two Ministers, fearing left the Prince fhould have FrancisII. a mind to raise fome new Commotions. 1560. Pope Another thing, which increased their fufpicions Pius IV. was, that the Queen talking with Thomas Perrenot Chantonet, Cardinal Granville's Brother, and Embaffador of Spain, as the Difcourfe fell upon the Enterprize of Amboife, the Embassador told her Majefty, that he thought no other way could be devised to restore Peace and Tranquillity in the Kingdom better, than that the Cardinal of Lorrain, and the Duke his Brother, fhould leave Court for a time, and to reftore the Princes of the Blood, and the Conftable Montmorency to their Rights, Privileges, and Authority. They did not apprehend, that this Minifter, which loved Disturbances, had nothing elfe in view, when he spoke fo, than to gratify the Queen-Mother's eagerness for Authority and Power, and to put them together by the ears, and into a greater Confufion than ever. But the Guifes interpreted otherwife this Minister's meaning, for they thought that Chantonet had spoke fo in favour of Montmorency, by King Philip's Orders, who countenanced the Conftable, and had feveral of his Family in his Service. Mother's The Queen being afraid of fome new Commo- LXVII. tions, though fhe was not ignorant of the caufe Queenof them, fent for Lewis de Renier, Sieur de la Conference Planche, du Tillet's Nephew, and intimate with with La one of the Conftable's Sons. She ordered him Planche. to meet her at St. Leger in the Foreft of Montfort, where the King was; fhe defired him to fpeak freely his Mind about the Caufes of the Troubles, and the Remedies which he thought proper to appease them. But as he thought, that this was only an Artifice of the Guifes to dive into his moft fecret Thoughts, he defired at first to be excufed, becaufe it was a matter of too great Pope FrancisII great moment, which he knew to be beyond his 1560. Capacity. But the Queen infifting, that it was Pius IV. the Duty of an honeft Man, who loved his King and Country, to tell freely what he thought the moft proper for the Good and the Welfare of both, efpecially on fuch occafions, when a great danger must be the confequence of his Silence, or Diffimulation. Thefe Arguments prevailing with Monfieur de la Planche, he opened his Mind That Gen- freely to the Queen, and faid to her in other tleman's words, what many others had faid before him, generous either by word of mouth or by writing. He Answer to the Queen. charged the Guifes with being the caufe of all the civil Broils, and told her Majesty, that if the Commotions raised for Religion's fake were fo terrible, those for the publick Welfare would not be lefs. The Queen endeavoured by Threats and Promifes, to oblige him to declare what he knew concerning Maligni's Flight, and De Soucelles's Efcape, to endeavour on his fide to take them again; but he said, that by God's favour, he depended on no body but her Majefty; that he was born of a Condition to be above doing the Office of an Informer or Bailiff; and added many other things to the fame purpofe, by which he declined giving any fatisfactory Anfwer to the Queen upon that head, fo his Freedom coft him the lofs of his Liberty, for two or three weeks (p). The Prince of Condé came to Bourdeaux, The Prince from whence he went to Nerac, where his Brother of Condé follicits bis refided. He exhorted him not to be deficien: to Brother. himself, nor to his Friends in fuch a Crifis; many LXVIII. of the prime Nobility were come with his Highness, who had conceived great hopes that the Kingdom's Liberty would be restored by the Union of the two Brothers. The Prince fent notice of his fafe Arrival to the Princess his 3 Thuani Hift. lib. xxv. 755. Con Pope Confort, and to the Conftable his Uncle, by Francisif. James la Sague, a noble Gafcon in his Service, 1560. who had Orders likewife to get what Intelligence Pius IV. he could of what was doing at Court, and to receive from the Princefs the Sums neceffary to bear his Charges during his ftay in Bearn; for which purpofe the Princefs had mortgaged fome of her Lands to the Constable for ten thousand Crowns: Before la Sague came back, the King of Navarr and the Prince of Condé had received Letters from the King, by which he invited them to come to the Affembly, which was to be convened at Fontainebleau, the following Month of Auguft. For the Guifes, who got Intelligence of all that paffed in the Court of Navarr, by Descars the King of Navarr's