Chapter XIII: Part 13

7. _Francisci Barbari P. V. Apologia ad Mediolanenses pro populo Brixiensi, anno 1439._ A MS. copy of this work is preserved in the Vatican library.

8. _Oratio Francisci Barbari P. V. ad Populum Brixiensem in renunciatione illius Civitatis._ This is in fact a report of an extempore speech of Francesco’s, composed from memory by Manelli, in whose Commentaries it is printed.

9. _Francisci Barbari, et aliorum ad ipsum Epistolæ ab anno Christi 1425, ad annum 1453, nunc primum editæ ex duplici MS. Cod. Brixiano et Vaticano uno, &c. Brixiæ excudebat Joannes Maria Rizzardi, 1743, in Quarto magno._ This collection of Francesco’s epistles, which was edited by Cardinal Quirini, contains 284 of his letters, besides 94 addressed to him by various correspondents. In the learned dissertation prefixed to this publication, the cardinal has quoted at length fourteen other epistles of Barbaro.

10. _Francisci Barbari viri illustris. pro Flavio Forliviensi pro Proemio descriptionis Italiæ illustratæ. Ad Alphonsum Serenissimum Arragonum Regem._ Cardinal Quirini, in the above mentioned dissertation, has printed this præfatory essay, which was written by Barbaro, in the name of Flavio Biondo.

11. _Epitaphium clarissimi viri Francisci Barbari Veneti in laudem Gathamelatæ Imperatoris Gentis Venetorum._ This epitaph Agostini has published in his _Istoria degli Scrittori Viniziani_, from a MS. preserved in the Guarnerian library in Friuli.

_Agostini Istoria degli Scrittori Viniziani, tom. ii. p. 28-134._

[87] _Leonardi Aretini Epistolæ, l. iv. ep. v._

[88] This letter from Poggio to Guarino Veronese is printed by L’Enfant, in the supplement to the second volume of his _Poggiana_, from a MS. in the Wolfenbuttle library. _See Poggiana, tom. ii. p. 309._

[89] Mehus is of opinion that the copy of Quintilian, thus found by Poggio, is preserved in the Laurentian library.—_Præfatio ad vitam Ambrosii Traversarii, p. xxxiv._

[90] _Mehi Præfatio ad vitam Ambrosii Traversarii, p. xxxv. xxxvi._

[91] The manuscript of this author was sent by Poggio to Martin V. who permitted Niccolo Niccoli to transcribe it. Niccolo’s transcript is preserved in the Marcian library at Florence.—_Mehi Præfat. p. xxxvii. xxxviii._

[92] Poggio transmitted his newly recovered copy of Lucretius to Niccolo Niccoli, who, with his usual diligence, made with his own hand a transcript of it, which is yet extant in the Laurentian library.—_Mehi Præfat. p. xxxviii._

[93] Poggio found this copy of Tertullian in a monastery of the monks of Clugny at Rome. By some means the cardinal Ursini got possession of it, and morosely locked it up from the inspection of the learned. At the instance of Lorenzo de’ Medici, however, he suffered the manuscript to be transported to Florence, where it was copied, first by Ambrogio Traversari, and afterwards by Niccolo Niccoli. The transcript of Niccoli is lodged in the library of St. Mark.—_Mehi Præfatio, p. xxxix._

[94] The volume which Nicolas of Treves thus conveyed from Germany, contained, besides four comedies which had been already recovered, the following twelve, which had been till then unknown, Bacchides, Mostellaria, Menæchmi, Miles gloriosus, Mercator, Pseudolus Pœnulus, Persa, Rudens, Stichus, Trinummus, Truculentus—This volume was seized by cardinal Ursini, who would not permit Poggio to take a copy of it. Poggio highly resented the illiberality of the cardinal’s conduct. “I have not been able,” says he, addressing himself to Niccolo Niccoli, “to get possession of Plautus. Before the cardinal’s departure, I begged him to send you the book, but he refused to comply with my request. I do not understand what the man means. He seems to think that he has done something great, though in fact he has not had the least participation in the discovery of the book. It was found by another, but it is hidden by him. I told both him and his people, that I would never again ask him for the book, and I shall be as good as my word. I had rather unlearn what I have learnt, than acquire any knowledge by the means of his books.” By the interposition of Lorenzo de’ Medici, however, the cardinal was induced to intrust the volume to Niccolo Niccoli, who copied it, and returned it to the Cardinal. Niccolo’s copy is deposited in the Marcian library.—_Mehi Præfatio, p. xi-xliii._

[95] Joannes Polenus, who published an elegant edition of Frontinus de Aquæductis at Padua in the year 1722, procured a transcript of this manuscript, which was still preserved in the monastery of Monte Cassino, and which he found to be much more correct than any printed editions of Frontinus’s treatise. It is in the form of a quarto volume, written on parchment, and, as appears from a fac simile of the first ten or twelve lines, in a very legible character. From the form of the letters, Polenus conjectures that it was written at the end of the thirteenth, or the beginning of the fourteenth century.—_Prolegomena ad Poleni editionem Frontini de Aquæductis, p. 19, 20._

Mention is made of this manuscript by Mabillon, in his _Museum Italicum, tom. i. p. 123._

[96] _Mehi Præfatio, p. xlviii. xlix._

[97] _Ambrosii Traversarii Opera, tom. ii. p. 285._ To the decline of life Poggio retained a considerable degree of indignation, which was at this time excited in his mind, by the indifference with which his labours to recover the lost writers of antiquity were regarded by the great. In the introduction to his dialogue, _De Infelicitate Principum_, he puts the following strictures on their conduct into the mouth of Niccolo Niccoli.—“When many of the ancient classics had been brought to light by our friend Poggio, and there was a most flattering prospect of the recovery of others of still greater consequence, no sovereign prince or pontiff contributed in the least degree to the liberation of those most excellent authors from the prisons of the barbarians. These exalted personages spend their days and their money in pleasures, in unworthy pursuits, in pestiferous and destructive wars. So great is their mental torpidity, that nothing can rouse them to search after the works of excellent writers, by whose wisdom and learning mankind are taught the way to true felicity.”—_Poggii Opera, p. 394._

[98] _Mehi Præfatio, p. xlvi. xlvii._

[99] _Poggii Epistolæ lvii. ep. xxx._

[100] _Mehi Præfatio, p. xlvii._

[101] Mehus, on the authority of one Vespasiano di Filippo, says, that he was born of poor parents. The author of his life, in the _Elogi degli Illustri uomini Toscani_, maintains, on the contrary, that his family was graced with the honours of nobility; and he supports his position by very cogent arguments. These different statements may be reconciled by an hypothesis by no means devoid of probability, namely, that the father of Ambrogio was descended of noble blood, but that the fortunes of his house were fallen to decay.

