Chapter 31

[143]Whilst Louis II., on whose claim that of Louis III. was founded, was on his march from Provence to the Neapolitan frontier, he was visited in his camp by Rodolfo of Camerino, to whom he made an ostentatious display of a valuable assortment of jewels, which he destined as ornaments of the regal state, which he flattered himself he should shortly attain. Rodolfo, unmoved by the brilliant spectacle, asked him what was the value and use of this collection. Louis answered, that it was very valuable, but of no utility. “I can show you at my house,” replied Rodolfo, “a pair of stones which cost only ten florins, and annually produce me a revenue of two hundred.” The duke was astonished at this assertion; but Rodolfo soon solved the riddle, by shewing him a mill which he had lately erected, intimating at the same time, that a wise man will always prefer utility to finery.—Poggii Opera, p. 440.Rodolfo was indeed a man of very phlegmatic humour, as appears by the advice which he gave to one of his fellow-citizens, who informed him of his intention of travelling with a view of seeing the curiosities of different countries. “Go,” said he, “to the neighbouring town of Macerata, and there you will see hills, valleys, and plains, wood and water, lands cultivated and uncultivated. This is the world in miniature; for travel as far as you please, and you will see nothing else.”—Poggii Opera, p. 441.[144]Platina, p. 399.—Tiraboschi storia della Letteratura Ital. tom. vi. p. 8.[145]Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 114, 119, 120, 121.[146]Ibid, p. 116.[147]Poggii Epist. a Tonel. lib. i. ep. 17.[148]Poggii Hist. Florent. p. 253.In his Facetiæ, Poggio relates the following instance, which occurred during the course of this contest, of the freedom of speech in which Filippo Maria permitted one of his domestics to indulge himself.“The old duke of Milan, a prince in all respects of singular good taste, had an excellent cook, whom he had sent to France to learn the art of dressing nice dishes. In the great war which he carried on against the Florentines, he one day received some bad news, which gave him a good deal of uneasiness. Soon after the arrival of this intelligence he sat down to dinner. The dishes not at all pleasing him, he sent for his cook, and reproved him severely for his unskilfulness. The cook, who was accustomed to take great liberties with his master, replied, I can assure your highness that the dishes are excellently dressed—And if the Florentines have taken away your appetite, how am I to blame?”—Poggii Opera, p. 425.This anecdote proves that Filippo inherited from his father a fondness of good living, and also intimates, that even at this early period, our Gallic neighbours were noted for their skill in cookery.[149]Mehi Vita Leonardi Aretini, p. xliv.[150]Ibid.[151]Mehi Vita Leonardi Aretini, p. xliv.[152]“Volui satisfacere amori in te meo, et tecum congratulari, quemadmodum solemus ei, qui uxorem duxit, cum onus subeat grave, difficile et molestum.”—Poggii Epistolæ lvii. p. 167.[153]It should seem that Humphrey, duke of Gloucester, who at this time governed the kingdom of England in quality of Protector, regarded this commission of the cardinal’s with a jealous eye. With a view of preventing the mischiefs which might ensue upon the exercise of foreign authority in the English dominions, he summoned Beaufort into his presence; and by a formal and express act, which set forth, that the legates of the pope had never been permitted to enter into England, except by summons, invitation, or permission of the king, which summons, invitation, or permission, Beaufort had not received, protested against his exercising the authority of legate in the king’s dominions in any form or manner whatever. To this protest Beaufort put in a formal answer, that it was not his intention in any thing to derogate from, or contravene the rights, privileges, liberties, or customs of the king or kingdom. This protest was made November 11th, 1428. It is printed in the appendix to Brown’sFasciculus Rerum expetendarum et Fugiendarum,p. 618, from an ancient register, formerly in the possession of archbishop Sancroft.For the purpose of raising money to defray the expense of the crusade, boxes emblazoned with the sign of the cross were fixed in the churches, in which the friends of the true faith were exhorted to deposit their contributions. To give additional stimulus to the zeal of the pious, the pontiff issued a bull, whereby he granted an indulgence of one hundred days to those who should attend the preaching of the crusade—a full pardon of all their sins, and an assurance of eternal happiness, to those who took the cross and served against the heretics at their own expense. The same premium was offered to those, who fully intending to perform this meritorious service, should happen to die before they joined the army; and to those who should send a soldier or soldiers to fight, at their expense, for the propagation of the true faith. This latter provision was particularly addressed to the women, who were graciously informed by the cardinal, that those females, who, being prevented by their poverty from maintaining each a warrior at their own expense, should enter into joint subscriptions for the purpose, should be entitled to considerable privileges; and so grateful was his holiness even for the gift of good wishes, that he granted six days’ indulgence to those who fasted and prayed in order to promote the success of the expedition.—Appendix to Brown’s Fasciculus, p. 621, 625, 630.[154]Hollinshead’s Chronicle, vol. ii. p. 602.—Stowe’s Annals, p. 371.—Platina, p. 400.[155]Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 136.—Platina, p. 401.[156]Ton. Tr. vol. i. p. 155.[157]Poggii Epistolæ lvii. p. 173.[158]Tonelli Poggii Epist. tom. i. lib. iii. ep. xxxv.[159]Poggii Epist. lvii. p. 178. Ambrogii Traversarii Opera, tom. ii. p. 978.[160]This Bernardino had for some time preached with uncommon applause to crowded audiences in the churches of Florence. The talents of a popular orator generally procure their possessor as many enemies as friends. Several ecclesiastics, who were envious of the reputation of Bernardino, took advantage of a daring flight of rhetoric, into which he was betrayed by the enthusiasm of his zeal, to endeavour to accomplish his ruin. In order to enforce his eloquence, in describing some impressive scene, (probably the sufferings of Christ) he exhibited to the people a picture, in which the transaction to which he alluded was delineated. Of this exhibition his detractors complained to the pope, as a kind of profanation of the rites of the church; and Bernardino was obliged to repair to Rome to vindicate his cause. Though the pontifical court was inflamed with prejudice against him by the artifices of his accusers, so captivating was his eloquence, that when he was permitted to preach in Rome, the ecclesiastics of the highest eminence, as well as the populace, being attracted by his fame to hear his discourses, listened to him with enthusiastic admiration. Martin V. commanded him to abstain for the future from the exhibition of pictures; he readily complied with this injunction, and by his prompt obedience obtained the favour of the pontiff, who during the remainder of his life treated him with distinguished kindness.—Ambrosii Traversarii Epist. lib. ii. ep. xl. xli.[161]Poggii Opera, p. 13.[162]In the original sketch of this dialogue, Poggio had attributed the first part of the attack on Avarice to Cincio, one of the apostolic secretaries; but on the admonition of Lusco, that as Cincio had the reputation of being a covetous man, an invective against that vice would be out of character, if represented as proceeding from him, he substituted in his place Bartolomeo di Montepulciano. The defence of Avarice he assigned to Lusco, because Lusco being generous even to extravagance, there was no reason to fear, lest the imputed patronage of so selfish a passion, should be supposed to convey an implied impeachment of his character.—Ambrosii Traversarii Opera, tom. ii. lib. xxv. epist. xliii.[163]Tiraboschi Storia della Letteratura Italiana, tom. vi. part 2d. p. 363.Poggio has recorded a notable story of one of these indiscreet orators, who in the fervour of a declamation against the vice of adultery, declared, that he had such a detestation of that offence, that he had much rather commit the sin of unchastity with ten virgins than with one married woman.—Poggii Opera, p. 433.[164]Appendix ad Fasciculum Rer. Expet. et Fug. p. 578.Poggio has commemorated in hisFacetiæa mortifying explanation which one of these noisy orators provoked by his overweening vanity. “A monk,” says he, “preaching to the populace, made a most enormous and uncouth noise, by which a good woman, one of his auditors, was so much affected, that she burst into a flood of tears. The preacher, attributing her grief to remorse of conscience, excited within her by his eloquence, sent for her, and asked her why she was so piteously affected by his discourse. Holy father, answered the mourner, I am a poor widow, and was accustomed to maintain myself by the labour of an ass, which was left me by my late husband. But alas! my poor beast is dead, and your preaching brought his braying so strongly to my recollection, that I could not restrain my grief.”