a large kingdom of Europe, situated between 5° W. and 7° E. Long, and between 43° and 51° N. Lat. being bounded by the English channel and the Austrian Netherlands on the north; by Germany, Switzerland, Savoy, and Piedmont, in Italy, on the east; by the Mediterranean sea, and the Pyrenean mountains, which separate it from Spain, on the south; and by the bay of Biscay on the west.

The kingdom of France was originally possessed by the Celts or Gauls. They were a very warlike people, and often checked the progress of the Roman army: nor did they yield till the time of Julius Caesar, who totally subdued their country, and reduced it to the form of a Roman province*. The Romans continued in quiet possession of Gaul, as long as their empire retained its strength, and they were in a condition to repulse the incursions of the German nations, whom even in the zenith of their power they had not been able to subdue. But in the reign of the emperor Valerian, the ancient Roman valour and discipline had begun to decline, and the same care was not taken to defend the provinces as formerly. The barbarous nations, therefore, began to make much more frequent incursions; and among the rest the Franks, a German nation, inhabiting the banks of the Rhine, proved particularly troublesome. Their origin is variously accounted for; but the most probable supposition is, that about the time of the emperor Gordian, the people inhabiting the banks of the lower Rhine entered into a confederacy with those who dwelt on the Weser, and both together assumed the name of Franks or Freeman. Their first irruption, we are told by Valerius, happened in the year 254, the second of Valerian's reign. At this time they were but few in number; and were repulsed by Aurelian, afterwards emperor. Not discouraged by this check, they returned two years after in far greater numbers; but were again defeated by Gallienus, whom Valerian had chosen for his partner in the empire. Others, however, continued to pour in from their native country in such multitudes, that Gallienus, no longer able to drive them out by force of arms, made advantageous proposals to one of their chiefs, whom he engaged to defend the frontiers against his countrymen as well as other invaders.

This expedient did not long answer the purpose. In 260 the Franks, taking advantage of the defeat and captivity of Valerian in Persia, broke into Gaul, and afterwards into Italy, committing every where dreadful ravages. Five years afterwards they invaded Spain; which they possessed, or rather plundered, for the space of 12 years: nor could they be driven out of Gaul till the year 275, when the emperor Probus not only gave them a total overthrow in that country, but pursued them into their own, where he built several forts to keep them in awe. This intimidated them so much, that nine of their kings submitted to the emperor, and promised an annual tribute.—They continued quiet till the year 287; when, in conjunction with the Saxon pirates, they plundered the coasts of Gaul, carrying off an immense booty. To revenge this insult, the emperor Maximian entered the country of the Franks the following year, where he committed such ravages that two of their kings submitted to him; and to many of the common people who chose to remain in Gaul, he allowed lands in the neighbourhood of Treves and Cambrai.

The restless disposition of the Franks, however, did not allow them to remain long in quiet. About the year 293, they made themselves masters of Batavia and part of Flanders; but were entirely defeated, and forced to surrender at discretion, by Constantius the father of Constantine the Great, who transplanted them into Gaul. Their countrymen in Germany continued quiet till the year 306, when they renewed their depredations; but being overcome by Constantine the Great, two of their kings were taken prisoners, and thrown to the wild beasts in the shows exhibited on that occasion.

All these victories, however, as well as many others said to have been gained by the Romans, were not sufficient to prevent the incursions of this restless and turbulent nation; insomuch that, in the year 355, they had made themselves masters of 40 cities in the province of Gaul. Soon after, they were totally defeated by the emperor Julian, and again by count Theodosius, father to the emperor of that name; but, in the year 388, they ravaged the province with more fury than ever, and cut off a whole Roman army that was sent against them. As the western empire was at this time in a very low state, they for some time found more interruption from other barbarians than from the Romans, till their progress was checked by Aetius.

When the war with Aetius broke out, the Franks were governed by one Pharamond, the first of their kings of whom we have any distinct account. He is supposed to have reigned from the year 417 or 418, to 428; and is thought by archbishop Usher to have been killed in the war with Aetius. By some he is supposed to have compiled the Salic Laws, with the assistance of four sages named Wifegalt, Lofegalt, Widdegalt, and Solegalt. But Valesius is of opinion that the Franks had no written laws till the time of Clovis.

Pharamond was succeeded by his son Clodio, who likewise carried on a war against the Romans. He is said to have received a terrible overthrow from Aetius near the city of Lens; notwithstanding which, he advanced to Cambrai, and made himself master of that city, where for some time he took up his residence. After this he extended his conquests as far as the river Somme, and destroyed the cities of Treves and Cologne, Tournay and Amiens. He died in the year 448, and was succeeded by Merovaeus.

Authors are not agreed whether the new king was Merovaeus, brother, or son, or any relation at all, to Clodio. It seems probable indeed, that he was of a different family; as from him the first race of French kings were styled Merovingian. He was honoured and respected by his people, but did not greatly enlarge the boundaries of his kingdom. He died in 458.

Merovaeus was succeeded by his son Childeric; who Chilieric, being no longer kept in awe by Aetius, made war on the Romans, and extended his conquests as far as the river Loire. He is said to have taken the city of Paris after a siege of five years, according to some, and of ten, according to others. The Roman power was now totally destroyed in Italy; and therefore Clovis, Clovis, or Louis, for his name is differently written, who succeeded Childeric, set himself about making an entire conquest of Gaul. Part of the province was still retained by a Roman named Syagrius, who probably had become sovereign of the country on the downfall of the western empire in 476. He was defeated and taken prisoner by Clovis, who afterwards caused him to be beheaded, and soon after totally reduced his dominions.

Thus was the French monarchy established by Clovis in the year 487. He now possessed all the country lying between the Rhine and the Loire; which, though a very extensive dominion, was yet considerably inferior to what it is at present.

Clovis had been educated in the Pagan religion, and continued in that profession till the 30th year of his age; notwithstanding which he allowed his subjects full liberty of conscience. Having married, however, Clotilda, daughter of the duke of Burgundy, this princess, who was a zealous Christian, used all her influence with her husband to persuade him to embrace her religion. For some time he continued to waver; but happening to gain a battle, where, being in great danger, he had invoked the god of Clotilda and the Christians, he afterwards gave such a favourable ear to the discourses of Remigius bishop of Rheims, that he soon declared himself a convert, and was baptised in the year 496. His acknowledgment of the truths of the gospel was not followed by any amendment of life: on the contrary, he employed the remainder of his life in the aggrandisement of himself and extension of his dominions by the most abominable treachery, fraud, and violence. In his attacks on Armorica he proved unsuccessful. The inhabitants of this country, which comprehended the maritime part of ancient Gaul lying between the rivers Seine and Loire, had united for their defence; and though abandoned by the Romans, mans, made a powerful defence against the barbarians who assailed them on all sides. Clovis, finding them too powerful to be subdued by force, proposed an union with his people, which they readily accepted, and this the more easily on account of his professing the Christian religion. Thus the Christianity of Clovis in several instances proved subservient to the purposes of his ambition, and his power became gradually very formidable. The Burgundians at this time possessed all the country from the forest of Vologes to the sea of Marseille, under Gondebaud the uncle of Clotilda; who to secure his own authority, had put to death two of his brothers, one of whom was the father of the French queen. The third brother, Godagefil, whom he had spared and allowed to possess the principality of Geneva, confederated with Clovis to drive him from his dominions. A war having commenced between the French and Burgundian monarchs, the latter was deserted in a battle by Godagefil, and obliged to fly to Avignon, leaving his antagonist master of the cities of Lyons and Vienna. The victor next laid siege to Avignon; but it was defended with such vigour, that Clovis at last thought proper to accept of a sum of money and an annual tribute from Gondebaud; who was likewise obliged to cede to Godagefil the city of Vienne, and several other places taken during the war.

Gondebaud no sooner found himself at liberty from his enemies, than he assembled a powerful army; with which he advanced towards Vienne, where Godagefil himself resided at that time. The place was garrisoned by 5000 Franks, and might have made considerable resistance; but Gondebaud being admitted through the subterraneous passage of an aqueduct, massacred most of the Franks, sent the rest prisoners to the king of the Visigoths, and put Godagefil to death. This was quickly followed by the submission of all the other places which had owned the authority of Godagefil; and Gondebaud, now thinking himself able to resist the power of Clovis, sent a message to inform him, that he must no longer expect the promised tribute; and though Clovis was very much mortified with this defection, he found himself obliged for the present to put up with the injury, and accept of the alliance and military service of the king of Burgundy.

His next expedition was against the Visigoths, who possessed considerable territories on both sides of the Pyrenean mountains. His motives for this undertaking were expressed in the following speech to his nobility when assembled in the city of Paris, which he considered as the capital of his dominions. "It is with concern (said the religious monarch) that I suffer the Arians to possess the most fertile part of Gaul; let us, with the aid of God, march against them; and having conquered them, annex their kingdom to our dominions." The nobility approved of the scheme; and Clovis marched against a prince for whom he had but lately professed the greatest regard, vowing to erect a church in honour of the holy apostles, if he succeeded in his enterprise. Alaric the king of the Visigoths was a young man destitute of military experience, though personally brave. He did not therefore hesitate at engaging his antagonist; but, unable to contend with the veteran troops of Clovis, his army was utterly defeated on the banks of the Clain, 10 miles south of Poitiers, in the year 507. Alaric, perceiving the ruin of his troops, rushed against Clovis in person, by whom he was killed, and the remainder of the army pursued for some time with great slaughter. After this victory the province of Aquitaine submitted, and Clovis established his winter quarters at Bordeaux. Thoulouse surrendered next spring; and the royal treasures of the Visigoths were transported to Paris. Augouleme was next reduced, and the city of Arles invested. But here the victorious career of Clovis was stopped by Theodoric king of the Ostrogoths, who had overturned the dominion of Odoacer in Italy. He had married Abolleda the sister of Clovis, but had also given his own daughter in marriage to the king of the Visigoths, and had endeavoured, as much as was in his power, to preserve a good understanding between the two sovereigns. Finding this impossible, however, and that no bounds could be set to the ambition of Clovis, he sent one of his generals with a powerful army against him; by whom the French monarch was defeated with the loss of 30,000 men. By this misfortune Clovis was obliged to raise the siege of Arles with precipitation; however, the Franks still retained the greatest part of their conquests, and the province of Aquitaine was indissolubly annexed to their empire.

In 509, Clovis had the title of Roman consul; by which means the people of Rome were inflexibly led with the pay a peculiar regard to the French monarchs; and title of Roman Consul. Clovis was now supposed to be invested with a just title to all his conquests in whatever manner they had been acquired. He was solemnly invested with his new dignity in the church of St Martin in the city of Tours; after which he entered the cathedral clothed in a purple tunic and mantle, the badges of his office.

Clovis now proceeded to augment his power by the murder of his kinsmen the princes of the Merovingian race. Among those who perished on this occasion were Sigibert king of Cologne, with his son Cloderic, Caracar, another prince whose dominions have not been accurately pointed out by historians; Ranacaire, who governed the present diocese of Cambrai; and Renomer king of the territory of Maine. All these murders, however, were expiated, according to the views of the clergy of those times, by the great zeal he expressed in the cause of Christianity, and his liberality to the church.

Clovis died in the year 511, after having reformed and published the Salic laws; a few lines of which, barring women from inheriting any part of the Salic lands, have been extended so far as to deprive the females of the royal family of France of their right of succession to the throne of that kingdom.

Clovis was buried in the church of St Peter and St Paul, now Genevieve, in the city of Paris, where his tomb is still to be seen. His dominions were divided among his four sons. Thierri, or Theodoric, the eldest, had the eastern part of the empire; and, from his making the city of Metz his capital, is commonly called the king of Metz. Clodomir, the eldest son by Clotilda, had the kingdom of Orleans; Childebert, and Clotaire, who were both infants, had the kingdoms of Paris and Soissons, under the tutelage of their mother. The prudence of Clotilda kept matters quiet in all the parts of the empire for eight years; but... about the year 520, a numerous fleet of Danes arrived at the mouth of the Meuse; and their king Cochillac, having landed his forces, began to destroy the country with fire and sword. Against him Thieri sent his son Theodobert, who defeated the Danish army and navy, and killed their king, forcing the rest to retire with precipitation.

In 522, Hermanfroi king of Thuringia, having destroyed one of his brethren named Berthaire, and seized on his dominions, applied to Thieri for assistance against his other brother Balderic, whom he intended to treat in the same manner. In this infamous enterprise Thiri embarked, on condition that he should have one half of Balderic's dominions; but after the unhappy prince was overcome and killed in battle, Hermanfroi seized all his dominions. Thieri had no opportunity of revenging himself till the year 531; when perceiving the power of the Ostrogoths, whom he much dreaded, to be considerably lessened by the death of king Theodoric, he engaged his brother Clotaire to assist him; and they accordingly entered Thuringia with two powerful armies. They joined their forces as soon as they had passed the Rhine, and were quickly after reinforced by a considerable body of troops under the command of Theodobert. The allies attacked the army of Hermanfroi, which was advantageously posted; and having totally defeated it, he was forced to fly from place to place in disguise. Soon after this the capital was taken, and Hermanfroi himself being invited to a conference by Thieri, was treacherously murdered; after which his extensive dominions became feudatory to Thieri.

In the mean time, Clotilde had excited her children to make war on the Burgundians, in order to revenge the death of her father Chilperic, whom Gondebaud king of Burgundy had caused to be murdered. Gondebaud was now dead, and had left his dominions to his sons Sigismund and Godemar. Sigismund's forces were quickly defeated; and he himself was soon after delivered up by his own subjects to Clodomir, who caused him to be thrown into a pit, where he perished miserably. By his death Godemar became sole master of Burgundy. Clodomir marched against him, and defeated him; but pursuing his victory too eagerly, was surrounded by his enemies and slain. After the reduction of Thuringia, however, Childebert and Clotaire entered the kingdom of Burgundy at the head of a powerful army, and in 534 completed the conquest of it; in which, according to some, Godemar was killed; according to others, he retired into Spain, and from thence into Africa.

In 560 Clotaire became sole monarch of France. He had murdered the sons of Clodomir, who was killed in Burgundy as above related. Thieri and his children were dead, as was also Childebert; so that Clotaire was sole heir to all the dominions of Clovis. He had five sons; and the eldest of them, named Claramer, had some time before rebelled against his father in Auvergne. As long as Childebert lived, he supported the young prince; but on his death, Chrammes was obliged to implore his father's clemency. He was at this time pardoned; but he soon began to cabal against, and engaged the count of Bretagne to assist him in another rebellion. The Bretons, however, were defeated, and Chrammes determined to make his escape; but perceiv-

Clotaire did not long survive this cruel execution of his son, but died in 562; and after his death the French empire was divided among his four remaining sons, Caribert, Gontran, Sigebert, and Chilperic. The old king made no division of his dominions before he died, which perhaps caused the young princes to fall out sooner than they would otherwise have done. After his death, however, they divided the kingdom by lot; when Caribert, the eldest, had the kingdom of Paris; Gontran, the second, had Orleans; Sigebert had Metz (or the kingdom of Austrasia); and Chilperic had Soissons. Provence and Aquitaine were possessed by all of them in common. The peace of the empire was first disturbed in 563 by an invasion of the Abaras; a barbarous nation, said to be the remains of the Huns. They entered Thuringia, which belonged to the dominions of Sigebert; but by him they were totally defeated, and obliged to repass the Elbe with precipitation. Sigebert pursued them close, but readily concluded a peace with them on their first proposals. To this he was induced, by hearing that his brother Chilperic had invaded his dominions, and taken Rheims and some other places in the neighbourhood. Against him, therefore, Sigebert marched with his victorious army, made himself master of Soissons his capital, and of the person of his eldest son Theodobert. He then defeated Chilperic in battle; and not only recovered the place which he had seized, but conquered the greater part of his dominions: nevertheless, on the mediation of the other two brothers, Sigebert abandoned all his conquests, set Theodobert at liberty, and thus restored peace to the empire.

Soon after this, Sigebert married Brunehaut daughter to Athanagilde king of the Visigoths in Spain; and in a little time after the marriage, died Caribert king of Paris, whose dominions were divided among his three brethren. In 567 Chilperic married Galfwintha, Brunehaut's eldest sister, whom he did not obtain without conduct of some difficulty. Before her arrival, he dismissed his Chilperic mistresses called Fredegonde; a woman of great abilities and firmness of mind, but ambitious to the highest degree, and capable of committing the blackest crimes in order to gratify her ambition. The queen, who brought with her immense treasures from Spain, and made it her whole study to please the king, was for some time entirely acceptable. By degrees, however, Chilperic suffered Fredegonde to appear again at court, and was suspected of having renewed his intercourse with her; which gave such umbrage to the queen, that she desired leave to return to her own country, promising to leave behind her all the wealth she had brought. The king, knowing that this would render him extremely odious, found means to dissipate his wife's suspicions, and soon after caused her to be privately strangled, upon which he publicly married Fredegonde.

Such an atrocious action could not fail of exciting the greatest indignation against Chilperic. His domi- nions were immediately invaded by Sigebert and Gontran, who conquered the greatest part of them; after which they suddenly made peace, Chilperic consenting that Brunehaut should enjoy those places which on his marriage he had bestowed upon Galfwintha, viz. Bordeaux, Limoges, Cahors, Bigorre, and the town of Bearn, now called Lelear.

The French princes, however, did not long continue at peace among themselves. A war quickly ensued, in which Gontran and Chilperic allied themselves against Sigebert. The latter prevailed; and having forced Gontran to a separate peace, seemed determined to make Chilperic pay dear for his repeated perfidy and infamous conduct; when he was affianced by a contrivance of Fredegonde, who thus saved herself and Chilperic from the most imminent danger. Immediately on his death, Brunehaut fell into the hands of Chilperic; but Gondebaud, one of Sigebert's best generals, made his escape into Auflavia with Childebert, the only son of Sigebert, an infant of about five years of age, who was immediately proclaimed king in room of his father. In a short time, however, Meroveus, eldest son to Chilperic, fell in love with Brunehaut, and married her without acquainting his father. Chilperic, on this news, immediately went to Rouen, where Meroveus and his consort were; and having seized them, sent Brunehaut and her two daughters to Metz, and carried Meroveus to Soifrons. Soon after, one of his generals being defeated by Gontran, who eloped Brunehaut's caute, Chilperic, in a fit of rage, caused Meroveus to be shaved and confined in a monastery. From hence he found means to make his escape, and with great difficulty arrived in Auflavia, where Brunehaut would gladly have protected him; but the jealousy of the nobles was so strong, that he was forced to leave that country; and being betrayed into the hands of his father's forces, was murdered at the instigation of Fredegonde, as was generally believed.

The French empire was at this time divided between Gontran king of Orleans, called also king of Burgundy, Chilperic king of Soifrons, and Childebert king of Auflavia. Chilperic found his affairs in a very disagreeable situation. In 579, he had a dispute with Varoc count of Bretagne, who refused to do him homage. Chilperic dispatched a body of troops against him; who were defeated, and he was then forced to submit to a dishonourable peace. His brother and nephew lived in strict union, and had no reason to be very well pleased with him. His own subjects, being oppressed with heavy taxes, were miserably poor and discontented. His son Clovis, by a former queen named Andovera, hated Fredegonde, and made no secret of his aversion. To add to his embarrassment, the fealons were for a long time so unfavourable, that the country was threatened with famine and pestilence at the same time. The king and queen were both attacked by an epidemic disease which then raged. They recovered; but their three sons, Clodobert, Samson, and Dagobert, died; after which, the sight of Clovis became so disagreeable to Fredegonde, that she caused him to be murdered, and likewise his mother Andovera, left Chilperic's affection for her should return after the tragic death of her son.

In 583 Chilperic himself was murdered by some unknown assassins, when his dominions were on the point of being conquered by Gontran and Childebert, who had entered into a league for that purpose. After his death Fredegonde implored the protection of Gontran for herself and her infant son Clotaire; which he very readily granted, and obliged Childebert to put an end to the war. He found himself, however, greatly difficulted to keep Fredegonde and Brunehaut in awe; for these two princesses having been long rivals and implacable enemies, were continually plotting the destruction of each other. This, however, he accomplished, by favouring sometimes Brunehaut and sometimes Fredegonde; so that, during his life, neither of them durst undertake any thing against the other.

On the 28th of March 593, died Gontran, having lived upwards of 60, and reigned 32 years. Childebert succeeded to the kingdom without opposition, but did not long enjoy it; he himself dying in the year 596, and his queen shortly after. His dominions were divided between his two sons Theodobert and Thierri; the first of whom was declared king of Auflavia, and the latter king of Burgundy. As Theodobert was only in the 11th year of his age, and Thierri in his 10th, Brunehaut governed both kingdoms with an absolute sway. Fredegonde, however, took care not to let slip such a favourable opportunity as was offered her by the death of Childebert, and therefore made herself mistress of Paris and some other places on the Seine. Upon this Brunehaut sent against her the best part of the forces in Auflavia, who were totally defeated; but Fredegonde died before she had time to improve her victory, leaving her son Clotaire heir to all her dominions.

For some time Brunehaut preserved her kingdom in peace; but in the end her own ambition proved her ruin. Instead of instructing Theodobert in what was necessary for a prince to know, she took care rather to keep him in ignorance, and even suffered him to marry a young and handsome slave of his father's. The new queen was possessed of a great deal of affability and good-nature; by which means she in a short time gained the affection of her husband so much, that he readily consented to the banishment of Brunehaut. Upon this Brunehaut disgrace fled to Thierri king of Burgundy, in the banished year 599. By him she was very kindly received; and instead of exciting jealousies or misunderstandings between the two brothers, she engaged Thierri to attempt the recovery of Paris and the other places which had been wrested from their family by Fredegonde, procuring at the same time a considerable body of auxiliaries from the Visigoths. This measure was so acceptable to Theodobert, that he likewise raised a numerous army, and invaded Clotaire's dominions in conjunction with his brother. A battle ensued, in which the forces of Clotaire were totally defeated, and himself obliged soon after to sue for peace; which was not granted, but on condition of his yielding up the best part of his dominions.

This treaty was concluded in the year 600; but three years afterwards, it was broken by Clotaire. He was again attacked by the two brothers, and the war carried on with great vigour till the next spring. At this time Thierri having forced Landri, Clotaire's general, to a battle, gave him a total overthrow, in which the king's infant son Meroveus, whom he had sent along with Landri, was massacred; to gratify, as Clotaire taire pretended, the malice of Brunehaut. After this victory, Thierri marched directly to Paris; fully bent on the destruction of his cousin, which now seemed inevitable. This, however, was prevented by Theodobert; who no sooner heard of the victory gained by Thierri, than he became jealous of his success, and offered Clotaire such terms of peace as he gladly accepted. The latter having then nothing to fear on the side of Austrasia, quickly compelled Thierri to listen to terms of accommodation also.

This behaviour of Theodobert greatly provoked his brother; and his resentment was highly inflamed by Brunehaut, who never forgot her disgrace in being banished from his court. A war was therefore commenced between the two brothers in 605; but it was so highly disapproved of by the nobility, that Thierri found himself obliged to put an end to it. The tranquillity which now took place was again disturbed in 607, by Theodobert's sending an embassy to demand some part of Childebert's dominions which had been added, by the will of that monarch, to those of Burgundy. The nobility of both kingdoms were so much adverse to war, that they constrained their kings to consent to a conference attended by an equal number of troops; but Theodobert, by a scandalous breach of his faith, brought double the number, and compelled his brother to submit to what terms he pleased. This piece of treachery instantly brought on a war; for Thierri was bent on revenge, and his nobility no longer opposed him. It was necessary, however, to secure Clotaire by a negociation; and accordingly a promise was made of restoring those parts of his dominions which had formerly been taken from him, provided he would remain quiet. This treaty being finished, Thierri entered Theodobert's dominions, defeated him in two battles, took him prisoner, used him with the utmost indignity; and having caused an infant son of his to be put to death, sent him to his grandmother Brunehaut. By her orders he was first shaved and confined in a monastery; but afterwards, fearing lest he should make his escape, she caused him to be put to death.—Clotaire, in the mean time, thought that the best method of making Thierri keep his word was to seize on those places which he had promised to restore to him, before his return from the war with Theodobert. This he accordingly did; and Thierri no sooner heard of his having done so, than he sent him a message requiring him to withdraw his forces, and, in case of his refusal, declared war. Clotaire was prepared for this; and accordingly assembled all the forces in his dominions, in order to give him a proper reception. But before Thierri could reach his enemies, he was seized with a dysentery; of which he died in the year 612, having lived 26 years, and reigned 17.

On the death of Thierri, Brunehaut immediately caused his eldest son, named Sigebert, then in the 10th year of his age, to be proclaimed king. It is probable that she intended to have governed in his name with an absolute sway; but Clotaire did not give her time to discover her intentions. Having great intelligence in Austrasia and Burgundy, and knowing that the nobility in both kingdoms were disaffected to Brunehaut, he declared war against her; and she being betrayed by her generals, fell into the hands of her enemies. Clotaire gave her up to the nobles; who generally hated her, and who used her in the most cruel manner. After having led her about the camp, exposed to the insults of all who had the means to insult her, she was tied by the leg and arm to the tail of an untamed Brunehaut horse, which, setting off at full speed, quickly dashed put to cut her brains. After this her mangled body was reduced to ashes, which were afterwards interred in the abbey of St Martin at Autun.

Thus in the year 613, Clotaire became sole monarch of France; and quietly enjoyed his kingdom till his death, which happened in 628. He was succeeded by Dagobert; who proved a great and powerful prince, and raised the kingdom of France to a high degree of splendour. Dagobert was succeeded by his sons Sigebert and Clovis; the former of whom had the kingdom of Austrasia, and the latter that of Burgundy. Both the kings were minors at the time of their accession to the throne, which gave an opportunity to the mayors of the palace (the highest officers under the crown) to usurp the whole authority. Sigebert died in 649, after a short reign of one year; leaving behind him an infant son named Dagobert, whom he strongly recommended to the care of Grimoalde his mayor of the palace. The minister caused Dagobert to be immediately proclaimed king, but did not long suffer him to enjoy that honour. He had not the cruelty, however, to put him to death; but sent him to a monastery in one of the Western islands of Scotland; and then, giving out that he was dead, advanced his own son Childebert to the throne. Childebert was expelled by Clovis king of Burgundy; who placed on the throne Childeric, the second son of Sigebert. Clovis died soon after the revolution, and was succeeded in his dominions by his son Clotaire; who died in a short time, without issue. He was succeeded by his brother Childeric; who, after a short reign, was murdered with his queen, at that time big with child, and an infant son named Dagobert; though another, named Daniel, had the good luck to escape.

The affairs of the French were now in the most deplorable situation. The princes of the Merovingian situation of race had been for some time entirely deprived of their power by their officers called mayors of the palace. In Austrasia the administration had been totally engrossed by Pepin and his son Grimalde; while Archambaud and Ebroin did the same in Neustria and Burgundy. On the reunion of Neustria and Burgundy to the rest of the French dominions, this minister ruled with such a despotic sway, that the nobility of Austrasia were provoked to a revolt; electing for their dukes two chiefs named Martia and Pepin. The forces of the confederates, however, were defeated by Ebroin; and Martia having surrendered on a promise of safety, was treacherously put to death. Pepin lost no time in recruiting his battered forces; but before he had any occasion to try his fortune a second time in the field of battle, the assassination of Ebroin delivered him from all apprehensions from that quarter. After his death Pepin carried every thing before him, overthrew the royal army under the command of the new minister Bertaire; and, having got possession of the capital, caused himself to be declared mayor of the palace; in which station he continued to govern with an absolute sway during the remainder of his life.

Pepin (who had got the surname of Herifal from his... his palace on the Meuse) died in the year 714, having enjoyed unlimited power for 26 years. He appointed his grandson Theudobald, then only six years of age, to succeed him in his post of mayor of the palace. This happened during the reign of Dagobert already mentioned; but this prince had too much spirit to suffer himself to be deprived of his authority by an infant. The adherents of the young mayor were defeated in battle, and this defeat was soon followed by his death.

Charles, however, the illegitimate son of Pepin, was now raised to the dignity of duke by the Austrasians, and by his great qualities seemed every way worthy of that honour. The murder of Dagobert freed him from a powerful opponent; and the young king Chilperic, who after Dagobert's death was brought from a cloister to the throne, could by no means cope with such an experienced antagonist. On the 19th of March 717, Charles had the good fortune to surprise the royal camp as he passed through the forest of Arden; and soon after a battle ensued, in which the king's forces were entirely defeated. On this Chilperic entered into an alliance with Eudes duke of Aquitaine, whose friendship he purchased by the final cession of all the country which Eudes had seized for himself. Charles, however, having placed on the throne another of the royal family named Clotaire, advanced against Chilperic and his associate, whom he entirely defeated near Soissons. After this disaster, Eudes, despairing of success, delivered up Chilperic into the hands of his antagonist; after having stipulated for himself the same terms which had been formerly granted him by the captive monarch.

Charles now advanced to the summit of power, treated Chilperic with great respect; and, on the death of Clotaire, caused him to be proclaimed king of Austrasia; by which, however, his own power was not in the least diminished; and from this time the authority of the kings of France became merely nominal; and so inactive and indolent were they accustomed, that historians have bestowed upon them the epithet of fainéants, i.e., "lazy or idle." Charles, however, had still one competitor to contend with. This was Rainfroy, who had been appointed mayor of the palace; and who made such a vigorous resistance, that Charles was obliged to allow him the peaceable possession of the country of Anjou. No sooner, however, had Charles thus set himself at liberty from domestic enemies, than he was threatened with destruction from foreign nations. The Suevians, Frifons, and Alemanni, were successively encountered and defeated. Eudes also, who had perniciously broken the treaties to which he had bound himself, was twice repulsed; after which Charles invaded Aquitain, and obliged the treacherous duke to hearken to reason. This was scarcely accomplished, when he found himself engaged with a more formidable enemy than any he had yet encountered. The Saracens, having over-run great part of Asia, now turned their victorious arms westward, and threatened Europe with total subjection. Spain had already received the yoke; and having passed the Pyrenees, they next invaded France, appearing in vast numbers under the walls of Thoulouse. Here they were encountered and defeated by Eudes; but this proved only a partial check. The barbarians once more passing the Pyrenees, entered France with such a powerful army, that Eudes was no longer able to resist. He encountered them indeed with his accomplished valour; but being forced to yield to superior power, he solicited the protection and assistance of Charles. On this occasion the latter, on account of his valour and personal strength, acquired the name of Martel, i.e., "the hammer," alluding to the violence of the strokes he bestowed on his enemies*. Three hundred and seventy-five thousand of the Infidels, among whom was the commander Abderahman himself, are said to have perished in the battle; notwithstanding which they soon made another irruption; but in this they were attended with no better success, being again defeated by Charles; who by so many victories established his power on the most solid foundation. Having again defeated the Frifons, and with his own hand killed their duke, he assumed the sovereignty of the dominions of Eudes after his decease, referring to himself the claim of homage, which he ought to have yielded to Thierry his lawful sovereign. At last his fame grew so great, that he was chosen by pope Gregory III. for his protector. He offered to shake off the yoke of the Greek emperor, and to invest Charles with the dignity of Roman consul; sending him at the same time the keys of the tomb of St Peter; but while this negociation was going on successfully, the pope, the emperor, and Charles Martel himself died. After his death, which happened in the year 741, his dominions were divided among his three sons, Carloman, Pepin, and Gripon, according to the disposition he had made in his life-time. By this Carloman, the eldest, had Austrasia; Pepin, the second, Neustria and Burgundy; while Gripon, the third, had only some lands assigned him in France; by which he was so much displeased, that the tranquillity of the empire was soon disturbed. With the assistance of his mother Sonnechilde he seized on the city of Laon, where he endured a violent siege. In the end, however, he was obliged to submit; Sonnechilde was put into a monastery, and Gripon imprisoned in a castle at Arden. The two brothers, having thus freed themselves from their domestic enemy, continued to govern the empire with uninterrupted harmony; but their tranquillity was soon disturbed by the intrigues of Sonnechilde. That enterprising and ambitious woman had negociated a marriage between Odilon duke of Bavaria and Hiltrude the sister of the two princes. This was no sooner accomplished than Odilon, instigated by Sonnechilde, and alarmed at the growing power of the two princes, entered into an alliance with Theodobald duke of the Alemanni and Theodoric duke of the Saxons; who having assembled a formidable army, advanced directly against the princes. They posted themselves in an advantageous manner, with the river Lech in their front; but Carloman and Pepin, pausing the river at different fords in the night-time, attacked the camp of the allies with great vigour. The engagement continued doubtful for five hours; but at last the entrenchments were forced on all sides, the Bavarians and Saxons entirely routed, and the vanquished dukes obliged to submit to the clemency of the victors. During their absence on this expedition, Hunalde, whom Charles Martel had appointed duke of Aquitain, having likewise entered into a confederacy with Odilon, paused the Loire, ravaged the open country, and burnt the magnificent cathedral of the city of Chartres. The two princes, however, having returned with their victorious torious army, Hunalde found himself obliged to retreat; and even this availed him but little; for the Franks entering the duchy of Aquitain, committed such devastations, that Hunalde in despair resigned his dominions to his son, and retired into a convent. This event was soon followed by a similar resignation of Carloman, notwithstanding the uninterrupted success he had met with. He suddenly took the resolution of retiring into a convent, and persisted in his design, notwithstanding the intrigues of Pepin, who, to appearance at least, did all he could to dissuade him.

By the resignation of Carloman, which happened in the year 746, Pepin was left sole master of France; and in this exalted station he acquitted himself in such a manner as has justly rendered his name famous to posterity. One of the first acts of his new administration was to release his brother Grippon from prison; but that treacherous prince had no sooner regained his liberty, than he again excited the Saxons to take up arms. His enterprise, however, proved unsuccessful; the Saxons were defeated, their duke Theodoric taken, and his subjects obliged to submit to the will of the conqueror; who upon this occasion caused them make a profession of the Christian religion. Grippon then fled to Hiltrude, his half-sister, whose husband Odilon was now dead, and had left an infant son named Taffilon. He met with a favourable reception from her; but, with his usual treachery, seized both her and her son by the assistance of an army of malcontent Franks, whom he had persuaded to join him. His next step was to assume the sovereignty and title of duke of Bavaria; but being driven from the throne by Pepin, he was obliged to implore his clemency, which was once more granted. All these misfortunes, however, were not yet sufficient to cure Grippon of his turbulence and ambition: He once more endeavoured to excite disturbances in the court of Pepin; but being finally detected and baffled, he was obliged to take refuge in Aquitain.

Pepin having now subdued all his foes both foreign and domestic, began to think of assuming the title of king, after having so long enjoyed the regal power. His wishes in this respect were quite agreeable to those of the nation in general. The nobility, however, were bound by an oath of allegiance to Childeric the nominal monarch at that time; and this oath could not be dispensed with but by the authority of the pope. Ambassadors for this purpose were therefore dispatched both from Pepin and the nobility to pope Zachary, the reigning pontiff. His holiness replied, that it was lawful to transfer the regal dignity from hands incapable of maintaining it to those who had so successfully preserved it; and that the nation might unite in the same person the authority and title of king. On this the unfortunate Childeric was degraded from his dignity, shaved, and confined in a monastery for life; Pepin assumed the title of king of France, and the line of Clovis was finally set aside.

