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CHAP. and retiring in separate bodies relinquished

XIV.

their undertaking.

A. D. 1516.

A. Et. 41.

A. Pont. IV.

Negotia

Europe.

During these occurrences in Italy, negoti ations had been carrying on among the Eurotions for pean states, which in the event, not only apthe pacifi- peased these contests, but laid the foundation cation of of that general tranquillity which soon afterwards ensued. The suspicions entertained by Francis I. of the dispositions of Leo X. had received confirmation from many concurring circumstances; nor can it be doubted that in his aversion to the establishment of a French government in Italy, Leo was uniform and unalterable. This aversion had been increased by the conduct of the French monarch, who by depriving the pope of the sovereignty of Parma and Piacenza, had done him an injury which from motives of good policy he ought to have avoided and for which all his other concessions were not considered by Leo as an equivalent. The papal troops, which since the departure of Marc-Antonio Colonna had been intrusted to the command of his near relations Prospero and Mutio Colonna, yet remained in the vicinity of the Milanese; whence, in order to prevent suspicion, they at length retreated to Modena. Here an interview took

place

place between those commanders and Girolamo Morone, which was conjectured to be for the purpose of arranging the preliminaries for an attack upon some part of the state of Milan. At the same time, Leo had sent as his legate to the Swiss cantons, Ennio bishop of Veruli, for the purpose, as Francis rightly conjectured, of inducing them to engage their services to his enemies.(a) Under these impressions, the king manifested some hesitation in permitting the pope to receive the emoluments arising from the tenths of the benefices in France, as agreed on by the concordat; but afterwards, either suppressing his displeasure or being yet desirous of obtaining the favour of the pontiff, he not only assented to this claim, but endeavoured to secure his friendship by other acts of kindness. He relinquished his pretensions to a revenue from the states of Mirandola, Carpi, and Correggio, as lord paramount of those places, on being informed that the pope had received them under his protection. He also affected to enter into the views of the pope, with respect to his favourite object of an attack upon the infidels, and offered to equip a powerful armament at Mar

K2

seilles,

(a) Guicciard. lib. xii. ii. 119.

CHAP.

XIV.

A.D. 1516.

A. Æt. 41.

A. Pont. IV.

XIV.

CHAP. seilles, under the command of Pietro Navarro,(a) for the purpose of attacking the states of Barbary, whose corsairs infested the Mediterranean, and who had probably increased the pious hatred of the pontiff by their sacrilegious attack upon his person. Well aware, however, that all attempts to reconcile the pontiff to the permanent establishment of the French in Italy might prove fruitless, he turned his views towards another quarter, and determined to secure his Milanese possessions by accommodating his differences with the young king of Spain. The advantages to be derived to both parties from such a treaty were obvious. The accession of Charles to the dominions of his ancestors was not unattended by difficulties, and in particular his Neapolitan dominions were yet subject to the rival claims of the house of Anjou, and of the illegitimate branch of the house of Aragon. The basis of this negotiation was therefore the quieting and defending each other in the possessions which they respectively held in Italy. On the thirteenth day of August, 1516,

it

A. D. 1516. A. Pont. IV.

A. At. 41.

(a) Guicciard. lib. xii. ii. 119.

XIV.

Treaty of

it was solemnly agreed at Noyon(a) that the CHAP. treaty of amity concluded between the two monarchs at Paris, in the year 1514, should be renewed and confirmed, and that they should assist each other as well in the defence of their respective territories on both sides Noyon. the Alps, as in any just conquest which either of them might undertake. In order to confirm this connexion, it was further concluded, that Francis should give his daughter Louisa, then only one year of age, in marriage to Charles at a stipulated period, and that on such marriage Charles should be invested with all the rights and pretensions of the family of Anjou to the crown of Naples. By the same treaty the rights of the family of D'Albret to the kingdom of Navarre, and the discordant interests of the Venetians and the emperor elect, were particularly attended to and arranged; and a power was reserved for Maximilian to accede to the league at any time within the space of two months. The pope was particularly named as the ally of both parties; but this was well understood to be merely in respect of his dignity, and not under any expectation that he was likely to assent to the treaty.

No

(a) Du Mont. Corps. Diplomat. vol. iv. par. i. p. 224.

A. D. 1516.

A. Et. 41.

A. Pont. IV.

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CHAP.
XIV.

A. D. 1516. A. Pont. IV.

A. Et. 41.

Leo endea

vours

its effects.

No sooner was Leo apprized of these negotiations, than he employed all his art and all his influence to prevent the Spanish monarch from acceding to the terms proposed to him; but finding that his interference for this to purpose was not likely to avail, he resolved to counteract counteract if possible the effects of this treaty by another alliance equally formidable. To this end he prevailed on the king of England and the emperor elect to unite with him in a league, to which he had also the address to prevail on the Spanish monarch to accede. But although Leo had been the original promoter of this measure, he declined being nominated as an ostensible party, and requested that power might be reserved to him to join in it at a future time. By this treaty, which was concluded at London on the twenty-ninth day of October, 1516,(a) the emperor elect and the kings of England and of Spain agreed to defend each other against any power that should attack their respective states; and the contingency

(a) This treaty is given by Lünig, Codex Ital. Diplomat. vol. i. p. 149. Rymer, Fœdera, vol. vi. þar. i. p. 121. Dumont, Corps Diplomat. tom. iv. þar. i. p. 240. also v. Supplem. au Corps Diplomat. tom. iii. par. i. p. 40, where this treaty is more correctly given, from an ancient copy, apparently written at the time of its conclusion.

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