Chancellor, [who, according to report, had been bribed into their Intereft,] fearing left the two Brothers fhould cause fome disturbance in Guienne, fet their Minds at work to find out means to infnare them both; and being told, that it was neceffary to convene the chief Men of the Kingdom, to confult about the propereft means of reftoring publick Peace and Tranquillity, had agreed to it, thinking that by this method they might execute their wicked defigns against the two Princes of Bourbon. But thefe Princes knowing what the Guifes were contriving, and thinking it was fafer for them to fee at a diftance what the fuccefs of that Affembly would be, made an Answer to the King, whereby they excufed themselves for not coming, because the time appointed was fo fhort, and for other Inconveniencies they alledged. Then they fent again la Sague to watch, what fhould be tranfacted in that Affembly, and to give them notice thereof. VOL. H The FrancisII. 1560. Pope Pius IV. LXIX. Assembly of Fontainebleau. The Constable Montmorency had from the beginning exhorted the King of Navarr to come to Court, to encourage the Nobility by his prefence, and to oppofe the defigns of the Guises. But that Prince, who was averfe to all manner of Bufinefs, and preferred a retired Life to an active one, frustrated by his natural indolence the entreaties and wishes of his Friends. The Conftable, as foon as he was fummoned, came to Court with the Count of Villars, the Admiral de Coligny, with his two Brothers, the Cardinal, and Dandelot, and fuch a great Attendance of Friends and Servants, that the like had never been seen before upon fuch an occafion; for there was above eight hundred Horfes, on purpose to make a fhew of his great Power, though he was out of favour; very few befides Claudius de Gouffier Marquis de Boify, the Rhiengrave, de Sanfac, and fome other Knights, came to meet him. Orders had been fent to the Governors of the Provinces, to keep the Troops in readiness to march, at the first warning, to the Place they fhould be wanted. The day appointed for the Affembly, which was the 21st of Auguft, being come, the King came into the Queen-Mother's Apartment at one in the Afternoon; then came the Queen-Mother, followed by the King's Confort, and his Brothers, the Cardinals of Bourbon, Lorrain and Guife, the Dukes of Guife and Aumale, the Conftable, the Chancellor, the Admiral, the Marshals of St. Andrew, and of Brifac, Andrew Guillard, Sieur du Mortier, and d'Avançon, as Privy-Counsellors, John Morvilliers, Bishop of Orleans, Charles de Marillac, Archbishop of Vienna, John de Monluc, Bishop of Valence, thefe took place according to their ranks. Then the the Knights of the Order, the Mafter of Re- FrancisIt' quefts, the Secretaries of State, the King's Treafurers, and the general Treasurers fat on a lower Bench. The King opened the firft Seffion by a fhort Speech, to inform them of the reafons of their being affembled, and exhorted them to speak freely, and without prejudice or paffion, what they thought about the Welfare of his Kingdom; that for the reft his Chancellor, and his Uncles the Cardinal of Lorrain, and the Duke of Guife, would let them know his Intentions. The QueenMother fpoke almoft to the fame purpofe, and intreated earnestly the Members of the Affembly, to ftrengthen by their prudent Counsel the Scepter in the hands of her Son, and to provide altogether, if poffible, for the Eafe of the People, and to the Satisfaction of the difcontented Nobility, 1560. Pope Pius IV. cellor's The Chancellor made a long Speech, wherein LXX. he compared the prefent State of the Kingdom The Chan to a fick Body, whofe. Diftemper's caufe is unknown to the Phyfician himself; he fpoke of Speech. the Kingdom's ftrength, that was exhaufted; of the Corruption and Depravation of the Nobility, Magiftrates, and all the Orders of the State; that, for these things, the People's Affection and Love were alienated from the King and his prime Minifters: but that the true Cause was unknown, and therefore it was more difficult to apply proper remedies to it; for that fome out of fear of the present and threatning Evils, fome for Religion fake, and many out of Ambition, and a defire of putting all in Confufion, had disturbed the Peace and Tranquillity of the Kingdom; that they ought to do their utmoft Endeavours to find out the caufe of that Diftemper, in order to apply proper remedies to restore the Body of the State's health; that the King's defire and S 2 will |