceslaus, their confidence in their strength, and the ardour of their zeal, impelled them to risk a contest with the power of Sigismund, his successor. Led on by the intrepid Zisca, they encountered danger without fear; and in the shock of battle, their impetuosity was irresistible. For the space of four years, the military talents of their favourite commander discomfited the armies of the emperor, who was at length reduced to the mortifying necessity of entering into a treaty with a man, whom he could regard in no other light than as an obstinate infidel, and a rebellious subject. This treaty was interrupted by the death of Zisca, who was cut off by the plague, on the sixth of October, 1424, at the castle of Priscow. After the death of this formidable antagonist, Sigismund, in hopes that the courage of the Bohemians would expire with their chieftain, again appealed to arms. But he was disappointed in his expectation. Great occasions produce great men. The heretics chose as the successor to Zisca, Procopius, an officer whose valour and skill they had frequently seen put to the proof. Procopius maintained the contest with courage, conduct, and success, and worsted the imperial forces in various engagements. The intelligence of these continued disasters filled the mind of the pontiff with vexation. Resolvingto aid the emperor with the temporal and spiritual power of the church, he proclaimed a crusade against the heretics, and sent a commission to cardinal Beaufort, authorizing him, in quality of legate, to wield the sword of the church, and chastise her rebellious sons. This commission was by no means disagreeable to the turbulent spirit of Beaufort. In pursuance of the instructions which he received from the pontiff, he appropriated to the purposes of the crusade, a tenth part of the revenues which accrued from England to the Roman see.[153]With thismoney he raised an army of four thousand men, at the head of which he encamped in the neighbourhood of Dover, waiting for a favourable wind to pass over to Flanders. [A. D. 1429.] Here he received letters from the duke of Gloucester, regent of the kingdom, requesting him to transport his troops into France, and march to the assistance of the duke of Bedford, who was at that time hard pressed by the Dauphin. In compliance with the regent’s request, Beaufort repaired with his army to Paris, whence he soon afterwards proceeded to Bohemia. The terrors of the crusade, thus aided by the power of the cardinal legate, did not dismay the heretics, who rushed to the combat with unabated fury, and routed the army of the church. The pontiff, sensibly mortified by this disaster, and attributing the ill success of his arms to the imprudence of Beaufort, recalled that haughty prelate, substituting in his place Bartolomeo da Piacenza. The new legate was not more fortunate than his predecessor. The orthodox army still continued to experience a series of defeats. Hoping that a change of his representative might effect a change in the fortune of his arms, Martin superseded Bartolomeo daPiacenza, and committed the direction of the war to Giuliano Cæsarino, Cardinal of St. Angelo.[154]
This was one of the last acts of the pontificate of Martin V., who died on the 20th of February, 1431. Though this pontiff was unable to accomplish the extinction of heresy, he had the good fortune to witness the termination of the famous schism of the West. Benedict XII. dying at Paniscola in the year 1424, two cardinals who had adhered to him in the midst of his misfortunes, at the instance of Alfonso of Arragon elected as his successor the Canonico Egidio of Barcelona, who, accepting the empty title bestowed upon him by this diminutive conclave, assumed the appellation of Clement VII. But soon after this transaction, Martin, having composed his differences with Alfonso, sent a legate into Spain, who easily persuaded Egidio, in consideration of the gift of the bishopric of Majorca, to abdicate the vain honours which rendered him ridiculous, and to renounce all claim to the pontifical dignity. In order to prevent the cardinals who had placed the tiara on the head of Egidio from again disturbing the peace of the church by proceeding to a new election, the Italian legate caused them to be arrested and thrown into prison.[155]
