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AUTHOR: [STONE, MRS ELIZABETH] TITLE: HISTORY OF GERMANY FOR JUNIOR CLASSES PLACE: NEWYORK DATE: [1876] COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES PRESERVATION DEPARTMENT Master Negative # BIBLIOGRAPHIC MICROFORM TARCFT Original Material as Filmed - Existing Bibliographic Record d45 M525 [Stone, Mrs. Elizabeth] History of Germany for junior classes. By Sutherland Mcnzies ipseud.j ... With coloured map and illustrations. New York, G. P. Putnam's sons (18763 344 p. lllus., fold, map, tables, l?*". ( On cover: Putnam's historical scries) Restrictions on Use: 1. Germany — Hist. Library of Congress DDOO.SSr) it()l)l| 4— 280C9 TECHNICAL MICROFORM DATA REDUCTION RATIO:_____^^j< FILM SIZE:____,J5_^_/21 IMAGE PLACEMENT: lA (itv IB IIB DATE FILMED:___:?i^*gj^ INITIALS__,_5^S_-_- HLMEDBY: RESEARCH PUBLICATIONS. INC WOODDRIDGE. CT Association for Information and Image Management 1100 Wayne Avenue. Suite 1100 Silver Spring, Maryland 20910 301/587-8202 Centimeter 12 3 4 5 im III! 6 7 8 9 10 iH'ljl 'l|lhllll|'lll[l'H|llNllll lllllllll|Mj^ Inches 1 I I iir TTT n 12 13 14 15 mm iilimliiiili|iili mli[Mlii||||M|ljmj| TTT 1.0 b^ III 2.8 1^ m u lUUu 1.4 2.5 2.2 2.0 1 n I.I 1.25 1.8 1.6 rir 1 MfiNUFRCTURED TO RUM STRNDORDS BY APPLIED IMAGE, INC. vni. THE ATLAS OF SCRIPTURE GEOGRAPHY. 16 Maps, witli Questions on each Map. Small 4to, flexible, cloth, 75 cents. 9. Modern Palestine. 10. Physical Map of Palestine. 11. Journeys of the Apostlo Panl. 12. The distribution of the Prevailing Religions of the World. 13. Tlie Tabernacle, Camp, etc. 14. Solonion'sTemple and ilerod'sTemplo. 15. Ancient Jerusivlem. 16. Modern Jerusalem. The Ancient World, countries mentioned in the Scrip- tures. Janaan, in the time of the Patriarchs. Journeying of the Israelites. J. Canaan as divided amongst the Tribes. 6. Dominions of David and Solomon, r. Countries of the Jewish Captivities, 3. Palestine in the time of Christ. IX. THE HANDBOOK OF SCRIPTURE GEOGRAPHY. 16 ^Taps and Plans, with Questions and Answers on eacli map. IGmo, cloth extra. X. THE STUDENT'S ATLAS OF MODERN AND CLASSICAL GEOGRAPHY. Consisting of 50 Maps, with Descriptive Letterpress. Half morocco, extra, $6.00. XI. THE ACADEMIC ATLAS. Consisting of 32 Maps, Imp. 4to, with a copious Index. Cloth extra., $2.50. xn. THE LIBRARY ATLAS. Consisting of 100 Maps of Modem, Historical, and Classical Geo- graphy, etc., with Descriptive Letterpress and copious Indices. Imp. 8vo, half morocco extra, $14.0. Some few of the Criticisms on "Putnam's Series op Atlases.** "The International Atlas ... is handsome and accurate, beautifully engraved and exquisitely coloured ... of exceptional completeDess."— iV. Y, Evening Mail. *' The Maps are well executed, and the work is most convenient for reference.**— N. Y. Tribune. "The Maps of the Classical Atlas are of exquisite clearness and beauty.**— Christian Union. 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HISTORY OF GERMANY FOB JUNIOR CLASSES. BY SUTHERLAND MENZTES, AUXHOB OF "HISTORY OF FRANCE." 8Hil^ doloureb glap anb llluslrations. "*Kv., NEW YORK: GEORGE P. PUTNAM'S SONS, 182 FIFTH AVENUE. \i-4ti . I. mvw 'ip nn ry^mw* PREFACE. I ^vSS^) The Empire of Germany is a gigantic figure in the retrospect of History; and, in tracing a rapid outline of tlie salient events occurring in its extended annals, to- gether with the earlier records belonging to the Teutonic race, as well as brief notices of the lives and characters of its most famous personages, the difficulty with which the author has had to contend was to avoid the obscu- rity often incidental to conciseness. In this History, therefore, he has endeavoured to obviate such result as far as possible by a careful registration of dates, and by division of the several periods into short paragraphs, with the headings of their several subjects given in larger type than that of the text. By adopting such plan, it is earnestly hoped that both teacher and pupil will be enabled to grasp and retain C with gi-eater facility any given period of German history J required to be entered upon in the course of their scholastic readinsj. L"^' en SUTHERLAKD MeXZIES. Ainllf 1S73. J • i\ 3t99 CONTENTS. Introduction, Primitive ropulations, PAOB 9 FIRST PERIOD. From the most Ancient Times to tlie Conquests of tlio Franks under Clovis (486 A. D. ), 15 SECOND PERIOD. From the Conquests of Clovis to Charlemagne (511-76S), 33 THIRD PERIOD. From Charlemagne to Henry I. (7GS-919), . • 53 FOURTH PERIOD. From Henry I. to Rodolphus of Hapsburg [The Saxon SicabiaUj and Ilohendaufoi Houses).— dld-l'Il'S, • 73 [\ FIFTH PERIOD. From Rotlolpb I. of Hapsburg to Charles V. [Enipcrora of (liferent Houses).— 12^3-1520, . SIXTH PERIOD. From Charles V. to the Peace of Westphalia (1519 -1GI8), 147 :o4 8 CONTEXTa SEVENTH PERIOD. From the Peace of Westphalia to the French Revolution (1648-1789), . . , . . PAGE 245 EIGHTH PERIOD. From the French Revolution to the Peace of Paris (1789-1815), 2G4 HISTORY OF GERMANY. KINTH PERIOD. From the Peace of Paris to the Franco -Prussian TVar (1815-1870-71), . . . ,202 German Progress in Literature, Art, and Science, . 314 Index, ••...,. 332 INTRODUCTIOK PRIMITIVE POPULATIONS. Almayne, the ancient Germany, took its name from one of its most warlike tribes, the AlaTnanniy or Allemanin (all sorts of men). Germany, the name now given to the whole country, is most generally supposed to be Roman, though the word, by some, is thought to be derived from a Teutonic word which signifies " warlike." * Its ancient limits were probably not very different from those of the country which still bears that appellation. It is bounded on the east by Hungary and Poland, on the north by the Baltic Sea and Denmark, on the west by France and the Netherlands, and on the south by the Alps, Switzer- land, Italy, the Adriatic, and Dalmatia. Germany, according to the description of the Romans, was, at the time they first became acquainted with it, a rude and inhospitable land, full of immense forests, marshes, and desert tracts. The great Hercynian forest, by Ca;sar*s account, extended from the Alps over a space that in its length occupied sixty, and in its width nine days* journey; consequently, all the chief mountain chains * Most probably from the word gei\ spear or lance, and the word man — the man, the lord or chief : therefore a warlike title of honour which distinguished the manliness and valour of the nation. War and hunting were their constant occupation; so much so, that lance and man were as synonymous as spindle and woman. 10 HISTORY OF GEliilANY. and forests of the present Germany must be tlie remnants of that stupendous wooded range. Ancient authors mention several German tribes, as well as their dwelling places, with greater or less precision. Several of them also speak of the chief tribes, among which the single septs united themselves. But their statements are not sufficiently unanimous or precise to give us that clear view which we would so willingly obtain. The origin of the Germanic nations, therefore, like that of all others, is unceii:ain. To assign to them a distinct historical origin is to make an assertion without evidence, though it is now indisputably established that the Teutonic dialects belong to one great family with the Latin, the Greek, the Sanscrit, and other European and Asiatic tongues. All the positive knowledge that we have of the German nations, previous to their contact with the Romans, is exceedingly vague and mere conjec- ture. The nations foraiing the Suevic race, as Ciesar and Tacitus describe them, dwelt in the large semi-circlo traced by the upper and middle Rhine and the Danube, through the middle of Germany, and farther towards the noi-th^'to the East Sea, so that they occupied the country of the Necker. the Maine, the Saale, and then the right Elbe bank of the Havel, Spree, and Oder. Tacitus even places Suevic tribes beyond the Vistula, as well, in the interior, as on the coasts of the Baltic, and beyond it in Sweden. Grounds of probability admit, indeed, of our placing a third, the Gothic- Vandal tnbe, between the Oder and the Vistula, and along the latter stream; but as distinct infomiation is wanting, we can but allude to it The Snevi, as Ctesar informs us, had early formed themselves into one large union, whose piinciples wei-e distinctly warlike. The love of arms was assiduously cherished in all, that they might be ever ready for any undertaking. Thence it was that individuals had no fixed landed possessions; but the princes and leaders yearly divided the land among the families just as it pleased them; and none were allowed even to select tlio INTRODUCTION^. 11 same pastures for two consecutive years, but were forced to exchange with each other, that neither might accustom himself to the ground, and, acquiring an attachment to his dwelling-place, be thus induced to exchange the love of war for agriculture. They were afraid that, if an individual were permitted to acquire an extensive tract, the powerful might chase away the poor, build large and imposing dwellings, and that the lust of wealth might give rise to factions and divisions. Besides which, they were obliged, from each of their hundred districts, to supply the wars with a thousand men yearly, and those who remained at home cultivated the land for all. The following year, on the other hand, the latter marched under amis, and the former remained at home, so that agiiculture as well as the art of war were in constant exei'cise. In these, although rude principles of the Suevic union, a great idea manifests itself, and proves that the ancient Germans, about the period of the birth of Christ, were by no means to be reckoned among the savage tribes. The territory of the Suevi, a single German nation, was divided into one hundred districts, and could bring two hundred thousand warriors into the field. Agricul- tural labour was usually pei*formed by slaves. They kept bees, and made mead of the honey; and besides corn, they raised oats and barley, from which they made ale, their favourite beverage. The Germans were noted for their love of feasting, which was carried to such excess that they would some- times remain whole days and nights at table, drinking and gaming, in consequence of which they very often quarreled and fought, so that a convivial meeting fre- quently terminated in bloodshed. They gambled with dice, as Tacitus, with astonishment, informs us, in a sober state, and as a serious occupation, and with so much eagerness for gain, that when they had lost their all, they hazarded their freedom, and even their very pereons, upon the last cast. Tlie loser freely delivered himself up to slavery, although even younger and stronger thai; his 12 HISTORY OP GER^fAXY. INTRODUCTION. 13 adversary, and patiently allowed himself to be bound and sold as a slave; thus steadfastly did they keep their word, even in a bad case. " They call this good faith;' says the Roman writer. There were various circumstances under which a German might forfeit his libeii;y, such as mariy- ing a bondwoman, or of not being able to pay his debts ; but the generality of the slaves were captives taken in war. The Germans did not all sit down at the same table, but each man had his own seat and board, which were of a very rough description, being merely a wooden stool and table, furnished with drinking horns, wooden bowls, spoons, and platters. Each person of rank had his ser- vant behind him to hold his shield and spear. He kept his swcrd by his side, for on no occasion would a German part with his arms, which was a proof that he expected to have frequent need of them. The wives and daughters of the Germans, we are told, shared in all the public entertainments, for however rude ,and fierce these people might be in other respects, they were distinguished, even in the most barbarous ages, for their attention and respect to the female sex, whom the> consulted on the most important affairs, and by whose opinions they were very often guided. The feasts of the Germans, like those of the Gauls and Scandinavians, were always attended by a number of bards, several of whom were attached to the fiimily of every chief, and were treated with the highest respect. They played on the harp and flute, and when they sang of war, the company took part in tlie concert by clashing their swords against their shields. The Germans, in very remote ages, were dressed in skins of wild animals, and afterwards in a coarse kind of linen, made by the women; but as they intermixed more with the Gauls, they learnt from them to make a finer sort of linen, and woollen also, and as soon as they were acquainted with these useful arts, spinning and weaving became the principal occupations of German women, and a more civilised costume was adopted than that which was made from the skins of the elk and reindeer. These animals, in the time of Julius Caesar, were very numerous in the forests of Germany, from which, however, they have long since disappeared. The Romans justly considered the German nation as an aboriginal, pure, and unmixed race of people. They resembled themselves alone; and like the specifically similar plants of the field, which, springing from a pure seed, not raised in the hotbed of a garden, but germinat- ing in the healthy, free, unsheltered soil, do not differ from each other by varieties; so also, among the thousands of the simple German race, there was but one determined and equal form of body. Their chest was wide and strong; their hair yellow, and with young children it was of a dazzling white. Their skin was also white, then- eyes blue, and their glance bold and piercmg. Their powerful gigantic bodies, which the Romans and Gauls could not behold without fear, displayed the strength that nature had given to this people; for, according to the testimony of some of the ancient writers, their usual height was seven feet. From their earliest youth upwards they hardened their bodies by all devisable means. New- born infants were dipped in cold water, and the cold bath was continued during their whole lives as the strengthen- ing renovator, by both boys and girls, men and women. The children ran about almost naked, and effeminate nations wondered how those of the Germans, without cradles or swaddling bands, should grow up to the very fullest bloom of health. Ciesar, Tacitus, and Suetonius, with many othei-s, have pointed to one and the same characteristic of the Germans, as the secret of their power and prosperity. The Kelt had everywhere yielded to the eagles of Rome, while the Teuton everywhere checked their flight. Amazed, and even alarmed, at those tall, fair-haired, blue-eyed enemies, who had to be conquered with gold instead of steel, Tacitus examines the reasons of their prowess, and finds it in the soberness of theii- blood, in their reverence for women and for the laws of nature, in their deference to u niSTORV OF GERMANY. INTRODUCTION. 15 parental autliority, and their marriages of maturity. "Chastity is a custom with them," says the "De Moribua Germanorum;" and a passage to the same effect might be cited from Caesar. Those southern soldiera and statesmen saw, in truth, with a terrible sense of over-hanging fate, that race of hardy, chaste, home-loving, free, and fearless barbarians, of whom Titus the emperor said, "Their bodies are great, but their souls are gi-eater." It has been well written about this same treatise, the " De Moribus:" The tone of Tacitus is that of a man who bitterly feels how much gi^eater, after all, as a moral being, the barbarian may be than the civilised man, when civilization recognises no higher aim than material splendour, and that utility which subserves material wants. Other civilizations than that of the Empii-e may read a lesson in those brief pages where the philosopher of a worn-out world records his impression of the races from which that world was hereafter to be i-econstituted. These, then, were the grand old Teutonic beginnings, the qualities and habits which rendered the Alemanni so strong. Religion of the Ancient Germans.— Although the Burgundians, Lombards, and Franks had embraced Chris- tianity two hundred years before the other tribes, the greater part of Germany seems to have continued in heathen darkness until the eighth century, when mission- aries from the Churches of England, Scotland, and Ireland, left their own shores to preach the Gospel of Christ in the forests of their ancient fatherland. The worship ot the ancient Gei-mans coincided with their natui-al chamctor, and consequently was much more simple and elevated than that of other i)eoples. Although uncultivated, they carried in their hearts the sentiment of an infinite and eternal ix)wer, and they regarded it as an affront to the Divinity to enclose it within walls, or to represent it under human form. They consecmted to it the woods and forests as a spacious temple of which nature itself erected the pillai-s, and to which the immensity of the heavens formed the roof, • ii The ancient Germans adored, like the Pei^sians, the sun and fire, but they regarded Wodan as their supreme god. They called him also Alvater, father of all things. Their most beneficent goddess was the mother of the earth (Ilertha), The Germans attached great importance to divinations and prognostics. The crow and the owl signified misfortune; the cuckoo announced long life. They discovered the future by means of the branches of fruit trees (runes). Various signs were cut upon each rod, and afterwards the rods were thrown upon a white cloth; then the priest, or father of the family, offered up a prayer to the divinity, and thrice chose from among the I'ods those which were to give the di^dne revelations. The clairvoyants were held in high estimation, and history has preserved some of the names of those to which the belief of the people had given a gi^eat influence over the decision of public affairs. Tacitus names Aurinia (probably Abruna), as deeply versed in the mysteries of runic rods ; the celebi'ated Weleda, who, from the summit of a tower upon the banks of the Lippe, governed the people of the Lower Rhine; and a certain Gauna of the time of Domitian. In the expedition of the Cimbri, and in the army of Ariovistus, there were also female prophets. FIRST PERIOD, FROM THE MOST ANCIENT TIMES TO THE CONQUESTS OF THE FRANKS UNDER CLOVIS. — 486 A.D. The eai'ly history of the Germans, like that of all nations who had no written records, is involved in much obscurity. The first accurate knowledge of their transactions was that of the invasion of the country by the Gauls, com- manded by Segovesus, king of the Keltse; whilst his brother Bellovesus marched with another army into Italy, Segovesus crossed the Rhine, and gained a settlement near the Hercynian Forest. The Gennans, however, soon acted on the oflensive, and expelled the Gauls, and, by the assistance of the Belgje, one of their most warlike tribes, gained possession of some territory to the west of the Rhine, where they were enabled to fix and maintain themselves so fiimly as never to be driven out, and whence they extended themselves to the sea-coasts of Britain, and even drove its inhabitants into the interior. The Germans and Gauls, thus brought into contact with each other, continued to hold vaccillating intercourse, sometimes at war, at other times in alliance in opposition to the power of the conquering and disciplined Romans. The Germans, under the name of Cimbri, then invaded the territory of Rome, and spread such terror, that Marius, by a deviation from the law, was appointed consul, to command an army against them. After various marches during some years, in 102 B.C. Marius with an army of 52,000 men, attacked the barbarians on the banks of the Rhone, and though they are said to have mustered 300,000 foot and 15,000 hoi-se, completely defeated them, with a loss of 150,000 killed and 60,000 prisoners. Many preferring death to slavery, underwent militaiy execution, FROM THE 3I0ST ANCIENT TIMES. 17 and a few were scattered over Gaul, or crossed the Danube and so escaped to their own country. A peace ensued between the Romans and Germans which lasted until Julius Caesar, having completed the subjugation of Gaul and extended his conquests to the Rhine, fii-st became acquainted with the Gennan name. The name of Germani was first applied by Caesar to the whole nation east of the Rhine, though it properly belonged only to those tribes which he conquered in Gaul. Ariovistus, the leader of a tribe that dwelt to the soutli of the Danube, attempted to fix his establishment in Gaul, but was defeated by Ctesar, and, with the loss of 80,000 men, driven across the Rhine. Caesar built a bridge over, and twice passed that river at the head of his army, not with the view of permanent conquest, but to secure his province of Gaul against the attacks of the barbarians. The civil wars, which first occupied Caesar and Pompey, and afterwards Mark Antony and Brutus and Cassius, left the Germans opjoortunities to attempt in- cursions. The confederation of the Segambri passed the Rhine, and having repelled the attacks of Agrippa, settled themselves on the western side of that river; but a few years afterwards they were defeated by Lollius, the legate of Augustus, when 14 years B.C., Drusus, the son-in-law of the emj^eror, achieved a succession of victories which had placed nearly the whole of northern Germany at his mercy. His career, however, was cut short by a fall from his horse, which i*esulted in his death (8 b.c.). He was succeeded by Tiberius, who, during his command, not only sustained the power which Drusus had acquired, but extended it towards the north; and, by intrigues among the natives, as much as by his force, induced many of the tribes to solicit peace, and excited others to enter into the military service of Rome. The great prosperity of the reign of Augustus was first interrupted by the rebellion of the Germans, which the extortions of Quintilius Vanis provoked. The best legions ot Rome wei"e entinisted to his command, with the suj^er- intendence of the territories lying between the Rhine B 18 niSTOEY OP GERMAN X.» FROM THE MOST ANTIEXT TIMES. 19 and Elbe, and the Alps and Danube, which had been added by Drusus and Tiberius to the Roman dominions. Arminiua (Herman), a young prince of the Catti, who was educated at Rome, and who had served in the Roman armies, united his countrymen in a secret confedei-acy; and then, pretending friendship to Varus, conducted him into the depths of the forest of Teutoburg (a.d. 9), where his troops could neither fight nor retreat. In this situa- tion, Arminius attacked the Romans, from whose camp he stole by night, and so harassed them that most of the officer slew themselves in despair. The legionaries, thus left without leaders, were cut to pieces; and thus the Romans received the gi^eatest overthrow that they had suffered since the defeat of Crassus. When the news of this calamity was brought to Rome, everybody expected that the Germans would immediately cross the Rhme, and advance against the city. Augustus, though over- whelmed with sorrow, made every exertion to allay the general consternation: he sent his son-in-law and heir, Tiberius, to guard the Rhine; but he prohibited him from following the wild tribes to their fastnesses. For several months the emperor abandoned himself to tran- sports of gi-ief, during which he frequently exclaimed, "Varus, Varus, restore me my legions!" and he observed the fatal day as a moui-nful solemnity until his death. In order to meet the more extensive incui-sions of the Germans, which were now expected as certain, consequent upon this victory, Tiberius was hastily despatched to the Rhine with a mpidly collected army; to his astonishment, however, he found everything quiet. The Germans did not desii-e conquest, they wished only to protect their freedom, and according to the very nature of their alliance, after the danger was removed, each returned to his home. Tiberius held the vacillating Gaul in obedience, and passed again across the Rhine ; and, as in a few years afterwards he succeeded Augustus in the empire, ho transferred to his nephew, Germanicud, the management of the war against the Germans. The news of the death of Augustus roused a mutiny among the legions in Pannonia, which was quelled by Drusus, the son of Tiberius. The armies on the Rhine under G^rmanicus showed a disposition to reject Tiberius, and a mutinous spirit; and if Germanicus had been in- clined to try the fortunes of a campaign, he might have had the assistance of the German armies against his uncle. But Germanicus restored discipline to the army by his firmness, and maintained his fidelity to the new emperor. He made three campaigns against the Germans, defeated Arminius, and retook a Roman eagle from the Marses, which they had kept since the defeat of Varus. Recalled to Rome, Germanicus led back the greatest j^oiiiion of his warriors by water, down the Ems to the North Sea. But a tremendous storm overtook his fleet, destroyed a multitude of his vessels, and dispersed them on the coasts of Britain. Thus did the German hero Arminius, equally great in victory or doubtful battle, behold his country freed from the danger of a foreign yoke. Henceforth, the Romans thought no more of subduing Germany, but applied themselves solely to the means of securing their frontiei^s from the incursions of the Geiman tribes. The Germans were also prevented from making any serious attempts against the Romans by the internal wars which distracted them for many years. They again attacked the Roman Empire under Domitian, Nerva, and Trajan ; the last of whom entirely defeated them. From this time their attacks on the Roman empire became more frequent and more formidable, and their history becomes blended with that of the decline of the Roman empire, on the ruins of which they established several new states. These states, though often at war with each other, and differing in smaller matters, chiefly arising from difference of soil and climate, were united in one ftimilar system of policy and domestic government, and had those common habits strengthened by the providential introduction of the Christian religion, to which, though varying in some points of faith, they all in process of time professed adherence^ 20 HISTORY OF GERMANY. A series of emigmtions which revolutionised Europe now began from the Frozen Ocean, extended themselves to the Atlantic Sea, and stretched over a portion of Northern Africa. They continued from the year 375, when the Huns first broke into Europe, till 5G8, when the Lombards had completed theii* conquest of the Koman empire. When, in the year of our Lord 395, the Roman empire was divided between the two sons of Theodosius, Arcadiua had the empire of the East, and reigned at Constantinople; Honorius that of the West, and reigned in Italy. The children of Theodosius were far from resembling their father: too indolent to exercise authority of themselves, they abandoned it to their chancellors, Rufinus and Stilicho, the one a Gaul, the other a Vandal. Rufinus at Constantinople was the declared enemy of Stilicho, who governed in Italy; and, to cause him embarrassment, he invited the young king of the Visigoths, Alaric, to quit the shores of the Danube and pass into Italy. Alaric did not march directly upon Italy, but deviated somewhat by shaping his course towards Greece, then defenceless, and despoiled it of the remains of its riches and the monuments of its grandeur. In that interval, Rufinus himself succumbed to the machinations of Stilicho; but for all that the Goths did not abandon their projects against Italy, and they passed the Alps in 402. Stilicho, however, succeeded in inducing them to re-cross the mountains, either by treating with them, or by opposing to them a resistance too formidable. He even saved Italy a second time in 405, when Radagaise, at the head of a powerful army of Germans, acting probably in concert with Alaric, threatened to pass the Alps at another point. The history of this period is so confused that it lias not been clearly proved whether that mass of people was exterminated at Fcesuloe {Fiesoli)y as some writer relate, or whether Stilicho had the address to divert them from their object by treaties, pointing to the not far distant Gaul as their prey. But that which remains incontestable is the fact that Stilicho was put to death in PROM THE MOST ANCIENT TIMES. 21 408, the weak emperor having been persuaded that his minister had meditated placing the imperial crown on the head of his own son Eucharius. So soon as Alaric had learned the death of Stilicho, he returned to Italy, forced the passage of the Alps, crossed the Po, and marched straight upon Rome, leaving the feeble Honorius, whom he despised, shut up in Ravenna. At his summons to surrender, terror and confusion spread through "the eternal city," which, for 600 years, had never seen an enemy at its gates, nor for 800 yeare a foe within its walls. Even then the Romans addressed Alaric in terms characteristic of their ancient pride: *' We are still numerous, and fear not war," said they, threateningly. To which Alaric, with a bui-st of derisive laughter, replied : " Come out then ; the thicker the gi'ass, the more easily it is mown." Upon this the Roman envoys sued for peace, but Alaric replied that the only conditions on which he would spare the city were, that he should receive 5000 pounds weight of gold, 30,000 pounds of silver, all the provisions, and all the slaves of German origin in the city. Seeing no hope of safety other than by submitting to the will of the Gothic king, the Romans at length complied with his demands. Where- upon Alaric marched upon Ravenna; but as Honorius would not come to any undei*standing with him, and the city proved impregnable, the latter returned to Rome, upon which he imposed another emperor, named Attalus, in opposition to Honorius. The new emperor, however, having shown himself little worthy of his position, Alaric returned a third time, a year afterwards, in order to hurl him into the dust from which he had drawn him, and took Rome by assault in the night of the 23rd of August 410. It was fortunate for the Romans that the Goths were Christians, for all those who sought an asylum in the churches were spared ; and, contrary to the anticipations of the conquered, the victors acted with such modemtion that they refrained from setting the city on fire. Alaric remained only six days in Rome, and then set iJtSfOilV 01* GERMANY. out for the south of Italy with splendid projects in his mind, pui-posing to pass into Sicily, and thence attempt the conquest of Africa, then the gi-anary of Italy, when death suddenly arrested him at Cosenza, in the thii*ty- second year of his age. All his people lamented his loss, and a tomb was prepared for him worthy of his memory. The watei-s of the river Butento were divei*ted from their channel; then a hole being dug in the middle of its bed, the Goths therein laid the body of their king full equipped, with his war-horse and the troi)hies of his glory; and afterwards brought back the stream to its wonted coui*se, in order that the avarice of the Romans, and the hatred which they bore to his name, might not concur to j)ro- fiine the tomb wherein the gi-eat Alaric rested after his victories. The Germanic barbarians had long threatened the frontiers of Gaul, and at the commencement of the fifth century they rushed over them. On the 25th Dec. 406, the Suevi, Alains, Quades, Yandals, and Burgundians crossed the Rhine. Driven back, after two years of frightful ravages, towards the Pyrenees, they passed into Spain. The Burgimdians alone remained in Gaul, where they founded, in the valley of the Saone, the kingdom of Burgundy (413). The Visigoths, whom Alaric had brought from the banks of the Danube into Italy, were led, after the death of that daring wan^ior, by his brother-in-law, Ataulf, into southeni Gaul. That barbarian chief, converting himself into a Roman as far as he could, set himself to repair the ruin heaped up on all sides by his countiymen, and was, by a treaty with Honorius, put in possession of Aquitaine. He married Placidia, the emperor's sister, overthrew two usurpers who had assumed the purple in Gaul, and began, to the profit of the empire, the conquest of Spain over the Suevi and Alains. But lie was assassinated at Barcelona (415), and his successor, Wallia, less disinte- rested, continued that war for his own advantage. The Visigoths, mastei-s of Aquitaine as far as the Loire, and of the largest portion of Si)ain, then i)ossessed an empire FROM THE MOST AXCIENT I'tMES. 1 23 Ml I i \vhich seemed to promise a long duration, and of Avhich Toulouse was the capital (419). Almost all the Germanic people sent forth millions of warriors eager for pillage and conquest; or, it might be, ^ themselves hai*assed by the attacks of other races more powerful, they rose up in mass to seek out another country, sword in hand. The more feeble, those who could not, or would not, quit their native land, almost always remained alone, or found themselves confounded with the invading people. Thus, at the beginning of the fifth centxiry, Europe was throughout overrun by the tide of barbarian migrations. Gemiany, therefore, prior to the Frank monarchy, exhibits a pei7)etual succession of vicissitudes. As we descend the stream of time, from the invasion by Caesar to the reign of Honorius, we find new nations, or at least new denominations of such, as previously existed; and the boundaries, or the location of each, to be ever chang- injr. At one time we read of a number of tribes located on the banks of the Elbe, or the Rhine, or of the Danube; in the I'e volution of two or three centuries, we perceive names totally different occupjdng the same regions. The location of these confederations at the opening of the fifth century must be understood, or little idea can be formed of the establishment of the Frank monarchy : — 1. Between the mouths of the Elbe and the Meuse, along the sea coast, yet extending inwards towards the Rhine, were the Franks — not perhaps the most numerous, or the most formidable, but, beyond doubt, the most remarkable of the Germanic associations. Sometimes the enemies, more recently the allies of the empire, they were always treated with consideration. 2. The Alamanni, a similar confederation of tribes, occupied the eastern bank of the Rhine. 3. In an obscure angle north of the Elbe, com- prising chiefly the duchy of Bremen and part of Holstein, the fSaxo7is, in the fourth century, appeared little formid- able to their neighbours; yet in another we find them stretched considembly into the present kingdoms of Saxony and Hanover. They could not, however, be of 24 HISTORY OF GERMAKY. that nation alone, who, in the fifth eentiiiy, sufficed to conquer England; associated, or at least acting simultane- ously with them, were the Jutes, the Frisians, and other tribes. This expatriation of so many thousand adven- turers did not much affect the amount of population left behind; for the extension of the Saxon frontier continued to be progressive until they bordered on the Fi-anks and bwabians. 4. Along the southern coasts of the Baltic, comprehending the maritime tmcts of Mecklenburrr and Pomemnia as far as the Oder, lay the Vcmdale. 5. East- ward still, to the banks of the Vistula, were the Goths, generally in alliance witli the Vandals. Of this great stock were the Burgundians, who, as their name implies, dwelt m cities situated on the confines of Germany and Poland; the Ileimli, who lay towanls the Palus Mceotis: the Lombards, who occupied the region l>etween the two comprising the northern parts of Pannonia; and thJ Gepidce, who extended farther into that province. Such were the Teutonic tribes, who, at the i>eriod in question, hovered on the Eoman frontiers. G. In the central parts of Germany, extending from the Mein to the Hartz forest, we perceive the Thuringians, evidently compose(J like the rest of several tribes belonging to the great Teutonic family. 7. Besides these nations were some tiibes of Sclavonic descent, inhabiting Monnia, Misnia, Bohemia, Lusatia, and part of Mecklenburg. Were these tribes the tributaries or the allies of the Teutones? Were they now located in these regions for the first time, or had they long been here? These questions cannot' be answered. One thing is certain, that, when in danger of being expelled by their neighbours, they invoked with success the succour of their Polish or Pannonian kindred. The changes effected in the location of these tribes by the invasion of the Roman emi)ire, were in some respects gi-eater, in others less, than we might have expected. On the one side, the Heruli and the Lombards penetrated into Italy ; the Suevi, the Alains, and the Vandals tra- vei-sed Gaul and passed into Spain; the Burgundians settled in the eastern province of Gaul; the Franks FROM THE MOST ANCIEXT TIMES. 25 extended themselves from the Bhine, throughout the Netherlands, to the frontiers of that monarchy. These changes enabled the Saxons, as we have before intimated, to extend themselves farther into the interior; and the Alamanni, who were joined by a considerable body of the Suevi, to spread themselves partially into Helvetia, Bhetia, and Vindelicia. From this period the united people are distinguished as Swabians; and the country now seized by the Boii became known as Bavaria. The Thuringians, by the movement of the Franks, extended their frontier to the east bank of the Bhine; but north of Cologne, that noble river was still possessed by the Franks. The subsequent departure of the Goths into Italy and Spain enabled the nations of Sclavonic descent to spread themselves farther into Brandenburg, Bohemia, and towards the Italian frontiers. The Vandals, who, with the Alains, had established themselves in the south of Spain, summoned to Africa by the Boman general, Boniface, who commanded there, and was burning to avenge himself on the emperor, passed over thither in 420, under the leadership of their king, Geiseric or Genseric, effected the conquest of all the northern coast, and founded a flourishing kingdom, which lasted for a century, of which Carthage was the capital. Such was the adventurous course of a people whom history fii^t finds on the shores of the Baltic, and traces to the confines of the African deserts. Genseric, one of the most vigorous spirits of his time, but otherwise a true barbarian, reigned during 50 years — from 428 to 477. After his death his empire fell into decadence, partly through intestine divisions, and partly through the enervation of its people, formerly so robust, caused by indulgence in vohq^tuous pleasures under that delicious climate. In 553, Justinian, emperor of Con- stantinople, sent Belisarius into Africa to profit by these circumstances; and the latter in eight months subdued the Vandals, and brought their last king, Gelimer, loaded with chains, to gmce his triumph at Constantinople. The Suevi who had remained in Spain, more and more 2G HISTORY OP GERMAXV harassed by the Visigoths under Wallia and his successoi-s, soon found themselves driven back to the north-west of Spain and of Portugal, and in the end confounded with tliat people, 585. It was also in the fifth century (449), that the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes landed in England and founded different kingdoms. Since the reign of Honorius the Romans had entirely abandoned Britain, finding themselves too feeble to protect an island so dis- tant; on the other hand, the Britons had become so effeminate under the Roman domination that, when left to themselves, they were incapable of defending their liberty. So that, continually tormented by the ravages of the Picts and Scots, their northern neighbours, they found no other means of ridding themselves of such enemies save by inviting the aid of foreignei-s. They therefore addressed themselves to the Saxons inhabitin<^ the shores of the North Sea, whose valour they had more than once proved when their fleets had come to ravage the coasts of Britain. Two brothers, two heroes de- scended from Woden, Hengist and Horst (or Horsa), accepted tlie invitation of the Briton king, Vorti^ern, and embarked for England with three ships only, car °yin^ m all IGOO warriors. But the valour of their arms made lip for paucity of numbers; they defeated the Picts at Stamford, and were soon aftenvards joined by a lam^o force of their countrymen. The Britons would then have fam rid themselves of their protectors; the Saxons, on the contrary, desirous of settling in the country, subdued all England as far as the Welsh borders, and formed the seven kingdoms, known by the name of the Saxon Heptarchy, of which that of Kent, founded by Hencrist had the pre-eminence. ^^ ' From the time of Julius Csesar to the fall of the Roman empire, a period of more than 400 yeai-s, the gi-eater part of the Germans were governed by Roman laws, and were kept in subjection by a military force, but the wars never entirely ceased, and as the power of the Roman empire declined, the Gei-mans gi-adually recovered their liberty, and became conquerors in theii- turn. iTROM THE MOST ANCIENT TIMES. 2? The proximity of the Romans on the Rhine, the Danube, and the Neckar, had by degi'ees eflfected altera- tions in the manners of the Germans. They had become acquainted Avith many new things, both good and bad. By means of the former they became acquainted with money, and even luxuries. The Romans had planted the vine on the Rhine, and constructed roads, cities, manufactories, theatres, fortresses, temples, and altars. Roman merchants brought their wares to Germany, and fetched thence amber, feathers, furs, slaves, and the very hair of the Germans; for it became the fashion to wear light flaxen wigs, instead of natural hair. Of the cities which the Romans built there are many yet remaining, as Salzburg, Ratisbonne, Augsburg, Basle, Strasburg, Baden, Spires, Worms, Metz, Treves, Cologne, Bonn, etc. But in the interior of Germany, neither the Romans nor their habits and manners had found friends, nor weie cities built there according to the Roman style. During the great movements of the tribes, the Franks had not, like the Goths, Burgundians, and other nations, migrated froni their dwellings to settle themselves else- where, but they remained in theii- own seat, and from thence conquered only that portion of Gaul which lies to the north of the forest of Ardennes; and this forest sheltered them from being di-awn into the gi'eat streams of migration. Their division also into several branches, each of which had its own king or prince, prevented them from making extensive and geneml expeditions. But their time came. About the year 482, when Clovis, the son of Childeric, was lifted up on the shield by the Italian Franks to be their leader in war, he soon prepared himself to execute the plans of his bold and comprehensive mind, for the bent of his ardent spiiit was to make war and conquest. He has sullied the celebrity of his military fame by the most despicable want of faith to his relatives and allies. He at first concluded with the princes of the Franks, who were his equals, and for the most part his relations, alliances of war against other tribes, and after he had conquered them by their assist- 2S HISTORY OF* GERMANY. ance, and had become powerful, he tlien dospatclied those very friends out of his way by poison, the dagger, and treachery. By this means he became eventually king of all the Franks. This people was a union of several Germanic tribes : the Salians, Ripuarians, Sicambri, Chamaviri, etc., who were seen for the first time in the year 240 of our era, along the lower Ehine, since which time they had not ceased to fight their way across the river, and to seek to establish themselves in Gaul. There- in they succeeded, and their tribes, passing over, each with his chief or king, had established themselves at Cologne, at Tournay, at Cambray, and Terouenne. The First Known Frank Kings. — Of these kings, Clodion, chief of the Salian Franks, is the first whose existence is confirmed by positive facts. Pharamond, who is said to have reigned before him, is only mentioned m chronicles of much later date, and those unworthy of faith. Clodion took Toumay and Cambi-ay, put all the Romans to death whom he found therein, and, advancing- towards the Somme, arrived near Hesdin (448). Here the Franks had posted themselves behind a barrier of chariots, upon hills at the base of which ran a small river, and, believing that the Romans were far distant, cele- brated the marriage of one of their chiefs. The entire camp was engaged in feasting, altogether unmindful of keeping watch, and resounded with song and dance; while above it rose the smoke of huge fires at which the viands were being cooked. Suddenly the Roman general ^tius, then the most formidable defender of the empire, appeared. His soldiers emerged from a pass, in close files, and at the double, along a narrow causeway. They . crossed a wooden bridge thrown over the river, and attacked before their enemy had had time to form his Hnes. Behind the warriors who were fighting, othei-s heaped tumultuously upon the chariots all the preparations for the feast, the meats and huge jars of beer wreathed with garlands; but the Franks being forced to yield or flee, the chariots remained in the hands of the conquerors, as also the fiiir bride. Clodion did not siu'vive his defeat. THE FIRST KNOWN FRANK KINGS. 20 Meroveus, a kinsman of Clodion, who succeeded him as chief of the Salians, gave his name to the kings of the first race. Three years afterwards, the Franks united themselves with all the barbarians cantoned in Gaul, and with the rest of the Romans, to arrest the formidable invasion of the Huns under Attila. These Huns, a Mongol race, had migrated from the centre of Asia west- ward three-quarters of a century previously (a.d. 375), carrying death and devastation on their path. They had nothing in common with the peoples of the West, either in facial features or habits of life. Contemporary his- torians describe them as surpassing by their savageiy all that can be imagined. They were of low stature, with broad shoulders, thick-set limbs, flat noses, high cheek- bones, small eyes deeply sunk in the sockets, and yellow complexion. Ammianus Marcellinus compares them, in their monstrous ugliness, to beasts walking on two legs, or the grinning heads clumsily carved on the posts of bridges. They had no beard, because from infancy their faces were hideously scarred by being slashed all over, in order to hinder its growth. Accustomed to lead a wan- dering life in their native country, these wild hordes traversed the Step^^es, or boundless plains which lie between Russia and China, in huge chariots, or on small hardy horses, changing their stations as often as fresh l)asture was required for their cattle. Except constrained by necessity, they never entered any kind of house, hold- ing them in hoiror as so many tombs. They were accus- tomed from infancy to endure cold, hunger, and thirst. As the gi'eat boots they wore deprived them of all facility in marching, they never fought on foot; but the skill with which they managed their horses and threw the javelin, made them more formidable to the Germans than even the disciplined, but less ferocious, legionaries of Rome. This was the rude race which, bursting into Europe in the second half of the fourth century, shook the whole l)arbarian world to its centre, and precipitated it upon the Roman empire. The Goths fled before them, when they passed the Danube, the Yandals when they crossed 30 HISTORY OP GERMANY. theRhme. After a halt of half a century in the centre of Europe the Huns put themselves again in motion. Attila, the king of this people, constrained all the tribes wandering between the Rhine and the Oural to ollow him. For some time he hesitated upon which of the two empires he should carry the wrath of heaven. Deciding upon the West, he passed the Rhine, the Moselle, and the Seine and marched upon Orleans. The popul lations fled before him in indescribable terror, for the Uoitrge of God, as he was called, left not one stone upon another wheresoever he passed. Metz and twenty other cities had been destroyed : Troyes alone had been saved by its bishop Saint Loup. He wished to seize upon Orleans, the key of the southern provinces ; and hi? innumerable army surrounded the city. Its bishop, St. Aignan sustained the courage of the inhabitants by pro- mismg them a poweiful succour, ^tius, in fact, arrived with all the bai-barian nations encamped in Gaul, at the expense of which the new invasion was made. Attila for the first time fell back; but in order to choose a battle- idd favourable for his cavalry, he halted in the Cata- launian plains near M^ry-sur-Seine. There the terrible shock of battle took place. In the first onset the Franks who formed the vanguard of ^tius, fought with such animosity that 15,000 Huns strewed the plain. But next clay, ^^^i^en the great masses on both sides encountered, the bodies of 165,000 combatants were left on that field of carnage. Attila was conquered. The allies, however, not danng to drive the wild Huns to despair, sufiered Attila to retreat into Germany (451). In the year fol- ^wmg he made amends for his defeat by an invksion of Northern Italy ravaging Aquileia, Milan, and other cities m a frightful manner, but died soon after his return from an apoplectic stroke (453), and his empire fell with ium, but not the terrible remembrance of his name and of his cruelties. The Visigoths, whose king had perished m the fight, and the Franks of Meroveus, had h^rl witu ^tius, the chief honour of that memomble day in the Catiilaunian plams. For it had become a question whether CHAOS IN GAUL. 31 Europe should be German or Mongolian; whether the for- midable king of the Huns* or the German race should found a new empire on the ruins of that which was then crumbling in pieces. Meroveus had for successor, in 456, his son Childeric. The Franks, whom he irritated by his luxury, drove him into exile, and took in his place, as their chief, the Roman general ^gidius. Little more is known of Childeric than the circumstances of his exile and of his return. He died in 481, and was buried at Tournay. His son Clovis, by Basine, queen of Thuringia, became the true founder of the Frank monarchy. Chaos in Gaul.— The fiite of the chief of the Salian Franks, interested only an insignificant people located in a corner of Gaul, where, after the battle of ilery and the great league momentarily formed against Attila, every- thing had for thirty years fallen back into chaos. The em[)ire of the West, reduced almost to Italy alone, was dead in 47 G, when Odoacer, a soldier of fortune and chief of the Heruli, who commanded the German mercenaries in the imperial service, wrested the sceptre from the feeble hands of the youthful Romulus Augustulus, and founded the fii-st barbaric kingdom in Italy. In Gaul, this event j>assed unnoticed, for the Roman general, -^gidius, whom Gregory of Tours calls King of the Romans, held the coun- tries between the Loire and the Somme, and bequeathed them to his son Syagrius. The cities of Armorica, between the mouths of the Loire and the Seine, had long since constituted themselves into a federate state. The Franks pressed in greater numbers into Belgium. The Britons, harassed in their island by the pirate Saxons, went in their turn to pillage Angers, near the Loire (465). One of the last emperors having ceded all the south of Gaul to the west of the Rhone to the Visigoths, they further seized u^^on Aiies, Marseilles, and Aix, to the left of * The Huns have left in Europe more than one terrible remem- brance: it owes to them the cattle plague, which, since that epoch, has established itself permanently in the Steppes of Southeru llussia. ) 32 MISTORY OF GERMANY. that river (^77) It was a perpetual rushing Lackwards and forwards. The peoples clashed against and min-led with one another from north to south, from east to west: all sought fortune sword in hand. The peaceful ballo-Koman cities reorganised their militia, and profited by the universal disorder to armnge tlieir secular quar- rels. Amidst this chaos the great voice of the Church alone was heard speaking of peace and order to those lunous nien, and seen extending its hand to protect the feeble. The council of Aries, in 452, interdicted the casting freedmen again into slavery for the crime of ingratitude unless the same had been juridically proved. The council of Orange (441) threatened with ecclesias- tical censui-es him who should attempt to cast back into servitude those whom the church had enfranchised, and forbade the deliveiing up of serfs who had sought refu-e in her sanctuaries. ° The religion of the Franks was the rude and warlike worship of Odin, the god of the Scandinavians. They be leved that after death the brave ascended to the Wal- lialla a palace constructed amongst the clouds, and the clelights of which were continual combats interrui)ted bv long banquets, when beer and hydromel circulated inces- Iherefore the Fmnks were passionately fond of war as the means of becoming rich in this world, and in the other the guests of the gods. Tlie youngest and the most yiolexLt among them sometimes experienced, when fight- ing, tits of frenzied ecstacy, during which they appea'l-ed insensible to pain, and endowed with a power of life per- fectly wonderful. They stood erect and still fought on alter receiving many wounds, the least of which would have sufficed to prostrate other men." We find in the JNormans the same warlike fanaticism. Clovis was a perfect type of his race. When first chosen king of t^ie Salian Franks, he possessed only a few districts of Belgium, cantoned about the environs of Touniay. The army at his disposal numbered not more than lour to five thousand warriors. The first five years THE VASE OP SOIsaONS. 33 of his reign are involved in an obscurity which his youth explains. At twenty, he proposed a warlike expedition to his Franks, associated therein Ptagnachaii-e, king of Cambray, and both, at the head of five thousand warrfors, defeated, near the ancient abbey of Nogent, twelve leagues to the north of Soissons, Syagrius, who sought refuge amongst the Visigoths, but was afterwards delivered up by them to Clovis and put to death. This commence- ment of his conquests took place in 486, ten years after Romulus Augustulus was deposed. The Vase of Soissons.--The spoil taken after the vic- tory was considerable. Saint Remi, bishop of Rheims, who seems to have early entertained amicable relations with Clovis, reclaimed at the king's hands a precious vase which had been carried away from one of his churches. When all the booty had been placed in common, the king, before its division, said : " I beg of you, my faithful followers, to give me that vase, beyond my share." All consented thereto except one soldier, who, dealing the vase a blow with his battle-axe, exclaimed, '' You shall have no more than the share allotted to you." The rest, however, consented to the king's wish, who took the half- shattered vase and sent it to the bishop. The following year, at the muster of the troops held annually in the month of March, Clovis held a review of his army; and when he came before the soldier who had struck the vase, he said to him : " No one has his weapons so ill-cared for as thine." And so saying he snatched them from him, and flung them on the ground. As the man stooped to pick them up the king clove his head with a single blow of his francisque (double-edged axe), saying, " Thus it shall be done unto thee as thou didst to the vase a year ago in Soissons." And Gregory of Tours adds: "It happened in a manner to inspire all with a supreme terror." This incident, in the first campaign of Clovis, strikingly illustrates the manners of the age, as well as the rude form of government which prevailed among the Frankish tribes, the personal character of their leader, and the rights, at once illinntable and restricted, of that ll L\ 34 niSTORY OP GERMANY. THE VICTORY OF VOULON. 85 barbaric royalty. Clovis has only his share of the booty, like the soldiers, and it is the lot which has fallen to him; at the same time he deals death, without trial, to avenge a personal insult, and not a murmur is heard. Two con- trary ideas were evidently clashing in the brains of those barbarians: the sacred character of royalty, and the invincible feeling of equality—ideas that are met with on other occasions in the course of history. Marriage of Clovis and Clotilda (493).— The years following upon the battle of Soissons were passed in negotiating and fighting with the cities between the Somme and the Loire. Clovis was especially desirous of laying hand upon Paris; but a war with the Thuiingians which called him beyond the Rhine, and next his mar- riage with Clotilda, niece of Gondeband, king of the Bur- gundians, gave another course to events. Clotilda was a Christian, and she obtained from her pagan husband the promise that her first-born "should be consecrated to Christ by baptism." These were facts of the highest importance. The bishops of Northern Gaul, who had doubtless brought about this alliance, ho]ied for the speedy conversion of the king himself; for the cities of Amiens, Beauvais, Bouen, and Paris, would open their gates to the man who had espoused a woman of their fiiith. Conversion of Clovis (496).— The Alamanns* who occupied a few cantons bordering upon the Vosges — lands that had been long devastated, and from which nothing more could be taken— on seeing the Franks lay hands on so many rich Boman cities, became possessed with a desire to force the latter to share with them ; and there- fore crossed the Bhine in gi'eat numbera. The Franks rushed to meet them with Clovis at their head. The shock was terrible, and Clovis for a moment thought him- self vanquished; and, in his distress, throwing himself * Or Alemanns, and later called AUemands. This people, neighbours of the Franks, had doubtless been taken by them for all the nation which the Romans called Germans ; for they gave that name to all the races that dwelt between the Baltic Sea and the Danube, and from the Rhine to the Vistula. It would have been more correct to call them Teutches or even Teutons, » fli upon his knees, he invoked the God of Clotilda. One more effort changed the fate of the battle. The Ala- manns, driven beyond the Bhine, were pursued as far as Snabia; and the population of that country, as well as the Bavarians who inhabited the adjacent region, recog- nised the supremacy of the Franks. So great was the success that Clovis considered himself obliged to keep his word. Saint Bemigius gave him baptism, and 3000 of his chief followers received it with him. In sprinkling the holy water upon the head of the neophyte, the bishop addressed him in these words: ** Bow down thine head, O Sicambrian, and pray to that which thou didst burn, and burn that to which thou didst formerly pray." The Victory of Voulon (507). — The glory, and more over the booty, which Clovis obtained by these successes brought around him the Franks of other tribes. One day, speaking to them of the Visigoths who occupied all the country from the Loire to the Pyrenees, he said, " It displeases me that these Arians should possess the best portion of Gaul. Let us march against them and gain their country." The army followed him, and conquered at Voulon, near Poitiers, the Visigoths, ^\ho then only preserved in Gaul Septimania (Nimes, Beziers, Narbonne, etc). The bishops, whom the Arian Visigoths and Bur- gundians oppressed, applauded the success of Clovis. When Clovis marched into Tours after that brilliant expedition, he there found the envoys of the Emperor of the East. That prince, menaced at the moment by the Ostrogoths of Italy, was delighted at the appearance, beyond the Alps, of a rival to their King Theodoric; and he sent to the king of the Franks the titles of consul and patrician, with the jiurple tunic and chlamys. " Then Clovis placed the crown upon his head, and, having mounted his horse, threw gold and silver amongst the assembled people." From that day he was called consul or " Augustus." The remembrance of the Boman empire still survived. Those titles conferred by the emperor seemed to give right to him who was only the possessor of force. CloviS; in the eyes of the Gallo-Bomans, was 36 HISTORY OF GERMANY. no longer tlie barbarian and pagan conqueror, but an orthodox prince and consul of Rome. :.- Unfortunately the orthodoxy, like the consulate, was only a matter of costume; under the chlamys, as under the robe of the catechumen, there lurked the barbarian. His wife, the pious Clotilda, long vainly endeavoured, alike by her entreaties and her virtues, to bring him to a better sense of his responsibilities as a Christian; but to prevail over his hard heart nothing availed save the actual presence of impending danger. Thus it was long apparent by his conduct, as by that of the Franks, that this so-called conversion was only a work of necessity, for after his baptism, as before it, he caused his kinsmen to be assassinated, and overran the states of Christian princes, one after another, in his rage for conquest. So that, several centuries later, the Franks were considered to be the most perfidious of tlie German peoples. In vain did the sagacious king of the Ostrogoths, Tlieo- doric, who had just established his sway in Italy, and had married the sister of Clovis, Audofleda, endeavour to turn that prince from his unjust enterprises; in vain did he represent that peace and union alone befitted Christian nations. All the means that he employed proved ineffi- cacious with an ambitious barbarian who rccofjnised onlv the right of the sword and brute force. Burgundy, which Clovis could not entirely subdue, was rendered tributary to him ; his old ally, Siegebert of Cologne, treacherously murdered at his instigation by Siegebert's own son, Chlo- deric, and another prince degraded to the condition of a subject by being shorn of the long locks which were then the indispensable ornament of royal heads. By these, and similar unscrupulous means, Clovis became at length sole monarch of the Frankish nation; which, increased as it was by his former conquests, now embraced the whole of Gaul, and a considerable portion of Germany. Clovis died in 511, aged forty -five, having reigned thirty years. He had at first fixed his residence at Soissons, and was crowned at Kheims; but, about the middle of his reign, he ti*ansferred the seat of sovereignty to Paris. I SECOND PERIOD. FROM THE CONQUESTS OF CLOVIS TO CHARLEMAGNE. (511-768). Division of the Frank Monarchy between the four Sons of Clovis. — At the death of Clovis the kingdom of the Franks extended from the German Ocean to the Adour and the Cevennes; and from the frontiers of Brittany to the Ehone and Saone. The Bhine was their boundary on the north-east. Burgundy and Brittany had been reduced to the condition of tributary states, and were bound to furnish a contingent to the Frank armies; but Burgundy, having for a short time paid tribute, refused it even during the lifetime of Clovis. The cities of Aqui- taine, feebly kept in check by the Frankish garrisons left in Bordeaux and Saintes, had remained almost inde- pendent. By Clotilda Clovis had four sons, Thierry, Clodomir, Childebert, and Clotaire, between whom the kingdom was divided in such wise that each of them had a portion nearly equal to the tenitory to the north of the Loire, where the Frank nation had established itself; and also part of the Roman cities of Aquitaine which paid rich tributes. Thierry, the eldest son, became king of Metz, with Cahors and Auvergne; Childebert king of Paris, with Poitiers, Perigeux, Saintes, and Bordeaux; Clotaire, king of Soissons, with Limoges; Clodomii', king of Orleans, with Bourges. These singular divisions were productive of quaiTcls, which soon broke out; and as, in consequence of these divisions, all the provinces had become frontier provinces, there was not one of thqm which escaped pillage and 38 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD If. ^11-7G8.] CONQUESTS OP THE SONS OF CLOVIJ?. SO devastation. Tlie old hatreds of the Gallic cities were reawakened ; and their anned forces more than once engaged in sanguinary contests in favour of the quarrels of their several masters. Conquests of the Sons of Clovis. — For some years the impulsion of conquest given by Clovis continued. Thierry victoriously repulsed the Danes, who had descended as far as the mouths of the Meuse; and, in 530, he effected the conquest of Thuringia. One day, having assembled his Prankish chiefs. King Thierry thus addressed them : '* Eemember, I pray you, that the Thuringians came to attack your fathers, that they carried off from them everything which they possessed, suspended the children to the trees by the nerves of their legs; and caused to perish by a cruel death 200 young girls', tying them by the arm to the necks of horses, whom they forced by blows of sharp goads to rush in diflferent directions, so that they were torn asunder. O there were extended over the wheel-ruts of the roads and pinned to the ground by stakes; then heavily-laden chariots were driven over them, and, their bones being thus broken, they left them to serve as food for the dogs and birds." At these words the Franks, with one voice, demanded to be led against the Thuringians. Thierry, accompanied by his brother Clotaire and his son Theodebert, made a great massacre of the Thuringians, and reduced their country under his power. The Conquest of Burgundy (534). — Clovis had ren- dered the Burgundians tributary; but Clotilda remained unsatisfied, and had long cherished vengeance against the murderers of her father, the death of Gondebaud, in 517, not having yet appeased her hatred. She one day said to Clodomir and her other sons, " That I may not repent me, my dear children, of having tenderly nui-tured you, be, I pray you, indignant at my ^vi'ongs, and avenge the death of my father and mother." They thereupon marched against the two kings of Burgundy, Gondemar and Sigis- mond. The latter had recently stmngled his son whilst he slept. The Burgundians were defeated, and Sigis- mond taken. Clodomir had him flung into a well, to- gether with his wife and remaining son. But one day, whilst pui-suing too eagerly the enemy, he was himself surrounded and slain at Veseronce, near Vienne (524). The conquest of Burgundy was deferred by that death; but, in 532, Clotaire and Childebert prepared another expedition, and invited their brother Thierry to march with them. The king of Austrasia refused. " If thou wilt not go into Burgundy with thy brothers," said his chiefs (leudes) to him, "we will quit thee, and follow them in thy place." Thierry had another expedition in view; the people of Auvergne had tried to withdraw themselves from his domination, and then give them- selves to Childebert, he therefore desired to punish them. " Follow me into Auvergne," said he to his chiefs, " I will lead you into a country where you will find gold and silver as much as you may desii-e, and whence you can carry away flocks and herds, slaves and vestments in abundance. Only do not follow those men." Clotaii-e and Childebert marched therefore alone into Burgundy, besieged Autun, and having put Gondemar to flight, occupied all the country (534). Meanwhile, Thierry kept his word with his chiefs, he abandoned Auvergne to them, which was frightfully devastated. War against the Visigoths and Ostrogoths— Ex- peditions beyond the Alps and the Pyrenees.— The king of the Ostrogoths, the victorious invader of Italy, Theodoric, having overcome Odoacer at Aquileia and Verona, erected, in 493, a mighty sovereignty, called the Empire of the Ostrogoths, which extended northwards as far as the Ehine and Danube, and eastwards to the borders of Macedonia and Dacia. During a peace of thirty years, he promoted the useful arts, agriculture and trade, and even attempted the arduous task of draining the Pontine marshes, a labour which he personally in- spected from a high tower near Terracina. Notwith- standing his marriage with the sister of Clovis, the feud between the Goths and Franks continued to rage as violently as ever, until at length Clovis, who had in- 40 fliStOKY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD 11. 511-768.] DIVISION OF THE FRANKISH KINGDOM. 41 vaded tlie empire of the Visigoths and slain their king, was arrested in his successful career by Theodoric, and compelled to disgorge the province of Languedoc. In 523, Theodoric also swept away the Valais from the Burgundians, and the Eouergue, the Vivamis, and the Velay from the Franks. But he died in 526, and the Franks then taking the oftensive, ravaged the whole of Septimania (531.) That province remained, nevei-theless, to the Visigoths for two centuries; and it will be seen that by that gate of the Pyrenees it was that the Arabs were able to enter the territories of the Franks. In 533 the Austrasians retook the Rouergue, the Velay, and the Gevaudan. Three years after, Vitigis, king of the Ostro- goths, ceded Provence to the Franks in order to obtain their alliance against the Greeks. Theodebert, there- upon, who succeeded in 534 to Thieriy, his father, in the royalty of Austrasia, led a numerous army into Italy, beat the Goths who had subsidised his troops, the Greeks who had summoned him, and then ravaged the country at his pleasure. Sickness decimated his army. But the barbarians counted not their dead, they only reckoned their booty. That which Theodebert brought back was so considerable, that Childebert and Clotaire, in order to keep their chiefs (leucles) faithful to their standards, were obliged to pro- mise them one equally rich in Spain. They passed the Pyrenees and took Pampeluna. But Saragossa arrested them, and they were beaten on theii- retreat. They next compelled the Alamanns of Ehetia and the Bavarians to recognise their sovereignty, and even the Saxons sub- mitted to pay them tribute. Clotaire sole King (558-5G1)— Ferocity of Manners- Violent Deaths of almost all the Frank Princes.—That power fell, in 558, into the hands of Clotaire alone. Death or assassination had rid him of his brothers and their children. One of them, Clodomii*, had been killed at the close of a battle by the Burgundians in 524. Of the three sons left, Childebert and Clotaire slew two of them with their own hands. Clodoald, disdaininr/ a IrV * terrestial kingdom, devoted himself to heaven, cut off his long locks with his own hand, and became a monk. He was after death honoured with a record in the calen- dar of the church; and his name, slightly altered, sur- vives in the ruins of the palace of Saint Cloud, recently destroyed during the Franco -Prussian war. Clotaire reigned only three years over the entire territory of Clovis. Chramme, his eldest son, had entered into some plot against him with Childebert. His uncle dead, he fled for refuge into Brittany; thither his father pursued him, defeated the Bretons who sought to protect him; and; on his capture, caused him to be fastened with his wife and children in a peasant's hut, which was set on fire, and all perished in the flames. Such were the ferocious manners of that asfe. Clotaire only survived that son a year, and his end was as fearful as his crimes had been enormous, for he was poisoned by his own son. He died in his villa of Compi^gne, where, in the immense forest surrounding, he often went to amuse himself with those great hunting parties which afforded so much pleasure to the early Merovingians. At the approach of death, when in his last agonies, that fierce barbarian felt himself conquered at last: "What is this king of heaven," he exclaimed, "who thus causes to perish the greatest kings of the earth]" He died in 561, having reigned fifty years. Under the sons of Clovis, the spirit of conquest still animated the Franks; henceforward, during a century and a half, there will reign only the spirit of discord. New Division of the Prankish Kingdom (561).— Although the partition of the monarchy had led to so much crime, yet upon the death of Clotaire I., it was again divided between his four sons, Charibert, Gonthram, Chilperic, and Sigebert, into the several kingdoms of Paris, Soissons, Metz, and Burgundy. The premature death of the king of Paris, Charibert, reduced thorn to three in 567. This last i)artition had more duration than the preceding, because it responded to real divisions, to distinct nationalities. Gonthram reigned over the 42„ HISTORY OF GERMANY. [pEIlIOP ll. Burgunclians, Sigebert the Aiistrasian or eastern Franks, and Chilperio over that mixed population of Franks and Gallo-Romans, called Neustrians or Westerns. Of these three personages, Gonthram had the least brilliant, but the longest existence; he was destined to outlive the sanguinary catastrophes of which the two other kingdoms were the theatre. Fr^degonde and Brunehaut. — These catastrophes were commenced by the rivalry of Fredegonde and Brunehaut. The first of these two celebrated queens had married Chilperic, after having incited him to murder liis wife, Galswinthe ; the other, sister of Galswinthe, had espoused Sigebert. Excited by Bninehaut, who burned to avenge the death of her sister, Sigebert seized upon almost all the teiTitories of his brother. But Fredegonde caused him to be assassinated (575). From that day her crimes multiplied; her husband's son was murdered, and Chil- peric himself met with the same fate (584); the bishop Pretextat was assassinated at Bouen on the steps of the altar. On account of the youth of Clotaire II., son of Chilperic and Fredegonde, and Childebeii; II., son of Sigebert and Brunehaut, the kingdoms of these princes were governed by theii' two mothei^; and for many years the struggle between these bad women deluged the royal houses with blood. At length, Brunehaut, having shed the blood of two of her own sons, and that of many other persons, received the reward of her crimes. On the death of Thierry II. (613), Brunehaut hoped to imite the Bur- gundians and Austrasians against the son of Fredegonde, but she was betrayed by her own soldiers, and given up to Clotaire II., her implacable enemy. He reproached her with the death of ten kings, abandoned her during three days to the insults of his army, and after parading her on the back of a camel through his camp, tied her to the tail of a wild horse, which dragged her over rough ground until she was torn in pieces. The four sons of Thierry II. had already perished by assassination, and Clotaire II. found himself, like his gi*andfather Clotaire I., sole king of the Franks (613). The horrible Fred^- 511-7G8.] CLOTAIRE II. SOLE KING. 43 gonde, his mother, escaped in this life the punishment due to her crimes, having died " full of years " in 597. State of Gaul in the Sixth Century — Disorders and Darkness of the Age. — Humanity has traversed few ejiochs so deplorable as the sixth and seventh centuries of our era. The indisci])line, the brutal violence of the barbarians, the absence of all order, the reawakening of old rivalries of city and city, of canton and canton, and everywhere, in short, a sort of return to a state of primi- tive nature; such is the spectacle shown by the annals of that miserable epoch. Pillage, incendiarism, or some sudden attack and murder were ever to be dreaded by all. Besides the evils caused by present violence, there was always i^ei'petual inquietude arising from the thought of future violence, the barbarians making as little scrui)le to forfeit the liberty as the possessions of the vanquished. Let us add, in order to finish the picture of those troublous centuries which followed the break up of the imperial sway of Rome, that all culture of the mind was arrested, that the Latin tongue was degraded in those coarse mouths, that kings and chiefs, and all who were not in the cliurch or the municipal administrations, no longer troubled themselves about learning to read or write. Civilization retrograded, and seemed on the point of dis- ai)pearing altogether under the ruins heaped up by the barbarians. Three Societies in Gaul. — When the invasion had passed over Gaul, breaking the ancient linl^s, and bring- ing forth new political and social ideas, as it had brought in new peoples, three societies were found in presence of each other, one of which served as a link to the two others; the Gallo-Bomans, the barbarians, and between them, recruiting itself from both, the Church. Clotaire IL kola King (613-623); Constitution Per- petual of 615. — There had been, however, under Clotaire 1 1., become sole king after the death of Brunehaut and the children of Thierry II., a considerable effort made in 615 to organise that society the disorder of which we have just described. Seventy-nine bishops assembled in 44 HISTORY OF GERMANY. PERIOD 11. Paris, together with the chiefs {leudes) of tlie three king- doms; and the king sanctioned, by an edict or perpetual constitution, the decisions of that assembly. The election of bishops was reserved for the clergy and the laity of the dioceses, the king having only the right to confirm the election, after which the metropolitan conseci-ated the elected; the cleric was only legally responsible to his bishop; the direct imposts established by Chilperic, Fr^de- gonde, and Brunehaut, were abolished; but the tolls upon the roads, and the dues upon entering the cities, sub- sisted; the judges of counties were always to be drawn from amongst the landed proprietors : a measure extremely favourable to the aristocracy, for the great proprietors found thenaselves invested with judicial power, which then seemed to unite all other. Barbarian Laws.