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AUTHOR:

M'CRIE, REV. THOMAS

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HISTORY OF THE
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1827

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LIBRARY

I *f

HISTOllY

OF THE

REFORMATION IN ITALY.

\ •'

«»

HISTORY

OF THE

r.iRi

PROGRESS AND SUPPRESSION

OF TlIK

REFORMATION IN ITALY

IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY:

INCLUDING A SKETCH OF THE HISTORY OF THE
REFORMATION IN THE ORISONS. ,

BY THOxMAS M^CRIE, D. D.

WILLIAM BLACKWOOD, EDINBURGH: AND
T. CADELL, STRAND, LONDON.

M.DCCC.XXVIL

PREFACE.

PRINTF-n nV A UAI.FOUR AMI ( O.

A CONSIDERABLE number of years has elapsed
since I was convinced that the reformed opinions
had spread to a much greater extent in Italy than is
commonly supposed. This conviction I took an
opportunity of making public, and at the same time
expressed a wish that some individual who had
leisure would pursue the inquiry and fill up what
I considered as a blank in the History of the Re-
formation. Hearing of none who was willing to
accept the invitation, I lately resolved to arrange
the materials relating to the subject which had oc-
curred to me in the course of my reading, with the
addition of such facts as could be discovered by a
more careful search into the most probable sources
of information.

To some of the quarters from which the most
interesting information might be expected, I enter-

:L6 4i20

rilEFACE.

PREFACE*

Vll

tallied no hope of finding access ; nor shall I in-
quire at present why the late revolutions which
have led to the fuller disclosure of the mysteries of
the Spanish, should have sealed up those of the
Roman Inquisition. Unfortunately none of the
Italian protestants in the sixteenth century thought
of recording the facts connected with the religious
movement which issued in their expulsion from
their native country ; a task which was not al-
together neglected hy those who were driven from
Spain for their attachment to the same cause.
Writers of the Roman Catholic persuasion, on the
other liand, ai)pear to have agreed, from an early
period, to pass over a subject at once ungrateful
and dangerous ; or, if they did touch it, to repre-
sent any agitation which took place as exceedingly
slight and transient, and as produced by a few in-
dividuals of no note or consideration, who had suf-
fered themselves to be led astray by fondness for
novelty. Facts which contradicted this representa-
tion were indeed to be found in writings composed
during the struggle, but these were afterwards care-
fully suppressed; and the Lnle.v Exjmrgatorius
of Rome was itself reformed in some instances,
with the view of preventing it from being known
that certain individuals had once been branded with
the stigma of heresy. In these circumstances, the

modern historian, if he does not choose to rest
in general statements, must have recourse to the
tedious process of examining the epistolary corre-
s])ondence of those wlio lived in that age, the me-
moirs of private individuals, and dedications and
prefaces to books on various subjects; while at
the same time he must take care that the editions
which he consults are original or at least unmuti-
lated.

The labour attending this task has been in no
small degree lightened by the numerous and valu-
able collections relating to literary and ecclesiasti-
cal history whicli John George Schelhorn, the learn-
ed superintendent and librarian of Memmingen,
published in Latin and in his native tongue, during
tlie first half of the eighteenth century. Some of
his statements respecting the progress which the
Reformation had made in Italy brought forward
Cardinal Quirini, the honorary and learned keeper
of the Vatican Library ; and, as is usual in such
cases, truth was elicited from the controversy
which ensued. In 1 765 the Specimen Italice Eefor.
matcc of Daniel Gerdes, well known by his general
History of the Reformation, made its appearance, in
which that indefatigable writer collected all the
facts which he had met with connected with that
subject. Though labouring under the defects of a

Vlll

niEFACE.

PKEFACE.

posthumous ])u})lication, this work is of great utili-
ty, and has induced later Italian writers to hring
forward facts which they might otherwise, like
their predecessors, have passed unnoticed. Had I
seen this work earlier, it might have saved me much
trouhle; hut I do not regret the circumstance of its
having come so late into my liands, as I wns led, in
the ahsence of such a help, into researches which I
would liave hecn tempted to decline, hut which
liave enahled me to supply in part its defects, and
to correct some of the mistakes into which its au-
thor had inadvertently fallen.

The Historia Reformationis llcctlcarum Kccle-
smnm, hy Kosius de Porta, has furnished me with
a numher of important facts respecting the Italian
refugees. To throw light on the settlements which
they formed in the (irisons I have given a sketch
of the history of the Reformation in that country,
which I trust will not he unacceptahle to the reader.
It has not heen in my power to procure several
Italian works, which I have reason to think would
have helped to illustrate parts of my subject. Some
of the most curious and valuable of those quoted in
the following pages I had the opportunity of examin-
ing in Holland, and particularly in the library of
the venerable iMons. Chevalier, one of the pastors
of the French church in Amsterdam, whose un-

common politeness I have to acknowledge, in not
only allowing me the freest use of his books, but
also in transmitting to me a number of extracts
wliich I had not time to make during my short stay
in that city.

Amidst sudi a multiplicity of facts, as to many
of which I had not the advantage arising from a
comparison of different authorities, I do not flatter
myself that with all my care I have kept free from
mistakes ; and shall feel obliged to any one who shall
put it in my power to correct the errors which I may
have committed.

It was my intention, even after the work went to
the press, to include in this volume an account of
the progress and suppression of the Reformation
in Spain. This I have found impracticable, and
accordingly have reserved that part of my under-
taking for a separate publication. I regret this de-
lay the less, that it will enable me to avail myself
of an extensive collection of Spanish books which
has been lately purchased by the Faculty of Advo-
cates.

FAlinhyrgh, Mh May, 1827.

■vt.

CONTENTS.

I'HAPTKR I.

ST.TE or „E,.,o,0>, ,H ,TA,.V BErOHE THE E„A Or THE UE """'

FOR3rATlO.V t iHt RE-

CHAPTER ir.

IKTRODLCTIOX OF THE REFORMED OPIVIOXS TKTO ITAT Y AND
CAUSES OF THEIR PROGRESS . *'AE1, AND

CHAPTER rrr.

PROGRESS OF THE RFFnonriTT^ ^^

STATF. .X. J REFORMED DOCTRINE IN THE DIFFEREVT

STATES AND CITIES OF ITALY . "^-"tNT

CHAPTER IV.

3.ISCELLANE0i:s FACTS RESPECTING THE STATF n.

FORMED OPINIONS IN ITALY . '''^ """^ «^-

• . . . 138

CHAPTER V.

MPPRESSION OF THE REFORMATION IV ITAT Y

189

%
.*

Xll

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER VI.

FOREIGN ITALIAN CIIUIICHES, WITH ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE
REFORMATION IN THE ORISONS ....

■lilll ■ ^

• »

APPENDI

INDEX

Page

308
109
427

HISTORY^

OP THE

Ah.

IIEFORMATION IN ITALY.

CHAPTER I.

STATE OF RELIGION IN ITALY BEFORE THE ERA

OF THE REFORMATION.

IT is an undoubted fact, though it may appear
improbable to those who are imperfectly acquaint-
ed with ecclesiastical history, that the supremacy
claimed by the bishops of Rome was resisted in
Italy after it had been submitted to by the most
remote churches of the West. The diocese of Italy,
of which Milan was the capital, remained long in-
dependent of Rome, and practised a different ritual,
according to what was called the Ambrosian Li-
turgy. It was not till the eleventh century that
the popes succeeded in establishing their authority
at Milan, and prevailed on the bishops of that sec

2 IlISTOllY OF THE llEKOKMATION IN ITALY.

to procure the archi-episcopal pall froin Rome.
When this was first proposed, it excited great in-
dignation on the part of the people as well as of the
clergy, who maintained that the Ambrosian church,
according to the most ancient institutions, was free
and indej)endent ; that the Roman pontiff had no
right to judge or dispose of any thing connected
with it ; and that they could not, without incurring
disgrace, subject to a foreign yoke that see which
had preserved its freedom during so many ages.*

As the supremacy of the bishop of Rome met
with strenuous opposition, so were there individuals
in tile darkest age who resisted the progress of
those superstitions which proved the firmest sup-
port of the pontifical power. Among these was
Claud, bishop of Turin, who, in the ninth century,
distinguished liimself not only by his judicious com-
mentaries on Scripture, but also by his vigorous op-
position to the worship of images and pilgrimages to
Rome ; on which account he, with his followers in
Italy, have been branded as Arians by popish his-
torians, who are ever ready, upon the slightest
pretexts, to impute odious opinions to those who
have dissented from the dominant church. f

• Petri Damiani Opusc. p. 5. The archbishop of Milan having
consulted Roboald, bishop of Alva, the latter replied, that '^ he would
sooner have his nose slit" than advise him to comply with the demand
of pope Honorius — " quod prius sustineret nasum suum scindi usque
ad oculos quam daret sibi consilium ut susciperet Roraae stolam," &c.
(Ughelli Italia Sacra, torn. iv. p. 189.)

t Dupin, Hist. Eccl. tome vii. p. 3. Simon, Hist. Crit. du N.
Test. chap. xxv. VVeiemanni Memorab. Hist. Eccles. torn. i. p. 761.

IIlbTOJt V Ol THE HEFOKMATION IN ITALY. 3

Soon after the bishops of Rome had secured the
obedience of the Italian clergy, and silenced the op-
position which arose from Turin, their attention
was called to a new class of opponents. Those
Christians, known in history by the several names
of Vaudois, AValdenses, and Albigenses, who con-
demned the corruptions by which the church waa
now everywhere infected, penetrated through the
Alps into Italy ; and had already, in the year 1180,
established themselves in Lombardy and Puglia,
where they received frequent visits from their bre-
thren in other countries.* At an early part of the
thirteenth century they were to be found in the ca-
pital of Christendom. In the year 1231, pope Gre-
gory IX. published a furious bull against them,
ordaining that they should be sought out and de-
livered to the secular arm to be punished, and that
such as harboured them should be declared in-
famous, along with their children to the second
generation. The senator, or chief magistrate, of
Rome set on foot an inquisition agreeably to the mu-
nicipal laws of the city, in consequence of this bull,
which was also sent by the pope to the archbishop
of Milan, with injunctions to see it executed in his
diocese and those of his suffragans, where heresy
had already made an alarming progress. That it
had also spread in Naples and Sicily appears from
a letter to the pope by the emperor Frederick II.

Legtr, Hist, des Eglises Evangeliques, part. ii. p. 20^.

4 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

who condemned such as were convicted of heresy to
the fire, but allowed tlie bishops to show mercy
where they thoui^lit it i)ro[)er, prov^ided the tongues
of those who were pardoned were cut out, so tliat
they mii^lit not ag;n\n blaspheme.* At Genoa, and
in some of the neighbouring cities, they had tlieir
houses and other receptacles in which they assembled,
with their barl)s or religious teachers.f Notwith-
standing the ])ersecutions to which they were ex-
posed, the Waldenses maintained themselv^es in
Italy ; they kept up a regular correspondence with
their brethren in other countries; and in the four-
teenth century they had academies in Lombardy,
which were frequented by youth, and supported by
contributions, from churches of the same faith in
Bohemia and Poland. :f

In the year L'iTO, the Vaudois who resided in the
valleys of Pragela, finding themselves straitened in
their territories, sent some of their number into Italy
to look out for a convenient settlement. Having dis-
covered, in Calabria, a district uncultivated and thin-
ly peopled, the deputies bargained with the proprie-

■ Rainaldi Aniial. ad ann. 1231, ii. xiv. 18 — 20. Compare the first
Document in the Appendix to Allix's Remarks on the History of the
Ancient Churches of Piedmont, pp. 297, 298.

t VWusmanni Memor. Hist. lorn. i. p. 1096. Mons. Court de Go-
belin, in his Diciionnaire Ettjrnolog-ique, says that the Vaudois were
called Barbcts, ^' parce que leur pasteurs s'appelloient Barbe du mot
Venetien Barhuy un ancien, un chef a Barbe."

X Wolfii Memor. Lect. torn. i. 312. Beze, Hist. Eccl. des Eglises
Ref. de France, tome i. pp. 35, 36. Perrin, Hist, de Vaudois, part. i.
pp. 2iO— 242.

HISTORY OF THK KKPOnMATION IN ITALY. 5

tors of the soi], in consequence of which a number
ot their brethren emigrated thither. AVithin a short
time the place assumed a new appearance ; villax^es
rose in every direction ; the Jiills resounded with die
bleating of flocks; and the valleys were covered with
corn and vines. The prosperity of the new settlers
excited the envy of the neighbouring villagers, who
«-ere irritated at the distance which they preserved,
and at their refusal to join with them in their revels
ami dissipation. The priests fin.ling tliat they receiv-
ed nothing from them but their tithes, which they

l'.-'H regnlarlyaccordingtothe stipulationenteredinto
with the proprietors ; and j>erceiv,no that they prac-
tised none of the ceremonies usual at the interring
of their dead, that they had no images in their cha-
pels, did not go in pilgrimnge to consecrated places.
an<l had their children educated by foreign teihers
-1.0... they liel.I in great honour, began to raise the
cry of heresy against the simple and inoffensive
strangers. Cut the landlords, gratified to see their
grounds so highly improved, and to receive large
rents for what had formerly yielded them nothing
nterposed ,n behalf of their tenants : and the prie tf
finding the value of their tithes yearly to increase
resolved prudently to keep silence.* ThecolonTre:
ceived accessions to its members, by the arrival of
the r bre hren who fled from the persecutions raised
against t em in Piedmont and France ; it continued
to flourish when the Reformation dawned on Italy

*if

Perrin, i. 196—198.

i >l

6 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATIOX IN ITALY.

and after subsisting for nearly two centuries, it was
basely and barbarously exterminated.*

It is a curious circumstance, that the first gleam
of light at the revival of letters shone on that re-
mote spot of Italy, where the Vaudois had found an
asylum. Petrarch first acquired the knowledge of
the Greek tongue from Barlaam, a monk of Cala-
bria ; and Boccacio was taught it by Leontius Pi-
latus, who was a hearer of Barlaam, if not also a na-
tive of the sameplace,and for whom his grateful pupil
procured an appointment among the professors of
Florence.! The example and the instructions of two
individuals, however eminent for genius and popu-
larity, could not impart a permanent impulse to the
minds of their countrymen, or overcome the ob-
stacles which at that time opposed the cultivation of
ancient letters. But the taste which they had been
the means of creating w^as revived, in the beginning
of the fifteenth century, by those learned Greeks
whom the feeble successors of Constantine sent to
the papal court, to implore succours against the over-
whelming power of the Turks, and who were induced
to teach their native language in different parts of
Italy. The fall of the eastern empire, and the tak-
ing of Constantinople in 1453, brought them in
greater numbers to that country, while it added im-

• Perrin, i. 190. Leger, P. ii. chap. i. p. 7. Morland, Hist, of the
Evang. Churches of Piedmont, p. 194.

t Sismondi, Histoire des Repubhques Itahennes, tome vi. pp. 160

162^ 16S_170. Boccaccio calls Barlaam a native of Thcssaly,

(Thessalonicensis) but Petrarch says he was a Calabrian, although
he affected to be a Greek. (Hodius de Griecis lllustribus, p. 2—5.)

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 7

mensely to the stock of manuscripts, which indi-
viduals had for some time before been in the habit
of procuring from the east.* And the art of print-
ing, which was invented about the same period, from
Its novelty, and its tendency to multiply the num-
ber of copies of a book indefinitely and to afford
them at a cheap rate, gave an incalculable accelera-
tion to the human mind in its pursuit of knowledge.
Ancient literature was now cultivated with the
greatest enthusiasm ; it spread with amazing rapidity
through Italy, and surmounting the Alps, reached
witliui a short period the most northern extremities of
i^uro]>e. 77]e liumau mind was roused from the
shunber by which it had been oppressed for ages ; its
faculties were sharpened by the study of languages •
tlie stores of ancient knowledge were laid open ; the
barbarism of the schools was exploded ; and opin^

edL';Sa7;t^;?''f"' '""^'.'^^.'^^^'^ -««-- has been ascrib-
conqueror. (H.to.e^^LfaLT^^^^^^^ Lt^TisI ^x^^

of ancient literature languished after his death it is u't k/
that u was afterwards revived by the arrival "natl of Gre'^ '
and what was the fall of Constantinople but the caL Ironh /T '
calamities which at fir-f m,i„. i ..: , <=»wstrophe of those

to which their sue sfo" w trLtrTed r'«" h" " ''''' ^"'^'
the wreck of their literary trersures ? "■ '"'' "^"^"'^ "■"!

8 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 9

ions and practices which had long been held sa-
cred, and which a little before it would have been
deemed impious to suspect, were now openly called
in question, opposed, and repudiated. The rise of
the papal monarchy, and the corruption of Chris-
tianity may be traced in a great measure to the i.^-
norance and barbarism which fell on Western Eu-
rope, and increased during the middle ages : the
revival of letters, by banishing the darkness, broke
the spell on which the empire of superstition rested,
and opened the eyes of mankind on the chains with
which their credulity had suffered their spiritual
rulers to load them.

A taste for letters does not, indeed, imply a
taste for religion, nor did the arrival of the former
necessarily infer the reformation of the latter. Some
of the worst of men, such as pope Alexander VI.
and his sons, encouraged literature and the arts ;
and in the panegyrics which the learned men of
that age lavished on their patronesses, we find
courtezans of Rome joined with ladies of the most il-
lustrious birth.* The minds of many of the restor-
ers of literature in the fifteenth century were com-
pletely absorbed by their favourite studies. Their
views often did not extend beyond the discovery of
an old manuscript, or printing and commenting on
a classical author. Some of them carried their
admiration of the literary monuments of pagan
Greece so far as to imbibe the religious sentiments

• Kosroe's Life of Leo X. vol. i. p. 3S.5, 336. vol. ii. 220.

which they inculcated ; and in the excess of their
enthusiasm they did not scruple to give a species of
adoration to the authors of such '* divine works." *
Others showed by their conduct that they were as
great slaves to worldly passions as other men, and
ready to support any establishment, however cor-
rupt, which promised to gratify their avarice, their
ambition, or their love of pleasure. Lorenzo de
Medici, the munificent patron of letters, and him-
self an elegant scholar, testified the most extrava-
gant joy at his son's being elected a cardinal at seven
years of age,f and gave the destined pontiff an edu-
cation better fitted for a secular potentate than the /
head of the church ; a circumstance which probably
contributed more to bring about the Reformation
than all the patronage he lavished on literature and
the arts. Bembo and Sadoleti were both apostoli-
cal secretaries, and in their oflficial character com-
posed and subscribed the most tyrannical edicts of
the court of Rome. The former, of whom it has
been said, that he *« opened a new Augustan age,
emulated Cicero and \'irgil with equal success, and

• Marsil. Ficini Pref. in Plotinum ; et Epist. lib. viii. fol. 14L
Sismondi, Hist, des Rep. Ital. tome viii. p. 238-9. Roscoe's Life of
Lorenzo de Medici, vol. i. p. 1G2, 163, 169. Ginguene, Hist. Litt.
d'ltalie, tome iii. p. 362.

t Roscoe's Life of Leo X. vol. i. p. 19. Another learned man did
not scruple to write, on the occasion of this advancement, in the fol-
lowing strain : " Semen autem Joannis ejusdem, in quo benedicentur
omnes gentes, est Joannes Laurentice genitus, cui adhuc adolescen-
tulo divina providentia mirabiliter Cardineam contulit dignitatem,
futuri pontificis auspicium." (Ficini Epist. lib. ix. fol. 159. Venet'
U95.)