Thus were the latter days of Martin V. passed ina state of tranquillity, which was disturbed only by the rumours of the distant war in Bohemia, and by a transitory revolt of the citizens of Bologna, who, after a feeble attempt to vindicate their freedom, were soon reduced to their wonted subjection. The fear of the plague, indeed, which at this period occasionally manifested itself at Rome, compelled the Pontiff to fly for safety to the neighbouring villages. When on these hasty removals his master required his attendance, Poggio devoted himself to a careful examination of the remains of antiquity, which were to be found in the places where the Papal court from time to time fixed its temporary residence. But whenever he was enabled to return to Rome, he took advantage of this period of domestic quiet to prosecute his studies.[156]He was now deeply engaged in the composition and correction of various works, and among the rest, of his dialogue on Avarice, which he submitted to the inspection of Niccolo Niccoli and others of his literary friends, in the year 1429. In the prefatory address to Francesco Barbaro, which is prefixed to this dialogue, he intimates, that he had not yet made a sufficient progress in the Greek language to be able to present to the public what was at that time held in the highest estimation—a version of any of the Græcian classics; but at the same time expresses his hopes, that this his first essay may be deemed not altogether destitute of merit. It should seem, however, that when he had given the last polish to his work, he was induced for a while to suppress it. Martin V. was impeached of the vice of avarice; and hissecretary, whilst he did ample justice to the kind feelings of his master, was doubtful how far it would be prudent, by the publication of his dialogue, to run the risk of the imputation of making his sole failing the object of satirical comment.[157]Besides this, Niccolo Niccoli, in perusing the work in question, without reserve declared his opinion that it was by no means worthy of the known talents of the author.[158]Encouraged however by the flattering encomiums of Francesco Barbaro, and others of his literary friends, to whom he had communicated his manuscript, and emboldened by the consciousness which he felt, that when compared with the productions of the times, his dialogue was possessed of considerable merit, he yielded to the suggestions of scholastic ambition; and immediately after the death of Martin V. by its publication proclaimed himself a candidate for the laurel of literary fame.[159]
In the introduction to the dialogue on Avarice, Poggio intimates that Antonio Lusco, Cincio, and others of the pope’s secretaries, paying a visit to Bartolomeo di Montepulciano, the conversation after supper turned upon the character of Bernardino,[160]a famous preacher who wasat that time exercising his talents at Rome. After a very favourable testimony to this preacher’s merits on the part of Lusco, Cincio observes, “In one respect both Bernardino and other preachers of the same description seem to me to fall into an error. They do not preach with a view of doing good, but for the purpose of displaying their eloquence. They are not so anxious to cure the mental diseases which they profess to heal, as to obtain the favour and applause of the mob. They learn a few phrases by heart, and utter them indiscriminately before audiences of every description. Treating of recondite and obscure matters, they soar beyond the comprehension of the vulgar, and tickle the ears of women and fools, whom they dismiss as ignorant as they found them. Some vices they reprove in such a manner that they seem rather to teach, than to correct them, and in their thirst for gain, they forget the promotion of the cause of religion.”
