do often proceed when kings governe themselves by men of base hand as they call them for then are princes and great lords jealous And therefore to shun such jealousies and just complaints that great men may have to see themselves despised a prince ought so to advance meane men that hee recoile not great men and meane men ought alwaies to acknowledge the place from whence they came respecting great men according to their degrees without staggering in their dutie to their prince common-wealth And when they see that by some accident they are evill beloved of great men or of the common people and that for the good of peace it is requisit to extinguish the envie and jealousie conceived against them they ought voluntarily to forsake their estate For willingly to retaine it to the detriment and confusion of the common-wealth therein doe they evidently shew that they are not good servants of their prince King Charles the seventh had Counsellors both wise and loiall as M. Tanguy du Chastell M. Iohn Lowet president de Provence the Bishop of Cleremont Annal. upon An. 1426. and certaine others of meane qualitie which had done him great services in great affaires he had had as well when he was Dolphin as after he was king At that time this king had civile warre against the duke of Burgoigne whome secretly the duke of Bretaigne favoured which warre the king would gladly have had extinguished Therefore hee himselfe openly spoke to the said lords and dukes which made him answere That they were content to come to some good accord provided that hee would put from him such Counsellors as he had and take others These beforenamed Counsellors knowing this said to the king Since Sir it holds but thereon to quench civile warre which there is against the house of Burgoigne let them all goe home againe it shall not come of us that so good a thing shall bee hindered and they themselves desired and counselled the king to accord to that condition These were good and loyall Counsellors but they are dead and there are no more such to bee found But such there are now adaies which had rather see the commonwealth in combustion and ruine than they would suffer themselves to be removed from their places one pace Yet these good Counsellors abovesaid withdrew to their houses willingly and without constraint and soone after peace was accorded and finished betwixt the king and the duke of Burgoigne These good persons alledged not That men sought to take away the kings faithfull Counsellors to seduce and deceive him and that their dutie commaunded them then more than ever to keepe nigh his Majestie seeing the great troubles and affairs of the kingdome and that otherwise they might be accounted traitors and disloiall No no they alledged no such thing they looked right upon the white to keepe peace in the kingdome For they knew well that if they had used these reasons to the duke of Burgoigne that he could soone have answered replied that they were too presumptuous and proud to thinke that in all the kingdome of Fraunce there could not be found people as wise and faithfull to their prince as they For in all times the kingdome of Fraunce more than any other hath ever beene well furnished with wise and vertuous people of the Nobilitie Iustice Cleargie yea Marchants and of the third Estate To come againe to our purpose certaine it is That a prince which committeth the government of his affaires to one alone brings himselfe in great daunger and hardly can such governement bee without great mischeefes and disorders For this commonly men hold That being lifted up unto great honor and dignitie they cannot hold a moderation and mediocritie which is that which giveth taste and grace to all our actions The emperour Severus so high advaunced Plautianus that being great master of his houshold the people thought seeing his dealings in his office that hee was the emperour himselfe and that Severus was but his great master Hee Dion Spartian Severo slew robbed banished confiscated the goods of all such as hee would in the sight and knowledge of Severus who contradicted him in nothing So farre mounted this great and immoderate license that Plautianus durst well attempt to cause Severus to be slaine and his two sonnes But his wickednesse was disclosed by a captaine unto whom he had discovered it insomuch that Severus caused him to come before him and although by nature he were a cruell Prince yet was he so firmely affected to Plautianus that he never spoke sharpe or rigorous word unto him but onely uttered this remonstrance I am abashed Plautianus how it came in thine heart to enterprise this against me who have so much loved and exalted thee and against my children whereof Bassianus my eldest sonne hath married your daughter and so is your sonne in law Truly the condition of men is very miserable that cannot maintaine themselves in such honour and dignitie as I have placed you in I pray you tell me your reasons defences to purge you of this act The abovesaid Bassianus seeing that the emperour his father would receive Plautianus to his justification fearing he should have escaped caused one of his men to slay him in the presence of his father adding to the saying of Severus Certaine it is that great honors attributed to one man alone as to governe the affaires of a kingdome not only makes him go out of the bonds of reason but also subjects him unto great envies wherby great mischeefes happen unto him In the time of Philip le Bell king of Fraunce M. Enguerrant de Marigni Countie Annal. upon An. 1314 1326. de Longuevile a valiant and wise knight governed almost all the affaires of the king and his kingdome and especially of his common treasure which was distributed by his ordinance Amongst other things he caused to build that great Pallace at Paris where the court of parliament is held After the death of king Philip Charles Counte de Valois his brother begun criminally to pursue M. Enguerrant before certaine commissionaries of the said court delegated for that purpose And so farre did the said Countie de Valois being a great lord prince of the bloud and in great credit with king Lewis le Hutin his nephew and sonne of the said Philip pursue the cause against M. Enguerrant who was then out of credit after the death of king Philip his master that he was condemned to bee hanged and strangled on a gibbet at Paris as he was indeed This happened onely unto him by the envie he had procured by his great place and too great credit For true it is that he was accused of many things but he was not condemned of any punishable thing But our hystories say That he was not received unto his justifications and defences he was so fiercely pursued by the said Countie de Valois who after he had caused him to bee hanged and that
ordinarily vvhen corrupted nations frequent amongst others for they infect them vvith evill manners And therefore it is that the Almaigne nation remaines so entire and constant in his manners because the Almaignes vvere never curious to trafficke vvith their neighbours nor to dwell in other countries nor to receive strangers into their countrey but alwayes have contented themselves vvith their owne goods nouriture manners and fashion of apparrell insomuch as shunning the frequentation of Spaniards French and Italians vvhich are the three nations of the vvorld most vicious they have not yet learned their customes and corruptions I Have not here set downe this Maxime to say it is not very true For besides the examples we reade in hystories we know it by experience and sight of eye seeing wee see at this day all Fraunce fashioned after the manners conditions and vices of strangers that governe it and have the principall charges and Estates and not onely many Frenchmen are such beasts to conforme themselves to strangers complections but also to gaggle their language and doe disdaine the French tongue as a thing too common and vulgar But if wee well consider this manner of vengeance taught by Machiavell in this Maxime we shall find it is a most detestable doctrine as well for them which practise it as for them against whom it is practised The example even of Capua which Machiavell alledgeth prooveth it For the Capuans in receiving into their towne Annibals armie corrupted Tit. Livius lib. 3. Dec. 3. rupted and infected the souldiers of Anniball with all excesse and effeminate wantonnesse also by the same meanes they procured their owne ruine and entire destruction which soone after happened unto them The Persian lords which with their manners corrupted king Alexander the Great did nothing to their owne advauntage Plu. in Alex. For Alexander becomming vicious they got the evill will of the Macedonians which tooke displeasure to see their king corrupted and finally after the death of Alexander which came unto him by his dissolutenesse learned of the Persians these lords had part of the evill lucke whereof they were cause And generally we may see that the corrupters of princes and people take part alwayes in the evill whereof they are cause as in other places we have shewed by many examples of flatterers which have corrupted their princes We Frenchmen may yeeld good witnesse of what account the Italian and Neapolitane nation is by the frequentation wee had with them in the voyage which was made to Naples in the time of king Charles the eight for from thence brought they this disease which at this day is now called the French poxe and that we have ever since kept but yet so as the Italians and Neopolitanes are not exempt therefrom but both the one and the other have part of that corruption Breefely we ought to detest and hate this wicked doctrine of Machiavell and reject all vengeance and follow S. Paules lesson who commands us to converse with good people and of good manners because the conversation of the wicked not onely corrupteth good manners but also soweth those that are wicked And as for that which Machiavell saith of the Almaignes wee know and see the frequentation of the Almaignes in France and yet till this present we have not seene that they have yet gathered corruption of manners And whereas he sets downe the French nation amongst such as are most corrupted we cannot denie it but we may well say That the doctrine of Machiavell the frequentation of them of his nation are cause of the greatest and most detestable corruption which is at this day in Fraunce For of whome have the Frenchmen learned and knowne atheisme sodomie trecherie crueltie usurie and such other like vices but of Machiavell and of them of his nation So that they may brag that they are well revenged of the warres which our auncestors have made in Italie 6. Maxime It is folly to thinke that with princes and great lords new pleasures will cause them to forget old offences CAEsar Borgia saith Machiavel during the life of Pope Alexander Cap. 7. Of Princes Discourse lib. 3. cap. 4. the sixt his father usurped the domination of Romania which is a land belonging to the Church and vvas called duke de Valentinois In making those usurpations in favour of the Pope his father he offended many Cardinals and amongst others the Cardinall of Saint Peter ad vincula yet after he consented that hee should bee elected Pope after the death of Alexander his father vvhereof hee soone repented For this new Pope called Iulius the eleventh straight be took himselfe to armes to recover that vvhich Borgia had usurped although he had favoured him in his election vvhich hee should never have done nor suffered any election of a Pope vvhich vvas his enemie For saith he new pleasures never makes men forget old iniuries and offences and therefore Borgia which in all other things had governed vvell committed a foule fault in the creation of Iulius and himselfe delivered the mean of his finall destruction The same fault cōmitted Servius Tullius king of the Romanes in giving his two daughters in marriage to two Tarquins vvhich quarrelled for the crowne and vvhich thought that Tullius vvould usurpe it upon them For not only this alliance extinguished the envie and rancour vvhich they had to Servius but that which is more it caused one of the daughters to enterprise to sley her owne father IF seemeth that this which Machiavell telleth of Borgia boweth something from the truth of the hystorie For Sabellicus writeth That during the election of Pope Iulius the eleventh Borgia was shut up in the Popes tower to be safe and guarded by his enemies So there was no likelyhood that a man brought into such an extremitie as to hide himselfe and be shut up in prison for the great multitude of enemies which hee had procured should have such great credit in the Popes election But suppose it was true that Borgia helped Pope Iulius to the Popedome and that Pope Iulius was unthankfull for that benefit for the remembrance that he had of the old and ancient injuries that Borgia had sometimes done him what followes hereof That all great lords will alwayes doe the like will some Machiavelist answer and that therefore they ought not to bee trusted Is not here a goodly doctrine for a prince Breefely it is Machiavels mind to teach a prince to trust in no lord which hee hath once offended and againe that none which hath made a fault or offended him shall any more trust him whatsoever reconciliation peace concord amitie pleasure and good offices may happen since the offence Here behold a most wicked and detestable doctrine to say That an offence ought to take so deepe root in the heart of the offended that by no pleasures services or other meanes it can be rased out But Machiavell seemeth something excusable to maintaine this Maxime for according to
his sonne For how durst he punish that vice that hee had learned him therefore this example of Severus serveth little or nothing to maintaine the doctrine of Machiavell neither is one example so considerable against a million of others contrary for men must make a law of that which happeneth most often and in many examples not of that which seldome happeneth When Anniball began to execute evill his businesses in Italie and that the Romanes having taken courage began to follow him neere and to hould him short he tooke a cruell counsell which much advanced his ruine For the townes and fortresses which hee could not guard hee ruinated and destroyed that his enemies after him might not draw any commoditie from them nor make any use of them This was a cause that their courages which tooke part with him were alienated from him for saith Titus Livius Example toucheth men more than doth callamitie and losse It was a great crueltie in the duke Iohn of Bourgoigne when hee durst so much enterprise as to cause to bee slaine the duke of Orleance the kings onely brother Monst lib. 1 cap. 38. 39. 112. which crueltie cost many heads and was cause of infinit evils in the kingdome of France and finallie was the cause that the duke himselfe was massacred on the same manner that hee had caused to massacre the duke of Orleans But yet it is a thing more strange that this duke durst maintaine that he had great neede to commit that massacre Yea he found a doctor in Theologie called master Iohn Petit who durst affirme in tearmes of Theologie that that act was goodly praiseable and worthie of remuneration True it is that in the time wherein wee are there are found many such doctors of the bottle patrons defenders of sinnes and vices such as this Iohn Petit but as in the end hee was knowne to bee a lyer and a slanderer and his propositions condemned hereticall so God will cause his imitators of this time in the end to bee found like him but that the asse may appeare by his eares I have briefely set downe his oration The duke of Bourgoigne having made himselfe the stronger in armes within Paris hee tooke order that there should be held a Counsell and an assembly therein to propose his justifications In which Counsell assisted Monssier le Daulphin the king of Sicile the cardinall of Bar the dukes of Berry of Bretaigne of Lorraine and many contes barons and many other great lordes and the rector of the Vniversitie of Paris accompanied with many doctors clearkes and bourgesses There was brought in by an usher master Iohn Petit a doctor in Theologie before all those nobles to justifie the act of the duke of Bourgoigne After then they had given him audience with both his hands hee tooke off his great square doctorall bonnet from off his head and began to speake in this manner My most redoubted lordes Monseignior the duke of Bourgiogne contie of Flanders and Arthois twise peere of France An oration of a doctor in Divinity and deane of Peares is come before the most noble most high Majestie royall as to his soveraigne lord to doe him reverence in all obedience as he is bound by foure obligations which commonly are set downe by doctors in Theologie and of the cannon civile law Of which bonds the first is of neighbour to his neighbour the second of parent towards his parent the third of vassaile towards his lord and the fourth will bee that the subject not onely offend not his lord but also revenge such offences as are done against him There are yet other obligations that is That the king hath done much good honour to my lord of Bourgoigne For it pleased him that Monseignior le Daulphin should espouse his daughter that the son of my said lord of Bourgoigne should marry madame Michelle daughter to his royall majesty and as S. Gregorie saith Cum crescunt dona crescunt rationes donorum that is when gifts encrease so doe their obligations also All these obligations are cause that my lord of Bourgoigne hath caused to slay the duke of Orleance lately dead which act was perpetrated for the very great good of the kings person of his children and of all the realme as I shall so sufficiently shew as every man shall bee satisfied For the said Monseignior of Bourgoigne hath charged me by expresse commandement to propose his justification which thing I durst not denie for two causes The first because I am bound to serve him by an oth taken of mee three yeeres agoe The second because hee hath given mee a good and great portion every yeere to keepe mee at schole because hee considered I was smally benificed which pension did mee great good towards my expences and yet will so doe mee long if it please God and my said lord of Bourgoigne But when I consider the great matter I have taken in hand to handle before this noble companie great feare troubleth my heart for I know I am of small sense feeble of spirit and of a poore memorie so that my tongue and memory flieth away and that small sence I was wont to have hath now altogether left mee so that I see no other remedie but to commend mee to my God and creator and to his glorious mother to Monseigneur S. Iohn the Evangelist prince of Theologians And therefore I humbly beseech you my most redoubted lords all this companie if I say any thing which is not well said to attribute it to my simplenesse and ignorance that I may say with the Apostle Ignorans feci ideoque miserecordiam consecutus sum that is I did it of ignorance and therefore am I pardoned But some may here make a question saying It appertaineth not to a Theologian to make the said justification but rather to a jurist I answer That then it belongeth nothing to me which am neither the one nor the other but a poore ignorant man as I have sayd whose sence and memorie faileth yet a man may say and maintaine it That it well belongeth to a doctor in Theologie to defend his master and to say and preach the truth Men need not then be abashed if I lend my pore tongue to my lord and maister who hath nourished me For it is now in his great need that I lend him my tongue they that love me the lesse for it I thinke they commit a great sinne and hereof every man of reason will excuse me Then to begin this Iustification I take my theame upon that which S. Paul saith Radix omnium malorū cupidit as quam quidam appetentes erraverunt à fide These words are in the first to Timothie the sixt chapter and are thus englished Ladie Covetousnesse of all evils is the root which makes men disloyall Some may object to me that pride is the first of all sinnes because Lucifer by his pride fell from Paradice into hell and also
fire therein thinking to burne him is also worthie of double death Fourthly every subject making alliance with the mortall enemies of the king the kingdome is also worthie of death Fiftly every subject which fraudulently setteth dissention betwixt the king and the queene making the queene understand that the king hateth her and counselling her to goe out of the realme she and her children offering safely to conduct her out is worthie of the like death as above Sixtly every subject that giveth the Pope to understand false things as to make him understand that his king and lord is not worthie to hold the crowne nor his children after him is worthy of like death Seventhly the tyrant that hindereth the union of the church and the deliberations of the Cleargie for the utilitie of the holy mother Church ought to be punished as an hereticke and schismaticke and meriteth that the earth should open and swallowe him as Dathan Core and Abiron Eightly the subject which by empoysonments and viands seekes to cause the king or his children to die is worthie of the aforesaid death The last is that every subject which with souldiers causeth the people and countrey of his soveraigne to bee eaten up and exiled and which taketh and distributeth his money at his pleasure and makes it serve his turne to procure alliances with his lords enemies ought to be punished as a very tyrant with the first and second death And here I make an end of my Maior of the justification of Monsieur the duke of Bourgoigne But I come now to declare my Minor wherin I have shewed That Lewis late duke of Orleance was so much embraced with ladie Covetousnesse of the honours and riches of this world that hee would have taken away the seignorie and crowne of Fraunce from the king his brother and his children by temptation of the enemie of hell using the aforesaid meanes for he found an Apostata monke expert in the divellish art unto whom he gave a ring and a sword to consecrate them to the divell This monke went into a solitarie place behind a bush where he put off all his garments to his shirt and fell on his knees so invocating devils Straight there appeared two devils apparelled in darke greene whereof the one was called Hernias and the other Estramain Then this monke did unto them as great reverence honour as he could doe to God our Saviour and one of the devils tooke the ring and the other the sword and after vanished away the monke went away also Hee returned into that place againe and there found the ring having a red colour and the sword wherewith he thought to have slaine the king but by the helpe of God and of the most excellent ladies of Berry and Bourgoigne the king escaped Also the said duke of Orleance made an alliance and confederation with the duke of Lancaster who in like manner warred against king Richard of England his lord as is abovesaid Item He went about to have carried away the queene and her children which hee meant to have carried into the countie of Luxembrough to take his will of her which the queene would not agree to Item Hee practised to make Monseignior le Daulphin eat an impoysoned apple which was given to a child who was charged to give it to none but to the said Daulphin but it so happened that the child gave it to one of the sonnes of the said duke of Orleance who diâ—d thereof Item The said duke hath alwayes favoured the Pope in the extraction of money out of the kingdome to obtaine of him a declaration against the king and his generation of inhabilitie to hold the kingdome and to give it unto him Item He hath held armed men in the fields by the space of 14 or 15 yeares which did nothing but pill exile rob ransack and sley the poore people and force women and maids Item He laid tallages upon the kings subjects and emploied the silver in making alliances with our enemies to come to the crowne and besides hee hath committed many great crimes which my said Monseignior le Bourgoigne reserveth to declare in time and place It followeth then by good consequence that my said lord of Bourgoigne Conclusion ought not to be blamed for sleying the said duke of Orleance and that the king should like that deed well and to authorize the same as much as were needfull And besides he ought to be rewarded in three especiall things that is in Love Honour and Riches as were S. Michaell the archangell and the most valiant Phineas that is to say as I thinke in my grosse and rude understanding That the king our lord ought more than before to beare amitie loyaltie and good reputation to my said lord of Bourgoigne and to cause to be published letters patents through all the realme God graunt it may bee so who bee blessed world without end Amen Here is in substance the Oration of that venerable doctor in Theologie unto which I have not added one word onely I have shortened certaine long and reiterated allegations whereby might be seene the beastlinesse of this our master a man hired to justifie one of the most execrable murders that ever was committed Very notable is the rhethoricke and art of this venerable doctors Oration which in the Exordium or beginning to obtaine benevolence confesseth that he is an ignorant man without sence or memorie And to make a reason why hee hath enterprised to be in these causes advocate he saith it is for a pension which the duke of Burgoigne gave him towards his living After for proofe of his Maior he alleadgeth places of Scripture so evill applied as children at this day will discover his follie And for notable authors he alledgeth a sort of sottish scholasticall sophisters of Theologie as Alexander de Hales Salceber Mivile and other like His Correlatives and his Minor are the false imputations wherewith the duke of Bourgoigne charged the duke of Orleance Moreover this Oration was reviewed by the masters of the facultie of Sorbonne with the bishop of Paris and the Inquisitor of faith and there were condemned for heresies these propositions following Every tyrant may be slaine by his vassale and subject without commandement of justice Secondly S. Michael slew Lucifer without Gods commandement Thirdly Phineas killed Zambry without the commandement of God Fourthly Moses slew the Egyptian without the commandement of God Fifthly Iudith sinned not in flattering Holofernes nor Iohn in lying that he would honour Baal Sixtly it is not alwaies perjurie when a man dooth that which he hath sworne not to doe Which articles having been declared hereticall they were condemned to be burnt publickely as also M. Iohn Petits bones who had maintained them for he was at this judgement dead and buried at Hesdin and the said articles were executed and put into the fire but not the doctors bones for they could not be gotten because the duke of Bourgoigne then