— Each German tribe had its law. That of the Visigoths and the Burgundians approached very closely to the Boman code, under which the clergy and the Gallo-Bomans lived. The laws of the Alamanns, the Bavarians, the Bipuarian, and Salian Franks are still extant. Three piincipal characteristics distinguish them from the Boman law. At first they formed only a penal legislation, that is to say, they were concerned solely with crimes, which implies a state of society singularly violent. In the second place, they permitted exemption from pun- ishment by money fines, by amends or composition {wehr- geld), the amount of which differed principally accordin^^ to the condition of the injured party. Every injury, from an insulting word to murder itself, had its suitable pen- alty; thus he who stole a pig was fined 15 shilimgs, and the murderer of a serf, 35; but the slaughter of a freeman could not be expiated for a less sum than 300 shillings. The use of scurrilous language subjected him who used it to penalties varying from 3 to 6 shillings. The soUdicSy or shilling, was the price of a cow; but it is, of course impossible to ascertain its exact value in English money. The Salian Franks divided it into forty denmii or j^ence, and the Bipuarii into twelve. If a criminal were unable to pay the fine, he swore that he did not possess sufficient 511-7G8.] THE SALIC LAW. 45 property either on the earth or under the earth, and made over his estate and debt to his relations by taking a hand- ful of dust from each of the four corners, and throwing it on them. He then stripped himself of his under gar- ment, and, with a staff in his hand, went to the limits of his property. After this ceremony the relations became responsible for payment of the fine; but if they also wero unable to discharge it, the culprit was put to death. All trials were conducted publicly before a jury of persons of like degree with the accused. Proof of the facts was admitted by the testimony of a certain number of rela- tives or friends, whether of the accused or the accuser. The judge might, however, order tlie single combat, or judicial duel, and the ordeals by cold water, hot water, or red-hot iron. In the first case, the accused with feet and wrists bound, being thrown into a large vessel filled with water, was considered to be guilty if he floated — the water, which had been religiously consecrated, being unable, they said, to retain anything impure. In the second, he plunged his hand to the bottom of a vase filled with water heated to the boiling-point, to take out a ring which the judge had thrown therein. If he withdrew ib without any trace of injury he was acquitted. It was the judgment of God. The ordeal by red-hot iron was analogous : he had to lift and carry for a few paces a bar of iron reddened in the fire; if, three days afterwards, the hand was without injury, or if the injury presented a certain aspect, the accused was innocent. Tortures and executions were reserved for the slave and the serf con- victed of crime. The free man was habitually subjected only to the wehrgeld. The Salic Law. — That law, drawn up in writing on the left bank of the Bliine before the baptism of Clovis, is preceded by a prologue written later by some cleric of Fiankish origin, and which clearly shows the degree of savagery still remaining in that people, even in its records, and also sincere devotion to the Church: *' Long live the Christ who loves the Franks ! may he watch over their kingdom and fill their king with light and grace; 46 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [period II. may he protect the army, may he gmnt it signs which attest its faith, the joys of peace and happiness. May the Lord Jesus direct in the path of piety the reigns of those who govern us; for this nation is that one which, small in numbers, but brave and strong, shook off the heavy yoke of the Romans, and who, having recognised the sanctity of ba})tism, ornamented sumptuously with gold and precious stones, the bodies of the holy martyrs, whom the Romans had burnt in the fire, massacred, muti- lated with the sword, or caused to be torn by wild beasts." A famous article of the Salic law decreed that a woman could not inherit Salic or allodial land, for which the Frank owed military service. That exclusion was natural ; and, later on, the kingdom was assimilated to the Salic land, and women in France have always been excluded from the succession to the cro\vn. In all the German kingdoms general assemblies of the people were held under different designations. Thus, among the Anglo- Saxons, they were termed Witenagemots (Councils ot the Wise), and, amongst the Franks, INIarzfelder (fields of March), because they were held in the open fields in that month. At these meetings questions of war and peace were debated ; and, in the event of the former being voted, the Heerbann or general militia was called out by the king, every adult male being required to appear at an appointed place armed and equipped for the cam- paign. In the field the inhabitants of each duchy and county were marshalled under the banner of their duke or count, the whole being imder tlie command of the king. Childebeii; II., having reunited the two kingdoms of Austrasia and Burgundy, had attempted to seize upon that of his cousin, Clotaire II.; but his troops were defeated at Droissy, near Soissons; and, before he had time to repair that check, a sudden sickness carried him off in 596. He left two sons, the eldest of whom, Theo- debert II., had Austrasia; the other, Thierry II., Bur- gimdy. After their deaths, Clotaire II. reigned alone till 628, when he died, leaving his kingdom between his two sons, Dagobcrt 1. and Charibcrt IJ, 511-7G8.] MAYORS OF THE PALACE. 47 Clotaire II., in 622, had imposed his son Dagobert as kino" upon the Austrasians, under the direction of the mayor of the palace, Pepin de Landen, or the Old, who had already distinguished himself in the struggle against Brunehaut, and of Saint Arnoulf, bishop of Metz. These two personages, ancestors of the Carlovingian House, were closely allied by the marriage of their children. Ansegise, the son of Arnoulf, had espoused a daughter of Pepin de Landen, and of their union was born Pepin d'Heristal. ^ nc^^ ^ Dagobert, by the mimler of his brother m G31, made himself master of the whole kingdom. He was the most powerful and the most popular of the Merovingian kings. '' A terrible prince," says his biographer, " towards rebels and traitors, grasping firmly the royal sceptre, and stand- ing like a lion against the factious." He founded the abbey of St. Denis, where the greater number of the kings of France lie buried; he encouraged the slight vestiges of art then existing, and exhibited a luxury unknown to his ferocious predecessors. For this he has been called '' the Solomon of the Franks," and the name of the gold- Bmith Eloi, his minister, linked with his own. Decadence of the Merovingian Empire.— The reign of Dagobert, like a short gleam of prosperity between a period of conquest and another of rapid decadence, saw also the reverse. That prince was forced to yield the crreatest part of Aquitaine to his brother Charibert. burino^ his lifetime, but especially after his death, defec- tions multiplied. Then the Saxons refused the tribute, the Thuringians revolted, the Frisons gave themselves to a duke, the Bavarians and the Alamanns only lent an obedience purely nominal. Even in the interior of Gaul the Frank domination fell back as far as the Loii-e. The successors of Charibei-t reigned over all Aquitaine and Gascony. Southern Burgundy gave itself equally to its national chiefs. Mayors of the Palace.— In each couH there was a mayor of the palace, chief of the warriors, elected by them, and judge of all the quarrels which arose withm 48 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD II. the royal abode. By degrees that officer, who at first only had the control of the palace and the command of the chiefs {leudes), assumed plenary power, the king dele- gating to his hands the discharge of the royal functions. From 613 the mayors found themselves strong enough to stipulate, when delivering up Brunehaut to Clotaire II., that they should hold their appointments for life. Var- nachaire, says a contemporary chronicler (Fredegaire), was instituted mayor of the palace of Burgundy, and received from the king an oath that he should never be degraded. Neustria, Austrasia, and Burgundy had each their several mayors of the palace, who all strove to grasp the principal power. Not only did the mayoralty become an office for life, but it was about to become, in Austrasia, at least, hereditary; so that the functions ol royalty will be, on one side, in the hands of the mayor, and the title, on the other, in those of the king. Gaul now for some ages was characterised, under the incapable hands of the Merovingian dynasty, by more than ancient barbarism. The descendants of Clovis reigned over the Franks for nearly two centuries and a half. That long period occupies but a brief space in history; its annals offer only a succession of barbarities and crimes. From Clovis to Charles Martel, the grand- father of Charlemagne, there existed not a royal personage worthy of the reader's attention or memory; nor is there recorded an event or anecdote which could excite any other feeling than that of disgust. The race of Clovis became effete from gross licentious- ness, and was thinned by mutual slaughter. Monarchs 01 monarch's sons could not long escape the sword of the assassin; whilst to intrust a child-king to the care of one of his own race, or of royal blood, even if such survived, was to deliver him to certain destruction. Hence arose the necessity of electing regents amongst the Frank chiefs. The office fell to the only magistrate or minister existing in that rude state of society. This was the mordom or Qiiajor domih, as it is rendered in Latin, who was at once a royal judge and a sort of steward of the household. lu 611-768.] MAYORS OF THE PALACE. 49 their own names they assumed the power of pardoning offences, of distributing offices, of filling vacant fiefs, and of transmitting their honours and possessions to theii« descendants In all this, however, they were obliged to proceed with mucli caution, having in the other great feudatories not only equals, but rivals. Austrasia and JVeustria, or the kingdoms of the East and the West, the two great divisions of the Frankish monarchy, the former includmg the territories bordering on the Rhine, the latter the more central parts of modern France, were nominally governed by Thierry IV., but in reality by I'epin d Heristal, mayor of the palace and duke of France • who, restricting his sovereign to a small domain, ruled dlir^ '^^-^ ^^^'*^ "^'^^ ^^^""^ ^^'^'^''^^ ^^'^ ^^^^ Charles Martel, the valiant son of Pepin, succeeded to Ins father s power, and, under a similar title, governed for twenty-six years with equal ability and success. He was victorious over all his domestic foes. His arms kept in awe the surrounding nations; and he delivered France Irom the ravages of the Saracens, who at that time were making gi^at inroads in the parts bordering upon Spain, and whoui he entirely defeated between Toui^s and Poitiers 300,000 ^A.D 732),* and again near Avignon, in 737, thereby in all probability, securing Lombardy, Italy, and eventually the eastern empire from the preponderance of the Moslems : such a course of conquest, according to their own writers, having been contemplated by the Arabian commander. Christianity wa^ thus saved from the greatest danger by which it had ever been menaced In the same year (737), died Thierry IV., the last oi the sluggard kings {faineants), when Charles Martel, no longer thinking it necessary to appoint another nomi- nal king at his death, in 741, bequeathed the kingdom as an absolute right between his two sons, Carloman and ^o^^&'t^^^ ^''^ ^^^^^ ^'' ^'^^y ^^'^ ^--^ hammered n 50 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [period it. Pepin the Short. Aquitania was not included in this bequest. It was governed by dukes of its own aiid refused to acknowledge the authority of Charles. Fepm and Carlonian assumed the title and power of kings, and thus put an end to the Merovingian dynasty, or that ot the race of Clovis, which had reigned from a.d. 481 to 741— in all, 2G0 years. , . , . For some time before being thus supplanted by a new power, the later monarchs of the Merovingians had become so far sunk in sloth and timidity, that the titular king no longer appeared in public before the people save at the assemblies in March. Then, seated on the throne of his ancestors, and exposed to the gaze of every one, he bowed to the great men, who returned his salute; received the presents offered to him by the nation, and remitted them to the mayor of the palace, who stood at the foot of the throne Kext, he distributed, according to the decision of the mayor, the vacant domains, or confirmed those which had been abready granted. This done, he re- entered his chariot drawn by four oxen, fol owing the ancient custom, and rolled lazily back to his palace, which he did not leave again until the month of March m the following- year. The male members of the Merovingian roval family were distinguished from the rest of the people by the custom of wearing their hair in long curls hanging down over their shouldei^, whilst all the other Franks had it cut very short. From this custom they are some- times called the *' long-haired kings" {les rois chevelns). The Merovingian race, says Eginhard, had not for a long time given proof of any virtue, or of anything illustrious save the title of king. The prince contented himself with the exhibition of his flowing locks and ample beard, with sittin<^ on the throne and in his royal robes thus repre- sentinc^ the monarch, generally too happy to intrust the cares of state to an able minister, whilst they themselves did little else (says a contemporary, Gregory of Tours), but gormandise like brute beasts, except now and then si^ming a state paper, or giving audience to ambassador, and making replies to them which they were taught, 511-7CS.] mayors of the palace. 51 or rather ordered to make. When Pepin d'Heristal demanded of Berthaire, a pretender to the throne of Neustria, the recall of the Neustrian chiefs who had sought refuge in Austrasia, Berthaire replied that ho would go in search of them himself, and went at the liead of a numerous army. But Roman France^ as Neustria had then begun to be called, was conquered at Testry (near Peronne), by Teutonic France, (687). That battle really put an end to tlie first dynasty of the Frank kings. For though the Merovingian kings still bore that title until 752, it was without linking with it even a shadow of power. In those 65 years, no acclamation arose in favour of that degenerate race to which it seemed even a trouble to live. Almost all these princes died in early manhood. Those who attained their thiiiiieth year were ah-eady old men, and their subjects were astonished to see them reach so '^reat an a^^e THIRD PERIOD. FROM CIIAI^LEMAGNE TO HENRY I. — (7G8-910). Origin of the Carlovingians.— The empire of tlio Merovingians, which had reached its apogee under Dagobert, had, as has been shown, slowly crumbled to pieces in the incapable hands of the " sluggard " kings. But from among the Franks, who had preserved upon the banks of the Rhine the warlike energy of the first con- querors, there sprang a family which combined all the conditions then requisite for exercising a gi-eat influence. It had very considerable possessions, for it reckoned amongst them as many as one hundred and twenty-three domains, and it had consequently a numerous band of adherents, that is to say, many warriors attached to its fortunes. The chiefs of this family, during the seventh century, had held hereditarily the office of mayor of the palace of Austrasia; first in the persons of Pepin de Landen and Amoulf ; next in Grimbald, son of Pepin, who had thought himself strong enough to place his own son upon the throne; and at length in Pepin d'Heristal, who, in 687, usurped the whole power of the kingdom. (Landen and Heristal were small towns in the neighbour- hood of Liege). On the death of Pepin, in 714, he was succeeded in his office and dignities as general and governor of all France by his son, Charles Martel, of whose signal valour and great energy mention has already been made. Charles died in 741, covered with glory on account of his splendid victories, leaving two sons, Pepin the Short and Carloman, the latter of whom soon after- wards retired into a monastery; when Pepin became sole major domiU of France. In that quality, he governed 768-919.] WARS OF PEPIN". 53 the kingdom at his will, in all wisdom and equity; whilst the king, Childeric III., kept himself shut up like a woman in his palace, without troubling himself about the government. But Pepin, having convinced himself that general feeling was in his favour, convoked a national assembly in 751, at which it was decided that a deputa- tion should be sent to the Pope to propose the following insidious question: "Which of the two is most worthy of the title of king; he who sits idly at home, or he who bears the burden and cares of government?" Pope Zacharias replied : " He ought to be king who holds the royal power." The Franks reassembled at Soissons on this matter, tore the crown from Childeric III, the last Merovingian, cut off* his long locks, and condemned him to pass the rest of his life in a cloister. Wars of Pepin (741-768).— During twenty-six years of continual wars and victories, Pepin rendered more assured the domination of the Franks over the Germanic tribes. He overthrew the dukes of Aquitania, rescued Septimania from the Arabs, and took the city of Yannes from the Bretons. At the solicitation of the Pope, Pepin twice crossed the Alps and conquered Astolphus, king of the Lombards, who, alarmed at the alliance between the king of the Franks and the Pope, had attacked the latter in his capital. Pepin having driven out Astolphus from the province called the exarchate of Ravenna, gave it to the church. That donation was the origin of the tem- poral power of the popes. As a reward for his services, Pepin was nominated exarch of Rome and Ravenna, with the title of Protector of the Holy City; and thus in the alliance of the temporal and spiritual powers was laid the foundation of that grievous tyranny under which Germany afterwards groaned for so many centuries. The church revived for him the Hebrew rite of consecration; he twice received the holy unction, first from the hands of Boniface, the apostle of Germany, and a second time, in 754, by those of Pope Stephen II., who came himself for that purpose as far as St. Denis. He undertook only two expeditions against the Saxons, from whom he exjicted 64 UISTORY OF GERMAN^, [PERIOD III. a tribute of 300 horses and free entrance into tlieir country to the Christian priests. In that quarter, he seems not to have wished to trouble by his arms the work of civilization which the missionaries were then accom- plishing. All his attention and all his strength were directed towards the countries of the South, Italy, Aquitania, and Southern Gaul. Pepin died of dropsy at Paris on his return from the expedition of 768, in which he achieved the conquest of Aquitania; "and," says Eginhard, " with the consent of his nobles, divided, on his death-bed, the kingdom of France between his two sons, Charles and Carloman." Pei)in was surnamed the Short from the smallness of his stature, which, however, detracted in no wise from his physical strength, if a very doubtful anecdote be credited that with one blow he fractured the skull of a lion that no one dared encounter. He was a man of gi*eat activity of mind and body, and reigned for 17 years with dignity and success, the founder of the second race of monarcLs known as the Carlovingian. In 759, he annexed to his own dominions Narbonne and a great i)ortionof Languedoc, then called Septimania, which had been conquered from the Visigoths by the Saracens. Upon Pepin fell a two- fold task — to reconstruct the emi)ire of the Franks which was falling to pieces, and to restore the royal authority, then in ruins. Of these two tasks, the second was more difficult to accomplish than the first. Charlemagne and Carloman. (7G8-771).— Carloman had received Neustria as his portion, and Charles (after- wards known in history as Charlemagne, or Charles the Great) inherited Austrasia. This division of the empire existed for only three years, and those years were employed in completing the work of Pepin in Aquitania. Carloman had badly supported his elder brother in tLat war, and a misunderstanding arose between the two princes which threatened a civil war, when Carloman died from an accident in 771, leaving sons. The Neustrians having to choose between those children and their uncle, Charlemagne, who had already shown himself a worthy successor of 768-919.] CnARLEMAGNE AND CARLOMAN. 65 Pepin, did not hesitate to proclaim him their king. The first act of Charlemagne had stamped him as the warrior eager for conquest. He raised an army and advanced with it beyond the Loire. For centuries barbarism had been continually making war upon civilization, conquering, destroying, or blending with it. The conquest was not yet over, the amalgamation not perfect. The rude Austrasians of the Rhine had lately subdued the more polished Neus- trians of the banks of the Seine. But Aquitania and the southern provinces were, with respect to Neustria, what Neu stria had been to Austrasia, far more civilised and Latinised, and the hate on the one side equalled the desire of conquest and domination on the other. Pepin had vanquished the Aquitanians. Upon his death they rebelled, rallying round one of the family of their ancient dukes. But the courage of the southerns failed before the approach of Charlemagne and his northern army; their troops dis- persed, and their chief remained a prisoner. Charlemagne, ere he retired, built the strong castle of Fronsac, on the Dor- dognc, and garrisoned it, to keep the malcontent province in subjection. The Franks had hitherto a hatred of towns, and a contempt for fortifications. This is the first instance among them of dominating a country by means of a fortress, and marks how advanced were the views of Charlemagne beyond those of his time. To a restless activity of body, which made every hour appear tedious unless employed in combating his enemies, or in the organization of his empire at home, this great man united a creative spirit, which, during the forty-three years of his reign, changed the condition not only of France, but of all Euroi)e. With him closes the history of ancient Germany. All the old free states and kingdoms were incorporated into one mighty empire, and with the new name the people adopted new views and a new character. The Goths, the Burgundians, the Lombards, and the Franks, had, as has been said, embraced Christianity already for some time back; but it was only two centuries afterwards that it spread in Germany, the greater part of which seems to have remained in heathen darkness imtil b6 History of Germany. [period hi. the eighth century, when missionaries from the churches of England, Scotland, and Ireland, left their own shores to preach the Gospel of Christ in the forests of their ancient fatlierland. Amongst those zealous proi)agatoi*s of the truth, who sowed the good seed far and wide, the most distinguished was an Anglo-Saxon monk, named Winifried, who was later known by the clerical title of Bonifacius {beneficent). On his amval in Gaul, he found heathenish ceremonies everywhere interminf^led with the rites of Christian worship; the priests so ignorant that, far from being able to explain the doctrines of Christianity, few of them could even read. Boniface, indeed, complained far more bitterly of the bad Christian priests whom he found amongst the Franks, than of the barbarity of the pagans. They abandoned themselves to every sort of crime; and for money they would have as readily sacrificed to pagan gods, to Thor or Woden, as baptize Christians; and the lightest reproaches with which he visits the bishops, whose duty it was to main- tain the discipline of the Church, being that they were more occupied with war, the chase, and the banquet, than in the exercise of their religious functions. "For the last 60 or 70 years," he writes to Pope Zacharias, "religion has been entirely dragged in the mire ; and more than 80 years have elapsed since the Franks have held a council, and they have not a single archbishop. Almost all the bishoprics are in the hands of greedy laics, and the others in those of infamous ecclestiastics who seek only after temporal gain." Having soon ascertained that the co- operation of some higher power would be requisite, in order to enforce discipline among the corrupt clergy of the Frankish church, Boniface earnestly solicitecf the assistance of the Pope. That such a step was unavoid- able, appears from his letters, in which he describes himself as being " in the situation of a mastiff, which sees the thieves and murderers breaking into his master s 'house, but, having none to help him, can do little more than groan and gi-owl." In an epistle to the English bishop, Daniel, he speaks also of the necessity of conciliating, not 768-919.] WAR AGAINST THE SAXOXS. 57 only the Pope, but the Frankish king. <* Without aid from the Prince of the Franks, I can neither rule the people, nor protect the priests and deacons, monks and nuns, whom I have brought hither with me from England ; nor can I, without his commands and penalties to enforce obedience to the same, hope to put an end to their heathenish practices and sacrifices to idols." The great measure of church reform among the Franks having been at length completed, Boniface found himself at leisure to undertake the conversion of the heathen; a work which he carried on with his accustomed energy, preaching with great zeal and effect, and stationing mis- sionaries in all parts of Germany. Fearless of danger, he would scatter with his own hands the stones of altars, around which multitudes of howling savages were assem- bled to offer sacrifices to their idols; or, snatching an axe from the ministering priests, hew down some ancient tree, the dwelling, as they believed, of some deity of their dark and bloody mythology. During this operation, the people would gaze in stupid wonder on the sacrilegious stranger, expecting, as stroke after stroke fell on the trunk, that its terrible inhabitant would rush forth in a jflame of fire and consume Boniface and his companions; but when the tree at length fell, without any sign of their god's dis- pleasure, they generally lost all confidence in his power, and listened patiently to the exhortations of the mission- aries. All who declared their willingness to embrace Christianity were then questioned after a certain formulary. In the seventieth year of his age, Boniface being then archbishop of Mainz and primate of the Greek Church, went to preach the gospel in Friesland, where he fell a victim to the ferocity of the people. "Truly" (says old Schmidt), Germany hath great cause to be thankful unto Bonifacius; for he it was who gave her instructors, not only in religion, but in the sciences; persuaded her in- habitants to eat no more horse-flesh, laid the foundation of letters among them, and shunned not to shed his blood for their sakes." War ag-ainst the Saxons (772-80^).— Bcligion was 53 fllSTORT OP GEnMANY. [PERIOD III. the pretext for the long war Charlemagne waged against the Saxons — the most formidable and obstinate enemies whom he encountered during his reign. The Saxons, a brave but savage race, who for centuries had been engaged y at intervals in sanguinary struggles with the Frankish y kings, had burned the church of Deventer and menaced with death the missionaries who had come amongst them. Charlemagne immediately entered their country, and devastated it far and wide by sword and fire, took the castle of Ehresbourg, and o\^rthrew the idol Irminsul, a patriotic remembrance of Hermann (or Arminius), the liberator of Germany from the Romans. In 774, whilst Charles the Great was in Italy, the Saxons tried to burn the church of Fritzlar; he returned and began a war of extermination, of which the principal incidents were the victories of Buckholz, of Detmold and Osna- bruck, the massacre of the 4500 Saxons decapitated at Verden, the transportation of a part of that people into other provinces, and the forced conversion of the in- habitants. The hero of the resistance was Wittikind. He fought resolutely until 785; ho then submitted and received baptism at Attigny. The last cam- paign, hov/ever, was undertaken as late as the 3^ear 803. ^ Charlemagne, in 787, had promulgated for the organisa- tion of Saxony, a capitular in which the pain of death was to be found in almost every article, not only for crimes which all laws punished thus, but for simple infractions of the ordinances of the church; for havin^ broken the quadrigesimal fast, refused baptism, carried on intrigues with pagans, or burned, like them, the body of a dead man, holding, as he did, cremation to be a pagan rite. Charlemagne, having followed up this cnieade at inter- vals for a period of thirty-three years, by means not nnfrequently altogether atrocious, at length succeeded. Saxony emerged from his hands subdued and Christian, divided into eight bishoprics, studded with new cities and abbeys, which proved centres of civilization; and that 708-910.] WAR AGAINST THE SAXONS. 69 wild country, until then barbarous and pagan, entered into communion with the rest of the empire. It will now be necessary to revert to the year 773, when Chai'lemagne*s attention was called away from the Saxons towards Italy, where his conquests and alliances produced events as important in their consequences, perhaps, as any to be found in modern history. He had contracted a matrimonial alliance with Desiderata, a Lombard princess; but had repudiated her within a year after their luiion, apparently from mere caprice, and sent her back dishonoured to her father. Didier (or Desiderius), king of the Lombards, exasperated by this gross outrage, appealed to the Pope, Adrian I., to recognise the two young sons of Carloman as their father's lawful successors ; and, on the pontiff's refusal, the Lombard army invaded the pa]^al territory, seized upon several cities, and threat- enccl Home itself. In the autumn of 773, Adrian sent messengers in urgent haste to the king of the Franks, imploring immediate succour. Charlemagne assembled his forces at Geneva, and crossed the Alps in two great divisions — the first, under himself, by the pass of Mont Cenis, whilst his uncle Bernard attempted the passage at the spot which was then Mons Jovis {Mont Joux)y but which has since been called after his name, the Great St. Bernard. Checked for a moment by the enemy in their descent from the mountains, the Franks overpowered all resistance when once they had reached the plain. Didier fied to Pavia; his son, Adalbgis (Adalgisius), with whom were the widow and children of Carloman, threw himself into Verona. Both cities were invested by the Franks, and both, after some months, surrendered at discretion. When the Lombard king reconnoitered the Frankish army from a high tower, and saw the gigantic form of his enemy sheathed in bright armour, and mounted on a charger, which seemed, like its master, to be an animated statue of iron, his heart, the old chroniclers relate, sunk within him, and he exclaimed in a melancholy tone to his attendants — " Let us descend and liide ourselves in the earth from the angiy face of so terrible a foe." Didier, 60 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD III. •with his wife and daughter, the widowed queen of Carloman, and the orphan princes, all fell into the hands of the conqueror. Charlemagne, having placed on his own head the ancient iron crown of Lombardy, the Lombard king was sent captive to Gaul, confined first at Liege, and afterwards for life in the Abbey of Corvey. The fate of the young princes is more doubtful, but it seems probable that they were likewise compelled to bury themselves for life in the obscurity of the cloister. The same year Charlemagne visited E-ome, and, dis- mounting at a thousand paces from the walls, walked in procession to the church of St. Peter on the Vatican Hill, kissing the steps in succession as he ascended in honour of the saints by whose feet they had been trodden. In the vestibule of the church he was received by the Pope, who embraced him with great affection, the choir chant- ing the psalm, " Blessed is he who cometh in the name of the Lord." Then they descended into the vaults, and offered up their prayers together at the shrine ol St. Peter. Meanwhile, the Lombards, far from submitting patiently to the yoke of a foreign master, had placed Adalgisius, the son of Didier, on his father's throne. But might again prevailed over right, and the unhappy prince was compelled to save his life by going into exile ; whilst of all the Lombardic cities, Venice alone bade defiance to the conqueror, beat back his armies from her walls, and retained her freedom. Charlemagne next spread his victorious arms over the south of Italy, the whole of which submitted to his power, with the exception of that part which now forms the kingdom of Naples, and which was then governed by independent princes of the Lombardic race, who had the title of dukes of Beneventum. Charlemai'ne had a ^rreat desire to annex this province to his new kingdom of Italy, but the dukes of Beneventum fought hard for their independence, and Charlemagne, after a long struggle, Avas obliged to give up the attem])t. The Frank domination extended no further than the 7C8-91 9.] CHARLEMAGNE, EMPEROR OF THE WEST. 61 Garigliano; and, if the dukes of Beneventum acknow- ledged themselves as tributaries, they mostly only paid the tribute when an army came to demand it from them. Charlemagne, however, assumed the title of king of Italy in 774, and that was the commencement of the misfortunes of that country. From that time, it has almost always ceased to boast of its independence, and it was by that title of heii^ of Charlemagne that the empe- rors of Germany reigned over the valley of the Po. The Lombards always preserved that which they possessed in the south of the peninsula. War in Spain (778). — Charlemagne was at Paderborn, occupied with compelling the Saxons to be baptised, when a Saracen emir, Jhn-al-Arabi, lord of Saragossa, came to him offering to place the Franks in possession of the cities he held south of the Pyrenees. Charles accepted the invitation, and with a numerous army traversed Gascony, tlie duke of which, Loup, was forced to swear fidelity to liim. He took Pampeluna and Saragossa. But his allies offering him little aid, he re-entered France by the gorges of the Pyrenees. The principal general in this expedition was Roland, lord of the marches of Brittany, the hero of Fmnkish song, who fell in a skirmish while threading the defile of Roncesvalles. In the course of a reign of forty-five years, Charle- magne extended the limits of his empire beyond the Danube ; subdued Dacia, Dalmatia, and Istria-, conquered and subjected all the barbarous tribes to the banks of the Vistula, and successfully encountered the arms of the Saracens, the Huns, the Bulgarians, and the Saxons. His war with the Saxons was of more than thirty years duration, and their final conquest was not achieved with- out an inhuman waste of blood, through what has been considered a mistaken zeal for the propagation of Christi- anity, by measures which that religion cannot be said to sanction or approve. Charlemagne, Emperor of the West (800). — All these wars were very nearly finished in the year 800. Charle- magne then found himself master of France, of Germany, 62 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [rERIOD III. of three quarters of Italy, and a part of Spain. He had increased by more than a third the extent of territory which his father had left him. These vast possessions were no longer a kingdom, but an empire. He thouglit he had done enough to be authorised to seat himself on the throne of the West; and, as his father had required at the hands of the Pope his regal crown, so it was from the Pope that he demanded his imperial diadem. He was, therefore, with gi'eat ceremony, created Emjieror of the West in St. Peter's, at Rome, by Pope Leo III., on Christmas day 800. It was a great event, for that imperial title which had remained buried under the ruins wrought by the barbarians, was drawn thence by the Roman pontiff, and shown to scattered nations and enemies as a rallying sign. A new right was created for those who should inherit that crown — the rif^ht of ruling over the Italian, German, and French peoples, who then found themselves united under the sceptre of the first Germanic emperor. When circumstances arising out of family claims, and through lapse of time, caused this title to pass to the German kings, France found her- self strong enough to repulse the domination of a foreign Caesar, but not Italy. Thence sprung one-half of the evils which that beautiful country was doomed to suffer. Extent of the Empire of Charlemagne.— Of these extensive conquests of Charlemagne some were durable, others ephemeral; some useful, others not. They had changed the constitution of a large portion of Europe. From the Ebro to the Raab and Theiss, and from Bene- ventum to the Eyder, all the German tribes, with the exception of the Anglo-Saxons, and the Scandinavians, who occupied Norway, Denmark, and Sweden, were for the first time united under one head. To these were joined the Romans of the western empire, and a consider- able portion of the Sclavonians and Avars; so that the dominions of Charlemagne were more extensive than those of the Roman emperors had been. The whole of this mighty monarchy had one religion, which fonned a wall of separation from the Mahommedans in Spain, 768-919.] PIRATICAL DESCENTS OF THE NORMANS o» 53 Africa, and Asia, on the one side, and the heathenish Nonnans, Sclavonians, and Avars, on the other. Italians and Germans, forgetting their former hatred of each other, were now united to defend their church against the attacks of all enemies, whether Mahommedan, pagan, or heretical, like the inhabitants of the eastern empire. Coronation of Charlemagne by Leo III. (800).~In 800, as already stated, the Emperor of the Franks received from the hands of Pope Leo III. the crown which was destined for one thousand and six years to be the symbol of German unity, whilst the assembled people shouted "Long life and victory to Carolus Augustus, the great and peace-bringing Roman emperor, whom God hath crowned ! " Thus, 324 years after the imperial dignity had disappeared in the person of Romulus Augustulus, it was renewed by Charlemagne, who attributed such im- portance to that coronation as to require from all male persons who had attained the age of twelve years a new oath of submission. Another personage acquired on that occasion an important prerogative. In crowning Charlemagne, Pope Leo III. had fulfilled a function, like St. Remy did in consecrating Clovis. His successors constituted it a privilege, and the pontiffs considered themselves as the dispensers of crowns. During the whole of the middle ages, the imperial consecration could only be given at Rome, and from the hands of the Holy Father, More than one war arose out of this prerogative. The Empire of the West even did not limit the views of Charlemagne. In the hope of placing on his head the crown of the East as well as that of the West, he sent ambassadors to Constantinople to demand the hand of the widowed empress Irene; but on their arrival they found that Nicephorous had usurped the throne, and those envoys were dismissed by him with indignity; an insult which Charlemagne retaliated by treating the usurper's ambas- sadors in a similar fashion three years later at Selz. Piratical Descents of the Normans. — In extending the outposts of his empire as far as the Eyder, Charlemagne 64 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD III. thouglit to liave sliiit out from Germany the men of tlio north. But a new enemy sprung up in the Normans, a people who dwelt on the northern shores of the Baltic, and who, under the conduct of a brave leader named Godfrey, manned their ships and made a piratical descent upon Friesland in 808. Tlie emperor led an army against them, but finding this new enemy more powerful than he expected, he prudently made peace and returned home. Results of the Wars of Charlemagne.— Some writers have sought to represent Charlemagne as a royal sage, a pacific prince, who only took up arms in self-defence. Truth compels a moi-e faithful though less flattering portraiture. He had no invasion to dread. The Saracens were scattered, the Avars (Bavarians) weakened, and the Saxons impotent to carry on any serious war beyond their forests and marshes. If he led the Franks beyond their own frontiers, it was that he had, like so many other monarchs, the ambition of reigning over more nations, and of leaving a high-sounding name to posterity. All that he attempted beyond the Pyrenees proved abortive. It would have been of greater value had he subdued the Bretons, so far as to have made them sooner enter French nationality, instead of contenting himself with a precarious submission. The conquest of the Lombard kingdom profited neither France nor Italy, but only the Pope, whose political position it raised, and whose independence it secured for the future. The country for which those long wars had the happiest result, was that one which had suffered most from them, Germany. Before Charle- magne, Almayne was still Germany— that is to say, a shapeless chaos of pagan or Christian tribes, but all bar- barian, enemies of one another, united by no single tie. There were Franks, Saxons, Thuringians, and Bavarians. After him there was a German people, and there will be a kingdom of Germany. It was great glory for him to have created a people — a glory which few conquerors have acquired; for they destroy much more than they found. His reign lasted forty-four ycai-s, and may be 768-919.] LOUIS THE DEBONNAIRE. 65 summed up as an immense and glorious effort to bring under subjection the barbarian world and all that which survived the Roman civilization; to put an end to the chaos born of invasion, and to found a settled state of society in which the authority of the Emperor, closely united to that of the Pope, should maintain order alike in Church and State— a very difficult problem, which it was given Charlemaorne to solve, but of which all the difficulties did not become ai)parent until after his death. The work of Charlemagne, in fiict, did not last, and the causes of its fall will shortly be shown. The name of this powerful though rude genius is not the less surrounded with a lasting glory; and'^it has remained in the memory of nations wSfth that of three or four other great men who have done, if not always the greatest amount of good, at least have made the most noise in the world. As to Charlemagne, the amount of good accomplished very far surpasses that which was only vain renown and sterile ambition. He created modern Germany; and if that chain of nations, the links of which he had sought to rivet, broke, his great image loomed over the feudal times as the genius of order, continually inviting the dispersed races to emerge from chaos, and seek union and peace under the sway of a strong and renowned chief. Charlemagne died, January 28, 814, in his seventy- second year, and was buried at Aix-la-Chapelle, in a church which he had built there after his Italian con- quests, in the Lombard style. Eginhard, his secretary and friend, who wrote his life, tells us that he was con- siderably above six feet in height, and well proportioned in all respects, excepting that his neck was somewhat too short and thick. His imperial crown, which is still pi-eserved at Vienna, would fit only the head of a giant. His air was dignified, but at the same time his manners were social. Charlemagne had no fewer than five wives • of his four sons, only one survived him, Louis, the youno-est and most incapable, who succeeded him on the imperial throne. Louis the Debonnaire — Dismemberment of the B 6C HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD III. Empire (814-840). — The Cavlovingian i-ace, after havins? produced, by an example very rare in history, four great men in succession, seemed suddenly to lose its power. Louis, the Debomuiire, was far from resembling liis ancestors. The gloi-y of that line had departed with Charlemagne. That great man had, indeed, been able to found a great empire; but it was not within his power to give those races of different origin, language, and customs, interests and feelings in common — that is to .Siiy, one and the same desire to remain united in a single and great political family. There was material, but no moral unity. But material order is not security. In moral unity alone subsists soundness and strength. When Charlemagne disappeared, all that wljich had coloured with a semblance of honour the subjection of the nations, blended together under the name of Franks, became eftuced. Whilst the private ambition of the princes of the imperial family aided the dismemberment of tho nations, those of the great proprietor and the imperial officers likewise favoured the division of fiefs. Charlemagne himself had recognised the necessity ot giving satisfaction to the nationalities tlie most deeply concerned, and he had made his three sons kings. Louis was set over the Aquitauians, Pepin over the Italians, Charles over the Germans. The two last named died before their father, and that partition was annulled. Latei', Charlemagne alloted Italy to Bernard, son of Pepin. It was the great emperor's intention that those kings should only be his docile lieutenants; and so they were as long as he lived. But when the strong hand which grasped that sheaf of nations relaxed in death, it broke asunder of itself. The nations desired to have kings, but kings of independence. To repress sucli ambitious desires, an energetic will was requii-ed, and it was to one of the feeblest of men that the unwieldy inheritance of the powerfid master of the West had fallen. Louis the Debomiaire, so named from his gentlene.sa and good-nature, was then thirty-six years old. H« was 708-919.] LOUIS THE DEBONNAIRE. 67 pious^and upright, but his piety was that of a monk not of a king, and his justice easUy degenerated intoweaK remarkabT Hef \ ""^ ^"*''"°°' '--vei^ls vty lemaikable He has been represented by contemporarie^ as of handsome person, with fine features, "0^* of flume, and so well skilled with bow and lane; ^ha no ° of his subjects could equal him. But he wa^ imbedk in ne was easily led away. In sense and judgment le J)e- honnmre ^v,.s unhappily for himself and Ms sublects misei-ably deficient. Such a sovereign was not Scl to mamtam the vast empire of his fSther. The ^Sest oTSXn.'" "'^' '°^^*^^^^-' '^^'^ ''- V thfraSs Louis began his reign by acts of reparation, which must have seemed to the old counselloi^ of Charlemalno Hb±lTtr* '' *'^ ^P*''"^' "»^*^- He restoref : ibeitv and their possessions a host of individuals who liad been depiived of both. He gave back to the Saxons and Fneslanders the right of hetrship; and allowed the Romans to institute a new pope in 816, withm t waitL' for the imperial confirmation. When Stephen IV afte" wards came from Rome to consecrate him, he suffered that ot the Holy Chair to appropriate to itself the right of dis- posing of the imperial crewn: "St. Peter glorifies hb, elf rtts?L*t!^'^^^"^^ ated with himself in the empire his eld^est son LothX Hts two younger sons, Pepin and Louis, he made Sn^" of Aquitania and Bavaria. The unliapj y moiwch sof became aware of his utter incapacity to manage the affZ of the empire; and, four years aftel. his accession' tearV c2? \y^''T''f\ ''ig'^ity. and full of remorse foTtho crime which he had committed in causing the eves of his revolted nephew, Bernard, king of It.aly to bTmt out t« proposed to abdicate in' favour of Li/'.on^ £ Tw 68 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD III. 7G8919.] DEPOSITION OF Tim EMPEtlOIl. CO pope and clergy were too fully aware of tlie advantage afforded them by his inefficiency to permit such a step; and so completely was he terrified by their threats, that, instead of retiring into a cloister as he had desired, he was obliged to content himself with doing open penance before the Diet of the empire for the cruel treatment of his nephew. It was a grand spectacle, assuredly, that of a powerful prince publicly avowmg his sins, and redeem- ing them by penitence. That spectacle Theodosius had presented to the Roman people; but, after having hum- bled himself in the cathedral at Milan, Theodosius had risen up stronger in his own eyes and in those of the people, because it was before Heaven and under remoi-se of conscience that he had bowed his head. Louis went forth from the palace of Attigny lessened, degraded, because it was from a political body, of an authority the rival of his own, that he had received his absolution. Every one knew thenceforward all that might be dared against such a man. Rebellion of the elder Sons of Louis (829).— In 823 there was born to the emperor, of Judith his second wife, a son named Cliarles, known in history by the surname of the Bald, That queen was desirous that her son should possess a kingdom; and the emperor, annulling in 829 the partition of 817, gave him Germany, thus depriving his elder sons of a part of their inheritance. This provoked the resentment of those princes; they rose in rebellion against their father, and the rest of Louis's reign was nothing but a succession of impious contests with his turbulent sons. In 833 he deposed Pepin, and gave his kingdom of Aquitaine to the son of Judith. Deposition of the Emperor by his Elder Sons.— Twice deposed himself, and twice restored after doing penance a second time at Soissons, Louis only emerged from the cloister, for which he was so well fitted, to repeat the same faults. In his blind predilection for his youngest born, Charles, he was unmindful that the cause of all his misfortunes was the redistribution of the pai*tition he bad made between his other sons. Afterwards, Louis had Germany, while Burgundy, Provence, and Septi- mania, were given to Charles. Pepin predeceased his father in 838. Dissatisfied with the share allotted to Charles, Louis took up arms to enforce his rights. But the life of his father, which had been one long scene of turbulence and misery, was rapidly drawing to a close. The emperor had collected his forces, and marched to the banks of the Bhine to meet his unnatural son, when mortal sickness compelled him to halt on the island of Ingelheim. The priests, who were called to administer the last rites of the Church, besought him to forgive his rebellious child, as he himself hoped for forgiveness at the hands of his heavenly Father. " Freely," said the poor old man, *' freely do I forgive him all his offences against me; but, reverend fathers, fail not to warn him that he has brought down my grey hairs with sorrow to the gi'ave.'' Soon afterwards he became speechless and expired, uttering an inarticulate sound, to scare away, as his superstitious attendants believed, the fiends which hovered round his bed. Thus died Louis, the degenerate son of a great father, on the 20tli June 840, in the sixty- third year of his age, and twenty-seventh of his leign. The Middle Ages, more regardful of the virtues of the man than of the faults of the prince, have been full of indulgence for the memory of Louis the Good-natured. Battle of Fontenaille (841).— Since the death of Charlemagne the emi)ire which he founded had heaved with agitation, like a heavy body in the throes of dissolu- tion. Each })rince struggled for the possession of a king- dom; and each great division of the empire was desirous of having a king in order to form a state by itself. The Austrasian Franks, who were only defending their own cause in sustaining that of the empire, were seconded by the Italians, who had adopted the new emperors as the legitimate heirs of Marcus Aurelius and Trajan. Lothaire, eldest son of Louis the Good-natured, was their chief. He bore the title of emperor, and desired to consider his l)rothers merely as lieutenants. Louis, now the second brother, sided with Charles; and theii' subjects, at length ^^ History ov GEinuNf. [period iit. wearied with these peq)etiial divisions, met to decide tho question solemnly by force of arms. A terrible battle was fought near Fontenaille," in Burgundy, in which 100,000 men are said to have fallen, and the forces of Lothaire were utterly routed (June 841). Lothaire fled precipitately, whilst Louis and Charles deliberated upon what ought to be done further against the defeated enemy. Though the victory remained to Charles, his army was too much enfeebled to reap further advantage from it. Indeed, thai fatal day so weakened the empire generally that bands of Normans, like famished wolves, renewed their predatory attacks, and were allowed to ravage the coasts with impunity. ^ The Strasburg Oath.—The battle of Foiitenaille hav- ing proved indecisive, the war continued. Louis and Charles met at Strasburg to reinforce their confederacy against Lothaire, and swear alliance before their soldiers the one in the Teutonic or German tongue, the other in the Komance or French language. The Strasburg oath IS the earliest monument of the French language, formed by the combination, in very unequal quantities, of threo idioms— Keltic, Latin, and Gallic, as spoken in Gaul- the Latin greatly predominating over the Gallic, and the' Keltic furnishing only a small number of words. That renewed alliance was celebrated l^y military fetes, to which some writers have attributed the origin of tourna- ments. The Treaty of Verdun (843) ; Repartition of the ^mpire.— It being evident that Louis and Charles had hrmly resolved to rend asunder the empire, Lothaire decided to treat with them. The three brothers met at Verdun m Lorraine, and concluded the celebrated treaty by which the dominions of Charlemagne were divided into three portions. The three principal peoples of the empire, the Gemians, Gallo-Franks, and Italians, were thus separated forever; the first under Louis, the second under Charles, and the third under Lothaire. The eldest brother, Lothaire, obtained the title of emperor, a dicniitv without power, with Italy, Helvetia, and a narrowlitrip 7GS-919.] KINGS OF THE CARLOVINGIAN RACE j^t ri of land westward of the Hhine, that part of Austrasia or eastern France, which, from the word Lotharingia, or^. land of Lothaire, is now called Lorraine. Charles the Bald had the title of King of France, with all the terri- tory west of Lorraine ; and Louis (surnamed the German) received for his share the whole of Germany, with the title of king. This treaty reduced Gaul by one-third, and removed from it, for the first time, its natural limit of the Rhine and the Alps. Nor could the eftbrts of Francis I. and Henry II., of Richelieu and Louis XIV., of the Resolution and Napoleon I., entirely nullify it. Charles the Bald, who signed that fatal convention, was therefore, to speak correctly, the first king of later France, as Louis was fii*st king of Germany. As for Lothaire, he con- tinued the kingdom of Italy, which was destined so often to become extinct and to revive. Thus was the dismem- berment of that ponderous empire of Charlemagne rent asunder, and the unity of Christian Europe dissolved by the treaty of Verdun. Lorraine, it is true, became after a time incorporated with the other portions; but France and Germany, from that day to the present (excej)t during the short reign of Charles the Fat) have been separate kingdoms. The province of Lorraine has been, for many centuries, and even up to the present time, an apple of discord between Germans and Frenchmen, and the cause of sanguinary wars amongst them. German Kings of the Carlovingian Race (843-911).— Louis the German was an athletic jnince, tall and of handsome exterior, with a bright eye and penetrating intelligence, favourable to civilization and the sciences, of which he gave proof by founding chairs of eloquence at Frankfoi-t and Ratisbon. But he had many wai*s to sustain for the preservation of his kingdom, on account of the frequent incursions of the Sclavonians on the east, and the Northmen or Danes on the north-west. The first and greatest, but not the only embarrassment to Louis was the inroads of the Normans {Northmen), a fierce piratical race, as savage as their seas and coasts, who had taken advantage of the perturbed state of the late dis- 72 niSTORr OF GERMANY. [PERIOD lit. 7G8-919.] CHARLES THE FAT. 73 niembered empire to cany on their ravages without inter- mission. Launching their swift-sailing galleys from tho shores of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark, they swept down with the speed of the wind to the mouths of rivers, and often penetrated \ery far into the interiors. Thus, on the Seine they ascended as far as Paris; on the Garonne as far as Toulouse; and on the Ehine as far as Cologne and Bonn. In their earlier depredations they never sought to acquire territory, but contented themselves with pillaging and destroying everything near the coast, and then sailed back to their own country with the booty; but after these sea-robbei-s had learned the use of horses, to which it appears they were at first unaccustomed, th^>y were enabled to carry their inroads to a very considerable distance, and spread terror into the very heart of tho country. They usually appeared in small numbcri, because, in fact, a fleet of small vessels could not carry a large army; but, by their courage, added to the strength of their bodies and their arms, these men of the North prevailed over every other people, and none could ri\al them in brandishing their heavy spears. So great was the terror caused by these marauders that a petition for Divine protection against them was added to the litany of the German church : A furore Nortmannorumy libera nos Bomine ! " From the fury of the Northmen, O Lord deliver us ! " Every year they attacked Friesland ; and one of their princes named Rollo established an indepen- dent kingdom in that part of France which is still called Normandy. In the interior of Germany the rebellious Sclavonian tribes were kept in check by the nobles; but on one occasion, it is recorded, the Saxons and Thur- ingians allowed the barbarians to get the better of them, for which they were soundly cudgelled by their wives on their return home. Louis the German died in 876, having governed his kingdom with great wisdom and prudence. He left his dominions among his three ^ons, Carloman, Louis, and Charles; and he had scarcely been consigned to his tomb ere Charles the Laid marched an army into Germany in hopes to dispossess his nephews; but he found them well prepared to defend their territories; and, in a battle fought at Andernach on the Hhine, he was repulsed and put to flight. Charles the Fat (876-887).— The two elder sons of Louis having died without legitimate issue, the youngest, Charles, surnamed the Fat, found himself in possession of the whole of Germany and Lorraine; and in 884 the French, dissatisfied with their young king, Charles the fSitnplej whom they considered as too young to succeed to the crown, being only five years old, and anxious to have a prince who could protect them against the repeated invasions of the Danes, dfl^ered him the crown of France; thus the two kingdoms were, for a short time, reunited under one sovereign. Proud and cowardly, and rendered contemptible by his gluttony, Charles the Fat was so regardless of his French subjects that he did not go near them, but left them to defend themselves as well as they could against the Normans. He had already ceded Fries- land to Godfrey, one of their chiefs, and afterwards caused him to be murdered. Another, the famous Eollo, a man of gigantic stature, who always fought on foot, being unable to find any horse capable of carrying his weight, took Eouen, Pontoise, and slew the Duke of Mans. On the ai)proach of his countrymen, the old pirate Hastings hastened to join them, and both together marched upon Paris, which they had already thrice pil- laged. But Paris, which was then contained within the narrow limits of the little island on the Seine, had been strongly fortified ; and its inhabitants, encouraged by their bishop, Gozlin, and by their count. Elides, son of Robert the Strong, withstood a year's siege. At length, Charles the Fat, at the earnest instance of Eudes, a^^peared before Paris with an army. The Parisians, full of ardour, were awaiting the signal to begin the battle, when they learned, to their great disgust, that Charles had purchased a dis- graceful peace by paying a large sum of money to the pirates, whom they had half- conquered, and further, allowed them to winter in Burgundy; that is to say, to 74 HISTORY OP GERMANr. [period III. 7G8 919.] ARXULPH CROWNED EMPEROR OF ROME. 75 ravage that province. The Parisians, however, refused to join in the disgraceful treaty; and when the Norman galleys sought to clear the bridges, they opposed their passage. The pirates were, therefore, compelled to drag their flotilla a long way ashore past the heroic city (Nov. 886), whose courage Sens in turn imitated, for it braved the Normans during six months. Deposition and Death of Charles the Fat (887-888). The contrast between the courage of that small city and the cowardice of the emperor turned every one against that unworthy prince. He was deposed at the Diet of Tribur, near Oppenheim, became insane, and would have wanted the necessaries of life had it not been for the compassion of Liutbart, bishop of Mainz. The wretched Charles the Fat died in 888. From that period Germany, Italy, and France, have never had a common master. The Carlovingian empire was irrevocably dis- membered, its relics forming seven kingdoms: France, Navarre, Burgundy {cis-Jurane), Burgundy (trans- Jurane), Lorraine, Italy, and Germany. Three quarters of a century only had elapsed since the vaults of his basilica at Aix-la-Chapelle had entombed the body of the famous founder of the West, and already neither empire nor emperor remained. Arnnlph (887-899).— Each nation now elected its own king. In Germany Charles the Fat Avas succeeded by a natural son of his brother Carloman, a gi-andson of Louis the German, Arnnlph (or Arnould). Arnulph Avas a brave and worthy king. He defeated the Normans near Louvain, in the Low Countries, where they had formed an entrenched camp; and that victory spread his reputa- tion throughout Germany; for the Normans were the bravest warriors of all the northern races, and until then they had never been known to flee before an enemy. War with Zwentibold. — About the same time, Zwen- tibold, having erected for himself in Moravia a great power, ArnulJf, to gain his friendship, gave him the duchy of Bohemia to hold in fief, and even chose him as god- father to his son, also named Zwentibold. He had soon, however, to sustain against that Sclavonian prince, who sought to be independent, a very dangerous war. Aniulph had then recourse to the Magyare, called by the Germans Hungarians (strangers), or Huns; being, as it was be- lieved, descendants of the ancient people who bore that name. These barbarians, who were still heathens, had first been called in by Leo, Emperor of the East, to assist him against the Bulgarians. They had since migrated to the West, and, having entered Moravia, overthrew the power of Zwentibold, and established themselves therein, Arnulph crowned Emperor of Rome (895). — At the invitation of the Pope, Arnulph marched into Italy, where several princes were contending for the imperial crown. He took Bergamo by storm, and penetrated as far as Rome ; but his army was so weakened by bad weather and sickness that he dared not venture to assault a city so strongly fortified; and hearing, moreover, that the ICing of France was marching against him, he was com- pelled to return into Germany. The next year, however (89G), he again crossed the Alps and marched to Home, where he found the city gates closed against him. Every attempt to storm the walls provmg fruitless, and tlie Komans having overwhelmed the German soldiers with insults, Arnulph was about to retreat; when the soldiers, without waiting for orders, in an excess of rage, attacked the gates, bridged the moats, scaled the ramparts, and carried the Eternal City by assault. Entering Rome in triumph, Arnulph received the imperial crown from the hands of the Pope. It was compulsory upon the Roman people that they should swear fidelity to him. But that people were strangers to the virtue of fidelity; and because they had been unable to resist the Germans by overt force, they had recourse to poison. Arnulph, attacked by sudden sickness, returned to Germany, where he died, in 899, of a lingering malady, the effect, doubt- less, of slow poison administered by the Italians; re- gretted by all Germany, and much too soon for liis emi)ire. He was yet young, and never had the country greater need of a vigorous arm. J 76 HISTORY OF GERMAXY. [PERIOD III. Extinction of the Carlo vingians in Germany (911). — The successor of Arniilph was his son Louis, surnamed the Child J a boy of six years old, wlio bore the title of King of Germany from 899 to 911. Those were, pro- bably, the most deplomble years in the annals of tbo nation. Every year, almost, the Magyars threw them- selves suddenly and in mass upon one province or other, wrapping it in blood and fire, and canying back with them thousands of the inhabitants as slaves. The Ger- mans, although brave, not being accustomed to that kind of war, were unable to defend themselves; the more so that they had no fortified cities in which their women and children could seek refuge. Bavaria was the first to become a prey to their devastations; its counts and nobles were cut to pieces. In the following years it was the turn of Saxony and Thuringia; and, in the two last, that of Franconia and Suabia. These misfortunes exem- ])lified the truth of the words of Solomon : " Woe unto the land the king of which is a child ! " At length, for- tunately for himself and for his country, Louis the Child died in 911. With him expired the race of the Carla vingians in Germany, and the monarchy became elective. Conrad L of Franconia (911-918).— On the death of Louis the Child the chief magnates of the German race met together to choose from amongst their worthiest princes him to whom should be given the title of king. Their choice fell upon Otto the Illustrious^ Duke of Saxony and Thuringia, descended from the Carlo vingians on the maternal side, and who, by the power of his house, as well as by his great age and wisdom, was held in high consideration by all the rest. But Otto refused the crown, the burthen of which he judged to be too heavy for a man of his years, and advised them to choose Conrad, Duke of Franconia. Conrad has been represented as a prince of great merit in peace and war : brave, prudent, gentle, and generous. His first care was to restore to royalty its vanished pres- tiize, reuardinu it as the fii*st foundation of order for the whole empire. But at first the disorder was too great, 768-919.] CONRAD I. OF FRANCONIA. 77 and, besides, his reign was too short for him to succeed completely. However, by energetic measures and timely concessions, general tranquillity and the imperial dignity were partially maintained. But Conrad saw clearly that his task had become very difficult, that the power of tho Duke of Franconia alone was insufiicient to keep in check the great princes, already become too powerful; and that larger forces than he could conmiand were neces- sary to protect the empire against the Sclavonians and Hungarians, who incessantly recommenced their inva- sions. When, therefore, Conrad, who had been wounded in his last expedition into Bavaria, lay languishing at Limbourg, upon the Lahn, and felt the approach of death, he remembered the example which Otto the Illus- trious had given him; and, putting aside all rivalry, with liis last breath recommended as his successor Henry of Saxony, whom he believed to be the only prince capable of holding the reins of government in those troublous times, lie died in December 9 1 8. FOURTH PERIOD. FROM HENRY I. TO RUDOLPIIUS OF IIArSBURG. — (919-1273). {The Saxo))y Sicahian, and Hohenstavf^n Houses.) Henry L, surnamed the Fowler (919-936). —The accounts left us of the election of Henry are widely varied. If we follow those of the ancient writers, it would appear that the princes and nobles of Franconia, following the advice of Conrad their late king, assembled at Fritzlar, at the commencement of the year 919, and chose for their king Duke Henry, in presence of the united Saxons and Franconians. It is true that a gi-eat many writers relate how the envoys who went to offer Henry the crown found him in his territories of the Harz, occupied at the moment of their arrival with snar- ing birds; from a fondness for which pastime he obtained the surname of the Fowler {Ilenricus Aucejis). Whatever may have been the circumstances of his election, the Archbishop of Mainz offered to consecrate him King, but Henry declared it was sufficient that he was called to rule over Germany by God's grace and the choice of the people; and, therefore, he entreated the prelate to reserve the holy oil for some more pious monarch. Lorraine reunited to Germany (922).— Some internal dissensions troubled the beginning of his reign, but proved of little consequence; for the hopes of Otto the Illustrious and King Conrad were fulfilled, and Saxony and Franconia remained in amicable relation with one another. The dukes of Swabia and Bavaria, on their return from Hungary, refused him ol>edieuce; but ho 919-1273.] NINE YEARS TRUCE WITH HUNGARIANS. 79 recalled them prom^Hly to their duty by force of arms, and retained them in it by the gentler power of words of peace, so that, in 921, all Germany obeyed King Henry; and after that date his empire was no further troubled by any intestine war; but it was only after fighting several battles that he conquered Lorraine, which always kept balancing between France and Germany. Later, he strengthened his union with it by giving his daughter, Gerberge, in marriage to its duke, Giselbert; and, during seven centuries, that fine country remained reunited to Germany. The Nine Years' Truce with the Hungarians (923- 932). — Henry was then able to occupy himself with his enemies without the realm, the Sclavonians and Hunga- rians. They thought themselves able to continue their manoeuvres with the German states as formerly; but found, on their rencontre with Henry, an adversary who arrested them. On the first occasion, it is true, Henry was compelled to give way to their fury, and they carried their ravages into the heart of Saxony. However, ho had the good fortune, one day when he made a sortie upon them from the castle of Werle, near Goslar, to takt. prisoner one of the most distinguished of their princes; and, for his ransom, a suspension of arms was agreed upon for nine years, during which the Hungarians swore that they would not enter Germany. Probably they reckoned upon doubly recuperating themselves for the time thereby lost; but Henry employed so usefully those nine years in active preparations to meet the enemy, that when they returned, they found Germany quite changed. Tlie Hungarians were entirely ignorant of the art of besieging fortified places; and when they were unable to make a rapid booty in an expedition, they did not willingly return. It was especially in his hereditary territories that Henry caused the fortresses and walled towns to be strengthened; for, accustomed to despise any defence save that of their swords and shields, the Ger- mans had suffered the few strongholds they possessed to iuU into ruiu. But, in order to gavriwn those place«, U« 80 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD IV. decreed that every ninth man liable for military service should leave the cultivation of the soil, and join in the defence of the fortresses; that he should thei-ein occupy himself with all the constructions necessary to offer, in case of invasion, a secure asylum; and that the rest should give for that purpose, annually, a third of their agricultural produce, to be stored as provision for the garrison in time of danger. Frontier Campaigns (928-929).— Henry, after having passed some years in these preparations, resolved, in order to exercise his warriors, to reduce to reason the peoples bordering on Germany to the north and east; who, if they were not as formidable as the Hungarians, were not less hostile. He defeated the Sclavonians in the marches of Brandebourg, the Hevelles upon the Havel, and conquered Brennabourg (Brandebourg), which he besieged during a winter so severe that his army encamped upon the frozen Havel. He afterwards sub- dued the Daleminziens who dwelt on the banks of the Elbe, from Meissen as far as Bohemia. Henry under- took also an expedition against the Bohemians, besieged their Duke Wenzeslas in Prague, his capital, and forced him. to submission. Since then the kings of Germany have always demanded homage from the dukes of Bohemia. Sanguinary Conflict with the Hungarians (933).— Meanwhile, the nine years' truce with the Hungarians had expired, and they sent a deputation into Germany to demand the ancient tribute which that country had shamefully paid them. But Henry, to show them in what contempt thev were held by the Germans, sent to the deputies, by way of tribute, a mangy dog, with ears and tail cropped. It was an ancient custom, exceedingly insulting to those who received the gift. The bellicose Hungarians grew furious at it, and made their prepara- tions°to wreak a terrible vengeance. Onward they marched next year (933) into Germany with two armies, thirsting for battle. One force, attacked by the Saxons and Thuririgians, not far from Sondershausen, had its leaders slain, and was itself cut to pieces. The other 919 1273.] EXPEDITION AGAINST THE DANES. 81 and the strongest force, on reaching the Saale, learned in the night the arrival of the king, and the destruction of their compatriots. The Hungarians, terror-stricken at the news, abandoned their camp, and lighted huge fires on the heights as signals to reassemble those who were dispersed in search of pillage. Henry, who overtook them next morning, having exhorted his soldiers in a few fiery words to avenge that day their devasted country, kins- men massacred or carried into slavery, unfurled before them the banner of the Archangel Michael, and charged the Hungarians with the cry of Kyrie eleison (Lord have mercy!) which was echoed back by the terrible llui ! Ilui! of the barbarians. After a bloody conflict the whole army of the invaders was either slain or put to flight; and Henry, falling on his knees, with all his soldiers, offered up a solemn thanksgiving to Heaven for the victory. The anniversary of this deliverance from the Hungarians is still celebrated in the parish church of Keuschberg, and the name of King Henry acclaimed therein by all those assembled. : Expedition against the Danes (934).--In 934, Henry covered himself with glory in an expedition against the Danes, who were ravaging the coasts of the Frisons and Saxons. He entered their country at the head of his army, forced their King, Gorm, to make peace, established at Sleswig a strong barrier, and even founded a mar- graviat, which he peopled with a colony of Saxons. One of the members of the royal family was even converted to Christianity; either Knut the eldest, or perhaps Harold, the second son of Gorm. Thus Henry I., before the end of his glorious career, had the satisfaction of seeing those men of the North, who during a century had terrified Europe, retreat before him within their confines, and recognise his power. In the summer of 936, Henry went from Erfurth to Memleben. There he was struck a second time with apoplexy; and, after having taken farewell of his wife, he died, 2nd July 936, at the age of sixty, in presence of his sons and several princes of the empire, F 82 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD IV. Otho L, surnamed the Lion (036-973).— As, before deatli had closed the eyes of Henry, the princes in the Diet had in'omised to acknowledge Otho, his son, as his successor to the empire, nothing more was needed than to confirm that acknowledgment; and it was made in a great assembly at Aix, where Otho was solemnly crowned. He was then in his twenty-fourth year. Of lofty stature and truly regal appearance, wide-chested and vigorous, with well-opened and expressive eyes, and lon^ fair hair fallinc: over his shoulders, all seemed to announce that he was born to reign. Those days of feasts and ceremonies having passed, Otho soon proved, by the vigour of his government, that, in his case, exterior appearance was not deceptive. But Otho did not gain over all hearts that power which his father had obtained. He was surnamed the Lion because of his proud and formidable mien, and because that, like the lion, he overcame all his enemies however numerous, and as often as they presented themselves, as well in the interior of Germany as without. He was a great and powerful monarch, who speedily became the first Christian prince. He placed upon his head the imperial crown of Charlemagne, and rendered the empire and the German name so great among all nations that none dared compare with him. An ordinary man never obtains such results; for if, in the Emperor Otho, too much pride made him many enemies; if, in his wrath, his too passionate tem- perament caused him to commit acts of severity against his adversaries, there was found also in him, as in the lion, to which he was compared, compassion for the weak- ness, and indulgence for the advei'sary who asked for pardon. For the rest, his anger and severity never car- ried him beyond the bounds of justice. The law with him was always stronger than everything else. Germany, which, previously to these two great mon- arclis, was going rapidly to ruin, torn by intestine dissen- sions, and was without suiTounded by enemies who despised her, devastated her by their rapine whenever it seemed fitting to them, now appeared suddenly to raise 019-1273] OTHO I. 83 her head like a new empire. Not only had enemies been overthrown, but countries had been conquered; and those who had held her in contempt now bowed theii^ heads before her. Otho showed so much confidence in his strength that, even shortly after he had ascended the throne ""in order to devote himself entii^ely to royalty, he not only despoiled himself of the duchy of Saxony, but even gave It to the bravest wamor of his family, to Herman Bil- limg, who had greatly distinguished himself in the war against Boleslas, duke of Bohemia. Otho w^as content therefore, to bear the single title of Emperor of Germany a title, dotibtless, very fiir greater than that of duke, when tJie bearer knows how to make it respected by the lofti- ness of his genius; but also much more insignificant and Avithout real power if deficient in character to rule. The dignity of a German King and Emperor rested on public esteem, his power depended upon the people, his grandeur was founded upon the prestige with which the imperial dignity invested him; and that veneration which, when the Emperor possessed it, rendered him the gi-eatest sove- reign m Christendom. Otho thought that he mi^rht acquire it and preserve it by himself. In truth, at the com- mencement of his reign, many nobles revolted against him; even his half-brother, Tancmar, and Henry, his younger brother, who believed that he had more" riglit than himself to the imperial dignity, because he was born when his father Henry was already King; whilst Otho. on the contrary, was born when his father was as yet only duke. But the Franks and Lorrainers, who could not bear that a Saxon should i:)ossess the crown, were pacified only by dint of arms; Tancmar was slain in the fight; and Henry, who had made common cause with them, came to throw himself at his brother's feet in i^enitential garments, at Frankfort, on the Christmas day of 042, during midnight mass, and received a full pardon' although he had thrice revolted against him, and had oven attempted his life. Still further, Otho gave him that same year the duchy of Bavaria, which was vacant; find after that they remained fiiithfully united until death. 84 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD IV. The Duke of Boliemia also bade defiance to the Empe- ror; whilst, to add to his embarrassment, the old enemies of the empire, the Hungarians, enconraged by these appearances of disaffection, entered the south of Germany, which they ravaged as far as the frontiers of France. But the new sovereign proved himself worthy of the con- fidence which his renowned father, as well as the electors, had reposed in him; and the Duke of Bohemia was at length subdued after a war which had lasted nearly fourteen years. Foreign Wars of Otho. — Having thus settled the in- ternal aflfairs of his kingdom, Otho had leisure to carry on his operations against the Sclavonians and Danes, who, after long and sanguinary wars, were made tributaries to the German crown ; but scarcely had these enemies heen overcome when he was called to take a part in the affairs of Italy. That unhappy country was now in a state of indescribable confusion. Since the extinction of the Carlovingians, numerous pretenders to the sovereignty had everywhere caused disorder and ruined the country. Berengar, duke of Ivrea, had by violence possessed him- self of regal authority; and, to strengthen himself in it, had striven to compel the young and beautiful widow of the last King, Lothaiie, whom he had himself put to death, to become the wife of his son Adelberg. Adelaide firmly refused, and seized a favourable opportunity to take flight. But, having already reached Como, she was overtaken and brought back. Willa, the infamous wife of Berengar, struck the noble daughter of the Burgundian kings, trod her under foot, dragged her by the hair of her head, tore off all her ornaments, and afterwards had her thrown into a dungeon of a strong fortress on the Lago di Garda. From this captivity she was rescued by the exertions of a pious and faithful monk, named Martin, Avho, touched by her sufferings, undermined the founda- tions of the castle until he reached her prison, released the princess, and conveyed her in a fisherman's boat across the lake. For some time she wandered up and down the opposite shore in the most pitiable distress, 919-1273.] VICTORY OVER THE HUNGARIANS. 