[102] Demetrius was so much pleased with the respectful attention which he received from his Camaldolese pupils, that he became a member of their fraternity in the year 1416.—_Mehi Vita Ambros. Travers. p. ccclxv._

[103] _Elogi degli uomini illus. Toscani, tom. i. p. cccxl. Mehi Vita Ambros. Travers. p. ccclxiv. & seq. Ejusdem Præfatio ad Colucii Salutati Epistolas, p. xli._

[104] _Poggii Opera, p. 252-261._

[105] _Muratori Annali d’Italia, tom. ix. p. 84._

[106] _Ibid._

[107] From a MS. which is preserved at Vienna, L’Enfant has given the following list of the persons who attended this wonderfully numerous assembly—Knights, 2300—Prelates, Priests, and Presbyters, 18,000—Laymen 80,000. In a more detailed catalogue, the Laymen are thus enumerated—Goldsmiths, 45—Shopkeepers, 330—Bankers, 242—Shoemakers, 70—Furriers, 48,—Apothecaries, 44—Smiths, 92—Confectioners, 75—Bakers belonging to the pope, &c. 250—Vintners of Italian wines, 83—Victuallers for the poorer sort, 43—Florentine Money-changers, 48—Tailors, 228—Heralds at Arms, 65—Jugglers, or Merry Andrews, 346—Barbers, 306—Courtezans, whose habitations were known to the author of the list, 700. It should seem, however, that this industrious chronicler had not visited all these professional ladies, as the Vienna list estimates their number at 1500! From a memorandum subjoined to this list, it appears, that during the sitting of the council, one of these frail fair ones earned the sum of 800 Florins.—_L’Enfant’s History of the Council of Constance, vol. ii. p. 415-416._

[108] _Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 89._

[109] _Ibid._ p. 96.

[110] _L’Enfant’s History of the Council of Constance, vol. ii. p. 143._

[111] See _Tonelli’s Epistolarium Poggii, lib. i. epist. xi._

[112] See _Henry’s History of Great Britain, vol. x. p. 109-128._

[113] Thus William of Wyrcester tells us, that the duke of York returned from Ireland, “et arrivavit apud Redbank prope Cestriam.”—_Henry’s History ut supra._

[114] Though Poggio carefully examined the libraries of many of the English monasteries, he discovered in them only one manuscript which he esteemed of any value, namely the Chronicle of Sigebert, a monk who lived in the tenth century. See _Ton.-Tr. vol. i. p. 116._

[115] Flavio Biondo, who was born at Forli, in the year 1388, was a descendant of the illustrious family of Ravaldini. He has himself recorded the fact, that he studied Grammar, Rhetoric, and Poetry, under the instructions of Giovanni Ballistario, of Cremona. At an early age he was commissioned by his countrymen to conduct some negociations at the court of Milan; and it was during his visit to that city, that he executed the task of copying the newly-discovered manuscript of Cicero’s treatise, _De Claris Oratoribus_. In the year 1430, he was making preparations for a journey to Rome; but Francesco Barbaro, who held him in the highest esteem, and who had procured for him the privileges of a Venetian citizen, having been lately appointed governor of the Bergamese district, induced him to give up this design, and to accompany him to Bergamo, invested with the confidential office of chancellor of that city. He afterwards entered into the Roman chancery, under the patronage of Eugenius IV., by whom he was employed in the year 1434, in conjunction with the bishop of Recanati, to solicit, on his behalf, the assistance of the Florentines and Venetians. He continued to hold the office of apostolic secretary during the pontificate of Nicholas V., Calixtus III., and Pius II. In the year 1459 he attended the last mentioned pontiff to the council of Mantua. From that city he returned to Rome, where he died on the 4th of June, 1463, leaving five sons, all well instructed in literature.

Of his numerous publications the following are the most considerable.

1. _Roma Instaurata_—A work of great erudition, in which he gave a most exact description of the buildings, gates, temples, and other monuments of ancient Rome, which still resisted the destructive hand of time.

2. _Roma Triumphans_—This is also a most elaborate treatise, which contains an account of the laws, constitution, religion, and sacred ceremonies of the Roman republic, collected from the incidental notices of these subjects, which are scattered through the wide extent of Latin literature.

3. Of a similar description is his _Italia Illustrata_, in which he describes Italy, according to its ancient division into fourteen regions, and details the origin and history of each province and city. This work he composed at the request of Alphonso, king of Naples.

4. A treatise, _De Origine et Gestis Venetorum_.

5. He undertook a work of still greater extent than any of those which have been enumerated above, viz. A General History of the period extending from the decline of the Roman Empire to his own times. He had finished three decads and the first book of the fourth of this work, when its prosecution was interrupted by his death.

“In all these works,” says Tiraboschi, “though Biondo occasionally deviates into various errors, he displays a singular diligence in collecting from all authors whatever appertains to his subject; and when it is considered, that they are the first essays in their kind, they cannot but give the reader a high idea of the prodigious learning and unwearied application of their author.”

The historical works of Biondo, translated into Italian by Lucio Fauno, were printed at Venice by Michel Tramezzino. A general collection of his writings was also printed in folio, at Basil, by Frobenius, A. D. 1531 and 1539. _Apostolo Zeno Dissertazioni Vossiane, tom. i. p. 229, &c. Tiraboschi Storia della Let. Ital. tom. vi. p. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7._

[116] _Mehi Præfatio, p. xlvi._

[117] _Ton. Tr. vol. i. p. 117._

[118] It is rather an extraordinary circumstance, that Ambrogio Traversari, the celebrated superior of the monastery of Camaldoli, in several of his letters to Niccolo Niccoli, requests his correspondent to present his compliments to this Benvenuta, whom he distinguishes by the title of _fœmina fidelissima_. Shall we suppose, that the reverend ecclesiastic was so little acquainted with the private history of the Florentine gentry, as to be ignorant of the intercourse which subsisted between Benvenuta and his friend—or shall we conclude that he did not regard this intercourse as a breach of moral duty?—_Ambrogii Traversarii Epistolæ, lib. viii. ep. ii. iii. v. &c._

[119] _Leonardi Aretini Epis. lib. v. ep. iv._

[120] Mehus, in his list of the works of Leonardo Aretino, intimates that a copy of this invective is preserved in the library of New College, Oxford. A strict and laborious search, made by direction of the Warden of New College, in the month of November, 1801, has ascertained the fact, that it does not now exist there. The catalogue of that valuable repository of learning does indeed make mention of a MS. volume, as containing the oration in question. On an accurate examination of this volume, however, no trace was found of Leonardo’s Invective, nor any appearances to justify the suspicion, that this or any other work has been withdrawn from it by the rapacity of literary peculation.

