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 PRESENTED HY 
 

 
 
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 CONSPIRACY 
 
 or THF 
 
 I 
 
 SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE, 
 
 AND OF 
 
 i> 
 
 JOHN LEWIS FIESCO 
 
 AGAINST 
 
 
 GENOA* 
 
 i 
 
 BOSTON: 
 
 HILLIARD, GRAY, LITTLE & WILKINS, 
 
 
 1828. 
 
DISTRICT OF MASSACHUSETTS, TO WIT ! 
 
 District Clerk's Office. 
 Be it remembered, that on the eleventh day of March, A. D. 1828. 
 in the fifty-second year of the Independence of the United States of 
 America, Hilliard, Gray, Little & Wilkins, of the said dis- 
 trict, have deposited in this Office, the Title of a Book, the right 
 whereof they claim as Proprietors, in the words following, to icit : 
 
 " Conspiracy of the Spaniards against Venice, and of John Lewis 
 Fiesco against Genoa." 
 
 In conformity to the act of the Congress of the United States, enti- 
 tled, " An act for the encouragement of learning, by securing the cop- 
 ies of maps, charts, and books, to the authors and proprietors of such 
 copies, during the times therein mentioned }"' and also to an act enti- 
 tled, " An act supplementary to an act, entitled, an act for the encour- 
 agement of learning, by securing the cc$>ies of maps, charts and books 
 to the authors and proprietors of sufji Jopies during the times therein 
 mentioned 5 and extending the benefiys'rhereofto the arts of designing, 
 engraving and etching historical aitd other prints." 
 
 JOHN W. DAVIS, Clerk of the District of Massachusetts. 
 
 am 
 
 MAR 27 1908 
 
 MUNROE & FRANCIS, PRINTERS. 
 
NOTE. 
 
 The account of the conspiracy of the Spaniards 
 against Venice, written by the abbe Real, has been 
 considered one of the most interesting works ever 
 published. Charles Butler, author of " Reminis- 
 cences," who was requested by a lady to prescribe 
 for her a course of historical reading, places it in the 
 list of books which he recommended. The French 
 tragedy of " Manlius," written by Lafosse, and the 
 English tragedy of " Venice Preserved," written by 
 Otway, are founded on events which it relates. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 No enterprise, in which men can be engag- 
 ed, calls into action such elevated faculties as 
 a conspiracy. Courage, prudence, and fidel- 
 ity, all equally essential, are qualities rare in 
 their nature ; but it is still more rare to find 
 tfrem united in the same individual. As men 
 naturally flatter themselves that they are 
 more beloved than they really are, especially 
 when they deserve, and have endeavored to 
 inspire esteem, some leaders of conspiracies 
 rely implicitly upon the attachment of their 
 associates ; but the most ardent attachment 
 is seldom stronger than the fear of death. 
 And, moreover, extreme warmth of attach- 
 ment is of itself too apt to confuse the judg- 
 ment in unexpected occurrences ; it is incom- 
 
 
Mil INTRODUCTION. 
 
 patible with the necessary discretion ; and 
 generally those who are excessively anxious 
 to accomplish an object are too unable to con- 
 ceal their anxiety. 
 
 If, from the known prudence of a conspira- 
 rator, reliance may be placed on his discre- 
 tion, he will not, for that very reason, engage 
 in such an undertaking so zealously as others ; 
 he will perceive the magnitude and probabil- 
 ity of the danger to which he exposes himself, 
 and will provide in the outset the means of" 
 retreat ; he will be apt to reflect that the ad- 
 vantages he may derive are uncertain, and 
 that, if he makes a disclosure, he may be sure 
 of safety and reward. 
 
 Besides, the talents of men are, for the most 
 part, the result of their experience ; and they 
 rarely reason correctly in the first important 
 affair in which they engage. The wisest are 
 those who profit by the errors they have com- 
 mitted, and deduce from their consequences, 
 rules for the government of their future con- 
 duct. But as there are no points of resem- 
 blance, whether the danger or the difficulty 
 be considered, between a conspiracy and any 
 
INTRODUCTION. IX 
 
 other affair whatever, the experience, which 
 may be otherwise acquired, can be of no use 
 in the conduct of an enterprise of this des- 
 cription. To enable an associate in a con- 
 spiracy to avoid committing an error, he must 
 have been engaged in one previously ; but it 
 seldom happens that the same man is con- 
 cerned in two. If the first succeeds, the ad- 
 vantages he derives from it generally relieve 
 him from the necessity of exposing himself 
 again to the same dangers ; if it fails, he per- 
 ishes ; or, if he escapes, he will rarely be 
 willing to incur, a second time, the same 
 peril. 
 
 Furthermore, it must be observed that, 
 however strong may be their hatred of ty- 
 rants, men always love themselves more than 
 they hate others. It is not enough that eve- 
 ry conspirator is in fact faithful, each must 
 also be convinced that all his associates will 
 be equally faithful ; and a leader must have 
 regard to all the panic terrors, and ridiculous 
 apprehensions which may seize them, as well 
 as to the real difficulties which he may have 
 to encounter, either being alike capable of 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 ruining his enterprise. Add to this, that a 
 word spoken of something else, a gesture 
 made without motive, may excite suspicion 
 of discovery, and precipitate the execution ; 
 that a circumstance of not the slightest im- 
 portance will sometimes frighten men for no 
 other reason than because it was unexpected ; 
 and that men are so constituted that they al- 
 ways apprehend their secret is known, and 
 every thing said or done in their presence 
 leads them to suspect they are discovered. 
 He who is conscious of guilt is startled at ev- 
 ery thinir. 
 
 If these difficulties are almost insurmount- 
 able in conspiracies against a single person, 
 how much greater must they be in conspira- 
 cies aimed against a large number at once, 
 for instance a city or a kingdom, and which 
 of course require more time to arrange, and 
 more persons to execute them. 
 
 These considerations have always led me 
 to regard this kind of enterprise as furnishing 
 the most instructive portions of history ; 
 and have induced* me to give to the public an 
 account of the conspiracy formed, in 1618, 
 
 
INTRODUCTION. xi 
 
 Jagainst Venice, by an ambassador from Spain 
 to that republic.* 
 tJVfy judgment may possibly be influenced 
 *M by love of the subject on which I have under- 
 taken to write ; but I frankly avow that it 
 appears to me that no where can we, so well 
 as in such enterprises, see how much pru- 
 dence, and how much chance avails in human 
 affairs ; nor learn the utmost reach of the 
 powers of the mind, and its various limits ; 
 its highest elevations, and its most secret 
 weaknesses ; the variety of considerations 
 necessary in governing men ; the difference 
 between commendable ingenuity, and repre- 
 hensible intrigue, between dexterity and cun- 
 tning. And if malignity is never more hateful 
 than when it makes a bad use of the most ex- 
 cellent qualities, the reader of this history must 
 * This conspiracy is spoken of in the history of Nani, book III, page 
 156, and in the fifth volume of the Mercure Francois, for the year 1618, 
 page 38, where may be seen a letter from Venice, dated the 21st of 
 May of that year. The principal authorities for this history, such as the 
 statement of the marquis of Bedmar, the long despatch of the captain, 
 James Pierre, to the duke of Ossuna, the deposition of Jaffier, the crim- 
 inal proceedings against the conspirators, and several others, may be 
 found among the manuscripts in the national library ; and the Squittinio 
 della Liberia. Veneta among the printed works. Divers other manu- 
 scripts have also been consulted. 
 
XII INTRODUCTION. 
 
 feel unutterable horror when he witnesses the 
 sublimest faculties of man devoted to the ac- 
 complishment of a detestable purpose. Thus 
 an ancient Grecian, seeing a criminal, suffer- 
 ing under the torture, adhere, with wonder- 
 ful constancy, to a falsehood, could not avoid 
 exclaiming, " O the wretch ! to prostitute 
 so noble a faculty to so bad a purpose." 
 
CONSPIRACY, 
 
 The controversy between the holy pontiff, Paul V, 
 and the republic of Venice, having been terminated 
 by the mediation of France, in a manner preserving 
 to the holy See the honor due to it, and to the Vene- 
 tians the glory they had merited, none but the Span- 
 iards had reason to be dissatisfied. As they had de- 
 clared for the Pope, and had offered to subjugate the 
 Venetians, they were offended that he had entered 
 into an arrangement without their participation ; but 
 having discovered the secret of this arrangement, they 
 were convinced that they had no cause of complaint 
 against him, and that the slight they had experienced 
 was to be attributed solely to the republic. It was, 
 in fact, in compliance with the wishes of the Vene- 
 tian senate, that they had been, in a measure, exclu- 
 ded from the mediation. This body insisted that 
 they ought not to be umpires after having displayed 
 so much partiality. 
 
 Whatever resentment they felt, they concealed it in 
 their own bosoms during the reign of Henry IV. 
 2 
 
— 7] 
 
 14 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 The obligations of this prince to the Venetians were 
 well known ; and the care which he had taken of 
 their interests, in their controversy with the Pope, 
 was not less so. But his death permitted the Span- 
 iards to act with freedom, and they waited only for 
 a pretext. 
 
 A troop of pirates, called Uscoques, had formed 
 an establishment upon the territory of Austria, situat- 
 ed upon the Adriatic sea, near to the Venetians. 
 They committed many outrages upon the citizens of 
 the republic, but were protected by the archduke 
 Ferdinand of Gratz, then sovereign of this territory 
 and afterwards emperor. This prince was very re- 
 ligious, but his ministers shared in the booty of the pi- 
 rates ; and, being devoted to Spain, they seized this 
 occasion to avenge the wrongs which that nation had 
 received from the Venetians. 
 
 The emperor Matthias, listening to the well-found- 
 ed complaints of the republic, endeavored, by an ar- 
 rangement made in February, 1612, to put an end to 
 these disorders ; but this arrangement was so little re- 
 garded by the archduke, that an open war was the 
 consequence, in which his success did not answer the 
 hopes and expectations of the Spaniards. 
 
 The Venetians easily repaired the losses they had 
 sustained in a few trifling engagements. Having noth- 
 ing to fear from the Turks, they could carry on the 
 war with less inconvenience than the archduke. This 
 prince was urged by the emperor to make peace, be- 
 cause he apprehended an attack from the Grand 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 15 
 
 Seignor, upon Hungary, and because he found it nec- 
 essary to expend large sums to gain his election as 
 king of Bohemia, which took place soon after. The 
 Spaniards would have cheerfully furnished him the 
 means of continuing the contest ; but Charles Em- 
 manuel, duke of Savoy, with whom they were then 
 at war, kept them from dividing their forces ; and as 
 the duke received large subsidies from the Venetians, 
 the Spaniards were unable to detach him from them. 
 
 The council of Spain felt indignant at finding the 
 Venetians so strong on all sides. The mild and pa- 
 cific temper of Philip III, and of the duke of Lerma, 
 his favorite, restrained them from adopting such 
 measures as their feelings dictated ; but one of their 
 ministers in Italy, of a disposition more enterprising 
 and fearless, undertook to relieve their embarrass- 
 ment. 
 
 This prince was don Alphonso de la Queva, mar- 
 quis of Bedmar, arhbassador resident at Venice, one 
 of the ablest and most dangerous characters that 
 Spain has ever produced. The writings which he 
 has left show that, by deeply studying the ancient and 
 modern historians, he had acquired all that was requi- 
 site to form an extraordinary man. He compared 
 the events they related with those that happened in 
 his own time. He noted with exactness wherein 
 they were different, and wherein they were similar ; 
 and considered what influence the particulars in which 
 they differed must have upon those in which they 
 agreed. He generally formed his opinion of the re- 
 
16 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 suit of a project, as soon as he had learned the origin 
 and the plan of it. If he found, by the event, that his 
 opinion was not correct, he ascended to the source 
 of his error, and endeavored to discover by what 
 he had been deceived. By studies of this nature he 
 had learned what are the true methods, the certain 
 means, and the important circumstances which, al- 
 most always, ensure success in great designs. This 
 constant practice of reading, of meditation, and of ob- 
 servation upon human affairs, had raised so high his 
 reputation for sagacity, that his conjectures concern- 
 ing the future were regarded, in the council of Spain, 
 with almost as much respect as prophecies. 
 
 To this intimate acquaintance with the nature of hu- 
 man affairs, he added singular talents for directing 
 them ; an ability to speak and write with inexpressi- 
 ble sweetness ; an unerring instinct in judging of 
 men ; an air of openness and gaiety, evincing more 
 animation than gravity. He was so free apparently 
 from dissimulation as to seem a model of ingenuous- 
 ness. His disposition was at once complaisant and 
 engaging, and he concealed his thoughts and senti- 
 ments the more perfectly because all fancied they 
 could divine them. His manners were so affection- 
 ate and insinuating, that he drew from the closest bo- 
 soms their dearest secrets ; and he exhibited all the 
 appearances of composure and tranquillity of mind in 
 the midst of the most cruel distractions. 
 
 At that period, the ambassadors of Spain usually 
 governed the courts to which they were sent ; and 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 17 
 
 the marquis of Bedmar had been selected, in 1507, 
 for that of Venice, as the most difficult of foreign sta- 
 tions, where neither women, monks nor favorites had 
 any influence. The council of Spain were so well 
 satisfied with his conduct, that, however desirous they 
 might be of employing him elsewhere, they could not, 
 even after he had resided there six years, resolve to 
 recal him. 
 
 His long residence at Venice had enabled him to 
 study the principles of the government, to discover its 
 most secret springs, to perceive its strength and its 
 weakness, its advantages and its defects. Appre- 
 hending that the archduke would be obliged to con- 
 clude a peace, which could not be otherwise than 
 disgraceful to Austria, as she was evidently in the 
 wrong, he determined to devise some means to pre* 
 vent it. 
 
 He reflected that such was the condition of Venice 
 that it was not impossible to become master of it, by 
 means of his confidential agents in the city, and the 
 forces which were under his control. The armies it 
 had sent forth had exhausted it of arms, and still 
 more of men capable of using them. As its naval 
 force had never been in such excellent condition, the 
 senate had never considered itself so formidable, and 
 had never felt less fear. This fleet, however, strong 
 as it was, dared not leave the coast of Istria, which 
 was the seat of war. The army was also at a dis- 
 tance, and there was nothing at Venice to resist an at- 
 tack from the naval force of Spain. To render such 
 2* 
 
18 
 
 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 an attack more sure of success, he proposed to gain 
 possession of the principal posts, such as the square 
 of St. Mark, and the arsenal ; and as it would be dif- 
 ficult to do this, while the city was in a state of tran- 
 quillity, he determined to set fire, at the same mo- 
 ment, to those parts which were most combustible, 
 and to those which the citizens would be the most 
 desirous of preserving. 
 
 He did not think it proper to state his design, in 
 the beginning, to his master. He knew that princes 
 are unwilling to commit themselves, in relation to 
 such projects, until they are so far matured that noth- 
 ing is necessary to their execution but an assurance 
 that the enterprize will be acknowledged in case of 
 success. He merely intimated to the duke of Uzeda, 
 tile principal secretary of state, that, perceiving the 
 disgrace which the house of Austria had sustained, 
 in the war of Friuli, from the insolent conduct of the 
 Venetians, and that all the steps towards an accom- 
 modation, which had been taken at Vienna and else- 
 where, had tended to aggravate it, he conceived him- 
 self placed in a situation where duty and policy 
 obliged a faithful subject to resort to extraordinary 
 measures to preserve his king and country from infa- 
 my otherwise inevitable : that this duty particularly 
 devolved upon him, on account of the employment he 
 held, in which, having constantly in view the origin of 
 the evil, he could, better than any other person, de- 
 termine what remedy should be applied ; and that he 
 should endeavor to perform this duty in a manner 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 19 
 
 worthy of the zeal which he felt for the honor of 
 his master. 
 
 The duke of Uzeda, who was well acquainted with 
 the character of the ambassador, perceived, at once, 
 that he had in contemplation some important and per- 
 ilous undertaking ; but as prudent men, until circum- 
 stances compel them, do not even avow their knowl- 
 edge of such enterprizes, he did not communicate 
 his suspicions to the first minister, and replied, in 
 general terms, to the marquis of Bedmar, that he 
 applauded his zeal and placed implicit reliance up- 
 on his well-known discretion. The marquis, for he 
 expected no other, was not surprised at receiving so 
 cautious an answer ; and immediately began to make 
 such arrangements as were best calculated to secure, 
 by success, the approbation and acknowledgement of 
 his superiors. 
 
 Never was' there a monarchy so absolute as the 
 senate of Venice. A marked distinction was made, 
 even in the most trivial matters, between the nobility 
 and the common people. None but nobles could be 
 appointed commanders or governors of the depen- 
 dent territories. The most powerful lords, and the 
 principal magistrates of these territories, were obliged 
 to regard them as sovereigns rather than governors ; 
 and if ever the republic gave the command of its sep- 
 arate armies to foreigners, their powers were so lim- 
 ited that they were compelled to be guided by the 
 opinions of the general in chief, and had little to do 
 but to execute his orders. 
 
20 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 As war always affords a plausible pretext for taxing 
 the people, that with the Uscoques gave the nobility, 
 by whom it was conducted, an excellent opportunity 
 to enrich themselves. This war was carried on at 
 an enormous expense. Besides the money expend- 
 ed in Piedmont, it became necessary, in the end, to 
 maintain a third army, in Lombardy, to oppose the 
 governor of Milan, who threatened to make a diver- 
 sion in favor of the archduke. The justice of the 
 cause of the republic emboldened the commanders 
 to resort to new modes of raising money, but did not 
 render the people more patient in suffering. The 
 exactions became so excessive, that the marquis of 
 Bedmar had reason to believe that the revolution, 
 which he wished to effect, would be as agreeable to 
 the people as it would be destructive to the nobility. 
 
 There were many persons, even among the nobili- 
 ty, who felt no affection for the government. These 
 were the partizans of the court of Rome. Some of 
 them, and indeed the greater number, ambitious and 
 revengeful, were dissatisfied and incensed because 
 the affairs of the republic, during the controversy 
 with that court, had been administered contrary to 
 their advice. They were ready to do and to suffer 
 any thing to deprive of power those who possessed it ; 
 and they witnessed with pleasure the misfortunes of 
 the state, considering them the consequences of 
 measures which they had condemned. Others, sim- 
 ple and ignorant, chose to be more catholic than the 
 pope himself. As he had, in the peace which had 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 21 
 
 been concluded, relinquished a part of his pretensions, 
 they supposed that he had been induced to do so 
 from policy ; and that, as he might have acted with a 
 mental reservation, there was reason to fear that the 
 sentence of excommunication yet remained Hi force 
 in the intention of his holiness. Of this number were 
 several senators, as destitute of fortune as of intellect. 
 These, in the sequel, were very serviceable to the 
 marquis, who convinced them, by the benefits he con- 
 ferred, that, after this affair, no one could be a Vene- 
 tian with a safe conscience. 
 
 Although the nobles were strictly forbidden to have 
 any intercourse with foreigners, the marquis had 
 found means to establish a confidential correspond- 
 ence with the most restless and discontented. If 
 they had a near relative in any of the convents, any 
 mistress, or any ecclesiastic, who w r as intimate with 
 their families, he spared no pains nor expense to be- 
 come acquainted with them ; he made them presents, 
 which, though they generally consisted merely of the 
 curiosities of foreign countries, were nevertheless 
 highly valuable. These presents, spontaneously con- 
 ferred, led those who received them to anticipate 
 even greater ; they therefore eagerly answered all 
 his inquiries ; and took pains to acquire information 
 to communicate to him. The rewards he bestowed 
 surpassed their expectation, and they labored inces- 
 santly to engage their superiors in the same secret in- 
 tercourse, until success crowned their exertions. 
 The poverty of the nobles had doubtless some influ- 
 
22 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 ence ; they probably could not see, without envy, 
 their dependants growing richer than themselves by 
 means of presents conferred merely because they 
 were their dependants. However this may be, none 
 of the deliberations of the senate were, afterwards, 
 unknown to the ambassador of Spain ; he was inform- 
 ed of ail its decisions ; and such as related to the 
 war were communicated to the generals of the arch- 
 duke before those of the republic had received an 
 order to execute them. 
 
 Though possessed of these means of gaining intelli- 
 gence, a considerable number of troops was still nec- 
 essary to enable him to execute his enterprise ; but 
 as there was a powerful Spanish army in Lombardy, 
 he had no apprehension that men would be wanting, 
 provided the governor of Milan would enter into his 
 designs. The marquis of Iniosa, who then held that 
 office, had too intimate a correspondence with the 
 duke of Savoy to be trusted with safety. He had 
 just concluded with that duke the treaty of Asti, of 
 which France and the Venetians were mediators. 
 The ambassador, who knew that this negotiation 
 would not be approved, in Spain, wrote home, advis- 
 ing the recal of Iniosa, and, at the same time, request- 
 ed don Pedro of Toledo, marquis of Villa-franca, 
 his intimate friend, to solicit the government of Mi- 
 lan. Don Pedro, about the end of the year 16J5, 
 received orders to set out immediately to take the 
 place of Iniosa ; and the instant after his arrival at 
 Milan, he gave notice thereof to the senate of Venice, 
 by the marquis of Lara. 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 23 
 
 The ambassador communicated bis project to this 
 marquis in the manner which he judged best calcu- 
 lated to induce him to approve it ; and he charged 
 him particularly to ascertain whether the new gover- 
 nor could spare him fifteen hundred of his best troops, 
 whenever they might be wanted. Don Pedro, charm- 
 ed with the project, resolved to afford all the assist- 
 ance he could, without exposing himself to certain ru- 
 in should it fail. He dispatched the marquis of Lara, 
 a second time, to Venice, to communicate this resolu- 
 tion to the ambassador ; but, at the same time, he be- 
 sought him to consider that he could not send that 
 number of troops without selecting all that were good, 
 and that, should they be lost by the failure of the en- 
 terprise, he would incur the severest censure, for hav- 
 ing exposed to such imminent danger the bravest 
 soldiers of his army. He would, however, spare all 
 that he could, and would select them so carefully 
 that he would be answerable for their fidelity. 
 
 Nothing was more important to the designs of the 
 ambassador than to prevent the restoration of harmo- 
 ny between the contending powers. With this view, 
 he persuaded the marquis of Lara to make the most 
 unreasonable propositions in behalf of the governor 
 of Milan. The senate, as was foreseen, rejected 
 them with indignation, and declined negotiating with 
 him. Don Pedro, on his part, omitted nothing calcu- 
 lated to embroil affairs still more. The duke of 
 Mantua felt little inclination to pardon his rebellious 
 subjects, which he had engaged to do by the treaty 
 
24 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 of Asti. Means were used to render him obstinate 
 on this point, and to induce him to continue, as he 
 had begun, to inflict punishment upon them. Propo- 
 sitions were made, by the agents of Spain, to the 
 duke of Savoy, for the execution of this treaty, which 
 they well knew he would not accept; and they de- 
 layed disbanding their troops, which he had done 
 and they ought to have done, under the pretence 
 that Spain could no longer, with honor, refuse to 
 take part in the war of Friuli : the Venetian army 
 had passed the Lizonzo, and besieged Gradisca, the 
 capital of the territories of the arch-duke. 
 
 The council of Spain, which had hitherto appear- 
 ed neutral, perceiving this prince in danger, threaten- 
 ed to declare in his favor. At this time, the misun- 
 derstanding which, since the contest between the son 
 and brother of Charles the fifth, for the succession to 
 the empire, had divided the Spanish and German 
 branches of the house of Austria, had been adjusted. 
 The interest which the Spaniards took in this war 
 was the first mark of their reconciliation. Don Pedro 
 ordered colonel Gambalotta to advance, with his 
 troops, towards Crema ; and he caused twenty-four 
 pieces of battering artillery to be mounted at Pavia ; 
 which were soon, as he declared, to be sent with a 
 body of eight thousand troops under the command of 
 don Sancho de Luna. In another quarter, the vice- 
 roy of Naples, who was cruising in the Mediterrane- 
 an with a Spanish fleet, threatened to attack Villa- 
 franca, belonging to the duke of Savoy, lie prevent- 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 25 
 
 ed the arrival, by sea, of all assistance to the repub- 
 lic, and was assiduous in making arrangements to en- 
 ter the gulf, for the avowed purpose of keeping in 
 check the Venetian fleet. 
 
 The ministers of Venice having remonstrated to 
 all the European Courts against this violent proceed- 
 ing, the marquis of Bedmar undertook to justify it. 
 He considered it also important to his design, to strike 
 at the root of the veneration, which had, for so many 
 centuries, been felt throughout Europe for this repub- 
 lic, as the oldest and freest of all nations. Its free- 
 dom and independence had lately been vindicated 
 and more vaunted than ever, in several publications, 
 written during the controversy with the pope, which 
 were yet considered unanswerable, although many 
 replies had been written by able men of the opposite 
 party. 
 
 The ambassador, undertaking to examine these 
 publications himself, refuted, in a few chapters, the 
 numerous volumes of the Venetian authors, without 
 deigning to name one of them. And as, in matters 
 of this nature, there is no question which an ingenious 
 disputant may not render doubtful, he, under the pre- 
 text of establishing the authority of the emperors 
 over Venice, demonstrated that the independence of 
 this republic was bat a chimera, and that its domin- 
 ion over the sea was not better founded. As it was 
 not consistent with his purpose to be known as the au- 
 thor of this work, he caused it to be published so pri- 
 vately that it was not known, during his life, that he 
 3 
 
26 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 had any share in composing it. That he was not 
 suspected, appears strange ; but the truth probably 
 is, that he had not yet become fully known to the 
 Venetians. His lively and impetuous deportment, 
 which he sought not to restrain but chose to display 
 on all occasions, prevented them from imagining that 
 a man of such character could be the author of a po- 
 litical satire of so much subtlety and refinement. 
 Candor and sincerity seemed to pervade it through- 
 out ; and the censures of the encroachments of the 
 Venetians, which were occasionally introduced, were 
 expressed with such apparent moderation, as sufficed 
 to render them plausible. This work, the title of 
 which was Squitiinio della Liberta Vencta, was the 
 universal topic of conversation. 
 
 As the author was unknown, suspicion naturally 
 fell upon the court of Rome, whence the preceding 
 publications, on that side of the question, had emanated. 
 The wise men of the Senate imagined that the world 
 felt the force of it as they did ; it dismayed them 
 like the loss of a battle ; and father Paul was direct- 
 ed to examine it. This man, who had treated with 
 ridicule the other writers of that party, declared that 
 no reply ought to be made to the last, for none could 
 be made without disclosing facts which prudence re- 
 quired should remain buried in the obscurity of anti- 
 quity ; that, nevertheless, if in the opinion of the 
 Senate, it best comported with the dignity of the re- 
 public to resent this outrage, he would undertake to 
 give the court of Rome so much trouble in defending 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. T( 
 
 itself, that it would think no more of attacking others. 
 This intimation was listened to in the first warmth of 
 resentment, and father Paul had the gratification of 
 publishing his History of the Council of Trent, a 
 work dear to his heart, which otherwise would not 
 have appeared during his life time. 
 
 The Gampaign of the year 1616, having, in the 
 meantime, closed, without any decisive advantage to 
 either side, the duke of Savoy and the Venetians, 
 who were unwilling to hazard, in a second, the glory 
 they had acquired, empowered Gritti, the Venetian 
 ambassador at Madrid, to renew the negotiation. 
 The Spaniards, irritated by the resistance they had 
 met with, made such unreasonable propositions that 
 nothing was accomplished. Gradisca was yet block- 
 aded j the war continued through the winter ; and 
 the two armies took the field in the spring, displaying 
 a degree of animation and ardor that promised more 
 brilliant exploits than those of the preceding year. 
 The truce between Holland and Spain having enabled 
 the former to dispense with the services of her troops, 
 and obliged the French and German adventurers to 
 seek employment elsewhere, the counts of Nassau 
 and Lievestien brought eight thousand Hollanders, or 
 Walloons, to the assistance of the republic. The 
 Spaniards complained loudly to the pope against the 
 Venetians, for exposing Italy to the infection of heresy, 
 by introducing these soldiers ; but the Venetian am- 
 bassador easily convinced him that the complaints of 
 the Spaniards were caused, not so much by their re- 
 
28 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 gard for religion, as by their chagrin at seeing two 
 great republics uniting their forces in opposition to 
 them. 
 