85 travelling by night and concealing herself by day among^ reeds or standing corn ; until at length she reached the cottage of a fisherman, where she remained for some days disguised in male apparel; whilst brother Martin hastened to seek succour from her friends. The margrave, Azzo, hurried to place her in safety, and carried her to his castle of Canossa, which was immediately attacked by her cruel ])ersecutor; and the besieged, terrified at the appearance of a force so much superior to any that they could raise, at once decided on calling in the assistance of Otho, and sent messengers to ofier him the crown of Italy, and the hand of the widowed queen. Nothing could be more acceptable to Otho than this proposal; for the death of his wife Edith, daughter of Edmund, King of England, had left him at liberty to contract another marriage ; and no alliance could bo more advantageous than one which would make him lord of the fair realms of Italy. A persecuted woman to deliver, and so gi^and a prize attached to that adventurous attempt, were motives more than sufliicient to excite to enthusiasm the chivalrous spirit of the Emperor. He therefore crossed the Alps in 951, raised the siege of Canossa, and, carrying off Adelaide in triumph, married her at Pavia, where he caused himself at the same time to be crowned King of the Lombards. He aftei'wards became reconciled with Berengar, and gave him Italy as a fief under the suzerainty of Germany. Victory over the Hungarians on the Lech (955). — On his return to Germany with his young bride, Otho cher- ished the belief that peace and tranquillity were estab- lished on a basis which might bid defiance to the assaults of disaffection. But these hopes were miserably frus- trated. The old enemies and devastators of Germany^ the Hungarians, imited with the Sclavonians, becamo anxious to try whether they could not prove more fortu- nate with the son of Henry the Fowler than they had been with the father. They found, moreover, a favour- able opportunity in the dissensions and internal troubles excited by Otho's own son, Ludolph, duke of Swabia, discontented at his father's marriage with Adelaide, sm^ ^^ History op Germany. [period iv. his kinsman Conrad, duke of Franconia and Lorraine, who forgot themselves so far as to invite tlie Hungarians to enter the country. For some time Ludolph carried on this unnatural strife in conjunction with the Archbishop of Mainz, and Conrad, son-in-law of Otho; but at length, wearied of war and despairing of success, he suddenly appeared before his father barefoot, and in the dress of a penitent; and, throwing himself on his knees, implored forgiveness. Otho readily i>ardoned him, but took away his dukedom, and sent him into Italy to fight against the rebellious Lombards. In the following year the Hungarians again entered Germany in countless numbers, and took up a position near Augsburg; and Otho, fully aware of the danger with which he was threatened, prepared to meet it by callin^r out the whole militia of Germany. The Emperor pitched his camp on the banks of the Lech in Bavaria. Fortu- nately for Otho, he was joined by Conrad, duke of Fran- coma, who had asked and obtained pardon for his ciimo of rebellion, and marched with so much the more valour at the head of a well-trained body of cavah-y against the enemy. The army was divided into eight corps; the three first composed of Bavarians, the fourth of Franks led by Conrad; Otho himself commanded the fifth divi- sion of picked troops, who, as a body-guard, had chari?e ot the sacred spear— formed out of the nails of the Cross or, according to some legends, the weapon itself with which the soldier pierced our Saviour's side—and the banner emblazoned with a figure of the Archangel Michael. The Swabians composed the sixth and seventh and with the eighth were 1000 picked horsemen to guard the baggage. No attack, therefore, was expected on tbat side. But scarcely had the Hungarian army made its appearance than its innumerable battalions developed themselves in order of battle, swam across the river and nished upon the camp in the rear of the army, threw the Bohemians and Swabians into disorder, and pillao-ed the baggage. Otho, seeing this, ordered Duke Com-ad to charge the enemy in front with his Franconian cavalry 010-1273.] OTTO MARCIIES INTO ITALY. 87 an order so well and vigorously earned out, that the baggage and prisoners were speedily retaken, and order established in the camp. Next day the general engage- ment began in earnest; the Germans, in the highest spirits, commencing the attack, and Otho, encouraging his men, gave the signal for the onset, and, in the thickest of the fight, peiformed prodigies of valour. Though the Hungarians fought fiercely, a great and imi^ortant victory "was achieved; but not until thousands and tens of thou- sands were slain, and the Lech was tinged with their blood, did they at length give way. The Germans con- tinued the pursuit during the two following days; and the villages in which they sought refuge being set on fire, most of them were burnt to death. Three of their princes were hanged as leaders of brigands; and we are told by Keza, one of their own annalists, that out of two divisions, mustering G0,000 men, only seven Hungarians escaped, and they with slit noses and ears, to tell their countrymen of the terrible disaster which had befallen the army. The third division could not have avoided a like fate if Otho had not been too soon called off the jjursuit, and obliged to make a diversion against the Sclavonians. The Germans were so transported at the bravery of their monarch that they hailed him on the field by the titles of " Emperor and Father of his country." After all, the victory was dearly purchased. The heroic Conrad, opi^ressed with the heat, having removed his armour for air, was mortally wounded in the neck by a spent arrow. The Bishop of Ratisbon, although severely wounded, had strength enough left to strike down a Hungarian who was beginning to strip him, and thus ]3reserved his life. After that great victory the Hunga- rians never dared to meet the Germans in a i)itched battle. The Sclavonians, being also reduced to obedience that eame year, Germany had rest once more. Otho Marches into Italy and Deposes Berengar (962). — Otho*s rebellious son, Ludolph, had been sent into Italy to chastise the Lombard prince Berengar, who, un- mindful of his oath, had thrown off his alle*?iance to the (\ 88 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [pERIOD IV. German crown. Ludolph, after reducing his enemy to the greatest extremities; having fiillen a victim to the insahibrity of the climate, the treacherous Lombard again rallied, and treated with cruelty all who refused to acknowledge his authority. By the invitation of these suiSerers, Otho again entered Italy, marched into Pavia without opposition, and, having deposed Berengar, was a second time crowned King of Italy. From Pavia he went to Home, where he received the imperial crown from the hands of the Pope, on the 2nd February, 962. Dating from this reign, the imperial crown, which had been alternately worn by the kings of France, Germany^ and Italy, belonged exclusively to Germany, which then took the name of the Holy German Empire, Otho Demands a Greek Princess for his Son. — During his last sojourn at Home the Emperor caused his son Otho to be crowned by the Pope; at the same time he sent an ambassador to Constantinople to demand for his son the hand of Theophania, the daughter of the Greek Emperor. The ambassador, Liutprand, bishop of Cremona, fared so badly, and met with such insufferable insults at Constan- tinople, that he was glad to escape, he tells us in his journal, from that '^perjured, lying, cheating, rapacious, greedy, avaricious, nasty city.'' Not long after, however, Nicephorous having perished during a sedition, his succes- sor hastened to make an alliance with the imperial liouse of Germany. Theophania was crowned at Rome in 972 by Pope John XIII., and married to the young Otho. Tlie Emperor returned that same year into Germany; and, having enjoyed some months* repose after his campaigns, Otho the Great terminated in serenity his glorious career. He died suddenly as he knelt before the altar in the church of Memleben, and so tranquilly, that the attendants who found him stretched on the pavement supposed at first that he was asleep. His body was interred in tljo church of St. Maurice at Magdeburg, his favourite city, by the side of his first wife, Edith of England. Otho II. (973-983).— Otho, surnamed the Red, on ascending the imperial throne, was in his nineteenth 019-1273.] LOTIIAIRE DESTROYS AN ARMY UNDER OTIIO. 89 year. It was a misfortune for that young prince, other- wise possessed of not a few good qualities, to have suc- ceeded so gi'eat a man as his father whilst still in boy- hood. After the death of his brother Ludolph, he had become haughty and dissipated; and, by his conduct, gave proof of great fickleness of character; at times show- ing high-heai-tedness and elevation of mind, whilst at others he exhibited the most singular weakness and poverty of idea. Lothaire, King of France, destroys an Army under Otho (975). — In the second year of his reign, France made the first attempt, which was more than once re- peated afterwards, of reannexing Lorraine, which the partition of Verdun had placed between France and Ger- many, but which was then claimed by the latter. The pretensions of Otho the Bed to regain every fief of the empire, rallied round the King of France the great vassals of several countries, whose sole tactics then centered in hindering, either in France or Germany, the return of the ancient imperial power; which had compelled them to fall back from the path on which they had advanced in the way of usiu'pations from the time of Charlemagne. Lorraine stood in this predicament. Lothaire, then king of France, claimed a part of Lorraine in right of his mother, and the nobles of that country summoned him to oppose Otho. Without waiting to declare war, Lo- thaire marched directly upon Aix-la-Chapelle, where the young Emperor kept his court. Otho was taken so com- pletely by surprise that he was obliged to rise from table where he was sitting at dinner, and mounting a swift hoi-se, escaped out of one gate as Lothaire and his. army entered at another. Lothaire stripped the palace of everything in it worth carrying oft'; and, having turned the golden eagle on the roof with its head towards France, then retraced his steps. Otho, burning with resentment against Lothaire, set out for Paris, " to return the visit," as he expressed it, devastating and ravaging everything as he went. Paris had been put in such a thorough state of defence £^0 History op Germany. [period iv. that Otho was unable to effect anything against it. After burning the suburbs he was compelled, therefore, to march back into Germany. But his retreat proved disastrous. He had reached unopposed the liver Aisne, which he crossed with a part of his army late at night. In the morning it was found that the water had risen so con- siderably that it was impossible for the second division to pass. In this position it was attacked by Lothaire; and Otho, from the opposite shore, saw his men put to the rout without being able to give them any assistance. It was a great thing for Lothaire to have thus made head against the Emperor, and destroyed almost entirely his army, 60,000 strong. Some time after this struggle a treaty of peace was made between the two cousins, and Otho consented to give up Lower Lorraine or Brabant to Lothaire and his brother Charles, to be held as a fief of the empire. Otho Defeated by the Greeks and Saracens in Cala- bria (982).-~.In 980 Otho passed into Italy with the intention of seizing upon certain possessions which the Greek emperors then were holding in the south, and over which he considered that he had rights through his wife, Theophania, her father having promised them, as the dowry of that princess. Whilst on his march south- wards, a Eoman, named Crescentius, having caused him- self to be proclaimed consul, murdered the Pope (Boniface yi.), and set up Boniface VII. in the holy chair. The imperial party resisted this nomination, and elected another Pope. Otho, thinking himself bound to inter- fere m these commotions, marched to Rome and restored order, but in a sutficiently treacherous and ruthless man- ner. Having invited all the principal Romans who had abetted Crescentius to a banquet in the space before St. Peter s Church, he caused to be seized and put to death all whom he suspected of being his enemies. He then marched against the Greeks, who summoned to their aid the Ai-abs of Africa and Sicily. At fii-st, Otho obtained some advantages over them, and seized upon Tarentum • but, becoming too much emboldened by success, he 910-1273.] REBELLION OP DUKE HENRY OP BAVARIA. 91 allowed himself to be drawn into an ambuscade ; and, being attacked by the united forces of the Greeks and Sai^cens near Basantello in Calabria, his army was com pletely cut to pieces. Udes, duke of Franconia sevex^l princes and nobles, with Henry, bishop of Augsb^u^ Tid Werner, abbot of Foulques, were left on the fiekl of batt e. The emperor, by the luckiest chance, saved him- self by swimming his horse across the river, and got on board a Greek vessel belonging to the enemy; butrbein- soon recognised, he again escaped by swimming, landed near Rossano, and found himself, as by a miracle, once more amongst his followers. He died at Rome the fol- lowing year, of grief and disappointment, it is said, at the age of twenty -eight, in the midst of preparations for avenging his defeat (983). ^ Otho III. surnamed the Prodigy (983-1002).— Otho 1, ' f "" T^ successor of Otho II., was only three years old when his father died; and his infanc/ would have proved very fatal to Germany had Theophania not known how to govern prudently during hi& minority, and if, whilst mother and son were in Italy, Adelaide had not held the rems of empire with the same ability as her claughter-in-law. Enemies hovered all round the empire and the grasping Lothaire thought it a favourable moment tor conquermg Lorraine. He had already taken the town ot Verdun when, perceiving the accord which reigned in UtTmany, he renounced his project and renewed the peace. Rebellion of Duke Henry of Bavaria.— The first inter- nal danger which threatened the realm arose from the renewed attempt of Duke Henry of Bavaria on the crown of Germany. That rebellious vassal audaciously made himself master of the young Emperor^s person; but the princes, on whose aid he had counted, held aloof from his treason, declaring that, as they had already sworn lidehty to Otho, they would not violate theii- oath Left thus single-handed in rebellion, the duke's heart failed liim, and he hastened to provide for his o>vn pei-sonal siifety and the possession of his duchy, by surrenderin"" the young King and renewing the oath of allegiance. *" ^2 ' HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD IV. Education and Character of the Emperor.— Otho Lad been carefully taught the rudiments of education by his mother, and afterwards the rapid progress he made in his studies under the tuition of the celebmted French abbot of Magdeburg, Gerbert, gave lively promise of a brilliant future career, and earned for him the surname of the Prodigy. At fifteen, he had become so well versed in general knowledge that it was thought advisable he should assume the reins of government. The refined culture implanted by Gerbert, the most accomplished scholar of his time, seems to have affected his imperial pupil with a distaste for the rude and coarse manners of his German subjects, and inclined Otho to adopt the mannei^s and customs of the Greeks; among the rest, to eat alone at a table raised a little higher than that at which his courtiers sat, and to bestow ui)on them posts of honour, like the Greeks and Eomans. He thus sought to induce his Saxons to get rid of their rustic coarseness, and to fiishion themselves more closely approaching to the standard of Grecian delicacy. The result was that on being called into Italy; in 996, to appease a fresh revolt of the Komans, the Eternal City pleased him so much that he conceived the idea of making it the capital of his empire, which would have changed the entire face of Europe. He placed in the pontificial chair Gerbert, his tutor, under the name of Sylvester II. But the Eomans recompensed him badly for his inclination towards them; for whilst he was dwelling in their midst in the greatest security, as he imagiaed, with a small number of Germans only, they revolted and kept him shut up during three days in his palace, without food or drink, demanding with savage clamour that he should resign the crown. Then the young Otho felt that the fidelity of the Germans and their vii-tues, rude as they were, transcended in value the unctuous words and polished manners of the Italians. Bernard, bishop of Hildesheim, who had been the first tutor of the Emperor, stationed himself with his sacred lance at the i)rincipal gate of the palace, and thundered terrible anathemas against the rebels, as the writer of his life 919-1273.] HENRY 11, 93 f tells us; until at length the Emperor was rescued from the hands of the Romans by the resolution of that bishop and the aid of Duke Henry of Bavaria and other princes. Crescentius, who had joined two insurrections, although he had sworn allegiance to Otho, threw himself into the Castle of St. Angelo, where he was besieged, and, after an ineffectual resistance, taken prisoner and beheaded. In the following year (1002), whilst occupied with pre- l)arations for chastising his ungrateful Roman subjects, Otho died, aged twenty-two, at Paterno, of a spotted fever, or, as some chronicles affirm, of poison given him by his mistress, Stephania, the beautiful widow of Crescentius. Thus suddenly cut off, his name may be added to those of many princes over whose early fate their subjects have mourned and generously persuaded themselves that death cut short the development of the highest virtues. All the male descendants of Otho the Great, or the Lion — his two sons, Ludolf and Otho II., and his two grandsons, Otho III., and Otho, son of Ludolf — died in Italy in the flower of their age; so that of the imperial Saxon family there only remained Duke Henry of Bavaria, great- grandson of Henry the Fowler, and son of that duko who had attempted to wrest the crown from Otho in his infancy. Thus, over and over again, armies from one side of the Alps have crossed the mountains, to conquer indeed as long as conquest was a matter of swords, pikes, or guns, but to be conquered as soon as the land itself and its climate had time to work a fitting vengeance. Some lost their lives, some their health, some their energy and military discipline. Henry XL, surnamed the Saint (1003-1024).— The Ger- mans were not at all favourable to that Bavarian family of which Henry was the head; but as it had with it, because of its liberalities, all the clergy, and possessed all the treasures of the empire, it readily won over all the German peoples, one after another; so that each of them, even without assembling in Diet for the elections, agreed to transfer to him the imperial dignity with the sacred lance. Henry pxerited the surnarne of Saint by the tenor of 94 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERTOD IV. 9101273.] THE HOrSE OF FRAXCONIA. 05 ft pioiis and severe mode of life, and l)y liis well-known liberality to the clergy. The latter had acquired great possessions under the Saxon emperors, who had all shown themselves very generous towards that body, and, by encouraging the usurpations of the spiiitual nobility, its chief members had become very poweiful princes. The German kings, following the example of Charlemagne, had seen with pleasure their power increase, being desirous of opposing it as a counterpoise to that of the magnates; thus at that period they were most frequently in agree- ment with them. Bernard of Hildesheim, who had shown himself so resolute at a moment when danger menaced Otho Til. at Rome, was a man of elevated mind, and who testified a singular zeal for the progress of the arts and sciences in that dark age, and for everything that could legitimately advance the nation. Henry obtains the Crown of Lombardy (1004).— Tlio Emperor Henry received in Italy a second surname, that of the Lame {Ilvffehoh). For after the death of Otho III. a fresh revolt having taken place in Italy, and a margrave, one Ardouin, having been made king, Henry went thither in 1004 to re-establish order. Ardouin, being put to flight, Henry caused himself to be crowned at Pavia with the iron crown. To conciliate that city, and show respect to its inhabitants, he had taken with him only a small escort, and had encamped the rest of his army outside tho walls; when suddenly the Italians, with their usual incon- stancy, broke out into insurrection. They rushed towards the palace to slay the Emperor; and it was then that Henry, compelled to leap from a window, contracted a lameness. His guards, though few in number, bravely withstood the attack upon the palace long enough for tho German troops outside the city to scale the walls, and, by a vigorous combat, save their Emperor. Henry, himself both faithful and loyal of heart, con- ceived so great an antipathy to the Lombards, through the treachery of Pavia, that he could not be persuaded to remain longer in Italy, and therefore returned to Ger- many. But even there his government was not free from I \ troubles; for lie had not of himself sufficient power to make himself fittingly respected. Much of his life, there- fore, was spent in alternate wars with the Italians, Poles and Bohemians. ' ' Henry Crowned Emperor by Pope Benedict VIII. (101 3). —Early in 1013, Henry went a second time into Italy to re-establish Pope Benedict VIII. ; he swore to protect him faithfully, and was crowned by him. The last yeai-s of his life were wholly occupied with founding the bishopric of Bamberg, the city of his predilection; he endowed it richly, and hoped that it might serve as a testimony of his piety and that of his wife Cunegonda. Henry died in 1024 at the castle of Grone, near Gottingen, which was often the residence of the Saxon Emperors. With him ended the Saxon dynasty, which, like that of the Carlovingian, had begun with very gixjat power and ended still more feebly than the former. Germany once more needed a strong-minded and far-sighted sovereign to prevent her decay, and from losing consideration in the eyes of other nations; for, during the long minority of Otho and the reign of Henry II., the great vassals had been suflfered to make numerous usurpations over the imperial rights. The sons of nobles, enriched by gifts of the empire, were confirmed in their possessions, as fully as though they held them by hereditary right. There were even several contests on this subject which were not settled without bloodshed, and it was especially the south of Germany that was torn by those wars. Nevertheless, the number of Christian countiies in which the imperial dignity was respected at the same time as the authority of the church was considerably enlarged. Towards the year 1000, which, according to traditional belief, was to be the last that the world would ever behold, and when warriors, laying aside their arms, endeavoured by prayer and penance to prepare themselves for the day of judgment, Christianity spread itself in Hungary, Poland, Russia, Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. The House of Pranconia (1024-1125).— Conrad II., surnamed the Salian (1024-1039).— The difierent German 96 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [period IV. peoples assembled to elioose a new Emperor, eacli with its duke, upon the banks of the Ilhine, between Mayence and AVorms, at Oppenheim. The majority was in favour of the house of Franconia, and of that house two princes, both named Conrad, were preferred to the rest of the candidates by the consideration they enjoyed from their good qualities. Count Conrad the Elder, called the Salian, as being, by tradition, descended from the JNIerovingians, and Conrad the Younger, were sons of two brothers, descendants of Conrad the Wise, kinsman of Otho I., who perished in the battle fought against the Hungarians on the banks of the Lech : both were worthy of their ancestor, and were allied, on the maternal side, to the imperial house of Saxony. When the election was about to commence, Aribon, archbishop of Mayence, who had to give the first vote, named Conrad the Elder, and the archbishoi)S and bishops who followed imitated Aribon; whilst among the temporal princes it was the lot of the Duke of Fran- conia (Conrad the Younger) to vote first. The latter rose lip, and with loud voice chose his cousin. Conrad the Elder took him by the hand, embraced him affectionately, and placed him by his side; whilst the other princes approved, with the exception of only two dissentient voices, and the people applauded their assent. The new Emperor was then conducted to Mayence for the purj)Ose of being solemnly consecrated and crowned there. During the i)rogress to the cathedral, the proces- sion was detained a long time by a crowd of petitioners who demanded justice of the new sovereign. Conrad listened graciously to all the supplicants, and remarked to the bishops, who showed some dissatisfaction at the delay : «* The first of my duties is to render justice, however hard may be the task." These words were heard with the liveliest pleasure, and thenceforward great hoi)es were placed in tlie new Emperor, hopes which Conrad later justified. He began his reign by making a progress through his dominions, dispensing justice, re-establishinnr order, and showing everywhere a just severity united 919-1273.] THE HOUSE OF FRANCONIA. 97 with such active goodness, that it was said of him that no king since Charlemagne had so well merited to be seated on his throne. Whilst ho thus governed his interior dominions, ho laboured with the same success for the grandeur and con- sideration of Germany abroad. Shortly after his accession, he visited Italy (1026), was crowned King of that country at Milan, and at Rome as Emperor on Easter-day of the year following, two sovereign princes being present at the ceremony: Eudolph III. of Burgundy and Canute the Great of England and Scandinavia. With the latter Conrad inaugurated a firm friendship which lasted during a cen- tury amongst their descendants, his son having espoused Canute's daughter, Cunihilda, and settled with him the boundaries of Germany and Denmark, so that the river Eider, which flows between Holstein and Sleswick, should separate the two kingdoms. It is true that he lost by such arrangement the margraviate of Sleswick; but it was a country very difiicult to defend, and Conrad, more- over, made acquisitions which compensated for its loss. Henry II. had already made anteriorly with his uncle Rudolph, King of Burgundy, who had no child, a treaty by which Burgundy should be reunited to Germany after his death. Conrad renewed that treaty; and, when Rudolph died, he took possession of his kingdom, although a party of Burgundians had summoned to opjiose him the powerful Count of Champagne, Odo, whom, however, he humiliated, and forced to acknowledge him as King of Burgundy {Cis-Jnrane). That kingdom which now com- prehended the fine provinces of the south-east of France, since called Provence, Dauphiny, Franche-Comte, the Lyonnais, Savoy, and a part of Switzerland, thus placed Germany in communication with the Mediterranean by the important ports of Toidon and Marseilles — a mag- nificent acquisition, which, later, under the feeble Empe- rors, was neglected, and fell into the power of the French. • Umler the Emperor Conrad was established for the fii-st time an institution by which the Church, whose power had long become superior to all other, endeavoured 9S HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD IV. to bridle the tyranny of brute force. In other words, to lessen the evils caused by the continual wars of the nobles with one another, the Church proposed the following pact, and enforced its adoption u})on several princes : — From Wednesday evening at sunset to Monday morning at sunrise of each week, or on any festival of the Church, and during Advent or Lent, all fighting to cease, no sword to be unsheathed. This pact was called " the Truce of God " {treuga or tnva Del)^ and whosoever should dare to break it incurrtjd inevitably the pain of excommunication. This league, which came first into operation in 1034, after several years of terrible famine and all the other scourges which accompanied it, was organised in Burgundy and Lorraine by the clergy, and chiefly by Odillon, abbot of Cluny; and thence it soon spread into France and Eng- land. Its operation lasted some fifty years, and obtained throughout all Christian countries, proving highly bene- ficial and reflecting great honour on the ecclesiastics and princes who promoted and enforced it. During Conrad's second expedition into Italy, whither internal dissensions, and especially the arrogance of Heri- bert, the haughty Bishop of Milan, called him, in 1037, tho plague decimated his army and carried off the Emperor's kinsman, Hermann of Swabia, as well as the young wife of his son, Henry, the King of Denmark's daughter. Conrad himself was attacked by the same malady, which proved incurable, and of which he died after his return to Germany, 4th June 1039, at Utrecht, and was buried in the cathedral at Spires. His wife, Giselle, one of tho most distinguished princesses of Germany, who loved him tenderly, refused all consolation, and lamented liis loss until her death in the convent of Kaufungen, near Casscl. Conrad II. did not hesitate to make public his inten- tion of carrying out what may be called the cardinal idea of the Salian family; namely, to get rid, as far as possible, of everything which limited the imperial power; of restraining, on the contrary, that of the magnates within narrow bounds, and, in order to attain that two-fold object, to win by every kind of favour the holderji of tho 919-1273.] THE HOUSE OP FRAXCOXIA. 99 smaller fiefs. This he did by rendering those fiefs here- ditary, providing that every fief, not held immediately from the crown, should be regularly transmitted from fiither to son; that all delinquent vassals should be tried, not as heretofore by the insolent coercion of the great feudal lords, but by a jury of men of their own rank; and that in the case of his feeling aggrieved, any vassal might appeal from his lord to the Em]:)eror. This was a decided step towards the emancipation of the smaller vassals, who had become little better than the slaves of the powerful lords. Such was the important law promulgated by Conrad in 1037, first in Italy and afterwards in Germany. At the same time he strove to bring back the princes, and more especially the dukes, to their ancient status in relation to the empire — to that of functionaries. Ho even succeeded in bestowing by degrees the vacant duchies of Bavaria, Swabia, and Carinthia on his own son Henry, which he looked upon as subservient to the execution of the grand scheme of rendering the imperial crown all- powerful; and if he had succeeded, Germany would early have been what France was later — a single and powerful realm. But the Salian family was arrested in its career, as well by its own faults as by the puissance of the ponti- ficial chair, which raised itself up with an astonishing strength and promptitude, and of which the potent Conrad 11. was far from foreseeing the aggressive preponderance over his grandson. The Guelphs or Welfs are first heard of in this reign, and afterwards, it will be seen, figure con- spicuously in the history of the emj^ire. In the eleventh century, Azzo, Lord of Milan and Genoa, became allied with a branch of this family by marriage; and at a later period his descendants, as well as the representatives of the German line, were the founders of a i)olitical party in Italy and Germany, which rendered itself prominent by its support of the JPopes, and its advocacy of Italian inde- pendence, in opposition to the Ghibel lines, who took part with the Emperor. A descendant of the Guelphic house, George, Elector of Hanover, ascended the British throno pn the death of Queen Anne in 171-4. 100 UISTOKY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD IV. Henry III., surnamed the Blade (1030-105G). — Henry, the son of Conrad, though scarcely twenty-two years old at his accession, inspired, nevertheless, hopes which the future failed not to realise. Like his father, he possessed a genius for governing^ a resolute will, and a firmness exaggerated even to obstinacy. He was easy of speech, if not eloquent, and had early been well instructed by his mother, Giselle, chiefly by reading, though books at that time were very rare. No Emperor since Charlemagne more rigorously main- tained, and no one commanded with more authority along all the frontiers of his vast empire, order and enforced obedience both in Italy and Germany. He had early distinguished himself by crushing formidable insurrec- tions in Bohemia and Burgundy, but nothing contributes more to the martial glory of his reign than that he so humbled the outer barbarians of Hungary, who, for up- wards of a century, had been the terror of the Germans, that the Magyar nobles, after a fierce battle in which they were defeated on the banks of the Eaab, took the oath of fidelity (1044); and Peter, their King, restored to the rule of his country as a fief, did homage, and there- upon received from the hands of the young Emperor the gilded spear. Henry then i)assed into Italy to remedy the groat dis- orders prevailing there. Three popes had ))een chosen at once by different factions: Benedict IX., Sylvester III., and Gregory VI., each of whom claimed the obedience of the faithful. Henry convoked a council at Sutri, and after listening to the trii)le claims, he deposed all three as illegally appointed, and placed a German in the ponti- ficial chair, Suidger, bishop of Bamberg, who took the name of Clement II. The new Pope crowned Henry Emperor on Christmas day 1046. After Clement, Henry gave three more popes to the Romans (for they had re- newed the promise, made previously to Otho I., to recog- nise no Pope without the approbation of the Em2)eror) ; all were bishops of Germany, chosen from amongst the most worthy and distinguished. 019-1273.] Henry iv. 101 Havmg determined to give up to other princes the German duchies he had hitherto held, Henry selected those who possessed the least power, and on whom lie bestowed the title of duke, though not the ancient privileges attached to it. To Henry, of the House of Luxembourg, he gave the duchy of Bavaria, and after lum to Conrad, one of the counts palatine; that of Cariii- thia to Guelph, son of Guelph, count of Swabia; and Swabia to Otho, count palatine of the Rhine. The house of Guelph was already powerful in Swabia, and would have well desired on that account to possess its duchy ; but it was precisely for that reason that Henry placed Count Guelph in Carinthia, unwilling that the Count's great patrimony should be situated in the duchy he gave him, which he moreover weakened by detaching*' the inarches of Styria, Carniola, and Istria, and placing over them a Margrave. It was thus, from high political motives, that he disposed of the great dignities of the empire, whilst he favoured the hereditary succession of the small fiefs. It was he also who gave the duchy of Upi)er Lorraine to Albei-t of Longwy, one of the ancestors of Francis I., and consequently one of the chiefs of the present House of Austria. Henry died suddenly at Bothfeld, near Blankembouiy, at the foot of the Hartz, whither he had gone to hunt, 5th October 105G, in the flower of his age, being in liis thirty-ninth year, and in the midst of great projects for the future. Henry IV. (105G-110G).— At the birth of his son, the princes had promised to Henry the Black to accept him as his successor; but, unfortunately, when the Emperor died the young prince was only in his sixth year. His education and the management of his em])ire were at first confided to the hands of his excellent mother, Agnes; but it was soon seen that the regent-mother was quite unable to cope with the turbulent magnates in their attacks on the privileges of the crown and the liberties of the people, and consequently to complete the work of Henry III. On the contrary, she sought to strengthen her government 102 tllSTORY OP GERMANY. [pERIOD iV. 919-1273.] tiENRY IV. 103 by winning over some "by admitting them to offices of tlio highest trust and honour. Heniy, bishop of Augsburg, possessed her entire confidence; but, stern and upright, a widespread feeling of envy and jealousy attended his attempts to counteract the evils by which her regency was assailed. At the head of the malcontents was Hanno, archbishop of Cologne, a man amljitious and adroit, but of a rigid and severe disposition. This jn-elate, in order to obtain the regency, entered into a conspiracy to carry off the young King, and for that puq^ose repaired at Easter, 1062, to Kaiserwerthe, an island in the E-hine, where the Empress was then keeping her coui-t. One day after dinner, Hanno persuaded the young prince, then twelve years old, to enter his pleasure boat with the view of inspecting a vessel of extraordinary size then building close by ; but, scarcely was he on board, when the sailors, at a sign from the archbishop, pulled from the shore and rowed towards the mainland. Perceiving that it was the aim of the conspirators to separate him from his mother, the terrified boy leaped suddenly overboard, and assuredly would have been drowned had not Count Egbert of Brunswick plunged into the stream and rescued him. Again in the boat, the conspirators sought to pacify him by many and fair words, and so conducted him to Cologne. The bereft regent-mother thus finding that the German princes had no longer any confidence in her, announced it as her intention to seek repose in the quietude of the cloister. Hanno immediately proclaimed himself regent, and assumed the guardianship of the young Emperor; but that it might not appear as though he desired to have the sovereign power wholly in his hands, he procured a law to be passed appointing that Henry should reside succes- sively in the different countries of Germany, and that the bishop of the diocese in which he might be should tem- porarily have the tutelage of him, and therefore the government of the kingdom. It may readily be believed that, at the bottom of his heart, Hanno thought to exer- cise the greatest influence over the piince's mind, but he was not the sort of man to conciliate his aflection. i Haughty, imperious, and severe, as during the penances of the father, the violent Henry the Black, the prelate, feared not, it is said, to strike hard; so also in his treat- ment of the son, he hesitated not to exercise his functions with equal rigour. Among the other bishops, on the contrary, was one of totally different character. As ambitious as Hanno, but dexterous and given to flattery; handsome of person and full of amenity — qualities which won over to him the young Henry so much the more easily that he allowed him to do exactly as he liked. This was Adelbert, archbishop of Bremen, a lover of luxury and pomp, and a jovial boon-companion also; no characters could be more opposite than those of the men who had taken upon themselves the charge of the youthful Emperor; for Hanno, well aware that there were many other magnajtes, scarcely less powerful than himself, who would probably dispute with him possession of the sove- reign's person, had craftily proposed to Adelbert that Henry should reside in his diocese at a subsequent period, and that the regency, meanwhile, should be administered by the two prelates conjointly. In their hearts these two ecclesiastics were the bitterest enemies, and agreed only in striving, each to the full extent of his power, to tyran- nise over and plunder the German empire. The young Henry, whoso misfortune it was to fall into the hands of two guardians so unfit for tlie task which they had undertaken, i)ossessed a pliancy of disposition which rendered his character peculiarly susceptible of injury from the opposite but equally faulty systems pur- sued by his instructors. Whilst Hanno, by educating him as he would have taught the meanest chorister of his cfiurch, excited in his young mind feelings of bitter hatred towards his severe taskmaster, Adelbert corrupted his morals by the daily scenes of licentiousness which dis- graced the palace at Bremen. The first lesson inculcated was the dangerous one, that kings are accountable for their actions to none but God; the second, that the dukes of the em})ire, his natural enemies, as lie was told, were to be hunted down with as little remorse as wild beasts. 104 niSTORV OF GERMANY. [PERIOD IV. The Saxons, with whom Adelbert hud long been at vari- ance, were unceasingly reviled, and a prejudice created in the mind of Henry w hich at a later period of his reign was the cause of much bloodshed and misery. The austere Hanno having made a journey to Ptome, and remained long absent, the profligate Adelbert con- sequently became sole master of his imperial charge. Nothing could have been more pernicious for this young Emperor than to be subjected to the influence of two men no diametrically opposite in character. From the most rigid severity, he suddenly passed to unrestricted license and the uncontrolled gratification of the senses. In 1063, the young Henry accompanied his guardian in an expedition against the Hungarians, and returned after a successful campaign, more than ever delighted with his unprincipled instructor. Two years later, being then fifteen years of age, he was girded with the sword of knighthood and declared a man. The Emperor now took up his residence at Goslar, in Saxony, where his court became a scene of the most undisguised and shameless profligacy. To support the expenses of this court exac- tions were made on the inhabitants of the surrounding country, whose murmurs and remonstrances were treated with contempt. A financial crisis at length having been brought about, the princes of the empire assembled to deliberate upon the affairs of Germany, and resolved unani- mously that no choice should be allowed to the King except that of abandoning Adelbert or resigning the crown. Henry, unwilling to renounce his favourite, endeavoured to escape by night, carrying with him the regalia of the empire; but his enemies having surrounded the palace with a guard, his attempt was frustrated. A second council was then held, at which scenes of great violence were enacted, and the archbishop scarcely escaped bein^ personally ill-treated by the enraged princes. At length it was resolved by a great majority that Heniy should be compelled to dismiss his obnoxious favourite, renounce his profiigate course of life, and marry Bcrtlia, daughter of the Italian margrave of Susa, a woman of the most 0101273.] HENRY IV. 105 estimable character, to whom he had been in childhood betrothed. Yielding to necessity, Henry dismissed the archbishop, and retired with his bride to Goslar. Adel- bert being now exposed to the fury of his enemies, was robbed of all his possessions, and reduced to a state of the most abject poverty. Meanwhile Henry, thinking himself safe in his strong- hold of Goslar, returned to his usual dissolute life, and treated his wife with great cruelty. As in the case of most forced marriages, their union soon proved an unha])py one, and he sought to obtain a divorce; but the opposition of the Pope and the German princes proved fata] to the prosecution of Henry's suit; and, after a time, touched by the gentle patience with which she had borne his ill-usage, he began to treat her with as much aftection as Jiis depraved heart was capable of feeling; and was requited by finding in her the most constant of friends and wisest of counsellors. In 1069, Henry's evil genius, the Archbishop of Bremen, again appeared at Goslar, and by his evil counsels speedily embroiled his imperial master afresh with the Saxons and Bavarians. After a series of plots and insurrections, the Saxons concluded a peace with Henry at Gerstingen, the chief condition of svhich was that all the royal fortresses in Saxony should be put into their hands, and levelled with the ground — a work which they performed with disgusting brutality, particularly at the Hartzburg, where they disinterred and insulted the corpse of Henry's son. Aroused by this atrocity, the Emperor declared that he no longer considered himself bound by the conditions of the peace. The nobles were now on his side, for they had taken deep ofience at the Saxons for having presumed to conclude a peace without their sanction; and Henry soon found himself at the head of a powerful army, with which he encountered the enemy near the town of Langen-Salza, in Thuriugia. The combat lasted the whole day, and, at its conclusion, the Saxons, who had lost 8000 men, sur- rendered to Henry, as their fathers had often done to Charlemagne, determined to burst the diain as soon as a 10(5 illSTORY OF GERMANY. [pERIOD IV. favourable opportunity slioukl occur for renouncing their forced allegiance. With Henry IV. commenced the intenninable wars of the investitures, which, during two centuries, convulsed the Christian world. That Pope Hildebrand* was i)er- fectly justified in seeking to deprive the Emperor of an usurped right, of filling, through corruption or court favour, ecclesiastical dignities with the weakest and most vicious of men, will not be denied. Had not the Holy See interposed, religion itself would for ever have been attached to the imperial car, and, from a ruling power,, converted into a slave. All the princes of Europe would have imitated the conduct of Henry; in fact, by some — by our William Kufus among the rest — it loas imitated ; and others were only waiting for the discomforture of tho Pope, to seize on the revenues and entire administration of the Church. Had he triumphed, the regal and sacer- dotal characters would at length have been united; and Christianity would not have been at all superior to the religion of pagan Home or Thibet. From this time to the reign of Rudolph I. the leading characteristic of German history is a struggle between the Emperors and the Popes : by the former to extend their influence, as well over the Germanic Church as over Italy; by the latter to prevent both. The late wearer of tho iron crown had displaced three contending popes, who were disturbing the peace of the city by their ferocious quarrels, and had appointed others in their room. There was no murmur of opposition to their appointment. They " * Hildebrand, afterwords Gregory VII. Avas the son of a Roman blacksmith, or, according to other authorities, of a carpenter in the small town of Soano, in Tuscany. Having risen to the highest offices of the Church by his talents, in the reign of Henry III., he was invited to Rome by Leo XL, whose chancellor he became. Thenceforward, it was he who directed every action of that Pontiff, his object bein;; the elevation of the Pope above all the potentates of earth. To this end he devoted his whole life with so much wisdom and firmness, with such singular force and ability, that he must be ranked amongst the most extraordinary men of his time. He was elected to the papal chair in 1073, aiij assumed the title of Gregory VII. 019-1273.] HENRY IV. 10? were pious and venerable men; and of each of them the inscrutable Hildebrand had managed to make himself the confidential adviser, and in reality the guide and master. Even in his own case, he waited patiently till he had secured the Emperor's legal ratification of his election, and then, armed with legitimacy, and burning with smothered indignation, lie wrote an insulting letter to the Emperor, commanding him to abstain from simony, and to renounce the right of investiture by the ring and cross. These, ho maintained, were the signs of spiritual dignitv, and their bestowal was inherent in the Pope. The time for tho message was admirably chosen, for Henry was engaged in a hard stniggle for life and crown with the Saxons and Thuringians, who were in open revolt. Henry promised obedience to the Pontiff's wish; but when his enemies were defeated he withdrew his concession. The Pope tlumdered a sentence of excommunication against him, released his subjects from their oath of fealty, and pro- nounced him deprived of his throne. The Emperor was not left behind in the race of objurgation. Henry summoned his princes and prelates to a council at Worms, and pronounced sentence of deprivation on the Pope. TJien arose such a storm against the unfortunate Henry as only religious differences can create. His sub- jects had been oppressed, his nobility insulted, his clergy impoverished, and all classes of his people were glad of the opportunity of hiding their hatred of his oppressions under cloak of regard for the interests of religion. He was forced to yield; and, crossing the Alps in the middle of winter, he presented himself at the castle of Canossa. Here the Pope displayed the humility and generosity of his Christian character, by leaving the wretched Henry three days and nights in the outer court, shivering with cold and barefoot, while his Holiness and the Countess Matilda (heiress of Boniface, the rich Margrave of Tus- cany), were comfortably closeted within. And after this unheard of degi-adation, all that could be wiping from the hatred of the inexorable monk was a promise that tho suppliant should be tried with justice, and that if he sue- 108 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD IV* ceeded in proving liis innocence, lie should be reinstated on his throne; but if he were found guilty, he should bo punished with the utmost rigour of the ecclesiastical law. Common sense and good feeling were revolted by this unexampled insolence. Friends gatliered round Henry when the terms of the sentence were heard. The Romans themselves, who had hitherto been blindly submissive, were indignant at the presumption of their bishop. None continued faithful except the imperturbable Countess Matilda, the zealous partisan of the Pope, and to whom she had given secretly all her possessions. He was still to her the representative of divine goodness and superhuman jjower. But her troops were beaten and her money exhausted in the holy quarrel. Robert Guiscard, the Norman, indeed, came to the rescue, and rewarded himself for delivering the Pope by sacking the city of Rome. Half the houses were burned, and" half the population killed or sold as slaves. It was from amidst the desola- tion his ambition had caused that the still unsubdued Hildebrand was guarded by the Normans to the citadel of Salerno, and there he died, issuing his orders and cui-ses to his latest hour, and boasting with his latest breath that *' he had loved righteousness and hated iniquity, and that therefore he expired in exile." After this man's throwing off the mask of moderation under which his predecessors had veiled tlieir claims, the world was no longer left in doubt of the aims and objects of the spiritual power. None of the great potentates of Europe, however, was anxious to diminish a i)ower which might be employed to his own advantage, and all of them by turns encouraged the aggressions of the Papacy with a short-sighted wisdom, to be an instrument of offence against their enemies. Little encouragement, indeed, was offered at this time to the spiritual despot. Though Hildebrand died a refugee, it was remarked Avith j)ious awe that Henry IV., his rival and opponent, was punished in a manner which showed the highest displeasure of Heaven. His chiklren, at the instigation of the Pope, rebelled against him. He was conquered in battle and taken prisoner by his youn^-est 010-1273.] THE FIRST CRUSADE. 109 son.^ He was stripped of all his possessions, and at last, so destitute and forsaken that he begged for a sub-chanter's pLace in a village church for the sake of its wretched salary, and died in such extremity of want and desolation that hunger shortened his days. For five years his body was left without the decencies of interment in a cellar in the town of Spires. The First Crusade (1096-1099).— Whilst the two Emperors Henry IV. and Henry V. were engaged in a violent struggle with the popes, an immense movement was now to take place in the European mind, which had the greatest influence on the authority of Rome. About the year 1090, the Turks, a horde of savage mountaineers from the Caucasus, who having driven the Saracens from Jerusalem, and become masters of the Holy Land, had defiled the sepulchre of Christ, and either carried off the Christians into slavery, or treated them with intolera})le cruelty and oppression. The Greek Emperor, Alexis Comnenus, himself menaced by the Turks, encamped before Constantinople, filled all the courts of Christendom with his cries of distress. But the danger threatening this last relic of the Roman empire failed to arouse the Western Christians from tlieir indifference. The first French Pope, Sylvester, had already addressed in vain an eloquent letter to the European i)rinces, in the name of Jerusalem forsaken; and though at one moment the reso- lute Gregory VII. (Hildebrand) was desirous of placing himself at the head of 50,000 knights, to go to the rescue of the Holy Sepulchre, he was too much engaged in his disputes with the Emperor of Germany to bestow much attention to the complaints of his persecuted brethren in Palestine. That in which Emperors and Popes alike failed, was accomplished by a poor monk, Peter the Her- mit, who had lately returned from a pilgrimage to Jeru- salem, and who made all France ring with his pathetic recital of the treatment which the Christians there experi- enced from the Turks. At the Council of Clermont, summoned in 1095, a crusade against the enemies of the faith was proclaimed, and from all parts of Europe a great 110 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD IV. crv of approval was uttered in all tongues, for it Lit t le ri^lit chord in the ferocious and superstitious heart of the world; and it was felt that the great battle of the Cross and the Crescent was most fitly to bo decided for ever on the soil of the Holy Land. As Germany was at that time wholly occupied witli her internal dissensions and struggle with the popes, she took scarcely any part in this first movement. Ihe suu- iect of the subsequent crusades, therefore, in which the German Emperors figured, will be treated of m their proper periods. , ^ . ji Henry V. (1106-1125).— Henry soon found that the throne lie had so basely usurped was not likely to reward him for the sacrifice of duty and conscience. Pope Pascal, in a council at Troyes, renewed the declarations against investiture, absolutely prohibiting every ecclesiastic, of whatever grade, to do homage to a layman. The menace was disregarded ; but Henry meditated open violence. In defiance of the Papal claim, he recommenced the struggle with Pascal II. on the subject of the imperial nght of investiture by cross and ring. He was a more formidable enemy than his father, for he knew well how to employ trick and duplicity in addition to force of arms. Early in the year 1110, Henry, at the head of the most formidablo army which for ages had passed the Alps, hastened to Pvome. A solemn treaty was about to be concluded between him and the Pope; but, when they came to tho conditions, there arose on the part of the Italian and German bishops an angry opposition and long dispute. In the midst of the disorder one of the German knights exclaimed: *' What is the good of all this noise? It is enough for you to know that our lord, the Emperor, wishes to be crowned like those before him, both Charle- mar^ne, Louis, and the rest." The Pope replied that ho could not consent thereto until Henry had renounced by a solemn oath his right of investiture. Thereupon, Henry, upon the advice of his chancellor Adalbert, and Burchard, bishop of Munsteu, called in his guards, who made tho Pope and the cardinals prisoners. This bold action pre- 919-1273.] HENRY v. Ill cipitated an appeal to arms. The Pomans, furious at such violence, attacked, next morning, the Germans encami^ed round St. Peter's church. The Emperor instantly leaped on his horse, rushed madly from the lower marble steps of the church upon the crowd, and pierced five Ptomans with his lance. But, being wounded, he fell from his horse. ^ Otho, count of Milan, saved Henry's life even at the price of his own; for, proin])tly giving him his own steed, he fell into the hands of the Bomans, who cut him in pieces. A murderous carnage was kept up all day, until towards evening the Emperor himself excited the bellicose fury of his followers to a final onslaught. The Romans suffered a terrible defeat, one portion being hurled into the Tiber and another driven into the city^ the Leonine quarter, with that of St. Peter remaining in the hands of the Germans. Henry, however, quickly abandoned the Eternal City, dragging with hiin his pri- soners, to ravage the environs. The Romans, reduced to the extremity of fiimine, urgently supplicated the Pope to make peace with the Emperor. Pascal, who had already been for sixty-one days a prisoner, stripped, w^e are told, of his pontificial ornaments, and, like the vilest malefactor, tied with cords, willingly consented to an accommodation. He agreed that the Emperor should keep the right of investiture with cross and ring, promising at the same time never to launch any excommunication on account of what had passed. The treaty was sworn to by twehe cardinals and by twelve princes on the part of Henry. The Emperor was then solemnly crowned in St. Peter's by Pascal, 13th Ajn-il 1111; but scarcely were the Ger- mans out of Rome than all the clergy loudly blamed the Pope, and compelled him to assemble a council at the Lateran, which pronounced the treaty null and void, as having been extorted by violence. So long as Pascal lived, Henry ran no risk of an excom- munication, but the papal legates and numerous higli dignitaries of the church, by launching a ban against him, created thereby a cause of fresh divisions and renewed agitations. A great portion of the princes of the empii-e 112 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD IV. refused oLedience to the Emperor, and a reign of arbitrary iron-handedness, brigandage, pillage, and murder pre- vailed. At length, in 1122, the two parties, wearied with the strife, concluded a solemn treaty, called the Concordat of Worms, by which mutual concessions were made, and the rights of Emperor and Pope clearly defined. The Emperor consented to the clergy choosing the bishops and abbots, and renounced the act of investiture by cross and ring; but, on the other hand, the election could only be made in the Emperor's presence, or that of his repre- sentative; and in case of incertitude or dispute arising, he was to have the decisive voice. In the matter of tem- poralities, investiture of a fief was to be given by the sceptre, the ecclesiastical consecration of the bishop-elect to take place in Germany after such investiture; but in Italy it was to precede it. Men of peace rejoiced ex- ceedingly at this reconciliation, and both sides separated, say the chronicles of the period, with infinite testimonies of joy. The Emperor reigned only three years after, at peace with the church, it is true, but not without being tormen- ted with insurrections in the empire, which had become a theatre of violence and devastation, and desolated with sword and fire. Henry died of a cancer at Utrecht, in 1 125, aged forty, leaving no children, and with him ended the Salic or Frankish house of Saxony. Lothar of Saxony, Count of Supplinburg (1125-1137). — The extinction of the house of Franconia summoned once more the German princes and nobles to the banks of the Khine, near Mayence, for the purpose of electing a successor to Henry V. Of ten princes selected from the four principal nations of Germany — Saxons, Franconians, Swabians, and Bavarians — three candidates only were chosen to contend for the imperial crown. These were, Frederick, duke of Swabia, brother-in-law of the late Emperor, Lothar of Saxony, and Leopold of Austria. The two last humbly begged with tearful eyes to bo spared the heavy burden. Frederick, on the contrary, in the pride of his nature, thought that the throne should \ \ )i ^ 019-1273.] LOTUAR OF SAXONY. 113 belong to no one but himself, and even allowed that pretension to be plainly visible on his countenance. Adalbert, archbishop of Mayence, of himself by no means friendly disposed to the house of Hohenstaufen, then asked the three candidates whether each of them was ready to submit himself willingly to him who should be chosen. The two latter consented; but Frederick hesitated and quitted the assembly under pretext of going to ask the advice of his friends. This conduct so highly offended the other princes that, at the insti- gation of Adelbert, Lothar of Saxony was chosen against his inclination. h MAYENCE. Shortly after his accession, Lothar renounced all the prerogatives which his predecessor had obtained by the Concordat of Worms, and even consented to hold his crown as a vassal of the Holy See. He was forced into making these concessions through the relentless hostility of the two i)uissant dukes of Hohenstaufen, Frederick of Saxony, and Conrad of Franconia, with whom he waged a sanguinary war during the greater part of his reign; until at length the dukes found themselves compelIed,'^in the year 1135, to submit to the imperial power. In this P5truggle, Lothar, to strengthen his party, had recom-qe te* lU HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD IV* a means wliicli became the cause of a centiuy of strife and desolation. He married his only daughter, Gertrude, to Henry the Proiidy duke of Bavaria, a prince already powerful, of the Guelphic house, and gave him the duchy of Saxony in addition to that of Bavaria. It was the first time that the two duchies had been united under the same duke. Further, he received as a fief, with the con- sent of the Pope, and under the condition of reversion to the Eoman Church after Henry's death, the rich inherit- ance of the Princess INIatilda of Tuscany; so that the domination of Henry extended from the Elbe to a long way on the other side of the Alps, and was greater eveu than that of the Emperor. Such was the commencement of the riviilry between the Guelphs and the Hohenstaufens or Waiblingers (so called from a fortress of that name), and later Ghibellines by the Italians. During a hundred years the party watchwords of " Guelphs" and " Ghibel- lines " resounded from Etna and Vesuvius to the shores of the Baltic and the North Sea. The entire reign of Lothar was so troubled by his struggles with the Hohen- staufens, and by his expeditions into Italy, that of all the sanguine hopes which had been conceived of his prudent, pious, and chivalrous character, none was destined to be realised. Lothar fell sick during his last Italian campaign, which was otherwise veiy glorious, in 1137, and died in a pea- sant's hut, amidst the savage forests of the Tyrol. Hia body was carried back to Saxony, and buried in the monastery of Konigslutter, which he had himself founded. If the two princely houses of the Guelphs and Ghibel- lines attracted universal attention at this time, a third, which rose under this reign, merits also some notice. Lothar had given the Margi-aviate of North Saxony to Albert the Bear, of the house of Anhalt, one of the most remarkable men of his age. After subduing the middle and southern marches, he, in order to stimulate their inhabitants to activity in useful industry, invited a large immigi-ation of agricultural labourers from Flanders. He may therefore be regarded as the founder of the mar- 919-1273.] THE HOUSE OF SWABIA. 115 gi\aviate of Brandenburg; and it was also under him, in the middle of the twelfth century, that the name of Ber- lin first appeared, and that city consequently had its origin about the same time that Leopold of Austria laid the foundations of Vienna. The House of Swabia or Hohenstaufen (1138-1154) —Conrad III. (1138-1152).— The empire was now divided into two parties, the Guclj^hs or followers of Henry the Proudy Duke of Bavaria and Saxony, and the Ghibellines, who were adherents of the Hohenstaufen. The latter assembled a diet at Coblcntz; and on this occasion the choice did not fall upon him who thought himself certain of the crown, that is to say, upon Lothar's son-in-law and sole heir, Henry the Proud, although he had already in his hands the crown jewels. The princes, offended by his pride, elected Conrad of Hohenstaufen, who had gained wisdom by misfortune, and to whom Frederick, his elder brother, the former rival of Lothar, willingly gave way. Henry the Proud refusing submission to the new Emperor, he was jilaced under ban, his two duchies confiscated, Bavaria being given to the margrave of Aus- tria, Leoi)old, uterine brother of the Emperor, and Saxony to Albert the Bear of Brandenburg. Henry died soon afterwards, leaving a son aged 16, who became sub- sequently celebrated by the name of Henry the Lion. Meanwhile, the vassals of the house of Guel])h had zealously espoused the cause of their lords and were fighting manfully against the Ghibellines in Bavaria and Swabia whilst Duke GucJph, the brother of Henry, shut himself up in the fortress of Weinsberg, in Wiirtemberg. After a battle fought before Weinsberg, in which Duke Guelpli ventured to measure his strength against the Emperor, and was completely defeated, the garrison of the fortress capitulated on condition that all the women should be allowed to depart, taking with them as much of their property as they could cavvj. When, at da}^- break, the gates were opened, the duchess came forth bearing her husband on her shoulders, followed by a long line of women carrying a like burthen either husband or IIG HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD IV. relative most dear to them. The Emperor, irritated by tlie long resistance of the city, had determined to subject it to fire and sword, but was so touched at the sight, that when his chiefs urged him to send back the men, on the score that they had obtained their liberty by a trick, the generous Conrad replied, "When an Emperor i)ledgos his word, it must be kept," and he not only pardoned the men, but the entire city."^ The steep hill, down which this extniordinary procession wound, still retains th3 name of Weibertreue {woniait s fidelit u). The Second Crusade (1LU-1U9).— In the year 11 II, intellisrence was received which forced on the nations of Europe the conviction that a new crusade must be under- taken, or the Holy City be abandoned to the infidels. Pope Eugenius II. sent forth, therefore, Bernard, abbot of Clairvaux, the adversary of Abelard, to preach a second crusade in France and Germany, but already the universal zeal of Christendom had grown cooler. The King of France, Louis VII., whose conscience was sorely burthened by remorse for having permitted a horiiblo massacre in a church in Champagne, promised to march a large army into Palestine, in the hoi)e of expiating hi.s guilt; but the Emperor Conrad, who thought that he had done enough for the welfare of his soul in making a pil- grimage to Jerusalem, was dis[)osed to turn a deaf ear to the preaching of St. Bernard, and declared that he could do nothing without the advice of his nobles. At a diet held at Spires for this purpose, Bernard urged Conrad from the altar with such stirring eloquence to succour his persecuted brother Christians, in token of his gratitude for the mercies and blessings which God had showered upon him, that the German Emi)eror no longer hesitated to " take the cross." His exam2)le was followed by his nephew Frederick, his former enemy, the old Duke Guelj'jh, and many others. Conrad's army is said to have numbered G0,000 men in arms, besides a host of pilgrims, who availed themselves of his protection to * This incident is related in a chronicle of that time, that of Saint Pantaleon; 919-1273.] THE SECOND CRUSADE. 117 visit the Holy Sepulchre. The command of the expedi- tion was offered to St. Bernard, but he, remembering Peter the Hermit, refused. Conrad and his Germans had preceded Louis of France in the march, and were already in Asia Minor; but, treacherously misled by their Greek guides, they lost their way in the defiles of the Taurus, and were cut to pieces by the Turks; Conrad and his nephew Barbarossa, with a few followers, escap- ing by the superior swiftness of their horses. Louis, warned of the danger of attempting this mountain route, took the longer but safer way by the sea-coast, and his army was encouraged by a victory over the Turks on the INIfeander; but beyond Laodicea, they entered on narrow defiles, where, through the incapacity of the commanders, the troops marched in two separate bodies. The Turks fell uj)on the rear, made a terrible slaughter, and tho King having fought for a long time alone — all the nobles of his escort having been slain — escaped with the greatest difficulty, with the loss of all his baggage and provisions. After encoimtering innimierable perils, Conrad, sick and dejected, at length reached the Holy Land with less than a tenth of his army. He saw Jerusalem and the different stations of the Cross, and there offered up his prayers; but this was all the fruit of his ill-starred enterprise. Conrad and Louis, as a last effort, laid siege to Damascus, but though the Emperor and his Germans performed prodigies of valour, disunion and want of dis- cipline, together with the treachery of the Greeks and Templars, rendered the attempt abortive. The siege was raised, and Europe saw but very few of those return who had set out on this second mad and destructive expe- dition. The first crusade had at least attained its object, it had delivered Jerusalem ; the second had uselessly shed torrents of Christian blood. After it, Palestine found itself weaker, Islamism stronger, and the Crusadei^ derived nothing from it but shame and dishonour. It was during:; this crusade that the double eaijle was first adopted as the arms of the empire. The two sove- reigns of Greece and Germany being in alliance to defend 118 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD IV. the Christian religion against the infidels, their union was typified by that heraklic symbol, which became hence- forth the cognisance of both. Conrad returned from the Holy Land only to die at Bamberg in 1152, some writers say of poison, whilst busied with prejmrations for a campaign against Guelph, Avho was conspiring against him with the Norman, Koger of Naples. Conrad III. was a brave and noble-minded prince, and universally esteemed. Instead of designating as his successor his own son, yet too young to govern, he recommended Frederick of Swabia, his valiant nephew, "who had taken part with him in the crusade, and he was elected with unanimity. Frederick I. sumamed by the Italians Barbarossa {Red-heard) (1152-1190).— This Frederick, the first Gor- man Emperor of his name, was the son of Conrad's brother Frederick, Duke of Swabia, by Judith, daughter of Henry the Black, Duke of Bavaria. A Ghibelline on his father^s side, and a Guelph on that of his; mother, it was hoiked that on his accession to the throne a cessation of the sanguinary rivalry between the two fiimilies would ensue; and, indeed, one of his first measures in Germany was in favour of the Guelphs; for, in 1152, he restored the duchy of Bavaria to Henry the Lion, son of Henry the Proud, who thus became, like his fiither, possessor at once of the duchies of Saxony and Bavaria, and conse* quently the most powerful prince in Germany. The reconciliation of the first jn-inccs of Germany caused a universal joy, and Frederick reckoned thenceforth firmly upon the support of his young friend Henry the Lion in his enterprises. The new Emperor took in hand with equal vigour the other interests of the empire, over- throwing the strongholds of the robber knights, making them answerable to the law for their misdeeds, and show- ing himself on all hands as the protector of order arul justice among the German peoi>le. At his accession, Frederick was in the prime of man- hood. Stalwai-t of frame and above the middle height, his complexion was clear and ruddy, with fair hair ciirl- Ma-1273.] FREDERICK I. 119 ing crisply over a broad and lofty brow, penetrating bluo eyes, and well-cut mouth, his manly form presented alto- gether an admii-able type of the ancient German race. From the reddish tinge of his beard, he obtained during his Italian campaigns the surname of Barbarossa. A natural afiability gave to his countenance that pleasing expression which is calculated to win all hearts, whilst his firm step and noble demeanour denoted a prince born to command. The rough life to which he had been exposed during the crusade had inured his frame to bear the extremes of heat and cold, hunger, thirst, and privation of every kind. Sincerely pious, but in nowise a bigot, he was, whilst firmly opposed to the pretensions which the ])apacy had been long steadily advancing to universal dominion, careful not to come into collision unprepared with one of the most unsparing of human forces. The countries bordering on Germany gave him an opportunity of investing the imperial crown with a fresh lustre. In the first Diet which he held at Merseburg (1152), he settled a quarrel between the two Danish princes Sweyn and Canute, on the subject of the kingdom of Denmark. Canute had Zealand, but Sweyn had the crown, which he received from the hands of Frederick, and to whom ho rendered homage as vassal. Boleslas, King of Poland, owed him the same homage, which he was con- strained to pay by force of arms, after a campaign in Silesia. Wladislas, Duke of Bohemia, obtained the title King for his fidelity as a vassal in the Polish war, for the Emperor alone could bestow such title. Geisa, King of Hungary, received his homage, and also fulfilled the duties of a vassal in Frederick's second expedition into Italy. Finally, in Burgundy, which had become almost alienated from the empire, Frederick re-established the ancient influence of Germany by his marriage with Beatrice, heiress of Upper Burgundy, and he attached to his house that portion of the old Burgundian kmgdom. All the magnates of the nation swore fidelity to the emjnre, and thus the imperial dignity shone with fresh lustre under the puissant monarch who governed Germany. 