[121] “Nam ut alias ad te seripsi, non ignoro, quam grave sit subire onus Clerici, et quantâ curâ oporteat eos torqueri, si quâ sint conscientiâ, qui ex beneficio vivunt. Quum enim præmia non dentur, nisi laboranti, qui non laborat ut ait Apostolus, non manducet. Hæc tamen dicuntur facilius quam fiant, et ut vulgo aiunt, satius est in manibus Dei incidere quam hominis. Sed tamen si opus Petri, hoc est promissio perficeretur, relinquerem ista sacra, ad quæ nonnisi invitus accedo, non quod Religionem spernam aliquo modo, sed quia non confido me talem futurum, qualem describunt esse debere.”—_Ambrosii Traversarii Opera, tom. ii. p. 1123._

These were the sentiments of Poggio, in the season of serious meditation. On another occasion, when irritated by the sarcasms of Cardinal Julian, he ascribed his abjuration of the priesthood to a somewhat different motive. “Nolo esse Sacerdos, nolo Beneficia; vidi enim plurimos, quos bonos viros censebam, maxime autem liberales, post susceptum sacerdotium avoras esse et nulli deditos virtuti, sed inertiæ, otio, voluptati. Quod ne mihi quoque accidat veritus, decrevi procul a vestro ordine consummere hoc, quidquid superest, temporis perigrinationis meæ; ex hâc enim magnâ capitis Sacerdotum rasurâ, conspicio non solum pilos abradi, sed etiam conscientiam et virtutem.”—_Poggii Epistolæ lvii. ep. xxvii._

[122] See Tonelli _Epistolarium Poggii, lib. i. ep. 18._

[123] _Ambrogii Traversarii Opera, tom. ii. p. 1122._

[124] _Poggii Opera, p. 69._

[125] _Ibid, p. 36._

[126] _Poggii Opera, p. 474._

[127] _Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 93._

[128] _Poggii Historia Flor. lib. iv. v._ Martin was particularly offended by a ballad, the burthen of which was _Papa Martino non vale un quattrino_. _Ibid, p. 203. apud notas._—_Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 103._

[129] _Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 97._

[130] Bologna surrendered to Braccio after a short siege, July 15th, 1420. _Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 98._

[131] _Platina, p. 398._

[132] _Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 93._ Baldassare Cossa is generally distinguished by the pontifical appellation of John XXIII. He was however in fact only the twenty-second of that name who filled the papal chair. The mistake in his designation arises from the extraordinary circumstance of the annalists of the holy see having admitted into the series of pontiffs the famous pope Joan, who it is asserted, on succeeding Leo IV. in the pontificate, assumed the name of John VII. This ecclesiastical Amazon is said to have been an Englishwoman, who went in man’s attire with her lover to Athens, where she made such a proficiency in her studies, that she rose through the subordinate degrees of clerical preferment to the supreme honours of the pontificate. It is further alleged, that having become pregnant by one of her domestics, she was seized with the pains of labour, as she was conducting a procession to the church of St. John Lateran, and expired in the street. This improbable story is related by Platina, who observes, however, that though it is commonly believed, it rests upon doubtful authority. He informs us, that those who maintain the truth of this narration, allege in proof of its authenticity, two circumstances, namely, that the pontiffs always avoid passing through the street where this untoward accident is said to have happened: and that on the installation of a newly elected pope, he is obliged to undergo a ceremony, which would infallibly detect any attempt at a repetition of the above-mentioned imposture. With regard to the first of these allegations, Platina acknowledges the fact of the pontiff’s avoiding the supposed scene of Joan’s disgrace; but says, that the reason of this is, that the street in question is too narrow to admit the passage of a crowded retinue. With regard to the second, he makes the following truly curious remark. “De secundâ ita sentio, sedem illam (perforatam sedem scilicet ubi pontificis genitalia ab ultimo diacono attrectantur) ad id paratam esse, ut qui in tanto magistratu constuitur sciat se non deum sed hominem esse, et necessitatibus naturæ, utpote egerendi subjectum esse, unde merito stercoraria sedes vocatur.”

In the annotations subjoined by Panvinio to the Italian translation of Platina’s history, published at Venice, A. D. 1744, it is most satisfactorily proved, that this story of John VII., alias pope Joan, is a gross falsehood, invented by one Martin, a monk.

[133] _Ton. Tr. vol. i. p. 137._

[134] _Leon. Aret. Epist. lib. iv. ep. xxi._

[135] _Ibid, lib. iv. ep. xxii._

[136] _Ambrogii Traversarii Opera, tom. ii. p. 297._

[137] This embassy occurred in the year, 1426.—_Agostini Istoria degli Scrittori Viniziani, tom. ii. p. 58, 59, 60._

[138] _Poggii Opera, p. 306._

[139] _Ibid, p. 347._

[140] _Poggii Opera, p. 347._

[141] _Poggii Epist. lvii. p. 161._

[142] Of this great personage Poggio has recorded an anecdote, which at once commemorates her reputation for gallantry, and her ready wit. “The Florentines,” says he, “once sent a certain doctor of laws of the name of Francesco as their embassador to the court of Naples. Francesco being apprised of the amorous disposition of the reigning queen Joanna, requested on his second interview with her majesty, that she would grant him a private audience, as he was instructed by his republic to communicate certain matters to her majesty alone. The queen accordingly withdrew with him into an inner apartment, where after a short preliminary conversation, he abruptly made to her a declaration of love; on which Joanna looked upon him with a pleasant smile, and said, _Was this also in your instructions?_”—_Poggii Opera, p. 448._

[143] Whilst Louis II., on whose claim that of Louis III. was founded, was on his march from Provence to the Neapolitan frontier, he was visited in his camp by Rodolfo of Camerino, to whom he made an ostentatious display of a valuable assortment of jewels, which he destined as ornaments of the regal state, which he flattered himself he should shortly attain. Rodolfo, unmoved by the brilliant spectacle, asked him what was the value and use of this collection. Louis answered, that it was very valuable, but of no utility. “I can show you at my house,” replied Rodolfo, “a pair of stones which cost only ten florins, and annually produce me a revenue of two hundred.” The duke was astonished at this assertion; but Rodolfo soon solved the riddle, by shewing him a mill which he had lately erected, intimating at the same time, that a wise man will always prefer utility to finery.—_Poggii Opera, p. 440._

Rodolfo was indeed a man of very phlegmatic humour, as appears by the advice which he gave to one of his fellow-citizens, who informed him of his intention of travelling with a view of seeing the curiosities of different countries. “Go,” said he, “to the neighbouring town of Macerata, and there you will see hills, valleys, and plains, wood and water, lands cultivated and uncultivated. This is the world in miniature; for travel as far as you please, and you will see nothing else.”—_Poggii Opera, p. 441._

[144] _Platina, p. 399._—_Tiraboschi storia della Letteratura Ital. tom. vi. p. 8._

[145] _Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 114, 119, 120, 121._

[146] _Ibid, p. 116._

[147] _Poggii Epist. a Tonel. lib. i. ep. 17._

[148] _Poggii Hist. Florent. p. 253._ In his Facetiæ, Poggio relates the following instance, which occurred during the course of this contest, of the freedom of speech in which Filippo Maria permitted one of his domestics to indulge himself.

“The old duke of Milan, a prince in all respects of singular good taste, had an excellent cook, whom he had sent to France to learn the art of dressing nice dishes. In the great war which he carried on against the Florentines, he one day received some bad news, which gave him a good deal of uneasiness. Soon after the arrival of this intelligence he sat down to dinner. The dishes not at all pleasing him, he sent for his cook, and reproved him severely for his unskilfulness. The cook, who was accustomed to take great liberties with his master, replied, I can assure your highness that the dishes are excellently dressed—And if the Florentines have taken away your appetite, how am I to blame?”—_Poggii Opera, p. 425._

This anecdote proves that Filippo inherited from his father a fondness of good living, and also intimates, that even at this early period, our Gallic neighbours were noted for their skill in cookery.

