would willingly have forgiven his being a printer and an atheist, if he had not stood forward as the champion of free thought. called by English Robert Etienne (or Stephens, as he is scholars) was more fortunate than Dolet. Up to the age of twenty-five he continued in the Romish Church, professing a doubtful sort of orthodoxy, like many other celebrated men of that day; and it is probable that he would have continued in this undecided equivocal state all his life, but for the virulent attacks made upon him by certain theologians, who were violent in proportion to their stupidity. His quarrel with the Sorbonne-began as early as 1523, when that same body, which in 1470 had invited the first printers to Paris, took alarm at the agitation of men's minds and turned fiercely against its own work. The presumption of a young man, and he a layman, to correct a text of Scripture, seemed monstrous. The publication of his Latin Bibles in 1528 and 1532, and more especially that of the small portable Bible in 1534, aggravated their hostility. But all this was as nothing to the rage excited by his edition of the Latin Bible in 1545, wherein he had collected the notes of that learned professor of Hebrew, Francis Vatable. In these notes the active inquisitors of the Sorbonne found a number of heretical propositions, such as a denial of the existence of purgatory, of the efficaciousness of confession, and so forth. Hitherto Robert had been able to escape the fate of his heterodox brother Dolet, through the intervention of the king and the influence of John du Bellay and others. But against this last tempest the royal authority seemed powerless. The Faculty of Theology instituted proceedings against him, when, unhappily for him, Francis I. died; and although Robert Etienne found an equally kind patron in his successor, the character of the new king was more impressionable. The Sorbonne attacked him more violently, and foreseeing that Henry would be unable to protect him, he quitted France, as Clement Marot, Olivetan, Amyot, and most of the professors of the Royal College had done be fore him. Beza tells us that all learning was suspected, and that hence many good but learned Catholics were numbered among the heretics. A man was liable to be condemned for not lifting his cap on passing an image (and they were at the corner of almost every street), for not kneeling at the sound of the Ave Maria bell, and for eating meat on fast days. Clement Marot was sent to prison and narrowly escaped burning for eating some bacon during Lent. Ils vinrent à mon logement: Par là, morbleu, voilà Clement, The fasting, or not fasting, on certain days soon became a test of orthodoxy. One of the last victims of this reign was Jean Brugière, who, after several imprisonments and escapes, was taken to Paris, tried, and condemned to be burned alive at Issoire (3d) March, 1547). He was transferred to Montferrand, where Ory, the inquisitor, discussed the "real presence" with him. "If you deny," said Ory," that the body of our Lord is in the host, when the priest has pronounced the sacramental words, you deny the power of God, who can do every thing." "I do not deny the power of God," answered Brugière, "for we are not disputing whether God has power or not to do it, so much as what he has done in his Holy Sacrament, and what he desires us to do." When the time of his suffering came, the priests pressed a crucifix to his lips, and bade him call on the Virgin and saints. "Let me," he said with a smile, "let me think of God before I die. I am content with the only advocate he has appointed for sinners." While preparing the rope or chain, the executioner slipped and fell. Brugière, who remained calm and unmoved, held out his hand to raise him. "Cheer up! M. Pouchet, I hope you are not hurt,” he said. When the fire was kindled, he raised his eyes to the cross and exclaimed: "Oh heavenly Father, I beseech thee, for the love of thy Son, that thou wilt be pleased to comfort me in this hour by thy Holy Spirit, in order that the work begun in me may be perfected to thy glory and to the benefit of thy poor Church." When all was over, the crowd withdrew in silence. The curate of Issoire said, as he returned home: "May God give me grace to die in the faith of Brugière."