This revolution took place in the year 751. The attention of the new monarch was first claimed by a revolt of the Saxons; but they were soon reduced to subjection, and obliged to pay an additional tribute; and during his expedition against them, the king had the satisfaction of getting rid of his restless and treacherous competitor Grippon. This turbulent prince, having soon become weary of residing at the court of Aquitain, determined to escape from thence, and put himself under the protection of Astolphus king of the Lombards; but he was killed in attempting to force a pass on the confines of Italy. Pepin in the meantime continued to push his good fortune. The submission of the Saxons was soon followed by the reduction of Brittany; and that by the recovery of Narbonne from the Infidels. His next exploit was the protection of pope Stephen III. against Astolphus the king of the Lombards, who had seized on the exarchate of Ravenna, and insisted on being acknowledged king of Rome. The pope, unable to contend with such a powerful rival, halted to cross the Alps and implore the protection of Pepin, who received him with all the respect due to his character. He was lodged in the abbey of St Dennis, and attended by the king in person during a dangerous sickness with which he was seized. On his recovery Stephen solemnly placed the diadem on the head of his benefactor, bestowed the regal unction on his sons Charles and Carloman, and conferred on the three princes the title of patrician of Rome. In return for these honours Pepin accompanied the pontiff into Italy at the head of a powerful army. Astolphus, unable to withstand such a powerful antagonist, shut himself up in Pavia, where he was closely besieged by the Franks, and obliged to renounce all pretensions to the sovereignty of Rome, as well as to restore the city and exarchate of Ravenna, and swear to the observance of the treaty. No sooner was Pepin gone, however, than Astolphus broke the treaty he had just ratified with such solemnity. The pope was again reduced to distress, and again applied to Pepin. He now sent him a pompous epistle in the style and character of St Peter himself; which so much inflamed the zeal of Pepin, that he instantly set out for Italy, and compelled Astolphus a second time to submit to his terms, which were now rendered more feasible by the imposition of an annual tribute. Pepin next made a tour to Rome; but finding that his presence there gave great uneasiness both to the Greeks and to the pope himself, he thought proper to finish his visit in a short time. Soon after his return Astolphus died, and his dominions were usurped by his general Didier; who, however, obtained the papal sanction for what he had done, and was recognised as lawful sovereign of the Lombards in the year 756.

Pepin returned to France in triumph; but the peace of his dominions was soon disturbed by the revolt of the Saxons, who always bore the French yoke with the utmost impatience. Their present attempts, however, proved equally unsuccessful with those they had formerly made; being obliged to submit and purchase their pardon not only by a renewal of their tribute, but by an additional supply of 300 horse. But while the king was absent on this expedition, Vaifar duke of Aquitain took the opportunity of ravaging Burgundy, where he carried his devastations as far as Chalons. Pepin soon returned, and entering the dominions of Vaifar, committed similar devastations, and would probably have reduced the whole territory of Aquitain, had he not been interrupted by the hostile preparations of his nephew Taffilon the duke of Bavaria. The king, however, contented himself at present with securing his frontiers by a chain of posts, against any invasion; after which he resumed his enterprise on the dominions of Vaifar. The latter at first attempted to impede the progress of his antagonist by burning and laying waste the country; but finding this to no purpose, he determined to try his fortune in an engagement. Victory declared in favour of Pepin; but he refused to grant a peace upon any terms. The French monarch advanced to the banks of the Garonne; while Vaifar was abandoned by his ally the duke of Bavaria, and even by his own subjects. In this distress he retired with a band of faithful followers into the country of Saintonge, where he defended himself as long as possible, but was at last deprived both of his crown and life by the victor.

Thus the duchy of Aquitain was once more annexed to the crown of France; but Pepin had scarce time to indulge himself with a view of his new conquest when he was seized with a slow fever, which put an end to his life in the year 768, the 54th of his age, and 17th of his reign. He was of a short stature, whence he had the surname of Le Bref, or the Short; but his great actions justly entitled him to the character of an hero; though under the succeeding reign his own fame seemed to have been entirely forgot, and on his tomb was only inscribed, "Here lies the father of Charlemagne."

Pepin was succeeded in his authority by his two sons Charles and Carloman; to whom with his dying breath he bequeathed his dominions. They continued to reign jointly for some time; but the active and enterprising spirit of Charles gave such umbrage to the weak and jealous Carloman, that he regarded him with envy, and was on the point of coming to an open rupture with him, when he himself was taken off by death, and thus the tranquillity of the empire was preserved.

The first military enterprise of Charles was against Hunalde, the old duke of Aquitain; who leaving the monastery where he had resided upwards of 20 years, assumed the royal title, and was joyfully received by his subjects, already weary of the French yoke. Charles took the field with the utmost expedition, and with difficulty prevailed upon his brother Carloman, who was then alive, to join him with his forces. But the junction was scarce effected, when Carloman withdrew his forces again, and left his brother to carry on the war in the best manner he could. Charles, though thus deserted, did not hesitate at engaging the enemy; and having overthrown them in a great battle, Hunalde was obliged to fly to the territories of Lupus duke of Gascony. Charles quickly sent an embassy demanding the fugitive prince; and Lupus, not daring to disobey the orders of such a powerful monarch, yielded up the unfortunate Hunalde, who was instantly cast into prison, from which, however, he afterwards made his escape.

The death of Carloman, which happened in the year 771, left Charles sole master of France; but the revolt of the Saxons involved him in a series of wars from which he did not extricate himself for 33 years. These had long been tributaries to the French, but frequently revolted; and now, when freed from the terror of Pepin's arms, thought they had a right to shake off the yoke altogether. Charles entered their country with a powerful army; and having defeated them in a number of small engagements, advanced towards Eresbourg near Paderborn, where they had their capital post, and where was the image of their god Irminful, represented as a man completely armed, and standing on a column. The Saxons made an obstinate defence, but were at last obliged to submit; and Charles employed his army three days in demolishing the monuments of idolatry in this place; which so much disheartened the whole nation, that for the present they submitted to such terms as he pleased to impose; and which were rendered easier than they probably would have been, by the news which Charles now received from Italy. He had concluded a marriage with the daughter of Didier king of the Lombards; but this had been dissolved by the Pope, who reproached the Lombards with the first stain of the leprosy. Thus all friendship was dissolved between Didier and Charles; and as the Lombard monarchs seem to have had a kind of natural enmity towards the popes, it is not surprising that it should now break out with uncommon fury. Didier having seized and frighted to death Pope Stephen IV., used his utmost endeavours to reduce his successor Adrian I. to a state of entire dependance on himself. Adrian applied to the French monarch, the usual resource of the pontiffs in those days. Charles was very willing to grant the necessary assistance, but the nobility were adverse to an Italian war; so that he was obliged to act with great circumspection. Several embassies were therefore sent to Didier, entreating him to restore to the pope those places which he had taken from him, and at last even offering him a large sum of money if he would do so; but this proposal being rejected, he obtained the consent of his nobility to make war on the Lombards. Didier disposed his troops in such a manner, that the officers of Charles are said to have been unanimously of opinion that it would be impossible to force a passage. This, however, was accomplished, either through the superior skill of Charles, according to some historians, or a panic which seized the Lombard soldiers, according to others; after which, Didier, with the old duke of Aquitain, who had escaped from his prison, and taken refuge at his court, shut themselves up in Pavia. Adalgis, the only son of the Lombard monarch, with the widow and children of Carloman, fled to Verona. That city was immediately invested by the conqueror, and in a short time obliged to submit. Adalgis had the good luck to escape to Constantinople, but we are not informed what became of Carloman's widow and children. Charles, after paying a short visit to Rome, returned to the siege of Pavia. The place was vigorously defended, until famine and pestilence obliged the inhabitants to implore the clemency of Charles. Hunalde fell a sacrifice to his own obstinacy in opposing the intention of the people; Didier was taken prisoner and carried into France; but we are not informed of his fate afterwards. His kingdom, however, was totally dissolved, and Charles was crowned king of Lombardy at Milan in the year 774.

Having received the oaths of allegiance from his new subjects, Charles set out for Saxony, the inhabitants of which had again revolted, and recovered Eresbourg their capital. The king soon recovered this important post; but a detachment of his army being cut off, and new troubles arising in Italy, he was obliged... ged to accept of the proposals of the Saxons, though their sincerity was very doubtful. Having therefore only strengthened the fortifications of Eresbourg, and left a sufficient garrison in the place, he set out for Italy, which was all in commotion through the intrigues of the emperor of the East, and Adalgise the son of Didier. The presence of Charles restored tranquillity in that quarter; but in the mean time, the Saxons having taken Eresbourg and destroyed the fortifications, threatened to annihilate the French power in that quarter. On the king's return, he found them employed in the siege of Siegebourg. His sudden arrival struck the barbarians with such terror, that they instantly sued for peace; which the king once more granted, but took care to secure their obedience by a chain of forts along the river Lippe, and repairing the fortifications of Eresbourg. An assembly of the Saxon chiefs was held at Paderborn; and a promise was made, that the nation should embrace the Christian religion: after which the king set out on an expedition to Spain in the year 778.

This new enterprise was undertaken at the request of Iubula, the Moorish sovereign of Saragossa, who had been driven from his territory. He was restored, however, by the prowess of Charles, who reduced the cities of Pamplona and Saragossa. He reduced also the city of Barcelona, and the kingdoms of Navarre and Arragon; but on his return, he met with a severe check from the Gaicons, who attacked and defeated the rear-guard of his army with great slaughter as they paffed the Pyrenean mountains. This engagement, which seems to imply some defect in the prudence or military skill of Charles, has been much celebrated among romance writers, on account of the death of Roland a famous warrior.

Next year, 779, he paid a visit to Italy with his two sons Carloman and Louis. Having passed the winter at Pavia, he entered Rome next spring amidst the acclamations of the inhabitants. Here, in the 39th year of his age, he divided his dominions in presence of the pope betwixt his two sons Carloman and Louis. The former, who now took the name of Pepin, had Lombardy; the latter Aquitain. Having then received the submission of Tassilon duke of Bavaria, he set out for Saxony, where he took a most severe revenge on the people of that country for the many treacheries they had been guilty of. The present revolt was chiefly owing to a chief named Witikind, who had twice before fled from the victorious arms of Charles, and taken refuge at the court of Denmark. Returning from thence in the king's absence, he roused his countrymen to action, while the generals of Charles, disagreeing among themselves, neglected to take the proper methods for repelling the enemy. In consequence of this, they were entirely defeated on the banks of the Weser in the year 782. Charles arrived in time to prevent the total destruction of his people, and directly penetrated into the heart of the country. Witikind, unable to resist his antagonist, once more fled into Denmark; but 4500 of his followers perished at once by the hands of the executioner. An universal insurrection was the consequence of this unheard-of cruelty; and though during three years the French monarch was constantly successful in the field, he found it impossible by any force whatever to subdue the spirit of the people. At last therefore he was obliged to have recourse to negociation. Witikind and several other chiefs were invited to an interview; where Charles represented to them in such strong colours the ruin which must necessarily ensue to their country by persisting obstinately in opposition to him, that they were induced not only to persuade their countrymen finally to submit, but to embrace the Christian religion.

Charles having thus brought his affairs in Saxony to an happy conclusion, turned his arms against Tassilon duke of Bavaria, who had underhand supported the Saxons in their revolt. Having entered his country with a powerful army in the year 787, he made such rapid advances, that the total destruction of Tassilon seemed inevitable. Charles had advanced as far as the river Lech, when Tassilon privately entered his camp, and threw himself at his feet. The king had compassion on his faithless kinsman on seeing him in this abject posture; but no sooner did the traitor find himself at liberty, than he started up the Hunns, the Greek emperor, and the fugitive Adalgise, against the king. He fomented also the discontent of the factious nobles of Aquitain and Lombardy; but his subjects, fearing least these intrigues should involve them in destruction, made a discovery of the whole to Charles. Tassilon, ignorant of this, entered the diet at Ingelheim, not suspecting any danger, but was instantly arrested by order of the French monarch. Being brought to a trial, the proofs of his guilt were so apparent, that he was condemned to lose his head; the punishment, however, was afterwards mitigated to perpetual confinement in a monastery, and the duchy of Bavaria was annexed to the dominions of Charles.

The Hunns and other enemies of the French monarch continued to prosecute their enterprises without regarding the fate of their associate Tassillon. Their attempts, however, only served to enhance the fame of Charles. He defeated the Hunns in Bavaria, and the Greek emperor in Italy; obliging the latter to renounce for ever the fortune of Adalgise. The Hunns, not disheartened by their defeat, continuing to infest the French dominions, Charles entered their country at the head of a formidable army; and having forced their entrenchments, penetrated as far as Raal on the Danube, but was compelled by an epidemic distemper to retire before he had finished his conquest. He was no sooner returned to his own dominions, than he had the mortification to be informed, that his eldest son Pepin had conspired against his sovereignty and life. The plot was discovered by a priest who had accidentally fallen asleep in a church where the conspirators were assembled. Being awakened by their voices, he overheard them consulting on the proper measures for completing their purpose; on which he instantly set out for the palace, and summoned the monarch from his bed to inform him of the guilt of his son. Pepin was seized, but had his life spared, tho' condemned to expiate his offences by spending the remainder of his days in a monastery.

Charles was no sooner freed from this danger than he was again called to arms by a revolt of the Saxons on the one hand, while a formidable invasion of the Moors distressed him on the other; the Hunns at the same time renewing their depredations on his dominions. The king did not at present make war against the Moors; probably foreseeing that they would be called off by their Christian enemies in Spain. This accordingly happened; the victories of Alfonso the Chalfe obliged them to leave France; after which Charles marched in person to attack the Saxons and Huns. The former consented again to receive the Christian religion, but were likewise obliged to deliver up a third part of their army to be disposed of at the king's pleasure; but the Huns defended themselves with incredible vigour. Though often defeated, their love of liberty was altogether invincible; so that the war was not terminated but by the death of the king, and an almost total destruction of the people; only one tribe could be induced to acknowledge the authority of the French monarch.

These exploits were finished betwixt the years 793 and 798; after which Charles invaded and subdued the island of Majorca and Minorca; which the dissensions of the Moorish chiefs gave him an opportunity of doing. The satisfaction he felt from this new conquest, however, was soon damped by the troubles which broke out in Italy. After the death of pope Adrian, his nephew aspired to the papal dignity; but a priest named Leo being preferred, the disappointed candidate determined on revenge. He managed matters so well, that his designs were concealed for four years. At last, on the day of a procession, a furious assault was made on the person of Leo. The unfortunate pontiff was left for dead on the ground; but having with difficulty recovered, and made his escape to the Vatican, he was protected by the duke of Spoleto, at that time general of the French forces. His cause was warmly espoused by Charles, who invited him to his camp at Paderborn in Westphalia; whence he dispatched him with a numerous guard to Rome, promising soon after to visit that metropolis, and redress all grievances. His attention for the present, however, was called by the defection of the Normans on the maritime provinces of his dominions; so that he was obliged to defer the promised assistance for some time longer. Having constructed forts at the mouths of most of the navigable rivers, and further provided for the defence of his territories, by instituting a regular militia, and appointing proper squadrons to cruise against the invaders, he set out for the fourth and last time on a journey to Rome. Here he was received with the highest possible honours. Leo was allowed to clear himself by oath of the crimes laid to his charge by his enemies, while his accusers were sent into exile. On the festival of Christmas, in the year 800, after Charles had made his appearance in the cathedral of St Peter, and assisted devoutly at mass, the pope suddenly put a crown on his head; and the place instantly resounded with acclamations of "Long life to Charles the August, crowned by the hand of God! Long life and victory to the great and pacific emperor of the Romans!" His body was then consecrated and anointed with royal unction; and after being conducted to a throne, he was treated with all the respect usually paid to the ancient Caesars; from this time also being honoured with the title of Charlemagne, or Charles the Great. In private conversation, however, he usually protested, that he was ignorant of the pope's intention at this time; and that, had he known it, he would have disappointed him by his absence: but these protestations were not generally believed; and the care he took to have his new title acknowledged by the eastern emperors, evidently showed how fond he was of it.

Charles, now raised to the supreme dignity in the west, proposed to unite in himself the whole power of the first Roman emperors, by marrying Irene the empress of the east. But in this he was disappointed by the marriage of that princess by Nicephorus; however, the latter acknowledged his new dignity of Augustus, and the boundaries of the two empires were amicably settled. Charles was further gratified by the respect paid him by the great Haroun Al-Rashid, caliph of the Saracens, who yielded to him the sacred city of Jerusalem, and holy sepulchre there. But in the meantime his empire was threatened with the invasion of a very formidable enemy, whom even the power of Charles would have found it hard to resist. These were the Normans, at this time under the government of Godfrey a celebrated warrior, and who by their adventurous spirit, and skill in maritime affairs, threatened all the western coasts of Europe with desolation. From motives of mutual convenience a transitory peace was established, and Charles made use of this interval to settle the final distribution of his dominions. Aquitain and Gascony, with the Spanish march, were assigned to his son Louis; Pepin had Italy confirmed to him; and to this was added the greatest part of Bavaria, with the country now possessed by the Grifons. Charles the eldest had Neustria, Austrasia, and Thuringia. The donation was supposed to be rendered more authentic by the sanction of the pope. This division, however, had scarce taken place, when the princes were all obliged to defend their dominions by force of arms. Louis and Pepin were attacked by the Saracens, and Charles by the Slavonians. All these enemies were defeated; but while Charles hoped to spend the short remainder of his life in tranquillity, he was once more called forth to martial exertions by the hostile behaviour of Godfrey the Norman leader. Charles sent him a message of defiance, which was returned in the same style by Godfrey: but the former, by artfully fomenting divisions among the northern powers, prevented for a while the threatened danger; but, these disturbances being quelled, the Normans renewed their depredations, and Charles was obliged to face them in the field. An engagement, however, was prevented by the death of Godfrey, who was assassinated by a private folder; on which the Norman army retreated, and the dominions of the emperor still remained free from these invaders. Still the latter days of Charles were embittered by domestic misfortunes. His favourite daughter Rotrude died, as did also Pepin king of Italy; and these misfortunes were soon followed by the death of his eldest son Charles. The emperor then thought proper to associate his only surviving son Louis with him in the government; which was formally done at Aix-la-Chapelle. Charles Death of himself survived this transaction only a few months: his Charles the death happened on the 27th of January 814; in the Great 71st year of his age, and 47th of his reign.

By the martial achievements of this hero, the French Extent of monarchy was raised to its utmost pitch of splendour. He had added the province of Aquitain to the territories of his ancestors; he had confined the inhabitants bitants of Brittany to the shores of the ocean, and obliged them to submit to a disgraceful tribute. He had reduced under his dominion all that part of Spain which extends from the Pyrenees to the river Ebro, and includes the kingdoms of Rouillon, Navarre, Aragon, and Catalonia. He possessed Italy from the Alps to the borders of Calabria; but the duchy of Beneventum, including most of the present kingdom of Naples, escaped the yoke after a transitory submission. Besides these extensive countries, Charles added to his territories the whole of Germany and Pannonia; so that the French now had the jurisdiction of all the country from east and west, from the Ebro in Spain to the Vistula; and from north to south, from the duchy of Beneventum to the river Eyder, the boundary between Germany and the dominions of Denmark.

In acquiring these extensive dominions Charles had been guilty of horrid and repeated massacres; for which, however, he had been in some measure excusable by the barbarity and rebellious disposition of the people with whom he had to deal, upon whom no mild measures would probably have had any effect. His establishing of schools throughout the conquered provinces, showed also his inclination to govern his subjects in peace, and to take proper steps for their civilization; though indeed many parts of his private conduct showed no small inclination to cruelty; particularly the fate of the sons of Carloman, of whom no account could ever be obtained. His advice to his son Louis indeed was excellent; exhorting him to consider his people as his children; to be very mild and gentle in his administration, but firm in the execution of justice; to reward merit; promote his nobles gradually; choose ministers deliberately, but not remove them capriciously or without sufficient reason. All these prudent maxims, however, were not sufficient to enable Louis to govern his empire so extensive, and people so turbulent as he had to deal with. At the time of the decease of his father this prince was about 36 years of age, and had married Ermengarde, daughter of the count of Hef- bai of the diocese of Liege, by whom he had three sons, Lothaire, Pepin, and Louis. Lothaire, the eldest, was associated with himself in the empire, and the two youngest were entrusted with the governments of Aquitain and Bavaria. Every one of the princes proved unfaithful to their father, as well as enemies to one another. The death of Ermengarde, and the marriage of the emperor with Judith a princess of Bavaria, artful but accomplished, proved the first source of calamity to the empire. In the year 823, Charles, the emperor's youngest son was born; and his pretensions became in time more fatal to the public tranquillity than the ambition and disobedience of all the rest. Various parts of the Imperial dominions were likewise assaulted by foreign enemies. The inhabitants of Brittany and Navarre revolted; the Moors invaded Catalonia; while the ambition of Judith produced a war among the brothers themselves.

Charles at first had been appointed sovereign of that part of Germany bounded by the rivers Danube, the Main, the Neckar, and the Rhine; the country of the Grisons and Burgundy, comprehending Geneva and the Swiss cantons; but this was opposed by the three elder sons. Pepin and Louis advanced with the united forces of Aquitaine and Bavaria, while the Imperial forces deserted their standard and joined the malcontents. The emperor was taken prisoner, and the empress retired to a monastery. Lothaire, the eldest of the young princes, to whom the rest found themselves obliged to submit, was the person who retained the emperor in his possession; but notwithstanding his breach of duty, his heart was touched with remorse on account of the crimes he had committed. Dreading the reproach of the world at large, and being threatened with the censures of the church, he threw himself at his father's feet, and begged pardon for his guilt, consenting to relinquish the authority he had unjustly usurped. Thus Louis was re-established in his authority by the diet of the empire which had met to depose him. His first step was to recall his empress from the monastery to which she had retired; but this princess, implacable in her resentment, now persecuted Lothaire to such a degree, that he was obliged to join his two brothers Pepin and Louis in a confederacy against their father. The old emperor thought to check this rebellious disposition by revoking his grant of Aquitain to Pepin, and conferring it on his youngest son Charles, then only nine years of age; but pope Gregory IV. conferred the Imperial dignity itself on Lothaire, deposing the unhappy monarch, and again sending the empress to a nunnery in the forest of Arden. The unnatural behaviour of his sons, however, once more excited the compassion of his subjects. Dreux, the bishop of Mentz, used his interest with Louis king of Bavaria to arm his subjects in defence of his father and sovereign. In this enterprise the Bavarian monarch was joined by the French and Saxons; so that the aged emperor was once more restored, the empress released from her nunnery, and Charles from his prison, in the year 833.

The ambition of Judith now set matters once more in a flame. Taking advantage of the affection her husband bore her, she persuaded him to invest her son Charles with the sovereignty of Neuftria as well as the dominions formerly assigned him. This was productive of great discontent on the part of Lothaire and Pepin; but their power was now too much broken to be able to accomplish anything by force of arms. The death of Pepin, which happened soon after, produced a new division of the empire. The claims of young Pepin and Charles, sons of the deceased prince, were entirely disregarded, and his French dominions divided between the two brothers Charles and Lothaire, the latter being named guardian to his infant nephew. This enraged Louis of Bavaria, whose interest was entirely neglected in the partition, to such a degree, that he again revolted; but the unexpected appearance, with the hostile preparations of the Saxons, obliged him to submit and ask pardon for his offences. Still, however, the ambition of the empress kept matters in a continual ferment, and the empire was again threatened with all the calamities of civil war; but before these took place, the emperor died, in 841, after a most unfortunate reign of 27 years.

Louis was eminent for the mildness of his manners and peaceful virtues, which procured him the title of Le Debonnaire, or "the gentle;" but such was the turbulence and excessive barbarity of the age in which he lived, that all his virtues, instead of procuring him respect... respect and esteem, were productive only of contempt and rebellion from those whom both duty and nature ought to have rendered the most submissive and obedient.

The decease of the emperor was followed by a civil war among his sons. The united forces of Lothaire and his nephew Pepin were defeated by those of Charles and Louis in a very bloody battle in the plains of Fontenoy, where 100,000 Franks perished, in the year 842. This victory, however, bloody as it was, did not decide the fortune of the war. The conquerors having, through motives of interest or jealousy, retired each into their own dominions, Lothaire found means not only to recruit his shattered forces, but pressed the other two princes so vigorously, that they were glad to consent to a new partition of the empire. By this Lothaire was allowed to possess the whole of Italy, with the whole tract of country between the rivers Rhone and Rhine, as well as that between the Meuse and Scheld. Charles had Aquitain, with the country lying between the Loire and the Meuse; while Louis had Bavaria, with the rest of Germany, from whence he was distinguished by the appellation of Louis the German.

By this partition, Germany and France were divided under one head. That part of France which was allowed to Lothaire, was from him called Lotharingia, and now Lorraine, by a gradual corruption of the word. The sovereignty, however, which that prince had purchased at the expense of every filial duty, and purchased at so much blood, afforded him now but little satisfaction. Disgusted with the cares and anxieties of his situation, he sought relief in a monastery in the year 855. On his retreat from the throne, he allotted to his eldest son Louis II. the sovereignty of Italy; to his second son Lothaire the territory of Lorraine, with the title of king; and to his youngest son Charles, named the Bald, Provence, Dauphiny, and part of the kingdom of Burgundy; so that he may be considered as properly the king of France. From the year 845 to 857 the provinces subjected to his jurisdiction had been infested by the annual depredations of the Normans, from whom Charles was at last fain to purchase peace at a greater expense than might have carried on a successful war. The people of Brittany had also revolted; and though obliged by the appearance of Charles himself, at the head of a powerful army, to return to their allegiance, they no sooner perceived him again embattled by the incursions of the Normans, than they threw off the yoke, and under the conduct of their duke Louis subdued the neighbouring diocese of Rennes; after which exploit Louis assumed the title of king, which he transmitted to his son Heriflee. By him Charles was totally defeated; and his subjects, perceiving the weakness of their monarch, put themselves under the protection of Louis the German. His ambition prompted him to give a ready ear to the proposal; and therefore, taking the opportunity of Charles's absence in repelling an invasion of the Danes, he marched with a formidable army into France, and was solemnly crowned by the archbishop of Sens in the year 857. Being too confident of success, however, and fancying himself already established on the throne, he was persuaded to dismiss his German forces; which lie had no sooner done, than Charles marched against him with an army, and Louis abandoned his new kingdom as easily as he had obtained it.

Notwithstanding this success, the kingdom of Charles continued still in a very tottering situation. The Normans harassed him in one quarter, and the king of Brittany in another. He marched against the latter in the year 860; but had the misfortune to receive a total defeat after an engagement which lasted two days. The victory was chiefly owing to a noted warrior named Robert le Fort, or the Strong, who commanded the Bretons; but Charles found means to gain him over to his party by investing him with the title of Duke of France, including the country which lies between the rivers Seine and Loire.

For some time the abilities of Robert continued to support the tottering throne of Charles; but his difficulties returned on the death of that hero, who was killed in repelling an invasion of the Danes. Some amends was indeed made for his loss by the death of the king of Lorraine in the year 869; by which event the territories of Charles were augmented by the cities of Lyons, Vienne, Toul, Besançon, Verdun, Cambrai, Viviers, and Urez, together with the territories of Hainault, Zeeland, and Holland. Cologne, Utrecht, Treves, Mentz, Straßburg, with the rest of the territories of Lothaire, were assigned to Louis the German.

All this time the Normans still continued their incursions to such a degree, that Solomon king of Brittany was persuaded to join his forces to those of Charles, in order to repel the common enemy. The event proved unfortunate to the Normans; for their principal leaders were besieged in Angiers, and obliged to purchase leave to depart by relinquishing all the spoil they had taken. Charles thus freed from a formidable enemy, began to aspire to the imperial crown, which about this time became vacant by the death of Louis. This belonged of right to Louis the German; but Charles, having instantly assembled a powerful army, marched with it into Italy before Louis could be apprised of his designs; and being favourably received at Rome, the imperial crown was put upon his head without any hesitation by the Pope, in the year 873. Louis, enraged at his disappointment, discharged his fury on the defenceless country of Champagne; and though the approach of Charles obliged him for the present to retire, yet he continued his preparations with such vigour, that Charles would in all probability have found him a very formidable adversary, had he not been taken off by death in the year 877. Charles was no sooner informed of his brother's decease, than he invaded the dominions of his son Louis, who possessed Franconia, Thuringia, the Lower Lorraine, with some other territories in that quarter. The enterprise, however, proved unsuccessful. Charles, though superior in numbers, was defeated with great slaughter, and had scarce time to reunite his scattered forces, when he was informed that the Normans had invaded his territories, laid waste part of the country, and taken possession of the city of Rouen. So many disasters affected him in such a manner that he fell dangerously ill; and was scarce recovered of his sickness when he found himself called into Italy to the assistance of the Pope again. the Saracens, whose invasions were encouraged by the dukes of Beneventum and the Greek emperor. Charles passed into Italy with only a few followers; but when he came to Pavia, at which place the pontiff had appointed to meet him, was informed that Carloman king of Bavaria, and son of Louis the German, was already in Italy with a powerful army, and laid claim to the imperial title in virtue of his father's right. Charles prepared to oppose him by force of arms; but his generals conspired against him, and the soldiers declared their resolution not to pass the Alps. On this he was obliged to retire to France, at the very moment that Carloman, dreading his power, prepared to return to Germany. This was the last of Charles's enterprises.

His journey brought on a return of his indisposition, which was rendered fatal through the treachery of a Jewish physician named Zedechias, who administered poison to him under pretence of curing his malady. He expired in a miserable cottage upon mount Cenis in the 54th year of his age, and 38th of his reign over the kingdom of France.

The ambition of Charles had been productive of much distress both to himself and to his subjects. His son Louis, surnamed, from a defect in his speech, the Stammerer, was of a quite different disposition; but his feeble administration was ill calculated to retrieve matters in their present situation. He died on the 10th of April 879, while on a march to suppress some insurrections in Burgundy. He left his queen Adelaide pregnant; who some time after his decease was delivered of a son, named Charles. After his death followed an interregnum; during which a faction was formed for setting aside the children of Louis the Stammerer, in favour of the German princes, sons to Louis the brother of Charles the Bald. This scheme, however, proved abortive; and the two sons of the late king, Louis and Carloman, were crowned kings of France. Another kingdom was at that time erected by an assembly of the states, namely, the kingdom of Provence, which consisted of the countries now called Lyonnais, Savoy, Dauphiny, Franche Comté, and part of the duchy of Burgundy; and this kingdom was given to duke Boson, brother-in-law to Charles the Bald. In 881, both kings of France died; Louis, as was suspected, by poison; and Carloman of a wound he received accidentally while hunting. This produced a second interregnum; which ended with the calling in of Charles the Gros, emperor of Germany. His reign was more unfortunate than that of any of his predecessors. The Normans, to whom he had given leave to settle in Friesland, sailed up the Seine with a fleet of 700 ships, and laid siege to Paris. Charles, unable to force them to abandon their undertaking, prevailed on them to depart by a large sum of money. But as the king could not advance the money at once, he allowed them to remain in the neighbourhood of Paris during the winter; and they in return plundered the country, thus amassing vast wealth besides the sum which Charles had promised. After this ignominious transaction Charles returned to Germany, in a very declining state of health both as to body and mind. Here he quarrelled with his empress; and being abandoned by all his friends, he was deposed, and reduced to such distress, that he would not even have had bread to eat, had not he been supplied by the archbishop of Mentz, out of a principle of charity.

On the deposition of Charles the Gros, Eudes count of Paris was chosen king by the nobility during the minority of Charles the son of Adelaide, afterwards named Charles the Simple. He defeated the Normans, and repressed the power of the nobility; on which account a faction was formed in favour of Charles, who was sent for, with his mother, from England. Eudes did not enter into a civil war; but peaceably resigned the greatest part of the kingdom to him, and consented to do homage for the rest. He died soon after this agreement, in the year 898.

During the reign of Charles the Simple, the French government declined. By the introduction of fiefs, those noblemen who had got into the possession of governments, having these confirmed to them and their heirs for ever, became in a manner independent sovereigns; and as these great lords had others under them, and they in like manner had others under them, and even these again had their vassals; instead of the easy and equal government which prevailed before, a vast number of insupportable little tyrannies were erected. The Normans, too, ravaged the country in the most terrible manner, and defoliated some of the finest provinces in France. At last Charles ceded to Rollo, the king or captain of these barbarians, the duchy of Neustria; who thereupon became Charilain, changed his own name to Robert, and that of his principality to Normandy.

During the remainder of the reign of Charles the Simple, and the entire reigns of Louis IV. surnamed the Stranger, Lothaire, and Louis V. the power of the Carolingian race continually declined; till at last they were supplanted by Hugh Capet, who had been created duke of France by Lothaire. This revolution happened in the year 987, and was brought about much in the same manner as the former one had been by Pepin. He proved an active and prudent monarch, and possessed such other qualities as were requisite for keeping his tumultuous subjects in awe. He died on the 24th of October 997, leaving his dominions in perfect quiet to his son Robert.

The new king inherited the good qualities of his father. In his reign the kingdom was enlarged by the death of Henry duke of Burgundy, the king's uncle, to whom he fell heir. This new accession of territory, however, was not obtained without a war of several years' continuance on account of some pretenders to the sovereignty of that duchy; and had it not been for the affluence of the duke of Normandy, it is doubtful whether the king would have succeeded.—As Robert was of opinion, that peace and tranquillity were preferable to wide extended dominions with a precarious tenure, he refused the kingdom of Italy and the imperial crown of Germany, both which were offered him. He died on the 20th of July 1030; having reigned 33 years, and lived 60.

Robert was succeeded by his eldest son Henry I. Henry II who in the beginning of his reign met with great opposition from his mother. She had always hated him; and preferred his younger brother Robert, in whose favour she now raised an insurrection. By the affluence of Robert duke of Normandy, however, Henry overcame... came all his enemies, and established himself firmly upon the throne. In return for this, he supported William, Robert's natural son, and afterwards king of England, in the possession of the duchy of Normandy. Afterwards, however, growing jealous of his power, he not only supported the pretenders to the duchy of Normandy secretly, but invaded that country himself in their favour. This enterprise proved unsuccessful, and Henry was obliged to make peace; but no sincere reconciliation ever followed; for the king retained a deep sense of the disgrace he had met with, and the duke never forgave him for invading his dominions. The treaty between them, therefore, was quickly broken; and Henry once more invaded Normandy with two armies, one commanded by himself, and the other by his brother. The first was harassed by continual skirmishes, and the last totally defeated; after which Henry was obliged to agree to such terms as the duke thought proper; but the rancour between them never ceased, and was in reality the cause of that implacable aversion which for a long series of years produced perpetual quarrels between the kings of France and those of the Norman race in England.

Henry died in 1059, not without a suspicion of being poisoned; and was succeeded by his eldest son Philip, at that time in the eighth year of his age. Baldwin earl of Flanders was appointed his guardian; and died in the year 1066, about the time that William of Normandy became king of England. After the death of his tutor, Philip began to show a very insincere, haughty, and oppressive disposition. He engaged in a war with William the Conqueror, and supported his son Robert in his rebellion against him*. But after the death of William, he assisted Robert's brothers against him; by which means he was forced to consent to a partition of his dominions.