After various other observations have been made on the defects of the preachers of that time, Bartolomeo remarks, that though luxury and avarice are the most copious sources of vice, these failings are rarely reprehended from the pulpit; or if at any time they happen to become the subject of clerical animadversion, they are treated in a dry, jejune and ludicrous manner, without dignity of thought or energy of expression. He therefore proposes that the company then assembled should, in a friendly conversation, enter into a discussion of the nature of these vices. To this proposal Lusco assents, expressing, however, his opinion, that it will be advisable for them to confine themselves to the subject of Avarice. While they are arranging the order in which they are to deliver their sentiments, they are joined by Andrew of Constantinople, a man of great erudition, and the most respectable character. After the interchange of the customary salutations, the new guest is informed of the proposed subject of discourse, and Bartolomeo proceeds to utter an eloquent invective against Avarice. This oration being ended, Lusco replies in extenuation of that vice, and in the course of his harangue reprobates the opposite error of luxury and extravagance. Lusco’s speech displays considerable ingenuity. The most striking passages which it contains are levelled against the professors of the civil law, and against the mendicant friars, both which descriptions of men are treated with great severity. Alluding to the latter, Lusco says, “Look through the whole city—the market—the streets—the churches—and if you can find any body who professes that he wishes for no more than a baresufficiency, depend upon it you have found a prodigious rarity. Do not cite as instances in contradiction to my assertion, those slovenly hypocritical vagabonds, who, under the pretext of religion, get their living without labour, and make their pretended poverty and contempt of worldly things a most copious source of gain. A well constituted state will not encourage these lazy rogues, but it will prefer those citizens who are willing to work for the benefit of the human race.”[161]
Andrew of Constantinople, in quality of moderator, replies to Lusco, and points out the distinction which the latter had artfully confounded, between a desire of the good things of life, and Avarice. This desire, says he, if moderate, is virtuous; if immoderate, it degenerates into covetousness, and becomes a vice. He then proceeds to answer the arguments of Lusco in regular order. In the course of his harangue he takes occasion to stigmatize the avaricious disposition of sovereign princes, and of the clergy; and in conclusion he supports his opinion by various quotations from the fathers and the ancient classic authors. The remarks of Andrew meeting the approbation of his auditors, the conference is closed.[162]
In the sentiments of disapprobation with which the good taste of Poggio led him to regard the harangues of the popular preachers of his time, he is supported by the weighty suffrage of Tiraboschi. “Some of the sacred orators of the fifteenth century,” says that judicious critic, “are mentioned with praise, not merely by vulgar and unpolished, but also by the most cultivated writers.—On the other hand, we have an opportunity of inspecting the discourses of these famed orators; and generally speaking, we cannot see in them the shadow of that eloquence for which they are so highly commended. Let any one read the sermons of S. Bernardino da Siena, Fra Roberto da Lecce, B. Alberto da Sarteano, Fra Michele da Carcano, and of many others, who, as the writers of that age inform us, attracted whole cities and provinces to hear them: and then judge whether they deserve the character of eloquent orations. They are generally nothing more than dry treatises on scholastic points, or on matters of theological morality, full of quotations of sacred and profane authors, where we see coupled together St. Augustine and Virgil, Chrysostom and Juvenal. The force of their eloquence consists in some exclamations, to which is sometimes joined a description of the vices of the times, which would now excitethe most immoderate laughter, but which then caused the audience to melt into tears.”[163]
The friars whom Poggio satirizes with such severity in his dialogue on Avarice, were a branch of the order of Franciscans, who, on account of the extraordinary strictness with which they professed to exercise their conventual discipline, were distinguished by the title ofFratres Observantiæ. The founder of this new subdivision of the ecclesiastical order was the above-mentioned Bernardino, of Siena, who appears by the testimony of Poggio to have been a man of great virtue and of considerable talents. Several of his disciples, however, who were not endued either with his good principles or his abilities, emulous of the reputation which he had acquired by preaching, began also to harangue the people from the pulpit.