—Poggii Opera, p. 497.[165]Alberto derived the designation of Da Sarteano from a small town in Tuscany, where he was born, A. D. 1385. At an early age he enrolled himself in the number of the conventuals, and afterwards joined the stricter order of theFratres Observantiæ. In the year 1424 he went to Verona, where he studied the Greek language under the instruction of Guarino Veronese. In the following year he paid a visit to Francesco Barbaro, who was then governor of Trivigi. Here he met with the famous preacher Bernardino, at whose instance he undertook the popular employment of an itinerant preacher. In this capacity he not only traversed a great part of Italy, but crossing the sea, he went to preach the true gospel amongst the schismatics and infidels of Greece, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Armenia. It was in consequence of his representations that the patriarch of the last-mentioned province attended the council of Basil, when in the name of his countrymen he submitted to the decisions of the Latin church. Alberto closed a life of religious labours in the year 1450, at Milan, where he was interred in the church of St. Angelo. A collection of his works, consisting principally of sermons and theological tracts, was published at Rome, A. D. 1688.—Tiraboschi Storia della Letter. Ital. tom. vi. p. 214, 215, 216.[166]Ambrosii Traversarii Epist. p. 978, 979, 1019, 1125.Poggii Opera. p. 317, 318, 319.[167]It is printed in the Appendix to theFasciculus Rerum Expetendarum et Fugiendarum; a collection of fugitive tracts, intended to display the errors of the church of Rome.This collection, which was first published at Cologne, A. D. 1535, by Orthuinus Gratius, of Deventer, was republished, with considerable additions, by Edward Brown, at London, A. D. 1689, at which period the avowed predilection of James II. for the Roman Catholic doctrines had given alarm to the zealous Protestants of England.[168]Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 142.—Platina, p. 402.[169]Poggii Epistolæ lvii. ep. xxiii.[170]Platina, p. 402, 403.—Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 143.—Poggii Historia de varietate Fortunæ, p. 100.[171]Poggii Histor. Flor. lib. vi.[172]Te fama est peragrare Germaniam ad apparatum belli contra Boemos. Id quidem laudo; sed considera diligenter, non quantum animi sit tibi ad pugnam, sed quantum virium armorum, ne magis animatus quam armatus in aciem accedas; et barbatum nostrum cave, ne auribus lupum teneas.—Poggii Epistolæ lvii. ep. xxiii.This letter is dated May 11th, 1431.[173]L’Enfant Histoire de la guerre des Hussites, tom. i. p. 315.[174]Some writers assert, that the number of the pontifical troops amounted to ninety, others to one hundred and thirty thousand men. But the numbers of forces are almost always exaggerated.—L’Enfant Histoire de la guerre des Hussites, tom. i. p. 317.[175]Voltaire Annales de l’Empire.We may judge of the precipitancy of the flight of the pontifical army, from the circumstance of the cardinal’s losing, with the rest of his baggage, the papal bull which authorised the crusade, his red hat, and the rest of his dress of ceremony, his cross and crochet.—L’Enfant ut supra.[176]Et cum ex fugâ exercitûs omnes populi Alemaniæ supra modum essent exterriti et consternati, videns nullum aliud superesse remedium, animabam et confortabam omnes, ut manerent constantes in fide et nihil trepidarent; quoniam ego propter hoc accedebam ad Concilium, ubi convenire debebat universalis ecclesia in quo omnino aliquod sufficiens remedium ad resistendum hæreticis, et ipsos extirpandos reperiretur.—Vide Epistolam Juliani Cardinalis ad Pontificem Eugenium IV. apud Fasciculum Rerum Expetendarum et Fugiendarum, p. 55.[177]Poggii Opera, p. 309, 310.[178]Poggii Epistolæ lvii. ep. xxvii.[179]Muratori Rer. Italic. Script. tom. vi. p. 869.[180]Poggii Opera, p. 429.[181]Ibid.[182]Poggii Opera, p. 481.[183]Ibid, p. 475.[184]Poggio intimates, that the loquacity of this incorrigible ecclesiastic continually betrayed his folly—that he was given to detraction; and that his rapacity frequently betrayed him into violent infringements of the rules of justice. He has also recorded the following severe, but coarse animadversion, which was made on his character after his death. “Damnabat quidam multis verbis vitam et mores Angelotti Cardinalis defuncti. Fuit enim rapax et violentus ut cui nulla esset conscientia. Tum ex astantibus unus, Opinor, inquit, diabolum jam vorasse et cacasse cum sæpius ob scelera sua. Alter vir facetissimus, Adeo mala caro ejus fuit, inquit, ut nullus dæmon quantumvis bono stomacho, illam præ nauseâ comedere auderet.”—Poggii Opera, p. 477.[185]Fasciculus Rer. Expet. et. Fugiend. p. 55.[186]Acta Conciliorum, tom. xxx. p. 25.[187]This declaration was made in the following florid terms. “Hæc sancta Synodus necessitates Christianæ religionis sedulâ meditatione recogitans, maturâ et digestâ deliberatione decernit; ad hæc tria, eo, a quo cuncta bona procedunt, auctore Deo, toto solicitudinis studio operam dare, Primo, ut omnium hæresum a Christiani populi finibus tenebris profugatis, lumen Catholicæ veritatis, Christo verâ luce largiente, refulgeat. Secundo, ut bellorum rabie, quâ, satore zizaniæ seminante in diversis partibus mundi affligitur et dissipatur populus Christianus, congruâ meditatione sedatâ, pacis auctore prostante in statum reducatur pacificum et tranquillum. Tertio, ut cum multiplicibus vitiorum tribulis et spinis Christi vinea jam quasi silvescat præ nimiâ densitate, ut illis debitæ culturæ studio resecatis, evangelico agricolâ cælitus operante, refloreat, honestatisque fructus et honoris felici ubertate producat.”—Concil. tom. p. 39, 40.[188]Acta Concil. tom. xxx. p. 24, 49.[189]Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 148.[190]See a copy of the cardinal’s letter (the good sense and integrity of which are much more commendable than its Latinity) in theFasciculus Rer. Expet. et Fug. p. 54 et seq.[191]Conciliorum. tom. xxx. p. 54.[192]Concilior. tom. xxx. p. 77.[193]Concilior. tom. xxx. p. 81.[194]Ibid, p. 92.[195]Concilior. tom. xxx. p. 103.—This decree was passed July 13th, 1433.[196]Poggii Epistolæ lvii. ep. xxvi.—This letter bears date June 30th, 1433.[197]Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 147.[198]Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 149.[199]Ibid, p. 154.[200]Ibid, p. 153.Poggii Hist. Flor. p. 301.[201]During his residence in Rome, Sigismund received from the pontiff six thousand gold crowns per month, to enable him to maintain the state becoming his exalted rank. Poggio gives a particular account of the emperor’s coronation in a letter to Niccolo Niccoli, which has not yet been printed.Poggii Historia de Variet. Fort. p. 92, 93.[202]Concil. tom. xxx. p. 114.[203]Poggii Epist. lvii. p. 221, 222, 223.This letter, which by a typographical error is dated 1433, was written, Jan. 27th, 1434.[204]Concilior. tom. xxx. p. 129.[205]Concilior. p. 146.[206]Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 155, 156, 157, 158.—Platina, p. 405.—Ambrogii Traversarii Epistolæ, lib. i. ep. vi. apud notas.[207]Poggii Histor. de Variet. Fortunæ, p. 92.[208]Ambrogii Traversarii Epist. lib. v. ep. x.[209]Poggii Hist. de Variet. Fort. p. 92.—Opera, p. 392.[210]Elogi degli Uomini Illustri Toscani, tom. i. p. 367.[211]Eadem iter facienti ad ortum occurrit amæna vallis, villis et pagis referta nomine Mugellum quam interfluit flumen Sæva.—Schotti Itinerarium Italiæ, p. 189.[212]Pignotti Istor. di Toscana, lib. iv. cap. 9, as referred to by Tonelli.[213]Machiavelli Istorie Fiorentine, p. 209, 210, 211.—Ricordi di Cosmo de’ Medici, in the appendix to the 1st vol. of Roscoe’s Life of Lorenzo de’ Medici, No. ii.[214]The following extract from Cosmo’s Ricordi proves that he could not with a safe conscience accept this part of Poggio’s panegyric. “Niccolo da Tolentino sentito il caso à di 8. venne la mattina con tutta la sua compagnia alla Lastra, e con animo di fare novità nella Terra, perchè io fussi lasciato; e così subito che si sentì il caso nell’ Alpi di Romagna e di più altri luoghi, venne â Lorenzo gran quantità di fanti. Fu confortato il Capitano, e così Lorenzo à non fare novità, che poteva esser cagione di farmi fare novità nella persona, e così feciono; e benchè chi consigliò questo fussino parenti, e amici, e à buon fine, non fu buono consiglio; perchè se si fussino fatti inanzi, ero libero, e chi era stato cagione di questo restava disfatto.”—Ricordi ut supra.[215]Poggii Opera, p. 312-317.[216]In a letter to Ambrogio Traversari, he gives the following catalogue of the books which he had collected during his residence in Constantinople.