The history of the popes, from the close of the middle ages : drawn ...

2
HISTORY OF THE POPES.
of Italy" could be secured, drove Leo at once into the
ranks of the enemies of the Hapsburg. Hence the plan of
forestalling the Emperor's journey to Rome by aggression ;
hence the idea of a great anti-Imperial league with France,
Venice, England, and the Swiss* England, however,
showed no inclination to be drawn into any such alliance ;
consequently, a smaller league between the Pope,
France, and Venice was contemplated. But as the
two last-named powers cautiously held back, the Pope
also withdrew, having no inclination to step alone into the
breach.-]- He was, however, most eager to be on friendly
terms with France, and in this wish there is no doubt that
his designs on Ferrara played an obvious part. The
suppression of the Duke, his insubordinate vassal, which
had, ever since the time of Julius II., been an important
item of the Papal policy, appeared to Leo to be more
urgent than ever, because, not only at the time of the
French invasion in 15 15, but also during the war of
Urbino, Duke Alfonso had made common cause with
the enemies of the Holy See.| Moreover, the subjection
of Ferrara appeared to be especially desirable at this
juncture, for Leo X. was convinced that only by an
increase of the States of the Church was an end to be
put to the critical position they occupied between the
two great powers of Europe. Conscious of his own
weakness, no choice had been hitherto left to him
except that of vacillating between these two powers, or
of attaching himself to one of them, at the risk of
being reduced to a state of servile dependence. After
the possessions of the Church had been increased, on the
* NiTTI, 228 seq., 234 seq., and Reichstagsakten, II., 42.
t Baumgarten, Karl V., I., 191.
X Cf. Vol. VII. of this work, p. 144, n., for the Risposta alia invectiva,
B. 3 and 4.