[149] _Mehi Vita Leonardi Aretini, p. xliv._

[150] _Ibid._

[151] _Mehi Vita Leonardi Aretini, p. xliv._

[152] “Volui satisfacere amori in te meo, et tecum congratulari, quemadmodum solemus ei, qui uxorem duxit, cum onus subeat grave, difficile et molestum.”—_Poggii Epistolæ lvii. p. 167._

[153] It should seem that Humphrey, duke of Gloucester, who at this time governed the kingdom of England in quality of Protector, regarded this commission of the cardinal’s with a jealous eye. With a view of preventing the mischiefs which might ensue upon the exercise of foreign authority in the English dominions, he summoned Beaufort into his presence; and by a formal and express act, which set forth, that the legates of the pope had never been permitted to enter into England, except by summons, invitation, or permission of the king, which summons, invitation, or permission, Beaufort had not received, protested against his exercising the authority of legate in the king’s dominions in any form or manner whatever. To this protest Beaufort put in a formal answer, that it was not his intention in any thing to derogate from, or contravene the rights, privileges, liberties, or customs of the king or kingdom. This protest was made November 11th, 1428. It is printed in the appendix to Brown’s _Fasciculus Rerum expetendarum et Fugiendarum_, _p. 618_, from an ancient register, formerly in the possession of archbishop Sancroft.

For the purpose of raising money to defray the expense of the crusade, boxes emblazoned with the sign of the cross were fixed in the churches, in which the friends of the true faith were exhorted to deposit their contributions. To give additional stimulus to the zeal of the pious, the pontiff issued a bull, whereby he granted an indulgence of one hundred days to those who should attend the preaching of the crusade—a full pardon of all their sins, and an assurance of eternal happiness, to those who took the cross and served against the heretics at their own expense. The same premium was offered to those, who fully intending to perform this meritorious service, should happen to die before they joined the army; and to those who should send a soldier or soldiers to fight, at their expense, for the propagation of the true faith. This latter provision was particularly addressed to the women, who were graciously informed by the cardinal, that those females, who, being prevented by their poverty from maintaining each a warrior at their own expense, should enter into joint subscriptions for the purpose, should be entitled to considerable privileges; and so grateful was his holiness even for the gift of good wishes, that he granted six days’ indulgence to those who fasted and prayed in order to promote the success of the expedition.—_Appendix to Brown’s Fasciculus, p. 621, 625, 630._

[154] _Hollinshead’s Chronicle, vol. ii. p. 602._—_Stowe’s Annals, p. 371._—_Platina, p. 400._

[155] _Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 136._—_Platina, p. 401._

[156] _Ton. Tr. vol. i. p. 155._

[157] _Poggii Epistolæ lvii. p. 173._

[158] _Tonelli Poggii Epist. tom. i. lib. iii. ep. xxxv._

[159] _Poggii Epist. lvii. p. 178. Ambrogii Traversarii Opera, tom. ii. p. 978._

[160] This Bernardino had for some time preached with uncommon applause to crowded audiences in the churches of Florence. The talents of a popular orator generally procure their possessor as many enemies as friends. Several ecclesiastics, who were envious of the reputation of Bernardino, took advantage of a daring flight of rhetoric, into which he was betrayed by the enthusiasm of his zeal, to endeavour to accomplish his ruin. In order to enforce his eloquence, in describing some impressive scene, (probably the sufferings of Christ) he exhibited to the people a picture, in which the transaction to which he alluded was delineated. Of this exhibition his detractors complained to the pope, as a kind of profanation of the rites of the church; and Bernardino was obliged to repair to Rome to vindicate his cause. Though the pontifical court was inflamed with prejudice against him by the artifices of his accusers, so captivating was his eloquence, that when he was permitted to preach in Rome, the ecclesiastics of the highest eminence, as well as the populace, being attracted by his fame to hear his discourses, listened to him with enthusiastic admiration. Martin V. commanded him to abstain for the future from the exhibition of pictures; he readily complied with this injunction, and by his prompt obedience obtained the favour of the pontiff, who during the remainder of his life treated him with distinguished kindness.—_Ambrosii Traversarii Epist. lib. ii. ep. xl. xli._

[161] _Poggii Opera, p. 13._

[162] In the original sketch of this dialogue, Poggio had attributed the first part of the attack on Avarice to Cincio, one of the apostolic secretaries; but on the admonition of Lusco, that as Cincio had the reputation of being a covetous man, an invective against that vice would be out of character, if represented as proceeding from him, he substituted in his place Bartolomeo di Montepulciano. The defence of Avarice he assigned to Lusco, because Lusco being generous even to extravagance, there was no reason to fear, lest the imputed patronage of so selfish a passion, should be supposed to convey an implied impeachment of his character.—_Ambrosii Traversarii Opera, tom. ii. lib. xxv. epist. xliii._

[163] _Tiraboschi Storia della Letteratura Italiana, tom. vi. part 2d. p. 363._ Poggio has recorded a notable story of one of these indiscreet orators, who in the fervour of a declamation against the vice of adultery, declared, that he had such a detestation of that offence, that he had much rather commit the sin of unchastity with ten virgins than with one married woman.—_Poggii Opera, p. 433._

[164] _Appendix ad Fasciculum Rer. Expet. et Fug. p. 578._ Poggio has commemorated in his _Facetiæ_ a mortifying explanation which one of these noisy orators provoked by his overweening vanity. “A monk,” says he, “preaching to the populace, made a most enormous and uncouth noise, by which a good woman, one of his auditors, was so much affected, that she burst into a flood of tears. The preacher, attributing her grief to remorse of conscience, excited within her by his eloquence, sent for her, and asked her why she was so piteously affected by his discourse. Holy father, answered the mourner, I am a poor widow, and was accustomed to maintain myself by the labour of an ass, which was left me by my late husband. But alas! my poor beast is dead, and your preaching brought his braying so strongly to my recollection, that I could not restrain my grief.”—_Poggii Opera, p. 497._

[165] Alberto derived the designation of Da Sarteano from a small town in Tuscany, where he was born, A. D. 1385. At an early age he enrolled himself in the number of the conventuals, and afterwards joined the stricter order of the _Fratres Observantiæ_. In the year 1424 he went to Verona, where he studied the Greek language under the instruction of Guarino Veronese. In the following year he paid a visit to Francesco Barbaro, who was then governor of Trivigi. Here he met with the famous preacher Bernardino, at whose instance he undertook the popular employment of an itinerant preacher. In this capacity he not only traversed a great part of Italy, but crossing the sea, he went to preach the true gospel amongst the schismatics and infidels of Greece, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Armenia. It was in consequence of his representations that the patriarch of the last-mentioned province attended the council of Basil, when in the name of his countrymen he submitted to the decisions of the Latin church. Alberto closed a life of religious labours in the year 1450, at Milan, where he was interred in the church of St. Angelo. A collection of his works, consisting principally of sermons and theological tracts, was published at Rome, A. D. 1688.—_Tiraboschi Storia della Letter. Ital. tom. vi. p. 214, 215, 216._

[166] _Ambrosii Traversarii Epist. p. 978, 979, 1019, 1125._ _Poggii Opera. p. 317, 318, 319._

[167] It is printed in the Appendix to the _Fasciculus Rerum Expetendarum et Fugiendarum_; a collection of fugitive tracts, intended to display the errors of the church of Rome.