—“Qui mihi nostri in Italiam libri gesti sunt, horum nomina ad te scribo: alios autem nonnullos per primas ex Byzantio Venetorum naves opperior. Hi autem sunt Plotinus, Aelianus, Aristides, Dionysius Halicarnasseus, Strabo Geographus, Hermogenes, Aristotelis Rhetorice, Dionysius Halicarnasseus de numeris et characteribus, Thucydides, Plutarchi Moralia, Proelus in Platonem, Philo Judæus, Herodotus, Dio Chrysostomus, Appollonius Pergæus, Ethica Aristotelis, Ejus magna Moralia et Eudemia, Oeconomica, et Politica, quædam Theophrasti Opuscula, Homeri Ilias, Odyssea, Philostrati de vitâ Appollonii, Orationes Libanii, et aliqui sermones Luciani, Pindarus, Aratus, Euripidis tragediæ septem, Theocritus, Hesiodus, Suidas; Phalaridis, Hippocratis, Platonis, et multorum ex veteribus philosophis Epistolæ, Demosthenes, Æschinis Orationes et Epistolæ, pleraque Xenophontis Opera, una Lysiæ Oratio, Orphei Argonautica et Hymni, Callimachus, Aristoteles de historiis animalium, Physica, et Metaphysica, et de Animâ, de partibus Animalium, et alia quædam, Polybius, nonnulli sermones Chrysostomi, Dionysiaca, et alii Poetæ plurimi. Habes qui mihi sint, et his utere æque ac tuis.”—Ambrosii Traversarii Opera, tom. ii. p. 1010.In the collection of this noble store of Grecian literature Filelfo must have expended a considerable sum of money; and this circumstance may honourably account for the embarrassed state of his finances on his arrival in his native country.[217]Ambrosii Traversarii Epist. p. 1007.[218]Filelfo arrived in Florence in the month of May, 1429.—Philelfi Epist. p. 9.[219]Ambrosii Traversarii Epist. p. 1016.[220]Philelfi Epist. p. 9.[221]Philelfi Epist. p. 9.[222]Ibid, p. 10.[223]Philelfi Epist. p. 11.[224]Philelfi Epist. p. 17.In the account which Filelfo gave of this transaction to Æneas Sylvius, he says, that he had never discovered by whom Filippo was hired to commit so execrable a deed, but intimates very strong suspicions of Cosmo de’ Medici. Poggio, however, in his third invective against Filelfo, asserts, that the assassin was the minister of the vengeance of one Jeronimo of Imola, whom Filelfo had provoked by the intemperance of his tongue.—Poggii Opera, p. 381.[225]Ibid.[226]Francisci Philelfi Satyræ; primæ decadis hecatosticha secunda.[227]Philelfi Epist. p. 12, 13.[228]Philelfi Satyræ; primæ decadis, hecatosticha quinta. Ejusdem hecatosticha sexta—Secundæ decadis, hecatosticha prima, &c.In a letter of remonstrance to Cosmo de’ Medici, Filelfo inveighed bitterly against Niccolo Niccoli, whom he asserted Cosmo had himself acknowledged to be guilty of insolence to the learned, and particularly of contumelious conduct towards the eminent Manuel Crysoloras.—“Ad ea tu sane leniter respondisti, ac subridens, non oportere inquiens mirari me nec æge ferre Nicolai Nicoli detractionem; eo enim esse hominem ingenio ut neminem doctum virum relinquat intactum mordacitate suà, quique ne soli quidem ipsi parceret,upote qui et Manuelem Chrysoloram sapientem et summum illum virum barbam pediculosam adhuc semper nominet, et Ambrosium monachum cui magis affectus est quam propriæ animæ, attonitum per contumeliam vocet.”—Philelfi Epistolæ, p. 12.[229]Philelfi Satyræ, quartæ decadis, hecatosticha prima.This satire concludes with the following atrocious address to the judges of Cosmo.“En Mundum servat conjectum in vincula carcer,Qui rebus momenta dabit non parva futuris.Nunc etiam atque etiam vobiscum volvite curas,Et lustrate animo quæ sint potiora salutiUrbis consilia: his castas accommodet auresQuisque suas. Vobis res coram publica seseOfferet in medium, referens stragesque necesqueVenturas, ubi forte minus pro lege vel æquoSupplicium sumptum fuerit de sonte nefando;Aut etiam officium collatum munere civis.Namque relegatus, si culpæ nomine mulctamPendeat, afficiet magnis vos cladibus omnes.”[230]The passages in Filelfo’s Satires, in which he has attacked the character of Poggio, are very numerous. Those who wish to examine these passages may consult the following references.Decad. i. hecat. 5.Decad. ii. hecat. 1. 3.Decad. iii. hecat. 2. 10.Decad. iv. hecat. 7.Decad. v. hecat. 8. 9.Decad. vi. hecat. 10.Decad. viii. hecat. 1, 3, 5.Such readers as are not possessed of a copy ofAureæ Francisci Philelfii Poetæ Oratorisque celeberrimi Satyræ centum, printed in octavo at Paris, anno 1518, (a book of rare occurrence) will probably be contented with the following specimen of what may be properly termed learned Billingsgate.“Quæ rapidis natura polis, quæ causa sepulchriHumano generi, quæ tanta licentia rerum,Spumantes inter pateras cereremque voracemOstensurus erat Codrus; cum grande pepedit,Rancidulum eructans post longa volumina verbum.Hunc mox Oenepotes miratus rara profatur.Rara inter Latias phœnix hæc pervolat urbes:Hinc vomit et meiens grave cunctis reddit oletum.Poggius arridet, simili dum peste tenetur.Nam quascunque dapes affert, ut verna CanopiPrælambens, rapidus vino sese obruit hospes.Laudibus hinc miris effert Codrumque, bonumqueOenepotam Nicolum: mox ne fortasse minorisSe quisquam reputet, quod foetet olentius addit.”[231]Philelfi Epist. p. 12.[232]Poggii Opera, p. 339-342.[233]“Verum nequaquam mirum videri debet, eum cujus mater Arimini dudum in purgandis ventribus et intestinis sorde diluendis quæstum fecerit, maternæ artis foetorem redolere. Hæsit naribus filii sagacis materni exercitii attrectata putredo, et continui stercoris fœtens halitus.”—Poggii Opera, p. 165.[234]The terms in which Poggio mentions this transaction are superlatively abusive, and whimsically gross. “Itaque Crysoloras moerore confectus, compulsus precibus, malo coactus, filiam tibi nuptui dedit a te corruptam, quæ si extitisset integra, ne pilum quidem tibi abrasum ab illius natibus ostendisset. An tu illam unquam duxisses uxorem si virginitatem per te servare potuisset? Tibi pater illam dedisset profugo, ignobili, impuro? Primariis suæ civitatis viris servabatur virgo, non tibi insulsæ pecudi et asello bipedali quem ille domi alebat tanquam canem aliquem solent senio et ætate confectum.”—Poggii Opera, p. 167.[235]“Sperasti, monstrum infandum hos tuos insulsissimos versus, in quibus etiam male latine loqueris, allaturos tibi laureolam, quâ fanaticum caput redimires. At stercoreâ coronâ ornabuntur fœtentes crines priapæi vatis.”—Ibid, p. 169.[236]Lingua tibi mediâ, Poggi, plus parte seceturQuâ nunquam lacerare probos et carpere cessas.Improbe, quis talem tibi tantus tradidit artemAuctor? An e stulto fatuoque et mentis egenteTe tuus insanum Lycolaus reddidit Utis,Addictum vitio dirumque per omne volutumFlagitium et facinus?—Tantum maledicere semperEdoctus, cunctos decoret quos aurea virtusInsequeris calamo, nequeas quos fulmine linguæ,Quam nimius crassam potus vel crapula fecit,Immanisque Venus. Tibi quæ tam dira voluptas,Undantis pelago dum vini nocte diequeEbrius obrueris; dum tanquam immensa voragoQuidquid pontus habet, quidquid vel terra vel aërVescendum peperit, latus tibi venter et ingensExcepit; dum fœda Venus patiturque facitqueOmne genus probri: tactus te levius estoTitillans, vesane, juvat redditque furentemEt dulci qui tactus agit prurigine linguam:Ut te communem præstes sapientibus hostemOmnibus, et nulli parcas velut effera quædamVipera tabifero terram cœlumque venenoInficiens.Philelfi Satyræ. Decad. ii. Hecat. 3.[237]Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 158.—Platina, tom. i. p. 406.[238]“Sopravenendo poi Giovanni Vitellesco che chiamavano il Patriarca, entranono in tanto spavento i Romani, che non avevano pure animo d’aprir la bocca.”—Platina, tom. i. p. 405.[239]Platina, tom. i. p. 406, 407.[240]Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 162, 163.[241]Ibid.—Platina, tom. i. p. 407.[242]The decree relative to the conversion of the Jews ordained amongst other things, that all diocesans should annually commission certain learned theologians to explain to them the word of God, in so plain a manner, that they might be convinced of their errors—that the Jews should be compelled, by the infliction of certain penalties, to attend the lectures of these theologians—that all infidels should be prohibited from keeping Christian servants or nurses—that no Christian should partake of any Jewish festivals—that the Jewish tradesmen should be strictly forbidden to buy, or take in pawn, any ecclesiastical books, chalices, crosses, or other church ornaments—that the Jews should be compelled to wear a distinguishing dress, and that they should live in a separate quarter of each town, at as great a distance as possible from any church. With regard to the converted Israelites, it was ordained, that whereas whatever goods or property they had obtained by usury, or by defrauding persons who were not to be found, became upon this conversion the property of the church; the council, in the name of the church, bestowed upon them all such property as a baptismal present—that the indigent converts should be relieved by the charitable assistance of the faithful—that they should be separated as much as possible from their unbelieving brethren—and that the ordinaries of each diocese should be directed to do all in their power to cause them to marry persons who had been born in the Christian faith.