In 1092, king Philip being wearied of his queen Bertha, procured a divorce from her under pretence of consanguinity, and afterwards demanded in marriage Emma daughter to Roger count of Calabria. The treaty of marriage was concluded; and the princess was sent over, richly adorned with jewels, and with a large portion in ready money; but the king, instead of espousing her, retained her fortune, and dismissed the princess herself, carrying off from her husband the countess of Anjou, who was esteemed the handsomest woman in France. With her he was so deeply enamoured, that not satisfied with the illegal possession of her person, he procured a divorce between her and her husband, and prevailed upon some Norman bishops to solemnize his own marriage with her. The whole of these transactions, however, were so scandalous, that the pope having caused them to be reviled in a council at Autun, in the year 1094, pronounced sentence of excommunication against Philip in case he did not part with the countess. On his repentance, the censure was taken off; but as the king paid no regard to his promises, he was, in 1095, excommunicated a second time. He again professed repentance, and was absolved; but soon after, living with the countess of Anjou as formerly, he was excommunicated a third time. This conduct, so unworthy of a prince, exposed him to the contempt of the people. Too many of the nobility followed his example, and at the same time despised his authority; not only making war upon each other, but spoiling and robbing his subjects with impunity.

In the year 1110, Philip prevailed on the court of Rome to have his affair reviewed in an assembly at Poitiers; where, notwithstanding his utmost efforts, sentence of excommunication was a fourth time pronounced against him. Yet, in spite of all these sentences, as queen Bertha was dead, and the count of Anjou offered, for a large sum of money, to give whatever affiance was requisite for procuring a dispensation, Philip at last prevailed, and the countess was proclaimed queen of France. But though the king's domestic affairs were now in some measure quieted, his negligence in government had thrown the affairs of the nation into the greatest disorder. He therefore associated with him in the government his eldest son Louis. This prince was the very reverse of his father; and by his activity and resolution, keeping constantly in the field with a considerable body of forces, he reduced the rebellious nobility to subjection, and, according to the best historians, at this time saved the state from being utterly subverted.

For these services the queen looked upon the young prince with so jealous an eye, and gave him so much disturbance, that he found it necessary to retire for some time into England; where he was received by king Henry I. with the greatest kindness. He had not been long at court, before Henry received, by an express, a letter from Philip; telling him, that, for certain important reasons, he should be glad if he closely confined his son, or even dispatched him altogether. The king of England, however, instead of complying with this infamous request, showed the letter to Louis, and sent him home with all imaginable marks of respect. Immediately on his return, he demanded justice; but the queen procured poison to be given him, which operated so violently that his life was deprived of. A stranger, however, undertook the cure, and succeeded; only a paleness remained in the prince's face ever afterwards, though he grew so fat that he was surnamed the Gros.

On his recovery, the prince was on the point of revenging his quarrel by force of arms; but his father having caused the queen to make the most humble submissions to him, his resentment was at length appeased, and a perfect reconciliation took place.

Nothing memorable happened in the reign of king Louis the Philip after this reconciliation. He died in the year Gros, 1108, and was succeeded by his son Louis the Gros. The first years of his reign were disturbed by insurrections of his lords in different places of the kingdom; and these insurrections were the more troublesome, as they were secretly fomented by Henry I. of England, that by weakening the power of France his duchy of Normandy might be the more secure. This quickly brought on a war; in which Henry was defeated, and his son William obliged to do homage to Louis for the duchy of Normandy. As the kings of England and France, however, were rivals, and exceedingly jealous of each other, the latter espoused the cause of William the son of Robert duke of Normandy, whom Henry had unjustly deprived of that duchy. This brought on a new war; in which Louis, receiving a great defeat from Henry, was obliged to make peace upon such terms as his antagonist thought proper. proper. The tranquillity, however, was but of short duration. Louis renewed his intrigues in favour of William, and endeavoured to form a confederacy against Henry; but the latter found means not only to dissipate this confederacy, but to prevail upon Henry V., emperor of Germany to invade France with the whole strength of the empire on one side, while he prepared to attack it on the other. But Louis having collected an army of 200,000 men, both of them thought proper to desist. Upon this the king of France would have marched into Normandy, in order to put William in possession of that duchy. His great vassals, however, told him they would do no such thing; that they had assembled in order to defend the territories of France from the invasion of a foreign prince, and not to enlarge his power by destroying that balance which arose from the king of England's possession of Normandy, and which they reckoned necessary for their own safety. This was followed by a peace with Henry; which, as both monarchs had now seen the extent of each other's power, was made on pretty equal terms, and kept during the life of Louis, who died in 1137, leaving the kingdom to his son Louis VII.

The young king was not endowed with any of those qualities which constitute a great monarch. From the superstition common to the age in which he lived, he undertook an expedition into the Holy Land, from whence he returned without glory. In this expedition he took his queen Eleanor along with him; but was so much offended with her gallantries during her stay there, as well as her behaviour afterwards, that he divorced her, and returned the duchy of Guienne which he received with her as a portion. Six weeks after this she married Henry duke of Normandy, count of Anjou and Maine, and heir-apparent to the crown of England. This marriage was a very great mortification to Louis; and procured him the surname of the Young, on account of the folly of his conduct. When Henry ascended the throne of England, some wars were carried on between him and Louis, with little advantage on either side: at last, however, a perfect reconciliation took place; and Louis took a voyage to England, in order to visit the shrine of St Thomas of Canterbury. On his return he was struck with an apoplexy; and though he recovered for that time, yet he continued ever after paralytic on the right side. After having languished for about a year under this malady, he died on the 18th of September 1180, leaving the kingdom to his son Philip.

This prince, named The Gift of God, The Magnanimous, and The Conqueror, during his lifetime; and, as if all these titles had fallen short of his merit, styled Augustus after his death,—is reckoned one of the greatest princes that ever sat on the throne of France, or any other.—It doth not, however, appear that these titles were altogether well founded. In the beginning of his reign he was opposed by a strong faction excited by his mother. Them indeed he repressed with a vigour and spirit which did him honour; but his taking part with the children of Henry II. of England in their unnatural contests with their father, and his treacherous combination with John to seize his brother's kingdom when he was detained in prison by the emperor of Germany, must be incredible stains in his character, and for ever exclude him from the title of Magnanimous. As to military skill and personal valour, he was evidently inferior to Richard I. of England; nor can his recovering of the provinces held by the English in France, from such a mean and dastardly prince as king John, intitle him with any justice to the surname of Conqueror. In politics he was evidently the dupe of the Pope, who made use of him to intimidate John into a submission, by promising him the kingdom of England, which he never meant that he should enjoy. An account of these transactions, which are the principal ones of this reign, is given under the article ENGLAND, n° 121—141.

Philip died in 1223, and was succeeded by his son Louis VIII. and he, in 1226, by Louis IX., afterwards styled St. Louis. This prince was certainly possessed of many good qualities, but deeply tinctured with the superstition of the times. This induced him to engage in two crusades. The first was against the Saracens in Egypt: in which he was taken prisoner by the Infidels, and treated with great cruelty; but at last obtained his ransom, on condition of paying a million of pieces of gold, and surrendering the city of Damietta. He no sooner regained his liberty, than he entered Syria with a view of doing something worthy of his rank and character. From this expedition he was obliged to return sooner than he intended, by the news of the decease of his mother queen Blanch, whom he had appointed regent in his absence, and who had managed the national affairs with the greatest prudence. The king, however, found many disorders in the kingdom upon his return; and these he set himself to reform with the utmost diligence. Having succeeded in this, he yielded to Henry III. of England, the Limousin, Quercy, Perigord, and some other places; in consideration of Henry and his son prince Edward their renouncing, in the fullest manner, all pretensions to Normandy and the other provinces of France which the English had formerly possessed.

The reputation of this monarch for candour and justice was so great, that the barons of England, as well as king Henry III., consented to make him umpire of the differences which subsisted between them. But though he decided this matter very justly, his decision was not productive of any good effect. At last the king, having settled every thing relating to his kingdom in a proper manner, set out on another crusade for Africa; where he died of the plague, on the 25th of August 1270.

Notwithstanding the misfortunes of Louis, his successor Philip, named the Hardy, continued the war Hardy against the Infidels with great vigour. Being reinforced by his uncle Charles king of Sicily, he brought the war to a more fortunate conclusion than his predecessor had been likely to do. The Saracens were defeated in two engagements, and the king of Tunis obliged to sue for peace; offering at the same time to double the tribute he formerly paid to the crown of Sicily; to reimburse the expenses of the war; and to permit the Christian religion to be freely propagated throughout his dominions. Having accomplished this, the two princes set sail for Europe; but the seeds of the distemper which had infected the army in Africa, not being eradicated, broke forth on their arrival in Sicily, and raged for some time with great violence. Besides Besides a vast number of common people, the king's brother John, his queen Isabella, with his brother and sister-in-law the king and queen of Navarre, and his uncle and aunt the count and countess of Poictiers, perished by this dreadful malady.

On his return to France, Philip took possession of the counties of Provence and Thoulouse; married his second son, though then very young, to the only daughter of the king of Navarre; while he himself espoused Mary the daughter of the duke of Brabant, reckoned one of the most beautiful princesses of the age. He steadily enforced the regulations of his predecessor, who had prohibited the barons from making private wars upon one another; procured the friendship of Edward I. of England by ceding to him the county of Agenois; and entered into a war with Spain in order to support the pretensions of his nephews, the Infants de la Cerda, to the throne of Castile.

The events of this war were of no great importance; and the king's attention was quickly called off from them by the death of his eldest son Louis at the age of twelve years. This disastrous event happened in the year 1275, not without a suspicion of poison; and the young queen, Mary, was accused by a surgeon named La Broisse as guilty of his death. Philip gave some credit to the accusation; but having applied to a nun, who pretended to be inspired, for full satisfaction, her answer proved fatal to La Broisse. The queen being cleared by this pretended prophetess, La Broisse was accused of a treasonable correspondence with the king of Castile, and condemned to death. The manner of his trial and execution, however, were such, that the tide of popular favour was turned; La Broisse was by the voice of the people declared to be innocent, and the king and queen themselves loudly condemned.

During these unfavourable circumstances, the Sicilians, over whom Charles of Anjou had established his authority, instigated by John of Procida, a noble exile, came to a resolution of freeing themselves at once from the French yoke by a general massacre. This cruel resolution was accordingly put into execution; and the French, to the number of 8000, murdered in one night; after which Peter of Arragon sailed to the island, where he was received by the inhabitants as their king and favourer. Charles was sensibly affected by this misfortune; and having laid siege to Melina, failed directly to Marseilles, where he obtained a powerful reinforcement. But during his absence on this occasion, his son, to whom he had entrusted the care of the siege, having rashly ventured an engagement with the Spanish fleet, was entirely defeated and taken prisoner; which so much affected the father that he died of grief, and Sicily was inseparably attached to the house of Arragon.

The misfortunes of Charles were followed by others equally great to Philip himself. Pope Martin IV., in the warmth of his zeal for the cause of the duke of Anjou, had excommunicated Pedro king of Arragon, and bestowed his kingdom on Charles of Valois, a younger son of the king of France. In attempting to defend himself against the execution of this unjust sentence, Pedro was mortally wounded; but, soon after, the French fleet being defeated by that of Arragon, the king was so much affected by the misfortune that he fell sick. His disease was augmented by the heat of the climate and the fatigues of war; so that, quite worn out with grief and infirmities, he expired at Perpignan in the 41st year of his age, and 16th of his reign.

By the death of Philip the Hardy the French crown devolved on his second son, called also Philip, and from the beauty of his person termed the Fair; who had espoused the princesses of Navarre, and at the time of his accession was in his 17th year. By the marriage with this princess he had obtained the counties of Champagne and Brie; yet with all this increase of power he found himself unable to support the war in which his predecessor had engaged. For this reason he thought proper to abandon the interest of the Infants de la Cerda, and settle the differences with Castile. The treaty was concluded by the mediation of Edward I. of England; at whose intercession Charles the Lame, son to the duke of Anjou already mentioned, was released from his captivity; Edward himself paying part of his ransom. On this Charles consented to renounce his claim on Sicily; and Philip himself promised that his kinsman, Philip of Valois, should renounce all pretensions to the crown of Arragon. In return for this generosity, the latter obtained the eldest daughter of Charles, with the territories of Anjou and Maine as a dowry.

The tranquillity procured by this treaty, however, was soon interrupted by differences with Edward the promoter of it; pope Boniface VIII., and Guy de Dampier, count of Flanders. The difference with England took place by a mere accident. A Norman and an English vessel having met off the coast of Bayonne, and having both occasion for water, the crews met and quarrelled at the same spring. A Norman was killed in the squabble by his own weapon, with which he assaulted an Englishman, as the latter pretended; but however the matter was, complaints were made by the Normans to Philip; who, without giving himself much trouble to inquire into the merits of the cause, instantly allowed them to redress their supposed injuries. On this a kind of piratical war commenced between the two nations, in which the two sovereigns for some time took no active part; though other nations interfered; the Irish and Dutch feigned siding with the English, and those of Flanders and Genoa with the French. Thus the powers on both sides were gradually augmented, till at last the affair became serious, that in one engagement 15,000 French are said to have perished. Philip, alarmed at such a carnage, summoned the king of England as his vassal to attend; and, on his refusal, declared his estates in France to be forfeited. After a number of negotiations, Philip declared that he would be satisfied with the nominal cession of the province of Guienne, which he engaged instantly to restore to the king of England as soon as it should be put into his hands. Edward complied with his demand; but no sooner had the French monarch obtained possession of that country, than he perilied in the forfeiture of the English possessions in France; which treacherous proceeding instantly produced a war betwixt the two nations. Edward, that he might the better defend himself against such a formidable adversary, concluded a treaty with the emperor Adolphus, together with the counts of Brittany, Holland, Bar, Juliers, Gueldres, and Plan- ders; while Philip strengthened himself by an alliance with John Baliol of Scotland; and this laid the foundation of that strict union which took place between France and Scotland for two centuries. During this war the French made a descent on the coast of England, and destroyed the town of Dover; while Edward, in revenge, landed in Gascony with an army of 50,000 men. No great exploits, however, were performed with this mighty armament; and both parties finding themselves pretty equally matched, contented to a suspension of arms for two years; during which a peace was finally concluded by the mediation of pope Boniface VIII. Guienne was restored; Edward espoused Margaret the sister of Philip; while his daughter Isabella was given in marriage to the prince of Wales.

Both Philip and Edward behaved to the allies whom they had engaged in their cause with equal perfidy. Baliol was abandoned by Philip to the resentment of Edward; while Guy, earl of Flanders, was left equally exposed to the resentment of Philip.

The reconciliation betwixt the French and English monarchs was soon followed by a difference with pope Boniface, whom they had appointed mediator between them. Sensible of his assuming disposition, however, they had inserted in the reference made to him, that he was chosen as a private man, and not as the successor of St Peter. The haughty pontiff, however, soon showed, that he was not by any means to be treated as a private person, and a contest with Philip quickly ensued. Boniface began with forbidding the clergy to grant the king any subsidies without first obtaining the consent of the Holy See, under the pain of excommunication. Philip revenged himself by prohibiting any ecclesiastics from sending money out of the kingdom without his leave; and by protecting the Colonnas, who were the implacable enemies of Boniface. By this his holinesses so much irritated that he sent a most abusive letter to Philip; after which he summoned the clergy of France to a council at Rome; which Philip retaliated, by seizing the temporalities of those who obeyed the summons, and recalling his brother Charles of Valois, who had the title of the pope's general. Sensible, however, of the danger that attended this contest, he dispatched two emissaries, under pretence of conciliating the differences, to levy such a body of troops as might execute his hostile purposes against the holy father. With these he suddenly invested the pope in his native city of Anagnia; and while the bull was preparing for the excommunication of Philip, and releasing his subjects from their obedience, the Pope himself was obliged to surrender prisoner to the troops of the prince whom he designed to anathematize.

Though Boniface had been at this time delivered up to the troops of Philip through the treachery of the people of Anagnia, yet he was no sooner taken prisoner and brought to distress, than they rescued him from his guards and conveyed him to Rome, where he soon after died of grief and shame. His successor Benedict revoked the excommunication of Boniface, and attempted to regain the allegiance of Philip by gentle means; but, before this could be effected, he himself was cut off by death, not without strong suspicions of poison. After his decease Philip offered to procure the papal chair for Bertrand archbishop of Bourdeaux, France, provided he would condemn the memory of Boniface, restore the honours and estates of the Colonnas which had been forfeited, allow him, for five years, the tenths of the clergy of France, and comply with a request which at that time it was not proper to divulge.

Bertrand having complied with the terms proposed by the king, ascended the papal throne by the name of Clement V., but narrowly escaped being killed on his return from the cathedral of Lyons, by the falling of a wall which had been overloaded by the number of people who came to see the procession; by which accident the duke of Brittany was killed, and the king and count of Valois considerably bruised. The new pope fixed his residence at Avignon, where he punctually complied with all the conditions of the treaty, except that of condemning the conduct of Boniface, which he absolutely refused to do; and, instead of doing so, vindicated with much solemnity, after having inquired into the matter, or pretended to do so. The other condition, which Philip had at first concealed, was discovered by the death of the emperor Albert of Austria; after which event he desired Clement to assist him in placing his brother Charles of Valois on the Imperial throne. But his holinesses, apprehensive of the danger which might accrue to himself from being surrounded with the powerful relations of Philip, urged the diet to proceed instantly to an election; recommending to them Henry of Luxemburg as a proper person to fill the Imperial throne. In this scheme he succeeded so well, that the election was over before Philip could arrive at Avignon; and the only consolation the French monarch could obtain for his disappointment was the possession of the city of Lyons, which had hitherto maintained an independency under its archbishop; but was now persuaded to submit to the authority of Philip.

In the mean time Guy, earl of Flanders, being abandoned by his ally Edward king of England, was obliged to throw himself on the mercy of the French monarch, who had sent his brother, Charles of Valois, with a powerful army to invade his dominions. From the latter indeed he had obtained a promise, that if he could not, within a year, compose the differences subsisting between him and Philip, he should be at liberty to retire, and pursue what measures he pleased. But Philip, in order to gratify the resentment which his queen entertained against the captive prince, detained him, with two of his sons, in close confinement; while he himself entering Flanders in triumph, was everywhere received as sovereign of the country; and at his departure appointed John de Chatillon, a relation of the queen, to govern those newly acquired territories.

The new governor took care to repair the fortifications, which had been suffered to decay by reason of the affluence of the Flemings to trade; but being of a very haughty and tyrannical disposition, and the poverty of the times not allowing his master to keep regular garrisons, an insurrection quickly took place. This would have been effectually quelled by the diligence of the magistrates, had not Chatillon unluckily entered Bruges, and publicly displayed two hogheads of ropes, which he threatened to employ in the execution of the inhabitants. On this they flew to arms, massacred 1500 French; Chatillon himself being obliged to escape their fury by swimming over the town ditch. The insurgents now, daily gathering strength, soon amounted to an army of 60,000 men, who laid siege to Courtray. Here they were rashly attacked in their trenches by the count d'Artois, who met with the reward of his temerity, being cut off with 20,000 of his troops. Philip determined on revenge; though the raising another army obliged him to debase the coin of the kingdom. Thus, however, he was enabled to enter Flanders with such a force as would probably have subdued the whole country, had not Edward artfully communicated to the queen of France, as a secret, a feigned correspondence between the French nobility and the court of Rome; by which false intelligence the king was induced to abandon the enterprise without performing any thing worthy of the armament he had fitted out. The war was continued for some time longer; but the attempts of Philip were constantly defeated by the steady valour of the Flemings; and the only recompense Philip obtained for all his trouble and expense was the city of Courtray.

The other remarkable transactions of this reign were the expulsion and confiscation of the estates of the Templars, who at that time enjoyed immense possessions in France. The confiscations took place without any form of trial, and upwards of 50 of them were put to death in a cruel manner. The grand-master, with three of his principal officers, were burnt by a slow fire in the presence of the king himself. The whole body of these unfortunate knights had been accused of the most gross and abominable sensualities. The particulars were revealed, or pretended to be so, by two criminals who received their pardon for the discoveries they made; and these discoveries were confirmed by the confession of the Templars themselves. But this confession was afterwards retracted, as being extorted from them by the fear of absolute destruction; and those who suffered, maintained their purity to the last; and on the whole, it was believed that Philip consulted his avarice rather than his justice by this cruel execution. The latter part of his life was embittered by domestic misfortunes. His three daughters-in-law, Margaret daughter of the duke, and Jean and Blanch, of the count of Burgundy, who had married his three sons Louis, Philip, and Charles, were accused of infidelity to their husbands. After a severe examination, Margaret and Blanch were condemned to perpetual imprisonment; in which situation Margaret was afterwards strangled by order of her husband Louis. Their paramours, Philip and Walter de Launay, two brothers, were flayed alive, and afterwards hung upon a gibbet, with an usher of the chamber, who had been their confident. The uncleanliness of mind which Philip suffered on this account is supposed to have impaired his health, and he died of a consumption in the year 1395, the 47th of his age, and 30th of his reign.

On the accession of Louis, surnamed the Boisterous on account of his violent temper, he found his treasury so much exhausted, that he was obliged to delay for some time the ceremony of his coronation with his new queen Clemence, daughter of the king of Hungary. Finding the kingdom otherwise in a very distracted state, he applied himself very diligently to appease the discontents of his subjects, and conciliate their affection by every means in his power. In this he was assisted by his uncle Charles of Valois, on whom he at length entirely devolved the government of the kingdom. This regent, however, behaved with such cruelty as is supposed to have proved fatal to the king himself; for having put to death a nobleman named Enguerrand de Poitier de Marigny, who enjoyed the confidence of the late king, this cruelty was so much resented, that his friends were thought to have administered poison to the king; who expired suddenly after drinking a glass of cold water, in the 26th year of his age, and second of his reign. Immediately after his death, Charles prepared to dispute the sovereignty with the brothers of the late sovereign. Philip count of Poictou, the eldest brother, was at that time at Rome afflicting in the election of a new pope; and it was not until a month after the death of his brother that he was able to put an end to the intrigues which took place on that occasion: but on his arrival in France, the throne was assigned to him by the unanimous voice of the people. His prospects, however, were for a short time clouded by the queen-dowager Clemence being delivered of a son, who has been enrolled among the kings of France under the name of John I. His death in three weeks secured the throne to Philip; who, on account of the Philip the tallness of his stature was surnamed the Long. His Long conduct proved superior to that of his predecessor, who had unsuccessfully attempted to subdue the Flemings, and had even suffered himself to be duped by their count; but Philip, by his vigorous behaviour, so reduced them, that they compelled their sovereign to consent to a peace upon honourable terms. He summoned Edward II. of England to do homage for his possessions in France; but that monarch, finding himself involved in difficulties, which rendered the visit inconvenient, sent excuses to Philip, which he was pleased to accept. As the French monarch had formerly taken the cross during the lifetime of his father, he now proposed to put his vow in execution; but was dissuaded from this by the pope himself, at whose instance he sent an army into Italy to put an end to the contending factions of the Guelphs and Gibelines, who for so long time filled that country with blood and slaughter. The event proved unfortunate; and the disgrace was rendered more mortifying by a contagious distemper, which swept off many thousands of French subjects. This was supposed by the superstitious people of those times to be occasioned by the Jews, who had conspired with the Saracens to poison the springs; and that the execution of the project was committed to some lepers who lived by themselves in hospitals richly endowed. On this a persecution was instantly commenced against these unfortunate men, and great numbers of them were burnt alive; while the Jews in general were abandoned to the rage of the populace, who insulted their persons, and plundered their houses without remorse.

The remaining part of the reign of Philip was spent in attempting to regulate the internal concerns of his kingdom. A design had been formed by his predecessors of establishing a certain standard for the coin, weights, and measures, throughout France; and this was adopted by Philip; who, in order to carry it more effectively into execution, purchased from the counts of Valois, Clermont, and Bourbon, their right of coinage. coinage within their own dominions. But notwithstanding all his endeavours for this purpose, he never could bring the scheme to bear; nor indeed could he in any degree conciliate the affection of his subjects. He died of a fever and dysentery in the year 1322, the 28th of his age, and 6th of his reign.

By the death of Philip, the crown of France devolved on his brother Charles IV., who had obtained the surname of Fair. After settling some disputes with the duke of Burgundy, his next step was to dissolve his marriage with Blanche, who still continued in prison, and to espouse Mary the daughter of Henry emperor of Germany. This marriage was contracted with a view to the imperial crown itself, which had been so long separated from that of France; and in 1325 an opportunity offered for Charles to gratify his ambition. At that time the Imperial dignity was disputed between Louis of Bavaria and Frederic of Austria; the latter of whom had been taken prisoner in a battle with Louis. But pope John, who entertained an implacable hatred against Louis, fulminated the sentence of excommunication against him, intrusting the execution of it to Leopold the brother of Ferdinand. The king of France was induced to embark in the same cause, by a promise of the spoils of Bavaria; while Frederic himself consented to relinquish his pretensions to the empire which he had so unsuccessfully maintained. Louis, however, by instantly releasing his prisoner, and disowning him in an honourable manner, engaged his friendship, and disarmed his most formidable antagonist. But the pope was not to be so disappointed. A considerable sum of money induced Leopold to persevere in his hostilities, while it was determined that a new council of electors should be held in order to transfer the Imperial crown to Charles. In pursuit of this visionary scheme the king of France set out for the frontiers of Germany with a splendid army; but soon found that there was no possibility of accomplishing his wishes. Leopold alone, from motives of interest, remained his friend; the rest showed the greatest indifference; and even his brother-in-law the king of Bohemia abented himself from the diet; while in a short time the death of the queen put an end to all connections with that crown.

On the decease of Mary, Charles espoused Joanna daughter to the count of Evreux; and in order to avert the calamities to be feared from an infant succession, he entered into an alliance with Robert king of Scotland; by which it was provided, that should either of the sovereigns die without an heir apparent, the estates of the kingdom should fill the vacant throne, and the survivor of the two kings should with his whole force support the legality of the nomination against any other competitor; though even this proved insufficient to avert the danger which now threatened the kingdom, as shall be explained in the sequel.

Charles died in the year 1328, in the 34th year of his age, leaving his queen pregnant; and as the succession depended on the fruit of the queen's pregnancy, a regent in the mean time was necessary; and two candidates instantly appeared for this important post, urging at the same time their right to the crown as well as to the regency. These were, Philip de Valois, cousin-german to the deceased king; the other, Edward III., king of England, who aspired to the throne in right of his mother, and the nephew of Charles the Fair. His pretensions, however, were easily set aside, and Philip was confirmed in the regency; from which he soon after stepped into the throne, on the queen being delivered of a daughter; from which circumstance he acquired the surname of Fortunate. But though the pretensions of Edward, both to the regency and crown, were unanimously rejected by the people, it was still impossible for Philip to think of the claims of such a formidable rival without uneasiness. He therefore summoned the English monarch to do homage for his possessions in France; and, upon his not answering his summons, forfeited them, and seized his revenues. This at last induced Edward to cross land, the sea and pay his homage; which Philip consented to receive in any form, upon condition of a proper explanation being afterwards given: but as this was studiously delayed after the return of the king of England, the province of Guienne was again seized by the French monarch. Edward, unwilling to lose his continental dominions, or involve himself in a war for the sake of a mere ceremony, sent over a formal deed, by which he acknowledged that he owed liege homage to France. Thus the flame was smothered for the present; and would perhaps have been entirely extinguished, had it not been for the intrigues of Robert of Artois, brother-in-law to the king of France himself, who had been expelled his country, and had taken refuge in England. By him he was persuaded to renew his pretensions to the crown of France, which of necessity produced a war.

For some time, indeed, neither party made any open declaration of hostility; but as both monarchs were possessed of great prudence and sagacity, they soon penetrated each other's designs. Philip, under pretence of taking the cross, began to make prodigious armaments, strengthening himself at the same time by alliances on every side; while Edward, determining to renew his claim to the crown of France, projected the conquest of Scotland. This, however, he could not accomplish; and in the mean time Philip, in order to favour the Scots, with whom he was in alliance, suffered his subjects to make irruptions into Guienne.

In 1337, the war broke out openly. Philip having detached a squadron of his fleet against the Infidels, first employed the rest, consisting chiefly of Genoese vessels, against the English. As in this war it was of great importance which side was taken by the Flemings, these people were courted by both parties. Louis count of Flanders declared for Philip, but his subjects were more inclined to king Edward. James Arceville a brewer, the most able and artful man in the country, governed them at that time as much as if he had been their prince; and the advantages arising from the English commerce determined him in favour of Edward, that prince, at his request, embarked for Slays with a numerous army. Here he arrived in 1338; and on his first landing, it was resolved that the German princes in alliance with him should act against France. But for this a pretence was wanting. The vassals of the empire could not act by Edward's orders, or even as his allies, without directions from the emperor, and he was in league with France. This difficulty, however, was soon overcome: the French had made themselves masters of Cambray, and the emperor resolved that it should be retaken. With this view he created Edward Vicar General of the Empire; an empty title, but which seemed to give him a right of commanding the services of the princes of Germany. The Flemings, who were vassals of France, likewise pretended scruples at invading the territories of their liege lord. To quiet these, Edward, by the advice of Arteville, assumed the title of King of France; and by virtue of this right challenged their assistance for dethroning Philip de Valois, the usurper of his kingdom. This step, which he feared would beget endless animosities and jealousies, he did not take without hesitation; and, according to Mr Hume, from this time we may date the commencement of that great animosity which the English have always borne to the French.

Edward's first attempt was upon the city of Cambrai, to which he laid siege; but in a short time he was prevailed upon by Robert d'Artois to raise the siege and march into Picardy. This country he entered with an army of near 50,000 men, composed mostly of foreigners. Philip came within sight of him with an army of near 100,000, composed chiefly of native subjects; and it was daily expected that a battle would ensue. But the English monarch was averse to engage against so great a superiority; and Philip thought it sufficient if he eluded the attacks of his enemy, without running any unnecessary hazard. The two armies faced each other for several days; mutual defections were sent; and Edward at last retired into Flanders, and dispersed his army.

Such was the fruitless, and almost ridiculous conclusion of Edward's first expedition, which had plunged him into the greatest difficulties. He had contracted near £300,000 of debt; he had anticipated all his revenue; he had pawned every thing of value which belonged either to himself or his queen; nay, he was obliged in some measure even to pawn himself to his creditors, by desiring their permission to go over to England in order to procure supply, and by promising on his word of honour to return in person if he did not remit their money. On his arrival in England, however, he procured a large supply, sufficient to enable him to make all the necessary preparations for a new invasion; and so certain were the English that France would now be conquered, that the parliament, before Edward's departure, protested that they owed him no obedience as king of France, but that the two kingdoms must remain for ever distinct and independent.

The king of England set out on his second expedition with a fleet of 240 vessels. Philip had prepared a fleet of 400 vessels, manned with 40,000 men; which he stationed off Sluys, in order to intercept him in his passage. The two fleets met on the 13th of June 1340; but the English, either by the superior abilities of Edward, or the greater dexterity of his seamen, gained the wind of the enemy, and had the fun in their backs; and with these advantages began the action. The battle was fierce and bloody; the English archers, whose force and address were now much celebrated, galled the French on their approach; and when the ships grappled together, the example of the king and the nobility who were with him so animated the seamen and soldiers, that they maintained everywhere a superiority over the enemy. The Flemings observing the battle, hurried out of their ports, and brought a reinforcement to the English; which coming unexpectedly, had a greater effect than in proportion to its power and numbers. Two hundred and thirty ships were taken; and 30,000 Frenchmen were killed, with two of their admirals: the loss of the English was inconsiderable, compared to the greatness and importance of the victory. None of Philip's courtiers, it is said, dared to inform him of the event; till his fool or jester gave him a hint, by which he discovered the loss he had sustained.

After this great victory, Edward landed his forces, and laid siege to Tournay. Philip marched to its relief with a very numerous army; but acted with so much caution, that Edward found himself in a manner blocked up in his camp; and the countess dowager of Hainault, sister to Philip, mother-in-law to Edward, and sister-in-law to Robert d'Artois, coming out of a convent, to which she had retired, interposed with so much spirit and address, that the engaged all parties to agree to a truce for a year, and might perhaps have brought about a peace if she had survived.

In 1341, however, Edward's ambition was once more excited by the invitation of the count de Montfort, who had possessed himself of the province of Brittany, and applied to Edward to second his claims. An offer of this kind entirely coincided with Edward's most sanguine desires. He was happy in the promised assistance of Montfort, an active and valiant prince, closely united to him by interest, and thus opening to him an entrance into the heart of France. These flattering prospects, however, were for a while dampened by the imprisonment of Montfort; whose aims being discovered, he was besieged in the city of Nantz and taken. But Jane of Flanders his wife soon made up for the loss of her husband. This lady courageously undertook to support the falling fortunes of her family. She assembled the inhabitants of Rennes, where she then resided; and carrying her infant son in her arms, deplored her misfortunes, and attempted to inspire the citizens with an affection for her cause. The inhabitants of Nantz instantly espoused her interests, and all the other fortresses of Brittany embraced the same resolution. The king of England was apprised of her efforts; and was intreated to send her succours with all possible expedition to the town of Hennebonne, in which place she resolved to sustain the attacks of the enemy. Charles de Blois, Philip's general, anxious to make himself master of so important a fortress as Hennebonne, and fill more to take the countess a prisoner, sat down before the place with a large army, and conducted the siege with indefatigable industry. The defence was no less vigorous; several assaults were made by the garrison, in which the countess herself was still the most active, and led on to the assault. Observing one day that their whole army had quitted the camp to join in a general storm, she fell out by a postern at the head of 300 horse, set fire to the enemies tents and baggage, put their fattlers and servants to the sword, and occasioned such an alarm, that the French desisted from the assault, in order to cut off her communication with the town. Thus intercepted, she retired to Auray, where she continued five or six days; then returning at the head of 500 horse, she fought her way through one quarter of the French camp, and returned to her faithful citizens in triumph. But the besiegers had at length length made several breaches in the walls; and it was apprehended that a general assault, which was hourly expected, would be fatal. A capitulation was therefore proposed, and a conference was already begun, when the countess, who had mounted on a high tower, and was looking towards the sea with great impatience, despaired some ships at a distance. She immediately exclaimed that succours were arrived, and forbade any further capitulation. She was not disappointed in her wishes; the fleet she discerned carried a body of English gentlemen, with 600 archers, whom Edward had prepared for the relief of Hennebont, but who had been long detained by contrary winds. They entered the harbour under the conduct of Sir Walter Manny, one of the most valiant commanders of his time. This relief served to keep up the declining spirits of the Bretons until the time appointed by the late truce with Edward was expired, on which he was at liberty to renew the war in greater form.

The succours under Sir Walter Manny were quickly followed by a more considerable reinforcement commanded by Robert of Artois, who made himself master of the city of Vannes soon after his arrival; but the Bretons soon recovered the city, and Robert was compelled to relinquish his prize after receiving a mortal wound. Edward himself, eager to revenge the death of his ally, soon landed at Morbihan near Vannes with an army of 12,000 men. With this small number he undertook at once the siege of Vannes, Nantes, and Rennes; but by dividing his forces, he failed in every enterprise, and gave an opportunity to John duke of Normandy, the king of France's eldest son, to invest him in his camp. In this situation his provisions soon began to fail; and Edward, notwithstanding all his valour, would have been obliged to surrender, had he not, by a train of artful negotiations, induced Philip to relinquish the advantage he had obtained, and consent to a truce of three years. This was accomplished by the mediation of the court of Rome; and the French monarch was soon made sensible of the partiality of that court, and the imprudence of the step he himself had taken. Edward soon found a pretence to renew the war, from the execution of some nobles of Brittany, who, he said, were partisans of Montfort, and chose to look upon their punishment as an infraction of the treaty.