Of these self-constituted instructors Poggio has drawn the following striking picture. “Inflated by the pretended inspiration of the Holy Spirit, they expound the sacred scriptures to the populace with such gross ignorance, that nothing can exceed their folly. I have often gone to hear them for the sake of amusement; for they were in the habit of saying things, which would move to laughterthe gravest and most phlegmatic man on the face of the earth. You might see them throwing themselves about as if they were ready to leap out of the pulpit; now raising their voices to the highest pitch of fury—now sinking into a conciliatory whisper—sometimes they beat the desk with their hands—sometimes they laughed, and in the course of their babbling they assumed as many forms as Proteus. Indeed they are more like monkeys than preachers, and have no qualification for their profession, except an unwearied pair of lungs.”[164]
Though the impudence of these men, which was equal to their folly, disgusted people of good sense, they had numerous partizans and admirers among the populace. Elated by their success, they arrogated to themselves considerable consequence. Some of them, in the pride of their hearts, scorned to hold inferior stations in the convents in which they were established, and solicited the erection of new monasteries, of which their ambition prompted themto expect to become the superiors. Scandalized by these irregularities, the assertors of discipline summoned an assembly of the brothers of the Franciscan order from every province of Italy, for the purpose of remedying these evils, which were likely to bring disgrace upon their fraternity. This assembly, which consisted of eighty members, decreed, that a general chapter of their order should be held on the ensuing feast of Pentecost—that in the interim, six only of the friars should be allowed to preach—and that no new convent should be erected for the accommodation of the Franciscans, till the pleasure of the above-mentioned general chapter should be known. The task of drawing up these decrees was assigned to Poggio—a task which it may be presumed he undertook with pleasure, and executed with fidelity. The mortified preachers and their partizans, imagining that Poggio was not only the registrer, but the author of these unwelcome restrictions, inveighed against his conduct with great bitterness. Soon after the publication of the above-mentioned decree, Carlo Ricascolo, a devout citizen of Florence, presented to theFratres Observantiæa small estate pleasantly situated in the neighbourhood of Arezzo. On this estate the friars immediately began, in defiance of the prohibition so lately issued by the heads of their order, to lay the foundation of a new monastery. Poggio thought it his duty to represent this act of contumacy to the pontiff, who immediately issued orders to the bishop of Fiesole to put a stop to the prosecution of the building. This circumstance still farther excited against Poggio the animosity of the indignant ecclesiastics, who industriously vilified his character, representinghim as an enemy of the Christian faith, and a malignant persecutor of the true believers. Niccolo Niccoli, with his usual impetuosity, gave credit to these accusations, and wrote to Poggio a letter of remonstrance. To this letter Poggio replied, first simply stating the facts of the case, and then protesting that he was no enemy either to religion or its professors—“on the contrary,” says he, “I make a point of behaving with the utmost reverence to those ecclesiastics who adorn their religion with virtuous conduct. But,” proceeded he, “I have been so often deceived, so frequently disappointed in the good opinion which I had conceived of men, that I know not whom or what to believe. There are so many wicked people, who conceal their vices by the sanctity of their looks, and the humility of their apparel, that confidence is in a manner destroyed. In the pontifical court we have too many opportunities of becoming acquainted with iniquitous transactions, of which people in general are ignorant. I am not however surprised,” says he in the conclusion of his letter, “that these friars should complain of their being prevented from establishing themselves in such a pleasant district. The excellence of our wine is a powerful allurement, both to strangers and to our own countrymen. Plato, who was no Christian, chose for the scite of his academy an unhealthy spot, in order that the mind might gain strength by the infirmity of the body. But these pretended followers of Christ act upon a different system. They select pleasant and voluptuous places—they seek not solitude, but society—they do not wish to promote the cultivation of the mind, but the pampering of the corporeal appetites.”
These sarcasms were communicated by Niccolo to Alberto da Sarteano,[165]a brother of the Franciscan order, who was so much displeased by them, that he expostulated with Poggio on the alleged impropriety of his conduct, in a long letter, to which the latter replied in a grave strain of irony, defending and confirming the remarks which had been so copious a subject of animadversion. Towards the conclusion of his letter, he bestowed upon his correspondent the following seasonable advice. “Do you apply yourself to your preaching, and attend to your peculiar province. Leave the building of religious houses to others, and be assured, that wheresoever you are, there you may acceptably serve and worship God.”
