The History of France from the Earliest Times to 1848 (Volume 2) (Paperback)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: He was laid upon a paltry palliass in that gallery where everybody went in and out at pleasure; and in that wretched place, after a lapse of nine hours, expired "he," says Commyne, " who had so many fine houses and who was making so fine an one at Amboise; so small a matter is our miserable life, which giveth us so much trouble for the things of the world, and kings cannot help themselves any more than peasants. I arrived at Amboise two clays after his decease; I went to say mine orison at the spot where was the corpse; and there I was for five or six hours. And, of a verity, there was never seen ths like mourning, nor that lasted so long; he was so good that better creature cannot be seen; the most humane and gentle address that ever was was his; I trow that to never a man spake he aught that could displease; and at a better hour could he never have died for to remain of great renown in histories and regretted by those that served him. I trow I was the man to whom he showed most roughness; but knowing that it was in his youth and that it did not proceed from him, I never bore him ill-will for it." Probably no king was ever thus praised for his goodness, and his goodness alone, by a man whom he had so maltreoted and who, as judicious and independent as he was just, said of this same king: "He was not better off for sense than for money, and he thought of nothing but pastime and his pleasures." CHAPTER XXVII. THE WARS IN ITALY?LOUIS XH. 1498-1515. On ascending the throne Louis XII. reduced the public taxes and confirmed in their posts his predecessor's chief advisers, using to Louis de la Tremoille, who had been one of his most energetic foes, that celebrated expression, "The king of France avenges not the wrongs of the duke of Orleans." At the same time on the day ...