120 HISTORY 05* GERSIANY. [pfiRIOD iV 919-1273.1 PREDERICIC I. 121 The gi^eat cities of Italy since the feeble and disorderly sway of Henry II., had shown great insolence to thc^ imperial power, and it was only with repugnance that they submitted to the rule of their suzerain. But of all the rest, the capital of Lombardy, the potent city of Milan, showed itself as the haughtiest and most insolent. From the beginning of the eleventh century, Milan had dis- played so much vigour and energy, that it had by degrees subjected several of the neighbouring cities, and affected a contempt so insulting for the Emperor's commands, that on one occasion the seal of a letter which Frederick had written with his own hand, in 1153, was torn oflP and trodden under foot, and the mandate itself, reduced to fragments, thrown into tlie faces of his envoys. At the same time, deputies from the Lombard city of Lodi threw themselves at the Emperor's feet, and im])lored his aid against the Milanese. Stung by these insults, and thus appealed to, Frederick resolved upon decisive measures. The following year he crossed the Alps with a formid- able army, and encamped on the Ptoncalian plain, near Piacenza, where he set up the imperial shield on a tall pole, and commanded all his Italian vassals to assemble and do homage on pain of forfeiting their fiefs. In answer to the summons, the Milanese ofiered him 4000 maiks of silver on condition of being confirmed in the lordbhip of Lodi and Cremona. Furious at the audacity of this pra- l)Osal, he determined to inflict a severe punishment upon the proud city. Not having made, however, preparations for besieging so strong a place, he proceeded to destroy several of its castles, and seized upon the two allied towns of Asti and Tortona. This had the desired effect of enforcing promptly the homage of most of the other Lom- bard cities; and after causing himself to be crowned King of Lombardy, he marched at once upon Eome. The Emperor found tlie Eternal City divided between two factions— the one, supporters of the Papal preten- sions, the other, the populace who, hurried away by the bold harangues of the reformer, Arnold of Brescia, sought to re-establish the ancient Roman republic. Both parties '/*■ implored aid of the Emperor. Pope Adrian IV., terrified by the violence of his enemies, had at first taken refuge in the strong fortress of Castellana, but; soon afterwards visited the German camp upon the Emperor's assurance that he would find safety therein. At the same time, Arnold sent envoys to Frederick, who, when in represent- ing the aspirations of the reformers, they spoke of the ancient Roman virtue, he interrupted them with the insulting remark, " It is not among you, effeminate liars as ye are, that ancient Rome and her virtues are to be found, but among us, who are full of vigour and truth !" It might have been well, however, if instead of thus rebuffing the radical reformer's envoys, Frederick had made use of Arnold and the Roman populace at this junc- ture in the attempt to curb the arrogant pretensions of Adrian IV. But the pious prince, doubtless, felt repug- nance at making common cause with an heretical leader in what he considered a design of establishing a temporal republic rather than that of effecting a great reform in the church. Arnold thus left to his own devices was made prisoner by his enemies, and met with summary punishment. The Emperor, on entering Rome at day- break, saw for the first and last time the pallid features of the audacious republican illuminated by the earliest sunbeam, as the papal guards were leading him forth to execution. It was a common practice of the Roman Church to denounce a man as a heretic who either rejected its doc- trines or manifested hostility to its corruptions. Arnold of Brescia, in whatever light Frederick Barbarossa, as a good son of the church, looked upon him, might never- theless have been sincere in his desire to reform that church, and although a formidable adversaiy to kings and priests, entirely unselfish in his attempt to rid the Roman people of sacerdotal tyranny. However that might be, the citizens of Rome, disheartened and dis- mayed, admitted the Emperor without resistance, who at once summoned the Pope to perform the ceremonial of his coronation. Adrian IV., an Englishman named Nicholas 122 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD iV. Breakspear, the only native of that country ever pro- moted to the Papal dignity, on his arrival from the camp, awaited, before dismounting from his mule, the attendance of the Emperor to hold his stirrup, as had been the custom of his predecessors. But as Frederick did not make his appearance, the cardinals who accompanied the Pope fled back to Castellana, regarding such negligence as a sign of the evil intentions of the Emperor. When, however, Adrian at length dismounted and placed himself in his chair at St. Peter's, Frederick threw himself at his feet and kissed them. Thereupon the Pope took courage, and reproached Frederick for not having given him the mark of deference he owed him. The Emperor, on being assured by the princes present, that Lotliar himself had gone through that form of respect to Pope Innocent II., the ceremony of dismounting was aiTanged to be recommenced on the day following, wlien, as the Italian chroniclei-s say, Frederick duly held the stirrup. The German writers, on the contrary, relate that the Emperor did in fact hold the stirrup, but, as through inadvei-tence he had held the right instead of the left, the Pope refused him " the kiss of Peace." In the end, however, the Emperor yielding to the solicitations of the princes, both embraced as friends, and Adrian placed the imperial crown on Frederick's head. Meanwhile the citizens, furious at the loss of their leader, rose in mass, and Frederick, whose horse chanced to Ml as he charged the insurgents, would have lost his life but for the courage of Henry (he Lion, who rescued him from a host of enemies. A terrible slaughter ensued, and Pome was taken only to be abandoned almost imme- diately by the victor, whose men had begun to fall victims to the pestilential onslaught of Koman fever. Marching south, with the intention of chastising the Kormans, Frederick's expedition failed from the same cause— -the unhealthiness of the climate, lletreating with his decimated army towards the Alps, he cut his way with difliculty through the treacherous Italians of the north who blockaded the passes, and ultimately D19-1273.] FREDERICK I. 123 reached Germany in safety. Soon afterwards, the Em- peror obtamed peace in Upper Italy by granting a con- stitution to the cities, to the terms of which all male persons between the ages of eighteen and seventy were required to swear obedience, and to renew their oath every five years. The quarrel between Pope and Emperor, however, was renewed after a momentary reconciliation through Adrian's intrigues with the German bishops, and con- tinued until that pontiffs death in 1159. Ecclesiastical affairs then became even more embroiled through the Emperor's party haAing chosen for Adrian's successor, Victor III., while that of the cardinal's elected Alex- ander III., a cardinal who had behaved with the greatest insolence before the German Diet, in resisting -what he called the encroachments of the Emperor. The schism between the cardinals and the emperors^ lasted for a long i)criod. They each insisted on the right to elect the'Pope; and consequently there were frequently two popes, who were of course bitter antagonists, each insisting on his own right, and calling the other antl-popc, launching their excommunications against each other, and both parties seeking to strengthen themselves by every means possible. The imperial power being still resisted in Italy, and the city of Lodi, which had submitted to it, laid in ashes by the Milanese, Frederick, at the head of a powerful army, crossed the Alps at the Pentecost of 1158, and laid siege to Milan. Awed by the presence of so formid- able a fbrce, almost all the cities of Northern Italy sub- mitted and joined the Emperor. Mihin, the rebellious, was soon conqujlled to surrender from want of provisions to the irritated suzerain. The Milanese appeared before the victor praying for mercy in the most abject and sup- pliant manner, the chief nobles with naked swords hung round their necks, and the citizens with halters, laymen and clerics alike being clad in mourning garments, with their feet bare. Frederick pardoned his rebellious vassals •with the remark, that " they might now see that it was 124 HiSTORt OF GERMANY. [PERIOD IV. easier to prevail by submission than by the arbitrament of arms." He then made them asjain swear alleGriance to him, exacted a sum of 9000 marks in silver, a promise to build him a pahxce in their city, took 300 hostages, and placed the imperial eagle on the roof of their cathedral. But this humiliation of the IMilanese was only feigned, and an expedient resorted to from necessity, which only lasted whilst the Emperor's forces terrified them. For, in the year following, when he desired, conformably with his prerogative, to api)oint burgomasters in Milan, the citizens fell upon Kainald, his chancellor, Otho, the Count Palatine, and the other envoys with such fury that it was with the greatest difficulty their lives were saved. Frederick once more ])laced Milan under the ban of the «mpire, and swore in his wrath never again to place the crown on his head until he had reduced tlie insolent city to a heap of ruins. Hostilities recommenced with all the fury of the wars of that period. The IMilanese sought safety in attempting the assassination of the i)owerful Emperor who menaced them; at least, we are told by contemi)orary writei^ that several attempts to murder Frederick Barbarossa were made when he lay with his army before Milan. These dastardly attacks upon the Emperor's life having failed one after another, the siege was carried on more vigor- ously than ever; but the strong city maintained a stub- born defence for nearly three years, during which nuich blood was shed on both sides. At length, exhausted by famine and loss of its defenders, the starving Milanese siu-rendered at discretion. After undergoing a series of humiliations in the camp of the concpieror, Frederick spared their lives, but compelled them to place all their insignia of honour, with more than a hundred banners and standards at the foot of the throne. He then sum- moned a council at Pavia to determine the fate of Milan, and, in a numerous assemblage of German and Italian bishops, nobles and envoys from other cities, it was de- creed that Milan should be razed to its foundations. In its prosperity, Milan had so continually tormented the 910-1273.] FREDERICK I. 125 neighbouring cities of Conio, Lodi, Pavia, Vercelli, No- vara, etc., that deputations from those places came to ask as a favour that they might themselves demolish the walls of the proud city; and, in their hatred, they set to w^ork with such vigour, that in six days they heaped up wider ruins than hired labourers would have done in many months. Among other relics taken during the sack of the place, the skulls of the JMagi, or Wise Men of the East, which had been deposited at Milan during the first crusade, were transferred by llainald, archbishop of Cologne, to his own cathedral, where they are still vene- rated under the names of Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar, the tlsroe Kin as of Cologne. 38V COLOGNE CATHEDRAL. But the most dangerous of Frederick's enemies was the bold and politic Alexander III., who, after two years of exile passed in France) had succeeded in gaining over ' 12G HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD IV. Eome to Lis side, and had re-entered the Holy City. Frederick, who liad been excommunicated by Alexander, hastened by forced marches to Rome, and compelled the inhabitants to receive Pascal III. ; whei-eiii^on the anti- pope, finding that the Romans were murmuring at his obstinacy, fled secretly from the city disguised as a pilgi-im and took refuge in Beneventum. Then Frederick, with his consort, was crowned by Pascal on the 1st Au^^-. 1167, in the metropolis of Christianity. It was soon, however, the Emperor's turn to floe from a more deadly enemy than the anti-j^ope. The German army was assailed by a terrible pestilence, the attacks of which were so sudden that men seemingly in perfect health being seized by giddiness whilst walking through the streets, fell dead, or expired in a few hours. Amongst those who i)erished were eight bishops, one of whom \va3 the skilful chancellor, Rainald of Cologne, four dukes including the Emperor's own cousin, Frederick of Rothen- burg, and Guelph the younger; besides some thousand nobles, knights, and seigniors. The Emperor fled to Pa via, and in the following spring secretly quitted Italy in disguise, with a very small suite, like a fugitive. ' Fredeiick at length reached Germany; and it was not until 1174 that he entered Italy for the fourth time. Meanwhile, he had not been idle whilst at home. Durininess might be extinguished on earth. So bitter an enemy of Frederick did Innocent show himself that, not satisfied with having resorted to the violent measure above stated, that Pontift' went so far as even to pronounce the deposition of the Emperor from all his states and all his dignities. At this juncture a formidable influence militated in favour of the Papacy — the power of public opinion. Innocent IV. had heaped gi^ave accusations against the Emperor: amongst others, that of contemning the Christian religion and the Holy Catholic Church, and of leaning towards the infidelity of the Saracens; this latter charge being seemingly confirmed by the fact of Frederick having employed Saracens in the war against the Lombard cities. To this must be added the vein of biting sarcasm which he had indulged at the expense of the Papacy without suflicient regard for its sacred 140 nisTouY OP GEniuxr. [period iv. functions Neither, unhai.pily, was his life pure and spotless being habitually sullied by sensual ^excesses . He lost by degx-ees therefore the high estimation 'vhTch e.T.lS» Tr'^/ ""j'^^"^' ^"'^ '^"^ c^onsciousness of ht embttered his latter years and hastened his death il,^ T r% ""^ °^ excommunication were scattered throughout Germany, seve.-al ecclesiastical princes made use of them to excite public opinion still fuK aS Fredenck; and, in 1246, caused the Landgrave of Thuringia, Henry Raspon, to be chosen EmperSr in his place at Wutzburg. But this antagonist obtaLcd no Wilham of Holland, who succeeded him, found but littlS support during the Emperor's lifetime. and lir'"'" wf "'tf ■ T"" '•"«"^'* ^°^^ '"^ Germany ana Italy. "When the Emperor Frederick wis nliPofl '^tVlleT °'-*'^ '^'''r'''' '^y^ - andentXtSnt theLrtv 7-?T'' r' <=<^»gr'^t"lated one another on the booty which offered itself to their grasp. The Dloucrb Nn^w^k'ef r f ^f-"l-nd ^cyth'es i^t tiS and stee ll n?r T*r'*''°",* "^""^^^S ^ith him his flint TJJ ' ^""^ *° ^ '■''-'^''y *" spread flames and ashes 'vitloutTnv';* '™"''** ^r" ^'^ ^t^'y *•>« ^-'^r went on ci es ThI fcisive result, especially among the Lombard FiederJoK ^'"f ^'''"^ ^'''"^ sometimes successful, but enSled aS"' became almost daily more and more t£ his '.rl ''''"f "^ ^'^''*""" altogether forsook him. liius his son Enzio whom he had made King of Sicily the handsomest and most chivalrous of all his family was niVos" ir 'C' ''^^"""""l "^ '^ unlucky Snl anv riZi i exasperated citizens refused to accej.t n 1 pJl • u. ^u^ twenty-two yeara; but he survived Srishod ll ' ?'^'\T' ^"'^ g'-andsons, who severally l^rished by poison, the sword, or the headsman TT;« chance lor andlong4ried friend, Peter DesvSetowh^m he had tnisted the most important affiurs & enTpiT his eyes put out, and destroyed himself by dashing his \ 0191273] FREDERICK II. 141 head against the walls of his cell. The Emperor did not long survive this series of disastrous events. He died m 1250. in the arms of Manfred, the son of his last mfe Bianca, at the Castle of Firenzuola, on the Ruhr, at the ace of fifty-six, having worn seven crowns— the imperial, the German, the iron crown of Lombardy, and those of Burgundy, Sicily, Sardinia, and Jerusalem. ll after tracing i-apidly the main events of Fredericks stormy life, we glance at his intellectual qualities and aU he^did for the arts and sciences in his tereditay dominions (Naples), we discover with regret ttat, at his death everything disappeared like a phantom. Gifted S 'Xte and acquii-ements possessed by few men of S time, he understood Greek, Latin, Italian French, Gei-man, and Arabic. Among the sciences, his predi- lection was for natural history, which led bm to foim a menagerie of wild beasts, and ho wrote a treatise on Ss which is still extant. His instructor in the Bc ences was the celebrated Michael Scott, «- ti-a-^^";; of Aristotle's treatise on natural history, who figuies as a nec^mancer in Sir Walter Scott's "Lay of the Last Minstrel" Frederick II. founded the university of Ninles in 1224, and liberally patronised that of balemo; and thank to his zeal, the first collection of objects of art were made in those cities, which, however, unfortunately disappeared during the troubles of the ^^^^%^^-,. Like Charlemagne, it is recorded of Frederick II. that the Itern potenkes were eager to testify their friend- ship by presenting him with curiosities and the most precioifs productions of art. His taste wa« exquisite, and is brilliint court in the beautifiil land of Ap« ja ^-^^ fcxinted with sensuality, became the centre ot al that was ^Sated, learned, an^ luxurious I-^ellectua^ c^^^^^^^^^^^^ in which the victoi-s were crowned, often took place, and in ^em Frederick shone as a poet, being the fii^t w^^ wrote verses in the vernacular dialect of Italy. t±i^ death threw that country into disorder and invo ved Sany in still worse calamities. I" ««»™any; '- were again two Emperoi^. throne against throne. Whilst 1^^ HISTORY OP GERMAN V. [PERIOD IV. the faction inimical to tlie Holienstaufen recognised and sustained William of Holland, the other had at their head Frederick's son Conrad, already elected Kin^ of the Komans in the lifetime of his fathei\ "^ /1oTn^1'o^'^^^^^^^"^''^ (1247-1256), and Conrad IV. (1 250-1 254).~Conrad, by his father's will, inherited with the imperial crown the sovereignty of Gennany: but engi'ossed with the recovery of his Italian dominions, ho crossed the Alps in 1251, leaving his wife behind, who m the following year gave biith to the unfortunate Conrad the younger, called by the Italians Conradino Placed under the ban of the Church, like his f\xther immediately the news of his accession reached Home' the Pope pronounced his title null, and sent out emis' saries to preach a crusade against him as an unbeliever and a heathen. Conrad, however, conquered Naples but made the inhabitants his irreconcilable enemies bv affixing a bridle to the statue of a horse which stood in the public square as the emblem of that city. On his retiirn to Germany, he was confronted by his rival William of Holland, in person at Oppenheim, and defeated. Shortly afterwards, Conrad fell sick and died, not without suspicion of having been poisoned. He was the last sovereign of the House of Holienstaufen -Frederick had, indeed, left a second son, Henry by his marriage with Isabella, a third, Manfred, by Bianca his third wife, and two grandsons of the unfortunate eldest Henry; but they all died in the flower of their a^e and nearly at the same time; so that at the death of Conrad •II ; ^^'^f ?,^^^3^ remained of the Hohenstaufen family the lU-fated Conradino and his brother Manfred wnf.^*^ ?.^, William of Holland (1256).~The Emperor William did not long survive Conrad, and had been held m such contempt that on one occasion he was pelted with stones by the people of Utrecht, and his wife assailed and plundered on the highway by a single citizen. In 1256 having marched against the Frieslanders, he perished in attempting to cross on horseback a frozen morass near Medenbhck, the ico having broken under him, Aftor 919-1273.] CONRADINO. 143 his death Germany became the seat of the most frightful disorders. The Interregnum (125G-1273).— The fortunes of the empire had now fallen so low that, with the exception of Ottocar, King of Bohemia, no German prince being willing to accept the crown, the electoral body conceived the ignoble idea of electing some foreigner for Emperor who should bid highest for the title. The electors dis- agreed, however, in their choice, one party having chosen Richard, Earl of Cornwall, brother of Henry III., King of England, who purchased the votes of the Archbishop of Mayence and his adherents for, in those days, a large sum of money, of which the Archbishop received 12,000 marks, and every other elector 8000. The other party, at the head of which was the Archbishop of Treves, negotiated with Alfonso of Castile, sumamed The Wise, who offered 20,000 marks to each of the electors. Richard of Corn- wall, according to the contemporary chronicles, carried ' the purchase money with him into Germany in thirty- \ two waggons, each drawn by eight horses, and laden with a hogshead of gold. With this treasure he conquered the hearts of the avaricious electors and was solemnly crowned at Aix. He soon afterwards, however, returned to Eng- I land accompanied by many distinguished Germans, who, finding themselves unpopular at the English court, made but a short stay therein. Richard thrice visited Germany, i but each of his visits was of brief duration. As for Alphonso, he never entered that country. The Pope had continually promised to adjudicate upon the claims ' of these two candidates, but his decision being deferred from year to year, disorder and violence in the meanwhile increased daily throughout the land; the petty princes, counts and knights, as well as the towns, were continually at war with one another, until the whole of Germany in this her darkest hour became a scene of bloodshed, pillage, and anarchy. Conradino, the last of the Hohenstaufen.— The fate of the last scion of the Hohenstaufen family was a sad one. Conradino of Swabia, son of Conrad IV., after \m f;*thev'» Ui HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD IV. 9101273.] CONRADINO. Ub death, had been brought up in Bavaria, and later in Swabia, where he still possessed some small territories, whilst his uncle Manfred, at first in quality of regent, and later with the title of King, administered his hereditary states of Naples and Sicily. Clement IV., however, the irrecon- cilable enemy of the Hohenstaufen, declared the throne of Apulia vacant ; and wishing to get it out of the hands of the Ghibellines, or Emperor's party, offered it to Charles of Anjou, brother of Louis IX. of France. Of a very different character from the pious St. Louis, he was, though brave and clever, ambitions, covetous, cruel, and unforgiving. This crown had fallen into the hands of the imperial family by the marriage of the heiress of the last Norman King of Sicily with the father of the Em- peror Frederick II. When Frederick died, the crown of the Sicilies — that is, the island of Sicily and the kingdom of Naples — was occupied as above stated, by Manfred his natural son. Charles of Anjou could not resist the temp- tation of being a King, and, in 1265, having collected an army, he encountered Manfred at Beneventum. Manfred, who had had the misfortune to lose by a sudden storm the fleet by which he might have prevented the landing of the French, was defeated and slain, and Charles took possession of his dominions. Charles began his reign with many acts of cruelty, among the rest by casting Man- fred's children into prison, where they ended their days. In 1267, the adherents of the Ghibellines in Apuli disgusted with the cruelty and tymnny of Charles o Anjou, having invited young Conradino to resume the crown of which he had been unjustly deprived, seveml of the German pi-inces joined him in an endeavour to drive the French out of Italy. Having crossed the Alps witli 10,000 men, Conradino made Verona his head-quarters, and during three months all the Ghibellines in Italy flocked to his standard. In a series of battles the French were invariably defeated, and Conradino at length, in despite of the Pope, entered Rome in triumph, and was escorted to the Capitol by a bevy of young maidens who scattered flowers along his path. But now the tide of w I success turned against him. Near Tagliacozzo, in Apulia, his adversary confronted him at the head of a powerful force, and Conradino's army, after routing the French, dispersed in search of booty, and falling into an ambus- cade, was cut to pieces by the enemy's rear-guard. Con- radino, after long fighting valiantly, escaped with his staunch adherent Frederick of Baden, through the speed of their horses; but having embarked on board a ship bound for Pisa, they were betrayed by Frangipani of Astura, and delivered up to Charles. A commission sat to determine their fate, and sentence of death beimr l)ronounced upon both as rebels, it was communicated to Conradino and Frederick whilst they were playing chess in their prison. When brought from his dungeon to ascend a scalibld erected in a market-place at Naples, the youth, eloquence, and exceptional beauty of the right- ful prince caused a deej) sullen murmur to run through tlie crowd. Even the French were moved to tears; and when Bobert of Bari advanced to read the sentence, he was instantly felled to the ground by Count Bobert of Flanders, the usurper's son-in-law, and carried senseless away; but no attempt was made to rescue the condemned. Conradino now addressed the S2)ectators, who listened in breathless silence to his last words. "I summon," he said, *' my judges before the tribunal of the Most Higli. My innocent blood, shed on this scaffold, will cry to Heaven for vengeance : nor do I hold mv Swabians and Bavarians, or my German people, so base and degenerate but that they will wash out in French blood this insult to their land." Having thus spoken he threw down his glove, which a German knight took up and conveyed to Conradino's relative, Pedro HI. of Arragon. Then, having removed his ui)per garment, the unfortunate prince embraced his friends, and murmuring some words about his mother, laid his head on the block. As the blood spouted uj) under the axe of the executioner, his fellow- sufferer, Frederick, uttered a dismal shriek and swooned, but was lifted up and executed with several others. Conradino, before ascending the scaffold, had ceded his li 1-iG HISTORY OF GERMANY. [period IV. riirhts to Constance, the daiigliter of Manfred, and it was tln-ouc^li her that the murder of Conradino was at length fearfiiily avenged by the horrible conspiracy called the Sicilian Vespers. Easter Eve, 1 282, was the day appointed for the massacre of the French; and the ringnig of the vesper-bell was to be the signal to the assassnis. At that hour, as the French, in ignorant security, were sittinf' at supper, the infuriate Sicilians rushed upon them,''and in the short space of two hours there was not a Frenchman left alive in Palermo, where the massacro bci^an, with the exception of one man alone, Guillaumo de^'Pourceleto, a gentleman of Provencii, whose life^ was spared on account of his extraordinary probity. Every other town in Sicily, in which any French were to bo found, followed the example thus set by Palermo, and it is estimated that 8000 persons fell in this massacre. Though the consjnracjj against Charles and his party had been long on foot, it is probable that the massacre itself was a sudden outbreak, and Sismondi represents it as such. When Charles of Anjou, who was at this time absent from Sicily, was informed of what had passed, he, furious with ra^e, hastened to Messina with all the forces ho could collect and laid siege to it; but the Sicilians who ' well knew his remorseless character, defended themselves with the courage of desperation, and Charles found hini- self obliged to retire to Calabria and there wait for rein- forcements. Pedro, however, in spite of Charles's eftbrts, retained possession of the island; and, in 1285, amidst all the horrors of a guilty conscience, the murderer of the last Ilohenstaufen ended his miserable life. I FIFTH PERIOD. FROM RODOLril I. OP HAPSBURG TO CHARLES "^P— (1273-1520). ^ (Emperors of different Houses), Rodolpll of Hapsburg (1273-1291).— The longer that anarchy jjrevailod in Germany, the greater it became; and when Eichard of Cornwall died in England, in 1272, as Alphonso of Castile gave himself very little trouble about the empire, the German princes assembled in Diet at Frankfort, in 1273, and having set his claims aside, proceeded to choose an Emperor, concerning whose fit- ness they should be unanimous. A strong and sagacious ruler was needed to re-establish the imperial dignity, and, on the other hand, one not too powerful, in order that the other princes should have nothing to fear for their own sway: one in short who would rule only in the manner which the Pope and the nobles might prescribe. This was no easy task. However, after considerable de- lay, an individual was found, who more than any other seemed to possess the necessary qualifications. In Count Rodolph of Hapsburg, it was the good fortune of Ger- many to find a man destined to restore peace to that distracted country. Distinguished as a brave and success- ful warrior, yet possessing little weight by his slender possessions, he had nevertheless won the esteem alike of rich and poor by his noble qualities. During the bar- barous period of the interregnum, he had resided on his })atrimonial estates, and, so far as his arm could extend, lie had protected the oj)pressed against the injustice and cruelty of brigandage. He was long the protector and 118 IIISTOUY OF GEKMAXY. [period V. 1273-1520.] RODOLPH OF HAPSBURG. 149 fe ,'ovenior of Zuricli, Strasbourg, and the towns situated at the foot of Mount St. Gotliard; during wliich rule lie had signally displayed sagacity, equity, and magnanimity. His exterior was connnanding, yet his demeanour frank and simple, his countenance pale and serious; and the Archbishop of Cologne, in a letter to the Pope, described hnn as "a sound Christian, a true friend of the Church, a lover of righteousness, mighty in his own strength, and allied with the miirlitv." MOUNT ST. GOTIIARD. Eodolph, who did not dream of such elevation await- ing lum, was at the moment at war with Basle, with the object of re-establishing therein the party of the nobles driven out by the citizens. It was in the dead of ni^dit that the burgrave of Nuremberg, Frederick de Hohtn- zollern, Eodolph's father-in-law, came into his camp with that unexpected message. At first, Eodolph could not credit It; but when later the imperial marshal also arrived, he sent the burgi-ave into the city to offer i)eace to the citizens, because he was then, he said, the stronr^esfc The besieged received the tidings verv jovfullv, and were / the first to offer up prayers for the prosperity of his reign. Gregory X. went in person to meet him at Lausanne, and there, kneeling at the Pope's feet, llodolph swore uncon- ditional obedience to the See of Koine. In after life he sought to justify this act of self-abasement. " I saw," he said, ** the traces of many footsteps going into the lion's den, but none returning thence; therefore did I hold it for the truest wisdom to serve the lion of the church rather than to fight with him." From Lausanne, he re- paired to Frankfort to meet the assembled nobles, and thence to Aix-la-Chapelle, where he was solemnly crowned (21st Oct. 1273), in the presence of 20,000 knights, and a vast concourse of people. After the ceremony, when the i)rinces of the em2)ire were about to render homage to the new Emperor, according to custom, for their states, no sceptre was forthcoming, the regalia having been lost during the troubles which followed the death of Frederick 11. An embarrassing pause ensued, which was promptly broken by Podol})h taking the crucifix from the high altar, and administering on it the oath which had been usually sworn on the imperial sceptre : "The symbol of our redemption," he said, "might well su2)ply its place." llodolph of Hapsburg began his reign by striking with all the severity of the law at the root of the etil by which Germany was op2)ressed, by purging his realm from in- ternal disorders. During the interregnum, the country had been the prey of the iron-handed marauder, and the license which prevailed was so great as to baffle descrip- tion: the entire land was infested by bands of robbers; no man's life or property being secure. But after he had succeeded in suppressing the robber chiefs and minor per- turbators, he was not long in perceiving that to give Ger- many lasting peace, and restore to the imperial dignity its proper consideration, it was necessary for him to com- pel the great princes also to fulfil their duties and render him due homage. One of the conditions imposed on llodolph at his election was, that he should humble the pride of Ottocar of Bohemia. Kodolph had been marblial 150 HISTORY 01* GERMAN3^. [pERIOD V, 12731520.] RODOLPn I. 151 of the palace to that King, and when, therefore, tiie Em- peror summoned him to do homage at the Diet of Nurem- berg, in 1274, Ottocar disdainfully replied: "What does that man want of me, have I not paid him his wages V* Ottocar was a powerful prince, and possessed, besides Bohemia, the hereditary states of Austria, which he had contrived to appropriate to himself after the extinction of the ducal house of Babenberg, partly by kinship and partly by force of arms and gold, and he thought that no one could compel him to obedience. Moreover, the Austrian states preferred bitter complaints to the Em- peror of his oppression and injustice. Accordingly, Otto- car having refused to obey a third summons to Augsberg, in 1275, he was placed under the ban of the empire as a rebel; and such was the rage of this perfidious prince, that when the imperial heralds appeared at Prague to announce the sentence, he ordered them to be hanged over the chief entrance-gate of that city. But his punish- ment was not long delayed. Rodolph entered Austria early in the following" year, and reduced all that country under his power as far as Vienna, which he besieged. Ottocar, conscious of a bad cause, yielded without strik- ing a blow; surrendering Austria, Styria, Carinthia, and Carniola to the empire, but retaining Bohemia and Mor- avia to be held as fiefs, for which he was to do homage. In order further to consolidate the peace, a marriage was arranged between the heir presumptive of Bohemia, Win- ceslas, and one of the six daughters of Ilodol])h, and a second between the Emperor's son and a princess of Bohemia. Ottocar soon afterwards repaired witji great pomp to Bodolph's camp on the island of Lobau,. in the Danube, to do liomage. This ceremony was attended by a bitter mortification for that haughty prince, who had hoped to eclipse by the s])lendour of his royal airay the unostenta- tious simplicity so characteristic of the Emperor. "The King of Bohemia has often laughed at my old grey doub- let," said Bodolph; " to-day it is the turn of the old grey doublet to laugh at him." Thus, when Ottocar, resplen- ii dent in purple and gold, was in the act of kneeling before the Emperor, the sides of the tent were suddenly draw^n \ip, so that he was seen by the 'svhole army. Enraged at this humiliation, and the continual reproaches of his queen, Ottocar again unsheathed the sword against his suzerain, who encountered him (26th Aug. 1278) near ]\Iarchefeld, on the Morava. The battle w^as sanguinary and its issue long doubtful, and Bodolph, whose horse was killed under him, had a narrow escape from losing his life. At length, the rebels w^ere put to flight, and Ottocar, fighting desperately, was slain by a Styrian knight, whose father he had cruelly put to death many years before. Rodolph I. founds the Imperial Dynasty of Austria. — In a Diet at Augsburg (1282), in presence and with the consent of a crowd of princes and nobles, Bodolph took solemn possession of Austria to the advantage of his own family, in fief, the conquest of which had cost the empire much blood and treasure; Bodolph of Haps- burg thus becoming the founder of the reigning dynasty of Austria. After settling other family afialrs, and having humbled the enemies of the empire, the Emperor, although now of an advanced age, set out on a progress through every part of Germany, listening to complaints and redressing grievances. During an expedition through Thuringia, he caused sixty-six castles of the robber nobles to be demolished, and twenty-nine of their owners to be hanged in chains at Erfui-t. Thus occupied at home, he had not time to think seriously of visiting Italy, in order to be crowned there. Moreover, he was so far from sharmg the opinions of his predecessors touching that country, that, in a treaty with Gregoiy X., he ceded all the rights of the empire over the territories of the church. He could congratulate himself on having thus got rid of that destructive allurement which had led former Emperors to undertake expeditions into Italy. Rodolph, towards the close of his reign, urged the Diet of Frankfort to recognise his son as Emperor; but 152 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [period V. 1273-15i>0.] ABOLPII OP NASSAU. 153 tlie great princes, jealous and already tired of Kodolpli's government which they found too rigorous, because he hindered them from pursuing their pai-ticular interests, rejected that proposal; so much the more firmly that they thought that if the son should succeed his father, the empire would cease to be elective. Thereupon llo- dolph retired, weary, sick, and discontented to Basle. For a year afterwards his physicians prolonged his life only by artificial means. He died at Germershein on the r)Oth Sept. 1291, universally lamented, aged seventy-four. His memory was so venerated in Germany that long after his death the phrase was in common use : — " That is not the loyalty of Iiodolphy In the affiiirs of Italy he took so little interest that he would not visit it, even to receive the imperial crown ; he compared it to the lion's den, whitened with bones of the Emperors, his predecessors. His reign exhibited a re- markable novelty — internal tranquillity. He not only preserved peace with his neighbours, but with a firm hand he suppressed private war in every quarter, razed the bandit fortresses to the gi'ound, and hung the inmates by scores. His probity l)ecame a proverb. " His very name," says a contemporary chronicler, "spread terroi among the turbulent barons, joy among the peoi)le; as light s])rings from darkness, so peace arose from desolation." Well may the liouse of Austria glory in its founder ! He was accessible to the humblest of his people. See- ing one day that his guards were preventing the approach of some poor men, he cried out, " Let them approacli, I was not made Emperor to be excluded from my fellow creatures !" But his highest eulogy is to be found in his conduct as a sovereign. Adolph of Nassau (1292-1298). — The claim of Bo- dolph*s son to the crown was set aside through the craft of Gerald, Archbishop of INIayence. That corruj)t and wicked prelate, by bribing the chief electors with large sums of money, secured the nomination of his cousin Adolph, Count of Nassau. He was prompted to this unscrupulous manoeuvre by the expectation of finding in Adolph a willing agent for the accomplishment of his own ambitious schemes. This Count of Nassau, though brave even to ferocity, had neither sufficient prudence, power, nor consideration, to entitle him to such a dignity. As he had inherited no more than half the country of Nassau, he enlaro;ed his territories by the purchase of Meissen and Thuringia from Albert the Degenerate with a large sum of money he received from Edward I. of England as a subsidy towards the expenses of aiding the English king in a war against Philip of France. The quarrel of the two kings having been suspended, Adolph did not hesitate to use the money as above stated. Albert the Degenerate, the bad Margrave of Thuringia, had repudiated his wife, the virtuous Margaret, daughter ot Frederick II., to espouse Cunegonde of Isenburg. When the persecuted mother was forced to separate from her children, she, in the excess of her grief, bit severely in the cheek the eldest, Frederick, as a lasting reminder ot his parent's wrongs. The unhappy Margaret died shortly afterwards at Frankfoi-t, and her sons fled from the roof of their unnatural fixther, but were soon retaken and thrown into prison, where they would have perished, had not a faithful servant brought them bread, and ulti^ mately supplied them with the means of escape. This execrable margrave further sold the hereditary posses- sions of the children of his first marriage, and gave the proceeds to Albert, the son of Cunegonde. But, when the wronged sons of Margaret were old enough to bear arms, they fought vigorously for their inheritance against Adolph and their father, universally assisted l)y the l)3ople, who had grown weary of the tyranny of their depraved and detested sovereign. Happily, the exertions of the two brothers were at length rewarded by a partial recovery of their territories. The unworthy conduct of Adolph had not only excited the hatred of the German people, but the Archbishop Gerald, disappointed at not finding him the ready tool he had expected, broke with him; and, at that tricky prelate's instigation, aided by bribery, a new Diet was iU HISTORY OP GER^UXV. [PERIOD V. assembled at Maycnco, wliich accused tlio Emperor of despoiling the Church, of receiving the pay cf a prince inferior to himself (Edward I. of England), and of having dismembered the empire instead of aggrandised it; and, finally, of not having maintained it in peace. Upon, these charges the Electors declared the throne vacant, and Albert Duke of Austria was chosen to fill it. Thisi was the first instance of the deposition of an Emperor by the electoral princes alone, without any instigation of the Po])e. The two adversaries marched against each other, and fought a decisive battle near Worms in 1298. Adolpli was defeated, and slain in the thick of tlie fight, some annalists say by the hand of Albert himself. Albert of Austria (1298-1308).— This new Emperor had neither the mildness nor the affability of his father; on the contrary, he was as unprepossessing in disposition as he was ill-favoured of fiice, the loss of an eye giving a sinister expression to the singularly repulsive ugliness of the other features. A life of intrigue, danger, and crime, had lent a look of gloom and severity to his countenance, which even the brilliance of his coronation at Nurem- berg could not dispel. Cold and obdurate, his severity towards the Archbishop Gerald of Mayence was perhaps deserved, that wily prelate having threatened him that, f with one blast of his horn, he could call up as many emperoi'S as he pleased. He had, in fiict, chosen another. Albert reduced him quickly to submission, and forced him to ask pardon. But, in many other instances, his actions were not guided by justice. They had the result, / at least, of gaining for him an extension of territory; '? and he was already contemi)lating the acquisition of >. Thuringia, Bohemia, and Holland, when an event occurred which put an end to his ambitious projects. In 1308, the three Swiss cantons of Uri, Schwyz, and XJnterwalden, having revolted against tlic Dukes of Austria, Albert swore to wreak sanguinary vengeance upon the rebellious mountaineers. In an expedition he undertook to the Swiss frontiers with the purpose of 1273-1520.] ALBERT 01* AUSTRIA, 155 raising forces for the suppression of the revolt, and after- wards making war upon Bohemia, he took with him his nephew, John of Bohemio, the son of his deceased brother Bodolph, from whom he had withheld his patri- monial inheritance of Hapsburg, although only his guardian. In vain had the young man often implored his uncle to restore those possessions of which the younger branch of the family had been unjustly deprived; but his pi-ayers -were always met with a refusal. At length, associating himself with some discontented nobles who nourished a secret hatred against Albert, four of them resolved to assassinate him. On the first day of May 1308, the Emperor was riding slowly with a few attendants through the fields at the Toot of the hills crowned by the castle of Hapsburg, nob far from which his camp was pitched. The ferry by which the retinue had to cross the Reuss being already in sight, the conspirators pressed onwards to enter the small boat that was to convey the Emperor, in order to separate him from his escort. Having reached the river, John and his fellow conspirators, rushing forwards, suc- ceeded in entering the boat with the Emperor and one solitary attendant. On landing they remounted and rode at a smart pace until they gained a sort of coppice, the thick growth of which hid them from tlie sight of the rest of the retinue, who were waiting on the other bank for the return of the boat. Suddenly John seized his uncle's bridle-rein, and shouted loudly and energetically, *' Let us now see whether the possessions of my father will be restored to me." The Emperor, though startled, preserved his presence of mind, and tried to calm his nephew by fixir promises; but tlie matter had gone too fiir. " How long will ye suffer this carrion io sit on horseback?" passionately exclaimed Eudolph of Balm, as he stabbed the Emperor with his dagger, whilst at the same moment Walter d'Eschenbach clove his skull with the blow of a sword. Albert fell to the ground senseless, bathed in his blood. A poor woman who witnessed the deed hastened to render the wounded monarch assistance 1.3 G HI6T0RY OF GERMANY. [period r. by trying to stauiicli tlie blood; but the blows dealt by tlio assassins were mortal, and in a few moments lie died in her arms. John fled into Italy, and, stung by remorse at a sense of his guilt, he threw himself at the Pope's feet, who sentenced him, at the request of the Emperor, Henry VII. (of Luxemburg), to confinement for life in an Augus- tine convent at Pisa. One of the assassins, Wart, was arrested and broken on the wheel at the spot where the murder was committed. His crushed and mangled limbs were transferred to another wheel, and set up' on a pole by the wayside, where he was left to die a lingering death. His wife, Adelaide de Sargans, who was taken with him, shared his dungeon with a babe at her breast. The child died from want of food, the mother's milk failing. Ade- laide, on the day of her husband's execution^ having obtained her release from prison, witnessed his torture and strove to alleviate his sufferings by her affectionate care, remaining day and night beneath the wheel to moisten his parched lips with a sponge dipped in water. When all was over she entered a convent at Bisle, where the fliithful relict of Wart soon afterwards died of gi-ief. Tlie remains of tlie late Emperor were laid, with all marks of respect and honour, by the side of his predeces- sor, Adolph, in the cathedral of Si)ires. Frederick *' with the bitten cheek," also expired (a d 1319), worn out with toil and laden with years, after having succeeded in recovering his family rights. He was succeeded in Meissen by his son, Frederick the Stern. The Swiss War of Independence—William Tell.-^ Switzerland originally formed a part of the kingdom of Aries or Burgundy, and was united later on to the rest ot the dominions of Eodolph. It contained a numerous and powerful nobility, and several rich ecclesiastical lords. Its towns of Zurich, Basle, Berne, and Friburor rose into importance. Among the nobles the Counts of Hapsburg gradually became the most powerful; they were advocates to several convents, some of which had estates in the forest- cant oj is of Schwvtz and Underwald, 1273-1520.] SWISS WAR OF INDEPENDENCE. 157 The peoi)le of these cantons reposed confidence in Bo- dolph, the first Emperor of the House of Hapsburg; but they distrusted his son, the cold and heartless Albert, who justified their suspicions; for, not satisfied with the CATHEDRAL, SPIRES. rights which, as advocate of the convents, he possessed over a part of the forest-cantons, he, wishing to annex them to the dukedom of Austria, sent imperial bailiffs to administer justice in the whole of these cantons. The 153 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [period V. people were indignant at tliis attemi)t to reduce them to servitude. Three men, Sfcauffacher of Schwytz, Furst of Uri, Melchthal of Unterwahl, each with ten companions, met by night in a secret vaUey, and swore to assert tlie liberty of their country. It was, therefore, the encroach- ments of ducal, not imperial tyranny, that drove these brave mountaineers to vindicate their independence with the sword. The encroachments which the confederates of Gruttli pledged themselves to withstand was the attempt to degrade their land from being a free fief of the empire into becoming a part of the hereditary posses- sions of the House of Austria. William Tell, a bravo and honest peasant, was the popular hero of this band of liberators, who, driven at length into oi)en rebellion by a series of insults offered to them by Gessler, the Austrian bailiff of Uri, made a suc- cessful stand against the tyrannical Duke Albert. Seve- ral circumstances of his life, even his existence, have been doubted; but it seems clearly proved that he really shared in the struggles and deliverance of his country. Born at Burghen, in the canton of Uri, he married the daughter of Walter Fui-st of Altinghausen, who had taken the oath:(7th Sept. 1307) at the Gruttli with Arnold de Melclithal and Werner de Stauflacher. Gessler had caused to be fixed upon a pole in the market-place of Altorf a hat (the ducal hat according to John de Muller), commanding the Swiss to bow their heads whilst passing it. Tell indignantly refused to obey that humiliating order. The tyrant, furious at the audacity of the recu- sant, compelled him, under pain of death, to shoot au arrow, at a distance of one hundred and twenty paces, through an apple placed uj)on the head of the youngest of his boys (18th Nov. 1307). Tell shot so true that he pierced the apple without harming his son. Gessler then perceiving a second arrow hidden beneath his belt, asked him what it was for. Tell would have excused himself by saying that it was the common custom of archers; but Gessler, seeing him confused, pressed him to disclose the real reason, promising that, whatever ho miglit say, his 1273-15-20.] WILLIAM TELL. 150 life should be safe. " Well, then," replied William Tell, " I will speak the truth. If I had slain my son, the second arrow should have pierced thy heart." " I pro- mised thee thy life," replied Gessler; " but since thou art thus evil disposed towards me, I will send thee to a place where thou shalt never see sun or moon more." Gessler then caused him to be loaded with chains, and thrown into a boat; and, fearing lest he should be rescued by his companions, he determined to conduct him himself to the strong fortress of Kussnacht. They embarked upon the lake of the Four Cantons; and scarcely were they in front of the Gruttli than the jocher, an impetuous wind frcn the south which often blows in these regions, raised tell's chapel. a violent storm, which rendered the small skilT unman- ageable. Tell was known to be a skilful boatman, and he averred that he could steer the skiff to a point where they could land safely. Gessler, terrified, consented to Lis chains being taken off, and trusted him with the helm. Tell directed the boat shorcwards towards a rocky platform which still bears the name of TeWs Leap, situ- ated on the Schwytz shore. There, snatching his bow, he sprang ashore from the skiff, thrusting it back with his foot, thereby leaving his enemy exposed to the fury of the waves. Gessler^ however, escaped also, and con- 160 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [period V. tinned Lis way by land towards Knssnacht. Tell waited for him by the roadside, until he had entered a hollow, woody pass, and, watching his opportunity, took a steady aim at the tyrant, and sent an arrow through his heart. After this exploit, Tell's life becomes ol)SCure. We learn only that he fought in the battle of Morgarten (1315), and that he died at Bingen, receiver of the church of that city in 1354. His death was another devoted act, for he perished in an attem2)t to save a child who had fallen into a torrent. The governor of Uri decreed that, on the anniversary of his death, a sermon should be delivered at the spot where stood the house of Tell, " our beloved citizen, and restorer of our liberties, in eternal memory of Heaven's benefits, and the happy deeds of the hero." Thirty years later a chapel was built upon the site on which that house had stood. Henry VII. of Luxemburg (1308-1313). — On the tragical death of Albert, the crown of Germany was claimed by Philip the Handsome {le Ikl) of France for liis brother Charles; the electors, however, dreaded his power, and refused to elect him. The eyes of many jninces were turned to Frederick, Duke of Austria; but the father had never been popular; and the cruelty with which some of the members of the family, especially Agnes his daughter, widow of Andrew III. King of Hun- gary, revenged the murder of that monarch, increased the feeling of dissatisfaction. Through the intrigues of Peter, archbishop of Mentz, the election fell on Henry, Count of Luxemburg, brother of Baldwin, archbishop of Treves. Henry was proclaimed Emperor at Beuse (1308), near Braubach, on the left bank of the Rhine, and there crowned. The two other crowns, the iron one in Lom- bardy, and the impeiial crown, were still in Italy. Henry was one of the noblest monarchs who ever sat on the throne of Germany. Deeply conscious of the duties imposed upon him by his station, he followed in the step.s of Charlemagne and Barbarossa, and worthily upheld the dignity and honour of the empire, ever remaining a stranger to the petty policy of his late predecessors, who 1273-1520.] LOUIS V. 161 sacrificed the state for the sake of increasing the wealth and influence of their own houses. The reign of Henry VII. was destined to be short. His predecessors, during half a century, had wisely refrained from interfering in the afliaii^ of Italy; and had thereby avoided the imhapi^y ^^^^ ^^ many whose bones, as Rodolph truly observed, whitened that den of wild beasts. But dazzled by his unexpected elevation, and that of his son, who acquired the crown of Bohemia by his marriage with Elizabeth, grand-daughter of Ottocar, he resolved, in a fatal hour, to restore the supremacy of the empire over Lombardy and Tuscany. His transactions in Italy must be sought in the histories of that country. Here we need only observe, that, though for a moment Lombardy sub- mitted, and he received the imperial crown at Home from the hands of three cardinals, to whom Clement V. (still at Avignon) delegated the necessary powers, he suddenly died at Buonconventi, near Sienna, poisoned during supper by a monk (August 24, 1313). With his expiring breath he said to his murderer : " You have given me death in the cup of life, but fly, ere my followers seize you ! '' The death of Henry replunged Germany into horrors to which, since the extinction of the Swabian line of emperors, it had been a stranger. Louis V. of Bavaria and Frederick of Austria (1314- 1347). — On the death of the noble-hearted Emperor, the empire again fell a prey to the adverse factions of the Guelphs and Ghibellines. The rancour of the Papal French party had been again excited by Henry's expedi- tion to Borne, and the Ha2:)sburgs once more appeared on the scene as its supportei-s and tools. Frederick the Hand- some was, consequently, zealously recommended by the Pope as the successor to the crown, for which a com- petitor also appeared in the person of John of Bohemia, the son of the late Emperor; but his youth proved the chief obstacle, and, after some consideration, he ceded his rights in favour of Louis of Bavaria. Although Louis was a member of the Austro-Hapsburg family, his mother being a daughter of Boclolph I., he had always been the 1G2 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [period V. enemy of the Austrian princes, and in tlie same dogreo the ally of the Luxemburg factions. The two candidates bein'^ respectively crowned Kings of the Romans— Louis at Aix-la-Ohapellc, by the Archbishop of Mentz, Frederick at Bonn, by the Metropolitan of Cologne, a civil war was inevitable : neither had virtue enough to sacrifice his own rights to the good of the state. As both had great mili- tary talents, equal enterprise and resolution, the contest could not fail to be severe and protracted. Fortunately for Louis, the Austrian forces were defeated by the hardy natives of Helvetia, who from hatred to the memory of Albert, and his rapacious officers, had declared for the Bavarian and Bohemian faction. Yet, after all, the con- test would have ended in favour of the Austrians, but for the rashness of Frederick, who, in September 1322, without waiting for the arrival of his brother Leopold, assailed Louis not fiir from Milhldorf in Lower Bavaria. With his usual magnanimity, Frederick, considering that the pre-eminence of danger was his proper duty, arrayed himself in splendid armour, on which was emblazoned the cognizance of his house; and on his head he wore a helmet surmounted by a crown, thus exhibiting himself on tho one hand as the rallying point of his followers, on tho other as a mark to the enemy. Louis who was more prudent though not less brave, placed himself in tho centre; but distrusting his own talents as a general, he left the command to Schweppermann, one of the most experienced captains of the age. The battle was main- tained with equal valour from the rising to the setting sun; and was evidently in f\ivour of the Austrians, when an unexpected charge in flank by a body of cavalry under the Margi-ave of Nuremberg decided the fortune of tho day. Frederick was surrounded and taken prisoner. The flower of the Austrian nobility, among others three- and-twenty of the ftimily of Trautmannsdorf, strewed tho field. After the battle, Louis gratefully acknowledged the services of his commander-in-chief Schweppermann, to whose skill he entirely owed his success. A basketful of e;ri?s being all that could be found for the imperial 1273-1520.] .LOUIS V. 163 table, the Emperor distributed them among his officers, saying: " To each of you one egg, to our gallant Schwep- ])ermann two!" The latter was of diminutive stature, old and lame, but skilled in the tactics of the time. The Emperor's words on this occasion may be still read on this officer's tombstone at Castel, near Amberg. Frederick was imprisoned in the castle of Trausnitz, near Landshut. But the contest was not yet decided ; the valiant Leopold was still at the head of a superior force; and Pope John XXII.,* the natural enemy of the Ghibellines, incensed at some succours which Louis sent to that party in Lombardy, excommmiicated the King of the Komans, and declared him deposed from his dignity. By Leopold he was signally defeated; and he had the mortification to see the inconstant King of Bohemia join the party of Austria. In this emergency, his only chance of safety was a reconciliation with his enemies; and Frederick was released on condition of his renouncing all claim to the empire. But though Frederick sincerely resolved to fulfil his share of the compact, Leopold and the other princes of the family refused; and their refusal was approved by the Pope. With the magnanimity of his character, Frederick, unable to execute the engagements he had made, voluntarily surrendered himself to his enemy. But Louis, who would not be outdone in gene- rosity, received him, not as a prisoner, but a friend. "They ate," says a contemporary writer, "at the same table, slept on the same couch;" and when the King left Bavaria, the administration of that duchy was confided to Frederick. Two such men could not long remain even politically hostile; and by another treaty (September 2, 1325), it was agreed that they should exercise conjointly the government of the empire. When this arrangement was condemned both by the Pope and the electors, Louis * This Pontiflf surpassed most of his predecessors in pride and tyranny. He kept his seat on the Papal chair, having humbled his competitor, Isicholas V., and left at his death an immense treasure, accumulated by the sale of benefices, while his rival, the Emperor, died in indigence. Ig4 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERlOD V. proposed to take Italy as his seat of government, and leave Germany to Frederick. But the death of the war- like Leopold— the great support of the Austrian cause— and the continued opposition of the States to any com- promise, enabled Louis to retain the sceptre of the king- dom; and in 1330, the decease also of Frederick strength- ened his party. , . . i x* « i Louis V. reigns alone.— But his reign was destined to be one of troubles. The year following the victory of Miihldorf, Louis had been cited to appear to plead betore the Pope at Avignon; and, on his refusal to appear, the whole empire was placed under an interdict. Louis retaliated by passing into Italy, and assuming the iron crown at Milan; after which he pronounced the ban ot the empire against the King of Naples; and, deposing the Pope, placed on the Papal throne a Minorite monk, Nicholas V., by whom he was crowned at Rome. As, by the death of Frederick, Louis had become sole Emperor, he, after his return to Germany, summoned a Diet at Reuse on the Rhine, where the electors made the follow- incr declamtion :— " That the German Emperor was the highest power on earth, and dependent for his election on none but the princes of Germany." This decree was at once signified to the Pope by a special letter. But now Louis imprudently compromised himselt m the eyes of his subjects by an act of treachery towards a forei4 ally. Edward III. of England being engaged in a sanguinary war with France, Louis at first embraced his cause, but soon with strange fickleness deserted that alliance, and attached himself to the French, the enemies of his country and of freedom, and sent his own son Louis with an army to act against England. The adversaries of Louis, particularly Clement VI., carried their animosity so far as to elect, in 1346, in an assembly which included certain princes, as Emperor of Germany, the son of King John of Bohemia, Charles, Mar^n^ve of Moravia, a prince who had been brought up in the court of Fmnce. He enjoyed no consideration so lon<^ as Louis lived; but that unfortunate Emperor wa3 1273-1520.] CHARLES IV. 165 killed in the year following, during a bear hunt, by a blow intended for the animal whilst at bay. Louis was the last Emperor excommunicated by the Popes. Charles IV. (1346-1378).— Twelve months before the decease of Louis, Charles of Bohemia, assisted by Clem- ent VI., was elected King of the Romans. But in re- turn he had signed a shameful capitulation with the Pope one by which the state, no less than the church of Germany, was placed at the feet of that haughty and corinipt Pontiff. For this and other reasons many of the princes were now unwilling to confirm the election. Four of them had offered the imperial crown to the conqueror of Crecy, which the English Parliament, fearing lest an Emperor of Germany might forget his duty as King of England, would not permit him to accept. An anti- Ctesar, however, was found in Gunther, Count of Schwart- zenburg, a prince of great militaiy reputation, and the unshak*en friend of the deceased sovereign. This opposi- tion was inevitable in a country where the two rival fixmilies of Luxemburg and Austria were pursuing each other with deadly animosity. Charles IV., however, craftily entered into negotiation with Edward of England, to whom he proved the necessity of an alliance between them against France, drew the Hapsburg araiy on his side by giving his daughter, Catherine, in marriage to Rodolph the son of Albert the Lame; and, with equal skill, dissolved the Wittelsbach confederacy by weddmg Anna, the daughter of the Pfalzgrave Rupei-t, by ceding Brandenburg to Louis the Elder, and declaring Walde- mar whom he had himself invested with that electorate, an impostor; Louis the Elder, with equal perfidy, sacri- ficing Gunther, who was shortly afterwards poisoned by one of Charles's emissaries, a.d. 1347. Charles IV., the tool of Papal and French policy, now found himself con- strained, owing to his dependence upon his father, to serve the French monarch against England, although, as will be hereafter seen, he was too prudent a politician and too sensible of his dignity to allow himself to be lon^ enchained to the petty interest of the French king. 166 HISTORY OF GERMAKY. [PERIOD V. 1273-1520.] THE BLACK DEATlt. 167 Edward of England, on landing in Flanders, was, notwith- standing the death of Artevelde, who, falsely suspected of a design of selling Flanders to England, had been assassinated by his countrymen, received with open arms by the citizens, and joined by Henry the Iron, of Hol- stein. The French suffered a total defeat at Crecy (Aug. 26, 1346). The Emperor's behaviour on this occasion was far from heroic, for he was among the first to flee, whilst his brave father, King John of 13ohemia, who had been blind for many years,"^ bound between two knights, plunged headlong into the thickest of the fight, in the vain hope of turning the battle. With him fell Rodolph of Lotharingia, Louis of Nevers, and all the Germans who had so uselessly ventured their honour and their lives in a stranger's cause, in that of their hereditary foe. When the death of the German princes was told to the English kmg, he exclaimed : " O ye Germans ! how could ye die for a French king ! " The sword of the blind Bohemian king bore the inscription " Ich dlen ! " I serve, that is, " God, the ladies, and right," which was on this occasion assumed by the Prince of Wales as his motto. In 1355, Charles published the imperial constitution, termed the Golden Bidl (so called from the knob of gold bulla aurea in which its seal is inclosed), which definitely fixed the number and prerogatives of the electors, and ^ became the fundamental law of the empire. The number of electors was fixed, in conformity "with ancient custom, at seven, who were to represent the seven candlesticks of the Apocalypse, and the seven gifts of the Holy Ghost. Thus Charles settled on them — himself as King of Bo- hemia being one — all the hereditary offices of the state, | and imprudently placed in their hands the whole power , of the empii'e. | Of Charles's foreign policy little need be said. He j observed treaties with France or England just so long as suited his interests. Into Italy he twice descended; once to receive the imperial crown, the second time under * John had lost one of his eyes during his Polish expedition, the other through the ignorance of his medical attendants. I)retext of restoring the supremacy of the empire. In both expeditions he sold its rights to the highest bidder, and returned to Germany, followed by the curses or the contempt, not merely of Italy, but of Europe. Cowardly in his nature, he carefully avoided the field of battle; avaricious beyond example, he made everything venal; faithless in his engagements, he sacrificed his most devoted adherents every moment he could do so with advantage; incapable of justice, or humanity, or any good principle, he hesitated at no means by which his ends could be attained. In his opinion the only use of the empii-e was the power to pillage it; of the imperial crown, to exchange its dignity for somctliing more sub- stantial. Though wholly destitute of comprehensive views he must have had talent of some kind, or he could never have brought Brandenburg, Silesia, Lusatia, and a portion of the Upper Palatinate into his family; and that, too, without shedding one drop of blood. Nor must it be forgotten that he extended the commerce, encouraged the industry, and promoted the prosperity of Bohemia— of the empire he w^as utterly regardless — and that he founded the University of Prague, the first that ever existed in Germany. But if his memory be dear to his own kingdom, it is odious to any right-minded German. Charles died in 1378, on liis return from France, whither he had gone for the purpose of establishing peace between that country and Germany. The Black Death (1349).— Early in this reign the most destructive plague recorded in modern history raged in every part of Germany. Beginning in the northern parts of Asia, it penetrated to the most distant regions of Europe, destroying one-third of the inhabitants of every country through which it passed. The narrative of this terrible pestilence, commonly called " the Black Death," of its physical eftects, and its moral influence among a more refined and polished people, which Boccacio has prefixed to his Dccamerone, is not surpassed even by the accounts of a similar visitation left us by the greatest writers of antiquity. But in Germany, to the evils in- f 168 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD V. separable from sucli a calamity, were added all the horrors arising from the power of superstition acting upon a brutal and ignorant populace. The Jews, always the first object of popular antipathy, were accused by some fanatics termed Flagellants^ who had acquired extra- ordinary influence by the severity of their mortifications, of having caused the prodigious mortality by infusing poison into the wells and fountains. This absurd rumour was secretely propagated and encouraged by the nobles, who were deeply indebted to this unhappy race, and who hoped to escape all payment by the destruction of their creditors. The people needed but a hint from their leaders to begin hostilities against a race whom they hated for their religion, and envied for their wealth. Their rage broke out with incredible fury 3 at Mentz and other cities the most excruciating torments were inflicted upon the Jews; at Strasburg 2000 were burned alive on one pile. It was long before the massacre was stopped by the civil magistrate, and few escaped from the rage of the frantic multitude, animated to their destruction by the appetite of plunder, the desii-e of revenge, and the belief that the slaughter of infidels was the most accept- able sacrifice they could ofier to the Almighty. The in- terior police of Germany was at that time extremely defective; many of the nobles were combined in regular associations for plunder; nor could any efiectual check be given to these disorders under the reign of a prince whose timid caution and naiTOW judgment sacrificed every other consideration to his present interests, and all of whose measures wore the stamp of concession, and of indiflerence to the dignity of his station. Wenceslaus (1378-1400).— In the last will of Charles the eldest son had Bohemia and Silesia; Sigismund, the second, had the March of Brandenburg; John, the youngest, had Schweidnitz, Goerlitz, and Lusatia. In virtue of the preceding election Wenceslaus also succeeded to the Germanic throne. The reign of this prince is the most remarkable in the annals of the empire. Called at too early an age to participate in the imperial government, 1273-1520.1 WEKCESLAUS. 169 Wenceslaus treated afiairs of state with ridicule, or entii-ely neglected them, in order to give himself up to idleness or drunkenness. At one moment he jested, at another burst into the most brutal fits of rage. The Ger- mans, with whom he never interfered beyond occasionally holding a useless Diet at Nuremberg, deemed him a fool; whilst the Bohemians, who, on account of his residence at Pi-ague, were continually exposed to his savage caprices, regarded him as a furious tyrant. Sunk in the lowest sensuality, " semper edendo ac bibendo" says a chronicler, he seems to have dissipated the few mental powers which nature had given him. To gluttony, drunkenness, and other vices he soon added murder. Sending for the ghostly confessor of his wife, he insisted on knowing what were the peccadilloes she had disclosed; and when promises, threats, even imprisonment, were employed in vain to shake the reticence of the priest, he caused him to be thrown from the bridge of Prague into the river. A solitary murder, even though the victim was a priest, would have led to no consequences either in Bohemia, which had been used to such tragedies, or at the Papal court, since the Christian world was now distracted by the schism; but the number of victims is said to have been great. He is even reported to have constantly kept neai* him a butcher to execute his sentences, at which he was always present with delight. Though this account may be safely rejected, it proves the degree of estimation in which he was held; and we may certainly admit that a butcher was one of his boon companions, who were always chosen from the dregs of society. The possessions with which the Bohemian nobility had formerly been invested by the crown exciting his cupidity, he invited the whole of the aristocracy to meet him at Willamow, where he received them under a black tent, that opened on either side into a white and a red one. The nobles were allowed to enter one by one, and were commanded to declare what lands they possessed as gifts from the crown. Those who voluntarily ceded their lands were conducted to the white tent and feasted; those who re- ^'^^ HISTORY OF GERMANY. f PERIOD V. fused were instantly beheaded in the red tent. Wlien a number of those nobles had thus been put to death, the iQ^QoF^'^'^mV'''^ '''^'^* '""^ Soing forward, obeyed (a.d. i^bJ). There must have been extraordinary provoca- tions on his part, or a people so patient of despotism as the Bohemians would never have risen against him. That, after the wanton murder of two citizens and two nobles' the mhabitants of Prague arose, seized, and consigned him to one of the public dungeons of the city, where during four months, they kept him on bread and water without allowing him any change of dress, or any indul- gence not granted to other malefactors is, perhaps, the most extraordinary flict in all history. It is certain however, that they would not have proceeded to such an extremity had they not been sure of the approbation of his brother Sigismund, who had succeeded to the throne of Hun;(arv. Sigismund, having married the eldest daughter of Louis the Great, Kmg of Hungary, succeeded by the death of his father-in-law to the throne of that kingdom. As the dissension between the free states and the confederate nobles still continued with unabated violence, Wenceslaus, with a view of defining more accurately the limits of each jurisdiction, adopted the scheme of dividing the empire into four circles. The first embraced Upper and Lower feaxony, the second the district stretching along the Rhine from Lasle to Holland, the third Austria, Swabia, and Lavaria, the fourtli Thuringia and Franconia. By this separation, which was afterwards completed by Maxi- miliaii Wenceslaus hoped to destroy the union between the cities which he divided into different circles. The cities at first refused all allegiance to the imperial edict, and when they at last acceded to it by the Convention of Heidelberg, it was on the express stipulation that they sHould maintain their former league inviolable Patriotism of Winkelried at Sempach.-In the midst ot these transactions, the Cantons of Switzerland liad vindicated their freedom in another field of blood and gloiy. Leopold, Duke of Austria, and GOO nobles 1273-1520.] WENCESLAUS DEPOSED. 1?1 I I perished in the battle of Sempach. It was on that occasion that Winkelried enobled the annals of his country by an action which may be placed by the side of those which have rendered the heroes of Greece and Home immortal. Finding that the serried phalanx of Austrian lances presented an impenetrable barrier to the Swiss, he commended his soul to God, and his children to his country, and then grasping as many lances as he could seize in his arms, he buried them in his bosom, opening to his countrymen the path of victory, and leaving to his native land the possession of her independence. The animosity between the princes and the free towns of Germany became every day more violent; the latter after the most terrible reverses had been obliged to sua for peace. Wenceslaus deposed (1400). — The Emperor, at a Diet held at Nuremberg, endeavoured to mediate between the contending factions, and succeeded in restoring some appearance of tranquillity. The severity with which AVenceslaus had repressed the pillage and disorders of the Bohemian nobles had excited their discontent; and as he was prone to excess in low debauchery, and was often guilty of unseemely and extravagant actions when heated by wine, there were not wanting plausible grounds on which to justify their disaficction. Under such cir- cumstances we cannot feel surprise that the Germanic nation should wish his deposition and effect it. The result was hastened by the hostility of Boniface IX., whom, no less than his rival Benedict XIII., Wenceslaus had offended by suggesting that a new election might be made and an end put to the schism which distracted the Church.* He was declared to have forfeited the imperial throne, and his subjects were released from their oaths of allegiance. In the choice of a successor, two of the electors, * The marriage of Anna, Wenceslaus' sister, with Richard II., King of England, rendered the Bohemians acquainted with the writings of Wicklilie, who, since 1360, had boldly ventured to attack the abuses of the Church of En^dand. 172 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [period V. Wenceslaus himself as king of Bohemia, and his brother Sigismund as mai'grave of Brandenburg, could not pos- sibly concur; since the one would never sanction his own degradation, nor was the other willing to see the exclu- sion of his house. A third, the Duke of Saxony, refused to take any pai-t in these proceedings; not from respect to Wenceslaus, but because he perceived that the choice of the other electors was already determined in favour of a candidate obnoxious to him. And to secure his neu- trality, if not concurrence, he was taken prisoner by an armed band in the interest of the rest. Rupert, Count Palatine (1410-1437).— The suffrages of the electors fell on one of their number, Rupei-t, Count Palatine, a piince who had neither the talents nor the influence necessary for the support of the dignity. His administration, whether in Italy or Germany, was un- fortunate. One of the causes alleged for the deposition of Wenceslaus was, that he had vii-tually dissevered Lombardy from the empire by creating the celebrated Giovanni Galeazzo Visconti Duke of Slilan. To settle the afJairs of that perpetually distracted country, Rupert j)assed the Alps, and summoned the Duke to resign both the title and the domain; but, instead of an obedient vassal, he found an open enemy, who signally defeated him. By favouring the league of the Guelphs, he excited the hostility of the Ghibellines, which, in this case, was the more bitter, as the Emperors were the natural allies of the latter party. In return, he might indeed expect to secure the adherence of the Guelphs, with Poi)e Boni- face at their head; but the assistance he received was so feeble, and the hostility he excited so formidable, that he ingloriously retraced his steps. His conduct in regard to the schism was no less impolitic. Instead of abetting the council of Pisa, which deposed both popes — the only measure that could give peace to the Church — he zealously espoused the interests of Gregory XII., and thereby, gave offence not only to the council, but to such of his subjects as approved the decision of the council. Nor in Germany itself was his conduct more approved. ft 4 1273-1520.] SIGISMUND, KING OF HUNGARY. 173 Attem])ting to restore the exercise of his undoubted prerogative, he was opposed by a league of princes, who assumed, as a pretext, the necessity of watching over the rights of the order against the encroachments of the crown. The Emperor, in fact, reigned merely by suf- ferance: he had been elected by seven princes; by a majority of the seven he might have been deposed. That doom Rupert very narrowly escaped. His unex- pected death preserved Germany from another spectacle of successful rebellion. Sigismund, King of Hungary (1410-1437).— The death of Eupert seemed to favour the partizans of Wenceslaus; but the partizans of his house preferred the choice of his brother Sigismund, King of Hungary. At Frankfort, Sigismund was illegally elected by two only of the seven; while five, who assembled later, gave their suffrages in favour of the Margrave of Moravia, cousin-german of Wenceslaus and Sigismund. Thus Germany had three kings of the Romans, two of whom were resolved to defend their rights with the sword. But the horrors of civil war were averted by the death of the Margrave, whose partisans, combining with those of Sigismund, proceeded to a new election; and Sigismund was unani- mously recognised King of the Romans, Wenceslaus him- self renouncing his own rights in favour of his brother. Sigismund had given at his election an example of his arrogant character. *' There is no prince in the empire," said he, "with whose merits I am so fully acquainted as with my own. I am surpassed by none— either in power or in the prudence with which I have ruled, whether in prosperity or adversity. Therefore do I, as Elector of Brandenburg, give my vote to Sigismund, King of Hun- gaiy, and will that he be elected King of Germany." Sigismund*s character was a combination of the charac- teristics of his immediate predecessors. Like Charles IV., he was crafty and politic, but resembled Wenceslaus in his love of sensual gratifications. Handsome, eloquent, and lively, he had no steadiness of pei^on, seeming to act on the impulse of the moment, and with a view to present 174 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD V. expediency, rather than on any settled plan. The first o)3Ject of his attention was the schism in the Church, there being a Pope in Italy, another in France, and a third in Spain, and eacli of them launched anathemas against his adversaries and the countries subjected to him. Sigismund, in furtherance of his favourite design, acted at first with sound policy and discretion; he sum- moned a General Council to meet at Constance, and in order to give its members the character of representatives of all Europe, he proclaimed that not merely the clergy, but distinguished laymen from difierent countries should assist at its deliberations; the Emperor himself waiving the right of supremacy which the E,omano-Germanic empire had hitherto assumed over other kingdoms, although its pretensions were little more than a name. But all these fair plans were ruined by his own want of self-C(5ntrol. During the sitting of the Council, Sigismund gave him- self up entirely to low debauchery ; and the only ellect of his condescension was to make himself the laughinfr- stock of the Church, and give foreign nations encourage- ment to encroach still farther on the privileges of the empire. The Council of Constance (1st Nov. 1414). — The place fixed upon for this important assembly of the spiritual and temporal powers of Catholic Europe, in compliance with the wishes of the Emperor, but not in accordance with the interests of the Pope, John XXIII., was Con- stance in Switzerland; and the day appointed for the meeting was the 1st of November, 1414. The assem- blage of ecclesiastics, and also of laymen, on this occasion, was immense. The Council was divided into four national sections, of Italy, France, Germany, and England, and the votes were taken according to this division, instead of being registered according to the opinions of individual members of the body. Both the Emperor and John were present. The professed objects of this famous Council were, the extinction of the schism, and the reformation of the Church, or the con-ection of those manifold abuses which existed in the management of ecclesiastical rev* III ( i i , 1273-1520.] COUNCIL OF CONSTANCE. 