Philip now endeavoured to secure himself against the power of his rival by alliances, and by purchasing the city of Montpellier from the king of Majorca; but in the mean time, the English, under the command of the earl of Derby, had invaded Guienne, twice defeated the French army commanded by the Count de Lisle, and made themselves masters of a great number of towns. Philip, by reason of the exhausted state of his treasury, was for some time incapable of making any opposition. To recruit his finances, he was obliged to lay a duty on salt; which gave such offence to his subjects as had almost excited a rebellion. When these discontentments were assuaged, however, he soon raised an army of 100,000 men, whose courage was further raised by the presence of the dukes of Normandy and Burgundy. The English general was therefore compelled to stand upon the defensive. One fortress after another was surrendered to the French; till at length nothing appeared but a total extinction of the power of England upon the continent. In this situation, Edward resolved to bring relief in person to his distressed subjects and allies; and accordingly embarked in 1346 at Southampton, on board a fleet of near 1000 sail, of all dimensions. He carried with him, besides all the chief nobility of England, his eldest son the prince of Wales (afterwards named the Black Prince); a youth of about 15 years old, and already remarkable both for understanding and valour above his age. His army consisted of 4000 men at arms, 10,000 archers, with an army of 10,000 Welsh infantry, and 6000 Irish; all which he landed safely at La Hogue, a port in Normandy, which country he determined to make the seat of the war.

The intelligence of Edward's landing, and the devastation caused by his troops, who dispersed themselves over the whole face of the country, soon spread universal consternation through the French court. The rich city of Caen was taken and plundered by the English without mercy; the villages and towns, even up to Paris, shared the same fate; and the French had no other resource but by breaking down their bridges, to attempt putting a stop to the invader's career. In the meantime, Philip was not idle in making preparations to repel the enemy. He had stationed one of his generals, Godemar de Faye, with an army on the opposite side of the river Somme, over which Edward was to pass; while he himself, at the head of 120,000 fighting men, advanced to give the English battle. Edward, thus unexpectedly exposed to the danger of being inclosed and starved in an enemy's country, published a reward to any that should bring him intelligence of a passage over the river Somme. This was discovered by a peasant of the country named Gobin Agace; and Edward had just time to get his whole army over the river, when Philip appeared in his rear. Of the battle that ensued, in which the French were overthrown with great slaughter, an account is given under the article Cressy.

Edward next laid siege to Calais, which was then defended by John di Vienne, an experienced commander, and supplied with everything necessary for defence. It was at length taken, after a twelve-month's siege, the defendants having been reduced to the last extremity by famine and fatigue; for the consequences of which, see the article Calais.

From the very beginning of this unfortunate war, Philip had invariably showed himself desirous of peace, and the victory of Cressy rendered him still more so. Edward also, notwithstanding his successes, was unable to support the expenses of the war any longer. The mediation of the court of Rome was therefore readily accepted, and a truce for three years concluded. At the same time, Philip met with some recompense for the losses he had sustained, by the acquisition of Dauphiny, which has ever since given the title of Dauphin to the eldest son of the king of France. It was obtained by the resignation of Humbert, prince of Dauphiny; who, being disappointed in his hopes of marrying Joan, daughter of the duke of Bourbon, gave up his territories to Charles the grandson of Philip, who had married that lady; himself retiring into a convent. Soon after this event, the king himself, who had been some time a widower, was married to Blanch, the daughter of Philip count of Evreux, and Jane queen of Navarre; and his son... for John to the countess of Boulogne. But the happiness occasioned by these marriages was soon interrupted by the death of the king; who expired in the year 1350, the 57th of his age, and 2nd of his reign.

On the death of Phillip, his eldest son John took possession of the kingdom; but scarcely was he seated on the throne, when he disquieted his nobility by an unseasonable act of severity. Robert de Brienne, count of Eu and Guines, had been taken prisoner by the king of England at Caen; and under pretence of negotiating his ransom, had passed several times between France and England; but being accused of a treasonable correspondence with Edward, he was by order of his sovereign suddenly arrested, condemned, and beheaded, without any form of trial. At his death, it is said, that he confessed his treasonable practices; but this has not been authenticated by any historian of credit. Having been confiscate of France, the sword, the badge of his office, was delivered to Charles de la Carda; but his fate was equally unfortunate with that of his predecessor, being soon after assassinated by Charles king of Navarre, furred the Black Prince. This prince, celebrated for his personal qualifications, but detested for his crimes, was the son-in-law of John himself. He had demanded the duchy of Angouleme of the king; but as the latter had thought proper to bestow it upon Carda, he had taken the effectual method of revenging himself by assassinating his rival. John did not fail to show a proper resentment; but such was the weakness of his government, that the king of Navarre felt him at defiance, and would not even condescend to the ceremony of asking pardon until John had sent him his second son as an hostage for his personal security. To these offenses the king of Navarre added another still more atrocious, viz. that of aspiring to the crown of France itself; to which he pretended a right derived from his mother, being grandson by the female side to Louis the Boiterous. But his more immediate demands were the countries of Champagne and Brie. To obviate all difficulties on this head, however, John bestowed the duchy of Normandy on his eldest son Charles; and commanded him to seize the estates of the king of Navarre. On this the latter soon made his appearance at Paris; but John found himself obliged to appease his murmurs at the expense of no less than 100,000 crowns.

All this time the truce with England had been very ill observed on both sides; the French had possessed themselves of the port of St Jean d'Angeli; and the English had surprized the town of Guines. The rival houses of Montfort and Blois still continued their animosities; while Edward continued to threaten war. The king of Navarre went on with his intrigues; and even the dauphin was drawn into a confederacy against his father. John, however, being informed of their machinations, found means to defeat them effectually. The dauphin was reclaimed by pointing out to him the impropriety of his conduct, and the disadvantage which must unavoidably accrue to himself from the connections which he had formed.

The king of Navarre was invited, with his principal adherents, to an entertainment, where they were unexpectedly arrested; the former being sent prisoner to Chateau Gaillard, and several of the most obnoxious of the latter put to death. The rest of the conspirators, instead of being dismayed by this check, immediately showed themselves in open rebellion; and finding themselves unable, without farther assistance, to gain their point, they without delay invited over Edward from England.

That warlike and enterprising monarch had never lost sight of the object he had originally embraced; and on the expiration of the truce had sent his son, the prince of Wales, and, from the colour of his armour, furred the Black Prince, with a fleet towards the coast of France. Young Edward had with this fleet entered the mouth of the river Garonne, burnt the towns and villages of Languedoc, and retired with the plunder into the country of Guienne. Edward himself, who had likewise passed over to the continent, waited the country as far as St Omer; but the French king, notwithstanding all these provocations, determined to avoid a battle, and therefore prohibited his general, the constable of Bourbon, from coming to an engagement though his army was much superior to that of the prince of Wales. With the flower of his troops, however, he pursued Edward from St Omer to Hesdin, where he defied him to a pitched battle; but the latter, without minding his bravadoes, continued his march to Calais, from whence he embarked for England. After his departure, John called an assembly of the states at Paris, where he explained the distressed situation of his finances, and showed so fully the necessity of afflicting him in the defence of the kingdom, that they consented to maintain an army of 30,000 men during the war. To supply the other exigencies of government, they revived the duty on salt, and added a variety of other imposts; but at the same time appointed a committee of their own number to take care that the money was solely appropriated to the public service.

The satisfaction which John received from these grants, and the suppression of some disturbances which happened about this time, was soon overcast by the news that the prince of Wales had marched with an army of 12,000 men from Bordeaux; and, after ravaging the Agenois, Quercy, and the Limousin, had entered the province of Berry. The young warrior had penetrated into the heart of France with this trifling body of forces, in hopes of joining the duke of Lancaster in Guienne. But he soon found that his scheme was impracticable; the country before him was too well guarded to permit his advancing further; and all the bridges behind were broken down, which effectually barred a retreat. In this embarrassing situation, his perplexity was increased, by being informed, that the king of France was actually marching at the head of 60,000 men to intercept him. He at first thought of retreating; but soon finding it impossible, he determined calmly to await the approach of the enemy; and, notwithstanding the disparity of forces, to commit all to the hazard of a battle.

It was at a place called Maupertuis, near Poitiers, that both armies came in sight of each other. The Poitiers French king might very easily have starved the English into any terms he thought proper to impose; but such was the impatient valour of the French nobility, and such their certainty of success, that it might have been equally fatal to attempt repressing their ardour to engage. In the mean time, while both armies were drawn... drawn out, and expecting the signal to begin, they were flopped by the appearance of the cardinal of Perigord, who attempted to be a mediator between them. However, John, who made himself sure of victory, would listen to no other terms than the restitution of Calais; with which the Black Prince refusing to comply, the onset was deferred till the next morning, for which both sides waited in anxious suspense.

During this interval, the young prince strengthened his post by new entrenchments; and placed 300 men in ambush, with as many archers, who were commanded to attack the enemy in flank during the heat of the engagement. Having taken these precautions, he ranged his army in three divisions; the van was commanded by the earl of Warwick, the rear by the earls of Salisbury and Suffolk, and the main body by himself. In like manner, the king of France arranged his forces in three divisions; the first commanded by the duke of Orleans; the second by the Dauphin, attended by his younger brothers; while he himself led up the main body, seconded by his youngest and favourite son, then about 14 years of age. As the English were to be attacked only by marching up a long narrow lane, the French suffered greatly from their archers, who were posted on each side, behind the hedges. Nor were they in a better situation upon emerging from this danger, being met by the Black Prince himself at the head of a chosen body of troops, who made a furious onset upon their forces, already in great disorder. A dreadful overthrow ensued: those who were as yet in the lane recoiled upon their own forces; while the English troops who had been placed in ambush, took that opportunity to increase the confusion, and confirm the victory. The dauphin and the duke of Orleans were among the first that fled. The king of France himself made the utmost efforts to retrieve, by his valour, what his rashness had forfeited: but his single courage was unable to stop that consternation which had now become general through his army; and his cavalry soon flying, he found himself exposed to the enemy's fury. At length, spent with fatigue, and despairing of success, he thought of yielding himself a prisoner; and frequently cried out, that he was ready to deliver himself to his cousin the prince of Wales. The honour of taking him, however, was reserved for a much more ignoble hand; he was seized by Dennis de Morbec, a knight of Arras, who had been obliged to fly his country for murder.

In April following, the prince conducted his royal prisoner through London, attended by an infinite concourse of people of all ranks and stations. His modesty upon this occasion was very remarkable: the king of France was clad in royal apparel, and mounted on a white steed distinguished by its size and beauty; while the prince himself rode by his side upon a mean little horse, and in very plain attire.

This dreadful defeat, which happened in the year 1356, almost entirely ruined the French affairs; and the miseries which ensued from this cause were greatly augmented by intestine commotions. The dauphin, who had now assumed the government, was altogether unable to govern a turbulent and feditious people at such a crisis. An assembly of the states, which he called, took the opportunity to limit the power of the prince, impeach the former ministers, and demand the liberty of the king of Navarre; the treasurer of the crown was murdered by one Marcel, a partisan of that worthless prince, who had filled the city of Paris with confusion by his intrigues. The afflatus whom Marcel employed was dragged, by order of the dauphin, from an altar where he had taken refuge, and instantly put to death. The bishop of Paris resented the indignity done to the church; and Marcel avenged the fate of his adherent by murdering both the marshals, who had seized him in the presence of the dauphin; and so near him, that his clothes were stained with their blood. The prince indignantly asked him, if he was to be involved in the same destruction? when Marcel affected to provide for his safety by putting upon him a blue hood, the badge of the adherents of Navarre. The public disorders were now also augmented by the escape of the king of Navarre from confinement; and though the dauphin was even assured that he had administered a dose of poison to him, he was obliged to fill to pay him some appearance of regard. A scheme was even formed by the chiefs of the federation to change the government, to vest all the power in the commons, and leave the king no more than an empty title; but though this was favourably received by the city of Paris, it was entirely rejected by the other cities of the kingdom. The dauphin was likewise recognised as regent by the states general, and the inhabitants of Picardy and Champagne took up arms in his cause.

In this disastrous state of affairs, the miseries of the people were heightened by a new and unexpected evil. The peasants, who had been all along oppressed by the nobles, were now treated in such a manner, that they rose in great numbers to revenge themselves; the castles of the nobility were razed to the ground, their wives and daughters ravished, and themselves put to the most cruel torments. At last they were obliged to arm in their own defence. The duke of Orleans cut off 10,000 of them in the neighbourhood of Paris; 12,000 were massacred by the king of Navarre; 9000, who had laid siege to the town of Meaux, where the dauphiness and three other ladies of the first rank resided, were routed and pursued with dreadful slaughter by an officer in the service of Edward. Amidst these confusions, Marcel, the seditious leader already mentioned, perished in a tumult of his own raising; and the most virtuous and prudent people of the nation supported the pretensions of the dauphin. His most dangerous enemy was the king of Navarre, who had allured to his standard numbers of those Norman and English adventurers who had followed Edward into France, and there been left to seek their fortunes; where they associated themselves under the name of the Companions. By such a formidable competitor the peace between the dauphin was reduced almost to the last extremity, when between his hopes were revived by an unexpected proposal from dauphin his rival, of peace upon equitable and moderate terms.

Historians in general have ascribed this to the natural levity of the king of Navarre; but some have been of opinion that he acted from prudential motives, and that he justly supposed it would be more easy to deal with the dauphin, who was his own kinsman, and humbled by so many misfortunes, than with an haughty and imperious conqueror like Edward.

On the expiration of the truce in 1359, Edward again set sail for France, and anchored before Calais with with a fleet of 1100 sail, assumed the title of king of France, and augmented his army to 100,000 men. The dauphin, finding himself unable to withstand so great a power, was obliged to act on the defensive; choosing the city of Paris for his station, and allowing the English to ravage all the open country. Thus they were allowed to penetrate through Picardy into Champagne; but the city of Rheims, where Edward deigned to have been crowned king of France, baffled their utmost efforts. From Champagne, therefore, which was already laid waste, the English monarch marched into Burgundy; pillaging Tonnerre, Gaillon, and Avalon. Burgundy was saved by the payment of 100,000 merks, and a like sum was paid for Nivernois. At last, after a long and destructive march, Edward arrived at the gates of Paris; but the prudence of the dauphin and citizens of that metropolis had rendered it impregnable to the attacks of famine as well as the assaults of an army. Thus the war went on till the year 1360, when the king of England was inclined to peace, as is said, by a dreadful tempest, to which his army was exposed while encamped in the fields round Chartres. His conduct, however, may more reasonably be derived from other motives. Notwithstanding all the victories he had gained, the French nation showed not the least favour to his claim of succession; the king of Navarre was a dangerous rival, and the caution of the dauphin in avoiding an engagement deprived him of the advantages he might expect from his valour and military skill. Thus conferences for a peace were opened at Bretigny in the Chartraine; and it was at last concluded on the following conditions, viz. That king John should pay for his ransom, at different periods, three millions of crowns of gold (about a million and a half of our money); Edward should for ever renounce all claim to the kingdom of France; and should remain possessed of the territories of Poitou, Xaintonge, L'Agénais, Perigord, the Limousin, Quercy, Rouergue, l'Angoumois, and other districts in that quarter, together with Calais, Guines, Montreuil, and the county of Pontluc on the other side of France. Some other stipulations were made in favour of the allies of England, as a security for the execution of these conditions.

Upon John's return to his dominions, he found himself very ill able to ratify those terms of peace that had been just concluded. He was without finances, at the head of an exhausted state; his soldiery without discipline, and his peasants without subordination. These had risen in great numbers; and one of the chiefs of their banditti assumed the title of The Friend of God and the Terror of Man. A citizen of Sens, named John Gouge, also got himself, by means of his robberies, to be acknowledged king; and he soon caused as many calamities by his devastations, as the real king had brought on by his misfortunes. Such was the state of that wretched kingdom upon the return of its captive monarch: and yet such was his absurdity, that he immediately prepared for a croisade into the Holy Land, before he was well replaced on the throne. Had his exhausted subjects been able to equip him for this chimerical project, it is probable he would have gone through with it; but their miseries were such, that they were even too poor to pay his ransom. This was a breach of treaty that John would not submit to; and he was heard to express himself in a very noble manner upon the occasion: "Though (says he) good faith should be banished from the rest of the earth, yet she ought still to retain her habitation in the breast of kings." In consequence of this declaration, he actually returned to England once more; and yielded himself a prisoner, since he could not be honourably free. It is said by some, that his passion for the countess of Salisbury was the real cause of his journey; but we want at this time the foundations for such an injurious report. He was lodged in the Savoy, the palace where he had resided during his captivity; and soon after he closed a long and unfortunate reign, by his death, which happened in the year 1384, about the 56th year of his age.

Charles, surnamed the Wise, succeeded his father on the throne of France; and this monarch, merely by the force of a finely conducted policy, and even tho' suffering some defeats, restored his country once more to tranquillity and power. He quelled and dispersed a set of banditti, who had associated themselves under the name of Compagnons, and who had long been a terror to the peaceable inhabitants. He had them enrolled into a body, and led them into the kingdom of Castile against Peter, surnamed the Cruel, whom his subjects had dethroned, and who, by means of an alliance with the English, endeavoured to get himself re-instated upon the throne. In consequence of these alliances, the English and French again came to an engagement; their armies on the one side commanded by the Black Prince; on the other, by Henry of Trantamarre, and Bertrand du Guéfelin, one of the most consummate generals and accomplished characters of the age in which he lived. However, the usual good fortune of the English prince prevailed; the French lost above 20,000 men, while only four knights and 40 private men on the side of the English were slain.

Nevertheless, these victories were attended with very bad success—few good effects. The English, by their frequent levies, had been quite exhausted, and were unable to continue an army in the field. Charles, on the other hand, cautiously forbore coming to any decisive engagement; but was contented to let his enemies waste their strength in attempts to plunder a fortified country. When they were retired, he then was sure to fall forth, and possess himself of such places as they were not strong enough to defend. He first fell upon Ponchier; the citizens of Abbeville opened their gates to him; those of St Valois, Rue, and Crotoy, imitated the example; and the whole country was, in a little time, reduced to total submission. The southern provinces were, in the same manner, invaded by his generals with equal success; while the Black Prince, destitute of supplies from England, and wasted by a cruel and consumptive disorder, was obliged to return to his native country, leaving his affairs in the south of France in a desperate condition.

In this exigence, the resentment of the king of England was excited to the utmost pitch; and he seemed resolved to take signal vengeance on his enemies of the continent. But the fortunate occasion was now elapsed; and all his succeeding designs were marked with ill success. The earl of Pembroke and his whole army were intercepted at sea, and taken prisoners by Henry king of Castile. Sir Robert Knolles, one of his his generals on the continent, at the head of 30,000 men, was defeated by Bertrand du Guéflin; while the duke of Lancaster, at the head of 25,000 men, had the mortification of seeing his troops diminished one half by flying parties, without ever coming to a battle.

At last, the English affairs were totally ruined by the death of the Black Prince and king Edward. On receiving this news, the armies of Charles attacked the English on all sides. One, under the command of the duke of Burgundy, entered Artois; another entered Auvergne, under the command of the duke of Berry; that which acted in Guienne was commanded by the duke of Anjou; and the forces in Bretagne were under the constable Gueflin: the king himself had a powerful body of troops, that he might be able to repair any accident which should happen through the chance of war. The constable joined the duke of Burgundy, who found it difficult to oppose Sir Thomas Felton and the Seneschal of Bourdeaux. Soon after his arrival, the constable attacked and defeated them, making both the commanders prisoners of war. This victory was so well pursued, that, at the close of the campaign 1377, Bayonne and Bourdeaux, with the districts about them, and the fortress of Calais with its dependencies, were all the places left to England on the continent.

Thus Charles established once more the house of Valois on the throne of France, but did not long live to enjoy his good fortune. He died in the year 1379, at the age of 44, of the consequences of poison formerly given him by the king of Navarre, as has already been mentioned. The immediate operation of this poison had been suspended by the skill of a physician sent by the emperor Charles IV. He opened an issue in his arm, the running of which preserved his life; but the physician declared, that whenever it should dry up the consequence would be fatal. Not long before his death, Charles had commenced a process against the king of Navarre for this crime. Several of the associates of the latter suffered on this occasion, and the king himself was deprived of his possessions in Normandy, as well as his lordship of Montpelier, which had been given him in lieu of the counties of Champagne and Brie, and the duchy of Burgundy which he had claimed. He did not long survive the death of the French monarch whom he destroyed. His death was singular and very terrible; for having been afflicted with the leprosy, he had been obliged to make use of some bandages dipped in sulphur and afterwards steeped in brandy. These took fire by the carelessness of a page, and the unfortunate prince was burnt to death.

Charles V. was succeeded by his son Charles VI., surnamed the Well-beloved, who at the time of his accession to the throne was only 12 years of age. The duke of Anjou, eldest brother to the late king, had been appointed guardian during the minority of the prince; but he being totally unfit for the office, and distinguished only for his capacity and ambition, readily resigned his charge to the dukes of Burgundy and Bourbon, the former uncle to the king by his father's side, the latter by his mother's. None of these tutors, however, proved faithful to the trust reposed in them. The duke of Anjou seized the plate and treasures of the late king, in order to support his ambitious enterprises. At that time Joan, infamous for her profligacy, reigned in Naples. She had appointed one Charles Durazzo, who was her relation, to succeed her in the throne; but the inhuman wretch murdered his benefactress, who with her last breath revoked her grant of the kingdom to him, and bestowed it upon the duke of Anjou. His influence at the French court enabled him to waste the treasures of the kingdom in support of his pretensions; though he proved ultimately unsuccessful, his forces being constantly defeated, and his designs frustrated by the superior skill of his adversary. The duke of Burgundy, instead of instructing his pupil in the ways of virtue, indulged him in every kind of vicious pleasure, hoping thereby to gain his favour afterwards. The citizens of Paris, oppressed by taxes, broke out into tumults, and were quelled with difficulty; while the mal-administration of Philip the duke of Burgundy soon involved the nation in hostilities with the Flemings. Philip invaded their country at the head of an army of 80,000 men, along with invaders whom was the young king, accompanied by the principal nobility of France. The first operations of war were favourable to the Flemings; but they were at length totally defeated on the banks of the river Lis, where their leader, with 25,000 of his followers, perished. This victory was followed by the submission of the whole country; but the satisfaction of the king at this event was disturbed by new seditions and revolts in the city of Paris, and other great towns of the kingdom. His return, however, at the head of a victorious army, soon reduced them to their duty, and several of the revolted cities were severely punished; at the same time that the death of the duke of Anjou having freed him from the immediate dependence on his tutors, he assumed the reins of government into his own hands in the year 1384.

The genius which Charles began to display in his early years, raised the hopes of the nation; but these were soon overcast, and greater misfortunes than ever were now about to ensue. The young king, whose marriage began to be a subject of attention to the council, refused to comply with the forms in use among his predecessors, and insisted upon seeing the person designed for his consort. An interview was accordingly contrived betwixt him and Isabella daughter to the duke of Bavaria; where he fell in love with daughter to that princess, and afterwards married her. His administration was for some time prudent and vigorous. He conciliated the affections of his people by restoring their privileges, punishing their oppressors, and relieving them from the taxes which had been imposed in his minority. He reduced the Flemings to submit to the authority of his uncle the duke of Burgundy; detached 15,000 archers and 1500 men at arms to assist the Scots in their incursions into England; and in 1385 fitted out a prodigious armament against England. A vast fleet was assembled in the harbour of Sluys, and a very numerous army in the neighbourhood. According to some writers, the armament consisted of 1200 ships, 20,000 foot differently armed, 20,000 cavalry, and 20,000 cross-bow men. There was besides a vast wooden edifice or floating town, which was contrived for the protection of the soldiers when landed: but all these preparations were at last brought France brought to nothing through the obstinacy of the duke of Berry; who, having been originally against this measure, carried on his part of the armament so slowly, that he did not arrive at Sluys till the middle of September, when the season was so advanced, that no invasion was practicable. A storm that happened soon after, drove the greatest part of the fleet on shore, and beat the wooden edifice all to pieces; the remains of which the king bestowed on the duke of Burgundy, to whom he gave also the port of Sluys, which was then very commodious, and of the utmost importance.

The destruction of the French fleet was only a prelude to calamities of a more extraordinary nature. The Sieur de Craon, a profligate nobleman, had been entrusted by the court of France with a considerable sum of money for the support of the duke of Anjou, at the time he was reduced to distress by his Italian expedition. This money he had dissipated at Venice; but, by the credit of the duke of Orleans, the king's brother, he had obtained his pardon, and returned to court. Here he attempted to gratify his private resentment by the assassination of Oliver Clifton the constable, whom he suspected of having promoted his disgrace. This veteran hero was attacked, on his return from the hotel de St Pol, by a band of 20 ruffians, against whom he defended himself with wonderful intrepidity, when at last he fell, after receiving more than 50 wounds. Happily, however, he recovered notwithstanding his being mangled in this manner; while the assassins, to screen himself from vengeance, fled for protection to the duke of Brittany. The king demanded the assassin to be given up to him in chains; but the duke answered, that he knew nothing of him; to which the king giving no credit, marched with all his forces into his territories. When the army arrived at Mans, the king was seized with a slow fever; but could not be prevailed upon to rest or take physic.

On the 5th of August 1391, having marched all day in the heat of the sun, a miserable, ragged, wild-looking fellow, darted from behind a tree, and laying hold of the bridle of his horse, cried out, "Stop! where are you going, king? You are betrayed!" and immediately withdrew again into the wood. The king passed on, not a little disturbed; and soon after one of the pages, who rode behind and carried his lance, overcome with heat, fell asleep, and let it fall upon the helmet which was carried by the other. The king, hearing the noise, looked about; and perceiving the page lifting the lance, killed him immediately: then riding furiously with his sword drawn, he struck on every side of him, and at every person, till he broke his sword; upon which one of his gentlemen leaped up behind him and held his arm. He fell soon after, and lay as if he had been dead; so that being taken up and bound in a waggon, he was carried back to Mans, where he lay two days in a lethargy, after which he came a little to himself, and expressed great concern at the blood he had shed in his delirium. The people, who had expressed the greatest concern for his distemper, were equally rejoiced at the news of his recovery; but unfortunately it was soon discovered, that he no longer possessed that strength of judgment and understanding for which he had formerly been remarkable. Hence a regency became indispensably necessary; and the competition for it brought to light the characters of the queen and duke of Orleans, which had not hitherto been displayed to public view. The former of these was a most beautiful and accomplished princess; but vindictive, violent, and intriguing; insensible to natural affection, but easily accessible to flattery, and ready to yield to every impulse of lawless passion. The duke of Orleans was equally remarkable for his personal accomplishments; and had married Valentina daughter of the duke of Milan; but his engagements with that princess did not prevent him from engaging in a number of licentious amours, and among the rest, as was supposed, with his sister-in-law Isabella. During the king's illness he openly aspired at the regency; but his pretensions were overruled by the states, the administration of affairs being for the present conferred on the duke of Burgundy. In a few months indeed the health and understanding of the king seemed to be sufficiently restored; but in the year 1393 it was again disturbed by an accident no less extraordinary than the former had been. An entertainment had been given in honour of the marriage of one of the queen's attendants. At this fix masques entered the apartment, disguised like satyrs, in linen clothes covered with rosin, and while-warm stuck over with down. These were the king and five of his lords. The duchess of Berri paid attention to the king though she did not know him, and engaged in conversation with him. In the meantime the duke of Orleans, ignorant of the consequence, out of diversion ran a lighted torch against one of them. His whole dress was instantly in a flame, and the fire was from him communicated to all the rest. The masques, notwithstanding the dreadful situation they were in, called out, "Save the king; save the king!" On which the duchess of Berri, recollecting that it must be him with whom she had engaged in conversation, wrapped him in her cloak, and preserved him from farther danger. Only one of the rest escaped by jumping into a cistern of water; the other four perished in the flames. The terror which the king underwent by this accident instantly occasioned a relapse; and he continued delirious at intervals as long as he lived. During this state of insanity he was intractable by every person except Valentina duchess of Orleans; who seemed to have as great an influence over him as her husband the duke had over the mind of the queen. So great was the power indeed which she had over the king in this deplorable state, that in those superstitious times it was supposed by many to be the effect of magic. Others, with more probability, ascribed it to her superior charms as a woman; and this idea instantly produced her a number of enemies among her own sex. The duchess of Burgundy, particularly, by her hatred, and the quarrel between the two ladies, soon extended itself to their husbands. Amidst their dissensions, however, they did not entirely neglect the administration of public affairs; they strove to conciliate the affection of the parliament by preserving the rights of the commons inviolate; and they endeavoured to check an inordinate passion for gaming, which began to appear about this time, and to substitute manly and martial exercises in its place.

During the intervals of his reason, Charles frequently assumed the government into his own hands; and as the war still continued with England, though in a languid manner, the French monarch, in one of these lucid intervals, had an interview with Richard king of England, in order to put an end to hostilities, of which both were equally weary. Still, however, their claims were so difficult to be adjusted, that they could do no more than conclude a truce for 25 years; during which space it was hoped that a lasting peace might take place. Richard gave up Cherbourg to Charles, and Bretz to the duke of Brittany; a marriage was also concluded betwixt the king of England and Isabella the daughter of Charles, though the latter was then only seven years of age; but by reason of the tender age of the princess, this marriage was never consummated.

During this unfortunate reign, France was still farther weakened by the succours sent to the Hungarians against the Turks. On this fatal expedition upwards of 1000 of the bravest and most experienced knights were sent under the conduct of John count of Nevers, eldest son of the duke of Burgundy; the count of Eu constable of France; John de Vienne admiral of France; and the count of Marcile, a prince of the blood-royal; together with De Coucy, one of the best and most experienced captains in Christendom. The prudent counsels of this veteran, however, were not obeyed by the youthful warriors by whom he was accompanied. Attacking the enemy therefore rashly, and while heated with wine, they were all either killed or taken prisoners. Notwithstanding this disaster, however, affiance was sent in the year 1400 to Wenceslaus emperor of Germany; and the duke of Orleans, who commanded the army on this occasion, acquitted himself so well that he acquired the duchy of Luxembourg for himself, and left his ally satisfied; but while the friendship of France was thus courted by foreign powers, the kingdom itself was in the most miserable situation. The king's dis temper seemed daily to gain ground; while the discordant interests of the contending parties kept the whole nation in a ferment. The most violent animosity took place betwixt the dukes of Orleans and Burgundy. The former, by means of his own interest with the queen, and the ascendancy his duchess had over the king, for some time got the better of his rival, and was made lieutenant-general and governor of the kingdom; but having presumed on his power to levy new imposts on the people, and oppressing also the churchmen, whom in that superstitious age he ought by all means to have let alone, he was deprived of his authority, and obliged to yield to the duke of Burgundy. For some time, however, these powerful rivals were kept within some bounds by the mediation of the duke of Bourbon, who seems to have been the only grandee who maintained a pure and unspotted character; but by his death in 1404, the unhappy nation was left totally exposed to their relentless fury. In 1405, the queen and duke of Orleans again seized the administration; but were soon deprived of it by the unanimous voice of the people. During this period Charles and his children were neglected and abandoned to distress; but they were relieved by the duke of Burgundy on his obtaining the regency; and Isabella, with the duke of Orleans, was obliged to retire from Milan. A sudden return of the king's reason and understanding for a much longer time than usual, now deprived both parties of their power; and the administration was vested in the queen and a council composed of princes of the blood.

The two rival dukes, thus prohibited from interfering in public affairs, exercised themselves in committing hostilities against the English, with whom the truce had been lately concluded. They were encouraged to this infraction of the treaty, by the unsettled situation of the affairs of Henry IV.; but their attempts proving unsuccessful, the truce was renewed after obtaining restoration of the princess, who had been married to Richard II., as has been already mentioned. The failure of their enterprises produced a new scene of discord betwixt the dukes, who mutually threw the blame upon each other. By the intrigues of the duke of Berri they were apparently reconciled; but the duke of Burgundy pretended friendship only in order to take the more signal vengeance. To this he was now further inflamed by jealousy. Having hired a band of ruffians to execute his bloody purpose, the duke was one evening attacked by eighteen of them while attended only by two pages. A Norman gentleman whom the duke had deprived of an employment, headed the assassins, and in person attacked the duke. At the first blow he cut off his hand, at the second he struck him from his mule, and at the third put an end to his life. His wife Valentina was so concerned at his death, that she died soon after. The duke of Burgundy escaped to Flanders; and the whole nation was rent into two factions, called the Burgundians and Armagnacs; the latter being the title of the party of the duke of Orleans, from Armagnac the father-in-law of that prince. A dreadful confusion ensued: the duke of Burgundy soon returned to France, and extorted a pardon from the unhappy king, who was now no longer able to resist him; and we may have some notion of the state of the kingdom in general from being told, that 2000 people perished in one tumult in the capital. The king himself was alternately the prisoner of each party, and alternately transferred the power from the one to the other as he happened to fall into their hands. This therefore was thought by Henry V. of England a favourable opportunity to recover from France those grants that had been formerly given up by treaty. But previously, to give his intended expedition the appearance of justice, he sent over ambassadors to Paris, offering a perpetual peace and alliance, on condition of being put in possession of all those provinces which had been ravished by the English during some former reigns, and of espousing Catharine, the French king's daughter, in marriage, with a suitable dowry. Though the French court was at that time extremely averse to war, yet the exorbitance of these demands could not be complied with; and Henry very probably made them in hopes of a denial. He therefore assembled a great fleet and army at Southampton; and having allured all the military men of England, the kingdom to attend him, from the hopes of conquest, he put to sea, and landed at Harfleur, at the head of an army of 6000 men at arms, and 24,000 foot, mostly archers.

His first operations were upon Harfleur; which being pressed hard, promised at a certain day to surrender, unless relieved before that time. The day arriving, and the garrison, unmindful of their engagement, still refusing to defend the place, Henry ordered an assault. assault to be made, took the town by storm, and put all the garrison to the sword. From thence, the victor advanced farther into the country, which had been already rendered desolate by factions, and which he now totally laid waste. But although the enemy made a feeble resistance, yet the climate seemed to fight against the English; a contagious dysentery carrying off three parts of Henry's army. In this situation he had recourse to an expedient common enough in that barbarous age, to inspire his troops with confidence in their general. He challenged the dauphin, who commanded in the French army, to single combat, offering to stake his pretensions on the event. This challenge, as might naturally be expected, was rejected; and the French, though disagreeing internally, at last seemed to unite at the appearance of the common danger. A numerous army of 14,000 men at arms; and 40,000 foot, was by this time assembled under the command of count Albert, and was now placed to intercept Henry's weakened forces on their return. The English monarch, when it was too late, began to repent of his rash inroad into a country where disease and a powerful army everywhere threatened destruction; he therefore thought of retiring into Calais. In this retreat, which was at once both painful and dangerous, Henry took every precaution to inspire his troops with patience and perseverance; and showed them in his own person the brightest example of fortitude and resignation. He was continually harassed on his march by flying parties of the enemy; and whenever he attempted to pass the river Somme, across which his march lay, he saw troops on the other side ready to oppose his passage. However, he was so fortunate as to seize by surprise a passage near St Quintin, which had not been sufficiently guarded; and there he safely carried over his army.

But the enemy was still resolved to intercept his retreat; and after he had passed the small river of Terrois at Blangi, he was surprised to observe from the heights the whole French army drawn up in the plains of Agincourt; and so posted, that it was impossible for him to proceed on his march, without coming to an engagement. A battle accordingly took place, in which the English gained a victory, the most remarkable, perhaps of any recorded in history; an account of which is given under the article Agincourt.