 The marquis of Bedmar would have been not a 
 little embarrassed had the pope obliged the Venetians 
 to dismiss these heretics. As soldiers, for the most 
 part, have only their personal interest in view, when 
 they enter into the service of a foreign prince, he 
 hoped to induce the chiefs of these mercenaries to 
 embark in his designs, by the offer of higher wages 
 and the allurement of the pillage of Venice. To ne- 
 gotiate with them, he selected an aged French gentle- 
 man, named Nicholas de Renault, a man of intelli- 
 gence and discretion, who had taken refuge in Ven- 
 ice, for some reason which no one had been able to 
 discover. The marquis of Bedmar had often seen 
 him at the palace of the French ambassador, where 
 he resided. In several conversations, which they 
 accidentally had with each other, Renault discovered 
 that the world had not estimated too highly the intel- 
 ligence and ability of the marquis ; and the latter, 
 sensible of the advantage of having such a friend in 
 the suite of the ambassador of France, formed an inti- 
 mate connection with him. 
 
 This man, though extremely poor, esteemed virtue 
 higher than riches ; but he loved glory more than 
 virtue ; and, could he find no innocent means of ac- 
 quiring it, there were none, however criminal, which 
 he was not willing to resort to. In perusing the an- 
 cient writers, he had imbibed that rare indifference to 
 

 
 SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 29 
 
 life and to death which, more than any thing else, 
 incites to extraordinary enterprises ; and he never 
 ceased to regret those illustrious ages, in which the 
 talents of individuals controlled the destiny of nations, 
 and when those, who possessed them, were never 
 without the means nor opportunities to display them. 
 The marquis of Bedmar, who had deeply studied 
 his character, and had need of a man, to direct his 
 enterprise, in whom he could entirely confide, said to 
 him, when he disclosed it, that he had fixed his 
 thoughts upon him, the moment the project first en- 
 tered his mind. This remark bound Renault to him 
 more firmly than the warmest praises could have 
 done. His advanced age did not deter him from 
 joining in the plot ; the less of life that remained to 
 him, the less he had to risk ; and he thought he could 
 not better employ the sad remnant of his years than 
 in hazarding them to render his name immortal. The 
 marquis gave him the control of sufficient funds to ne- 
 gotiate with the Dutch commanders. He charged 
 him not to disclose the enterprise, at present, but 
 merely to intimate, that affairs were in such disorder 
 that the Spanish ambassador at Venice foresaw that a 
 time might arrive when his person would be in dan- 
 ger from the fury of the populace ; and that, for his 
 own protection, he wished to secure the services of a 
 considerable number of faithful and resolute friends. 
 This pretext was a gross one ; but the slightest dis- 
 guise is of great use, in affairs of this kind. It im- 
 ports little that it is known that something is conceal- 
 
^P">— •■9— 
 
 30 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 ed, if the real secret is not discovered. In this way- 
 he hoped that he might seduce the choicest portion of 
 the Venetian army, and that it would then be left so 
 weak that Don Pedro could easily defeat it, on its 
 way to Venice, should the senate recai it to oppose 
 the conspirators. 
 
 The navy was to be feared more than the army. 
 It had been accustomed to conquer, and could be 
 much more r eadily recalled. The greater number 
 of the sailors were natives of the republic ; and it 
 could not be doubted that, on the discovery of the 
 conspiracy, the fleet would hasten home. To expect 
 that the Spanish fleet would defeat it, would be an 
 unsafe reliance ; and it would not be prudent to com- 
 mit, to the fortune of a battle, the success of an en- 
 terprise in other respects so hazardous. It was nec- 
 essary to contrive means to render this fleet incapa- 
 ble of affording assistance. 
 
 The ambassador, not having had so much experi- 
 ence in naval affairs as the viceroy of Naples, who 
 commanded the naval force of Spain, thought it his 
 duty to consult him on this subject. This viceroy, 
 who was to be a principal actor in the«trage<^ which 
 the ambassador was preparing* was that duke of Os- 
 suna, who was so celebrated for his gallantries, and 
 was as enterprising as Don Pedro, or the Marquis of 
 Bedmar. This resemblance of disposition had pro- 
 duced an intimate friendship between the three. 
 Don Pedro and the duke of Ossuna had not the 
 qualifications of cabinet politicians, and the duke even 
 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 31 
 
 sometimes committed eccentricities which might be 
 called extravagances ; but the deference which both 
 felt for the marquis of Bedmar supplied the place of 
 that discretion which thev wanted. 
 
 The profits which piracy yields, to those who pur- 
 sue it under the protection of a powerful nation, had 
 attracted to the court of Naples all the celebrated 
 corsairs of the Mediterranean. The viceroy, who 
 was fond of extraordinary projects, and rather prodi- 
 gal than avaricious, protected them, not so much for 
 the share which he received of their booty, as for the 
 purpose of collecting around him a numerous body of 
 such men as would be ready to perform whatever he 
 should desire. He not only welcomed to his domin- 
 ions those who came voluntarily ; but, whenever he 
 heard of one who had more than ordinary reputation 
 in his profession, he sought him out, and was so liber- 
 al of his favors that he attached him firmly to his 
 person. He had, in this manner, secured the friend- 
 ship of captain James Pierre, a Norman by birth, 
 and so eminent in his profession, that others were 
 proud of having learned it under his instruction. 
 
 The disposition of this captain did not partake of 
 the barbarity which is characteristic of his occupation. 
 Having acquired the means of living genteely, he re- 
 solved to quit it, though yet in the flower of his age ; 
 and he chose, for his retreat, the territories of the 
 duke of Savoy. This prince, enamoured of every 
 species of extraordinary talent, and so much the more 
 capable of appreciating it in others, as nature had 
 

 32 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 been liberal to himself, permitted the corsair, who 
 passed for one of the bravest of men, to establish him- 
 self at Nice. Every officer, soldier, and sailor, who 
 frequented this part of the country, rendered him the 
 homage due to a chieftain. To them his counsels 
 w T ere oracles ; he was the sovereign arbiter of their 
 disputes ; and they never ceased to admire a man 
 who had quitted a pursuit, in which he was so well 
 qualified to excel, and which is the most difficult of 
 all to abandon. 
 
 Among his associates was one named Vincent Rob- 
 ert, of Marseilles, who, having landed at Sicily, where 
 the duke of Ossuna was then viceroy, was so cor- 
 dially welcomed that he enlisted in his service. The 
 duke, understanding that he was a friend of the cap- 
 tain, complained to him, in good humour, that his 
 friend, in selecting a retreat, had preferred the gov- 
 ernment of the duke of Savoy to his own, expressing, 
 at the same time, a high respect for the courage of 
 the captain, and for his experience in naval affairs, 
 and declaring that he would omit nothing which could 
 have the effect to attract to his court a man of such 
 extraordinary merit. Robert gladly undertook to 
 persuade him to repair thither ; and his efforts were 
 so well assisted by the advances of the viceroy, that 
 the captain at length repaired to Sicily, with his wife 
 and children. 
 
 As he had never entirely banished the sea from 
 his thoughts, the passion, which he had once felt for 
 it, had not been extinguished. The galleons, which 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 33 
 
 the viceroy had lately built, were so fine, and several 
 Turkish vessels were then at sea with such feeble 
 convoy, that he could not resist the temptation they 
 presented. And he had no occasion to regret that 
 he yielded to it. He gained an immense booty ; and 
 the duke of Ossuna, who, from that time, lived with 
 him as with a brother, surrendered most of it to him, 
 on condition that he would follow him to Naples, of 
 which the king had just appointed him viceroy, and 
 that he would make a voyage to Provence, to engage 
 in his service the best of the sea-faring men with 
 whom he was acquainted, on that coast. He brought 
 back with him a sufficient number to man five large 
 vessels, which belonged to the viceroy in person, and 
 of which he had the sole direction. With this little 
 fleet, he ravaged, with impunity, all the islands and 
 shores of the Levant, and, at the close of his first 
 cruise, he fought a great battle, in which he captured 
 or sunk the whole of a large squadron of Turkish 
 gallies. 
 
 It was at this period that the marquis of Bedmar, 
 persuaded that the duke of Ossuna would cheerfully 
 assist him, communicated to him his design. This 
 duke, anxious to obtain the control of these seas, de- 
 sired nothing more ardently than to ruin those who 
 alone could dispute it with him, and who could not be 
 beaten so easily as the Turks. He consulted the 
 captain on the subject, and stated such difficulties as 
 occurred to him. The captain did not think them 
 insurmountable j and after several days, which were 
 
34 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 spent in private conference, he secretly quitted Na- 
 ples, in a manner indicative of extreme precipitation 
 and terror. The viceroy despatched messengers in 
 every direction, except the one in which he fled, with 
 orders to seize him dead or alive. His wife and 
 children were imprisoned, and were apparently treat- 
 ed with extreme cruelty. All his property was con- 
 fiscated ; and though the duke had long been known 
 to be excessively passionate, yet the transports of rage 
 which he exhibited on this occasion surprised all Na- 
 ples. As the captain appeared not less excited, it 
 was easily believed that a misunderstanding had taken 
 place, and that he had been detected in some designs 
 injurious to Spain, or to the interests of the duke. 
 He returned to his former asylum. 
 
 The duke of Savoy was at open war with Spain, 
 and had the reputation of a most generous prince. 
 Though he had manifested some displeasure, when 
 the captain quitted his dominions to settle in Sicily, 
 yet the impostor did not hesitate to throw himself at 
 his feet. He communicated to him several pretend- 
 ed designs of the viceroy against Venice, which, 
 though atrocious, had nothing in common with the 
 true one ; and observed that, as he could not engage 
 in them with honor, he had resolved to take measures 
 to escape from Naples, with his family and property ; 
 but having learned that the viceroy had discovered 
 his intention, he had been obliged to fly, in the great- 
 est haste, leaving all that was dear to him in the pow- 
 er of the most cruel of men, 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 35 
 
 The duke of Savoy, touched with pity at this 
 mournful recital, received him with open arms, assur- 
 ing him that, his own interests and those of the Vene- 
 tians being the same, he would reward the service he 
 had rendered the common cause, if the Venetians 
 did not. He added, that it was important that the 
 senate should be informed, by himself, of the de- 
 signs of the duke of Ossuna ; and, after having ex- 
 horted him to bear his misfortunes with fortitude, 
 furnished him with every thing necessary, and made 
 him a magnificent present, he sent him to Venice 
 with letters of credit and of recommendation. 
 
 The Venetians were not less compassionate than 
 the duke of Savoy. The flight, the poverty, the dis- 
 tress, the reputation of the captain, the hope that he 
 would attract to their service the many brave men 
 whom he had engaged in that of the duke of Ossuna, 
 but particularly, the account which he gave of the 
 designs of the duke, to which he contrived to give the 
 appearance of truth : all spoke so powerfully in his 
 favor, that they immediately gave him the command 
 of a vessel. This was done contrary to the remon- 
 strances of Contarini, ambassador at Rome, who, in 
 his letters to the Senate, insisted that this man, hav- 
 ing been in the service of the viceroy, should be re- 
 garded with suspicion. But, the Venetians, made 
 credulous by their fears, disregarded this prudent 
 advice. A short time afterwards, the fleet being at 
 sea, the captain, aware of the importance of perform- 
 ing some signal exploit, in the service of the republic, 
 
36 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 obtained permission to cruise against the Uscoques, 
 and took such considerable prizes that, on his return, 
 eleven vessels were added to the one he already com- 
 manded. 
 
 He gave an account of his good fortune to the 
 duke of Ossuna, and observed, in the conclusion of 
 his despatch, " If these simpletons continue to be as 
 credulous as they have hitherto been, I dare assure 
 your excellency that I shall not spend my time in 
 vain in this country." At the same time, he wrote to 
 his former companions, at Naples, inviting them to 
 enter into the service of the republic. He did not 
 find it difficult to persuade them. After his flight, 
 the viceroy, pretending to suspect their fidelity, was, 
 in his conduct towards them, as harsh as he had 
 before been civil. 
 
 The duke of Ossuna complained loudly of the 
 protection which the captain received from the repub- 
 lic. To retaliate, he collected around him the Us- 
 coques, whom the Venetians had driven from their 
 retreats. Under his protection, they again made 
 cruises. They captured a large vessel, on the way 
 from Corfu to Venice, and publicly sold their bootv 
 within his dominions. He violated the freedom of 
 ports ; made reprisals of great value for trifling inju- 
 ries ; refused, when ordered by Spain, to restore 
 what he had seized ; and published a manifesto justi- 
 fying his disobedience. He sent a powerful fleet in- 
 to the Adriatic, and caused the prizes it captured to 
 be brought in triumph to Naples. In fine, he ruined 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 37 
 
 their commerce, injuring, at the same time, the Nea- 
 politans themselves, who were interested in it ; and 
 the farmers of the revenue daring to murmur, he 
 threatened to hang them. 
 
 As war had not been declared between Spain and 
 the republic, the Venetians were astonished at this 
 bold and irregular conduct. It was generally imput- 
 ed to the madness of the hot-brained duke of Ossu- 
 na ; but the more sagacious, knowing that such rash 
 and lawless individuals are often designedly made use 
 of, conjectured that the Spaniards were willing he 
 should perform what they would be unwilling to avow 
 or approve. In his familiar discourse, he frequently 
 spoke of surprising the ports of Istria belonging to the 
 republic ; of ravaging her islands ; and even of mak- 
 ing, if he possibly could, an attack upon Venice. He 
 often, with his courtiers, studied the plan of the city ; 
 he caused exact maps to be made of its environs, 
 and boats, brigantines, and other small vessels, adapt- 
 ed to canals, to be constructed ; he caused experi- 
 ments to be made to ascertain what burden water of a 
 given depth would sustain in boats of different sizes ; 
 and he invented new machines to diminish the bur- 
 den, and to facilitate the motion of boats. The Ve- 
 netian minister at Naples sent home an exact account 
 of all this, to the infinite despair of the marquis of 
 Bedmar, who began to repent that he had united his 
 destiny with that of a man so impetuous and heedless. 
 But the result belied his fears. 
 
 The viceroy made all his preparations with so 
 4 
 
38 CONSPIRACY OP THE 
 
 much parade and publicity, that the Venetians could 
 only laugh at his folly. Even the most intelligent 
 could not believe that any thing serious was intended 
 where every step was so ostentatiously taken. The 
 duke continued to make his preparations at his leisure, 
 and no one regarded them ; and his indiscretion, in- 
 stead of ruining the enterprise, aided it more than 
 even the circumspection of the marquis of Bedmar. 
 Nevertheless the marquis determined to hasten the 
 execution of it, either because he did not choose to 
 give the Venetians leisure to reflect, or because his 
 person was at all times exposed to danger. The Ve- 
 netian fleet, having once offered battle to that of 
 Spain, which declined engaging, and having ravaged 
 the coasts ofPouilly, the populace of Venice became 
 so insolent in their exultation, that the ambassador 
 and his whole household would have been massacred, 
 had not the magistrates sent him a guard. 
 
 The same day, he received news from the camp 
 before Gradisca, which consoled him for what had 
 happened. Renault informed him, that he found the 
 commanders so happily disposed, that he had con- 
 cluded his negotiation with little delay. The ambas- 
 sador ordered him to repair, before he returned, to 
 Milan ; and don Pedro received him with all those 
 blandishments with which the great know so well how 
 to impel their inferiors to hazard life in their service. 
 They agreed that it was necessary to select some 
 town on the continental territory of the Venetians, of 
 which they might take possession at the same time 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 39 
 
 as of Venice. This, when in their power, would be 
 a check upon the other towns in its neighbourhood ; 
 w T ould serve as a depot of arms to the Spanish troops 
 that might be sent to attack those towns, and as a 
 barrier to the Venetian army, should the republic be 
 disposed to despatch it to protect them. 
 
 Renault passed through the principal towns and 
 stopped some time at Crema, where he formed a par- 
 ty, with the aid of a French lieutenant, named John 
 Berard, an Italian captain, and a lieutenant belonging 
 to Provence, whom don Pedro had already engaged 
 to favor his designs. These three men offered to con- 
 ceal, in the city, five hundred Spaniards, without ex- 
 citing the suspicion of the Venetian commander, 
 and to take possession of it eight days afterwards. 
 From the examination which Renault made upon the 
 spot, he thought they might easily, with that number 
 of men, perform what they promised. Nothing 
 more was necessary than to cut the throats of a body 
 of miserable recruits, who, all the regular troops be- 
 ing at Friuli or in the armies, had been detached 
 from the militia of the country. 
 
 The duke of Ossuna had also stated to the mar- 
 quis of Bedmar that it would be necessary to possess 
 some place, belonging to the Venetians, upon the 
 gulf, from which assistance and support could be giv- 
 en to the Uscoques and the archduke, and to which 
 the Spanish fleet might retreat, should it, by any acci- 
 dent, be obliged to seek an asylum, when cruising in 
 that sea. With this view, they selected Marano, a 
 
40 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 strong place on an island near to Istria, which has a 
 harbor capable of sheltering a large fleet. An Italian, 
 named Mazza, who, for forty years, had been ser- 
 geant major there, exercised almost as much authori- 
 ty as the governor himself. Tempted by a large sum 
 of money, and the promise of the chief command, 
 this man engaged, whenever he should 'receive or- 
 ders from the duke of Ossuna, to massacre the gov- 
 ernor, and make himself master of the place, and 
 hold it for the Spaniards. It was almost as easy for 
 him to perform this promise, as to make it : the gov- 
 ernor, who was the purveyor, Lorenzo Tiepolo, lived 
 with him on the most familiar terms, and as, in time 
 of war, his office of purveyor occupied much of his 
 attention, he relinquished to the sergeant major, who 
 was the oldest and most respectable officer in the 
 garrison, the entire direction of the interior of the 
 place. 
 
 Affairs being thus situated, the ambassador deter- 
 mined to enter upon the execution of the enterprise ; 
 not because he could not, by deferring it longer, con- 
 cert additional measures ; but because he was well 
 aware that delay is often fatal to designs of this na- 
 ture. It is impossible that all the various means, 
 contrived to ensure success, should be capable, at 
 any one moment, of rendering their most efficient 
 aid ; some become less favorable while others are in 
 preparation ; and when the leader of a conspiracy is 
 once so fortunate as to have a sufficient number, at 
 the same moment, present a favorable aspect, he 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 41 
 
 commits a capital fault in omitting to take advantage 
 of the happy conjuncture. 
 
 It was of great importance to the honor of Spain, 
 that, should the conspiracy fail, the part which her 
 ambassador had acted should never be known. He 
 therefore resolved not to disclose himself to any of 
 the conspirators, except Renault and the captain. 
 These two men were unknown to each other ; they 
 visited him only when invited ; and, to prevent the 
 possibility of their meeting, he had always taken care 
 to invite them on different days. Should a discovery 
 take place, it would be important to him that they had 
 had no intercourse with each other. As that event 
 was possible, it was highly desirable to him, that they 
 should continue to perform, unknown to each oth- 
 er, their respective parts, as they had hitherto done; 
 but, after mature reflection, he concluded that this 
 was impossible ; and, despairing of success in his de- 
 sign, if he did not establish a cordial understanding 
 between them, he determined to do it, whatever the 
 peril might be. ♦ 
 
 Both of these men had personal courage and dis- 
 cretion, but Renault valued himself principally upon 
 his capacity of combining and disposing his arrange- 
 ments in such manner, that the execution of an enter- 
 prise would be easy, and its success infallible. The 
 captain, on the contrary, who was much younger, 
 valued himself principally upon his power and skill 
 in executing designs, and upon being a man of un- 
 daunted resolution. The marquis disclosed to him 
 4* 
 
42 CONSPIRACY OF TIU. 
 
 the various negotiations which Renault had success- 
 fully concluded ; his fertility in devising expedients 
 adapted to every conjuncture ; his eloquence and ad- 
 dress in gaining partizans, his ability- to write well, a 
 talent of much importance, as it was necessary to be 
 constantly informed of the condition of the fleets, of 
 the provinces, and of the armies. He added that he 
 imagined a man of this description would afford great 
 relief and assistance to the captain ; that he was an 
 old man of much experience, who was destitute nei- 
 ther of courage nor resolution ; but his age, and his 
 studious, contemplative habits, rendered him incapa- 
 ble of participating with the captain, in the glory of 
 executing the enterprise. To Renault he merely ob- 
 served that the captain was the agent of the duke of 
 Ossuna ; and as the duke was a principal in their de- 
 sign, he could not, with propriety, conceal any thing 
 from his confidant. He besought him to tolerate the 
 manners of the corsair, so far as should be necessary 
 in the pursuit of their object, and, by treating him 
 with deference, to conciliate a man who was, to the 
 last degree, proud and presumptuous. 
 
 The marquis of Bedmar having taken such pains to 
 prepare these men to live harmoniously together, his 
 astonishment was extreme when, at their first meeting 
 at his house, he saw them embrace affectionately, the 
 instant they cast their eyes upon each other. It is 
 not possible that any mind should be so calm and 
 firm as to judge rationally of circumstances that pro- 
 duce surprise and astonishment. The first thought 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 43 
 
 of the ambassador was, that he was betrayed. As he 
 had supposed that these men had no knowledge of 
 each other, he could not comprehend why they should 
 have concealed from him the fact that they were well 
 acquainted. This mystery was soon explained. He 
 was told that they had often met at the house of a 
 famous Greek, who, though a courtesan, was a wo- 
 man of extraordinary merit. Of this no other proof 
 was necessary than the fact, that she had, as each 
 had requested, faithfully forborne to mention their 
 names. This fidelity appeared to them the more 
 remarkable, as she was not ignorant that each had 
 formed a very high opinion of the other. 
 
 The ambassador, recovering from his surprise, was 
 rejoiced to find that the cordial friendship between 
 them, which he so ardently desired, was already es- 
 tablished. In the course of this interview, each ac- 
 knowledged that he had resolved to engage the other 
 in the enterprise. As they were much occupied 
 with their project, they had sometimes, in the conver- 
 sations they had held together, discoursed on topics 
 of this nature, while speaking of the affairs of that 
 time, and of the state of the war. They made no 
 disclosure of their own project, and indeed had not 
 the slightest intention to do so : but they now, in 
 presence of the ambassador, ingenuously confessed 
 that, in the warmth of conversation, they had some- 
 times been carried too far, and had used expressions 
 which might possibly have betrayed them. •The am- 
 bassador advised them to be more circumspect in fu- 
 
44 CONSPIRACY OF TIIE 
 
 ture, and hinted that their experience should teach 
 them that, to preserve an important undertaking re- 
 ally secret, it is not enough to say nothing, and to 
 do nothing relative to it, but they must forget that 
 they know any thing concerning it. 
 
 Afterwards Renault stated, that rumors of peace 
 being again circulated, at the close of the month of 
 June, the Venetian officers had ill treated the foreign 
 troops ; and that, not being restrained by the author- 
 ity of the count of Nassau, who had died about that 
 time, these troops had shown symptoms of discontent 
 before Gradisca ; that the general of the republic, 
 fearing that a disturbance might ensue, had placed 
 them in several posts distant from each other ; that, 
 perceiving from this precaution that they were re- 
 garded with distrust, they had revolted, and refused 
 with insolence to obey certain orders of the senate ; 
 that the general had thought it his duty to execute 
 the leaders of the mutiny ; that he had confined the 
 principal officers in Padua, and placed the rest in 
 different posts, in Lombardy, until their wages could 
 be paid, and the conclusion of peace should permit 
 him to disband them. 
 
 Renault added, that the lieutenant of the count of 
 Nassau, who was one of those with whom he had 
 carried on a correspondence, had been banished to 
 Brescia ; that he had there concerted a plan, by 
 means of which he could deliver that city into the 
 hands of don Pedro ; and that it was necessary to 
 come to some determination on this point immedi- 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 45 
 
 ately, as the lieutenant insisted on an early and deci- 
 sive answer. 
 
 The ambassador replied, that no movement ought 
 to be made in that quarter, until they were masters 
 of Venice ; that even then ihey had need of but one 
 place in Lombardy ; that they were sure of Crema, 
 and this new project would be attended with the 
 disadvantage of dividing their forces ; that, neverthe- 
 less, it was expedient to preserve the friendship of 
 those whom he had engaged, but to defer, from time 
 to time, under some pretext or other, the execution 
 of this project ; and that it would be advisable to 
 abandon it, rather than hazard the slightest agitation. 
 Renault then stated that, besides this lieutenant, 
 he had engaged three Frenchmen named Durand, 
 who were sergeants-major of the regiments of Lieves- 
 tein, Brainville, and Bribe ; a Savoyard named Ter- 
 non, who was present at the assault on Geneva ; a 
 Dutchman named Theodore ; Robert Revellido, an 
 Italian engineer ; and two other Italians who had 
 formerly been employed in the arsenal, the one nam- 
 ed Louis de Villa-mezzana, a captain of light horse, 
 the other William Retrosi, lieutenant of captain Ho- 
 norat, in Parma ; that he had found it necessary to 
 make a full disclosure to these nine persons, but he 
 had selected them with such care that he would an~ 
 swer for their fidelity with his life ; that, while he 
 continued in the camp, they had engaged more than 
 two hundred officers ; that to these officers he had 
 merely stated, as the ambassador had directed, that 
 
46 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 whenever necessary, they would be required to pro- 
 ceed to Venice, to protect his excellency from the 
 populace of that city ; that since his return, having, 
 by letter, requested a statement of the exact number 
 of men upon whom he might securely rely, he had 
 been assured that he might depend upon two thou- 
 sand, at the least, of the troops of Lievestein, and 
 upon two thousand three hundred of those of Nas- 
 sau ; that all the officers were ready to place them- 
 selves in his power, as security for this engagement ; 
 that, from the beginning of the negotiation, they had 
 flattered their soldiers with the prospect that, when 
 disbanded by the republic, they should be employ- 
 ed on some expedition, in which they would obtain a 
 rich reward for the privations and distresses they had 
 endured ; that there was no reason for apprehending 
 that the peculiar nature of the enterprise would, 
 when disclosed to them, diminish their ardor ; that 
 they were so exasperated against the senate, on ac- 
 count of the ignominious treatment they had received, 
 that, were they to act from no other impulse, they 
 would hesitate at nothing to obtain revenge ;. that, 
 nevertheless, for greater safety, the secret should not 
 be communicated, if such was the wish of the mar- 
 quis, until matters were so well arranged, and the en- 
 terprise so near its accomplishment, that little doubt 
 could be entertained of its success ; and that, the 
 resolution having been taken to deliver up Venice to 
 pillage, there was not one who would hesitate to scizo 
 the opportunity to enrich himself, in a way so certain 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 47 
 
 - id prompt, and thus be enabled to live in opulence 
 the remainder of his days. 
 
 When the enterprise first occurred to the marquis 
 of Bedmar, he resolved that he would not engage in 
 it, until he had obtained the control of more means 
 than were sufficient to ensure success ; and that these 
 means should be so independent and disconnected 
 that, should it happen that any one should fail him, 
 the others would not, for that reason, be less efficient. 
 With this view, though he relied with certainty upon 
 what don Pedro had promised, and upon the engage- 
 ment of the Dutch officers with whom Renault had 
 negotiated, he had adopted measures to procure 
 troops from the duke of Ossuna. With each of these 
 he had made the same engagements for assistance, 
 as if he had sought none from the others, and as if he 
 had determined to execute three different projects. 
 
 The time had arrived when it was necessary to 
 know the precise moment when the duke of Ossuna 
 could despatch to Venice the force he had engaged 
 to furnish. But as, from his character, they could 
 not safely rely upon his word, in an affair of such im- 
 portance and delicacy, they determined to send to 
 Naples some one capable of judging, on the spot, 
 whether he was in a condition to fulfil his engage- 
 ment. Should the captain leave Venice, his absence 
 would occasion suspicion ; it was necessary that Re- 
 nault should remain in the city ; therefore, as the 
 most proper person to make this voyage, they selected 
 de Bribe, one of the Frenchmen whom Renault had 
 
48 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 engaged at Friuli. But he having received from the 
 republic, when on the point of departing, a commis- 
 sion to enlist recruits, they thought it expedient that 
 he should remain and perform that service ; and 
 another Frenchman, named Laurent Nolot, a com- 
 rade of the captain, left Venice in his stead, on the 
 first day of the year 1618. 
 