his owne nets Therefore Machiavell his reason That the deceiver shall alwayes find them which will be deceived doth not so well conclude as it seemeth For if the deceiver find alwaies some to deceive he shall also find some which will deceive him and it may be sometimes for one that he deceiveth hee may find sixe which will deceive him because none can bee so perfect in the art of trompery which art Machiavell so much recommendeth to a prince but also hee shall alwaies finde others which know more than himselfe in some points and many together doe know more than one alone in all points of that art one in one point and another in another So that in the end hee himselfe shall see alwaies according to the common proverbe the deceiver shall bee deceived As it happened even to Pope Alexander the sixt whose example Machiavell heere alledgeth for the end of all his tromperies and perjuries was to make his bastard Caesar Borgia lord king of all Italie and after of all christendome if he could But the issue of his desseignes and purposes was a tragicall act as wee have before discoursed in another place Moreover the cause why that many times this Pope deceived christian princes and even the king of France Lewis the twelfth was For that in that time men so greatlie feared the Popes bulls and interdictions and that they beleeved him to bee a true lieutenant of God on earth so that they durst not discredit any thing hee did but rather beleeved all his wordes as oracles but at this day children would mocke at his actions and few men will bee baited with his allurements But for whereas Machiavell saith That the ancient Romanes under the deceit of The Romanes allies subjects were not slaves those names Allies and confederats brought into their subjection and servitude the Latin people their neighbours is a plaine and pure lie For they subjugated all men by warre at divers times as wee reade in hystories True it is that after once they vanquished and brought them under they then made treaties of peace and confederations which were not greatly to the advantage of such as were overcome as in reason they might For if by the right of nations such as are vanquished by warres may be bondslaves of the vanquishers by a stronger reason may the vanquishers reserve to themselves some preheminence over the vanquished But the preheminences which commonly the Romanes reserved to themselves in all their treaties were that the allies and confederats should not make warre upon any without their consent and that they should contribute unto their souldiers in their warres Moreover they left to all people their franchises liberties goods religion magistrates and all other things without altering any thing and without imposing upon them tributes of mony or such like This cannot bee called a servitude as Machiavell calls it or if it bee a servitude there are no people in christendome whether they be subjects of princes or common wealthes which are not in a double and quadruple servitude And whereas Machiavell saith That a prince ought to know the art of trompery and deceit some will aske to take heede of it which are the precepts of the art Wherunto I answere for Machiavell that no man can give precepts practicale or singular which may bee applied to every busines to avoide deceit and fraude But the generall precepts of art which the philosophers call Axiomes in philosophie are these Bouldly to forsweare themselves Subtilly to dissemble to infinuate into mens minds and to prove them To breake faith and promise and such like as heeretofore wee have handled and shall doe heereafter But heere we must note one thing which is That one well experienced in the art of trompery will not alwaies practise that principle To breake faith for if he ordinarilie doe it hee shall offend against another principle which commands To dissemble subtilly For by every where and ever breaking of faith hee shall discover himselfe to bee a manifest deceiver whereas hee ought to dissemble and to make an outward countenance not to bee so but rather to bee a good and an honest man And therefore to observe all the principles of that art together without breaking one in observing another hee shall in small matters keepe his faith to breake it in great things and in matters of consequence Heereof Fabius Maximus admonisheth Scipio to take heede Thou desirest Scipio Titus Livi. lib. 8. Dec. 3. saith hee to make warre upon the Carthaginians in Affricke under an hope thou hast to have the favour of king Siphax and of the Numidians which have promised thee aide and succours But take good advice how thou trustest in the barbarous nations which commonly make no account to breake their faith to deceive True it is in small matters they will keepe their faith with thee well to assure thee in their promise and loyaltie that they may afterward breake it to their great profit and advantage as soone as they see they have meanes and occasion in their hands altogether to ruinate thee This was the admonition which that wise Fabius gave to Scipio then a yong captaine What then should a man doe to guard himselfe from such deceitfull faith of deceivers which appeeres and shewes it selfe in little things and is defective in great matters A man must doe that which Scipio answered to Fabius I know well lord Fabius saith hee how a man must leane upon the evill assured faith of Syphax and the Numidians I thinke so much to leane and rest my selfe upon them as may serve my turne so that yet alwaies I hold my selfe upon my guardes to warrant my selfe from all perfidie and treacherie Moreover there is yet another remedie against such deceivers and dissemblers which promise much and in their hearts have no other intention then in no thing to keepe their promises that is to shun and flie from them as from hell and from more than capitall enemies as Homer teacheth us Hee that one thing in heart another in mouth doth beare Fly him an enemie thine and as hell-fire him feare Homer Iliad lib. 9. 20. Maxime A prince who as it were constrained useth Clemencie and Lenitie advanceth his owne destruction IN an hundred times saith Machiavell it vvill scant happen Discourse lib. 1. cap. 32. once that the good and comfort vvhich a prince doth to his subiects vvhen he seeth himselfe as it vvere forced to doe it by feare of rebellion or otherwise is gratefully received of them For commonly the people for benefits so granted by their prince are not thankefull but rather thinkes themselves beholden to such as draw their prince unto the bestowing of such benefits upon necessitie and constraint And this is often the cause that the people seeketh occasions and meanes to draw the prince into that necessitie And therfore a prince ought never to attend that extreame necessitie to shew himselfe kind and liberall for
villanously to his death therefore by thine owne confession thou doest merit a most ignominious death Straight after the king commaunded that he should be hanged and strangled which was done So this perfidious and disloyall Heber received the reward of his perfidie and breach of Faith as hee himselfe judged to have merited Edward king of England the second of that name was much governed by the Frois lib. 1. cap. 5. 13 14. house of the Spensers which took upon them the handling of all the affaires of the kingdome and despised farre greater lords than themselves The said king having lost a battaile at Esturmelin against the Scots all England imputed the evill lucke of that losse unto the evill government of the Spensers They beleeving that the great lords of England which envied their credit had caused this brute to bee sowne resolved to take vengeance thereof by a most perfidious disloiall meanes For they persuaded the king to convocate a generall assemblie of States to advise and provide as they gave to understand for the affaires of the kingdome The princes and lords of the kingdome not doubting any thing assembled at the kings commaund But incontinent as they were assembled king Edward whome the Spensers had persuaded that his princes and lords meant to get his kingdome from him commanded them to be taken arrested prisoners which was done and without any knowledge of cause he cut off the heads from two and twentie of the greatest lords and princes of the kingdome and amongst them there was beheaded Thomas duke of Lancaster the kings uncle who was a good and a sage prince and who after was cannonized and saincted This perfidie joyned with crueltie for commonly the one goeth with the other was the cause that the said king was deprived by all the States of England of his royaltie as unworthie to carrie the crowne and was confined to prison where he finished his daies And the Spensers authors of such disloialtie were executed and rigorously punished according to their merits For after they had ben drawne on hurdles through the streets all over the citie of Herford their privie parts were first cut away and cast into the fire then were their hearts taken out of their bellies and also cast into the fire after their heads were cut off and carried to London and the bodies of every of them were quartered and every quarter caried into other severall towns to be set on the tops of their great gates in detestation of their great perfidie and disloyaltie which they used towards the said lords It was also a great perfidie in Charles the last duke of Bourgoigne in that hee De Comines lib. 1. cap. 78. and Annal. 1475. gave safe conduct to the contie of S. Pol constable of France to come to him with good assurance and then tooke him prisoner and delivered him to king Lewis the seventh who making his processe at Paris his head was cut off in the place de Greve True it is that the said countie had committed great faults as well against the king as against the duke hee had also alwaies studied to nourish warre betwixt the said two princes yet notwithstanding it was a very dishonorable and infamous thing for the duke to take him prisoner after hee had given him his faith and assurance by the safe conduct which hee graunted him For if hee had not beene hee had according to his determination with his silver fled into Almaigne from thence in time he might have made his peace and againe have come into the kings favour But he was deceived as before and the said perfidie was so much the more infamous and dishonest because it was perpetrated by this duke of Bourgoigne for the covetousnesse to gaine the townes of S. Quinten Han and Bohain which belonged to the said countie which the king gave to the said duke to the end hee would deliver and betray him But behold the just judgement of God who permitted that this duke of Bourgoigne was in the end beaten with the same rods wherewith hee had beaten the countie of S. Pol for being twice overthrowne at Granson and Morat by the Suissers the siege of Nus succeeding evill unto him and also having lost the dutchie of Lorraine which before he had unjustly occupied upon the duke of Lorraine who conquered it all these traverses and troubles engendred such greefe sadnesse and confusion in his spirit and great indisposition in his person that hee was never after whole either in bodie or mind His wits thus comming into decay there came into his braine a distrust of his owne subjects and therefore thought good to serve himselfe with strangers and to chuse a loyall and faithfull nation he addressed himselfe to a countie de Campobache an Italian and gave him charge to bring with him many Italians to his service as hee did This was the last act of the Tragedie of his life For this countie de Campobache ceased not till he had betrayed him unto the duke of Lorraine before Nancy which the said duke of Bourgoigne held besieged and there was slaine in an assault which the duke of Lorraine gave him to constrain him to raise the siege And so in like sort as by perfidie and violating of his faith he had caused the constable of S. Pol to leese both life and goods so by the treason and perfidie of Campobache hee both lost his life and his house was ruinated and â—ent in pieces which was the greatest house in Christendome next unto that of Fraunce He should never have done that would set downe all the calamities mischiefes proceeding of perfidie and breach of publicke Faith It caused the ruine of Carthage the great in Affrica which for a long time was one of the greatest and most flourishing commonweales that ever was in the world It was the onely ruine of Corinth of Thebes of Calchis which were three of the greatest fairest and richest cities of Greece It was the cause of Ierusalems destruction and of all the countrey of Iudea yea breefely there never happened any great subversion and desolation in the world were it of citties commonweales kingdomes empires great captaines great monarchs or of strong and flourishing nations but it came upon perfidie and the breach of Faith True it is that it draweth at the taile with her crueltie avarice and other like companions but yet perfidie is the mistresse and governesse of all She breaketh peace she renueth civile and strange warres she troubleth people nations which are quiet she destroyeth and impoverisheth them she overthroweth right and equitie she prophaneth and defileth holy and sacred things she banisheth and chaseth away all pietie justice and the feare of God she bringeth in Atheisme and contempt of all religion she defaceth all amitie and naturall affection towards parents our countrey and nation she confoundeth all politicke order shee abrogateth good lawes and customes Finally what mischeefes hath there ever beene in the
generositie and hardinesse came to besiege new Carthage in Spain which the Carthaginians of Affricke had founded there and did so much as hee got it by assault Besides the great riches which he found within the towne he found there also within that towne a good number of Spanish hostages which the Carthaginians held there for the better assurance of other townes of Spaine which they had regained upon the Romanes after the death and overthrow of the Scipioes and their hoast Scipio as soone as the towne was taken caused all the hostages to be brought before him and wished them to take good courage and that they should feare nothing for they were falne into the power of the Romane people which loved better to bind men unto them by good deeds than by feare and to joyne all strange nations unto them rather by a societie than by a sad servitude After hee had thus encouraged them hee dispatched messengers through all Spaine to the end every man might come thither to seeke his hostages and in the meane while gave expresse charge to Flaminius his treasurer to handle them well and honourably Amongst other hostages there was a young ladie of a great house which was brought to Scipio which was of so great beautie that as she passed by she dreweach mans regard upon her This ladie was fianced unto one Allucius prince of the Celtiberians Scipio taking knowledge of her parents and to whom shee was fianced also that Allucius extreamely loved her he sent for them all Her parents came with a great quantitie of gold and silver for her ransome Allucius came also They all beeing present before Scipio hee said to that young prince Allucius My deare friend understanding that ardently you love this young ladie as her beautie well meriteth it I thought it good to keepe her for you as I would my affianced should be kept for me if the affaires of the commonweale permitted me to thinke upon the action of legitimate love in favor then of your affections I have preserved your loves inviolated in recompence whereof I only desire and pray you that from henceforth you will be friends unto the Roman people and if you will credit me as a good man that is desirous to follow the traces of my father and uncle which you knew Know you that in our towne there be many like to us and that there is no people in the world which you ought lesser to desire for enemies nor more for a friend After Scipio had thus graciously entertained this young prince he was so filled with shame and joy that presently he prayed the gods that they would acquite to Scipio that great benefit for hee could never doe it The said ladies parents stepped forward and presented unto him a great quantitie of gold and silver for their daughters ransome which although Scipio refused yet they pressed it so sore upon him that he accorded to take it and bad them lay it before him which they doing Scipio called Allucius and said unto him Good friend besides the dowrie which your father in law will give you my desire is that you will take this silver at my hands as an encrease of her dowrie Allucius very joyfull of so great a benefit thanking him greatly returned with his lover in great contentment unto his countrey where as soone as he came he sowed the fame of those things through all Spaine saying That there was come into that countrey a young lord like the gods which vanquisheth all men by armes by clemencie and magnificence Within a smal time after he came to the service of Scipio with 1400 horse Not long after came also to Scipio the parents of the other hostages which he had taken in new Carthage all which he yeelded unto them conditionally to be the Romanes friends Hee gave also to a great lord called Mandonius his wife who was sister of another great lord named Indibilis which were exceeding joyous thereof and promised Scipio all fidelitie Amongst those prisoners also there was found a young prince called Massiva the nephew of Massinissa king of Numidia which he sent to his uncle after he had honourably apparrelled mounted and accompanied him This was the cause that Massinissa stucke so firmely to the Romane partie wherein he constantly persevered all his life and greatly aided Scipio to the overthrow of the Carthaginians And as for the Spaniards whose hostages Scipio had sent home without ransome they performed many great favours to him in all his Spanish wars Breefely this great Clemencie kindnesse and gentlenesse of Scipio were the cause that all his high mightie enterprises were ever facile easie unto him But herein appeared in him a double Clemencie namely that the two lords above-named Mandonius and Indibilis revolted and so caused all their countrey to revolt also upon a false fame that run of Scipioes death But after finding the report false they resolved yet once againe to proove his Clemencie as an assured refuge and so went fell on their knees before him desiring pardon confessing their faults Scipio after he had rebuked them said unto them in this sort My friends by your merits you shall die but you shall live by the benefit of the Romane people And although the custome be to take all armes from rebels yet I will not take them from you but if you fall any more into such a fault I shall have reason with armes to take armes from armed people but not from disarmed Therefore seeing you have many times experimented the Romanes Clemencie take heed also you prove not their vengeance and wrath By this example then of Scipio it appeares that a prince ought alwaies to be enclined to Clemencie wherby he may obtaine friends augment his dominations shun Gods indignation the envie of men and to do to another that which he would should be done to himselfe This is it which Romulus said to the Antenates and Caeninians which hee had vanquished subjugated Although said he you have merited to suffer al extreame things for that you rather loved warre against us than our amitie yet many reasons Dioni Halic lib. 2. moove us to use our victorie moderately in respect of the indignation of the gods unto whom pride is odious the feare of the envie evill will of men and because we beleeve that Mercie and Clemencie is a great releese and remedie for the miseries and calamities of mortall men which we would gladly entreat of others in our owne distresses and calamities We therefore pardon you this fault and leave you in the same enjoiance of your goods as you were before The Romane Senat had alwayes Clemencie in great recommendation yea even towards them which had often rebeled The Ligurians which now we cal Genevois Titus Liviuâ— lib. 2. Dec. 2. rose up against the Romanes many times insomuch as they sent against them Marcus Popilius Consull with a puissant armie Popilius having subjugated and vanquished them