This victory, gained on the 25th of October 1415, was however attended with no immediate effects. Henry still continued to retreat, after the battle of Agincourt, out of the kingdom; and carried his prisoners to Calais, and from thence to England. In 1517, he once more landed an army of 25,000 men in Normandy; and prepared to strike a decisive blow for the crown of France, to which the English monarchs had long made pretensions. That wretched country was now in a most deplorable situation. The whole kingdom appeared as one vast theatre of crimes, murders, injustice, and devastation. The duke of Orleans was assassinated by the duke of Burgundy; and the duke of Burgundy, in his turn, fell by the treachery of the dauphin. At the same time, the duke's son, desirous of revenging his father's death, entered into a secret treaty with the English; and a league was immediately concluded at Arras, between Henry and the young duke of Burgundy, in which the king promised to revenge the murder of the late duke; and the son seemed to insist upon no further stipulations. Henry, therefore, proceeded in his conquests without much opposition from any quarter. Several towns and provinces submitted on his approach; the city of Rouen was besieged and taken; Pontoise and Gisors he soon became master of. He even threatened Paris by the terror of his power, and obliged the court to remove to Troye. It was at this city that the duke of Burgundy, who had taken upon him the protection of the French king, met Henry in order to ratify that treaty which was formerly begun, and by which the crown of France was to be transferred to a stranger. The imbecility into which Charles had fallen, made him passive in this remarkable treaty; and Henry dictated the terms throughout the whole negociation. The principal articles of this treaty were, That Henry should espouse the princess Catharine; that king Charles should enjoy the title and dignity of king for life; but that Henry should be declared heir to the crown, and should be intrusted with the present administration of the government; that France and England should forever be united under one king, but should still retain their respective laws and privileges; that Henry should unite his arms with those of king Charles and the duke of Burgundy, to depose and subdue the dauphin and his partisans.

It was not long after this treaty, that Henry married the princess Catharine; after which he carried his father-in-law to Paris, and took a formal possession of that capital. There he obtained, from the estates of the kingdom, a ratification of the late compact; and then turned his arms with success against the adherents of the dauphin; who, in the mean time, wandered about a stranger in his own patrimony, and to his enemies successes only opposed fruitless expostulations.

Henry's supplies were not provided in such plenty as to enable him to carry on the war, without returning in person to prevail upon his parliament for fresh succours; and, upon his arrival in England, though he found his subjects highly pleased with the splendor of his conquests, yet they seemed somewhat doubtful as to the advantage of them. A treaty, which in its consequences was likely to transfer the seat of empire from England, was not much relished by the parliament. They therefore, upon various pretences, refused him a supply equal to his exigencies or his demands; but he was resolved on pursuing his schemes; and, joining to the supplies granted at home, the contributions levied on the conquered provinces, he was able once more to assemble an army of 28,000 men, and with these he landed safely at Calais.

In the mean time, the dauphin, a prince of great prudence and activity, omitted no opportunity of repairing his ruined situation, and to take the advantage of Henry's absence from France. He prevailed upon the regent of Scotland to send him a body of 8000 men from that kingdom; and with these, and some few forces of his own, he attacked the duke of Clarence, who commanded the troops in Henry's absence, and gained a complete victory.

This was the first action which turned the tide of success against the English. But it was of short duration; for Henry soon after appearing with a consider- able army, the dauphin fled at his approach; while many of the places, which held out for the dauphin in the neighborhood of Paris, surrendered to the conqueror. In this manner, while Henry was everywhere victorious, he fixed his residence at Paris; and while Charles had a small court, he was attended with a very magnificent one. On Whitunday 1421, the two kings and their two queens with crowns on their heads dined together in public; Charles receiving apparent homage, but Henry commanding with absolute authority.

In the mean time, the dauphin was chased beyond the Loire, and almost totally dispossessed of all the northern provinces. He was even pursued into the south, by the united arms of the English and Burgundians, and threatened with total destruction. In this exigence, he found it necessary to spin out the war, and to evade all hazardous actions with a rival who had been long accustomed to victory. His prudence was everywhere remarkable; and, after a train of long persecutions from fortune, he found her at length willing to declare in his favour, by the death of the king of England.

Charles VI died a short time after; and Charles VII succeeded his father to a nominal throne. Nothing could be more deplorable than the situation of that monarch on assuming his title to the crown. The English were masters of almost all France; and Henry VI, though yet but an infant, was solemnly invested with regal power by legates from Paris. The duke of Bedford was at the head of a numerous army, in the heart of the kingdom, ready to oppose every insurrection; while the duke of Burgundy, who had entered into a firm confederacy with him, still remained steadfast, and seconded his claims. Yet, notwithstanding these favourable appearances, Charles found means to break the leagues formed against him, and to bring back his subjects to their natural interests and their duty.

However, his first attempts were totally destitute of success. Wherever he endeavoured to face the enemy he was overthrown, and he could scarcely rely on the friends next his person. His authority was insulted even by his own servants; advantage after advantage was gained against him; and a battle fought near Verneuil, in which he was totally defeated by the duke of Bedford, seemed to render his affairs altogether desperate. But from the impossibility of the English keeping the field without new supplies, Bedford was obliged to retire into England; and in the mean time, his vigilant enemy began to recover from his late confusion. Dunois, one of his generals, at the head of 1000 men, compelled the earl of Warwick to raise the siege of Montargis; and this advantage, slight as it was, began to make the French suppose that the English were not invincible.

But they soon had still greater reason to triumph in their change of fortune, and a new revolution was produced by means apparently the most unlikely to be attended with success. In the village of Domremi, near Vaucouleurs, on the borders of Lorraine, there lived a country-girl, about 27 years of age, called Joan de Arc. This girl had been a servant at a small inn; and in that humble station had submitted to those hardy employments which fit the body for the fatigues of war. She was of an irreproachable life, and had hitherto testified none of those enterprising qualities which displayed themselves soon after. She contentedly fulfilled the duties of her situation, and was remarkable only for her modesty and love of religion. But the miseries of her country seemed to have been one of the greatest objects of her compassion and regard. Her mind, inflamed by these objects, and brooding with melancholy steadfastness upon them, began to feel several impulses, which she was willing to mistake for the inspirations of heaven. Convinced of the reality of her own admonitions, she had recourse to one Baudricourt, governor of Vaucouleurs, and informed him of her inclination by heaven to free her native country of its fierce invaders. Baudricourt treated her at first with neglect; but her importunities at length prevailed; and willing to make a trial of her pretensions, he gave her some attendants, who conducted her to the court, which at that time resided at Chinon.

The French court were probably sensible of the weakness of her pretensions; but they were willing to make use of every artifice to support their declining fortunes. It was therefore given out, that Joan was actually inspired; that she had been able to discover the king among the number of his couriers, although he had laid aside all the distinctions of his authority; that she had told him some secrets, which were only known to himself; and that she had demanded, and minutely described, a sword in the church of St Catherine de Fierbois, which she had never seen. In this manner, the minds of the vulgar being prepared for her appearance, she was armed cap-a-pie, and shown in that martial dress to the people. She was then brought before the doctors of the university; and they, tinctured with the credulity of the times, or willing to second the imposture, declared that she had actually received her commission from above.

When the preparations for her mission were completely blazoned, the next aim was to send her against the enemy. The English were at that time besieging the city of Orleans, the last resource of Charles, and every thing promised them a speedy surrender. Joan undertook to raise the siege; and to render herself still more remarkable, girded herself with the miraculous sword, of which she before had such extraordinary notices. Thus equipped, she ordered all the soldiers to confess themselves before they set out; she displayed in her hand a consecrated banner, and assured the troops of certain success. Such confidence on her side soon raised the spirits of the French army; and even the English, who pretended to despise her efforts, felt themselves secretly influenced with the terrors of her mission. A supply of provisions was to be conveyed into the town; Joan, at the head of some French troops, covered the embarkation, and entered Orleans at the head of the convoy which she had safely protected. While she was leading her troops along, a dead silence and astonishment reigned among the English; and they regarded with religious awe that temerity, which they thought nothing but supernatural assistance could inspire. But they were soon roused from their state of amazement by a fall from the town; Joan led on the besieged, bearing the sacred standard in her hand, encouraging them with her words and actions, bringing them to the trenches, and overpowering the besie- gers in their own redoubts. In the attack of one of the forts, she was wounded in the neck with an arrow; but instantly pulling out the weapon with her own hands, and getting the wound quickly dressed, she hastened back to head the troops, and to plant her victorious banner on the ramparts of the enemy. These successes continuing, the English found that it was impossible to resist troops animated by such superior energy; and Suffolk, who conducted the attack, thinking that it might prove extremely dangerous to remain any longer in the presence of such a courageous and victorious enemy, raised the siege, and retreated with all imaginable precaution.

From being attacked, the French now in turn became the aggressors. Charles formed a body of 6000 men, and sent them to besiege Jargeau, whither the English, commanded by the earl of Suffolk, had retired, with a detachment of his army. The city was taken; Suffolk yielded himself a prisoner; and Joan marched into the place in triumph at the head of the army. A battle was soon after fought near Patay, where the English were worsted, as before; and the generals Scales and Talbot were taken prisoners.

The raising of the siege of Orleans was one part of the maid's promise to the king of France; the crowning him at Rheims was the other. She now declared that it was time to complete that ceremony; and Charles, in pursuance of her advice, set out for Rheims at the head of 12,000 men. The towns through which he passed opened their gates to receive him; and Rheims sent him a deputation, with its keys, upon his approach. The ceremony of his coronation was there performed with the utmost solemnity; and the Maid of Orleans (for so she was now called) feeling the completion of her mission, desired leave to retire, alleging, that she had now accomplished the end of her calling. But her services had been so great, that the king could not think of parting with her; he pressed her to stay to earnestly, that she at length complied with his request.

A tide of successes followed the performance of this solemnity; Laon, Soissons, Chateau-Thierry, Provins, and many other fortresses in that neighbourhood, submitted to him on the first summons. On the other hand, the English, discomfited and dispirited, fled on every quarter; not knowing whether to ascribe their misfortunes to the power of sorcery or to a celestial influence; but equally terrified at either. They now found themselves deprived of the conquests they had gained, in the same manner as the French had formerly submitted to their power. "Their own divisions, both abroad and at home, unfitting them entirely for carrying on the war; and the duke of Bedford, notwithstanding all his prudence, saw himself divested of his strongholds in the country, without being able to stop the enemy's progress. In order, therefore, to revive the declining state of his affairs, he resolved to have Henry crowned king at Paris, knowing that the natives would be allured to obedience by the splendor of the ceremony. In 1430, Henry was accordingly crowned, all the vassals that still continued under the English power swearing fealty and homage. But it was now too late for the ceremonies of a coronation to give a turn to the affairs of the English; the generality of the kingdom had declared against them, and the remainder only waited a convenient opportunity to follow the example.

An accident ensued soon after, which, though it promised to promote the English cause in France, in the end served to render it odious, and conducing to the total evacuation of that country. The duke of Burgundy, at the head of a powerful army, had laid siege to Compeigny; and the Maid of Orleans had thrown herself into the place, contrary to the wishes of the governor, who did not desire the company of one whose authority would be greater than his own. The garrison, however, were rejoiced at her appearance, and believed themselves invincible under her protection. But their joy was of short duration; for Joan Maid of having the day after her arrival headed a rally, and Orleans twice driven the enemy from their intrenchments, she taken prisoner was at last obliged to retire, placing herself in the rear, to protect the retreat of her forces. But in the end attempting to follow her troops into the city, she found the gates shut, and the bridge drawn up by order of the governor, who is said to have long wished for an opportunity of delivering her up to the enemy.

Nothing could exceed the joy of the besiegers, in having taken a person who had been so long a terror to their arms. The service of Te Deum was publicly celebrated on this occasion; and it was hoped, that the capture of this extraordinary person would restore the English to their former victories and successes. The duke of Bedford was no sooner informed of her being taken, than he purchased her of the count Vendome, who had made her his prisoner, and ordered her to be committed to close confinement. The credulity of both nations was at that time so great, that nothing was too absurd to gain belief that coincided with their palliations. As Joan but a little before, from her successes, was regarded as a saint, she was now, upon her captivity, considered as a sorceress, forsaken by the devil who had granted her a fallacious and temporary assistance. Accordingly it was resolved in council to send her to Rouen to be tried for witchcraft; and the bishop of Beauvais, a man wholly devoted to the English interest, presented a petition against her for that purpose. The university of Paris was so mean as to join in the same request. Several prelates, among whom the cardinal of Winchester was the only Englishman, were appointed as her judges. They held their court in Rouen, where Henry then resided; and the Maid, clothed in her former military apparel, but loaded with irons, was produced before this tribunal. Her behaviour there now disgraced her former gallantry; she betrayed neither weakness nor womanish submission; but appealed to God and the pope for the truth of her former revelations. In the issue, she was found guilty of heresy and witchcraft; and sentenced to be burnt alive, the common punishment for such offences.

But previous to the infliction of this dreadful sentence upon her, they were resolved to make her abjure her former errors; and at length so far prevailed upon her, by terror and rigorous treatment, that her spirits were entirely broken by the hardships she was obliged to suffer. Her former visionary dreams began to vanish, and a gloomy distrust to take place of her late inspirations. She publicly declared herself willing to recant, and promised never more to give way to the vain vain delusions which had hitherto misled her, and imposed on the people. This was what her oppressors desired; and willing to show some appearance of mercy, they changed her sentence into perpetual imprisonment, and to be fed during life on bread and water. But the rage of her enemies was not yet satiated. Suspecting that the female dress, which she had consented to wear, was disagreeable to her, they purposely placed in her apartment a suit of men's apparel, and watched for the effect of their temptation upon her. Their cruel artifices prevailed. Joan, struck with the sight of a dress in which she had gained so much glory, immediately threw off her penitent's robes, and put on the forbidden garment. Her enemies caught her equipped in this manner; and her imprudence was considered as a relapse into her former transgressions.

No recantation would suffice, and no pardon would be granted. She was condemned to be burnt alive in the market-place of Rouen; and this infamous sentence was accordingly executed with most brutal severity.

One of the first misfortunes which the English felt after this punishment, was the defection of the duke of Burgundy; who had for some time seen the error of his conduct, and wished to break an unnatural connection, that only served to involve his country in ruin. A treaty was therefore begun and concluded between him and Charles, in which the former agreed to assist him in driving the English out of France. This was a mortal blow to their cause; and such was its effects upon the populace of London when they were informed of it, that they killed several of the duke of Burgundy's subjects, who happened to be among them at the time. It might perhaps also have hastened the duke of Bedford's death, who died at Rouen a few days after the treaty was concluded; and the earl of Cambridge was appointed his successor to the regency of France.

From this period, the English affairs became totally irretrievable. The city of Paris returned once more to a sense of its duty. Lord Willoughby, who commanded it for the English, was contented to stipulate for the safe retreat of his troops to Normandy. Thus ground was continually, though slowly, gained by the French; and notwithstanding their fields were laid waste, and their towns depopulated, yet they found protection from the weaknesses and divisions of the English. At length both parties began to grow weary of a war, which, though carried on but feebly, was yet a burden greater than either could support. But the terms of peace insisted upon by both were so wide of each other, that no hopes of an accommodation could quickly be expected. A truce, therefore, for twenty-two months, was concluded in 1443, which left everything on the present footing between the parties. No sooner was this agreed upon, than Charles employed himself with great industry and judgment in repairing those numberless ills to which his kingdom, from the continuance of wars both foreign and domestic, had so long been exposed. He established discipline among his troops, and justice among his governors. He revived agriculture, and repressed faction. Thus being prepared once more for taking the field, he took the first favourable occasion of breaking the truce; and Normandy was at the same time invaded by four powerful armies; one commanded by Charles himself, a second by the duke of Brittany, a third by the count of Alençon, and a fourth by the count Dunois. Every place opened its gates almost as soon as the French appeared before them. Rouen was the only one that promised to hold out a siege; but the inhabitants clamoured so loud for a surrender, that the duke of Somerset, who commanded the garrison, was obliged to capitulate. The battle, or rather the skirmish, of Fourningsi, was the last stand which the English made in defence of their French dominions. However, they were put to the rout, and above a thousand were slain. All Normandy and Guienne, that had so long acknowledged subjection to England, were lost in the space of a year; and the English saw themselves entirely dispossessed of a country which for above three centuries they had considered as annexed to their native dominions. Calais alone remained of all their conquests; and this was but a small compensation for the blood and treasure which had been lavished in that country, and only served to gratify ambition with a transient applause.

Thus, in the year 1450, the power of the English in France was entirely destroyed; and Charles deservedly obtained the surname of Victorious, on account of the vigour he had shown in driving out the invaders of his country. His satisfaction, however, was now greatly diminished by domestic misfortunes. The dauphin, forgetting the allegiance and filial duty he owed to his father, had already impeded his conquests by his seditious intrigues. He had used every endeavour to thwart the designs of his ministers, and it was supposed that he had destroyed Agnes Soreille his father's favourite mistresses by poison. He had married Charlotte daughter to the duke of Savoy; which Charles had resented by a declaration of war against the duke, but had been prevailed upon to recall it in order to prosecute the war against Guienne, which made part of the dominions of the English. At last, weary of the disobedience of his son, he commanded him to be arrested; but Louis, informed of his design, withdrew to Franche Comte, and afterwards to Brabant; of which the duke of Burgundy (at this time sovereign of the country) was no sooner apprised, than he ordered him to be supplied with every necessary, and treated with all imaginable respect. He refused to see him, however, until he should obtain the approbation of his father; on which Louis, having in vain attempted to draw the duke into a participation of his crimes, employed himself in fawning diffusion betwixt his benefactor and his son the count of Charolois, at the very time that he himself was receiving a pension of 12,000 crowns annually from the father. Thus he at last destroyed the domestic peace of his benefactor, while his unnatural behaviour created continual suspicions in the mind of his father. Charles was repeatedly informed that his own domestics, along with his undutiful son, were in a conspiracy against his life. The miserable monarch, therefore, in continual fear of being poisoned, and having none in whom he could repose any confidence, obstinately refused for some days to take any nourishment; and when at last prevailed upon by the opportunities of his attendants to do so, his stomach had become incapable of receiving food, so that he died for want of sustenance in the year 1461. His body, neglected by his unnatural son, was interred at the expense pence of Tannegui de Chastel, who had been his faithful companion.

On the death of Charles, his son Louis succeeded to the throne, to which he had so long aspired. He was reckoned one of the greatest politicians that ever existed; though his character was not on that account the more amiable; on the contrary, there are few princes whose history appears in a more detestable light. So destitute was he of natural affection, that he did not even attempt to conceal his joy at his father's death. He pretended much friendship for the count of Charolais, son to the duke of Burgundy, on account of the protection he had received at his father's court; and even conferred upon him a pension of 12,000 crowns annually; but all this show of affection soon degenerated into a mortal aversion on both sides. Some differences which took place between the courts of France and Castile produced an interview betwixt the two monarchs, Louis, and Henry, furred the Impotent. They met at Mauleon on the confines of Navarre; but their negotiations came to nothing, and they parted with a mutual contempt of each other; Henry despising the mean and forlorn appearance of Louis, as he in his turn did the gaudy magnificence of Henry. In his negotiations with the duke of Burgundy, Louis proved more successful; persuading him to restore some towns on the river Somme, which had been ceded by Charles VII., and by the possession of which the duke was in effect master of Picardy. This cession was opposed by the count of Charolais; but Louis, by corrupting John de Croy the duke's minister, obtained his end; and for the sum of 400,000 crowns the cities were delivered to him. By this transaction he effectually ensured the hatred of Charolais; and even in that very transaction the duplicity of Louis was eminently displayed; for though he had agreed to retain in those towns the officers appointed by the duke, he was no sooner in possession of them than he displaced them all, and nominated others in their stead.

The duchy of Brittany was at this time governed by Francis, a weak but generous prince, and whose defect of capacity was supplied by the abilities of his ministers. Him Louis insulted in the most grievous manner; and as Francis found himself unable to oppose such a powerful adversary alone, he joined in a close alliance with the duke of Burgundy and the count of Charolais; the latter having been grievously offended with Louis, and even accused him of attempting his life. The conspiracy was joined by several of the principal French nobility, who had been opposed by the king; and though the secret was confined to upwards of 500 persons, not one of them ever divulged it. Louis finding matters become very critical, marched with an army towards the capital, which the count of Charolais already insulted. A battle ensued, in which both princes exerted themselves to the utmost, though their valour was but ill seconded by the bravery of their troops. About 1500 perished on each side; but the count of Charolais remained master of the field of battle. Louis, however, after this engagement, entered the capital; where he endeavoured, by every kind of concession he could think of, to conciliate the affection of his subjects; in which he succeeded so well, that though the army of insurgents was soon augmented to more than 100,000 men, they were unable to make themselves masters of the city. At last a treaty was set on foot betwixt Louis and the count of Charolais; by which the latter obtained the towns which had been formerly ceded, with the districts of Boulogne, Guîne, Peronne, Mondidier, and Roye, as a perpetual inheritance for himself. By granting favours to the other confederates, the league was broken; and the moment that Louis found himself freed from danger, he protested against the whole of Louis' treaty in presence of some confidential members of parliament, as contrary to the interests of the crown; and therefore waited the first favourable opportunity to crush one by one those who had been ready by their united efforts to destroy himself. The duke of Bourbon, one of the most able of the confederates, was gained over, by bestowing upon him in marriage Jane the natural daughter of Louis himself, with the dowry of Uffon in Auvergne; together with Moras, Beaurepaire, and Cormillon in Dauphiny; while, by the contents betwixt the dukes of Brittany and Normandy, he was enabled to secure the neutrality of the former, and to recover from the latter some territories which he had unwillingly ceded to him.

In 1467, Philip duke of Burgundy, from his amiable qualities furred The Good, died, and left his dominions to his son Charles count of Charolais. That fiery and impetuous prince, jealous of the growing power of France, and an implacable enemy of Louis, had entered into a secret treaty with Francis; but Louis had driven the Bretons from the polls they occupied in Normandy before the duke of Burgundy could pass the Somme. The king, however, alarmed at the power of the confederates, concluded a peace with Brittany; and, confiding in his talents for negotiation, determined to have a personal interview with the duke of Burgundy.

This memorable interview took place in the year Louis in 1468; and Peronne, a city of Picardy, but belonging to the duke of Burgundy, was appointed as the place of rendezvous. To this place the politic Louis repaired with a slender train, and attended only by Cardinal Balue, the duke of Bourbon, and the count de St Pol, constable of France; seeming without reflecting that he was entering an hostile city, where he might be confined for any length of time, or treated at the pleasure of the duke, who was his mortal enemy. Indeed he had not long been in the place when he began to see the error of his conduct; and by the daily concourse of Burgundian lords and other persons of rank, who were his avowed enemies, he became alarmed for his personal safety. His fear now suggested to him a worse measure than even the former; and he requested apartments in the castle, where it was in the power of his rival in a moment to make him a close prisoner. This event accordingly took place, and that through the arts and machinations of Louis himself. His design had been from the beginning to keep the duke of Burgundy constantly employed in domestic wars. For this purpose he had, before his interview with Charles, excited the inhabitants of Liege, who were subject to the duke of Burgundy, to revolt. It is most probable, that he did not imagine the effects of this treachery would so soon begin to appear. At the very time, however, that Louis was in the castle of Peronne, the people of Liege revolted; seized the bishop and governor; and having massacred great numbers of the adherents of Charles, retired with the prisoners they had made to the capital. Charles was soon informed of this massacre, with the additional circumstance, that the ambassadors of Louis were seen animating the insurgents to their work of destruction. He then flew into a transport of rage; commanded the gates of the castle to be shut and strictly guarded; denouncing the severest vengeance on the perfidious monarch who had so often deceived him. Louis, however, though greatly, and no doubt very justly, alarmed, did not neglect to take the proper methods for securing himself. He distributed large sums of money among those officers to whom he imagined the duke was most inclined to pay any regard, and by splendid promises and presents endeavoured to allay the resentment of his other enemies. At last the resentment of Charles having subsided, he entered into a treaty with the king, and concluded it upon much the same terms as those which had been agreed upon before. His resentment, however, still manifested itself so far, that he inflicted upon Louis being present at the punishment he inflicted upon the inhabitants of Liege for the massacre they had committed, and of which we have already taken notice. This was agreed to: the two princes formed the siege of the city in conjunction; and notwithstanding the obstinate defense of the people, it was at last taken by storm, and the inhabitants massacred. It was not long, however, before the new alliance was dissolved. A confederacy against Louis, whom neither promises nor treaties could bind, was formed betwixt his own brother the duke of Normandy and the duke of Burgundy; but before their measures were ripe for execution, Louis had already commenced hostilities. The duke of Burgundy, as a peer of France, was summoned to parliament; and on his refusal, the constable St Pol made himself master of St Quintin. Several other cities were soon after reduced; and Baldwin, the natural brother of Charles, corrupted by Louis, deserted his cause; and the haughty spirit of the duke was thus at last obliged to condescend to solicit a peace. This, however, was of no long duration. Charles, encouraged by the success of Edward IV. of England his brother-in-law, began once more to league against Louis with the dukes of Brittany and of Guienne; the latter being the king's brother, formerly duke of Normandy, but who had exchanged that duchy for the territory of Guienne. But while the affairs of the confederates seemed to be in a prosperous way, their prospects were suddenly overcast by the death of the duke of Guienne, which was universally supposed to have been occasioned by poison, and Louis was as universally looked upon as the author. The abbot of St Joan d'Angeli was fixed upon as the immediate perpetrator of the deed; but on the day appointed for his trial he was found strangled in his cell; and this also was with great probability supposed to have been the deed of Louis, who after the death of his brother instantly seized on the territory of Guienne, and annexed it to the dominions of France.

By this unheard of conduct of the French monarch, Charles was exasperated to such a degree, that he vowed the most dreadful vengeance against the unhappy people of France, and threatened to sacrifice to the memory of the duke of Guienne every one who now fell into his hands. The citizens of Nelle were massacred without distinction of sex or age; Beauvais resisted his attacks; after which Charles wreaked his fury on other places. Having entered the country of Caux, he reduced the cities of Eu and St Valery, burnt Longueville, and waited the whole country as far as Rouen. Louis, on the other hand, steady and constant in his designs, determined to dissolve the league between the duke of Brittany and Edward IV. of England. Accordingly he encamped with his army on the frontiers of Brittany; while the duke, not meeting with the assistance promised by Edward, was obliged to consent to a truce for a year; and the duke of Burgundy himself was obliged to follow his example, having committed such devastations as deprived him of all means of subsistence in the country, so that he could neither advance nor retreat. In a very little time, however, he again began to conspire with the king of England against Louis, and a powerful invasion was determined upon. Edward was to cross the sea with an army of 15,000 men, while Charles assembled all his forces to join him. The former was also to set up a claim to the crown of France, and at least to obtain the provinces of Normandy and Guienne; the duke was to have Champagne with some adjacent districts; to free his dominions from homage; and neither party was to make peace without the consent of the other. It was supposed that the duke of Brittany would naturally accede to the confederacy; and the count de St Pol, constable of France, had engaged to deliver up the town of St Quintin and others which he occupied on the river Somme. Louis, however, still had the good fortune to avoid the storm. Charles, instead of advancing to the assistance of Edward, who had entered France at the head of 15,000 archers and 1500 men at arms, laid siege to the city of Nuiz on the Rhine; while the constable St Pol, instead of delivering up the towns as he had promised, deceived his allies, and enabled Louis to dissolve a confederacy, which, had it been vigorously maintained, might have involved him in the greatest difficulties. To procure the departure of Edward, however, he was obliged to consent to a tribute of 75,000 crowns, as well as to settle on the king himself 50,000 crowns for life; be- country. To this resolution he adhered; but no sooner was the term expired, than he concluded a truce with Louis for nine years. The stipulations publicly agreed upon betwixt these two princes consisted only in some articles for the mutual advantage of their subjects; but privately they had signed others of a different nature. The count of St Pol having rendered himself obnoxious to all parties by his complicated treachery, fled to Mons in Hainault; but the duke of Burgundy had already consented to deliver him up on condition of receiving his estates and moveables as the price of his treachery.

Thus was Louis, without any other remarkable qualification than the mere arts of falsehood and duplicity, got rid of all his enemies except the duke of Burgundy, whose growing power rendered him a constant object of jealousy and terror. His own imprudence and rashness, however, soon proved his ruin. Having rashly engaged in a war with the Swiss, he was defeated in the first engagement with that martial nation, with the loss of his military chief and baggage, with his plate and jewels, supposed to be the richest in Europe. His disappointment on this occasion was so great, that he was seized with a severe sickness, from which he had hardly recovered when he resumed his mad scheme of conquering the Swiss. Another battle ensued; in which, after an obstinate dispute, Charles was defeated with the loss of 18,000 men, himself escaping with great difficulty. This disaster was followed by the defection of most of his allies: the duke of Lorraine recovered the city of Nancy and great part of his dominions which Charles had seized; while the latter, overwhelmed with shame and disappointment, spent his time in solitude and inactivity. From this he was at last routed by the misfortunes which fell upon him in such quick succession. He now invested the city of Nancy; and in this, as well as in every other instance, he acted against the advice of his best officers; and the consequences were still more fatal than before. The duke of Lorraine advanced with a strong body of Germans to the relief of the city, while Charles had scarcely 4,000 men to oppose him. His troops were therefore easily defeated, and himself, notwithstanding the most heroic efforts of valour, hurried away in the crowd. The count de Campobasso, an Italian nobleman in whom he put a great deal of confidence, but who was in reality a traitor, had deserted with about 80 men in the beginning of the engagement. He left 12 or 15 men about the duke's person, with strict orders to assassinate him in the tumult; and this order they punctually complied with; the body of Charles being found two days after the battle, pierced with three wounds.

The news of Charles's death was received with the most unfeigned joy by Louis, whose sole object now was to unite the territories of the duke of Burgundy to his own. This might be done in two ways; one by a match betwixt the dauphin and Mary the heiress of Burgundy; the other, by marrying her to the duke of Angoulême, a prince of the royal blood of France, and on whom Mary had shown some inclination to below herself. The king, however, to whom duplicity and falsehood seem to have been absolutely necessary, chose a third method, more agreeable to his character. The match with the dauphin was attended with such circumstances as rendered it evidently impracticable. The disparity of age was very great, the dauphin being only eight years old, and the princess twenty; the Flemings were besides very much averse from submitting to a prince whose powerful resources would enable him to oppress their liberties; but, notwithstanding these insurmountable difficulties, Louis chose to insist upon the match, at the same time that he endeavoured to make himself master of her dominions by force of arms. He addressed circular letters to the principal cities of Burgundy; representing, that the duchy had been given by king John to the male heirs of his son Philip; and that now, when these were extinct by the death of Charles, the territory reverted of course to the crown. To render this argument more effectual, he corrupted the governors of some towns, seduced the inhabitants of others to rise against their governors; whilst he himself, at the head of an army, prepared to enforce obedience from those who could not be worked upon by other methods. Thus the province of Burgundy was entirely reduced; but Flanders could not be brought under subjection either by fair means, force, or fraud. In his conduct for this purpose, indeed, Louis displayed the most detestable as well as the meanest treachery and falsehood. To render Mary odious to her subjects, he negotiated with her ministers, and prevailed upon them to disclose to him some of the most important state secrets; after which he communicated their letters to the states of Flanders. This double treachery, however, did not at present answer his purpose. The two ministers whom he had betrayed were indeed put to death without mercy, and that even in the presence of their sovereign; but Mary herself was thus induced to betray herself upon the emperor Maximilian; and Louis had the mortification to find that all his arts had contributed only to aggrandize a rival power, whom he had already sufficient cause to dread. To remedy this oversight, he entered into an alliance with Edward IV. of England, whom he had inspired with a jealousy of his brother Clarence, in order to prevent a match betwixt that nobleman and the princess Mary, which had also been in agitation. Thus a peace was concluded between the two monarchs, to continue during the life of each, and for a year after.

The marriage of Mary with Maximilian effectually secured the independence of Flanders; while the return of the prince of Orange to the party of that princess extended the flames of war once more to the cities of Burgundy. The French were on the point of being totally expelled from that country, when Maximilian unexpectedly made proposals of peace. A truce was on this concluded between the two princes; but without any term limited for its duration, or without any conditions stipulated in favour of the Burgundians; so that the whole country was quickly after reduced by Louis.

The king now, freed from the apprehension of foreign enemies, turned his vindictive disposition against and cruelty to his own subjects; over whom, under pretence of former rebellions, he exercised the most infupportable tyranny. The principal victim to his sanguinary disposition on this occasion was James d'Armagnac duke of Nemours, one of the first noblemen in the kingdom, but who had formerly appeared a zealous confederate against against him in the league in which Edward and Charles were concerned. The unfortunate nobleman, knowing that vengeance was determined against him, fled to a fortress named Carlat, situated among the mountains of Auvergne. Here he was besieged by the Seigneur de Beaujeu, who had married Anne the daughter of Louis. The place, however, was almost impregnable to any force; so that his enemies were obliged to make the most solemn promises of safety in order to induce him to surrender himself. By these he was at last persuaded to trust himself in the hands of the faithless tyrant; who no sooner had him in his power than he shut him up in the Bastile in an iron cage, and reprimanded the judges because they had released him from this close confinement during the time of his examination. The judges reluctantly condemned him to be beheaded; but the king's cruelty extended beyond the sentence; and he ordered the two young sons of the duke, though yet in early childhood, to be placed directly under the scaffold, that they might be covered with the blood of their father. Four thousand persons are supposed to have perished upon this occasion without any form of trial: and were it not for the concurrent testimony of the historians of that age, the inhumanities and barbarities of this monarch are scarce to be credited. By these he broke the spirits of the French nobility, and gradually extended the power of the crown beyond all bounds; so that at last it was limited only by the sovereign's pleasure. Amidst all the perfidy and cruelty, however, for which this monarch is so justly to be detested, we may on some occasions remark a kind of magnanimity and generosity, which we cannot but applaud. An instance of this was his supporting the house of Medici against pope Sextus, whom he obliged to desist from his attacks, and to recall his sentence which he had fulminated against them.

In 1479, the emperor Maximilian, who had lightly abandoned the duchy of Burgundy when he might have reduced it, now renewed his claims when it was no longer in his power to enforce them. After a variety of actions of lesser note, and the destruction of cities on both sides, a decisive battle was fought at Guinegate. Here the Flemings were routed; but as the French pursued with too great ardour, the infantry of the enemy rallied, and the battle was renewed with great slaughter on both sides. A more decisive advantage was afterwards gained by the capture of 80 Flemish vessels, which induced that commercial people to think of peace. In the meantime, however, Louis, after a life spent in continual deceit, hypocrisy, and cruelty, received warning of his approaching end by a fit of apoplexy with which he was seized in the year 1480. He lay speechless and motionless for two days; after which he recovered in some degree, but never completely regained his health and strength. His illness, however, neither prevented him from pursuing the schemes of his ambition, nor from using the same methods as before to attain them. He seized, without any pretence, the estates of the duke of Bourbon, the only nobleman in the kingdom whose power could give him any cause of suspicion; yet, notwithstanding his assiduity for the interest of the dauphin, he kept him a kind of prisoner in the castle of Amboise, permitting none but his own servants, or persons of the meanest rank, to have access to him. He banished his own consort, the mother of the dauphin, to Savoy, and endeavoured to inspire the prince with aversion towards her. By the death of Charles, the titular king of Naples, and the last of the second house of Anjou, he became master of the county of Provence; but his satisfaction on this occasion was marred by a second stroke of apoplexy. Still, however, he revived, and, with his recovery, again began to pursue his ambitious intrigues. The death of Mary of Burgundy, who perished by a fall from her horse, inspired him with new views; and he betrothed his son to the infant daughter of the emperor. Thus he offended Edward IV. of England, whose eldest daughter Elizabeth had been previously contracted to the dauphin; and a war would have undoubtedly ensued, had it not been for the death of the king of England. This was followed in no long time after by that of Louis himself, who had in vain exhausted the skill of Louis XI., the physician, and wearied the clerical order with prayers and processions to avert the impending stroke. He expired in the year 1483, after a reign of 23 years; during which he was detested by his subjects, whom he had continually oppressed; and equally dreaded and hated by his neighbours, whom he had constantly deceived; notwithstanding which he obtained the title of Most Christian from his holiness, which his successors have ever after retained.