175 cnues. Here it was determined, after some debate, that a General Coimcil could compel the Pope to abdicate, and the method of cession was moreover declared to be the only means of securing the peace of the Church. Accordingly, on the 2nd of March 1415, John publicly pronounced his abdication, on condition of a similar pro- ceeding on the part of Benedict and Gregory. Suspi- cions, however, having been manifested by the Council with regard to the sincerity of the Pontiff in these trans- actions, the latter planned his escape from Constance, and fled first to Schaff hausen, afterwards to Brissac, and at length to Fribourg, where he expected to receive the protection of the Duke of Austria, but was treacherously delivered into the power of the Emperor and the Council. A series of enormous crimes being now laid to his charge, John was solemnly deposed from the Pontificate (May 29, 1415), and condemned to rigorous imprisonment, which he suffered, first at Heidelberg and afterwards at Manheim, for the period of three years. In the course of the same year Gregory sent to the Council a voluntary and solemn resignation of his dignity. Benedict, how- ever, remained inflexible, declaring that he was the true, and now the only Pope. Sigismund went in person to Perpignan with a view to obtain his resignation; but Benedict obstinately resisted all solicitations, and ulti- mately withdrew, for the security of his person, to the small fortress of Paniscola. The Council, fully convinced of his contumacy, proceeded to the sentence of deposition ; and although Benedict continued to anathematise his adversaries daily in his obscure place of refuge, he had ceased to be a means of dividing the obedience of the Church. The claims of the late competitors having been thus entirely destroyed, the Cardinals proceeded to the election of a new Pope, and agreed in the choice of Otto de Colonna, a Roman, who ascended the Papal Chair under the name of Martin V. And thus the primary object of the Council, the healing of the Great Schism, which had long been productive of such numerous dis- orders, was successfully accomplished. Gregory XII. died 176 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [period V. soon after his cession. John XXIII., restored to liberty about three years after his deposition, was solicited by some of his friends to resume the Papal dignity, but instead of complying with their advice, he voluntarily threw himself at the feet of Martin, who received his submission. And thus the Great Western Schism was completely at an end. John Huss and Jerome of Prague (1416). — The spii'itual business of the Council of Constance was no less important than its temporal. John Huss, a disciple of Wickliff, and professor in the new university of Prague, founded by Charles IV., was tried for heresy, in opposing the hierarchy, and satirising the immoralities of the popes and bishops.* He did not deny the charge; and refusing to confess his errors, was burnt alive, though he had a safe conduct from the Emperor to appear at the Council. But the principle on which the Council acted was not concealed : it was indeed openly avowed, that, in certain cases, faith was not to be kept with heretics. A similar fate was the portion of his friend and disciple, Jerome of Prague, who displayed at his execution the eloquence of an apostle, and the constancy of a martyr. Sigismund felt the consequences of these horrible proceedings; for the Bohemians, justly exasperated at the treacherous execution of their countrymen, opposed his succession to their crown, vacant by the death of his deceased brother Wenceslaus, and it cost him a war of sLxteen years to attain it. Whatever was the imperial power at this time, it derived but small consequence from its actual revenues. The wealth of the Germanic states was exclusively pos- sessed by their separate sovereigns, and the Emperor had little more than what he drew from Bohemia and Hun- gary. The sovereignty of Italy was an empty title. The interest of the Emperor in that country furnished only a source of faction to its princes, and embroiled the states in perpetual quarrels. War of the Hussites— Death of Wenceslaus (1418). — The execution of Huss, with all its circumstances of cruelty and falsehood, had been regarded by the Bohq- 1273-1520.] ACCESSION OF SIGISMUND. 177 |i mians as a national insult, which called aloud for signal and adequate retribution. When the ashes of the martyr were thrown into the Rhine, the rulers of the Church believed that his name had perished with his body. But the people thought far otherwise. James Hussinitz, a nobleman residing in the village where Huss was born, determined to avenge his death, and to maintain his doc- trines. Wenceslaus, finding himself wholly unable to resist the storm of popular indignation, withdrew from Prague, which soon fell entirely into the hands of the malcontents. Under the command of the leaders of the new doctrines, they proceeded to yet more violent extre- mities. To revenge some slight offence which had been offered to them in one of their religious processions, they buret into the coimcil chamber at Prague, and seizing thirteen of the principal magistrates, flung them from the windows upon the pikes of their associates. The intelli- gence of this outrage roused Wenceslaus to so violent a paroxysm of fury, that it occasioned an apopletic fit which put an end to his existence. Sigismund succeeds to the Crown of Bohemia (1419). — The accession of Sigismund, who, notwithstanding a letter addressed to the Bohemians in vindication of his conduct, was universally considered as the cause of Huss's execution, and a promulgation of a decree of the Council of Constance containing a most unqualified denunciation of their sect, wrought the passions of the Hussites to a yet higher state of exasperation. They refused to recog- nise Sigismund as King, whereupon the Hussite civil war broke out. They were divided into two -parties, the more moderate Calixtines and the more rigid Tabprites.- Ziska, the leader of the latter party, a man of extraordinary powers, assembled them on Mount Tabor, captured Prague, pillaged and burnt the monasteries, and in several engage- ments defeated Sigismund. After the death of Ziska (1424), his place was filled by a monk named Procopius, who defeated the mercenaries sent under the name of Crusaders by the Emperor and the Papal legates in the battles of Mies (1427) and Tachau (1431), and whose 178 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD V. 1273-1520.] COUNCIL OP CONSTANCE* 170 troops ravaged Austria, Franconia, Saxony, Catholic Bohemia, Lusatia, and Silesia. A council held at Basle in 1433 made concessions which were accepted by the Calixtines. The Taborites, rejecting the compromise, were vanquished in the battle of Prague (1434), and by the treaty of Iglau (1436), the compromise of ]3asle was accepted by Bohemia, and Sigismund recognised as King. •'c'S^X'^ BASLE. The Emperor having committed to the Council of Basle the task of carrying on negotiations, had withdrawn to Eome on pretext of being crowned l)y the new Pope, Eugenius TV. The coimcil led by the spiritual and tem- poral lords, who were fully aware of the importance of the cause at stake, shared the Emperor's opinion, and were, consequently, fav more inclined to make concession than was the Pope, who refused to yield to any terms, preferring to throw the onus of the peace on otliera. The council therefore acted without reference to tl)e Pontiff, ( who in the meantime amused himself with solemnising a farcical coronation of the Emperor at Pvome. Sigismmid remained, during the sitting of the Council, in Italy, engaged in love affairs, althougli already sixty-three years of age. After openly procrastinating the ceremony, the Pope at length gave full vent to his displeasure (1433), by causing the crown to be placed awry on Sigismund's head by another ecclesiastic, and then pushing it straight with his foot as the Emperor knelt before him. Close of the Council of Constance (1437).— After long and tedious conferences the Council conceded to the Bohemian laity the use of the cup in the communion, and Sigismund on his side agreed that the Hussite priests should be tolerated, even at court; that no more monas- teries should be built; that the university of Prague should be reinstated in all its former privileges; and a general amnesty granted for all past disturbances. Thus peace was concluded in 1437. Bohemia, however, remained still in a feverish state until about a century after, when the reform of Luther revived old feelings and antipathies, of which the Thirty Years' War that, another century later, desolated all Germany, may be said to have been the ^pmote consequence. There are a few Hussites now in J Johemia; the rest have merged into Caivinists, Lutherans, JMoravians, and other sects. The German nobility, freed from their fanatical oppo- nents, turned their attention liomewards, and resolved to curb the violence of the Emperor, and to secure the main- tenance of peace by a system of moderation. Sigismund was now old, and his son-in-law, Albert of Hapsburg, pur- sued an uncompromising policy. They therefore conspired with Rokizana, Archbishop of Prague, and the Empress Barbara, to proclaim Wladislaw of Poland successor to the throne. Sigismund, on learning their intentions, per- ceived the false step he had taken, again made concessions, and, suddenly entering Moravia, seized the person of the faithless Empress, the IMessalina of her age. He shortly afterwards expired at Znaim, sitting in state "as lord of the world," as he vain-gloriously boasted (1437), in tho 180 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD V. twenty-eiglitli year of his reign, and the seventieth of his life. Albert II. of Austria—Frederick III. (1438-1493).— Albert of Austria, son-in-law of the late Emperor, was, after a short interval, elevated by the unanimous sutiVages of the electors to the vacant throne of the empire; Frederick of Bmndenburg, his only opponent was easily persuaded to resign his pretensions in favour of so illus- trious a competitor. Fifth in descent, and fourth in succession from tbat Albert who fell a victim to domestic treachery in the early part of the fourteenth century, the newly-created head of the Germanic Confederation com- bined every quality best calculated to win the affection and command the obedience of the turbulent vassals with whose government he had been entrusted. So little, however, did he aspire to the magnificent title which it was now proposed to confer upon him, and so reluctant was he to entangle himself in the maze of German politics, that on assuming the government of Hungary, he had pledged himself, in the event of his election, to reject the nominal supremacy of the empire, and to devote his care entirely to the administration of those vast districts which had already fallen under his control. Frederick of the Empty Pocket, and the Revolt of the Swiss. — From the period of the battle of Miilildorf in 1322, when Frederick the Fair of Austria was over- thrown, until the election of Albert II., the House of Hapsburg remained excluded from the imperial throne, and were chiefly occupied with the affairs of their Austrian dominions. At the beginning of the fifteenth century we find these possessions, which were now considembly enlarged, shared by three members of the family, of whom one, called from his poverty, Frederick of the Empty Pockety held the Tyrol and the ancient territories of the house in Switzerland and in Suabia. Frederick having, in 1415, assisted the escape of John XXIII. from Con- stiince, was excommunicated by the Council then sitting in that town, and was also placed under the imperial ban by the Emperor Sigismund. Frederick's possessions were 1273-1520.] DIVISIONS l^ THE EMPIRE. 181 now at the mercy of those who could seize them, and in a few days 400 towns declared against him. In this general revolt, the Swiss, with the exception of the miners of Uri, were especially active : they seized the territories so liberally bestowed upon them by the Council; and it was now that Hapsburg, the cradle and hereditary castle of the family, was laid in ruins, as it has continued ever since. Albert II. would doubtless have done much for the welfare of Germany, had not death unhappily surprised him after a brief reign of scarcely two years, on his return from an expedition against the Turks in Hungary. From his time, the imperial crown was transmitted in the House of Austria almost as if it had been an hereditary possession ; and we shall see the descendants of E,odolf attaining to a power and pre-eminence which threatened to overshadow the liberties of Europe. Frederick III. (1440-1493). — After the death of Albert, the Germans elected for their Emperor Frederick III., the elder son of Ernest, surnamed the Iron, brother to Frederick with the Empty Pockety and who possessed Styria, Carinthia, Istria, and other provinces. Frederick III. was a well-intentioned prince, although too pacific and too indolent to reign over the empire at a time when the affairs both of church and state required a vigorous and steady hand. Little was known of him, save that he had once made a pilgi-image to the Holy Sepulchre, and wandered among the mountains of Palestine. Being, Iiowever, the eldest representative of the mighty House of Hapsburg, it was deemed expedient to elect him Emperor. A short time was sufficient to show how injudicious the choice had been. Frederick III. ruled Germany, if such an expression can be applied to his weak and miserable reign, till 1493; and his long sway added not a single remarkable or glorious action to the annals of Germany. Frederick was crowned King of the Romans at Aix-la- Chapelle in 1442. Divisions in the Empire. — In 144G, the people of Zurich renounced the impei'ial alliance, and joined the confederacy of three forest cantons, which had made itself 182 ttlStORY OF GERMANY. [period V. res]>ectecl by all its neigliboiirs. In Ilungaiy, the young Ladislaus, son of tlie late Emperor, had been crowned by the German party; but a threatened invasion of tho Turks, rendering it necessary to have a man of action at the head of the government, the j^eople chose Ladislaus of Poland, who was conquered and slain by tlic Turks at Yarna, soon after his election. In Bohemia, the German Ladislaus was luiiversally recognised as King, but tho powers of government wxre exercised by the heads of two factions, Meinhard and Ptaczek. After the death of the latter, George of Podiebrad, a brave warrior, became leader of the more popular party, surprised Prague, threw his rival into prison, and was made sole regent. In Austria, one Sitzinger, a Bavarian, exercised unlimited influence over the states : thus in each of the hereditary dominions of the Emperor and his young ward, Ladis- laus, the people were ruled with an absolute authority by a power almost independent of the indolent Frederick and his cousin. The last Coronation performed at Rome. —In 1151, Frederick repaired to Rome t« receive the imperial crowL from the hands of the Tope. Nicholas V., who then filled the Papal chair, received him witli great magnificence; but it was observed that the Emperor, till after his coronation, yielded precedence to the Cardinals. Accord- ing to the strict order of this ceremony, it was necessary that Frederick should first receive the iron crown of Lombardy, w^liich it w\as the privilege of the Archbishop of Milan to bestow; but Frederick having, for some reason, declined to enter that city, the Pope, with his own hands, crowned him King of Loml)ardy, though with a reservation of the rights of the Archbishop. On tlie same day (March 15), Nicholas married Frederick to Eleanor, the beautiful daughter of tho King of Portugal, who had niet him at Sienna, and three days afterwards received the imperial crown. This coronation is memor- able as the last performed at Home, and the last but ono in which the services of the Poj^e were ever required.* * Charles V. was crowned by tho Pope at Bolof-jix •i i\ )< I I II 1273-1520.] FREDERICK ACKNOWLEDGES PODIEBRAD. l83 After the ceremony, Frederick set off for Naples with his consort, to visit King Ali)honso, uncle of his Empress, Avhere the marriage was celebrated with great pom]), tlie fountains of the city being made to run with wdne, and tables were spread for tho entertainment of 30,000 guests. Destruction of the Byzantine Empire by Mahomet II. (1453). — At the time of this vain ceremonial, measures WQVQ concerted for a crusade against the Turks; but the spirit which precipitated Europe upon Asia was no more, and the descendants of those who had rescued the Holy Se[>ulchre from the power of the infidels w^ere con- tent to remain passive spectators of the entire destruction of the Byzantine emi)ire. The inactivity and negligence of Frederick, who knew neither how to yield nor how to withstand, involved him daily in fresh ditKculties, and exposed him to innumerable mortifications. In consequence of the calamities which his npathy had occasioned, and of the insults for which it behoved him to seek I'cdress, the electors had already begun to deliberate on the expediency of deposing him. To comi>lete his embarrassment, Ladislaus, the son of Albert, died, leaving his hereditary dominions exposed to ilie dreadful evils arising from intestine strife and civil disorganization. Some historians have represented this prince as an accomplished and virtuous ruler, but the execution of Corvinus, brother of the patriotic warrior, John Han- niades, leaves a blot on his character which years of beneficent government could hardly wipe away. Matthias Corvinus, the son of Ilunniades, was now raised by a grateful people to the throne w^hich his father had i)rc- served; and although the defection of a few nobles enabled Frederick to gain possession of the Hungarian crown and jev/els, the former continued till his death to enjoy the substantial privileges, and to exercise the real functions of a legitimate sovereign. Frederick acknowledges Podiebrad, King of Bohemia (1459). — Bohemia, inflamed by a similar spirit of dis- affection, disregarding the claim of Frederick and his 184 filSTOnV OF GERMANY. [PERIOD V. descendants, elected their Lravo leader, George of Podie- brad for its ruler, whom the Emperor was compelled to acknowledge. A third war with his brother Albert, who, after wresting from his feeble grasp a part of Austria, aspired to the conquest of the whole, was equally disastrous to his reputation. He was besieged in the fortress of Vienna; and, but for the politic advice of Podiebrad, would have been captured, and made to sign worse terms than the cession of his hereditary states. By Podiebrad's influence a reconciliation was efiected; Albert was allowed to retain, during eight years, the government of Lower Austria, under the condition of an annual tribute of 4000 ducats. But the humiliations which he was doomed to support from his brother ended in 1463, by the death of Albert, who, had his life been protracted, would entirely have conquered the whole of the Austrian states. Imbecility of Frederick III. — If these contentions were thus hushed for a moment, the imbecility of the Emperor was apparent to every one. New wars broke out under his very eyes; wars which he had neither the ability nor the inclination to repress. That there should be a loud outcry against him, and that the project of dethroning him to make way for Podiebrad should be resumed, need not surprise us. When the Empress was informed of certain of his concessions, she exclaimed, turning to her son Maximilian, *' If, my son, I could trace in you any symptoms of your father's pusillanimity, I should lament the fortune that destines you a throne." Frederick, however, had some address; and he had the wisdom to maintain a friendly intercourse with every succeeding Pope. Now he stirred up a war between Podiebrad and Matthias of Hungary ; now he prevailed on the Pope to preach a crusade against the Bohemian King, as the acknowledged head of the Hussites. But Germany would not move even to resist the progress of the Turks under Mahomet II., much less to dethrone an elector who had won the respect of the empire. If Frederick himself wished the destruction of his vassals, 1273-1520.] BETROTUAL OF MAXIMILIAN. 185 he had certainly no great antipathy to the infidels. They furnished employment to one whom he hated, the King of Hungary; and though detached bodies of these bar- barians "penetrated twelve times into his hereditary dominions, though they massacred thousands, and led thousands captive from Carinthia and Styria, he did not oppose them in the field. In the language of a contem- porary chronicler, " He was more anxious to shield his cabbages from the frost, than his people from the bar- barians." That he should be regarded with contempt was the righteous meed he deserved. Death of Podiebrad, King of Bohemia (U71).— The death of Podiebrad freed Frederick from one dangerous rival; but it did not open his way to the Bohemian throne. In conformity with the wishes of the deceased monarch, the States elected Ladislaus, son of Casimir, King of Poland ; and though Frederick stormed, he was compelled to recognise the new potentate. Betrothal of Maximilian and Mary of Burgundy.— But if Frederick was thus unfortunate in his under- taking's, one of his efibrts for the aggrandisement of his house°was more successful, though, in its consequences, it proved most disastrous to his posterity, to France, and to Europe. During the life of Charles the Rash, Duke of Bur<^undy, Frederick negotiated a marriage between his son° Maximilian and Mary, daughter and heiress of that prince. With his accustomed fatality, indeed, he turned one whom he had chosen for the father-in-law of his son into an implacable enemy, and had brought the troops of Burgundy into the Rhenish provinces; but, after the death of Charles, he renewed the negotiations with the princess herself. Policy, the interest of the Netherlands, and even of Europe, required that she should be married to the Dauphin of France, for wlioni her hand was sought by the crafty Louis XI.; but tbe Dauphin was yet a child, and Mary was a woman, already favourably disposed towards Maximilian. Contrary, therefore, to the advice of her ministers, she received, with evident pleasure, the ambassadors of the Emperor; 186 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [pERIOD V. 1273-1520.] HOSTILITY OF FRANCE. 187 she was even marriccl by proxy; and, on this occiision, the nobleman who represented Maximilian lay down by her side, but armed at all points, with a sword between him and the princess, and in presence of numerous witnesses. The issue of this marriage was Philip, who became the husband of Juanna, the heiress of Castile, and father of the Emperor Charles V. Hence the rivalry between France and Spain, between France and the Empire, which raged with fury down to the 18th century. Nor was this the only evil; for the Flemish were always a disaffected people — always fond of revolution; and to maintain them in obedience required more trouble, and occasioned more expense than the provinces were actually worth. Death of Frederick III. (1493).— The termination of Frederick's protracted and inglorious reign of fifty-three years was now approaching; he expired in 1493, and may be compared in many respects to our English Henjy III., to whom his character certainlv bears a stronsf resemblance. Pusillanimous, feeble, and vacillating, his infirmity of purpose and superstitious regard for the authority of the Pope, in an age when the respect for l)apal authority was every day declining, exposed him to the charge of weakness and inconsistency ; an exile from his hereditary dominions, unable to control his turbulent vassals, apparently dependent for his daily maintenance on the town of the em2)ire in which he fixed his residence, under his rule the im2)erial authority seems to have ebbed to the very lowest point of degradation and contempt. But, on the other hand, he was faithful to his word, skilful in his negotiations, well acquainted with human character, temperate in his habits, and unsullied in his morals; and great as was his indolence, his enemies cannot deny that some good was effected during his reign. By securing the crown in his own fiimily, and by the vast sums of money which he contrived to accumulate, he placed the means of aggrandisement in the hands of his posterity; and although the improvidence of Maxi- milian rendered them for some time unavailing, yet were i r, they grasped with firmness, and wielded with terrific energy by his successors. Maximilian 1. (1403-1519).~On the death of his father, Maximilian had been seven years King of the Bomans; and his accession to the imperial crown en- countered no opposition. The time was departed when a king, elected during the life-time of a reigning emperor, could be set aside by a factious elector. In reality, a much gi'eatcr change was effected in the disposition of the German mind. All men felt that the order of succes- sion should be placed on a less precarious footing; that, though the constitution still demanded the exercise of the elective right, there must be an approximation to hereditary principles in the sovereignty; that, if any family were thus to be favoured, none could produce so good a claim as the House, of Austria. Omitting all considerations of gmtitude; of the splendour which Bodolph, its restorer, had conferred on the empire; of the services performed by that house in behalf of the common body, — policy showed that the crown should remain where it was, because it had been already w^orn by two members of that family, and the hereditary principle, so much desired by all patriots, was in action; but chiefly because no other house was so able or so likely to preserve the iionour, the inde])endence, we might add, the existence of the empire. No other had sncli extent of territory ; no other w\as so 2)owerfiil : not Austria only, and the extensive provinces to the south, were dependent on it, but it had claims on Bohemia and Hungary. Hostility of France to the Empire— Marriage of Maximilian and Mary of Burgundy.— On the death of Frederick, Germany felt its situation changed. France, instead of comi)rising, as formerly, a number of petty states, scarcely dependent on their feudal head, was now one compact monarchy. She had expelled the English from all but the insignificant territory in the vicinity of Calais; and she had successfully incoi-poratid Provence, Dauphiny, Burgundy, and Brittany with the other pro- vinces. Though France and the empire were always 188 HISTORY OF GERMANY. Fperiod V. hostile by circumstances ; though each had claims to the fine regions extending from the Moselle to the Mediter- ranean, the one through weakness, the other through indifference, had abstained from war. The marriage of Maximilian with the heiress of Burgundy brought the two into direct collision. Louis XI., who had seized the other possessions of Charles the Bold, Mary's father, aspired to the Netherlands also. That beautiful heiress, anxious alike to escape the merciless grasp of that royal monster and the rule of the wild democracy of Ghent, at first endeavoured to conciliate the Dutch by the promul- gation of a great charter, but fruitlessly. In the hope of gaining a greater accession of power by a foreign marriage, she skilfully worked upon the dread with which the French were viewed by her subjects, to influence them in favour of Maximilian, the handsomest youth of his day, whom she is said to have seen at an earlier period at Treves, or, as some say, of whose picture she had become enamoured. Mary, as we have already said, was married by proxy to the Archduke Maximilian, in the lifetime of Frederick III. Maxi- milian who inherited the physical strength of his grand- mother, Cimburga of Poland, and the mental qualities of his Portuguese mother, surpassed all other knights in chivalric feats, was modest, gentle, and amiable. Mary confessed to the assembled states of the Netherlands, that she had already interchanged letters and rings with him, and the marriage was resolved upon. Maximilian hastened to Ghent, and, mounted on a brown steed, clothed in silver-gilt armour, his long fair locks crowned with a bridegroom's wreath, resplendent with pearls and precious stones, rode into the city, where he was met by Mary. The youthful pair, on beholding one another, knelt in the public street and sank into each other's arms. " Welcome art thou to me, thou noble German," said the young duchess, '* whom I have so long desired, and now behold with delight." Amongst those princely marriages which history sig- nalises on account of the gi^eatness of their coiiscc|uences, 1273-1520.] MARRIAGE OF ANNE OF BRITTANY. 189 fio, and, by the violation of a doul)lo contract, to prevent the consummation of a union which a])peared destructive to the grandeur aud security of his dominions. IMaximilian, destitute of troops and money, and embarrassed by the continual revolt of the Flemings, could send no succour to his distressed consort, even had he been able to anti- cipate the dissolution of engagements apparently so advan- tageous, and contracted with so much solemnity. Charles, however, advanced with a i)owerful army and invested Itennes, at that time the residence of the duchess, who, assailed on all sides, and deserted by her adherents, was at last comi)elled to open the gates of the city, and to accept the French King as her husband. ^^ Consequences of the Rupture of the Marriage.— This unexpected success roused Maximilian to a par- oxysm of indignation, and his anger was embittered by the reflection that his own supine apathy, in neglecting' to render the tie indissoluble by the consummation of hit marriage, had exposed him to this sensible mortification. Not only had he lost a considerable territory, which he looked upon as his own, and an amiable princess, whom lie considered as his wife, but those injuries were yet further enhanced by the repudiation of his daughtei-, Margaret, who, after she had enjoyed for some tinTe the title of Queen of France, was sent back to liim in the face of Europe by her affianced husband. Incensed by these gi-oss outrages, he vented his rage in the most violent expressions, and he menaced Charles with the vengeance which the united arms of Austria, England, and Aragon were ready to inflict; but his threats' were not supported by any military power or financial resources He petitioned, indeed, the Diet for support; but thouc^h the qualities for which his name is idolised to this hour in Germany, rendered him the darling of his country, he found it impossible to obtain any solid assistance from'the 1273-1520.] GERMANY, FRANCE, AND ITALY. 101 i: .^, d tardy and irresolute proceedings of that body. He there- fore acce]:)ted the mediation of the Swiss, and a peace was concluded at Senlis, by which the French monarch con- sented to make restitution of Artois, Franche Compte, and Charolois, wliich had been ceded to France as the doMS-ry of his daughter. Imprisonment of Maximilian by the Flemings.— The jealousy of the Flemings, roused by the invidious prefer- ence which Maximilian exhibited on all occasions for his German followers, broke out in an insurrection at Bruges, where Maximilian was seized and detained in strict con- finement until the empire, under the command of Albert of Saxony, armed for the defence of its future sovereign. So great, however, was the imbecility of Maximilian and the independence of the Flemings, that although his liberation was ultimately effected, the rebels who had seized upon and imprisoned their sovereign were suflfered to escape with almost entire impunity : forty citizens of Bruges, who had most grievously insulted the royal person, being alone executed. On Maximilian's return to the Netherlands in 1493, Albert of Saxony led his two children to him at Maes- tricht, with these words, " God has granted me success, therefore I bring you these two children and an obedient land." Maximilian owed him a heavy debt of gratitude, for he had furnished the means for carrying on the war in the Netherlands from his private proi)erty, the mines in the Snow moiratains. Relations of Germany, France, and Italy.— France at this time cast her eyes upon Italy. Nepotism, the family interest of the popes, who bestowed enormous wealth, and even Italian principalities, on their nephews, relatives, and natural children, was the prevalent spirit of the court of Rome. The Pope's relations plundered the Papal treasury, which he filled with the plunder of the whole of Christendom, by raising the Church taxes, amplifying the ceremonies, and selling absolution. Alex- ander VI., who at that period occupied the pontifical throne, surpassed all his predecessors in wickedness. He 192 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD V. tiled of poisoix (1503), laden with crimes. The royal House of Aragon again sat on the throne of Naples. In Upper Italy, besides the ancient republics of Venice and Genoa, and the principalities of Milan and Fermra, Florence had become half a republic, half a principality, under the rule of the House of Medici. France, ever watchful, was not tardy in finding an opportunity for interference. In Milan, the young duke, Giovanni Galeazzo Sforza, had been murdered by his uncle Luigi, who seized the ducal throne. Ferdinand of Naples, Galeazzo's brother-in-law, declaring against the murderer, Luigi claimed the assistance of the French King, Charles VIII., who promised him his protection, and at the same time asserted his own claim to the Neapolitan throne as the descendant of the House of Aujou. In 1494, he unexpectedly entered Italy at the head of an immense army, partly composed of Swiss mercenaries, and took Naples. Milan, alarmed at the overwhelming strength of her importunate ally, now entered into a league with the Pope, the Emperor, Spain, and Naples, for the purpose of driving him out of Italy, and Alexander VI. astonished the world by leaguing with the arch-foe of Christendom, the Turkish Sultan, against the " most Christian " King of France. Charles yielded to the storm, and voluntarily returned to France (1495). Maximilian had been unable, from want of money, to go in person to Italy, and 3000 men were all he had been able to supply. He had, however, secured himself by a marriage with Bianca Maria, the sister of Galeazzo Sforza, and attempted, on the withdrawal of the French, to put forward his pretensions as Emperor. Pisa imploring his aid against Florence (1496), he under- took a campaign at the head of an inconsiderable force, in which he was unsuccessful, the Venetians refusing their promised aid. His marriage with Bianca, a woman of a haughty, cold disposition, unendowed with the mental and personal gi-aces of Mary of Burgundy, was far from happy. Relations of Germany and Spain.— A still closer THE AULIC COUNCIL. 193 1273-1520.] .s formed with Spain, where the whole power he was \\\ Finance, centered in the monarch. The last the rege^^ts ^i the ancient petty kings of this country, chann^^j^^l of Aragon, and Isabella of Castile, had married, ISO^by their united force, had expelled the Moors (1492), ^^^^ear also famous for the discovery of America, whose mines so greatly enriched Spain, by Columbus, the Genoese. The marriage of Philip, Maximilian's son (already related), with the Infanta Juanna, and that of his daughter Mar- garet, with the Infant Don Juan, Prince of the Asturias ^ (1496), brought this splendid monarchy into the House of Hapsburg, the Infimt Don Juan expiring shortly after- wards, and the whole of Spain falling to Philip in right of his wife. Maximilian founds the Aulic Council (1501).— The Diet of Worms aimed at establishing a perpetual public peace in Germany, by adopting vigorous measures for the suppression of private warfare, and by providing a paramount court of justice— the imperial chamber. But as the establishment of the imperial chamber was dis- agreeable to the Emperor, to rescue from its jurisdiction such causes as he considered lay more peculiarly within the range of his prerogative, and to encroach by degrees on the jurisdiction of this odious tribunal, Maximilian, in 1501, laid the foundation of the celebrated Aulic Council. But the time consumed in these deliberations rendered hopeless any result from the expedition of Maximilian into Italy. The storm had passed away, and the imbecile King of France had returned to the de- baucheries of his court in Paris; when at last, with a handful of troops not exceeding 4000 men, the Emperor made an appearance in Italy, at once unnecessary and unacceptable. No danger was apprehended from France, and the force which he brought with him was sufficiently » The title of I'rince of the Asturias was appropriated to the heir apparent of Castile, in professed imitation of that of Prmce of Wales, and was bestowed on the Infant Don Henry, after- wards Henry III., on the occasion of his marriage with the dauf'hter of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, in 1388. 192 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD V. died of poison (1503), laden witli crimes. The royal House of Anigon again sat on the throne of Naples. In Upper Italy, besides the ancient republics of Venice and Genoa, and the principalities of Milan and Ferrara, Florence had become half a republic, half a principality, under the rule of the House of Medici. France, ever watchful, was not tardy in finding an opportunity for interference. In Milan, the young duke, Giovanni Galeazzo Sforza, had been murdered by his uncle Luigi, who seized the ducal throne. Ferdinand of Naples, Galeazzo's brother-in-law, declaring against the murderer, Luigi claimed the assistance of the French King, Charles VIII., who promised him his protection, and at the same time asserted his own claim to the Neapolitan throne as the descendant of the House of Aujou. In 1494, he unexpectedly entered Italy at the head of an immense army, partly composed of Swiss mercenaries, and took Naples. Milan, alarmed at the overwhelming strength of her importunate ally, now entered into a league with the Pope, the Emperor, Spain, and Naples, for the purpose of driving him out of Italy, and Alexander VI. astonished the world by leaguing with the arch-foe of Christendom, the Turkish Sultan, against the " most Christian " King of France. Charles yielded to the storm, and voluntarily returned to France (1495). Maximilian had been unable, from want of money, to go in person to Italy, and 3000 men were all he had been able to supply. He had, however, secured himself by a marriage with Bianca Maria, the sister of Galeazzo Sforza, and attempted, on the withdrawal of the French, to put forward his pretensions as Emperor. Pisa imploring his aid against Florence (1496), he under- took a campaign at the head of an inconsiderable force, in which he was unsuccessful, the Venetians refusing tlieir promised aid. His marriage with Bianca, a woman of a haughty, cold disposition, unendowed with the mental and personal graces of Mary of Burgundy, was far from happy. Relations of Germany and Spain. — A still closer THE AULIC COUNCIL. 193 formed with Spain, where the whole power France, centered in the monarch. The last hts of the ancient petty kings of this country, fand of Aragon, and Isabella of Castile, had married, >y their united force, had expelled the Moors (1492), ^ear also famous for the discovery of America, whose mines so greatly enriched Spain, by Columbus, the Genoese. The marriage of Philip, Maximilian's son (already related), with the Infanta Juanna, and that of his daughter Mar- garet, with the Infant Don Juan, Prince of the Asturias * (1496), brought this splendid monarchy into the House of Hapsburg, the Infant Don Juan expiiing shortly after- wards, and the whole of Spain fiilling to Philip in right of his wife. Maximilian founds the Aulic Council (1501). — The Diet of Worms aimed at establishing a peri^etual public peace in Germany, by adopting vigorous measures for the suppression of i)rivate warfare, and by providing a paramount court of justice — the imperial chamber. But as the establishment of the imperial chamber was dis- agreeable to the Emperor, to rescue from its jurisdiction such causes as he considered lay more peculiarly within the range of his prerogative, and to encroach by degrees on the jurisdiction of this odious tribunal, Maximilian, in 1501, laid the foundation of the celebrated Aulic Council. But the time consumed in these deliberations rendered hopeless any result from the expedition of Maximilian into Italy. The storm had passed away, and the imbecile Kinij of France had returned to the dc- baucherics of his court in Paris; when at last, with a handful of troops not exceeding 4000 men, the Emperor made an appearance in Italy, at once unnecessary and unacceptable. No danger was apprehended from France, and the force which he Ijrought with him was sufficiently * The title of l^riiicc of the Asturias was appropriated to the heir apparent of Castile, in professed imitation of that of Prince of Wales, and was bestowed on the Infant Don Henry, after- wards Henry III., on the occasion of his marriage with the daughter of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, in 1388. 191 HISTORY OP GERMANY. large to excite the suspicions of the rulers ol Venice. With the combined object of avertiil prehended peril, and of rendering his name r3 Maximilian was induced, by these two powei-s, to a) the reduction of the insolent city of Florence. His^ errors, and the incompetency of his forces, the desertH of the Venetian troops, and the succours thrown in by the French, showed him the futility of his designs. He returned in the autumn. Defeat of the Imperial Army by the Swiss. — A de- vastating war ensued in Switzerland upon his return. The Swiss, courted by the princes of Europe, to whom their mercenary infantry were indispensable in the wars of the time, refused to accede to the demands of Maxi- milian, until relieved from the exactions of the Imperial Chamber. Long-sui)pressed jealousies at last broke out into active hostilities. The war was at first carried on by the troops of the Swabian League, of which the couniy of Tyrol was a member, but to the advantage of the Swiss, who were victorious in numerous and bloody actions. On the refusal of the German nobles to servo against the peasantry of Switzerland, Maximilian de- spatched the Count of Fui-stenberg with 1G,000 troops. These were defeated shortly after at Dornach, and a treaty was concluded, by which the independence of the Swiss was fully established (1499). The fruitless result of this expedition, which tarnished most injuriously the reputation of Maximilian, and his unsuccessful collision with the Swiss, in the intermediate years, were followed by a submission on his part to the establishment of a council of regency for the administra.- tion of the empire during the absence of its ordinary head, and during the intervals of the Diets. At Worms he had oj)posed this institution, as d(;rogatory to his im- perial rights. In the hope of finding this smaller body more easily manageable than the more numerous one of the Diet, he instructed the members to ]n*oceed, accord- ing to certain directions of his own, in the negotiations for peace with France, But ftiiling to persuade them, 1273-1520.] JUANNA OF CASTILE. 195 he was unable to carry them on through his son Philip, the regent of Spain, and a treaty concluded through this channel between him and Louis XII., in the close of 1501, relieved him from the pressure of hostilities with that prince. Maximilian ever intended well. He fervently desired to march against the Turks, to reannex Italy to the empire, to chastise the insolence of France — in a word, to act as became a great German Emi)eror; but he was a prisoner in the midst of the weapons of Germany, a beggar in the midst of her wealth; the vassals of the empire, sunk in shameless egotism, coldly refused to assist their sovereign, and rendered him the laughing- stock of Euroi)e. The fanciful plans of Maximilian for a crusade against the Turks were soon thrown aside for hostilities, which, arising in his immediate vicinity, were productive of some honour, and a considerable accession of territory : this was the petty war of succession in Bavaria, termi- nated by the decision of the Diet of Cologne in 1505. Disturbances had also arisen in the Netherlands, where the people favoured Charles of Gueldres to the prejudice of the Hapsburg. Maximilian's son, Philip the Iland- some^ at length concluded a truce with his opponent, and went into Si)ain to take possession of Castile, whose queen, Isabella, had just expired, in the name of her daughter, his wife, Juanna. Ferdinand of Aragon, his father-in-law, however, refused to yield the throne of Castile during his lifetime, and, in his old age, married a young Frenchwoman, in the hope of raising another heir to the throne of Aragon. Juanna of Castile and Philip the Handsome. — Juanna had been imprisoned during Philip's absence, by command of her cruel father, in Medina del Campo. Animated by a strong desire to rejoin her husband, whom she passion- ately loved, she placed herself under the gateway, whence she refused to move, notwithstanding the inclemency of the weather, and remained there night and day until she was liberated . She was reported to her husband as lOG HISTORY OF GERMANr. [period V. crazed, but his messenger disproved tlie fact, and lie re- joined her, but shortly afterwards, died, either of a sudden chill, or of poison, which Juanna was accused of havini^ administered; but a heavier suspicion falls upon Ferdinand. Juanna refused to quit the body of her husband, which she constantly held in her embrace, and watched over, taking it everywhere with her, so that, as had been once foretold to him, he wandered more about his Spanish kingdom after his death than during his lifetime. She was at length persuaded to permit his interment; but the body had scarcely been removed ere she imagined herself at Medina del Campo, her beloved Philip in tho Netherlands, and that she was not allowed to join him, and her attendants were compelled to beg of her to order the vault to be re-opened in order to convince herself of his death. She did so, but had the coffin once more placed at her side. She then consoled herself with a nurse's tale of a dead king, who, after a lapse of fourteen years, was restored to life, and with childish delight awaited the day. On finding her hopes disappointed she became incurably insane, and was put under restraint. She survived her husband fifty years. Philip left two sons, Charles and Ferdinand. His sister, IMargaret, became Regent of the Netherlands, whence Albert, the brave Duke of Saxony, had been ex]:>elled by Philip, and degi-aded to a mere stadtholder of Western-Friesland. Maximilian cedes Milan to France by the Treaty of Blois (1504).— Charles had been succeeded on tho throne of France by Louis XII., who renewed the pro- jects upon Italy, and maintained his claims upon Milan in right of his gi-andmother, a Visconti. Venice, ever at strife with that city, gladly favoured his pretensions; and Pope Alexander VI., in the hope of gaining by his means an Italian throne for his son, the notorious Ciesar Borgia, also sided with him. Louis invaded Italy (1500), and took possession of Milan. Maximilian beheld tho successes of the French monarch in Italy, and Ferdmand of Naples dragged in chains to France, with impotent i^age, and convoked one Diet after another without being 1273-1520.] DEATli OF MAXIMILIAN. i07 able to raise either money or troops. At length, m the hope of saving his honour, he invested France with the duchy of his brother-in-law, Sforza, and, by the treaty of Blois (1504), ceded Milan to France for the sum of 200,000 francs. The marriage of Charles, Maximilian's grandson, witli Claudia, the daughter of Louis, who it was stipulated should bring Milan in dowry to the House of Hapsburg, also formed one of the articles of this treaty; and in the event of any impediment to the marriage being raised by France, Milan was to be unconditionally restored to the House of Austria. The marriage of the Archduke Ferdinand with Anna, the youthful daughter of Wladis- law of Hungary and Bohemia, was more fortunate. Ferdinand of Spain, unable to tolerate the Hapsburg as his successor on the throne, entered into a leagiie with France, who instantly infringed the treaty of Blois, and Claudia was married to Francis of Anjou, the heir apixarent to the throne of France. Maximilian, enraged at Louis's perfidy, vainly called upon the imperial estates of Germany to revenge the insult; he was merely enabled to mise a small body of troops, with which he crossed the Alps to take possession of Milan, and of being finally crowned by the Pope. The Venetians, however, refused to grant him a free passage, defeated him at Catora, and compelled him to retrace his steps. At Trient, Lang, Archbishop of Salzburg, placed the crown on his brow in the name of the Pope (1508). Tlie confederation, overwhelmed with reproaches, and moved to shame by the earnest appeal of the Emperor to theii' honour as Germans, sent ambassadors to Constance, to lay excuses for their conduct before the Emperor; but the reconcilia- tion that ensued was speedily forgotten on the unexpected annunciation of the alliance of the Em peroi' with France. Decline and Death of Maximilian.— The Elector of Saxony and Maximilian were the two senior princes ot Germany; the latter was declining to the close of a lite which his own vague and indefinite views of policy, and wasteful habits with regard to money, had contributed to embitter and embroil. Since his treaty with the bwiss 108 msTOftV 01* GERiitAyY. [period v. in 1499, Maximilian had been deeply invoived in all the bloody and disgi\aceful politics of Italy. He had failed to rescue the duchy of Milan, a fief of the empire, from the gmsp of Louis XII.; his connection, Ludovico Sforza, had pined away his latter yeai-s in French dungeons, to which the perfidy of his Swiss mercenaries had consigned him; the ill-fated King of Naples taxed him with neglect- ing to supply the aid for which he had received a sum of money, and his succession to the League of Cambray, that enduring monument of the folly and wickedness of the sixteenth century, with his vacillating policy subse- quently, have almost counterbalanced, in the judgment of posterity, the innate good qualities of his character, and the undoubted improvements introduced by him into the machinery of the empire, and internal administration of his own dominions. His health was now declining, and he survived by only three months the Diet of Augs- burg in October L518, thus witnessing the first outbreak of that movement which was to form the centre of German affairs for a period of one hundred and thirty years. He died in peace, and with devotion, at Wels, on Januaiy 12, 1519. The Reformation (1517).— The date fixed by common consent as that of the commencement of the Reformation is the year 1517, during the course of which the con- spiracy of his cardinals against Leo X., and the termina- tion of the dilatory and irregular sittings of the Council of Lateran took place. The eyes of men had been gradually opened to the frauds and corruptions of the Romish Church, and the rapacity of the Court of Rome had alienated the minds of princes and people. The awakened love of knowledge led men to asi)ire after freedom of thought, and to feel heavy the yoke which the Church of Rome, though never less intolerant or arbitrary, imposed in all mattei-s relating to religious doctrine. Mental emancipation was panted after. A proper occasion and a bold leader were all that were wanting to excite the flames of spiiitual rebellion. The occasion was soon presented, and the loader appeared. 1273-1520.] MAtlTIN LUTHEtt. 199 Martin Luther was born at Eisleben on the 10th November 1483. His father, a miner, near that place, sent him, in his fourteenth year, to the High School at Magdeburg, where he was compelled to eke out his scanty means by begging and I allad -singing, practices then not uncommon. The usual studies of that age were ill adapted to satisfy his searching spirit. In 1505, he entered into the Augustine fraternity, much against the will of his father. A gloomy turn of mind, chequered with frequent fits of moody depression, led him, at the advice of his superior, Stauptz, to seek a remedy in the careful study of the Scriptures. Religious belief, in the sense of a true and undivided faith in the doctrines of Christianity, had no recognised existence at the period we have reached. But this absence of religious belief was combined with a most implicit trust in the directions and authority of the Church. The first book that Guttenberg published in H51 was the Holy Bible — in the Latin language, to be sure, and after the Vulgate edition, but still containing, to those who could gather it, the manna of the Word. Two years after that, in 1453, the capture of Constan- tinople by the Turks had scattered the learning of the Greeks among all the nations of the West. The univer- sities were soon supplied with professors, who displayed the hitherto unexplored treasures of the language of Pericles and Demosthenes. Everywhere a spirit of in- quiry began to reawaken, but limited as yet to subjects of philosophy and antiquity. Erasmus was alarmed at the state of feeling in 1516, and expressed his belief that, if those Grecian studies were pursued, the ancient deities would resume their sway. But the Bible was already reaping its ap]>ointed harvest. Its voice, lost in the din of speciilative philosophies and the dissipations of courts, was heard in obscure places, where it had never pene- trated before. In 1505, Luther was twenty-two years of age. He had made himself a scholar by attendance at schools where his poverty almost debarred him from ai)pearing. Afterwards he had gone to Erfurt, and, tired or afi-aid of the world, anxious for opportunities of self- 200 lilStORY OP GERMANY. [period V. examination, and dissatisfied with his spiritual state, ho entered the convent of the Aiigustines, as ah-eady related, and in two years more, in 1507, he became priest and monk. A journey to Rome, in 1510, on the business of his Order, brouglit under his view the depravity of tho Papal Court, over which at that time the military Julius II. presided, and we may enter into the suq)rise of Luther at seeing the Father of the Faifeliful breathing blood and ruin to his rival neighbours. But the force of early education was still unimpaired. The Pojie was Pope, and the devout German thought of him on his knees. But in the year 1517, a man of the name of Tetzel, a Domini- can of the rudest manners and most brazen audacity, appeared in the market-place of Wittenberg, ringing a bell, and hawking indulgences from the Holy See, to be sold to all the faithful. A new Pope was on the throne, the voluptuous Leo X. He had i*esolved to carry on the buildings of the great Church of St. Peter, and having exhausted his funds in riotous living, he sent round his emissaries to collect fresh treasures by the sale of jmrdonB for human sin. "Pour in your money," cried Tetzel, "and whatever crimes you have committed, or may commit, are forgiven ! Pour in your coin, and the souls of your friends and relations will fly out of purgatory tho moment they hear the chink of your dollars at the bottom of the box." Luther was then doctor of divinity, pro- fessor in the University, and pastoral visitor of two provinces of the empire. He felt it was his duty to interfere. He learned for the firet time himself how far indulgencies were supposed to go. He wrote and preached against them ; he was listened to with admimtion : opposi- tion excited him; he had, though not profoundly learned, a strong sense of truth, and a vigorous imagination; his eloquence was popular, his command of his native tongue great; his soul was full of love to his country and man- kind, and his courage in maintaining what he held to be true invincible. On the festival of All Saints in November 1517, Luther read a series of propositions against indulgences in the 1273-1520.] HENRY VIII. OF ENGLAND. 201 great church, and startled all Germany like a thunder- clap with a printed sermon on the same subject. Tho press began its work, and people no longer fought in darkness. Nationalities were at an end when so wide- embracing a subject was treated by so universal an agent. The monk's voice was heard in all lands, even in the walls of Rome, and crossed the sea, and came in due time to England. "Tush! tush! 'tis a quarrel of monks," said Leo X. ; and with an affectation of candour, he re- marked, " This Luther writes well; he is a man of fine genius." Henry VIIL of England— Pope Leo X., and Luther. — Gallant young Henry VIIL thought it a good oppor- tunity to show his talent, and meditated an assault on the heretic — a curious duel between a pale recluse and the gayest prince in Christendom. But the recluse was none the worse when the book was published, and the prince earned, from the gratitude of the Pope, the name of '* Defender of the Faith," which is still one of the titles of the English crown. Penniless Maximilian looked on well pleased, and wrote to a Saxon counsellor : " All the popes I have had anything to do with have been rogues and cheats. The game with the priests is begin- ning. What your monk is doing is not to be despised ; take care of him." Luther's own prince, the Elector of Saxony, was his Grm friend, and on one side or other all Europe was on the gaze. Leo at last perceived the danger, and summoned the monk to Pome. He might as well have yielded in the struggle at once, for from Pome he never could have returned alive. He consented, however, to appear before the Legate at Augsburg, at- tended by a strong body-guard furnished by the Elector, and held his ground against the threats and promises of * the Cardinal Cajetan. When Charles V. obtained the empire, he was again summoned and appeared before the Diet at Worms. He was dismissed; and, under the protection of the Elector of Saxony, he still con- tinued to 'propagate his opinions through tho north of Germany. ^^^ blSTORT OP CERMAin'. [pERIOD V. Commencement of Modern History.— The Middle Ages emUvith Maximilian, their last repmentative. A ne«r epoch is now reachcd-that of the three great Re- volutions marking the transition from the Middle Ages to Modern Times :-l. The extinction of feudalism: 2. The commencement of ocean navigation, and discovery of the New World; 3. The causes which led to the Re- formation of the Church. The effects of these mighty changes upon European civilization will be noticed in detail hereafter in the Chapter on Progress. *% 1273-1520.] tABLE OP COI^TEMPOnARY SOVEREIGNS. 203 Popes. Nicholas V. Calixtus III. Pius II. Paul II. Sixtus IV. Innocent VIII. Alexander VI. Pius III. Julius II. Leo X. 1 Germ A Frederick I Maximilian Ci 0< Ci 4*. 4* 4- 4^ 4»- 4- 4^ H-oooa;->4Ci<:;«:;t O W 10 W 1>S 4*. H- rf* CO wi 1 v^A? W ;^ ^Tj hq >> Krj K, o p-o p- C «> •-« "^ 'I "^ P p P p O o o ^^ ffu CL. £3- ;i- 3- •^ Hj P g P 5 r-J S O C 5° 5 OQ K^ s:* ^ Gj &" ^ 2s, 1-1 ^-1 •— < ^ ^^ rj >— ( h- ( HH • M Franc rles VII. is XI. rles VIi: is Xll. !-• ra S H ^ ^* W X (-- ^- >— 1 I-- H-l t— 1 k-J h^ Ofe ^ £: C< 4^ )^ 4- 4^ 4^ 4^ 4^ <^ S O O O O wi CO GO O ra 1j ^ H- OS 4i^ 4-' 05 OO CO t— ' ^ 2 >- o ^:^z^^ ffia^WKH] ^ >- P P P P h*H p^ ~~ V, 5< ^^ /r. rt) t^' &- P-* O BBBB § p g-l^i^l _ O t^ (I n o w 00 {» !» CO Q ^ HH l-H 1— 1 O ■ 4»- *^ w H- 00 C5 O 00 Oi GO C^ HH CC GO O . 1 «0 Ct CO CO •— ■ • John Henr Isabe Joani Alph John Ferd Maho Bajaz Sehm Spai: castil; II. ylV. 11a ua ARAGO; onso V II. inand TURKE met II etil 1. • to o • A V^ f< ' .'< & u-i »-< \ ^ \~t )-t ^4^ Ct 4^ 4i^ H -1 ci o -J 9« '^ QO 4- 4- 4*- 10 H-. O , ?^!> 1 ^t>t>o I—* ^ O U^ POLAN asimir IV. Ibert lexander igismund I CO s Sp o • ^ :tug oV eltl P J— « 1— 1 1— I 91^^ p CO GO ooo C5 H- t5 ct- Or H- ■ — 1^ V 1519-1G48.] ARRIVAL OF CHARLES V. 205 SIXTH PERIOD. FROM CHARLES V. TO THE PEACE OP WESTPHALIA. — (1519-1648). Charles V. (1519).— As Maximilian left no son, tlio partisans of the House of Austria cast their eyes on the eldest of his grandsons, Charles, King of Si)ain. But the youthful monarch had many op})onents. As King of Naples, which he inherited through Ferdinand of Aragon, he was too dangerous a neighbour to the Papal See for Leo X. to wish him success ; as King of Spain, Lord of the Netherlands, and Archduke of Austria, his power was justly dreaded by the states of the empire and by Europe. He had for his competitor Francis I. of France, who had distinguished himself by the conquest of the Milanese, and the adjustment of the contending interests of the Italian states. The German electors, afraid of the exorbitant power both of Charles and of Francis, would liave rejected both, and conferred the imperial crown on Frederick, Duke of Saxony; but this extraordinary man declined the proffered dignity, and his counsel determined the election in favour of Charles of Austria (1519). Hostilities between Charles V. and Francis I. of France. — Charles V. and Francis I. were now declared enemies, and their mutual claims on each other's dominions were the subject of poqjetual hostility. The Emperor claimed Artois as part of the Netherlands. Fmncis ]>re- pared to make good his right to the two Sicilies. Charles had to defend Milan, arid support his title to Navarre, which had been wrested from France by his grandfather, Ferdinand. Henry VIII. of England was courted by the ' rival monarclis, aa the weight of England was sufficient to turn the scale, where the power of each was nearly balanced. Leo X. would fain have interposed between the rivals, but they were both too great to be under his control. Charles in the views of universal empire which he early conceived, had, therefore, apparently only Irancis to impede him; but his own character and the strength ani ilsources of his kingdom gave t^J^ .lat^^r such ad^n- ta^es, that only ambition could have bhnded the Empeioi tothe plain fact that France was then, as ever, unconqtier- S.le But there was just at this period a >«oral power aifein-, more eflcctual to check the ambition of the Emper'or than even the chivaliy of France. The great reforn.ation of religion had now commenced State Of Germany on the Arrival of Charles V. ,1590) -A period of sixteen months intervened from theclection of Charles until his arrival, during which e re 'ency was administered by the Electors Pala- Se and of Saxony. Their influence was eminently Surable to the iilfaut Keformation. . At the ^d^ of this inten-al the new Emperor had arrived fiom Spain, and had been formally crowned at Aix-la.Chapelle (Oct '^3 1 520) Charles found Germany disturbed by l^utliei s hiipient 'scheme. The Emperor was ^ow twenty-one y arl old. His sceptre stretched over the ha f of Em^pe, and across the great sea to the golden ^^ v the f Uti; When Leo saw the safe accession of Charles V the taith ful sel•^•ant of St. Peter, he pushed mattei-s ^-^J 'i hghe; hand against the daring innovator. At a Diet held at Worms in Jan. 1521, Luther was summoned to appear and Charles gave him a safe-conduct for his securitj M^-th Sed a new gown from the not very lavish Etm' and went in a ^ort of chariot to the appointed eif serene and confident, trusting in the goodness of m cau e Such a scene never occurred in any age of t e world as was presented when the assembly met AH the Tei and '^ entates of the German Empire, presided over by the most powerful ruler that ever had been known in Europe, 4ex-e gathered to hear the tnul and i 206 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD VI. 1519-1G48.] THE CONSTABLE BOURBON. 207 condemnation of a thin, wan-visaged young man, dressed in a monk's gown and hood, and worn with the fatigues and hazards of his recent life. Luther refused to retract his opinions, and appealed to a geneml council. So the Chancellor of Treves came to him and said, "Martin, thou art disobedient to his Imperial Majesty, therefore depart hence under the safe- conduct he has given thee," and the monk departed. As he was nearing his destination, and was passing through a wood alone, some horsemen seized his person, dressed him in military garb, and put on him a false beard. They then mounted him on a led horse, and rode mpidly away. His friends were anxious about his fate, for a dreadful sentence had been uttered against him by the Emperor on the day when his safe-conduct expired, forbidding any one to sustain or shelter him, but ordering all persons to arrest and bring him into prison to await the judgment he deserved. People thought he had been waylaid and killed, or at all events sent into a dungeon. Meantime he was living peaceably and comfortably in the Castle of Wartburg, to which he had been conveyed in this mysterious manner by his friend the Elector, safe from the machinations of his enemies, and busily engaged in his immortal translation of the Holy Scriptures. League against Francis I. of France.— While Charles was absent from Spain, the towns of Castile broke out into open insurrection. Francis I. seized the opportunity of recovering from John d' Albert Navarre, which Ferdi- nand had unjustly seized. A French army conquered it; but venturing to advance into Spain, it was defeated, and Navarre recovered. Francis invaded the Low Countries without advantage. A league was now formed between the Pope, Henry VIII., and Charles, against the King of France. The Milanese, disgusted with the insolence and exactions of the French, resolved to expel them, and put themselves under Francis Sforza, brother to their late duke. The Pope hired Swiss, and formed an army under Prosper Colonna to assist them. The French were defeated; Lautrec, their commander, fled to Venice, and they lost everything but Cremona, the Castle of Milan, and a few other places. Joy at this success is said to have terminated the life of Leo X. On the death of Leo X., Charles placed his preceptor, Cardinal Adrian on the Papal throne, in 1521, though he was a native of Utrecht, and almost a stranger at Rome; and by the promise of elevating Wolsey, the minister of Henry VIII., to that dignity, on the death of Adrian, gained the alliance of the English monarch m his war against France. He also found means of detaching Venice and Genoa from the interests of his competitor. Defection of the Constable Bourbon — Francis I. made Prisoner by Bourbon.— At this critical time, when he had not only almost all Europe against him, but was in want of money, Francis imprudently quarrelled with his best general, the Constable of Bourbon; who, in re- venge, deserted to the Emperor, and was by him invested with the chief command of his armies. The imperial and Italian generals under him (for most of the princes of Italy were adverse to the government of France), were f\ir superior in abilities to their opponents. Their troops also were superior, more numerous, and better paid. The French were defeated at Biagrassa, and Charles was carry- ing everything before him in Italy, when Francis entered the Llilanese, and retook the capital ; some changes having taken place in his f\ivour, by the defection of the new Pope, Clement VII., from the party of Charles, as well as of John de' Medici, one of the best generals of those days. But, in the subsequent battle of Pavia, though Francis displayed the utmost valour, his troops were entirely defeated, and the French monarch became the Constable of Bourbon's prisoner (1525). It was upon this occasion that he wrote to his mother, " Madame, all is lost but my honour." The Emperor made no advantage of his good fortune, strangely neglecting all the opportunities which it offered. By the treaty of Madrid (March, 1526), Francis regained his liberty in the following year, on yielding to Charles the duchy of Burgundy, and the superiority of Flanders 208 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD VT. 1519-1C4S.] THE DIET OF AUGSBURG. 209 and Artois. He gave his two sons as hostages for the fiilfihnent of these conditions; but the States refused to ratify them, and the faihire was compromised for a sum of money. Rome Captured and Sacked by the Imperialists — Death of Bourbon. — The war was now renewed. The Pope and most of the Italian powers, exasperated by the tyranny of Charles, and tlie cruelty and excesses of the Spanish troops, took the part of Francis. Henry VIII. of England also espoused his cause. Bourbon com- manded the imperial forces in the Milanese, and finding his sokliers becoming mutinous for want of pay, he re- solved to march to Rome, and pacify their discontent by giving tliem the plunder of the Eternal City. At tho approach of the imjierial army, Clement shut himself up in the Castle of St. Angelo, leaving the citizens to make the best defence they could. The assault was given early in the morning of the Gth May 1527, and as Bourbon was in the act of placing a scaling ladder against the walls, he was killed by a random shot from the town, fired, it is said, by Michael Angelo. His soldiers, by whom he was much beloved, cruelly avenged him. Tho city was taken and given up to plunder. During nine months, Rome was subjected to tortures and outrages which even the Goths and Vandals had not inflicted upon her. It was the army of Charles V. which pro- faned thus the capital of Christianity, and which kept the Pope a captive in St. Angelo. The Emperor, it is ti-ue, in order to conceal the part he had taken in this great scandal, caused masses to be said for the deliver- ance of the Holy Father; but the robbers were only driven from their prey by a pestilence, and the approach of Lautrec, who, after reducing the Milanese, had advanced rapidly to the succour of the Pope. Of the numerous hosts which had marched to the sack of Rome, scarcely 500 survived to leave it, when it was evacuated about ten months after the capture. Francis accused Charles V. of these horrors, by which the latter profited whilst he repudiated them, fj Campaigns of Charles V. against the Turks.— After the conclusion of the peace of Cambi-ay (1529), which restored to the two sons of Francis their liberty, and to the King, their father, the duchy of Burgundy, Charles visited Italy, and received the imperial diadem from Pope Clement VII., disposing of the diflerent states of Lom- bardy to various princes for what money he could get. The Turks having invaded Hungary, the Emperor marched against them in person, assisted by his brother, Ferdinand, and compelled the Sultan Soliman, with an army of 300,000 men, to evacuate the country. He soon after embarked for Africa, to replace the dethroned Muley Hassan in the sovereignty of Tunis and Algiers, which had been usurped by Hayradin Barbarossa, and he achieved the enterprise with honour. His reputation at this period exceeded that of all the sovereigns of Europe, both for political ability, for real power, and the extent and opulence of his dominions; but he had a hard task upon his hands, having at one and the same time to guard against the Turks and the French, and the latter both on the noi-th and the south. The Lutheran Party styled Protestants.— In 1529, a diet assembled at Spires, where the princes of the empire decided by a majority of votes that Church afiairs should remain as they were until a general council could be held. The Lutheran princes immediately drew up and forwarded to the Emperor a 2>rotesty from which cii-cum- stance they and all the Lutheran party were thenceforth styled Protestants, The Diet of Augsburg (1530).— While Charles was engaged in the Italian wars, the opinions of the Re- formers had spread rapidly in Germany. While at enmity with the Pope, the Emperor was not very anxious to discourage them; but now apprehending danger from them to tho imperial authority, he resolved to take measures for their suppression. The Emperor quitted Bologna, in the close of March 1530, for Augsburg; at which the confession of faith of the Protestants was read and defended by Melaucthon and others. A decree was 210 HISIORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD VI. issued against them, and coercive measures resolved on. The Protestant princes met at Smalcalde, and entered into a league for mutual defence, and a secret alliance with the kings of France and England. The Turks were now menacing Hungary, and Charles saw that this was no time for violent measures. A treaty was theretore concluded, in which he granted the Protestants liberty of conscience till the meeting of a general council, and they engaged to assist him against the Turks. AUGSBURO. The Emperor's Brother, Ferdinand, Elected King of the Romans (1531).— The Elector of Saxony drew up a protest against the election of Ferdinand as King of the Eomans (to whom Charles had already ceded his Austrian possessions), which was presented by his son, John Frederick, to the Emperor at Cologne, whither he had proceeded after the breaking up of the Diet of Augs- burg; but it produced no effect. It had been at first contemplated to deprive the Elector of Saxony of his 1519-1648.] INVASION OF HUNGARY. 211 vote, as a heretic, under the bull of Leo X.; but the other electoi-s woukl not agree to a stroke which might next fall upon themselves. The five Eoman Catholic electors, the Palatine, Brandenburg, Mentz, Treves, and Cologne, had been early gained ov^r by gifts and promises ; and Ferdinand himself, as King of Bohemia, had a vote. He was elected, January 5, 1531, and two days after- wards crowned at Aix-la-Chapelle. In his capitulation he pledged himself to observe the recess of the Diet of Augsburg. From this time forwards, Charles left tho government of Germany mostly to his brother, requiring only to be consulted in things of the last importance. The latter, however, soon found that the new title did not give him more power than that iDOSsessed by any other prince of the empire. Invasion of Hungary by the Turks — The Ana- baptists. — Suliman entered Hungary at the head of 200,000 men. Charles took the command of 80,000 foot and 20,000 horse, besides a vast body of irregulars, near Vienna (1532). The Sultan retired; and Charles returned to Spain, and engaged in a successful expedition against Tunis. While he was absent the sect of the Ana- baptists seized on the city of Miinster, and defended it for some time courageously against the troops of the bishop; but the fanatic Bockold, who had assumed the title of King, and Kiiip2)erdoling were taken prisoners and executed ; their corpses being suspended in iron cages on one of the highest towers in the city (1535). While Charles was in Africa, Francis revived his claim on Italy. The King of England, engaged about his divorce from Catherine of Aragon, declined having to do with the affairs of the Continent; and the League of Smalcalde, indignant at the cruelties inflicted on some Protestants in Paris, refused to unite with Francis. The latter resolved, even without allies, to venture on war, iinder pretence of chastising the Duke of Milan for the murder of his ambassador. He approached Italy; but instead of entering the Milanese, he seized a great part of the dominions of the Duke of Savoy, who appealed ^Ll 212 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD VI. 1519-1648.] tllE COtNClL OF TilEKT, 213 in vain to Charles, whose exchequer was now completely empty. Meantime, Sforza died without issue, and the rights, which had only been surrendered to him and his heirs, returned to Francis. Instead, however, of entering at once on the duchy, he wasted his time in negotiation, while Charles took possession of it as a vacant lief of the empire, though still pretending to own the equity of the claims of the French monarch. The Emperor having now procured sufficient supplies of money, resolved on attempting the conquest of France. Having driven the French out of Savoy, he invaded the southern provinces at the head of 50,000 men. Two other armies were ordered to enter Picardy and Cham- pagne. The system adopted by Francis was defensive. From the Alps and Dauphiny to Mai-seilles and the sea the country was laid waste ; strong garrisons placed in Aries and Marseilles ; one French army strongly encamped near Avignon, another at Valence. After fruitlessly in- vesting Aries and Marseilles, and spending two months in Prcn-ence, Charles retreated with the loss of one-half of his troops by disease and famine. An attempt by Francis on the Low Countries, was followed by a truce at Nice, under the mediation of Pope Paul III. (1538). Charles's Disastrous Expedition against Algiers /1541). The Emperor suppressed an insurrection which had broken out in the city of Ghent; but he w:is forced to make concessions to the Protestants in Germany, to gain their assistance against Suliman, who had seized a part of Hungary. But the favourite object of Charles was the conquest of Algiers; and in the end of autunin he, contrary to the advice of Doria, his admiral, landed in Africa with a large army; but tempests scattered his fleet and destroyed his soldiers, and he was forced to re-em]>ark, with the loss of the gi-eater part of his men. In 1542, the war between the rival monarchs broke out anew. The Emperor was supported by the King of England and the Protestant princes, to whom he had made further concessions. Francis was allied v. ith the Kings of Denmark and Sweden, and he renewed the treaty he had formerly made with Suliman. During two years France, Spain, Italy, and the Low Countries were the scenes of war; but the only battle of consequence was that of Cerisolcs, gained by the French, in which 10,000 Imperialists fell. A peace was concluded at Crespi. The chief articles were, that the Emperor should give one of his own or his brother Ferdinand's daughters to the Duke of Orleans, second son of Francis, and with her the duchy of Milan, and renounce all claim to Burgundy; Francis doing the same to Naples, Artois, and Flanders; and that they should unite against the Turks (1544). The Council of Trent. — Charles and the Pope being now both intent on putting down the German Protestants, the Council of Trent was at length opened for the de- spatch of business (December 13, 1545). A general council had always been regarded as affording the last chance of restoring the unity of the Church, and when its authority was rejected by the Protestants, no alterna- tive seemed left but an ap})eal to arms. That extremity, which might have crushed Protestantism when in its infancy, had been hitherto avoided. Luther did not live to behold these scenes of violence. At the very time when his doctrines were imder examination at Trent, tho champion of Protestantism, whose strong head and fear- less heart had thus engaged in angry and anxious discus- sion, as over their dearest interests both in this world and the next, the highest, the most powerful, and the most learned men in Europe, was quietly expiring in the obscure little town that gave him birth. He had gone to Eisleben to reconcile a quarrel that had arisen between the Counts Mansfeld; and, while engaged in this mission of peace, was attacked with inflammation, which termi- nated his life, February 18, 1546, at the age of sixty- three. The Elector of Saxony caused his funeral to be celebrated with great pomp. A few months later, when, after the route of the Protestant army at the battle of ^[uhlbcrg, Charles entered Wittemberg in triumi)h, where Luther*s ashes repose, Aloa advised him to dis- inter and burn the body of the arch-heretic. " Let him / 21^ HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD VI. rest," was the magnanimous reply; "he lias ai^peaved before his judge ere now— I wai?e war with the livin*^. not the dead." ° fj^^"^.^^^.: .s VVITTEMliEKU. The Religious War— Struggle for Supremacy be- tween France and the House of Austria.