This collection, which was first published at Cologne, A. D. 1535, by Orthuinus Gratius, of Deventer, was republished, with considerable additions, by Edward Brown, at London, A. D. 1689, at which period the avowed predilection of James II. for the Roman Catholic doctrines had given alarm to the zealous Protestants of England.

[168] _Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 142._—_Platina, p. 402._

[169] _Poggii Epistolæ lvii. ep. xxiii._

[170] _Platina, p. 402, 403._—_Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 143._—_Poggii Historia de varietate Fortunæ, p. 100._

[171] _Poggii Histor. Flor. lib. vi._

[172] Te fama est peragrare Germaniam ad apparatum belli contra Boemos. Id quidem laudo; sed considera diligenter, non quantum animi sit tibi ad pugnam, sed quantum virium armorum, ne magis animatus quam armatus in aciem accedas; et barbatum nostrum cave, ne auribus lupum teneas.—_Poggii Epistolæ lvii. ep. xxiii._ This letter is dated May 11th, 1431.

[173] _L’Enfant Histoire de la guerre des Hussites, tom. i. p. 315._

[174] Some writers assert, that the number of the pontifical troops amounted to ninety, others to one hundred and thirty thousand men. But the numbers of forces are almost always exaggerated.—_L’Enfant Histoire de la guerre des Hussites, tom. i. p. 317._

[175] _Voltaire Annales de l’Empire._ We may judge of the precipitancy of the flight of the pontifical army, from the circumstance of the cardinal’s losing, with the rest of his baggage, the papal bull which authorised the crusade, his red hat, and the rest of his dress of ceremony, his cross and crochet.—_L’Enfant ut supra._

[176] Et cum ex fugâ exercitûs omnes populi Alemaniæ supra modum essent exterriti et consternati, videns nullum aliud superesse remedium, animabam et confortabam omnes, ut manerent constantes in fide et nihil trepidarent; quoniam ego propter hoc accedebam ad Concilium, ubi convenire debebat universalis ecclesia in quo omnino aliquod sufficiens remedium ad resistendum hæreticis, et ipsos extirpandos reperiretur.—_Vide Epistolam Juliani Cardinalis ad Pontificem Eugenium IV. apud Fasciculum Rerum Expetendarum et Fugiendarum, p. 55._

[177] _Poggii Opera, p. 309, 310._

[178] _Poggii Epistolæ lvii. ep. xxvii._

[179] _Muratori Rer. Italic. Script. tom. vi. p. 869._

[180] _Poggii Opera, p. 429._

[181] _Ibid._

[182] _Poggii Opera, p. 481._

[183] _Ibid, p. 475._

[184] Poggio intimates, that the loquacity of this incorrigible ecclesiastic continually betrayed his folly—that he was given to detraction; and that his rapacity frequently betrayed him into violent infringements of the rules of justice. He has also recorded the following severe, but coarse animadversion, which was made on his character after his death. “Damnabat quidam multis verbis vitam et mores Angelotti Cardinalis defuncti. Fuit enim rapax et violentus ut cui nulla esset conscientia. Tum ex astantibus unus, Opinor, inquit, diabolum jam vorasse et cacasse cum sæpius ob scelera sua. Alter vir facetissimus, Adeo mala caro ejus fuit, inquit, ut nullus dæmon quantumvis bono stomacho, illam præ nauseâ comedere auderet.”—_Poggii Opera, p. 477._

[185] _Fasciculus Rer. Expet. et. Fugiend. p. 55._

[186] _Acta Conciliorum, tom. xxx. p. 25._

[187] This declaration was made in the following florid terms. “Hæc sancta Synodus necessitates Christianæ religionis sedulâ meditatione recogitans, maturâ et digestâ deliberatione decernit; ad hæc tria, eo, a quo cuncta bona procedunt, auctore Deo, toto solicitudinis studio operam dare, Primo, ut omnium hæresum a Christiani populi finibus tenebris profugatis, lumen Catholicæ veritatis, Christo verâ luce largiente, refulgeat. Secundo, ut bellorum rabie, quâ, satore zizaniæ seminante in diversis partibus mundi affligitur et dissipatur populus Christianus, congruâ meditatione sedatâ, pacis auctore prostante in statum reducatur pacificum et tranquillum. Tertio, ut cum multiplicibus vitiorum tribulis et spinis Christi vinea jam quasi silvescat præ nimiâ densitate, ut illis debitæ culturæ studio resecatis, evangelico agricolâ cælitus operante, refloreat, honestatisque fructus et honoris felici ubertate producat.”—_Concil. tom. p. 39, 40._

[188] _Acta Concil. tom. xxx. p. 24, 49._

[189] _Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 148._

[190] See a copy of the cardinal’s letter (the good sense and integrity of which are much more commendable than its Latinity) in the _Fasciculus Rer. Expet. et Fug. p. 54 et seq._

[191] _Conciliorum. tom. xxx. p. 54._

[192] _Concilior. tom. xxx. p. 77._

[193] _Concilior. tom. xxx. p. 81._

[194] _Ibid, p. 92._

[195] _Concilior. tom. xxx. p. 103._—This decree was passed July 13th, 1433.

[196] _Poggii Epistolæ lvii. ep. xxvi._—This letter bears date June 30th, 1433.

[197] _Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 147._

[198] _Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 149._

[199] _Ibid, p. 154._

[200] _Ibid, p. 153._ _Poggii Hist. Flor. p. 301._

[201] During his residence in Rome, Sigismund received from the pontiff six thousand gold crowns per month, to enable him to maintain the state becoming his exalted rank. Poggio gives a particular account of the emperor’s coronation in a letter to Niccolo Niccoli, which has not yet been printed.

_Poggii Historia de Variet. Fort. p. 92, 93._

[202] _Concil. tom. xxx. p. 114._

[203] _Poggii Epist. lvii. p. 221, 222, 223._ This letter, which by a typographical error is dated 1433, was written, Jan. 27th, 1434.

[204] _Concilior. tom. xxx. p. 129._

[205] _Concilior. p. 146._

[206] _Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 155, 156, 157, 158._—_Platina, p. 405._—_Ambrogii Traversarii Epistolæ, lib. i. ep. vi. apud notas._

[207] _Poggii Histor. de Variet. Fortunæ, p. 92._

[208] _Ambrogii Traversarii Epist. lib. v. ep. x._

[209] _Poggii Hist. de Variet. Fort. p. 92._—_Opera, p. 392._

[210] _Elogi degli Uomini Illustri Toscani, tom. i. p. 367._

[211] Eadem iter facienti ad ortum occurrit amæna vallis, villis et pagis referta nomine Mugellum quam interfluit flumen Sæva.—_Schotti Itinerarium Italiæ, p. 189._

[212] _Pignotti Istor. di Toscana, lib. iv. cap. 9_, as referred to by Tonelli.