10 HISTOUy OF THE REFOKMATION IN ITALY.

recalled in his writings the elegance and purity of
Petrarca and of lioccaccio," has his name affixed to
the infamous Bull, vindicating the sale of indul-
gences ; and the latter disgraced his elegant pen by
drawing and signing the decree which condemned
Luther as a heretic, ordaining that, if he conti-
nued obstinate, he should be seized and sent to
Home, and authorizing the sentence of excommu-
nication and interdict to be pronounced against
all powers, civil or ecclesiastical, (the emperor
excepted,) secular or regular, dukes, marquises,
universities, conuuunities, who should receive or
harbour him.* 7^iius did these two polite scholars
share between them the responsibility of measures
which had it for their object to crush the most
glorious attempt ever made to burst the chains of
despotism ; and in compensation for the stigma in-
flicted upon literature by the conduct of its repre-
sentatives, we must be contented with being told, that
they " first demonstrated that the purity of the
Latin idiom was not incompatible with the forms
of business, and the transactions of public affciirs."
There are, I doubt not, persons who will be gra-
tified with the infonnation which I have it in my
power to afford them, that, before the Reformation,
there were sums issued from the exchequer of the
Vatican, as salaries to learned men, whose task it
was to reform the hullarhuu, by picking out all
the solecisms which had crept into it, and substitut-

• Uoscoe's Leo X. vol. iii. app. no. cli. and clix.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 1 1

ing purer and more classical words in their room *
\V\\o knows to what advantages this goodly work
of expurgation would have led? What elegant
reading would not the papal bulls have furnished
to our modern literati, if the barbarous reformers
had not interfered, and, by their ill-timed clamour,
turned the public attention from words to things —
from blunders in grammar to perversions of law and

gospel !

But though many of the revivers of literature
intended nothing less than a reformation of religion,
they nevertheless contributed greatly to forward this
desirable object. It was impossible to check the
progress of the light which had been struck up, or
to prevent the new spirit of inquiry from taking a
direction towards religion and the church. Among
other books which had long remained unknown or
neglected, copies of the sacred writings in the ori-
ginal languages, with the works of the Christian
fathers, were now eagerly sought out, printed, and
circulated, both in the original and in translations ;
nor could persons of ordinary discernment and can-
dour peruse these without perceiving, that the
church had declined far from the Christian stand-
ard, and the model of primitive purity, in faith,
worship, and morals. This truth forced itself on
the minds even of those who were interested in the

* " Ante paucos annos, Ilhonia.', ex arario pontificis, eruditis ali-
quot salarium dari solitum est, qui, e pontificuni Uteris, soloecisnios
toUerent." (Erasmi Rotenl. Apologia, refellens suspiciones D. Jaco-
bi Latomi, p. 16. Lovanii, 1519.)

12 HISTOUV OF THE REFORMATION IX

rrALY.

support of the existing corruptions. Tliey felt that
they stood on iin^olid ground, and trembled to think
that the secret of their power had Ix^en discovered,
and was in danger of becoming every day better
and more extensively known. This paralysed the
exertions which they made in their own' defence,
and was a principal cause of tliat dilatory, vacillat-
ing, and contradictory procedure which characteris-
ed the policy of tlie court of Rome in its first at-
tempts to check the progress of the reformed opin-
ions.

The poets of the middle ages, known by the name
of l^roubadours, had joined witfi the Vaudois in con-
demning the reigning vices of the priests; and se-
veral of tlie superstitious notions and practices by
which the clergy increased their power and wealth
were assailed in those lively satires, which were
written in the ancient language of Provence, but
read by the inhabitants of Italy and Spain. It is a
curious circumstance, and may be considered f:s re-
flecting honour on a sect whic'h has been so umner-
cifully traduced by its adversaries, that the Noble
Lei/fofi, and other religious poems of the Vau-
dois, which are among the earliest and rarest mo-
numents of Provencal poetry, contain fe^v of those
satirical reflections on the clergy, which abound in
the writings of their contemporaries who remained
in the Romish church. " Indulgences, (says one of
the latter,) pardons, God and the devil,— all, the
priests make use of. To some they allot paradise
by their pardons: others they send to hell bv their

HISTORY OF THE REFOKMATIOX IN rfALY. 13

exconnnunications. There are no crimes for which
pardon cannot be obtained from the monks : for
money they grant to renegades and usurers that
sei)ulture which they deny to the poor who have
nothing to pay. To live at ease, to buy good fish,
fine wheat-bread, and exquisite wines, is their great
object during the whole year. God grant me to be
a monk, if salvation is to be purchased at this price !"
" If God (says another troubadour,) save those whose
sole merit lies in loving good cheer, and i)aying their
court to women — if the black monks, the white
monks, the templars, the hospitallers, gain heaven,
then St. Peter and St. Andrew were great fools to
submit to such torments for the sake of a paradise
which costs others so little."*

From the earliest dawn of letters in Italy, the
corruptions of the Roman Church had been dis-
covered by persons who entertained no thought of
renouncing her communion. Besides the severe
allusions which he has made to this subject in dif-
ferent parts of his immortal poem,t Dante wrote

• Si iTionge niers vol dieus que sian sal,

Per pro manjar ni per femnas tenir,

Ni mongc blanc, per boulas a mentir,

Ni per erguelh Temple ni Espital,

Ni canonge per prestar a renieu.

Bene tene per fol sanli Peir', sanh Andrieu,

Que sofriro per Dieu aital tunnen,

S'aquest s'en van aissi a salvamen.
(Raymond de Castelnau : Renouard, Choix des Poesies Orig. dea
Troubadours, tome iv. p. 383.)
t Paradiso, Cant. 9. 18. 29. 32. Inferno, Cant. 19. In this last pass-

14 HIbTOKY OF THE KEFOltM ATION IN ITALY.

a treatise in defence of the emperor against the pa-
pal claims, in which he proves that the imperial
power was undivided and independent of the Roman
see, speaks disrespectfully of tiie reigning pope as
a decretalist and no divine, and inveighs against
his predecessors and their defenders, as notorious
for amhition, avarice, and imprudence, and as per-
sons, who showed themselves to be children of
iniquity and the devil, while they boasted that they
were sons of the church. * Petrarch and Boccaccio
euii)loyed, each in his own style, their wit and hu-
mour in exposing the frauds, and lashing the vices
of the clergy ; not sparing the dignitaries of the
church and the sovereign pontiffs themselves.
They were followed by others of tlieir countrymen,
both in prose and verse ; and the lampoons against
priests and friars which became common in other
countries were imitations, and in many instances
translations, of those of the Italian poets and satir-
ists. In the beginning of the fifteenth century,

age, as elsewhere, the poet asserts that Rome is meant by Babylon, in
the book of the Revelation.

Quella, ehe con le sette teste nacque,

Et da le diece coma hebb' argoniento.

Fin che virtute al suo raarito piacque.

Fatto v' havete Dio d'oro et d'argento,

Et che altr' e da voi a I'idolatre,

Se non ch'egli uno, et da voi n'orate cento ?
• Wolhi Lect. JVIemor. torn. i. 498 — 301. ii. 683, 695. The Mo-
nnrchia of Dante was translated from the original Latin into Italian
by Marsilio Ficini toward the close of the fifteenth century. Though
not printed, it was put into the Index Prohibitorius of Rome for the
year 15.59.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 15

Laurentius \'alla, " who rescued literature from the
grave, and restored to Italy the splendour of her
ancient eloquence," * wrote against the pretended
donation of Constantine, and various papal abuses.
This learned Italian had advanced far before his
age in every species of knowledge : as a gramma-
rian, a critic, a philosopher, and a divine, he was
equally distinguished. His scholia on the New
Testament, in which he proposes numerous correc-
tions on the Vulgate, display an intimate acquaint-
ance with the Greek language ; and in his dialogue
on free-will he defends with much acuteness the
doctrine on that subject, and on predestination, af-
terwards espoused l)y Luther and Calvin, f The
freedom of his sentiments exposed him to the re-
sentment of the patrons of ignorance ; and Valla
was condemned to the flames, a punishment from
which lie was saved by the protection of Alphonsus
V. of Arragon. :j:

Contemporary with Valla was Poggio Bracciolini
the author of an eloquent and pathetic description of
the martyrdom of Jerome of Prague, of which he was
an eye-witness, who employed his wit in exposing
the vices of the clergy, and the ignorance and absur-
dities of the preachers of that time, in his dialogues
on avarice, luxury, and hypocrisy. That such free
doms should have been permitted in a pontifical

• Erasmi Epist. lib. vii. ep. 3.

t Lauren tii Vallae Opera, Basiles, 1540, fol.

^ ^^Z'- "'f • ^'^'' "^PP- ^^^' ^'^2. Wolfius, ut supra, ii 7 Gin
guene. Hist. Litter, d'ltalie, tome vii. p. 349. '""

,-2

16 HISTORY or THE KKFOKMATION IN ITALY.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 17

secretary, must excite surprise ; and tolerant and
friendly to learned men as Nicholas V. was, it is
probable that Poggio would have suffered for his
temerity, had he not secured the protection of his
master, by writing an invective against his rival,
the anti-pope Amedaeus.* The writings of Baptista,
the modern poet of Mantua, who flourished in the
end of the fifteenth century, abound with censures
of the corru[)t manners of the court of Rome, which
deserve the more credit, as they proceeded from a
friar, whose verses are at least as nuich distinguish-
ed for their moral purity as for their classical ele-

gance.f

It has been common to place the Florentine
monk, Jerome Savonarola, among the witnesses of
the truth before the Reformation ; and some have
called him the Luther of Italy.:|: Others have de-
scribed him as an ambitious fanatic and turbulent
demagogue, who, by laying claim to the gift of
prophecy and inmiodiate intercourse with heaven,
sought to excite the people against their rulers,

• Giiiguene, vol. vii. p. 308, 313, 319. Shepherd's Life of Poggio
Bracciolini, pp. 88, 428.

t .... Venalia nobis

Templa, sacerdotes, altaria, sacra, coronte,
Ignes, thura^ preces ; ccelum est venale, Deusque.

Ite lares Italos, et fundamenta nialorum,
Romuleas arces et pontificaha tecta,
Colluviem scelerum, ^c.

(Baptista Mantuanus, lib. iii. De Calam. Temp.)
X M. Flacii lUyrici Testes Veritatis, p. 890. Henr. Hottingeri Hist.
Eccl. Sec. XV. part. iv. p. 62. Wolfii Lect. Memor. torn. i. p. 800,
801.

civil and ecclesiastical, and to gratify his own
ambition, by humbling his superiors. In this light,
his character has been drawn, not only by the in-
terested advocates of the court of Rome, but also
by the warm admirers of the house of Medici,
whose attempts to establish their dominion over
Florence he vigorously resisted.* It cannot be
denied that the mind of Savonarola was strongly
tinged with the superstition of the age in which he
lived, while the fervour of his zeal for piety and
liberty appears to have subjected him to the illu-
sions of an over-heated imagination ; but on the
other hand, the best and most enlightened men of
that time bear unequivocal testimony to his sanctity,
integrity, and patriotism, as well as to the irresisti-
ble i)ower of his eloquence. f Besides denouncing
the tyranny of the court of Rome, and calling for

• Roscoe's Lorenzo, vol. ii. p. 2G9, and Leo X. vol. i. p. 278.

t Marsilii Ficini Epistolae, lib. xii. f. 197. Joan. Fr. Pici Miran-
dula^ Opera, toui. ii. p. 40. Philip de Comines, liv. iii. chap. v.
Guicciardini, Istor. lib. iii. J. F. Picus, de Injusta Excommu-
nicatione. Pro Hier. Savonarolae Innocentia ; apud Wolfii Lect.
Memor. ii. 3A — 48. Thomas Erastus published, in 1569, " Defensio
Libelli Hieronymi Savonarola^ de Astrologia Divinatrice, adversus
Christ. Strathmionem." In 1674, Jaques Quetif published the
letters of Savonarola, with a life of the author by Jo. Fr. Picus,
illustrated witli notes of his own. John Francis Budieus, in his
youth, published a dissertation unfavourable to the Florentine monk,
of which he afterwards, with great candour, wrote a refutation. Both
dissertations are printed in his Parerga Historico-Theologica, pp.
280 — 398. HaliE Magd. 1703. Compare Schelhorn, Ergoetzhch-
keiten aus der Kirchenhistorie und Litteratur, t. i. p. 198, ike. The
modern writer who has given the most impartial account of Savona-
rola is Sismondi. (Hist, des Rep. Ital. tome xii. jmssiin.) Specimens
of his eloquence may be seen in Tiraboschi, Storia della Letteratura
Italiana, loni. vi. pp. 1160 — 1162.

18 HISTORY or THE REIOIIMATION IN ITALY.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 19

nSnt

a reform in the manners of the clergy, he has been
represented as holding the doctrines afterwards
taught hy Luther, concerning justification, the com-
munion under both kinds, indulgences, and human
traditions ;* but the passages in his writings usually
referred to, do not appear to me to support this alle-
gation. The invectives of Savonarola were quench-
ed by the flames in the year l-iOS ; but this did not
prevent others of his countrymen from reiterating
those complaints against tlie corrujition of the see
of Rome, which were the true cause of his death.

From the time of the council of Constance, a re-
formation of the church, both in its head and mem-
bers, had been loudly demanded. This demand was
repeated, at the beginning of the sixteenth century,
in the council which the pope was compelled to con-
vocate ; as appears not only from the decrees which
tliat assembly passed during its sitting at Pisa, but
also from the orations delivered in it, after it was
transferred to the Lateran and sat under the eye
of the supreme pontifl*. Among these, the most
noted were the speeclies of Egidio of \^iterbo, ge-
neral of the order of Augustinians, and John Fran-
cis Pico, the learned and pious count of Mirandula,
both of whom denounced, with singular freedom and
boldness, the abuses which tlireatened the ruin of
the church, and the utter extinction of religion, f

• Flaciiis and ^\'oltiiis, ut supra.

t The speech of Ep;itlius is published by Gerdesius, Hist. Reform,
torn. i. app. no. v. ; that of Picus, by Roscoe, in his Life of Leo X.
vol. iii. app. no. cxlvi. See also Wolfii Lect. Memor. torn. i. pp.
30—35.

It would be unsuitable here to enter into a mi-
nute detail of the ecclesiastical grievances which were
the subject of such general complaint and remon-
strance. Suffice it to say, that all of them existed
in an aggravated form in Italy, if we except certain
exactions levied by the popes on other countries
from which she was exempted. The vices of the
clergy, the neglect of religious instruction, the ig-
norance of the people, the sale of ecclesiastical of-
fices, and the prostitution of sacred things to worldly
purposes, had grown to the greatest height among
the Italians. The court of Rome had become more
corrupt than any of the secular courts of Europe,
by the confession of writers who owned its authori-
ty, and of such as, from the official situations which
they held in it, were admitted into all its secrets.
The unprincipled and faithless character of its po-
licy was proverbial. It was a system of intrigue,
cabal and bribery; and its ministers, while they
agreed together in duping the world, made no
scruple of deceiving and supplanting one another
whenever their personal interests came to be con-
cerned. The individuals who filled the papal chair
for some time before the Reformation openly in-
dulged in vices over which the increasing know-
ledge of the age should have taught them in point
of prudence to throw a veil. During the pontifi-
cate of Sixtus IV. we are presented with the horrid
spectacle of a supreme pontiff, a cardinal, an arch-
bishop, and other ecclesiastics, associating them-
selves with a band of ruffians to murder two men

20 HISTORY OF THE llEFOUMATIOX IN ITALY.

who were an honour to their age and country, and
agreeing to perpetrate this crime during a season of
hos])itality, within the sanctuary of a Christian
church, and at the signal of tlie elevation of the
host. Alexander VI. was so notorious for his profli-
gate maimers and insatiahle rapacity, that Sannazza-
ro has compared him to the greatest monsters of an-
tiquity — to Nero, Caligula and IIeli()ga!)alus. Julius
II. was more solicitous to signalize himself as a
soldier than a hishop, and by his andjition and tur-
bulence kept Italy in a state of continual warfare.
And Leo X., though distinguished for his elegant
accomplishments, and his patronage of literature
and the arts, disgraced the ecclesiastical seat by his
voluptuousness, and scandalized all Christendom
by the profane methods of raising money to which
he had recourse, for the purpose of gratifying his
love of pleasure and his passion for magnificent
extravagance.

To this rapid sketch I shall add the description
of the papal court, drawn by the pen of an Italian
wlio lived in the age of the Reformation, in whose
writings we sometimes find the cojnousness of Livy
combined witii the deep-toned indignation against
tyranny which thrills our hearts in perusing the
pages of Tacitus. The reader need not be told
that the following passage was struck out by the
censors of the press before the work was allowed to
be published in Italy. " Having raised themselves
to earthly power on this basis and by these methods,
the popes gradually lost sight of the salvation of

HISTORY or THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 21

souls and divine precepts ; and bending their
thoughts to worldly grandeur, and making use of
their spiritual authority solely as an instrument
and tool to advance their temporal, they began to
lay aside the appearance of bishops, and assumed
the state of secular princes. Their concern was no
longer to maintain sanctity of life, no longer to pro-
mote religion, no longer to show charity to man-
kind ; but to raise armies, to wage wars against
Christians, to perform the sacred mysteries with
tlioufjhts and hands stained with blood, to ac-
cumulate treasures ; and with the view of drawing
money from every quarter, new edicts were issued,
new arts invented, new stratagems laid, spiritual
censures fulminated, and all things, sacred and
profane, sold without distinction and without
shame. The immense riches amassed in this way,
and scattered among the courtiers, were followed
by pomp, luxury, licentiousness, and the vilest and
most abominable lusts. No care was taken to main-
tain the dignity of the pontificate ; no thought be-
stowed on those who should succeed to it : the
reigning pope sought only how he might raise his
sons, nephews, and other relations, not merely to
immoderate wealth, but to principalities and king-
doms ; and instead of conferring ecclesiastical dig-
nities and emoluments on the virtuous and de-
servinsT, he either sold them to the best bidder, or
lavished them on those who promised to be most
subservient to his ambition, avarice, and voluptu-
ousness. Though these things had eradicated from

22 HISTORY OF THE IlEFORMATIOX IX ITALY.

the iiiiuds of men all that reverence which was once
felt for the popes, yet was tlieir authority still sus-
tained to a certain degree hy the imposing and po-
tent influence of the name of religion, together with
the opportunity which they had of gratifying princes
and their courtiers, hy bestowing on them dignities
and other ecclesiastical favours. Presuming on the
respect which men entertained for their office ; aware
that such as took arms against them incurred general
infamy, exposed themselves to the attack of other
powers, and reaped little advantage in the issue ;
and knowing that, if victorious, they could make
their own terms, and, if vanquished, they would
escape on easy conditions, they abandoned tliem-
selves to their ruling passion of aggrandizing their
friends, and ju-oved for a long time the instruments
of exciting wars, and spreading conflagrations over
the whole of Italy."*

On the other hand, the obstacles to ecclesiastical
reform, and the reception of divine truth, were nu-
merous and formidable in Italy. The Italians could
not, indeed, be said to feel at this period a super-
stitious devotion to the see of Rome. This did not
originally form a discriminating feature of their na-
tional character : it was sui)erinduced ; and the
formation of it can be distinctly traced to causes
which produced their full etiect subsequently to the
era of the Reformation. The republics of Italy in
the middle ages gave many proofs of religious in-