wee come to alledge For they said That men must not stay upon fishing for froggs but men must catch in their nets the great Salmons that one Salmons head was more worth than tenne thousand froggs and that when they had slaine the cheefetaines of pretended rebels that they should easily overthrow the rude and rascally multitude which without heads could enterprise nothing These venerable enterprisers should have considered that which here their Doctor Machiavell saith which also since they have seen by experience That a people cannot want heads which will alwayes rise up yea even those heads which bee slaine If they had so well noted practised this place of Machiavell as they do others so much blood would never have ben shed their tyrannie it may be had longer endured than it hath done For the great effusion of blood which they have made hath incontinent cried for vengeance to God who according to his accustomed justice hath heard the voice of that blood and for the crie of the orphant and widdow hath laid the axe to the root of all tyrannie and alreadie hath cut away many braunches thereof and if it please him will not tarry long to lay all on the ground and so establish Fraunce in his auncient government As for Fortresses in frontiers of countries they have been long time practised and are profitable to guard from incursions and invasions of enemies and to the end such as dwell upon the borders may the more peaceably enjoy their goods Wee reade That the emperour Alexander Severus gave his Fortresses upon frontiers to Lamprid. in Alex. Pomp. Laetus in Constant Magno good and approoved captaines with all the lands and revenewes belonging unto them to enjoy during their lives to the end saith Lampridius that they might be more vigilant and carefull to defend their owne And afterward the emperour Constantine the Great ordained That the said Fortresses with their grounds and revenewes should passe to the heires of the said captaines which held them as other manner of goods and heritages And hereupon some say have come such as the civile law call Feudi 34. Maxime A Prince ought to commit to another those affaires which are subiect to hatred and envie and reserve to himselfe such as depend upon his grace and favour A Prince vvhich vvill exercise some cruell and rigorous act saith cap. 7. 14. of a prince M. Nicholas he ought to give the commission thereof unto some other to the end he may not acquire evill vvill and enmitie by it And yet if he feare that such a delegation cannot bee vvholly exempted from blame to have consented to the execution which was made by his Commissarie he may cause the Commissarie to be slaine to shew that he consented not to his crueltie as did Caesar Borgia and Messire Remiro Dorco THis Maxime is a dependancie of that goodly doctrine which Machiavell learned of Caesar Borgia which although it was very cruell yet meaning to appeare soft and gentle following therein the Maxime which enjoyneth dissimulation committeth the execution of his crueltie to Messire Remiro Dorco as at large before wee have discoursed that hystorie And because we have fully shewed that all dissimulation and feignednesse is unworthie of a prince we will stay no longer upon this Maxime Well will I confesse that many things there be which seeme to be rigorous in execution although they be most equall and just which it is good a prince doe commit to others to give judgement and execution by justice as the case meriteth For as the emperour Marcus Antonine said It seemeth to the world that that which the prince doth hee doth it by his absolute authoritie and power rather than of his civile and reasonable power Therefore to shun that blame and suspition it is good that the prince delegate and set over such matters to Iudges which are good men not suspected nor passionate not doing as the emperour Valentinian did who would never heare nor receive accusations against Iudges and Magistrates which hee had established but constrained the recusators or refusers to end their cause before those Iudges only Whereby he was much blamed and his honor impeached and disgraced For truly the cheefe point which is required to cause good Passionate Iudges cannot judge well justice to be administred is That Iudges be not suspected nor passionat because the passions of the soule and heart doe obfuscate and trouble the judgement of the understanding and cause them to step aside and stray out of the way It is also a thing of very evill example when a prince with an appetite of revenge or to please the passions of revengefull great men dooth elect Iudges and Commissaries that bee passionate and which have their consciences at the command of such as employ them As was done in the time of king Lewis Hutin in the judgement of Messire Enguerrant de Marigni great master of Fraunce and in the time of king Charles the sixt in the judgement of the criminall processe of Messire Iean de Marests the kings Advocate in the parliament of Paris And a man may put to them the judgements given in our time against Amie du Bourg the kings Counsellor in the said parliament and against captaine Briquemand and M. Arnand de Cavagnes master of the Requests of the kings houshold and against the countie de Montgomerie and many others For the executions to death which followed manifested well That the Iudges were passionate men their consciences being at the command of strangers which governed them 35. Maxime To administer good Iustice a Prince ought to establish a great number of Judges TO have prompt and quicke expedition of good Iustice saith Machiavell many Iudges must be established for few can dispatch Discourse lib. 1. cap. 7. few causes and a small number is more easie to gaine and be corrupted than a great number And vvithall a great number is strong and firme in Iustice against all men EXperience hath made us wise in France that this Maxime of Machiavell is not true For since they multiplied the Officers of Iustice Multiplicitie of Officers cause of the corruption of â—ustice in Fraunce in the kingdome by the encrease of Counsellours in parliaments by erection of Presidents seats by creation of new or alternative Officers we have processes and law causes more multiplied longer and worse dispatched than before insomuch as by good right and by good reason the last Estates generall held at Orleance complained to king Charles the ninth of that multiplication and multitude of Officers which served not as it doth not yet but to multiplie law causes to ruinate and eat up the people and yet no better expedition of Iustice than before but rather worse and notoriously more long and of greater charges to the parties Vpon which complaint it was holily ordained That offices of Iustice which became vacant by death should bee suppressed and that none should come in their
Lewis The good justice of Lewis which gave oedinarie audience to the complaints of their subjects and to doe them justice But it shall suffice to close up all this matter with the example of that good king S. Lewis who amongst other vertues wherewith he was endowed he was a very good and upright administer of justice This good king having a great zeale to establish a good Iustice in his kingdome first hee would and ordained That the good and auncient lawes and customes of the kingdome should be well and straitly observed upon the paine he would take of his Bayliffes Seneshals and other magistrates if they caused them not to bee well observed And to the end the said magistrates might carry themselves well in their offices he chose other officers the best that hee could find of which he secretly enquired of their vertues and vices And to the end they might administer good and breefe justice to the poore as to the rich without exception of persons he forbad them to take presents unlesse some present of victuall which may not exceed tenne shillings by the weeke nor any other benefites for them or their children neither of them which were in contention nor of any other person of their bailiwike and territorie and commaunded they should take nothing within their perfecture or jurisdiction For this good king considered that presents benefits and desire to gain are the means wherby magistrates may be corrupted and therfore to shun all corruption he must cut off the meanes therunto Moreover he very rigorously punished such officers of Iustice as abused their estates spared not even great lords themselves but punished them after their merits as happened to the lord de Coucy who caused to strangle two yong Flamins when he found them hunting in his woods For the king caused to be called before him the said lord who fearing to be handled as he had delt with the Flamins wold have taken the hearing of the cause from the king saying he was to be sent for before the peeres of France But the king forced him to abide his judgments indeed had made him die if great lords parents friends of the said lord de Coucy had not importuned so much the king for his pardon unto which the king accorded that he shold have his life but yet he condemned him to the warre against the Turks and Infidels in the holy land by the space of three yeares which was a kind of banishment and besides condemned him in a fine paiment of 10000 Paris pounds which were bestowed on the building of an Hostle Dieu at Ponthoise This king gave not easily any pardon nor without great deliberation And for a devise he had often in his mouth that verse of the Psalme of David Happie are they which doe iudgement and Iustice at all times He said also That this was no mercie but crueltie not to punish malefactors Moreover he was a king full of truth chast charitable and fearing God which are vertues exceeding woorthy for a good prince and which commonly accompanie good justice But the godly precepts hee The tenne commandemēts which the king S. Lewis at his disease gave to his eldest sonne gave being in extremitie of his life to king Philip the Hardie his sonne and successor doe well merit to be written in letters of gold upon the lintels of doores and the houses of all kings and Christian princes to have them alwaies before their eies My deare sonne saith he since it pleaseth God our Father and Creator to withdraw me now from this miserable world to carrie mee to a better life than this I would not depart from thee my sonne without giving you for my last blessing the doctrines and precepts which a good father ought to give to his sonne hoping you wil engrave in your heart these your fathers last words I command you then my deare sonne That above all things you have alwaies before your eies the feare of God our good Father for the feare of God is the beginning yea the accomplishment of all true wisedome if you feare him he will blesse you Secondly I exhort you to take all adversities patiently acknowledging that it is God which visiteth you for your sins not to wax proud in prosperitie accounting that it comes to you by Gods grace not by your merits Thirdly I recommend unto you charitie towards the poor for the good you doe unto them shall be yeelded unto you an hundred fold and Iesus Christ our Saviour shall account it done unto him After I recommend to you very straitly my deare sonne that you cause to keep well the good laws customes of the kingdome and to administer good justice to your subjects for happy are they which administer good justice at all times and to doe this I enjoine you that you be carefull to have good magistrates and command you them that they favor not your Procurators against equitie and that you rigorously punish such as abuse their Offices for when they make faults they are more punishable than others because they ought to govern other subjects and to serve them for an example Suffer not that in judgement there be acception of persons and so favour the poore onely as the truth of his fact doth appeare without favoring him as to the judgement of his cause Moreover I command you that you bee carefull to have a good Counsell about you of persons which be of staied good age which be secret peaceable not covetous for if you doe this you shall bee loved and honoured because the light of the servants makes their masters shine Also more I forbid you to take tallages or tributes upon your subjects but for urgent necessitie evident utilitie and just cause for otherwise you shall not bee held for a king but for a tyrant Further I command you that you be carefull to maintaine your subjects in good peace and tranquilitie and observe their franchises and priveledges which before they have enjoyed and take heede you moove no warre against any Christian without exceeding great occasion and reason Item I exhort you to give the benefices of your kingdome to men of good life and good conscience not to luxurious and covetous wretches My deere sonne if you observe these my commands you shall bee a good example to your subjects and you shall bee the cause that they will adict themselves to doe well because the people will alwaies give themselves to the imitation of their prince and God by his bountie maintaine you firme and assured in your estate and kingdome Thus finished this good king his last words full of holy zeale and correspondent to his life passed and yeelded his soule to his creator which had given it him His sonne king Philip third of that name called the Hardie because of his valiancie which he shewed against the infidels and against other enemies as well during the life as after the death of
happie memorie For during his raigne and before the kingdome was governed after the meere French manner that is to say following the traces and documents of our French auncestors But since it hath governed by the rules of Machiavell the Florentine as shall bee seene heereafter Insomuch that since that time untill this present the name of Machiavell hath beene celebrated and esteemed as of the wisest person of the world and most cunning in the affaires of Estate and his bookes held dearest and most precious by our Italian and Italionized courtiers as if they were the bookes of Sibilla whereunto the Paynims had their recourse when they would deliberate upon any great affaire concerning the common wealth or as the Turkes hould deare and precious their Mahumets Alcaron as wee have said above And wee neede not bee abashed if they of Machiavells nation which hould the principall estates in the government of France have forsaken the ancient manner of our French ancestors government to introduct and bring France in use with a new forme of managing ruling their countrie taught by Machiavell For on the one side every man esteemeth and priseth alwaies the manners fashions customes other things of his owne countrey more than them of an others On the other side Machiavell their great doctor Cap. 3. De Princ. Discourse lib. 2. cap. 30. lib. 3. cap. 43. Machiavells slanders against the kings and the people of France describes so well France and the goverment thereof in his time blaming and reprehending the Frenchmens conduction of affaires of Estate that it might easily persuade his disciples to change the manner of French government into the Italian For Machiavell vaunteth that being once at Nantes and talking with the Cardinall of Amboise which was a very wise man in the time of king Lewis the twelfth of publike State affaires hee plainly tould him that the Frenchmen had no knowledge in affaires of Estate And in many places speaking of French causes hee reprehendeth the government of our abovenamed kings Charles the eight and Lewis the twelfth yea hee hath beene so impudent speaking of that good king Lewis rebuking him for giving succours unto Pope Alexander the sixt that hee gives him the plaine lie saying hee belyes himselfe having passed Italie at the Venetians request yet succoured the Pope against his intention And in other places hee calls our kings Tributaries of the Suisses and of the English men And often when hee speaketh of the Frenchmen hee calleth them Barbarous and saith they are full of covetousnesse and disloyaltie So also hee taxeth the Almaignes of the same vices Now I beseech you is it not good reason to make so great account of Machiavell in France who so doth defame reproove the honour of our good kings of all our whole nation calling them Ignorant of the affaires of Estate Barbarous Covetous Disloyall But all this might bee borne withall and passed away in silence if there were not another evill But when we see that Machiavell by his doctrine and documents hath changed the good and ancient government of France into a kind of Florentine government whereupon we see with our eies the totall ruine of all France It infallibly followeth if God by his grace doe not remedie it soone that now it should be time if ever to lay hand to the work to remit and bring France againe unto the government of our ancestors Hereupon I humbly pray the Princes and great lords of France to consider what is their duties in this case Seemeth it most Ilustrious Lords seeing at this time poore France which is your countrey and mother so desolate and torne in sunder by strangers that you ought to suffer it to be lost and ruinated Ought you to permit them to sowe Atheisme and Impietie in your countrey and to set up schooles thereof Seeing your France hath alwaies been so Zealous in the Christian Religion as our ancient kings by their pietie and iustice have obtained that so honourable a title and name of Most Christian Thinke you that God hath caused you to be borne into this world to help to ruinate your countrie or coldly to stand still and suffer your mother to be contaminated and defiled with the contempt of God with perfidie with sodomie tyrannie crueltie thefts strange usuries and other detestable vices which strangers sowe heere But rather contrarie God hath given you life power and authoritie to take away such infamies and corruptions and if you do it not you must make account for it you can looke for but a greevous iust punishment If it be true as the Civilian lawiers say That he is a murderer and culpable of death which suffereth to die with hunger the person unto whom he oweth nourishment And shall not you be culpable before God of so many massacres murders and desolations of your poore France if you give it not succours seeing you have the meanes and that you are obliged thereunto by right of nature Shall you not be condemned and attainted of impietie Athisme and tyrannie if you drive not out of France Machiavell and his government Heere if any man will inquire how it appeareth that France is at this day governed by the doctrine of Machiavell the resolution heereof is easie and cleere For the effects which France governed by the doctrine of Machiavell we see with our eies and the provisions and executions of the affaires which are put in practise may easily bring us to the causes and Maximes as we have abovesaid which is one way to know things by ascending from effects and consequences to the knowledge of causes Maximes And whosoever also shall reade the Maximes of Machiavell which we shall handle heereafter and discend from thence into the particularities of the French government hee shall see that the precepts and Maximes of Machiavell are for the most part at this day practised and put in effect and execution from point to point Insomuch that by both the two wayes from the Maximes to the effects and from the effects to the Maximes men may clearely know that France is at this day governed by the doctrine of Machiavell For are they not Machiavelists Italians or Italianized which doe handle and deale with the seales of the kindgome of France Is it not they also which draw out and stampe Edicts Which dispatch all things within and without the realme Which hould the goodliest governments and fermes belonging unto the Crowne Tea if a man will at this day obtaine or get any thing in the Court for to have a good and quicke dispatch thereof hee must learne to speake the Messereske language because these Messers will most willingly heare them in their owne tongue and they understand not the French no not the tearmes of iustice and Royall ordinances Whereupon every man may coniecture and imagine how they can well observe or cause to be observed the lawes of France the tearmes whereof they
reignes and governement of Charles the eight Lewis the twelfth and Francis the first or before or long time after the French nation was contaminated with that vice as yet there are many good and naturall Frenchmen thankes bee to God which detest all perfidie and disloyaltie and are in no way affected to those exploits which the Italians and Italianized doe in France but rather doe sobbe and sigh in their hearts for to see the French nation to be diffamed with that infamous and abhominable vice detested and hated amongst all countries and nations And I hope also that the good and loyall Frenchmen will endevour themselves to recover the good renowne and reputation of the French nation which some degenerated and Italianized have defiled and polluted But wherefore doth Machiavell so diffame and disgrace the French nation for covetousnesse I doe much merveile at it For untill this present time the Frenchmen have alwayes had this reputation to bee Liberall Courteous and readie to doe any pleasure even unto straungers and such as are unknowne unto them And would to God that the French nation had never been of that nature and condition to doe well unto straungers without first knowing and trying their behaviours and manner of life we should not then see France to be governed and ruled by strangers as it is We should not feele the calamities and troubles of civile warres and dissentions which they doe enterprise there to maintaine their greatnesse and magnitude and to fish in troubled water The treasures of France should not bee so exhausted and drawne out by their rapines and most insatiable avarice as they are What countrey or nation is there in the world that feelcth or can iustly complaine of the covetousnesse of Frenchmen Or rather what nation is there which hath not felt of the liberalitie of the kingdome of France But contrariwise wee see with the eye and touch with the finger the covetousnesse and avarice of the Italians which doe undermine and ruinate us yea which also doe sucke out all our substance and wealth and leaves us nothing at all for our selves Some of them are Publicanes or Farmers of the kings revenewes or Farme-rents Some Farmers of the customes and fraights of marchandizes and carriages Some Farmers of yearely Tributes and Subsidies and some of the Princes private rents yea of all publicke and common profites belonging unto the French king rating them even at what price they will So that by that meanes infinite coine comes into their hands but there is but little which returneth againe to the publicke or common good of the Prince and countrey Others obtaine great Estates Offices and Benefices by the meanes whereof all the treasure and money of the kingdome of France fals into the hands of strangers And those Italians which have no meanes or occasions thus to deale with the publicke affaires of the Commonwealth doe hould and keepe bankes in good townes where they exercise most exorbitant and unmeasurable usuries by the meanes whereof they doe wholly eat and consume poore France and bring it unto confusion And although that in Machiavels time France was not fallen into that extreame evill and great calamitie as it is now at this present yet since that time have wee sufficiently felt the covetousnesse of the Italians in the warres which our kings of France have made in Italie and Piedmont For the great store of treasure and money that must needes have beene sent beyond the Alpes for to satisfie the insatiable and greedie lusts of the Italians was the cause oftentimes of encreasing and raising imposts and tallages upon the people which by little and little did rise so high that they exceeded and doe exceede many times more than halfe the revenewe of the poore Plebeian or common sort of people But this Italian covetousnesse which the Italians did exercise and use in the kingdome of France at that time by their dealings for to draw our treasure and money into their owne countrey was but honny in respect of that which they have exercised and doe still exercise more and more since that they have passed on this side the Alpes and that they came to dominiere and pearch all over the country of France and to hould and possesse Offices Benefices Fermes Customes Revenewes and Bankes as is heeretofore said And therefore it is clearely and evidently seene that it is as I may say against the haire that Machiavell and the other Italians dooth taxe the Frenchmen of Covetousnesse and Avarice Vnlesse a man will say that the Frenchmen are much to bee blamed and reprehended for Passive Avarice which is in them that is to say which they suffer and endure of the Italians who by their Active Covetousnesse which they doe practise and put in action amongst us doe clip the wooll on the backe and sucke our blood and substance as men do with sheepe And in this sence to take it as wee should it is certaine and assured that Machiavell blaming us of Passive Covetousnesse which we do suffer sheweth us breefely that wee are beastes which will suffer our selves so to bee bereaved and weakened of our wooll and our blood with patience by strangers For it may well one day come to passe that they may bee made to disgorge their booties and rapines and that their great heapes of money gotten by extortions in France may turne them unto damage For as the Poet Sophocles sayth Men must not seeke nor love of all things to get gaine For hee that draweth gaine out of that which is nought Before hee profit gets shall sooner losse sustaine For evill gotten goods are often dearely bought And whereas Machiavell taxeth and chargeth the Almaignes with Covetousnesse and perfidie heerein may be seene what an impudent and most wicked slanderer hee is For all men may plainely see that neither in their owne countrie nor in the townes of France where they dwell for their commerce and trafficke they practise no great and execrable usuries as the Italians doe but content themselves with a meane and reasonable profite for their money as of five or eight at the most for the loane and use of a hundreth Whereas the Italians doe often returne their money with the gaine of fiftie yea often of an hundreth for an hundreth And as for Marchandize and traffique it is well knowne that no other nation is more plaine faithfull sincere and loyall than they are in their bargaines and trafficke For they doe not refresh pollish and decke up their wares nor doe change them and sell one for another they set not a price of their marchandize more than it is worth but at the first word they aske what at the last they will have or not sell it without seeking any unmeasurable or extraordinarie profit upon them which know not what the marchandize is worth And as for perfidie deceit and treason the Almaignes have them in so great execration and detestation that they thinke there neither is nor can
