to morals.

DEATH OF LUTHER AND FRANCIS I.

43

The great number of Italian bishops enabled Ch. 3. the Pope to have everything his own way, in spite of the A. D. remonstrances of the German, Spanish, and French prelates, 1545. and of the ambassadors of the different monarchs, who also had seats in the council.

The decrees of this council respecting articles of faith are considered as a final authority by the Roman church. It denounced the reform of Luther, and confirmed the various ecclesiastical usurpations which had rendered the Reformation necessary. It lasted twenty-two years, being held at different intervals, during the pontificate of five popes. The Jesuits, Its chaduring its sittings, had considerable influence in consequence racter. of the learning and ability of their representatives, and especially of Laynez, the general of the Order. The Dominicans and Franciscans manifested their accustomed animosities and rivalries, and questions were continually proposed and agitated, which divided the assembly. The French bishops, headed by the Cardinal of Lorraine, were opposed to the high pretensions of the Italians, especially of Cardinal Morone, the papal legate; but, by artifice and management, the more strenuous adherents of the Pope attained their ends.

Francis

About the time the council assembled died three dis- Death tinguished persons-Henry VIII. of England, Francis I., and of Luther Luther. Charles was now freed at once from his great rival, and of and from the only private person in his dominions he had reason to fear. He determined, therefore, in good earnest, to turn his attention to the internal state of his empire, and to crush the Reformation. He commenced by endeavouring to amuse and deceive the Protestants, and evinced that profound dissimulation, which was one of his characteristics. formed a strict alliance with the Pope, made a truce with Solyman, and won over to his side Maurice and other German princes. His military preparations and his intrigues alarmed the Protestants, and they prepared themselves for resistance. Religious zeal seconded their military ardour. One of the largest armies which had been raised in Europe for a century

He

44

A. D.

to

TREACHERY OF MAURICE.

Ch. 3. took the field, and Charles, shut up in Ratisbon, was in no condition to fight. Unfortunately for the Protestants, they 1545 negotiated instead of acting. The Emperor was in their power, but he was one of the few persons who remain haughty 1547. and inflexible in the midst of calamities. Instead of decisive action, the Protestants dallied and procrastinated, unwilling to make peace, and equally unwilling to face their sovereign. Their army melted away, and nothing of importance was effected.

Triumph of Charles.

Maurice

to the

tant

side.

The Elector

The fortune of war now inclined to Charles. of Saxony was taken prisoner at the battle of Muhlhausen, 1547, and deprived of his crown, which he was forced to surrender to Maurice. The Landgrave of Hesse, in no condition to fight single handed, also made his submission.

To all appearances the triumph of the Emperor was complete. His great rival was dead; his enemies were subdued and humiliated; Luther's voice was hushed; and immense contributions filled the imperial treasury. He now began to realize the dream of his life. He was unquestionably, at that time, the most absolute and powerful prince Europe had ever seen since the times of Charlemagne.

But what an impressive moral does the history of human greatness convey! The hour of triumph is often but the harbinger of defeat and shame. "Pride goeth before destruction." Charles, with all his policy and experience, overreached himself. The failure of his ambitious projects, and the restoration of Protestantism, were brought about by instruments the least anticipated.

The cause of Protestantism and the liberties of Germany returns had been endangered by the treachery of Maurice, who reProtes- ceived, as his reward, the great electorate of Saxony. He had climbed to the summit of glory and power. Who could suppose that this traitor prince would desert the Emperor who had so splendidly rewarded his services, and return to the rescue of those princes whom he had so basely betrayed? But who can thread the labyrinth of an intriguing and selfish

HIS REPENTANCE AND RETURN.

to

45

heart? Who can calculate the movements of an unprincipled Ch. 3. and restless politician? Maurice, at length, awoke to a A. D. perception of the real condition of his country. He saw its 1547 liberties were about to be overturned by the most ambitious man whom ten centuries had produced. He saw a great 1552. cause, which his convictions told him was the true one, in danger of being wrecked. He was, moreover, wounded by the pride, coldness, and undisguised selfishness of the Emperor. He was indignant that the Landgrave, his father-in-law, should be retained a prisoner, against all the laws of honour and of justice. He resolved therefore to come to the rescue of his country.

plans.

He formed his plans with the greatest coolness, and exercised a power of dissimulation that has no parallel in history. But his address was even greater than his hypocrisy. He Forms gained the confidence of the Protestants, without losing that his of the Emperor. He even obtained the command of an army which Charles sent to reduce the rebellious city of Magdeburg, and, while he was besieging the city, he was negotiating with the generals who defended it for a union against the Emperor. Magdeburg surrendered in 1551. Its chieftains were secretly assured that the terms of capitulation should not be observed.