[213] _Machiavelli Istorie Fiorentine, p. 209, 210, 211._—_Ricordi di Cosmo de’ Medici, in the appendix to the 1st vol. of Roscoe’s Life of Lorenzo de’ Medici, No. ii._

[214] The following extract from Cosmo’s Ricordi proves that he could not with a safe conscience accept this part of Poggio’s panegyric. “Niccolo da Tolentino sentito il caso à di 8. venne la mattina con tutta la sua compagnia alla Lastra, e con animo di fare novità nella Terra, perchè io fussi lasciato; e così subito che si sentì il caso nell’ Alpi di Romagna e di più altri luoghi, venne â Lorenzo gran quantità di fanti. Fu confortato il Capitano, e così Lorenzo à non fare novità, che poteva esser cagione di farmi fare novità nella persona, e così feciono; e benchè chi consigliò questo fussino parenti, e amici, e à buon fine, non fu buono consiglio; perchè se si fussino fatti inanzi, ero libero, e chi era stato cagione di questo restava disfatto.”—_Ricordi ut supra._

[215] _Poggii Opera, p. 312-317._

[216] In a letter to Ambrogio Traversari, he gives the following catalogue of the books which he had collected during his residence in Constantinople.—“Qui mihi nostri in Italiam libri gesti sunt, horum nomina ad te scribo: alios autem nonnullos per primas ex Byzantio Venetorum naves opperior. Hi autem sunt Plotinus, Aelianus, Aristides, Dionysius Halicarnasseus, Strabo Geographus, Hermogenes, Aristotelis Rhetorice, Dionysius Halicarnasseus de numeris et characteribus, Thucydides, Plutarchi Moralia, Proelus in Platonem, Philo Judæus, Herodotus, Dio Chrysostomus, Appollonius Pergæus, Ethica Aristotelis, Ejus magna Moralia et Eudemia, Oeconomica, et Politica, quædam Theophrasti Opuscula, Homeri Ilias, Odyssea, Philostrati de vitâ Appollonii, Orationes Libanii, et aliqui sermones Luciani, Pindarus, Aratus, Euripidis tragediæ septem, Theocritus, Hesiodus, Suidas; Phalaridis, Hippocratis, Platonis, et multorum ex veteribus philosophis Epistolæ, Demosthenes, Æschinis Orationes et Epistolæ, pleraque Xenophontis Opera, una Lysiæ Oratio, Orphei Argonautica et Hymni, Callimachus, Aristoteles de historiis animalium, Physica, et Metaphysica, et de Animâ, de partibus Animalium, et alia quædam, Polybius, nonnulli sermones Chrysostomi, Dionysiaca, et alii Poetæ plurimi. Habes qui mihi sint, et his utere æque ac tuis.”—_Ambrosii Traversarii Opera, tom. ii. p. 1010._

In the collection of this noble store of Grecian literature Filelfo must have expended a considerable sum of money; and this circumstance may honourably account for the embarrassed state of his finances on his arrival in his native country.

[217] _Ambrosii Traversarii Epist. p. 1007._

[218] Filelfo arrived in Florence in the month of May, 1429.—_Philelfi Epist. p. 9._

[219] _Ambrosii Traversarii Epist. p. 1016._

[220] _Philelfi Epist. p. 9._

[221] _Philelfi Epist. p. 9._

[222] _Ibid, p. 10._

[223] _Philelfi Epist. p. 11._

[224] _Philelfi Epist. p. 17._ In the account which Filelfo gave of this transaction to Æneas Sylvius, he says, that he had never discovered by whom Filippo was hired to commit so execrable a deed, but intimates very strong suspicions of Cosmo de’ Medici. Poggio, however, in his third invective against Filelfo, asserts, that the assassin was the minister of the vengeance of one Jeronimo of Imola, whom Filelfo had provoked by the intemperance of his tongue.—_Poggii Opera, p. 381._

[225] _Ibid._

[226] _Francisci Philelfi Satyræ; primæ decadis hecatosticha secunda._

[227] _Philelfi Epist. p. 12, 13._

[228] _Philelfi Satyræ; primæ decadis, hecatosticha quinta. Ejusdem hecatosticha sexta—Secundæ decadis, hecatosticha prima, &c._

In a letter of remonstrance to Cosmo de’ Medici, Filelfo inveighed bitterly against Niccolo Niccoli, whom he asserted Cosmo had himself acknowledged to be guilty of insolence to the learned, and particularly of contumelious conduct towards the eminent Manuel Crysoloras.—“Ad ea tu sane leniter respondisti, ac subridens, non oportere inquiens mirari me nec æge ferre Nicolai Nicoli detractionem; eo enim esse hominem ingenio ut neminem doctum virum relinquat intactum mordacitate suà, quique ne soli quidem ipsi parceret, _upote qui et Manuelem Chrysoloram sapientem et summum illum virum barbam pediculosam adhuc semper nominet_, et Ambrosium monachum cui magis affectus est quam propriæ animæ, attonitum per contumeliam vocet.”—_Philelfi Epistolæ, p. 12._

[229] _Philelfi Satyræ, quartæ decadis, hecatosticha prima._

This satire concludes with the following atrocious address to the judges of Cosmo.

“En Mundum servat conjectum in vincula carcer,
Qui rebus momenta dabit non parva futuris.
Nunc etiam atque etiam vobiscum volvite curas,
Et lustrate animo quæ sint potiora saluti
Urbis consilia: his castas accommodet aures
Quisque suas. Vobis res coram publica sese
Offeret in medium, referens stragesque necesque
Venturas, ubi forte minus pro lege vel æquo
Supplicium sumptum fuerit de sonte nefando;
Aut etiam officium collatum munere civis.
Namque relegatus, si culpæ nomine mulctam
Pendeat, afficiet magnis vos cladibus omnes.”

[230] The passages in Filelfo’s Satires, in which he has attacked the character of Poggio, are very numerous. Those who wish to examine these passages may consult the following references.

_Decad. i. hecat. 5._ _Decad. ii. hecat. 1. 3._ _Decad. iii. hecat. 2. 10._ _Decad. iv. hecat. 7._ _Decad. v. hecat. 8. 9._ _Decad. vi. hecat. 10._ _Decad. viii. hecat. 1, 3, 5._ Such readers as are not possessed of a copy of _Aureæ Francisci Philelfii Poetæ Oratorisque celeberrimi Satyræ centum_, printed in octavo at Paris, anno 1518, (a book of rare occurrence) will probably be contented with the following specimen of what may be properly termed learned Billingsgate.