— The pro- gress of the Reformation had hitherto been peaceful ; we now enter upon an epoch when its path was marked by blood — a catastrophe foreseen and dreaded by Luther, Init which he was spared from witnessing. For a period of nearly a century, our attention will be chiefly arrested by religious wars, which, however, are often combined with a gi^eat political movement that had already been initiated— the struggle for supremacy between France and the House of Austria. One of the terms of the i>cace of Crespi was that both sovereigns engaged themselves to destroy Protestantism in their respective dominions. In France they began to fulfil this engagement by massacring the Protestjiiits tn the towns of Cabrieres and Merindol; in Germany Charles 1510-1G4S.] THE I'REATY OF PASSAU, 215 proceeded by less sanguinary and more formal means. The Diet of Wonns, in 1545, passed several resolutions against the Protestants, in consequence of which they rose in arms in 1546, under Frederick, Elector of Saxony, and Philip, Landgrave of Hesse. Charles defeated them, and took tlie two princes prisoners. He gave the elec- torate of Saxony to Maurice, a kinsman of Frederick. Maurice acted with consummate skill, so as to deceive Charles himself, during several years, as to his real inten- tions. He appeared to side with the Emperor, fought bravely for him, but at the same time took care that the cause of the Protestants should not be rendered totally desperate; he urged Charles to liberate the Landgrave of Hesse, who was his father-in-law, and, on Charles's re- peated refusals, he entered into secret correspondence with tlie other Protestant princes to be ready to rise at a given signal. At last, in 1552, Maurice threw off the mask, by taking the field at the head of the Protestant confederacy, and was very near surprising the Emperor at Innspruck. The Treaty of Passau— Its effect upon Protestantism. — Maurice was detained, after a successful assault upon the imperial camp at Pteuti, by a mutiny in one of his regiments. A day was losb by this disturbance, which enabled Charles to make his escape by fleeing to the Alps in a litter, in the midst of a dark rainy night. He now illustrated, in his own fortunes, the truth of the words with which he had taunted John Frederick ;in 1547. The Emperor, so lately more absolute than any since the Swabian line, was compelled to fly night and day, in his weak and ailing condition, across the rugged mountain roads which lead from Innspruck to Villach. ^ He was menaced with captivity, in retribution for that in which he had so long detained the two unfortunate princes; he was stung with the successful treachery of his favourite; and, in the decline of life, he was condennied to see the hopes of a re-union in the Church rudely dashed to the ground. The Council of Trent broke up, and did not re- assemble. A conference was held at Passau : the terms proposed in the name of the prmccs of the empire were ^^^ History op Germany. [period ti. rejected by the Emperor. Maurice laid siege to Frank- tort, and tlie haughty spirit of Charles was forced to bend. Ihe treaty of Passau overthrew the fabric he had so lon^^ been raising, and placed the Protestant religion of Gei^- many on a secure basis. Such is the sum of the treaty of Passau, the second decided advance made by the tenets of the Eeformation, It the provisional truce of Nuremburg may be considered as the first. Philip of Hesse was liberated from his con- linement at Louvain. He was received at tlie frontiers ot Hesse by his sons and councillors. Sorrows had broken down h];s health and whitened his liair, although he was still m middle age. It must have been a touching si^'ht to have witnessed his progress through liis dominions, amid the acclamations of his subjects, who had experienced, even from his prison-house, the wise rule of their sove- reign; and to have seen him kneeling in the church of Cassel by the tomb of his f^iithful consort. Death of Maurice of Saxony (1553).— And Maurice soon passed away from the scene. Charles, after the pacification, had commenced a devastating war in Lor- raine; but after in vain attempting to reduce Metz, which was defended by the Duke of Lorraine with the greatest gallantry, he was compelled, in January 1552, to abandon the campaign, which had been one of unparalleled suflb- mg and horror. Hostilities, however, were i)rolon-cd m the Netherlands with every atrocity, until the truco of Vaucelles in 1556. But the bloodthirsty Albert of l^randenburg, unable to live in an atmosphere of com- parative purity, after the siege of Metz had been raised, commenced a series of atrocities in Franconia, which evoked the allied hostility of Maurice and Ferdinand. Uiey met at Sievershauson, on the Weser, on July 1), 105 J. Albert was defeated, bub Maurice died of hia wounds two days afterwards. Thus perished Maurice of Saxony, a traitor, in tlie worlds opinion, to his kinsman, his country, and his sovereign; yet by his instrumentality did Providence comx^lete the first stage of the holy work of the Eeformu. 1519-lGlS.] CHARLES V. ABDICATES. 217 1 tion. Albert, the antagonist of Maurice, after a defeat by Henry, Duke of Brunswick, died in 1557. Thus we have seen the Reformation in its birth brinir- ing together the princes and cities of the empire as friends or foes, and recognised at last by a formal Act. But this is but the history of its childhood; we have yet to con- sider its progress and difficulties from the peace of Ausjs- burg (called the " Peace of Beligion,'* for it was the foundation of religious freedom in Germany), until its triumph in 1648. And this stage will divide itself into two parts; the first containing the silent seeds of change and quarrel, until the reign of Rodolph IL; the second, the fiery maturity of these evil seeds, fomented by the contest of the rival principles embodied in Spain and her minion Austria, and in France and her subsidiary, Sweden. The Marriage of Philip of Spain and Mary of England. — In 1554, Philip, Charles's son, married Mary Tudor, Queen of England, upon which occasion his father made over to him the crowns of Naples. In 1555, Joanna of Spain died, having been insane for nearly fifty years. Charles V. Abdicates (1555)— His Death (1558).-^ Charles being now nominally, as well as in reality, solo King of the Spanish monarchy, put in efiect a resolution which he had formed for some years before. A month subsequently to the conclusion of the Religious Peace of Augsburg, Charles V., in an assembly of the estates at Brussels, on the 25th of October 1555, appeared seated between his son, Philij), and his two sisters, the widowed fiueens of Bohemia and of France, and solemnly resigned to his son his paternal dominions of Burgundy, Brabant, and the Netherlands, releasing his subjects in those countries from their allegiance to himself, and commend- in cj to them the service of his successor. After this solemn transfer, the sovereign of so many and fair posses- sions rose, and leaning on the Prince of Orange for sup- l)ort, as he was suffering severely from the gout, addressed the audience to the following effect : " Ever since the age of seventeen," he said, " he had devoted all his thoughts and exertions to i)iiblic objects, seldom reserving any :5c 215 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD VI. 1519-1648.] FERDIKAXD I. OF AUSTRIA. 219 portion of his time for the indulgence of ease or pleasure. Nine times have I visited Germany, Spain, six times, Italy, seven times, Flanders, ten times: twice have I been in England, and also in Africa. I have crossed the North Sea four times, and made eight voyages to tho Mediterranean. Wars I have undertaken from compul- sion rather than choice: but no hardship, no exertion which I have undercjone has caused pangs equal to those CHARLES v. (From the original hy Holheln). which I now feel in bidding you f\irewell; but my f^iiling strength tells me that there is no choice. I am not so fond of reigning as to wish to retain the sceptre with a powerless hand!" He added that '' if, in the course of a long administration, he had committed errors — as what young man has not? — from want of experience, and from tho common weakness of humanity, I solemnly declare that I have never, knowingly or purposely, injured or connived at the injury of any person. If there be, indeed, any who can bring against me just ground for complaint, I entreat him to pardon my errors and injustice." Then turning to Philip, he gave him some salutary advice, especially to respect the laws and the liberties of his sub- jects; after which, exhausted with fatigue and emotion, he closed this impressive scene. Two weeks after he made over to Philip, with the same solemnity, and before a large assembly of Spanish grandees and German princes, the crowns of Spain and the Indies. In the following year (August 1556), he likewise resigned the imperial crown to his brother, Ferdinand, who had already been elected King of the Romans and his successor; and after visiting his native place, Ghent, he embarked for S})uin with a small retinue. On landing at Laredo, in Biscay, he kissed the ground, saying, " Naked I came out of my mother's womb, and naked I return to thee, thou common mother ot mankind." In February 1557, accompanied by one gentleman attendant and twelve domestics, ha retired to the monastery of St. Yuste. of the Hieronymite order, situated near Plasencia, in Estremadura, in a sequestered valley at the foot of the Sierra de Gredos, where he caused apartments to be prepared for him. There ho lived for about eighteen months, employed either in his garden, or in contriving works of ingenious mechanism, and occasionally diverting himself with literature. In the last six months of his existence, his body becoming more and more enfeebled by repeated fits of the gout, his mind lost its energy, and he fell into gloomy reveries, and tJie practice of ascetic austerities. Among other things he had his own funeral obsequies pei-formed in the chapel of the monastery (August 30, 1558). The fatigue and excitement of this ceremony, in which he took part, brought on a fit of fever, which in about three weeks carried him off; he died on the 21st of September 1558, in his fifty-ninth year. Terdinand I. of Austria, younger brother of Charles v., was born in 1503. Elected King of the Eomans 220 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD VI. daring liis brother s reign, lie succeeded him as Emperor in consequence of the abdication of Charles, which was sanctioned by the Diet of the empire in 1558. It was indeed singular that a prince, the cii'cum stances of whose position, in the neighbourhood of his melancholy mother, and of his grandfather exclusively occupied with worldly schemes, seemed to i)romise but inauspiciously for his welfare, should, in his more advanced years, have dis- played so rare a combination of sagacity and activity; that educated and long resident in Spain, he should be able to adopt the habits and feelings of his future empire. The change in the behaviour of Ferdinand may, in a great measure, be attributed to his keen-sighted ambition. The earlier years of his residence, as the vicegerent of his brother, in Austria, were neither productive of popularity to himself, nor passed in harmony with Charles. The inhabitants munnured at his severity and exactions, and Ferdinand himself was anxious to exchange his uncom- fortable position in Austria for the sovereignty of the recent conquest of Milan, which Charles was disinclined to grant. After his elevation to the title of King of the llomans, these jealousies and heartburnings gave place to vigorous and cordial co-operation with his brother in atfairs of state. No ditlerences, no separate views of policy disturbed their harmony; tlie reserved and stately bearing, the unbending coldness and severity of the elder brother, the cheerfulness, condescension, and leniency of theyounger being but the expression of their individual temperaments. Ferdinand had married, in 1521, Anna, daughter of Ladislaus VI., King of Bohemia and Hungary, and sister of Louis, who having succeeded his father in the crown of those realms, was killed in the disastrous battle of ]\[ohacz, by the Turks, in 152G, and left no issue. Fer- dinand, claiming a right to the succession in the name of his wife, the states of Bohemia acknowledged him; but in Hungary a strong party declared for John of Zapoli, Palatine of Transylvania. This was the beginning of a long and desolating war, interrupted by occasional truces, in which Suliman, Sultan of the Turks, interfered on be- 1519-1G48.] RELIGIOUS DISSENSIONS. 221 half of John, and after John's death, in 1540, on behalf of liis son, Sigismund. In Bohemia the religious disputes between the Callixtines, who were a remnant of the Hussites, and the Boman Catholics, occasioned consider- able vmeasiness to Ferdinand, who found at last that it was his policy to tolerate the former. At the same time, however, he effected a thorough change in the institutions of that kingdom, by declaring the crown of Bohemia here- ditaiy in his family, without the sanction of the States. This gave rise to a confederacy which opposed Ferdinand by force of arms, but was overpowered and dissolved. On being i)roclaimed Emperor of Germany, after having signed certain conditions with the elector, which defined the boundaries of the imperial authority, and gave security to the Protestant religion, Ferdinand notified Ids election to Pope Paul IV., expressing a desire to be crowned by his hands. Paul refused, under the plea that the abdica- tion of Charles V. w\as effected without the consent of the Papal See, and required a fresh election to be made. Ferdinand, indignant at these pretensions, ordered his ambassador to quit Rome. Paul, however, dying soon after, his successor, Pius IV., showed himself more tract- able in acknowledging Ferdinand as head of the empire. It was then resolved by the electors, Boman Catholic as well as Protestant, that in future no Emperor should receive the crown from the hands of the Pope, and that instead of the customary form in which the Emperor-elect professed his obedience to the head of the Church, a mere complimentary epistle should be substituted. Thus ended the last remains of that temporal dependence of the German Empire on the See of Bome, which had been the subject of so many controversies and wars. Religious Dissensions. — Ferdinand continued through- out his reign to hold the balance even between the Pro- testants and Boman Catholics with regard to their mutual toleration and outward harmony ; he even endeavoured, though unsuccessfully, to effect a union of the two com- munions, by trying to persuade the Protestants to send deputies to^ and acknowledge the authority of the Council 222 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD VI. 1519-1648.] MAXIMILIAN II. 223 assembled at Trent. This, however, they refused to do, unless their theologians were acknowledged as equal in dignity to the Roman Catholic bishops, and unless the Council were transferred from Trent to some city of the empire. The Lutheran church had delivered itself from the yoke of Home, and the Lutheran princes made them- sel ves almost entirely independent of the Emperor. Could they have agreed among themselves, they might have spread the blessings both of civil freedom and sound religious knowledge, as far as the German tongue was spoken. But the Protestants, instead of making common cause against the arrogance of Rome, were disputing with each other about the various tenets of Luther, Zwinirli. and Calvin. In Prussia, society was shaken to its founda- tion by the contentions of the rival sects, headed by Osiander and Morlin. The Council of Trent, abandoning all hopes of an accommodation, now applied itself solely to such measures as were likely to be available to retain- ing in the Church those who still belonged to the com- munion. Some abuses, such as the immorality of the clergy and the sale of indulgences, were in a gi*eat measure removed. But the supremacy of the Papal See \vas asserted more vehemently than before, and any de- parture from the tenets now promulgated as the decision of the Church was forbidden on pain of excommunication. Since that time there has never been a reasonable hope of reconciliation between the Church of Rome and the Protestants. Ferdinand, in order to conciliate some at least of the dissenting sects in his own hereditary states, attempted to obtain of the Pope, among other concessions, the use of the cup at the communion table for the laity, and the liberty of marriage for the priests. Pius IV., however, would not listen to the latter proposition, and the negotiations were still pending with regard to the former, when the Emperor died at Vienna, in July 1564. He left three sons: 1, Maximilian, who succeeded him as Emperor, Archduke of Austria, and King of Bohemia and Hungary; 2, Ferdinand, whom he made Count of Tyrol; 3, Charles, whom he appointed Duke of Styria, Carinthia, and Carniola. Upon the whole the admini- stmtion of Ferdinand was able and enlightened; he main- tained religious peace in Germany, he effected some useful reforms, and he saw the closing of the Council of Trent. From this time the House of Austria was divided into two great branches, the successors of Charles V., or the Spanish branch, and those of Ferdinand, or the German branch. Maximilian H. — Towards the close of his life, Fer- dinand began to be anxious for the settlement of the succession. This wish had led to the elevation of his son Maximilian to the dignity of King of the Romans (1562) during the first year of the proceedings at Trent. Few princes have been personally characterised in terms of approbation so unqualified as'^those applied to Maximilian which do not, after a close and severe scrutiny, appear to have been exaggerated. His ])ersonal appearance bore the stamp of talent and honesty, his address was frank, his manners, in the opinion of many, erred on the side of indiscreet and undistinguishing familiarity, and his accomplishments were varied and considerable; for he was well read in history, a practical chemist, and pas- sionately fond of music, a science which he thoroughly understood. His acquaintance with the languages of Europe was extraordinary in every way. For a period of three years he had governed Spain to the satisfaction of his uncle Charles, by whose daughter, Mary, he had sixteen children. But neither did his affection and ad- miration for his noble uncle, nor his residence in Spain, nor the strong attachment of his consort to the religion and habits of that country (to which, after her widow- hood, she retired), exercise any prejudicial influence upon Maximilian's warm and kindly temperament. In his policy as regarded the empire, it was his constant aim to preserve the religious peace, which was never more threatened than during his reign. Because he had so much attachment to the Lutheran doctrines as to receive the communion under both kinds, and detested persecution, though he remained in the bosom of the 224 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD \I. 1519-1C48.] SIGISMUND AND THE TURKS. 225 Catliolic ChurcL, he had great influence with botli parties. Listening with patience to the comi)laints of both, and being able to show both that they were wrong— the Roman Catholics in seeking to pei-secute the Lutherans of their states, the Lutherans in clamour- ing for the abolition of the ecclesiastical reservtition— he persuaded them, for the common good, to refrain from open hostility. He even protected the Calvinists, who w^ere hated by the Lutherans even more than by the Roman Catholics, so far as to prevail on his own brethren not to join in the persecution. Maximilian's policy towards the Elector Palatine, Fredeiick IIL— Frederick III., Elector Palatine, had quitted Lutheranism for Calvinism; and so, by the com- pact concluded between the Catholics and the followei^ of Luther, had forfeited all claim to toleration. Both called for his deposition; but he was a powerful prince; he had all his co-religionists throughout Europe at his disposal; and his valour Avas celebrated. Knowing that a civil war might even wrap Europe in flames, Maximilian, by detaching the Catholics from the confederacy, left tlie odium of the persecution to the Lutherans alone; and they, fearful alike of the imputation and of the con- sequences of weakening the Protestant cause, reluctantly consented to remain at peace. Had his representations, indeed, to the Papal See obtained the attention which they deserved, he would have effected more in this re- spect than any of his predecessors. By several popes, the use of the cup had been granted to the Bohemians, the Austrians, and such of the Germans as insisted on it. He besought the Pope to proceed a step further— to con- cede the power of marrying to the clergy — and asserted that, by this judicious concession, the Catholic Church would be more benefitted, and the Lutheran more injured, than by all other measures. This, he contended, was a mere matter of discipline which did not in the slightest degree affect the tenets of the church. But Paul V. was inexorable. He had no wish to call another Gmnd Council so soon after that of Trent hod recorded ita ^lll solemn approbation of clerical continoncy. He would not hear of any attempt to unite the two parties; all that re- mained, he observed, for the Protestants, was uncondi- tional submission to the decrees of the late council. He severely condemned every effort to conciliate them ; and threatened the Emperor with deposition if he ventiu-ed, like Charles V., to sit in judgment on matters of faith or discipline. Maximilian was even required to revoke the toleration which he had granted to his subjects of Bohemia and Austria; but he evaded compliance, and by so doing secured himself a tranquil and happy reign. Once, indeed, the public peace was in danger of being disturbed, but not by religious feuds. William de Grum- bach, one of the free nobles of Franconia, procured the assassination of Melchior, bishop of Wurtzburg; besieged the city; forced the cliaj)ter to capitulate; and, to escape punishment, prevailed on John Frederick, duke of Gotha, to give him an asj'lum. Grumbach, the duke, and all their adlierents, who were preparing to sustain their rebellion, were placed under the ban of the empire : the execution of the decree was entrusted to the Elector of Saxony: Gotha was taken; the dethroned prince confined for life to an Austrian prison; and Grumbach, with the more active accomplices, was put to death. The celerity with which this private war was quelled, was owing to the efficiency and prompt resolution of the Diet of Dejiu- tation — an institution owing to the able and j)atriotic father of Maximilian. John Sigismund and the Turks.— The public tran- quillity was disturbed in Hungary only. John Sigismimd still contended for the crown; and, aided by his constant allies the Turks, whom he thus criminally introduced into the kingdom, he was enabled to maintain his ground. When Maximilian ascended the throne, the aspect of affaire in the East was lowering. Suliman was arming with the resolution of subjugating the whole country to the very gates of Vienna. But his mighty jireparations ended in nothing: before a little fortress he lost 20,000 men; and anxiety, fatigue, no less than the j^estilential 2-^ HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD VI. marshes, soon brought liim to the grave. Selini, who succeeded, being anxious to turn the Mohammedan arms against Cyprus, concluded a truce with the Emperor; though John Sigismund refused to be comprehended in' It, the successes of Maximilian soon compelled him to sue for peace. He retained the princii)ality of Transyl- vania, but renounced the regal title to Hungary. Maximilian's waning Influence and Death.— The bestowal of his daughters, Anne and Elizabeth, in mar- riage, upon Philip II. of Spain and Charles IX. of France, during 1570, hardly tended to increase Maxi- milians waning influence in those Catholic countries, ihe ensuing years passed in war and bloodshed therein called forth fruitless exjn'essions of soitow from the Em- peror. He lamented that his son-in-law, the Kin*^ of France, should have been so far misguided as to sanction the massacre of St. Bartholomew; and he mourned over the desolation and ruin caused in the Netherlands by the bigoted counsellors of Philip II. His attempts at media- tion at the Congress of Breda, in March 1575, were unavailing. Nor was Maximilian more successful at home. Years of peace and tranquillity, during which the religious divisions could have been most effectually healed, passed away, and the remainder of his reign was spent in fruitless and irritating discussions. Through the un- christian divisions of the Protestants, no positive con- cessions were made, and the i)oints in dispute were left to a future amicable adjustment. Amid this mockery died Maximilian (Oct. 12, 1570) The future justified the boding predictions of bloodshed and tyranny which accompanied the decease of this, the noblest among the rulei-s whom the House of Hapsburc/ had supplied to the imperial throne. Maximilian was a great prince, a Christian philosopher, scholar, and patriot. He had the rare good fortune of being praised by Catholic and Protestant, by Austrian and Bohemian, by German and Hungarian. That such a prince should have little ^culty in procuring the election of his son Rodolf as King of the Romans^ was to be expected; 1519-1648.] TABLE OF CONTEMPORARY SOVEREIGNS. 227 Ki , 1 i S!?'^^ ^^»^ tr-t-QS. smund ulislaus nIL lolf II. bthias dinand diuand !-('-' 5^ t— ( 1— 1 > P HH 1— 1 1— (• • tz5 t— 1 I-- h- ' 1— 1 h^ Oi 05 c; C5 Oi 4*^ W W »-^ •— ' QO to •^ COtD John IV {House c begins o R3 Philip I Philip I Ul H n o > <.- M r- a I ^ ^-' a i:! lO 9 \ »— '^ tJ *-i^ O ^ t> ^ ^ cf M* QD t-^ tr "^ Sj* P CO S3 c» H tr" 2 2 » Ci^ d B omet met I. tapha an II. tapha him omet to ta '~t H yiv. i XIII. XIV. > PI o • '< 1 i—i 1-^ c^ c: Ci Ci c: Ci O C5 »4- re iC/ — ►- O 4^ H^ 1 00 W M QO->J M WO HjO Elizab< {Englis croiv James Charle; hristi reder o n an IV. ick II] > o f > • • ^5? p 1 s C5 S. Ci 4^ t>3 <-i O 00 Ot 5s- CO COO P ;;f ht p o H- H< w p B C-^ S O 2 rles IX. tavus Ad. istina o soTQ H- . a o lentVIIL XL V. ory XV. m VIII. cent X. 1 1-^ 1-^ 1 h-rf 1—1 |_i H.d h_i C5 C5 1 C5 O Ci C: 35 Z/i *-• 4- »C* ICi O O trobably be by the Spanish branch of the Austrian house, they placed a foreigner, Henry IV. of France, at the head of their confederation, and instigated their brethren in Austria and the Low Countries to rise against their re- spective governments. On the other hand, Rodolf per- sevei'ed in his impolitic course of exasperating, instead of conciliating, the dissidents. Civil Dissensions Ruin the Trade of Germany (1582). — Such was the lamentable aspect of affairs purely reli- gious : the civil was scarcely more promising. Germany, almost isolated at this period from the rest of Europe, was the scene of few political events of any importance. A diet had been held in Augsburg in 1582, for the purpose of deciding on the policy proper to be jnirsued with regard to the frontiers on tlie side of Holland, now violated by the levies and incursions of the factions con- tending in that quarter. Time was wasted in discussions, irreconcilable demands were put foward in turn by either party, nor were they convinced of the folly of their con- duct, until the arrival of intelligence of the blockade of the Rhine by the Hollanders, a measure which completed the ruin of the declining trade of Germany. Eccentricities and Misgovernment of Rodolf. — It is no ungrounded fancy which would assign an hereditary unsoundness of intellect to many members of the House of Hapsburg. Of such a malady there is sufficient proof in the life of an unfortunate Joanna, the mother of Charles v., and the history of the later kings of the line in Spain is a melancholy corroboration of the truth of this assertion. Many of the evils of Germany at the time may be traced to the wretched government of Rodolf. He lived shut up in his palace of Prague, surrounded by toys and gew- gaws, alembics and crucibles. On these vanities, and the greedy professors of mystic arts, he wasted money, and health, and time. To gain access to the Emperor was a task of great difficulty. It is even said that foreign ambassadors were obliged to assume the dress of grooms that they might meet him in liis visits to his stud of Spanish and Arabian horses, in which he took great delight. But even here, either his morbid fears of assas- sination, or dislike to appearing in public, inteifered to prevent him from employing in the chase or parade his expensive acquisitions. These pi^oceedings did not pass unheeded by his brother, the Archduke Matthias, a man of restless ambition, and lax principles of honour and faith. The reign of Rodolf was now rapidly drawing to its close. Stung by the sense of his own powerless and degraded condition, he attempted to secure the assistance of the Protestants of Austria, dissatisfied as were these last with the treachery of Matthias, and to draw a force together for the purpose of settling upon his brother, Leopold, who had remained faithful to him in all his distresses, the succession of his hereditary kingdoms. But this attempt on the part of Rodolf only ended in arousing the suspicions and fears of the Bohemians, and in drawing upon himself the forces of Matthias. The unfortunate prince was com- pelled, during May 1611, to abdicate Bohemia, Silesia, and Lusatia; and Matthias was crowned at Olmutz with gi-eat splendour, in the ensuing September. Consistent in treachery, he sullied the moment of his triumph by a fruitless attmnpt at fraud; and the closing years of his own short and dishonourable reign were justly darkened -^^ HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD VI. by the insult, violence, and oj^position of an ungrateful kinsman. The decease of Eodolf took i)lace on January 13, 1G12. ^ ^ Matthias (1G12-1619).— The annals of the few years, during which the imperial crown was worn by Matthias, are full of divisions and abuses, and teem with the most extravagant expressions of party spirit. They were fitting precursors to the times of bloody waifare, which it will be our task soon to narrate; and which will be best iishered in by a brief survey of the state of Germany during the seven years of the nominal sway of Matthias. 1519-1648.] THE ELECTOR OF SAXONY, 233 THE ELECTOR OF SAXONY. State of Germany in 1612-1G19.— King of Hun^^aiy and Bohemia, Matthias had little difficulty in procunnrr the suflrages of the electors for the imperial crown. As^ however, no King of the I'vomans had been elected duriii^' o I the preceding reign, there was a short interregnum, which, in the agitated state of the times, was remarkable for one circumstance. The vicariat of the empire, or hereditary dignity, devolved on two Protestants : the one, the Elector of Saxony, a Lutheran; the other, the Count Palatine, Duke of Neuberg, a Calvinist. To these men the Catholic States refused obedience; and it consequently became necessary to choose a sovereign with the least possible delay. The reign of Matthias exhibits the same animosity on the part of the religious rivals, as had disgraced that of his predecessor. The affairs of the three duchies, which was oiiginally a civil, but which the passions had turned into a religious question, alike continued to harass the court and country. The Elector of Saxony, who had witnessed the usurpation of all three, obtained from the present Emperor the confirmation of his claim ; but rather a claim of participation than of sole administration. The two princes, however, who were in actual possession of the greater portion, refused to surrender it, or to admit liini into the government of these provinces. With the view of uniting two, at least, of the concurrent claimants, a marriage was contracted between the Count Palatine (the Duke of Neuberg), and the daughter of the Elector of Brandenburg. But one day, while over their cups, the latter gave his intended son-in-law a sound box on the car; the duke, in revenge, joined the Catholic Church and league, and married the daughter of the Bavarian duke. Thus, affairs were complicated, and religious animosity increased, worse than before. The French and Dutch had before' advanced to assist the Protestant claimants ; the Spaniards were now introduced to support the new convert. With the same policy the Elector of Brandenburg forsook Lutheranism for Calvinism, and obtained the aid of the Dutch, under the Prince of Orange. Whoever reads with attention the transactions of this period, must perceive that worldly views were more powerful than religious considerations with the leaders on both sides. The Imperial Court was not likely to regard with much favour men who, on every 234 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD VI. occasion, refused the supplies necessary for the defence of the empire, and for the internal administration. Hence the rigour with which the Aulic Council acted towards Buch of the dissidents as were compelled to bring their causes before it. But the Evangelical Union gradually acquired strength. In 1614, it hoped to acquire more by the marriage of its youthful head, Frederick V., Elector Palatine, with Elizabeth, daughter of James I. of England. It could not foresee that this very prince would do more fco injiu-e the Protestant cause, than the bitterest of its enemies. In Bohemia, the year preceding the death of Matthias, religious hatred burned more fiercely than ever. The Archbishop of Prague and another dignitary, in- censed that the dissidents should continue to build conventicles on their own domains, demolished a few. Instantly the latter were in arms; and, though the con- duct of the two ecclesiastics was approved by the Emperor and by Ferdinand, who had just then been elected King of the Romans and crowned King of Bohemia (Matthias had no issue), they were not discouraged; they were formidable in the kingdom, and they were sure of support from the Protestant rulers of the empire, and of the Low Countries. One of their first objects was characteristic of Bohemians — to hurl the royal governor of Prague and his secretary from the windows of the municipal hall. To this violence they were led by Count Thurn, a Pro- testant, a man of great ambition, and who had to revenge his dismissal by the Court from a distinguished civil office. Though Matthias promised ample toleration, and, indeed, a redress of many other grievances, they would not be pacified. Moreover, Silesia and Upi>er Austria joined its dissidents to them; the Evangelical Union of Halle sent troops; and the war became general, though desultory. In virtue of his recent alliance, the rash and inexperienced Elector Palatine aimed at the Bohemian crown, and was secretly assured of aid from the princes of the Union. Hostilities raged on every side : nor could they be sup- pressed by the Emperor, wlio, though mild, was unpopular; or by Ferdinand, who, though King of Hungary no less 1519-1648.] THE THIRTY YEARS* WAR* 235 than of Bohemia, covdd not bring a force of any amount into the field. In this posture of affairs, Matthias died — an event not likely to restore tranquillity, as the King of the Romans was perfectly detested by the Protestant party. The causes of the Thirty Years* War — one of the most disastrous that ever afflicted a country — were in full operation. A contest of principles no less than of per- sonal ambition was about to commence — one which shook Europe to its extremities, and must be remembered so Ions: as books remain to record it. o THE THIRTY YEARS* WAR. Ferdinand II. of Austria (1619-1637), son of Charles, duke of Styria, and grandson of Ferdinand I., succeeded his cousin, Matthias, in 1619. Ferdinand's position at the time of his accession seemed dark and hopeless. It was indeed a season of imminent peril for Austria. Less dangerous in reality than some humble schemes which were then in agitation, the designs of the leaders of the Union portended the total overthrow of the German branch of the House of Hapsburg. It was i^'oposed to elevate to the imperial dignity the Duke of Savoy, who had supplied to the Count of Mansfeld the troops with which that child of discord was engaged in opposing the Imperialists in Bohemia, A second scheme was that of raising the young Elector Palatine to the throne of Bohemia. The States of Bohemia, contending that Fer- dinand had broken his compact with them, declared the throne vacant. All Bohemia, except one fortress, was soon in possession of the insurgents, of whom all were dissidents; in fact, three-fourths of the kingdom were said, at this time, to favour some sect of the Reformation. Moravia and Silesia were equally firm in the new faith, and in the resolution of establishing the liberties of the country on some better foundation than a tyrant's will. Upper Austria, which had as many discontented inhabi- tants as there were dissidents, received Count Thorn with applause. Vienna itself, where the King then was, was invested by the insurgents; who threatened to execute 236 filSTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD VI. • his ministers, to confine him within the walls of a monas- tery, and to educate his children in the Protestant fViith. Foi-tunately, he was relieved from his jieriloiis situation by the unexpected^ arrival of a pai-tizan, and the siege was raised. Of this circumstance he took advantage, by hastening into Germany to claim the imperial crown, which, he hoped, would so far augment his influence as to enable him to triumph over his rebellious subjects. He carried his election by means of the Roman Catholic electors, who formed the majority. But the Bohemian States elected as their King, Frederick, Count Palatine, son-in-law of James I. of England, and Hungary joined in the revolt, supported by Bethlem Gabor, Prince of Transylvania. Nor was the act less foolish than disloyal, since this vain, weak, and, as the result proved, cowardly prince, had no talents for the station. It was, indeed, expected that, by the aid of his father-in-law, James I. of England, of his relation, the Prince of Omnge, and other Protestant rulers, he should be able to withstand his enemies; but no hope was ever more unfounded. James had too much respect for the authority of kings to en- courage rebellion, even in the husband of his daughter; and he earnestly attempted to dissuade Frederick from an enterprise which he was resolved not to suppoi-t. On tho other hand, Frederick was encouraged to persevere by Christian of Anhalt, who had been a kind of tutor to him; as well as by his minister, Camerarius, and his wife, the Princess Elizabeth. The latter especially, whose violent and ambitious character, combined with consider- able talent, has procured for her the reputation of a princess of spirit, vehemently incited him to the enter- prise; and is said to have asked him why, as he had had courage enough to woo a king's daughter, he had none to stretch out his hand and seize a sceptre which seemed ofiered to him by heaven? Frederick himself, now onlv twenty-two years of age, was naturally ambitious; in temper gnxve, melancholy, and jiroud, so that he would eat in company with none but jninces. It may be, too, that the doctrine of predestination, which formed part of 1519-1648.] TUE THIRTY YEARS' WAR, 237 his faith, had some influence in determining his judgment; his wife, at least, appears to have used that argument with him. Thus, by his own weakness, the ambition of his consort, and the injudicious advice of his friends, he was lured to his destruction. Towards the end of Oct. 1G19, he proceeded to Prague, and there solemnly received the Bohemian crown. Circumstances seemed at lirst to f^ivour the ambitious enterprise of Frederick, but the result was such as re- quired little proi)hecy to foresee. Though he was received with open arms by the dissidents ; though he found that most of Hungary, instigated by the same restless spirit, had thrown off the yoke of Ferdinand; though the Austrian States were again overrun by the Protestant generals; and the Evangelical Union refused any suc- cours to the Emperor, who was insultingly advised to make peace with the new Bohemian King; he was little able to contend with a prince so constant in adversity, so persevering in purpose, so fertile in resources, as the head of the Austrian House. Ferdinand was aided by the King of Spain, by the Archduke Albert, governor of the Netherlands, and the Catholic princes of the empire. Spinola led 24,000 men from the Low Countries and ravaged the Palatinate. Yet though Frederick had still the numerical superiority, he contrived to disgust both his Catholic and his Lutheran subjects by his Calvinistic fanaticism, and to render all but a desperate sect luke- warm in his cause. In a few days he was expelled from a kingdom which he had not courage to defend or wisdom to conciliate. Defeated at Prague by the Duke of Bavaria, he and his adherents were put to the ban of the empire. Never was defeat or flight more inglorious. This royal puppet had the mortification to find his hereditary state occupied by the Bavarian and imperial troops ; nor could he find any place of safety until he reached the Low Countries. Count Tilly, Ferdinand's general, completed the conquest of the Palatinate; Frederick was degraded, and his dignity of Elector conferred on the Duke of Bavaria (1022). 238 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD VI. Tills unexpected success— for which Ferdinand was chiefly indebted to the extraordinary abilities of the ferocious Count de Tilly, a name only inferior to that of Wallenstein in the annals of the Thirty Years* War — was the prelude to others of even greater brilliancy. In consternation at the triumph of their opponents, the Pro- testant States of Lower Saxony began to dmw closer the relaxed bonds of their union, and to importune for aid the Kings of England, Sweden, and Denmark. Ambition, rather than love of religion, induced Christian IV. of Denmark to arm, and place himself at the head of the confederates, whose rnnks were increased by some English, Scotch, and Dutch adventurers (1625). To oppose him, Ferdinand sent with Tilly another commander of extra- ordinary abilities — Wallenstein; men whom merit alone i-aised from humble fortunes to the very summit of glory. In two campaigns the Protestant States were subdued; and the Danish King was not only expelled from the empire, but taught to tremble for his hereditary dominions, until the treaty of Lubeck (1G29) restored peace between the two parties. Unfortunately, if Ferdinand was great in adversity, he was overbearing in prosperity. He now adopted measures of retaliation which drove the Protestants to despair. He abolished the exercise of the Protestant religion in Bohemia; he exiled or put to death the leaders of that and other dissident communions ; he con- fiscated their property; 700 noble families were pro- scribed, and the common people were forced to change their faith. Above 30,000 families, prefemng their con- sciences to their country, sought refuge in the Protestant states. Ferdinand intended to carry on the same sweeping measures throughout Germany, but here he adopted a more cautious plan. He began by dividing the Lutherans from the Calvinists, and he called for the execution of a former act which allowed to the Lutherans only the free exercise of their religion, but condemned the Calvinists to apostacy or exile. He also insisted on the restitution 1519-1G48.] GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS OF SWEDEX< 239 of such ecclesiastical property as the Protestants had seized since the treaty of Passau in 1532. The Protestants re- monstrated; a Diet was held at Ratisbon; the majority of the Catholic princes were for quieting them; the spiritual electors seconded the views of the Emperor. The Pro- testants, to escape the meditated robbery, formed a secret alliance with Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden. Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden. — Gustavus was a prince of the highest military and civil talents; he was animated by a rational zeal for the Protestant religion, and he saw through the Emperor's project of extending his dominions over the Baltic. Various other reasons combined to induce him to engage in war. Cardinal Richelieu, then minister in France, desirous to check the power of the House of Austria, engaged to give him an annual subsidy of 1 ,200,000 livres. Charles I. of England allowed 6000 men to be raised in the name of the Marquis of Hamilton, to aid the King of Sweden, and numerous English and Scottish volunteers crowded to his standard. Gustavus disembarked in Pomerania. The Protestant princes were at first fearful of joining him; but his well- timed decision towards the Elector of Brandenburg ended their hesitation. Being joined by the Saxons, he advanced towards Leipzig, where Tilly lay, who advanced into the plain of Buitenfeld to meet him. The numbers on each side were about 30,000; but Tilly's troops were all veterans. The Saxons, being raw troops, fled at the first onset; the skill of Gustavus and the valour of the Swedes gained a complete victory (1G31). The King of Sweden quickly made himself master of the whole country from the Elbe to the Rhine. The Elector of Saxony entered Bohemia and took Prague. Tilly, in disputing the passage of the Lech with the Swedes, was killed. Gustavus took Augsburg, marched into Bavaria, and entered Munich. Wallenstein had meanwhile recovered Prague. The King of Sweden offered him battle near Nurnburg; Wallenstein declined it: a furious attack was for ten hours made on his en- trenchments, and the Swedes were repulsed with great 240 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD VI. loss. Soon after, hearing tliat Wallenstein had trans- ferred his camp to Liitzen, Gustaviis, tlioiigh it was the depth of winter, and the imperial forces greatly exceeded his in number, resolved to seek and engage him. The battle which ensued is one of the hardest fought recorded in history. It lasted from daybreak till night ; the King of Sweden fell in the midst of the conflict. Night alono pi*e vented the victory of the Swedes being complete (Nov. 1, 1632). Death of Gustavus Adolphus. — Thus, at the gi-eat battle of Liitzen, ended the life of Gustavus Adolphus, one of the best men who ever wore a crown. His deatli cast a gloom over the Protestants; they fell into factions; the Roman Catholics were elated at the fall of their powerful enemy. In Madrid, Rome, Munich, Vienna, and Brussels, public thanksgivings and rejoicings took place, to commemorate the great delivemnce. But thougli he left his kingdom exposed to the troubles of a minority — his daughter, Christina, being only in her seventh year — the war was vigorously prosecuted by the Regent Oxen- stiern, a man of great ability, who, with the Duke of Saxe- AYeimar and Generals Banier and Horn, prosecuted it witli vigour. The Assassination of Wallenstein. — An event now occurred seemingly calculated to advance the Protestant cause. The Emperor, whether justly or not is doubtful, suspecting the fidelity of Wallenstein, and fearing to deprive him of his command, had him secretly assas- sinated. But the loss of his genius was supplied by a large accession of Spanish and other troops, and by the junction of the Dukes of Lorraine and Bavaria. That the policy of Ferdinand was sufficient to sow jealousy and dissension among the leformed princes ; tliat the victory gained by the imperial general at Nordlingen counter- balanced all the i)rior advantages of the Protestants, equallmg in brilliancy the glorious deeds of Gustavus; that this general, the Archduke Ferdinand, eldest son of the Emperor, who had been crowned King of Hungary and Bohemia, pursued the advantage; that in 1G35, the 1519-1G4S.] FERDINAND III. 241 :| Elector of Saxony, in a treaty at Prague, was reconciled to the Emperor; that the junction of the imperial and Saxon troops against the Swedes and the Protestant states of the empire gave a preponderance to the cause, which no efforts of the reformed league, aided by the intrigues of England, Holland, and France, was able to counteract; that all the members, excei)t the Landgrave of Hesse-Cassel, convinced of the fruitlessness of resist- ance, adhered, one by one, to the pacification of Prague — thus engaging to expel the Swedes, to whom they were indebted for their restoration to their civil privileges ; and that when Ferdinand died in 1637, two months after witnessing the election and coronation of his son as King of the Romans, he had the satisfjiction to know that none but foreigners — the Swedes and their allies the French — were seriously intent on perpetuating the troubles of the realm. Character of Ferdinand II. — Of Ferdinand II. it need only be said that, if he was a cruel bigot ; if he was sometimes perfidious — witness his connivance at the assassination of Wallenstein — he was generally swayed by conscientious motives, was regular in his habits, pure in his morals, constant in adversity, persevering in every purpose, comprehensive in his views, just, liberal, and, whenever his religious prejudices were not concerned, merciful. Had he been less subservient to mistaken notions of religious duty, he would have been every way worthy of the throne, for his was an imperial mind. Ferdinand IIL (163G-1648), King of Bohemia and of Hungary succeeded, in virtue of his election as King of the Romans, to the imperial throne without opposition. Opportunities of pacification neglected, the war of thirty yeai^ was no continuous strife. There were, as has been seen throughout its course, breaks, in which a termination of hostilities seemed to be unavoidable or expedient, from the relative positions, at different periods, of the different parties. But these were neglected or despised ; nor was the desired ratification of peace published until eight years had been expended in discussions, wearisome for their 9 242 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD VI. length, complicated from the number of parties engaged, teeming with matters of petty and contemptible etiquette, with instances of jealousy and rapacity, of treachery and imbecility. The bloody scenes which have been before described were repeated, and, in some cases, on the same fields. New leaders arose to carry on with the same tactics the hostilities bequeathed them by their prede- cessors, whom excess, or the fortune of war, or suspicious accident, had removed from their command. Ferdinand III. found the Swedes and French still in possession of several important cities of Saxony, and pre- paring for a vigorous campaign. The same line of policy was pursued, and the war was accordingly renewed with fury. The Duke of Weimar laid siege to Rainfeld ; an imperial army advanced to its relief, and was totally defeated by the duke ; the town surrendered, as did soon after Brissac, and other places (1G38). While Weimar triumphed on the Rhine, Banier was equally successful in Pomerania; he reduced several towns, and cut to pieces some of the imperial troops. In the beginning of the next campaign, the Duke and Banier took measures for penetrating into the heart of the Austrian dominions. Banier crossed the Elbe, beat everything that opposed him, entered Saxony, and totally defeated the Saxon army at Chemnitz. He invaded Bohemia, laid the country under contribution, fell on the imperialists under General Hofskirk at Brandeiz, and pursued them to the walls of Prague. He then repassed the Elbe, defeated the imperialists at Glatz, and drove the Saxons three times from their camp at Tirn. But the hopes of the Swedes were almost blighted by the loss of the Duke of Saxe -Weimar, who died at this time, in his thirty-sixth year, by poison, as was strongly suspected. After a good deal of contest for his army, it was finally taken into the pay of the King of France, who thus became master of a great part of Alsatia and Brisgau. Under the command of the Duke of Longueville it joined Banier at Erfurt; but the Swede found his genius cramped by their presence, and was no longer able to execute his 1519-1648.] DEATH OF BANIER. 243 bold and sudden projects. Driven from Bohemia by the imperialists under the gallant Archduke Leopold, Picco- lomini and Hatfeld, Banier laid waste Thuringia in the most appalling manner. Effecting a junction with the French army under Marshal Guebriant at Neustadt, they crossed the Danube on the ice, took 1500 of the imperial horse, and appeared before Ratisbon, where a Diet was then assembled. The dismay in the city was extreme. Ferdinand alone was unmoved by the general panic; and liis firmness and feelings of shame prevented the deputies from seeking safety in flight. A sudden thaw saved Ratisbon, and Banier retreated, after throwing five hundred shots into the town, an insult that enraged Ferdinand beyond measure. Retreat and Death of Banier.— After the attempt on Ratisbon, the French and Swedes separated. Banier marched through Bohemia, followed by Piccolomini and Gleen. He conducted his retreat in a most masterly manner to Zickau, where he was again joined by Guebriant, and they prepared to make head against the imperialists. But this daring leader died at Halberstadt in May, in the forty-fourth year of his age. TJncourteous, arrogant, cruel, and debauched, he owed his early death to his excesses, and not to the effects of poison, as was supposed in his case, as in that of the Duke of Weimar. His talents as a commander were of a very high order. Six hundred standards,'^the trophies of his successes, were carried to Stockholm; and 80,000 of the enemy are said to have fallen in the various operations in which he commanded. The remainder of the war may be briefly told. Though ever and anon renewed with fury, nothing decisive for either party was the result. If to-day one prince was seduced from his allegiance to the head of the state, on the next the paternal admonitions of the Emperor recalled him from his wanderings. If victory was gained one day by the combined Swedes and French, assisted by the open or secret wishes of some Protestant states, it was neutral- ised on another by an equally signal advantage to the 244 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD VI. imperial troops. But this harassing wai-fare was severely felt by Germany. The excesses committed on eveiy side by restless and ferocious bodies of foreignei*s, and even by natives, destroyed all social security, and made even humble individuals tremble for their persons no less than their substance. The whole people began to perceive, that if foreign interests gained by the continuance of the war, by the weakening of the empire and its head, Germany was rapidly hastening to internal ruin — probably to subjugation by France and Sweden. Not merely the greatness, the existence of the empire was in jeopardy; and this conviction spread widely and deeply among the princes and states. Such as had been most corrupted by the gold of France, or the promises of Sweden, began to join the demand for peace; and for this purpose negotia- tions were opened; though from the vicissitudes of the war, from the consequent elation of one party and the depression of the other, years elapsed before they were brought to a conclusion. At length, in 1648, the French and Swedes were every- where successful ; the Elector of Bavaria and other princes were forced to make separate peaces with them; the Emperor was alone exposed to them; and though the Elector of Bavaria had again joined him, the victory of Zummerhausen, gained by Turenne and Vrangel, and the invasion of Bavaria and Bohemia, compelled him to think at last seriously of peace. The Treaty of Westphalia (1G48). — It was as neces- sary to reconcile, as it was to disarm, the French and Swedes ; otherwise the same causes of disunion would eternally operate and infallibly terminate in the destruc- tion of the confedemte body — of the great work which Charlemagne had founded, which ages had cemented, and of which the preservation was demanded by the voice of Europe no less than by that of the empire. After six years had elapsed from the opening of the preliminaries, the treaty of Osnaburg, between the Emperor and the Protestant states, was agreed on in August 1648; that of Miinster, between the Emperor, France, and her allies, lol9-lG48.i 't'lIE TREATY OF WESTPHALIA. 245 the following month ; and both were duly signed at Miinster on the same day (October 24). This pacification, known as the Peace of Westphalia^ from the circumstance of both cities being contained in that province, will be memorable through all time, both from its having served as the foundation of the international law of Europe, of the policy generally adopted by each state, and from its having correctly defined the claims of Protestants and lloman Catholics, the bounds of the imperial, the elec- toral, the aristocratical, and the municipal powers. It is, in the strictest sense, the key of modern history. As the Pope seemed to be included in the peace as an ally of the Emperor, under the expression " the Princes and Republics of Italy," the Nuncio Chigi, immediately after the completion of the treaty, entered a protest against it, and Pope Innocent X. soon after published a bull (November 26), declaring the treaties of Mtinster and Osnabriick null and void. But his thunders had ceased to terrify even those who remained in the ancient com- munion, and not a sword was drawn to support him. The remainder of Ferdinand's reign passed in tranquillity; nor does it contain any striking event except such as we have anticipated in the preceding pages. He caused his son to be elected King of the Romans, under the title of Ferdinand IV.; but the young prince, already King of Bohemia and Hungary, preceded him to the tomb, and left the question of the succession to be decided by a Diet. Ferdinand III. died in 1657, leaving behind him a char- acter for wisdom and moderation unequalled perhaps by any monarch of his age. 24G fitsTOR? OP GEiiMAN*y. [pehiod vt Of) o wi •-^ g W3 :S ^H a o ce; ^ ,.«» 1 OD <^ ?w .S* ^ ^ o ?^ P4 > ^ O CQ ^ «) >< ^ Cs < O (^ «0 O ?^ Ph s ^ w i O """^ O pq O W H^J PQ -< H O O O O 'M O O Ah aul III. ulius HI. aul IV. ius IV. ius V. regory X ixtus V. lement V hristian I rederick hristian I p-i 1-5 Ph Ph ;i^ O c/} O OfeQ O [Z4 CO 55 OS C5 ■^ o »o »o O lO fl P «3 N t^ Ci O '^ Ci .^ ir^ O i>. c/3 O lO o »^ o H X HH 00 '^ 00 vn^^ g fl g ^ C S O CO 00 '"' CO "t CO lo CO t^ lO iO o s 00 C3 .4 "O O) L_| J'. o Ph CO C< »0 CO "^ i-r- QO ITS o lO uo I— < F-H I— H ^H 00 .?< . HI "TS -fi >— ( S S ® fl tf s a b^ a .2.2 fl Pu.^ til) t/} 1) ^ bo «: '/: K Ti X I SEVENTH PERIOD. FROM THE PEACE OF WESTPHALIA TO THE FRENCH REVOLUTION. — (1648-1789). Death of Ferdinand 11. (1637);— The aged Ferdinand did not live to see the close of that terrible war the com- mencement of his reign ushered in for the extermination of Protestantism, the only way to attain which end, as Scioppius, in his " Alarm-drum of the Holy War^" freely declared, was "to wade to it through blood." Few sovereigns have left behind them a more odious name. Almost'' the last act of a life which had been one long display of ferocious cruelty, was to order the drowning of some insurgents in Carinthia, and the infliction of horrible tortures on the peasants of Upper Austria. Practically following out the teaching of the Jesuits, heretics were to be exterminated, not because their doctrines were damnable, but because those who presumed to differ from their sovereign were in his eyes guilty of rebellion. Thus, under the mask of religious zeal, more than ^e?i millions of human beings were sacrificed to this unjust and cruel policy. ^ , /. xi, x Before the Emperor himself disappeared from the gi^eat stru^c^le, he had the satisfaction of seeing his son Ferdi- nand^'unanimously acknowledored as his successor by the Diet of Ratisbon, and who, towards the end of the year, succeeded to the imperial throne. The year in which the old Emperor died, a frightful famine was added to the other horrors of war. • So ghastly was this visitation that men, to save their lives, disinterred and devoured the bodies of their fellow-creatures, and even hunted down human beings that they might feed on their flesh. 248 UlSTORY OF GER3IANy. [PERIOD Ylt. The eflect of this unnatural and loathsome diet was a jjestilence, which swept away the soldiery as well as the l)eoi)le by thousands. In Pomerania, hundreds destroyed themselves, as unable to endure the pangs of hunger. On the island of Eiigcn many poor creatures were found dead with their mouths full of grass, and in some districts attempts were made to knead earth into bread. Through- out Germany the licence of war and the misery consequent on famine and pestilence had so utterly destroyed tho morality which was once the pride and boast of this land, that the people, a few years before the most simi)le and kind-hearted in Europe, now vied with the foreign mer- cenaries who infested their country in setting at nought the laws of God as well as man.* To understand clearly the march of events at this critical juncture, it will be necessary to revert briefly to the closing years of the war. Already, during 163G, the cry of anguish from Germany " lying in the dust " had gone up from so many suffering thousands; but still the war went on ruthlessly for twelve years longer, and the Protestant cause was for a second time deprived of its head by the death of Bernard of Saxe-Weimer (July, 1630). After his death the Generals Banier, Torstenson, and Wrangel succeeded each other in command of the Protestant army, and the imperial General Gallas was replaced by a renegade Calvinist Melandcr von HolzapfeL The last event of this long and disastrous war was the taking of Prague by the Swedish general, Konigsmark. And though, on the 24th of Oct. 1648, articles of peace were signed at Mlinster and Osnabrtick in Westphalia, nearly six years elapsed before the Diet even met to arrange the dubious or open points of the two-fold treaty. A treaty comprising such concessions, embracing such gi-eat and contradictory interests, trenching on so many deep-rooted prejudices and established regulations, natur- ally met with almost innumerable obstacles in the exe- cution. Of this treaty only the principal conditions can be * Schiller, 20 Jahriger Krieg, lG48-i7S0.1 DEATIt OF FERDINAND IT. 249 given. Tlie objects of the peace may be divided into two lieads: the settlement of the affairs of the empire, and the satisfaction of the two crowns of France and Sweden. With regard to Germany, a general amnesty was granted; and all princes and persons were, with some exceptions as to the immediate subjects of the house of Austria, restored to their rights, possessions, and dignities. The question of the Palatinate, one of the chief objects of the war, was settled by a compromise. The Duke of Bavaria was allowed to retain the Upper Palatinate, with the electoral dignity and rights; while the Lower Palatinate, or that of the Rhine, was restored to the eldest son of the unfortunate Frederick V., son-in-law of James I. of England, and an eighth electorate erected in his favour. On the extinction either of the Bavarian or the Palatine line, however, both electorates were again to be merged into one. Thus the policy of France and Sweden was entirely successful. These countries, besides raising up a counter- l)oise to the power of the Emperor in Germany itself, had succeeded in aggrandising themselves at the exj^ense of the empire. Sweden, indeed, in the course of a few years was to lose her acquisitions; but France had at last j)ermanently, it seemed, seated herself on the Bhine; the House of Austria lost the preponderance it had enjoyed since the time of Charles V., which was now to be trans- ferred to her rival, and, during the ensuing period, we shall have to contemplate France as the leading Euro])ean power; a post which she mainly owed to the genius and policy of Bichelieu. With the Peace of Westphalia begins a new era in the policy and public law of Europe. However little this memorable treaty differed from similar arrangements of the time in procuring a long cessation from war, it had this distinguishing character- istic, that it served in after time for the basis of the future policy of Europe.* No other peace is so con- stantly referred to, even if it be true that no other peace is so often broken. It provisions were not, indeed, all * Heeren's Manual, Vol. I., p. 162, X 250 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [pfiRIOD Vll. practicable, and many were from time to time evaded or disregarded; but the principles themselves seem to have taken root in the Germanic constitution, and ultimately to have prevailed both over neglect and opposition. France, occupied since the peace with domestic affairs, omitted her usual interference; and Sweden, now under the fantastic rule of the eccentric Christina, supported the Emperor, with a view to conciliate the Romanist princes. After so many conflicts, Germany lay maimed and crippled; and, through the hereditary States of Austria having particularly suffered such severe reverses, that imperial power which Charles V. had raised up during his reign, thereby securing to Germany the preponderance in Europe, was lost by her under Ferdinand II. and Fer- dinand III. in the course of the Thii'ty Years' War. Still the treaty which brought that war to an end, by adjusting the European equilibrium, definitely estab- lished Lutheranism in Germany, and Lutherans and Calvinists saw the necessity of laying aside their disputes to obtain the abrogation of that foolish and wicked law that would compel every subject to follow the religion of his sovereign. Condition of Germany after the Thirty Years' War. — It is not difficult to understand what were the wounds of a country after a war so desolating, and which had been so long in the hands of men who had ruthlessly spread ruin far and wide by living on the tears and blood of Germany. Two-thirds of the population had suc- cumbed, less by the edge of the sword than as victims of those scourges which war brings in its train — life de- stroyed by slow degi-ees, inconceivable sufferings from contagious fevers, plagues, famine, terror, and despair. For death upon the field of battle is not the worst of war. The worst scourge is found in the horrors and miseries it inflicts upon those who are not combatants — old men, women, and children, by robbing them of all the enjoyments and hopes of life; by the germ of the new generation exhibiting a sickly de\elopment without vigour or courage. 104S-n80.] Leopold's reigk and character. 251 Ferdinand III. died in 1657, leaving behind him a reputation for good intentions, and for cautious rather than prudent statesmanship. His eldest son, Ferdinand, the elected King of the Romans, died in 1654 of the small-pox, and his second son, Leopold, had been destined by his father to succeed him. Ferdinand accordingly procured for him the crowns of Hungary and Bohemia, with the homage of the Austrian States, but the question of the succession was left to be decided by a Diet; and ultimately he was chosen Emperor in 1659, after a con- tested election between him and Louis XIV. of France, who had gained four of the electors over to his side. ^ 1 « . Influence of France over the Affairs of the Empire. — The interregnum, and indeed the century which fol- lowed the death of Ferdinand, showed the alarming preponderance of the influence gained by France in the affairs of the empire, and the consequent criminality of the princes who had first invoked the assistance of that power. Her recent victories, her character as joint guarantee of the Treaty of Westphalia, and the con- tiguity of her possessions to the states of the empire, encouraged her ministers to demand the imperial crown for the youthful Louis XIV. Still more extraordinary is the fact that four of the electors were gained by that monarch's gold to espouse his views; still more strange that a single voice could have been raised in behalf of a power which had exhibited an ambition so perfidious and grasping; which had inflicted so fatal a blow on the confederation; which watched the progress of events, in the hope of rendering the country as dependent on France as it had been in the time of Charlemagne. Leopold's Reign and Character (1657-1705).— The long reign of Leopold, which lasted nearly half a century, was an eventful time for Germany and Europe, not through any striking qualities of the Emperor, but in consequence of the many important wai-s in which he was concerned. Thus, though Leopold had no talents for war, though he was never present at a battle, hia 253 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD Vll. arms were victorious. This result, however, must not he ascribed to any merit of his : it arose from the general feeling of Europe against one of the most unprincipled sovereigns that ever cursed a country, and from the alliances offensive and defensive which that feeling inevit- ably produced. Leopold's reign was one of great humili- ation to his house and to the empire. Without talents for government, without generosity, feeble, bigoted, and pusillanimous, he was little qualified to augment the glory of the country; though, to do him justice, its prosperity was an object which he endeavoured, however ineffectu- ally, to promote. Throughout his long reign, he had the mortification to witness, on the part of Louis XIV., a series of the most unprovoked, wanton, and unprincipled usurpations ever recorded in history. It is unnecessary here to enter into a subject so universal, but it may be observed that, aided by some alliances which his money enabled him to procure in the very heart of the empire, Louis was a terrific scourge to it: that a sense of the common danger roused Holland, the empire, Denmark, England, and even Sweden, to combine against the common enemy of Europe. Again, that the treaties of Nimeguen in 1G79, and of Ryswick in 1697, were but truces, made on the part of France only to give time; that, though sj^lendid successes accompanied for some years the arms of France, victory at length forsook them for those of her enemies; that in the war of the Spanish Succession^ to which Leopold's son, the Archduke Charles had undoubted claims, though Philip V. was supported on the throne by France and Spain, in the Low Countries the French were humbled, especially at the glorious battle of Blenheim (13th August 1704); and that when Leopold died in 1705, all Europe — Italy and Spain especially — were animated with a new spirit against France. Ono of Leopold's last acts was to confer, by lettei-s patent, the dignity of Prince of the Empire on the Duke of Marlborough. The principal interaal events in Germany during the reign of Leopold were: — 1. The establishment of a ninth 1G48-17S9.] JOSEPH T. !53 electorate in favour of Ernest Augustus, Duke of Bruns- wick-Lunenburg, who in 1692 became the first Elector of Hanover.* 2. The assumption of the regal title by Frederick, Elector of Brandenburg and Duke of Prussia^ in 1701. Leopold acknowledged him, as he stood m need of his assistance, and Holland, England, and Sweden followed the example. 3. The establishment of a per- manent Diet attended, not by the electors in person, but by their representatives, is one of the most striking peculiarities of Leopold's reign. He was succeeded by his eldest son, Joseph I. ^ , , i i i Joseph I. (1705-1711), the son of Leopold, who had been declared King of Hungary, and, in 1690, had been elected King of the Romans, succeeded to the imperial crown in 1705. His reign was short but fruitful in great events. His foreign wars were brilliantly successful, lie carried on the war called that of the Spanish Siiccession, which had begun under his father, against Louis XIV. in the Low Countries, the victories of his general, Eugene, and of the' greater Marlborough, brought France into a state of degradation which she had never experienced since the conquering days of Creci, Poitiers, and Agmcourt I^uis was so far humbled, that, besides relinquishing all his former conquests, he proposed, as a condition of peace even to abandon his nephew, Philip V., whom he had placed on the troubled throne of Spain, and to acknow- ledcre the Archduke Charles, brother of the Emperor, who was then fighting for the Spanish crown in Catalonia as Kin<^ of Spain and the Indies. Unfortunately for the peace of Europe, the allies, infatuated by success, refused the conditions, and the war was continued In the Netherlands, it was still decisive for the a lies. The battles of Ramilies, Oudenarde, and Malplaquet, the deliverence of Turin by Prince Eugene, the surrender » The Electoral College was now constituted of the following members : — Saxony, Brandenburg, Hanoyer-Pro^..^a./. | Tempor^ Bohemia, Bavaria, the Palatmate— 7?07na7U8^. J LUctOis, Mainz, Treves, ColognQ— Spiritual Electors, I 254 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD VII. of Naples to the Austrians, and the permanent footing obtained by the Archduke Charles in Spain, seemed to have nearly decided the question, when Joseph died of the small-pox in April 1711, leaving his brother Charles, afterwards Charles VI., the last male heir of the House of Hapsburg, to conclude the war. Character and Reign of Joseph I. — Joseph was a good prince; he was learned and assiduous in the dis- charge of his duties; humane, charitable, accessible, and though a devoted Roman Catholic, he was no bigot, no persecutor; in princii)le and practice he was alike tolerant. Internally, his reign is remarkable for the suppression of tlie Bavarian electorate, in punishment of the tenacity with which the late Elector had clung to the alliance of France, and for the transfer of the dignity to the Count Palatine. Hence the eighth electorate, which had been created for the Count Palatine, being suppressed, tho electoral college had one member less. Charles VI. of Germany (1711-1740), born in 1685, was the younger son of the Emj)eror Leopold I. By the death of Joseph, the Archduke Charles, who was striving for the Spanish crown, was the only candidate for the imperial throne. Charles II. of Spain, the last oflfspring of the Spanish branch of the House of Austria, being childless, Leopold had claimed the inheritance of tlie crown of Spain for one of his children, as next of blood. lie fixed upon his younger son, the Archduke Charles, as the presumptive heir, and King Charles confirmed the choice by his will; but the intrigues of Louis XIV. and his friends at the court of Spain made the King alter his will before his death in favour of Philip of Anjou, whose grandmother was daughter to Philip IV. of Spain and sister to Charles II. This gave rise to the long war of the S2)anish Succession, in which most of the other European powers took part. After the death of Charles II. in November 1700, Philip of Anjou was proclaimed under the named of Philip V., but the Emperor^ England, Holland, and Portugal supported the claims of the Arch- duke Charles, who, forsaking the scene of his battles, 1C4S-1789.] CHARLES VI. OF GERMANY. 255 landed at Lisbon in March 1704 with some English and Dutch troops, and was assisted by the Portuguese. But the public mind of Europe was now changed. If the war with France had been undertaken chiefly from a dread lest the crown of that country and of Spain might be placed on the brow of a Bourbon, the objection was even stronger against the union of the Spanish and of the Imperial crowns, with those of Hungary and Bohemia, on the brow of an Austrian. From this moment it was evidently the object of the allies to make what terms they could with Louis XI V.— to acknowledge Philip V., provided security were given that the two thrones were never filled by the same prince, and provided the bound- aries of the French monarchy on the Belgian and Ger- manic frontier were drawn within narrower limits. The fall of the Whigs in England, and the accession of the Tories to power, strengthened the desire; and it was evident, that if England withdrew from the confederacy, the war would soon be at an end. Hence negotiations were opened; and, after some discussion, a peace was concluded; Philip retaining Spain, but renouncing the throne of France; England keei)ing Gibraltar; and, after some further manauvring, a treaty was signed at Utrecht between all the European powers, except France and the empire, on the 31st March 1714. Charles VI. received as an indemnification all the Spanish j^ossessions in Italy, with Sardinia, the Netherlands, and the fortresses of Kehl, Friburg, and Breisach. The following year Austria exchanged Sardinia for Sicily with the Duke of Savoy, who assumed the title of King of Sardinia. Frederick of Prussia obtained Neufchatel, in Switzerland, as heir of its former possessor, Marie de Nemours, a relation of the House of Brandenburg. Thus ended the war of the Spanish Succession, in which France lost her superi- ority, and Austria and Germany found the moment favourable for resuming their former places in modern history. 256 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD YII. 1648-17S9.] MARIA THERESA. 257 CI I- o O o P4 "A O ^-\ > O OQ >H -^ o p^ o 1^ CI < H 72 ;^' CO' -r a o o o 1^ a H CO C4 PM o P4 "^ V Ph .$ Oh-OOCS^O^ -t< O r^ GO O O r- r^ x> Ci O i?i i-: -o c; — O O o -o :o o I- 1 - •■^ to to i'^ r-t 1— « i-H (— t 1 • rt *-• S • y. {^ m j-( •r^'-' w G M in . o Ph fl a S S so? c S ^i« ^"M ^1^ ^1^ ^ ^"^ ^ ^i^ . h-H 1— 1 O .5 05 00 «3 W .-I >H rt rt c3*r o5 o o ;; ^ ;:j Ph C5 O »0 C5 Tt< (?1 "^^ 1^ O -/: CO c: O -H • ^fc •,^ *.*», •.^ *'^ |,^ 1^^ 1-1 (-1 • ^ & J— * . r • Pi ^4 1— 1^ t— ( 03 O 05 '^ 3 3 .% « 5 i^ \A ^ d «1J aj rt j3 O 1 a § a sa s o Q tJ •--; ^ c ij <>^ Pi a 3 O Ph CU o a s ^- 3 Ph 05 CO H O O rd;5^ J£^ »o o or^«o o o »'5 :^ o :5i:-» O ^t- f-H rH • • • «< l-H 5^. Ph CO ::> H Pi o > O Lj . Ph S'^ « s (IhOP^ ^<:phh. r<.»r5 ^-^ CO coo O O -H CO r^ C5 o r>.r- CO CO 'o rl (-H ^H 1— 1 1— 1 1— t y< < - • H >H O OT 2 a> 0* o ^ • O :3 . (Ut— I •tS "^ ^ 3 In 1724, Charles issued the Pragmatic Sanction, or fundamental law, which repjulates tlie order of succession in the family of Austria. By this law, in default of male issue, Charles's eldest daughter, Maria Theresa, was called to the inheritance of the Austrian dominions, and her children and descendants after her. The Pragmatic Sanction was guaranteed by all the German ])rinGes, and several of the other powers of Europe, with the exception of the French and Spanish Bourbons, who were always jealous of the power of Austria. Death of Charles VI., and War of the Austrian Succession (1740-1748). — The death of Augustus II., King of Poland, in 1733, was the signal of a new war on the part of the Bourbons against Austria, ostensibly on account of the Polish succession, which was disputed between Augustus III. and Stanislaus Leczinski. By the Peace of Vienna in November 1735, the Emperor gave up Naples and Sicily to Don Carlos, Infante of Spain, while the succession of Tuscany, after tlie death of Gian Gastone, the last of the Medici, who was child- less, was secured to Maria Theresa of Austria and her husband, Francis of Lorraine, who in 1739 took posses- sion of that fine country. The Emperor Charles died at Vienna, 20th October 1740, and was succeeded in his liereditary dominions, and afterwards in the empire, by his daughter, Maria Theresa, after a long and memorable war, known by the name of the War of the Austrian Succession. Charles was the last male offspring of the House of Austria-Hapsburg. The present house, though frequently called the House of Hapsburg, is Austria- Lorraine, being the descendants of Maria Theresa and Francis of Lorraine. Maria Theresa, Archduchess of Austria, Queen of Hungary and Bohemia, and Empress of Germany, was born in 1717. By the death of her father, Charles VI., she was, in accordance both with the rights of blood and the faith of treaties, the lawful sovereign of Bohemia, Hungary, Austria, Upper and Lower, and numerous other states, countries, and cities, in Germany, Italy, 258 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD VII. 1C4S-17S0.] tut: seven years' war. 259 and the Xetlierlands. Of this vast inheritance she accord- ingly took undisputed possession. But she had soon to experience the faithlessness of princes. Charles Albert, Elector of Bavaria— a house which, from its alliance with France, and its own ambition, seemed destined to be the curse of the empire and the House of Austria— claimed Bohemia. Augustus of Saxony, who, like his queen, had agreed to the Pragmatic Sanction, and by so doing had procured the support of Austria in his election to the throne of Poland, with great modesty demanded the whole of the Austrian dominions. A similar demand was made by the King of Spain; by the King of France; while the King of Sardinia, unable to cope with monarchs so power- ful, showed his superior moderation, by declaring that he Avould be contented with the duchy of Milan. Maria Theresa, however, with a spirit and decision remarkable for her age, lost no time in repairing to Vienna and taking possession of Austria, Bohemia, and her other German states; she then proceeded to Presburg, took the oaths to the constitution of Hungary, a\ul was solemnly proclaimed Queen of that kingdom in 1741. .tt ,r. Invasion of Silesia by Frederick William II., King of Prussia, surnamed the Great.