* Guicciardini Paraliponiena, ex autographo Florentino recensita,
pp. 40—4.8. Ainstel. 1663.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 23

dependence, and singly braved the menaces and ex-
communications of the A^itican at a time when all
Europe trembled at the sound of its thunder.
That quick-sighted and ingenious people had, at an
early period, penetrated the mystery by which the
emptiness of the papal claims was veiled, while the
opi)ortunity which they enjoyed of narrowly in-
specting the lives of the popes, and the real motives
by which they were actuated in the most imposing
of their undertakings, had dissipated from their
minds those sentiments of veneration and awe for
the holy see which continued to be felt by such as
viewed it from a distance. The consequence of this,
under the corrupt form in which Christianity every-
where presented itself, was the production of a spirit
of indifference about religion, which, on the revival
of learning, settled into scepticism, masked by an
external respect to the established forms of the
church. And in this state did matters remain un-
til the middle of the sixteenth century, when, from
causes which will be seen, superstition and igno-
rance took the place of irreligion and infidelity, and
the popes recovered that empire over the minds and
consciences of their countrymen which they had al-
most entirely lost. If there were few heretics in
Italy, or if those who swerved from the received
faith were less eagerly inquired after and punished
there than in other countries, it was because the
people did not give themselves the trouble to think
on the subject. Generally speaking, devotion, even
according to the principles authorized by the Ro-

24 HISTORY OF Tin: IIKI ORMATIOX in ITALY.

IIISTOllY OF THF: reformation in ITALY. 25

man churcli, was extinct among the Italians. They
were not attached to the churcli cither hy a lively
faith or an ardent enthusiasm, hy the convictions
of the understanding or the sentiments of the heart.
The only religion of tlie statesmen was their secu-
lar interest ; the learned felt more respect for Aris-
totle or Plato, than for the sacred scriptures or the
writings of the Christian fathers ; and the people,
always imder the influence of their senses and ima-
gination, were attracted to the services of the
church hy the magnificence of its temples, and the
splendour and gaiety of its religious festivals.*

On a superficial view of the matter, we might he
apt to think that a people who felt in the manner
which has heen descrihed, might have heen detached
without much difficulty from their ohedience to the
church of Rome. But a little reflection will satisfy
us, that none are more impervious to conviction, or
less disposed to make sacrifices to it, than those who
have sunk into indifference under the forms of reli-
gion ; especially when we take into view the aliena-
tion of the human mind from the spiritual and
huinhling discoveries of the gospel, as these were
brought forward, sim])ly and without disguise, in
the preaching of the first reformers. Experience
too, has shown, that men whose hearts were cold
and dead to religion, have turned out as keen and
bitter persecutors as the most superstitious and
bigoted, when their peace has been threatened by

• Sismoiidi, Hist, dcs Rt'p. ItaL tome viii. pp. 237 — 2i0.

the progress, or their minds galled by the presenta-
tion, of truths which they hated as well as disbe-
lieved. But this is not all. The want of religious
principle was, on the present occasion, supplied by
national vanity, and a regard to interest ; two prin-
ciples which had been at work for more than a
century before the Reformation, in strengthening
the attachment of the Italians to the Roman see.
The removal of the papal court to Avignon had
greatly diminished the wealth and importance of
the city of Rome. After the return of the popes
to their ancient seat, and the revival of the pon-
tificate from the deadly wound inflicted on it by
the schism of the anti-popes, the Romans congratu-
lated themselves on the recovery of their former
distinction. In this feeling their countrymen in
general participated ; and, the passion for political
liberty by which they had been animated having
subsided, they seemed to think that the loss of the
ancient glory which Italy once enjoyed as the mistress
of the world was compensated by the flattering
station to which she was now raised as the head of
Christendom. AVhen the councils of Pisa, Con-
stance, and Basle, attacked the corruptions of the
Roman court, and sought to abridge its extensive
authority, the Italians were induced to come for-
ward in its defence. They felt themselves dis-
honoured as a nation by the invectives which the
reformers of that age pronounced against the
Italian vices of the pontiffs. And they saw that
the reforms which were so eagerly pressed, would

k'i

26 IIlSTOllY OF THE llEFORMATION IN ITALY.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 27

cut off or drain those pecuniary resources by which
they hoped to be enriched. The popes \vere careful to
foster this spirit. By a system of artful policy, the
bishops of Rome had taken care, that the power
which they had gra(hially acquired over all the na-
tions of the west, should not be empty or unpro-
ductive. The wealth of Europe continued to flow in
various channels to Rome, from which it was distri-
buted through Italy. Under tlie name of aimats, the
pope received the first year s produce of all ecclesi-
astical livings after every vacancy. lie drew large
sums of money for the confirmation of bishops, and
for the gift of palls. His demands on the clergy
for benevolences were frequent, besides the extraor-
dinary levy of the tenths of benefices, on pretence
of expeditions against the Turks wliich were sel-
dom undertaken. Add to these the sums exacted
for dispensations, absolutions, and indulgences, with
the constant and incalculable revenue arising from
law-suits, brought from every country by appeal to
Rome, carried on there at great expense, and pro-
tracted to an indefinite length of time. The pope
had also an extensive right of patronage in every
country to which his authority reached. He pre-
sented to all benefices which came under the name
of reserved, and to those vacant by translation, or
by the death of persons who died at Rome or within
forty miles of it, on their journey to or from that
city. * These, if not sold to the highest bidder,

* Robertson's Charles V. vol. ii. pp. 118 — 150, 273. Llorenle,
Hist.de rinquisition d'Espagne, i. 239 — 256. Rymer's Foedera, vols. x.

were generally conferred on Italians, upon whom
the i)ope could rely with more implicit confidence
than on foreigners, for extending his authority, or
supporting him in those contests in which his
ambition often involved him with the secular
powers. In consequence of the influence which the
court of Rome had come to exert in the political af-
fairs of Europe during the fifteenth century, almost
every sovereign strove to procure for his near rela-
tions, or at least for some of his subjects, seats in
the sacred college ; and this was usually purchased
by the gift of the richest benefices within his king-
dom, to those who, from their situation or connex-
ions, had it most in their power to serve his inter-
ests. There was not an Italian state or town which
did not, on these accounts, depend on the papal
court ; nor a prince or great family which had not
some of its relations in offices connected with it.
The greater part of the learned either held benefices,
or enjoyed pensions which they drew from them.
Italy was a land of priests. Though the states of
the church, properly so called, even after they had
been enlarged by the warlike Julius, were confined
within narrow bounds ; yet the pontiffs had taken
care to preserve their paramount power over those
districts or cities which withdrew from their go-
vernment, by transferring the power over them to
particular families, under the title of vicars of the

and xi. Appellatio Univers. Paris. ; apud Richer. Hist. Concil. Gen.
lib. iv. p. ii. cap. iv. § 15. Georgii Gravamina, pp. 363, 522. Kappe,
Nachlcse Ref. Urkunden, P. ii. pp. 399, 435, P. iii. pp. 2i6— 350.

28 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 29

church. Indeed there were few places in Italy to
which they had not at one time or another advanced
a claim founded on ancient grants or endowments ;*
and provided any prince had testified a disposition to
withdraw his allegiance from the see of Rome, it
would have hecn easy for the pope to reviv^e his
ancient claim, and having launched the sentence of
excommunication, to add the forfeited possessions
to the patrimony of the church, or to hestow them
on some neighbouring rival of the rebellious
heretic, f

"When these things are taken into consideration,
it will be matter of surprise, that the reformed
doctrine made so nuu'h progress in Italy as we shall
find it to have made ; and we are able to account for
the mistake into which some writers, guided by
theory rather tlian fact, have fallen, when they
assert that it had few or no converts in that coun-
try, t

• Franc. Ouicciardini Paralipomcna : Discorso Icvato del tutto via
delliiistoria ncl quarto Hbro, pp. 35 — 42, 44.

f So late as the year 15,55, the pope, Paul IV. not only excom-
municated Marco Antonio Colonna, and deprived him of the dukedom
of Palieno, but ordered a legal process to be commenced in the aposto-
lical chamber, against Philip II. king of Naples, as a schismatic and
favourer of heresy, inferring, if proved, that he should be deprived of
the crown of the two Sicilies, as a fief of the Holy See; and sentence
would have been pronounced against him, had not the Duke of Alva
advanced with his troops from Naples to Rome. (Llorente, ii.
172_181.)

i " Peu de personnes prirent le parti de Luther en Italic. Ce
peuple ingenieux occupe d'intrigues et de plaisirs n'eut aucun part a
ces troubles." (Voltaire, Essai sur les Moeurs, chap, cxxviii.) Vol-
taire is not the only author who has committed this error.

CHAPTER II.

INTRODUCTION OF THE REFORMED OPINIONS
INTO ITALY, AND CAUSES OF THEIR PROGRESS.

A CONTROVERSY, which had been carried on for
several years with great warmth in Germany, and
which was at last brought before the papal court
for decision, deserves notice here, as having contri-
buted, in no small degree, to direct the attention of
the Italians, at an early period, to the reformed
opinions. A monk of Cologne, a convert from Ju-
daism, either from hostility to learning, or with the
view of extorting money from his countrymen, ob-
tained a decree from the imperial chamber, ordain-
ing all Jewish books, with the exception of the Bi-
ble, to be committed to the flames, as filled with
blasphemies against Christ. John Reuchlin, or Cap-
nio, a learned man of Suabia, and the restorer of
Hebrew literature among Christians, exerted him-
self, both privately and from the press, to prevent
the execution of this barbarous decree. His suc-
cessful opposition exposed him to the resentment of
the monks, and sentence was pronounced against
him, first by the divines of Cologne, and afterwards

30 HISTORY OF THE llEFORMATION IN ITALY.

by the Sorborine at Paris. Reudiliii appealed to
Rome, and tlie friends of learning determined to
make his cause a common one. Erasmus and other
distinguished individuals wrote warmly in his fa-
vour to their friends at Rome, of whom they had
some in the sacred college. The monks exerted
themselves with equal zeal to defeat a party which
they had long hated, and from whom they had much
to dread. No cause of the kind had, for a long
time, excited such general interest. On the one side
were ranked the monks, the most devoted clients of
the papal throne ; on the other, the men who had
attracted the admiration of Europe by their talents
and writings. The court of Rome was averse to
offend either side, and by means of those arts which
it knew so well how to employ in delicate cases,
protracted the affair from time to time. During
this interval, the monks and their supporters were
subjected to the lash of the most cutting satires ; *
and the ultimate sentence, enjoining silence on both
parties, was scarcely ratified, when the controversy
between Luther and the preachers of indulgences
arose, and was brought before the same tribunal
for decision.!

The noise excited by the late process had fixed
the attention of the Italians on Germany ; the facts
which it brought to light abated the contempt with

• Of these the most celebrated was the work entitled, Epistola?
Obscurorum Virorum, the joint production of several learned men.

t Maii Vita lleuchlini, jxissim. Schlegel, Vita Georgii Spalatinl,
pp. 21, 25. Sleidani Comment, tom. i. pp. 105 — 109, edit. Am Ende.
Bulffi Hist. Univ. Paris, tom. vi. pp. 47 — 57.

i
1

IIISTOllY OF THE IIEFORIMATION IN ITAEY. 31

which they had hitherto regarded the inhabitants
of that country ; Luther had taken part with Reuch-
lin ;* and some of the keenest and most intrepid de-
fenders of the latter, such as Ulric Hutten, declared
at an early period in favour of the religious opinions
of the former.

It was not to be expected that a dispute managed
by a friar, in an obscure corner of Germany, against
the sale of indulgences, a traffic which had long
been carried on under the auspices and for the profit
of the see of Rome, would at first attract much atten-
tion in Italy. But the boldness of his own mind, and
the provoking impudence of his antagonists, having
led Luther to persevere in his opposition, and gra-
dually to extend his censure to other abuses, his
name and opinions soon became the topic of ge-
neral conversation without the limits of his native
country. Two years from the time of his first ap-
pearance against indulgences had not elapsed, until
his writings found their way into Italy, where they
met with a favourable reception from the learned.
It must have been highly gratifying to the Reformer
to receive the following information, in a letter ad-
dressed to him by John Froben, a celebrated printer
at Basle. " Blasius Salmonius, a bookseller of Leipsic,
presented me, at the last Frankfort fair, with several

• Luther declares himself decidedly in favour of Reuchlin, in a
letter to Spalatin, written in 1514, according to Aurifaber, (Epist.
Luth. tom. i. p. 8.) but as early as 1510, according to Walch. (Lu-
thers Saemtliche Schriften, tom. xxi. pp. 518—521.) A letter from
him to Reuchlin is to be found in lllustrium Virorum Epistolae ad
Joanncm Reuchlin : Liber Secundus, Hagenoap, 1519; sig. C 3.

32 HISTOKY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

treatises composed by you, wliicli being approved by
all learned men, I immediately put to the press, and
sent six luuidred copies to France and Spain. They
are sold at Paris, and read and approved of even by
the Sorbonists, as my friends have assured me. Se-
veral learned men there have said, that they of a
long time have wished to see such freedom in those
who treat divine things. Calvus also, a bookseller of
Pavia,* a learned man,and addicted to the muses, has
carried a great part of the impression into Italy.
He promises to send epigrams written in praise of
you by all the learned in Italy ;t such favour have
you gained to yourself and the cause of Christ by
your constancy, courage and dexterity." t A letter
has also been preserved, written about this time by
an individual in Rome, and applauding the spirit

• The person referred to in the text was Francesco Calvi, often
mentioned in the letters of Erasmus, and highly praised by Andrea
Alciati, the civilian, and other learned men. (Tiraboschi, vii. 365.)
Speaking of the difficulty of disposing of books in Italy, Cii>lio Cal-
cagnini says, in a letter dated from Ferrara, " 17 kal. Febr. 1525 ^
" Unus fuit Calvus, ejus Calvi frater qui rem impressoriam curat
Roniiu, qui non pecuniam sed librorum permutationem obtuUt." (Cal-

cagnini Opera, p. 115.)

t Schelhorn (Ama^nit. Hist. Eccles. et Liter, tom. ii. p. 624) has
published a copy of verses in praise of Luther, composed at Milan in
1521, which conclude thus :

Macte igitur virtute, pater celebrande Luthere,

Communis cujus pendet ab ore salus :
Gratia cui ablatis debetur maxima monstris,
Alcida^ potuit qua? metuisse manus.
+ Miscellanea Groningana, tom. iii. pp. 61—63. F-oben's letter
is dated " Rasilea.^ d. 14. Februar. 1519." A letter to the same purpose
by AVolfgangus Fabricius Capito, dated " 12. kal. Martii, 1519," is
inserted in Sculteti Annal. Reform, p. 44.

fi\

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 33

and writings of Luther.* Burchard Schenk, a Ger-
man nobleman who had embraced a monastic life,
and resided at Venice, writes on the 19th of Sep-
tember, 1520, to Spalatinus, chaplain to the elector
of Saxony : " According to your request, I have
read the books of Martin Luther, and I can assure
you that he has been much esteemed in this place for
some time past. But, the common saying is, 'Let him
beware of the pope !' Upwards of two months ago ten
copies of his books were brought here and instantly
purchased, before I had heard of them ; but in the
beginning of this month, a mandate from the pope
and the patriarch of Venice arrived, prohibiting
them ; and a strict search being instituted among
the booksellers, one imperfect copy was found and
seized. I had endeavoured to obtain that copy, but
the bookseller durst not dispose of it."f In a letter
written during the following year, the same person
states that the senate of Venice had at last reluc-
tantly consented to the publication of the papal bull
against Luther, but had taken care that it should not
be read until the people had left the church. :j: Two
circumstances of a curious kind appear from this cor-
respondence. The one is that Schenk had a commission
from the elector of Saxony to purchase relics for the
collegiate church of Wittemberg ; but soon after the
period referred to, that commission was revoked and

* Riederer, Nachrichten fiir Kirchengelehrten und Biicherge-
schichte, tom. i. p. 179.

t Seckendorf. Hist. Lutheranismi, tom. i. p. 115.
i Ibid. p. IIG.

tii HISTORY OF THE llEFOlOrATlOX TX ITAT.Y.

the relics sent back to Italy to be sold at what price
tliey would brin<^ ; " for, (writes Spalatinus) here
even the common peo])le so desi)ise them, as to think
it sufficient, as it certainly is, if they !)e taught fr )ni
scripture to have faith and confidence in God, and
love to their neighbour."*' The other fact is, that
the person employed by Schenk to collect relics for
the elector was W^rgerio, afterwards bishop of Capo
d'Istria, and legate from the pope to the German
princes, but who subsequently renounced i)opery,
and became zealously instrumental in spreading the
reformed doctrine in Italy and elsewhere. The cha-
racter given of him at this early period of his life
is worthy of notice, as the popish waiters, after his
defection, endeavoured in every possible way to dis-
credit his authority and tarnish his reputation.
Schenk describes him as " a most excellent young
man, who had distinguished himself among the stu-
dents of law^ at Padua, and was desirous of finishing
his studies at Wittemberg, under the auspices and
patronage of the elector Frederic"!

In spite of the terror of pontifical bulls, and the
activity of those who w^atched over their execution,
the writings of Luther and Melanchthon, Zuingleand
Bucer,continued to be circulated, and read with great
avidity and delight, in all parts of Italy. Some of
them were translated into the Italian language,
and, to elude the vigilance of the inquisitors, were
published under disguised or fictitious names, by

* Schlegcl, Vita Spalatini, p. 59. Scckend. toni. i. p. 223.
+ Seckend. "/ supra.

HISTOTIY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITAEY. 35

which means they made their way into Rome,
and even into the palace of the Vatican ; so that
bishops and cardinals sometimes unwittingly read
and praised w^orks, w^iich, on discovering their real
authors, they were obliged to pronounce dangerous
and heretical. The elder Scaliger relates an incident
of this kind, which happened when he w^as at Rome.
*' Cardinal Seraphin, (says he) who was at that time
counsellor of the papal Rota, came to me one day, and
said, * We have had a most laughable business before
us to-day. The Common Places of Philip Melanchthon
were printed at Venice w^ith this title, jxir Messer
Ippqfilo da Terra Negra,'^ These Common Places
being sent to Rome, wx^re freely bought for the
space of a whole year, and read with great applause ;
so that the copies being exhausted, an order w^as
sent to Venice for a fresh supply. But in the
mean time a Franciscan friar, who possessed a
copy of the original edition, discovered the trick, and
denounced the book as a Lutlieran production from
the pen of Melanchthon. It was proposed to punish
the poor printer, who probably could not read one
word of the book, but at last it was agreed to burn
the copies, and suppress the whole affair.' "f A
similar anecdote is told of Luther's preface to the

* Schwcnizerd, which was his original name, signifies in German, as
Mclauchlhon does in Greek, and Terra Ncgra in Italian, hJack earth.
The Italian translator of the Common Places is supposed to have
been the celebrated critic, Ludovico Castelvetro.' (Fontanini, Delia
Eloquenza Italiana, pp. 490 — aOf)-)

t Scaligerana Secunda, art. Rota. See also Brucker, Miscel.
Hist. &c. P. ii. pp. 32.3, 333.

36 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY,

epistle to the Romans, and his treatise on justifica-
tion, which were eagerly read for some time as the
productions of cardinal Fregoso.* The works of
Zuingle were circulated under the name of Coricius
Cogelius ;t and several editions of Martin Bucer's
commentary on the* l\salrns were sold in Italy and
France as the work of Aretius Felinus. In this
last instance, the stratagem was used with the con-
sent of the author. " I am employed (says Bucer,
in a letter to Zuingle) in an exposition of the
Psalms, which, at the urgent request of our brethren
in France and Lower Germany, I propose to pub-
lish under a foreign name, that the work may be
bou^>-ht by their booksellers. For it is a capital
crime to import into these countries books which
bear our names. I therefore pretend that I am a
Frenchman, and, if I do not change my mind, will
send forth the book as the production of Aretius
Felinm, which, indeed, is my name and surname,
the former in Greek, and the latter in Latin."t
It is one thing to discover the errors and abuses of
the church of Home, and it is another, and a very

* Vergerii Adnot. in Catal. Hipret. Ronuc, 1559.

t Gerdesii Ital. Ref. pp. 12— U. Zuinglius is introduced under the
name of Abydenus Cora/Ius in the Index of Rome for 1559.