Rodolfo was indeed a man of very phlegmatic humour, as appears by the advice which he gave to one of his fellow-citizens, who informed him of his intention of travelling with a view of seeing the curiosities of different countries. “Go,” said he, “to the neighbouring town of Macerata, and there you will see hills, valleys, and plains, wood and water, lands cultivated and uncultivated. This is the world in miniature; for travel as far as you please, and you will see nothing else.”—Poggii Opera, p. 441.

[144]Platina, p. 399.—Tiraboschi storia della Letteratura Ital. tom. vi. p. 8.

[145]Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 114, 119, 120, 121.

[146]Ibid, p. 116.

[147]Poggii Epist. a Tonel. lib. i. ep. 17.

[148]Poggii Hist. Florent. p. 253.In his Facetiæ, Poggio relates the following instance, which occurred during the course of this contest, of the freedom of speech in which Filippo Maria permitted one of his domestics to indulge himself.“The old duke of Milan, a prince in all respects of singular good taste, had an excellent cook, whom he had sent to France to learn the art of dressing nice dishes. In the great war which he carried on against the Florentines, he one day received some bad news, which gave him a good deal of uneasiness. Soon after the arrival of this intelligence he sat down to dinner. The dishes not at all pleasing him, he sent for his cook, and reproved him severely for his unskilfulness. The cook, who was accustomed to take great liberties with his master, replied, I can assure your highness that the dishes are excellently dressed—And if the Florentines have taken away your appetite, how am I to blame?”—Poggii Opera, p. 425.This anecdote proves that Filippo inherited from his father a fondness of good living, and also intimates, that even at this early period, our Gallic neighbours were noted for their skill in cookery.

“The old duke of Milan, a prince in all respects of singular good taste, had an excellent cook, whom he had sent to France to learn the art of dressing nice dishes. In the great war which he carried on against the Florentines, he one day received some bad news, which gave him a good deal of uneasiness. Soon after the arrival of this intelligence he sat down to dinner. The dishes not at all pleasing him, he sent for his cook, and reproved him severely for his unskilfulness. The cook, who was accustomed to take great liberties with his master, replied, I can assure your highness that the dishes are excellently dressed—And if the Florentines have taken away your appetite, how am I to blame?”—Poggii Opera, p. 425.

This anecdote proves that Filippo inherited from his father a fondness of good living, and also intimates, that even at this early period, our Gallic neighbours were noted for their skill in cookery.

[149]Mehi Vita Leonardi Aretini, p. xliv.

[150]Ibid.

[151]Mehi Vita Leonardi Aretini, p. xliv.

[152]“Volui satisfacere amori in te meo, et tecum congratulari, quemadmodum solemus ei, qui uxorem duxit, cum onus subeat grave, difficile et molestum.”—Poggii Epistolæ lvii. p. 167.

[153]It should seem that Humphrey, duke of Gloucester, who at this time governed the kingdom of England in quality of Protector, regarded this commission of the cardinal’s with a jealous eye. With a view of preventing the mischiefs which might ensue upon the exercise of foreign authority in the English dominions, he summoned Beaufort into his presence; and by a formal and express act, which set forth, that the legates of the pope had never been permitted to enter into England, except by summons, invitation, or permission of the king, which summons, invitation, or permission, Beaufort had not received, protested against his exercising the authority of legate in the king’s dominions in any form or manner whatever. To this protest Beaufort put in a formal answer, that it was not his intention in any thing to derogate from, or contravene the rights, privileges, liberties, or customs of the king or kingdom. This protest was made November 11th, 1428. It is printed in the appendix to Brown’sFasciculus Rerum expetendarum et Fugiendarum,p. 618, from an ancient register, formerly in the possession of archbishop Sancroft.For the purpose of raising money to defray the expense of the crusade, boxes emblazoned with the sign of the cross were fixed in the churches, in which the friends of the true faith were exhorted to deposit their contributions. To give additional stimulus to the zeal of the pious, the pontiff issued a bull, whereby he granted an indulgence of one hundred days to those who should attend the preaching of the crusade—a full pardon of all their sins, and an assurance of eternal happiness, to those who took the cross and served against the heretics at their own expense. The same premium was offered to those, who fully intending to perform this meritorious service, should happen to die before they joined the army; and to those who should send a soldier or soldiers to fight, at their expense, for the propagation of the true faith. This latter provision was particularly addressed to the women, who were graciously informed by the cardinal, that those females, who, being prevented by their poverty from maintaining each a warrior at their own expense, should enter into joint subscriptions for the purpose, should be entitled to considerable privileges; and so grateful was his holiness even for the gift of good wishes, that he granted six days’ indulgence to those who fasted and prayed in order to promote the success of the expedition.—Appendix to Brown’s Fasciculus, p. 621, 625, 630.