 The marquis of Bedmar thought that the proper 
 time had also arrived for coming to an explicit under- 
 standing with the council of Spain. To anticipate 
 all the explanations which they might require, he sent 
 them a detailed and circumstantial account of his proj- 
 ect. And as he was well aware that this court was 
 dilatory in its deliberations, he insisted, in a private 
 letter to the duke of Lerma, upon an early and deci- 
 sive answer, observing that the dangers by which he 
 was surrounded gave him a right to speak in this ab- 
 solute manner, and declaring that, if they detained 
 his courier more than eight days, he should interpret 
 this delay as an order to abandon the enterprise. 
 
 He received an answer within the time he prescrib- 
 ed, but it was not so decisive as he desired. He was 
 instructed that, should there be disadvantage in delay, 
 he should proceed to the execution of his design ; but 
 they expressed a strong desire to receive previously, 
 if possible, a full and exact description of the slate 
 of the republic. 
 
 The ambassador, who was already prepared on this 
 point, immediately drew up a statement so able and so 
 elegant that the Spaniards have pronounced it tho 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 49 
 
 most finished of all their state papers. It does not 
 appear for what purpose it was prepared ; but those 
 who read it with a knowledge of the purpose, per- 
 ceive that every word bears upon the design in view. 
 He begins by setting forth the difficulty of the task, 
 on account of the impenetrable secrecy of the govern- 
 ment which he was about to describe. He next 
 speaks in praise of that government ; but his eulo- 
 gium applies rather to the first age of the re- 
 public, than to its present condition. He then, in el- 
 oquent language, makes the trite remark, that such is 
 the deplorable condition of human affairs, that what- 
 ever is most excellent is most liable to corruption ; 
 that thus the wisest law T s of this republic, being abus- 
 ed, have been the principal causes of its degeneracy ; 
 that the law, which excludes the people from all par- 
 ticipation in the government, originated and confirmed 
 the tyranny of the nobles, and that, which subjects 
 the ecclesiastical to the civil authority, had occasion- 
 ed and encouraged a spirit of disaffection towards the 
 court of Rome, which was openly manifested by the 
 people of Venice, after their quarrel with that court. 
 He exaggerates this disaffection by stating acts of 
 impiety which, as was reported, the Dutch had com- 
 mitted with impunity at Friuli. He exclaims partic- 
 ularly against their having caused a distinguished no- 
 bleman of their country, named Renaud de Brede- 
 rode, to be interred, though a calvinist, in the church 
 des Servites, in Venice ; and here, without naming 
 him, he casts a serere reproach upon father Paul, 
 5 
 
50 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 who instigated the senate to commit this offence 
 against the established religion. He expresses sur- 
 prise that the people, whose reverence for the civil 
 magistrate must be weakened by the contempt of re- 
 ligion which they often witnessed, could patiently 
 endure the cruel oppressions of their rulers. These 
 oppressions he describes in detail; and from his des- 
 cription, in which nothing is exaggerated, they ap- 
 pear intolerable. He then shows that the honour and 
 and lives, not less than the property of the people, 
 are in the power of the great ; and that, devoted as 
 the nation is to avarice, to vengeance and to love, if 
 is not surprising that those in inferior stations should 
 be oppressed by their superiors. In fine, he exam- 
 ines the condition of the senate, of the provinces, of 
 the army, and of the navy He observes that divis- 
 ions exist in the senate, and does not scruple to say 
 that he is acquainted with many disaffected nobles. 
 He describes the desolation of the provinces, some 
 laid waste by the Uscoques, and others exhausted by 
 their exertions to render assistance. He declares 
 that, in all Lombardy, there are not three officers to 
 a garrison, who receive pay, and that the govern- 
 ment retains its authority there solely because no one 
 comes forward to wrest it from them. As to the ar- 
 my, he gives a faithful account of the revolts that had 
 occurred ; he states how the mutineers had been dis- 
 persed, and observes that these were so numerous 
 that the rest could be regarded only as a collection 
 of miserable militia without courage, experience, or 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 51 
 
 discipline. As to the navy, it had become the asylum 
 of the infamous pirates of the Mediterranean, men 
 destitute of character, and upon whose fidelity the 
 republic could not rely one moment after they should 
 have become strong enough to turn her own arms 
 against herself. 
 
 After having stated these particulars, with admira- 
 ble beauty of language and force of expression, he 
 enquires what opinion should be formed as to the fu- 
 ture condition of this republic, its fortune and its du- 
 ration \ and he proves, by the inferences which nat- 
 urally flow from the facts he had established, that it is 
 already in its decrepitude \ that its disorders are of 
 such a nature, that no remedy could be effectual that 
 should not entirely change its constitution. 
 
 Having considered this exposition of the state of 
 Venice, the council of Spain gave the marquis of Bed- 
 mar permission, but sent him no order, to proceed. 
 Yet as Nolot did not return, nothing could be done ; 
 and the marquis could not console himself for having, 
 in an affair of this nature, exposed himself to the ca- 
 price of the duke of Ossuna, whom he ought long 
 since to have thoroughly known. The delay, at this 
 juncture, was important. After the Spaniards had 
 taken Vercelli, the siege of Gradisca was pressed with 
 great vigor, by the Venetians, and the council of 
 Spain saw no mode of saving it, but by renewing 
 propositions of peace. A project of a treaty, con- 
 taining the principal articles, was therefore drawn up, 
 in concert, at Madrid ; but the irregular conduct of 
 
52 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 the duke of Ossuna obliged the Venetians to revoke 
 the powers of their ambassador, and transfer the ne- 
 gotiation to France, where the death of marshal 
 d'Ancre gave hope of a favorable issue. Peace was 
 concluded, at Paris, on the Gth of September. 
 
 The governor of Milan had a conference, soon af- 
 ter, at Pavia, with the count de Bethune to make ar- 
 rangements for the execution of the treaty, so far as 
 regarded the duke of Savoy ; but, at the same time, 
 this governor continued to harass the Venetians, and 
 even took several little towns belonging to them, in 
 Lombardy. They complained loudly of this con- 
 duct, and made preparations to carry on the war 
 more vigorously than ever. The marquis of Bed- 
 mar therefore offered, in full senate, his congratula- 
 tions upon the conclusion of peace, and engaged that 
 whatever had been agreed upon should be performed* 
 He was induced to take this step, not so much be- 
 cause he had received orders frem Spain, as because 
 he was desirous of effacing the unfavorable impres- 
 sions, in relation to him, which the late transactions 
 had made upon the senate. With this view, he per- 
 formed the ceremony with all imaginable demonstra- 
 tions of joy and friendship, and the Venetians, who de- 
 sired nothing so much as what he promised, were so 
 far deceived by his protestations that they agreed 
 upon a suspension of arms. 
 
 This suspension was a stroke of policy on the part 
 of the Spaniards, and proved the masterly adroitness 
 of their ambassador. The siege of Gradisca hacl 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 55 
 
 been pressed so vigorously that the place could not 
 possibly hold out a fortnight. Yet hostilities were 
 not to cease until the end of two months, because 
 this time had been judged necessary to exchange 
 ratifications, and to make arrangements for the execu- 
 tion of the treaties. It was necessary to prevent the 
 surrender of Gradisca within this time ; the suspen- 
 sion of arms placed it out of danger ; and the Span- 
 iards, not having this motive to hasten the execution 
 of the treaties, remained at full liberty to interpose 
 all the delays they might imagine necessary to their 
 designs. 
 
 In effect, the duke of Ossuna, constrained by or- 
 ders from Madrid, and the urgent representations of 
 the pope, offered some time afterwards to restore the 
 ships which he had taken ; but, as to the merchan- 
 dise, he pretended he could not tell what had become 
 of it. It was, nevertheless, at this moment, exposed 
 to sale at Naples, under the eyes of the Venetian res- 
 ident ; and the duke again sent a powerful fleet to 
 cruise in the Adriatic. The senate having thought 
 proper to complain of this to the marquis of Bedmar. 
 he joined in their complaints, and was even louder 
 than they. He declared that he could not explain 
 nor justify the conduct of the duke ; that the king, 
 their master, would not acknowledge it ; that, having 
 received, during the period of his embassy at Venice, 
 many favors, and much friendly treatment, he had 
 but one subject of regret, which was, that the conduct 
 of this viceroy had been imputed to his counsels ; that, 
 5* 
 
54 
 
 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 m fact, he had not the slightest participation in it ; 
 that, little as they might know of the duke of Ossuna, 
 they must he convinced that he was governed solely 
 by his caprice ; and that, as to himself, they might 
 judge of his disposition, by the pacific conduct of the 
 governor of Milan, which, he was proud to say, had 
 been in conformity with his advice. 
 
 It was true that the governor faithfully observed the 
 engagement to suspend hostile operations ; but yet he 
 did not disarm his troops ; and that this conduct 
 might appear less strange, he contrived to quarrel 
 again with the duke of Savoy, alleging, as a pretext, 
 that the troops disbanded by this prince, still remain- 
 ed in the Pays de Vaud awaiting the entire execution 
 of the treaties. Don Pedro, when required by the 
 count de Bethune, refused to disarm, according to 
 his promise at Pavia ; and he also persuaded the duke 
 of Mantua to perform whatever depended upon him. 
 The Count de Bethune, withdrawing upon their refu- 
 sal, published a protest against their conduct ; and to 
 this protest the most plausible reply was made that 
 the marquis of Bedmar could invent. 
 
 From what has been related, it will easily be seen 
 that it was important to hasten the execution of the 
 conspiracy, as it was difficult to maintain affairs, for 
 a long lime, in the condition essential to its success. 
 But the duke of Ossuna delayed to send back Nolot; 
 and the ambassador, vexed and distressed beyond 
 measure, having demanded an explanation of this de- 
 lay, the cause was soon disclosed. 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 55 
 
 A short time after the captain was received into the 
 service of the republic, the duke, desirous of gaining, 
 from different sources, intelligence of the state of 
 Venice, sent thither, as a spy, an Italian named Alex- 
 ander Splnosa. This man, who was unknown, soon 
 obtained employment, as did all adventurers who 
 came to solicit it. He suspected that the duke con- 
 templated some important enterprise, but did not sup- 
 pose that the corsair was entrusted to manage it ; he 
 doubted, however, whether this corsair was on such 
 unfriendly terms with the duke as was generally sup- 
 posed. After his arrival at Venice, he proposed to 
 the viceroy to assassinate the captain ; the viceroy- 
 declined the offer, alleging that the attempt would be 
 attended with danger. Spinosa, who was not desti- 
 tute of sagacity, and was well acquainted with the 
 duke, concluded there must be some stronger reason 
 for this refusal ; for he could not believe that he 
 would hesitate to obtain revenge, at the risk of losing 
 one of his men. The duke, however, charged him to 
 observe the conduct of the corsair, either to prevent 
 him from suspecting the truth, or because he belonged 
 to that class of men who suspect every body, and was 
 desirous of knowing whether the reports of Spinosa 
 and the captain, in relation to the conduct of the lat- 
 ter, would agree. 
 
 To enable him to execute his commission, Spinosa 
 associated with several Frenchmen, whom he had 
 known at Naples, and who w r ere companions of the 
 captain, at Venice. These men, who were in fact 
 
00 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 some of the conspirators, gave to the captain an ex- 
 act account of the enquiries made by Spinosa, in rela- 
 tion to him ; and they, moreover, discovered that this 
 spy was himself concerting some plot, and endeavoring 
 to engage men for the service of the duke of Ossuna. 
 
 The captain felt indignant that the duke distrusted 
 him ; but he was not surprised at it ; nevertheless he 
 considered that, if Spinosa should continue his in- 
 trigue, without coming to an understanding with him, 
 he would weaken their party by dividing it ; and 
 that, on his part, he could not condescend to solicit 
 the confidence of a man who was evidently a spy up- 
 on his conduct. 
 
 The marquis of Bedmar and Renault concluded 
 also that this difficulty should be immediately remov- 
 ed, and after mature deliberation they decided, that 
 nothing could ensure their own safety, but the sacri- 
 fice of Spinosa. But he was a man who would sell 
 his life dearly, should they attempt to assassinate him ; 
 the business he had engaged in obliged him to be al- 
 ways on his guard ; and the captain, after considering 
 and rejecting every other course, was at length oblig- 
 ed to accuse him to the council of Ten, as a spy of 
 the duke of Ossuna. The Frenchmen, with whom 
 he had associated, testified so judiciously against 
 him, that he was arrested, and the same day privately 
 executed. All that he advanced against the corsair 
 made no impression on the minds of the judges, be- 
 cause the latter was his accuser, and he could prove 
 nothing that he asserted. 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VEJMICE. 5/ 
 
 This affair greatly increased the confidence which 
 the Venetians had reposed in the captain ; but still it 
 disquieted the marquis of Bedmar, because it admon- 
 ed the Venetians to observe more closely the conduct 
 of the foreigners in their service. 
 
 The duke of Ossuna had just heard of the death 
 of Spinosa, when Nolot arrived at Naples. He was 
 at no loss to divine the author. The event displeas- 
 ed him ; be was offended that the marquis of Bed- 
 mar sent him no account of it ; and the various sus- 
 picions which arose in his mind prevented him from 
 forming any definite resolution. 
 
 The troops of Lievestein having, in the mean time, 
 again mutinied, they were, in the beginning of Feb- 
 ruary, marched, by the order of the senate, to the 
 Lazaretto, two miles from Venice. The marquis of 
 Bedmar, fearing they might themselves, in order to 
 obtain their pay, adjust their quarrel with the repub- 
 lic, and would then be compelled to leave the coun- 
 try, persuaded them, by means of their officers, not 
 to receive the sum which was at first offered. The 
 conspirators, that they might have it in their power 
 to make use of these troops while they remained in 
 the vicinity, despatched a courier to Nolot, request- 
 ing him to state to the viceroy, that, for a month from 
 that time, they should have near five thousand men 
 at their command. Nolot discharged his duty ; but 
 the viceroy, who had not yet digested his anger, 
 amused him so long that, after a suspense of six 
 weeks, the officers, fearing that their soldiers, who 
 
58 
 
 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 suffered much, would make an agreement themselves, 
 concluded an arrangement, with the consent of the 
 conspirators, who saw no means of preventing it. 
 
 Ten days afterwards, Nolot arrived from Naples, 
 with the determination of the duke of Ossuna. It 
 was such as they desired, but was addressed to Rob- 
 ert Brulard, one of the associates of the captain. The 
 ambassador and the captain, rejoicing to be released 
 from their perplexity, did not deign to notice this in- 
 sult. The viceroy stated that he was ready, when- 
 ever they should direct, to send barks, brigantines, 
 and other small vessels, adapted to the harbors and 
 canals of Venice, and capable of carrying six thou- 
 sand men if necessary. Nolot had seen the troops 
 and the vessel all prepared to depart ; and the cap- 
 tain caused the harbors and canals, which led to St. 
 Marks, to be sounded. As he had, from his office, 
 many mariners at his command, they could, without 
 suspicion, visit these harbors and canals, as often as 
 they pleased, and take all their dimensions with ex- 
 actness. 
 
 Nothing now remained but to prevent the depar- 
 ture of the troops of Lievestein. For this purpose, 
 money was liberally dispersed, and the inclemency 
 of the season served as a pretext for their delay. 
 The greater number still remained at the lazaretto, 
 and those who had departed before the arrival of No- 
 lot, stopped at places near to Venice. 
 
 Renault and the captain, finding their duties too 
 arduous, resolved to choose, for assistants, eighteen 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 59 
 
 others, who should be discreet, courageous, and wor- 
 thy of entire confidence. They selected the nine 
 whom Renault had engaged at Friuli, and the most 
 distinguished among those who had followed the cor- 
 sair from Naples. Of these, five were captains of 
 vessels, like himself ; Vincent Robert of Marseilles, 
 Laurent Nolot, and Robert Brulard, who have been 
 already mentioned ; the two last, and another Bru- 
 lard, named Laurent, were from Franche-compte ; 
 another, from Provence, named Antoine Jaffier; two 
 brothers, from Lorraine, named Charles and John 
 Boleau, and and an Italian, John Rizzardo, all three 
 well acquainted with the management of the petard ; 
 and a Frenchman called Langlade, who was consid- 
 ered the most skilful artificer of fire-works that ever 
 lived. His skill was so well known that he had ob- 
 tained permission to work at his business at the arse- 
 nal ; by this means, the petardiers, his comrades, 
 were freely allowed to enter the arsenal, as well as 
 two others, named Villa Mezzana and Retrosi, who 
 had been employed there before, and who were of 
 the number that Renault had engaged. 
 
 These six persons drew such an exact plan of the 
 arsenal, that those, who had never seen it, could delib- 
 erate concerning it, as well as those who had built it. 
 In this they were much assisted by two officers of the 
 arsenal, whom the captain had gained to his party. 
 They appeared to him to be dissatisfied with their 
 employment, to be ready to embark in such a project, 
 should it promise to promote their interest, and dis- 
 
60 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 posed to adhere faithfully to whatever engagements 
 they might make. The event proved that he had 
 judged correctly. The flattery which he freely ad- 
 ministered, accompanied occasionally by a considera- 
 ble number of Spanish pistoles, induced them to en- 
 gage to perform whatever he should command. 
 
 Langlade and the two officers lodged in the arse- 
 nal. Bride, Brainville, and Laurent Brulard resided 
 with Renault, at the house of the French ambassador. 
 The three petardiers lived with the marquis of Bed- 
 mar, who supplied them with powder and other nec- 
 essary materials and instruments, but had no inter- 
 course with them. They had already made more 
 petards and fire-works than were necessary, and the 
 ambassador's house w r as so full that no others could 
 lodge there. The captain lived in his own house 
 and alone, that suspicion might not be excited ; and 
 the others he placed at the house of the courtesan, 
 where he and Renault became acquainted with each 
 other. The esteem and friendship which succeeded 
 to the love they had felt for her, but still more the 
 knowledge they had obtained of her adventures, per- 
 suaded them that they could not make a better se- 
 lection. 
 
 This courtesan was from one of the Greek Islands 
 of the Archipelago, and her family held as high a 
 rank as any, not being Venetian, could hold in a coun- 
 try under the dominion of Venice. The person sent 
 there as governor, by the republic, Mattering her with 
 high expectations, seduced her, and afterwards, when 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST TENICE. 
 
 61 
 
 her father required the fulfilments of his promise, he 
 caused him to be assassinated. The daughter re- 
 paired to Venice to demand the punishment of the 
 murderer, but she obtained no redress ; and having, 
 in prosecuting her suit, expended all the property she 
 possessed, her beauty relieved her from the misery it 
 occasioned. No passion is so violent as the resent- 
 ment of a person compelled to descend from a re- 
 spectable to a degraded rank. The project of her 
 two friends gave her inexpressible pleasure, and she 
 was willing to risk every thing to aid it. She rented 
 one of the largest houses in Venice ; and, under the 
 pretext of making some alterations, she forbore to 
 remove her furniture into it, and thus retained, with- 
 out exciting suspicion, the one she before occupied, 
 and which was not far distant. 
 
 In these two houses, eleven of the principal con- 
 spirators resided, for near six months. As she was 
 visited by all the genteel Venetians and foreigners, 
 and as this crowd of people, flocking to her house, 
 might lead to the discovery of her inmates, she feign- 
 ed an excuse to prevent these visits. They, who 
 know with what civility women of her character are 
 treated in Italy, will readily believe that her house 
 was afterwards visited by none but such as went 
 thither on business. The conspirators left it in the 
 night only, and their meetings were held during the 
 day. 
 
 At these meetings, Renault and the captain pro- 
 posed to the conspirators, the measures which had 
 6 
 
62 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 been agreed upon with marquis of Bedmar, that their 
 opinions might be obtained and the means of execut- 
 ing them be devised. Whenever it was necessary 
 to visit the marquis, they repaired to his house, with 
 all the circumspection required in a country like this, 
 and at a time when the houses of ambassadors, and 
 particularly his, were watched as though they were 
 the abode of enemies. It had long been determined 
 that it was necessary to have a thousand soldiers in 
 the city, before the execution of their plot ; but as it 
 might occasion suspicion should all bring arms, the 
 marquis had procured them for more than five hun- 
 dred. As the gondolas of ambassadors, from what- 
 ever quarter they come, are not visited, he had found 
 it easy to do this : and nothing was now wanting but 
 an opportunity to introduce the requisite number of 
 men without exciting observation. 
 
 About this time, the doge Donato died, and Anto- 
 nio Priuli, who was then at Friuli to enforce the exe- 
 cution of the treaties, was elected in his stead. The 
 admiral was ordered to repair thither, with his fleet, 
 and escort him to Venice. The grand chancellor, 
 and the secretaries of state, were to proceed in ad- 
 vance, and bear to him the ducal bonnet. Twelve 
 of the principal senators were to follow, each in an 
 armed brigantine magnificently decorated, and accom- 
 panied by a splendid suite ; and the senate, in a 
 body, were to meet him at sea, and conduct him, 
 with all this retinue, to the city. 
 
 As it had seldom happened that those who wero 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 
 
 elected to the office of doge, were, at the time, ab- 
 sent from the city, this unusual pomp attracted to it a 
 large number of people. The marquis of Bedmar, 
 who anticipated this when he heard of the election ot 
 Priuli, sent Nolot again to Naples, directing him to 
 insist on the immediate departure of the duke of Os- 
 suna. To remove all excuse for delay, the captain 
 was directed to send to the duke an exact plan of the 
 enterprise, and to give him an account of all that 
 occurred at Venice, during the former absence of 
 Nolot. The corsair did even more than he was di- 
 rected. Willing to humour the caprice of the vice- 
 roy, and to show that they felt no dissatisfaction at 
 his conduct, he concluded his despatch with these 
 words. — " I attribute the long delay of Nolot, at Na- 
 ples, to his remissnes ; for I do not doubt that, had 
 he represented things truly, your excellency would 
 have hastened his return. He doubtless asked for 
 money, or made some other demand of that nature, 
 but he had express orders to the contrary ; and 1 
 now engage to retain Venice in my power six months, 
 should not the grand fleet of your excellency arrive 
 sooner, provided you send me the brigantines, and 
 the six thousand men, immediately after Nolot reach- 
 es Naples." This letter bears date the 11th of April, 
 the day Nolot left Venice. 
 
 In the mean time, Renault assembled, at Venice, 
 all the officers of the troops he had engaged, that they 
 might gain such a knowledge of the city as to be able 
 to execute the enterprise in the night. Before they 
 
64 
 
 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 came, they designated Individually a thousand of the 
 Dutch troops, who were directed to hold themselves 
 in readiness to march at a day's notice ; and to pre- 
 vent the absence of these men from being remarked, 
 they were selected, in equal proportions, from the va- 
 rious posts, where those troops were stationed. To 
 lodge these troops, each of the officers engaged as 
 many apartments as he could without exciting suspi- 
 cion ; the landlords were told that these apartments 
 were engaged for foreigners, who were desirous of 
 witnessing the approaching celebration. The officers 
 themselves lodged at the houses of courtezans, where, 
 paying liberally, they were more effectually conceal- 
 ed than they could have been in any other place. 
 
 Nothing now remained but to arrange the plan of 
 execution ; and the marquis of Bedmar, Renault, 
 and the captain, conferring together, determined up- 
 on the following. 
 
 "As soon as it shall be dark, that portion of the 
 thousand soldiers, who shall have come to the city 
 without arms, shall repair to the residence of the am- 
 bassador, where arms will be delivered to them. 
 Five hundred shall then proceed to the square of St. 
 Marks, where the captain will meet, them ; the great- 
 er part of the other five hundred will go to the neigh- 
 bourhood of the arsenal, where they will be joined by 
 Renault, and the remainder will take possession of all 
 the gondolas and boats they can find, near the bridge 
 of Rialto, and proceed, with all possible haste, to 
 bring from the lazaretto about one thousand soldiers 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 
 
 65 
 
 of Lievestein's regiment. While these are absent, 
 those who remain will conduct themselves as peace- 
 ably as possible, that they may not, by producing 
 commotion, be obliged to act, until the troops shall 
 have arrived from the lazaretto. 
 
 "If nothing occurs, until these troops shall have 
 arrived at the square of St. Marks, to make it neces- 
 sary for the conspirators to declare themselves, the 
 captain shall take five hundred of them, and shall 
 place them, with the five hundred already there, un- 
 der the command of the serjeant major Durand. 
 These thousand men shall then be drawn up in order 
 of battle. The captain, with two hundred men, shall 
 take possession of the ducal palace, and especially of 
 the arms deposited there, that he may supply such of 
 his own troops as shall be destitute, and prevent the 
 Venetians from using them. A hundred others, un- 
 der Bride, shall take possession of La Seeque ; and 
 a hundred others, under Brainville, of the palace of 
 the procurator, with the assistance of men, who will, 
 during the day, be secretly introduced into the bel- 
 frey or tower. These hundred last mentioned shall 
 remain in the belfrey, until the enterprise is accom- 
 plished, to prevent the sounding of the alarm bell. 
 Other detachments shall keep guard at the entrance 
 of all the streets that lead from the square. Artille- 
 ry must be placed in positions to enfilade these 
 streets ; and until cannon can be obtained from the 
 arsenal, they must be taken from the galley of the 
 council of ten, which is near the spot, and may be 
 6* 
 
C6 CONSPIRACY OF TM£ 
 
 easily seized. All who are found in the places of 
 which possession shall be gained, and where guards 
 shall be posted, shall be put to the sword. During 
 these operations around the square, the scrjeant ma- 
 jor will remain in the middle, with the rest of the 
 troops drawn up in order of battle. And all these 
 things must be done with as little noise and disturb- 
 ance as possible. 
 
 " The conspirators will then openly proceed to force, 
 with petards, the gate of the arsenal. At this signal, 
 the eight conspirators, who have drawn the plan of 
 it, and who will be within, shall, with the artificial 
 fire works prepared for the purpose, set fire to it, in 
 different places, and put the principal officers to the 
 sword* This they may easily do, in the confusion 
 which the petards and the fire will occasion, especial- 
 ly as these officers will have no suspicion of their 
 purpose. They will join Renault as soon as he shall 
 have gained admittance, and every person belonging 
 to the arsenal shall immediately be killed. The sol- 
 diers will then convey the cannon to the places where 
 they can be used with most effect, particularly to the 
 Arena de Mari, to the Fontego de Tedeschi, to 
 the salt magazines, to the belfrey of the procurator's 
 palace, to the bridge of Rialto, and to other elevated 
 places, from which they may fire on the city, and de- 
 stroy it, should resistance be made. 
 
 11 Whilst Renault is forcing the gate of the arsenal, 
 the captain will break into the prison of St. Marks, 
 and arm the prisoners. The principal senators must 
 
 - 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 67 
 
 be killed ; and persons, engaged for the purpose, 
 will set fire to at least forty places in the city, as dis- 
 tant as possible from each other, in order to increase 
 the confusion. 
 
 " In the mean time, the Spaniards despatched by 
 the duke of Ossuna, having heard the signal, which 
 will have been given on becoming masters of the ar- 
 senal, will debark at the square of St. Marks, and in- 
 stantly proceed, in detachments, to different quarters 
 of the city, under the command of the other nine 
 leaders of the conspiracy. 
 
 "Every one shall cry liberty, liberty ; and when all 
 these orders are executed, the city shall be given up 
 to pillage : but foreigners shall be respected ; from 
 them nothing shall be taken, under pain of death, and 
 every one shall be spared who ceases to resist." 
 
 Nolot, on arriving at Naples, found every thing in 
 such a state of preparation, that the six thousand men 
 were embarked the next day, under the command of 
 an Englishman of the name of Haillot. To avoid 
 suspicion the duke of Ossuna directed that his large 
 ships should make a long circuit ; but he sent Haillot 
 and the brigantines by the shortest route. On the 
 second day of their voyage, these brigantines were 
 attacked by a squadron of corsairs from Barbary. 
 As they were constructed for the transport of troops, 
 and were not fitted to engage in a regular action, 
 they suffered much from the artillery of the Barba- 
 rians, whose brigantines were better armed, and 
 could be managed with more ease. But though the 
 
68 « o.VSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 men on board the Neapolitan vessels were too nu- 
 merous to act with regularity and freedom, yet as 
 they were all Spaniards, selected for the occasion, 
 they treated so harshly such of the enemy as they 
 could grapple with, that these corsairs would proba- 
 bly have had cause to regret having encountered 
 them, had not a furious storm, occurring to the heat 
 of the engagement, dispersed both fleets. That of 
 the duke of Ossuna received so much damage that it 
 could not again venture to sea, for some time. 
 