— The appearance of u young helpless female on the thrones of those vast ]^osses- sionsf opened to these chivalrous i)riiicos a glorious pro- spect for the dismemberment of her states. But while they were carefully apportioning their respective shares of the spoil, a new and more dangerous competitor appeared in Frederick, King of Prussia. He offered the young queen his friendship on the condition of her sur- rendei-ing Silesia to him, but she resolutoly refused, and Frederick invaded that province. The Elector of Bavaria overran Austria and Bohemia, and pushed his troops to the gates of Vienna. Maria Theresa being obliged to quit her capital, repaired to Presburg. Convoking the Hungarian Diet, she appeared in the midst of that assembly with her infant son, Joseph, in her arms. She told the magnates, prelates, and deputies, that ** being assailed by her enemies on every side, forsaken by her i:^^ IS- fiiends, and findiug even her own relatives hostile to her, she had no hopes except in their loyalty, and that she had come to place under their protection the daughter and the son of their kings." This heart-stirring ai)peal was answered by a burst of chivalrous enthusiasm. The Hungarian nobles drawing their swords, unanimously cried out, " Moriamur pro Jiege nostro, Maria Theresa," and the Avhole military force of Hungary was soon in arms to defend their queen. Her troops, under General Kevenhuller and Prince Charles of Lori-aine, her brother- in-law, fought gallantly, and drove the French and Bava- rians out of the liereditary states. A rival Emperor Elected (22nd Jan. 1742). — Charles Albert, Elector of Bavaria, was in the meantime elected Emperor of Germany, by the Diet assembled at Frank fort, by the title of Charles VII. Frederick of Prussia soon made peace witli Maria Theresa, who was obliged to surrender Silesia to him. But, though still menaced by these royal bandits, the queen did not despair: sup- ported by Hungary, which exhibited the most chivalrous devotion to her cause, she commenced a career of warfare highly glorious to the Austrian arms. In 1744, Frederick again declared war against her, and invaded Bohemia: but the Elector of Saxony, who had made his peace with her, sent the Queen reinforcements, which obliged the Prussians to evacuate the country. Francis I. of Lorraine, Grand Duke of Tuscany, Elected Emperor (1745).— In 1745, Charles VII. died, and Francis, Maria Theresa's husband, was elected Emperor. In 1747, the war continued to rage in Italy and Flanders, with various success. In 1748, the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle terminated the war called " the War of the Austrian Succession," and Maria Theresa was left in peaceful possession of all her hereditary dominions, except Silesia, which the King of Prussia kept. The Seven Years' War. — In 1756 began the Seven Year's' War between France, Austria, and Bussia, on one side, and Frederick of Prussia on the other. It ended in 1763, leaving both Austria and Prussia with* 2G0 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERTOD VII. 1C48-1789.] LEOPOLD in 261 the same boundaries as before. In 17G5, Maria Theresa /lost her Inisband, for whom she continued to wear mourn- ing till her death, and her son, Joseph, was elected Emperor. She however retained in her hands the administration of her dominions, and devoted all her cares to promote their prosperity, and to the improve- ment of the people under her sway. The Partition of Poland (1773).— The only important act of Maria Theresa's political life with which she can be reproached is her participation in the first partition of Poland. The plan, however, did not originate with her, and she for some time refused to accede to the treaty^ of partition drawn up by Prussia and Kussia in 1772. However, Prince Kaunitz and her own son, Joseph II., urged her to join the two other powers, and she at last gave her consent. Character cf Maria Theresa.— The improvements which IMaria Theresa made in her dominions were many and important. She was a sincere Roman Catholic, but not a blind devotee to the court of Rome, and she knew how to discriminate between the temporal and spiritual jurisdictions. Maria Theresa will ever rank high among illustrious women, and among those sovereigns who have been the benefactors of mankind. She died at Vienna on the 29th of November 1780. With her ended the House of Austria-Hapsburg, and at the same time began the present dynasty of Austria-Lorraine. Joseph XL, eldest son of Maria Theresa and of Francis of Lorraine, was elected King of the Romans in 17G4, and in the following year, on the death of his father, he became Emperor. As long as his mother lived he had little real power. Maria Theresa, as already stated, retaining the administration of her vast territories in her own hands; but on her decease he became possessed of all the hereditary Austrian dominions. He would soon have been hurled from the throne of the empire by the ambitious monarch of Prussia, had not the Austrian armies maintained him on it. For some years he was not engaged 'in war: and he had no other employment than to witness the i<' ! ) h salutary reforms which his mother had introduced . Indeed, during her life, he was no. less a cipher than his father had been ; nor could all his eftbrts, all his intrigues, wrest the sovereign authority from her hands. Hence he rather acquiesced in, than effected, the infamous partition of Poland (1773), between Maria Theresa, the Empress of Russia, and the Prussian monarch. Soon after his acces- sion, Joseph II. displayed considerable ambition, mixed with much restlessness; he was, however, kept in check by France, and by Frederick of Prussia. After the deatli of Frederick in 1786, Joseph joined Catherine of Russia in a war against Turkey, which his general, Laudon, carried on with success, taking Belgrade and other fort- resses in 1789. But the threatening aspect of affairs in France and Brabant arrested the progress of the Austrian armies, and Joseph himself died in 1790. The character in which Joseph II. is chiefly viewed is that of a reformer — in many instances a wise one, but in others rash and inconsiderate. With all his liberality, he was perfectly despotic in carrying his measures into effect, without regard to the feelings, prejudices, or interests of individuals. Leopold II. — As Joseph left no issue, Leopold, his brother, who, as Grand-duke of Tuscany, had acquired great popularity in that state, succeeded to the hereditary dominions of the House of Austria. Owing, in a great measure, to the rash innovations of his brother, Leopold found discontent everywhere; the Netherlands in oi)en revolt; Hungary preparing to throw off the yoke, Bohemia disafiected; Prussia hostile; England estranged; France herself convulsed, and likely to become an enemy; and Russia, the only power from which he could expect aid, engaged in warfare with the Turks. But Leopold had qualities which were sure to win the hearts of his own subjects. He abolished the more odious innovations; he concluded a peace with the Porte; he pacified Hungary by restoring such of the ancient privileges of its aristo- cracy as had been lately disregarded, and at the same time marching troops to restrain the more rebellious nobles. The next step of Leopold was to endeavour to 262 iWSTORY OP GERMANY. [pERIOD Vlt. pacify the revolted states of the Netherlands, Ly ofl'ering to re-establish their ancient constitutions; and when they obstinately refused to listen to his offers, he marched his troops into the Low Countries, and the leaders being divided amongst themselves, Leopold recovered, without much difficulty, those fine provinces. Then came the dis- putes with France ; the terror caused by the outbreak of the French Revolution; his eft'orts to save his sister, Marie Antoinette, and Louis XVI., her husband; and his alliance with Prussia for the purpose of checking the progi'ess of French revolutionary proselytism. In the midst of all these cares, Leopold died on the 1st of March 1792, aged foi-ty-four years. He was generally regretted for his affability, his strict justice, his kindness towards the poor, whom he admitted freely into his ])rescnce, and his sound judgment. He was succeeded by his eldest son, Francis II. 1G1S-17S0.] TAr.Lli 01? CONfl^MPORAllY SOVEREIGNS. 2C3 1 I S^2 P !^ S 2 P'S 52 P p p ,2 B ^ ^ 2.t— o -^ K^-^ -•^ ^ «j CO e« K.^ • t— 1 (-H t P k; crh . 1 l-l H-l (— k«. ^-1 >- |_< 1 H-< )— ■ »-• 1 -I -^1-1 "-I ^1 -1 -a 1 ^.^.^1 c; c: *- 4- w i:> 10 1 C^ 4^ 4^ 14) li» H- O O^ CI 1 Ci tt O ^<^^ OOHjh-J ohn V, oseph [aria F o p p P El: o o B ^ CC W p ^ (yi B t-* 3 H-IH-B .-^ Mi* CI .^ r— '.,__i r*- >-> ■^ >— 1 i-J o Q • • <1 •>1 5' o 1 (— 1 • . g ^ ^^- »-' H- H-i f& -l-^I ^1 «-^I --4 ^ •^1 Ci Cc C;« 4- i=5 -lO C5 .^* 'A S-.^ ri t— ' 3 « CD -< H- «-i -1 .-I 1 —I -^1 C; 4^Co cr. lo CT. c: o 1 O -1 2- ' cu^' ""BBoB^gB 55 2b B J:;'B B-2 B ieonoral k 1 lerick 1 sin. - w • • • • 1 t-iH-^^ H- H-t-J 1 — J -^1 --I 1 ^1 ^a -I - 1 -1 -^1 -^T 1 •-] wi ^!.*i -^1 Ci Ci 4:- CO lO lO 1 t— ►— H- rf^COO) O O *"- > « o o o H t> •-H •Tj O O < w I o lO »-- H O OO o EIGHTH PERIOD, FROM THE FRENCH REVOLUTION TO THE PEACE OF PARIS (1789-1815). Francis II. (1702-1806) succeeded bis father in 1792. The French Ee volution commences a new er;i in the history of Germany, of Europe, almost of the workl. The new Emperor entered into an alliance with Frederick William II., King of Prussia, against the French Republic. To anticipate them, the latter hastened to declare war against Austria in 1792. The commencement of 1793 saw the atrocious murder of Louis XVI. (January 21), the sanguinary faction of the Jacobins having got the uppermost. The history of the German states at this period is unim- portant, except in connection with the French Revolution, and the affairs of Pohxnd. The same spirit which i)ro- duced the revolution in France, had penetrated into Germany, and even into its courts. It had animated and influenced Frederick the Great and the Emperor Josei)h II. The vast intellectual movement observable throughout Europe in the last half of the eighteenth century, the upheaving, as it were, and throes of the European mind, had given birth almost to the first Ger- man literature that can be called original and vernacular. The works of most of their distinguished writers began to breathe a spirit of liberty. Salzmann sketched a strik- ing and perhaps exaggerated picture of the political and social evils under which his countiymen laboured. The epic poet, Kloi^stock, gave vent to his aspirations for freedom in several odes. In many of Stolberg's pieces, love of liberty and hatred of tyrants are expressed with 17S0-1815.] THE GERMAN CAMPAIGN OF 1796. 265 a boldness which must have grated strangely on the ears of some of the German sovereigns. Schiller's early tragedies were calculated to have more effect. Yet when the French Revolution broke out, it found no partisan in Schiller. He augured unfavourably of the Constituent Assembly, thought them incompetent to establish, or even to conceive, true liberty ; foretold the catastrophe of a military despotism.* Goethe, his contemporary, regarded the explosion in France as an unwelcome interruption of the tranquil pleasures of polite and cultivated society; Wieland, in his essays on the French Revolution, took the popular side. A more direct form of propagating liberal principles than by literature was by means of clubs and secret societies. Of these latter, one called the Order of Illiuninatl was the most influential. In a few years this society numbered thousands of members, belonging chiefly to the higher classes. Its principles seem not to have threatened any very immediate or alarming danger; never- theless, it was suppressed by Charles Theodore, Elector of Bavaria. In other German states the lUuininati appear to have been left unmolested. Prone to reflection, the German mind is not readily excited to action. Little desire was manifested in Ger- many to imitate the movement in France. It was only in the Rhenish provinces, where the people came into imme- diate contact with the French, and could be assisted by their armies, that any revolutionary spirit was manifested. The German Campaign of 1796.— Only a brief out- line can be given of the somewhat comi)licated campaign of the French against the empire in 1790. The plan of it by Carnot was bold and skilful. Two generals, already dis- tinguished, Jourdan and Moreau, having each from 70,000 to 80,000 men, were to penetrate into Germany, the first by the valley of the Mein; the second, by that of the Necker, in order to reach the basin of the Danube, and descend, from thence, upon the hereditary estates, which the army of Bonaparte, 35,000 strong, menaced by way of Italy. *..•...* .* K. A. Meiizel. Dcr DcutscJien, B. vi., S. 285. 2GG HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD VIIL \\ 1789-1815.] THE GERMAIN CAMPAIGN OF 179(5. 26J Eonaparte had found the French army cantoned upon the bouthem slopes of the Alps and Apennines, where it had struggled with difficulty for four years against the Sardinian and Austrian troops. Instead of wasting its strength among barren rocks, he tried again, by develop- ing it, the manoeuvre which had caused the loss of the camp of Saorgio in 1794, and which, followed up by Massena in 1795, had again profited Scherer by the victory of Loano, in which the Austrian general was crushed and compelled to regain the defiles of the Tyrol, while J3rescia and Salo were recovered by the French. The opening of the cam])aign of 179G by Bonaparte was followed by the most brilliant success. By the promptitude of his manoeuvres and suddenness of his attacks, he completely overcame and separated the army of the Sardinians from that of the Austrians, and forced the King of Sardinia to sign a treaty of peace; and this he followed up by turning his arms against the Austrians, and pursuing them to the north of the Po. Thus the whole of Central Italy lay now open before the Corsican conqueror, and all the princes of that country trembled at his vengeance. They alternately demanded ]>eace and obtained it, but at the sacrifice of millions of money, nume- rous invaluable paintings, together with other treasures of art and precious manii3crii)ts. Meanwhile, great events had likewise transpired in Germany. The forces there had scarcely commenced operations, when already the principal blow was struck in Italy, and the brave old warrior, V/urmscr, was sum- moned from Germany with 30,000 men to the relief of IMantua, the last stronghold of the Austrians in Italy. The French armies, according to Carnot's plan, drawn ui> by order of the French Directory, were now enabled tc penetrate into the heart of the Germanic empire. In August, Jourdan was within only a few days* march of Batisbon, and Moreau was close to Munich, with the army of the Bhine and Moselle; the latter general declared openly that his object was to give his right hand to Bona- parte's army in Italy, and his loft to that of Jourdan, This junction of such overwhelming masses of troops brought with it the most alarming appearances, and this was one of the most critical and dangerous moments for Austria. Nevertheless, the jieril thus threatened was once more diverted by the youthful hero of that imperial house. The Archduke Charles now came forth, and sud- denly marching with his troops against Jourdan, attack- ing him at Neumark (27th August), and at Amberg ou the 24th, beat him so completely that the whole army ol the Sambre and Mouse took to flight, and never halted till it gained the Lower Bhine. Jourdan rallied them at Miihlheim, marched thence to Dusseldorf, and shortly afterwards resigned the connnand. By this disaster, Moreau was forced likewise to make a retreat to the Upper Bhine; and this he effected in such masterly style, that after marching over the most perilous roads through Swabia and the Black Forest, and being continually pur- sued and hemmed in by the enemy, he gained the banks of the Bhine well provided with booty, and bringing with him even a number of prisoners taken on his march. By this admirable retreat, tiie fame of Moreau as a general was permanently established. The leaders on both sides now agreed upon an armistice being concluded on the Bhine during the winter. The Archduke Charles, on whom all eyes were now turned with admiration, received a hastv summons to repair to Italy, in order to reorganise the Austiian army. Wurmser, although successful in several attacks, was only able to throw himself, with a subsidy of 10,000 men, into Mantua; but Bonaparte had now arrived, and, renewing the siege, forced them, on the Gtli of February 1797, to surrender. The Archduke, with a broken-down and dispirited army, was not in a condition to check the progress made by Bonaparte. The latter, after the fall of Mantua, penetrated more and more northwards, crossed the Alps which separate Italy from Carinthia, and rapidly advanced through Styria upon Vienna. But his course, at this time, had been i)ui'sued with too much impetuosity, and 2G8 HISTORV OF GERMANY, [PERIOD Vlll. the situation in wliicli he now found himself was extremely critical. In his front he had the imperial army, whicli, at every retrogressive step, became more and more for- midable, as Vienna had already armed itself, and Hungary was rising en masse. On his left flank, the imperial general, Laudon, was marching in advance against him from the Tyrol; and in his rear, in the vicinity of Trieste, another numerous body of troops, together with the whole of the Venetian territory, were under arms. In this state of things, if Austria had been willing to stake the chances she might have succeeded in annihilating her adversary with one blow. Bonaparte was lost should the Archduke's ])lan of operations meet with the approbation of the Viennese cabinet, and perfectly aware of the fact, he made proposals of peace under pretence of sparing unneces- sary bloodshed. The imperial court, stupefied by the late discomfiture in Italy, acceded to them. Preliminaries of l)eace were concluded at Leoben, by which the French, besides being liberated from their dangerous position, were recognised as victors. The negotiations were con- tinued at Campo Formio, a nobleman's castle near Udine, where the Austrians somewhat regained courage, and Count Cobenzl even ventured to refuse some of the articles proposed. Bonaparte, irritated by oj^position^ dashed a valuable cup, the gift of the Eussian Empress, violently to the ground, exclaiming, "You wish for war? Well! you shall have it, and your monarchy shall be shattered like that cup." The armistice, however, was not interrupted, and hostilities were even suspended on the Bhine (October 1797). Thus Bonaparte, in two campaigns, subjugated Italy; gained fourteen battles; wrested their arms from the grasp of all the states in that quarter ; and, finally, brought over Austria to sign a peace. The Emperor, by this treaty, ceded the Austrian Nether- lands to France, and renounced his Italian possessions, including the capital of Milan, together with several other Italian provinces, which were to form a Cisalpine Bepublic, under the protectorship of Fmnce. In return for this, Austria received Venice, the Venetian Isles, Istria, and 1780-1815.] THE GERMAN CAMPAIGN OF 1706. 2G9 Dalmatia, and engaged to summon, forthwith, a congress at Bastadt, in order to treat, more fully, the several conditions of the peace concluded between the French republic and the Germanic empire. The triumph of the republic was confirmed, and ancient Europe received a new form. The object for which the sovereigns of France had for centuries vainly striven was won by the monarch- less nation; France gained the preponderance in Europe. Italy and the whole of the left bank of the Bhme were abandoned to her arbitrary rule, and this fearful loss, far from acting as a warning to Germany and promoting her nnion, merely increased her internal dissensions,^ and offered to the French republic an oi)portunity for inter- vention, of which it took advantage for purposes of gain and pillage. The principal object of the policy of Bonaparte and ot the French Directory, at that period, was, by rousing the ancient feelings of enmity between Austria and Prussia, to eternalise the disunion between those two monarchies. A coalition of powers was now formed against France, such as had never before been brought into operation : being a union of Bussia, England, Austria, and even Turkey. At the moment when the negotiations with the Germanic empire had as yet made but little progress, and consequently the peace of continental Europe was not yet secured, and when England was maintaining a gloriously victorious struggle on the seas, the flower of the French army, headed by Bonaparte and their best and most suc- cessful leaders, suddenly embarked and set sail towai-ds a distant land. Bonaparte, compelled to veil his ambi- tious projects, judged it more politic, after sowing the seed of discord at Campo Formio, to withdraw awhile, in order to await the ripening of the plot, and to return to reap the result. He accordingly went, meantime (May 1798), with a small but well -picked army to Egypt tor the obstensible purpose of opening a route overknd to India, the sea-passage having been closed agaiiist J^ ranee by the British, but in reality for the purpose of awaitinnr there a turn in Continental affairs. or O 270 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD VTII. During Bonaparte's absence, tlie weakness of the Direc- tory had allowed all the fruits of the peace of Campo Formio to be lost. On the renewal of the war in 1799, at the instigation of the Neapolitan court, the Austrians were assisted by the Eussians, and at the close of the eighteenth century, the tide of affairs seemed to be turn- ing greatly against the French, when a new revolution in the fluctuating govcrnmont of that disturbed people, brought about chiefly by financial difficulties, suddenly changed the fiice of things. Affairs to the Assumption of the Chief Power by Bonaparte (1799-1800).— Only a general idea of the campaign of 1799 can be given. On the Gth March, the French fleet was utterly destroyed by Lord Nelson in tho Bay of Aboukir. The Directory declared war against the Emperor, who had lately formed a coalition with Kussia, England, and Turkey. The French were anxious to obtain possession of the Grison country. At Ostrach and Stockach, Jourdan was defeated by the Archduke Charles. A Russian army, under Suvaroff, entered Italy, and, in union with the Austrians, defeated the French at Cassano, in Lombardy, and drove them to JMilan and Genoa. Alessandria was taken, and the French, under Joubert and Moreau, were routed at Novi. Suvarofi marched into Switzerland, Avhere there had been some severe fighting. Korsakoff* had led another Paissian army into that country. Massena, the French commander, attacked and defeated this last officer, and Zurich was taken by storm. But the retreat of Jourdan rendered these dear-bought successes unavailing; and before the end of March the French were driven back in this quarter by Bellegarde. The Aulic Council at Vienna did them, however, some service by forbidding the Archduke to pursue his victorious career. The Russians, accusing tho Austrians of treason, withdrew from the coalition. Murder of the French Plenipotentiaries at Rastadt. — The advance ot the Austrians had compromised tho safety of French plenipotentiaries at Rastadt, near Baden. Count Metternich, the imperial minister, had announced 1789-1815.] DEFEAT OP THE FRENCH IN ITALY. 271 his recall (April 7), as well as the resolution of the Emperor to annul all that had been done at Rastadt. The congress was thus de facto terminated, as the deputation of the empire could not deliberate in the absence of a represen- tative of the Emperor. Nevertheless the French minister remained. A guarantee of the neutrality of Rastadt, which the Litter endeavoured to obtain from tho com- mander of the Austrian advanced posts at Gernsbach, was refused. On the evening of April 28, the town was occupied by a detachment of Szekler hussars, whose colonel having directed the French ministers to leave it within twenty-four hours. Bonnier, a man of violent temper, persuaded his colleagues to depart at once, though it was already night. Their carriages had scarcely cleared the tov/n when they were surrounded by a party of Szcklers ; Bonnier and Robertjot were sabred; Jean Debry, severely wounded, and left for dead, contrived to get back to Rastadt. Nothing was taken from the French ministers but their portfolios. This atrocious violation of the law of nations created universal indignation and abhorrence in Europe. There could be little doubt that the order iov the crime must have emanated from the cabinet of Vienna, and the presumption was strengthened by the sudden suppression by that cabinet of the judicial inquiry which had been instituted. The Austrians defeat the French in Italy.— Mean- while, the Austrians in Italy reduced Coni (May 19), and invested Genoa. Naples was reached and taken (June 17); scenes of vengeance and massacre ensued, to put an end to which Rufib granted the revolutionists a favour- able capitulation. The French garrison in the castle of St. Elmo surrendered July 5, and on the 27th King Ferdinand IV. re-entered his capital. Every lover of his country, every admirer of her greatest naval hero, must lament that Nelson, who was absent from Naples at tlie time of the capitulation, should have disavowed it on his return, though signed by one of his own captains; that he should have persuaded King Ferdinand to repudiate it, and to condemn to death a great many of the revolu- 272 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD VII. tionists, including Prince Moliterno, Marquis Camccioli, and the Duke ofCassano; nay, that he should have con- verted the quarter-deck of his own vessel into a place of execution. A fiital syren had corrupted for awhile the heart of the victor of Aboukir, and, in the intoxication of unlawful love, had caused him to forget the dictates of humanity and his own glory. Bonaparte Reconquers Italy from the Austrians.— On learning the loss of Italy, and the danger and defeats of France, Bonaparte suddenly quitted Egypt without being recalled, and suddenly reappeared in Paris. The struggle of parties had recommenced with greater violence than ever, and resulted in placing Bonaparte at the head of the republic, with the title of First Consul (29th Dec.) In the following spring tlie brilliant soldier of Areola and Ptivoli crossed the Alps by the Pass of Mont St. Bernard, fell upon the rear of Melas, the Austrian general, and in a single battle (Marengo), reconquered Italy (14th June 1800). This transcendent success, together with the splendid victory of Moreau, at Hohenlinden, over the Archduke John, forced Austria to sign the peace of Lune- ville (9th February 1801), in which Austria recognised Holland, Switzerland, and the noi-tli of Italy as indepen- dent states protected by France, under the names of the Batavian, Helvetic, Ligurian, and Cisalpine Republics, and ceded to the French the entire left bank of the Rliino with four millions of inhabitants. England declares War against France (May 1803). — The treaty of Luneville was rapidly followed by that of Amiens (27th March 1802), by which England con- cluded a peace with France. But this cessation of hostilities lasted little more than a year. England, pre- ferring open war to a hollow peace, resolved to again draw the sword, if necessary, against France, and demanded of Bonaparte the evacuation of Holland and of Switzer- land, and, on his refusal, declared war against him (IMay 1803). No sooner was the English minister's (Mr. Pitt) proclamation issued than the French took possession of Hanover, although it formed a portion of the Germanic ;/ 89- 1815.1 JHE TREATY OF PRESBURG. 273 / /empire, with which they were at peace. After the con- quest of their country, many thousand Hanoverians passed over into England, where they were formed into a brigade called the " King's German Legion," and served with dis- tinction in Spain, Portugal, France, and Italy. Bonaparte chosen Emperor (1804). — In 1802, that energetic general and able administrator. Napoleon Bona- parte seemed to have reached the summit of glory, in having for a second time given peace to France externally. But the climax of his wonderful career had not yet been attained. Internal discord and dangerous innovations in the Tribunal resulted in a declaration from the Senate, urging the First Consul to govern the French Republic as hereditary Emperor by the title of Napoleon I., and the people ratified by their suffrages the establishment of a new dynasty, which, sprung from the revolution, should preserve the principles of it (18th May 1804). But the powerful master of France did not know how to master himself or hold within fixed limits his towering ambition. Created Emperor in France, he became King of Italy (18th March 1805). Austerlitz and the Treaty of Presburg (1805).— The contest with England, as already stated, i-ecommenced in 1803. Russia and Austria again coalesced with that power. Napoleon, with his characteristic impetuosity, burst into Germany in the beginning of Octol3er 1805. VVurtemberg, Baden, and Bavaria joined their forces tc his, and the Duke of Wurtemberg and the Elector of Bavaria were rewarded by his conferring on them the title of King. Ulm surrendered on the 17th of October. On the 21st, the news of a great naval reverse gave pro- found anxiety to the French Emperor. The same day on which the Austrian general evacuated Ulm, after a bloody engagement. Admiral Villeneuve was defeated by Nelson in the sanguinary battle of Trafalgar. The French irmy entered Viemia (November 13). On the 2nd oi December was fought the great battle of Austerlitz, which ended in the complete defeat of the Russians and A^ustrians, and enabled the French Emperor to dictate 274 HISTORY OP GERVAXY. [PERIOD VII \ I7S9-1S15.] CONFEDERATION OF THE RIIIXE. 275 a peace witli Austria.. Soon after this battle, wliicL Napoleon called '' the battle of the three Emperors," a treaty of peace was signed at Presbiirg (26th December 1805), by which Austria gave up the Tyrol to Bavaria, ^ her Swabian possessions to Wurtemberg and Baden, and ^ her Venetian dominions to Bonaparte, as King of Italy. The Emperor of Russia withdrew his troops into his own teiTitories. The King of Prussia, who had remained neutral in this contest, received Hanover as the reward of his neutrality; or, as is most probable, that electorate was confen^ed on him for the pui-pose of placing his interests in opposition to those of the King of England, who, it could not be doubted, would seize the first oppor- tunity of reclaiming his ancient inheritance. Thus rapidly was this coalition dissolved in a short campaign, which proved universally successful, except on that element in which the power of England still reigned without a rival. Encouraged by her naval victory of Trafalgar, England continued the struggle, and decided Prussia to descend into the arena. Confederation of the Rhine — Dissolution of the Germanic Empire.— On the 12th of July 180G, sixteen of the German princes solemnly renounced their fealty to the empire, and formed a league called the Confederation of the Rhine, and placed themselves under the protection of Napoleon. On the 1st of August he declared the German Empire at an end; and five days later, Francis II., on laying aside that dishonoured crown of the ancient empire, which, 1006 years previously, Charlemagne had [)laced on his own brow — assumed the title of Emperor of Austria.* Thus was extinguished, after having lasted * The family from which the imperial dynasty of Austria sprang in the seventh century was that of the House of Hapsburg. Hapsburg was an ancient castle in Switzerland, on a lofty eminence near Schintznach. In 115G, the Margraviate of Hapsburg was made an hereditary duchi/ by the Emperor Frederick I., and, in 1453, it was raised to an archduchy by the Emperor Frederick III. E-odolph, Count of Hapsburg, having been elected Emperor of Germany in 1273, acquired Austria in 1278; and, from 141)3 to 1804, his descendants were Emperors of Germany. so many ages, the Holy Roman Empire, more properly called the Germanic Empire. Prussia, which had been too much alarmed by the rapid progress of the French armies in Germany to dare to break her neutmlity, now entered into a league with Eussia, and took arms to .lescend into the arena. The establishment of the Rhenish Confederation was viewed as at once an attack and an insult upon Prussia. That Confederation completed another great step towards universal domination. Napoleon was now master of Italy and Dalmatia; he had humbled Austria and overturned the first throne of Christendom; he was the Protector and Dictator of a great part of Germany. The epoch of the Austrian war and humiliation of the Emperor was also marked by the deposition of the Pope. The result of this ill-advised attempt of Prussia to avenge an insult by a declaration of war w^as what might have been anticipated. Napoleon replied to the provoca- tion of the Berlin cabinet by a thunderbolt. He gave the allied armies no time to unite their forces, but con- centrating his own great army still in Germany, he fell upon the Prussians. Two terrible blows were struck at Auerstudt and Jena. A portion of the Prussian army was at Auerstiidt, under the command of the Duke of Brunswick; and the other, under the orders of the Prince of Hohenlohe, was stationed at Jena, but both without acting in combination with each other; and they were accordingly attacked and decisively defeated on the same day. Marshal Davoust fought at Auerstadt, and Napoleon m pei^on at Jena. In a month (8th November), the Prussian monarchy had ceased to exist. Ten days after the battle of Jena, Napoleon marched into Berlin, and from Potsdam he took the sword of Frederick the Great. Encouraged by his success, he declared in Berlin that he would never give up that city until he had conquered a general peace; and it was from that same city he issued the decree (21st November 180G) against the English, by which the British Islands were declared in a state of blockade, British manufactures excluded from all the \ y / 274 HISTORY OP GERMAXY. [PERIOD VII I L ^ a peace with Austria. Soon after this battle, which Nai)oleon called ''the battle of the three Emperors," a treaty of peace was signed at Presburg (26th December 1805), by which Austria gave up the Tyrol to Bavaria, her Swabian possessions to Wurtemberg and Baden, and her Venetian dominions to Bonaparte, as King of Italy. The Emperor of Russia withdrew his troops into his own teiTitories. The King of Prussia, who had remained neutml in this contest, received Hanover as the reward of his neutrality; or, as is most probable, that electorate was conferred on him for the pui7)ose of placing his interests in opposition to those of the King of England, who, it could not be doubted, would seize the first oppor- tunity of reclaiming his ancient inheritance. Thus rapidly was this coalition dissolved in a short campaign, which proved universally successful, except on that element in which the power of England still reigned without a rival. Encouraged by her naval victory of Trafalgar, England continued the struggle, and decided Prussia to descend into the arena. Confederation of the Rhine — Dissolution of the Germanic Empire.—On the 12th of July 180G, sixteen of the German princes solemnly renounced their fealty to the empire, and formed a league called the Confederation of the Rhine, and placed themselves under the protection of Napoleon. On the 1st of August he declared the German Empire at an end; and five days later, Francis II., on laying aside that dishonoured crown of the ancient empire, which, 1006 yeai^ previously, Charlemagne had placed on his own brow — assumed the title of Emperor of Austria.* Thus was extinguished, after having lasted * The family from wliicli the imperial dynasty of Austria sprang in the seventh century was that of the House of Hapsburg. Hapsburg was an ancient castle in Switzerland, on a lofty eminence near Schintznach. In 1156, the Margraviate of Hapsburg was made an hereditary duchij by the Emperor Frederick I., and, in 1453, it was raised to an archduchy by the Emperor Frederick III. Rodolph, Count of Hapsburg, having been elected Emperor of Germany in 1273, acquired Austria in 1278; and, from 141)3 to 1804, his descendants were Emperors of Germany. \ I7S9-1S15.] CONFEDERATION OF THE RHINE. 275 SO many ages, the Holy Roman Empire, more properly called the Germanic Empire. Prussia, which had been too much alarmed by the rapid progress of the French armies in Germany to dare to break her neutrality, now entered into a league with Russia, and took arms to descend into the arena. The establishment of the Rhenish Confederation was view^ed as at once an attack and an insult upon Prussia. That Confederation completed anothergreat step to^vards universal domination. Napoleon was now master of Italy and Dalnijitia; he had humbled Austria and overturned the first throne of Christendom; he w^as the Protector and Dictator of a great part of Germany. The ej^och of the Austrian war and humiliation of the Emperor was also marked by the deposition of the Pope. The result of this ill-advised attempt of Prussia to avenge an insult by a declaration of war w^as what might have been anticipated. Napoleon replied to the provoca- tion of the Berlin cabinet by a thunderbolt. He gave the allied armies no time to unite their forces, but con- centrating his o^vn great army still in Germany, he fell upon the Prussians. Two terrible blows were strjuck at Auerstadt and Jena. A portion of the Prussian army was at Auerstadt, under the command of the Duke of Bnmswick; and the other, under the orders of the Prince of Hohenlohe, was stationed at Jena, but both without acting in combination with each other; and they w^ere accordingly attacked and decisively defeated on the same day. Marshal Davoust fought at Auerstadt, and Napoleon in pei^son at Jena. In a month (8th November), the Prussian monarchy had ceased to exist. Ten days after the battle of Jena, Napoleon marched into Berlin, and from Potsdam he took the sword of Frederick the Great. Encouraged by his success, he declared in Berlin that he would never give up that city until he had conquered a general peace; and it was from that same city he issued the decree (21st November 1806) against the English, by which the British Islands were declared in a state oi blockade, British manufactures excluded from all the 276 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [I'ERIOD VIII. continental ports, all British property on the continent, and vessels that had only even touched on the shores of Albion, were to bo seized. As Nai)oleon could not reach England with the sword, he thought to crush her by stifling her commerce. But the results, as it turned out, were more injurious to the continent. A similar decree was issued from Milan. ROYAL PALACE, BEELIN'. Battles of Eylau and Friedland.— From Prussia, Napoleon marched soon afterwards against the Eussian armies in Poland. There too he was succes.sful, after a long and harder contest, defeating them at Eylau (8th February 1807), and at Friedland (14th June). The Emperor Alexander then entered into negotiations, and a peace was concluded at Tilsit, on the Niemen (July 7). By the terms of this peace the King of Prussia was stripped of almost half his dominions. These spoils of Prussia were given to Saxony and Westphalia, two new kingdoms now created by Napoleon. In the electorate of Saxony the Elector was made King, and Prussian 1789-1815.] MSING IJJ PORTUGAL AND St>AW. 277 Poland was added to his dominions. Jerome Bonaparte was made King of Westphalia. Having made these dis- positions. Napoleon returned in triumph to Pans beanng with him the sword of Frederick the Great, and the car with its bronze hoi-ses which had ornamented the i>ran- denburg gate of Berlin. . Conquests of Napoleon.— Nai)oleons empire, whicli extended from the mouths of the Elbe to those ot the Tiber included 130 departments. This was the moment of his greatest ascendancy. Every power of the contmciit that had dared to resist the arms of France was at t.i is time prosti-ated by continual defeats. Liigland aloiio remained inaccessible. The invasion of that country w.as a favourite project with the daring and brilliant con- queror: but a project much too dangerous to be attemptcil without first acquiring a great maritime power. Ho therefore had recourse to the system, already mentioned, which has been commonly called the continental blockade. Russia and Denmark took part witli him m this policy, which required them to break ofi' all communication witi. England: and at length those powers joined Fmncc open.y in the war. This juncture discloses also a new scene ot events which, necessarily withdraws attention, for a short time, from the politics of the nortliem powers ot ■^"Thr'Risinff in Portugal and Spain.-Portugal refus- in- to associate herself with this new policy. Napoleon, in'concert with diaries IV., King of Spain, sent an amy under Junot to invade Portugal, and drive the English one of her oldest allies, out of that kingdom Tlie Prince Recent of Portugal sailed for Brazil, and the Frend t oops took posses^sion of Lisbon (30tli November 18.M ^ Durin" these opei-ations, the court of Madrid presented to the worid a most sorrowful spectacle. . ^e hereditary prince was conspiring against his father influenced by an unworthy favourite; and the King invoked the aid of the French Emperor. Napoleon met the King ami Pnnce at Bavonne and decided the old monarch to abdicate m bisfthe Emperor's, favour (9th May 1808), who placed 278 illSTOUY OF GEHMANY. LPElllOD VIII. on tlie throne his brother Joseph, King of Naples. This attempt to lay hands upon Spain was Napoleon's greatest fault, and one of the causes of tlie fall of the empii-e. The Spaniards, indignant at the insult oflfered to their country by thus elevating a foreigner to the throne, rose with enthusiasm to repel the intrusion. Imploring the aid of England, an English army, under the command of Sir Arthur Wellesley (afterwards Marquis and Duke of Wellington), was promptly dispatched to assist these struggles in the Peninsula. Junot was forced to evacuate Portugal, and nearly at the same time Joseph quitted Madrid. In November 1808, however, Napoleon him- self entered Spain, and soon made himself master of the greater part of the country. Madrid submitted to him, December 4. Austria rises against Napoleon. — In spite of the success with which the French arms had thus been almost everywhere crowned, the resistance they had met with in Spain taught the Emperor of Austria how much might be effected by the swords of a united people, and awakened the slumbering spiiit of the other powers of the continent. The natives of Germany, it was hoped, thoroughly weary of the French yoke, would patriotically answer the sum- mons of Austria. The commercial interests of the whole of Europe were almost ruined by the effect of those decrees which precluded, or at least extremely embar- rassed, the trade with England ; and the Emj^eror Francis was impatient under his i)ast losses, and eager to redeem them. In the spring of 1809, the Tyrol revolted. The Westphalians expelled King Jerome from his new domin- ions, and it was believed that Pnissia was ready to take advantage of the first reverses of Napoleon to join her forces to those of the Austrians. Unhappily the move- ments of Austria were so slow as to allow Napoleon time to return from Madrid into Germany, and place himself at the head of the Khenish Confederacy. " I come not," he said, "as Emperor of France — I stand here as the protector of your land and of the German league. Not a French soldier is among us. Alone you shall beat the enemy." 1780-1815.] THE RUSSIAN CAMPAIGN. 272 In the month of April 180D, Napoleon five times defeated the Austrians, gainmg successive victories at Eckmuhl and Essling; a second time took possession of Vienna; and, though beaten in a terrible engagement at Asperne. where, for the first time, Napoleon was completely over- thrown, he, a short time afterwards, conquered at the bloody battle of Wagram (6th July). He then dictated a peace, called the Peace of Schonbriin, which was signed, October 14, 1809. Napoleon at the Summit of Power (1810-1812).— The Continent was now again prostrate at the feet oi Napoleon. The Tyrol was given up to devastation; the Pope dethroned; Bernadotte, a French general, was elected successor to the throne of Sweden; and Louis, King of Holland, although brother to the French Emperor, yet being thought to allow of a freer intercourse with England than the jealousy of Napoleon would tolerate, was dispossessed of his kingdom, and the Dutch territories were incorporated with France. Now also Napoleon allied himself by marriage with the most ancient and illustrious house in Europe. He divorced the Empress Josephine, and was united to Marie Louisa, Archduchess of Austria, a daughter of the Emperor Francis II. (March 11,1810). In the following year the birth of a son (March 20), to whom was given the title of King of Rome, swelled to the utmost the tide of his prosperity. The Russian Campaign (1812).— By the Peace of Schonbriin, Napoleon had reached such a climax of suc- cess, that all hope appeared then lost of ever seeing his power broken. But even amidst all the glory and triumph and prosperity which he enjoyed during the brief interval aftbrded by this peace, a new war was preparing. The Emperor of Bussia, during the French campaign against Austria, which ended in the disaster of Wagram, main- tained the alliance he had contracted at Tilsit, though lie repented of a policy which appeared daily to add new strength to the overbearing power of France. In the latter part of 1810, he renewed his intercourse with Eng- land ; and during that year both he and Napoleon pre- 2S0 niSTOIlY OP GERMANr. [PERIOD VIlI. nso-isi5.] THE GERMAN CAMPAIGN. 281 pared for a contest, which, through the latter's rashness and unprincipled ambition, was destined to prove the chief cause of his min, by enabling Germany to cast off" the yoke he had imposed upon her. Already his arms were no longer invincible. In Spain, Junot, Massena himself, had not been able to conquer Portugal, and General Dupont had signed his disgraceful capitulation of Baylen. The hopes of his enemies brightened, and En^^land once more succeeded in detaching Eiissia from his alliance. To constrain that power to re-enter the system of the continental blockade, Napoleon entered upon the rashest of entei-prises. On the 24th June 1812, he crossed the Niemen, at the head of 450,000 men. He thereupon issued a proclamation," in which he declared war against Eussia. The expedition appeared at first to succeed. The Russians were everywhere beaten; at Witepsk, at Smolensk, at Yaloutina. On the 7th September, he engaged in a great battle with the Eussian army, near Borodino, a viUage in the environs of Moscow. This sanguinary battle proved indecisive, but, a few days afterwards, Kutusoff, the Eussian general, thought it expedient to retreat and deliver up Moscow, the second capital of the empire, to Napoleon, which city the Eussian governor caused to be set on fire on quitting it. Napoleon had thus far triumphed, but this was the term fixed by Providence of his success. He installed himself inauspiciously in the Kremlin (the ancient palace of the Czars), when the flames of the burnt city had exhausted themselves. But the Eussian power was still unbroken; his communication with France would soon be cut oft'; and the vast armies of the enemy advance on liim in the spring. All this was obvious. Yet he hoped that the eclat of his conquest would now induce Alexander to seek for peace. Failing in this hope, he himself pro- posed to negotiate; but was answered promptly, that no terms could be entered into while an enemy remained in the Eussian temtories. After twice renewing the same proposal, and with the same ill success, Napoleon, though in the face of a Eussian winter, which that year com- menced earlier than ordinary, determined to begin his retreat. The circumstances of that calamitous retreat are well known. A great part of the army, all the horses, all the baggage, perished or were abandoned, either amidst the snow, or in the disastrous passage of the Beresina. Napoleon himself, on the 5th December, set out on a sledge for Paris, whilst the relics of his army arrived on the 12th at Kowno, the same place where, six months before, they had crossed the Niemen in their invasion of Eussia. How different the state in which they now re- crossed it ! Of half a million of men, including Prussians and Austrians, who are supposed to have engaged in this disastrous expedition, not 50,000, it is calculated, escaped death or captivity. However, those of the soldiers who still remained in arms resisted every attempt to disperse them, and Napoleon, on reaching Paris, made immense preparations towards repairing his losses. But it was all over with the prestige of his invincible power. All his allies turned one after another against him. General York, who commanded thci Prussian army had no sooner gained the frontiers of his own country than he abandoned the French, and proposed to the King that he should immediately join the Eussians; a suggestion which Frederick William adopted without hesitation, in the hope that was now given of crushing for ever the insatiable ambition of the French Emperor. Sweden also acceded to this new coalition, but Austria showed much tergiversation. The German Campaign— Battles of Gross-Beeren and Lutzen.— Though France was able to march a very large and powerful force into Germany early in the spring, new enemies had arisen in the meantime. The coalition confronted Napoleon with 500,000 soldiers, 1500 guns, and a reserve, ready to bring into line, of 250,000 more. Two Frenchmen were in its ranks : the Prince-royal of Sweden, Bernadotte, and the victor of Hohenlinden, Moreau, who, at the invitation of the Empress of Eussia, had returned from America to aim a deadly blow against / 2S^ 11 [STORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD VllJ. his countiy.* Nevertheless, Napoleon was stUl alert and intrepid. On May 2, 1813, he gained a victory over the Russians and Prussians at Lutzen. On the 20th and 21st, lie gained another at Bautzen. The Emperor of Austria then proposed a mediation. An armistice wag concluded on the 4th June, and a congi-ess assembled at Prague to take into consideration terms of peace. The terms proposed were, that the French empire should be bounded by the Alps, the Eliino, and the Mouse, and that the German States should be restored to their indejjend- ence. These terms were positively rejected by Bonaparte, and the armistice terminated August 10. Immediately afterwards Austria joined the confederates. The French Emperor had upon the Elbe and under hand only 360,000 men; still, however, presuming too far upon his strength, notwithstanding the inequality of numbers, and that his battalions were mostly filled by conscripts, he dared to threaten at one and the same time Berlin, Breslau, and Prague; which enfeebled him at hi? centre, at Dresden, where, however, in a great battle near that city on the 26th and 27th August, Napoleon defeated the allies and compelled them to retreat. But whilst the great army of Bohemia was in disorderly flight across the mountains whence it had descended, Napoleon learned that Macdonald had just sustained a disaster at Katzbach (26th-29th August), and that Oudinot had been beaten on the 23rd at Gross-Beeren, upon his march to Berlin, and that Bavaria had joined the coalition. These bad tidings prevented him from following up in person the pursuit of the defeated army and overwhelming it. Van- damme, operating in Bohemia, but not being supported, was crushed at Kulm (30th August), which nullified the victory at Dresden by leaving to the Austrians the bul- wark of the Bohemian Mountains, with the facility of issuing therefrom at will in order to turn the right of the * AVhilst Moreau was in the act of indicating to the Emperor Alexander a certain niananivre to be carried out, a cannon ball from Napoleon's artillery of the guard broke both liia thi<'ha. He died four days afterwards. ° 1789-1815.] TUE GERMAN CAiirAIG>r. 283 French army. The defeat of Macdonald had lost Silesia and brought Bliicher into Saxony; that of Oudinot and another sustained by Ney at Dennewitz (6th September), in attempting to re-open the road to Berlin, allowed Bernadotte to reach Wittenberg, whence he joined hands with Bliicher. Davout, who was already in the middle of Mecklenburg, where he had taken Wismar, was forced to follow the general movement of retreat beyond the Elbe. Thus, from Wittenberg to Toeplitz, the forces of the coalition formed a segment of a circle bristling with 300,000 sabres and bayonets threatening the front of the French, at the same time that its extremities made efforts to join I'anks in the rear of Napoleon, with the intention of cutting off his return to France. Thus brought to bay, the French Emperor once again attempted to cut his way through the encircling enemy. On Na2)oleon concentrat- ing his forces round Leipzic, that city being in the occu- pation of the French, the allied army was immediately formed into a crescent, having a single 02)ening to the south-west, which they intended to fill up on the arrival of the Swedish army, under Bernadotte, and the Russian and Austrian divisions of Bennigsen and Colloredo. With such dispositions, Bonaparte resolved to stand the hazard of a general engagement, and on the IGth of Oct. was fought what the Germans have called the Battle of the Nations — a conflict the most murderous of modern history; 190,000 Frenchmen sustaining, during three days, the furious attacks of 133,000 allied enemies. The Saxons and Wurtemberg cavalry went over to the enemy upon the field of battle, and fired their cannon already loaded with French balls uj)on the French soldiery. So great was the vibration caused by the discharge of at least 1200 pieces of artillery, that "the ground shook and reeled as with an earthquake." At the end of the third day's struggle the reserves of the French artillery were exliausted, there remaining munitions for only 15,000 discharges, that is to say, for two hours' further combat; and the numbers of their enemies were incessantly increas- ing. As in 1812, the great captain was compelled to fall 284 llISTOIlY O^ (SfillMAS*^. [PERtOt) Villi back without having been conquered, which voluntary retreat became a disaster; so in 1813 also that retreat involved a catastrophe only less calamitous than that of Moscow, because a less distance was to be crossed before he could reach a place of safety; and because he had not now to contend with the climate of Russia, or with the hardships of a rigorous season. Napoleon, with a view not to reveal too plainly his intentions, had not caused bridges to be thrown over the Elster and Pleisse ; one only, long and narrow, had been constmcted at the divided branches of the two rivers. Therefrom arose a great obstacle to the crossing of the troops, delay, and then a fatal error. Soon after Napoleon had crossed, a miner blew up the Elster bridge before the last division of the army with two marshals and many commanders of corps had cleared it; so that 25,000 men were in consequence cut to pieces, taken prisoners by the allies, or drowned in the river. Macdonald swam across it; Lauriston and Eeynier were made prisoners; the valiant Poniatowsky, after fighting bravely until the streets of Leipzic were strewn with the bodies of his soldiers, retreated towards the Elster; but finding the bridge destroyed, he tried tu swim his horse across the stream. But the bank being steep on the other side, the horse, in attempting to clear it., fell back on his rider, and both were drowned. Soon alter the evacuation by the French, the two Emperors and the King of Prussia entered Leipzic, amidst the acclamations of the grateful citzens (19th October). On the 7th November, Napoleon crossed the llhine at Mentz, and two days afterwards arrived in Paris. Campaign of 1814— Invasion of France.— Another period of war was about to scourge the nations of Europe. Yet the naked sword of vengeance was now visibly sus- pended over the head of that iron-hearted man, whose insatiable ambition still urged him to further sacrifice to it innumerable victims. Napoleon had scarcely crossed the Rhine when the whole of the Rhenish confederacy abandoned him— an example soon followed by Holland, Switzerland, and Italy. The tide of war, which since tho h\ 17891815.] INVASION OP FRANCE 285 revolution had overflowed Germany and the surrounding nations, was now rolled back on France itself. At the commencement of 1814, four armies invaded that country . from different quarters, and advanced into the heart of France. On the 1st January, Bliicher crossed the Rhine with the Prussian army of the centre, that nation bringing into the field 130,000''men, the Austrians and Russians, advancing on the Swiss frontier, 150,000; Bernadotte with 100,000 by way of the Netherlands. At the same time the Austrians had another army in Italy. Murat, King of Naples, also joined the confederates, and Lord Wellington was already upon French territory with 80,000 English, Spaniards, and Portuguese.^ Finally, the German Empire placed on foot from 150,000 to 160,000 men, in eight divisions. Half a million of men at least, therefore, were steadily about to hem in the French army, whilst the forces of the latter could not have amounted to so much as half the strength of its adversaries. Opposed by so many and such formidable foes. Napoleon appeared not to lose either his courage or his military genius. He disconcerted the allies by the rapidity of his movements, and gained several brilliant successes; which, though they did not carry with them any lasting advan- tage, made his enemies still doubtful of the result. On the 29th of January, Blucher was attacked by Napoleon near Brienne so suddenly that he narrowly escaped being taken prisoner. Negotiations for a peace were however commenced at Chatillon early in February 1814; but the insincerity which marked the conduct of the French com- missioners prevented them from coming to any conclusion. Napoleon had at length beaten his enemies into the art of conquering, so that whilst he was manoBuvring in their rear, the Prussians and Austrians made a rush on Paris, which fell almost without resistance, capitulated (30th March), and the Senate decreed the imperial crown for- ieited, and the empire fallen. Napoleon abdicated (11th April), and Louis XVIII. was recalled from exile to ascend the throne of his ancestors. The ex-Emperor had 286 HISTORY OP GERMAXY. [PERIOD VIII« 1789-1815.] BATTLE OF WATERLOO. 287 assigned to him tlie island of Elba as an independent sovereignty, with a pension of two millions of fiancs. Tho duchies of Parma and Placentia were settled on his wife and son. The Peace of Paris.— On the 4th May 1814, the whito banner of the Bourbons replaced the tricolor of Austerlitz, and, on the 30th of the same month, Talleyrand, the real head of the provisional government, signed with the allies a convention, with the view of afibrding France the benefits of peace before a regular treaty could be pre- ]^ared. The allies, by their celebrated Declciration of Fmnhfort (1st December 1813), had announced their wish to see France great, powerful, and happy, because she was one of the corner stones of the Euro] )ean system ; and they agreed, therefore, to evacuate the French terri- tory, according to the ancient limits of it, on January 1, 1792, but with some few additions, partly in the Nether- lands, and partly in Savoy. The terms, indeed, were so highly f\ivourable to France that tlie veteran Bliicher, amongst some other provisions, protested vehemently but ineffectually against the French being allowed to retail, the German provinces of LoiTaine and Alsace. Thus vanished with the stroke of a pen the fruits of twenty years of bloodshed and conquest ! Congress of Vienna— The Return from Elba- The Hundred Days (20th March- 22nd June).— In order to settle the general affairs of Europe, it had been deter- mined to assemble a Congress at Vienna, which was formally opened November 1, 1814. While the leading powers were thus endeavouring to restore Europe to its ancient system, an event occurred which threatened to render all their deliberations useless. Napoleon, esca})ing from Elba with 900 of his veterans, landed near Cannes, in the Gulf of Juan, March 1, 1815. The army every- where declared in his favour, and almost the whole of the civil authoiities readily acknowledging his cause, Napoleon was thus once more seated on his abdicated throne by the most rapid transition known in history (20th March). The news of this event fell like a thunderbolt amoni; the \ )i I statesmen assembled at Vienna. The allied powers a-ree- ing unanimously that they would have neither peace'nor truce with the violator of treaties, it became evident, tJierefore that there must be another appeal to the sword and both parties made the most gigantic preparations. Ihe thi^ee allied sovereigns and the Prince Ee-ent of England launched afresh 800,000 men against France, and i^laced Bonaparte under the ban of the nations. -a VIENNA. The usurper had tried to rally round him the liberals, by proposing institutions of a nature favourable to liberty* and similar to those of Louis's constitutional charter! But he clearly saw that his real strength lay in his army; and it w\as plain, that if victory should restore his authority, all the national and civil institutions would again bend before his v/ill. The Campaign of Four Days— Battle of Waterloo (18th June 1815).— About the middle of April, Bliiclier marched into the Netherlands and established liis head- quarters at Li6ge, and early in June he found himself at 283 I niSTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD VIII. the head of an army of 117,000 men, with which he occupied the country between the Sambre and the Meuse, while the Duke of Wellington with 100,000 occupied the whole of Flanders from Brussels to the sea. Napoleon, with his characteristic decision and promptitude, put him- self at the head of 150,000 selected troops, and rapidly advanced against the Prussians. In the afternoon of the 16th, Napoleon, with 124,000 men, advanced to attack Bliicher's position at Ligny. The Prussians fought with their accustomed bi-avery, and for five houi^s maintained their ground; but at about seven o'clock in the evening, a vigorous charge, lead by Napoleon in person, threw their infantry into irretrievable disorder. Bliicher, at the head of his light cavalry, now attacked the heavy French dragoons; but as he galloped forward, cheering on his men, his horse, struck by a cannon-ball, fell to the ground, crushing the rider beneath its body. The remnant of his army retreated in tolerable order, and left no troi)hy to the enemy but the field of battle. On the same day at Quatre Bras, Marshal Ney had a severe sti-uggle with the English, under the Prince of Orange, in wJiich neither party gained complete superiority. In this action the Duke of Brunswick was killed — the son of that duke who had commanded the Prussian army in the war which broke out at the commencement of the revolution. Both these actions are memorable as the precursors of the decisive battle which followed on the 18tli, at Waterloo, and which terminated for ever Napoleon's eventful career. Never, perhaps, was any defeat more bloody or more disastrous than that w^hich lie was there destined to sustain. He had issued his orders, and viewed the battle from a convenient distance ; and an officer who stood near him affirmed that *' his astonishment at the resistance of the British was extreme; his agitation became violent ; he took snuff by handfuls at the repulse of each charge." At last, he took the officer by the arm, saying, " The affair is over — we have lost the day — let us be off!" In this heartless mannei*, and thinking only of himself, Napoleon abandoned an 1789-1815.] THE GERMANIC CONFEDERATION'. 289 army which was wholly devoted to him. Such was that campaign of four days. The defeated Emperor reached Paris on the 20th June and again abdicated in favour of his son (22nd) On the 29th he set out for Rochefort, in the hope of escaping to America; but finding that it was impossible to baffle the vigilance of the English cruisers, he surrendered himself to Captain Maitland, of the Bellerophon. When the allies I were informed of this event, they decided that he should ) be sent as a prisoner to the Island of St. Helena, in the / Southern Atlantic. There he died (5th May 1821) The advance of the allied army on Paris was unob- structed, and altogether a victorious march. On the Ttli July the city surrendered, and on the 8th Louis XVIII re-entered it. Thus closed finally that succession of revolutions which had distracted Europe for a period of twenty-five years Peace was again restored nearly on the basis of the treaty which had been contracted the year before, but with some resumption of territory by the allies on the frontiers of the Netherlands, of Germany, and of Savoy, all the provinces of Germany being restored which had beloni^ed to her before the revolution, and had been torn from her during the wars that followed it. It was also provided that an allied army of 150,000 men should occupy, for the s^mce of three or five years, a line of fortresses from Cambray to Alsace; the possession of which would enable them, in any case of necessity, to march upon Paris with- out o])iiosition. This army was to be maintained wholly ^^n nnn^'i!?^'''^ ""^ ^'■'^''^^' ^""'^ ^^*^^^^c« ^Sreed also to pay / 00,000,000 of francs, to be divided in different portions among the allied powers, as a partial indemnification for the expenses of this last contest. Tlie definitive treaty was signed at Paris on the 20th November, 1815 The Germanic Confederation (1814-1815).— At a crveat congress of all the European powers opened at Vienna, a confederation of thirty-eight German states was formed under the auspices of the Holy Alliance (or league of the three- great continental sovereigns), for purposes of mutual T I / Il % 290 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD VIII. protection; each state being rcqnired to fiirnisli a con- tingent of troops proportionate to the number of its inhabitants, but being in all other respects free and indc- l)endent. That army was to consist of 300,000 men, of whom Austria was to furnish 94,000; Prussia, 79,000; Bavaria, 35,000; Wurtemberg, 13,G00; Hanover, 13,000; Saxony, 12,000; Baden, 10,000; Hesse-Darmstadt, 6000; Hesse-Cassel, 5i00; and the other states in the same proportion. Their general a flairs were to be discussed at a Diet sitting at Frank for t-on-the-Main, under the presi- dency of the Emperor of Austria. In a congress held at Aix-la-Chapelle in the autumn of 1818, it was resolved l)y the allied monarclis to withdraw their army, as no longer necessary for the maintenance of order in Fi'ance. Subsequent congresses were held at Tropj^au in 1819, Leibach in 1821, and Verona in 1822, for the ]mrposo of settling the affairs of Greece, Naples, and Spain. 17S0-1S15.] TABLE OF CONTEMPORARY SOVEREIGNS. 291 00 a> o o 00 "^ o w ►-^.^ f^ •^ <^ S K' '—' ^ ^ o o t->. h- M > k— 1 |_i ^-JT CO o 1 i>:^o ^a O C;- - 2 ^ ^ >-•• I— 1 s o p CO CO o GO p (T> O o ?i 5* t— O 'O Ci 4-^ to M Hj ooo Htf^ P en 03 M ci- ef CC CQ aviis I avusA les XI -1-1 1— 1 k-t • •13 o t— 1 . hH w • hH* '^i • . tli, and tho Austrians crossed the Ticino. On the 27th, French troops entered 1 ledmont, and on May 3, the French Emperor declared >var to ex] cl the Austrians from Italy 1SIG-1S71.] THE LIBERATION OF ITALY. 301 ii doned their first line of defence, and retired upon the Adda, after having vainly made a momentary stand at a spot already famous — Marignan, and upon the Mincio, beyond the celebrated plains of Castiglione, between the two strong fortresses of Peschiera and Mantua. The Austrian army then thought itself posted in an inexpug- nn.ble position — the great quadrilateral of Yerona. There the Emperor of Austria, with a new general and con- siderable reinforcements, had come to await the French. The Austrians had long studied this strategic battle-field. They were then 160,000 strong upon the heights, over- looking the village and tower of Solferino, ready to sweep down ujion the plain. Napoleon III. had scarcely 140,000 men in hand, and was obliged to fight upon a line of five leagues in extent. Whilst the right wing struggled against the enemy in the })lain, to avoid being turned, and King Victor Emmanuel with his Piedmontese resisted bravely on the left, the centre made a vigorous attack, and, after an heroic struggle, carried successively Mont Fenile, Mont des Cypres, and lastly the village of Solferino. The enemy's line was broken and his reserves reached, before they could engage, by the balls of the new rifled cannon. Thereupon ensued a frightful pell-mell; but at the same time a terrific storm, accompanied by hail and torrent-like rain, stopped the victors, and enabled the Austrians to recross the Mincio, leaving 25,000 behind them. The Emperor Napoleon took up his quarters that evening in the same chamber which had been occupied in the morning by Francis Joseph (24th June 1859). Great excitement arose in Germany in consequence of the French successes in Lombardy, and which led to a meeting of the French Emperor and the German sove- reigns at Baden, as well as of the Czar and Emperor of Austria, and the PvOgent of Prussia at Tceplitz, in the year following. A meeting was also held at Cobui-g in favour of German unity against French aggression (Sept. 5, 1860). Results of the Liberation of Italy.— Twice a con- 302 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD IX. 1816-1871.] PRUSSIAN AGGRESSION. 303 queror, Napoleon III. had suddenly made an offer of peace to his Austrian foe. Italy was free, although a ])ortion of the Italian territory, Venice, still remained in the hands of Austria. Euroj^e, astounded by these rapid victories, could not conceal its newly awakened jealousy. The French Emperor thought he had done enough for Italy by driving back the Austrian across the Mincio, whose forces had so shortly previous occupied the banks of the Ticino, and he signed with Francis Joseph, at Villafranca, a peace the principal conditions of whicli were confirmed at the close of that year by the treaty ot Zurich. By that peace Austria abandoned Lombardy with which France aggi'andised Piedmont, in order to secure to herself a faithful ally on the other side of the Alps. The Mincio became the Ijoundary of Austria in the Peninsula, the several states of which it was proposed shoidd form a great confederation under the presidency of the Pope. But this plan was rejected by all parties interested in it, and the revolutionary movement con- tinued. The Emperor confined himself to preventing Austria from intervening. Then the go^ernments of Parma, Modena, the Boman Legations, Tuscany, and Naples, which, since 1814, had been nothing more than lieutenances of Austria, were seen successively to collapse; and Italy was free to form one kingdom only, minus Bome and Venice. All the European powers, however, have subsecpiently recognised the unity of the Italian Peninsula, including the two last-mentioned cities.* Prussian Aggression. — During the dispute between Prussia and Denmark respecting the rights of Holstcin * 111 Milan there is a lofty monument, originally reared by tlio first Napoleon, called the Arco delta Pao'. This triumphal arch was afterwards degraded by paltry trophies and fulsome pane- gyrics of an Austrian Kaiser. These have now been replaced by an inscription uHsurpassed for pathos and nobility by any sculptured stone in Europe — the purport of which is, that when Napoleon III. and Victor Emmanuel II. entered the capital of Lombardy as liberators, ** Exulting Milan tore from those marbles the emblems of slavery, and wrote up instead that Italy waa and Sleswick, King Frederick William IV. died (Jan. 2, 18G1), and was succeeded by his brother, William I., the present Emperor of Germany. Prussia, which, since Frederick the Great, had dreamed of reconstituting the German empire, knew well that she could not realise that object, so threatening to Europe, until after the military hiuniliation of France, and she now prepared the means for it with increased and untiring perseverance. Events were rapidly hastening on to " raise Prussia into Germany." Irritation between the Prussian and Austrian Governments. — Early in March 18G6, a feeling of great irritation had si^rung up between the govern- ments of Austria and Prussia, the ostensible cause of v/hich was the question of the occupation of the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein by Prussia, but the real reason was the rivalry between the two powers, each of whicli aspired to rule Germany, and found herself checked and thwarted by the other. Italy made no secret of her wish to come to hostilities with Austria, and made active war- like preparations for a contest which she was resolved to precipitate. This justilied Austria in increasing her armaments, but Prussia chose to take oilence at her pro- ceedings, and she assumed that the increase of the military Btrength of Austria was intended as a menace against herself. The truth is, that Count Bismarck was only too glad to find a pretext for quarrelling with Austria, and thus enable him to execute, at the risk of failure and ruin, the ambitious schemes of aggrandisement which ho had long cherished for his country. On the 24th March the Prussian government sent a circular despatch to the minor German states, pointing out the necessity of their coming to an immediate decision as to which of the two powers, Prussia or Austria, they would side with in the struggle which the armaments {join*:' on in Austria seemed to render imminent. Several of the states thus appealed to answered by referring to the 11th clause of the Federal Act, by which war between Oerman governments, members of the JSumlj was pro- » i 304 HISTORY OF GERMANY [PERIOD IX. 181G-IS71.] AUSTRIA SURRENDERS VENETIA. 305 liibitecl, and a pacific mode of settling disputes provided. The Bavarian government said in their reply, that a federal state which, by disregarding those provisions, attempted to do itself justice, and declare war against another federal state, must be considered as having violated the Federal Constitution. Yet, when shortly afterwards, the helmets of Prussia shone over a prostmte Confederation, remarkable moderation was shown in the treatment of Bavaria by the court of Berlin. In the result, 17 out of the 33 states that formed the Bund seceded from it, and all the minor northern states, with the exception of the elder House of Reuss, made common cause with Prussia. Secret Treaty between Italy and Prussia against Austria. — Before the end of March, a secret treaty of alli- ance was entered into between Prussia and Italy, the terms of which, so far as they were known, show how resolved the two countries were to engage in wiTi- with Austria. According to these, Italy engaged to declare war against Austria as soon as Prussia should have either declared war or committed an act of hostility. Prussia engaged to carry on the war vmtil the mainland of Venetia, with the exception of the fortresses and the city of Venice, either was in the hands of the Italians, or until Austria declared herself ready to cede it volunUirily; and King Victor Emmanuel promised not to lay down his arms until the Prussians should be in legal possession of the Elbe duchies. The Seven Weeks' War — Battles of Sadowa, Lissa, and Custozza. — In July 1866, what bade fair to become a European war began in earnest. Immediately on receipt of an advei-se vote passed by the German Diet (16th June), Count Von Bismarck presented an ultimatum to the Courts of Hanover and Saxony, demanding that they should disarm and accept the Prussian project of reform, imder penalty of war. Both courts refused, and on the 18th June, the Prussians entered Dresden, Hanover, Hesse-Cassel, and Hamburg, without apparently firing a shot. The King of Hanover retreated with his army to Gottingen, leaving his family in the capital; the King of Saxony and his 25,000 men retired into Bohemia; and the Elector of Hesse-Cassel became a state prisoner of Prussia. The Germanic Confederation was, in fact, broken up. The rapid successes of the Prussians cul- minated in a pitched battle fought at Sadowa (3rd July 1866), near the fortress of KiJniggratz in Bohemia, under Prince Frederick Charles against the Austrians (the latter assisted by Saxon troops), under Field Marshal Benedek. There were about 250,000 troops available on each side. The battle raged obstinately till the afternoon, when a second Prussian army, under tlie Crown Prince, which had approached the battle-field by forced marches, appeared on the .flank of the Austrian position, and drove them from the field with great slaughter. Thus defeated, the Austrians retired iij)on Vienna. A naval battle was also fought on 20th July ofi* Lissa, in the Adriatic, between the Austrian fleet under Admiral Tegethoff", and that of Italy under General Persano. Iron-clad ships were prominently engaged on both sides; but the result of the action was disputed. A few days after this sea-fight, a battle was fought at Custozza, near Verona, between the Italian and Austrian forces, result- ing in the repulse of the former; the victorious general being the Archduke Albert. In this campaign, Prussia got the better in so short a time, that it has been called the Seven Weeks War. Austria Surrenders Venetia to France. — Through the mediation of Napoleon III., to whom the Emperor of Austria sun*endered Venetia, an armistice was ultimately agreed ui)on, followed by a cessation of hostilities and a treaty definitively signed at Prague on the 23rd August. By the peace which was now made, Austria was shut out from Germany altogether, and the kingdom of Hanover and some smaller states were annexed to Prussia, and the northern states were formed into the North German Confederation, under the presidency of Prussia, with a common constitution and assembly. Let us now see what was the territorial position of 306 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD IX. 1810-1871.] FRENCH WAR AGAINST GERMANY. 307 Prussia before the war, and what she gained by its suc- cessful issue. Before the war the kingdom of Prussia consisted of nine provinces — 1. Eastern Prussia, with Konigsberg as its capital 2. Western Prussia; capital, Dantzig. 3. The Grand Duchy of Posen, or Polish Prussia; capital, Posen. 4. Silesia; capital, Breslau. 5. Brandenburg, in which is situated Berlin. 6. Pomerania; capital, Stettin. 7. Saxon Prussia, in which is situated the strong fortress of Magdeburg. 