For the purpose of raising money to defray the expense of the crusade, boxes emblazoned with the sign of the cross were fixed in the churches, in which the friends of the true faith were exhorted to deposit their contributions. To give additional stimulus to the zeal of the pious, the pontiff issued a bull, whereby he granted an indulgence of one hundred days to those who should attend the preaching of the crusade—a full pardon of all their sins, and an assurance of eternal happiness, to those who took the cross and served against the heretics at their own expense. The same premium was offered to those, who fully intending to perform this meritorious service, should happen to die before they joined the army; and to those who should send a soldier or soldiers to fight, at their expense, for the propagation of the true faith. This latter provision was particularly addressed to the women, who were graciously informed by the cardinal, that those females, who, being prevented by their poverty from maintaining each a warrior at their own expense, should enter into joint subscriptions for the purpose, should be entitled to considerable privileges; and so grateful was his holiness even for the gift of good wishes, that he granted six days’ indulgence to those who fasted and prayed in order to promote the success of the expedition.—Appendix to Brown’s Fasciculus, p. 621, 625, 630.

[154]Hollinshead’s Chronicle, vol. ii. p. 602.—Stowe’s Annals, p. 371.—Platina, p. 400.

[155]Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 136.—Platina, p. 401.

[156]Ton. Tr. vol. i. p. 155.

[157]Poggii Epistolæ lvii. p. 173.

[158]Tonelli Poggii Epist. tom. i. lib. iii. ep. xxxv.

[159]Poggii Epist. lvii. p. 178. Ambrogii Traversarii Opera, tom. ii. p. 978.

[160]This Bernardino had for some time preached with uncommon applause to crowded audiences in the churches of Florence. The talents of a popular orator generally procure their possessor as many enemies as friends. Several ecclesiastics, who were envious of the reputation of Bernardino, took advantage of a daring flight of rhetoric, into which he was betrayed by the enthusiasm of his zeal, to endeavour to accomplish his ruin. In order to enforce his eloquence, in describing some impressive scene, (probably the sufferings of Christ) he exhibited to the people a picture, in which the transaction to which he alluded was delineated. Of this exhibition his detractors complained to the pope, as a kind of profanation of the rites of the church; and Bernardino was obliged to repair to Rome to vindicate his cause. Though the pontifical court was inflamed with prejudice against him by the artifices of his accusers, so captivating was his eloquence, that when he was permitted to preach in Rome, the ecclesiastics of the highest eminence, as well as the populace, being attracted by his fame to hear his discourses, listened to him with enthusiastic admiration. Martin V. commanded him to abstain for the future from the exhibition of pictures; he readily complied with this injunction, and by his prompt obedience obtained the favour of the pontiff, who during the remainder of his life treated him with distinguished kindness.—Ambrosii Traversarii Epist. lib. ii. ep. xl. xli.

[161]Poggii Opera, p. 13.

[162]In the original sketch of this dialogue, Poggio had attributed the first part of the attack on Avarice to Cincio, one of the apostolic secretaries; but on the admonition of Lusco, that as Cincio had the reputation of being a covetous man, an invective against that vice would be out of character, if represented as proceeding from him, he substituted in his place Bartolomeo di Montepulciano. The defence of Avarice he assigned to Lusco, because Lusco being generous even to extravagance, there was no reason to fear, lest the imputed patronage of so selfish a passion, should be supposed to convey an implied impeachment of his character.—Ambrosii Traversarii Opera, tom. ii. lib. xxv. epist. xliii.

[163]Tiraboschi Storia della Letteratura Italiana, tom. vi. part 2d. p. 363.Poggio has recorded a notable story of one of these indiscreet orators, who in the fervour of a declamation against the vice of adultery, declared, that he had such a detestation of that offence, that he had much rather commit the sin of unchastity with ten virgins than with one married woman.—Poggii Opera, p. 433.

[164]Appendix ad Fasciculum Rer. Expet. et Fug. p. 578.Poggio has commemorated in hisFacetiæa mortifying explanation which one of these noisy orators provoked by his overweening vanity. “A monk,” says he, “preaching to the populace, made a most enormous and uncouth noise, by which a good woman, one of his auditors, was so much affected, that she burst into a flood of tears. The preacher, attributing her grief to remorse of conscience, excited within her by his eloquence, sent for her, and asked her why she was so piteously affected by his discourse. Holy father, answered the mourner, I am a poor widow, and was accustomed to maintain myself by the labour of an ass, which was left me by my late husband. But alas! my poor beast is dead, and your preaching brought his braying so strongly to my recollection, that I could not restrain my grief.”—Poggii Opera, p. 497.

[165]Alberto derived the designation of Da Sarteano from a small town in Tuscany, where he was born, A. D. 1385. At an early age he enrolled himself in the number of the conventuals, and afterwards joined the stricter order of theFratres Observantiæ. In the year 1424 he went to Verona, where he studied the Greek language under the instruction of Guarino Veronese. In the following year he paid a visit to Francesco Barbaro, who was then governor of Trivigi. Here he met with the famous preacher Bernardino, at whose instance he undertook the popular employment of an itinerant preacher. In this capacity he not only traversed a great part of Italy, but crossing the sea, he went to preach the true gospel amongst the schismatics and infidels of Greece, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Armenia. It was in consequence of his representations that the patriarch of the last-mentioned province attended the council of Basil, when in the name of his countrymen he submitted to the decisions of the Latin church. Alberto closed a life of religious labours in the year 1450, at Milan, where he was interred in the church of St. Angelo. A collection of his works, consisting principally of sermons and theological tracts, was published at Rome, A. D. 1688.—Tiraboschi Storia della Letter. Ital. tom. vi. p. 214, 215, 216.

[166]Ambrosii Traversarii Epist. p. 978, 979, 1019, 1125.Poggii Opera. p. 317, 318, 319.

[167]It is printed in the Appendix to theFasciculus Rerum Expetendarum et Fugiendarum; a collection of fugitive tracts, intended to display the errors of the church of Rome.This collection, which was first published at Cologne, A. D. 1535, by Orthuinus Gratius, of Deventer, was republished, with considerable additions, by Edward Brown, at London, A. D. 1689, at which period the avowed predilection of James II. for the Roman Catholic doctrines had given alarm to the zealous Protestants of England.

[167]It is printed in the Appendix to theFasciculus Rerum Expetendarum et Fugiendarum; a collection of fugitive tracts, intended to display the errors of the church of Rome.

This collection, which was first published at Cologne, A. D. 1535, by Orthuinus Gratius, of Deventer, was republished, with considerable additions, by Edward Brown, at London, A. D. 1689, at which period the avowed predilection of James II. for the Roman Catholic doctrines had given alarm to the zealous Protestants of England.

[168]Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 142.—Platina, p. 402.

[169]Poggii Epistolæ lvii. ep. xxiii.

[170]Platina, p. 402, 403.—Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 143.—Poggii Historia de varietate Fortunæ, p. 100.

[171]Poggii Histor. Flor. lib. vi.

[172]Te fama est peragrare Germaniam ad apparatum belli contra Boemos. Id quidem laudo; sed considera diligenter, non quantum animi sit tibi ad pugnam, sed quantum virium armorum, ne magis animatus quam armatus in aciem accedas; et barbatum nostrum cave, ne auribus lupum teneas.—Poggii Epistolæ lvii. ep. xxiii.This letter is dated May 11th, 1431.

[173]L’Enfant Histoire de la guerre des Hussites, tom. i. p. 315.

[174]Some writers assert, that the number of the pontifical troops amounted to ninety, others to one hundred and thirty thousand men. But the numbers of forces are almost always exaggerated.—L’Enfant Histoire de la guerre des Hussites, tom. i. p. 317.