 The news of this disaster convinced the marquis 
 of Bedmar that he could not disturb the approaching 
 festivities. He therefore participated in them, dis- 
 playing more magnificence than any other person. 
 He declared, in the senate, when congratulating the 
 new doge upon his elevation, that the lively joy he 
 experienced arose from his confidence that his high- 
 ness would retain, on the throne, that earnest desire 
 for the execution of the treaty of peace, which he had 
 lately expressed at Friuli. 
 
 On leaving the senate, he sent for Renault and the 
 captain. Shall the enterprise, he asked them, be 
 abandoned ? They replied, that not only w r ere they 
 unwilling to abandon it, but their associates appear- 
 ed no more disheartened by the disaster of the fleet, 
 than if it had arrived safe in port ; and that they were 
 all disposed to take the necessary means to preserve 
 affairs in their present condition, until circumstances 
 should become more favorable. The ambassador, 
 who trembled when he asked the question, embraced 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 69 
 
 them, on heating this reply, with tears of joy. He 
 said to them, with a gaiety and animation which would 
 have inspired the timid with boldness, and revived 
 the confidence of the most terrified, that great rever- 
 ses, which, in common affairs, might divert men from 
 their purposes, are but natural incidents in extraordi- 
 nary enterprises ; that they test the strength of the 
 mind ; and that then only ought a man to consider 
 himself capable of accomplishing a difficult enterprise, 
 when he has been once defeated, and preserved his 
 equanimity and firmness. 
 
 It was finally determined, by the marquis and his 
 two confidents, that the execution of their project 
 should be deferred until the feast of Ascension, which 
 was near, and was, at that period, the most solemn 
 festival celebrated at Venice ; that, in the meantime, 
 the troops should be kept in the places they then oc- 
 cupied, and all the comforts and conveniences they 
 could desire should be furnished them ; that, for this 
 purpose, money should be freely distributed among 
 the principal officers : that, of the three hundred 
 who had repaired to Venice, the most distinguished 
 should be detained, as hostages for the fidelity of the 
 rest, and the others sent back, as well to retain the 
 soldiers in their duty, as to avoid exciting suspicion, 
 by lessening the number of officers in the city ; that 
 the time of those who remained should be occupied 
 in some agreeable manner, to prevent them from be- 
 ing wearied by waiting, and from reflecting too much 
 on the present state of affairs ; that the twenty prin- 
 
1 
 
 70 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 cipal conspirators should attentively observe their 
 conduct ; and that, to induce the republic to retain 
 the troops of Lievestein, and to defer dismissing those 
 of Nassau, the governor of Milan, and the viceroy of 
 Naples, should delay carrying the treaties into exe- 
 cution. 
 
 Every pretext, which human ingenuity could de- 
 vise, was invented by the marquis of Bedmar, and 
 put in practice by don Pedro and the duke of Ossuna ; 
 nevertheless, they were constantly impelled, howev* 
 er contrary it might have been to their inclinations, 
 to take steps which led to peace. The council of 
 Spain dared hazard nothing upon the uncertain pros- 
 pect of the success of the conspiracy ; and France, 
 desirous of maintaining the treaty of Paris, persuad- 
 ed the Venetians te consent that the duke of Savoy 
 should dismiss the troops, who, remaining in the 
 Pays de Vaud, afforded to don Pedro a pretext for 
 his delays. This obstacle removed, the marquis of 
 Bedmar, in hope of preventing this prince from re- 
 storing the places he had taken in Montferrat, circu- 
 lated a report that, as soon as the duke of Mantau 
 should regain possession, he would enter into some 
 arrangement with the Spaniards. 
 
 At the same time, don Pedro quarrelled, without 
 cause, with a minister from Savoy, who had come to 
 Milan with the French ambassadors, and command- 
 ed him to quit the city. The duke, irritated by this 
 insult, directed them to repair to Savoy, and counter- 
 manded the orders he had given to evacuate the 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 71 
 
 places he occupied ; but, convinced by the ambassa- 
 dors that he had fallen into the snare set for him by 
 don Pedro, he instantly surrendered those places. So 
 great was the astonishment of don Pedro, when he 
 heard of this, that he could not forbear expressing it 
 in public. He felt it to be necessary te give up also 
 his prisoners, and the places of least importance ; 
 but, as to restoring Vercelli, the important point, he 
 made such unreasonable objections, that the council 
 of Spain threatened to recal him, before the usual pe- 
 riod. At first, he declared that it would be disgrace- 
 ful for him to restore Vercelli, whilst the French am- 
 bassadors remained at Milan, for the purpose, as it 
 seemed, of compelling him to do it. They quitted 
 that city. He then insisted that the duke of Savoy 
 should previously restore certain lands, which belong- 
 ed to ministers of Mantua. These lands were re- 
 stored ; yet don Pedro still kept possession of Ver- 
 celli. At length, the king of France, who wished to 
 conclude a marriage between Madam Christiana, 
 his sister, and the prince of Piedmont, having expres- 
 sed himself plainly and decisively on this subject, 
 don Pedro began to sendoffthe munitions of war and 
 the artillery, but proceeded with all possible slowness. 
 The marquis of Bedmar having requested him to 
 use even less despatch, he resorted to the expedient 
 of requiring additional assurances, from the duke^of 
 Savoy, in favor of the duke of Mantua ; but the 
 ministers of Mantua, wearied by so many delays, de- 
 clared, in a public manifesto, that they did not desiro 
 these assurances. 
 
 
7% CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 Whatever chagrin this declaration occasioned to 
 the Marquis of Bedmar, the conduct of the duke of 
 Ossuna occasioned still greater. This duke, haras- 
 sed by the incessant complaints of the Venetians, that 
 he continued to disturb the navigation of the gulf, 
 and unable to devise any other new pretence to justi- 
 fy himself, made answer, that he should pursue the 
 same measures so long as the Venetians retained in 
 their service the most inveterate enemies of the king 
 his master. The feelings of the marquis, on hearing 
 this reply of the duke, may be easily imagined, when 
 it is recollected what pains he had taken to detain in 
 the city the troops from Holland, to whom the duke 
 alluded. He had no doubt that the senate, who were 
 desirous of peace, at any price, would, to deprive the 
 viceroy of all excuse, immediately dismiss them ; but 
 the event was again at variance with the well-founded 
 anticipation of the marquis. 
 
 Some demon, favorable to the extravagances of the 
 duke of Ossuna, impelled the Venetians to pursue a 
 course directly contrary to their inclinations and their 
 interest. It was suggested to the senate, that the re- 
 public had already given too many proofs of its desire 
 for peace ; that, it was this that encouraged the Span- 
 iards to delay the execution of the treaties ; that, if 
 the last demand of the viceroy were granted, he 
 would be led to think they would assent to any thing ; 
 and that, instead of dismissing these troops, it was 
 necessary to retain in service even the regiment of 
 Lievestein, until the complete execution of the treaties. 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 73 
 
 The pleasure which this resolution gave to the 
 marquis of Bedmar was disturbed by the discovery 
 of the plot at Crema. Alfier, the officer from Pro- 
 vence, and the Italian captain, who were stationed 
 there, and had been engaged in the conspiracy, hav- 
 ing quarrelled at play, a duel was the consequence, 
 in which the captain was mortally wounded. Before 
 he expired, he, to relieve his conscience, made a full 
 disclosure to the Venetian commander. Alfier, an- 
 ticipating this, absconded immediately after wound- 
 ing his adversary, taking with him all his accomplices 
 whom he could apprize of their danger. The re- 
 mainder, among whom was the French lieutenant, 
 who was the principal, were arrested ; but as Re- 
 nault had made himself known merely as an agent 
 from Milan, and as they knew nothing more concern- 
 ing him, don Pedro only was implicated by the dis- 
 closure. 
 
 Eight days afterwards, the sergeant major, who 
 had agreed to deliver up Marano to the conspirators, 
 having kept back, for his own emolument, a part of 
 the perquisites of a servant of the purveyor, and of a 
 pensioner of the republic, they, irritated by the loss, 
 entered his house in his absence, broke open his 
 trunks, and carried away his money and papers. 
 Among these were letters on the subject of the con- 
 spiracy. As he knew only the agent of the duke of 
 Ossuna, who had negotiated with him, he would have 
 accused none but the duke ; but he pursued a more 
 honorable course. In the midst of torments, he do 
 7 
 
 I 
 
74 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 clared that he was well convinced he should not be 
 permitted to escape, and that he had rather leave his 
 accomplices, if he had any, in a condition to avenge 
 his death, than, by making disclosures, to ruin them 
 without any advantage to himself. Thanks to God 
 were offered publicly in Venice, on occasion of these 
 two discoveries. The success of the enterprise was, 
 however, rendered more certain than before. The 
 senate supposed they had, at length, ascertained the 
 secret cause of the irregular conduct of the Span- 
 iards ; and, after these two projects had failed, they 
 imagined that all danger was over, and no longer 
 doubted the complete fulfilment of the treaties. 
 
 The time assigned for the execution of the enter- 
 prise was now near. From the Sunday preceding 
 the feast of Ascension to the day of Pentecost, one 
 of the most celebrated fairs in the world, was, at that 
 period, held at Venice. The crowd of merchants, 
 who then visited the city, did not increase the difficul- 
 ty of surprising it ; on the contrary, it afforded to 
 the body of one thousand soldiers, an opportunity of 
 entering with the merchants, and of procuring lodg- 
 ings without being remarked. They found it easy to 
 leave the Venetian towns where they were posted, 
 because, for several months, those most anxious to 
 return to their native country had, from time to time, 
 been dismissed ; and the magistrates, whose duty it 
 was to impose regulations, neglected to interfere, be- 
 cause the republic paid nothing for their services. As 
 the departure of so many at once might occasion 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE, 75 
 
 alarm, most of them declared that they were going to 
 the fair at Venice. They changed their dress, assum- 
 ing the guise of various occupations. To avoid all 
 appearance of concert, individuals, who spoke differ- 
 ent languages, took lodgings together, and all behav- 
 ed as though they had no acquaintance with each 
 other. 
 
 The five hundred Spaniards who were to have ex- 
 ecuted the plot at Crema, which had been discovered, 
 were sent, by don Pedro, to the vicinity of Brescia, 
 with orders, on receiving intelligence of the success 
 of the conspiracy, to take possession of that city, in 
 which they were to be assisted by the party formed 
 there by the lieutenant of the count of Nassau, and 
 yet subsisting. The leader of these Spaniards was 
 charged to conduct them directly to Venice, the in- 
 stant he received orders from Renault. 
 
 The Venetian fleet had sailed to Dalmatia, but so 
 incessant were the movements of the duke of Ossuna, 
 that it was kept in constant readiness to put out to 
 sea. The captain sent to the officers, who, in his ab- 
 sence, commanded his twelve vessels, powerful fire- 
 works, to be secretly distributed to the other vessels 
 of the fleet, just before the time appointed for the ex- 
 ecution of the enterprise. As no one distrusted these 
 officers, it was easy for them to do this without being 
 discovered or even suspected. He gave orders that 
 they should measure the matches so exactly, that, if 
 possible, all might explode at the same moment ; that 
 if any vessel should be uninjured by them, they should 
 
76 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 attack, and capture or sink her ; that they should 
 then repair immediately to Venice, and be in readi- 
 ness to perform whatever might be directed, but 
 should wait for further orders before they attempted 
 any thing. The Sunday before the feast of Ascen- 
 sion, being the first day of the fair, was appointed for 
 the execution of the enterprise. 
 
 The little squadron of the duke of Ossuna was this 
 time so fortunate as to arrive, without any accident, 
 within six miles of Venice. To prevent suspicion, it 
 sailed in two divisions, one at a little distance from 
 the other. The largest was composed of boats like 
 those of fishermen ; the other of brigantines similar 
 to those of the corsairs. On Saturday morning, Hail- 
 lot was commanded to leave his station the next day, 
 at such time as would enable him to approach within 
 sight of Venice between day -light and dark ; to hoist 
 the standard of St. Marks, and take possession of sev- 
 eral little islands near which he must necessarily pass, 
 which were entirely defenceless, and from which in- 
 formation might be sent of his arrival ; ho was then 
 to present himself boldly before the castles of Sido 
 and Malamaco, which were destitute of garrisons, and 
 between which he could pass without injury ; on giv- 
 ing notice, by despatching a boat, of his arrival there, 
 pilots were to be sent to him lest he should run upon 
 the banks or rocks which render the entrance of the 
 port difficult to strangers. 
 
 As the whole of the next day must be occupied in 
 preparing for the business of the evening, Renault and 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 77 
 
 the captain considered it advisable to confer, for the 
 last time, with their companions ; and it was agreed 
 that Renault should state to them the situation of af- 
 fairs, and give them the necessary directions. Though 
 great exertions were made, all could not be collected 
 until near night. There were present, at this meet- 
 ing, the three Frenchmen who lodged with Renault, 
 the lieutenant of the count of Nassau, the three pe- 
 tardieis, Langlade, the two officers of the arsenal, 
 the captain and the lieutenant who had formerly been 
 stationed there, Nolot, the two Brulards, Jaffier, Rob- 
 ert, Theodore the Dutchman, the Savoyard who was 
 present at the assault of Geneva, and Revellido the 
 engineer. These twenty persons, with Renault and 
 the captain, having shut themselves up, with all the 
 precautions usual at such meetings, in the most se- 
 cluded apartment in the house of the courtezan, the 
 latter addressed the assembly. 
 
 He began by giving a plain and full account of the 
 present state of affairs ; of the forces of the republic, 
 and of their own ; of the disposition of the city and 
 of the fleet; of the preparations of don Pedro and of 
 the duke of Ossuna ; of the arms and other munitions 
 of war deposited at the house of the Spanish ambas- 
 sador ; of his private understandings with members of 
 the senate and many of the nobility ; and, in fine, of 
 the precise information they had obtained of whatever 
 was necessary to be known. After having gained 
 the confidence of his hearers by this detail, which 
 
 they themselves knew to be correct, of arrangements 
 7* 
 
78 
 
 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 effected almost as much by their efforts as his own, 
 he proceeded as follows : 
 
 " Such, my companions, are the means destined 
 to conduct you to the glory you so ardently seek. 
 Every one of you can judge whether ll)2y may be 
 relied on, and are sufficient. The plans we have 
 devised will, beyond all question, enable us to intro- 
 duce ten thousand soldiers into a city which does not 
 contain two hundred to oppose us ; the plunder of 
 this city will attract to our party all the foreigners 
 whom curiosity or traffic has brought hither ; and I 
 inhabitants themselves, the instant they perceive they 
 can do it with safety, will assist us to plunder the 
 nobles who have plundered them so often. The best 
 vessels of the fleet are ours, and the rest carry with- 
 in them, at this moment, the means of their own des- 
 truction. The arsenal, that famous arsenal, the won- 
 der of Europe and the terror of Asia, is even now al- 
 most in our power. The nine brave men, who now 
 hear me, and who, for six months past, could have 
 delivered it to us at a word, have taken such addition- 
 al precautions during the delay that has taken place, 
 that they are willing to answer, with their lives, for 
 its surrender. Even should we not have the troops 
 at the lazaretto, nor those on the main land, nor the 
 little fleet of Haillot to support us, nor the five hun- 
 dred men promised by don Pedro, nor the twenty 
 Venetian vessels of our comrade, nor the large ves- 
 sels of the duke of Ossuna, nor the Spanish army of 
 Lombardy, yet our recent understandings and our 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 79 
 
 thousand soldiers would be amply sufficient for our 
 purpose. And all the different means, which I have- 
 just enumerated, are disposed in such manner that 
 any one may fail us, and the others be left in a state 
 to act with undiminished efficiency. All are distinct 
 and independent ; each may aid, but cannot injure, 
 the others. It is hardly possible that all should fail us, 
 and any one is sufficient to ensure success. 
 
 " And if, after taking all the precautions which hu- 
 man wisdom can suggest, we may anticipate what 
 success fortune will award us, can we have proofs of 
 her favor more explicit than those we have already 
 received ? Yes, my friends, they certainly partake of 
 the miraculous. In all history, no instance can be 
 found in which an enterprise of this kind has been 
 partly revealed without being completely defeated. 
 Ours has met with five unfavorable incidents, the 
 least of which was sufficient, apparently, to ruin it. 
 Who could have thought that the affair of Spinosa, 
 whose object was the same as ours, would not have 
 involved us in ruin ? that the disbanding of the troops 
 of Lievestein, who were entirely devoted to us, would 
 not have been the means of disclosing our secret ? 
 that the dispersion of the little fleet would not have 
 deranged all our projects and exposed us to new and 
 perplexing inconveniences ? that the discovery of the 
 plot at Crema, and of that at Marano, would not have 
 led necessarily to the discovery of the whole conspi- 
 racy ? And yet all these incidents have had no unfa- 
 vorable result. No one has pursued the track 
 
80 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 which would have led him to us ; and our enemies 
 have derived no advantage from the glimmering 
 light they afforded. Never did such profound re- 
 pose precede an explosion so terrible. The senate, 
 we are positively assured, the senate sleeps in perfect 
 security. Destiny, auspicious to us, has blinded the 
 most penetrating, encouraged the most timid, lulled 
 the most suspicious, confounded the most subtle. 
 We live yet, my dear friends, we are even stronger 
 than before these disasters ; they have served only 
 to prove our firmness. We live ; and our lives shall 
 soon be fatal to the tyrants of this city. 
 
 " Can a success so extraordinary, so constant, bo 
 the effect of natural causes ? May we not presume 
 that it is vouchsafed to us by some power that con- 
 trols human affairs ? And in truth, my companions, 
 what is there upon the earth that is worthy the pro- 
 tection of heaven, if our enterprise is not ? It is our 
 purpose to overthrow the most detestable of all gov- 
 ernments ; to secure to the poor subjects of this state 
 the enjoyment of their property, of which, should we 
 not interfere, the avarice of the nobles would for- 
 ever deprive them ; to preserve the honor of every 
 female endowed with charms to fascinate, who would 
 otherwise be subject to their lawless caprice ; to give 
 safety to an infinite uumbcr of miserable beings whom 
 their cruelty would sacrifice for the slightest offences ; 
 in a word, to punish the most guilty of men, blackened 
 by crimes which nature abhors, and polluted by vices 
 which modestv dares not name. 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 81 
 
 "Let us not hesitate, then, seizing the sword with 
 one hand and the torch with the other, to exterminate 
 these wretches. And when we see those palaces 
 where blasphemy sits enthroned, burning with the 
 fire rather of heaven than of earth ; when we see 
 those tribunals which are stained with the tears of 
 the innocent, consumed by devouring flames ; the 
 enraged soldier withdrawing his bloody sword from 
 the bosom of the wicked ; death every where pres- 
 ent ; and the horrible spectacles which, in the dark- 
 ness of night, the unbridled fury of soldiers may pre- 
 sent, let us then remember, my friends, that no good 
 is vouchsafed unmixed to man ; that the most lauda- 
 ble actions produce intense suffering ; and, in fine, 
 that the tumult of the approaching night is the only 
 means of restoring, and forever, the reign of peace, 
 innocence and freedom, in that unhappy city where 
 furious passions have spread desolation and misery." 
 
 This address was heard by the whole assembly 
 with that approbation which men generally entertain 
 for sentiments congenial with their own. Neverthe- 
 less Renault, who observed the countenances of the 
 audience, remarked that Jaffier, one of the best friends 
 of the captain, had, after listening attentively, sudden- 
 ly displayed extreme anxiety, which he endeavored 
 in vain to conceal ; and that, after the close of the 
 address, there still remained upon his countenance 
 marks of sadness and terror, indicating emotions of 
 horror. Renault spoke of it to the captain, Who at 
 first did not think it. worthy of attention j but, having 
 
82 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 observed Jaffier a few moments, he began to enter- 
 tain some suspicions and doubts. Renault, who per- 
 fectly understood the relations and connection be- 
 tween the most secret emotions and the slightest 
 outward signs, after further observation and reflec- 
 tion, declared explicitly to the captain, that, in his 
 opinion, Jaffier was not to be trusted. 
 
 The captain, who knew Jaffier to be one of the 
 bravest of men, pronounced this opinion to be unwar- 
 ranted and precipitate ; but Renault, convinced of 
 its correctness, explained so forcibly the reasons in 
 support of it, that, if they did not make the same live- 
 ly impression on the mind of the captain, he yet 
 thought that his conduct ought to be attentively ob- 
 served. He, however, suggested to Renault that, 
 even if Jaffier were wavering; which he could not be- 
 lieve, there would not be time, before the evening of 
 the next day, for him to deliberate and to form the 
 resolution to betray them ; at any rate, under present 
 circumstances, it was impossible to change their 
 measures, and they must unavoidably incur the haz- 
 ard which he apprehended. Renault replied, that 
 there was one sure way of avoiding it, which was to 
 poniard Jaffier that very evening. For a short time, 
 the captain was silent ; at length he observed, that 
 he could not resolve to sacrifice his best friend, on a 
 mere suspicion ; that this summary execution might 
 have many injurious consequences ; that he feared it 
 would irritate and disafFect their companions, who 
 might imagine their leader claimed despotic power 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE, S3 
 
 over them, even that of life and death ; that it would 
 be difficult to convince them of the necessity of sac- 
 rificing Jaffier as clearly as they themselves felt it, 
 and every conspirator, not perceiving it, would feel 
 that his own life was in danger, whenever a similar 
 suspicion should enter into the minds of their chiefs ; 
 that when the thoughts of men are agitated by their 
 rapid approach to the execution of a perilous under- 
 taking, a mere trifle is sufficient to change their 
 course ; and that, in such a predicament, the slight- 
 est alteration is of great importance, for none but 
 sudden and violent measures can then be adopted ; 
 that, should Jaffier be poniarded, and the manner in 
 which he had disappeared be concealed, it was still 
 more to be feared that his associates would believe 
 that he had been detected, had fled, was a prisoner 
 or a traitor ; and that, whatever pretext should be 
 invented, his absence, when the enterprise, in which 
 so important a part had been assigned to him, was on 
 the point of execution, must give rise to discouraging 
 reflections. 
 
 While Renault was listening to the discourse of 
 the captain, one of their men came to them, bringing 
 an order of the senate, which hud just been received, 
 that all those attached to the fleet should go on board 
 the next morning. At the same time, a letter was 
 received from the ambassador, explaining the reason 
 of this order. The duke of Ossuna had not been 
 able to leave Venice to join his fleet without the 
 knowledge of the spies of the republic ; but as he 
 
84 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 had given orders that, until a certain time, no person 
 should be permitted to depart for Venice, and that 
 all letters directed to that city should be detained, 
 the Venetians had not, until this day, received notice 
 of his departure. The archduke, who had just been 
 elected king of Bohemia, and a portion of whose sub- 
 jects had revolted, had solicited his assistance against 
 the rebels ; and the viceroy having boasted that he 
 would transport the troops intended for that service, 
 by the way of the gulf, near to the ports of the arch- 
 duke, in Istria, the Venetians had desired this prince 
 to request the viceroy to take another route. But as 
 the reasons which govern other men had no influence 
 with him, they did not doubt, when they heard he 
 had set sail, that his purpose was to conduct the troops 
 himself, by the route he had mentioned. As they 
 wished to avoid an open rupture, they did not, as 
 they might, obstruct his passage ; but determined to 
 send their fleet to the coasts of Istria, to observe his 
 motions, and protect their maritime possessions from 
 any attack which he might be tempted to make. 
 
 The firmest resolutions of men result generally from 
 a strong conception of the danger which they have re- 
 solved to encounter. By the constant contemplation 
 of this danger, the mind becomes familiar with it, and 
 with all the circumstances that attend it, however ter- 
 rible they may be ; but this firmness of resolution is 
 so connected and interwoven with these circumstan- 
 ces, that, if a change in any one of them should hap- 
 pen, on the point of execution, there is great dan- 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 85 
 
 ger that the resolution, however firm before, should 
 also change. 
 
 Such an effect Renault and the captain apprehend- 
 ed might be produced upon their associates, by the 
 unexpected order for the fleet to sail, of which they 
 had just received information. The news distressed 
 them exceedingly, for they supposed, at first, that 
 they should be compelled, however unpleasant it 
 might be, to make some change in the plan of exe- 
 cution, which had been agreed on. This plan, it 
 was evident, could not be executed immediately, for 
 the night was already far advanced, and day light 
 would appear before the squadron under Haillot could 
 be brought within cannon shot of Venice, and before 
 the troops at the lazaretto could be sent for. Neither 
 could it be executed the next day, for if Haillot 
 should then be directed to come up to the city, he 
 would inevitably meet people on their way to the 
 fleet, which was about to set sail. The departure of 
 the fleet was, in fact, an event more favorable to the 
 conspirators than any they could have wished for ; 
 Haillot would be left master of the port ; and there- 
 fore, all things considered, they determined to defer 
 the execution of their design, until some time after 
 it had sailed. 
 
 The greatest difficulty was, to decide whether the 
 captain, Langlade, the three petardiers, and the oth- 
 er conspirators, who were attached to the fleet, should 
 obey the orders of the senate. It seemed necessary 
 that they, and particularly the captain, should remain 
 8 
 
8 * CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 at Venice ; yet he, of all of them, could least avoid 
 obeying. The important command, which he held 
 in the fleet, would cause his absence to be remarked 
 more than that of all the rest. As most of them 
 were attached to his vessels, he might, if present, by 
 substituting others, prevent their absence from being 
 noticed. It was therefore determined that he should 
 go, accompanied by Langlade alone, who, as well as 
 the three petardiers, acted under the immediate or- 
 ders of the admiral ; but, as to the petardiers, the 
 conspirators preferred to hazard every thing rather 
 than suffer them to depart. The admiral, when he 
 first saw the captain, made enquiries concerning 
 them ; and the captain replied that he believed that 
 they, and other officers belonging to his vessels, 
 whom he could not find, were concealed at the houses 
 of courtesans, and that he had been obliged to leave 
 Venice in such haste that he had no time to make 
 search for them. The admiral's orders to set sail 
 were so peremptory, and his time so much occupied, 
 that he could neither despatch men to look for ihem. 
 nor wait until they could be found. 
 
 Before he embarked, the captain took Jaffier aside, 
 and requested him to take his place by the side of 
 Renault, on the night of the execution of the enter- 
 prise. He spoke in high terms of the confidence 
 they reposed in his courage and address ; he assured 
 him that, were it not for this, he should never have 
 consented to go on board the fleet ; but as Jaffier 
 was to remain, he felt certain that he should leave 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 87 
 
 with his associates a man equal at least to himself. 
 During this conversation, the captain observed him 
 attentively ; and he, affected by these expressions of 
 esteem and confidence, gave, in his reply, such assu- 
 rances of zeal, fidelity and gratitude as would have 
 removed all doubt from the most suspicious of men. 
 This was the last struggle of his expiring firmness, 
 which ceased to exist when his friend disappeared. 
 Having no longer before his eyes the only man who 
 had influence over him, he abandoned himself entire- 
 ly to his irresolution. 
 
 The description which Renault, at the close of his 
 address, had given of the night of the execution, had 
 affected him to such a degree, that he could not re- 
 press his emotions of pity. His imagination rendered 
 the picture more vivid. It presented to him, in the 
 liveliest colors, the injustice and the cruellies, that, 
 on such occasions, must inevitably be committed. 
 From that moment, he heard nothing but the cries 
 of children trodden to death, the groans of old men 
 slaughtered, and the shrieks of women dishonored. 
 He saw only palaces demolished, temples on fire, sa- 
 cred places polluted with blood. Venice, sorrowing, 
 miserable Venice, was constantly before his eyes, not, 
 as formerly, triumphant over Ottoman fortune and 
 Spanish haughtiness, but in ashes, or in chains, and 
 immersed in the blood of her inhabitants more than 
 in the waters that surrounded her. 
 
