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    No495. Sept. 17> 184)9.] THE LEADER. 106...

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    Some Memorials Of Eenee ,()F Feance, Duc...

    , "~ nf _nnrnnse with eenerositv of heart . Hei Sties _flSboJh freely ™ _thf needy , the deso- i _^ _S th _^ oppressed ! 'She loved the luxury of _' _doinff _ffood . ' The candour of her disposition was , o ffreat that it soon prepared her to admit con vie- tions adverse to many a long-revered dogma , whilst it rendered her accessible to the influences of real aj , d ancient truths . As for her deportment , it was as courteous as ( despite her personal deformity ) it _was majestic _; she knew how to preserve the respect due to her rank , whilst she won all hearts by the graciousness of her address , the _mbdesty of her bearing , and the charm of her conversational powers . " ¦¦ . _- . . . The biographer thengoes on to relate , in elo- _j _atiswi _Araas . _au £ _rf _= self to her husband ' s subjects . She soon became I famous for her encouragement of literature and the fine arts , and in her men of genius found a faithful friend and liberal patroness . But the stream of light , which , at this progressive period was fast _dispelling the mental darkness which for ages had enveloped the doctrines of the Church of Rome , had penetrated deeply into the heart of this re- _marlfable woman _^/ d _Renee was _^ soon suspected of cherishing in secret the tenets of the " reformed faith . " She , in fact , received at her court of Ferrara that world-renowned and indefatigable reformer , John Calvin , who , under an assumed name , enjoyed for a time both ease and tranquillity I in the palace of the sympathising Duchess . One of the chief protegees of this princess was Olympia _Moratl , so celebrated _afterwards for her high literary _aspirations and patriotic adherence tothe _ProteLuS religion . B _? permission of the ¦ _DwAess _^ he- shared and assisted the studies of her daughter Anna d'Este , A short extract here might be interesting to the reader . ¦ _¦'¦ « This bright genius who adorned an age that yet wanted not ornaments—this true _-womdn , whose history may be pondered in silent compassion , yet in profound admiration—this saint so tried in life , so blessed in death , has formed a favourite subject forthepenof the biographer . She was five years older than the young princess whose studies she lightened and whose recreation she shared . But notwithstanding the difference of age . a friendship soon sprung up between them , with the harmony of which there is no ground for supposing that any in- tellectual jealousies ever interfered .- Olympia was daughter to Fulvio Peregrino Morata , whose name was one of mark in the celebrated universities of Northern Italy , and she had enjoyed from her child- ood the rarest advantages of education in her refined though humble home . The learning of her father , the piety of her mother , the society of the gifted friends of both , and the affectionate interest which she awakened in all around her , left ' the marvellous child' nothing to wish for under the parental roof , except leisure to pursue the taste for study with which these favourable circumstances had naturally imbued her . To cultivate her mental powers to their full extent seemed impossible as long as the narrow means of her family required the young Olympia to share with her mother the dis- I tasteful labours of the household , * and we can easily imagine the . reluctance with which the book was laid aside for the spinning-wheel with perhaps the indignant murmur— 'My time for this—and this ? ' " The Estense Palace was a very temple of the Muses , and it was a welcome refuge to Olympia _te _^ e _« UnCOngenia L ° _t C M _, ? _wK _« _TuhLifVi ?;; V kTnd hea ? Ld P d ° u g ch 0 S s _fflleVrmi _^ _S _SSto _^ iS chUd whom _sh _^ l ad almost adopted _^ her own ° f From her father , Olympia was not _Beparated . I Fulvio retained tho privilege of instructing hia I daughter even in the ducal palace , _f and there , in , _ty the society of Anna d'Este , she advanced rapidly in I _claasioal learning ; whilst her native talents of im- | ; j _provisation , composition and recitation were like- _, $ wise , developed . It followed , as a matter of _couree , k ¥ that one so richly endowed by nature and education i became an object of great attraction to the learned ' _$ did ° _SrXcea ? G th e * aSSS " Olvmma % ' ' i oxanvSe _jwSSTSot to _supn v _^ _ffo _reauired _^ _S Se- 1 I S P _toX Princess TnS , who _fXwed Mr if ftiond ' s steps—though , it may be , far behind . ! A | $ dangerous _fllnoas interrupted tho young enthusiast ' s ) | enjoyments for a time , and banished her to the quiet i _M of her own home , from whence she returned , as p H e ° on as , she recovered , to the palace , amidst the » ' I _'' yH 1 _' _^ . " ! _inmates and to those scenes of R _^ . _"ectual display which s « U enthralled her heart _; [ I _with their _fasefnations . For as yet Olympia know _[| * _Vlo a'Oiympia _AtomtA . pp ai 23 Iff ,, „ 1 _fliaa , pp v B 8 , a « _' ' ' I f ? vlo a _Olymplu _Morata , p . no .