“Quæ rapidis natura polis, quæ causa sepulchri
Humano generi, quæ tanta licentia rerum,
Spumantes inter pateras cereremque voracem
Ostensurus erat Codrus; cum grande pepedit,
Rancidulum eructans post longa volumina verbum.
Hunc mox Oenepotes miratus rara profatur.
Rara inter Latias phœnix hæc pervolat urbes:
Hinc vomit et meiens grave cunctis reddit oletum.
Poggius arridet, simili dum peste tenetur.
Nam quascunque dapes affert, ut verna Canopi
Prælambens, rapidus vino sese obruit hospes.
Laudibus hinc miris effert Codrumque, bonumque
Oenepotam Nicolum: mox ne fortasse minoris
Se quisquam reputet, quod foetet olentius addit.”

[231] _Philelfi Epist. p. 12._

[232] _Poggii Opera, p. 339-342._

[233] “Verum nequaquam mirum videri debet, eum cujus mater Arimini dudum in purgandis ventribus et intestinis sorde diluendis quæstum fecerit, maternæ artis foetorem redolere. Hæsit naribus filii sagacis materni exercitii attrectata putredo, et continui stercoris fœtens halitus.”—_Poggii Opera, p. 165._

[234] The terms in which Poggio mentions this transaction are superlatively abusive, and whimsically gross. “Itaque Crysoloras moerore confectus, compulsus precibus, malo coactus, filiam tibi nuptui dedit a te corruptam, quæ si extitisset integra, ne pilum quidem tibi abrasum ab illius natibus ostendisset. An tu illam unquam duxisses uxorem si virginitatem per te servare potuisset? Tibi pater illam dedisset profugo, ignobili, impuro? Primariis suæ civitatis viris servabatur virgo, non tibi insulsæ pecudi et asello bipedali quem ille domi alebat tanquam canem aliquem solent senio et ætate confectum.”—_Poggii Opera, p. 167._

[235] “Sperasti, monstrum infandum hos tuos insulsissimos versus, in quibus etiam male latine loqueris, allaturos tibi laureolam, quâ fanaticum caput redimires. At stercoreâ coronâ ornabuntur fœtentes crines priapæi vatis.”—_Ibid, p. 169._

[236]

Lingua tibi mediâ, Poggi, plus parte secetur
Quâ nunquam lacerare probos et carpere cessas.
Improbe, quis talem tibi tantus tradidit artem
Auctor? An e stulto fatuoque et mentis egente
Te tuus insanum Lycolaus reddidit Utis,
Addictum vitio dirumque per omne volutum
Flagitium et facinus?—Tantum maledicere semper
Edoctus, cunctos decoret quos aurea virtus
Insequeris calamo, nequeas quos fulmine linguæ,
Quam nimius crassam potus vel crapula fecit,
Immanisque Venus. Tibi quæ tam dira voluptas,
Undantis pelago dum vini nocte dieque
Ebrius obrueris; dum tanquam immensa vorago
Quidquid pontus habet, quidquid vel terra vel aër
Vescendum peperit, latus tibi venter et ingens
Excepit; dum fœda Venus patiturque facitque
Omne genus probri: tactus te levius esto
Titillans, vesane, juvat redditque furentem
Et dulci qui tactus agit prurigine linguam:
Ut te communem præstes sapientibus hostem
Omnibus, et nulli parcas velut effera quædam
Vipera tabifero terram cœlumque veneno
Inficiens.

_Philelfi Satyræ. Decad. ii. Hecat. 3._

[237] _Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 158._—_Platina, tom. i. p. 406._

[238] “Sopravenendo poi Giovanni Vitellesco che chiamavano il Patriarca, entranono in tanto spavento i Romani, che non avevano pure animo d’aprir la bocca.”—_Platina, tom. i. p. 405._

[239] _Platina, tom. i. p. 406, 407._

[240] _Muratori Annali, tom. ix. p. 162, 163._

[241] _Ibid._—_Platina, tom. i. p. 407._

[242] The decree relative to the conversion of the Jews ordained amongst other things, that all diocesans should annually commission certain learned theologians to explain to them the word of God, in so plain a manner, that they might be convinced of their errors—that the Jews should be compelled, by the infliction of certain penalties, to attend the lectures of these theologians—that all infidels should be prohibited from keeping Christian servants or nurses—that no Christian should partake of any Jewish festivals—that the Jewish tradesmen should be strictly forbidden to buy, or take in pawn, any ecclesiastical books, chalices, crosses, or other church ornaments—that the Jews should be compelled to wear a distinguishing dress, and that they should live in a separate quarter of each town, at as great a distance as possible from any church. With regard to the converted Israelites, it was ordained, that whereas whatever goods or property they had obtained by usury, or by defrauding persons who were not to be found, became upon this conversion the property of the church; the council, in the name of the church, bestowed upon them all such property as a baptismal present—that the indigent converts should be relieved by the charitable assistance of the faithful—that they should be separated as much as possible from their unbelieving brethren—and that the ordinaries of each diocese should be directed to do all in their power to cause them to marry persons who had been born in the Christian faith.

[243] _Concil. tom. xxx. p. 162._

[244] “Turpem etiam illum abusum in quibusdam frequentatum ecclesiis, quo certis anni celebritatibus nonnulli cum mitrâ, baculo, ac vestibus pontificalibus more episcoporum benedicunt, alii ut reges ac duces induti, quod festum fatuorum vel innocentium, seu puerorum, in quibusdam regionibus nuncupatur, alii larvales et theatrales jocos, alii choreas et tripudia marium ac mulierum facientes, homines ad spectacula et cachinnationes movent, alii comessationes et convivia ibidem præparant; hæc sancta Synodus detestans, statuit et jubet tam ordinariis quam ecclesiarum decanis et rectoribus, sub pœnâ suspensionis omnium proventuum ecclesiasticorum trium mensium spatio, ne hæc aut similia ludibria, neque etiam mercantias seu negotiationes nundinarum in ecclesiis quæ domus orationis esse debent, ac etiam cæmeterio exercere amplius permittant, transgressoresque, per censuram ecclesiasticam, aliaque juris remedia punire non negligant, omnes autem consuetudines, statuta ac privilegia quæ his non concordant circa hæc decretis, nisi forte majores adjicerent pœnas, irritas esse hæc sancta synodus decernit.”

[245] _Concil. tom. xxx. p. 166._

[246] _Concil. tom. xxx. p. 180._

[247] On the 15th of October, 1435, the council condemned as heretical various propositions which had been lately maintained by Agostino di Roma, archbishop of Nazareth, in three elaborate theological tracts. Those whose anxiety to preserve the purity of the catholic faith leads them to wish to know what sentiments it is their duty to reject, and those who are interested in observing the niceties of theological distinctions, will perhaps be gratified by the following recital of the dangerous errors which incurred the severe reprehension and reprobation of the venerable synod of Basil.