* Francis I. died slowly of a disgusting malady, the consequence of his licentious amours. For a time his life was prolonged by the use of potent medicines; but the opportunity thus given him of redeeming the past was wasted in regrets that he had not extirpated heresy. He used often to say, if we may credit Brantome, that this novelty-the Reformation "tended to the overthrow of all monarchy, human and divine." Yet none of the kings who embraced the new creed lost their thrones; while the devotee Henry III., and the converted Henry IV., both fell by orthodox daggers. The king's funeral sermon was preached by Pierre du Chastel, Bishop of Macon, whose orthodoxy had become suspected in consequence of the attempts he had made to save Stephen Dolet. When Cardinal de Tournon reproached him with this, the good prelate made answer: "I acted like a bishop, you like a hangman." When the sermon was published, the Sorbonne hunted out several heretical propositions, particularly a passage where the bishop, after extolling Francis as a saint of the highest order, continued: "I am convinced that, after so holy a life, the king's soul, on leaving his body, was transported to heaven without passing through the flames of purgatory." ‡ The Sorbonne protested against this, and a deputation of *Imberdis: Hist. Guerres Civ. 8vo. Moulins, 1840. † A curious apology has been made for Francis I. Mezeray, answering an Italian writer, who had insinuated that the king had permitted the spread of heresy by taking no heed of it, says:— Quoi donc, faire six ou sept rigoureux édits pour l'étouffer, convoquer plusieurs fois le clergé, assembler un concile provincial, dépêcher à toute heure des ambassades vers tous les princes de la chrétienté pour en assembler un général, brûler les hérétiques par douzaines, les envoyer aux galères par centaines, et les bannir par milliers: estce là permettre, ou n'y prendre pas garde," etc. ii. p. 1038. P. Castellani Vita, auct. P. Gallandio, 8vo. 1674. doctors went to St. Germains, where the court was staying, to denounce the heretical panegyrist. They were received by John de Mendoza, the first chamberlain, who desired them to be quite easy in their minds: "If you had known His Majesty as well as I did, you would have understood the meaning of the bishop's words. The king could never stop anywhere, however agreeable the place might be; and if he went to purgatory, he only remained there long enough to look about him, and was off again." Solvuntur risu tabula! The doctors retired in confusion: there was no answering such a jest. The character of Francis is a "mingled yarn." He had great virtues, but he also had great vices. He had noble aspirations, but he often suffered them to be obscured by ignoble passions. All his life long he allowed himself to be led by women. Had they all been like his sister, Margaret of Valois, it would have been well for him, for France, and for religion; but they were more frequently such as the Duchess of Valentinois, and even worse. He was ambitious, but it was more for his kingdom than for himself; he was a warrior, though not equal to his rivals; he was sumptuous and extravagant, but architects and painters, historians and poets, scholars and wits, were not neglected by him. He was impressionable and superstitious, but he often checked the fiery zeal of the persecutors, tried to reform the clergy in his dilettante fashion, and was never bigoted except when frightened by the priests, or when he fancied his personal dignity insulted. It is not wonderful that Frenchmen look back to him with pride, for he represents the national character in its best as well as in its worst phases. CHAPTER II. HENRY II. [1547-1559.] Henry II.-Catherine and Diana-Montmorency-Coronation-King Enters Paris-Fêtes-Heretic Burning-New Edicts-Chambres Ardentes --Edict of Chateaubriant-Persecution at Angers, Le Puy, Velay-Inquisition Proposed-Resistance of Parliament-Siege and Battle of St. Quentin-Affair of the Rue St. Jacques-Martyrdom of Philippa de LunzCalvin's Letter-Pre Aux Clercs and Marot's Psalms-Peace of CateauCambresis-Divisions in the Paris Parliament-The Mercurial of June -Du Faur and Du Bourg Arrested-First Synod of Reformed ChurchesConfession of Faith and Book of Discipline-Edict of Ecouen-The Tournament-Henry's Death. HENRY II. was twenty-nine years of age when he ascended his father's throne (31st March, 1547), his elder brother, the dauphin Francis, having died almost ten years before. He was rather tall, well-proportioned, fond of athletic sports, and vain of his skill in the tournay-a weakness that proved fatal to him at last. His hair was dark, his beard short and pointed, his complexion pale, almost livid. His large, black, lively eyes somewhat contradicted his melancholy, saturnine character. He rarely laughed, and, according to the Venetian envoy, Matteo Dandolo, some of the courtiers declared they had never seen him smile. His portraits would leave us to suppose that he was of a mild and gentle disposition; but bigotry often made him cruel, and his pride was impatient of opposition. He could be liberal, too-especially with other persons' money. Thus he gave the notorious Diana of Poitiers the renomination of all the officials whose posts had become vacant by the death of his predecessors, by which she appropriated more than 100,000 crowns in the shape of fines and presents. Henry possessed good natural abilities, and a reten |