    Some Memorials Of Eenee ,()F Feance, Duc...

    not that the highest aspirations of an immortal being are spiritual rather than intellectual . To her mind the bright lights of Classic literature had not yet ' paled their ineffectual fires' before the _trrfe light of an assured Christian faith . In her ardent pursuit of studies purely secular , _^ she had l » therto neglected that knowledge which ' it is not good for the soul to be without . ' She was _^ applaudedasthe pride of Ferrara , ' and was not yet alive to the supe- rior excellence of < the honour which _comoth from God only . ' " The subsequent disgrace of this "bright , parti- cuiar star" that shone so brightly even in the midst of so many surrounding luminaries is a lasting dishonour to the memory of RenSe of _s _. _sis : jf _? rs mired her genius and appreciated her virtues , W also shared her faith . " She soon afterwards retired to Germany with her husband , Italy being no longer a safe asylum for one whose opinions were known to be so inimical to the doctrines of the Church of Rome . In another part of the book , the author thus records the death of this high- minded and heroic girl . « During the _short _remainderofOlym P iaMorata _? _^ h ly existence the literary character of her life > almost entirely merged in the moral and the | spiritual . As one who was well aware ol her pre- carious state of health , she gave more earnest need . than ever to preparation for eternity . . Not that ner household duties , once so \ _rksome wer _^ under the clear sense >« f a stall higher f _~ e , _^ ' _^ _to to _/^^ J _^ J _^ _V £ S £ L _^ _iliotn ¦ _St _^^ J _^ m _^^^ 1 i _^ 1 _SlS _^^^ _SiiS _Jgaft _^^^ J _^ _^ no _^& _e _% _S * " of mediation . All her own aspirations were heavenward . And as to things temporal , she had learned that it was < far better - . to endure _ajl with Jesus _^ hrist than to possess ¦ _*" e . _^ _Wle . J _^ W _vito- out Him' Though she still , _^ d wiJh _ _fiutMtal affection those friends who , amidst J _^ storm of per- secution , had never forsaken her her _ettemrto th _^ m reveal . the gradual weaning of her ( _| oui trom all nu- man _^ s _f _^ d . _her _^^ P _^ S J _^^ J 0 _* _^* ' and to be with _JhMt ..- A _^ Utttew _^ and her desire was granted . The _mprtaX disease uiiderwhicli she laboured increased during the _^" 1 _^ i o _" _^ ' and claimed Olympia as its prey on _^ the 7 tn _™ J" ° - vember . following . When ' all burexpirmg , _havinff awoke from sleep a little while _J _^« e ' _^ _» PP « _w _^ to me , ' wrote her be _^ aved Juspand to Curione , under the influence of so . , J ° y f _f n s _^* X ' d her _laughingasit we by _toj J PP _~ _™ l' and asked what she saw that . w _^ ° a s _^ e o t : _f _, 1 , saw , she said , ' inmy _TfL _^ _il _^ _Mi _^ t _? More of the most beautiful and the b _^ rightest light . More she could not utter through her weak _* ess . - Well _«? _7 wife ' I said , 'thou wilt dwell in t ha * beautiful _^ 8 ™ - Smiling again , she nodded witl _^ nei heaa , and soon after said , 1 am all giacmess . _£ w < u _" see speak again , except that just as her ¦ eyes were growing dun , she _^ aid , 'I scarcely _> _listingu > _sli you any longer , but all beside seems mil ot the _^ eiicist flowers / These , were her very last words . For not long afterward , as one sinking mto a sweet , sleep , she breathed her last . • • • • , ; & he was 1 U her twenty-ninth year when _sne cuea . But to return to the Duchess , whose words and actions form the principal topic of the present memoir . It was not to be supposed that the Catholic powers of Europe would long allow a u heretic " of such illustrious station to enjoy her new faith without remonstrance and disturbance . _^ oon » eauonoe was that her husband , a bigoted Catholic , _a _& r seeking in vain , bv mild means to change the tenour of his wife's opm . _ona , at length forced her , by bitter and unrelenting persecution , to make a false recantation , and return once more into tho body of the Romish faith . Upon tho death of her spouse , however , RenC'e , trusting in her maternal influence over the mind of the young JDuke , at once threw off the mask , and , boldly _declared her continued adherence to the Calvin- . _j . d Al _, he kne not that ia that _bigotted and _poneouting age , tolerance in religious _matters was not to be _Obtained even from those neareat and dearest to our hearts ; and she soon received from her _spn the " stern alternative to renounce her religious opinions or withdraw from Forrara . She chose the latter . Thus , after an absence of thirty-two years , tho soil of Franco again became the homo of its native prinooss . _gho retired to her little dependency of Montargis , whioh _tocrethor with other ' places had formed a ! _£ _* £ _, _^^^^ _^ S _^ r Hero she was soon made to acknowledge in bitterness of spirit hat tho struggle between tho contending faiths ao

    Some Memorials Of Eenee ,()F Feance, Duc...