 This horrible image besieges him night and day, 
 pursues, oppresses, shocks him. In vain does he 
 
88 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 strive to dismiss it from view. More obstinate than 
 the furies of fable, it stands before him, at every re- 
 past ; it disturbs his slumbers, it mingles with his 
 dreams. — But, to betray all his friends ! and such 
 friends ! courageous, intelligent, each in his peculiar 
 faculty surpassing all others ; centuries must pass be- 
 fore again such a number of extraordinary men could 
 be united in one undertaking. Could he, at the mo- 
 ment which was to render them memorable forever, 
 snatch from them the fruit, then ready to be gather- 
 ed, of the grandest design ever contrived by a private 
 individual? And how would they perish? In torments 
 more ingenious and more terrible than the tyrants of 
 barbarous ages had ever invented. Who knows not 
 that there is, in Venice, a prison more capable of an- 
 nihilating the firmness of a man of courage than the 
 most frightful punishments of other countries ? These 
 last reflections, operating upon the amiable weakness 
 of Jaffier, strengthened his first resolutions. The pity 
 he felt for his companions became as powerful as 
 that which the ruin of Venice excited ; and he con- 
 tinued irresolute until the feast of Ascension, to 
 which time the execution of the enterprise had been 
 deferred. 
 
 The next morning they received news from the 
 captain. He sent word that he would answer for the 
 fleet ; that it would sail to the neighbourhood of Ma- 
 rano ; that, when they sent to the lazaretto for the 
 troops of Lievestein, they must also despatch a boat 
 to give him notice ; and that on receiving this notice, 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 
 
 89 
 
 lie would begin to act in his department. The pilots, 
 which had been promised, were sent to Haillot. Men, 
 suborned for the purpose, and intimate with those 
 who kept guard in the Procuracy of St. Marks, were 
 introduced into the belfry, or tower, where the guard 
 were stationed ; and, by means of drugs mixed with 
 their liquor, which they were persuaded to drink to 
 excess on account of the public rejoicings of the day, 
 stupified their faculties and caused them to sleep pro- 
 foundly. Certain officers were ordered to take pos- 
 session of the houses of the senators most to be fear- 
 ed, and to kill them. The house which each was to 
 attack was designated, and to each of the other offi- 
 cers, or chiefs, a particular duty was assigned. Each 
 was instructed what number of men he was to com- 
 mand, where he would find them, the word by which 
 he would know them, and the route by which he 
 was to conduct them. The troops at the lazaretto, 
 the Spaniards belonging to the squadron, the thou- 
 sand Hollanders yet remaining in Venice, were also 
 told in what direction they were to leave the square 
 of St. Marks which was the general rendezvous, the 
 posts they were to seize, the officers appointed to 
 command them, and the word by which each might 
 be recognised. Men, not liable to suspicion, were 
 sent to examine the council barge, and others ascer- 
 tained that the artillery was in complete order. 
 
 Jaffier had the curiosity to witness the ceremony 
 of the doge espousing the sea, it being the last time 
 that ceremony was to be performed. The sight of 
 8* 
 
90 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 the public festivities redoubled his compassion ; the 
 tranquil enjoyments of the devoted Venetians present- 
 ed to his mind, in still stronger colors, their ap- 
 proaching desolation ; and he returned from the 
 scene more irresolute than ever. In fine, Heaven 
 decreed that the work of twelve centuries, and many 
 wise patriots, should not be abandoned to the fury of 
 a courtesan, and of a band of desperate zealots. 
 
 The guardian genius of the republic suggested to 
 Jaffier an expedient by which, as he imagined, he 
 might, at the same time, save Venice and his compan- 
 ions. Y^e went to Bartholomew Comino, secretary 
 of the council often, and told him that he had some- 
 thing to reveal, which was of great importance to the 
 safety of the republic ; but he required, as a previous 
 and indispensable condition, that the doge and the 
 council should promise him a favor, and engage, by 
 the most sacred oaths, that their promise should be 
 ratified by the senate ; that this favor was the lives of 
 twenty-two persons whom he would name, whatever 
 crime they might have committed ; and he assured 
 him that they need not hope, without granting this 
 favor, to force his secret from him, for no tortures, 
 however horrible, could oblige him to utter a word. 
 The Ten and the doge were instantly assembled ; 
 they did not hesitate to make the promise exacted by 
 JafTier ; and lie, well satisfied with the course he 
 was pursuing, disclosed to them the whole conspiracy. 
 
 The disclosure appeared to them so incredible and 
 so horrible, that they could not believe it. Never- 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 91 
 
 theless, as it was easy to ascertain the truth, they 
 despatched Comino to the belfry of the Procuracy. 
 He returned with intelligence that all the guard were 
 intoxicated or asleep. He was then sent to the ar- 
 senal. He sought a long time for the officers ; but 
 at length a servant, terrified by his threats, showed 
 him a small door, which, after knocking in vain sev- 
 eral times, he forced open. He found them with the 
 three petardiers, who were engaged in finishing the 
 fire-works to be used by the conspirators. He ask- 
 ed them what induced them to labor on such a day 
 of rejoicing, and why they did not open the door 
 when he knocked. They replied, with much inge- 
 nuity, that the petardiers were obliged to set out, the 
 next day, to join the fleet ; that the admiral had or- 
 dered them to carry on board a quantity of fire-works 
 ready for use ; that, not having so many prepared as 
 he required, they had requested the others to assist 
 them ; that as it might be of great importance that 
 the fire-works should be finished, they thought it their 
 duty to abstain from partaking of the public festivi- 
 ties ; and that, to avoid scandal, they had shut them- 
 selves up, as he had found them, in the most private 
 apartment of the arsenal. To this answer Comino 
 could make no reply, but he arrested them. 
 
 The Ten, more and more alarmed, sent immedi- 
 ately to the residence of the Greek courtesan, but 
 there they found no one. The men who had admin- 
 istered opiates to the guard in the belfry, had^ when 
 Comino entered, feigned to be asleep like the others ; 
 
92 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 but the instant he departed, they hastened to her 
 house, and gave the alarm. Without losing a mo- 
 ment, Nolot, Robert, Revellido, Villa-mezzana, Du- 
 rand, Ternon, and Robert Brulard, who happened to 
 be there, leaped into one of the boats, which had 
 been procured to bring the troops from the lazaretto, 
 and fled safely from Venice. 
 
 Chagrined at their escape, the Council resolved 
 to visit immediately the houses of the ambassadors of 
 France and Spain. Entrance was civilly demanded, 
 on business which concerned the safety of the repub- 
 lic. The French ambassador cheerfully admitted 
 them ; and Renault, Laurent Brulard, and de Bribe 
 were arrested. But the Spanish ambassador angrily 
 refused. He claimed all the privileges of his station, 
 and when they entered forcibly he protested with 
 spirit against the violence they committed. They 
 found in his house arms for more than five huudred 
 men, sixty petards, an immense quantity of powder, 
 artificial fire-works, and other things of a similar na- 
 ture. Of all an exact inventory was taken which he 
 sportingly and jeeringly assisted to draw up. 
 
 Before this inventory was transmitted to the coun- 
 cil, a nobleman of the house of Valiera arrived with 
 Brainville and Theodore, two of the principal conspi- 
 rators. They had just heard that all was discovered ; 
 and that the gates of the city had been closed imme- 
 diately after the flight of the courtesan. Having, 
 therefore, no hope of escape, they resolved to display 
 their willingness to reveal the conspiracy, and waited 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 93 
 
 upon this nobleman, whom they had known in Flan- 
 ders, and desired him to conduct them to the council 
 of ten, where they were arrested. In the meantime, 
 all the boarding houses, taverns, houses of ill fame, 
 and other places where foreigners would be likely to 
 conceal themselves, were visited ; and all the Dutch, 
 French, Spanish, Walloon, Neapolitan, and Milanese 
 officers were arrested, amounting, in the whole, to 
 near five hundred. 
 
 In the midst of these occurrences, two Dauphinese, 
 coming from Orange, presented themselves to the 
 council, in boots, as they leaped from the boats that 
 brought them. They declared that, having received 
 letters from Frenchmen in Venice, stating that, if 
 they wished to enrich themselves, they had nothing 
 to do but to come to the city immediately, for a con- 
 spiracy had been formed, and was just ready to be 
 executed, to get possession of the city, and give it up 
 to pillage, they had come in great haste, to give infor- 
 mation of the plot. They received the thanks of the 
 council, were conducted to convenient lodgings, and 
 desired to repose themselves until the senate could 
 determine what recompense was due to them. 
 
 In the morning, the senate assembled, and the mar- 
 quis of Bedmar demanded an audience. It was 
 granted merely from curiosity. The report of the 
 conspiracy had spread through the city, and produced 
 a frightful agitation. The people, who had heard 
 that the Spaniards were the authors of it, collected 
 around the house of the ambassador, determined to 
 
94 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 enter it by force ; and they were about to set fine to 
 it, when the persons arrived who were to conduct him 
 to the audience. The orders they had received be- 
 ing announced, the people, presuming the senate 
 would inflict an exemplary punishment, permitted 
 him to leave his house, but followed, loading him with 
 reproaches and imprecations. 
 
 The ambassador, entering the Senate, began by 
 complaining indignantly against the violence which 
 had been committed in his house contrary to the laws 
 of nations ; and he threatened so fiercely to be re- 
 venged, that he frightened most of the senators, who 
 feared that this man still had means, with which they 
 were unacquainted, to accomplish his enterprise. 
 The doge answered that they would apologise to him 
 for this outrage when he, who, being an ambassador, 
 ought to be a minister of peace, had given some ac- 
 count of the provisions and munitions of war, which 
 had been discovered at his house. He replied that 
 he was astonished that men, who had the reputation 
 of men of sense, should be so disingenuous as to in- 
 sult him to his face upon a pretext so gross ; that 
 they knew, as well as he, that the provisions were 
 merely deposited in his house for safe keeping, as 
 others before had been, to be sent to Naples and the 
 Tyrol ; that, in regard to the arms, the whole world 
 knew that none were so excellent as those made in 
 the cities of the republic ; and, as to the fire-works, 
 and other similar things, certain artists of extraordi- 
 nary skill having offered him their services, he had 
 employed them to gratify his curiosity. 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 95 
 
 The doge interrupted him, declaring that these 
 artists were wretches, or rather monsters, born for the 
 eternal disgrace of mankind ; and presented to him a 
 letter of credit for the governor of Milan, which, with 
 other letters from the duke of Ossuna, had been found 
 among the papers of Renault. 
 
 The ambassador answered that, as to the duke of 
 Ossuna, he had already declared that he had no con- 
 nection with him, and was not responsible for his con- 
 duct ; that, as to the letter of credit, it was true that 
 the French ambassador had, a short time ago, recom- 
 mended to him a gentleman who, having business of 
 his own at Milan, was in need of assistance, and he 
 had given him the letter which had just been shown 
 to him ; but he was entirely ignorant that the busi- 
 ness of this gentleman had the slightest connection 
 with the interests or welfare of the republic. 
 
 The doge, perceiving from these answers that the 
 assurance of the ambassador would never fail him, 
 contented himself with representing to him, in a sol- 
 emn and dignified manner, the atrociousness of his 
 design, and concluded by declaring that they had not 
 the slightest suspicion that he acted with the knowl- 
 edge of the king his master. The ambassador repli- 
 ed, with all the indignant earnestness of a highmind- 
 ed man, when his honor is unjustly attacked, that he 
 belonged to a nation, so distinguished for valor and 
 prudence, that it need not have recourse to dishon- 
 orable acts to destroy its enemies ; that the king his 
 master was sufficiently powerful, as they would soon 
 
1)6 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 find, to vanquish them, by open force, without re- 
 sorting to treachery. He then hastily and without 
 ceremony left the hall. Those who attended him be- 
 sought him to repose himself, a short time, in an ad- 
 joining apartment, until the senate should have given 
 the necessary order for his protection ; and he per- 
 mitted them to conduct him where they thought 
 proper, making no reply, and trembling with passion. 
 While the populace were gathering in the square, 
 with the intent to tear him in pieces as soon as the 
 senate had dismissed him, a few persons were des- 
 patched to his house, who directed his family to go 
 on board a vessel in the harbor, and conveyed thither 
 his most valuable furniture. They then, returning to 
 him, conducted him through secret passages in the 
 palace to a brigantine well armed and defended by a 
 strong escort. The populace, enraged at his escape, 
 made an effigy of him and of the duke of Ossuna, 
 and treated them in the same manner they would 
 have treated their persons had they fallen into their 
 hands. 
 
 Orders, at the same time, were sent to the admiral 
 to cause Langlade, the captain James Pierre, and all 
 his confidential officers, to be thrown into the sea. As 
 it was supposed that they would be on their guard, a 
 vessel of a shape and appearance the most uncommon 
 in Venice, was selected to carry this order ; she was 
 equipped like a foreign vessel, and made a long cir- 
 cuit that she might approach the fleet in a direction 
 different from that in which she would naturally have 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 97 
 
 come, had she sailed from the city. It was afterwards 
 known that the captain had been all night on the 
 watch, and that, having seen this vessel arrive, he 
 immediately repaired to his principal ship, as if he 
 had apprehended the truth, and had resolved to make 
 preparations to defend himself in case he was betray- 
 ed. But probably the fear of ruining his enterprise, 
 by an apprehension which might be groundless, kept 
 him some time in deliberation what course to pursue ; 
 for the admiral, who lost not a moment, sent two men 
 on whom he could rely, who, concealing their arms, 
 boarded his vessel and finding him alone, accosted 
 him with their usual frankness, stabbed him instantlv 
 and cast him into the sea, without being seen by any 
 one. Langlade and forty of his officers were treated 
 in the same manner and with the same secrecy. 
 
 Renault, when interrogated at Venice, replied that 
 he knew nothing in relation to the enquiries made of 
 him. They showed him the letter of credit for don 
 Pedro, a passport in Spanish for all the dependencies 
 of Spain, bills of exchange for large sums, and a 
 thousand pistoles in gold. He answered that he was 
 not acquainted, either with the Spanish ambassador or 
 the governor of Milan ; that, therefore, if any thing, 
 which had reference to them, had been found among 
 his papers, it must have been placed there by oth- 
 ers j and that, in regard to the bills of exchange 
 and the gold, they were all the property he had in the 
 world. He was put to the torture ordinary and extra- 
 ordinary ; but he said nothing further, except that he 
 9 
 
98 CONSPIRACY OF THE 
 
 was a poor old man, honest, noble, and honorable, 
 and God would avenge him. On several successive 
 days, the instruments of torture were displayed be- 
 fore him, and he was even promised impunity if he 
 would relate all he knew, but in vain : and, after 
 having, at different times, been tortured in every 
 mode that could be devised, he was strangled in pris- 
 on, and hung up in public, by one of his feet, as a 
 traitor. The lieutenant of the count of Nassau, the 
 three petardiers, Bribe, Laurent Brulard, and the two 
 officers of the arsenal, were also strangled, after hav- 
 ing endured the torture with equal constancy ; but 
 Brainville, Theodore, and upwards of three hundred 
 officers were, without suffering the torture, privately 
 strangled or drowned. 
 
 In the meantime Jaffier, rendered miserable by the 
 cruel effects of his compassion, complained loudly 
 that the doge and the council had not kept the prom- 
 ise thfcy had made him in favor of his companions. 
 This promise had not been violated until after mature 
 consideration. Many, in fact, were of opinion that it 
 ought to be religiously observed. Others represent- 
 ed that the question might have been a doubtful one, 
 had a knowledge of the conspiracy been obtained 
 from Jaffier only, but the two Dauphinese, who had 
 also disclosed it, invested the senate with full right to 
 act as though Jaffier had disclosed nothing. This 
 opinion, supported by the general horror and conster- 
 nation, was adopted by the majority, although many 
 arguments might have been advanced against it. 
 
SPANIARDS AGAINST VENICE. 99 
 
 To appease Jaffier, every expedient was resorted to. 
 He was urged to accept of money and employment. 
 He refused every thing, and persisted in demanding, 
 though in vain, the lives of his friends ; and after their 
 execution he left Venice inconsolable. The senate, 
 when informed of his departure, sent him an order to 
 quit the territories of the republic, in three days, un- 
 der pain of death, and four thousand sequins, which 
 he was compelled to receive. The pity which he 
 felt for his friends redoubled whenever he reflected 
 that he had been the cause of their death. He ascer- 
 tained, after leaving the city, that the.enterprise against 
 Brescia . might yet be prosecuted successfully. His 
 desire of vengeance impelled him to throw himself in- 
 to that city. But he had scarcely entered it, when 
 the ten, having gained knowledge of the project from 
 the papers of the conspirators, despatched thither a 
 body of troops, who took possession of the principal 
 posts, and put to the sword several Spaniards who had 
 been admitted within the walls. Jaffier was taken 
 fighting at their head like a man who sought only to 
 sell his life dearly j and being brought to Venice, a 
 few days afterwards, was drowned the next day after 
 his arrival i 
 
 The death of this miserable man having restored 
 tranquillity to this great city, the senate immediately 
 demanded another minister from Madrid. Don Louis 
 Bravo was appointed, and received orders to depart 
 instantly for Venice; and the marquis of Bedmar, ac- 
 cording to custom, gave him instructions for his guid- 
 
!00 CONSPIRACY, <fcc. 
 
 ance, which were almost wholly comprised in two 
 particulars. 
 
 The first was, that the new ambassador should, on 
 every occasion, loudly and explicitly censure the con- 
 duct of his predecessor, and should take pains, even in 
 the most trivial matters, to exhibit a totally different 
 demeanor. The other was, that, in all his negotia- 
 tions concerning the rights and pretensions of the re- 
 public, he should consult, as his only guide, the Squit- 
 iinio della Liberia Veneta^ to which the marquis oft- 
 en refers, in terms which, though cautiously expres- 
 sed, discover his paternal affection for this work. 
 
 In the meantime, proclamation was made, in all the 
 dependencies of the republic, that no one, under pain 
 of death, should impute to the king of Spain, nor to 
 the Spaniards, any participation in the conspiracy ; 
 and thirty thousand ducats were given to the two 
 Dauphinese, who had come from their native country 
 for the sole purpose of revealing it. 
 
 Don Pedro, perceiving all hope at an end, dismis- 
 sed his troops and restored Vercelli. The duke of 
 Ossuna made ample provision for the wife and chil- 
 dren of the captain and released them from prison. 
 
 The marquis of Bedmar was appointed first minis- 
 ter in Flanders ; and, a short time afterwards, receiv- 
 ed, from Rome, a cardinal's hat. 
 
CONSPIRACY 
 
 OF 
 
 JOHN LEWIS FIESCO 
 
 AGAINST 
 
 GENOA. 
 
 
 
r 
 
NOTE. 
 
 The history of the Conspiracy of John Lewis Fies- 
 co against Genoa was written, in his youth, by the cel- 
 ebrated cardinal De Retz. It displays such high admi- 
 ration of Fiesco and his enterprise, that, on perusing it, 
 cardinal Richelieu, then first minister of France, pre- 
 dicted that the young ecclesiastic would be a turbu- 
 lent and dangerous character. It is well known that 
 afterwards, when archbishop of Paris, he acted a 
 conspicuous part in the insurrection of the Fronde. 
 The reflections interspersed are characteristic of the 
 author, and prove that he must at least have retouch- 
 ed it, after his judgment had been matured by ex- 
 perience. 
 
CONSPIRACY, 
 
 At the beginning of the year 1547, the condition 
 of the republic of Genoa might have been called for- 
 tunate, had it been more firmly established. She 
 enjoyed, in appearance, an honorable tranquillity, ob- 
 tained by her own arms, and secured by those of 
 Charles V, whom she had chosen protector of her 
 liberties. The weakness of her enemies relieved her 
 from all fear of their ambitious designs ; and peace 
 brought back into her borders that abundance which 
 war had for a long time banished ; her trade revived 
 to the visible advantage of the public and of individu- 
 als ; and, had her citizens been as contented as their 
 condition was fortunate, this republic, in a short time, 
 would, in the enjoyment of a profitable and happy re- 
 pose, have recovered all she had lost. But divisions 
 still existed among them, and the seeds of hatred, 
 which previous quarrels had sown in their hearts, 
 were dangerous relics, evincing too plainly that the 
 body politic was not yet relieved from its maladies ; 
 and that its indications of prosperity resembled the 
 
106 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 apparent health of bloated countenances, in whose 
 flesh fester a multitude of peccant humors. The no- 
 bility, who administered the government, could not 
 forget the injuries which, when banished from power, 
 they had received from the people. The people, on 
 their part, regarded the domination of the nobility, 
 as a new tyranny, subversive of the constitution of 
 the republic. A portion even of the gentlemen, who 
 aspired to a higher rank, did not disguise their envy 
 of those above them. Those in authority ruled with 
 insolence ; those in subjection obeyed with indigna- 
 tion ; and many imagined they obeyed because they 
 could not rule with absolute sway. At this period, 
 by the permission of Providence, an event occurred 
 which, at once, confined forever the nobility in power 
 and the people in servitude 
 
 This event was the conspiracy of John Lewis Fies- 
 co, count of Lavagna, a history of which will be ren- 
 dered more intelligible and interesting by a relation 
 of the events and circumstances which preceded and 
 occasioned it. 
 
 At the time of those memorable wars, in which the 
 emperor, Charles V, and Francis I, of France, deso- 
 lated Italy, Andrew Doria, descended from one of 
 the most illustrious families of Genoa, and the great- 
 est naval commander of the age, supported with zeal 
 the cause of France, and sustained upon the sea the 
 reputation of that crown, with a courage and good 
 fortune, which redounded as much to the advantage 
 of his master as to his individual glory. But it i> 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 107 
 
 frequently the fault of the greatest princes, that they 
 do not treat with sufficient regard the men they em- 
 ploy, when they once consider themselves sure of 
 their fidelity. It was for this reason that France lost 
 the services of an able and important officer, and the 
 loss produced such disastrous consequences that it 
 will never be recollected without sorrow. 
 
 At the time when Doria was engaged, on terms 
 highly advantageous to him, in the service of the 
 king, as admiral of his gallies, those who were high in 
 favor at court, and filled the principal seats in the 
 councils of the kingdom, began to envy his glory, and 
 to covet his station ; and they resolved to ruin the 
 man whom they saw too powerful to court the favor 
 of any one but his master. Knowing that it would 
 not, at first, be either safe, or useful to their design, 
 to speak of him unfavorably to the king, whose friend- 
 ship was too strong to be suddenly changed to enmi- 
 ty, they pursued a more artful course ; and, uniting 
 with the public in applauding the first services that 
 he rendered to France, they resolved to give him 
 causes of dissatisfaction, which might be attributed to 
 the necessities of the nation rather than to their par- 
 ticular enmity, and which would, nevertheless, pro- 
 duce the effect they desired. They sought opportu- 
 nities of eliciting complaints from this proud and arro- 
 gant hero, that they might the more easily ruin him 
 in the opinion of the king ; and his own affairs were 
 so often discussed in the council, that they, enjoying 
 unlimited influence there, found too many occasions 
 

 108 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 of displeasing him. Sometimes the finances were too 
 much exhausted to pay his exorbitant salary ; some- 
 times they paid him in depreciated paper ; some- 
 times his demands were decided to be unreasonable 
 and unjust. At length the remonstrances, drawn 
 from him by the wrongs he sustained, were, by the 
 artifices of his enemies, represented as disrespectful 
 to the king, who became weary and dissatisfied, and 
 was, by degrees, induced to consider him a selfish, 
 insolent, and intractable man. At last, they openly 
 offended him, by refusing to pay him the ransom of 
 his prisoner, the prince of Orange, whom his nephew, 
 Philippin Doria, had taken before Naples, and whom, 
 upon the order of the king, he had delivered into his 
 hands. They demanded, and enforced their demand 
 with threats, that he should also deliver up the mar- 
 quis del Guasto and Ascanio Colonna, who had been 
 made prisoners in the same battle. They neglected 
 to perform the promise they had made him to restore 
 Savona to the republic : and as, instead of conceal- 
 ing his resentment under the appearance of modera- 
 tion, he manifested it openly, his enemies omitted no 
 opportunity of inflaming it. M. de Barbezieux was 
 ordered to take possession of his gallies, and even to 
 arrest him if he should find it practicable. This 
 course of proceeding was not only contrary to good 
 faith but to the dictates of worldly prudence ; and 
 the ministers of France cannot be too severely cen- 
 sured for having preferred their own interests to 
 those of their king, and for having driven from his 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 109 
 
 Service the only man who could sustain his cause in 
 Italy. It may also be said that, having determined 
 to ruin him, they ought to have done it at once and 
 completely, and not have left him in a condition to 
 inflict essential injury, not only upon France, but also 
 upon themselves, by giving the king good reason to 
 feel dissatisfied with their counsels, which were the 
 source of such disasters to his kingdom. 
 
 Doria, seeing himself thus treated as a criminal, 
 made known his complaints, in a public manifesto, 
 and declared that he was not so sensibly affected by 
 his private wrongs, as by the injustice of the king in 
 refusing to restore, as he had often promised, the city 
 ofSavona to his dear country. He made an agree- 
 ment himself with the marquis del Guasto, his prison- 
 er, declared himself for the emperor, and accepted 
 the command of his fleet. The conduct of this old 
 politician was as malicious, at least, as that of the 
 ministers of France, but was much more crafty and 
 judicious. He cannot be exonerated from the charge 
 of great ingratitude, for resolving, in a moment of 
 anger, to be revenged on a prince to whom, it may be 
 said, he was indebted for all his glory, as he had ob- 
 tained his most brilliant testimonials of honor, in the 
 command of his forces; and it is difficult to justify 
 the treachery, base and unworthy his former actions, 
 of which he was guilty, when he, at a time when he 
 professed a desire to remain in the service of the 
 king, directed Phillippin Doria, his lieutenant, to per- 
 mit provisions to be conveyed into Naples, which was 
 10 
 
110 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 then closely beseiged by Mons. de Lautrec. But it 
 must also be acknowledged that his conduct entitles 
 him to a high rank in that class of politicians who are 
 governed wholly by self interest ; for he exhibited 
 such address in arraying appearances on his side, that 
 his friends might speciously assign the king's breach 
 of faith, in regard to his country, as the real cause of 
 his change of party ; and his enemies could not deny 
 that the treatment he had received had been extreme- 
 ly harsh and difficult to be endured ; and moreover 
 he well knew that the secret means of obtaining a 
 high consideration in a party is to render it, at the 
 time of joining it, an important service. In fact, he 
 chose his time so judiciously, and conducted his re- 
 volt so skilfully, that he preserved Naples for the em- 
 peror, which the French, had Philippin Doria con- 
 tinued to serve them faithfully, would, in a few days, 
 have wrested from him. His change of party occa- 
 sioned the ruin of one of the greatest captains that 
 France ever produced, and, in the sequel, placed the 
 republic of Genoa under the protection of Spain, to 
 which nation, she is, on account of her dominions in 
 Italy, of vast importance ; and this was the first ser- 
 vice which Andrew Doria rendered to the emperor 
 after he had explicitly declared against the king. 
 
 This artful and ambitious man, who was well ac- 
 quainted with all the intrigues, and the inclinations of 
 the Genoese, found no difficulty in managing a people 
 who have always been accused of a love of novelty. 
 As he had, in the city, many friends and concealed 
 
AGAINST GENOA. Ill 
 
 partisans, who gave him an account of all that happen- 
 ed, he took pains to exasperate the discontented, to 
 create dissatisfaction in the minds of others, and to 
 convince all that the French, retaining the whole 
 power in their own hands, left to the Genoese only 
 the shadow of sovereignty ; he held up to the view of 
 the nobles, the image of the ancient government, 
 .which was placed entirely in their hands ; and, in 
 fine, he intimated to all classes that a revolution would 
 produce a general improvement of affairs. 
 
 His party being formed, he drew near to Genoa 
 with his gallies, landed, and, without meeting any re- 
 sistance, placed his troops in battle array. He then 
 marched into the city, followed by those of his own 
 party who had taken arms on a concerted signal. He 
 took possession of the principal posts, and became 
 master of ihe city almost without drawing his sword. 
 Theodore Trivulcius, who commanded for the king 
 of France, lost, in losing Genoa, all the reputation he 
 had acquired in the wars of Italy ; for he neglected 
 to crush the intrigues which, previous to the surren- 
 der, were carried on in the city, although he was ap- 
 prised of their existence, and, to save his life and his 
 wealth, he cbose to make a disgraceful capitulation 
 in the citadel, rather than to bury himself gloriously 
 in the ruins of a city so important to the interests of 
 his master. 
 