hardie withall he suffered them to take upon him some small advantages seeking still to draw them unto some place of advantage to fight with them as indeed he did They beeing swelled for that in some light skirmishes they had overthrowne some few of Annibals souldiors and thereby thought it was not honourable to recoile and that men would think their hearts failed them to flie before such as they had alreadie beaten resolved to give battaile and indeed they gave it but they lost it to their great shame and confusion Which the Romane Senate seeing sent against Anniball Fabius Maximus who was not so forward and it may bee not so hardie in enterprizing as Flaminius or Sempronius were but he was more wise and carefull as he shewed himselfe For at the first arrivall as the other did he did not aboord and set upon Anniball who desired no other thing but began to coast him a farre off seeking alwayes advantageous places And when Anniball approched him then would he shew him a countenance fully determined to fight yet alwaies seeking places of advantage But Anniball which was not so rash as to joine with his enemie to his own disadvantage made a shew to recoile and flie to draw him after him Fabius followed him but it was upon coasts and hils seeking alwayes not the shortest way but that way which was most for his advantage insomuch as Anniball saw him alwaies upon some hill or coast nigh him as it were a cloud over his head so that after Anniball had many times assaied to draw Fabius into a place fit for himselfe and where he might give battaile for his owne good and yet could not thereunto draw him said I see well now that the Romanes also have gotten an Anniball and I feare that this cloud which approching vs still hovers upon those hils will some of these mornings poure out some shoure on our heads Breefely the prudencie and wisdome of Fabius brought more feare and gave more adoe unto Anniball than all the Romane forces which yet was not small I have above recited another example witnessed of king Edward of England who said That he feared more the missives and letters of king Charles le Sage than he feared the great and puissant armies of 40 and 100000 men of his Father and Grandfather and that wrought him more trouble and broke more of his purposes and enterprises in enditing of letters than they ever did with their great forces Which is another witnesse made for prudence and good Counsell like unto the example of Anniball which witnesses are so much the more worthie of credite as the one proceeded from a most valiant king and the other from a most noble and hardie Captaine both which well knew by long use and experience how to helpe themselves with force and armes And if we consider the Romane hystories we shall truly find that the ancient Romanes made themselves lords and maisters almost of all the world more by wisdome and good Counsell than by force although they used both Therefore said Varro as by a common proverbe received in his time That the Romans vanquished sitting as if he would say As they sit in their chairs in their Senate they provide so for their affaires by good Counsell and wisedome that they get and obtaine the upper hand in all their enterprises Yea and we see that at this day the Venetians maintain very well their estate yea do augment and make it greater although they understand no thing how to handle armes and indeed when they must needs goe to warre they hire and wage people to doe it but yet notwithstanding are they wise and prudent keeping themselves as much as they can from the warre and when they have warre they do discreetly seeke meanes to quiet and appease it by some other way than by battailes besiegings of Townes or any other exploits of warre And assuredly they know better how to finish and bring a warre to an end by their wisedome and good Counsell without striking any stroke than many puissant princes by their forces and armes Hitherto we have spoken of a princes Counsell which in the time of the Roman A Senat and the Estates are things correspondēt emperours men called The princes Consistorie and our French The kings Priuie Counsell But now we must know that as well the Romane emperours as the kings of France of old have yet had another Counsell whereunto they had recourse in all their waightie affaires which were of great consequence as when they stood in need to make lawes ordinances and rules concerning the universall estate the Romanes called this Counsell the Senat and the French call it the Parlement But this name of Parlement aunciently signifieth an assemblie of the three estates as Philip de Comines saith and as is seene by all our French hystories Our kings also De Comines lib. 1. cap. 64. convocated sometimes with their ordinarie and priuie Counsell some good number of great Prelats and Barons of the realme and that assemblie they called The great Counsell But afterward men attributed the name of Parlement unto the assemblie of Iudges and Senators which judged causes and processes from whome there is no appeale And some thinke that our Parlement is at this day like unto the Senat of Rome but they are greatly deceived for the Romane Senat tooke not any knowledge of the processes and causes of particular persons but only dealt with affairs of the State of the universall government and pollicie and of matters of consequence unto all the Commonwealth and therefore the assemblie of the three estates in France doe much better resemble the Roman Senat than the Parlements doe at this day which might better be compared unto the Romans Centumvirat or to their Praetorian government which dealt in the knowledge of appellations and matters of justice distributive from which judgement ther was no appeale And as the name of Parlement is at this day otherwise applied than it was anciently so is it of the name of Great Counsell But to come to our purpose Wee read that the good Emperours never contemned or thought much in waightie affairs to take the advice of the Romane Senat and to governe themselves thereby for although that by the change of the estate which happened in the time of Iulius Caesar when the commonwealth was changed into a Monarchie the authoritie of the Senate was much abated and weakened yet there was never emperour found that durst enterprise altogether to abolish it but contrarie the good and wise emperors rather helped to establish their authoritie and power And the reason why no emperor good or wicked durst enterprise to abolish the Senate was because by the Law Roiall whereby the estate Monarchicall was established at Rome there was only transferred unto the king the authoritie and power of the people and not that which the Senat had Which people although they had sovereigne power over every particular person of
the Senat yet had they no power over the whole body of the Senat for they might well punish with death one Senator but they had no superioritie over the body of the Senat. So the body of the Senat and the body of the People were as it were alike and equall And as much authoritie had the lawes of the Senat which they called Senatus consulta as the lawes of the People which they called Plebiscita And therefore the emperours which by the Law Roiall succeeded in the place of the People only for the Senat did never despoile themselves of their authoritie to invest the emperour therewith had never power to decay the Senat neyther durst they ever enterprise it although some had a will thereunto as Nero Caligula and their like But as for the good emperours besides that they had no power to abolish the Senat they never had any desire thereof but maintained and conserved it and governed themselves by it and by it were they better obeied For we need not doubt but a people will more willingly obey a Law or Decree which shall have been sifted and examined in a great wise and notable an assembly such as was the Senate and will like it better and rather judge the Law to be founded upon reason and equitie than when it onely passeth through the braine of one sole man or of some small number Therefore the Emperour Alexander Severus never made Lamp in Alexand. law nor edict but he had on his Counsell twentie great and excellent Lawyers and fiftie other great excellent persons wise and well experienced And yet to the end that they might give their opinions more assuredly he first made them understand the matter upon which they must give their advise and after give time to consider thereof that their opinions might bee better digested resolved Therfore also the Emperour Theodosius ordained that no law should be availeable unlesse it were first L. humanum C. de Leg. concluded and determined with good and assured resolution of all the princes Consistorie and afterward received and approved by the Senat of Rome For saith he we know well that the ordinance of good Lawes and Edicts concluded with good Counsell and deliberation is the establishment of the assurednesse and glory of our Empire Therefore was it also that that great and wise Emperour Augustus Caesar did so communicate all the affaires of his Commonwealth with the Romane Senate Dion in August that as Dion saith he made a sweet and pleasant mingled harmonie of the Monarchicall estate with the estate of the Commonwealth And he not onely contented not himselfe to conferre with the Senate all affaires of importance and to take their advise but yet he would that the Senate should give him every yeare twentie Counsellors to be nigh him of his privie Councell in which Counsell he had alwaies many men very wise courteous and very modest such as the Lawyer Trebatius and that good and prudent Agrippa his sonne in law with that so learned and good a piller of learned men Mecoenas Therefore also Tiberius the Emperour the successor of Augustus although he was a Prince more abundant in vices than in vertues not daring wholly to stray out of his predecessors traces that good Augustus made nor ordained any thing of weight without the Counsell and advise of the Senate For this cause also breefely all the good Emperors as Vespatian Titus Traian Adrian the Antonines and others like communicated alwaies with the Senate upon all the great affaires of the Commonwealth and they bore themselves not like maisters but like Presidents of the Senat also they did not attribute unto themselves any title of honour nor enterprised to make any triumphs but such as was decreed and ordained by the Senate And by the contrarie the Emperours which were of no account such as Caligula Nero Comodus Bassianus Maximinus Heliogabalus and other like hated extreamely the Senate esteeming of it as their pedegoge and corrector and have caused many Senators to die thinking the more easily to command as they would having no controulers to withstand their wicked actions But the end was alwayes this that such as despised and would have annihilated the Senate have ever had an unluckie end and reigned not long time but have all been massacred and slaine young and have left unto their posteritie an infamie and most wicked memorie of them Herein is shewed a continuall successe of the just judgements of God against them which despised wise Counsell and contrary a felicitie and divine prosperitie in other Emperours which governed themselves by the good Counsell of the Senate and of the wise men of their privie Counsell For they raigned and held the Empire happily replenished with all goods honour and glorie and their subjects under them enjoyed good handling and good repose and tranquilitie And we need not doubt that such felicitie comming to good Princes the evill haps unto wicked Princes doe not proceed from God for as the wise man saith Good Counsell commeth from God and he that despiseth the gift of God Prov. 18. Eccle. 37. certaine it is that in the end he shall be well chastised Our kings of France of old used the same course that these good Emperors did For they often convocated the three Estates of the kingdome to have their advise and Counsell in affaires of great consequence which touched the interest of the Commonwealth And it is seene by our Hystories that the generall assembly of the Estates was commonly done for three causes One when there was a question In old time the general Estates wer held for three causes to provide for the kingdome a Governour or Regent as when kings were young or had not the use of their understandings by some accident or were captives or prisoners For in these cases the three Estates assembled to obtaine a Governour for the Realme Againe when there was cause to reforme the kingdome to correct the abuses of Officers and Magistrates and to bring things unto their ancient and first institution and integritie For kings caused the Estates to assemble because that many being assembled from all parts of the kingdome they might better be informed of all abuses and evill behaviours committed therein and might also better worke the means to remedie them because commonly There is no better Physician than he that knoweth well the disease and the causes therof The third cause why there was made an assembly of the Estates was when there was a necessary cause to lay a Tribute or Impost upon the people For then in a full assembly some shewed to them which were there which represented all the people the necessitie of the kings and the kingdomes affaires who graciously and courteously entreated the people to aid and helpe the king but with so much money as they themselves thought to be sufficient and necessarie And for this cause that which the Estates accorded to the king was
called with these gracious names Subsidies Subventitions Aydes Grants not with these tearmes Tailles Imposts Tributes Impositions which were tearmes more hard and odious Examples appeare of the first cause when the generall Estates assembled at Paris after the death of king Charles le Sage to provide for the government as well of king Charles the sixt being under Annal. upon An 1380 and Fross li 2. cap. 58. 60. age as of the kingdome which government they gave unto three of the kings uncles namely to the Duke of Berry Languedoc to the Duke of Bourgoigne Picardie and Normandie and to the Duke de Aniou the remainder of all the realme and the rule of the young kings person was committed to the said Dukes of Berry and Bourgoigne So was there ordained during the said kings life another ordinance In like manner the generall Estates were held at Tours after the decease of king Lewis the eleventh to purvey for the government of king Charles the eighth under Annal. upon An. 148. and Coâ—â—n â—ib 1. ca. 109. age and of the kingdome And by the same Estates was established a Counsell of twelve persons good men and of good calling to dispatch the affaires of the kingdome yet in the kings name and under his authoritie And the rule of the young kings person was committed unto Madame de Beavien his sister When king Charles the sixt le bien aime was come to the age of one and twentie yeares his uncles were discharged from the government of the kingdome by the Froiss lib 1. cap. 134. lib. 4. cap. 44. advise and deliberation of the kings great Counsell But this good prince by an accident of sicknesse fell a certaine time after into a frenzie which sometimes bereaved him of his sences insomuch that the Estates assembled at Paris gave the government of the kingdome during the kings indisposition to his two uncles the dukes of Berrie and Burgoigne The yeare 1356. that king Iohn was taken prisoner nie Poictres at the journey of Annal. upon An. 1356 and Fross li. 1. cap. 170. 171. Maupertins with his sonne Philip after Duke of Burgoigne and that they were led into England there remained in France three of the said king Iohns children namely Charles Dauphin and duke of Normandie Lewis duke de Aniou and Iohn duke of Berrie There was a question about the providing for the government of the kingdome because of the kings captiuitie but none of them would enterprise the mannaging thereof of himselfe insomuch that the generall Estates were assembled at Paris whereby were elected thirtie six persons some say fiftie to governe the affaires of the kingdome with Monsieur le Dauphin who at the beginning called himselfe the Lieutenant of the king his father but afterward he named himselfe Regent The yeare 1409. during the raigne of Charles the sixt king of France were held Monstrelet lib. 1. ca. 59. the generall Estates at Paris for the reformation of abuses in the kingdome And there it was ordained that all accountants for the kings revenues and rents should make their accounts By the meanes of which reformation great summes of money were recovered upon the same accountants and there were also made some good lawes and ordinances In other conventions of Estates the money and coine hath been reformed from weake and light unto thicke and of good waight and goodnesse Also of late at the generall Estates held at Orleans were made manie goodly ordinances for the good and comfort of the poore people reformation of justice and for the cutting off of manie abuses which were committed in plaies at Cardes and Dise in superfluitie of apparell and in matter of benefices But commonly commeth such euill hap that all good things which are introducted and ordained vpon good reason and to a good end incontinent vanish away and wicked examples are alwaies drawne into consequence As for the last cause for which we haue said the generall Estates in old time were called namely for the graunt of Helps Subsidies ther are manie examples in our Histories As in the time of king Iohn wherein the Estates accorded great subventions Froiss lib. 1. cap. 155. Annal. upon An 1354 58. 59. or subsidies to make warre against the English men which then held a great part of the kingdome And after he was taken prisoner and led into England the said Estates agreed to give vnto Monsieur le Dauphin his soune great summes of money to pay for the said kings raunsome and for Philip his sonne being also a prisoner And well to be marked it is that our histories doe witnesse that all the people of France generally were meruailously anguished grieved with the prisonment captivitie which they saw their king suffer but especially the people of the countrey of Languedoc For the Estates of the said countrey ordained that if the king were not delivered within a yeare that every one both men and women should lay by all coloured garments such also as were jagged and cut and such as were enriched with gold silver or other strange and costly fashion Likewise to make cease all stage-plaies morrisdauncings piping yea and plaies pastimes and daunces in signe and token of their mourning and lamentation for their princes captivitie A thing whereby appeared the great and cordiall affection of this people towards their king As truely the Frenchmen have alwaies been of great love and affection towards their kings unlesse they were altogither tyrants But to make an end of this point Certaine it is that before king Charles the seventh called le Victorieux no Subsidies were imposed without assembling the generall Estates And that our kings used thus to do was not because they had power by an absolute authoritie to impose tallages and subsidies without calling the Estates but it is to the end they may be better obeyed with a voluntarie and unconstrained obedience and to shunne all uprores and rebellions which often happen upon that occasion And truly the French people have alwaies been so good and obedient unto their kings that they never refused him any thing if there were but any appearance of reason to demand it Yea often the Estates have granted their king more than he would demand or durst looke for as is seene by that which our histories write of the Estates held for Subsidies But because Aydes and Subsidies were customably granted for the making of De Com. lib. 5. cap. 18. warres M. Philip de Comin saith That kings should also communicat and consult with their Estates whether the causes of such warres be just and reasonable and that the Prince cannot nor ought not otherwise to enterprise a warre For it is reason that they which defray the charges and expenses should know something But yet he passeth further and saith There is no Prince in the world which hath power to lay one pennie upon his subjects without their grant and consent unlesse he will use tyrannie and
and triflingly talked with king Alexander the Great as if he had spoken to some simple burgesse of Athens And Calisthenes Plutarke in Alex. whom Alexander led with him in his voyage unto Asia to instruct him in good documents of wisedome who indeed was so austere hard and biting in all his remonstrances and reasonings as neither the king nor any others could take in good part any thing that he taught It is then very much expedient if a man mean to gather fruit and do good by his speech to use gentle and civile talke and persuasions especially if he have to doe with a Prince or great man which will not be gained by rigor or as they say by high wrastling but by mild and humble persuasions And above all men ought well to engrave in princes minds that notable answere which The difference of a friend and a flatterer captaine Phocion made unto the king Antipater who had required some thing of him which was not reasonable I would Sir doe for your service all that is possible for me but you cannot have me both for a friend and a flatterer as if he would say That they be two things farre different to be a friend and to be a flatterer as in truth they are For the true friend and servant of the prince orders and frames all his actions Plutarke de discri adul amici to the good of the prince and the flatterer tends and bends all his actions to his owne proper good the true friend loveth with a true love his prince and the flatterer loveth himself the true friend modestly sheweth his vices in his presence and praiseth his vertues in his absence but the flatterer alwaies exalts the prince in his presence rather for his vices than for his vertues and behind his backe he blameth and defameth him vaunting and saying that he governes him at his pleasure and that he possesseth him and makes him doe what hee will the true friend persevereth in the service of his prince as well in time of adversitie as prosperitie and the flatterer turnes his backe in time of adversitie the true friend serves for an healthfull medicine to his prince but the flatterer for a sweet poison the true friend conserveth his prince in his estate and greatnesse but the flatteter precipitateth him into ruine and destruction as we shall discourse the examples of al these things hereafter Moreover when we say that flatterers are pernicious to a prince that is not ment of all them which dedicate and give themselves to please the prince for there may well be Gentlemen of his owne age about him to accompany him in his honest pastimes as to ride hunt hawke to tourney to play at tennis to run and other like pastimes which doe not evill to give themselves to please him in such things but contrary it is right necessary and requisit that the prince have sometimes such companie For it should not be good nor comely in defect and for want of plaies and pastimes hee should to himselfe procure an habit of a Stoicall humour neither that he should get a complection too severe and melancholicke Hereof we read a very remarkable example above others in Alexander the great king of Macedon When he departed from his countrey to passe into Asia to make war upon that great Dominator king Darius he had with him most cheefe in his love amongst others Craterus and Hephaestion two gentlemen his especiallest friends and servants yet farre Plutarke in Alex. different the one from the other for Craterus was of an hard and sharpe wit severe stoicall and melancholicke who altogether gave himselfe unto affaires of Counsell and indeed was one of the kings cheefe Counsellors but Hephaestion was a young gentleman well complexioned and conditioned in his manners and behavior of a good and quicke wit yet free of all care but this to content and please the king in his sports and pastimes insomuch as men called Craterus the kings friend and Hephaestion the friend of Alexander as one that gave himselfe to maintaine the person of his prince in mirths and pastimes which were good to the maintenance of his health When Alexander had conquered Persia and Media he begun to apparrell himselfe after the Persian Median manner the rather to gaine the hearts of those nations newly conquered Hephaestion to please the king did the like leaving the Macedonike manner to apparrell himselfe as the Persians and Medes did for which the king liked him the better but Craterus kept alwaies his old fashions of Macedonie and much blamed that change of fashions in their apparrell and said it was but even to barbarize and begun to taunt and gibe at Hephestion for it This their contrarietie of manners was a cause that they entred farre into enmitie and quarrels insomuch as one day thēy came unto the drawing of swords one against another and streight assembled their friends on both sides wherby had falne out a great mutinie if the king himselfe had not come in good time hearing a great noise of people and seperated them presently openly rebuking Hephaestion calling him foole and mad man he tooke also privatly aside Craterus and told him he greatly marvelled that he being a wise man would so hate Hephaestion for so small a thing Afterward he agreed them publickely delared unto them that they were the two Gentlemen which most he loved in the world but if any more they fell to quarell again hee swore by Iupiter Amon that with his owne hands he would slay him that begun But after that they did nothing one against other Hereupon I say That it is necessary for a Prince to have such as Craterus for his counsell and it also becomes him well to have such as Hephaestion to keepe him companie in his honest pastimes But to the end men may better discerne such as are good friends and servants from flatterers I will now God willing discover the examples of many sorts of flatterers which for the most part have had in singular observation that Maxime of Machiavell namely To hold close from the Prince the truth of things and the better to distinguish them I will call them with such names as our auncestors have called them which are very proper and covenable unto them First there are a sort of flatterers which our auncient Frenchmen called janglers which signifieth as much Ianglers as a skoffer a trifler a man full of words or as we call them long tongues which by their jangling and babelings in rime or in prose such as do give themselves to please great men in praising and exalting them exceedingly rather for their vices than for their vertues These be they which by their fair language can make as one saith of a Devill an Angell but in the meane while they so enchant men and swell them up so with pride that in effect they make them become even Angelicall Devils This sort