X Le Long, edit. Masch, vol. iii. p. ii. p. 5<20. Colomesii Nota? in
Scaliger. Secund. p. 538. Fontanini, Delia Eloquenza Ital. p. 490.
The work was printed first at Strasburg in 1529, under this title:
♦• Psalmoruni Libri quinque ad Ebraicam veritatcm versi, et familiari
explanatione elucidati. Per Aretium Felinum Theologum." The
dedication to the Dauphin of France is dated, '^ Lugduni iii. Idus
Julias Anno m.d.xxix."

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 37

different thing, to have the mind opened to perceive
the spiritual glory and feel the regenerating in-
fluence of divine truth. Many who could easily
discern the former, remained complete strangers to
the latter, as preached by Luther and his associates ;
and it is not to be expected that these would make
sacrifices, and still less that they would count
all things loss, for the excellent knowledge of Christ.
Persons of this character abounded at this period in
Italy. But the following extracts show that many
of the Italians " received the love of the truth,"
and they paint in strong colours the ardent thirst
for an increase of knowledge, which the perusal of
the first writings of the reformers had excited in
their breasts. " It is now fourteen years (writes
Egidio a Porta, an Augustinian monk on the Lake
of Como, to Zuingle) since I, under the impulse of a
certain pious feeling, but not according to knowledge,
withdrew from my parents, and assumed the black
cowl. If I did not become learned and devout, I
at least appeared to be so, and for seven years dis-
charged the office of a preacher of God's word, alas !
in deep ignorance. I savoured not the things of
Christ ; I ascribed nothing to faith, all to works.
But God would not permit his servant to perish
for ever. He brought me to the dust. I cried,
Lord, what wilt thou have me to do ? At length
my heart heard the delightful voice, ' Go to Ulric
Zuingle, and he will tell thee what thou shouldst
do.' O ravishing sound ! my soul found ineffable
peace in that sound. Do not think that I mock

'^ *%,Ms»n=*-" 3SSiip;a-'Ji»^%as*)BH»tV*^

I 4

.'38 HISTORY OF THE llEFOUMATION IN ITALY.

you ; tor you, nay not you, but God by your means,
rescued nie from tbe snare of the fowler. But why do
I say me >' For I trust you have saved others along
with me." * The meaning of Egidio is, that, having
been enlightened by the writings of the Swiss reform-
er whicli providence had thrown in his way, he had
imparted the knowledge of the truth to some of his
brethren of the same convent. In another letter
he adjures Zuingle to write him a letter which
might be useful for opening the eyes of others be-
longing to his religious order. " But let it be cau-
tiously written, (continues he) for they are full of
pride and self-conceit. Place some passages of
scripture before them, by which they may perceive
liow much God is pleased at having his word
preached purely and without mixture, and how
highly he is ofleiided with those who adulterate it
and bring forward their own opinions as divine."!
The same spirit breathes in a letter addressed by
Balthasar Fontana, a Carmelite monk of Locarno,
to the evangelical churches of Switzerland. " Hail,
ye faithful in Christ. Iliink, oh think, of Lazarus
in the gospels, and of the lowly woman of Canaan,
who was willing to be satisfied with the crumbs which
fell from the table of the Lord. As David came to
the priest in a servile dress and unarmed, so do I
fly to you for the shew-bread and the armour laid

• Epistola iEgidii a Porta, Comtnsib, Dec. 9, 1525; apud Hottiii-
.'OJ, Hist. Eccl. Sec. xvi. torn. ii. p. (>n-
f Ibid. p. Iti.

'.4fl

HISTORY or THE 111: FORMATION IX ITALY. 39

up in the sanctuary. Parched with thirst I seek
to the fountains of living water: sitting like a blind
man by the wayside, I cry to him that gives
sight. With tears and sighs we who sit here in
darkness, humbly intreat you who are acquainted
with the titles and authors of the books of know-
lege, (for to you it is given to know the mysteries
of the kingdom of God) to send us the writings of
such elect teachers as you possess, and particularly
the works of the divine Zuinglius, the far-celebrated
Luther, the acute Melanchthon, the accurate Eco-
lampade. The prices will be paid to you through
his excellency, Werdmyller. Do your endeavour
that a city of Lombardy, enslaved by Babylon, and
a stranger to the gospel of Christ, may be set free."*
The attention which had been paid to sacred li-
terature in Italy, contributed in no small degree to
the spread of the reformed opinions. In this as
well as in every other literary pursuit, the Italians
at first took the lead, though they were afterwards
outstripped by the Germans. From the year 1477,
when the psalter appeared in Hebrew, different parts
of scripture in the original continued to issue from
the press; and in the year 1488, a complete He-
brew bible was printed at Soncino, a city of the
Cremonese, by a family of Jews, who, under the
adopted name of Soncinati, established printing-

* " Apud Conuim, 15th December, 1526." Another letter from
the same individual, dated '' Ex Locarno Kal. Mart, anno 1531," is
pubhshed by Hottinger, Hist. torn. vi. par. ii. pp. 618, 620, 271.
Tempc Helvetica, torn. iv. p. 111.

iWEf f'S'a*^"* ,Sii!l 1SF'« ""rf*" * '

40 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

presses in various parts of Europe, including Con-
stantinople. This department of typography was
almost entirely engrossed by the Jews in Italy, un-
til the year 1518, when an edition of the Hebrew
scriptures, accompanied with various readings, and
Rabbinical commentaries, proceeded from the splen-
did press which Daniel Bomberg had recently
erected at \^enice. *

A minute investigation of the remaining docu-
ments of tliose times, shows that the knowledge of
Hebrew was not quite extinct among Christians in
Italy, anterior to the revival of letters. An individual
now and then had the curiosity to acquire some in-
sight into it from a Jew, or had the courage to grapple,
in his own strength, with the difficulties of a lan-
guage whose very characters wore a formidable as-
pect; and individuals, who, like Fra Ricoldo of Flo-
rence, and Ciriaco of Ancona, travelled into Turkey,
Syria, and adjacent countries, picked up some ac-
quaintance with other languages of the east. In the
literary history of Italy, during the early part of the
fifteenth century, several persons are spoken of as
Hebrew and Arabic scholars ; the most distinguish-
ed of whom was Giannozzo Manetti, a Florentine,
who drew up a triglot psalter, containing a Latin
translation made by himself from the original.f

* De Rossi, De Heb. Typogr. Origin. Wilhehn Fried. Hctzels Ge-
schichteder Hebraischen Sprache und Litteratur, pp. 143 — 176. Le
Long, Bibl. Sac. edit. Mascli, vol. i. par. i. Baueri Crit. Sac. pp.
y:iO, 232.

f Tiraboschi, Storia dclla Lctteratura Italiana, torn. vi. pp. 792,
(>7f).

HISTORY OF THE REFOKMATION IN ITALY. 41

But the study of Hebrew in Italy, properly speaking,
was coeval with the printing of the Hebrew scrip-
tures ; and it was facilitated by the severe measures
taken by Ferdinand and Isabella, at the instigation
of the inquisitors, against the Jews, which induced
many of that people to emigrate from Spain to Italy,
where, from lucrative motives, they were favourably
received by the popes.* John Pico, count of Miran-
dula and Concordia, was one of the first students of
the oriental tongues among his countrymen. Of
the enthusiasm with which this prodigy of learning
applied himself to the study of Hebrew, Chaldaic,
and Arabic, his letters afford the most satisfactory
evidence ; f and judging from his writings, the pro-
ficiency which he made in the first of these languages
was considerable.:]: The names of the persons from
whom he received lessons were Jochana and Mith-
ridates ; the last of whom refused to teach him
Chaldee, until he took a formal oath that he would
not communicate it to any person. § This enthu-
siastic scholar was deceived by some of the Jews
who frequented his house, and had certain manu-
scripts, probably Rabbinical, palmed upon him as the

* Basnage, Histoire des Juifs, liv. vii. chap. xxix. sect. iv. — vii.
Sadoleti Epist. lib. xii. pp. 5, 6. Llorente, Hist, de I'lnquisition
d'Espagne, tome i. pp. IGl — 170.

t Opera Joannis et Jo. Francisci Pici, torn. i. pp. 367-8, 382, 385,
387, 388.

X See his Heptaplus, dedicated to Lorenzo de Medici; Opera,
torn. i.

§ Opera, torn. i. p. 385; torn. ii. p. 1371. Colomesii Italia et His-

pania Orientalis, pp. 10 — 17.

42 HISTORY OF THE HEFOllMATIOX IN ITALY.

HISTOKY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 43

genuine works of Zoroaster, and other eastern sages.*
The same thing happened to his contemporary and
countryman, Nanni or Annius of Viterbo, who pub-
lished a number of f^ibulous works as the authentic
productions of Berosus, Manetho, Fabius Pictor,
Archilochus, Cato, and Megasthenes ; at least it
seems more probable that he was the dupe of others
and of his own credulity, than that he should have
practised a fraud, which must have cost him im-
mense labour, and required a knowledge of tlie
learning of the east, which we can scarcely suppose
a European of that age to have possessed.! John
Francis Pico inherited his uncle's taste for He-
brew literature, and other scholars arose who cul-
tivated it, not indeed with greater zeal, but certainly
with greater success.

Germany had the honour of giving to the world
the first elementary work on Hebrew which was
written by a Christian, or in the Latin language,
in the grannnar and lexicon of John Reuchlin, print-
ed at Pfortzheim, in the year 1506 ; but as early
as 1490, the Book of Hoofs, or lexicon of the cele-
brated Jewish grammarian, David Kimchi, was
published in the original at Venice, t Francis Stan-
car of Mantua, who afterwards embraced the pro-
testant religion, and excited great stirs in Poland,

• Opera, toni. i. p. 307. Simon, Lettrcs Choisies, tome ii. p. 1S8.
t Tiraboschi, torn. vi. par. ii. p. 17.

X Hirts Orientalischc und Excgetische Bibliothek, tom. i. pp. 3.5,
4i. G. Laur. Bsueri Hermeiieiitica Sacra, p. 17o.

published a Hebrew grammar in 1525.* Felix of
Prato, a converted Jew, who published a Latin
translation of the Psalms in 1515, appears to have
been the first Christian in Italy who taught He-
brew, being invited to Rome for this purpose in
1518, by Leo X.f About the same time Agathias
Guidacerio, a native of Catano, also taught it at
Rome, from which he was called by Francis I. to be
professor of Hebrew in the Trilingual college at
Paris, in which Paolo Paradisi, or Canossa, his coun-
tryman, and, like him, the author of a work on He-
brew grammar, afterwards held the same situation.:|:
As early as 1514, a collection of prayers was
printed in the Arabic language and character at
Fano, in the ecclesiastical states, at a press which
had been founded by the warlike pontiff Julius IL§
Previous to this, an edition of the Koran in the ori-
ginal language had been begun, and a part of it at
least printed at Venice, by Pagnino de Pagninis.||
But the principal work in this language, so far as
biblical literature is concerned, was published by
Augustine Justinian, bishop of Nebio in Corsica,

* Tiraboschi. tom. vii. p. 1087. Hetzels Geschichte der Heb.

Sprache, p. 1C9.
t Ibid. p. 1083. Colomesii Ital. Orient, p. 19. Le Long, edit.

Masch, vol. i. part i. p. 97, vol. ii. part ii. p. 534.

X Prefat. in Lib. Micblol, per Agathiam Guidacermm.— Parisus
in Collegio Italorum, 1540. Conf. Colome.ii Ital. Orient, pp. 60,

68—70.

§ Schnurreri Bibliolheca Arabica, pp. 231—231.

II Ibid. pp. 402—404.

■?

44 HISTOllY or THE llErOllMATIOX IN ITALY.

in a polyglot psalter, containing the Hebrew, Chal-
daic, Arabic, Greek and Latin ; printed at Genoa
in the year 1516, and intended as a specimen of a
polyglot bible, which the anthor had been long en-
gaged in preparing for the press.* This work pro-
cured him an invitation from Francis I. to teach the
oriental tongues at Paris.f Juan Leon, a native of
Elvira in Spain, better known as an historian by the
name of Leo Africanus, and who afterwards went
to Tunis, and relapsed to Mahometanism, instruct-
ed many of the Italians in Arabic; and, amongothers,
Egidio of Viterbo, a prelate more distinguished by
his elegant taste and extensive learning, than by his
wearing the purple, and who promoted oriental
studies among his countrymen both by his example
and his patronage. :j:

Certain deputies sent to Rome, from the Christi-
ans of Abyssinia, during the sitting of the Lateran
council in 1.512, were the means of introducing into
Europe the knowledge of the Ethiopic, or, as they
called it, Chaldean language, in which their coun-
trymen continued to perform the religious service.
In consequence of instructions received from them,

* Detlic. Justiniani atl Lconem X. Le Long, edit. Masch, vol. i.
par. i. p. 400.

t Tiraboschi, vii. 1067. Coloniesii Ital. Orient. 31 — 36. Sixt Se-
nensis Bibl. Sacr. p. 3'27.

J Widnianstiidter's Dedication to the Emperor Ferdinand, of his
edition of the Syriac New Testament. Compare the testimonies to
Egidio's merits collected by Colomies. (Ital. Orient, pp. 11 — 46.)

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 45

John Potken, provost of St. George's, at Cologne,
was able in 1513, to publish at Rome, the psalter
and song of Solomon in Ethiopic, with a short in-
troduction to that language.* At a subsequent pe-
riod, a learned abbot of that country, named Tesso-
Sionis Malhesini, or, as he called himself in Europe,
Peter Sionita, who resided at Rome under the pa-
tronage of cardinal Marcello Cervini, prevailed on
Pierpaolo Gualtieri, and Mariano Vittorio, after-
wards bishop of Rieti, to learn his native tongue ;
and with their assistance, and that of two of his
own countrymen, he published the New Testament
in Ethiopic at Rome, in the year 1548. Four years
after this, the first grammar of that language was
given to the public by Vittorio.f

It may appear strange, that no part of the Syriac
version of the scriptures should as yet have come
from the i)ress. Bomberg intended to print the
gospel according to Matthew, from a copy of the
four gospels in that language which was in his
possession, but delayed the work in expectation of
obtaining additional manuscripts.if Teseo Ainbro-
gio, of the noble family of the Conti d'Albonese,
a doctor of laws, and canon regular of St. John's of

* Le Long, edit. Masch, vol. i. par. ii. pp. 146-7.

t Tiraboschi, vii. 1073. Le Long, edit. Masch, vol. i. par. ii. pp.152—
154-. Colomesii Ital. Orient, pp. 107-8. art. Marianus Victorias Re-
atinus. Michaehs's Introd. by Marsh, vol. ii. part i. p. 612.

X Postel, Linguarum duodecim Alph. Introd. sig. Biiij. Parisiis,
1538. Conf. Tostelli Epist. prefix. Vers. N. Test. Syriaci : Vien. Austr.
1555.

Img^M

46 IIISTORY OF Tin: REFOiniATIOX rX ITALY.

the Lnteran, received instructions in Ethiopic, from
the Abyssinians who visited Rome in 1512, and
was initiated into the Syriac hinguage, by one of
three individuals, Joseph Acurio, a priest, Moses, a
deacon, and Elias a sub-deacon, whom Peter, patri-
arch of the Maronites, had sent as a deputation to
Rome, soon after the advancement of Leo X. to the
pontificate. From that time, Ambrogio became
passionately fond of these languages, and being ap-
pointed to teach them at liologna, gave a specimen
of his qualifications for that task in his Introduction
to the Chaldaic, Syriac, Armenian, and ten other
languages, w^ith the characters of about forty difler-
ent'^alphabets.* Various untoward events i)revent-
ed him from executing his favourite design of pub-
lishing the gospels in Syriac, which, at an acci-
dental interview, he devolved on Albert Widman-
stiulter, the learned chancellor of Easter Austria,
who afterwards accomplished the w^ork. In the
year 1552, Ignatius, patriarch of Antioch, sent
Moses Mardineus, as his orator to the Roman
pontiff, to obtain, among other things, the i)rinting
of an edition of the Syriac New Testament, for the
use of the churches under his inspection. The ora-
tor exerted his eloquence in vain at Rome, Venice,
and other places of Italy ; and, after wasting nearly
three years, was about to return home in despair,

• Introauctio in Chalilaicam liu-iiam, Syriacam, &cc. Papia^, 1539.
Tiraboschi, vii. 1068—107^2. Hrnr. a Porta, (Prof. Lin-iiannn Ori-
ental, apud Acad. Ticin.) Do Ling. Orient. Pncstantia, p. 1^9.

HISTORY OF THE REPORMATION IN ITALY. 47

when he was advised to ap})ly to Widmanstiidter^
by wliose zealous exertions the work was published
in 1555, at Vienna.* Thus was Italy deprived of
the honour of giving to the world the New Tes-
tament in the best and most venerable of all the
ancient versions.

The first edition of the Septuagint came from the
Aldine press in 1518, under the direction of Andrew
of Asolo. In 1516, Erasmus published at Basil
his edition of the Greek text of the New Testament,
accompanied with a Latin translation formed by him-
self ; to which his fame gave an extensive currency
in Italy. And in 1527, Sante Pagnini of Lucca
publislied his Latin translation of the whole I^ibJe,
which had excited great expectations, from the re-
putation which the author enjoyed as a Hebrew
scholar, and its being known that he had spent up-
wards of twenty-five years on the w^ork.

The publication of the scriptures in the original
languages, and in various versions, was followed by
illustrations of them which were neither without
merit nor utility. The work of Pietro Colonna,
commonly called, from his native place, Galatino,
from which later writers on the Jewish controversy
have drawn so mucli of their materials, was not
the less useful, that it was afterwards found to be
chiefly a compilation from the w^ork of another au-

* Detlic. et Prapfat. in N. Test. Syriac. Vien. Austr. 1355. Assemani
Bibl. Orient, tom. i. p. 535. Le Long, edit. Masch, vol. i. par. ii. pp.
71 — 79. Michaelis's Introd. by Marsh, vol. ii. p. ii. 8, 535 — 540.

48 HISTORY OF THE UEFORMATION IX ITALY.

thor * Besides his own paraphrases, Erasmus
published the notes of Laureritius Valhi on the
New Testament, which came recommended to the
Italians as the work of one of their countrymen
who had distinguished himself as a reviver of let-
ters, but whom Bellarmine afterwards called, not
without reason, the precursor of the Lutherans, f
The scriptural simplicity which characterises the
commentaries of cardinal Cajetan, and a few others,
form a striking contrast to the writings of the
scholastic divines who preceded them. Cardinal
Sadolet's commentary on the epistle to the Ro-
mans was the work of an orator, who wished to
correct the barbarisms of the vulgate, and combat
the tenets of St. Augustine, t The works of Au-
gustine Steuchi, or Steuco, of Gubbio, discover an
extensive acquaintance with the three learned lan-
guages, mixed with cabbalistical and Platonic ideas.
I shall afterwards have occasion to speak of the
commentaries of Folengo. Isidoro Clario, a Bene-
dictine abbot of Monte Cassino, who was ad-
vanced to the bishopric of Foligno, published the
vulgate, corrected from the original Hebrew, and

» De Arcanis Catholica.- Veritatis, OrtoiiJe, 1518. See the account
of the Pngio Fidei of Raymond Martini, afterwards given in the
history of the Reformation in Spain.

t Simon, Hist. Crit. des Commentateurs du N. Test. pp. 484—

487.

X Ihid. pp. 550— 55G. Sadolet was thrown into great distress, in
consequence of the Master of the sacred palace refusing to approve of
his commentary. (Tirahoschi, Storia, torn. vii. pp. 313—315.)