 The French were no sooner expelled from Genoa 
 than the streets resounded with the name of Doria ? 
 some, in these acclamations, conveying their real sen^ 
 r 
 
112 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 timents ; others, by shouts of dissembled joy, con- 
 cealing opinions which they had formerly expressed, 
 and contrary to those manifested by the public ; and 
 the majority, as is generally the case, welcoming the 
 new state of things for the sole reason of their novelty. 
 Doria, without suffering this ardor to cool, assem- 
 bled the nobility, committed the government to their 
 hands, and, protesting that he claimed no higher au- 
 thority than any other gentleman, prescribed himself 
 a constitution for the republic. Then, after receiving 
 all imaginable demonstrations of the gratitude of his 
 fellow citizens, he retired to his palace to enjoy, in re- 
 pose, the fruit of his past labors ; and the republic 
 erected to his honor a statue inscribed, To the Father 
 of his Country and the Restorer of Liberty. 
 
 There are many who think that Doria had fully 
 satisfied his ambition in restoring liberty to his coun- 
 try ; and that the general applause he received rath- 
 er inspired him with the thought of enjoying in tran- 
 quillity the glory he had acquired, than of taking ad- 
 vantage of it to accomplish more elevated designs. 
 Others cannot imagine that the important office which 
 he had just accepted in the service of the emperor, 
 and the pains he had taken to attach the nobility of 
 Genoa to his family, could have proceeded from a 
 disposition solicitous of repose, and entirely uninflu- 
 enced by self interest. They believe that he had too 
 much discernment not to be aware that a sovereign in 
 Genoa could not possibly continue on friendly terms 
 with the court of Spain, and that he intended merely 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 113 
 
 to amuse that power by exhibiting an apparent mod- 
 eration, and to defer his ambitious projects to a more 
 favorable season. 
 
 His advanced age might, however, have diminished 
 the apprehension which they entertained of the au- 
 thority he exercised, had they not perceived a second 
 self in possession of authority almost equal to his own. 
 Giannetino Doria, his cousin and adopted son, then 
 about twenty-eight years of age, was extremely vain, 
 haughty, and overbearing. All the offices which 
 Andrew held would be transmitted by inheritance to 
 him ; and the nobility of Genoa were, for this reason, 
 attached to his interests. His style of living was 
 more splendid than that of a citizen unwilling to at- 
 tract the envy of others, or to arouse the jealousy of 
 republicans. He did not even conceal his contempt 
 of those of noble birth. The extraordinary exalta- 
 tion of this family produced the great commotion 
 which will now be described, and gave to all nations a 
 memorable admonition not to permit any individual 
 to become so eminent as to inspire in others a wish 
 to humble him, and afford a pretext for undertaking it. 
 John Lewis Fiesco, count of Lavagna, descended 
 from the most ancient and illustrious family in Ge- 
 noa, enjoying an annual income of more than two 
 hundred thousand crowns, twenty-two years of age, 
 endowed with every pleasing and noble faculty, am- 
 bitious, enterprising and brave, led, at this time, in 
 Genoa, a life quite contrary to his inclinations. As 
 he was passionately fond of glory, and was presented 
 10* 
 
Ill CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 with no opportunity of acquiring it, he was continual- 
 ly meditating upon the means of creating such op- 
 portunity. But, although, at that time, the state of 
 affairs afforded him none, he yet might have expect- 
 ed that his talents would, at some futute time, open to 
 him the way to the glory he coveted, in serving his 
 country, had the extraordinary power of Giannetino 
 Doria, of which we have just spoken, permitted him 
 to hope for employment ; but, as he was too illustri- 
 ous by his birth, and too highly esteemed for his 
 good qualities, not to excite the apprehension of the 
 man who wished to enjoy all the reputation, and com- 
 mand all the forces of the republic, he was convinc- 
 ed that he could have no well founded hope, where 
 his rival was almost omnipotent ; for nothing is more 
 certain than that those who, in the highest stations, 
 regard others with jealousy, never think of them but 
 with a wish to effect their ruin. Aware, therefore, 
 that he had every thing to apprehend from the eleva- 
 tion of Doria, and that he could have no hope of per- 
 sonal advancement, he felt impelled to endeavor, by 
 his courage and address, to prevent the ill consequen- 
 ces of that grandeur which eclipsed his own ; well 
 knowing that nothing is ever to be expected from 
 those who impress others with fear, but an excessive 
 distrust of all who are capable of rising by their own 
 merit, and incessant endeavors to impede their pro- 
 gress. 
 
 Despairing from all these considerations, of attain- 
 ing to eminence in the service of his country, he con- 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 115 
 
 ceived the design of humbling the family of Doria, 
 before it had become more firmly established ; and 
 as that family was identified with the government of 
 the republic, he resolved to effect the ruin of the one 
 by a revolution in the other. 
 
 Great rivers never do any damage when nothing 
 interrupts their course ; but, meeting the slightest ob- 
 stacle, they rage with violence, and an inconsidera- 
 ble bank often causes them to overflow and drown 
 those fields which otherwise they would have render- 
 ed fertile. And thus it is reasonable to suppose that 
 if the ambition of Fiesco had not found the career of 
 glory preoccupied by the Dorias, he would never 
 have transgressed the bounds of moderation and duty, 
 but would have devoted to the service of the repub- 
 lic those talents which almost effected its ruin. 
 
 These ambitious purposes of the count were en- 
 couraged by the representations of many, who ex- 
 pected to derive personal advantages from the public 
 disorders ; and more especially by the pressing so- 
 licitations of the French, who addressed to him many 
 arguments, and made him considerable offers, at first 
 by the medium of Caesar Fregosa and Canino Gon- 
 zague, and afterwards of Mons. du Bellai, who held 
 secret conferences with him by the intervention of Pe- 
 ter Luke Fiesco. 
 
 It was generally believed, at that time, that Pope 
 Paul III, hoping, by the same blow, to humble An- 
 drew Doria, whom he hated for certain private rea- 
 sons, and to deprive the emperor, already too power- 
 
116 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 ful, of an able partisan in Italy, had labored assidu- 
 ously to inflame the ambition of Fiesco, and had pre- 
 sented to him the strongest inducements to undertake 
 his designs against Genoa. 
 
 No flattery is so grateful to a man of spirit, and 
 nothing impels him to such perilous enterprises, as to 
 be courted by persons greatly superior to others in 
 dignity or reputation. This mark of their esteem in- 
 spires him with high confidence in himself, and per- 
 suades him that he is capable of conducting success- 
 fully the most important affairs. The project which 
 Fiesco had conceived was thus made to appear to 
 him glorious and easy to be executed ; for he was 
 urged to undertake it by the greatest prince in Eu- 
 rope, and by the ablest statesman of the age. The 
 one was Francis I, who directed Peter Strozzi, when 
 passing, with his troops, over the mountains near Ge- 
 noa, to convey to hirn his wishes ; and the other 
 was cardinal Augustine Trivulcius, protector of 
 France at the court of Rome, from whom he receiv- 
 ed all imaginable honors, when, apparently for the 
 gratification of his curiosity, but in reality to commu- 
 nicate his design to the Pope and ascertain his senti- 
 ments, he visited that city. 
 
 The Cardinal, whose reputation was then at its 
 height, and who was considered a very sagacious 
 politician, succeeded in inflaming the ambition of Fi- 
 esco, a passion which naturally had too much domin- 
 ion over him. He exhibited to him, in the manner 
 best calculated to excite his jealousy, the present 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 117 
 
 greatness of Giannetino Doria, and the future great- 
 ness he was endeavoring to secure by the connections 
 he was forming ; and, augmenting thus the envy 
 which the former, and the apprehension which the 
 latter excited, he insinuated that it must be intolera- 
 ble to a man of spirit to live in a republic where the 
 career of honor was closed against him, and where 
 noble birth and exalted merit gave him no advantage 
 above ordinary men. 
 
 After he had confirmed him in his purpose, he offer- 
 ed him, on the part of France, all the aid he might 
 desire. His urgent representations had such effect 
 upon a mind already inclined to yield, that the count, 
 at length, with evident satisfaction, expressed an in- 
 tention of accepting the command of six gallies in the 
 service of the king, of two hundred men of the garri- 
 son of Montobio, of a company of infantry, and a 
 pension of twelve thousand crowns, declaring, never- 
 theless, that he would not give a definite answer until 
 after his return to Genoa. So true it is, that, in af- 
 fairs of importance, nothing is more difficult than to 
 form, at once, a decisive resolution ; a multitude of 
 considerations, each balancing another, crowd togeth- 
 er into the mind, and give rise to the fear that suffi- 
 cient time has not been devoted to deliberation. 
 
 Extraordinary actions resemble explosions of thun- 
 der, which are never loud, nor their effects danger- 
 ous, except where the exhalations which occasion 
 them have been a long time struggling with each oth- 
 er. When there is nothing but a mass of vapors, a 
 
118 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 low sound only is produced, which, far from terrify- 
 ing, is scarcely heard. It is thus with resolutions in 
 great affairs. When they enter at once into the 
 mind, and meet only with feeble resistance, it is an 
 infallible sign that they make only a slight and tran- 
 sient impression, which may indeed occasion some 
 agitation, but will never produce any important ef- 
 fect. 
 
 It cannot justly be denied that Fiesco had reflect- 
 ed materially upon the project which he was desirous 
 of undertaking ; for, after his return to Genoa, anx- 
 ious as he was to execute it, he hesitated, a long time, 
 in determining which of the various routes, leading 
 to his object, he should select. Sometimes the offer- 
 ed aid of a powerful king inclined him to adopt the 
 resolution of throwing himself into the arms of the 
 French ; at other times, the distrust of foreigners, 
 which all naturally feel, joined to certain aspirations 
 of glory, which impel a man to reject all participation 
 of others in the brilliant actions he intends to perform, 
 inclined him to hope that he might find, in his own 
 resources, means bearing some proportion to his great 
 designs ; and perhaps these different reflections would 
 have long agitated his bosom, and occasioned consid- 
 erable delay, had he not daily had new and just cau- 
 ses of indignation at the insupportable arrogance of 
 Giannetino Doria, who, in addition to his general in- 
 solence of behaviour, treated the count, after his re- 
 turn, with such particular haughtiness, that he could 
 not restrain his anger, and openly declared that he 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 139 
 
 would not submit to the disgraceful servitude to which 
 his fellow citizens were subjected. 
 
 Politicians, following the general maxims, that ev- 
 ery feeling of anger against those we hate, should be 
 suppressed until the opportunity occurs of striking a 
 fatal blow, have censured this conduct of the count as 
 injudicious. But it must be acknowledged that, if his 
 prudence failed him. on this occasion, it is a fault to 
 which lofty natures are liable. Contemptuous treat- 
 ment irritates them so suddenly and so violently that 
 they cannot wait to take counsel of their reason, nor 
 to acquire the mastery over themselves. This fault 
 proves him guiltless, at least, of the charge which 
 some historians have made against him, that he was 
 naturally of a dark and dissembling temper, more 
 covetous than ambitious, and more strongly attached 
 to interest than to glory. This warmth, I say, which 
 his conduct displayed, proves that he was actuated 
 by a love of glory, and by a laudable ambition, for 
 all, who have embarked in similar designs, from a 
 love of domination, and from other views than the ac- 
 quisition of honorable fame, have previously submit- 
 ted patiently to shameful humiliations. 
 
 It is certain that Giannetino Doria was intolerably 
 insolent, and that, in all respects, he followed the 
 wicked maxim, that severity and haughtiness are the 
 best methods of governing, and that it is useless to 
 conciliate by kindness those who may be controlled 
 by interest or fear. This conduct, increasing the 
 aversion of the count, strengthened the resolution 
 
120 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 which he had found to destroy him, and afforded 
 him the opportunity of making use, to humble him, 
 of the effects of that haughtiness with which he en- 
 deavored to humble all others. 
 
 The Cardinal Augustine Trivulcius, aware that, 
 on such occasions, it is dangerous to give to the zeal 
 of young men a time to cool, immediately after the 
 count's return to Genoa, despatched Nicholas Foder- 
 ato, a gentleman of Savona, and a relation of the fam- 
 ily of Fiesco, to obtain his decisive answer. He 
 found him more incensed than ever, and easily per- 
 suaded him to stipulate whatever he desired. He 
 then returned, without delay, to procure the ratifica- 
 tion of the treaty by the ministers of the king, who 
 were, at that time, at Rome. But having proceed- 
 ed thirty or forty leagues, he was overtaken by a 
 courier and recalled, the count having reflected that 
 he had been too precipitate, and that he ought not 
 to have concluded an agreement of that importance 
 without haviag conferred with those friends whose 
 judgments he confided in. He assembled three of 
 them, on whose fidelity he could implicitly rely, and 
 whom he highly esteemed for their good qualities ; 
 and after having declared that he had resolved to en- 
 dure no longer the present government ef the repub- 
 lic, he requested their advice upon the subject. 
 
 Vincent Caleagno of Varesa, a zealous servant of 
 the family, discreet but timid, began his discourse 
 with the freedom which his long services entitled him 
 to use ; and, addressing the count, spoke as follows : 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 121 
 
 " It seems to me that there is much reason to com- 
 passionate the misfortune of those who embark in 
 important undertakings. They cast themselves, as it 
 were, upon a tempestuous ocean, where no spot is 
 visible that is not marked by a shipwreck. And it 
 ought to increase our fears to see young men, whom 
 we love, exposed to this danger : for they have not 
 the strength to encounter the labors of such a voyage, 
 nor the experience to avoid the rocks, or steer safely 
 to port. All your servants ought to feel a lively in- 
 terest in the designs which your courage prompts 
 you to undertake. Permit me to say, that this is 
 above your age, and the station you occupy. Your 
 thoughts are bent on affairs, which require a higher 
 consideration in the world than a man of your age, 
 however fortunate he may have been, can possibly 
 have obtained ; and the design you have formed de- 
 mands forces which one of the greatest kings of the 
 age has never been able to raise. These thoughts 
 arise in your mind from two modes of. false reason- 
 ing, which are, as it were, inherent in the nature of 
 man. Himself is apt to engross too much of his 
 thoughts ; that is to say, he assumes that he can do, 
 whatever his imagination tells him he may do ; and 
 he seldom forms a safe judgment of others, because 
 he makes himself the criterion by which he judges, 
 considering only what they can do, and not what they 
 ought nor what their interests may lead them to do. 
 The first error is exceedingly dangerous, because, as 
 no one can perform an important enterprise alone, 
 11 
 
122 CONSPIRACY OP PIESCO 
 
 and as many others must be consulted, it is highly im- 
 portant that they also should think it rational and 
 practicable ; otherwise he, who undertakes it, will 
 find few friends who are willing to follow his fortunes. 
 The second error is even more common and not less 
 dangerous, because those very persons, from whom 
 much assistance is anticipated, are often found to 
 make the strongest opposition. Be careful, there- 
 fore, that the great talents which nature has given 
 you, and which you may, perhaps justly, imagine will 
 supply the deficiency of experience, do not betray 
 you into the first error ; and consider that, brilliant 
 as they are, they may not produce, in the minds even 
 of those best disposed to serve you, that strength of 
 attachment which will be necessary for the execution 
 of an enterprise so difficult and dangerous. And it 
 is still more unlikely that they should so dazzle your 
 enemies, as to prevent them from making use, with 
 effect, of the pretence that you are yet a young man. 
 Be careful, also, that your illustrious birth, and the 
 reputation which you have acquired by your good 
 qualities ; that your immense wealth and the secret 
 understandings which you, perhaps, have entered in- 
 to, do not betray you into the second error, and in- 
 duce you to believe that those who have promised to 
 assist you will not desert you in time of need. Dis- 
 miss therefore that thought, or if you do not entertain 
 it, cease to judge others by yourself, but judge them 
 by the relations in which they stand. Consider their 
 interests ; reflect that it is that which actuates and 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 123 
 
 governs almost every one ; that most of those who 
 respect, and love you, love themselves infinitely more, 
 and dread injury to themselves much more than they 
 desire success to you. In fine, consider that those 
 who encourage you to hope for their assistance are 
 either foreigners or your fellow-citizens. Of the 
 first, the most considerable are the French. They 
 cannot assist you, for, at present, their whole strength 
 is needed to defend themselves in their own country, 
 against the armies of the empire and of Spain. Those 
 who can assist you, the Genoese, will not. Some 
 will be terrified by the dangers which are incident to 
 affairs of this nature ; and others, governed by inter- 
 est, will fear the loss of their repose or their fortunes. 
 Most of those, not influenced by these considerations, 
 are persons of such mean birth and little influence, 
 that no assistance can be expected from them. 
 Wherefore, the unbounded authority of Doria, and 
 the evil condition of the times, which inspire you 
 with thoughts of revolt, ought rather to teach you pa- 
 tience, for they have so dispirited the Genoese that 
 they now esteem it an honor to surrender to his au- 
 thority that independence which he has restored to 
 them, and which he wrested from foreigners only 
 that he might usurp it himself. Are you not aware, 
 that, for a long time, this republic has enjoyed only 
 the shadow of a free government, and that it can no 
 longer exist without a master ? Do you not perceive 
 that the family of Doria is gradually attaching to its 
 interests the greater portion of the nobility, by the 
 
124 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 naval appointments it confers ? and that, favored by 
 the empire and Spain, it holds all the rest in fear I 
 Do you not perceive, I say, that all the Genoese are 
 sunk, as it were, into a profound lethargy ; and that 
 even those, who have most spirit, do not think it dis- 
 honorable to give way to that mighty power, provided 
 they do not debase themselves by worshipping it. I 
 do not pretend to justify the republic for its impru- 
 dence in permitting the elevation of this family, which 
 it can no longer endure without disgrace, nor humble 
 without danger ; but I dare maintain that an individual 
 cannot reasonably hope, by his own means, to remove 
 an evil which has become so deeply rooted ; and that 
 all which an honorable man can do, in such a junc- 
 ture, is to imitate those prudent mariners, who, in- 
 stead of struggling obstinately with the wind to reach 
 a port, seek the open sea t and submit, without resist- 
 ance, to the force of the storm. Yield, therefore, 
 to the times, while fate so ordains ; seek not for rem- 
 edies where none are to be found that are not worse 
 than the disease. Await them from the hand of Prov- 
 idence, which rules, as it pleases, the destinies of 
 states, and which will never desert this republic. 
 Enjoy, in contentment, the repose, and the advan- 
 tages, which your birth secures you, or seek the law- 
 ful opportunities, afforded by foreign wars, to exer- 
 cise your valour. 
 
 " Expose not to the hazard of a criminal revolt the 
 great fortune you possess, and which would satisfy 
 the ambition of any other person ; and be assured 
 
 i 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 125 
 
 that, if Giannetino envies or hates your merit, you 
 cannot gratify him more than by following your pres- 
 ent inclination, for you will afford him an opportunity 
 of pursuing his private resentment under the pretext 
 of public good, and of making use of the authority of 
 the state to destroy you ; and, in fine, you will labor 
 yourself to erect, upon your own ruins, trophies of his 
 glory and power. They, who rise without effort to 
 eminent stations, most commonly fall of themselves ; 
 because, if they possess ambition, and the qualities 
 which enable them to rise, they are generally desti- 
 tute of those which are necessary to sustain them : 
 and when one, whom fortune has borne to these lofty 
 stations, reaches the height without stumbling, he 
 must have encountered, from the beginning, many 
 difficulties which taught him to stand firm on a place 
 so slippery. Caesar possessed, in an eminent degree, 
 all the qualities necessary to a great prince, yet nei- 
 ther his courtesy, his prudence, his courage, his elo- 
 quence, nor his liberality could have raised him to the 
 empire of the world, had he not met with resistance 
 in the Roman republic. The pretext afforded by 
 the persecution of Pompey ; the reputation which 
 their contests with each other gave him an opportuni- 
 ty to acquire ; the advantages he derived from the 
 division among his fellow citizens, were what, in real- 
 ity, raised him to power ; and yet it appears to me 
 that you are laboring to strengthen the family of Do- 
 ria, by procuring it the only advantage it has not pos- 
 sessed ; and because its high fortune has been too 
 11* 
 
126 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 easily attained to be firmly secured, you resolve, in 
 your impatience, to fortify it by efforts which, being 
 too feeble to overthrow it, will serve only to justify 
 his designs and establish his authority. 
 
 " But I will, if you please, adopt your sentiments, 
 and suppose that you have succeeded in all your de- 
 signs. Imagine that all the family of Doria are mas- 
 sacred, and that all the nobility, who belong to his 
 party, are in irons ; imagine all your enemies over- 
 thrown, and Spain and the empire unable to molest 
 you; enjoy the certainty of a triumph in the midst 
 of this universal desolation : If these gloomy images 
 of destruction afford you pleasure, what course will 
 you pursue in a city rendered desolate by you, and 
 which will regard you rather as a new tyrant than as 
 her deliverer ? What solid foundation will you be able 
 to find on which you can support your acquired great- 
 ness ? Could your confidence in the instability of the 
 Genoese, who, the instant you have placed the crown 
 on your head, if such be your intention, will, perhaps, 
 regard you with horror, and think of nothing but the 
 means of wresting it from you ? For, as 1 have al- 
 ready observed, they are not capable of enjoying lib- 
 erty, nor will they long endure the same master. Or 
 should you again surrender Genoa to the domination 
 of foreigners ; should you again open your gates to 
 admit them, on the first act of oppression which they 
 commit, she will consider you as the author of her 
 ruin, and as the parricide of your country. Do you 
 not fear that those, who are now the most zealous to 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 127 
 
 serve you, will, from an unwillingness to be subject 
 to your power, be the first to labor for your over- 
 throw . ? And even if this feeling should not impel them 
 to act thus, you cannot be ignorant that those who 
 serve a rebel imagine they lay him under such strong 
 obligations, that, as he can never reward them ac- 
 cording to their claims, they almost always become 
 his enemies. As those who fall down a mountain are 
 torn to pieces by the same projecting rocks which they 
 caught hold of to ascend, so those who fall from an 
 exalted station are almost always ruined by the means 
 which they had employed to rise. I am well aware 
 that ambition animates persons of your condition, age, 
 and talents, and that it places before your eyes pom- 
 pous and dazzling images of glory and grandeur. 
 But while your imagination exhibits to you all the 
 objects of that passion which renders men illustrious, 
 your judgment ought to regard it as that which 
 most commonly renders them miserable, and as that 
 which sacrifices certain good, for the attainment of 
 uncertain hopes. Know that if, when properly direct- 
 ed, it is the source of the noblest virtues, its excess 
 also leads to the greatest crimes. Consider that it 
 was ambition which formerly mingled so many poi- 
 sons and sharpened so many poniards against usurp- 
 ers and tyrants, and that it is the same passion which 
 now urges you to become the Catiline of Genoa. 
 
 " Do not flatter yourself that the motive, by which 
 you are actuated, of preserving the liberty of the re- 
 public, will be considered by the world as any thing 
 
128 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 more than the common pretence of all leaders of fac- 
 tions ; and though nothing, in truth, but zeal for the 
 public good, impels you to embark in this undertak- 
 ing, yet do not expect that the world will ever do 
 you the justice to believe it ; since, in all cases where 
 actions may be attributed indifferently to vice or to 
 virtue, and where the intention alone of the actor can 
 justify them, mankind, who judge only from appear- 
 ances, rarely put a favorable construction upon the 
 most innocent ones. But in your enterprise, in what- 
 ever light you view it, you can see nothing but mas- 
 sacres and objects the most dismal, which the best 
 intentions in the world cannot justify. Strive, then, 
 to control your ambition ; and remember that you 
 ought then only to follow its dictates, when it divests 
 itself entirely of self-interest, and is guided solely by 
 duty. There have been many conquerors who have 
 ravaged nations and overturned thrones, and who did 
 not possess that greatness of soul which regards, with 
 equal eye, the highest elevation and the lowest abase- 
 ment, success and misfortnne, pleasure and pain, life 
 and death, and yet it is this love of true glory, this 
 nobleness of soul, which makes men really great, and 
 which raises them above the rest of the world. This 
 species of glory, and this alone, can render you per- 
 fectly happy, even should all the dangers, which you 
 imagine, surround you ; and you cannot obtain the 
 other without committing the blackest crimes. Seek 
 this, therefore, for so prudence as well as virtue dic- 
 tates, it being more useful, less dangerous, and more 
 honorable." 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 129 
 
 The count was sensibly affected by this discourse, 
 the arguments appearing strong, and the confidence, 
 which, from his earliest youth, he had reposed in the 
 speaker, increasing their weight and force. Verrina, 
 one of those who had been invited to the council, a 
 man of extensive views, impetuous, fond of great en- 
 terprises, an implacable enemy of the present govern- 
 ment, almost ruined by his prodigality, strongly at- 
 tached by interest and inclination to the count, im- 
 mediately spoke thus in reply : 
 
 " I should be astonished that a single man in Ge- 
 noa, should be capable of uttering the sentiments you 
 have just heard, if the sufferings, which the republic 
 patiently endures, had left me the faculty of being as- 
 tonished at any thing. When every one submits to 
 oppression with such shameful servility, it is natural 
 to conceal dissatisfaction, and to seek excuses for 
 weakness. This insensibility is nevertheless a proof 
 of the deplorable condition of the republic ; and Vin- 
 cent Caicagno has correctly referred to it as the 
 plainest symptom of the violence of our malady. But 
 to me it seems unreasonable that we should reap no 
 advantage from the knowledge which we have of our 
 disease ; for nature itself instructs us, that we ought 
 to be guided by it in applying the proper remedies. 
 However, the health of this republic is not yet as des- 
 perate as if all its members were corrupt ; and the 
 count Fiesco, exalted in rank, in wealth, and in birth, 
 above all others, directs his thoughts beyond the lim- 
 ited views of the Genoese, and rises, by his courage. 
 
130 CONSPIRACY Or FIESCO 
 
 above the general corruption. To ascertain whether 
 a man is born for extraordinary actions, the advanta- 
 ges of nature and fortune ought not solely to be re- 
 garded, for there have been many persons who have 
 possessed both in perfection, yet, during their whole 
 lives, have remained in the beaten path of ordinary 
 men ; but we ought to observe whether a man, en- 
 joying these advantages, retains, in conjunctions preg- 
 nant with evil, and in a country where tyranny is mak- 
 ing rapid strides, the sentiments of virtue, and pre- 
 serves from corruption the noble qualities with which 
 nature endowed him ; for if, in these circumstances, 
 he holds fast his integrity, and resists the contagion 
 of those base maxims which infect the rest of the 
 world, and especially men of rank, (for tyrants, fear- 
 ing them most, take most pains to corrupt them ;) 
 then we may presume that his reputation will, at 
 some future time, be equal to his merit, and that for- 
 tune designs him for something great, and even won- 
 derful. Wherefore, sir, I know of no person from 
 whom the republic may, with reason, expect such 
 signal interposition as from you. You live in a time 
 which presents you with no example of courage and 
 generosity that is not punished, nor of baseness and 
 treachery that is not rewarded. Add to this, you live 
 in a country where the power of the house of Doria 
 depresses, with abject fear, the courage of all the no- 
 bility, or holds them bound in the servile fetters of in- 
 terest ; and yet you have not fallen into this general 
 degradation. You still cherish those noble sentiments 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 131 
 
 which your illustrious birth inspires ; and your mind 
 projects undertakings worthy of your valor. Do not 
 forbear, therefore, to exercise those admirable quali- 
 ties ; abuse not the talents which nature has conferred ; 
 serve your country ; be convinced, by the excellence of 
 your motives, that the actions they will produce must be 
 great and glorious. A single individual of your rank 
 and merit is capable of restoring the courage of the 
 Genoese and of reviving their pristine love of liberty. 
 Be persuaded that tyranny is the greatest evil that 
 can afflict a republic. The condition, to which ours 
 is reduced, resembles those diseases which, notwith- 
 standing the dejection they produce, excite, in the 
 mind of the patient, a vehement desire of recovery. 
 Comply with the wishes of the whole people, who 
 groan under the unjust domination of Doria. Second 
 the prayers of the virtuous portion of the nobility, 
 who deplore, in secret, the common calamity of the 
 Genoese; and be assured, in fine, that, if weakness 
 and baseness continue to spread among them, the 
 blame will not rest so much upon Giannetino Doria 
 for having produced it, by his insolence, as upon 
 John Lewis Fiesco for having permitted it, by his ir- 
 resolution. 
 