Notwithstanding the dark character of this prince, it is undoubtedly to be allowed, that he laid the foundations of the future greatness of France. By his arts he deprived the common people of their liberty, depressed the power of the nobility, established a standing army, and even induced the states to render many taxes perpetual, which formerly were only temporary, in order to support the army which was to keep themselves in slavery. From this time the people were accustomed to submit entirely to the voice of their sovereign as their only legislator; and being always obedient in matters of the greatest consequence, they cheerfully contributed whatever sums were required to fulfil the king's pleasure.

Charles VIII., who succeeded his father Louis XI., in 1483, was only 14 years of age at the time of his father's death; but though he might, even at that age, have ascended the throne without any material violation of the laws of France, yet it was judged necessary to have a regent on account of the king's delicacy of constitution and want of education. Three competitors appeared as candidates for this important trust, viz. John duke of Bourbon, a prince of the blood, and who had, till the age of 60, maintained the most unblemished character; Louis duke of Orleans, presumptive heir to the crown, but who from his being only 20 years old himself, seemed incapacitated on that account from undertaking such an important office; the third competitor was Anne, the eldest daughter of Louis, to whom the latter had in the last moments of his life committed the charge of the kingdom, with the title of governess. The claim of this lady was supported by the assembly of the states-general at Tours; and though she was only entered into the 22nd year of her age, it appears that the office could not have been more properly bestowed. Being married to Peter of Bourbon, sire of Beaujeu, her her present title was the Lady of Beaujeu; but she appears to have acted entirely independent of her husband, who was but of moderate capacity, and indeed had been recommended to her by Louis on account of his slender abilities, lest by any other match the house of Bourbon should be too much aggrandized. Her first step was to ingratiate herself with the people by some popular acts; among which one was to punish the instruments of her father's cruelties. One of these, named Olivier le Dain, who, from the station of a barber, had raised himself to the confidence and favour of the king, and had distinguished himself by the invention of new modes of torture, was publicly hanged. Another, named Jean Doyac, who by continual acts of violence and rapacity had oppressed the people, was condemned, after being whipped in all the open places or squares of Paris, to have one of his ears cut off, and his tongue pierced with a hot iron; after which he was conveyed to his native city of Montferrand, where he was again whipped, and his other ear cut off; after which his estates, as well as those of Olivier, were confiscated. Jacques Coitier, the physician of Louis, who had availed himself of the terror of death with which the king was strongly influenced, to extort great sums of money from him, was ordered to answer for the immense wealth he had acquired; but he averted the danger by paying a fine of 50,000 crowns.

Thus the lady de Beaujeu gained the affection of the people at large; and was equally successful in gaining over those who were adverse to her government. The duke of Bourbon was made constable, an office which he had long desired; but the duke of Orleans behaved in such a manner as to exclude all hopes of favour. Incensed at the determination of a trifling dispute at tennis against him, by the lady Beaujeu, he exclaimed, that whoever had decided it in that manner "was a liar if a man, or a flatterer if a woman." After this furious declaration he fled to the castle of Beaujacy, where, however, he was soon forced to surrender. He then applied to Henry VII. of England, who had newly ascended the throne of England; but that prince, naturally slow and cautious, did not pay much attention to his proposals; on which he next made his application to the court of Brittany. Here he was received with great marks of esteem, and began to entertain hopes of marrying the daughter of the duke; but being looked upon with a jealous eye by the nobility, they entered into secret negotiations with Anne, and even solicited her to invade the country. In these negotiations, however, they stipulated that only a certain number of troops should enter the province, and that no fortified place should remain in the hands of the French; which conditions were indeed agreed to by the regent, though she determined to keep them no longer than it answered her purpose. In pursuance of this resolution, Brittany was invaded at once by four armies, each of them superior to the stipulated number, who quickly made themselves masters of the most important places in the country; while the troops of the duke retired in disgust, leaving them to pursue their conquests as they pleased. Finding at last, however, that the entire subjection of their country was determined upon, the nobility began to exert themselves in defence of it; and, inflamed by the enthusiasm of liberty, they raised an army of 60,000 men. By these the French were compelled to abandon the siege of Nantes; but this proved only a transient gleam of success. Anne persevered in her design of completing the conquest of the country, and the fate of Europe at that time favoured the design. Of all the European states, England alone was then capable of affording any effectual assistance; and the slow caution of Henry prevented him from giving the assistance which for his own interest he ought to have done. Thus the Bretons were left to defend themselves the best way they could; and having ventured a battle, they were entirely defeated, and most of their leaders taken prisoners. A small body of English, under the command of lord Woodville, who assisted them, were entirely cut in pieces. The duke soon after died by a fall from his horse, leaving his dominions to his daughter Anne, at that time only 13 years of age. A marriage was negotiated between this princess and Maximilian king of the Romans, who had been married to Mary of Burgundy; but by reason of the poverty of that prince it was never completed. The lady Beaujeu, then, finding that the absolute conquest of Brittany would still be a difficult matter, determined to conclude a marriage betwixt the king the young king of France and the duchess, though the former had already been married to Margaret of Austria, the daughter of Maximilian. This marriage in Brittany, indeed had not been consummated by reason of the tender age of the princess; but she had been sent to Paris for her education, and had for several years been treated as queen of France. In 1491, however, Margaret was sent back to her father: Anne of Brittany for a long time refused to violate the engagements into which she had entered; but at last, finding herself distressed on all sides, and incapable of resisting the numerous forces of France with which she was pressed, she reluctantly consented to the match, and the nuptials were celebrated the same year at Langeais in Touraine.

Maximilian, whose poverty had prevented him from giving any assistance to his bride, or even from coming to see her, enraged at the double disgrace he had suffered, began, when too late, to think of revenge. France was now threatened with an invasion from the united forces of Austria, Spain, and England. But this formidable confederacy was soon dissipated. Henry, whose natural avarice had prevented him from giving the necessary assistance, was bought off with money: the immediate payment of 745,000 crowns, and the promise of 25,000 annually ever after, persuaded him to retire into his own country. Ferdinand king of Spain had the counties of Roussillon and Cerdagne restored to him; while Maximilian was gratified by the cession of part of Artois, which had been acquired by Louis XI.

The young king of France agreed to these terms His expedition more readily, that he was impatient to undertake into an expedition into Italy, in order to conquer the kingdom of Naples, to which he claimed a right. Most of his counsellors were against the expedition; but the king was inflexible, even though Ferdinand king of Naples offered to do homage for his kingdom, and pay him a tribute of 50,000 crowns a-year. He appointed Peter duke of Bourbon regent in his absence; after which he set out on his expedition with very few troops. troops and very little money. By the way he fell ill of the small-pox, but in a short time recovered, and entering Italy with only 6,000 horse and 12,000 foot, he was attended with the most surprising success, traversing the whole country in six weeks, and becoming master of the kingdom of Naples in less than a fortnight. Such extraordinary good fortune seemed miraculous; and he was reckoned an instrument raised up by God to destroy the execrable tyrants with which Italy was at that time infested. Had Charles made use of this prepossession in his favour, and acted up to the character generally given him, he might have raised his name as high as any hero of antiquity. His behaviour, however, was of a very different nature. He amused himself with feasts and shows; and leaving his power in the hands of favourites, they abandoned it to whoever would purchase titles, places, or authority, at the rates they imposed; and the whole force he proposed to leave in his newly conquered dominions amounted to no more than 4,000 men.

But while Charles was thus losing his time, a league was concluded against him at Venice; into which entered the pope, the emperor Maximilian, the archduke Philip, Ludovic Sforza, and the Venetians. The confederates assembled an army of 40,000 men, commanded by Francis marquis of Mantua; and they waited for the king in the valley of Farnova, in the duchy of Parma, into which he descended with 9,000 men. On the 6th of July 1495 he attacked the allies; and, notwithstanding their great superiority, defeated them, with the loss of only 80 of his own men. Thus he got safe to France; but his Italian dominions were lost almost as soon as he departed. Some schemes were proposed for recovering these conquests; but they were never put in execution, and the king died of an apoplexy in 1498.

The premature death of this monarch, in the 28th year of his age, was supposed to have been owing to his irregular life, and particularly his attachment to women; which had for some time impaired his health, and brought on evident symptoms of his approaching dissolution. At last he relinquished his irregularities, and retired with the queen to the castle of Ambloise. Here in passing through a low door he struck his head with violence against the top. No unfavourable symptom appeared at the time; but soon afterwards, as he conversed with his confessor, and avowed his design of observing the nuptial fidelity he owed to the queen, he suddenly fell backward in a fit of apoplexy. He recovered his voice three times, and uttered some expressions of devotion; but instantly relapsed, and in a short time expired, notwithstanding every affiance that could be given. He was greatly celebrated for his sweet temper and agreeable disposition, which procured him the surnames of the Affable and Courteous. Two of his domestics are said to have died of grief after his death, and his widow abandoned herself to the most pungent sorrow for two days.

By the death of Charles VIII., the throne of France passed from the direct line of the house of Valois, and Louis duke of Orleans succeeded to the throne. At the time of his accession he was in his 36th year, and had long been taught prudence in the school of adversity. During the administration of the Lady Beaujeu, he had been, as we have already observed, constantly in disgrace; and after his connections with the duke of Brittany, had spent a very considerable time in prison; and though afterwards set at liberty by Charles, he had never solicited any share of that monarch's confidence or favour. Towards the conclusion of that reign, he fell under the displeasure of the queen; and had afterwards continued at his castle of Blois till he was called from thence to the possession of the kingdom. He had been married in early life, and against his will, to Jane the youngest daughter of Louis XI., a princess of an amiable disposition, but deformed in her person, and supposed to be incapable of bearing children. Afterwards he entertained thoughts of having this marriage dissolved, and was supposed to possess the affection of the duchess of Brittany before she became queen of France. After the death of her husband, that princess retired to Brittany, where she pretended to assume an independent sovereignty; but Louis having got his marriage with Jane dissolved by Pope Alexander VI. quickly after made proposals to the queen-dowager, which on her part were accepted without hesitation; though it was stipulated, that if she should have two sons, the younger should inherit the duchy of Brittany.

As Louis, while duke of Orleans, had some pretensions to the kingdom of Naples, he instantly set about realizing them by conquest. On his accession, he found matters in that country much more favourable to his designs than formerly. The pope, Alexander VI., was very much in his interests, from the hopes of getting his son Cæsar Borgia provided for; he had conciliated the friendship of the Venetians by promising them a part of the Milanese; he concluded a truce with the archduke Philip; and renewed his alliances with the crowns of England, Scotland, and Denmark. He then entered Italy with an army of 20,000 men; and being assisted by the Venetians, quickly conquered one part of the duchy, while they conquered the other, the duke himself being obliged to fly with his family to Infruck. He then attacked Ferdinand of Spain with three armies at once, two to act by land, and one by sea; but none of these performing anything remarkable, he was obliged to evacuate the kingdom of Naples in 1504.

In 1506, the people of Genoa revolted; drove out the nobility; chose eight tribunes; and declared Paul Nuova, a silk-dyer, their duke; after which, they expelled the French governor, and reduced a great part of the Riviera. This occasioned Louis's return into Italy; where, in 1507, he obliged the Genoese to surrender at discretion; and, in 1508, entered into the league of Cambrai, with the other princes who at that time wanted to reduce the overgrown power of the Venetians. Pope Julius II., who had been the first contriver of this league, very soon repented of it; and declared, that if the Venetians would restore the cities of Faenza and Rimini, which had been unjustly taken from him, he would be contented. This was refused; and in 1509, the forces of the republic received such an entire defeat from Louis, that they agreed to restore not only the two cities demanded by pope Julius, but whatever else the allies required.

The pope now, instead of executing his treaties with his allies, made war on the king of France without the least provocation. Louis called an assembly of his clergy; where it was determined, that in some cases it was lawful to make war upon the pope; upon which the king declared war against him, and committed the care of his army to the Marshall de Trivulce. He soon obliged the pope to retire into Ravenna; and in 1511, Galton de Foix, duke of Nemours, gained a great victory at Ravenna, but was himself killed in the engagement. After his death the army disbanded for want of pay; and the French affairs in Italy, and everywhere else, fell into great confusion. They recovered the duchy of Milan, and lost it again in a few weeks.

Henry VIII. of England invaded France, and took Terruennne and Tournay; and the Swiss invaded Burgundy with an army of 25,000 men. In this desperate situation of affairs the queen died, and Louis put an end to the opposition of his most dangerous enemies by negotiating marriages. To Ferdinand of Spain he offered his second daughter for either of his grandsons, Charles or Ferdinand; and to renounce, in favour of that marriage, his claims on Milan and Genoa. This proposal was accepted; and Louis himself married the princess Mary, sister to Henry VIII. of England. This marriage he did not long survive, but died on the 2d of January 1514; and was succeeded by Francis I., count of Angouleme, and duke of Bretagne and Valois.

The new king was no sooner seated on the throne, than he resolved on an expedition into Italy. In this he was at first successful, defeating the Swiss at Marignano, and reducing the duchy of Milan. In 1518, the emperor Maximilian dying, Francis was very ambitious of being his successor, and thereby restoring to France such a splendid title, which had been so long lost. But Maximilian, before his death, had exerted himself so much in favour of Charles V. of Spain, that Francis found it impossible to succeed; and from that time an irreconcilable hatred took place between the two monarchs. In 1521, this ill will produced a war; which, however, might perhaps have been terminated, if Francis could have been prevailed upon to restore the town of Fontarabia, which had been taken by his admiral Bonivet; but this being refused, hostilities were renewed with greater vigour than ever; nor were they concluded till France was brought to the very brink of destruction. The war was continued with various success till the year 1524; when Francis having invaded Italy, and laid siege to Pavia, he was utterly defeated before that city, and taken prisoner on the 24th of February.

This disaster threw the whole kingdom into the utmost confusion. The Flemish troops made continual inroads; many thousand boors assembled in Alsace, in order to make an invasion from that quarter; Henry VIII. had assembled a great army, and threatened the kingdom on that side also; and a party was formed in the kingdom, in order to dispossess the duchess of the regency, and confer it upon the duke de Vendome. This prince, however, who, after the constable, was the head of the House of Bourbon, went on purpose to Lyons, where he assured the regent that he had no view but for her service, and that of his country; upon which she formed a council of the ablest men of the kingdom, and of this she made him president. The famous Andrew Doria failed with the French galleys to take on board the remains of the French troops under the duke of Alva, whom he landed safely in France. Those who escaped out of the Milanese also made their way back again as well as they could. Henry VIII. under the influence of cardinal Wolsey, resolved not to oppress the oppressed: he therefore assured the regent that he had nothing to fear from him; and at the same time advised her not to consent to any treaty by which France was to be dismembered. To the emperor, however, he used another language. He told him, that the time was now come when this pusillanimous monarchy lay at their mercy; and therefore, that so favourable an opportunity should not be let slip: that, for his part, he should be content with Normandy, Guienne, and Gascony, and hoped the empire would make no scruple of owning him king of France; adding, that he expected the emperor would make a right use of his victory, by entering Guienne in person; in which case he was ready to bear half the expenses of the war. He foretold what fell out: the emperor was alarmed at these conditions, and did not care to have him for a neighbour; for which reason he agreed to a truce with the regent for six months. In Picardy the Flemings were repulsed; and the count de Guise, with the duke of Lorraine, had the good fortune, with a handful of troops, to defeat and cut to pieces the German peasants.

In the mean time, Francis was detained in captivity in Italy; but being wearied of his confinement in that country, and the princes of Italy beginning to cabal where he for his deliverance, he was carried to Madrid; where, signs a different article of which were, That he should resign the duchy of Burgundy in full sovereignty; that he should desist from the homage which the emperor owed him for Artois and Flanders; that he should renounce all claim to Naples, Milan, Asti, Tournay, Lille, and Hesdin, &c.; that he should persuade Henry d'Albret to resign the kingdom of Navarre to the emperor, or at least should give him no assistance; that within 40 days he should restore the duke of Bourbon and all his party to their estates; that he should pay the king of England 500,000 crowns which the emperor owed him; that when the emperor went to Italy to receive the Imperial crown, he should lend him 12 galleys, four large ships, and a land-army, or instead of it 200,000 crowns.

All these articles the king of France promised on the word and honour of a prince to execute; or, in case of non-performance, to return prisoner into Spain. But notwithstanding these professions, Francis had already protested before certain notaries and witnesses in whom he could trust, that the treaty he was about to sign was against his will, and therefore null and void. On the 21st of February, the emperor thought fit to release him from his prison, in which he had been closely confined ever since his arrival in Spain; and after receiving the strongest assurances from his own mouth, that he would literally fulfil the terms of the treaty, sent him under a strong guard to the frontiers, where he was exchanged for his two eldest sons, who were to remain as hostages for his fidelity.

When the king returned to his dominions, his first care was to get himself absolved by the Pope from the oath he had taken; after which he entered into a league with the pontiff, the Venetians, the duke of Milan, and the king of England, for preserving the peace of Italy. In the month of June, he publicly received remonstrances from the States of Burgundy; in which they told him, without ceremony, that by the treaty of Madrid he had done what he had no right to do, in breach of the laws and his coronation-oath; adding, that if he persisted in his resolution of throwing them under a foreign yoke, they must appeal to the General States of the kingdom. At these remonstrances the viceroy of Naples and the Spanish ministers were present. They perceived the end which the king aimed at, and therefore expostulated with him in pretty warm terms. At last the viceroy told him, that he had now nothing left but to keep his royal word in returning to the call of Madrid, as his predecessor John had done in a like case. To this the king replied, that king John acted rightly; that he returned to a king who had treated him like a king; but that at Madrid he had received such usage as would have been unbecoming to a gentleman; that he had often declared to the emperor's ministers, that the terms they extorted from him were unjust and impracticable; but that he was still willing to do all that was fit and reasonable; and to ransom his sons at the rate of two millions of gold, in lieu of the duchy of Burgundy.

Hitherto the treaty for the tranquillity of Italy had been kept secret, in hopes that some mitigation of the treaty of Madrid would have been obtained; but now it was judged expedient to publish it, though the viceroy of Naples and the Spanish lords were still at the French court; and the emperor was to be admitted into it, provided he accepted the king's offer of two millions for the release of his children, and left the duke of Milan and other Italian princes in quiet possession of their dominions. It is the common misfortune of all leagues, that the powers who enter into them keep only their own particular interests in view, and thus defeat the general intention of the confederacy. This was the case here. The king's great point was to obtain his children upon the terms he had proposed; and he was desirous of knowing what hopes there were of that, before he acted against the monarch who had them in his power. Thus the duke of Milan and the Pope were both sacrificed. The former was obliged to surrender to the duke of Bourbon, and the latter was surprised by the Colonnas; both of which disasters would have been prevented if the French succours had entered Italy in time. See Italy.

According to an agreement which had been made between Francis and Henry, their ambassadors went into Spain, attended each of them by a herald, in order to summon the emperor to accept the terms which had been offered him; or, in case of refusal, to declare war. It seems the emperor's answer was foreseen in the court of France; and therefore the king had previously called together an assembly of the notables; that is, persons of the several ranks of his people in whom he could confide. To them he proposed the great question, Whether he was bound to perform the treaty of Madrid? or, Whether, if he did not perform it, he was obliged in honour to return to Spain? To both these questions, the assembly answered in the negative; they said, that Burgundy was united to the crown of France, and that he could not separate it by his own authority; that his person also was the property of the public, of which therefore he could not dispose; but for the two millions, which they looked upon as a just equivalent, they undertook that it should be raised for his service. When the ambassadors delivered their propositions, Charles treated the English herald with respect, and the French one with contempt; which produced a challenge from Francis to the emperor*. All differences, however, were at last adjusted; and a treaty was concluded at Cambrai, on the 5th of August 1528. By this treaty, instead of Cambray, the possession, the emperor contented himself with reserving his rights to the duchy of Burgundy, and the two millions of crowns already mentioned. Of these he was to receive 1,200,000 in ready money; the prince's lands in Flanders belonging to the house of Bourbon were to be delivered up; these were valued at 400,000 more; and the remaining 400,000 were to be paid by France in discharge of the emperor's debt to England. Francis was likewise to discharge the penalty of 500,000 crowns which the emperor had incurred, by not marrying his niece the princess Mary of England; and to release a rich fleur de lys which had been many years before pawned by the house of Burgundy for 50,000 crowns. The town and castle of Hédin were also yielded; together with the sovereignty of Flanders and Artois, and all the king's pretensions in Italy. As for the allies of France, they were abandoned to the emperor's mercy, without the least stipulation in their favour; and Francis himself protested against the validity of the treaty before he ratified it, as did also his attorney-general before he registered it in parliament; but both of them with the greatest secrecy imaginable.

Nothing farther of much consequence happened during the remainder of the reign of Francis I. The war was soon renewed with Charles, who made an invasion into France, but with very bad success; nor was peace fully established but by the death of Francis, which happened on the 3d of March, 1547. He was succeeded by his son Henry II., who ascended the throne that very day on which he was 29 years of age. In the beginning of his reign, an insurrection happened in Guinne, owing to the oppressive conduct of the officers who levied the salt tax. The king dispatched against the insurgents two bodies of troops; one commanded by the duke of Aumale son to the duke of Guise, the other by the constable. The first behaved with the greatest moderation, and brought back the people to their duty without making many examples; the other behaved with the utmost haughtiness and cruelty; and though the king afterwards remitted many of his punishments, yet from that time the constable became odious to the people, while the family of Guise were highly respected.

In 1548, the king began to execute the edicts which had been made against the Protestants with the utmost severity; and, thinking even the clergy too mild protestants in the prosecution of heresy, erected for that purpose a chamber composed of members of the parliament of Paris. At the queen's coronation, which happened this year, he caused a number of Protestants to be burned, and was himself present at the spectacle. He was, however, so much shocked, that he could never forget it; but complained, as long as he lived, that at certain times, it appeared before his eyes, and troubled his understanding.

In 1549, a peace being concluded with England, the king king purchased Boulogne from the latter, for the sum of 400,000 crowns; one half to be paid on the day of restitution, and the other a few months after. Scotland was included in the treaty, and the English restored some places they had taken there. This was the most advantageous peace that France had hitherto made with England; the vast arrears which were due to that crown being in effect remitted; and the pension which looked so like tribute, not being mentioned, was in fact extinguished. The earl of Warwick himself, who had concluded the peace, was so sensible of the disgrace suffered by his nation on this occasion, that he pretended to be sick, in order to avoid fetting his hand to such a scandalous bargain.

This year, an edict was made to restrain the extravagant remittances which the clergy had been in use of making to the court of Rome, and for correcting some other abuses committed by the papal notaries. With this edict Pope Julius III. was highly displeased; and the following year (1550), war was declared by the king of France against the pope and the emperor. The pretence was, that Henry protected Octavio Farnese duke of Parma, whom the pope was desirous of depriving of his dominions. In this war the king was threatened with the censures of the church, more especially when it was known that he had entered into an alliance with the Turks, and a Turkish fleet entered the Mediterranean, where they threatened the Isle of Gozo, and made descents upon Sicily. Henry, however, strongly denied any such connection, and insisted that the emperor had given them sufficient provocation; but, be this as it will, the emperor soon found himself in such danger from these new enemies, that he could not support the pope as he intended, who on that account was obliged to sue for peace. After this, the king continued the war against the emperor with success; reducing the cities of Toul, Verdun, and Metz. He then entered the country of Alsace, and reduced all the fortresses between Hagenau and Wittenburg. He failed, however, in his attempt on Strasbourg; and was soon after obliged by the German princes and the Switz to desist from farther conquests on that side. This war continued with very little interruption, and as little success on the part of the French, till the year 1557, when a peace was concluded; and soon after, the king was killed at a tournament by one count de Montgomery, who was reckoned one of the strongest knights in France, and who had done all he could to avoid this encounter with the king.

The reign of his successor Francis II. was remarkable only for the persecution of the Protestants; which became so grievous, that they were obliged to take up arms in their own defence. This occasioned several civil wars, the first of which commenced in the reign of Charles IX., who succeeded to the throne in 1560. His first war continued till the year 1562, when a peace was concluded, by which the Protestants were to have a free pardon, and liberty of conscience. In 1565, the war broke out anew, and was continued with very little interruption till 1569, when peace was again concluded upon very advantageous terms for the Protestants. After this, king Charles, who had now taken the government into his hands, cared for the Protestants in an extraordinary manner. He invited to court the admiral Coligny, who was the head of the Protestant party; and caressed him so, that he was lulled into a perfect security, notwithstanding the many warnings given him by his friends, that the king's fair speeches were by no means to be trusted; but he had no reason to repent his confidence. On the 22nd of August 1571, as he was walking from the court to his lodgings, he received a shot from a window, which carried away the second finger of his right hand, and wounded him grievously in the left arm. This he himself ascribed to the malice of the duke of Guise, the head of the Catholic party. After dinner, however, the king went to pay him a visit, and amongst others made him this compliment; "You have received the wound, but it is I who suffer;" desiring at the same time, that he would order his friends to quarter about his house, and promising to hinder the Catholics from entering that quarter after it was dark. This satisfied the admiral of the king's sincerity; and hindered him from complying with the desires of his friends, who would have carried him away, and who were strong enough to have forced a palliate out of Paris if they had attempted it.

In the evening, the queen-mother, Katharine de Medici, held a cabinet-council to fix the execution of massacre of the Protestants, which had been long the premeditated. The persons of which this council was composed, were, Henry duke of Anjou, the king's brother; Gonzaga duke of Nevers; Henry of Angoulême, grand prior of France, and bastard brother of the king; the marshal de Tavannes; and Albert de Gondi, count de Rhetz. The direction of the whole was given to the duke of Guise, to whom the administration had been entirely confided during the former reign. The guards were appointed to be in arms, and the city-officers were to dispose the militia to execute the king's orders, of which the signal was the ringing of a bell near the Louvre. Some say, that when the hour approached, which was that of midnight, the king grew undetermined; that he expressed his horror at shedding so much blood, especially considering that the people whom he was going to destroy were his subjects, who had come to the capital at his command, and in confidence of his word; and particularly the admiral, whom he had detained so lately by his cares. The queen-mother, however, reproached him with his cowardice, and represented to him the great danger he was in from the Protestants; which at last induced him to consent. According to others, however, the king himself urged on the massacre; and when it was proposed to him to take off only a few of the heads, he cried out, "If any are to die, let there not be one left to reproach me with breach of faith."

As soon as the signal was given, a body of Swiss troops, of the Catholic religion, headed by the duke of Guise, the chevalier d'Angoulême, accompanied by many persons of quality, attacked the admiral's house. Having forced open the doors, the foremost of the assassins rushed into his apartment; and one of them asked if he was Coligny? To this he answered that he was; adding, "Young man, respect these grey hairs:" to which the assassin replied by running him through the body with his sword. The duke of Guise and the chevalier, growing impatient below stairs, cried out to know know if the business was done; and being told that it was, commanded that the body should be thrown out at the window. As soon as it fell on the ground, the chevalier, or (as some say) the duke of Guise, wiping the blood off the face, kicked it with his foot. The body was then abandoned to the fury of the populace; who, after a series of indignities, dragged it to the common gallows, to which they chained it by the feet, the head being cut off and carried to the queen-mother; who, it is said, caused it to be embalmed and sent to Rome. The king himself went to see the body hang upon the gibbet; where a fire being kindled under it, part was burnt, and the rest scorched. In the Louvre the gentlemen belonging to the king of Navarre and the prince of Condé were murdered under the king's eye. Two of them wounded, and pursued by the assassins, fled into the bed-chamber of the queen of Navarre, and jumped upon her bed, beseeching her to save their lives; and as she went to ask this favour of the queen-mother, two more, under like circumstances, rushed into the room, and threw themselves at her feet. The queen-mother came to the window to enjoy these dreadful scenes; and the king, seeing the Protestants who lodged on the other side of the river, flying for their lives, called for his long gun, and fired upon them.

In the space of three or four days, many thousands were destroyed in the city of Paris, by the most cruel deaths which malice itself could invent. Peter Ramus, professor of philosophy and mathematics, after being robbed of all he had, his belly being first ripped open, was thrown out of a window. This so much affected Denis Lambin the king's professor, that, though a zealous Catholic, he died of terror. The first two days, the king denied it was done by his orders, and threw the whole blame on the house of Guise; but, on the 28th of August, he went to the parliament, avowed it, was complimented upon it, and directed a process against the admiral, by which he was stigmatized as a traitor. Two innocent gentlemen suffered as his accomplices in a pretended plot against the life of the king, in order to set the crown on the head of the prince of Condé. They were executed by torch-light; and the king and the queen-mother (with the king of Navarre and the prince of Condé by force) were spectators of this horrid fact; and they also assisted at the jubilee to thank God for the execution of such an infamous design.

This massacre was not confined to the city of Paris alone. On the eve of St Bartholomew, orders had been sent to the governors of provinces to fall upon the Protestants themselves, and to let loose the people upon them; and though an edict was published before the end of the week, afflicting them of the king's protection, and that he by no means designed to exterminate them because of their religion, yet private orders were sent, of a nature directly contrary; in consequence of which, the massacre, or (as, in allusion to the Sicilian vespers*, it was now styled) the Matins of Paris, were repeated in Meaux, Orleans, Troyes, Angers, Thoulouse, Rouen, and Lyons; so that in the space of two months 30,000 Protestants were butchered. The next year Rochelle, the only strong fortress which the Protestants held in France, was besieged, but was not taken without the loss of 24,000 of the Catholics who besieged it. After this a pacification ensued on terms favourable to the Protestants, but to which they never trusted.

This year the duke of Anjou was elected king of Poland, and soon after set out to take possession of his new kingdom. The king accompanied him to the frontiers of the kingdom; but during the journey was seized with a slow fever, which from the beginning had a very dangerous appearance. He lingered for some time under the most terrible agonies both of body and mind; and at last died on the 30th of May 1572, having lived 24 years, and reigned 13. It is said, that after the dreadful massacre abovementioned, this prince had a fierceness in his looks and a colour in his cheeks which he never had before. He slept little, and never found. He waked frequently in agonies, and had soft music to compose him again to rest.

During the first years of the reign of Henry III., Henry III., who succeeded his brother Charles, the war with the Protestants was carried on with indifferent success on the part of the Catholics. In 1575, a peace was concluded, called by way of eminence the Edict of Pacification. It consisted of no fewer than 63 articles; the substance of which was, that liberty of conscience, and the public exercise of religion, were granted to the reformed, without any other restriction than that they should not preach within two leagues of Paris or any other part where the court was: Party chambers were erected in every parliament, to consist of equal numbers of Catholics and Protestants, before whom all judgments were to be tried: The judgments against the admiral, and, in general, all who had fallen in the war or been executed, were reversed; and eight cautionary towns were given to the Protestants.

This edict gave occasion to the Guises to form an association in defence, as was pretended, of the Catholic religion, afterwards known by the name of the Catholic League. In this league, though the king was mentioned with respect, he could not help feeling that it struck at the very root of his authority: for, as the Protestants had already their chiefs, so the Catholics were, for the future, to depend entirely upon the chief of the league; and were, by the very words of it, to execute whatever he commanded, for the good of the cause, against any, without exception of persons. The king, to avoid the bad effects of this, by the advice of his council declared himself head of the league; and of consequence recommenced the war against the Protestants, which was not extinguished as long as he lived.

The faction of the duke of Guise, in the mean time, took a resolution of supporting Charles cardinal of Bourbon, a weak old man, as presumptive heir of the crown. In 1584 they entered into a league with Spain, and took up arms against the king: and tho' peace was concluded the same year, yet in 1587 they again proceeded to such extremities, that the king was forced to fly from Paris. Another reconciliation was soon after effected; but it is generally believed that the king from this time resolved on the destruction of Guise. Accordingly, finding that this nobleman still behaved towards him with his usual insolence, the king caused him to be stabbed, as he was coming into his presence, by his guards, on the 23d of December 1587. The king himself did not long survive him; being stabbed by one James Clement, a Jacobine. cobine monk, on the first of August 1588. His wound at first was not thought mortal; but his frequent swooning quickly discovered his danger; and he died next morning, in the 39th year of his age, and 16th of his reign.

Before the king's death, he nominated Henry Bourbon king of Navarre for his successor on the throne of France; but as he was a Protestant, or at least one who greatly favoured their cause, he was at first owned by very few except those of the Protestant party. He met with the most violent opposition from the members of the Catholic league; and was often reduced to such straits, that he went to people's houses under colour of visits, when in reality he had not a dinner in his own. By his activity and perseverance, however, he was at last acknowledged throughout the whole kingdom, to which his abjuration of the Protestant religion contributed not a little. As the king of Spain had laid claim to the crown of France, Henry no sooner found himself in a fair way of being firmly seated on the throne, than he formally declared war against that kingdom; in which he at last proved successful, and in 1597 entered upon the quiet possession of his kingdom.

The king's first care was to put an end to the religious disputes which had so long distracted the kingdom. For this purpose, he granted the famous edict, dated at Nantes, April 13, 1598. It re-established, in a most solid and effectual manner, all the favours that had ever been granted to the reformed by other princes; adding some which had not been thought of before, particularly the allowing them a free admission to all employments of trust, profit, and honour; the establishing chambers in which the members of the two religions were equal; and the permitting their children to be educated without constraint in any of the universities. Soon after, he concluded peace with Spain upon very advantageous terms. This gave him an opportunity of restoring order and justice throughout his dominions; of repairing all the ravages occasioned by the civil war; and abolishing all those innovations which had been made, either to the prejudice of the prerogatives of the crown or the welfare of the people. His schemes of reformation, indeed, he intended to have carried beyond the boundaries of France. If we may believe the duke of Sully, he had in view no less a design than the new-modelling of all Europe. He imagined that the European powers might be formed into a kind of Christian republic, by rendering them as nearly as possible of equal strength; and that this republic might be maintained in perpetual peace, by bringing all their differences to be decided before a senate of wise, disinterested, and able judges: and then he thought it would be no difficult matter to overturn the Ottoman empire. The number of these powers was to be 15; viz., the Papacy; the empire of Germany; France; Spain; Hungary; Great Britain; Bohemia; Lombardy; Poland; Sweden; Denmark; the republic of Venice; the States-General; the Swiss Cantons; and the Italian commonwealth, which was to comprehend the states of Florence, Genoa, Lucca, Modena, Parma, Mantua, and Monaco. In order to render the states equal, the empire was to be given to the duke of Bavaria; the kingdom of Naples to the pope; that of Sicily to the Venetians; Milan to the duke of Savoy, who, by this acquisition, was to become king of Lombardy; the Austrian Low Countries were to be added to the Dutch republic; Franche Compte, Alsace, and the country of Trent, were to be given to the Swifs. With a view, it is now thought, of executing this grand project, but under pretence of reducing the exorbitant power of the house of Austria, Henry made immense preparations both by sea and land; but if he really had such a design, he was prevented by death from attempting to execute it. He was stabbed in his coach by one Ravillac, on the 12th of May 1608.