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 49

Greek, and accompanied with preliminary disserta-
tions and explanatory notes ; but the work did not
a])pear until 1542, when the progress of heresy
had alarmed his brethren, the consequence of which
was, that the w^ork underwent the process of ex-
purgation, and the prolegomena were suppressed. *
He gave great offence by saying in his preface, that
he had diligently corrected the version of the Old
Testament by the Hebrew, and of the New by the
Greek verity, f The author had also availed him-
self of the notes of the protestants, but tacitly; '* for
in the time in which he wrote, to cite a protestant
author was an unpardonable crime," as Tiraboschi
has candidly owned. " Heresy (says another modern
writer) was a pest, the very touch of which creat-
ed horror ; the cordon of separation or precaution
was drawn all around ; Clario did not dread the
contagion for himself, but he dreaded to appear to
have braved it, and his prudence excuses his pla-
giarism." :|:

By means of these studies the minds of the learned
in Italy were turned to the scriptures, and prepared
for taking part in the religious controversy which
arose. Individuals in the conclave, such as Egidio,
Fregoso and Aleander, were skilled in the sacred
tongues, which were now studied in the palaces of
bishops and in the cells of monks. All were not
concerned to become acquainted with the treasures

* Riveti Opera, torn. ii. p. 91 G.
X Ginguene, tome vii. p. 36.

t Tiraboschi, tom. vii. p. 348.

,>0 HisTOitY oi Tin: iu:roR:MATio\ in italy.

liid in thost' books wliich they turned over by night
and bv <hiv, and still less were they led by them
to renounce a system to which, among other secular
advantages, they owed their literary leisure ; but
neither, on the other hand, were men disi)0sed at
that period, as they were at a subsequent one,
to enii)loy sacred criticism as an art to invent argu-
ments for sui)i)orting existing abuses, and there
were always individuals, from time to time, wdiose
minds welcomed the truth or were accessible to con-
viction. Accordingly, we shall find among the con-
verts to the reformed doctrine, men eminent for
their literary attainments, the rank which they held
in the church, juid the character which they had
obtained for piety in those orders to which
the epithet religious had long been appropriat-
ed. The reformers appealed from the fallible
and conflicting oi)inions of the doctors of the
church to the infaUil)le dictates of revelation, and
from the vulgate version of the scriptures to
the Hebrew and Greek originals ; and in these
appeals they were often supported by the transla-
tions recently made l)y persons of acknowledged
orthodoxy, and published with the permission
and warm recommendations of the head of the
church. In surveying this portion of history, it is
impossible not to admire the arrangements of pro-
vidence, when we perceive monks, and bishops,
and cardinals, and popes, active in forging and
polishing those weapons which were soon to be

HISTOUV OF THK KEFOU.MATION IX ITALY. 51

turned against themselves, and which thev after-
wards would fain have blunted, and laboured to
decry as unlawful and empoisoned.

The works which liave been described were con-
fined to the learned ; and however useful thev were
it is not probable that any impression would Jiave
been made on the public mind in Italy, unless the
means of religious knowledge had been laid open to
the people at large. As the church of Rome lias
strictly confined the religious service to an unknown
tongue, we need not be astonished at the jealousy
with which she has always viewed translations of the
scriptures into vulgar languages. There would be
still less reason for astonishment at this, if we might
believe the statement of a learned Italian, that, down
to the sixteenth century, all the sermons preached
in churches were in Latin, and that those in Italian
were delivered without the consecrated walls, in
the piazzas or some contiguous spot. "^ This state-
ment, however, has been controverted. The truth
appears to be, that, in the thirteenth century,
the sermons were preached in Latin, and after-
wards explained in Italian to the common peo-
ple ; and that instances of this practice occur

• Fontanini, Delia Eloquenza Italiana, lib. iii. cap. ii. pp. 250—
254. It is certain, that, as late as ihe middle of the 16th century,
Isidore Clario, bishop of Foligno, preached in Latin to a crowded
assembly of men and women — " Frequens iste, quern cerno, virorum,
muHcrnmquey conventus," says the preacher. (Orationes Extraord.
V'cnet. 1567, torn. i. orat. xvi.)

r '.

:)'! iiisr(>](Y or mi', kkioumation ix italy.

ill the* history of the fifteenth century. *" It was
pleaded, that the di<rnity of tlie i)uli)it,and the sacred-
iiess of the word of God, suflenMl hy using a dilfer-
ent nietliod ; and with ecjual force inight it ])e urged,
that '• the sacred scriptures were vilified by being
transhited into tlie vulgar tongue/'t J^iit in spite
of this prejudice, translations of the Bible into Itali-
an were attempted, as soon as the language had
been purified and moulded by Dante, Petrarch, and
others ; and they came from the press within a few
years after the invention of the art of printing.

Jacopo daVoragine, bishop of Genoa, and author
of the (rolden Legend, is said to have translated
the scrii)tures into the language of Italy as early as
the middle of the thirteentli century4 It is cer-
tain, that this task was undertaken by more tliari
one individual in the subsecpuMit age, but executed,
as may l)esupposed,in a rude and barbarous manner. ^
An Italian version of the scriptures by Nicolo
Malermi, or Malerbi, a Camaldolese monk, was

» \nostolo Zeno,Note alia liibliotccadel Fontanini, torn. ii. p. 4.n.
Sig. Doinoiiico Maria Manni, Prefaz. alle Prccliche di Fra (;iordano ;
apiul Tiraboschi, tomo iv. pp. 196 — li>H.

t - ivvilirc la sacra Scrittura il tradurla in lingua volgare, says
Passavanti, in his Sfccrhw di vera Fcnitcn^n, quoted by Fontanini, p.

""t Lt- Long doubts if there ever ^vas such a version. (Bibl. Sac.
toni. i. p. 33^2. edit. 3.) Fontanini denies its existence. (Delia KI04.

Ital. p. 073.) , . ,M • I •

§ Fragments of such translations ^vere to be found m hbraries during

the lifternth century. Malenni expressly mentions one of them, whicli

contained, he says, - cose euormi, que non lice ser dicte, no da esscr

le-nute " (D. Abbate (Jiov. Andres, Dell' Originc d'ogni Letteratura,

tomo XIX. p. 200.) (Jirolamo -quarzafico, a learned man, who wrote a

pret^ice to the edition of the Bible in 1477, says: - VenerabilisDommus

IIISTORV OF THE llEFOK AIATION IN ITALY. ryS

printed at Venice so early as the year 1471,* and
is said to Iiave gone through no fewer than nine
editions in the fifteenth and twelve editions in the
sixteenth century ;f a proof that the Italians were
at least addicted to reading in their native tongue, if
there did not exist among them at that time a
general desire for the word of God. We find an
additional proof of this in the Italian versions of
parts of scripture, which appeared about the same
period.]: Malermi's translation, like those on which
it was founded, was made from the vulgate, and writ-
ten in a style unsuited to the sixteenth century. A

Nicolaus de Malermi faulde Malerhi) sacra Biblia ex Latino Italice
reddidit, cos iniitatus, qui vulgarcs antea versiones, si sunt hoc nomine,
et non potius confusiones nuncupantur, confecerunt." (Lettera Critica
dal Signor Abbate N. N. all' Erud. Padre Giov. degli Agostini, p. 8.
Koveredo, 173P.)

* Fontanini, p. 673. De Bare (Partie de la Theologie) p. 89. It
was printed " Kal. Aug. 1 171," by '' Vind. de Spira," and contains a
prefatory epistle by Nicolo di Malhcrbi. Another version of the
Bible was printed In the month of October of the same year, without
notice of the translator, printer, or place of printing. (Dibdin's
.Edes Al thorp, vol. ii. p. U. Bibl. Spencer, vol. i. p. 63.)

t Foscarini, Delia Letteratura Veneziana, vol. i. p. 339. Dr. Geddes
says it went through thirteen editions in the space of less than half a
century. (Prospectus of a New Translation, p. 103.) Andrew Ri-
vet possessed a copy of the edition printed in 1477. (Opera, torn, ii, ,
p. 920.) Pere Simon, who is not always so accurate as a severe critic
on the works of others should be, speaks of Malermi's version as pub-
lished for the first time in lall. (Hist. Crit. de V\ Test. pp. 371,
598. edit. 1G80.)

% The two following are mentioned by MafFei : " Li quattro volumi
de gli F:vangcli volgarizzati da frate Guido, con le loro esposizioni
fatte per Frate Simone da Cascia, Ven. U8C." " L'Apocalisse
con le chiose de Nicolo da Lira ; traslazione di Maestro Fcderico da
Venezia, lavorata ncl 1391., e stampata Ven. 1.519." (Esame del Sig.
^L^rchese Scipionc Maffoi, p. 19. lloveredo, 1739.)

■ ^K

,54 IIISTOUV OF THE UEl OK Af A TION IN ITALV.

version less barbarous in its diction, and more faithful
to the original, had long been desired by the learned.
This was at last undertaken by Antonio Brucioli. a
native of Florence, who added a knowledge of He-
brew to those classical attainments for which the in-
habitants of his native city had long been celebrated.*
After distinguishing himself among the academicians
of his native city, he was driven into exile in conse-
quence of an unsuccessful resistance to the usurpa-
tions of the Medici, in which he had taken part,
and travelled in France and Germany, from which
he returned with his mind improved, and an ardent
desire to enlighten his native country. But in the
year 1529, he was forced a second time from Flo-
rence, and narrowly escaped with his life, having
incurred the suspicion of lieresy. At A^mice, wliere
he found an asylum, and where two ])ersons of the
same name, his brothers or kinsmen, established a
ju'inting office, he published his translation of the
scriptures, and conunentaries on them. He was the
author of several other works, philosophical and re-
llgious,ani()ng which was a collection of liymns.f His
version of the New Testament made its appearance
in the year 1530, and was followed at intervals, dur-

* Aretiiio, in a Utter to him, Nov. 7, 1537, says : " Voi scte huomo
scnza pare no rinttlligentia de la lingua Ilebraica, Gra?ca, Latina, e
( lialilca."

t An interesting account of Brucioli's life and writings is given
by Sclielhorn, an author to whom the history of the Reformation is
greatly indebted, in his work, Ergcitzlichkeiten aus der Kirchen-
hiotorit und Litteratur. There is also a pood article on him in Maz-
/.uihelli Snittori Ital. tomo ii. parte iv.

HISTORY OF THK REFORMATION IN ITALY.

a 5

ing two years, by translations of the rest of the sacred
books.* It is not evident, that Jirucioli ever for-
maUy left the communion of the church of Rome,
but his prefaces to the different parts of his version,
in which he extols the utility of such works, and
vindicates the common right of Christians to read
the word of God in their own language, are written
in the style and spirit of a protestant. His Bible
was ranked among prohibited books of the first class
in the index of the council of Trent, and all his
works, " published or to be jmblished," were for-
mally interdicted. f But before this i)rohibitory
sentence was issued or could be carried into exe-
cution, his translation was eagerly read, and contri-
buted greatly to increase religious knowledge in
Italy. " Although Italy be the fort and power of

* Le Long, Bibl. Sac. par. ii. p. 125-6. edit. Bocrneri. Wolfii Nota?
ad Colom. Ital. Orient, p. 59. Gerdes. Ital. Ref. p. 190. Miscell. Gron-
ingana, torn. ii. p. 658. Simon, Hist. Crit. de V. Test. 1. ii. chap. 2^2.
and Disquis Crit. p. 193. There is confusion among some of these
authorities, in enumerating the dates of printing, which I do not stop
to examine.

t Fontanini, in Ids work, De/lu Ehquen^a Italiaun, (p. 305.) says
that Brucioli translated and commented on the Bible " alia Luterana."
Scipio Maffei says, '' I'Autore — nelle prefazione parla da Prutcstanii."
Brucioli, in the dedication of his translation and exposition of Job, (a.
1534.) calls Margaret, queen of Navarre, the great patroness of the
reformed, " the refuge of oppressed Christians." Charles du Moulin
says, he was condemned as *' one that spoke neither well nor ill of
God" — " doctus et pius I talus, Antonius Brucioli, confinatus Vene-
tiis, et damnatus nee bene nee male de Deo loqui." (Molimei Collat.
Evang. p. 142.) Tiraboschi accounts for the opposition made to his
version, " per le moltc eresic, di cui egli imbratto la stcs^sa vcrsioiie, c
pill ancora il diffuso comento in sette tomi in foglio, chc poi diedc in
hice.'' (Storia, tomo vii. p. 404.)

56 iiTSTom' OF Tfir, ur.FomiATiox in italy.

the pope's doctrine and empire, since Ills authority
is there most stron«!;ly confirmed in the minds ot the
people, (say the divines of (ient-va. in an answer to
the cardinal hishop of Lucca,) yet the li«^ht coidd
not he i)revented from penetratini;- it in dillerent
quarters, and makini;- the scales to fall from the eyes
of many hlind .md cliained ca])tives, hy means of
an Italian translation of tiie scriptures hy Brucioli,
which apiK-ared at that time, and which they did
not then iudtre it advisahle to sui)press, as they have
since attempted to do." ^ Such was the avidity ot the
puhlic for the scriptures at this period, and the dis-
position of the learned to ^i;ratify it, that other Italian
versions were called for and in-oductMl in the course
of a few years after the ai)pearance of lirucioli's.
The J5il)le puhlished hy Sante Marmocchini, was
rather a revisal of Brucioli's than a new version.t
Fra Zaccario followed Marmocchini in his trans-
lation of the New Testament. '., Massimo Teotilo,
in his version of the New Testament, {) professes it
as his object to preserve the purity of the Italian
language, which had been neglected by other trans-
lators ; l>ut both he, and Filippo Rustici, who
published a version of the Bible, [j defend, in their
prefatory and subjoined discourses, the translation
of the scriptures into vulgar languages, and w^rite
in every respect like protestants. ^[

f Printed at Venice in 1 538.
§ Printed at Lyons in 1551.

• Gerdcsii Ital. Ilef. p. 15.
J Printed in 151.2.
11 Printed in 15G2.

HGerdes. Ital. Ref. pp. 329, ;U0. Abbate D. Giovanni Andres,
ut snpra, pp. 2*2-3. Henr. a Porta, He Ling. Orient, p. 71.

IIISTOUY OF THC IIEFOHMATIOX IX ITALY. 57

I'he protestant opinions were also propagated in
Italy by the intercourse carried on by letters and
travelling between it and the countries which had
embraced the Reformation. It had long been the cus-
tom for the (rermari youth to finish their education,
esj)ecially in law and medicine, at Padua, Bologna,
and other Italian universities. The Italians in their
turn now bei^an to visit the schools of Switzerland
and (lermany, whose literary reputation was daily
advancing; and many of them were attracted to
Wltteinberg by tJie fame of Alelanchthon, who w^as
known to most of the learned in Italv, and with
vvliom Rembo and Sadoleti did not scruple to main-
tain a friendly correspondence by letters.* The
effects of this intercourse were so visible that it was
repeatedly conijdained of by the more zealous de-
fenders of tlie old religion ; and a waiter of that time
gives it as his advice, " that a stop should be put to
all commerce and intercourse, epistolary or other-
wise, between the (lermans and Italians, as the best
means of preventing lieresy from pervading all
Italy."!

War, wh it'll brings so many evils in its train, and
proved such a scourge to Italy during the first half
of the sixteenth century, was overruled by provi-
dence for spreading the gospel in that country. The

• Melanchthon, Epist. coll. 368, 373, 712, 728, 733, 758, edit.
Lond.

t Busdragi Epistola de Italia a Lutheranismo preservanda ; in
Serin. Aniiq. torn. i. p. 324. It has been supposed, that Vergerio con-
cealed himself under the feigned name of Gerardus BusdragriSj and
that the whole letter is a piece of irony.

.'>8 HISTORY or Tin: Ul.lOirMATlOX IN' ITALY.

UlSTOHY OF THE IIEFOUMATION IX ITALY. 59

troops which Charles W brought from fTerniany to
assist him in his Italian expeditions, and the Swiss
auxiliaries who followed the standard of his rival
Francis I., contained many protestants.* With
the freedom of men who have swords in their hands,
these foreigners conversed on the religious controver-
sy with the inhabitants on whom they were quarter-
ed. They extolled the religious liberty which they
enjoyed at home, derided the frightful idea of the re-
formers which the monks had impressed in the minds
of the people, talked in the warmest strains of Lu-
ther and his associates as the restorers of Christia-
nity, contrasted the jnirity of their lives, and the
slender income with which they were contented, with
the wealth and luxury of their opponents, and ex-
pressed their astonishment that a peopleof such spirit
as the Italians should continue to yield a base and im-
plicit subjection to an indolent andcorrui)tpriestIiood,
which sought to keep them in ignorance, that it might
feed on the spoils of tlieir credulity. The impression
which these representations were calculated to make
on the minds of the people, was strengthened by the
angry manifestoes which the poj)e and emperor pub-
lislied against each other. Clement cliarged the
emperor with indifference to religion, and complain-
ed that he liad enacted laws in various parts of his
dominions, which were highly injurious to the in-
terests of the church, as well as derogatory to the
honour of the I lolv See. Charles recriminated, bv

* Robertson's Charles Y. vol. ii. ]>. :io6. iurtlis. Ital. Rcf. ]> 17.

accusing the pope of kindling afresh the flames of
war in Europe, that he might evade, what was uni-
versally and loudly called for, the reformation of the
church in its head and members ; he wrote to the
cardinals to summon a general council for this pur-
pose ; and threatened that, if this were not done, he
would abolish tlie jurisdiction of the pope through-
out Spain, and convince other nations, by his exam-
ple, that ecclesiastical abuses might be corrected,
and the ancient discipline of the church restored,
without the intervention of papal authority.*

Nor did the emperor rest in threatenings. His
general, the duke of Bourbon, liaving entered the
papal territories, Rome was taken and sacked, and
the pontiff, after enduring a siege in the castle of
St. Angelo, was obliged to surrender to the impe-
rial troops, by which he was kept for a consider-
able time as a captive. According to the accounts
given by Roman Catholic historians, the Germans
in the emperor's army behaved with great modera-
tion towards the inhabitants of Rome after the first
day's pillage, and contented themselves with testify-
ing their detestation for idolatry ; the Spaniards
never relented in their rapacity and cruelty, tortur-
ing the prisoners to make them discover their trea-
sures ; while the Italians imitated the Spaniards in
their cruelty, and the Germans in their impiety.f

• Pro divo Carolo ejus nominis quint©, Apologetic! libri duo ;
Mogunt. 1527. Sleidan, Comment, torn. i. pp. 332—336, edit. Am
Knde. De Thou, Hist. lib. i. sect. II.

t Guicciardini, II Sacco di Roma; and the authorities quoted by
Sismondi, Hist.des Rep. Ital. tome xv. pp. 27J.-6.

(Jo IIISTOIIY OF TIIL: RKFOllMATIOX IN ITAIA.