“Et postissime scandalosam illam assertionem, erroneam in fide, in ipso libello contentam, quam piæ fidelium aures sine horrore audire non possunt, videlicet: Christus quotidie peccat; ex quo fuit Christus quotidie peccavit; quamvis de capite ecclesiæ Christo Jesu Salvatore nostro dicat se non intelligere, sed ad membra sua, quæ cum Christo capite unum esse Christum asseruit, intelligentiam ejus esse referendam dicat. Nec non et propositiones istas, et eis in sententiâ similes, quas in articulos damnatos in sacro Constantiensi Concilio incidere declarat, videlicet: Non omnes fideles justificati sunt membra Christi, sed soli electi, finaliter in perpetuum regnaturi cum Christo. Secundum ineffabilem præscientiam Dei sumuntur membra Christi, ex quibus constat ecclesia, quæ tamen non constat nisi ex eis qui secundum propositum electionis vocati sunt. Non sufficit Christo uniri vinculo caritatis, ut aliqui efficiantur membra Christi, sed requiritur alia unio. Has etiam quæ sequuntur: Humana natura in Christo, vere est Christus. Humana natura in Christo, est persona Christi. Ratio suppositalis determinans humanam naturam in Christo non realiter distinguitur ab ispâ naturâ determinatâ. Natura humana in Christo procul dubio est persona verbi; et verbum in Christo naturâ assumpta, est realiter persona assumens. Natura humana assumpta a verbo ex unione personali, est veraciter Deus naturalis et proprius. Christus secundum voluntatem creatam tantum diligit naturam humanam unitam personæ verbi, quantum diligit naturam divinam. Sicut duæ personæ in divinis sunt æqualiter diligibiles ita duæ naturæ in Christo, humana et divina, sunt æqualiter diligibiles propter personam communem. Anima Christi videt Deum tam clare et intense, quantum clare et intense Deus videt seipsum. Quas quidem propositiones, et alias ex eâdem radice procedentes, in prædicto libello contentas, tamquam erroneas in fide, damnat et reprobat hæc sancta Synodus.”—_Concil. tom. xxx. p. 172._

[248] _Panormitani Epist. lib. v. ep. 118_, as referred to by the French and Italian translators of the life of Poggio.

[249] _Apostolo Zeno Dissertazioni Vossiane, tom. i. p. 37, 38._

[250] _Poggii Opera, p. 65, 67._ _Mehi vita Ambrosii Traversarii, p. lii._

[251] The catalogue of reliques of Roman architecture, which Poggio has inserted in the interesting pröemium to his dialogue _De varietate Fortunæ_, evinces the diligence and care with which he had surveyed the ruins of ancient Rome. This catalogue did not escape the extensive researches of Gibbon, who has introduced it into the 71st chapter of his _Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire._

[252] “Poggius noster sæpe mecum est; reliquias civitatis probe callens nos comitatur.”—_Ambrosii Traversarii Epistolæ, p. 407._

In a letter to Bartolomeo Facio, Poggio thus invites him to visit the ruins of Rome. “Video te cupere urbem visere, et certe nisi incoeptum opus, ut ais, impediret hortarer te ad inspiciendas reliquias ejus urbis quæ quondam orbis lumen præclarissimum fuit. Equidem quamvis in eâ jam pluribus annis ab ipsâ juventute fuerim versatus, tamen quotide tamquam novus incola tantarum rerum admiratione obstupesco, recreoque persæpe animum visu eorum ædificiorum, quæ stulti propter ingenii imbecillitatem a Dæmonibus facta dicunt.”—_Facius de viris Illustribus, p. 97._

[253] _Mehi Vita Ambrosii Traversarii, p. lii._

[254] _Mehi Vita Ambrosii Traversarii, p. lii._ _Poggii Epist. citat. a Ton. tom. i. p. 258._

[255] _Poggii Opera, p. 321._

[256] _Ibid._

[257] _Ibid, p. 329._

[258] _Mehi Vita Ambrosii Traversarii, p. lii. liii._

[259] From an expression which Poggio uses in a letter on the subject of Francesco’s conduct, addressed to Andreolo Giustiniano, it should seem, either that the busts did not answer the expectation which he had formed concerning the exquisiteness of their workmanship, or that he suspected that Francesco had substituted inferior pieces of sculpture, in the place of those destined for him by Suffretus. The following is the expression in question. “Cum Suffretus quidem Rhodius ei consignasset tria capita marmorea, et signum integrum duorum fere cubitorum, quæ Franciscus se ad me allaturum promisit, _capita quædam dedit_, signo autem me fraudavit,” &c. Perhaps, however, quædam is, by an error of the press, substituted for quidem.

[260] _Poggii Opera, p. 329._

[261] _Poggii Opera, p. 329._

[262] The admirer of ancient art will find the principles, the observance of which led to the perfection to which it was carried by the Greeks, clearly and forcibly explained in the eighteenth, nineteenth, and twentieth pages of Mr. Fuseli’s _Lectures on Painting_. Of this work it may be asserted, that hardly any composition in the English language comprehends an equal quantity of thought in the same compass of expression. Almost every sentence which it contains is a theme of reflection, a text, pregnant with the most useful instruction.

[263] _Poggii Epist. lvii. p. 181._

[264] _Poggii Opera, p. 357, & seq._

[265] _Poggii Opera, p. 366._

[266] _See note to Tonelli’s translation, vol. i. p. 264._

[267] _Poggii vita a Recanatio, p. xiv._

[268] _Poggii vita a Recanatio, p. xiv._

[269] This dialogue was, for upwards of three centuries, buried in the repositories of Manuscripts which are stored up in a few public libraries on the continent of Europe. In the year 1802, the author of this work was fortunate enough to find in the then _Bibliothéque Nationale_, now _Bibliothéque du Roi_, at Paris, a very legible manuscript copy of it, which he carefully transcribed; and soon after his return home he printed a very small impression of it for distribution among his literary friends. A copy of this impression having been sent by him to the late Dr. Parr, that eminent scholar urged him to reprint and publish it, with a few necessary corrections. The wish of Parr was complied with, and the Dialogue was brought out in the year 1807, with a Latin preface and a Latin dedication to the late Mr. Roscoe. In the year 1823, the Signor Pecchioli published at Florence a new edition of it, which is enriched with various readings from a MS. in the Riccardi library.

[270] In the first edition of the work it was stated that Poggio, on his marriage, not only parted with his mistress, but also deprived four of his illegitimate children, who were then living, of an inheritance which he had secured to them by a Bull of legitimacy. This statement, however, rests only on the authority of Valla, the bitter personal enemy of Poggio, and it has been satisfactorily proved by the Cavaliere Tonelli (_Ton. Tr. vol. i. p. 266._) that this imputation is of the number of those calumnies in which the scholars of the fifteenth century were, in their contests with each other, so apt to indulge.

[271] _Poggii Epistolæ lvii. epist. xxxvii._

[272] _Poggii Opera, p. 355._

[273] The correspondence above referred to, which was first brought into public notice by the Cavaliere Tonelli, (_Ton. Tr. vol. i. p. 276-283_) is to be found in the Riccardi and the Hafod manuscripts.

[274] _Ton. Tr. vol. i. p. 284, Note._

[275] _Mehi Vita Ambrosii Traversarii, p. xxxiii._