On the death of Henry IV, the queen-mother assumed the regency. Ravillac was executed, after suffering horrid tortures. It is said that he made a confession, which was so written by the person who took it down, that not one word of it could ever be read, and thus his instigators and accomplices could never be discovered. The regency, during the minority of Louis XIII, was only remarkable for cabals and intrigues of the courtiers. In 1617, the king assumed the government himself, banished the queen-mother to Blois, caused her favourite marshal d'Ancre to be killed, and chose for his minister the famous cardinal Richelieu. In 1620, a new war broke out between the Catholics and Protestants, which was carried on with the greatest fury on both sides; and we may judge of the spirit which actuated both parties, by what happened at Négrépisse, a town in Quercy. This place was besieged by the king's troops, and it was resolved to make an example of the inhabitants. The latter, however, absolutely refused to surrender upon any terms. They defended themselves, therefore, most desperately; and the city being at last taken by storm, they were all massacred, without respect of rank, sex, or age, except ten men. When these were brought into the king's presence, he told them they did not deserve mercy; they answered, that they would not receive it; that the only favour they asked, was to be hanged on trees in their own gardens; which was granted, and the place reduced to ashes. Both parties soon became weary of such a destructive war; and a peace was concluded in 1621, by which the edict of Nantes was confirmed. This treaty, however, was of no long duration. A new war broke out which lasted till the year 1628, when the edict of Nantes was again confirmed; only the Protestants were deprived of all their cautionary towns, and consequently of the power of defending themselves in time to come. This put an end to the civil wars on account of religion in France. Historians say, that in these wars above a million of men lost their lives; that 150,000,000 livres were spent in carrying them on; and that 9 cities, 400 villages, 200 churches, 200 monasteries, and 10,000 houses, were burnt or otherwise destroyed during their continuance. The next year, the king was attacked with a fever which nothing could allay, an extreme depression of spirits, and prodigious swelling in his stomach and belly. The year after, however, he recovered, to the great disappointment of his mother, who had been in hopes of regaining her power. She was arrested; but found means to escape into Flanders, where she remained during the rest of this reign. Richelieu, by a masterly train of politics, though himself was next to an enthusiast for popery, supported the Protestants. Protestants of Germany and Gustavus Adolphus against the house of Austria; and after quelling all the rebellions and conspiracies which had been formed against him in France, he died some months before Louis XIII. in 1643.

Louis XIV., surnamed le Grand, succeeded to the throne when he was only five years of age. During his minority, the kingdom was torn in pieces under the administration of his mother Anne of Austria, by the factions of the great, and the divisions between the court and parliament, for the most trifling causes, and upon the most deplorable principles. The prince of Condé flamed like a blazing star; sometimes a patriot, sometimes a courtier, and sometimes a rebel. He was opposed by the celebrated Turenne, who from a Protestant had turned Papist. The nation of France was involved at once in civil and domestic wars; but the queen-mother having made choice of cardinal Mazarin for her first minister, he found means to turn the arms even of Cromwell against the Spaniards, and to divide the domestic enemies of the court so effectually among themselves, that when Louis assumed the reins of government into his own hands, he found himself the most absolute monarch that had ever sat upon the throne of France. He had the good fortune, on the death of Mazarin, to put the domestic administration of his affairs into the hands of Colbert, who formed new systems for the glory, commerce, and manufactures of France, all which he carried to a surprising height. The king himself, ignorant and vain, was blind to every patriotic duty of a king, promoting the interests of his subjects only that they might the better answer the purposes of his greatness; and by his ambition he embroiled himself with all his neighbours, and wantonly rendered Germany a dismal scene of devastation. By his impolitic and unjust revocation of the edict of Nantes in the year 1685, with the dragooning* the protestants that followed it, he obliged them to take shelter in England, Holland, and different parts of Germany, where they established the silk manufactories, to the great prejudice of their own country. He was so blinded by flattery, that he arrogated to himself the divine honours paid to the pagan emperors of Rome. He made and broke treaties for his convenience; and in the end he raised against himself a confederacy of almost all the other princes of Europe; at the head of which was king William III. of England. He was so well served, that he made head for some years against this alliance; and France seemed to have attained the highest pitch of military glory, under the conduct of those renowned generals Condé and Turenne. (See United Provinces.) At length, having provoked the English by his repeated infidelities, their arms under the duke of Marlborough, and those of the Austrians under prince Eugene, rendered the latter part of Louis's life as miserable as the beginning of it was splendid. His reign, from the year 1702 to 1711, was one continued series of defeats and calamities; and he had the mortification of seeing those places taken from him, which, in the former part of his reign, were acquired at the expense of many thousand lives. (See Britain, no 342, &c.)

Just as he was reduced, old as he was, to the desperate resolution of collecting his people and dying at their head, he was saved by the English Tory ministry defeating the cause, withdrawing from their allies, and concluding the peace of Utrecht in 1713. See Britain, no 371, &c.

The last years of Louis XIV. were also embittered by domestic calamities; which, added to those he had already endured of a public nature, impressed him with a deep melancholy. He had been for some time afflicted with a fistula; which, though successfully cut, ever afterwards affected his health. The year before the peace, his only son, the duke of Burgundy, died, together with the duchess and their eldest son; and the only remaining child was left at the point of death. The king himself survived till the month of September 1715; but on the 14th of that month expired, leaving the kingdom to his great-grandson Louis, then a minor.

By the last will of Louis he had devolved the regency, during the minority of the young king, upon a council, at the head of which was the duke of Orleans. That nobleman, however, disgusted with a disposition which gave him only a calling vote, appealed to the parliament of Paris, who set aside the duke of Orleans, of the late king, and declared him sole regent. His first acts were extremely popular, and gave the most favourable ideas of his government and character. He restored to the parliament the right which had been taken from them of remonstrating against the edicts of the crown, and compelled those who had enriched themselves during the calamities of the former reign to restore their wealth. He also took every method to efface the calamities occasioned by the unsuccessful wars in which his predecessor had engaged; promoted commerce and agriculture; and, by a close alliance with Great Britain and the United Provinces, seemed to lay the foundation of a lasting tranquillity. This happy prospect, however, was soon overcast by the intrigues of Alberoni the Spanish minister, who had formed a design of recovering Sardinia from the emperor, Sicily from the duke of Savoy, and of establishing the Pretender on the throne of Britain. To accomplish these purposes, he negotiated with the Ottoman Porte, Peter the Great of Russia, and Charles XII. of Sweden; the Turks intending to resume the war against the emperor; the two latter to invade Great Britain. But as long as the duke of Orleans retained the administration of France, he found it impossible to bring his schemes to bear. To remove him, therefore, he fomented divisions in the kingdom. An insurrection took place in Brittany; and Alberoni sent small parties in disguise into the country, in order to support the insurgents, and even laid plots to seize the regent himself. All of a sudden, however, the Spanish minister found himself disappointed in every one of his schemes. His partisans in France were put to death; the king of Sweden was killed at Fredericksburg in Norway; the Czar, intent on making new regulations, could not be persuaded to make war upon Britain; and the Turks refused to engage in a war with the emperor, from whom they had lately suffered too much. The cardinal, nevertheless, continued his intrigues; which quickly produced a war between Spain on the one part, and France and Britain on the other. The Spaniards, unable to resist the union of two such formidable powers, were soon reduced to the necessity of seeking for peace; and the terms were dictated... tated by the regent of France; and of these the dismission of Alberoni the Spanish minister was one. A double marriage was now set on foot: the duke of Orleans gave his own daughter, Mademoiselle Montpensier, to Don Lewis prince of Asturias, while the infanta of Spain was betrothed to her cousin the king of France. From this time the house of Bourbon continued united; both princes being convinced, that it was their interest not to waste their strength in wars against each other.

The spirit of conquest having now in a great measure subsided, and that of commerce taken place throughout the world in general, France became the scene of a remarkable project in the commercial way as ever was known in any country. One John Law, a Scotman, having been obliged to fly from his own country for murder, laid the plan of a company which might by its notes pay off the debt of the nation, and reimburse itself by the profits. Law had wandered through various parts of Europe, and had successively endeavoured to engage the attention of various courts. The proposal was made to Victor Amadeus king of Sicily; but he dismissed Law with a reply, that "he was not rich enough to ruin himself:" but in France it was looked upon in a more favourable light; the nation being at this time involved in a debt of 200 millions, and the regent, as well as the people in general, very fond of embarking in new schemes. The bank, thus established, proceeded at first with some degree of caution; but having by degrees extended their credit to more than 80 times their real stock, they soon became unable to answer the demands made upon them; so that the company was dissolved the very same year in which it had been instituted. The confusion into which the kingdom was thrown by this fatal scheme, required the utmost exertions of the regent to put a stop to it; and scarcely was this accomplished when the king, in 1723, took the government into his own hands. The duke then became minister; but did not long enjoy this post. His irregularities had broken his constitution, and brought on a number of maladies, under which he in a short time sunk, and was succeeded in his administration by the duke of Bourbon Conde. The king, as we have already remarked, had been married, when very young, to the infanta of Spain, though by reason of his tender years the marriage had never been completed. The princesses, however, had been brought to Paris, and for some time treated as queen of France; but as Louis grew up, it was easy to see that he had contracted an inveterate hatred against the intended partner of his bed. The minister, therefore, at last consented that the princess should be sent back; an affront so much resented by the queen her mother, that it had almost produced a war between the two nations.

The dissolution of the marriage of Louis was the last act of Conde's administration; and the procuring of a new match was the first act of his successor Cardinal Fleury. The princess pitched upon was the daughter of Stanislaus Leszczinski, king of Poland, who had been deposed by Charles XII. of Sweden. The princess was destitute of personal charms, but of an amiable disposition; and though it is probable that she never possessed the love of her husband, her excellent qualities could not but extort his esteem; and the birth of a prince soon after their marriage removed all the fears of the people concerning the succession.

Cardinal Fleury continued the pacific schemes pursued by his predecessors; though they were somewhat interrupted by the war which took place in the year 1733. Notwithstanding the connection between that monarch and the French nation, however, Fleury was so parsimonious in his affluence, that only 1500 soldiers were sent to relieve Dantzig, where Stanislaus himself resided, and who at that time was besieged by the Russians. This pitiful reinforcement was soon overwhelmed by a multitude of Russians; and Stanislaus was at last obliged to renounce all thoughts of the crown of Poland, though he was permitted to retain the title of king; and that this title might not be merely nominal, the king of France consented to bestow upon him the duchies of Bar and Lorraine; so that, after the death of Stanislaus, these territories were indissolubly united to the dominions of France. Fleury steadily pursued his pacific plans, and the disputes between Spain and England in 1737 very little affected the peace of that kingdom; and it must be remembered to his praise, that instead of fomenting the quarrels between the neighbouring potentates, he laboured incessantly to keep them at peace. He reconciled the Genoese and Corsicans, who were at war; and his mediation was accepted by the Ottoman Porte, who at that time carried on a successful war with the emperor of Germany, but made peace with him at the intercession of the cardinal. All his endeavours to preserve the general peace, however, proved at last ineffectual. The death of the emperor Charles VI. in 1740, the last prince of the house of Austria, fell all Europe in a flame. The emperor's eldest daughter, Maria Theresa, claimed the Austrian succession, which comprehended the kingdoms of Hungary and Bohemia, the duchy of Silcha, Austrian Swabia, Upper and Lower Austria, Styria, Carinthia, Carniola; the four forest towns; Burgaw; Brissgau; the Low Countries; Friuli; Tyrol; the duchy of Milan; and the duchies of Parma and Placentia. Among the many competitors who pretended a right to share, or wholly to inherit, these extensive dominions, the king of France was one. But as he wished not to awaken the jealousy of the European princes by preferring directly his own pretensions, he chose rather to support those of Frederic III. who laid claim to the duchy of Silesia. This brought on the war of 1740; and of which an account is given under the articles Britain and Prussia. It was terminated in 1748 by the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle; but to this Louis, who secretly meditated a severe vengeance against Britain, only consented, that he might have time to recruit his fleet and put himself somewhat more upon an equality with that formidable power. But while he meditated great exploits of this kind, the internal tranquillity of the kingdom was disturbed by violent disputes between the clergy and parliaments of France. In the reign of Louis XIV., there had been violent contests between the Jansenists and Jesuits concerning free-will and other points of theology; and the opinions of the Jansenists had been declared heretical by the celebrated papal bull named Unigenitus; the reception of which was enforced by the king, in opposition to the parliaments, the archbishop of Paris, and the body of the people. people. The archbishop, with other prelates, protested against it as an infringement of the rights of the Gallican church, of the laws of the realm, and an insult on the rights of the people themselves. The duke of Orleans favoured the bull by inducing the bishops to submit to it; but at the same time fanned a persecution which was going on against its opponents. Thus matters palled over till the conclusion of the peace; a short time after which the jealousy of the clergy was awakened by an attempt of the minister of state to inquire into the wealth of individuals of their order. To prevent this, they revived the contest about the bull Unigenitus; and it was resolved, that confessional notes should be obtained of dying persons; that these notes should be signed by priests who maintained the authority of the bull; and that, without such notes, no person could obtain a viaticum, or extreme unction. On this occasion the new archbishop of Paris, and the parliament of that city, took opposite sides; the latter imprisoning such of the clergy as refused to administer the sacraments excepting in the circumstances above mentioned. Other parliaments followed the example of that of Paris; and a war was instantly kindled between the civil and ecclesiastical departments of the state. In this dispute the king interfered, forbade the parliaments to take cognizance of ecclesiastical proceedings, and commanded them to suspend all prosecutions relative to the refusal of the sacraments: but instead of acquiescing, the parliament presented new remonstrances, refused to attend any other business, and resolved that they could not obey this injunction without violating their duty as well as their oath. They cited the bishop of Orleans before their tribunal, and ordered all writings, in which its jurisdiction was disputed, to be burnt by the executioner. By the assistance of the military, they enforced the administration of the sacraments to the sick, and ceased to distribute that justice to the subject for which they had been originally instituted. The king, enraged at their obstinacy, arrested and imprisoned four of the members who had been most obstinate, and banished the remainder to Bourges, Poitiers, and Auvergne; while, to prevent any impediment from taking place in the administration of justice by their absence, he issued letters patent, by which a royal chamber for the prosecution of civil and criminal suits was instituted. The counsellors refused to plead before these new courts; and the king, finding at last that the whole nation was about to fall into a state of anarchy, thought proper to recall the parliament. The banished members entered Paris amidst the acclamations of the inhabitants; and the archbishop, who still continued to encourage the priests in refusing the sacraments, was banished to his seat at Conflans; the bishops of Orleans and Troyes were in like manner banished, and a calm for the present restored to the kingdom.

The tranquillity thus established was of no long duration. In the year 1756, the parliament again fell under the displeasure of the king by their imprudent persecution of those who adhered to the bull Unigenitus. They proceeded so far in this opposition as to refuse to register certain taxes absolutely necessary for the carrying on of the war. By this Louis was provoked; that he suppressed the fourth and fifth chambers of inquests, the members of which had distinguished themselves by their opposition to his will. He commanded the bull Unigenitus to be respected, and prohibited the secular judges from ordering the administration of the sacraments. On this occasion the counsellors of the great chamber resigned their offices, and 124 members of the different parliaments followed their example; and the most grievous discontent took place throughout the kingdom. An attempt was made by a fanatic, named Damien, to assassinate him; and the king was actually wounded, though slightly, between the ribs, in the presence of his son and in the midst of his guards. The assassin was put to the most exquisite tortures; in the midst of which he persisted, in the most obstinate manner, to declare that he had no intention to kill the king; but that his design was only to wound him, that God might touch his heart, and incline him to restore peace to his dominions, &c. These expressions, which undoubtedly indicated insanity, had no effect on his merciless judges, who confined him to one of the most horrible deaths the ingenuity or cruelty of man could invent. This attempt, however, seems to have had some effect upon the king, as he soon after banished the archbishop of Paris, who had been recalled, and accommodated matters with his parliament once more.

The unfortunate event of the war of 1755 had family brought the nation to the brink of ruin, when Louis compact implored the alliance of Spain; and on this occasion between the celebrated Family Compact was signed; by which France, with the single exception of the American trade, the blithed subjects of France and Spain are naturalized in both kingdoms, and the enemy of the one sovereign is invariably to be looked upon as the enemy of the other. At that time, however, the alliance of Spain availed very little; both powers were reduced to the lowest ebb, and the arms of Britain were triumphant in every quarter of the globe. See the article BRITAIN.

The peace concluded at Paris in the year 1763, though it freed the nation from a most destructive and bloody war, did not restore its internal tranquillity. The parliament, eager to pursue the victory they had formerly gained over their religious enemies, now directed their efforts against the Jesuits, who had obtained the Jesuits, and enforced the bull Unigenitus. That once powerful order, however, was now on the brink of destruction. A general detestation of its members had taken place throughout the whole world. A conspiracy formed by them against the king of Portugal, and from which he narrowly escaped, had roused the indignation of Europe, and this was still farther inflamed by some fraudulent practices of which they had been guilty in France. Le Valette, the chief of their missionaries at Martinico, had, ever since the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle, carried on a very extensive commerce, inasmuch that he even aspired at monopolizing the whole West India trade when the war with Britain commenced in 1755. Leonay and Gouffre, merchants at Marseilles, in expectation of receiving merchandise to the value of two millions from him, had accepted bills drawn by the Jesuits to the amount of a million and a half. Unhappily they were disappointed by the vast number of captures made by the British; in consequence of which they were obliged to apply to the Society of Jesuits at large; but they, either ignorant of their true interest, or too slow in giving alit- France, suffered the merchants to stop payment; and thus not only to bring ruin upon themselves, but to involve, as is usual in such cases, a great many others in the same calamity. Their creditors demanded indemnification from the society at large; and on their refusal to satisfy them, brought their cause before the parliament of Paris. That body, eager to revenge themselves on such powerful adversaries, carried on the most violent persecutions every where against them.

In the course of these, the volume containing the constitution and government of the order itself was appealed to, and produced in open court. It then appeared, that the order of Jesuits formed a distinct body in the state, submitting implicitly to their chief, who alone was absolute over their lives and fortunes. It was likewise discovered that they had, after a former expulsion, been admitted into the kingdom upon conditions which they had never fulfilled; and to which their chief had obstinately refused to subscribe; consequently that their existence at that time in the nation was merely the effect of toleration. The event was, that the writings of the Jesuits were pronounced to contain doctrines subversive of all civil government, and injurious to the security of the sacred persons of sovereigns; the attempt of Damien against the king was attributed to them, and every thing seemed to prognosticate their speedy dissolution. In this critical moment, however, the king interfered, and by his royal mandate suspended all proceedings against them for a year; a plan of accommodation was drawn up, and submitted to the pope and general of the order; but the latter, by his ill-timed haughtiness, entirely overthrew the hope of reconciliation. The king withdrew his protection, and the parliament redoubled their efforts against them. The bulls, briefs, constitutions, and other regulations of the Society, were determined to be encroachments on authority, and abuses of government; the Society itself was finally dissolved, and its members declared incapable of holding any clerical or municipal offices; their colleges were seized; their effects confiscated; and the order annihilated ever since.

The parliament, having gained this victory, next made an attempt to set bounds to the power of the king himself. They now refused to register an edict which Louis had issued for the continuance of some taxes which should have ended with the war, and likewise to conform to another by which the king was enabled to redeem his debts at an inadequate price. The court attempted to get the edicts registered by force, but the parliaments everywhere seemed inclined to resist to the last. In 1765, the parliament of Brittany refused the crown a gift of 700,000 livres; in consequence of which they were singled out to bear the weight of royal vengeance; but while matters were on the point of coming to extremities, the king thought proper to drop the process altogether, and to publish a general amnesty. The parliaments, however, now affronted to despise the royal clemency; which exasperated the king to such a degree, that he ordered the counsellors of the parliament of Brittany (who had refused to resume the functions of which he deprived them) to be included in the list of those who were to be drafted for militia; and those upon whom the lot fell were immediately obliged to join their respective regiments; the rest being employed in forming the city-guard. The parliament of Paris remonstrated so freely upon this conduct of the king, that they also fell under his censure; and Louis in the most explicit manner declared, that he would suffer no earthly power to interfere with his will; and the parliaments were for the present intimidated into submission.

The interval of domestic tranquillity which now took place, was employed by the king in humbling the pride of the pope, who refused to recall a brief he had published against the duke of Parma. On this the French monarch reclaimed the territories of Avignon and Venaissin; and while the pontiff denounced his unavailing censures against him, the marquis de Rochechouart, with a single regiment of soldiers, drove out the troops of the pope, and took possession of the territories in question.

A more formidable opposition was made by the natives of the small island of Corfica; the sovereignty of Corfica reduced, which had been transferred to France by the Genoese, its former masters, on condition that Louis should reinstate them in the possession of the island of Capraia, which the Corsicans had lately reduced. These islanders defended themselves with the most desperate intrepidity; and it was not till after two campaigns, in which several thousands of the bravest troops of France were lost, that they could be brought under subjection.

The satisfaction which this unimportant conquest might afford to Louis, was clouded by the distress of the nation at large. The East India Company had totally failed, and most of the capital commercial houses in the kingdom were involved in the same calamity. The minister, the duc de Choiseul, by one desperate stroke, reduced the interest of the funds to one half, and at the same time took away the benefit of the survivorship in the tontines, by which the national credit was greatly affected; the altercation betwixt the king and his parliaments revived, and the dissensions became worse than ever. The duc de Choiseul attempted in vain to conciliate the differences; his efforts tended only to bring misfortunes upon himself, and in 1771 he was banished by the king, who suspected him of favouring the popular party too much; and this was soon after followed by the banishment of the whole parliament of Paris, and that by the banishment of a number of others; new parliaments being everywhere chosen in place of those who had been expelled. The people were by no means disposed to pay the same regard to these new parliaments that they had done to the old ones; but every appearance of opposition was at last silenced by the absolute authority of the king. In the midst of this plenitude of power, however, which he had so ardently desired, his health daily declined, and the period of his days was evidently at no great distance. As he had all along indulged himself in sensual pleasures to the greatest excess, so now they proved the immediate means of his destruction. His favourite mistress, Madame de Pompadour, who for a long time governed him with an absolute sway, had long since been dead, and the king had for some time been equally enslaved by the charms of Madame du Barre. At last even her beauty proved insufficient to excite desire; and a succession of mistresses became necessary to rouse the languid appetites of the king. One of these, who was infected with the small-pox, communicated the disease to the king; who in a short time died of it, notwithstanding all the assistance that could be given him by the physicians.

The new king Louis XVI., grandson to the former, ascended the throne in the year 1774, in the 20th year of his age; and to secure himself against the disease which had proved fatal to his predecessor, submitted to inoculation, with several others of the royal family. Their quick and easy recovery contributed much to extend that practice throughout the kingdom, and to remove the prejudices which had been entertained against it.

The king had no sooner regained his health, than he applied himself diligently to extinguish the differences which had taken place betwixt his predecessor and the people. He removed those from their employments who had given cause of complaint by their arbitrary and oppressive conduct; and he conciliated the affection of his subjects by removing the new parliaments and recalling the old ones.

But though the prudence of Louis had suggested to him these compliances, he endeavoured still to preserve pure and entire the royal authority. He explained his intentions by a speech in the great chamber of parliament. "The step that he had taken to ensure the tranquillity and happiness of his subjects, ought not (he observed) to invalidate his own authority; and he hoped, from the zeal and attachment of the present assembly, an example of submission to the rest of his subjects. Their repeated resistance to the commands of his grandfather had compelled that monarch to maintain his prerogative by their banishment; and they were now recalled, in the expectation that they would quietly exercise their functions, and display their gratitude by their obedience." He concluded with declaring, "That it was his desire to bury in oblivion all past grievances; that he should ever behold with extreme disapprobation whatever might tend to create divisions and disturb the general tranquillity; and that his chancellor would read his ordinance to the assembly, from which they might be assured he would not suffer the smallest deviation to be made." That ordinance was conceived in the most explicit terms, and was immediately registered by the king's command. The articles of it limited within very narrow bounds the pretensions of the parliament of Paris: The members were forbidden to look upon themselves as one body with the other parliaments of the kingdom, or to take any step, or assume any title, that might tend towards, or imply, such an union: They were enjoined never to relinquish the administration of public justice, except in cases of absolute necessity, for which the first president was to be responsible to the king; and it was added, that on their disobedience the Grand Council might replace the parliament, without any new edict for the purpose. They were still however permitted to enjoy the right of remonstrating before the registering of any edicts or letters patent which they might conceive injurious to the welfare of the people, provided they preserved in their representations the respect due to the throne. But these remonstrances were not to be repeated; and the parliament, if they proved ineffectual, were to register the edict objected to within a month at farthest from the first day of its being published. They were forbidden to issue any acts which might excite trouble, or in any manner retard the execution of the king's ordinances; and they were assured by the king himself, at the conclusion of this code for their future conduct, that as long as they adhered to the bounds prescribed, they might depend upon his countenance and protection. In short, the terms on which Louis consented to re-establish the parliaments were such, that they were reduced to mere cyphers, and the word of the king still continued to be the only law in the kingdom. The archbishop of Paris, who had likewise presumed to raise some commotions with regard to the bull Unigenitus, was obliged to submit; and severely threatened if he should afterwards interfere in such a cause.

The final conquest of the Corsicans, who, provoked by the oppression of their governors, had once more attempted to regain their former liberty, was the first event of importance which took place after this restoration of tranquillity: but the kingdom was yet filled with disorder from other causes. A scarcity of corn happening to take place just at the time that some regulations had been made by M. Turgot the new financier, the populace rose in great bodies, and committed such outrages, that a military force became absolutely necessary to quell them; and it was not till upwards of 500 of these miserable wretches were destroyed that they could be reduced. The king, however, by his prudent and vigorous conduct on this occasion, soon put a stop to all riots, and eminently displayed his clemency as well as prudence in the methods he took for the restoration of the public tranquillity.

The humanity of Louis was next shown in an edict which he caused to be registered in parliament, effecting the deferment of his army in future to work as slaves on the public roads, instead of punishing them as formerly with death; and with equal attention to the general welfare of his subjects, he seized the moment of peace to fulfill those promises of economy which on his accession he had given to his people. Various regulations took place in consequence; particularly the suppression of the Mufquetaires and some other corps, which being adapted more to the parade of guarding the royal person than any real military service, were supported at a great expense, without any adequate return of benefit to the state.

Particular attention was also paid to the state of the marine; and the appointment of M. de Sartine in 1776 to that department did honour to the penetration of the sovereign. That minister, fruitful in resources, and unrewarded in his application, was incessantly engaged in augmenting the naval strength of his country; and the various preparations that filled the ports and docks created no small uneasiness to the British court.

The next appointment made by the king was equally happy, and in one respect singular and unprecedented. M. Turgot, though possessed of integrity and industry, had not been able to command the public confidence. On his retreat, M. Clugny, intendant-general of Bordeaux, had been elevated to the vacant post; but he dying in a very short space, M. Taboureau des Reaux was appointed his successor; and the king soon after associated with him in the management of the the finances M. Necker, by birth a Swiss, and by religion a Protestant. That gentleman, in the preceding reign, had been chosen to adjust some differences between the East India company and the crown; and had discharged his trust in a manner which gained the approbation of both parties. Possessed of distinguished abilities, his appointment would have excited no surprise, had it not been contrary to the combat policy of France, which had carefully excluded the aliens of her country and faith from the control of her revenue. It now stood forward as a new instance of enlargement of mind and liberality of sentiment; and will to posterity mark the prominent features of the reign of Louis XVI.

Although the French monarch was of a pacific disposition, and not destitute of generosity of sentiment; yet his own and the public exultation had been openly and constantly proportioned to the success of the Americans in their contest with Britain: the princes of the blood and the chief nobility were eager to embark in support of the cause of freedom; and the prudence of the king and his most confidential ministers alone restrained their ardour. The fatal events of the former war were still impressed on the mind of Louis; and he could not readily consent to expose his infant marine in a contest with a nation who had so frequently asserted the dominion of the seas, and so lately broken the united strength of the house of Bourbon. At the same time, he was sensible that the opportunity of humbling those haughty islanders should not be entirely neglected, and that some advantages should be taken of the present commotions in America. Two agents from the United States, Silas Deane and Dr. Benjamin Franklin, had successively arrived at Paris; and though all audience was denied them in a public capacity, still they were privately encouraged to hope that France only waited the proper opportunity to vindicate in arms the independence of America. In the mean while, the American cruisers were hospitably received into the French ports; artillery and all kinds of warlike stores were freely sold or liberally granted to the distress of the colonists; and French officers and engineers, with the connivance of government, entered into their service.

Some changes were about this time introduced into the different departments of state. The conduct of M. Necker in the finances had been attended with universal approbation; and M. Taboureau des Reaux, his colleague, had resigned his situation, but still retained the dignity of counsellor of state. To afford full scope to the genius of M. Necker, Louis determined no longer to clog him with an associate; but, with the title of Director-general of the Finances, submitted to him the entire management of the funds and revenue of France. In the ensuing year, the count de St Germain, secretary at war, died; and the prince de Montbarey, who had already filled an inferior situation in that department, was now appointed to succeed him.

In the mean time, Louis's negotiations with foreign courts were not neglected. He concluded a new treaty of alliance with Switzerland; vigilantly observed the motions of the different princes of Germany on the death of the elector of Bavaria; and when closely questioned by the English ambassador Lord Stormont, respecting the various warlike preparations which were diligently continued through the kingdom, he replied, That at a time when the seas were covered with English fleets and American cruisers, and when such armies were sent to the New World as had never before appeared there, it became prudent for him also to arm for the security of the colonies and the protection of the commerce of France. The king was not ignorant at the same time, that the remonstrances of Great Britain, and the importunities of the agents of the United States, would soon compel him to adopt some decisive line of conduct. This was hastened by a new event disastrous to Britain; the failure of general Burgoyne's expedition, and the capture of his army. The news of that event was received at Paris with unbounded exultation. M. Sartine, the marine superintendent, was eager to measure the naval strength of France with that of Great Britain; the queen, who had long seconded the applications of the American agents, now espoused their cause with fresh ardour; and the pacific inclinations of Louis being overborne by the suggestions of his ministers and the influence of his queen, it was at length determined openly to acknowledge the independence of the United States.

Dr. Franklin and Silas Deane, who had hitherto acted as private agents, were now acknowledged as public ambassadors from those states to the court of Versailles; and a treaty of amity and commerce was signed between the two powers in the month of February 1778. The duke of Noailles, ambassador to the court of London, was in the month of March instructed to acquaint that court with the above treaty. At the same time he declared, that the contracting parties had paid great attention not to stipulate any exclusive advantages in favour of France, and that the United States had referred the liberty of treating with every nation whatever on the same footing of equality and reciprocity. But this stipulation was treated by the British with contempt; and the recall of Lord Stormont, their ambassador at Versailles, was the signal for the commencement of hostilities.—The events produced by this war are related under the articles AMERICA, BRITAIN, and INDOSTAN. Here our chief business is with domestic transactions, the measures of the cabinet, and the internal economy of the state.

In the year 1780, new changes in the French ministry took place. M. Bertin had resigned the office of secretary of state; the prince de Montbarey had retired from the post of secretary at war, and was succeeded by the marquis de Segur. But the most important removal was that of M. Sartine, who had for several years presided over the marine department, and whose unwearied application and ability had raised the naval power of France to a height that astonished Europe: but his colleagues in the cabinet loudly accused a profusion, which would have diverted into one channel the whole resources of the kingdom; and his retreat opened a road to the ambition of the marquis de Caltrics, who was appointed to supply his place.

This year, the king fixed on the anniversary of his birthday to render it memorable by a new instance of humanity; and he abolished for ever the inhuman custom of putting the question, as it was called, by torture, a custom which had been so established by the practice of ages, that it seemed to be an inseparable part of the the constitution of the courts of justice in France. At the same time, to defray the charges of war, he continued to diminish his own expenditure; and sacrificing his magnificence to the ease of his subjects, dismissed at once above 400 officers belonging to his court.

Unhappily, however, the popular discontents were excited next year by the dismissal of their favourite minister M. Necker. He had conceived the arduous but popular project of supporting a war by loans without taxes; and the rigid economy which he had introduced into all the departments of the royal household, and the various resources that presented themselves to his fertile genius, had supported him amidst the difficulties that attended this system. But his austerity of temper had not rendered him equally acceptable to the sovereign and his subjects; and the repeated reforms he had recommended were represented as inconsistent with the dignity of the crown; he was therefore in 1781 dismissed from his office of comptroller-general; and M. Joli de Fleuri, counsellor of state, was appointed to that important department. The defeat of the count de Graffe happened next year, and impressed the kingdom with general grief and consternation. Imminent preparations were, however, made for the operations of 1783; and in conjunction with the courts of Madrid and the Hague, Louis was determined this year to make the most powerful efforts to bring the war to a conclusion. But in the midst of these preparations, the voice of peace was again heard; and Louis was induced to listen to the proffered mediation of the two first potentates in Europe, the emperor of Germany and the empress of Russia. The count de Vergennes, who still occupied the post of secretary of foreign affairs, was appointed to treat with Mr Fitzherbert the British minister at Bruxelles, but who had lately proceeded to Paris to conduct this important negotiation. The way was already smoothed for the restoration of the public tranquillity, by provisional articles signed at the conclusion of the last year between the States of America and Great Britain, and which were to constitute a treaty of peace finally to be concluded when that between France and Great Britain took place. Preliminary articles were accordingly agreed upon and signed at Verailles; there were soon after succeeded by a definitive treaty; and France, throughout her extensive dominions, beheld peace once more established. Though the late war had been attended by the most brilliant success, and the independence of America seemed to strike deep at the source of her rival's power, yet France herself had not been entirely free from inconvenience. The retreat of M. Necker had, as we have already observed, diminished the public confidence; three different persons who had since transiently occupied his post, increased the jealousies of the people; and the failure of the celebrated Caiffe d'Etat completed the universal consternation.

That bank had been established in the year 1776. The plan of it was formed by a company of private adventurers, and its capital was fixed at L500,000 Sterling. The professed design of the Company was to discount bills at short dates, at the rate of four per cent. per annum; but as this interest could never be an equivalent for the capital sunk by the proprietors, they were entrusted with the additional power of issuing notes to the amount of their capital, which, as they were capable at any time of being converted into specie, might be often voluntarily taken by their customers from mere convenience. The reputation of the bank soon caused its stock to fall above par; and its credit was still at the highest, when to the astonishment of the nation it suddenly stopped payment on the 2d of October 1783. The cause assigned was an uncommon scarcity of specie. But the public suspected that the failure arose from a loan secretly made to government; and what confirmed the suspicion was, that government about the same time stopped payment of the bills drawn upon them by their army in America.

Whatever was the cause of this event, the king was prevailed on to extend his protection to the company. By four successive edicts the banks in Paris were ordered to receive the notes of the Caiffe d'Etat as currency; and a lottery with a stock of one million Sterling, redeemable in eight years, being established, the tickets were made purchasable in notes of the Caiffe d'Etat. By these expedients the public confidence in that bank was revived, its business increased, and its stock rose to above double the original subscription; the bills from America were at the same time put in a train of payment, and public credit was restored throughout the kingdom. Some compensation also for the expenses that had been incurred during the late war, was drawn from a treaty with the United States of America. These engaged to reimburse France in the sum of 18 million of livres, which had been advanced in the hour of their distress; and Louis consented to receive the money, as more convenient to the States, in the space of 12 years, by 12 equal and annual payments.