A scene whicli wns exhibited during the siege of the
castle, will convey an idea of the indiu:nity shown to
all which liad been held sacred in the Roman see.
A j)arty of (lernian soldiers, mounted on horses and
mules, assend)led one day on the streets of Rome.
One of them, named (irunwald, distinguished hy
In's majestic countenance and stature, being attired
like the i)oi)e, and wearing a triple crown, was plac-
ed on a horse richly cai)arisoned. Others were ar-
rayed like cnrdinals, some wearing mitres, and others
clothed in sciU'K t i.v white, according to the raidv of
those whom they personated. In tiiis form they
marched, amidst the sounding of drums and fifes,
and accompanied with a vast cnumurse of people,
with all the ])omp and ceremony usually observed
in a pontifical procession. Wlien they passed a house
in which any of the cardinals was confined, Grun-
wahl blessed the people by stretching out his fingers
in the manner i)ractised by the pope on such occa-
sions. After some time he was taken from his horse,
and borne on the shoulders of one of his comj)anions
on a pad or seat prepared for the purpose. Having
reached the castle of St. Angelo, a large cup was put
into his hands, from which lie drank to the health
and safe custody of Clement, in whicli lie was pledg-
ed by his attendants. lie then administered to his
cardinals an oath, in which he joined ; engaging,
that they would yield obedience and faithful allegi-
ance to the emperor, as their lawful and only prince,
that thev would not disturb the peace of the em-
pire by intrigues, but, as became them, and accord-

niSTOHV Ol Tin: HKFOUMATION IX ITAFV. (il

ing to the precepts of scripture and the example of
Christ and his apostles, would be subject to the
civil j)owers. After a speech in which he rehearsed
the civil, parricidal, and sacrilegious wars excited
by the po][)es, and acknowledged tliat providence had
raised up the emperor Charles to revenge these
crimes, and bridle the rnge of wicked priests, the
pretended pontiff solemnly promised to transfer by
testament all liis authority and power to Martin Lu-
tlier, tliat he might remove all the corruptions which
liad infected the apostolical see, and completely refit
the sJiip of St. Peter, that it might no longer be the
sport of the winds and waves, through the unskil-
fulness and negligence of its governors, who, intrust-
ed witli the helm, had spent their days and nights
in drinking and debauchery. Then raising his voice,
he said, " All wlio agree to these things, and are
willing to see them carried into execution, let 'them
signify this by lifting up their hands ;" upon which
the whole band of soldiers, raising their hands, ex-
claimed, " Long live Pope Luther ! Long live Pope
Luther !" All this was performed under the eve of
Clement VIL*

111 other circumstances, such proceedings would
have been regarded in no other light than as the un-
bridled excesses of a licentious soldier}-, and might
have excited compassion for the captive pontiff.

• N'arratio Direpticnis Expugiiata^ Urbis, ex Italico tran&lata a
tasparo narthio, apud Fabricii Ccntifol. Lutheran, torn. i. pp. 96—98.
'i'he principal facts in tliis narrative are confirmed by the popi-h
wtil-rs, Cocblceus, Spor.danus, &c.

l1 % "

I i

Gi> msTOUY 01 THl, KKKOUMATIO.N- IN ITALY.

But at this ti.ne all were convinced, that the wars
which had so long desolated Italy were chiefly to he
ascrihed to the an.hition and resentment ot the
popes J and the conduct of Clement in provokn.g a
powerful enemy, whom he was incapable ot resist-
ing, appeared to he the effect of a judicial mtatua-
tion. The disasters which betel the papal see
and the city of Rome were interpreted as marks of
divine displeasure, and those who insulted over them
were regarded as heralds employed to denounce the
nidgments of heaven against an incorrigible court,
and a city desecrated and defiled by all manner ot
wickedness. These were not merely the sentiments ot
the vulgar, or of such as had already imbibed the re-
formed opinions. They were enterlained by digni-
taries of the Roman church, and uttered within the
walls of the \'atican. We have a proof of this 111
a speech delivered by fetaphylo, bishop of Sibari, at
the first meeting of the apostolical Rota held atter
Home was delivered from a foreign army. Havnig
described the devastations committed on the city,
the bishop proceeds in the following manner : " But
whence, I pray, have these things proceeded? and why
have such calamities befallen us ? Because all flesh
have corrupted their ways : because we are citizens,
not of the holy city Rome, but of Babylon the wick-
ed city. The word of the Lord spoken by Isaiah is
accomplished in our times, ' How is the faithful
city become an harlot ! It was full of judgment
and holiness, righteousness formerly dwelt in it;
now sacrilegious persons and murderers. Formerly

HISTORY OF THE UEFOKMaTIOX IN IT.\1.Y. Gj

it was inhabited by a holy nation, a peculiar people ;
but now by the jieojile of Gomorrah, a depraved
seed, wicked children, unfaithful priests, the com-
panions of thieves.' Lest any should suppose that
this jirophetic oraclewas fulfiJledlong ago in the over-
throw of the Babylonish Jerusalem by the Roman
tin[)erois, ^^espasian and Titus, seeing the words
appear to refer to the time in which the prophet
lived, I think it proper to observe, agreeably to ec-
clesiastical verity, that future things were set be-
fore the eyes of the prophet's mind as present,
'i'his is evident from the sacred Avritings througli-
out : ' The daughter of Zion shall be forsaken mid
made desolate by the violence of the enemy,' This
daughter of Zion, the ajiostle Jolin, in tlie l)ook of
Revelation, explains as meaning not Jerusalem but
tlie city Rome, as ai)pears from looking into his
description. For John, or rather the angel, explain-
ing to John the vision concerning the judgment of
the wliore, represents this city as meant by Baby-
lon. ' The woman (says he) whom thou sawest is
that great city which reigns (he refers to a spiritual
reign) over the kings of the earth.' He says :—
' She sits on seven hills;' which applies properly to
Rome, called, from ancient times, fhe seven-hilled
cifij. Siie is also said to ' sit on many waters,'
wliich signify i)eople, nations, and various languages',
of which, as we see, this city is composed more'
than any other city in the Christian world. He says
also, 'She is full of names of blasphemy, the mo-
ther of uiuleanness, fornications and abominations

■

ii4 IHSTOKY OV Tlli. IIKI'OKM ATlOX IX ITALY.

of the cartli; This supersedes the necessity of any
more speeiiic proof, that Rome is tlie city referred
to ; seeing these vices, though they prevail every-
where, have fixed their seat and empire with us."'^^-
If such were tlie impressions made on the mind of
a bishop by this event, and if such was the huiguage
held within the hearing of the sovereign pontiff,
what must have been the feelings and the language of
those who were less interested in the support of the
ecclesiastical monarchy, and who were still greater
sufferers from the ambition and tyranny of those who
administered its affairs? Tiie mysterious veil of sanc-
tity, by which the minds of tlie vulgar had been long
overawed, was now torn off ; and when revealed, the
claims of the priesthood appeared to be as arrogant
and unfounded as their conduct was inconsistent with
the character which they had assumed, and with the
precepts of that religion of which they professed to
be the teachers and guardians. The horror hither-
to felt at the name of lieretic or Lutheran in Italy
began to abate, and the minds <.>f the people were
prepared to listen to the teachers of the reformed
doctrine, who in their turn were emboldened to
preach and make proselytes in a more open manner
than they had yet ventured to do. *' In Italy also,
(says the historian of the council of Trent, speaking
of this period,) as there had neither been pope nor
papal court at Rome for nearly two years, and as

*Oratiohabita atl Auditores Rotic, de causis Excidii Urbis Ilomai,
anno ViST; inter lleriim (Jcrmaii Scriptorts, a Schardio, torn. ii. p.
6\:i, ^c. \\ olHi L( ct. Moil or. torn. ii. p. 300.

HISTORY OF TllK KErOKMATlON IX ITALY. 65

most looked on thecalamities wliich had fallen on both
as the executionofa divine judgment, on account of the
corruptions of its government, many listened with avi-
dity to the Reformation ; in several cities, and particu-
larly at Faenza, which was situated within the terri-
tories of the pope, sermons were delivered in private
liouses against the church of Rome; and the number of
those named Ljitherans, or as they called themselves
ErangelicaLs, increased every day."* That these
sermons were not entirely confined to private houses,
and that the reformed doctrine was publicly ])reach-
ed in Italy before the year 1530, we learn from the
liighest authority. " From the report made to us,
(says pope Clement VII.) we have learned with
great grief of heart, that in different parts of Italy,
the pestiferous heresy of Luther prevails to a high
degree, not only among secular persons, but also
among ecclesiastics and the regular clergy, both
mendicant and non-mendicant ; so that some by
their discourses and conversation, and what is worse,
by their public preaching, infect numbers with this
disease, and greatly scandalize faithful Christians,
living under the obedience of the Roman church,
and observing its laws, to the increase of heresies,
the stumbling of the weak, and the no small injury
of the catholic faith."f These appearances, while
they gave alarm to the friends of the papacy, excit-

*Fra Paolo, IH.t. du Concile de Trente, p. 87, edit. Courayer.
>V ith this the statement of Giannone exactly agrees. (Ili&t. Civ. de
Naples, torn. iv. p. 1 10.)

t Uaynaldi Annales, adann. 1^30.

66 HISTOllY OF THE UErOllMATlON IN ITALY.

ed hopes in the hreasts of those who had espoused
the cause of the Reformation. Both calculated on
the national character of the Italians ; and it was
a connnon remark, that as the plague, on account
of the intenser lieat of an Italian sky, was more
violent in that country than in Germany, so Luther-
anism, if it seized on the minds of the Italians,
which were more ardent and vivacious than those
of the Germans, would rage with greater impetuosi-
ty and violence,*

HISTORY OF THE UEFOIIMATION IN ITALY. 6?

• Campcgii Cardiiialis Oratio ad orclincs Imperii Norimberg. ; apud
Seckeiidorf, lib. i. p. 2SD. Busdragi Kpistola ; in Scrinio AutiqiiariO;,
torn. i. par- »• P- 3'^^-

CHAP. III.

rUOGIlESS OF THE REFORMED DOCTRINE IN THE
DIFFERENT STATES AND CITIES OF ITALY.

Having given a general account of the intro-
duction of the reformed opinions into Italy, and the
causes which led to this, I now proceed to trace the
progress which they made through the different
states and cities of that country.

Feri^ara is entitled to the first notice, on account
of the protection which it afforded at an early period
to the friends of the Reformation, who fled from vari-
ous parts of Italy, and from foreign countries. Un-
der the government of its dukes of tlie illustrious
house of Este, Ferrara had for some time vied with
Florence in the encouragement of learning and the
fine arts. Ariosto lived at the court of Alfonso I.,
as did Bernardo Tasso, and at a subsequent period,
his more ilhistrious son, the author of Jerusalem
Delivered, at the court of Ercole II. ; and in con-
sequence of this, the genealogy and achievements of
tlie dukes of Ferrara have been transmitted to pos-
terity by the first poets of that age. Hercules had re-
ceived a good education, and was induced by personal
judgment and feeling toyield that patronage to learn-
ed men which contemporary princes paid as a tribute

68 HISTOUY or TIU: llKl'OKMATIOX IX ITALY.

to fashion, and out of regard to tlieir own fame *
The house of Este had in several late instances been
ill repaid for the devotion which they had shown to
the interests of the see of Rome ; but the reason al-
ready mentioned, as attachin<^ the Italian princes to
the pope, overcame the sense of the injury. Ippolito,
a younger son of Duke Alfonso, and afterwards
his nephew, Ludovico, were cardinals ; and from
time innnemorial a branch of the family had occu-
pied a place in the sacred college.f Accordingly,
Alfonso had proved a faithful ally to Clement
during the humiliating disasters to which he was
exposed ; and his successor Hercules, though more
eiiliirhtened in religious matters than his father,
avoided any thing which might give offence to the
supreme i)ontiiF.

In the year 1527, Hercules II. married Renee,
daughter of Louis XII. of France ; and the coun-
tenance which the reformed opinions obtained at
the court of Ferrara, is chiefly to be ascribed to
the influence of that amiable and accomplished
princess. Distinguished for her virtue and ge-
nerosity, of the most elegant and engaging man-
ners, speaking the French and Italian langua-

• Civlii Calcagnini Opera, pp. 77, IIG, lU, 175. The eulogium
which Calca<^iiini has pronounced on him, is justified by the account
of a conversation between them respecting the choice of a tutor to the
duke's son. (lb. p. 168. Conf. pp. 160-162.)

t Puffendorf, Introd. Hist. Europ. p. 606. Black's Life of Tasso,
\. 34-8. 'i'o this Ariosto alludes ;

'Twere long to tell the names of all thy race,
That in the conclave shall obtain a place.
To tell each enterprize their arms shall gain,
A\'hat conquests for the Roman church obtain.

(Orlando Furioso book iii.)

HISTORY OF THE REFOKMATIOX IX ITALY. 69

ges with equal purity, aud deeply versed iu the
Greek and Roman classics, she attracted the love
and admiration of all wlio knew her.* Before
leavnig her native country she had become acquaint-
ed With tlie reformed doctrine, by means of some of
those learned persons Mho frequented the court of
the celebrated Margaret, queen of Navarre; and she
M-as anxious to facilitate its introduction into the
country to which her residence was now transferred
P or some time she could only do this under the co-
vert ot entertaining its friends as men of letters
which the duke, her husband, M-as ready to encour-
age, or at least to wink at. 'J'he first persons to whom
she extended her protection and hospitality on this
principle, were lier own countrymen, whom the
violence of persecution had driven out of France
Madame de Soubise, the governess of the duchess
liad introduced several men of letters into the court
of France, during the late reign.f She now resided
at the court of Ferrara, along with her son, Jean
lie Partlienai, sieur de Soubise, afterwards a princi-
l)al leader of the iirotestant party in France ; her
•laughter, Anne de Partlienai, distinguished for her
elegant taste ; and the future husband of this young
lady, Antoine de Pons, count de Marennes, who
adhered to the reformed cause until the death of liis
wife.j In the year 1534, the celebrated French

* Muratori, Aiiticliita Estensi, torn. ii. p. 368. Tirabosclii Storia
toni. vii. par. i. p. y?. Calcagnini Opera, pp. 149, 150,
+ Oeuvrcs dc Clement Marot, torn. ii. pp. 182-181.. A la Have,

t Ibid. pp. 178-181. Bayle, Diet. art. Soubise, J. de Partheuai.

J'.*

t I

Imui

70 nisTOiiv oi- Tiir, iti- iou.matiox in itai.v.

poet, Clement Marot, fled from his native comitiy.
in c'onseciiience of the persecution excited hy the •
placards, and after residing for a short time at the
court of the queen of Navarre in Uearn, came to
Ferrara.* He was introduced by Madame de Sou-
hise to the duchess, who made him her secretary,!
and his friend, Lyon Jamct. finding it necessary
soon after to join him, met with a reception ecpially
gracious.t About the same time, the celebrated re-
former. Join. Calvin, visited Ferrara, where he spent
some months under the assumed name of Charles
Heppeville. Tie received the most distinguished at-
tention from the duchess, who was confirmed in the
protestant faith by his instructions, and ever after
retained the highest respect for his character and
talents.^ In the year 1.536, the duke of Ferrara
entered iuto a league with the pope and emperor, by
one of the secret articles of which he was bound to
remove all the French from his court; and in conse-
quence of this, the duchess was obliged reluctantly

• In the biographical ami critical preface to the Hague e.lition of
Marof3 works, by Le Chevulk r Gonlon de Percd (un.ler which name,
Nicole Lcglet ,lu Fre.mo,j is supposed to have concealed himself,) it
is stated, that the famous Diana of Poitiers, afterwards mistress ot
Henry 11. instigated the persecution against Marot, in revenge for
some satirical verses, which he had written on her for deserting him.

(Tom. i. pp. 25, 76.)

tOeuvres de Marot, torn. i. pp. 73-79. Bcze, Hist. Eccl. torn. i. p.
22. Le Labourcur, Addit. aux Mem. de C'astelnau, p. TIC. Noltenu
Vita Olympiio Moratir, pp. fiO-G2. edit. Hesse.

{ Nolteii, ut supra, pp. 65-6T.

S Bcza, Vita Calvini. Muratori, Antichita Estcnsi, torn. ii. p. 3S9.
nuchat, Hist, de la Reform, de la Suisse, tome v. p. 620. The mis-
statements of Varillas and Moreri respecting Calvin's visit to Italy
jre corrected by Bayle, Diet, ut supra.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IX ITALY. 71

to part with Madame de Soubise and her family *
Marot retired to Venice, from wliich he soon after
obtained permission to return in .safety to liis native
country.! It is not improbable, that he was induc-
ed at first to take part with the reformers from re-
sentment at the opposition which the clergy made
to every sj)ecies of literature ; but his attachment
to the protestant doctrine was greatly increased
durmg his residence at Ferrara, if we may judge
from tlie strain of the letters and other pieces which
proceeded from his pen at this time, and which
breathe the spirit of martyrdom. Probably he would
have shrunk from the fiery trial, if he had been ex-
posed to it; but it does not follow from this, either
that the sentiments referred to are not noble, or that
the poet was not in earnest wlien he uttered them, t

• Epitres de Rabelais, p. 1 8. Marot has described with much ten-
derness, the distress which the duchess felt on this occasion, in an
c'pistle to the queen of Navarre :

Ha, Marguerite ! escoute la soufFrancc
Du noble cueiir de Renee de France;
Tuis comme sanir plus fort que d'esperancc

Console — la.
Tu S9ais comment hors son pays alia,
Et que parens et amis laissa la ;
Mais tu ne s^ais quel traitement elle a

Kn terre estrange.
Elle ne voit ceux a qui se veult plaindre.
Son ceil rayant si loing ne peult attaindre,
Et puis les monts pour se bien lui estaindre
Sont entre deux.

. _ , (Oeuvres, tome ii. 317-8.)

t In the title to his 21st Cantigue, he is said to be "banni de
t ranee, depuis chasse de Ferrara, et de la retire a Venise 1536." (Oeuv-

mentT^ "' ^' ^^^' ''''™^* ^''™'' '' ^^' ^^'^' ^^^^^' ^'^* ^^^''^^^ ^^^-
t The account which he gave of his faith in his poetical epistle

[¥■'

72 HISTORY OF THE llKFOim ATIOX IX ITALY.

Lyon Jaiuet was allowed to remain with tlie dudiess,
probably as a person less known than Marot, and
discharged the duty of secretary to Renee after the
departure of his friend.*

Several individuals who were decidedly favour-
able to the Reformation obtained a place in the uni-
versity of Ferrara, which was now fast recovering
its former lustre, after having suffered severe-
ly from the civil wars, in which the family of Este
had for many years been involved.f But the re-
formed doctrine was propagated chiefly by jneans
of those learned men whom the duchess retained
in her family for the education of her children.
This was conducted on an extensive scale, suited
to the liberality of her own views and the munifi-
cence of her husband. Teachers in all branches of
polite letters and arts were i)rovided. In the gal-
axy of learned men which adorned the court of

adclressed to his prosecutor, Mons. Boucliar, in 1 jy5, diftlrs widely
from tliat which is contained in his epistle addressed to Francis I. in
1336. (Oeuvres, tonic ii. p. 39. comp. p. 107.) His willinj^ncss to suf-
fer niaityrdoni, which his biographer, after Bayle, has sneered at, i*
expressed in the following lines :

Que pleust a 1' Flternel,

Pour le grand bien du pcuple desole.

Que leur desir de nrion sang fust saoule,

Et tant d'abus, dont ils se sont numis,

Fussent a cler descouverts et punis,

O quatre fois et cinq fois bien heureuse

La mort, tant soit cruelle et rigoureuse !

Qui feroit seule un million de vies

Sous tels abus n'estre plus asservies ?
* Oeuvrcs de Marot, tome ii. p. 1 30. Bayle, art. Marot, Clement,
fin the beginning of the sixteenth century, there were so many
English students at the university of Ferrara, as to form a distinct
nation in that learned corporation. (Bersetti Hist. Gymn. Ferrar.
apud Tiraboschi, tomo vii. p. 119.)