[175]Voltaire Annales de l’Empire.We may judge of the precipitancy of the flight of the pontifical army, from the circumstance of the cardinal’s losing, with the rest of his baggage, the papal bull which authorised the crusade, his red hat, and the rest of his dress of ceremony, his cross and crochet.—L’Enfant ut supra.

[176]Et cum ex fugâ exercitûs omnes populi Alemaniæ supra modum essent exterriti et consternati, videns nullum aliud superesse remedium, animabam et confortabam omnes, ut manerent constantes in fide et nihil trepidarent; quoniam ego propter hoc accedebam ad Concilium, ubi convenire debebat universalis ecclesia in quo omnino aliquod sufficiens remedium ad resistendum hæreticis, et ipsos extirpandos reperiretur.—Vide Epistolam Juliani Cardinalis ad Pontificem Eugenium IV. apud Fasciculum Rerum Expetendarum et Fugiendarum, p. 55.

[177]Poggii Opera, p. 309, 310.

[178]Poggii Epistolæ lvii. ep. xxvii.

[179]Muratori Rer. Italic. Script. tom. vi. p. 869.

[180]Poggii Opera, p. 429.

[181]Ibid.

[182]Poggii Opera, p. 481.

[183]Ibid, p. 475.

[184]Poggio intimates, that the loquacity of this incorrigible ecclesiastic continually betrayed his folly—that he was given to detraction; and that his rapacity frequently betrayed him into violent infringements of the rules of justice. He has also recorded the following severe, but coarse animadversion, which was made on his character after his death. “Damnabat quidam multis verbis vitam et mores Angelotti Cardinalis defuncti. Fuit enim rapax et violentus ut cui nulla esset conscientia. Tum ex astantibus unus, Opinor, inquit, diabolum jam vorasse et cacasse cum sæpius ob scelera sua. Alter vir facetissimus, Adeo mala caro ejus fuit, inquit, ut nullus dæmon quantumvis bono stomacho, illam præ nauseâ comedere auderet.”—Poggii Opera, p. 477.

[185]Fasciculus Rer. Expet. et. Fugiend. p. 55.

[186]Acta Conciliorum, tom. xxx. p. 25.

[187]This declaration was made in the following florid terms. “Hæc sancta Synodus necessitates Christianæ religionis sedulâ meditatione recogitans, maturâ et digestâ deliberatione decernit; ad hæc tria, eo, a quo cuncta bona procedunt, auctore Deo, toto solicitudinis studio operam dare, Primo, ut omnium hæresum a Christiani populi finibus tenebris profugatis, lumen Catholicæ veritatis, Christo verâ luce largiente, refulgeat. Secundo, ut bellorum rabie, quâ, satore zizaniæ seminante in diversis partibus mundi affligitur et dissipatur populus Christianus, congruâ meditatione sedatâ, pacis auctore prostante in statum reducatur pacificum et tranquillum. Tertio, ut cum multiplicibus vitiorum tribulis et spinis Christi vinea jam quasi silvescat præ nimiâ densitate, ut illis debitæ culturæ studio resecatis, evangelico agricolâ cælitus operante, refloreat, honestatisque fructus et honoris felici ubertate producat.”—Concil. tom. p. 39, 40.

[188]Acta Concil. tom. xxx. p. 24, 49.

[189]Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 148.

[190]See a copy of the cardinal’s letter (the good sense and integrity of which are much more commendable than its Latinity) in theFasciculus Rer. Expet. et Fug. p. 54 et seq.

[191]Conciliorum. tom. xxx. p. 54.

[192]Concilior. tom. xxx. p. 77.

[193]Concilior. tom. xxx. p. 81.

[194]Ibid, p. 92.

[195]Concilior. tom. xxx. p. 103.—This decree was passed July 13th, 1433.

[196]Poggii Epistolæ lvii. ep. xxvi.—This letter bears date June 30th, 1433.

[197]Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 147.

[198]Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 149.

[199]Ibid, p. 154.

[200]Ibid, p. 153.Poggii Hist. Flor. p. 301.

[201]During his residence in Rome, Sigismund received from the pontiff six thousand gold crowns per month, to enable him to maintain the state becoming his exalted rank. Poggio gives a particular account of the emperor’s coronation in a letter to Niccolo Niccoli, which has not yet been printed.Poggii Historia de Variet. Fort. p. 92, 93.

Poggii Historia de Variet. Fort. p. 92, 93.

[202]Concil. tom. xxx. p. 114.

[203]Poggii Epist. lvii. p. 221, 222, 223.This letter, which by a typographical error is dated 1433, was written, Jan. 27th, 1434.

[204]Concilior. tom. xxx. p. 129.

[205]Concilior. p. 146.

[206]Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 155, 156, 157, 158.—Platina, p. 405.—Ambrogii Traversarii Epistolæ, lib. i. ep. vi. apud notas.

[207]Poggii Histor. de Variet. Fortunæ, p. 92.

[208]Ambrogii Traversarii Epist. lib. v. ep. x.

[209]Poggii Hist. de Variet. Fort. p. 92.—Opera, p. 392.

[210]Elogi degli Uomini Illustri Toscani, tom. i. p. 367.

[211]Eadem iter facienti ad ortum occurrit amæna vallis, villis et pagis referta nomine Mugellum quam interfluit flumen Sæva.—Schotti Itinerarium Italiæ, p. 189.

[212]Pignotti Istor. di Toscana, lib. iv. cap. 9, as referred to by Tonelli.

[213]Machiavelli Istorie Fiorentine, p. 209, 210, 211.—Ricordi di Cosmo de’ Medici, in the appendix to the 1st vol. of Roscoe’s Life of Lorenzo de’ Medici, No. ii.

[214]The following extract from Cosmo’s Ricordi proves that he could not with a safe conscience accept this part of Poggio’s panegyric. “Niccolo da Tolentino sentito il caso à di 8. venne la mattina con tutta la sua compagnia alla Lastra, e con animo di fare novità nella Terra, perchè io fussi lasciato; e così subito che si sentì il caso nell’ Alpi di Romagna e di più altri luoghi, venne â Lorenzo gran quantità di fanti. Fu confortato il Capitano, e così Lorenzo à non fare novità, che poteva esser cagione di farmi fare novità nella persona, e così feciono; e benchè chi consigliò questo fussino parenti, e amici, e à buon fine, non fu buono consiglio; perchè se si fussino fatti inanzi, ero libero, e chi era stato cagione di questo restava disfatto.”—Ricordi ut supra.

[215]Poggii Opera, p. 312-317.

[216]In a letter to Ambrogio Traversari, he gives the following catalogue of the books which he had collected during his residence in Constantinople.—“Qui mihi nostri in Italiam libri gesti sunt, horum nomina ad te scribo: alios autem nonnullos per primas ex Byzantio Venetorum naves opperior. Hi autem sunt Plotinus, Aelianus, Aristides, Dionysius Halicarnasseus, Strabo Geographus, Hermogenes, Aristotelis Rhetorice, Dionysius Halicarnasseus de numeris et characteribus, Thucydides, Plutarchi Moralia, Proelus in Platonem, Philo Judæus, Herodotus, Dio Chrysostomus, Appollonius Pergæus, Ethica Aristotelis, Ejus magna Moralia et Eudemia, Oeconomica, et Politica, quædam Theophrasti Opuscula, Homeri Ilias, Odyssea, Philostrati de vitâ Appollonii, Orationes Libanii, et aliqui sermones Luciani, Pindarus, Aratus, Euripidis tragediæ septem, Theocritus, Hesiodus, Suidas; Phalaridis, Hippocratis, Platonis, et multorum ex veteribus philosophis Epistolæ, Demosthenes, Æschinis Orationes et Epistolæ, pleraque Xenophontis Opera, una Lysiæ Oratio, Orphei Argonautica et Hymni, Callimachus, Aristoteles de historiis animalium, Physica, et Metaphysica, et de Animâ, de partibus Animalium, et alia quædam, Polybius, nonnulli sermones Chrysostomi, Dionysiaca, et alii Poetæ plurimi. Habes qui mihi sint, et his utere æque ac tuis.”—Ambrosii Traversarii Opera, tom. ii. p. 1010.In the collection of this noble store of Grecian literature Filelfo must have expended a considerable sum of money; and this circumstance may honourably account for the embarrassed state of his finances on his arrival in his native country.