 " The high esteem which your good qualities 
 have procured you, is an important advantage which 
 you have already gained. Let it not be said that 
 your youth is an obstacle to the success of an enter- 
 prise so glorious ; it is an age when the warmth of 
 the blood, the source of the noblest courage, inspires 
 
132 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 none but elevated and generous designs ; and, in ex- 
 traordinary undertakings, vigor and intrepidity are 
 more requisite than the cool reflections of timid pru- 
 dence which perceives all the dangers of a contempla- 
 ted project. Besides, your reputation is so well es- 
 tablished that I may say, without flattery, that, with 
 all the charms of youth to attract friends, you have 
 acquired that credit in the world which is ordinarily 
 acquired only at a more advanced age. You are 
 therefore, and it is fortunate that you are, under a 
 strong obligation to maintain the high opinion which 
 the public entertain of your virtue. 
 
 " Convinced of your disinterestedness, I know not 
 whether I ought to add, to the considerations arising 
 out of the misfortunes of our republic, -motives which 
 concern you personally ; but as there are conjunc- 
 tures when interest is so closely connected with hon- 
 or, that it is almost as disgraceful not to consult, as it 
 is, at other times, noble to despise it, I beseech you 
 to reflect in what situation you would be, should the 
 present government continue much longer. Those 
 who unite great merit to exalted birth have always 
 two powerful enemies ; the envy of courtiers and the 
 hatred of those who fill the highest offices. It is ex- 
 tremely difficult to escape the first when one possesses 
 splendid establishments ; and it is impossible to avoid 
 the second, when one has independence of spirit and 
 a high consideration in the world. Prudence and ci- 
 vility may indeed allay the jealousy which interest ex- 
 cites among equals, but they can never entirely dispel 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 133 
 
 the distrust which a regard for their own safety plants 
 in the minds of superiors. There are virtues so ex- 
 cellent and imposing that they force envy itself to ren- 
 der them homage. But, at the same time that they 
 gain a victory over envy, they exasperate hatred. 
 Hatred increases as merit rises ; and virtue, in these 
 circumstances, resembles a vessel tossed by a tem- 
 pest, which has no sooner surmounted one wave, than 
 it encounters another more formidable than the first. 
 " Can you be ignorant that Giannetino Doria feels 
 a secret envy of your birth, so much more illustrious 
 than his own? of your wealth, more honestly acquir- 
 ed than that which he possesses ? and of your reputa- 
 tion which surpasses by far whatever he can hope to 
 attain . ? What reason have you to suppose, that the 
 envy growing out of these considerations, and insti- 
 gated by a vehement ambition, will give rise, in the 
 mind of this imperious man, to nothing but feeble and 
 irresolute purposes, and that it will not aim directly at 
 your ruin ? Can you hope that when, by your pru- 
 dence and by the force of your virtue, you shall have 
 conquered his envy, you will be able to escape that 
 hatred which the contrariety of your dispositions nat- 
 urally produces in his breast ; and that his haughty 
 spirit, which the prudence of Andrew Doria has hith- 
 erto restrained, will longer tolerate the man who is 
 the only obstacle to his designs ? As for me, I am 
 persuaded that the consequences I have alluded to 
 are inevitable, because you cannot divest yourself of 
 the qualities that will produce them, nor change your 
 12 
 
134 CONSPIRACY OP FIESCO 
 
 nature and cease to be generous. But should it even 
 be in your power to conceal, under a modest exteri- 
 or, that loftiness of soul which raises you so far above 
 common men, do you believe that Giannetino Doria, 
 jealous as he is, and as all tyrants are, will not feel a 
 constant distrust of your conduct ? All the marks of 
 your moderation and patience would seem to him ar- 
 tifices designed to ensnare and undo him. He would 
 not consider it possible that a man, bearing the name 
 of Fiesco, could be capable of such baseness ; and 
 judging, rationally, that you were what you ought to 
 be, he would make use, for your ruin, of that apparent 
 submission which you would assume for your safety. 
 All the difference, therefore, between what you now 
 are, and what you would then be, would be merely 
 this, that you would then certainly perish with eter- 
 nal infamy ; when, by following the generous impul- 
 ses of your nature, you may be assured that the only 
 misfortune that can happen to you will be, to die in 
 a glorious enterprise, and to obtain, in dying, the 
 highest honor that was ever acquired by a private in- 
 dividual. 
 
 " If you perceive these things, and doubtless your 
 sagacity enables you to perceive them more clearly 
 than 1, there is no necessity for me to say more con- 
 cerning them ; I request you merely to regard two 
 important consequences which may be deduced 
 from them. The first is, that those maxims are false 
 which forbid us to anticipate an enemy who has de- 
 termined to ruin us, and advise us to wait until he 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 135 
 
 ruins himself. We deceive ourselves, if we believe 
 that fortune raises to the highest stations those whom 
 we hate, to give us the pleasure of witnessing their 
 fall. Greatness is not always surrounded by preci- 
 pices ; usurpers have not always been unfortunate ; 
 Heaven, in fine, does not always, at the expected mo- 
 ment, punish the wicked, that the righteous may be 
 gratified, and be preserved from the injustice of those 
 who would oppress them. Nature, more infallible 
 than politicians, teaches us to prevent the evil which 
 threatens us ; it becomes incurable while prudence is 
 deliberating what remedy to apply. What advantage 
 shall we gain by examining, with minute attention, the 
 examples which have been set before us ? Is it not 
 true that extreme subtilty of reasoning enervates our 
 courage, and prevents the most glorious actions ? Ev- 
 ery course of proceeding bears two different faces ; 
 the same politicians, who blame Pompey, for strength- 
 ening the power of Caesar by exasperating him, have 
 applauded the conduct of Cicero in crushing Cati- 
 line. The other consequence which may be deduced 
 from these considerations is, that the talents which 
 nature has given us ought not to resemble those faint 
 and useless lights, which glimmer only, and do not 
 warm. They ought rather to resemble the light of 
 the sun which invigorates what it shines upon. Ele- 
 vated thoughts should be followed by great effects ; 
 and in the execution, as well as in the conception, of 
 this enterprise, your courage should meet with noth- 
 ing to prevent you from becoming the vanquisher of 
 
136 
 
 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 monsters, the avenger of crimes, the refuge of the 
 oppressed, the ally of kings, and the umpire of Italy. 
 But if, at the present moment, that semblance of lib- 
 erty which is yet visible in our republic, should pre- 
 sent itself to your mind, I have reason to fear that it 
 will check the course of your ambition ; for I know 
 that a mind as scrupulous as yours and as jealous of 
 honor, will dread the frightful appellations of rebel 
 and traitor. 
 
 " Yet these names of infamy, invented to terrify 
 vulgar minds, attach no disgrace to those who bear 
 them for extraordinary and successful actions. Scru- 
 ples and greatness have ever been incompatible ; and 
 the weak precepts of common prudence are bet- 
 ter adapted to the school of the vulgar than to that 
 of great men. The crime of usurping a crown is so 
 splendid, that it may well pass for a virtue. Every 
 condition of life has its peculiar criterion of reputa- 
 tion. Men in inferior stations ought to be estimated 
 by their moderation ; the great, by their courage and 
 ambition. A miserable pirate, cotemporary with Al- 
 exander, who amused himself in capturing little boats, 
 passed for an infamous robber ; and that great con- 
 queror, who wrested kingdoms from their rightful 
 sovereigns, is yet applauded as a hero ; and if Cati- 
 line is condemned as a traitor, Caesar is applauded as 
 the greatest man that ever Jived. In short, I have 
 but to bring to your mind, all the princes who reign 
 at present in the world, and ask you if those, from 
 whom they inherit their thrones, were not usurpers. 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 
 
 137 
 
 But if these maxims offend, in the least, your delica T 
 cy of principle ; if the love of your country glows in 
 your heart more intensely than the love of glory ; il 
 there yet exists in your bosom some slight regard for 
 the expiring authority of the republic, let us see what 
 honor you will gain by respecting it, when your ene- 
 mies disregard it ; and whether it would be for your 
 advantage to incur the hazard of becoming their sub- 
 ject. Would to God the republic shone in its pristine 
 splendor ! No person would then, more earnestly than 
 I, dissuade you from the design which I now recom- 
 mend. If this republic, which now enjoys nothing of 
 liberty but the name, could maintain her authority, 
 feeble as it is, in the condition we now see it, I con- 
 fess that there would be some reason for enduring our 
 misfortunes with patience ; and that, if it were neither 
 safe nor useful, it would at least, be generous, to sac- 
 rifice our personal interests to that shadowy image 
 which yet remains of its liberty : but now, when the 
 arts of Andrew Doria have concentrated all the au- 
 thority of the republic in himself, and when the arro- 
 gance of Giannetino has assumed the control of all its 
 forces ; now, when Genoa has reached that point of 
 time in her existence, when, by that secret but inevi- 
 table fatality which prescribes certain limits to the 
 duration of power, a revolution must happen ; now, 
 when the minds of her citizens are too much at vari- 
 ance to live longer under the government of many ; 
 in this extremity, I say, when we cannot banish tyr- 
 anny but by establishing a legitimate monarchy, what 
 12* 
 
138 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 shall we do ? Shall we present our throats to these 
 butchers who, at the same time, seek our ruin and 
 the destruction of liberty . ? Will the count John Lewis 
 Fiesco witness, with patience, Giannetino Doria 
 proudly ascending the throne of his country, to which 
 his ambition and good fortune encourage him to as- 
 pire, without possessing a single qualification that enti- 
 tles him to it ? No, no, my lord, your courage must 
 contend for that honor, an honor which is due to you 
 alone. It is a circumstance at once rare and desira- 
 ble, to find oneself so situated as to be impelled, as 
 you now are, by regard for the public good and your 
 own glory, to place a crown on your head. Fear not 
 that this action will procure you the reputation of an 
 interested person ; on the contrary, nothing but the 
 fear of danger, which is thp basest of all passions, can 
 prevent you from undertaking it ; and nothing but 
 the love of glory, which is directly opposite to self- 
 interest, is capable of prompting you to so noble a 
 design. If you are so scrupulous that you cannot en- 
 dure the appearance of blame, what shall prevent 
 you from restoring to your republic the liberty which 
 you will have acquired for her ; and from surrender- 
 ing to her the crown which you will have so highly 
 deserved ? Then you will have it in your power to 
 display a signal proof of the contempt with which 
 you regard all motives of interest when they have no 
 connection with honor, 
 
 i* The only remark which remains for me to make 
 to you is that, in my opinion, you ought not to make 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 139 
 
 use of the French. Any understanding with foreign- 
 ers is always extremely odious ; and, in the present 
 conjuncture, an understanding with the French can 
 be of no advantage to you, because, as Calcagno has 
 observed, France is sufficiently occupied in defend- 
 ing herself against the forces of the empire and of 
 Spain, which beset her on every side ; but even could 
 you derive assistance from her, reflect that the change 
 in your condition would be but a change of servi- 
 tude ; you would become the slave of France, when 
 you may become her ally. Determine, in fine, 
 whether it be the proper course for a man of talents, 
 of merit, and of rank like yourself, to endure every 
 thing and submit to become the victim of the inso- 
 lence of Doria ; and determine, also, whether you 
 will hazard every thing to throw off the yoke of his 
 tyranny, and expose yourself, without necessity, to 
 become the slave of a foreign power, and remain, as 
 before, in the condition of a private citizen." 
 
 Raphael Sacco,. who acted as judge in the domin- 
 ions of the house of Fiesco, and who was the third 
 invited to this council, perceiving that the count in- 
 clined decidedly to the sentiments of Verrina, thought 
 it would be useless to controvert them ; and believing 
 also that the project would be extremely hazardous, 
 he was unwilling to advise him to undertake it ; he 
 therefore did not express his sentiments on the sub- 
 ject, referring the decision, as to the main design, 
 entirely to the pleasure of his master. He confined 
 himself to advising merely that, if the enterprise was 
 
140 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 resolved upon, the count ought to accept the aid of 
 the French ) observing that it would be gross impru- 
 dence not to employ all his credit and all the troops 
 at his command when he hazarded his whole fortune ; 
 that he could not comprehend why he should be ad- 
 vised to oppose himself singly to the forces of the 
 empire, of Spain and of Italy, which would assuredly 
 be united against him ; that it might be possible, 
 perhaps, to gain possession of a city by a conspiracy, 
 but not to acquire the control of a state ; that this 
 could not be effected but in a long course of years, 
 and by means of armies and allies ; and that the idea 
 of seizing on the sovereignty of Genoa, in the present 
 state of European affairs, was a rash resolution, how- 
 ever willing others might be to disguise it under the 
 name of a glorious enterprise. Verrina opposed, with 
 all his power, this reasoning of Raphael Sacco, and 
 reminded the count of the arguments which he had 
 urged on that point, in his discourse. And he now 
 insisted, more earnestly than he had done, that the 
 friendship of princes never outlives their interests ; 
 and that, although the friendship of the house of Aus- 
 tria to the Dorias seemed to be unchangeable, because 
 the latter were useful to the former, yet it would end 
 as soon as they ceased to be so. And moreover, if 
 the emperor should perceive the count to be in a 
 condition to assist or to injure him, he would soon for- 
 get the services of others, and solicit his friendship. 
 But if he invited the French to assist him, besides 
 endangering his enterprise by a connection with a 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 141 
 
 people who soon become weary of every thing, and 
 whose attention to foreign affairs is subject to the fre- 
 quent revolutions which happen within the kingdom, 
 and depends on the disposition of those who are in of- 
 fice, he would preclude all accommodation with the em- 
 peror, whose power in Italy was greater than theirs. It 
 would be in season to solicit the aid of France, after 
 he had ascertained that he could form no alliance 
 with the emperor. In this case, it would be so much 
 the interest of the French not to desert him that they 
 would not fail to assist him, because, while he re- 
 mained master of Genoa, they would be in constant 
 fear that he would unite with their enemies, if they 
 refused the assistance necessary for his defence. 
 And furthermore, to ensure success there was no ne- 
 cessity for greater forces than those he could furnish 
 himself, for he well knew that there were but two 
 hundred and fifty soldiers in Genoa, and that the gal- 
 lies of Giannetino Doria were completely disarmed. 
 
 These reasons convinced the count, because they 
 were conformable to his natural inclination to glory, 
 and to his greatness of soul, which deemed nothing 
 difficult that was honorable. He resolved to attempt 
 the execution of his design with his own means, and 
 to employ none but the friends and adherents which 
 his illustrious birth, his uncommon affability, his pro- 
 fuse liberality, and all his other good qualities had se- 
 cured him. 
 
 There are many persons, who have merit, courage, 
 and ambition, and who form general resolutions to 
 
142 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 raise themselves to high stations, and to improve their 
 condition in the world ; but we meet with few who, 
 having formed these resolutions, know how to choose 
 the proper mode to accomplish them, and who do not 
 sometimes relax in that constant exertion which is 
 necessary to ensure success ; or, when they do exert 
 themselves, it is almost always at an improper time, or 
 in an improper manner, and with too much anxiety 
 for the result. And this is so true that, in affairs of 
 this nature, most men deliberate longer than is neces- 
 sary before they resolve, but do not allow themselves 
 time enough to execute their determinations. They 
 do not, in season, aim to accommodate their actions 
 to the object they have in view, to regulate all their 
 steps by the plan they have formed, to establish a rep- 
 utation, to acquire friend?, nor, in short, to render all 
 their conduct subservient to their principal design. 
 On the contrary, we often see them suddenly change 
 their course, their minds seem agitated and over-bur- 
 thened by the secret and the weight of their enter- 
 prise, and amidst the changes and irregularity of their 
 conduct, they say or do something which gives an ad- 
 vantage to those who watch them, or offence to their 
 enemies. 
 
 The count Fiesco wisely avoided these errors ; 
 for, conscious of an ardent desire for distinction, and 
 persuaded that he should, at some future time, be 
 able to concentrate his general inclination upon some 
 particular design favorable to his elevation, this 
 thought assumed the entire mastery of his faculties ; 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 143 
 
 and as he had naturally an incredible thirst for glory 
 and great address in establishing a reputation, he so 
 conducted himself that the eminent qualities he dis- 
 played, seemed to proceed from his natural disposi- 
 tion, and not to be studied nor affected. His counte- 
 nance always appeared serene, open, pleasant, and 
 even jovial. He was civil to every body, but made 
 proper and flattering distinctions according to merit 
 and rank ; he was so profuse in his liberality that he 
 anticipated the wants of his friends. Thus he gained 
 the poor by his munificence, and the rich by his cour- 
 tesy. He faithfully observed his engagements ; he 
 displayed an ardor to oblige which never remitted ; 
 his house was open and his table free to all who 
 came ; he was generous in all things even to excess ; 
 and no one was ever so firmly persuaded as he that 
 avarice, reserve, and pride, obscure the most shining 
 qualities of great men. But what gave an extraordi- 
 nary lustre to those he possessed was the manly 
 beauty of his person and his graceful and dignified 
 manners, which attested his illustrious birth, and en- 
 gaged the esteem and respect of all. 
 
 This behavior secured, to that degree, the affec- 
 tions of his friends, that not one of those, who prom- 
 ised to serve him, were unfaithful or indiscreet — an 
 extraordinary circumstance, indeed, in a conspiracy, 
 where so many actors and so much secrecy are nec- 
 essary that, even should no one prove unfaithful, it 
 would be remarkable that no one should be impru- 
 dent. But it is still more wonderful that his conduct, 
 
144 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 though uniformly such as I have described, and ob- 
 served by his enemies, did not excite their distrust ; 
 they believing that whatever was too ostentatious in 
 his behavior should be attributed rather to his natural 
 disposition than to any particular design he had 
 formed. 
 
 This, without doubt, was one of the causes that in- 
 duced Andrew Doria to slight the information, con- 
 cerning the enterprise, which he received from Fer- 
 dinand Gonzague and two or three others : I say one 
 of the causes, for, although the behavior of Fiesco 
 contributed to lull the suspicion of this old politician, 
 who was exceedingly jealous of his authority, there 
 must, nevertheless, have been some other cause for 
 this extraordinary blindness. But it is difficult to 
 discover what it was, unless we refer to an overruling 
 providence, which delights in showing the vanity of 
 human prudence, and in confounding the presumption 
 of those who flatter themselves they can divine the 
 most secret thoughts of men, and judge, with infalli- 
 ble certainty, of all human actions. This presump- 
 tion is never more ridiculous than in those great ge- 
 niuses whom continued study, profound meditation 
 and long experience have raised so high above com- 
 mon men, and inflated with such self-conceit, that 
 they rely implicitly upon their own judgment, in the 
 most intricate affairs, and listen to the advice of oth- 
 ers only to despise it. It is certain that most of those 
 extraordinary men, whom others consult as oracles, 
 and who, in matters which do not concern them, have 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 145 
 
 a quick insight into futurity, are almost always blind 
 in regard to their own interests. They are more 
 unfortunate than others, for they will not be guid- 
 ed either by their own reason or by that of their 
 friends. 
 
 The act of generosity, which most augmented the 
 partisans of Fiesco among the people, was that of af- 
 fording relief to the silk-spinners, who constituted a 
 considerable portion of the inhabitants of Genoa. 
 They, at that time, suffered extremely from want oc- 
 casioned by the recent wars. The count, apprised 
 by their consul of their miserable condition, evinced 
 much compassion for their poverty, and requested 
 him to send to his palace those who had the most 
 need of assistance. He supplied them liberally with 
 money and provisions, and requested them to say 
 nothing of the presents he gave them, as he desired no 
 other reward than the internal satisfaction he derived 
 from relieving the afflicted. In dispensing his bounty, 
 he displayed all the courteousness and obliging civil- 
 ity which was natural to him, and gained so entirely 
 the hearts of these poor people, that ever afterwards, 
 they were wholly devoted to his service. 
 
 But if, by his generosity, he gained the esteem and 
 love of the lower class of citizens, he did not forget to 
 secure the good will of those at the head of this class, 
 by the praises of liberty which he often, with much 
 address, introduced into his discourse. From this 
 they inferred that, although he belonged to the nobil- 
 ity, he was too reasonable and just not to feel a lively 
 13 
 
146 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 compassion for the people groaning under the op- 
 pression of their rulers. 
 
 There are some who accuse the republic of indis- 
 cretion on this occasion, and maintain that it was ex- 
 tremely imprudent, in the senate, to suffer the count 
 thus to conciliate every body, and to take such means 
 to gain the hearts of his fellow-citizens. I cannot 
 deny that the maxim, on which this accusation is 
 founded, has been considered correct by subtle and 
 refined politicians : its object being to prevent private 
 individuals from acquiring great influence, it may, 
 with some reason, be thought that its effect will be 
 to promote the general safety ; but I am convinced 
 it is an erroneous maxim, for it changes the nature of 
 good qualities, rendering them hurtful or dangerous 
 to the possessor. I consider it even pernicious, be- 
 cause, exposing merit to suspicion, it stifles the seeds 
 of virtue, and creates such a disgust for the pursuit of 
 glory, that men will not zealously undertake to per- 
 form meritorious actions, and will be diverted, by the 
 fear of offending the government, from those which 
 might be useful to the state. It happens, also, that, 
 instead of confining bold and intrepid men within the 
 limits of that equality which it inculcates, it sometimes 
 impels them to give a freer course to their ambition, 
 and to take violent measures to relieve themselves 
 from restraint so tyrannical. 
 
 The count did not rely so implicitly upon the good 
 will of the populace as to neglect to secure the aid of 
 soldiers, who are essentially necessary in enterprises 
 
AGAINST GENOA, 147 
 
 of this nature. In the beginning of the summer, he 
 left Genoa, apparently to visit his estates, but in real- 
 ity to ascertain what number of men who had served 
 in war, could be found among his vassals, and to train 
 them in martial exercises, upon the pretence that he 
 apprehended an attack from the duke of Placentia. 
 He wished also to give the necessary orders for exe- 
 cuting the design he had formed, of introducing se- 
 cretly, and at the proper time, a number of his parti- 
 sans into Genoa, and to ascertain the sentiments of 
 the duke, who engaged to furnish him two thousand 
 of his best troops. 
 
 The count, returning about the end of autumn, con- 
 tinued to behave as he had done, and moreover prac- 
 tised a profound dissimulation, in regard to the family 
 of Doria ; professing, on every occasion, a great 
 veneration for Andrew, and cordial friendship for 
 Giannetino. His motive was to convince the world 
 that their recent divisions were entirely adjusted, and 
 to show them that his friendship was sincere, and 
 might be relied on. 
 
 If it is true that the count, on the day of the exe- 
 cution of his enterprise, said that he had long before 
 been informed that Giannetino had resolved on his ru- 
 in, and that this violent and wicked man, who was 
 kept in restraint only by Andrew, perceiving that his 
 uncle was subject to dangerous infirmities, had com- 
 manded captain Lercaro to despatch all who belong- 
 ed to the family of Fiesco, the moment he should 
 die 5 that he had authentic letters by which he could 
 
148 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 prove, that this same Giannetino had attempted, 
 three several times, to poison him ; and that he was, 
 besides, assured that the emperor intended to confer 
 on him the sovereignty of Genoa ; if, I say, all this 
 is true, I do not think the dissimulation of the count 
 can justly be blamed ; for, when life or the safety of 
 our country is at stake, frankness is a virtue out of 
 season, nature teaching us, by the instinct of the smal- 
 lest animals, that, in such extremities, the use of 
 stratagem to preserve ourselves from danger, and our 
 country from oppression, is justifiable and proper. 
 
 But if the accusations of the count were only calum- 
 nies against the family of Doria, invented to justify 
 his designs, and to exasperate the people, it cannot be 
 denied that these false tokens of friendship, indica- 
 tive of so much affection, were artifices unworthy of 
 his great courage. And it would, without doubt, be 
 difficult to justify such conduct, except by the neces- 
 sity which the power and insolence of Giannetino im- 
 posed upon him to behave in this manner. 
 
 The count had bought four gallies, which he main- 
 tained, under the name of his brother Jerome, with 
 funds furnished by the pope. Convinced that the 
 step most essential to the success of his design was to 
 render himself master of the port, he ordered one of 
 these gallies to Genoa, pretending that he intended 
 to despatch it, on a cruise, to the Levant ; and, at 
 the same time, he, without exciting suspicion, intro- 
 duced into the city, a party of soldiers who came 
 from his estates, and from the duchy of Placcntia. 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 149 
 
 some of them passing for soldiers of the garrison, 
 some for adventurers in quest of employment, some 
 for sailors, and man}' even for galley slaves. 
 
 Verrina artfully dispersed, among the companies 
 belonging to the city, fifteen or twenty soldiers who 
 were vassals of the count, and corrupted others be- 
 longing to the garrison. He obtained, from persons 
 of the most enterprise and and influence among the 
 people, promises of every assistance they could ren- 
 der, to execute a design which, as he told them, he 
 had formed against some of their enemies. Calcag- 
 no and Sacco, on their part, labored with diligence 
 and industry ; and I cannot better describe the ad- 
 dress, with which these four persons managed this 
 enterprise, than by saying that, without disclosing 
 the real object to any one, they engaged in their ser- 
 vice more than ten thousand men. 
 
 Matters being thus arranged, nothing remained but 
 to select a day for the execution of the enterprise ; 
 and this was found somewhat difficult. Verrina was 
 of opinion that the two Dorias, Adam Centurione, 
 and such of the nobility as were attached to that par- 
 ty, should be invited to attend a mass to be celebrated 
 by a priest of distinction, being the first time he offi- 
 ciated, when it was usual to invite persons of rank to 
 be present ; and he offered to kill them himself. 
 This proposition was instantly rejected by the count, 
 who, struck with horror, exclaimed that he would 
 never consent to profane the holiest mystery of his 
 religion to facilitate the success of his design. It was 
 13* 
 
150 
 
 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 then proposed that they should take the opportunity 
 of the marriage of a sister of Giannetino Doria with 
 Julius Cibo, marquis of Massa, a brother-in-law of 
 the count ; and they concluded their design could 
 then be executed with ease, as the count would have 
 a pretence for inviting all the relations of that family 
 to an entertainment, where he might massacre them 
 at once. But the generous feelings of the count, as 
 many assert, and as may be easily believed of a man 
 of his disposition, impelled him also to reject the 
 practice of such treachery ; yet the partisans of Do- 
 ria have asserted that he had determined to make use 
 of this opportunity, but that Giannetino being obliged, 
 on that day, to leave Genoa on business, he altered his 
 purpose. At length, after much deliberation, the 
 night of the second of January was selected, and to 
 this effect the necessary orders were judiciously giv- 
 en, Verrina, Calcagno and Sacco directing those 
 they had engaged. The count caused a great quan- 
 tity of arms to be brought to his house ; he sent per^ 
 sons to examine the posts of which he had resolved to 
 take possession ; he introduced, by small numbers at 
 a time, and without noise, into a building contiguous 
 to his palace, the soldiers who were destined to ex- 
 ecute the first part of the enterprise ; and the day 
 having arrived, he, to conceal his design, visited 
 many of his friends, and even went, in the evening, 
 to the palace of Doria. There, observing the chil- 
 dren of Giannetino, he took them one by one in his 
 arms, and caressed them a long time, in the presence 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 151 
 
 of their father, whom he requested to give orders to 
 the commander of his gallies not to interpose any ob- 
 stacle to the departure of his own galley, which was 
 to set sail, that evening, for the Levant. He took 
 leave of him, with the ordinary civilities ; and, when 
 returning home, he stopped at the house of Thomas 
 Assereto, where he found upwards of thirty gentlemen 
 who were popular in the city, and whom Verrina had 
 the address to collect at that place. These he invited 
 to sup with him at his palace. He then sent Verrina 
 throughout the city, to the senate house, and to the 
 palace of Doria, to ascertain whether any one had 
 knowledge or suspicion of his design ; and after hav- 
 ing learned that every thing was quiet as usual, he 
 gave orders that the doors of his palace should be 
 shut, that all should nevertheless be admitted, who 
 expressed a wish to see him, but that no one should 
 be permitted to go out. 
 