above shewed that our predecessors were sometimes miscontented with the Englishmen that would needs have all estates and offices in Aquitaine as much may happen in this time for nothing hath beene in times past which may not againe be in this time The Salicke law which is observed in Fraunce and through all Almaigne was not onely made to fore-close and barre women from the succession of the crowne and from soveraigne domination by reason of the imbecilitie and incapacitie well to commaund which is in the feminine sex for in the masculine sexe happen often such incapacities But especially the Salicke law was made to the end That by marriages strangers should not come to the said succession of the Crowne For it should be as an intollerable thing to a Frenchman to obey a strange king as to obey a queene of the French nation so odious is a strange domination in Fraunce As also for that the consequence thereof with us should be ever evill For a strange king would alwayes to estates and offices of the kingdome advaunce straungers of his nation a thing which would alwayes cause in the end disorders and confusions as is seene by the examples which we have before discovered There is also an auncient example of Queene Brunehant or Brunechile who advanced Annal. upō Anno 607. to the estate of Maire du Palais de France which was as much as governor of all the kingdome a Lumbard called Proclaide who was much in her good grace and amitie This stranger seeing himselfe lifted up so high became so fierce and so proud that he made no estimate of the princes of the kingdome but put them to many troubles and vexations Hee became also very rapinous and covetous as sayth the hystorie is the nature of the Lumbards insomuch that hee did eat up and ruinated the subjects of Fraunce Breefely his behaviours and dealings were such that hee got the evill wils of all men from the nobleman to the carter At that time was there warre amongst the children of the queene Brunehant Theodoric king of Orleans and Theodebert king of Metz. The barons and great lords their vassales desirous to make a peace betwixt the two kings brothers but this great Maire Proclaide hindered it withall his power which the said lords seeing resolved amongst them That it were better that strangers died than that so many gentlemen and subjects of the two kings should sley one another and so indeed they did slay him as an enemie to peace and concord The example of this Lombard should be well marked in this time by the Lombards which governe in Fraunce Lewis le Debonance sonne of Charlemaigne king of Fraunce and emperour Annal. An. 829. Maire du Palais a stranger cause of civile warre of the West altogether gave the Estate of Maire du Palais de France to a Spaniard called Berard who incontinent mounted into great pride The king had three sonnes Lotharie Lewis and Pepin who could not support the arrogancie and fiercenesse of this stranger who as it were would parragon them This was the cause of an evill enterprise of these three young princes against their owne father For they seized upon his person and brought him into the towne of Soissons and there caused him to forsake his crowne of Fraunce and the Estate of the empire and to take the habit of a monke in the Abbey of S. Marke in the said Soissons within which they caused him to be kept straitly for a time But in the end the great barons and lords of Fraunce and Almaigne medled therein and dismonked him and restored him to his Estate and agreed the father with the children This had not happened if that good king and emperour had had that wisedome not to have lifted up a stranger so high a thing which could not be but displeasant to his naturall subjects great and little For a conclusion of this matter I will here place the witnesse of M. Martin du Bellay knight of the kings order a man of qualitie of vertue and of great experience who sayth That hee hath seene in his time more evill happen unto the affaires of king Francis the first of that name by the meanes of straungers which revolted from his service than by any other meanes Amongst which strangers Strangers enclined to commit treasons hee placeth the Bishop de Liege the Prince of Orange the Marquesse of Mantua the Lord Andrew Doria M. Ierome Moron of Millaine who caused Millaine to revolt and certaine others But because these things are not of very auncient memorie but happened in our world I will make no longer discourse thereof Seeing also the examples and reasons which wee have above rehearsed are sufficient to shew against the opinion of Machiavell his disciples That a Prince cannot doe better than to serve himselfe in offices and publicke charges of the countrey of his domination with his owne subjects of the same countries as beeing more fit and agreeing to the nature of the people of that countrey than are strangers And there is not a more odious thing to the people as M. Comines sayth than when they see great offices benefices and dignities conferred upon strangers And as for offices it hath not beene seene aunciently and commonly that they have beene bestowed upon straungers but that within this little space of time they have found meanes to obtaine the greatest and best For of old there was committed unto them but offices of Captaineships to the end that under that title they might the better draw people of their owne countrey to serve the king But as for benefices of a long time it hath been that the Italians have held and possessed the best in Fraunce which the Pope bestowed upon them and our kings durst not well contradict Yet notwithstanding it gave occasion unto king Charles the sixt to make an edict in the yeare 1356 whereby hee forbad That any benefices of the kingdome of France should be conferred upon strangers which both before and since by many royall Edicts hath often beene renued and reiterated Which Edicts merite well to be brought into use but it shall not bee yet since that they onely are they which yet doe governe all But I pray here all them which are good Frenchmen that they will consider a little neerer the wrong they do themselves to suffer themselves to be reputed for strangers in their owne countrie and by that meanes recuiled and kept from the Charges and Estates of the same For Italians or such as are Italianized which have in their hands the governance of France hold for true the Maxime of Machiavell That men should not trust in strangers as it is true and this is because they would not advance any other but men onely of their owne nation and certaine bastardlie and degenerous Frenchmen which are fashioned both to their humour and their fashions and which may serve them as slaves and most vile ministers of their trecheries cruelties rapines
which is so odious to the world brought him to prison where they caused him to finish his daies I will then conclude this recitall That if all Christian princes would practise the Magistrall determination of our masters of Sorbonne and of the Vniversitie of Paris the same would fall unto S. Peter which fell unto Frier Iohn his bird Yet is it not onely by the change of lead into gold that his Holinesse dooth Froisart lib. 2. chap. 132 133. 135. 140. much evill to provinces farre from Rome but also by his interdicts and excommunications In the time of the aforesaid schisme of Popes hee of Rome who was called Vrban sent Buls unto king Richard of England who tooke his part and was an Vrbanist by which hee commaunded him to make warre upon the king of France who was a Clementine and gave him power to levie silver upon the Warre for the Pope of Rome English Cleargie Moreover hee gave so great quantitie of pardons to all them which with a good heart did furnish silver for that warre that it seemed hee meant cleane to have emptied both hell and purgatorie of Englishmen for every man or woman might draw out his father grandfather great grandfather uncles aunts children nephewes and others ascendants descendants and collaterals by paying so much for every poll He further promised their soules to be guided right into paradice which died in this warre or which died that yeare after they had paied the money for that said warre nor that there should be any necessitie for the said soules to stray out of their way by purgatorie and the Limbo but to goe right to paradice The said buls being thus preached and published through England there was every where a great prease that yeare to die and to give silver so that in a small time there was heaped up the summe of 2500000 franks One part of this silver was given to the bishop of London who was chosen generall to make warre upon the Clementines in Spaine and the other part was delivered to the bishop of Norwitch who was elected generall of another armie to make warre upon France which also was Clementine And indeed these two armies did much harme as well in Spaine as in France yet the bishop of Norwitch being a young man and inconsiderat entring upon Flaunders an Vrbanist the king of Fraunce meeting him therewith 100000 men constrained him to retire homeward with shame and great losse In the yeare 1513 happened great damage and hurt unto the kings of Fraunce Annales upon the said yeare Du Bellay lib. 1. of his Memories and of Navarre by the meanes of an interdict and excommunication which Pope Iulius the second of that name cast against all the princes which had sent their embassadors to the counsell of Pise whose lands and seignories he exposed and gave as a prey to all men that would take and invade them For under colour of those wicked and detestable buls the emperour Maximilian and the Switzers constrained king Lewis the twelfth to abandon and forsake Millaine and almost all that hee held in Italie And on the other side the king of England fell upon Fraunce which by the Pope was exposed as a prey with an armie of 3000 English assaying to conquer part thereof But God suffered it not for in the meane time this wicked Pope died and the interdict was revoked and peace made with the English On the other side also king Ferdinand of Arragon feigning he would come to prey upon France entred into the kingdome of Navarre and got and usurped it upon king Iohn d' Albert The Pope cause of the losse of the kingdome of Navarre from the right heirs who was disseased thereof without being defied yea before he knew the king of Arragon his purpose whose successours have alwayes since detained and usurped the said kingdome of Navarre upon the said king Iohn d' Albret and upon his lawfull successors as they doe yet by this title onely of usurpation prey and bootie yet notwithstanding the said unjust usurpers call themselves most Catholike I could here accumulate many other examples of many great domages losses committed by Popes in strange countries and even in Almaigne where they have commonly sowen warres betwixt the emperour and the princes of Almaigne but I will content my selfe with the abovesaid examples for I will not at length handle such an ample and almost infinit matter but it sufficeth mee to have shewed That the contrarie of that which Machiavell saith is true and that the Pope and his holy seat doe much good in the place where they are and many evils and mischeefes in farre countries And as for that which Machiavell saith That Italie is the province of Christendome where there is least Religion he saith very true but what would hee now say if he were alive hee should then find that if in his time they had so well profited in his schoole as to be very great Atheists and contemners of God and of all Religion that now his schollers know farre more than his master And there is no doubt but alreadie long agoe all Religion is contemned in Italie yea and even the Romane Catholicke Will you have a better example than that which M. Comines rehearseth He saith That in the time of king Lewis the twelfth there were two houses at Florence which were principall that is to say of Medicis and of Pacis which were in quarell and enmitie together They of the house de Pacis favoured the Pope and the king of Naples and by their counsell and advice did they enterprise to slay Lawrence de Medicis who was cheefe of his house and all his race and to surprise him the better unprovided and without heed taking they resolved to sley and massacre him with all his race and sequele upon a solemne feast day at the houre that the great Masse was sung and that when the priest begun to sing Sanctus Sanctus it should be the watch word to rush upon them And indeed they executed their enterprise except that they slew not Lawrence de Medicis who saved himselfe in the revestrie but Iulian his brother and certaine others of his race were slaine I demand of you if they which enterprised and gave counsell to attempt such an act beleeved in the Masse we need not doubt but they were very Atheists But if in that time some hundred yeares agoe Italie were so furnished with Atheists and contemners of Religion what thinke you it is now In conclusion Italie Rome the Pope and his seat are truly the spring and fountaine of all despight of Religion and the schoole of all impietie and as they alreadie were in Machiavels time as he confesseth so are they farre more in this time For although the papall Church of Rome both heretofore made and yet dooth certaine demonstrations to sustaine a Religion yet in effect it maintaineth it no otherwise but by subtilties and words for it commaundeth
a new evill deed and in your prosperitie handle not as enemies them which in your adversitie you elected for friends The people saith Titus Livius were much moved by the ancient merit of the Caerites rather to forget the new fault than the old benefit and a An old pleasure putteth out a new offence peace and remission of their offences was accorded unto them The same moderation of minde used Francis the first of that name of good memorie towards the inhabitants of Rochell in Anno 1541. The Rochelois falling to mutunie against certaine of the kings officers about the impost of Salt but acknowledging Du Bello lib 9. of his Coment their fault they humbled themselves before that good king demanding pardon which hee granted in an oration with a grave and discreet admonishment very worthie such a king and Christian prince in these words My good subjects and friends for such may I well call you since you acknowledge your faults the office and dutie of subjects is so great towards their prince that they which faile in that dutie commit so great a crime as they cannot perpetrate a greater nor more punishable for the inconveniences which may thereupon follow For every estate of The publick estate lieth in wel commanding wel obeying a well instituted monarch and commonweale consisteth in two points namely in the just commandement of the prince or superiors and in the loyall obedience of subiects If either of these want it is as much as in thelife of a man the separation of the bodie and of the soule for in man life can no longer endure than the soule desisteth to command and governe the body and that the body desisteth from obeying the soule God grant mee grace that I may not faile in the commandement which hee hath given mee over you which I doe acknowledge to hold of him as a thing whereof I must make account unto him and although according to that command I have over you I may reasonably practise the punishment of justice upon you yet because it is a thing more covenable for a prince to prefer mercy and clemencie before the rigour of justice but especially towards such as repent and demand pardon I pardon you with a good heart seeing likewise that I know you are children of good fathers whose fidelitie hath beene many times experimented by my predecessors I had rather forget your new misdeede than your ancient merits I hope also that from henceforth you will as willingly bee enclined to obey mee as my naturall inclination is to pardon you I will not doe to you as the emperour did to them of Gaunt which having committed them under the slavish servitude of a citadell defiled his hands with their bloud My hands thanks bee to God are Crueltie takes love from subjects to their princes cleare from the bloud of my subjects and indeede hee lost the hearts and amitie of his subjects by shedding their bloud but I hope that my mercie and clemency shall confirme your hearts love towards me your king who kindly handleth you as a good father and that if you and your predecessors have beene in times past good and faithfull subjects you will bee much better heereafter I pray you forget this offence which is happened and for my part I will not remember it at any time of my life I pray you also bee as good subjects as you have heeretofore beene and I hope God will give mee grace to bee better towards you than I have beene God our Lord and creatour pardon you and I doe heartely forgive you all you have done without excepting any thing At this word proceeding from so magnificall and generous a king all the Rochelois began to weepe for joy and crying Vive le Roy they prayed God to conserve in all prosperitie so good a king so kind and mercifull Then upon the kings commandement all the bells of Rochell were rung all their gunnes were shot off and bonefires made in signe of great rejoycing And so much there wants that good princes have beene enclined to vengeance that contrary the principallitie it selfe makes them forget all affection of vengeance Spartian in Adrian that they had before as wee reade of the emperour Adrian who being come to the empire forgot all his former enmities insomuch as one day soone after he Ascending unto honor is descending from vengeance came to the empire encountring a capitall enemie of his hee said unto him Thou art escaped King Lewis the twelfth before hee was king being but duke of Orleance had many troubles For in the time of king Charles the eight his predecessor his enemies Annales upon Anno 1488. thought to have taken him prisoner but hee saved himselfe in Bretaigne whither hee was persecuted with an army and battaile was given him and the duke of Bretaigne who tooke his part at S. Aubin where the kings armie got the victorie and the said duke of Orleance were taken prisoners led to the castle Luzignen and from thence brought to the great towre of Bourges After all this there was a concorde amongst them and the said duke came to the crowne Being king they which followed him into Bretaigne and to other places during his adversitie persuaded him to bee revenged of such as had made warre upon him at the kings command and they shewed unto him that the cause of his then persecution came not by king Charles his motion who was then within age but by his principallest Counsellors and governours such as was Messire Lewis de la Trimonille and others But that good king Lewis shaped them this answere worthie of so gentle and christian a king that could command his choler and passions Nay saith hee a king of France may not revenge injuries done to the duke of Orleance King Phillip the hardie a gentle prince a lover of peace and very easie to graunt Annal. upon the year 1272. pardon The countie de Foix in his time rebelled but at the request of a sonne in law of the countie this good king pardoned him his fault and gave him againe certaine land which hee caused to bee seized and moreover made him knight and at Court retained him into his service This is far from nourishing enemies and perpetuall vengeance as Machiavell teacheth But heere might I accumulate and heape up many other examples of Caesar Augustus Traian Marcus Antonius Constantine Charlemaine S. Lewis Charles le sage Alexander the great of Sirus and generally of all the good princes which ever have beene all which were endowed with that excellent vertue of clemencie and were farre from all vengeance But these I have recited I hope may serve sufficientlie to shew by good reasons and notable examples that that passion of irreconcilable vengeance is unseemely and unworthie a good prince And as for the examples wherewith Machiavell serves himselfe they bee but examples of tyrants and such as were of no account and of
great care to see himselfe in reputation to be cruell so that thereby he maintaine his people in a faithfull union and obedience For the cruell and rigorous executions of a prince doe but privately hurt certaine particulars which ought not to be feared and the two great lenitie of a pitifull prince is the cause of infinit evils which grow up and engender in their kingdomes as murderes thefts and other like Insomuch as a man may well say that a pitifull prince is cause of more evills than a cruell prince The example of the emperour Severus may serve vs for proofe heereof for hee was very cruell and by his crueltie overcame Albinus Niger the most part of their friends so wrought himselfe a peaceable empire which hee long time held beeing well obeyed and reverenced of all the world I Have heeretofore shewed how Caesar Borgia by his crueltie obtained for enemies almost all the potentates of Italie and thereby so well assured his estate that incontinent as his father was dead he was invironed with enemies destitute of friends despoiled of the lands he had usurped and constrained to hide himselfe to save his life This tragicall issue accordeth not very well with that which Machiavell heere maintaineth saying Bâ—rgia was erected by the credit of his father not by his crueltie That the crueltie of Borgia was the cause that hee got the peaceable domination of Romania For to say truth it was not his crueltie which easilie might have beene resisted Borgia of himselfe beeing without power but it was the favour and feare of the pope his father who commanded the French powers and made himselfe feared of all christian princes For at that time men feared more the popes simple buls than at this day they feare either the keies of S. Peter or the sword of S. Paul which hee said hee had or all his fulminations excommunications agravations reagravations interdicts anathematizations or all the forces and meanes hee can make And who would make account of all those at this day seeing even the Romanes themselves make but a mocke of them But in the time of Alexander Borgia yea in the time of Pope Iulius the eleaventh his successor all that the Pope would and ordained was held of christian princes for an ordinance as from the mouth of God yea even when the Pope ordained things manifestly wicked as when Iulius delivered as a prey the whole kingdome of France and the lands of the kings allies For the king of England of Arragon and the emperour Maximilian beleeved all that it was a sufficient cause to set upon the king and his allies and that it was even as an expresse commandement of God The world then and even princes being then overtaken with that beastly superstition and follie wee neede not bee abashed that Caesar Borgia had the meanes to possesse Romania under the shadow and favour of the Pope his father that with the aide of the king of France and it was plainly seene that that good hap to subjugate Romania proceeded from favour and not from crueltie as Machiavell saith because as soone as that favour ceased all his case was overthrowne and it was straight seene that his utter ruine arived as is said I doe then maintaine cleane contrary from the Maxime of Machiavell and say That crueltie is a vice which ordinarily bringeth â—o princes the ruine of them their estates and that clemencie and gentlenes is the true meanes to maintaine and establish a prince firme and assured in his estate For proofe heereof reasons are cleare and manifest for wee call crueltie all executions which are committed upon men their lands and goods without any forme of justice or against all right and equitie heereupon it followeth that as violence is directly contrarie to right and equitie so also is crueltie and that crueltie is no other thing but manifest violence But according to the Maximes even of philosophers No violent thing can endure So it followeth that an estate founded upon cruelty cannot long endure Moreover crueltie is alwaies hated of every one for although it bee not practised upon all particulars but upon some onely yet they upon whom it is not exercised cease not to feare when they see it executed upon their parents friends allies and neighbours But the feare of paine and punishment engendreth hatred for one can never love that whereof hee feares to receive evill especiallie when there is a feare of life losse of goods and honours which are the things wee hold most precious and of that which wee hate wee by the same meanes desire the losse and entier ruine and search out procure and advance it with all our power But it is impossible when all a people shooteth at one same marke that a tyrant or cruell prince for all is one can long endure or that hee can doe so much as there shall not arive unto him some disastre or evill fortune And if sometimes it please God to suffer him to live long it is to cause him to take the higher leap that in the end hee may have the sorer fall As wee see it well painted in poets tragoedies where many tyrants are seene which enduring long time have done no other thing during the space of their life but knit cordes fasten gallowes in some imminent places whet swords and daggers temper poisons for afterward to drinke the poison to stab the dagger in their bosomes or hang themselves on the gibet in the sight of all the world which laughing and mocking them say it is well employed we must not say that such tragoe dies are but poeticall fictions for hystories are full of such tragicall ends of tyrants which have delighted to shed their subjects bloud and to handle them cruellie Cruell people are commonly cowards This vice of crueltie proceeding from the weaknesse of such as can not command their choller and passions of vengeance and suffer themselves to bee governed by them never happened in a generous and valiant heart but rather alwaies in cowardly and fearefull hearts Therfore when one day one advertised the emperour Mauricius that the captaine Phocas entended and wrought evill against him and another maintained that he was but a coward and too fearefull to bring any thing to passe the emperour Mauricius answered So much the more ought I to take heed for those cowardly and fearefull people when they enterprise a crueltie and that they have advantage they can never hold any measure therein And this vice of crueltie saith Marcellinus may be called the ulcer of the soule proceeding of Amian Mar. lib. 27. feeblenesse of the mind and cowardise of the heart And therefore sicke and diseased people are more chollericke than they that are in health and miserable and desperate men more than they which are at their ease and contented And hereupon saith Marcellinus that the cause why Valentinian was a cruell man came because of the choller which