His next point was, to keep the army together until his schemes were ripened, and then to arrest the Emperor, whose thoughts now centred on the council of Trent. So he proposed sending Protestant divines to the council, but delayed their departure by endless negotiations about the terms of a safe conduct. He, moreover, formed a secret treaty with Henry II., the successor of Francis, whose animosity against Charles was as intense as that of his father. When his pre- And parations were completed, he joined his army in Thuringia, the and took the field against the Emperor, who had no suspicion field. of his designs, and who blindly trusted to him, deeming it impossible that a man, whom he had so honored and rewarded, could turn against him. On the 18th of March, 1552, Maurice published his manifesto, justifying his conduct.

takes

46

A. D.

1552.

MISFORTUNES OF CHARLES.

Ch. 3. His objects, he said, were to secure the Protestant religion, to maintain the constitution of the empire, and to deliver the Landgrave of Hesse from bondage. He was powerfully supported by the French king, and, with a rapidly increasing army, marched towards Innspruck, where the Emperor was quartered. Charles was thunderstruck when he heard the tidings of this desertion, and was in no condition to resist him. He endeavoured to gain time by negotiations, but these were without effect. Maurice, at the head of a large army, advanced rapidly into Upper Germany. Castles and cities surrendered as he advanced, and so rapid was his progress, that Flight he came near taking the Emperor captive. Charles was obliged Charles, to fly, in the middle of the night, and to travel on a litter by torchlight, amid the passes of the Alps. He had scarcely left Innspruck before Maurice entered it--but too late to gain the prize he sought.

of

The Emperor now rallied his armies, and a vigorous war was again carried on between the contending parties. But the Protestants maintained the advantage they had secured, and the Emperor was obliged to make peace with them; for his Spanish subjects were disgusted with the war, his funds were exhausted, his forces dispersed, and his territories threatened Treaty by the French. On the 2d of August, 1552, was concluded of Pas- the peace of Passau, which secured the return of the Landgrave to his dominions, freedom of religion to the Protestants, and the preservation of the German constitution. The sanguine hopes of the Emperor were now dispelled, all his ambitious schemes were defeated, and he was left to meditate, in the intervals of pain which he suffered from the gout, on the instability of all greatness, and the vanity of human life.

sau.

The labors and perplexities of Charles were not diminished by the treaty of Passau. He continued his hostilities against the French and against the Turks. He was obliged to raise the siege of Metz, which was gallantly defended by the Duke of Guise. To his calamities in France, were added others in Italy. Sienna revolted against his government, and

RESIGNATION OF CHARLES.

47

Naples was threatened by the Turks. The imperialists were Ch. 3. unsuccessful in Italy and in Hungary, and the Archduke A. D. Ferdinand was obliged to abandon Transylvania. But war 1554 was carried on in the Low Countries with considerable to vigor. 1556.

Philip

Charles, whose only passion was the aggrandizement of his house, now projected a marriage of his son, Philip, with MarMary, Queen of England. The Queen, dazzled by the prospect of marrying the heir of the greatest monarch in Europe, and VI. eager to secure his powerful aid to re-establish Catholicism in England, listened to his proposal, although it was disliked by the nation. In spite of the remonstrance of the house of commons, the marriage treaty was concluded, and the marriage celebrated (1554).

nation

Soon after, Charles formed the extraordinary resolution of Resigresigning his dominions to his son, and retiring to a quiet of retreat. Diocletian was the only instance of a prince, capable Charles. of holding the reins of government, who had adopted a similar course. All Europe was astonished at the resolution of Charles, and all historians of the period have moralized on the event. But it ceases to be mysterious, when we remember that Charles was no nearer the accomplishment of the ends which had animated his existence, than he was thirty years before; that he was disgusted and wearied with the world; and that he suffered severely from the gout, which, at times, incapacitated him for the government of his extensive dominions. It was never his habit to intrust others with duties and labors which he could perform himself, and he felt that his empire needed a more powerful protector than his infirmities permitted him to be. He was grown prematurely old; he felt his declining health, longed for repose, and sought religious consolation. Of all his vast possessions, he only reserved an annual pension of one hundred thousand crowns; resigning Spain and the Low Countries into the hands of Philip, and the empire of Germany to his brother Ferdinand, who had already been elected King of the Romans. He then set out for his

E