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 73

Ferrara, were Celio Calcagnini, Lilio Giraldi, Bar-
tolomeo Riccio, Marzello Palingenio, and Marco
Antonio Flaminio, men whose minds were elevTited
above the superstitions of the age, if they were not
disciples to the protestant faith. * During a vi-
sit which tlie pontiff, Paul III., paid to Ferrara,
in the year 1543, the Adelphi of Terence was acted
by the youth of the family, and the tliree daughters
of the duke, the eldest of whom was only twelve
and the youngest five years of age, performed their
l)arts with great applause, f His Holiness was not
then aware of the religious sentiments of the mas-
ters by whom the juvenile princesses liad been qualifi-
ed for affording him this classical amusement. Chi-
lian and John Sinaj)i, two brothers from Germany,
instructed them in Greek, and being protestants,
imbued their minds with sound views of religion. :j:
Fulvio Peregrino IMorata, a native of Mantua, and
a successful teacher of youth in various parts of
Italy, liad been tutor to the two younger brothers
of duke Hercules, and having returned finally to
Ferrara in 1539, was re-adinitted to his professoi-
sliip in the university. § Like most of his learned

* Noltenii Vita Olympiir Morata?, pp. 67—87, ed. Hesse.

t Muratori, ut supra, ii. 368.

J Opera Olympian Morat«, pp. 7G, 97, 203, 205.

§ Nolten, ut supra, pp. 14 — 17. His works in Italian and in
Latin are mentioned by Tiraboschi, (Storia, tomo vii. pp. 1197— 1200)
and by Schelhorn. (Amoen. Eccl. et Lit. torn. ii. p. 647.) A warm
eulogium is passed on him by Calcagnini, (Opera, p. 156.) and by
Bembo. (Epist. Famil. apud Schelhorn.) Bembo, in a letter '' a M.
Bernardo Tasso, Secretario della Signora Duchessa di Ferrara," May
27, 1529, speaks of " Maestro Pellcgrino Moretto," as having said
some injurious things of his prose works. (Lettere, tomo iii. p.
226. Milano, 1810.)

Ill

74 iiisTOTiv or Tin: hkfoioiation in itai.y.

countryiiien, Morata's mind liad been engrossed with
secular studies during tlie first part of his lite, hut
having met withCelio Seeundo Curio, a refugee from
I'iedmont, he imbibed from him the knowledge of
evangelical truth and a deep sense of religion.* Es-
teemed as he was for his learning and integrity, he
became still more celebrated as the father of Olyni-
pia Morata, one of the most learned females of the
age, whom lie educated with a zeal prompted by
parental fondness and professional enthusiasm. In
conseciuence of her early proficiency in letters,
Olympia was chosen by the duchess to be the com-
panion of her eldest daughter, Anne, with wlioui
she improved in every elegant and useful accom-
plishment ; and although she afterwards acknow-
ledged tliat her personal piety suffered from the
bustle and blandishments of a court, yet it was dur-
inir her residence in the ducal i)alace that she ac-
([uired that knowledge of the gospel which support-
ed her mind under the privations and hardships
which she afterwards liad to endure, f

We have no means of ascertaining tlie number
of protestants at Ferrara, which i)robably varied at
different times, in consequence of the fluctuating
politics of the duke, and the measures of religious
constraint or toleration which were alternately

* Fulvio calls Curio his " divine teacher, — one sent of God to in-
struct him, as Ananias was sent to Paul." (Xolten, Vita Olynipiie
Moratie, p. 17, 18, cd. Hesse. Opuscula Olympiit ISIoratte, pp. 94-,
96, edit. Basil. 1.S80.)

t Coelii Secundi Curionis Araneus, pp. 1^3, I51-. Basil. lo41-

1II8TOKV OF THE KEFORMAIIOX JX ITALY. 75

adopted by the other states of Italy. One account
liientions, that they had several preachers as early
as the year 1528;* but whether they were per-
mitted to teacli i)ublicly or not, we are not inform-
ed. Iliat their labours were successful, is evident
from the number of distinguished persons who either
im])ibed the protestant doctrine, or were confirmed
in their attachment to it, at Ferrara. To the in-
stance of this among the natives of France already
mentioned, may be added riubert Languet, an ac-
complished scliolar, and one of the first, or at least
soundest, politicians of ln*s age.f The most emi-
nent of the Italians who embraced the reformed faith,
or who exposed themselves to the suspicions of the
clergy by the liberality of their opinions, resided for
some time at the court of Ferrara, or were indebted
in one way or other to the patronage of Kenee.

MoDENA was also under the government of the
house of Este, and most probably owed its first ac-
quaintance with the reformed opinions to tlie same
cause which introduced them into Ferrara. Some
of the Modenese were among the early correspond-
ents of Luther.i Few cities of Italy in that age
could boast of having given birth to a greater num-
ber of persons eminent for talents and learning than
JModena. It reckoned among its citizens four of
the most accomjilished members of the sacred col-
lege, (including Sadoleti,) Sigonio, the celebrated

* Tempe Helvetica, torn. iv. p. 138.

t Langueti Epistolje, lib. i. part, ii.pp. lll,26i. Hala*, 1G99.

J Gerdcsii Italia Reformata, p. 61.

pif

If i

76 HISTORY OF Tin: REFORMATION IX ITALY.

aiiti(iiiaiy, Castelvelro, a critic of great aciiteiiess,
and iiiaiivothers, wliose names occur frequently in the
history of Italian literature. Modena possessed one
t)f tliose academies whicli sprung uj) in such great
numbers in Italy during tlie sixteenth century, and
threw into shade the old and endowed seminaries of
science. This owed its origin to an opulent physician
of the name of Grillenzone, who lived with his five
brothers and tlieir families in one house, which was
open at all times to learned men. Religious topics
were not excluded from the discussions of the Acca-
demia del Grillenzone, and some of its most distin-
guished members inclined to the opinions of the re-
formers. Muratori, in his Life of Castelvetro, repre-
sents the ecclesiastical proceedings instituted against
this learned body as originating solely in one of
those feuds in which the literati of that age were
not unfrequently involved with the priests and
friars ; but more accurate investigation has shown
that they had a deeper foundation. The academy
had incurred strong suspicions of being tainted
with heresy as early as 15,^37, on account of a
book circulated in the city, which had been con-
demned as heretical, but whicli the academicians
defended as sound and worthy of approbation.*
Two years after this, the inquisitor of heretical
pravity was directed by a pap(d rescript to make
diligent inquiry after the adherents to the new opi-
nions among the different religious orders establish-

* For a fuller account of the dispute occasioned ])y this book, Ti-
rahoschi (torn. vii. p. KJS.) refers to Bihliotcca (fcn/i Serif fori Mo-
denes i ; a work vvliich I have not been able to see.

msTOltV Ol- THK UKIOKMATKJN IX ITALY. 77

«! in tliis city.* I„ UiO, Paolo Ricci, or Lisia
I-ileuo, as he was also called, a native of Sicilv
who had imbibed tiie reformed doctrine, came to'
Aiodena, where his reputation for learning secured
Mm a cordial reception. He made it his business
to fmd out the friends of the new opinions wI,o
were scattered in the city ; and having prevailed on
tlien. to meet jjrivately in a particular house, acted
as then- teacher. His instructions soon inade ad-
ditional converts ; and gathering courage with their
numbers, the new preachers mounted the pulpit
•••nd drew crowds to their sermons. This produced
a great sensation in the city ; the scriptures were
eagerly consulted, and the subjects in dispute be-
tu'ee.1 the clun-ch of Rome and her opponents were
treely and generally canvassed. « Persons of all
classes," (says a contemporary popish writer,) " not
only the learned, but also the illiterate and women.
Avhenever they met in the streets, in shops, or in
churches, disputed about faith and the law of Christ
and all promiscuously tortured the sacred scriptures'
quoting Paul. Matthew, John, the Apocalypse, and
all the doctors, though they never saw their writ-
ings "f The news of the success of the gospel at
Modena reached Germany, and drew a letter of
congratulation and advice from Bucer. t The

* Spondani Aiinal. ad an. I J39.

t fronaca SiS. di Alcssandro Tassoni, apud Tiraboschi, torn. vii.

■ 168. G.ngucK- translates the passage into good Frencl., and give.

as ,,s own description of ,he fact, without appearing to be aLc

liat (his was the eon.mon language of Roman Cathohc writers of that

'ng on religious subjects. (Hist. Litt. d'ltahe, p. 36i.)
. Buceri Script. Anglic, p. 687.

'1-

7H lUSTOUY OV TlIK KKIOKM aTION IN ITALY-

ewy nuulo lou.l cmplaints ; and Uicci being
t^L.ul.a in tl.e neighbouring village o Staggu
rthe orders of dnke Hercules, was con.lucted as
^ i^oner to Ferrara, and forced to „.ake a pubhc
Station of his opinions. ^"^ ^'--^ -7,'^
l,i,„ „„, others had alrea.ly taken deei. i-oo n. the
n u s of the Mo.lenese, who testified then- uuhg-
" ion at the treatn.ent of their favourite preacher,
ylblicly deriding the priests, and on so.ne « -
cnMons obliging them to come down tron. the
Hd^.* I.> tl-se practices the populace were not
^ ' -1 i.u tl..> known sentiments of

a little encouraged by the Knou. ...„„,,,.

the acaden.icians, who did not ccmceal hei con
tern, of the ignorance and profligacy ot the clergy.
C Xl Morma-, then bishop of Modena, complam^^
„f this in a letter addressed to cardinal Coutarcne
t m'i, and adds, that it was the common report,
that " the whole city was turned Lutheran, t

FioiiKXCE had lately seen two of her citizens
advancedto the papal throne; an intimate connex-
ion subsisted between her and Rome ; a"'!''!" Y.
l.lded x.p her liberties to Cosmo de Med.c, who
exercised the supreme authority, under the title
of Grand Uuke of Tuscany. On these accounts, the
,eforined doctrine was never permitted to make_grc.it
progress in Florence. Uut so early as 1.52o the
L.mtes concerning religion were agitated there,
,,;, nuuiy of the Florentines had embraced the new
opinions.t Brucioli and Teofilo, already mentioned

;^rn;:H."avo,.n..Kpi..c.a.i....,.ceUx.vi. «a-

"'ts»;:£ ,^::;;i:;tiit:i;: Hn.i. L.. anno U.S.

niSTOHY OF THE IJKIOKMATIOX IX ITALY. 79

as translators of the scriptures, and Carneseca and
Martyr, of whom we shall afterwards have occasion
to speak particularly, were natives of Florence ; nor
Mere there wanting several of their fellow-citizens
who sighed for religious reform and liberty but
who, despairing to find it at Jiome, chose a voluntary
banisliment, and an uncertain and uncomfortable
abode in foreign countries.*

Bologna, in the sixteenth century, formed part
of the territories of the church, and from it the su-
preme pontiffs issued some of the severest of their
edicts against iiere.sy. IJut this did not prevent the
light \vhidi was shilling around, from penetrating in-
to that city. The university of Bologna was one of
the earliest, if not the very first, of the great schools
ot Europe, and the extensive privileges enjoyed by
Its members were favourable to liberal sentiments,
and the projiagation of the new opinions in religion'
The essentia] principles of liberty, equally obnoxious
to political and ecclesiastical despots, were boldly
avowed in public disputations before the students,
at a time when they liad fallen into disrepute in
those states of Italy which still retained a shadow
of their former freedom, f John Mollio, a native
of Montalcino in the territory of Sienna, was a
l.rincipal instrument of promoting the gospel at Bo-
logna. He had entered in his youth into the order
of Minorites, but instead of wasting his time, like
ilie most of liis brethren, in idleness or superstition,

* Ger<lcsii Syllabus Ital. Jtelorni. /wm//h.
t Life of John Knox, vol. ii. |). I'^j.

so msioRY OK rm: MV.vou^iynos in ii-mv.

had .levoted himself to the study of polite letters
an<l theology. By the careful perusal ot the smp-
tures and certain ho<»ks of the retorna-rs he atta n-
ed to clear views of evangelical truth, which his a-
lents, and his reputatio., for learning and piety
enahle.1 him to recommend, both as a preacher and
an academical professor. * After acpurmg great
celebrity as a teacher in the universities ot Bics-
eia, Milan, and )>avia, he came, about the year
1533, to liologna. Certain propositions which he
advanced in his lectures, relating to justification
by tailh and other points then agitated were oppos-
ed by Coruelio, a professor of metaphysics, who,
being foiled in a public dispute which ensued be-
twect. them, lodged a charge of heresy against his
opponent, and procured his citation to Home. Mol-
lio defended himself with such ability and address,
that the judges appointed by Paul III. to try the
cause we're forced to ac.piit him, in the way ot de-
claring that the sentiments which he had maintained
were t"rue, although they were such as could not be
publicly taught at that time without prejudice to the
apostolical see. He was therefore sent back to Ho-
locnia, with an admonition to abstain tor the future
from explaining the epistles of St. Paul. But, con-
tinuing to teach the same doctrine as formerly, and
with s^iU greater applause from his hearers, cardi-
nal Campeggio procured an order from the pope to
remove him from the university, f

The state of religious feeling at liologna is de-

. lUstoire acs Martyrs, f. <-'.U, c.Ut. U97. folio. Zanclui Kpist.

Jib. ii. col. 'JTH.

t Pantalcon, Kcnuu in EccL Cn.t.lib. ix. i. iOo.

HISTORY OF THE llEFOUMATION IN ITALY. 81

picted ill a letter as singular in its style as in its
matter, which some inhabitants of that city address-
ed to John Planitz, who had come to Italy as am-
bassador from the elector of Saxony to Charles V.
Having mentioned the report that he was sent to
intreat the emperor to use his influence with the
pope to call a council for the reformation of the
churcli, an object which had been long and earnest-
ly expected by all good men, they proceed in the
following manner :— " If this be true, as we trust

it is, then we offer our thanks to you all, to you

for visiting this Babylonian land,— to Germany for
demanding a council, — and especially to your evan-
gelical prince, who has undertaken the defence of
the gospel, and of all the faithful, with such ardour,
that, not content with restoring the grace and liberty
of Christ to his native Saxony and to Germany, he
seeks to extend the same blessings toEngland,France,
Spain, Italy, and the churches in every other coun-
try. We are quite aware, that it is a matter of
small consequence to you whetiier a council is as-
sembled or not, seeing you have already, as becomes
strenuous and faithful Christians, thrown off the ty-
rannical yoke of antichrist, and asserted your right
to the sacred privileges of the free kingdom of Jesus
Christ, so that you everywhere read, write, and pub-
licly preach at your pleasure ; the spirits of the pro-
phets jointly hearing and judging, according to the
apostolical rule. We are aware also, that it gives you
no uneasiness to know, that you are loaded in foreign
countries with the heavy charge of heresy, but that on

82 aiSTOKY OF THi: UKI-OKMATIOX IN ITAI.V.

the contrary, you esteem it matter of jay and eternal
gloriationto be tl.e fn>t to sailer reproaches, impris-
onment, and fire and swor.l, for tl.e name of Jesus.
It is tlierefore plain to us, that, in urging the convoca-
tion of such a synod, you do not h.ok to the adyan-
ta.n. of the (Jennans.but that.oheying the apostohcal
injunction, you seek the adva.Uage and salvation of
other people. On this account all Christians pro-
fess themselves under the deepest ohligations to
you, and especially we of Italy, who, in propor-
tion to our proximity to the tyrannical court, (alas.
we cherish the tvrant in our boson.,) are bo«..d to
acknowlclge the-divine blessi.ig of Y^-^^l^^^
« We beseech and obtest you by the ta.th ot Lhnst
(tbou..h you are sufficiently disposed to this already,
and nee<l not ..ur ad.nonitions) to employ every
means in your power with tl.e religious emperor,
and to leave no stone untur.ied. to obtain tins most
desirable and necessary assen.bly, hi which you
can scarcely fail to succeed, as his gentle and gra-
cious maie'sty knows that this is desired, demand-
ed expected, an<l loudly called for by tl.e most pious,
learned, and honourable men, in the most illustrious
cities of Italy, and even in Konie itself ; many ot
whom, we have no doubt, will flock to you. as soon
as they shall learn that this is the object ot your

embassy.

« In fine, we hope that this will be willingly
granted, as most reasonable and consonant to the
constitutions of the apostles and holy fathers, that
Christians shall have liberty to examine one an-

]

niSTOKY OF THE BEFORMaTION IN ITALY. 83

other's confessions, since the jnst live not by the
acts of others;, hut by their own faith, otherwise
faith IS not fa.th ; nor can that persuasion which is
not produced i„ a divine n.anner upon the heart
be proper y called pe.-snasion, but rather a violent
an,l forced nnpnlse, which the simplest and most
Ignorant n.nst perceive to be utterly unavailing to
salyat.on. Jiut, if ,he n.alice of Sata.i still rages to
such a degree that this boon cannot be immediate-
ly obtamed, liberty will surely be granted in the
jnean time both to clergy and laity to purchase
Bibles without incurring the charge of heresy, and
to quote the sayings of Christ or Paul without be-
ing branded as Lutherans. For, alas ! instances
of tl„s abominable practice occur ; and if this is not
a mark ot the reign of antichrist, what is it, when
the laM^ and grace, and doctrine, and peace, and li-
berty of Christ are so openly opposed, trampled up-
on and rejected ?"*

The number of persons addicted to protestantism
n Bologna continued to be great many years after
this period. Bucer congratulates them on their in-
creasing knowlecfge and numbers, in a letter written
m the year 1541 ; f and in 154.5 Baldassare Altieri
writes to an acquaintance in Germany, that a noble-
nan in that city was ready to raise six thousand
cMiers ill favour of the evangelical party, if it was
found „eces.sary to make war against the pope, f
i hat the desire for ecclesiastical reform was as

't £t":S;;; ?;,''■ ''■ ' «"-' «-P- Anglic, p. csr.

'/,

84 HISTORY OF THE REFOU^tATIOK IS ITAI.V.

Strongly and generally felt throi.gh Italy as is re-
presented in the letter of the liolog..ese appears
from a measure adopted by the court ot Rome at
this time. Averse to the holding of a general
council, and yet unable to evade t».e importun.t.es
of those who demanded it, pope Paul III. m l^.ii,
assembled four cardinals and hve prelates at
Rome, and charge.l then., after due .leliberat.on to
lay before him their advice as to the best method
of refornung the abuses of the church. 1 he mem-
bers of this commission, including some of the most
respectable dignitaries of the church, met according-
ly, and presented their joint advice to his hohness.
Though they touched the soresof the ecclesiastic body
with r geiitlehand,they acknowledged that both head
and members " laboured under a pestiferous ma-
lady, which, if not cured, would prove fata .
Among the evils which called for a speedy remedy,
they pointed out the admission of improper persons
to the priesthood, the sale of benefices, tlie disposi-
tion of them by testaments, the granting of dispen-
sations and exemptions, and the union ot bishoprics,
and of " the incompatible offices of cardinal and bi-
shop." Addressing the supreme pontiff, they say,
" Some of your predecessors in the pontifical chair,
having itching ears, have heaped to themselves

. These were cardinals Contarene, Caraffa, Sadolet, and Pol^ ^
Frefioso, archbishop of Salerno, Meander of Brmd.si, and Gibert ot
Verona; Cortese, abbot of St. George of Venice, and Bad.a, master of
the Sacred I'alacc.

H.STOUV OK THE KEFORMATIOX IN ITALY. 8.5

teachers according to their own hists, not men who

would mstntct them what they ought to do, but

uch as were expert i„ finding out reasons to usti

pe,si,ade,l tlie pope that he was the proprietor ofal
benefices, and might sell them without being Jlty
o sunony."* No one acquainted with the po es

Tl Adv ""^''"' '° ^''"•'" •^^■-' these abuses.
J be AdMce was approved of and ],rinted by the or-
<!-• of Paul in. ; but, instead of seeing ifeamed
mo execution, he glaringly transgresse! its provt
s ons m various instances, f Nor did the advisers
themselves testify any forwardness to exemplify theL
own ru es. Such of them as were botl/car^dina ,
and bishops retained their double office ; cardinal
1 ole did not think it necessary to lay aside the pur-

ub in tntrt s'l T '" r'''"^' <^"i""i mentioned in the

es.as.cal abuses in his prefaces to his edition of ca'rdTna P J 's L .'
ters, and also m h>s Dia/nha de Gesfis Pauli III. Parnesii nubilh
ed at Bresca in ,7*o. To this two able replies wfe T^ •' ont bv"
Joan Rudolphus Kiesling, entitled, EpistolL GeslisP^uHTeZld
c..n^,one^EccUsi. s^^CanHbu., Lipsi., n*r; and th T^tby

jussu fmt, Tertn, sed ab eodem negkcio. Tiguri, 1748.