 Perceiving that those whom he had invited as 
 guests were extremely surprised to find, instead of a 
 feast which they expected, nothing but arms, persons 
 unknown to them, and soldiers, he requested them to 
 repair to a large hall, where, displaying in his counte- 
 nance a lofty and confident courage, he thus addres- 
 sed them : 
 
 " My friends, it is too much to endure the insolence 
 of Giannetino, and the tyranny of Andrew Doria. U 
 we wish to secure our lives and our liberty from the 
 danger which threatens them, we have not a moment 
 to lose. Is there one here who can be ignorant, that 
 
152 
 
 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO- 
 
 the republic is in imminent peril? To what use, do 
 you imagine, are destined the twenty gallies that he- 
 siege your harbor ? For what purpose have so many 
 troops been collected, so many arrangements made ? 
 Behold them ready to triumph over our patience, and 
 to raise their unjust authority upon the ruins of the 
 state. We must no longer deplore our sufferings in 
 secret ; we must hazard every thing to obtain deliv- 
 erance. As the distemper is violent, so also must be 
 the remedy ; and if the fear of falling into a state of 
 degrading servitude can have any effect upon your 
 minds, it is incumbent on you to make an effort to 
 break your chains, and to anticipate those who wish 
 to fasten them forever upon you-; for I cannot imag- 
 ine that you are capable of enduring any longer the 
 injustice of the uncle, and the arrogance of the 
 nephew. I do not believe, I say, that there is one 
 among you of a temper to submit to those as masters, 
 who ought to be content to be your equals. Even 
 were we regardless of the safety of the republic, we 
 cannot be of our own. Each one of us has too many 
 wrongs to revenge ; and our vengeance will be, at 
 the same time, legitimate and glorious ; for our pri- 
 vate resentments mingle with our zeal for the public 
 good, and we cannot abandon our own interests with- 
 out betraying those of our country. It depends upon 
 you alone to secure her safety, and your own ; you 
 have only to resolve to be happy, and you will be so. 
 I have provided against every thing which could ob- 
 struct your success ; 1 have opened to you the career 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 153 
 
 of glory, and I am ready to show you the way, if you 
 are disposed to follow. These preparations which 
 you witness, ought, at this time, to animate you more 
 than they have surprised you ; and the astonishment 
 which I observed, at first, on your countenance, ought 
 to change to the glorious resolution to employ, with 
 vigor, these arms to effect the destruction of our com- 
 mon enemies, and the establishment of our indepen- 
 dence. I should insult your courage, if I imagined 
 you capable, after seeing these arms, of hesitating, an 
 instant, what use you ought to make of them. Suc- 
 cess is rendered sure by the perfect arrangements I 
 have made ; it will be beneficial from the advantages 
 you will receive; it will be just by reason of the op- 
 pressions you endure ; and it will, in fine, be glori- 
 ous from the grandeur of the enterprise. I could 
 prove, by these letters which you now see, that the 
 emperor has promised to bestow on Andrew Doria, 
 the sovereignty of Genoa, and that he is prepared to 
 execute his promise. I could show, by other letters 
 which I have in my possession, that Giannetino has 
 attempted, three several times, to suborn wretches to 
 poison me. It would be easy to convince you that 
 he has given orders to Lercaro to assassinate me and 
 all my family, the instant his uncle dies. But the 
 knowledge of these treacherous intentions, detestable 
 and infamous as they are, would add nothing to the 
 horror with which you already regard these monsters, 
 Methinks I see your eyes sparkle with that noble ar- 
 dor which demands honorable vengeance. T perceive. 
 
154 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 you are more impatient than I to give entire license to 
 your resentment, to secure your property, your re- 
 pose, and the honor of your families. Let us then, 
 my dear fellow citizens, save the reputation of Genoa ; 
 let us preserve the independence of our country ; and 
 let us show the whole world that there yet exists, in 
 this republic, good men who have the heart to bring 
 tyrants to destruction." 
 
 This discourse astonished the assembly, but as al- 
 most all of them were ardent in their attachment to 
 the count, and as some of them, in addition to this at- 
 tachment, felt exalted hopes of advantage in case the 
 enterprise succeeded, and others feared his resent- 
 ment if they refused to follow his fortunes, they prom- 
 ised to serve him to the utmost of their power. Two 
 only of the whole number, either because their peace- 
 ful occupations or timorous dispositions rendered them 
 incapable (as they said) of serving in an enterprise 
 where many dangers were to be encountered and 
 many murders committed, or because they felt a sin- 
 cere attachment to the family of Doria, or some of his 
 party, which they concealed under the appearance of 
 timidity, prayed to be excused from engaging in the 
 project. The count urged them no farther, but con- 
 tented himself with confining them to deprive them 
 of the power of revealing his design. The mildness 
 with which he treated these two persons prevents me 
 from believing, what several historians, hostile to his 
 reputation, have published, that in his discourse to 
 the assembly he uttered nothing but threats against 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 155 
 
 those who should refuse to assist him ; and I think 
 we may, with reason, form the same opinion, in re- 
 gard to the impious and cruel expressions, which they 
 accuse him of having used, on the evening of the ex- 
 ecution of his enterprise. For is it probable that a 
 man of his condition, born with an ardent inclination 
 to acquire glory, could have permitted his passions 
 to betray him into the use of expressions which can- 
 not be recollected but with horror, and which could 
 not, in any manner, have been useful to his designs ? 
 However the fact may be, as soon as he had finished 
 his address to the assembly, and explained to them 
 the arrangements he had made, he repaired to the 
 apartment of his wife. As she suspected that the 
 great preparations which had been made in the pal- 
 ace, were destined, by her husband, for some dan- 
 gerous enterprise, he found her in tears. He there- 
 fore thought that he ought no longer to conceal from 
 her his intentions, but he endeavored to calm her 
 apprehensions by all the arguments he could devise, 
 representing to her how far he had proceeded, and 
 that it was impossible now to retreat. She made all 
 imaginable efforts to divert him from his undertaking, 
 exerting all the influence which his affection gave 
 her over his mind. But neither her tears nor her 
 prayers could shake his resolution. Paul Pansa, who 
 had been his tutor, and for whom he felt a high ven- 
 eration, united with the countess, and omitted nothing 
 to recal him to the observance of the duties of a good 
 citizen, nor to convince him of the hazard he incur- 
 
156 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 • 
 
 red in pursuing his object. The count was as little 
 influenced by the advice of his tutor, as he had been by 
 the caresses and tears of his wife. He had (as is said 
 of Caesar) passed the Rubicon ; and, returning to 
 the hall, where he had left his guests, he gave the 
 last orders for the execution of his enterprise. He 
 commanded one hundred and fifty men, chosen from 
 the whole body of soldiers, to go that part of the city 
 called the Burough, whither he was to follow them, 
 accompanied by the nobility. He ordered Cornelius, 
 his illegitimate brother, as soon as they had arrived 
 at the Burough, to take thirty of this number, and 
 gain possession of the gate of the arch. Jerome and 
 Ottoban, his brothers, with Vincent Calcagno, were 
 directed to take possession of that of St. Thomas, at 
 the instant they heard the cannon of Fiesco's galley. 
 This galley was commanded by Verrina, and was in 
 readiness to close the entrance into the dock, and to 
 invest the gate of Doria's palace. The count was to 
 repair, by land, to this gate, after having, with as lit- 
 tle noise as possible, placed, on his way, detachments 
 at St. Andrew's and St. Donat's arches, and at the 
 square des Sauvages. Thomas Assereto was com- 
 manded to seize this gate, giving the countersign, 
 which he could easily know, as he held an office un- 
 der Giannetino Doria. As this was the most impor- 
 tant part of the enterprise, because, if it did not suc- 
 ceed, those who were in the count's galley could have 
 no communication with the other conspirators, it was 
 thought expedient, to ensure success, that Scipio 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 157 
 
 Borgognino, one of the count's vassals and an intrepid 
 soldier, should force his way, with armed feluccas, 
 into the dock, and land on that side, at the moment 
 when Assereto should make the attack on the other. 
 It was also determined that, as soon as Jerome and 
 Ottoban Fiesco had become masters of St. Thomas' 
 gate, which was near Doria's palace, one of them 
 should force his way into the paiace and kill Andrew 
 and Giannetino ; and as there was reason to believe 
 that Giannetino, awakened by the noise at the gates, 
 might throw himself into Lewis Julia's felucca and 
 hasten thither to give orders, three armed feluccas 
 were stationed there to prevent it. To these partic- 
 ular orders a general one was added, that all the 
 conspirators should call to the people with the name 
 of Fiesco, and cry Liberty, in order that those citi- 
 zens, of whose attachment they were well assured, 
 might not be deceived, and that, knowing the count 
 was the leader of the enterprise, they might join his 
 party. 
 
 It is not easy to decide whether it would not have 
 been more advantageous and safe to have kept united 
 in one body all these troops, who were despatched to 
 positions distant from each other. Their number was 
 sufficiently large to authorise the belief that, if they 
 had entered the city at one place, they would have 
 driven all before them, and would, wherever they 
 went, have induced the people to join the victorious 
 party ; but, being divided, they could act but feebly, 
 were liable to commit mistakes, and to be defeated, 
 14 
 
158 CONSPIRACY OP FIESCO 
 
 one division after another ; for nothing is more true 
 than that it requires uncommon exactness to assign 
 the precise moment for several combined attacks, and 
 unusual good fortune for all to succeed alike. On 
 these occasions, so many arms and so many heads 
 must concur in the same action, that the least error 
 in one often disconcerts all the rest, as the disorder 
 of a single wheel may stop the motion of the greatest 
 machine. And furthermore it would be very surpris- 
 ing if, in the night and amidst the tumult which gene- 
 rally accompanies attempts of this kind, either the 
 courage or the discretion of some one of the conspi- 
 rators should not fail him, and that, dreading the dan- 
 ger which was near more than that which was remote, 
 he should not repent his engagement ; but when all 
 march in a body, example animates and encourages 
 the most timid, who are drawn onward by the multi- 
 tude, and do from necessity what the brave do from 
 courage. 
 
 Those who adopt the opposite opinion maintain 
 that, in enterprises of this kind which are executed 
 by night, in a city where the conspirators act in con- 
 cert with many others, where most of the inhabitants 
 are favorably disposed, and where they may gain 
 possession of the principal posts before their enemies 
 are in a condition to contend with them, it is more 
 advisable to form several parties, and make separate 
 attacks, in many places ; because, by giving, at the 
 same time, several alarms, in distant parts, those who 
 act on the defensive are obliged to divide their forces, 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 159 
 
 without knowing how many to detach, and the terror, 
 which these sudden alarms generally occasion, is much 
 greater when the noise proceeds from every quarter 
 than when attention is called to only one ; besides, 
 where the streets are narrow, like those of Genoa, 
 a small number can effect all that a larger can, and 
 ten men, attacked in front, with the help o r a slight 
 barricade, may stop a hundred times as many of the 
 bravest soldiers, and gain time for those who are be- 
 hind to rally. In fine, those who are of this opinion 
 think that, in an enterprise like this, it is less advanta- 
 geous to the conspirators, they having the good will of 
 a majority of the citizens, to unite their forces in one 
 body, than to disperse them into different parts of the 
 city ; because then the whole are aroused at once, 
 and they take arms the more readily when they per- 
 ceive others do the same, and are more capable of 
 rendering service when they act with regular troops 
 and have persons of credit to lead them. 
 
 All these reasons being impartially considered, it is 
 my opinion that the count conducted judiciously ; for 
 it appears to me that, on this occasion, he had 
 less reason than is commonly the case to fear 
 the inconveniences just mentioned. His party was 
 composed, not merely of soldiers and nobles, but also 
 of a multitude of citizens, upon whose attachment he 
 relied ; so that, having numerous friends in all parts 
 of Genoa, he had reason to believe that the garrison, 
 which was extremely weak, and those who were not 
 friendly to him, could not oppose any obstacle to the 
 
I 
 
 100 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 success of his design, nor make sufficient resistance 
 to dishearten those who should join his party. For 
 these reasons, when he left his palace, he divided hii 
 men according to the plan he had devised ; and, at 
 the moment when the report of the cannon on board 
 his galley, which had been appointed as the signal, 
 was heard, Cornelius surprised the guard stationed at 
 the gate of the arch, and gained possession of it with- 
 out difficulty. Ottoban and Jerome, brothers of the 
 count, accompanied by Calcagno and sixty soldiers, 
 found more resistance at St. Thomas' Gate, where 
 Captain Sebastian Lercaro, and his brother, for a con- 
 siderable time, maintained their post. But the latter 
 being killed, and the former taken, and some of their 
 men, who had been previously gained, having declar- 
 ed in favor of Fiesco, the guard fled, abandoning 
 their post to the conspirators. Giannetino Doria, 
 awakened either by the tumult at the gate, or by the 
 outcry which, at the same time, w r as made in the 
 harbor, rose in haste ; and accompanied only by a 
 page, who carried a flambeau before him, he ran to 
 St. Thomas' gate, where, being recognized by the 
 conspirators, he was killed as soon as he arrived. 
 
 This precipitancy of Giannetino saved Andrew 
 Doria's life, and gave him time to mount a horse and 
 retire fifteen miles from Genoa ; for Jerome, who had 
 been directed by his brother to force the palace of 
 Doria, the instant he was master of St. Thomas' gate, 
 seeing that Giannetino was killed, preferred the pre- 
 servation of the immense riches which were in tha 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 
 
 I6t 
 
 palace, and which he could not easily have saved 
 from the soldiers, to the capture of Andrew Doria, 
 whom he considered an inefficient old man, that it 
 would be useless to sacrifice. 
 
 In the midst of these occurrences at the gate of 
 St. Thomas, Assereto and Scipio Borgognino execu- 
 ted the orders which had been given them with com- 
 plete success. They killed all who made any resist- 
 ance at the gate by the dock, and pressed the rest 
 with such vigor that they had not time to rally, and 
 at last they took possession of that important post. 
 
 The count, after having, on his way, posted detach- 
 ments at the places he considered the most impor- 
 tant, arrived at the dock, the entrance to which he 
 found unobstructed, and joined Verrina, who had al- 
 ready, with his galley, attacked those of prince Do- 
 ria. They were almost destitute of arms, and he 
 took possession of them with ease; but fearing that, 
 in this confusion, the crew of the admiral's galley, 
 where he heard considerable noise, would rise upon 
 their guard, he hastened to give orders concerning 
 it ; and, when he was on the point of entering that 
 galley, the plank on which he passed overturned, and 
 he fell into the sea. His armor, which was heavy, 
 and the mud, which in this place was deep, prevent- 
 ed him from rising again to the surface : and the dark- 
 ness of the night, and the noise on every side, con- 
 cealed from those around him all knowledge of the 
 accident ; so that, without knowing the loss they 
 had sustained, they continued their exertions, and 
 14* 
 
162 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 at length gained possession of the harhor and the gal- 
 lies. 
 
 Ottoban, who, after executing the duty first assign- 
 ed him, had repaired to this place, remained there to 
 command ; and Jerome, who had followed him, 
 posting Vincent Calcagno at the gate of St. Thomas, 
 left the harbor, with two hundred men, to arouse the 
 populace in the streets, and rally around him as many 
 as he could. Verrina did the same in another direc- 
 tion, and both having collected a multitude of people, 
 no one dared to appear without declaring for Fiesco. 
 The greater part of the nobility remained shut up at 
 home during the commotion, each fearing the plunder 
 of his house ; the most courageous repaired to the 
 senate house, accompanied by the imperial ambassa- 
 dor, who was on the point of flying from the city, but 
 was prevented by the remonstrances of Paul Lasag- 
 na, a man much respected by the people. Cardinal 
 Doria, and Adam Centurione went thither also, and 
 they, with Nicholas Franco, the chief of the republic, 
 there being then no duke, resolved to despatch Bon- 
 iface Lomellino, Christopher Pallavicini, and Antho- 
 ny Calva, with fifty soldiers of the garrison, to the 
 defence of St. Thomas' Gate. But these, having 
 met a body of the conspirators, and being deserted 
 by a part of their number, were obliged to retire into 
 the house of Adam Centurione. Finding there Fran- 
 cis Grimaldi, Dominic Doria, and several other gen- 
 tlemen, they resumed their courage and returned, by 
 a different route, to the gate. But they found it so 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 163 
 
 well guarded, and were attacked with such vigor, 
 that they retreated, leaving Boniface Lomellino pris- 
 oner, who distinguished himself, in this action, by his 
 courage, and happily escaped from the conspirators. 
 The Senate having found that nothing could be 
 effected by force, had recourse to remonstrances. 
 They deputed Jerome de Fiesco, a relation of the 
 count, and Jerome Canevale to demand the reason 
 of this commotion ; and immediately after, Cardinal 
 Doria, who was allied to him, together with John 
 Baptist Lercaro, and Bernard Castagna, both sena- 
 tors, resolved, at the desire of the senate, to go and 
 speak to the count and endeavor to appease him. 
 But, perceiving that every thing was in such confu- 
 sion that, if he ventured into the city, he should, with- 
 out any prospect of advantage, expose his dignity to 
 the insolence of a furious populace, he declined 
 leaving the senate house. The senate then gave the 
 same commission to Augustine Lomellino, Hector 
 Fiesco, Ansaldo Justiniani, Ambrose Spinola, and 
 John Balliano, who, perceiving a party of armed men 
 coming towards them, supposed the count was among 
 them, and stopped at St. Siro to wait for him. As 
 soon as the conspirators saw them, they attacked 
 them, and made Lomellino and Hector Fiesco flee. 
 Ansaldi Justiniani stood firm, and, addressing Jerome, 
 who led the party, he enquired, in the name of the 
 republic, for the count. The conspirators had just 
 learnt that he was dead. Verrina, after having, for 
 a long time, sought him in vain, had returned to his 
 
164 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 galley in despair, hearing from all quarters that he 
 was no where to be found. Jerome, therefore, bold- 
 ly and very imprudently answered Justiniani, that it 
 was now too late to seek for any count but himself, 
 and demanded that the palace should be instantly 
 surrendered to him. 
 
 The senate, discovering from this reply that the 
 count was dead, resumed their courage, and sent 
 twelve gentlemen to rally as many of the guard, and 
 of the people, as they could put in a posture of de- 
 fence. Some, even of those most ardently attached 
 to Fiesco, began to be alarmed. Many, who had not 
 so much affection for Jerome as they had had for his 
 brother, nor so much confidence in his talents, disper- 
 sed the moment they heard of his death. Confusion 
 entering the party of the conspirators, those in the 
 senate house perceived it, and deliberated whether 
 they should attack them, or negotiate with them. 
 The first course was proposed as the most honorable, 
 but the last was adopted as the most safe. Paul 
 Pansa, a man of high consideration in the republic, 
 and constant in his attachment to the family of Fiesco, 
 was selected as the most proper agent for this pur- 
 pose. The senate instructed him to offer to Jerome 
 a full pardon for himself and all his accomplices. He 
 consented, by the persuasions of Pansa, to accept 
 these terms ; and the pardon was signed and sealed, 
 with all the requisite formalities, by Ambrose Senare- 
 gua, the secretary of the republic. Jerome thereup- 
 on left Genoa, accompanied by his whole party, and 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 
 
 165 
 
 retired to Montobio. Ottoban, Verrina. Calcagno, 
 and Sacco, who had escaped in Fiesco's galley, took 
 the route towards France, and after sending back un- 
 hurt Lercaro, Manfredo, Centurione and Vaccaro, 
 whom they had taken at St. Thomas' gate, they arriv- 
 ed at Marseilles. At the end of four days, the body 
 of the count was found, and having been exposed for 
 a short time, on the shore, was thrown into the sea by 
 the order of Andrew Doria. Benedict Centurione 
 and Dominic Doria were sent to Andrew to condole 
 with him, in the name of the republic, on the death of 
 Giannetino, and to conduct him again to the city, 
 where he was received with all imaginable honors. 
 He went the next day to the senate, and in a violent 
 speech, which he took care should be supported by 
 his friends, he represented that the republic was not 
 bound to abide by the agreement which had been 
 made with the Fiescos, because it had been conclud- 
 ed contrary to all precedent, and signed, as it were, 
 sword in hand. He dwelt on the danger of permit- 
 ting subjects to treat, in this manner, with their sove-^ 
 reign ; and insisted that to suffer a crime of this mag-^ 
 aitude to pass unpunished would be an example fatal 
 to the republic. In short, Andrew Doria concealed, 
 with so much address, his private views under the 
 veil of public good, and exerted so efficiently his au- 
 thority to accomplish his desire of vengeance, tbat, al- 
 though many could not approve such a violation of the 
 public faith, the senate nevertheless declared all the 
 conspirators guilty of high treason, ordered the mag-- 
 
166 
 
 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 nificent palace of Fiesco to be razed to the ground, 
 condemned to death his brothers and the leaders of 
 his party, banished, for fifty years, all who had the 
 Jeast concern in the enterprise, and decreed that Je- 
 rome Fiesco should be ordered to surrender to the re- 
 public the fortress of Montobio. The last decree was 
 not so easy to be executed as the others ; and as the 
 place was strong, as well by its situation as its fortifi- 
 cations, upon which the conspirators were constantly 
 at work, they resolved, before they resorted to force, 
 the success of which is always doubtful, to try all 
 gentle means of inducing the Fiescos to surrender it. 
 Paul Pansa was directed to repair thither immediate- 
 ly, and to offer reasonable conditions to Jerome, on 
 the part of the republic ; but he made no other re- 
 ply than reproaches for the violation of their solemn 
 engagements, and an indignant refusal to enter into 
 any treaty with the Genoese. The emperor, fearing 
 that the French would obtain possession of this for- 
 tress, which is highly important to the safety of Ge- 
 noa, urged the senate to besiege it, and furnished, for 
 this purpose, all necessary assistance. Augustine 
 Spinola, a commander of high reputation, invested 
 the place, cannonaded it for forty days, and compel- 
 led those who were within it to surrender at discre- 
 tion. 
 
 Some historians accuse Verrina, Calcagno and 
 Sacco, who had returned from France, where they 
 had been disgusted with the cold reception they had 
 met with, of haying pdvised Jerome to conclude a ca- 
 
AGAINST GENOA. l6j 
 
 pitulation so little honorable to his courage. The 
 capture of the place was the cause of new distrac- 
 tions in the republic, the senators differing in opinion 
 with regard to the punishment of the prisoners. Ma- 
 ny, inclined to be merciful, were in favor of pardon- 
 ing Jerome, on account of his youth ; and insisted 
 that the family of Fiesco had been sufficiently punish- 
 ed by the death of the count and the confiscation of 
 all his property ; but the hatred of Andrew Doria 
 prevailed once more over the clemency of the senate ; 
 he procured a decree to be passed that Jerome Fi- 
 esco, Verrina, Calcagno, and Assereto should be ex- 
 ecuted, and one still more detestable against Ottoban, 
 which prohibited his posterity, to the fifth generation, 
 from approaching Genoa. 
 
 Here let us stop, and consider particularly all that 
 happened in the execution of this great design. Let 
 us, if possible, deduce, from the numerous errors 
 which we may perceive, examples of human weak- 
 ness ; and let us acknowledge that this enterprise, 
 which in its conception was a masterpiece of human 
 courage and subtlety, exhibited in its progress and 
 termination the ordinary effects of the meanness and 
 imperfection of our nature. How disgraceful it was 
 in Andrew Doria to abandon the city, at the very be- 
 ginning of the disturbance, without making the slight- 
 est effort to quell, by his authority, the tumult of the 
 populace ! What infatuation to disregard the informa- 
 tion, which came to him from several sources, of the 
 design of the count ! What imprudence in Giannetino 
 
168 CONSPIRACY OF FIESCO 
 
 to go alone, in the darkness of night, to the gate of 
 St. Thomas, to appease a commotion, which he had 
 no reason to despise, being ignorant of the cause ! 
 What cowardice in Cardinal Doria, who dared not 
 leave the senate house to awe the people by the dig- 
 nity of his station ! What imprudence in the senate to 
 neglect assembling, on the first alarm, all their forces, 
 to check the progress of the conspirators, merely 
 sending small detachments, which could effect noth- 
 ing important ! And how ridiculous, in fine, it was 
 to attempt to recal to his duty, by remonstrances, an 
 avowed rebel, with arms in his hands and superior 
 in force ! But having concluded a formal treaty, by 
 what maxim can the senate be justified for violating 
 the public faith so solemnly pledged to Jerome and 
 Ottoban ? If the apprehension of similar treatment 
 may be advantageous to a state, by restraining, with- 
 in the bounds of duty, those who have an inclination 
 ty revolt, it may also be pernicious, by depriving of 
 all hope of pardon those who have revolted. And it 
 is, indeed, difficult to comprehend, why those politi- 
 cians, who were considered able men, were not ap- 
 prehensive of driving to despair, by this example, Je- 
 rome Fiesco, who still held the rock of Montobio, 
 which he might surrender into the hands of foreign- 
 ers, and the loss of which must have been followed 
 by the destruction of Genoa. 
 
 But if those, of whom we have just spoken, com- 
 mitted remarkable faults, it may, with equal truth, be 
 said, that the conspirators committed even greater, 
 
AGAINST GENOA. 169 
 
 after they had lost their chief. His valor and pru- 
 dence, which animated and directed his party, vanish- 
 ing at his death, confusion ensued, which completed 
 their ruin. Jerome, who ought, for many reasons, to 
 have concealed the death of his brother, was the first 
 to announce it, and thereby revived the courage of 
 his enemies, and threw dismay into the ranks of his 
 friends. Ottoban, Verrina, Calcagno and Sacco, who 
 escaped in the galley, set at liberty, almost as soon 
 as they had left Genoa, the prisoners they had made, 
 without reflecting that they might be of great use in 
 effecting their accommodation. Verrina, when in- 
 formed of the death of the count, fled, and shame- 
 fully abandoned an important enterprise to the direc- 
 tion of Jerome, who had neither sufficient experience, 
 nor sufficient authority over the conspirators, to com- 
 plete it. This same Jerome made a treaty with the 
 senate, and consented to return to the condition of a 
 private citizen, after having been on the point of be- 
 coming a sovereign. He afterwards made a disgrace- 
 ful capitulation in Montobio, confiding in the faith of 
 those who had already violated their engagements. 
 Verrina, Calcagno and Sacco, the principal actors in 
 this conspiracy, and the most criminal of all the ac- 
 complices of the count, persuaded Jerome, from the 
 hope of impunity which they indulged, to commit 
 this unworthy action, preferring rather to run the 
 hazard of dying by the hands of an executioner, than 
 to meet an honorable death in a breach. 
 
 Thus terminated this great enterprise ; thus died 
 15 
 
170 conspiracy or* fiesco 
 
 John Lewis Fiesco, count of Lavagna, whom some 
 honor with splendid eulogiums, whom others censure, 
 and whom many excuse. If we regard the maxim, 
 w T hich commands us always to respect the actual gov- 
 ernment under which we live, his ambition, without 
 doubt, was criminal ; if we consider his courage, and 
 the brilliant qualities which shone forth in the man- 
 agement of his enterprise, it appears noble and gene- 
 rous ; if we regard the power of the Dorias which 
 gave him good reason to apprehend the ruin of the 
 republic and of himself, it appears excusable. But 
 in whatever manner it may be spoken of, the most 
 prejudiced cannot deny that all the ill they can say 
 of him may also be said of the most illustrious men. 
 He was born in a small state, where all subordinate 
 stations were beneath his aspirations and his merit ; 
 the restlessness natural to his countrymen, ever in- 
 clined to novelty, the elevation of his own mind, his 
 youth, his immense wealth, the number and the adu- 
 lation of his friends, the attachment of the people, the 
 respect shown him by foreign princes, and, in fine, 
 the esteem of all men, were circumstances peculiarly 
 adapted to inspire with ambition a mind less ardent 
 than his. The result of his enterprise was one of 
 those accidents which human wisdom cannot foresee. 
 Had his success been equal to the vigor and talent 
 he displayed, his courage and destiny might have 
 raised him higher than the sovereignty of Genoa ; and 
 those who, since his death, have vilified his memory, 
 would have been, while he lived, the first to sing his 
 
} 
 
 
 AGAINST GENOA. 171 
 
 praises. Those authors who, to gratify the hatred of 
 the Dorias, and to justify the senate for their breach 
 of faith, have aspersed him with the 'blackest calum- 
 nies, would then have composed his panegyric, and 
 posterity would have placed him in the number of 
 the heroes of his age. So true it is, that good or ill 
 success is the ordinary criterion by which praise or 
 censure is applied to extraordinary actions. Never- 
 theless, I think it may be said, consistently with the 
 duty of a historian who pronounces judgment upon 
 the reputations of men, that nothing was wanting to 
 establish that of John Lewis Fiesco but a longer life, 
 and more just occasions of acquiring glory. 
 
 FINIS. 
 
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 
 
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