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

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10<br />

HISTORY OF THE POPES.<br />

Ca<strong>the</strong>rine de' Medici.* Cardinal Bibbiena, who had just<br />

returned <strong>from</strong> France,f seems to have smoo<strong>the</strong>d over this<br />

misunderstanding ; but Leo X. soon had fresh reasons for<br />

complaint against his confederate. While carrying on his<br />

negotiations for forming a league between Rome, France,<br />

and Venice, he learned to his bitter experience that Francis<br />

had no intention <strong>of</strong> keeping his word and renouncing his<br />

patronage <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Duke <strong>of</strong> Ferrara.:^ Moreover, <strong>the</strong> spirit<br />

in which <strong>the</strong> French King meant to keep his solemn<br />

pledges in regard to <strong>the</strong> Turkish war, was revealed when<br />

<strong>the</strong> Pope asked his help on behalf <strong>of</strong> Rhodes, upon which<br />

<strong>the</strong> Sultan Selim was meditating an attack. Francis flatly<br />

refused all assistance.<br />

Moreover, constant complaints came <strong>from</strong> Milan <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong><br />

French encroachments on <strong>the</strong> rights <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Church.||<br />

Almost as if <strong>the</strong>se <strong>of</strong>fences gave him <strong>the</strong> right to ask for<br />

more favours, Francis I. was for ever seeking for fresh con-<br />

cessions ; and if <strong>the</strong>se were not at once granted, he used<br />

<strong>the</strong> most violent threats. In <strong>the</strong> autumn <strong>of</strong> 1520 he showed<br />

so little consideration towards <strong>the</strong> Pope that his imprudence<br />

can cause nothing but surprise. First, he demanded <strong>the</strong><br />

prolongation by five years <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>of</strong>fice <strong>of</strong> Legate in<br />

France for Cardinal Gouffier de Boissy. Not content with<br />

obtaining this extraordinary concession, he took <strong>the</strong> op-<br />

portunity <strong>of</strong> trying to enforce <strong>the</strong> discontinuance <strong>of</strong> his<br />

protection <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> rights <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Legate <strong>of</strong> Avignon. In<br />

* See <strong>the</strong> Letter <strong>of</strong> Giulio de' Medici to <strong>the</strong> French Nuncio G.<br />

Staffileo, Jan. 7, 1520, in NiTTi, 326, n. i.<br />

t Cf. Bandini, Bibbiena, yj seqq. ; LuziO-Renier, Mantova, 241.<br />

About his reception in Consistory, Jan- g, 1520, see Paris de Grassis in<br />

H<strong>of</strong>fmann, 441 ; Acta Consist, in Kalk<strong>of</strong>f, Forschungen, 71 seq.<br />

Cf. *Diary in Cod. Barb., lat. 3552, Vatican Library.<br />

I<br />

NiTTI, 272.<br />

§ See Despatch <strong>of</strong> Paolucci, June 3, 1520, in Balan, VL, 30.<br />

II GuicciARDiNi, XIV., I. Cf. Raynaldus, 1 52 1, n. 78.

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