In the collection of this noble store of Grecian literature Filelfo must have expended a considerable sum of money; and this circumstance may honourably account for the embarrassed state of his finances on his arrival in his native country.

[217]Ambrosii Traversarii Epist. p. 1007.

[218]Filelfo arrived in Florence in the month of May, 1429.—Philelfi Epist. p. 9.

[219]Ambrosii Traversarii Epist. p. 1016.

[220]Philelfi Epist. p. 9.

[221]Philelfi Epist. p. 9.

[222]Ibid, p. 10.

[223]Philelfi Epist. p. 11.

[224]Philelfi Epist. p. 17.In the account which Filelfo gave of this transaction to Æneas Sylvius, he says, that he had never discovered by whom Filippo was hired to commit so execrable a deed, but intimates very strong suspicions of Cosmo de’ Medici. Poggio, however, in his third invective against Filelfo, asserts, that the assassin was the minister of the vengeance of one Jeronimo of Imola, whom Filelfo had provoked by the intemperance of his tongue.—Poggii Opera, p. 381.

[225]Ibid.

[226]Francisci Philelfi Satyræ; primæ decadis hecatosticha secunda.

[227]Philelfi Epist. p. 12, 13.

[228]Philelfi Satyræ; primæ decadis, hecatosticha quinta. Ejusdem hecatosticha sexta—Secundæ decadis, hecatosticha prima, &c.In a letter of remonstrance to Cosmo de’ Medici, Filelfo inveighed bitterly against Niccolo Niccoli, whom he asserted Cosmo had himself acknowledged to be guilty of insolence to the learned, and particularly of contumelious conduct towards the eminent Manuel Crysoloras.—“Ad ea tu sane leniter respondisti, ac subridens, non oportere inquiens mirari me nec æge ferre Nicolai Nicoli detractionem; eo enim esse hominem ingenio ut neminem doctum virum relinquat intactum mordacitate suà, quique ne soli quidem ipsi parceret,upote qui et Manuelem Chrysoloram sapientem et summum illum virum barbam pediculosam adhuc semper nominet, et Ambrosium monachum cui magis affectus est quam propriæ animæ, attonitum per contumeliam vocet.”—Philelfi Epistolæ, p. 12.

[228]Philelfi Satyræ; primæ decadis, hecatosticha quinta. Ejusdem hecatosticha sexta—Secundæ decadis, hecatosticha prima, &c.

In a letter of remonstrance to Cosmo de’ Medici, Filelfo inveighed bitterly against Niccolo Niccoli, whom he asserted Cosmo had himself acknowledged to be guilty of insolence to the learned, and particularly of contumelious conduct towards the eminent Manuel Crysoloras.—“Ad ea tu sane leniter respondisti, ac subridens, non oportere inquiens mirari me nec æge ferre Nicolai Nicoli detractionem; eo enim esse hominem ingenio ut neminem doctum virum relinquat intactum mordacitate suà, quique ne soli quidem ipsi parceret,upote qui et Manuelem Chrysoloram sapientem et summum illum virum barbam pediculosam adhuc semper nominet, et Ambrosium monachum cui magis affectus est quam propriæ animæ, attonitum per contumeliam vocet.”—Philelfi Epistolæ, p. 12.

[229]Philelfi Satyræ, quartæ decadis, hecatosticha prima.This satire concludes with the following atrocious address to the judges of Cosmo.“En Mundum servat conjectum in vincula carcer,Qui rebus momenta dabit non parva futuris.Nunc etiam atque etiam vobiscum volvite curas,Et lustrate animo quæ sint potiora salutiUrbis consilia: his castas accommodet auresQuisque suas. Vobis res coram publica seseOfferet in medium, referens stragesque necesqueVenturas, ubi forte minus pro lege vel æquoSupplicium sumptum fuerit de sonte nefando;Aut etiam officium collatum munere civis.Namque relegatus, si culpæ nomine mulctamPendeat, afficiet magnis vos cladibus omnes.”

[229]Philelfi Satyræ, quartæ decadis, hecatosticha prima.

This satire concludes with the following atrocious address to the judges of Cosmo.

“En Mundum servat conjectum in vincula carcer,Qui rebus momenta dabit non parva futuris.Nunc etiam atque etiam vobiscum volvite curas,Et lustrate animo quæ sint potiora salutiUrbis consilia: his castas accommodet auresQuisque suas. Vobis res coram publica seseOfferet in medium, referens stragesque necesqueVenturas, ubi forte minus pro lege vel æquoSupplicium sumptum fuerit de sonte nefando;Aut etiam officium collatum munere civis.Namque relegatus, si culpæ nomine mulctamPendeat, afficiet magnis vos cladibus omnes.”

“En Mundum servat conjectum in vincula carcer,

Qui rebus momenta dabit non parva futuris.

Nunc etiam atque etiam vobiscum volvite curas,

Et lustrate animo quæ sint potiora saluti

Urbis consilia: his castas accommodet aures

Quisque suas. Vobis res coram publica sese

Offeret in medium, referens stragesque necesque

Venturas, ubi forte minus pro lege vel æquo

Supplicium sumptum fuerit de sonte nefando;

Aut etiam officium collatum munere civis.

Namque relegatus, si culpæ nomine mulctam

Pendeat, afficiet magnis vos cladibus omnes.”

[230]The passages in Filelfo’s Satires, in which he has attacked the character of Poggio, are very numerous. Those who wish to examine these passages may consult the following references.Decad. i. hecat. 5.Decad. ii. hecat. 1. 3.Decad. iii. hecat. 2. 10.Decad. iv. hecat. 7.Decad. v. hecat. 8. 9.Decad. vi. hecat. 10.Decad. viii. hecat. 1, 3, 5.Such readers as are not possessed of a copy ofAureæ Francisci Philelfii Poetæ Oratorisque celeberrimi Satyræ centum, printed in octavo at Paris, anno 1518, (a book of rare occurrence) will probably be contented with the following specimen of what may be properly termed learned Billingsgate.“Quæ rapidis natura polis, quæ causa sepulchriHumano generi, quæ tanta licentia rerum,Spumantes inter pateras cereremque voracemOstensurus erat Codrus; cum grande pepedit,Rancidulum eructans post longa volumina verbum.Hunc mox Oenepotes miratus rara profatur.Rara inter Latias phœnix hæc pervolat urbes:Hinc vomit et meiens grave cunctis reddit oletum.Poggius arridet, simili dum peste tenetur.Nam quascunque dapes affert, ut verna CanopiPrælambens, rapidus vino sese obruit hospes.Laudibus hinc miris effert Codrumque, bonumqueOenepotam Nicolum: mox ne fortasse minorisSe quisquam reputet, quod foetet olentius addit.”

[230]The passages in Filelfo’s Satires, in which he has attacked the character of Poggio, are very numerous. Those who wish to examine these passages may consult the following references.

Decad. i. hecat. 5.Decad. ii. hecat. 1. 3.Decad. iii. hecat. 2. 10.Decad. iv. hecat. 7.Decad. v. hecat. 8. 9.Decad. vi. hecat. 10.Decad. viii. hecat. 1, 3, 5.Such readers as are not possessed of a copy ofAureæ Francisci Philelfii Poetæ Oratorisque celeberrimi Satyræ centum, printed in octavo at Paris, anno 1518, (a book of rare occurrence) will probably be contented with the following specimen of what may be properly termed learned Billingsgate.