8. Westphalia. 9. Bhenish Pnissia. After the war, in addition to these territories, she incorporated into her dominions, Hanover, Hesse-Cassel, Nassau, Hesse-IIombourg, the duchies of Schleswig, Holstein, and Lauenberg (these last, however, had been previously annexed), that part of Hesse- Darmstadt whicli lies to the north of the Maine, and the little principality of Hohenzollern — the cradle of tho Prussian Koyal House— situated on the borders of Lake Constance, between Wurtemberg and Switzerland. Prussian Preparations for War with France. — Still further territorial acquisition, the result of conquest, and even empire, were destined speedily to fall within the grasp of the House of Hohenzollern. Prussia stimulated, through the means of history, poetry, and science, German patriotism, against those whom she called in her news- papers "the hereditary enemy." She armed all her male population from 20 to GO; she required from her officers the most complete instruction, from her troops the most severe discipline ; and, by an organization which left no portion of tho national forces inactive, by a foresight which utilised all the resources of science and industry, she con- stituted, in the centre of Europe, the most formidable machinery of war that the world has yet seen — 1,500,000 men trained and armed — every man a soldier. And that terrible machinery she confided to be put in action to men whom few scruples of justice, legality, or honour, could stop, since they said openly — " Force overcomes right" {La force prime le droit), and they acted accordingly. France saw nothing or desired to see nothing in thosa immense preparations, which were being completed even on her own territory, by the minute and secret study of every means of action or of resistance. Ideas of peace and economy predominated in the legislative body; a blind confidence in France's military superiority, an equal distrust against the armament of the whole country, pre- vented the proportioning of the forces of France to the greatness of the struggle which was approaching; and, through the incapacity of officials and the insufficiency of the administrations, those which existed were badly handled. France declares War against Germany. — An an- nouncement was made in the beginning of July 1870, by the Spanish ministers, of their intention to recommend Prince Leopold of Hohenzollern Sigmaringen, a German prince belonging to a branch of the house widely separated from that which reigned in Prussia, to the long vacant throne of Spain. The personal and family circumstances of Prince Leopold allied him in some measure, it might seem, with French and Napoleonic interests. The branch of the Hohenzollerns to which he belonged was Roman Catholic; his paternal grandmother was a Murat; his maternal grandmother a Beauharnais; his mother was of the house of Braganza-Bourbon. It was more than five centuries since he and the King of Prussia had had a common ancestor. On the 6th, the Duke de Grammont said in the French Legislature that it was undoubtedly true that Marshal Prim had offered the crown to the Hohenzollern ]>rince, and tliat the latter had accepted it; but the Spanish people had not yet declared themselves. Meanwhile, in view of the dangers to the peace of Europe which were arismg. Prince Leopold himself decided on giving in his resigna- tion, and a momentary hope arose that the threatened storm had blown over. It was not, however, as was shortly seen, when a credit of fifty millions was demanded by the minister of war and granted. On the 19th July, war was formally declared. Thus, as a finishing stroke of dexterity, Prussia had had the art to evoke a declara' 308 HISTORY OF GERMANY. [pERIOD XI. 181G-1871.] TREATY OF VERSAILLES. 309 tion of tlie war which she so ardently desired, and for which she liad been preparing for some fifteen years. To 700,000 sokliers moved up in fifteen days to the frontier, and concentrated in a small space, from Treves to Landau, the French opposed 240,000 men scattered over a line of 100 leagues. Thus, they were overwhelmed at Wissemhourg, at lleichsoffen, and at Forbach by an enemy three or four times superior in numbers, fighting at a distance, under cover of the woods, and covered by an innumerable artillery, the range of which was greater than that of the French guns (4th and 6th August). The Emperor capitulated at Sedan (2nd Sept.), and Marshal Bazfiine at Metz (26th Oct.). Strasburg succumbed after METZ. a bombardment which burned the library, the museum, and threatened to demolish the cathedral. On the 19th Sept., Paris invested, fought its first battle at Chatillon. In detaining before its walls during more than four months (18th Sept. to 27th Jan.), the principal Prussian forces, it gave France time to raise herself up. All the regular army, save four Algerian regiments, "vvas prisoner in Germany. It was necessary to improvise soldiers, can- nons, rifles, and commissariat. The provincial forces ■were crushed; and when, after 131 days of siege and a month's bombardment, famine forced Paris to lower the drawbridges of her forts, nothing more remained but to submit to the law of the conqueror. Treaty of Versailles. — A treaty of peace between Germany and France was, after much patient negotia- tion, concluded at Versailles on Feb. 26, 1871. The ICmperor William, " with a deeply-moved heart and with gratitude to God," telegraphed the result at once to Berlin. The negotiations were conducted with the utmost secrecy, and removed altogether from any influence likely to be exercised by neutrals either for advice or guarantee. The only modification the Germans were understood to have made in the original severity of their terms was the resti- tution of the fortress of Belfort, commanding the passes of the Vosges, conceded, it was said, as an equivalent for permitting the German army to march through Paris. The major conditions of the Treaty were the cession of Alsace and German Lorraine, and the payment of a war indemnity of five milliards of francs (£200,000,000)— demands, it was thought as great as Europe would allow, and not unlikely to create a permanent feeling of hatred between the two countries. The payment, it was sti])u- lated, of one milliard, was to take place during 1871, and the remainder within three years from the ratification of the then existent preliminaries. On the 28th, when the victorious Germans entered Paris in triumph, the terms of the treaty were ratified in the French National As- sembly by 546 votes to 107. At the same sitting, a formal proposal was submitted, amid enthusiastic cheers, for the deposition of Napoleon III. as the person "respon- sible for all our misfortunes, the ruin, the invasion, and the dismemberment of France." For the first time during four centuries, France retro- graded. In 1815, she had at least very nearly preserved the frontiers which her old monarchy had given her; but I; 310 HISTORY OP GERMANY. [PERIOD VIII. 1816-1871.1 GERMAN UNITY. 311 by tlie Treaty of Versailles (1871), a wound was inflicted U2)on her wliicli will ever bleed, by tearing away the two provinces, Alsace and a portion of Lorraine, which had never been connected with the German Empire, save by the most feeble ties. Strasburg had voluntarily given itself to Louis XIV. in 1G81, and Metz to Henry IL in 1552. New Political Divisions of Germany — Recapitula- tion. — The events just recorded have involved an entire change in the political relationship of the German States to one another, and to the rest of Europe. This cliango has been immediately (hxQ— firstly^ to the Austro-Prussiau war of 18G6; and, secondly , to the Franco-Prussian war of 1870-1. Its remoter causes, however, had long becu in preparation. The Old German Empire — elective in its constitution, constantly weakened by the mutual jealousies between its membei^, and the consequent want of unity in its dealings with foreign states — was terminated in 1806, during the military success of Napoleon I. With the downfall of Napoleon, a German Confederation, composed of 39 states (subsequently diminished, by fixilure of succession and other causes, to 33 in number), was organised by the Congress of Vienna, in 1815. Austria, ruled by sove- reigns of the House of Hapsburg, which had occ\ipicd, during many successive generations, the imperial throne, had the foremost place in the Confederation; Prussia, the second; Bavaria, Wiirtemberg, Hanover, Saxony, and tho smaller States, taking successive grades of inferior import- ance. A Diet, assembling at Frankfort-on-the-lNIaine, regulated the affairs of the Confederation as a whole, its dealings with foreign powers, kc. ; each State remaining (at least nominally) a sovereign power in all internal regards. This cumlirous machinery, after enduring just half a century, fell to pieces in 186G. The brief war of that year resulted, as already shown, in the decisive suc- cess of the Prussian armies over those of Austria, gained on the field of Koniggi*atz. Prussia dissolved the then existing Confederation, and erected in its place a new f I % " North German Confederation " {Xord Deutscher Buiul), from which Austria was expressly excluded. All the States of Germany lying north of the river Maine and the Erz Gebirge (Luxemburg alone excepted) became members of the new Confederation, with Prussia at their head. The increase of the Prussian monarchy at this time, by the absorption within its limits of some half- a-dozen of the smaller states, has been previously detailed. German Unity. — The war declared by France against Prussia, in 1870, at once aroused the German nation to a recollection of the sufferings which, above half a century previously, had resulted from former disunion, and to a conviction of the necessity of united action, with a view to preserve the possible recurrence of like disasters. The combined action of all the German States, with the cxcej)tion of Austria, in arms against France, was tho immediate result. The King of Prussia created Emperor of Germany. — While the German siege of Paris was going on (Jan. 1871), the various sovereign states of Germany — tho South German, as well as the members of the lately organ- ised federation — determined on a revival of the Empire, and the imperial crown vras, at their joint instance, con- ferred on the King of Prussia, on behalf of himself and liis descendants. King William, being in the great hall of Louis XIV. at Versailles, received the title of German Emijeror from the princes and free cities of Germany, even the King of Bavaria playing a leading part in the memorable ceremonial. This was, in fact, a restoration, not of the Emj^lre, bat of the Kingdom of Germany; as, luider tlie ancient imperial system, the title of Emperor could be held only by one who was, or asserted himself to be, monarch of either the old or the new Home. However, now that several of the German ])rinces are called kings, it would have been diflicuit to find a more appropriate title than Emiyeror for the chief of the Con- federation which has kings amongst its members. The New German Empire unites under one rule the entire German nation, the subjects of Austria alone excepted, 312 niStORY OF GERMANY. [PERIOD IX. TABLE OF CONTEMPORARY SOVEREIGNS. 313 much more closely than it had been ever since the Thirty Years* War, or indeed since the great " interregnum." The sovereign rights of the various states are limited to their own internal affairs. The revival of the ancient title of Emperor of Germany, in the person of the Piiissian monarch, was proclaimed to the Prussian Diet on the 18th Jan. 1871. Early in March the conquerors were home again. The 22nd was the new Emperor's birthday, when he attained the age of 74 years. Numerous German princes seized the occasion to offer their congi-atulations in person, and municipalities presented addresses. "More than four centuries and a half have elapsed," said the Burgomaster of Berlin, "since Divine Providence sent the Hohcn- zollcrns to take care of our Marches, then a prey to every kind of disorder. In this long time the i)rinces of your Royal House have worked and toiled for us in a spirit of paternal solicitude, and without ever resting from the task they had undertaken. May the Emperor who has extended our frontiers and added fresh laurels to our banners, be destined alike to promote the blessings of peace, and to increase and develop our welfare, liberty, and culture!' The new representative of Charlemagne showed himself not unmindful of the Paladins who had stood by his side in the hour of victory; by whom the basis of each ^'ictory was laid. Bismarck was raised from the rank of count to that of prince; Count Moltke was made a Field-Marshal; to Von Roon the title of count was accorded. Large donations in land and in money were subsequently accorded to the heroes of the war, and fresh honours and titles added to those which the princes of the Imperial House already bore. One can hardly experience a greater sense of contrast than in turning one's thoughts from the condition of Franco in the year 1871 — marked by ruin, discord, disintegi^ation — to that of Germany — triumphant, powerful, and occupied in consolidating, by a mighty principle of attraction, the hitherto loosely-compacted elements of the national policy. ) i-^ M> t-^ o o o X :r>i frj o P o o hi ►1 1— 1 ►< CO U3 1— 1 i^ M t^ ' > m t-^ »-« 00 00 CI 10 CJt Ci o >-t o •-J o •-t> O o p ^ 3 o o << • P P Qo cr> S? I— I M O M o o ^ o as >~" w X JO n -1 w > '^^^ *t n *^ S2.g o S* o OD p 00 > Of *^S t-i o ^ H ." hi • m 1— 1 1— > COCO 1 4^ CO 1 CO Oi » n p'p c« O *" C • < GO CO CO CO by 1—1 1— ( r^, p Q o tr ^r "^ i=^ p o ^s-;L o 09 2" X < 1 I *~' • o OD O) QO GO QO -I Cc 4- CO to H- i>:* CO © 4^ • CO GO CO 04^ CO CO GO :C o oc p f^ p p S ^^ ^ •^ <^ •— ' H- t-.-^SS c-.>< -1 o 2 • t— 1 (— < GO 00 1^ GO t^t-l o C?3 <1^QO M. *H ft> ti:o rgel rge I liam toria H •-< ^.<.S 1-^ k-J »— • 00 GO GO CO CO to ^00 ►Tj ^ r^ ^ P rt C3 C cc 05 Cfl w - 1 ^ >^ <^ ^^'^ dHa •-3 o CO CO GO GO 4->- CO to 10 O ^ *0 CO XJ rfe o <5 ^ «> •^ fe> « > W H O a o H O o n©ur with the Ward; a wgman swore, if not by hftv tresses, yet holding them in her left hand, whilst her right was laid upon her bosom; and some of the old Scandinavian legends record the anxiety of heroes at the block to preserve their hair fi*om being soiled with blood by their decapitation. Further, the unfree had no wergeld, or fixed damages, for their murder; but their lives were not, therefore, unprotected, except against their master. The patriarchal indulgence, modifying the harshness of the feudal system, is pleasingly displayed in the partial relaxation of one of its generally harsher features— the game laws. In the laws respecting the treatment of strangers the admixture of the kindly and severe spirit appears. Traveller were not only entitled to hospitality, but whilst journeying were permitted to cut wood for the repair of their conveyance, whatever that might be, to feed their tired horses with gi'ain, com, and grass, or hay from a stack; to gather fruit for themselves, and even to catch fish, provided they lighted a fire, and dressed and ate it upon the spot. But if they remained a year and a day in one place, they forfeited the rights of freemen, be- coming the property of the lord of the soil. But nowhere does this mixed character appear more strongly than with regard to criminals. Whilst the punishments awarded to guilt are fearfully sanguinary, and sometimes so disgustingly atrocious as to be almost indescribable, there is always to be discovered an evident disposition to enable the culprit to escape. Hanging between wolves and dogs upon a leafless tree, burning, boiling, flaying, impaling, every kind of mutilation, tarring and feathering, casting to wild beasts, were the ordinary doom, when offences were not compounded for by a sum of money. Cowards were drowned, or rather smothered, in mud. Removers of boundary stones were buried up to the neck in the earth, and ploughed to death with a new plough by four unbroken horses, and a plough- man who had never before turned a furrow. Forest burners were seated at a distance from a fire of a certain magnitude, to which their bare feet were turned till tho 322 HISTORY OF GERMANY. soles dropped of. But the most horrible punishments awaited him who was detected in barking trees. His navel was dug out, and nailed to the injured tree, round which he was driven, drugging out his own bowels, and winding them upon it in lieu of the despoiled bark. And this whilst every injury to a fellow-creature, even murder, might be expiated with a sum of money. The Dawn of German Literature (771-800)— Prom Charlemagne to the Accession of the Swabian Dynasty. — The. reign of Charlemagne may be considered as the commencement of German literature, although there are some fragments of translations from ecclesiastical books which were made probably prior to that epoch. Charle- magne, who was very anxious to promote the cultivation of his native language, introduced Geiman names of months. He ordered the scattered monuments of the Teutonic language, particularly laws or customs, and songs, to be collected. He also ordered the ministei^s of religion to preach in German, and directed the translation of several things from the Latin for the information of the common people. It is impossible to know whether the songs collected by the order of Charlemagne were of the same kind as those which, according to the descrip- tion of Tacitus, were in use among the Germans about the beginning of our era, or to form any correct idea of them, as the collection is entirely lost. The two most ancient German poems are, the " Lay of Hildebrand and Hadubrand," and the " Prayer of Weiszenbrun," which have been published by Grimm, and which belong to the eighth century. After the reign of Charlemagne, the Christian religion being established throughout all Germany, many frag- ments of the Bible and some ecclesiastical writings were paraphrased from the Latin into the vnlgar tongue. The separation of the Germanic Empire from the Frankish, which took place in the middle of the ninth century, acted beneficially on the national language and literature. The earliest known German poem of that time is a song written in commemoration of the victory which Louis III. GERMAN POETRY. 323 of France gained over the Normans in 881. But tlie most remarkable production is the metrical paraphrase of the Gospels by Ottfried, a Benedictine monk, made about 870, which shows an uncommon poetical genius in the author, who had to contend with all the difllculties presented by a rude and uncultivated language. German Poetry — The Minnesingers — From the Accession of the Suabian Dynasty to the Reforma- tion of Luther (1137-1517).— The reign of the Emperors of the Suabian family of Hohenstauffeu is the golden age of the romantic or chivalrous poetry of Germany. This poetry being written in the Suabian dialect, which came into fiishion through the influence of the reigning family, is generally called the Suabian. Germany at that time had made great progress in civilization, particularly by its frequent intercourse with Italy, which was owing to the expeditions of the Emperors to that country. 'This circumstance led to an acquaintance with the Troubadours of Provence; and the Crusades also, which brought the Germans into contact with the more civilised nations, such as the Greeks and Saracens, powerfully contributed to advance the intellectual development of the nation, and to exalt its chivalrous spirit. The poets of that period are known under the name of Minnesingers, from the old (xerman word minney which signifies " love." They may be compared in many respects with the Troubadours of Provence, and were generally knights and nobles, whose life was divided between the occupations of love, war, and devotion, which inspired their poetical effusions with tender, noble, and jiious feelings. They lived chiefly at the courts of German princes, who were fond of poetry, and many of whom were poets themselves. Such were' among others. Emperor Frederick II., Leopold IV., Duko of Austria, Henry Margrave of Misnia, Herman Margrave of Thurginia, etc. The court life, which was spent amidst toin-naments and splendid entertainments of every kind, gave to their poetry a high degree of refinement and brilliancy. The decline of chivalry put an end to the Minnesingera, and the art of poetry descended from the 324 HISTORY OF GERMANY. nobles to the burghers of cities; welfare and civilization being secured by their fortified towns, gave thcui a decided advantage over the nobles, who abandoned themselves to the gi-eatest excesses, and lived in a most lawless state, being constantly engaged in mutual feuds and depreda- tions during the troubles which agitated tlie German empire in the latter part of the thirteenth century, after the death of Frederick II. Downfall of Chivalry through the use of Gunpowder. — Europe, during the fifteenth century, had become ripe for great reforms which, their results once obtained, were calculated to change widely the social condition of the masses. The use of gunpowder, an invention attributed to Swartz, had already caused such an innovation in tho art of war as to bring about the downfall of chivalry, an institution which had existed for centuries, and largely modified the middle ages. The art of printing, combined with the invention of paper made from flax, creating a new means of communicating ideas, it became possible to act upon men*s minds from one end of Europe to another with astonishing rapidity. Tlie discoveiy of a new world, and a route by sea to the East Indies had wholly changed the paths of commerce; so that all the activity and power that followed in her train were exchanged between nations which, until then, were scarcely known to each other. Diplomacy, and political science in government, taking their rise chiefly in Italy and France, assumed quite novel forms. Good faith was sacrificed to interest, and self-interest became the fundamental law in the alliances or enmities of states. Thus, in the mutual relations of nations, another law governed than that which was expected to control the mutual relations existing between individuals. The Influence of Classical Studies and Natural Philosophy on German Theology. — The dead-letter spirit, prevalent in Germany among the Lutherans, having again degraded theology to mere scholasticism, and not only maintained but strengthened the ancient superstition of the multitude (as, for instance, in ADVANCE OP GENERAL EDUCATION. 325 respect to witchcraft), had gradually vanished as know- ledge was increased by the study of the classics and of natural philosophy. Halle became for this second period of the lieformation what Wittenberg had been for the first. As Luther formerly struggled against the monks and monkish superstition, Thomasius (a.d. 1728) com- bated Lutheran orthodoxy, overthrew the belief in witch- ci-aft, and reintroduced the use of the German language in the cathedi-al service, whence it had been long expunged. He was succee^od (a.d. 1754) by the philosopher Wolf, the scholar of the great Leibnitz, who beneficially en- lightened the ideas of the theological students. Before long, the critical study of the Bible, and a positive divinity, which sought to unite the Bible with philosophy, prevailed. The founders of this school were Michaelis at Gottingen, Semler at Halle, and Ernesti at Leipzig. Mosheim at Berlin, and Gellert at Leipzig gi-eatly elevated the tone of morality. The Advance of General Education, Art, and Science. — In proportion as the universities shook off the yoke im- posed by theological and juridical ignorance (as evidenced by the trials for witchcraft), the study of philosophy, languages, history, and the natural sciences gained ground. A wide range was thus opened to learning, and a spirit of liberality began to prevail, which, as the first effect of its cosmopolital tendency, completely blunted the patriotic feelings of the German, by rendering his country a more secondary object of interest and inquiry. The struggle between modern ideas and ancient usage began also in the lower academies. Kousseau proposed the fundamental transformation of the human race, and tho creation of an ideal people by means of education. John Basedow attempted to put his novel plans of educa- tion into practice by the seminary, known as the " Philan- thropium," established by him at Dessau, in which many excellent teachers were formed, and by which gi^eat good was effected. The new plans of education, adopted by a few private establishments, and recommended in the numerous new publications on the subject, more parti- 324 HISTORY OF GERMANY. noLles to the burghers of cities; welfare and civilization being secured by their fortified towns, gave them a decided advantage over the nobles, who abandoned themselves to the gi'eatest excesses, and lived in a most lawless state, being constantly engaged in mutual feuds and depreda- tions during the troubles which agitated the German empire in the latter part of the thirteenth century, after the death of Frederick II. Downfall of Chivalry through the use of Gunpowder. — Europe, during the fifteenth century, had become rij)© for great reforms which, their results once obtained, were calculated to change widely the social condition of the masses. The use of gunpowder, an invention attributed to Swartz, had already caused such an innovation in tho art of war as to bring about the downfall of chivalry, an institution which had existed for centuries, and largely modified the middle ages. The art of printing, combined with the invention of paper made from flax, creating a new means of communicating ideas, it became possible to act upon men's minds from one end of Europe to another with astonishing rapidity. The discoveiy of a new world, and a route by sea to the East Indies had wholly changed the paths of commerce; so that all the activity and power that followed in her train were exchanged between nations which, until then, were scarcely known to each other. Diplomacy, and political science in government, taking their rise chiefly in Italy and Fi-ance, assumed quite novel forms. Good faith was sacrificed to interest, and self-interest became the fundamental law in the alliances or enmities of states. Thus, in the mutual relations of nations, another law governed than that which was expected to control the mutual relations existing between individuals. The Influence of Classical Studies and Natural Philosophy on German Theology. — The dead-letter spirit, prevalent in Germany among the Lutherans, having again degraded theology to mere scholasticism, and not only maintained but strengthened the ancient superstition of the multitude (as, for instance, in ADVANCE OP GENERAL EDUCATION. 325 respect to witchcraft), had gradually vanished as know- ledge was increased by the study of the classics and of natural philosophy. Halle became for this second period of the Keformation what Wittenberg had been for the first. As Luther formerly struggled against the monks and monkish superstition, Thomasius (a.d. 1728) com- bated Lutheran orthodoxy, overthrew the belief in witch- ci-aft, and reintroduced the use of the German language in the cathedral service, whence it had been long expunged. He was succeeded (a.d. 1754) by the philosopher Wolf, the scholar of the gi-eat Leibnitz, who beneficially en- lightened tlie ideas of the theological students. Before long, the critical study of the Bible, and a positive divinity, which sought to unite the Bible with philosophy, prevailed. The founders of this school were Michaelis at Gottingen, Semler at Halle, and Ernesti at Leipzig. Mosheim at Berlin, and Gellert at Leipzig gi-eatly elevated the tone of morality. The Advance of General Education, Art, and Science. — In })roportion as the universities shook ofl" the yoke im- posed by theological and juridical ignorance (as evidenced by the trials for witchcraft), the study of philosophy, languages, history, and the natural sciences gained ground. A wide range was thus opened to learning, and a spirit of liberality began to prevail, which, as the first effect of its cosmopolital tendency, completely blunted the patriotic feelings of the German, by rendering his country a more secondary object of interest and inquiry. The struggle between modern ideas and ancient usago began also in the lower academies. Bousseau proposed the fundamental transformation of the human race, and the creation of an ideal people by means of education. John Basedow attempted to put his novel plans of educa- tion into practice by the senrinary, known as the " Philan- thropium," established by him at Dessau, in which many excellent teachers were formed, and by which gi-eat good was effected. The new plans of education, adopted by a few private establishments, and recommended in the numerous new publications on the subject, more parti- S26 HISTORY OP GERMANY. ciilarly owed their gradual adoption to the tutors, wlio in their freer sphere of action, bestowed their attention upon the arts most useful in practical life, and, out of respect for the parents, introduced a more humane treat- ment of the children. Piivate and individual efforts would, however, have but little availed without the beneficial reformation that took place in the public academies. In England, the study ot the ancient classics, so well suited to the stern character and liberal spirit of the people, had produced men noted for depth of learning, by whom the humanities and the spirit of antiquity were revived. Their infiuenco extended to Hanover. At Gottingen, Heyne created a school, which opposed the spirit to the dead letter, and, in the study of the classics, sought not merely an acquaint- ance with the language, but also with the ideas of ancient times, and Wmckelmann visited Italy in order to furnish Germany with an account of the relics of antiquity, and to inspue his countrymen with a notion of their sublimity and beauty. The attention of the student was drawn to mythology to ancient history, and an acquaintance with the lives of the ancients led to the knowledge of modern history and geography. Political Science.— The Dutch took the lead in political science. As early as 1638, Althausen laid the 'najestas popuh down as a principle, and Hugo Grotius laid the hrst foundation to the law of nations; and the iealousy between the houses of Hohenzollern and Hapsburg per- mitted Pufendorf, a Brandenburg privy-counsellor, to commence a tolerably liberal criticism on the German constitution. ■Mathematics and General Science.— Tlie study of the mathematics was gi-eatly promoted by Liebnitz, the inventor of differential calculus, and was carried to hicrher perfection by Lambert of Alsace, by the flimily of Bemouilli of Basle, Euler, etc. The Germans made great discoveries in astronomy. Scheiuer (a.d. 1G50) oiscovered the spots in the sun; Hevel (a.d. 1G87) and Dorfel found out the jiaths of the comets; Eimmart of CHEMISTRY, BOTANY, AND PHARMACOLOGY. 327 •'■A-ljt Nuremberg measured several of the fixed stars. Herschel (born A.D. 1740, died a.d. 1822) discovered, with his giant telescope in England (a.d. 1781), the planet Uranus, nebulous stars, planetary nebulae, etc. Huygens improved the telescope, Lowenhoek and Hontsoecker the micro- scope (in Holland). Lieberktihn of Breslau invented the solar microscope; Tschirnhausen, burning-glasses; Snell discovered the laws of refaction. The study of- physics was gi^eatly promoted by Otto von Guericke, burgomaster of Magdeburg (a.d. 1686), the inventor of the air-pump and of the electrifying machine; by Sturm (a.d. 1703), the founder of experimental physics; by Fahrenheit, who (a.d. 1714) invented the thermometer; by Kercher, the inventor of the speaking trumpet; by Hansen, who improved the electrifying machine. Chemistry. — Among the chemists, before whose science alchemy fled, Glauber, who gave his name to a celebrated salt, Becher, Stahl, Brand, the discoverer of phosphorous, and Gmelin merit particular mention. Werner acquired great note as a mineiulogist at the close of the eighteenth century. ^..;.. Botany was industriously studied by Haller of Switzer- land, Klein, the noted travellers Pallas, Blumenbach, and Bechstein, were celebrated as zoologists. Geography and natural history were greatly promoted by travels, undertaken for scientific purposes. Reinhold and Georgo Forster accompanied Cook round the world (a.d. 1716). Carsten Niebuhr was the most celebrated among the travellers in Persia and Arabia. Pallas and Gmelin explored Siberia. In Pharmacology the Germans have done more than any other nation; after them the Dutch. Helmont, although not free from the alchemical prejudices of his age, did much good by his dietary method, all diseases, according to him, proceeding from the stomach. Hermann Boerhaave, the most eminent physician of his time, en- couraged by the anatomical discoveries of Lowenhoek and Buysch, carefully investigated the internal formation of the human body in search of the primary causes of 328 filSTORY OF GERMANir. ART AKD fashion. 329 diseases, but was led astray by the meclianical notion that all diseases originated in the improper circulation or diminution of the humours of the body. Boerhaave's numerous works are, nevertheless, still regarded as text- books by the profession; his knowledge as an anatomist, chemist, and botanist, as well as the causes, nature, and treatment of diseases, was unrivalled. In Germany proper, medicine was not brought to any degree of perfection until a later period. The discovery of animal magnetism by Mesmer (a.d. 1775), was an important one, not only in medicine, but more particularly in psychology. It was first studied as a science by Gmelin, professor of chemistry and natural history at Gottingen, and has since engaged the attention of numerous physicians and psychologists. A miraculous property has been attributed to this discovery, which is certainly one of the most extraordinary ever made in inventive Germany. Som- mering was the most eminent of the German anatomists. Gall gained a transient fame by his novel phrenological ideas, and Lavater of Zurich by his science of ])hysiog- nomy. The belief in apparitions was again spread through- out the Protestant world by this pious enthusiast, and by Jung Stilling, whilst Father Gassner, at the same time, about a.d. 1770, inspired the Catholic population of Upper Swabia with terror by his exorcism. Philosophy gave, however, at that period the tone to learning. .The eighteenth century was termed the age of philosophy, being that in which the French began in their Encyclopsedia to regard all human knowledge in an independent point of view, neither ecclesiastical nor Christian. The Germans, although borrowing their frivolous mock-enlightenment from France, imitated the English in the serious study of philosophy and philology. Under the protection of the King of England, Von Leibnitz, the mathematician and philosopher, shone at Hanover, like Albertus Magnus, in every branch of learning. His system was a union of the Christian mysticism of former times, and of the scholastic scientific modern philoso2>hy, the result of the study of mathematics and the classics. The gi-adual deviation of philosophy from Christianity, and the increasing similarity between it and heathenism, were in accordance with the spirit of the age. In 1677, Spinosa, the Dutch Jew, reproduced, with subtle wit, the old doctrine of the mystic Weigel, concerning the original conti^adictions apparent in the world, which he explained, not by a Christian idea of love, but by a mathematical solution. Spinosa renounced the Jewish religion for that of Calvin. He afterwards became a Mennonist, and at last fell into the most dangerous scepticism, if not downright atheism. Mathe- matical reasoning was certainly useful for the proper arrangement of ideas, but was essentially devoid of pur- port. In England, it led to mere scepticism, to a system of doubt and negation, whence, instead of returning to the study of theology, the English philosophers turned to a zealous research in psychology, in which they were imitated by the Germans, Platner, Reimarus, Mendelssohn, the physician Zimmermann, etc.; all of whom were sur- passed by Kant, in 1804, at Konigsberg, in his "Critical Inquiiy into the Natiu-e of Pure Reason," which contains a critical analysis of every mental faculty. Art and Fashion. — Although Art had, under French influence, become unnatural, bombastical, and contrary to every rule of good taste, the courts, vain of their collections of works of art, still emulated each other in the patronage of the artists of the day, whose creations, tasteless as they were, nevertheless afforded a species of consolation to the people, by diverting their thoughts from the miseries of daily existence. Architecture de- generated in the greatest degree. Its sublimity was gradually lost as the meaning of the Gothic style became less undei*stood, and a tasteless imitation of the Roman style, like that of St. Peter's at Rome, was brought into vogue by the Jesuits and by the court-architects, by whom the chateau of Versailles was deemed the highest chef- (Toeuvre of art. Miniature tuniery-ware and microscopical sculpture also came into fashion. This taste was not, however, utterly useless. The predilection for ancient i 330 HISTORY OP GERMANY. ARCHITECTURE. 331 gems promoted the study of the remains of antiquity, as Stosch, Lippert, and Winckelmaun prove, and that of natural history was greatly facilitated by the collection of natural curiosities. Painting. — The style of painting was, however, still essentially German, although deprived by the Reforma- tion and by French influence of its ancient, sacred, and spiritual character. Nature was now generally studied in the search after the beautiful. Among the pupils of Eubens, the great founder of the Dutch school, Jordaens was distinguished for brilliancy and force of execution, Van Dyk for grace and beauty, although principally a portrait painter, and incapable of idealising his subjects, in which Rembrandt, who chose more extensive historical subjects, and whose colouring is remarkable for depth and effect, was equally deficient. Whilst cei-tain of these painters, such as the two Mieris, Terbourg and Nelschcr, Honthorst, Van der Werf, and Van Loo, belonged to the higher orders of society, of which their works give evi- dence, numerous othei^ studied the lower classes with still greater success, as Teniei^, Ostade, and Jan Steen. Landscape painting alone gave evidence of a higher style. In the commencement of last century, landscape painting also degenerated, and became mere ornamental flower l)ainting, of which the Dutch were so passionately fond that they honoured and paid the most skilful artists in this style like princes. Huysum was the most celebrated of the flower paintei-s, with Rachel Ruysch, Von Arless, and others of lesser note. Fruit and kitchen pieces were also greatly admired. Hondekotter was celebi-ated as a painter of birds. Painting was, in this manner, confined to a slavish imitation of nature, for whose lowest objects a ju-edilec- tion was evinced until the middle of the eighteenth century, when a style, half Italian, half antique, was introduced into Gemiany by the oi)ei*as, by travellei-s, and more particularly by the galleries founded by piinces, and was still further promoted by the learned researches of connoisseurs, more especially by those of Winckelmaun. I Architecture flourished during the Middle Ages, paint- ing at the time of the Reformation, and music in modern times. The same spirit that spoke to the eye in the eternal stone, now breathed in transient melody to the ear. The science of music, transported by Dutch artists into Italy, had been there assiduously cultivated; the Italians had speedily surpassed their masters, and had occupied themselves with the creation of a peculiar church music and of the profane opera, whilst the Netherlands and the whole of Germany was convulsed by bloody religious wars. On turning to the history of those neigh- bouring countries, it will be found that the glorious epoch of French literature (reign of Louis XIV.), was certainly a century later than tliat of the English, whilst the literature of Germany, a country which now excels in Arts as well as Arms, is of a still later date. \ \ 8 SWlKiDB ^ O H T n s E ^i MdniU/7 &"». *"»tl^i/KiUiiU.r 64 jc::::?^^^ •Hlll(f«>fl »'«|/n/ if ,s:^ Uj ftn Qurff &» >t P^"'^* '«n. \ I fU»» « ^ JB r ,•: ^^>f ■^•^prn 2?; p(«/riu/i4 1^ Veuntiidt \ "5'*«">t/» ■ >' *t;j*;'^ iiihnlJj ?^E sVi lH-r,. .Hai i*-». <] vA III ?'V.*. —.^•I fV?rffc/.fc„„, -A '♦V*//, ^*»rfA«.-fJ^ *'l?? rAA» ^.^OltuUiaeJt I '*/.,. 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SALGi8irs, king of Lombardy, driven into exile by Charlemagne, 01. Adelbert, bishop of Brunen, shares the regency with Hanno, his character and conduct, 103. Adolnh of Nassau procures the imperial crown by bribery, 153; his throne de- clared vacant, is slain near Worms, Adrian I., Pope, implores the aid of Charlemagne, t>0. Adrian IV., his arrogant pretensions, 121. „ , „, .ZEgidius adopted chief of the Franks, 31. ittius conquers Attila, 30. Agnes (regent-mother of Henry IV.), troubles of her regency, 101. Alaric (the Visigoth) despoils Greece and invades Italy, 20. Albert of Austria (son of Rodolph I.) chosen by the electow to fill the throne vacant by the deposition of Adolph of Nassau, his character and life, i-evolt of the Swiss Cantons, 154; is assassinated by his nephew and other conspirators, 156. Al»>ert II. of Austria (son-in-law of Sigismund), his brief reign of scarcely two years, 181. , ^^^ , Albert of Saxony, the heavy debt of gratitude owed him by Maximilian I-. 191. , ^ , Albert of Longwy, ci-eated Duke of Upper Lorraine, 101. Albert th6 Bear, founder of the Mar- gi-aviate of Bmndenburg and the city of Berlin, 115. Albert the Degenerate, margrave of Thuringia, sella his territories to Adolph of Nassau, 153. Alfonso X. the ]Vue (of Spain) pur- chases the crown of Germany, 143; his claim set aside, 147. Almayne, name of, whence derived, 9. Anabaptists. The, seize on Mimster, Aline of Brittany married by proxy to Maximilian I.: assumes the title of Queen of the Romans, 189; com- pelled to accept Charles VIII. of France as her husband, consequences of the rupture of the marriage, 190. Ansegise, son of Arnoulf, 43. Arcadius obtains the empire of the East, 20. Ardouin, a margrave, made King of Italy, 94. Ariovistus defeated by Caesar, 17. Arminius (Hermann) destroys the legions of Varus, 18. Arnold of Brescia, seeking to restore the ancient Roman republic, is put to death, 121. Arnould, king of Germany, defeats the Normans, 74. Arnoulf, bishop of Metz, 48. Astolphus, king of the Lombards, con- quered by Pepin, 54. Ataulf (the Visigoth) wrests Spain from the Suevi and Alains, 22. Attila (the Hun), his invasion of Euroi>e; defeated by iEtius, 80. Augustus Ca»ar, rebellion of the Ger- mans against, 17; loss of his legions under Yams, 18. Augustus III. of Poland, his succession disputed by Stanislaus Ijeczinski, 257. Augsburg, the Diet of, 209. Austerlitz and the treaty of Presbura 274. Austria, the House of, loses its jire- iwnderance in Euroi^e, 248. Austrian sway in Italy, re-establish- nient of, 293; its aggression in Italy opposed by France, 294; collapse of its system of repression, 296. Austrian Question, The, a new element of discord in Euroi>e, 297. Azzo, lord of Milan and Genoa, becomes allied to the Guelphs, 99. Banier, the Swedish general, repeat- edly defeats the inii)erialists, 242; lays waste Thuringia; his retreat and death, 243. Bavaria, Duke Henry of, his attempt on the crown of Germany, 91. Berenger, duke of Ivrea, usurps rejral power in Italy, deposed by Otho the Lion, 88. Bernard of Hildesheim, his elevated character, 94. Bernard, abbot of Claiivaux, preaches the Second Crusade, 116. 334 INDEX. INDEX. 335 Bertha of Susa, queen of Henry IV., her admirable cliaracter, lOo. Bethlem Gabor, prince of Transyl- vania, 23fi. Bismarck, Count, raised to the rank of Prince, 312. Black Death, The, destroys one-third of the population, 1(37. Bonaparte, Napoleon, his campaign Against the Austrians, 2G7; his im- petuous march ui>ou Vienna, brings over Austria to sign a peace, 2G8; his policy of creating disunion be- tween Austria and Pi-ussia, sud- denly embarks for Egypt, 260: aftUirs to his assumption of the chief power, 270; reconquers Italy from the Aus- trians, 272 : chosen Emperor, 273 ; humiliates the Emperor of Austria and deposes the Po^w, 275; defeats the Prussians at Auerstadt and Jena, and their monarchy ceases to exist, 275; wins the battles of Eylau and Friedland, results of the JPeace of Tilsit, 276; his conquests, 277; Aus- tria rises against him, 278 ; at the summit of power; the Russian cam- paign, 270; the German caniiKiign, 281; campaign of 1S14, 284; Peace of Paris, Congress of Vienna, 286; cam- paign of four days (Waterloo), 287. Boniface, St., the apostle of Germany, 54, 58. Brnnehaut, queen of Siegehert, her crimes and terrible death, 43. Burgundians, The, found a kingdom in Gaul. 22. Burgundy, conquest of, by the sons of Ciovis, 39 ; reunited to Germany under Conrad II., 07. Byzantine empire. The, destruction of by Mahomet II., 183. C^SAR, Julius, his conquests on the Rhine, 17. Campo Formic, treaty of, 2G8. Canute, king of England, at corona- tion of Conrad II. at Rome, 07. Carloman I. (son of Charles Martel), 53. Carloman II. (son of Pepin the SUoit), 55. Carlovingians, their origin, 53; their extinction in Germany, 70. Charlemagne (Charles the Great), his character and career, 56 ; his long wars with the Saxons, he sulxiues and Christianises them, 59 ; con- quei-8 Didier, kingof Lombardy, sub- dues Southern Italy, 61; his war in Spain, becomes Emperor of the West, 62; extent of his empire, 68; results «f his wars and conquests, 65; his death, CO; his eropii-c rent asunder, 72. Charibert I., king of Paris, 41. Charibert II., king of Aquftaine, 47. Charles of Anjou (brother of Louis IX. of France) defeats and slays Manfretl at Boneventum, and takes iwssessioa of his dominions, 144; infuriated by the conspiracy of the Sicilian Ves- pers, lays siege to Messina, hut is compelled to retire to Calabria. 146. Charles the Bald (first king of later France) defeated at And.-rnach by his nephews, 73. Charles the Fat offered the crown of France, 73; his character; cedes Friedland to Godfrey the Norman, and afterwanls murdei-s him, 73 ; purchases a disgraceful peace of the Normans, 73; his deposition and death, 74 ; the Carlovingian empira irrevocably dismembered, 74. Charles IV., margrave of Moravia (son of John of Bohemia), electetl King of the Romans, and declareeror by Clement VI., 164; from his shame- ful capitulation with the Pojje, the princes are unwilling to confirm his election; the imi>erial crown offered to Edward III. of England; his state craft, the tool of p,n)al and French policy, 165; among the first to flee at Crecy, whilst his blind father bravely falls; publishes the Golden Bull, and imprudently places the whole power of the state in the hands of the elec- tors, 166; his character and career, 167. Charles the Rash, duke of Burgundy, invades the Rhenish provinces, his daughter and heiress Mary betrothed to Maximilian, son of Frederick III., 185. Charles V. of Austria (grandson of Maximilian, and king of Spain), elected emi)eror; the Ujost powerful monarch of the age of the Reforma- tion; his career; declared enemy of Francis I., struggle between Austria and France, 204; state of Germany on his arrival there, 205 ; league against Francis I., 206; places his preceptor on the papal throne; the war in Italy; the Constable of Bour- bon deserts to the emi>eror, 207; Rome captured and sacked by the Imperialists, 208; cam iiaigns against the Turks, 209; attempts the con- quest of France; his disastrous expe- dition against Algiers, 212; 10,000 Imperialists fall in the battle of Cerisoles, 213; Philip, his ion, mar- ries Iklary of England; Charles abdi- cates, 217; his death, 210. Charles I. of England aids Gustavus Adolphus against Austria, 239. Charles VI. (younger son of Leopold I.) presumptive heir of Charles II. of Spain, lands at Lisbon with Eng- lish and Dutch troops to enforce his claim, 254; dominions awarded to him by the Treaty of Utrecht; result of the Spanish succession war, 255; issues the Pragmatic Sanction: the last male offspring of the House of Austria-llapsburg, 257. Charles Albert, elector of Bavaria, chosen emperor in opposition to Maria Theresa, by the title of Charles VII., 258. . . X Charles, the archduke, of Austria, beats the French under Jourdan, and comi>el8 Moreau to retreat; re- organises the Austrian army in Italy, 267- his pUin of ojierations against Bonaparte, 268; defeats Jourdan at Ostrach, 270. , Childobert II. reunites Austria and Burgundy, 47. , . .. Childebert and Clotaire, their expedi- tions and conquests, 41. Childeric driven into exile by the Franks 31. Childeric* III. (the last Merovingian) »• deposed, 54. Chili^eric, king of Neustna, marries Fredegonde, 43. . Christianity, the spread of, in Hun- gary, Poland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Russia, 05. Christian IV. of Denmark is opposed in the Thirty Years' War by Tilly and Wallen stein; exi>elled from the empire, 238. Cimbri, their invasions, 16. Clement, Pope, declaies the throne of Apulia vacant, and offers it to Charlesof Anjou, 144. , , ^ ^ . Clodion, the Salian chief, defeated by ^tius, 28. , , XT T. Clodomir slain in battle by the Bur- gundians, 41. Clotaire I., his ferocity, 42. Clotaire II., sole king of the Franks, 43. Clotilda, a Christian princess, marries the pagan Ciovis, 30. Ciovis founds the Frankish monarchy, 31. Commercial union of Gennany, 202. Confederation of the Rhine, dissolu- tion of the Germanic empire, 274. Conrad I. of Fi-anconia, liis short and difficult reign, 77. Conrad II. surnamed The Salian^ elected emperor, 00 ; forces Odo, count of Champagne, to acknowledge him King of Burgundy, 97; his army decimated by the plague in Italy, 98; diesof the plague, 98; imi>ortant law promulgated by him in Italy and Gennany, 09. Conrad III., the empire divided into two imrties,Guelphs and Ghibellines, 115; ''takes the Cross" on Bernard preaching the Second Crusade, 116; the shame and dishonour attendant uiwn it, 117; dies at Bamberg, 118. Conrad IV. (son of Frederick II.), by his father's will inherits the crown ; placed under the ban of the Church, and his title pronounced null by the Poi)e; conquers Naples; on his re- turn to Germany confronted with William of Holland whom he de- feiits; falls sick and dies, not without suspicion of poison, 142. Couradino of Swabia (son of Conrad IV.), invited to resume tlie throne of Apulia; attempts to drive the French out of Italy, enters Rome in triumph, 144; his army cut to pieces in Apulia; betrayed by Frangipani of Astura, and delivered up to Charles of Anjou; his sad fate, 145. Constance (wife of Henry VI.), heiress of the last Norman King of Sicily. Constance (daughter of Manfred), avenges the murder of Conradino by the conspiracy of the Sicilian Ves- pei*s, 146. Cornwall, Richard, earl of (brother of Henry III. of England), purch.ises the empire, and is crowned at Aix, Corvinus, Matthias (son of Hunnides), raised to the throne of Hungary, 183. Council of Constance, The. its pi-ofe.ssed objects the extinction of schism, and reformation of the Church, 174; the close of; its consequences, 179. Crescentius, his insurrection against Otho III., and death, 03. Crusade, the First, its influence on the authority of Rome, 03. Crusade, the Second, preached by St. Bernard, 116. Crusade, the Third, urged on the princes of Europe by Gregory VIII., 128 Cunegonda, wife of Henry the Saint, "95. Cunihilda (daughter of Canute), re* suits of her marriage with Henry, son of Conrad, 97; dies of the plagu* in Italy, 98. 336 INDEX INDEX. 337 Dagobrrt I., king of the Austrasians, niurdei"8 his brother, 48. Denmark and the duchies, 295. Desiderata, a Lombard princess, mar- ried to Charlemagne, CO. Didier (or Desiderius), king of the Lombards, captive to Charlemagne, 61. Drusus, his victories over North Ger- many, 17. EoBERT, of Brunswick, count, saves the young Emiieror Henry IV. from drowning, 102. EUzabeth (daughter of James I. of England), queen of Bohemia, her ambitious character, 236. Emigrations, a series of, continued from 375 a.D. to 5G8 a.d., 20. Enzio (son of Frederick II.), king of {Sicily, kept prisoner during 24 years by the Bolognese, 140. Esthonia, subdued by the knighU of the Cross and Sword, 136. Eudes (son of Robert the Strong), with- stands a year's siege of Paris, . Eugene, Prince, his victories, 253. Ferdinand I. (brother of Charles V.), elected King of the Romans, 210; succeeds as emperor; his claim to Bohemia involves a long war, 220; the temiM)ral dependence of the empire on the See of Rome ends; endeavoui-s unsuccessfully to effect a union of the two Communions, 221 ; Council of Trent, 222. Fei-dinand ll.of Austria (son of Charles, duke of Styria, and grandson of Ferdinand I.), his dark and hopelesa ijosition on his accession, 235; the 'rotestant States subdued, and that religion abolished in Bohemia; the leaders exiled, or put to death, 238; causes Wallenstein to be secretly assassinated; his unjust and cruel policy aud character, 241; he dies, leaving behind an odious name, 246. Ferdinand III. (son of Ferdinand II.), succeeds without opiwsition, and pursues his father's line of policy, 242; his death and character, 245. Ferdinand I., emperor of Austria (son «)f Francis, the last of the German, iind Jirst of the Austrian emperors), led by his minster. Prince Mettav- nich, 294. Flagellants, The, accuse the Jews of jjoisoning the wells and fountains, who are persecuted with incredible fury, 108. Fontenaille, battle of, 70. Francis I., struggle between, and Charles V., league against, 206: the defection of the Constable of Bour- bon; taken prisoner at Pavia; re- leased on yielding to Charles V. the duchy of Burgundy, 207. Francis I. of Lomiine, consort of Maria Theresa, elected emperor, 251». Francis II. (eldest son of Ijeoi)old II.), enters into an alliance with Frederick William of Prussia against the French Republic, 264; campaign of the French against the empire, 265: the French penetrate into the heart of the empire, 266; by a treaty made with Bonaparte, France gains the preponderance in Europe, 269 ; Austria assisted by the Russians, 270; murder of the French pleni- potentiaries at Rastadt, 271 : the Austrians defeat the French in Italy, 217. France and Austria, disagreement be- tween, in 1859, 299; the war hi Italy, 300. Franco-Prussian war (1870-1871), 308. France becomes the lending European power, 248: its influence over tho affairs of the empire, 251. Franconia, the House of, 95. Franks, The, a union of several Ger- manic tribes, 28: they unite them- selves with the Romans in Gaul to oppose Attila, 29; their religion the worship of Odin, 32; their jmssion for war, 32; division of the Frank monarchy between the sonsof Clovis, 38; second partition of the kingdom between the sons of Clotaire, 42. Fi-edegonde, queen of Chiljieric, her fearful crimes and death, 43. Frederick, duke of Swabia, brother-in- law of Henry V., a candidate for the imperial crown; his rolentless hostility to Lothar of Saxony, 113. Frederick I. surnamed Barbaro»»n, duke of Swabia, elected emi>eror, his i)ersonal qualities and character; restores the duchy of Bjivaria to Henry the Lion, son of Henry the Proud, \\%; settles a quarrel between Sweyn and Canute touching Den- mark, 119; compels Boleslas, king of Poland, to do him homage; re- establishes the ancient influence of Germany in Bui-gundy by his marriage with Beatrice, the Bur- gundian heiress, 119; deputies from Lodi having implored his aid against the Milanese, he crosses the Alps ; with an army, and promptly enforces homage of most of the Lombaid cities: aft^r being crowned King of Lorabardy, he marches upon Rome, 120; holds Adrian's stirrup, and is crowned by that Pope; his expedition against the Normans in the south fails through the unhealthiness of the climate, 122; the quarrel between Poi>e and Emperor; Vo\yQ and Anti- poi>e, 123 : the rebellious Milanese sulxiued; they again revolt, and after a three years* siege Milan surrenders at discretion, and is razed to its foundations, 125; is, with his con- sort, crowned at Rome; his army being assailed by a pestilence, he secretly quits It.aly for Germany; his vigorous extension of the House of Hohen.staufen, 126 ; he crosses the Aljw for the fifth time, and lays siege to Ales.sandria, V>ut fails to reduce it; suffers a defeat at Lignano by the Lombards, and narrowly escapes capture; affairs of Italy pettlod by a treaty of peace with the Lombards, and the Emperor returns to Germany, is crowiwd at Aries, 127; marriei^his eldest son to Con- stance, heiress presumptive of Naples and Sicily: the Pope excom- municates the bishops who ]>er- formed the rite; joins th« Third Crusade in his seventieth year, 128; leads his army skilfully to the frontiers of Syria, and is drowned in the river Calycadnus, and buried in Antioeh, 129. Frederick II. (son of Henry VI., grand- son of Barbarossa) , set \\\t by Inno- cent 111., who carefully super- intenda the education of the young Emperor after the decease of his mother, Constance: versed in the arts and sciences, he also cxiltivates jHXjtry, and lashes the follies of his day in sharp satirical verse; his lK)iitical energies expended in an ever-recurring struggle between the Pope and the empire, 133; neglects Germany for his inheritance of the two Sicilies; launches keen sarcasms agains the Holy See, and is excom- municated by Gregory IX.; special circumstance which gives rise to the quarrel with that Poi>e, 134; is crowned by the Sultan Alkamel, king of Jerusalem; hastens back to Italy, and comjHjLi the Pope to make peace with him, and remove the excommunication, 135 ; his son, Henry, left in Germany to govern the empire, revolts agninst him, is deposed, and dies in pvison, 130; the Emperor marries Isabella, sister of Henry III. of England; Conrad, his younger son, elected successor, as King of the Romans: Frederick de- feats the Lombards and Milanese; excommunicated a second time by Gregory IX., 137 ; deposed and banned by Innocent IV., 139; his death; his intellectual qualities and attainments and brilliant court, 141. Frederick of Hohenzollern (father-in- law of Rodolph of Hapsburg), de- puted to invite Rodolph to accex)t the imperial crown, 148. Frederick the Bitten (son of Albert the Degenerate), severely bitten in the cheek by his mother as a lasting reminder of her wrongs, 153 ; expires, worn out with toil, after recovering his rights, 156. Frederick of Austria, rival of Louis of Bavaria, crowned King of the Romans; his forces defeated by the Swiss; assails Louis near MUhldorf and is taken prisoner, and confined in the Castle of Trausnitz; renounces all claim to the empire; his mag- nanimity ; an arrangement to exercise conjointly with Louis the govern- ment, 163, Frederick of the Empty Pocket (of the House of Hapsburg), excom- municated and placed under the imi>erial ban, 180; his suhgects re- volt, the hereditary castle of Haps- burg laid in ruins, 181. Frederick III. elected emperor as eldest representative of the House of Hapsburg; his long, weak, and miserable reign, 181; divisions in the empire, 182 ; is crowned at Rome, marries Eleanor of Portugal, 183; acknowledges the leader, Podiebrad, King of Bohemia; besieged in Vienna by his brother, Albert; in spite of his political address he is regardeil with contempt from his inglorious reign, 186. Frederick III. (Elector Palatine),quits Liitheranism for Calvinism, 224; his intolerance; introduces the Genevan creed by force, 229. Frederick V. (Elector Palatine), marries Elizabeth, daughter of James I. of England, aims at the Bohemian crown, 234; elected by the Bohemian States: his character, 236; disgusts his subjects by his Calvinistic fanaticism; expelled from his king- dom, and put under the ban of the empire, 237; is degrailed and de- prived of his electorship, 238; tho 338 INDEX. Palatinate of the Rhine restored to his eldest son, 248. Frederick William II. of Prussia, the Great, invades Silesia, 258; invades Bohemia fruitlessly, 259. Frederick William III. of Prussia, his weak and treacherous character, 294. Frederick William, crown -prince of Prussia (son of William I., emperor of Germany), married to the Princess- Royal of England, 299. Frederick W^iliiam IV. of Prussia, succeeded by liis brother, William I., the present Emperor of Germany; Prussian aggression; irritation be- tween the Prussian and Austrian governments, 303. French Revolution of 1848, its effects upon Germany, 297. GALLo-Romans, The, 44. Gaul, state of in Sixth Century, 44. Gauls, their invasion of Germany, 16. Genseric, the barbarian leader of the Vandals, founds a kingdom in Africa, 25. Gemld, archbishop of Mayence, bribes the electors to secure the nomination of his cousin Adolph of Nassau to the crown, 152; breaks with Adolph and procures his deposition, is reduced to submission by Albert of Austria, 154. Gei'mani, its signification and deriva- tion, boundaries, 9 ; the name first applied, by Cajsar, 17. Germanic Confederation, 289; affairs of, after 1816, 292. Germanic Empire, dissolution of, 274; the old, 310. Germanic nations, origin of, 10; bar- barians ravage Gaul, 22; confedera- tions, the locality of, in fifth century, 23. German Unity, meeting in Coburg in favour of, against French aggression, 310, 311. Germanicus, his camixiigns against the Germans, defeats Arminius, 19. Gemians, religion of the ancient, 14; emigration of the, 20. German tribes, religion of, 14 ; the barbarian laws of, 45. Germany, a Teutonic word, 10 ; the imi)erial crown given exclusively to, and thence called the Holy German Empire, 88; its condition after the Thirty Years' War, 249; new political divisions of, 310. Goisa, king of Hungary, fulfils his vas- salage to Frederick Rarbaru^^sa in Italy, 119. Gelimer, Lost king of the Vandals, sub- dued by Belesarius, 25. George, elector of Hanover and king of England, a descendant of the Guelphic House, 99. Qessler, bailiff of Uri, insults the Swiss patriots and is slain by Tell, 100. Ghibellines, The, a political party who took part with the Emperor against the Pui)e8, 99. Gian Gastone, last of the Medici, suc- ceeded by Maria Theresa in Tuscany, 257. Giselle, wife of Conrad II., laments his loss until her death, 98. Godfrey, the Norman chief, obtains Friesland from Charles the fat, who afterwards causes him to be mur- dered, 73. Gouthram, kingof the Burgundians, 4*2. Gregory VIII., Pope, summons the princes of Euroi)o to a Third Crusade, 128. Gregory IX., frustrated in holding an cecumenical council by Frederick II., dies through mortification, 138. Grimbald, son of Pepin d'Heristal, mayor of the })alace, 53. Grumbach, William de, of Franconia, procures the assassination of Mel- chior, bishop of Wurtzburg; is put to death, 225. Guelphs and Ghibellines, commence- ment of the rivalry of, 114. Gunther of Schwartzenburg, chosea anti-Caesar to Charles IV., poisoned by an emissary of the latter, 165. Gustavus Adolphus, king of Sweden, his secret alliance with the Protes- tants of Germany; his character and abilities; subsidised by Richelieu to check the ix)wer of Austria; gains a victory over Tilly; is repulsed by W.iUenstein, 239; is killed at the battle of Lutzeu, 240. Hann'o, archbishop of Cologne, con- spires to carry off the young king Henry IV. and obtain Uie regency; proclaims himself regent, and as- sumes guardianship of the emperor, 102; his character and conduct, 103. Hanover, the crown of, separated fromi the English crown, 294. Hapsburg, the powerful counts of, 156; become the supporters and tools of the Poi)e, 161. Hengist and Horsa subdue England and form the Heptarchy, 28. Henry I., surnamed the Foicler, sub- dues and re-unites Lorraine to Ger- many, 79; his frontier camiwigus; INDEX. 339 sanguinary conflict with the Hun- garians, SO; expedition against the Danes, 81. Henry II., surnametl the Saint (the Bavarian), elected Emperor, 93; ob- tains the iron crown of Lombardy; liis escape from assassination at Pavia, 94; crowned by the Pope; with his death the Saxon dynasty ends, 95; results of his treaty with Rudolph, king of Burgundy, 97. Henry, the Proud, duke of Bavaria, his dominion greater than that of the Emperor; marries Gertrude, only daughter of Lothar, 114; refuses sub- mission to Conrad III., and is de- prived of his duchies. Henry III., surnamed the Black, his character, defeats the Magyar nobles on the Raab; convokes a council at Sutri, and deposes the three Poj^es, Benedict IX., Sylvester III., and Gregory VI., as illegally appointed; after Clement II. the Emperor gives three more popes to Ronie, all bishops of Germany, 100; confers the German duchies on various princes from high iwlitical motives, his sud- den death, 101. Henry IV. ,trouble8duringhisboyhood, 102; knighted and rieclared a man at fifteen; his campaign against the Hungarians, 104; manies Bertha of Susa ; the Saxons disinter and insult the corpse of Henry's son: he overcomes them in Thuringia, and they surrender, 105; commences the interminable wars of the investi- tures, 106; pronounces sentence of deprivation on the Pope; the Em- peror's degradation at Canossa by llildebrand, 107; his children rebel against him; conquered and taken prisoner by his youngest son ; strip- l)ed of all his possessions, and dies ' in extremity of want and desolation, 109. Henry V. recommences the struggle about the right of investiture with Pascal II.; marches uiK)n Rome with a large army and tjikes the Vo\w prisoner; the Pope renounces the right of investiture in favour of the Emperor and crowns him. Ill; by the Concordat of Worms, the rights of Emperor and Pojw are clearly defined; dies childless, and with him ends the Salic or Fraukish House of Saxony. 112. Henry the Lion, the duchy of Bavaria restored him by Frederick I., 118; extendi widely his conquests iu Silesia and Pomerania; meets Bar- baiossa at Chiavenna and refuses to join him in his campaign; punished by forfeiture of all his possessions save Brunswick and Luneburg, and banishment from the empire, 127; retires to the court of his father-in- law, Henry II. of England (Plan- tagenet) ; his wife Matilda gives birth to a son, who becomes head of that branch of the House of Han- over now reigning in England, 128. Henry VI., eldest son of Barbarossa, succeeds him as Emperor, 129; iu chai-acter cruel, avaricious, and nar- row-minded; his ignoble conduct to Richard C(xur de Lion for the affront to his brother Duke Leopold at Acre; his avarice and cruelty in Naples and Sicily; dies suddenly during an in- surrection in Sicily; in this reigu Styria is added to Austria, and the expense of fortifying Vienna paid out of the king of England's ransom, 131. Henry VII., of Luxemburg, elected Emperor through the intrigues of Peter, archbishop of Mentz; follows in the footsteps of Charlemagne aiul Bai'barossa and worthily upholds the dignity of the empire, 160; is crowned at Rome, dies suddenly near Sienna, poisoned; the empire falls a prey to factions, 161. Henry VIII. of England courted by the rival monarchs Francis I. and Charles V. Henry the Pious, duke of Ijower Silesia, attempts to rei>el the Mongol inva- sion, but is slain near Liegnitz, 138. Henry the Iron, of Holstein, joins Edward III. of England against the French, 166. Honorius obtains the empire of the West, 20. Hungarians, nine years* truce with, 79. Hungary, Invasion of, by the Turks, 211. Huns, The, their characteristics, 29; their invasion of Europe. Huss, John, a disciple of Wickliff, tried for heresy and burnt alive, 176. Hussites, the war of, 176. Innocent X. , Pope,declare8 the treaties of Munsterand Osnabruck void, 245. Interregnum, the imperial crown, put up to auction, the whole of Germany becomes a scene of bloodshed, pillage, and anarchy, 143. Italy, results of the liberation of, in 1859, 301; secret treaty with Prussia against Austria, 304. 340 INDEX. Jerome of Prapne tried for heresy and burnt alive, 176. Jerusalem, the title of kins: of. passes from Frederick II. to the King of Naples and Sicily. 135. John of Bohemia, nephew of Albert of Austria, conspires to assassinate his uncle the Emperor, 155; flies into Italy, and is confined for life at Pisa, 156. John XXII.. Pope, tlie natural enemy of the Ghibellines, his rapacity, 163. John, the blind king of Bohemia, bravely falls at Crecy ; the inscription on his sword " Ich dien" a<«sumed by the Prince of Wales as his motto, 106. John XXIII., Poi^e, escapes from the Council of Constance, but is delivered up to the Emperor and Council, de- ])osed and condemned to rigorous imprisonment, 175; Pope Martin IV. receives his submission, and the great western schism ends, 176. Joseph I. (son of Leopold I.) his short but eventful reign; Louis XIV. hum- bled, acknowleilges the Archduke Charles as King of Spain; the war of the Spanish Succf^sion; the vic- tories of his general Prince Eugene, 253; his reign and character, *2;>4. Joseph II. (eldest son of Maria Theresa and Francis of Lorraine) a cipher during his mother's lifetime, acquies- ces in the partition of Poland, 261. joins Catherine of Russia in a war against Turkey, 261. JuannaofSpain (daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella) marries Phili[), son of Maximihan 1., 193; imprisoned by command of her father, 11«5; becomes JTicurabiv insane at the death of Pliilip, 196. KoNiGSMARK, the Swedish General, tnkes Prague, the last event of the Tliirty Years' War, 247. Ladislaus, king of Hungary (son of Albert II. of Austria) universally recognised as King in Bohemia, but the lowers of government exercised by two factions, 182. Xadislaus of Poland conquered and slain by the Turks at Varna, 1S2. Ladislaus (son of Ci^simir, king of Poland) elected king of Bohemia, 185. Leopold, the margrave of Austria (ute- rine brother of the Emi)eror Conrad) lays the foundations of Vienna, 115. Leopold, duke of Austria, his dastardly revenge against Richaid Cieur de Lion, his death from a fall from his horse, 130. Leopold I., emperor of Germany, his reign and character, 251-253. Leopold II., condition of Europe on his accession, 261 ; terror caused by outbreak of the French Revolution; his efforts to save his sister Maria Antoinette; his character, 262. Leopold of Hohenzollern-Signiaringen, his relations with Frencli interests. Marshal Prim offers him the crown of Spain; gives in his resignation, 307. LoUius defeats the Segambri, 17. Lombardy wrested from Austria, 208. Lothaire (eldest son of Louis the Good- nat lived) utterly defeated by hia brothers at Fontenaille, obtains the title of Emiwror, 71. Lothar of Saxony, 91. Lotharingia, or I^nd of Lothaire, now called Lorraine, 72. Lothar of Saxony, count of Supplin- burg, chosen emperor; renounces all the prerogatives of his \)redeces8or, and consents to hold his crown as vassal of the Holy See, 113; marries his only daughter, Gertrude, to Henry the Proud, duke of Bavaria, and gives him the duchy of Saxony: commencement of the rivalry of the Guelphs and Ghibellines; Lo\har dies in a i>oai»ant*s hut in the Tyrol, 114. Louis the Debonnaire, his weakness of character, does penance for putting out the eyes of his nephew, 68; re- bellion of his elder sons, 69; is twice deposed, 70. Louis II. (son of Louis, the Good- natured), suruamed the German, made first King of Germany, 72. Louis the Child, king of Gerniany, last of the Carlovingians in Germany, 76. Louis V. of Bavaria (of the Austro- Hapsburg family) an enemy of the Austrian princes, and an ally of the Luxemburg factions; he and his rival, Frederick of Austria, both crowned Kings of the Rom:uis;in the victory near MUhl.'J; Ferdinand of Aragon refuses to yielcl up to him the throne of Castile, 195; his mysterious death, lOG. Piccolomini, the imperialist general, drives Banier out of Bohemia, 242. Poland, The first partition of, 260. Poles, The, summon to their aid against the Prussians, Hermann of Salza, Grand Master of the Teutonic Order, 13d. Popes, Tlie, origin of the temporal power of, 54; the prerogative ac- quired by them throuKh the corona- tion of Charlemagne, 04. Procopius, the monk, leader of the Taborites, defeats the mercenaries of Sigismund, and ravages Austria and other states; vanquished in the battle of Prague, 178. Prussians, The Pagan, conquered and civilised by the Knights of the Teu- tonic Order, and I'russia becomes their iwssession, 136. Prussia rises into Germany, 297; ter- ritorial jx>sitiou of, before and after the war with Austria; her prepa- rations for war with France, 306; France declares war against- her (1870), 307. Raspon, Henry, landgrave of Thurin- gia, chosen Emjjeror in place of Frederick II., 140, Ravenna, exarchate of, its donation to the Pojie by Pepin, 54. Reformation, commencement of the, IDS. Richelieu, Cardinal, subsidises Gusta- vus Adolphus to check Austria, 239, Roger, the Nonnan, of Naples, con- spires with Guelpli against Conrad III., 118. Rollo and the old pirate Hastings pillage Paris, 73. Roman empire divide- ber chiefs and compels the homage of the great princes, 140; humbles the pride of Ottocar of Bohemia, 150; reduces all Austria as far 8S Vienna; founds the in>i)erial dynasty of Aus- tria; cedes all the rights of the em- pire over the terri tories of the church, 151; dies universally lamented; the ti-anquillity of his reign, his admir- able character as a sovereign, 152. Rodolph II (son of Maximilian II.), the right of primogeniture in the House of Austria established; his character, his attempts to curtail religious liberty, 228; dissensions of the Lutherans and Calvinists; civil dissensions ruin the trade of Ger- many, 230; his eccentricities and misgovernment; compelled to abdi- cate Bohemia, Silesia, and Lusatia, 231; his decease, 232. Rudolph III., of Burgundy, present at coronation of Conrad II. at Rome; his treaty with Henry II. and its consequences, 97. Rupert, Count Palatine, elected Em- peror; crosses the Alps, is defeated by the Duke of Milan, and inglori- ously retraces his steps, 172; his uu- exiHicted death, 173. Russian influence in Germany, 298. Saladin, sultan of Egypt, defeats the Christians near Tiberius, 128. Salian Frai.ks, their laws, 45. Salic Law, The, 46. Saxons, The, subdued and christianised by Charlemagne, 59. Schleswig-Holstein, the question of the duchies of, 295. Schweppermann, by his skill gains the battle of MUhldorf, 1022, his reward of two eggs, 103. Segambri, they repel the attacks of Agrippa, 17. Segovesus, king of the Kelta;, 16, Sens, its six months heroic defence against the Normans, 74. Seven Weeks' War, The, battles of Sadowa, Lissa, and Custozza, 305. Sigebert, king of Austrasia, seizes upon theterri tories of his brother Chilperic, is assassinated by Fredegonde, 43. Sigismund, margrave of Brandenburg, (brother of Wenceslaus), succeeds to the throne of Hungary; elected Em- jjeror, his arrogant character, 173 ; summons a council to meet at Con- stance; his misconduct during the Council; the Bohemians oppose his succession, and it costs him a war of sixteen years to attain it, 176 ; suc- ceeds to the crown of Bohemia, 178; his farcical coronation at Home; the nobility conspire against him, his death, 179. Sigismund, John, and the Turks, 225. Soliman the Magnificent invades Hun- gary, dies from anxietv and fatigue, 226. Spinola ravages the Palatinate, 237, Stephen II., Poi)e, crowns Pepin at St. Denis, 54. Stilicho invites Alaric to invade Italy. 20. •^' Strasburg Oath, The, 71. Suevic race, its localities, political system and mode of life, 11; con- founded with the people of Spain and Portugal, a.d. 685, 26. Suidger, bishop of Bamberg, placed in the pontificial chair by Henry III., and takes the name of Clement II. Swiss War of Independence, The, 156. Swabia, The duke of (second son of Barbarossa), dies of the plague before Antioch, in his twentieth year, 129. TANXsrAR,haIf.brother of Otho the Lion, revolts against him and is slain, 83. Tell, William, the Swiss patriot, 158. Theodobert, king of Austria, conquers the Greeks and Goths in Italy, 41. Theodobert II., king of Austria, 47. Theodoric erects the empire of the Ostrogoths, 40; arrests the career of Clovis, 41. Theoi)hania, daughter of the Greek Emj)eror Nicepiiorous, marries Otho II., 88; governs the empire for her infant son, 91. Thierry (son of Clovis, and King of Metz), massacres the Thuringians, 39, Thierry II., his four sons assassinated, 43; king of Burgundy, 47. Thierry III., (last of the "Sluggard Kings ") nominally governs Austria and Neustria, 50. Thirty Years' War, the, 235; vicissi- tudes of, ended by the Peace of West- phalia, 244; its varied horrors, 246. Tiberius, intrigues with the Germans, 17; guards the Rhine, 18. Tilly, Count (General of Ferdinand II.), completes the conquest of the Palatinate, 238; is killed at the pas- sage of the Lech, 239. Trajan defeats the Germans, 19. Trent, the Council of, 213, " Truce of God," The, organization and operation of, 98. Turenne, Marshal, gains the victory of Zummerhausen and invades Bavaria and Bohemia, 244. Urban III., Poi>e, dies on hearing of the defeat of the Christians by the Saracens, 128. Vandals, The, found a kingdom in Africa, zb. Varus, Quintilius, provokes the Ger- mans to rebellion by his extortions, 17; his legions cut to pieces by Ar- minius, 18. Venetia surrendered by Austria to France, 305. Verdun, treaty of, repartition of Char- lemagne's empire, 71; the unity of Chiistian Europe dissolved by the treaty of, 72. 344 INDEX*. Versailles, treaty of (1S71), 300. Vitigis, king of the Ostrogoths, cedes Provence to the Franks, 41. Wallenstkin commands the army of Ferdinand II. : issecretlyassaasinated by the Emperor's orders, 240. War, the Religious, in France and Germany begins, 214. War of the Spanish Succession, 252. War of the A uxtrian Succession, 257 • ended by the Peace of Aix-la-Cha- pelle, 259. War, the Seven Tears', 209. Weimar, the Duke of Saxe, defeats the imperialists; his mysterious death, 242. Weinsberg, Duke Guelph of, defeated by Conrad III. at, 115; the scene of the Weibertreue "woman's fidelity," VVencesIaus(son of Charles IV.>suoceeds to tlie throne: his vicious life and detestable character, 168; the Bohe- mians rise against him and consiijn hira to a dungeon for four months, 169 ; divides the empire into four circles, 170; is deposed 171; is driven out of Prague and dies in an ano- plectic fit, 177. ' Westphalia, tlie treaty of the ley of mwlern history; its conditions, 24S. Wickliffe, the Bohemians made ac- quainted with the writings of, by the marriage of Anna, sister of Wen- ce9lau3,with Richard II. of England. 171. William of Holland, his pretensions to the imperial throne, 142. William L, king of Prussia, maile Emperor of the New German Em- pire, 311. Winkelried, his patriotism at Sem- pach, 171. Witenageniots (Councils of the Wise), the Anglo-Saxon, 47. Wittikind. the Saxon leader, long re- sists Charlemagne, 89. Wladisl.is, duke of Bohemia, obtaiiis the title of King tlirough his fidelity to Frederick Bar ha rossa, 119. Wurtembeig, the King of, denounces the insidious ambition of Pru8sia,29S. Zapoli, John of, Palatine of Tran.syl- vania, 220. Ziska, leader of the Taborites, defeats Sigismund and captures Prague, 177. Zwentibold obtains the duchy of Bo- hemia from Arnulf, 74. WILLIAM C0LUN3 AND COMPANY, PBINTERS, GLASGOW. PUTNAM'S SERIES OF ATLASES. I. THE STUDENTS ATLAS OF PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY. Consisting of 20 Maps witli Descriptive Letterpress. Illustrated by numerous Engravings. Glasgow and Kew York. Imp. 8vo, cloth extra, §2. jO. n. THE COLLEGIATE ATLAS. A new comprehensive and useful Atlas of Modem Geography for the Library and for ordinary reference, with about 40 Maps. Glasgow and New York. Imp. Svo, cloth extra, §4.00. III. FOR REFERENCE, LIBRARIES, AND FOR FAMILY USE. THE INTERNATIONAL ATLAS-GEOGRAPHICAL, POLITICAL, CLASSICAL, AND HISTORICAL. 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