forsakers of knighthood but who can more forsake knighthood than he which forsakes his king who is the chiefe of all knighthood The second authoritie is That it is lawfull to kill theeves and robbers by high wayes It is lawfull then to kill a tyrant which continually watcheth and intendeth the death of his soveraigne lord I come now to three authorities of the holy Scripture The first is that of Moses who without authoritie slew the Aegyptian who tyrannized over the people of Irael For at that time Moses had not the authoritie of a judge over the people of Israel which was delivered unto him nigh fortie yeares after that he had slaine the Aegyptian The second authoritie is the example of Phineas who without any commandement slew the duke Zambry because he allied him selfe by carnall love with a Sarracene woman whereupon Phineas was commended and reverenced in three things in love honour and riches The third authoritie is that of S. Michael the archangell who without the commandement of God or any other fought against the tyrant Lucifer so disloyall to God his soveraigne who went about to usurpe the seignorie of God The said S. Michael was favourably rewarded in three things that is in honour love and riches in love because God loved him more than any other Angell in honour because God made him a perpetuall prince of the heavenly hoast in riches because God gave him riches as much as he desired or could carrie away so it appeareth that my third Veritie is well proved by twelve reasons in the name of the twelve Apostles of which reasons three are taken from the holy Theologians three from Moralists and three from Legists and the three last from the holy Scripture and they goe alwaies from three to three My fourth Veritie is this It is more meritorious and honourable that a tyrant be slaine by the kings parents than by a stranger and by a duke than by a countie and by a barron than by a simple vassale because therein shineth more the love obedience of the sleyer and is more honourable to the king to be revenged of a great man than a base and meane man My fift Veritie is That alliances promises othes or confederations ought not to be kept if for keeping them there come any prejudice to the prince or to the commonweale but to keep them is to do against the morall naturall and divine lawes I proove this Veritie by thus arguing Whensoever two contrarie obligations are concurrent a man must keepe and observe the greatest and breake the least But in this case the bond unto the prince and commonwealth is greater than any other promise or consideration Ergo then wee must observe the obligation towards the prince and commonwealth and breake all other obligations othes and confederations Also in arguing thus Whensoever a man doth a thing better than that which he sweares to do he is not perjured in doing that better thing omitting that thing which he swore to doe as expressely the master saith of Sentences in the last of the third but in this propounded case it is better to kill a tyrant although a man have sworne not to kill him than to let him live as hath been above shewed Ergo then it is no perjurie nor evill done to sley a tyrant against his sworne promise alliance or confederation that he hath with him Also Isiodorus in his booke of soveraigne good sayth That wee must not observe an oth whereby a man shall bee forced rashly to commit an evill but in our case a man shall bee forced to an evill by such a promise and oth Ergo he must then not observe it The sixt Veritie is That if so it happen that the alliances othes or confederations turne to the prejudice of one of the promisers hee is in nothing bound to keep them This veritie is prooved in thus arguing The end of every commaundement is charitie as the Apostle saith but the cheefe charitie beginneth at our selves Ergo the commandement to observe the faith and promise ought not to bee observed if it be contrarie to the charitie which we ought to have towards our selves according to that which is said of the Cannonists Frangenti fidem fides frangatur eidem Hee that breakes faith faith ought to be broken to him againe Also in all promises that are made every man must include If it please God But certaine it is it pleaseth not God that we should do any thing against the law and order of charitie Ergo c. The seventh Veritie is That to every subject it is lawfull honourable and meritorious to kill a tyrant by deceits speculations and dissimulations I proove it first by the authoritie of the morall philosopher Boccace above alledged Also by the example of king Iehu who dissembled to approve the service of Baal to trap the sacrificers for which he was praised Also by the example of Ioiada who by treason caused Athalia to be slaine for which he was praised Also of Iudith who slew Holofernes by dissimulation whereupon she is praised And this is the fittest death for tyrants to die on that is to be slaine villanously by watchings and espiements The eight Truth is That every subject which enterpriseth and worketh against his soveraigne lord by Necromancie and invocation of devils for covetousnesse to have the crowne is a violator of the Catholicke faith and worthie of double death the first and the second For S. Bonaventure in his second book Distinction the sixt saith That the divell never pleaseth the will of such men but first idolatrie and infidelitie are mingled together For as faith serveth much to the operation of the miracles of God so infidelitie is as requisit in the operation of divellish things The divell also will doe nothing for such men unlesse they agree to yeeld him the domination over them whereof he is very desirous Also that great doctor in the ninth article in Secunda Secundae saith and affirmeth That invocations of devils never come to effect without a fore-going of a corruption of faith idolatrie and an expresse compact with divels And this opinion doe the venerable doctors Alexander de Hales Richard de Mivile and Astensis hold and commonly all the other doctours which have writ of this matter Here you see my eight Verities well proved I come now to eight Correlatives The first is If it come to passe that in the case aforesaid these invocators of devils and traitoâ—â—â—o the king be imprisoned and some of their partakers deliver or cause to deliver them hee ought to bee punished with the same punishment as they are themselves namely with the first and second death Secondly every subject that maketh a bargaine with any man to empoyson his soveraigne lord although the enterprise come not to effect is also well worthie of death Thirdly every subject that by dissimulation of pastime causeth apparrell to be made to put on his soveraigne lord and to put
held Hesdin Surely it is a strange thing and very deplorable that there should be any such men in the world which durst maintaine with reasons so horrible a crime farre from all common sence and all reason and humanitie as is a massacre done and executed practisedly without any forme of justice Is not this to call things with contrarie names that is to call injustice by the name of justice crueltie by the name of clemencie night by the name of light evill by the name of good and the devill by the name of an Angell Is not this to praise that which is to be despised and detested to follow that which is to be fled to love that which is to be hated to bring into a confusion the distinction of good and of evill and to overthrow the order which God and nature have established in the distinction of good and evill things But after I have shewed that crueltie cannot bee but pernicious and cause of a princes ruine whatsoever Machiavell saith to the contrarie it will not be to any evill purpose now to shew That kindnesse clemencie and goodnesse are the true means to establish a princes estate in firmitie assurance But because we shall handle hereafter another Maxime where it shall bee more proper to discourse this matter wee will reserve the speaking therof to that place 9. Maxime It is better for a Prince to be feared than loved MEn saith our Florentine doe love as it please them and do feare as it pleaseth the prince Therefore the prince if hee bee vvise ought to found himselfe and to leane that vvay vvhich dependeth upon himselfe and not that vvay vvhich dependeth upon another If the prince can have both together to bee feared and loved that is the best but it being a very difficult thing for to embrace both it is more assured to be feared than to be beloved THis Maxime is a saying or proverbe which our elders have attributed to tyrants Oderint dum metuant that is Let them hate so be it they feare Caius Caligula usurped this auncient proverbe as Suetonius saith and put it in practice during all the time of his raign Sucto in Caligula cap. 30 and he ended as commonly such princes doe end which will rather bee feared than loved as in another place wee have said The emperour Tiberius would needs something mitigate this proverbe not allowing to make himselfe feared and yet disdained not hatred For he was wont to say as by the way of a proverbe or device Oderint dum probent that is Let them hate so they allow But it seemes he made an evill match in coupling hatred with approbation for that which a man hateth hee dooth not willingly allow and that which a man alloweth hee hateth not also Moreover all such sayings and proverbes Let them hate so they feare and Let them hate so they allow are but tyrants devices and our forefathers have so esteemed them and tyrants have alwayes practised them As Nero when he perceived that by his cruelties he was feared and redoubted he bragged that none of them which had been emperours before him had any understanding how to command neither knew they the power they had to make themselves be obeyed But that power was well made knowne to himselfe for men made him well to feele That power evill exercised acquireth hatred to him that exerciseth it and hatred ruine and destruction So happened it to Caligula so to Tiberius and so will it alwayes fall unto them which seeke to bee feared rather with hatred than with love As for that which Machiavell sayth That the prince is feared as he will and as it pleaseth him If this were true all should goe well for him for hee would alwayes be so feared as none should oppose themselves against his desseignes and commandements but that every one should come under the yoke and obey him purely and simply But experience shewes us the contrarie and makes us see and know That a prince cannot long be obeyed if that which he commandeth bee disagreeable and found unjust of him that should obey insomuch as at the first occasion that presenteth it selfe they unyoke themselves and their obedience endureth no longer than force and necessitie endureth And because no force nor necessitie can actually endure long time because no violent thing naturally lasteth therefore it followeth that disagreeable commandements cannot long be observed and that obedience founded upon feare is incontinent broken For the equitie justice of a commandement is the sinew thereof And as the bodie cannot move without sinewes unles only for a leape like a stone so a commaundement which for want of equitie displeaseth Equitie is the sinew of the commādement the obeyers shall never be well put in action and practised unlesse it bee for a small time and at the beginning And as for that which Machiavell saith That it is very hard for a prince to bee feared and loved together it is cleane contrarie For there is nothing more easie for A prince may well be seated and loved together a prince than to obtaine them both as reason sheweth it Because it is certaine that a prince which maintaines his subjects in good peace keepeth them from oppressions causing all them to bee punished which would oppresse them and which will maintaine their liberties and punish the breakers of them and who will observe a good pollicie in his countrey that therein there may be a free assured commerce without imposition of tributes or burdens and he that shall cause good justice to be ministred to every one it is certaine that such a prince shall be greatly beloved of his subjects yea and feared thus When men understand that the prince ministreth good justice in every place without support favour or corruption leaving not punishable faults unpunished and is not prodigall in graunting favours and pardons unlesse they have a good foundation upon reason and equitie certaine it is that hee shall be redoubted and feared not only in his own countrey but in strange countries also For example hereof are all the ancient and good emperours as Augustus Traian Adrian Antonine and others which were together feared beloved and reverenced I could here alleadge almost all our auncestor kings of France which with good justice were not onely redoubted of their subjects but also of all their neighbours yea that good reputation of justice in them was a cause that often strange princes have submitted their contentions to the judgment of the Court of Paris in France as we reade in histories And because they caused to be ministred good justice think you they were the more hated no not of the wickeder sort which are forced by their consciences to love and admire the good and vertue although their lives bee contrarie And how should they not be beloved of their subjects beeing good kings as they were seeing Frenchmen are of that nature that they can never hate their
theft and they wicked men as they are although most subtillie they play the Foxes according to their masters doctrine yet in the end they wil be alwaies known Murder is alwaies murder to whatsoever end it bee done for Foxes And though they sometimes deceive before they bee knowne they are therefore after double punished in regard of the profit they get by deceiving when none will beleeve or trust them in any manner no not even then when they have an intention and will not to deceive at all For alwaies men presume of them as men ought to presume of deceivers and wicked men which are without faith and promise for men hold them for such and they can bee held for no other in regard of their actions and behaviours of their lives past This then is the first evill proceeding from Machiavells doctrine which is that they themselves which practise it bring evill to themselves and are discryed hated and evill beloved of all men The other inconvenience which followeth this Maxime is that if the prince permit Crueltie overthroweth justice men to commit murders under colour of a good intent and end hee shall breake the order of justice which hee ought to observe in the punishment of offenders and so shall turne all upside downe and bring his estate and countrey into confusion and perill for when justice goeth evill all goes evill when well all goes well as in another place shall bee shewed more at full Murders and massacres also never remaine long unpunished for God incontinent sendes them their reward as came to Romulus Machiavells owne example who was an unjust murtherer and in the end was murdered himselfe And in our time wee see examples enough and I beleeve wee shall see more in such as the hand of God hath not yet touched But amongst these evills and inconveniences which ordinarily lay hold of these murderers and follow them even to their graves with furies feares and torments which vexe their consciences I could heere alledge for a confirmation of this Maxime that which S. Paul saith That we must not doe evill that good may come thereof But I have alreadie said in another place thar I will not imploy the sacred armour of the holy scripture to fight against this profane and wicked Atheist but I will still give him this advantage to contend with his owne armes namely with profane authors which were not Christians and which heerein alone resemble him for in other things hee holds nothing of them and especially in the matter whereof wee speake they have beene most farre from his detestable doctrine When Tarquin the proude king of Rome saw that hee had so behaved himselfe Titus Livius lib. 1. 21. Dec. as he had utterly lost the amitie of his subjects then resolved to cause himselfe to be obeyed by feare and to bring it to passe hee tooke to himselfe the knowledge of capitall causes against great men which before appertained to the Senate to make himselfe the better feared and obeyed and so hee put to death such as he thought good under certaine pretextes and colours thinking thereby the better to assure his estate But how did hee assure it Thus hee so practised this doctrine of Machiavell that hee became extreamely hated of all men in such sort as his subjects not being able to beare his tyrannie did drive him out of his kingdome where hee miserably died And so much there wanteth that the ancient Romanes delighted in massacring and slaying that they hated even the too rigorous punishments of offenders as the punishment of Metius Suffetius Albanois who was with foure horses drawne to death for a strange and damnable treason by him entended For although he merited to bee so handled yet the Romanes had the crueltie of the punishment in so great disdaine and detestation that every body turned away their eyes saith Titus Livius seeing so villanous a spectable And it was the first and last time that ever they used that rigorous punishment Likewise it greatly displeased the Romanes that some thinking to doe well caused to bee slaine a Tribune of the people a very seditious man called Genutius who ceased not to trouble the commonwealth by divisions whereby hee stirred the common people to uproares If Genutius had had his lawfull tryall it is likely hee would have beene condemned but therein there was this mischiefe that none durst lay hold upon him for the reverence of his estate during that yeere but hee must needes have beene suffered either to doe what hee would or els to resist his dessignes by other meanes then by accusation and not at all to condemne him before hee were out of his office This seemed a goodly colour to dispatch him to shun seditions and troubles which this Tribune raised yet the execution which was made without course of law was found nought and of an evill example and consequence and was the cause of great mischiefes and broyles which followed after And as for that which Machiavell writeth that Romulus caused to slay Tatius Dioni Halic lib. 2. Titus Livi. lib. 1. Dec. 8. his companion in the kingdome the better to rule and governe the towne of Rome this is false for histories doe witnesse that after hee had caused this execution to be made hee became cruell and proud towards the Senators exercising tyrannie in many things insomuch as the Senators themselves slew him even in the senat house and cut him in little pieces whereof every man tooke one piece in his bosome so that the bodie of Romulus was not found for they hired one to say that hee did see the bodie flie into heaven and the said Senators helping this bruite and report Plutarch in Romulo placed him in the letanie of their Gods and persuaded the people that hee ascended into the heavens both in body and soule But they gave Romulus his reward for the murdering of his brother Remus and his companion Tatius and they murdered him as hee had done them For briefely it is a generall rule that murderers are alwaies murdered which rule hath seldome any exceptions But whereas Machiavell saith That well to rule and governe a common wealth there would bee but one person to medle therein there hath beene alwaies the contrarie Tituâ— Livi. lib. 3. Dec. 8. practised When the Romanes thought it good by good lawes and ordinances to governe the estate of their common weale they considered that the number of two Consuls which were their soveraigne magistrates were too few and therefore they abrogated and tooke them cleane away and elected ren men in their places Dionisius 14 Halic lib. 10 unto which they gave the same authoritie which the Consuls before had and especially gave them power and expresse charge to make lawes and ordinances for the pollicie government and justice of the common weale They made the lawes of the twelve tables which endured long after them yea at this day some of these are
there is like to be so little helpe therein as it vvill rather advance his ruine IT should bee best and more expedient for a prince to prevent all his subjects with good and courteous dealings than to attend till hee see himselfe constrained to diminish his rigour and as the common proverbe saith to bend or breake Notwithstanding the counsell here given by Machiavell is altogether wicked and cannot but bring into ruin a prince and his estate for in summe his counsell is To hold hard against his subjects nothing to abate his rigour nor to use any kindnesse or graciousnesse then and when he sees himselfe to doe it constrained and pressed thereunto If a prince then will stand stiffe alwayes rigorously to handle his subjects and to oppresse them The rigour of a prince is the cause of deniall of obedience without abating any thing thereof although he heare of their grievances and complaints and that hee see them prepared to rebellion and to denie their obedience what other thing can there follow but the entire ruine of him and his estate For wherein consisteth the estate of a prince but that his subjects agree together for to yeeld him obedience If then by his obstinate rigour and evill dealing hee so doe as he brings his subjects into that necessitie to denie him obedience will not that be the ruine of him and his estate There is no man of good judgement but he knows this Therefore said the poet Sophocles Even as hard steele in fire we see In pieces breake most easilie So minds too hard and fierce which bee Most oft with fall on ground doth lie Wherefore this precept whereby Machiavell would make a prince stiffe and inflexible against his subjects can bring to him but his owne ruine as it happened to Roboam the king who when his people humbly desired an ease and mitigation of their tributes he obstinately and proudly denied them For this king following such counsell as Machiavell giveth here made answere to his subjects that so much there wanted that he had any intent to abate any thing of his former dealing with them that contrarie he determined to augment rather his rigour towards them And for this cause did the greatest part of his kingdome cut themselves from his rule and obedience And to say that the people are unthankfull to their prince for benefits accorded Constrained graunts are not without profit as it were by constraint this is false and experience shewes us the contrarie For the people is not so speculative that they will cause to seeke out and examine the impulsive cause which moved the prince to commit or ordain any thing but holds themselves contented with the good and profit which redounds to them by that ordinance and the enjoying of the good they receive bringeth unto them such a pleasure and contentment as it moves them to thanke their prince for that good and to praise and blesse him yea to pray unto God for his conservation and prosperitie In all the peace that was made in Fraunce since the civile warres there hath alwayes been seene an experience thereof For a man may well say that the king accorded peace to the Protestants as it were by constraint which indeede is contained in the edicts of peace for the king himselfe so declared it in other edicts which hee made when the warre was renued as he declared by an edict in the yeare 1568 wherein hee saith That hee had alwayes had in his heart to abolish the religion of the said Protestants and the cause of his before suffering it had been as by constraint and to accommodate himselfe to the time The Courtiers also have alwayes called it the Suffered Religion and the Catholicke Romane the authorised Religion Although then that those goodly edicts of peace were accorded by the king against his heart yet ceased not the people to be thankfull unto the king yea to praise and exalt him as a lover of the good and repose of his poore people and to blesse and praise God for him both publickely and privately But put the case that were true which Machiavell saith That the subjects of a prince cannot be thankfull for a benefit accorded by constraint it followeth not therefore that such a benefit and a better handling must needs be unprofitable and without fruit For certaine it is that alwaies this will make cease the complaints of the people and cause them to desist from all rebellions and whatsoever enterprises are intended machinated against him Titus Livius sheweth us by many examples this to have many times happened at Rome where the commons entered into seditions and rebellions against the Patricij and such as were great men in authoritie but they were appeased incontinent as soone as the great men graunted that which they desired And yet wee find not that the great Patricians and nobles of Rome did almost at any time accord unto the commons but as constrained and against their wills There was amongst them men of as good wits and judgement as Machiavell such as Coriolanus Appius Caeso Fabius and other like which cried that they must not accord to common people under the pretext of their seditions and rebellions what they demand because it is an evill example and as it were to give occasion to the people ever to rebell and be seditious causing their faults to turne to their profit but notwithstanding all these reasons the most part of their wise Senators found it more expedient to bow and give place to the tumultuous people than to resist them There hath beene many times seene in Fraunce rebellions and stirres of the people for new imposts which straight were stayed by taking them away And indeed naturall reason sheweth well that it ought so to be For in all things of what sort soever they bee as soone as the cause is taken away men also take away the effect thereof Moreover I will not denie but this is of very evill consequence that a profit should come of a rebellion and sedition but upon this point it is worth noting that seldome or never people arise without some great just and urgent occasion therefore if the prince have not done his dutie to cut off that occasion before but that thereby there arise rebellion sedition he may not find it strange nor evill to remedie it rather late than never and so to purge his negligence A prince in stead to harden his heart against his subjects as Machiavell teacheth shall doe better not to bee so obstinate but to plie and bow his courage when the good of the commonweale and his owne requireth it following the admonition which that wise knight Phenix gave to the prince Achilles his disciple Appease thy selfe Achilles strong thy hardened heart abate A mortall man it not becomes implacable to bee Hom. Iliad 9. Though power most and honour eke on gods attend and wait To prayers of us mortall men yet yeeld they we