“Quæ rapidis natura polis, quæ causa sepulchriHumano generi, quæ tanta licentia rerum,Spumantes inter pateras cereremque voracemOstensurus erat Codrus; cum grande pepedit,Rancidulum eructans post longa volumina verbum.Hunc mox Oenepotes miratus rara profatur.Rara inter Latias phœnix hæc pervolat urbes:Hinc vomit et meiens grave cunctis reddit oletum.Poggius arridet, simili dum peste tenetur.Nam quascunque dapes affert, ut verna CanopiPrælambens, rapidus vino sese obruit hospes.Laudibus hinc miris effert Codrumque, bonumqueOenepotam Nicolum: mox ne fortasse minorisSe quisquam reputet, quod foetet olentius addit.”

“Quæ rapidis natura polis, quæ causa sepulchri

Humano generi, quæ tanta licentia rerum,

Spumantes inter pateras cereremque voracem

Ostensurus erat Codrus; cum grande pepedit,

Rancidulum eructans post longa volumina verbum.

Hunc mox Oenepotes miratus rara profatur.

Rara inter Latias phœnix hæc pervolat urbes:

Hinc vomit et meiens grave cunctis reddit oletum.

Poggius arridet, simili dum peste tenetur.

Nam quascunque dapes affert, ut verna Canopi

Prælambens, rapidus vino sese obruit hospes.

Laudibus hinc miris effert Codrumque, bonumque

Oenepotam Nicolum: mox ne fortasse minoris

Se quisquam reputet, quod foetet olentius addit.”

[231]Philelfi Epist. p. 12.

[232]Poggii Opera, p. 339-342.

[233]“Verum nequaquam mirum videri debet, eum cujus mater Arimini dudum in purgandis ventribus et intestinis sorde diluendis quæstum fecerit, maternæ artis foetorem redolere. Hæsit naribus filii sagacis materni exercitii attrectata putredo, et continui stercoris fœtens halitus.”—Poggii Opera, p. 165.

[234]The terms in which Poggio mentions this transaction are superlatively abusive, and whimsically gross. “Itaque Crysoloras moerore confectus, compulsus precibus, malo coactus, filiam tibi nuptui dedit a te corruptam, quæ si extitisset integra, ne pilum quidem tibi abrasum ab illius natibus ostendisset. An tu illam unquam duxisses uxorem si virginitatem per te servare potuisset? Tibi pater illam dedisset profugo, ignobili, impuro? Primariis suæ civitatis viris servabatur virgo, non tibi insulsæ pecudi et asello bipedali quem ille domi alebat tanquam canem aliquem solent senio et ætate confectum.”—Poggii Opera, p. 167.

[235]“Sperasti, monstrum infandum hos tuos insulsissimos versus, in quibus etiam male latine loqueris, allaturos tibi laureolam, quâ fanaticum caput redimires. At stercoreâ coronâ ornabuntur fœtentes crines priapæi vatis.”—Ibid, p. 169.

[236]Lingua tibi mediâ, Poggi, plus parte seceturQuâ nunquam lacerare probos et carpere cessas.Improbe, quis talem tibi tantus tradidit artemAuctor? An e stulto fatuoque et mentis egenteTe tuus insanum Lycolaus reddidit Utis,Addictum vitio dirumque per omne volutumFlagitium et facinus?—Tantum maledicere semperEdoctus, cunctos decoret quos aurea virtusInsequeris calamo, nequeas quos fulmine linguæ,Quam nimius crassam potus vel crapula fecit,Immanisque Venus. Tibi quæ tam dira voluptas,Undantis pelago dum vini nocte diequeEbrius obrueris; dum tanquam immensa voragoQuidquid pontus habet, quidquid vel terra vel aërVescendum peperit, latus tibi venter et ingensExcepit; dum fœda Venus patiturque facitqueOmne genus probri: tactus te levius estoTitillans, vesane, juvat redditque furentemEt dulci qui tactus agit prurigine linguam:Ut te communem præstes sapientibus hostemOmnibus, et nulli parcas velut effera quædamVipera tabifero terram cœlumque venenoInficiens.Philelfi Satyræ. Decad. ii. Hecat. 3.

[236]

Lingua tibi mediâ, Poggi, plus parte seceturQuâ nunquam lacerare probos et carpere cessas.Improbe, quis talem tibi tantus tradidit artemAuctor? An e stulto fatuoque et mentis egenteTe tuus insanum Lycolaus reddidit Utis,Addictum vitio dirumque per omne volutumFlagitium et facinus?—Tantum maledicere semperEdoctus, cunctos decoret quos aurea virtusInsequeris calamo, nequeas quos fulmine linguæ,Quam nimius crassam potus vel crapula fecit,Immanisque Venus. Tibi quæ tam dira voluptas,Undantis pelago dum vini nocte diequeEbrius obrueris; dum tanquam immensa voragoQuidquid pontus habet, quidquid vel terra vel aërVescendum peperit, latus tibi venter et ingensExcepit; dum fœda Venus patiturque facitqueOmne genus probri: tactus te levius estoTitillans, vesane, juvat redditque furentemEt dulci qui tactus agit prurigine linguam:Ut te communem præstes sapientibus hostemOmnibus, et nulli parcas velut effera quædamVipera tabifero terram cœlumque venenoInficiens.Philelfi Satyræ. Decad. ii. Hecat. 3.

Lingua tibi mediâ, Poggi, plus parte secetur

Quâ nunquam lacerare probos et carpere cessas.

Improbe, quis talem tibi tantus tradidit artem

Auctor? An e stulto fatuoque et mentis egente

Te tuus insanum Lycolaus reddidit Utis,

Addictum vitio dirumque per omne volutum

Flagitium et facinus?—Tantum maledicere semper

Edoctus, cunctos decoret quos aurea virtus

Insequeris calamo, nequeas quos fulmine linguæ,

Quam nimius crassam potus vel crapula fecit,

Immanisque Venus. Tibi quæ tam dira voluptas,

Undantis pelago dum vini nocte dieque

Ebrius obrueris; dum tanquam immensa vorago

Quidquid pontus habet, quidquid vel terra vel aër

Vescendum peperit, latus tibi venter et ingens

Excepit; dum fœda Venus patiturque facitque

Omne genus probri: tactus te levius esto

Titillans, vesane, juvat redditque furentem

Et dulci qui tactus agit prurigine linguam:

Ut te communem præstes sapientibus hostem

Omnibus, et nulli parcas velut effera quædam

Vipera tabifero terram cœlumque veneno

Inficiens.

Philelfi Satyræ. Decad. ii. Hecat. 3.

[237]Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 158.—Platina, tom. i. p. 406.

[238]“Sopravenendo poi Giovanni Vitellesco che chiamavano il Patriarca, entranono in tanto spavento i Romani, che non avevano pure animo d’aprir la bocca.”—Platina, tom. i. p. 405.

[239]Platina, tom. i. p. 406, 407.

[240]Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 162, 163.

[241]Ibid.—Platina, tom. i. p. 407.

[242]The decree relative to the conversion of the Jews ordained amongst other things, that all diocesans should annually commission certain learned theologians to explain to them the word of God, in so plain a manner, that they might be convinced of their errors—that the Jews should be compelled, by the infliction of certain penalties, to attend the lectures of these theologians—that all infidels should be prohibited from keeping Christian servants or nurses—that no Christian should partake of any Jewish festivals—that the Jewish tradesmen should be strictly forbidden to buy, or take in pawn, any ecclesiastical books, chalices, crosses, or other church ornaments—that the Jews should be compelled to wear a distinguishing dress, and that they should live in a separate quarter of each town, at as great a distance as possible from any church. With regard to the converted Israelites, it was ordained, that whereas whatever goods or property they had obtained by usury, or by defrauding persons who were not to be found, became upon this conversion the property of the church; the council, in the name of the church, bestowed upon them all such property as a baptismal present—that the indigent converts should be relieved by the charitable assistance of the faithful—that they should be separated as much as possible from their unbelieving brethren—and that the ordinaries of each diocese should be directed to do all in their power to cause them to marry persons who had been born in the Christian faith.

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