This letter to Alberto, Poggio enclosed in another,which he addressed to Ambrogio Traversari. To the learned monk of Camaldoli he could venture to write, even upon this delicate subject, with all the freedom of jocularity. “I cannot help thinking,” says he, “that the benevolence of many persons is too great, who prefer the public good to their private interest; and who, through their anxiety for the salvation of others, lose their own souls. I could wish that these men would retire to woods and deserts, where they might attain to the perfection of holy living, rather than settle in such pleasant places, in which they run such risk of falling into temptation. Your favourite St. Jerome says, that it is better and safer to be in a situation where it is impossible to err, than even to escape from imminent danger. I am afraid some people have too much confidence in their own fortitude. But I have done.—Let every one bear his own burden.—Farewell, and pray that your friend Poggio may amend his ways.”[166]
The lenient influence of time did not abate the dislike and contempt which Poggio entertained for those ecclesiastics who adopted the religious habit as a convenient cloak for the concealment of indolence or luxury; and who, by the mere appearance of extraordinary sanctity, endeavoured to attain those worldly honours which they affected to despise. When he was declined into the vale of years, he attacked those pests of society in a dialogue on Hypocrisy,a composition which abounds in the keen sarcasms of polished wit, and in acute observations on the human character. It is no doubt on account of the boldness with which he inveighs against the evil practices of pretenders to uncommon strictness in the observance of religious duties, that the editors of his works have suppressed this dialogue, which has been preserved and circulated by the industrious zeal of protestantism.[167]The freedom with which he therein speaks of the vices, not merely of individuals, but of whole classes of religious hypocrites, is truly astonishing. The following remonstrance against the folly and wickedness of the monastic life savours more of the eighteenth, than of the fifteenth century, and is drawn up in the spirit of a Gallicœconomiste, rather than in the style of a secretary to the sovereign pontiff. “I do not wish to scrutinize into the secret life of these cœnobites, which is known only to God. I will not inquire whether they are sober or otherwise; whether they are chaste or unchaste; whether they employ their time in study, or waste it in idleness; whether they are the prey of envy; and whether they are continually hunting after preferment. It is not sufficient that they keep within doors,oppressed with a load of garments, and do no public and open mischief. Let me ask, of what utility are they to the faith, and what advantage do they confer on the public? I cannot find that they do any thing but sing like grasshoppers, and I cannot help thinking they are too liberally paid for the mere exercise of their lungs. But they extol their labours as a kind of Herculean task, because they rise in the night to chant the praises of God. This is no doubt an extraordinary proof of merit, that they sit up to exercise themselves in psalmody. What would they say if they rose to go to the plough, like farmers, exposed to the wind and rain, with bare feet, and with their bodies thinly clad? In such a case no doubt the Deity could not possibly requite them for their toil and sufferings. But it may be said, there are many worthy men amongst them. I acknowledge it. It would be a lamentable thing indeed, should there be no good men in so vast a multitude. But the majority of them are idle, hypocritical, and destitute of virtue. How many do you think enter upon the religious life through a desire to amend their morals? You can recount very few who do not assume the habit on account of some extraneous cause. They dedicate, not their minds, but their bodies to devotional exercises. Many adopt the monastic garb on account of the imbecility of their spirits, which prevents them from exerting themselves to gain an honest livelihood. Some, when they have spent their property in extravagance, enter into religious houses, because they think that they shall there find a rich pasture; others are induced to hide in these abodes theinfamy which they have contracted by their ignorance, and by their dissolute and abandoned course of life.”
In the same dialogue Poggio recounts several instances of artful priests abusing the confidence of auricular confession, for the indulgence of their licentious appetites. He also mentions, with due reprobation, a set of fanatical profligates, who propagating and acting upon the doctrine, that those who were in a state of grace were made perfect, and could not possibly commit sin, had lately debauched a considerable number of women in the city of Venice.
In modern times, enthusiasts have the audacity, whilst they make a public acknowledgment of gross violations of the duties of morality, to proclaim their confidence, that their sins are forgiven, and to declare their firm persuasion, that whatever may be the complexion of their future conduct, they cannot forfeit the favour of the Almighty. Though it would be unjust to charge these men with an imitation of the actions of the sanctimonious Venetians, whose vile deeds are recorded by Poggio, certain it is, that their principles, if carried into practice, would grant a license even to these flagrant acts of wickedness. Thus, in the wide circle of immorality, there is a point, where the extreme of enthusiasm and the extreme of libertinism meet together. When reason is shaken from her throne, the passions make even Religion herself the promoter and the instrument of vice.