was then such account made of Faith which they preferred before all difficulties and particular necessities And afterward many times that law of taking away from rich men that which they possessed more than five hundred acres was refreshed brought into question by other Tribunes to have it to passe but it never came to effect yet there arose of it infinite seditions murders pilleries and other innumerable evils A thing which well sheweth that the violation of publicke Faith draweth alwayes with it a great Iliade of evils and Titus â—ivius lib. 3. Dec. 3. calamities The Romanes seeing themselves one day want money for the maintenance of their armies and paiment of souldiers the Senat consulted what provision to make for this want none of them thought it good to impose a taillage or tribute upon the people which would prove very greevous in many sorts at last they all agreed that souldiers must needs be paid For said they if the commonwealth stand not by Faith it cannot stand by riches It were therefore better to spend the good of the commonwealth in loyally paying souldiers wages and so acquite themselves of their Faith towards them than to spare the commonwealth by the failing of Faith and word All the Senat being of this advice expedient then it was as they thought to find money and therefore a charge was given to the Praetor Fulvius in an oration to the people to shew them all their publicke necessities and to exhort such as were growne rich by farming grounds belonging to the commonwealth to lay out some silver for the maintenance of the armie in Spaine Fulvtus so well persuaded that the farmers accorded to lay downe a certaine summe of money as much as was demaunded upon conditions to enjoy their farmes for three yeares and that the commonwealth would take upon them the perils of the sea which might come unto them in their commerces by shipwracks and hostile incursions For they were certaine that such money as they lent to the commonwealth was as assured unto them as in their hands upon the publicke Faith and if the Romanes had not had that good reputation they should not so soon have found money for their need But they that have that vertue Well to observe their word shall never want with whom to contract King Perseus of Macedonie determining to make warre upon the Romanes sent embassadours to the Achaeans a people of Greece and allies of the Romanes to draw them on his side and only required of them a Diet where they were assembled to heare the said embassadors But Callicratides a notable man amongst the Achaeans was of advice That they should give no eare unto that king Perseus nor to his embassadors because the Achaeans had already confirmed an alliance by Faith and oath with the Romans that upon that Faith was founded all the assurance of their estate and that Faith had that propertie that it will not be violated nor suspected in any sort whatsoever And therfore it was a breach of Faith only to affoord audience Faith will neither be violated nor suspected to that king whome they saw plainely prepared to make warre upon the Romanes This reason founded upon the authoritie of publicke States was the cause that nothing was accorded to Perseus And likewise heereunto accordeth the saying of the emperour Antonine That the most lamentable thing in this world is when Faith is broken and violated by friends and without the same no vertue can bee Dion in Marcel assured To this purpose that Faith cannot bee suspected that is notable which Fabius Titus Livins lib. 2. Maximus Dâ—ctator did Anniball being in battaile array nigh Rome conceived this subtile device to ruinate and utterly to destroy all the houses in the fields both for pleasure and for other necessarie uses but onely the houses and commodities appertaining to Fabius And this hee did to bring a suspition upon Fabius that hee had made some secret compact with Anniball against his Faith and dutie Fabius knowing well that it was not sufficient perfectly to observe his Faith but that also he must be exempt from all suspition sent straight his sonne to Rome to sell and rid him of all he had without the towne which he did and so assured his publicke Faith by his particular damage taking from the people all sinister opinion they might take of him And assuredly there is nothing in the world more pleasant than when Faith is sincerely kept even in adversitie and when we have most to doe Therefore the Romanes esteemed such their good and loyall allies as kept their Faith loyally during the time they had warres in hand as did Ptolomeus king of Aegypt when the Romanes had to doe with Anniball and the Carthaginians for he was alwayes firme in the confederation and alliance which he had made with them insomuch as their warre being finished with Anniball they sent embassadors to Ptolomie to thank him for that in their so doubtfull and hazardous affaires his Faith had not altered and to pray him to continue Attalus king of Pergamus in Asia came to the degree of royaltie by his vertue Titus Livius lib. 3. 7. Dec. 4. for he was neither sonne nor successor of a king neither had hee the heroicall vertues of Hercules of Alexander or Caesar to conquer a kingdome yea breefely he had nothing in him saith Titus Livius that could either aid or bring hope unto him at any time to be a king but onely riches which he bestowed and used so well that by the meanes of them and by his fidelitie towards the Pergames he became king of Pergamus after he had once vanquished the Gaules of Asia As soone as he was come to this degree he allied himselfe by confederations with the Romans and alwaies kept his Faith perfect and entire insomuch as well by the integritie and constantnesse of his Faith as by good justice hee raigned foure and fortie yeares and left his kingdome stable and firme to Eumenes his sonne whose domination Fidelitie a good inheritance the Romanes greatly augmented because he continued in his fathers loyaltie who at his death charged him to repute that fidelitie to be the best heritage hee left him There was nothing in the world which the old Romanes had in greater reverence Titus Livius lib. 1. Dec. 1. lib. 4. Dec. 3. and observation than their publicke Faith Therefore had they a temple of Faith where men swore and solemnely promised all their treaties of peace truces confederations alliances and other such like and those who first did violate it were esteemed dedicated to the gods of hell and with a like sinceritie did they also observe their Faiths in particular contracts so that every one thought they could not better assure a debt than in lending to the commonwealth yea when by reason of great wars their treasuries were emptie of money such as had the custodie of pupils and widdowes portions and other
dead man makes no warre But if a man reply upon them that a dead man yet may because of warre although he can make no warre what would they answere Dare they denie so apparent a thing as we see with our eyes and whereof hystories furnish us with infinit examples Lewis duke of Orleance king Charles the sixt his brother after the duke Iohn of Bourgoigne had caused him to be slaine made no warre indeed but yet was the cause of a civile warre in Fraunce which endured more than sixtie yeares Pompeius after he was slaine made no more warre but his death was the cause of a great and long civile warre in the Romane empire The violating and Iudges 19 20. death of a Levites wife was it not the cause of a warre wherein there died more than sixtie thousand men They which were slaine at Vassi Anno 1562 drew not they on a civile warre which endured too long They also which were slaine in Anno 1572 in the moneth of August by the great townes of Fraunce but especially Paris were not they cause of great warres It is therefore a foule and an inconsiderate saying to alledge that a dead man makes no warre thereupon to found their massacres and slaughters without considering the consequences thereof Hereupon is very memorable the speech that Geta the yong prince made to the emperour Severus his Spar. in Geta father Severus having vanquished Albinus and Niger his competitors to the empire begun to make a great slaughter of the greatest lords and gentlemen of Rome which had taken part with Albinus or Niger because they were of a more noble house than Severus As then day by day he was committing his slaughter he one day said unto Bassianus Geta his children as men spoke of that fact I shall by this meanes ease you of all your enemies Hereupon Geta his sonne demanded of him My lord and father them which you meane to put to death are they a great number Yea answered Severus and told him the number All they replied he have they neither parents allies nor friends Yea they have many said Severus You then said Geta will leave us more enemies than you take from us This wise speech of this young prince touched so well the heart of Severus although he was cruell that hee would needs cease from his slaughter but that Plautianus and other courtiers which attended the enriching of themselves by confiscations incited him to continue Let murderers then hold themselves assured that for one they have slaine they stirre up tenne enemies And yet is not this all for all the rest of their life they have soules and consciences tormented with the remembrance of such as they have most wickedly murdered and the shadowes and remembrances of them shall alwayes bee before their eyes as a feare and terror unto them O how the shadow of that great Admirall shall strangely torment these great enterprisers of massacres it will never leave them at rest but shall bee a burning flame which shall agast and fearefully accompanie them even to their sepulchres Let them then hearken unto the menace and threatening he makes in his tombe against them Although the soule from bodie mine cold death hath ravished Virgil Aene. lib. 4. Yet absent I will follow thee yea with a flame full blacke My shaddow alwaies shall appeare about thee as one dead Which shall revenge on thee my blood thou who no ill doest lacke I thought good by the way to touch what warre the dead makes or what cause of war they are to refute that saying of the Machiavellians That a dead man makes no warre Let us now come where we left Of subtilties which wee say ought not to bee practised in the government of the affaires of State and that thereby none may cover any perfidie When Anniball had gotten the battaile of Cannas against the Romanes hee toke a great number of prisoners and because he more loved money for their ransome than to hold them hee sent a certaine number of them to Rome to practise and worke their redemption but hee made them sweare and promise that they would returne to him and so did let them goe upon their Faith But one advised himselfe of a subtile device when hee came at Rome to returne no more yet none should say hee broke his Faith For having passed a good piece of his way towards Rome hee suddenly returned backe againe to Anniball fayning hee had forgotten something after againe followed his companions and so they all came to Rome But their affaires comming to bee debated in the Senate none would yeeld to redeeme the prisoners insomuch as they all which came to Rome for that purpose returned very sad to Anniballs campe except hee which returned by the way who with these came not to the campe but remained in his house thinking hee was well discharged of his Faith and othe But when the Senate heard tell of the fallacious and deceitfull returne of the said souldier so unworthy and unseemely for a Romane they commanded him to bee drawne out of his house and by force to bee led unto Anniball Heereby you may see then that no wise people of good judgement such as were the ancient Romanes can approve such subtile palliations and covertures of an infraction and breach of Faith such as Machiavell persuadeth to a prince A like deceit was in the king of France Phillip the sixt of that name for having Froisart lib. 1. cap. 10. made an oth as almost all his ancestors kings of France had done never to run over or attempt to besiege or take any thing belonging to the empire yet desiring the castle of Tin the Bishops nigh to Cambray which troubled him much caused his sonne the duke of Normandie as the chiefe generall of the armie to besiege it and himselfe went thither also as a simple souldier without any command at all By which subtiltie the king Phillip could not save his oth for hee that doth any thing by a mediator is as much as if hee had done it himselfe neither did the deceit succeede well unto him for both the duke of Normandie was constrained to raise his siege from before the castle and not long after the king lost the battaile at Cressy The emperour Valentinian in his time was cruell in his actions and dealings Amm. Marel lib. 28. and had many officers like himselfe Amongst other such there was a criminall judge called Maximus who as hee examined certaine criminall persons promised them if they would confesse the truth they should suffer no punishment either of sword or fire These poore accused persons as often men doe confessed things they had never perpretated trusting upon his Faith and promise But this wicked judge caused them to bee beaten downe and slaine with leaden hammers thinking by this cavillation to save his oth God would that for a recompence hee should after be hanged and strangled under the emperour Gratianus
effects whereof wee have above discoursed which are to temper the rigour of justice to make the prince beloved reverenced and praised of all the world and to fill his subjects with good manners there are yet three other effects worthie of note in a princes Clemencie that thereby hee may bee better obeyed more assured in his estate and may augment his domination And to touch those three points in order one after an other I will presuppose for the first point That a prince makes himselfe easily and well obeyed when the wils of his subjects are of themselves A clement prince better obeyed well disposed to yeeld obedience But it is certaine when a prince is debonaire and clement that his subjects will bee alwaies well disposed to obey him for two reasons The one because he shal be beloved the amitie which his subjects beare him shall incite and stirre them more willinglie to obey him The other reason because being soft and gentle his commands also are sweet and gratious founded upon reason and equitie and this will cause them easily to yeeld obedience because there is nothing that more enduceth a subject to render his prince obedience and to obey his command than when themselves do see and judge that the commandement is both reasonable equall for equitie is the sinew of the commandement of the law which makes it forcible and brings it into action and without this equitie the law cannot endure nor long bee observed Therefore the lawes and ordinances which the Romanes gave to the Macedonians Titus Livius lib. 5. Dec. 5. after they had brought Macedonie under their obedience endured very long before they were in any thing chaunged or corrected For they were so upright and convenient for that nation as the usage it selfe saith Titus Livius which is the true corrector of lawes found nothing to reprehend or correct by the experience of many yeeres Very memorable also is the manner of the Romanes use to make How to make good lawes lawes and especially those which they gave to the Macedonians For they were not contented to handle and deale with them in their Senate to cut and stretch them after their fancies as some doe at this day which make lawes in their chambers with such as themselves but elected ten delegates or deputies wise and honourable men which went all over Macedonie to inquire and bee informed of the manners and conditions of the countrie people and of their antient customes and liberties and to have their peoples aduice of such lawes as were fittest for them By this meanes they made very covenable lawes for the nation of the Macedonians which they found good holy and equall and they willingly obeyed and observed them with good hearts without any constraint And assuredly this is the best meane when men makes new lawes and ordinances that is to have the aduice of such as are to have obey them to know of them the discommodities that by them may fall out which they must needes know better than any other And for this reason the antient kings of France made their lawes and ordinances by the advice of the States generall or at the least by the assemblie of a great number of barons prelates and wise people of each great towne of the kingdome which assembly they called the kings great Counsell And the Romane emperours made their lawes by their Senates advice as wee have in another place said And indeed it is a rash presumption of one man alone or a few men to thinke they can make lawes of themselves and covenable ordinances for a people and a nation without having the advice of them of that nation yea of many of divers countries The ancient Romanes were of a better judgement than such presumptuous persons and they never received law till it was well tossed and handled and till every one were hard speake that would either persuade or disuadethe law which was to be enacted Therefore saith Titus Livius it came often to passe that the Tribunes whose office it was to cause the law to bee received or rejected by the people desisted from the receit of a law being moved so to doe by the reasons and remonstrations of such as disuaded it and often times also opposing themselves against the reception of a law they departed from their opposition being moved thereunto by the reasons of such as persuaded and truely if the lawes and ordinances which are made for the government of a kingdome or other principallitie were so well examined before they were concluded and that everie man were heard in a generall assembly of States to persuade or disuade them so many absurd and weake lawes would not bee made as are neither by consequent would they bee so evill observed as they are For they should be made equall commodious for such as should obey them and so would each man obey them with good will because as is said Equitie is that which holdeth law in action observation Moreover none neede to doubt but when he that hath authoritie to command Dion in Pompeio Plutarch in Lucul is beloved that by that meanes he shall not bee better obeyed Lucullus was a valiant and wise captaine who executed great matters against Mithridates Tigranes two of the greatest kings of Levant and of all Asia but in the end not being able to obtaine the love of his souldiers hee was in hazard by their disobedience to have overthrowne all the glory and honour which hee had acquired This disobedience of his army was the cause that the Romanes called him from Levant before hee had altogether ended the subjugating of those two kings and sent in his place Pompeius who did nothing else but as I may say gathered the fruit that Lucullus had sowne and carried away the honour and triumph of his paines and travels For the necessitie was such that Pompeius must necessarilie bee sent in Lucullus his place for that Lucullus was nothing obeyed of his people of warre because they loved him not he was so sterne and uncourteous and as soone as they had obtained Pompeius for their captaine generall they greatly obeyed him because hee was unto them gentle clement and affable insomuch as he did with them what hee would and by their forces and valloures hee brought all the East under the Romanes obedience This then was a great evill hap for Lucullus who otherwise was endowed with excellent vertues that hee could not use softnesse clemencie and kindnesse towards his souldiers and have gotten love and to have contained them in his obedience but so to lose the fruit of his travailes and victories not wholy finishing that whereof hee had taken charge But yet greater evill lucke happened unto Appius Claudius who was so exceeding Titus Livius lib. 2. Dec. 1. rigorous and imperious that hee caused his souldiers rather to hate than love him Hee being Consull and captaine generall of the Romane army against the