The general peace was soon after followed by a particular treaty between France and Holland, which was effected with great address by the Count de Vergennes. It included all the principles which can serve to cement in the closest union distinct nations under distinct governments; and by which they may mutually participate, in peace or in war, of good or of evil; and in all cases administer the most perfect aid, counsel, and succour to each other. It also prescribed, if their united good offices for the preservation of peace should prove ineffectual, the affluence they were to afford each other by sea and land. France was to furnish Holland with 10,000 effective infantry, 2000 cavalry, with 12 ships of the line and 6 frigates. Their High Mightinesses, on the other side, in case of a marine war, or that France should be attacked by sea, were to contribute to her defence six ships of the line and three frigates; and in case of an attack on the territory of France, the States-general were to have the option of furnishing their land contingent either in money or troops, at the estimate of 5000 infantry and 1000 cavalry. Further, if the stipulated succours should be insufficient for the defence of the party attacked, or for procuring a proper peace, they engaged to assist each other with all their forces, if necessary; it being however agreed that the contingent of troops to be furnished by the States general should not exceed 20,000 infantry and 4000 cavalry. It was further added, that neither of the contracting powers should disarm, or make or receive proposals of peace or truce, without the consent of the other; they promised also not to contract any future alliance or engagement whatever, ever, directly or indirectly, contrary to the present treaty; and on any treaties or negotiations being proposed which might prove detrimental to their joint interest, they pledged their faith to give notice to each other of such proposals as soon as made.

Titus was Holland now converted into the firm ally of that power against whose encroaching spirit she had formerly armed the most powerful kingdoms of Europe; while France having affected the independence of America against Great Britain, and having converted an ancient and formidable foe into an useful friend, seemed to have attained an influence over the nations of the earth that she had never before been possessed of.

But however exalted her present situation might appear, the seeds of future commotion were already apparent to an attentive observer. The applause that had attended the parliament of Paris in their struggles with the late king might be considered as the first dawn of freedom; the language of that assembly had boldly inculcated to their countrymen their natural rights, and taught them to look with a less enraptured eye on the lute that encompassed the throne. The war in America had contributed to enlarge the political ideas of the French; they had on that occasion stood forth as the champions of liberty, in opposition to regal power; and the officers, who had acted on that conspicuous theatre, accustomed to think and speak without Britain and restraint, on their return imparted to the provinces of her colonies. France the flame of freedom which had been kindled in the wilds of America. From that moment the French, instead of silently acquiescing under the edicts of their sovereign, canvassed each action with bold and rigid impartiality; while the attachment of the army, which has ever been considered as the sole foundation of despotism, gave way to the noble enthusiasm of liberty.

We have already noticed the public dissatisfaction that had attended the dismissal of M. Necker; his transient successor, M. de Fleury, had retired from the management of the finances in 1783, and the more transient administration of M. d'Ormesson had expired in the same year that gave it birth. On his retreat, M. de Calonne, who had successively filled with acknowledged reputation the office of intendant of Mentz, and afterwards of the provinces of Flanders and Artois, was nominated to the post of comptroller-general. This gentleman, flexible and infatuated, eloquent in conversation and polished in his manners, fertile in resources and liberal in the disposal of the public money, soon rendered himself acceptable to the sovereign. But he did not enter upon his new and arduous station favoured by the breath of popularity: he was reported to be more able than confident, and not to have tempered the ardour of his spirit by the severity of deep research; and the people, amidst repeated loans, regretted that fervent simplicity which had characterized the administration of M. Necker.

It was the bold and judicious measures of Calonne, however, that restored credit to the Caisse d'Éscompte, which had stopped payment a few weeks before his accession. His next measure, in 1784, the establishment of the Caisse d'Amortissement or sinking fund, was intended to a still higher degree of applause. The plan of that fund was simple and moderate: It was to pay annually by government, into the hands of a board set apart for that purpose, the entire interest of the national debts, whether in stock or annuities, together with an additional sum of L.120,000. The annuities that would be extinguished every year were estimated at L.50,000; and in that proportion, the sum set apart for the redemption of the national debt would annually increase. The operation of this new fund was limited to the term of 25 years; and during that term the annual receipt of the Caisse d'Amortissement is declared unalterable, and incapable of being diverted to any other object.

The principal measure of the next year was the establishment of a new East India Company, the constitutions of which have been already detailed in a preceding volume of this work, under the article COMPANY; see Vol.V, p.247, 248: A measure not equally commendable with the preceding, and which did not fail to excite violent complaints. The time, however, was now approaching, when the necessities of the state would compel him to measures still more unpopular, and destined to undergo a feverish scrutiny. Although peace had been re-established throughout Europe for three years, yet the finances of France seemed scarce affected by this interval of tranquillity, and it was found requisite to close every year with a loan. The public expenditure of 1785 might probably seem to sanction this measure. It had been thought proper to fortify Cherbourg upon a large and magnificent scale; the claim of the emperor to the navigation of the Scheldt, had obliged the French to increase their land forces, either to form a respectable neutrality, or to assist effectually their Dutch allies; and the marquis de Calonne, fond of war and profuse in his designs, had not suffered the navy, which M. Sartine had surrendered into his hands, to decline during the interval of peace. The treaty of commerce concluded in the year 1786 with Great Britain was a new source of discontent. Though regarded by the English manufacturers as far from advantageous, it excited in France still louder murmurs. It was represented as likely to extinguish those infant establishments, which were yet unable to vie with the manufactures of England that had attained to maturity; and the market that it held out for the wines and oils of France was passed over in silence, while the distress of the artisan was painted in the most striking colours. But when the edict for registering the loan at the conclusion of the last year, and which amounted to the sum of three millions three hundred and thirty thousand pounds, was presented to the parliament of Paris, the murmurs of the people, through the remonstrances of that assembly, assumed a more legal and formidable aspect. The king however signified to the select deputation that were commissioned to convey to him their remonstrances, that he expected to be obeyed without farther delay. The ceremony of the registering accordingly took place on the next day; but it was accompanied with a resolution, importing, "that public economy was the only genuine source of abundant revenue, the only means of providing for the necessities of the state, and restoring that credit which borrowing had reduced to the brink of ruin."

The king was no sooner informed of this step than he commanded the attendance of the grand deputation of parliament; when he erred from their records the resolution that had been adopted; and observed, that though it was his pleasure that the parliament should communicate, by its respectful representations, whatever might concern the good of the public, yet he never would allow them so far to abuse his clemency as to erect themselves into the censors of his government. At the same time, more strongly to mark his displeasure at their expostulations, he supereded one of their officers, who had appeared most active in forwarding the obnoxious resolution.

M. de Calonne, however, though gratified by the approbation of his sovereign, could not but feel himself deeply mortified by the opposition of the parliament. His attempt to conciliate that assembly had proved ineffectual; and he experienced their inflexible aversion at the critical juncture when their acquiescence might have proved of the most essential service. An anxious inquiry into the state of the public finances had convinced him that the expenditure by far exceeded the revenue. In this situation, to impose new taxes was impracticable; to continue the method of borrowing was ruinous; to have recourse only to economical reforms, would be found wholly inadequate; and he hesitated not to declare, that it would be impossible to place the finances on a solid basis, but by the reformation of whatever was vicious in the constitution of the state.

To give weight to this reform, M. de Calonne was sensible that something more was necessary than the royal authority; he perceived that the parliament was neither a fit instrument for introducing a new order into public affairs, nor would submit to be a passive machine for sanctioning the plans of a minister, even if those plans were the emanations of perfect wisdom. Though originally a body of lawyers, indebted for their appointments to the king, there was not an attribute of genuine legislative assembly but what they seemed desirous to engross to themselves; and they had been supported in their pretensions by the plaudits of the people, who were sensible that there was no other body in the nation that could plead their cause against royal or ministerial oppression. To suppress, therefore, the only power of control that remained, and to render the government more arbitrary, was deemed too perilous a measure; yet to leave the parliament in the full possession of their influence, an influence that the minister was convinced would be exerted against him, was at once to render his whole system abortive.

In this dilemma, the only expedient that suggested itself was to have recourse to some other assembly, more dignified and solemn in its character, and which should in a greater degree consist of members from the various orders of the state and the different provinces of the kingdom. This promised to be a popular measure; it implied a deference to the people at large, and might be expected to prove highly acceptable. But the true and legitimate assembly of the nation, the states-general, had not met since the year 1614; nor could the minister flatter himself with the hope of obtaining the royal assent to a meeting which a despotic sovereign could not but regard with secret jealousy. Another assembly had occasionally been substituted in the room of the states-general: this was distinguished by the title of the Notables; and consisted of a number of persons from all parts of the kingdom, chiefly selected from the higher orders of the state, and nominated by the king himself. This assembly had been convened by Henry IV. again by Louis XIII. and was now once more summoned by the authority of the present monarch.

The writs for calling them together were dated on the 29th of December 1786; and they were addressed to seven princes of the blood, nine dukes and peers of France, eight field-marechals, twenty-two nobles, eight counsellors of state, four masters of requests, eleven archbishops and bishops, thirty-seven of the heads of the law, twelve deputies of the pays d'états, the lieutenant civil, and twenty-five magistrates of the different towns of the kingdom. The number of members was 144; and the 29th of January 1787 was the period appointed for their meeting.

Upon the arrival of the Notables at Paris, however, the minister found himself yet unprepared to submit his system to their inspection, and postponed the opening of the council to the 7th of February. A second delay to the 14th of the same month was occasioned by the indisposition of M. de Calonne himself, and that of the count de Vergennes president of the council of finance and first secretary of state; and a third procrastination was the necessary result of the death of the count on the day previous to that fixed for the opening of the meeting. He was succeeded in the department of foreign affairs by the count de Montmorin, a nobleman of unblemished character. But his loss at this critical juncture was severely felt by M. de Calonne; he alone, of all the ministers, having entered with warmth and sincerity into the plans of the comptroller-general. The chevalier de Miramon, keeper of the seals, was avowedly the rival and enemy of that statesman. The maréchal de Castris, secretary for the marine department, was personally attached to M. Necker; and the baron de Breteuil, secretary for the households, was the creature of the queen, and deeply engaged in what was called the Austrian system.

It was under these difficulties that M. de Calonne, splendid on the 2nd of February, first met the assembly of the project of Notables, and opened his long expected plan. He began by stating, that the public expenditure had for centuries past exceeded the revenue, and that a very considerable deficiency had of course existed; that the Mississippi scheme of 1720 had by no means, as might have been expected, restored the balance; and that under the economical administration of cardinal Fleury the deficit still existed; that the progress of this derangement under the last reign had been extreme; the deficiency amounting to three millions sterling at the appointment of the abbé Terray; who, however, reduced it to one million six hundred and seventy-five thousand pounds; it decreased a little under the short administrations that followed, but rose again in consequence of the war, under the administration of M. Necker; and at his own accession to office, it was three millions three hundred and thirty thousand pounds.

In order to remedy this growing evil, M. Calonne recommended a territorial impost, in the nature of the England land-tax, from which no rank or order of men were to be exempted; and an enquiry into the positions possession of the clergy, which hitherto had been deemed sacred from their proportion of the public burdens: the various branches of internal taxation were also to undergo a strict examination; and a considerable resource was presented in mortgaging the domain lands of the crown.

The very necessity for these reforms was combated with a degree of boldness and force of reasoning that could not fail of deeply impressing the assembly; and instead of meeting with a ready acquiescence, the comptroller-general was now launched into the boundless ocean of political controversy. M. Necker, previous to his retirement, had published his Compte rendu au Roi, in which France was represented as possessing a clear surplus of 425,000 pounds sterling: this performance had been read with avidity, and probably contributed to estrange from the author the royal countenance; but the credit of it was ably vindicated by M. de Brienne archbishop of Thoulouse.

M. de Calonne met with a still more formidable adversary in the count de Mirabeau. This extraordinary man, restless in his disposition, licentious in his morals, but bold, penetrating, and enterprising, had occasionally visited every court in Europe. He had been admitted at one time to the confidence of the minister; and had been directed, though in no ostensible character, to observe at Berlin the disposition of the successor of the great Frederic: in this capacity he was frequently exposed to neglect and disappointment; his letters were often left unanswered; disgust succeeded to admiration; and he who had entered the Prussian court the intimate friend, returned to Paris the avowed enemy, of M. de Calonne: While the archbishop arraigned the understanding, the count impeached the integrity, of the comptroller-general.

The eloquence of M. de Calonne, however, might have successfully vindicated his system and reputation against the calculations of Brienne, and the invectives of Mirabeau; but he could not support himself against the influence of the three great bodies of the nation. The ancient nobility and the clergy had ever been free from all public affections; and had the evil gone no farther, it might have been still perhaps borne with patience; but through the shameful custom of selling patents of nobility, such crowds of new noblesse started up, that every province in the kingdom was filled with them. The first object with those who had acquired fortunes rapidly, was to purchase a patent; which, besides gratifying their vanity, afforded an exemption to them and their posterity from contributing proportionally to the exigencies of the state; the magistracies likewise throughout the kingdom enjoyed their share of these exemptions; so that the whole weight of the taxes fell on those who were least able to bear them.

The minister's design, then, of equalizing the public burdens, and by rendering the taxes general diminishing the load borne by the lower and most useful classes of people, though undoubtedly great and patriotic, at once united against him the nobility, the clergy, and the magistracy; and the event was such as might be expected: the intrigues of those three bodies raised against him so loud a clamour, that finding it impossible to stem the torrent, he not only resigned his place on the 12th of April, but soon after retired to England from the storm of persecution.

In the midst of these transactions at home, Louis's attention was also called to the state of affairs in the republic of Holland, his new and closest ally. The prince of de Calonne Orange had been stripped of all authority by the aristocratic party; and, retiring from the Hague, maintained the shadow of a court at Nimeguen. His brother-in-law, however, the new king of Prussia, exerted his endeavours to promote the interests of the stadtholder; and having offered, in concert with France, to undertake the arduous task of composing the differences which distracted the republic, the proposal was received with apparent cordiality by the court of Versailles. At the same time it could scarcely be expected that France would become the instrument of restoring the prince of Orange to that share of power which he had before occupied, and thus abandon one of the longest and most favourite objects of her policy, the establishing a supreme and permanent control in the affairs of Holland. In fact, the conditions which were framed by the Louvetain faction, as the basis of reconciliation, were such as plainly indicated their design to reduce the influence and authority of the stadtholder within very narrow limits. On his renouncing his right of filling up the occasional vacancies in the town senates, he was to be restored to the nominal office of captain-general; but he was to be restrained from marching the troops into or out of any province, without leave from the respective provinces concerned; and he was also to subscribe to a resolution passed some time before by the senate of Amsterdam, that the command should at all times be revocable at the pleasure of the states. Had the prince acquiesced in these preliminaries, France would have completely attained the object of her long negotiations, and by means of the Louvetain faction have acquired the ascendancy that she had repeatedly sought in the councils of Holland. But under the difficulties that surrounded him, the prince of Orange was admirably supported and assisted by the genius, the spirit, and the abilities of his consort: she firmly rejected every measure tending to abridge any rights that had been attached to the office of stadtholder; and M. de Rayneval, the French negociator, having in vain endeavoured to overcome her resolution, broke off the correspondence between the Hague and Nimeguen, and returned to Paris about the middle of January 1787.

The events that ensued will be found detailed under a subsequent article. It is only necessary to observe in this place, that the republican party were totally disappointed in their hopes from France. The court of Versailles had indeed long trusted to the natural strength of the republican party, and had been affidavit of the during the whole summer in endeavouring to second French to them by every species of succours that could be privately afforded. Crowds of French officers arrived daily in Holland; and either received commissions in the service of the states, or acted as volunteers in their troops. Several hundreds of tried and experienced soldiers were selected from different regiments; and being furnished with money for their journey, and assurances of future favour, were dispatched in small parties to join the troops, and help to discipline the burghers. A considerable corps of engineers were also directed to proceed silently and in disguise towards Amsterdam, and to assist in strengthening the works of that city. These aids, which might have proved effectual had the contest been confined to the States of Holland and the stadtholder, were overwhelmed in the rapid invasion of the Prussians; and the court of Berlin had taken its measures with so much celerity, and the situation of the republicans was already become so desperate, that it was doubtful whether their affairs could be restored by any alliance that France was capable of immediately administering. Yet on Great Britain fitting out a strong squadron of men of war at Portsmouth to give confidence to the operations of the king of Prussia, the court of Versailles also sent orders to equip 16 sail of the line at Brest, and recalled a small squadron which had been commissioned on a summer's cruise on the coast of Portugal. But in these preparations Louis seemed rather to regard his own dignity, than to be actuated by any hopes of effectually relieving his allies. All opposition in Holland might be already considered as extinguished. The States assembled at the Hague had officially notified to the court of Versailles, that the disputes between them and the stadtholder were now happily terminated; and as the circumstances which gave occasion for their application to that court no longer existed, so the succours which they had then requested would now be unnecessary.

Under these circumstances, France could only wish to extricate herself from her present difficulty with honour. She therefore readily listened to a memorial from the British minister at Paris; who proposed, in order to preserve the good understanding between the two crowns, that all warlike preparations should be discontinued, and that the navies of both kingdoms should be again reduced to the footing of a peace establishment. This was gladly acceded to by the court of Versailles; and that harmony which had been transiently interrupted between the two nations was restored.

Though the French king could not but sensibly feel the mortification of thus relinquishing the ascendancy which he had attained in the councils of Holland, the state of his own domestic concerns and the internal situation of his kingdom furnished matter for more serious reflection. The dismission of M. de Calonne had left France without a minister, and almost without a system; and though the king bore the opposition of the Notables with admirable temper, yet the disappointment that he had experienced sunk deep into his mind. Without obtaining any relief for his most urgent necessities, he perceived too late that he had opened a path to the restoration of the ancient constitution of France, which had been undermined by the crafty Louis XI., and had been nearly extinguished by the daring and sanguinary counsels of Richelieu under Louis XIII. The Notables had indeed demeaned themselves with respect and moderation, but at the same time they had not been deficient in firmness. The appointment of the archbishop of Toulouse, the vigorous adversary of M. de Calonne, to the office of comptroller-general, probably contributed to preserve the appearance of good humour in that assembly; yet the proposed territorial impost, or general land tax, which was an object so ardently coveted by the court, was rejected. Louis, therefore, deprived of any farther hope of rendering the convention subservient to his embarrassments, determined to dissolve the assembly; which he accordingly did, with a very moderate and conciliatory speech to the members on their dismission.

Thus disappointed of the advantage which he had flattered himself he would have drawn from the acquiescence of the Notables, the king was obliged now to recur to the usual mode of raising money by the royal edicts; among the measures proposed for which purpose were the doubling of the poll-tax, the re-establishment of the third twentieth, and a stamp-duty. But the whole was strongly disapproved by the parliament of Paris; and that admirably, in the most polite terms, refused to register the edict. Louis was obliged to apply, as the last resort, to his absolute authority; and, by holding what is called a bed of justice, compelled them to enroll the impost.

The parliament, though defeated, were far from subdued; and on the day after the king had held his bed of justice, they entered a formal protest against the edict; declaring, "that it had been registered against their approbation and consent, by the king's express command; that it neither ought nor should have any force; and that the first person who should presume to attempt to carry it into execution, should be adjudged a traitor, and condemned to the galleys." This spirited declaration left the king no other alternative, than either proceeding to extremities in support of his authority, or relinquishing for ever after the power of raising money upon any occasion without the consent of the parliament. Painful as every appearance of violence must have proved to the mild disposition of Louis, he could not content to surrender, without a struggle, that authority which had been so long exercised by his predecessors. Since the commencement of the present discontent, the capital had been gradually filled with considerable bodies of troops; and about a week after the parliament had entered the protest, an officer of the French guards, with a party of soldiers, went at break of day to the house of each individual member, to signify to him the king's command, that he should immediately get into his carriage, and proceed to Troyes, a city of Champagne, about 70 miles from Paris, without writing or speaking to any person out of his own house before his departure. These orders were served at the same instant; and before the citizens of Paris were acquainted with the transaction, their magistrates were already on the road dispatched to their place of banishment.

Previous to their removal, however, they had presented a remonstrance on the late measures of government, and the alarming state of public affairs. In stating their opinions on taxes, they declared, that neither the parliaments, nor any other authority, excepting that of the three estates of the kingdom collectively assembled, could warrant the laying of any permanent tax upon the people; and they strongly enforced the renewal of those national assemblies, which had rendered the reign of Charlemagne so great and illustrious.

This requisition of the parliaments to re-establish the the national council, or states-general, was the more honourable, as the former assemblies must have sunk under the influence of the latter, and returned to their original condition of mere registries and courts of law. The confidence and attachment of the people of consequence role in proportion to this instance of disinterestedness; their murmurs were openly expressed in the streets of the capital, and the general dissatisfaction was augmented by the stop that was put to public business by the exile of the parliament.

The cabinet at the same time was apparently weak, disunited, and fluctuating; and continual changes took place in every department of the state. Louis, adverse to rigorous councils, wished to allay the growing discontent by every concession that was consistent with his dignity; but it was generally believed, that the queen strongly dissuaded him from any step that might tend to the diminution of the royal authority. The influence of that princess in the cabinet was undoubtedly great; but the popularity which once had accompanied her was no more; and some imputations of private levity, which had been rumoured through the capital, were far from rendering her acceptable to the majority of the people; while the count d'Artois, the king's brother, who had expressed himself in the most unguarded terms against the conduct of the parliament, stood exposed to all the consequences of popular hatred.

Nor was it only in the capital that the flame of liberty once more burst forth; it blazed with equal strength in the provincial parliaments. Among various instances of this nature, the parliament of Grenoble passed a decree against lettres de cachet, the most odious engine of arbitrary power; and declared the execution of them within their jurisdiction, by any person, and under whatever authority, to be a capital crime.

The king had endeavoured to soothe the Parisians by new regulations of economy, and by continual retrenchments in his household: but these instances of attention, which once would have been received with the loudest acclamations, were now disregarded under their affliction for the absence of their parliament. His majesty, therefore, in order to regain the affections of his subjects, consented to restore that assembly; abandoning at the same time the stamp-duty and the territorial impost, which had been the sources of dispute. These measures were, however, insufficient to establish harmony between the court and the parliament. The necessities of the state still continued; nor could the deficiency of the revenue be supplied but by extraordinary resources, or a long course of rigid frugality.

About the middle of November 1787, in a full meeting of the parliament, attended by all the princes of the blood and the peers of France, the king entered the assembly, and proposed two edicts for their approbation: one was for a new loan of 450 millions, near 19 millions sterling; the other was for the re-establishment of the Protestants in all their ancient civil rights; a measure which had long been warmly recommended by the parliament, and which was probably now introduced to procure a better reception to the loan.

On this occasion, the king delivered himself in a speech of uncommon length, filled with professions of regard for the people, but at the same time strongly expressive of the obedience he expected to his edicts. Louis probably imagined, that the dread of that banishment from which the members had been so lately recalled, would have ensured the acquiescence of the assembly; but no sooner was permission announced for every member to deliver his sentiment, than he was convinced that their spirits remained totally unsubdued. An animated debate took place, and was continued for nine hours; when the king, wearied by perpetual opposition, and chagrined at some freedoms used in their debates, suddenly rose, and commanded the edict loan to be registered without further delay. This measure was most unexpectedly opposed by the duke of Orleans, first prince of the blood; who, considering it as an infringement of the rights of parliament, protested against the whole proceedings of the day as being thereby null and void. Though Louis could not conceal his astonishment and displeasure at this decisive step, he contented himself with repeating his orders; and immediately after, quitting the assembly, retired to Versailles. On the king's departure, the parliament confirmed the protest of the duke of Orleans; and declared, that as their deliberations had been interrupted, they considered the whole business of that day as of no effect.

It was not to be supposed that Louis would suffer so bold an attack on his power with impunity. Accordingly a letter was next day delivered to the duke of Orleans, commanding him to retire to Villars Cotterel, one of his seats about 15 leagues from Paris, and to receive no company there except his own family; at the same time the Abbé Sabatier and M. Fréteau, both members of the parliament, and who had Duke of distinguished themselves in the debate, were seized Orleans under the authority of lettres de cachet, and conveyed members the first to the castle of Mont St Michel in Normandy, and the last to a prison in Picardy. This act of despotism did not fail immediately to rouse the feelings of the parliament. On the following day they waited on the king, and expressed their astonishment and concern that a prince of the blood royal had been exiled, and parliament, two of their members imprisoned, for having declared in his presence what their duty and consciences dictated, and at a time when his majesty had announced that he came to take the sense of the assembly by a plurality of voices. The answer of the king was reserved, forbidding, and unsatisfactory; and tended to increase the resentment of the parliament. At the same time, it did not prevent them from attending to the exigencies of the state; and convinced of the emergency, they consented to register the loan for 450 millions of livres, which had been the source of this unfortunate difference. This concession contributed to soften the mind of the king, and the sentence of the two magistrates was in consequence changed from imprisonment to exile; M. Fréteau being sent to one of his country-seats, and the Abbé Sabatier to a convent of Benedictines.

The parliament however was not to be soothed by that measure to give up the points against which they had originally remonstrated. In a petition conceived with freedom, and couched in the most animated language, they boldly reproved the late acts of arbitrary violence, and demanded the entire liberation of the persons against whom they had been exerted. We have already noticed the fluctuating counsels of the court of Versailles; Versailles; and that Louis, as often as he was left to pursue his own inclinations, adopted measures of reconciliation. On the present occasion, in the beginning of the year 1788, he recalled the duke of Orleans to court, who soon after obtained leave to retire to England; and he permitted the return of the abbe Sabatier and M. Fretreau to the capital.

The parliament however had not confined their demands to the liberation of those gentlemen; but had also echoed the remonstrances of the parliament of Grenoble, and had loudly inveighed against the execution of lettres de cachet. These repeated remonstrances, mingled with personal reflections, seconded most probably the suggestions of the queen, and Louis was once more instigated to measures of severity. Messrs. d'Epemrevil and Monlambert, whose bold and pointed harangues had pressed most closely on the royal dignity, were doomed to experience its immediate resentment. While a body of armed troops surrounded the hotel in which the parliament were convened, Colonel Degout entered the assembly, and secured the persons of the obnoxious members, who were instantly conducted to different prisons. This new instance of arbitrary violence occasioned a remonstrance from parliament, which in boldness far exceeded all the former representations of that assembly. They declared they were now more strongly confirmed, by every proceeding, of the entire innovation which was aimed at in the constitution. "But, sire," added they, "the French nation will never adopt the despotic measures to which you are advised, and whose effects alarm the most faithful of your magistrates; we shall not repeat all the unfortunate circumstances which afflict us; we shall only represent to you with respectful firmness, that the fundamental laws of the kingdom must not be trampled upon, and that your authority can only be esteemed so long as it is tempered with justice."

Language so pointed and decisive, and which affected the controlling power of the laws above the regal authority, could not fail of seriously alarming the king; and with a view to diminish the influence of parliament, it was determined again to convene the Notables. Accordingly, about the beginning of May, Louis appeared in that assembly; and after complaining of the excesses in which the parliament of Paris had indulged themselves, and which had drawn down his reluctant indignation on a few of the members, he declared his resolution, instead of annihilating them as a body, to recall them to their duty and obedience by a salutary reform. M. de la Moignon, as keeper of the seals, then explained his majesty's pleasure to establish a cour plénire or supreme assembly, to be composed of princes of the blood, peers of the realm, great officers of the crown, the clergy, marshals of France, governors of provinces, knights of different orders, a deputation of one member from every parliament, and two members from the chambers of council, and to be summoned as often as the public emergency, in the royal opinion, should render it requisite.

If the assembly of the Notables listened in silent deference to the project of their sovereign, the parliament of Paris received it with every symptom of aversion. That body strongly protested against the establishment of any other tribunal; and declared their final resolution not to assist at any deliberations in the supreme assembly which his majesty prepared to institute. A more unexpected mortification occurred to the king in the opposition of several peers of the realm: these expressed their regret at beholding the fundamental principles of the constitution violated; and while they were lavish in their professions of attachment to the person of their sovereign, concluded with apologizing for not entering on those functions assigned them in the plenary court, as being inconsistent with the true interests of his majesty, which were inseparable from those of the nation.

The flame quickly spread throughout the more distant provinces; at Rennes in Brittany, and Grenoble in Dauphiné, the people broke out into acts of the most daring outrage. In the latter city several hundreds of the inhabitants perished in a conflict with the military; they yet maintained their ground against the regulars; and the commanding officer, at the instigation of the first president, readily withdrew his troops from a contest into which he had entered with reluctance. The different parliaments of the kingdom at the same time expressed their feelings in the most glowing language; and strongly urged the necessity of calling together the states-general, the lawful council of the kingdom, as the only means of restoring the public tranquillity.

Louis now plainly saw, that a compliance with the public wishes for the re-establishment of the states-general was absolutely necessary, in order to avoid the calamities of a civil war which impended upon his refusal. In that event he must have expected to have encountered the majority of the people, animated by the exhortations and example of their magistrates; the peers of the realm had expressed the strongest disapprobation of his measures; nor could he ever depend any longer on the support of the princes of his blood; but what afforded most serious matter of alarm was the spirit lately displayed among the military, who, during the disturbances in the provinces, had reluctantly been brought to draw their swords against their countrymen; and many of whose officers, so recently engaged in establishing the freedom of America, publicly declared their abhorrence of despotism.

It was not, however, till after many a painful struggle that Louis could resolve to restore an assembly, whose influence must naturally overshadow that of the crown, and whose jurisdiction would confine within narrow limits the boundless power he had inherited from his predecessor. In the two preceding reigns, the states-general had been wholly discontinued; and though the queen-regent, during the troubles which attended the minority of Louis XIV., frequently expressed her intention of calling them together, she was constantly dissuaded by the representations of Mazarin. It is probable that the present monarch still flattered himself with the hope of being able to allure the members of that assembly to the side of the court; and having employed them to establish some degree of regularity in the finances, and to curb the spirit of the parliaments, that he would again have dismissed them to obscurity.

Under these impressions an arrêt was issued in August, fixing the meeting of the states general to the first of May in the ensuing year; and every step was taken to secure the favourable opinion of the public states-general during all. during the interval. New arrangements took place in the administration; and M. Necker, whom the confidence of the people had long followed, was again introduced into the management of the finances; the torture, which by a former edict had been restricted in part, was now entirely abolished; every person accused was allowed the assistance of counsel, and permitted to avail himself of any point of law; and it was decreed, that in future sentence of death should not be passed on any person, unless the party accused should be pronounced guilty by a majority at least of three judges.

The time appointed for the convention of the states-general was now approaching; and the means of assembling them formed a matter of difficult deliberation in the cabinet. The last meeting, in 1614, had been convened by application to the bailiwicks. But this mode was liable to several strong objections; the bailiwicks had been increased in number and jurisdiction, several provinces having since that period been united to France; and the numbers and quality of the members were no less an object of serious attention; it was not till the close of the year, therefore, that the proposal of M. Necker was adopted, which fixed the number of deputies at 1000 and upwards, and ordained that the representatives of the third estate or commons should equal in number those of the nobility and clergy united.

The eyes of all Europe were now turned on the states-general; but the moment of that assembly's meeting was far from auspicious: The minds of the French had long been agitated by various rumours; the unanimity that had been expected from the different orders of the states was extinguished by the jarring pretensions of each; and their mutual jealousies were attributed by the suspicions of the people to the intrigues of the court, who were supposed already to repent of the haste with which they had extorted. A dearth that pervaded the kingdom increased the general discontent; and the people, pressed by hunger, and inflamed by resentment, were ripe for revolt. The foreigner also, equally impatient of the obstacles he continually encountered, could not conceal his chagrin; while the influence of the queen in the cabinet was again established, and was attended by the immediate removal of M. Necker. The diffusion of that minister, so long the favourite of the public, was the signal of open insurrection: the Parisians assembled in myriads; the guards refused to oppose and stain their arms with the blood of their fellow-citizens; the count d'Artois and the most obnoxious of the nobility thought themselves happy in eluding by flight the fury of the insurgents; and in a moment a revolution was accomplished, the most remarkable perhaps of any recorded in history.

But that we may not take up room with an imperfect or dubious narration, we must defer giving any detail of particulars till some future opportunity, when the tide of innovation and reform now prevailing in that kingdom shall have subsided, and the government in one shape or another have attained a footing that promises to be durable. The objects of the revolution are many and arduous; and it is impossible to say, whether we may have yet to record their entire consummation; or to recount a new train of events tending to shake the novel fabric, and to restore the puissance and the splendor of royalty, though the sceptre of deposition should be swayed no more. In short, it is wished to have an opportunity, not only of detailing the progress, but of surveying the final issue, of the event in question. Such an opportunity may perhaps be afforded by the time we arrive at the article Revolution, where there will be occasion to advert to the principal events which under that denomination have formed eras in the history of different nations, and when of course this great era in the annals of France will claim a share of attention proportioned to its magnitude and importance.

The air in France is pure, healthy, and temperate. The kingdom is so happily seated in the middle of the temperate zone, that some make it equal to Italy, with regard to the delightfulness of the landscapes, and the fertility of the soil: however, it is certainly much more healthful. The soil produces corn, wine, oil, and flax, in great abundance; and they have very large manufactures of linen, woollen, silk, and lace. They have a foreign trade to Spain, Italy, Turkey, and to the East and West Indies. They themselves reckon that the number of the inhabitants is 20,000,000. The kingdom is watered by a great number of rivers; of which the four principal are, the Loire, the Seine, the Rhone, and the Garonne or Gironde. The monarchy was absolute before the late revolution; and the subjects were extremely devoted to their prince even under the greatest acts of oppression. The parliaments, for a long series of years past, had little or no share in the government; and their business was confined to the passing and registering the arrets or laws which the king was pleased to send them; however, they did not always pay a blind obedience to the king, and we have had frequent instances of their making a noble stand. In civil causes these parliaments were the last resort, provided the court did not interpose. That of Paris was the most considerable, where the king used often to come in person to see his royal acts recorded. It consisted of the dukes and peers of France (when dukes and peers existed), besides the ordinary members, who purchased their places; and they only took cognizance of causes belonging to the crown. The revenues of the crown arose from the taille or land-tax, and the aids which proceed from the customs and duties on all merchandize, except salt, the tax upon which commodity is called the gabelle*: besides these, there were other taxes; as, the capitulation or poll-tax; the tenths of all estates, offices, and employments; besides the right of a penny, from which neither the nobility nor clergy were exempted. Add to these, the tenths or free-gifts of the clergy, who were allowed to tax themselves; and, lastly, crown-rents, fines, and forfeitures, which brought in a considerable sum. All these are said to have amounted to 15,000,000 Sterling a-year. But the king had other resources and ways of raising money, whenever necessity obliged him. The army, in time of peace, is said to consist of 200,000 men, and in time of war of 400,000; among whom are many Swedes, Germans, Scots, Irish, Swedes, and Danes. There was till lately no religion allowed in France but the Roman Catholic, ever since the revocation of the edict of Nantes in 1685; though they are not so devoted to the pope as other nations of that communion, nor... nor had they ever any inquisition among them. The Roman Catholic is still the established religion; but with ample toleration to the Protestants, who are now even not excluded from places of the highest trust in the state.

**Ile of France**, a province of France, so called, because it was formerly bounded by the river Seine, Marne, Oise, Aisne, and Ourque. It comprehends, besides Paris, the Beauvoisis, the Valois, the county of Senlis, the Vexin, the Hurepoix, the Gatinois, the Multien, the Goele, and the Mantois. Paris is the capital.