    f was raging as _^ - _^ olen * ly in _^ an _aa in Italy an * instance of tins may be deduced from the follow- _, ing account of the conspiracy of _Amboise : — « The plan proposed by La Eenandie _waa aa _fouows ; A _jarge _tmmber of Huguenots were to present themselres unarmed before the king at' Blois , _^ m & eimon imp ioring him to withdraw the _persecuting edicts , and to grant the Reformed the free exercise oftheir religion . And , since their secret assemblies by nigh _<; had afforded to their enemies a pretext for calumniating their conduct , they were to beseech the Icing to grant permission for their assembling in temples open to the public , and under the eye of authority . Meanwhile , when the royal attention was attracted J ° . _thfa crowd of _£ _^™ a h _£ st " _SSaSS ¥ sS .-sS : _" - - _g" _™^ ' _andSSuxbons , were to meet from the _digfrent provinces , to advance in silence , surprise the town of Blois , seize the persons of the Guises , brjng them to trial , engage Francis H . to follow from henceforth the counsels of the Bourbon princes , and to convoke the States-General . * _^ "The conspiracy failed—being divulged , _thr ough terror or remorse , by a Pf _^ _T _^ Mlst _Sfi £ _^ _^ S _^^^^^^^^ SS _^ _SJewarned " wereof _^ course forearmed . Measurewere craftify takento lull the Huguenots into a false g ecurity and thus to insure their after-destruction The " court removed from Bio is to _Amboiae . It a g _^ _q _^ that the secret had transpired , but to admit of a retreat , pushed the affair to extremity . Th Precautions of the Guises were however , too _wel 1 * aken ' _La Renaudie , at the head of l » _* troo _£ _gSSfflS _!^ J _£ i _^^ c « Sl _^ 2 Sft 2 _^ X _^ adlr _? CaSneau ? had previously surren-£ ™ _° _%££$£ the _^ Duke of Nemours at Noizai ; ¦ ma _& te and _Raunai were also prisoners . Then h g : _^ e _^ t jo ] jia which have blackened for ev r the names of those who ordered them , and of thQge who witnegsed them _> Not les 3 than twelve huh _^ d vi ctimg _perished to glut the vengeance of the brothers of Guise . < The executions proceeded , ' says La _Planche , * with the greatest diligence for n _(/ t a day nor _night passed in which a great number w € re tfo _/ put _^ death and all of them personages ofdistiuction . Some were drowned , others hanged , . otheEa beheaded . But what was strange to see , and a tW thai had never happened under any form of govern _- ment , _was their being led to execution with- - out any g entence publicly pronounced upon them , or any declaration made of the feason of their deaths , orera of _theirnames .... One thing observed . . _.-- was-that the executions were Tese _^ ed u _^^^^ to custom , but the Gu . g ea did tbift essl to afford some pastime for thc ladies _who had become weary of being so J _^ tMa plac _^ And in truth thpy both ( eux et clles ) took station at the windows of the castle , as if there had been some momeries to be played before them being moved neither with pity nor compassion at least there was no appearance of any in thein And w ] mt . g wQra the fcil Rnd ) lia young brothers appeared at theSe spectacles , and the sufferers were x pointed out to them by tho cardinal , with the signs of a man avIio rejpiced greatly to animate the prince against his own subjects ; for wnonL they died with the greatest constancy , ho would say , ' Behold , sire , these audacious infuriates ! Tho fear of death cannot abate their prido and malice : what would they then do if they hud you in their hands ? ' _"f Tho subsequent life of Kcnec was composed of variou 8 ftcts _2 f charity _towanla _^ ior _opproswa brc - thrca . Endeavouring _^ cverv Vncan _s in her power to uileviate their wretched lot she drew down up 0 ll herself uraoh vexation and turmoil now tuo opposing party . Xt _, would occupy too much space to enumerate the many conspiracies , and court intrigues , bota rclijrious and political , which make up the history of this dark period ; _auffico it , that in the midst of the horrible masaacre of St . Bartholomew , and the universai j 1 Orror with which intelligence of that evOn ? was received bv tho whole Proto » ta * itworlcL tho ,, rinCeS 8 Eenee , daughter of Lou _. « . _Xllth , and pucho 8 fl , of _Fen-ara breathed her l _j- _^^ l y I jj _minted by her own family , and tho remnant ? oi that bleeding , persecuted soct with which uor name - ia so nobly associated . The roador will find much information ana _conuidorable _amusement from tho perusal of tins welldigested , and elegantly-written volume . J 2 r __^ 2 ; -7 _yjjr _gffivfig" _*™ oV thl 8 _^ _mpir _^ y , « oo _sinaowll . t i { C _' ff _^ ior de l _» _Wanohtf , p . aw . Quoted by _QlaraonoJ , t . xviu . pp . H 8 , _i-w .

    No495. Sept. 17> 184)9.] The Leader. 106...

    No 495 . Sept . 17 > 184 ) 9 . ] THE LEADER . 1063 _^

• Citation
  • Leader (1850-1860), Sept. 17, 1859, page 19, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/sldr_17091859/page/19/