remaineth to shew That Liberalitie is profitable and necessarie for a prince when he applieth it to good uses When Alexander the Great departed from Macedonie to goe to the conquest Plutarch in Alexand. of Asia hee caused all the captaines of his armie to appeare before him At their comming he distributed unto them almost all the revenue of his kingdome insomuch as he left to himselfe almost nothing Amongst them one of the said captaines called Perdicas said unto him What then will you Sir keepe for your selfe Even Hope answered Alexander We then shall have our part thereof replied Perdicas since we goe with you Thus Perdicas and certaine other also refused the gifts which their king offered them and were as thankfull as if they had accepted them So that they accompanied him in his voyage of Asia full of good will to serve him as they did For he was so well served of these valiant Macedonians his subjects that with them he conquered almost al Asia so the Liberalitie of Alexander was very profitable unto him The ancient Romanes had this custome ordinarily to encrease the seignories and Titus Livius lib 7. Dec. 4. Plutarch in Caton dominations of the kings their allies as they did to Massinissa king of Numidia unto whom they gave a great part of the kingdome of Syphax his neighbor and some part of the countrey of the Carthaginians after they had vanquished Syphax and the Carthaginians as also they did to Eumenes king of Pergamus in Asia unto whom they gave all they conquered upon king Antiochus from beyond the mount Taurus which came to more than foure times so much as all Eumenes his kingdome They also practised great Liberalities towards Ptolomeus king of Cyprus towards Attalus another king of Pergamus towards Hiero king of Sicilie and many others And what profit got they by all this even this that in the end all the countries and kingdomes fell into the Romans hands either by succession and testamentarie ordinance of those kings or by the will of the people or otherwise And this reputation of Liberalitie which the Romans acquired was the cause that the kings and potentates of the world affected and so greatly desired their amitie and alliance Silla Marius his lieutenant making warre upon king Iugurtha persuaded Bocchus king of Salust de bello Mauritania to take part with the Romanes against Iugurtha because saith hee the Romanes are never wearie with vanquishing by beneficence but doe alwaies enrich their friends and allies The king Cotis of Thrace having promised the Romanes that he would proove their good and faithfull friend and to that effect having delivered them hostages notwithstanding they aided king Perseus of Macedonie against the Romanes when after by warre king Perseus was vanquished wherin Bitis the said king Cotis his sonne was taken prisoner this king would have ransomed his sonne and withall made certaine frivolous excuses The Senate made him this worthie answere That the Romanes knew very certainely that hee had preferred the good grace and favour of Perseus before their amitie but that therefore they would not cease to give him his sonne and his hostages because the benefits of the Romane people are free insomuch as they better love to leave the price and the recompence within the hearts of such as receive their said benefits than to be readie to receive prompt and quicke satisfaction Augustus Caesar seeing himselfe have many enemies which he had gotten by civile Dion in August warres he knew not whether he should put them all to death or what hee should doe For he on the one side considered that if he caused all to die then the world would thinke that either he was entring into the butcherie of a civile warre or els to usurpe a tyrannie and on the other side he feared that some mischeefe would happen unto him if he suffered them to live The abovesaid Livia his wife which was a good and sage ladie shewed him that he ought to gaine his enemies which he feared by liberalitie and beneficence Hee followed this counsell and begun with one Cornelius the nephew of Pompeius whom hee advaunced into the office of Consull and in like sort to others which he tooke to be his enemies he practised beneficence and bountifulnesse in such sort as he gained all their hearts But because the remonstrance which Livia made to Augustus is very memorable I will here summarily recite it I am very sorrowfull my most deare lord and spouse to see you thus greeved and tormented in your spirit so that your sleepe is taken from you I am not ignorant that you have great occasions because of many enemies which you will have still feeling in themselves the deaths of their friends and parents which you have caused to die during those civill wars withall that a prince cannot so well governe but there will be alwaies mailcontents and complainers There is this moreover that this change of estate which you have brought into the commonweale by reducing it into a monarchie makes that a man cannot well assure himselfe of such as they esteeme to be their friends yet I beseech you my good lord to excuse me if I a simple woman take that hardinesse to tel you my advice upon this matter which is that I thinke there is nothing impossible to represse by soft and gentle meanes for the natures of such as are enclined to do evill are sooner subdued and corrected by using clemencie and beneficence towards them than severitie For princes which are courteous and mercifull make themselves not onely agreeable and honourable to them upon whom they bestow mercie but also towards all others And by contrary such as are inexorable and will abate nothing of their rigour are hated and blamed not only of them towards whom he shewes himselfe such but of all others also See you not my good lord that either never or very selde physicians come to cut the sicke members of the bodie but onely seeke to heale them by soft and gentle mendicaments in like sort are maladies of the spirit to be healed And the gentle medicaments of the spirit may these well be called Affabilitie and Soft words of princes towards every one his Clemencie and placabilitie his Mercie and debonairetie not towards wicked and bad persons which make an occupation to do evill but towards such as have offended by youth imprudencie ignorance by chance by constraint or which have some just excuse It is also a very requisit thing in a prince not only to do no wrong to any person but also to be reputed such a man as will never do wrong to any man because that is the meane to have the amitie and benevolence of men which a prince can never obtaine unlesse he doe persuade them that he will do well to the good and that hee will doe wrong to none For feare may well bee acquired with force but amitie cannot bee obtained but by persuasion
they understood how they should administer as a captaine Niger lieutenant of the warre for the emperor Marcus Antonine complained to him But that incommoditie was much more supportable in that time than Spart in Nigro at this day it can bee in Fraunce for the Romane magistrates seldome decided private and particular causes but in Fraunce magistrates must deale in all causes After that the prince hath well established his justice as well by publication of A Prince ought himself to minister Iustice good lawes as by institution of good magistrates yet is he not discharged For he ought himselfe also to deale therin And this is another point of the Counsell which Iethro gave to Moses For after he had counselled him what magistrates hee should establish under him he added more That Moses ought to reserve unto himselfe the knowledge and decision of great affaires which are of consequence And assuredly this is a point very necessarie and which a prince ought not to leave behind for hee is debtor of Iustice to his subjects and ought to give them audience in things wherof he is to have necessarie knowledge for all things are not proper to bee handled before magistrates established by the prince but there are many things wherof the knowledge ought to appertaine to the prince alone as when a meane man wil complaine against some great lord or magistrat or against Publicans and exactors of the princes money or when a man labours for a pardon gift recompence and many other like The prince then ought himselfe either alone or in his Counsell to give often audience unto his subjects For we reade that by the primitive creation of kings Dionis Halic â—ib 1. 5. and monarchs the authoritie which was attributed unto them by the people consisted in three very notable points whereof the first was To minister good justice unto their subjects by causing them to observe the lawes and customes of the countrey and to take knowledge themselves of the injuries which are great and of consequence amongst their subjects The second point was To convocat an assembly of a Senat to handle the affaires of the commonwealth And the third To be the cheefetaine and soveraigne of the warre And for as much as the first dutie of kings consisteth to do good justice unto their subjects the auncient Grecians even Homer calleth them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is to say Distributers of justice This is it wherefore almost all good princes have had their ordinary daies of Audience wherin they took knowledge of the complaints and grievances of their subjects and administred right and justice unto them Iulius Caesar tooke great paine and travaile to heare causes and to administer justice and to cause them to observe lawes which concerned Suet. in Caesar cap. 43. in Aug. cap. 3 in Claud. cap. 15. in Galba cap. 7. 8 9. Domitiano cap 8. the commonwealth as especially the law Sumptuariam which would permit no excesse in bankets nor dissolutnesse in apparell Augustus Caesar likewise kept an ordinarie Audience which he continued untill night yea being evill at ease he in a litter would be carried to the pallace or hold Audience in his house The emperour Claudius also although hee were of an heavie and dull spirit yet held hee his Audience and administred right to parties So did Domitian who how wicked soever he was in other deportments with great industrie and diligence administred good justice unto parties and often revoked decrees from the Centumvirat seat which for favor were given and spared not to punish corrupted Iudges The emperour Galba likewise although he was of the age of threescore and twelve yeares when he came to the empire yet dealt with audience of parties and administred justice So did Traian Adrian the Antonines Severus Alexander and many other Romane emperors give Audience to their subjects and administred justice unto them And very memorable is that which is written of the emperor Adrian namely That one day as hee went into the fields he was required by a poore woman who had watched to speake with him to doe her justice upon a certaine complaint she made unto him The emperour very Dion in Adrian kindly said unto her That that was no place where she should require justice and sent her away till another time The woman replied upon him Sir said she if you wil not doe me justice wherefore deale you to be emperour Adrian was never moved hereat but staied still heard her did her justice If we read the hystories of France wee shall find that it hath yet beene more ordinarie and common with our auncient kings to hold Audiences which men called Lict de Iustice The Bed of Iustice than with the Romane emperours Charlemaigne king of Fraunce and emperour besides Annal. upoÌ„ Anno 809 814 1215. that he tooke great care that Stewards Bayliffes and their deputies should walk upright without abusing their Offices would also that they should reserve unto him all great causes or such as were amongst great lords Then caused hee the parties to appeare before him he heard them patiently and agreed them amiably if he could by any means and so he gave his sentence and good and prompt justice King Lewis the first of that name surnamed le Debonaire because of his good and holy conditions following the traces of Charlemaigne his father held a publicke Audience in his pallace three times in the weeke and heard the grievances and complaints of every one executing to all quicke and right justice But what good came there hereof Even this saith the hystorie that the publicke good in this good kings time was so well governed and administred that there was almost no man found amongst his subjects which complained that any man did him wrong or injurie but al men lived in great peace and prosperitie one not daring to offend another for the feare they had of the kings good justice which he would administer himselfe and so cause his ministers to doe after his example So much could that royall vertue of Iustice doe for the maintenance of peace and prosperitie in a kingdome King Philip Augustus surnamed the Conquerour for his great prowesses and conquests was also a good Iusticer and willingly heard the complaints of his subjects insomuch as one day understanding that Guy Counte de Auverne used greatly to pill and violently to spoile his subjects and neighbours exacting upon them great summes of money against their wils and without the kings consent their soveraigne and having found him culpable hereof condemned him by the advice of the barons of the realme to lose his land and seignorie of Auverne which from that time was united to the crown We may also place here the good justice of the kings Charles le Sage Charles the seventh Charles the eight Lewis the twelfth and of many other kings of France Annal. upon Anno 1255 1269 Gaguin in the liâ—e of S.
king is good and Plutarch in Apo. excellent when kings use it well but because there were farre more kings which abuse their powers than that use them well he provided for himselfe and his successors certaine Censors and correctors to reprehend them of their faults which were called Ephori Certaine then said unto Theopompus that by this establishment of Ephori he had lessened and enfeeblished his power Nay then said he I have fortified it and made it perdurable meaning to say as true it is that there is nothing which better fortifieth nor which makes more firme and stable a princes estate than when he governes himselfe with such a sweet moderation that even he submits himselfe to the observation of lawes and censures The emperour Severus otherwise endowed with Spart Dion in Carac many great vertues had not this good to be debonaire and clement but rather was rigorous and cruell yet he knew well and himselfe confessed that Clemencie is a vertue most worthie of a prince and he much desired to bee so esteemed although his actions were contrarie I know well that here the Machiavellists may reply upon me that he faigned and only made a shew to esteeme of Clemencie upon a certain kind of playing the Fox and dissimulation which Machiavell holdeth to be convenient for a prince Here unto I make a double answere And I say suppose in this place Severus meant to play the Fox yet when he so much praiseth Clemencie and so faine would seeme clement he therby seemes to approve that vertue as both lowable and good Secondly I say that it is credible that Severus although he was exceeding sanguinarie and cruell during his raigne yet in the end he found that it had been better for him if he had been Clement for with his owne eyes he saw Plautianus his greatest and especiallest friend and Bassianus his eldest son whom with himselfe he associated in the empire both of them though not together conspire to slay him insomuch as he durst not punish them because they had learned of him to be sanguinarie and cruell and at the end of his dayes the last words hee spake were That he left the empire firme and assured to his Antonines meaning Bassianus and Geta which he named Antonines that they might be beloved provided that they proved good princes but if they were wicked and cruell then he left them weak and evill assured And indeede these last words were as a prophecie to his children For Bassianus his eldest sonne who succeeded him in the empire was as cruell as he and begun to exercise his crueltie in slaying with his owne hand Geta his brother and after continued it upon his friends and other notable people a great number which he brought to their deaths and therefore was not his foot long in the empire but according as his father prophecied of his death hee was soone despoyled thereof and of his life withall for he was slaine by Macrinus his lieutenant and lived but nine and twentie yeares whereof he raigned sixe The emperour Domitian also was a very cruell prince yet he greatly praised Clemencie in a prince and ordinarily when he reasoned upon any affaire in the Senat he often enterlaced amongst his speeches some commendations of his owne Clemencie although he was most cruell and wicked And breefely we may say and conclude that this vertue of Clemencie is so excellent and lowable of it selfe that even the wicked which reject it are notwithstanding constrained to have it in estimation and to confesse it is a vertue worthie of a prince From the beginning that Rome was reduced into the forme of a commonweale and delivered from the tyrannie of the Tarquins the people were sent to the warre Dioni Halic lib. 5. without wages and whilest they were at the warre for the commonweale the interests and usuries which they ought to the rich for alwaies the poore are debters to the rich left not to encrease and multiplie insomuch as when the souldiers returned from the warre some being maimed and wounded in stead to have rest in their houses they had the usurers on their backs which demanded the usuries run on during the time of the warre Hereupon arose there in the towne a great sedition for the poore amongst the people could not suffer this rude handling that they thus should be tormented with seisures and pawning of their goods and with imprisonments of their persons for the interests growing during the warre and being in the common-wealths service This cause finally comming in deliberation in the Senate house Valerius Publicola who was one of them which helped away the tyrant from Rome spoke thus This the usurers rigorous dealing is but a new tyrannie and it is but a small thing for us to have expulsed from Rome the tyrannie of the Tarquins if now wee will establish another that it was too unreasonable that souldiers should pay interests running on whilest they served the commonwealth since also they served without wages Therefore he exhorted the Senate to releeve the people of those interests for their content and that afterward they might with so much the better will serve the commonweale at a need For els saith he certaine it is if there be a continuance of this rigorous dealing it will bring the people into a great disobedience a sedition into the commonwealth the estate wherof by this means may be shrewdly shaken and hazarded But if the people be kindly and graciously used in acquiting them of the said interests by this meanes you shall make most assured the estate of the citie The Senate followed this advice of Publicola knowing well that the firmitie and assurednesse of the publicke State is founded upon Clemencie and Gentlenesse Anniball making warre in Italie meaning to goe to Capua commanded one of Titus Livius lib. 2. Dec. 3. the prisoners he held to guide him to a place called Casin which was in the way to Capua This prisoner supposing Anniball had bidden him guide him to Casilin and that because Anniball spoke not well the Latine language hee conducted his armie on that side to Casilin farre from the way to Capua Anniball perceiving hee was evill guided caused to whip and hang the prisoner which had done this before he would heare any excuse This rigorous execution and other cruelties that he used never caused such as were allied with the Romanes to breake from them although on every side they saw themselves in great perill because saith Titus Livius they knew that they were commanded by a just and a moderate government and by good people that hated crueltie therefore refused they not to obey which is the true bond of Faith the best most prudent and humane Antiochus king of Syria and a great dominator in Levant having enterprised a Titus Livius lib. 7. Dec. 3. warre against the Romanes they sent against him Lucius Scipio for captaine generall of their armie although otherwise he
was no great warriour But the cause why the Romanes delivered so great and honourable a charge unto him was because the great Scipio the Affrican his brother had declared that if Lucius his brother were chosen generall captaine to goe against Antiochus he should be there as his lieutenant As then they both were in Greece with the Romane armie making warre upon that king it so happened that the only sonne of Scipio the Affrican was taken prisoner by Antiochus souldiers Antiochus having this young lord in his hands entertained and used him very honourably knowing that that great Scipio was of such Clemencie that he would never forget that the pleasure and that the amitie of so great a personage might stand him in good stead in some great necessities as losse of a battaile or of a captivitie or such like Not long after Scipio fell sicke whereof Antiochus hearing he sent him his sonne without ransome fearing Scipio would die with greefe and melancholie by whose death he doubted to leese a good refuge For that king saith Titus Livius trusted more in the Clemencie and authoritie of Scipio alone for the uncertaine and doubtfull haps of warre than in his armie of 60000 footmen and 12000 horsemen Is not here thinke you an admirable effect of Clemencie that an enemie dooth better assure his estate upon his enemies Clemencie than upon his owne forces But what need we any more to amplifie by examples or authorities this point doth not ordinarie experience shew and ever hath done that all good and clement princes have alwaies been very assured in their estates as Augustus Vespasian Traian Adrian the Antonines and many other Romane emperours and the most part of our kings of Fraunce which were clement and debonaire doe fully proove this which I say for they raigned very peaceably died of naturall deaths and after their deaths were greatly lamented of the people Here I may not forget a notable sentence of the emperour Antonius Pius which hee received from Scipio the Affrican Capit. in Pio. Sueâ— in August cap. 35. which was this That hee loved better to preserve one of his subjects than to sley a thousand of his enemies Assuredly a sentence of a good and clement prince who delighted not in shedding of blood as our Machiavelists doe at this day which are so covetous of such blood as they account their enemies that whensoever any of marke fals into their hands they will not give him for an hundred pounds They may well say contrary to Scipio and the emperor Pius that they had rather slay an enemie than save an hundred friends Are not these people worthie to commaund Neither make they any account more of their princes subjects than of slaves which men may beat scourge or sley at their pleasure as beasts as indeed there hath been lately a burne-paper-fellow a writer for wages one of these Machiavelists who durst publish by writing That the authority of a prince over his subjects is like that which a lord hath over his villaine and slave having power over death and life to sley and massacre them at their pleasure without forme of justice and so to despoile them of their goods And how comes this Thinkes this sot that the office of a king is like to the office of a gally captaine to hold his subjects in chaines and every day to whip them with scourges Surely they which hold that opinion doe merit to be so handled yea that some good gally captaine would twice or thrice a day practise that goodly doctrine upon their shoulders but how much more notable and humane is the doctrine wee learne of the life of Augustus Caesar who so much feared that men had such an opinion of him that he would not take away but onely diminish the libertie of the people that he could never abide and suffer to be called Dominus that is to say Lord but abhorred it as an injurious name full of opprobry because it hath some relation to Servus which is to say servant or slave he being farre from the affectation of such great and magnificall names as many great men have since well liked of without shewing the effect of them The third point now remaineth which is to shew That the Clemencie of a prince A prince by Clemencie encreaseth his domination Dionis Halic lib. 2. Plutarke in Caesar Alexand is cause of the encreasement of his domination Hereupon we reade a memorable hystorie of Romulus who was so clement soft and gentle towards his people which he vanquished and subjugated that not only many particulars but the whole multitude of people submitted themselves voluntarily and unconstrainedly under his obedience The same vertue was also cause that Iulius Caesar vanquished the Gaulois for he was so soft and gracious unto them and so easie to pardon and used them every way so well farre from all oppression that many of that nation voluntarily joyned themselves unto him and by them he vanquished the others When Alexander the Great made great conquests in Asia most commonly the citizens of all great cities met him to present unto him the keyes of the townes for he dealt with them in such Clemencie and kindnesse without in any thing altering their estates that they liked better to be his than their owne Anniball having taken the towne of Saguntum in Spaine was so feared and redoubted Titus Livius lib. 2. Dec. 3. that the most part of Spaine submitted themselves under his obedience and abandoned the Romane societie because they had not aided Saguntum against Anniball The Romanes to repaire their fault whereat they tooke much greefe sent great forces into Spaine under the conduction of Publius Scipio father of the African and of Cneius his uncle Anniball to containe in obedience the Spaniards tooke in hostage their children their brethren or parents of all the nobilitie of the countrey and the notablest citizens of the good townes and set them under guard at Saguntum under the charge of some small number of souldiers God would that those hostages should find meanes to escape from their prison yet it was their haps to fall into the hands of the Scipioes The Scipioes having possession of them in place to revenge themselves upon them as they feared for the fault they and their parents had made by their revoltment from the Romanes they welcommed and dealt with them very graciously and sent them all to their parents and houses This Clemencie and kindnesse of the Scipioes was cause that soone after all Spaine forsook the obedience of Anniball and the Carthaginians and fell under the government of the Romans which they would never have done if these hostages had been dealt with after the counsels and precepts of Machiavell Yet the example of Clemencie in Scipio the Affrican is more notable than this Titus Livius lib. 3. Dec. 3. of his father and uncle After the deaths of his said father and uncle this young lord full of all