86 iiisroRY oi ini-. ur.rouMATios in italv.

pie wlKM.he becanu- prin.ntc of all Englau.l ; ami
anlinal Carafla, wl.cn he afterwards ascynded
papal thnnus un.le.- U,e title of Paul U -, m t -
LL. which he had,iven to h.s IH'f--- ^^
the list of prohibited books. * The protestauts. h v
et,did nit overlook this d..euuK.nt. A copy o'
IdvieebeiuiA-senttotiennauyJ it was published n

LaU::.-;.. : prefatory epistle, ''X ;^U^-''-;;X
the aeade,uy of Str..shur, ; and in Gern.an by L h ,
amnnpanied with anin.advers.ous, n. w nch, a uon
TtlK-r Lirieal ren.arks, he says, that the cardm^^^^
contented then.selves with ren.ovn.g- the sn.all tv^ ig.,
"^.ile they allowed the trunk of eorruption to ren.au
ln.oleste.l, and. like the Pharisess of old, stra.ned a
flies and swallowe.l can.els. To set tins belore the
eyes of his readers, he prefixed to his book a pr.ut, m
which the pope was represented as seated on a ngh
throne, surrounded by the cardinals, who held u. tlctr
ands long poles with foxes' tales fixed to then, hk
broo.ns, with which they swept up a..d dow,. the
rooni. Pallavicini is displeased with this measure
of the pope, who, " by ordering a refornmt.on ot

« In „n,^iti<m to a statement by Schclhorn, cardinal Quirini

. T?r. r u IV. .Vn^ not condemn the Consilium, but only

r 1— te ^:i iei Stunnius and otl.e.s wrote on it. Schclhorn

, rc3"he ar^ununts of the cardinal, and confirmed In. o«n state-

:;„. in tract. ^.ntitUd. n. Co„.sin. J. E,na,Jun,,a i^f'-". -^Z"'

I. r HI nmurinto; acal'auhir.,hmnalo. Tig. 17*8.
'"; Viiniw::;! at fir. asserted that .t was originaUy ,,rint«
by the Protestants, but he afterwards found two co,«cs of .t ,mnted
Rome in U38, by the authority of the pope. (Ut supra, p. 9.)

msTOuy OF the hei-okmation m italy. 87

manners, acknowledged that deformity existed uid
ad.le.l force to the detracting speeches which here-
t.c.s c.renlated among the vulgar."* ^I.ether the
follow. ng article of the proj.osed reform ^vas car-
r.ed into eftect or not, I cannot say : " Since boys
are now accustomed to read at schools the collo-
<ju.es ot Ei-asmus, in which are many things calcu
lated to l,etray uninformed minds into impietr the
reading of tf.at book, or a..y other of the sa.ne'kind
shall be prohibited in seminaries of learning."f To
this was affi.xed the name of Sadolet ! Well might
Melanchthon express a surprise, not unmingled
With scorn, at this proposal, and at the whole of the
ruhcnlous afihir. " I {,ave not yet answered Sado-
Jet, says he, in a letter to a friend. « I would
certainly have written him, if I had had leisure for
Jt ; but I am of opinion that the delay will not be
without its utility i.i reference to what he is doing
Our friends write me from Italy, that he is offend-
ed at my silence, and that some j)ersons have incens-
ed h.m against me ; but he perhaps thought, that
hy one letter sent into Ger.nany, he would, as with
the music of Orpheus, charm not only me, who, I
confess, am weak, but all my countrymen, to abln-

• Storia Concil. Trent, lib. iii. sect. 57, § 3.

+ On the margin of that part of the Advice which relates to Eras-
mus, Luther wrote. Wolt. Gott er soke lehen ! O that he }md been ■
alwe ! an exclamation expressive,' in my opinion, of regret at the re-
cent death of an illustrious antagonist, blended with delight at the
thought of the merited castigation which Erasmus, if he had survived
would have bestowed on the mitred censors of his favourite work!
( ^"^eckend. lib. iii. p. 164.^

88 HISTORY Ol' TlIK UEI-OKMATION IN ITALY.

don the cause. The only friend of peace at Kon.e
was Schonberg, cardinal of Capua, who thought
that some concessions ought to be made. I looked
upon him as a person of great moderation, and am
confirmed in this opinion by the letters which I have
received from my friends since his deatli, which has
produced a great change of counsels. There has
just been published a ridiculous consultation of the
cardinals about the correction of abuses, in which
the colloquies of Erasmus are forbidden to be used in
schools, and to this consultation were called these
heroes, Alcandcr and Smiolet" * What pigmies do
men of mere letters appear in the eyes of a man, not
of stern virtue, but of sterling principle !

Faenza and Imoi.a were both situated in that
part of Italy which was called the patrimony of St.
Peter, and acknowledged the popes as their tempo-
ral sovereigns. It has been already mentioned that
tlie reformed doctrine was introduced into the for-
mer city :t that it gained admission into the latter
appears from an anecdote related in a letter of
Thomas Lieber, (better known, in the controversy
respecting ecclesiastical discipline, by his Greek
name oi' Era.s-ht.i) who was then prosecuting his
medical studies at the neighbouring university of

• Mclancth. Kpist. coll. 752-3. Slculan's account of the sentiments
and conduct of the cardinal of Capua is very different from that of
Melanchthon. (Comment, tom. ii. p. H'-)

+ Sec above, p. 65.

lUSTOKY OK THE llEl OKMATION IN ITALY. 89

Bologna. An Observantine monk, preaching one
day at Imola, told the people, that it behoved them
to purchase lieaven by the merit of their good works.
A boy, who was present, exclaimed, " That's blas-
pliemy ! for the Bible tells us that Christ purchased
heaven by his sufferings and death, and bestows it
on us freely by his mercy." A dispute of consider-
able length ensued between the youth and the
preacher. Provoked at the pertinent replies of his
juvenile opponent, and at the favourable reception
whidi the audience gave them, " Get you gone, you
young rascal ! (exclaimed the monk) you are but
just come from the cradle, and will you take it up-
on you to judge of sacred things, which the most
learned cannot explain ?"_" Bid you never read
these words, ' Out of the mouths of babes and suck-
lings God perfects praise ?' " rejoined the youth ;
upon which the preacher quitted the pulpit in wrath-
ful confusion, breathing out threatenings against
the poor boy, who was instantly thrown into pri-
son, " where he still lies," says the writer of the
letter, which was dated on the 31st of December
1544.*

Venice, of all the states of Italy, afforded the
greatest facilities for the propagation of the new
opinions, and the safest asylum to those who suffer-
ed for their adherence to them. Jealous of its au-
thority, and well apprized of the ambition and en-

• Schelhorni Amoenit. Hist. Eccles. tom, ii. p. Si.

90 lilSTOUY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

croachiHg spirit of the lloincin court, the senate had
imitonnlv resisted the attempts made to estabhsh
the inquisition, and was cautious in allowing tlie
edicts of the ^^atican to be promulgated or carried
into elfcct within the \'enetian territories. Politi-
cal sagacity counteracted the narrow views ot a
proud "md jealous aristocracy, and taught them to
relax tiie severity of their internal police. Venice
had risen to power and opulence by commerce ; and
the concession of a more than ordinary freedom of
thinking and speaking was necessary to encourage
strangers to visit her ports and markets. This re-
public was then among popisli, what Holland be-
came among protestant states. She had been, and
continued long to be, distinguished for the number
of her printing presses;* and while letters were
cultivated elsewhere for themselves, or to gratity
the vanity of their patrons, they were encouraged
here, from the additional consideration of their
forniing an important, and not unproductive, branch
of manufacture and merchandise. The books of the
German and Swiss protestants were consigned to
merchants at Wuiice, from which they were circulated
to the different parts of Italy;! and it was in this city

• See, besides the common typographic authorities, Le Brett, Dis-
sertatio de Ecclesia Gr^ca hodierna in Dalmatia, ike, pp. % 93.

t - Bene vale ; et si quando deest scribendi argumentum, vel de
communibus studiis, vel si quid librorum Germani mancipes nuper
Venetias invexerint, perscribe." (C*l. Caleagninus Peregrino Morato,
Epist. lib. xi. p. 158.)

HISTORY OF THE REFOllMATlOX IN ITALY.

that versions of the Bible and other religious books
in the vulgar tongue, were chiefly printed.

We have already had occasion to notice that the
first writings of Luther were read in A\^nice soon
after they were published. In a letter written in
the year 1528, the reformer says to a friend, ** You
give me joy by what you write' of the VcuMims re-
ceiving the word of God. Thanks and glory to
God."* In the course of the following year, he was
in correspondence with James Ziegler, a learned
man, who possessed great authority at \^enice, and
was favourable to the grand attemi)t to reform re-
ligion, though he never joined its standard.f Zieg.
ler had sent from W^nice to AVittenberg, his adopt-
ed brother, Tlieodore \^eit,; who acted for some
time as secretary or amanuensis to Luther, and af-
terwards became minister of Nurenberg. This is
the person so often mentioned under the name of
Theodorus Vitus iii the letters of Melanchthon, and

• Luthers Samtliche Schriften, toni. xxi. p. 1092. edit. J G
AValcli. •

f Ibid. J). 1163. Ziegler was the intimate friend of Celio Calcag-
nini, who has celebrated his talents and virtues in the warmest man-
ner. (Calcagnini Opera, pp. 64.— 57, 67, 86.) He was distinguished for
his skill in Mathematics, Geography, and Natural History, and pub-
lished the principal works of the ancients on these subjects, with an-
notations. Schelhorn published his Hhton'a dementis VII. and pre-
fixed to it, a treatise Dc Vita et Scriptis Jacohi Ziegleri, which con-
tains curious particulars concerning the learning and literati of that
time. (Amoenit. Hist. Eccles. et Liter, torn. ii. p. 210, &c.)

t Buddeus, in his Supplement to Luther's letters, (p. 74,) reads,
'• misit ad me virvvi, (instead of Vifum,) fratrera sibi adoptatum ;" a
mistake which has been corrected by Walch.

92 HISTOUY Ol' THE ]lEFOUMATlON IN ITAEV.

through whom that reformer chiefly received his in-
telligence respecting tlie protef-tauts in Italy.*

An occurrence which took place in 15,'30, shows that
there were then numbers in WMiice ^vilo felt a deep
interest in the cause of the Reformation. AMiile car-
dinal Campeggio attended the imperial diet at Augs-
burg, as papal legate, a report was widely spread that
he had wrought so far on the yielding temper of Me-
lanchthon, as to persuade him to submit to the judg-
ment of the supreme pontiff. This excited great unea-
siness in the breasts of the Venetians who favoured the
gospel, one of whom, Lucio Paolo Rosselli, addressed
a letter to that reformer, conceived in a noble spirit.
After expressing the high esteem which he felt for
the person of Melanchthon, and the delight which he
had received from his writings, he exhorts him, in re-
spectful language, but with an honest freedom, to
show himself a firm and intrepid defender of that
faith to which he had been the honoured instrument
of winning so many. " In this cause, (continues he,)
you ought to regard neither emperor, nor pope, nor
any other mortal, but the immortal God only. If
there be any truth in what the papists circulate
about you, the worst consequences nnist accrue
to the gospel, and to those who have l)een led to
embrace it through you and Luther. Be assured
that all Italy waits with anxiety for the result of
your assembly at Augsburg, ^\llatever is deter-

* Melancth. Epist. col. 598, 835, &c. Conf. Seckend. Index I. art.

Theodor-icus.

HISTOKY OF TnK HKFOUMAT.OX IX ,TaI.V. 9J

3"ine.I by it will be embrace.! by Christians in other

oun nes through the authority of the eu.pe or

It behoves you and others, who are there for th^ pu,^

pose of defending the gospel, to be fir„,, and noHo

suffer yourselves to hp ^ifi, ^ • i

/ ^eivth 10 De eitlier frichtenpfl frv^m fi.^
^f-m^I'iivi /.*' r"! • xi , ^'t5"^*^"cu iiom tlie

bv ntr r ? ^^ threatening, or drawn from it

.sir "" !"■""""• ' ""'""- '-^ °btest you,
as the head and leader of the whole evano-elical ar

;. y. to regard the salvation of every indivTd.a^^

io„^. you should be calle.l to suffer death for J

glory of Christ, fear not, I beseech you • for it i.

mer to die With honour than to livl in I",ra J

c, wst ' i T'r/ fr""' ^^"""^" ^-'" J--

doing tins, you may depend on the aid of the prayers
and s^ipplications of many, who day and l^Z
treat Almighty God to prosper the cause ^ot^l^
gope. and to preserve you and other champion
ot at, through the blood of his Son, Farewellfand
desert not the cause of Christ."* In the course of
'.e same month, this zealous person wrote a second
mie to Melanchthon, inclosing a copy of the letter
Unch It was said the reformer had addressed to
the legate. If unhappily he had been induced to
write in a strain so unworthy of his character, he
exhorts him to evince the more courage and con-
ancy for the future; but if it was a fabrication,
as many of his friends asserted, then he should lose

94 HISTOKY Ul- THE UKIOUM ATIOX IN ITALY.

no time in exposiriii such a malicious caluinuy, and
,„aintaiu l,oncet\.rtl. a declared and open warfare
M'ith men who sought to accomplisli their ends by
stratagem and falsehood.*

Anion- those who contributed most to propagate
the reformed opinions at \'enice, were Pietro Carne-
secchi, ]}aldoLupetino, and Ualdassare Altieri. With
the first, we shall afterwards have occasion to meet
among the martyrs of Italy. The second, who al-
so obtained the crown of martyrdom, was a native
of Albona, of noble extraction, and held in high
esteem for his learning and integrity. He was
provincial of the Franciscans within the Venetian
territories, and in that character liad the best oppor-
tunities of communicating religious instruction, and
of proteciing those who had received it.f It was by
his advice that Matteo Flacio, a kinsman of his,
altered liis resolution of assuming the monastic
garb, and retired into (Jermany, wlicrc he became
distinguished for his learned writings, and the active
and riither intemperate part which lie took in the in-
ternal disputes which agitated the Lutheran church4

• Ciclcstin. toin. Hi. f. IS. Wolfii Lcct. Moiiiorab. tom.ii. p. 34-4.-5 ;
where Melanclithoirs letter to Cainpereio 's also inserted. If really
written by liim, it was humble enough. ,

t Rittevi Vita Flacii Ulyrici, p. ». apud Gerdcs. Ital. UeJ. pp. o>i,

"+Tiyit' usually called Matth,n,s Flacius Ilhjricns. He was the
principal compiler of the Ecclesiastical History known by the title of
Ce»turkv Magdehur^enses, and of the Cafahgus Tc.stinm VentaUs.
An early and still valuable work on biblical interpretation, entitled
CUxvi. Sacrw Scripturcf, is the production of his pen. His account
of his own life, under the title of Historia Adionum ,t Cerlaminum,
which abounds in anecdotes of his time, is exceedingly rare.

HISTOUY OF THE REEOHMATION ,N ITALY. 95

Altieri, though a native of Aquila, a city of Naple.
had fixed Jus resitlence in Venice, where he acted
for some time as the secretary of the Enghsh am
hassador to the Venetian republic, and aftefj V
agen for the protestant princes of Germany He
was distinguished for his ardent devotion to Uie fe

IrTo :; f ""'•^^■''^•''. "'^ ««->--tuations enabled
him to advance in various ways— by the enistolarv

correspo,4.1eiice which he carried on w t,? t J^

and by the advice and active support which he w««
always ready to afford to his cointrvmen who Z
embraced or were inquiring after th; truth.*

1542 that Its friends, who had hitherto met in pri-
vate for mutual instruction and religions exercise
held deliberations on the propriet/of orZ^
hemselves into regular congregations, and aTem^
h^-^g^n pnblicf Several n.einbers of the senate"
were favourable to it, and liopes were enter a ned
at one time that the authority of that bod; w^'
be interposed in its behalf. This produced a Tetter
from Melanchthon to the senate in the year 1538 1
which he expresses his high satisfaction at ha^grl-
ceived in onnation from Braccieti. a Venetian who
had come to study at Wittenberg, that man honour
able persons among them entertained a favourable

iol'". ^""'"- ^'"- "■"• ""• '■ '''■ ^^''endorf, iib. iii. pp.
t Gerdes. Ital. Ref. p. 67,

9(3 HISTOllY OV THK UKFORMATION IX ITALY.

opinion of the reform of ecclesiastical abuses which
had been made in (Germany. After a sliort statement
of the cautious manner in which the reformers had
proceeded, and their care to repress popuhir tunudts,
and avoid dan-erous innovations, and after suggest-
inc. some considerations to show that various cor-
ruptions liad been introduced into the church, the re-
former adds : " Sucli shivery surely ought not to be
established, as that we should be obliged, for peace's
sake, to approve of all the errors of those who go-
vern the church ; and learned men especially ought
to be protected in the liberty of expressing then-
opinions and of teaching. As your city is the
only one in the world which enjoys a genuine aris-
tocracv, preserved during many ages, and always
hostilJ to tyranny, it becomes it to protect good
men in liberty of thinking, and to discourage that
unjust cruelty which is exercised in other places.
Wherefore, I cannot refrain from exhorting you to
emplov vour care and authority for advancing the
divine' glory, a service which is most acceptable to
God." * Had Venice been treated by the court ot

• Melanchthonis Epistohe, coll. 150-Ui, edit. Londini. Schelhorn
(Aman. Liter, ton. i. p. 4<2o.) suspects that Melanchthon .-as no
on terms of such intimacy with the senators of Venice, as to address
a letter to them, and is of opinion, that it was addressed A<l len.torum
nuosdam Evangelii sUuUosos, under which title it appears in the Sdect^
Declamationcs of the author, published in 1 541, p. 8(U. But the let-
ter contains internal evidence of its having been intended for the
magistrates of that republic ; and Bock states, that he had seen, m
the Royal Library of Konigsberg, a copy of the onginal edition,
printed at Xurenberg, and bearing this title, Episiola Phhppi

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITAL\^ 97

Rome at this period in the same manner in w^iicli
it was treated by it at the commencement of the
seventeenth century, it is highly probable that the
republic would have declared in favour of the Re-
formation ; and in that case it might at this day
have possessed its political independance, though it
should not have regained its ancient glojy.

The gospel was also introduced into the differ-
ent territories belonging to the republic of Venice.
At Padua it was embraced by many of the students,
and some of the professors in the university, w^hich
was celebrated at that period as a school of medi-
cine.* At I^ero?ia,atlierga}?io,iindatIires€iay there
were converts to the reformed faitli.f But the great-
est number of these w^as to be found in the Ficeiitino
and Trevmuio, situated in the neighbourhood of
A'enice. In the year 1535, the doge delivered up,
to the vicar-general of the bishop of Vicenza, a
German, named Sigisnumd, to be punished for dis-
seminating the Lutheran heresy in that diocese, for
wiiich act of filial obedience his excellency was for-
mally thanked by Paul III. in a pontifical brief. %
I'his example of severity had not, however, the ef-

Mdanchihonis ad Senatum Venctiim. It was a presentation copy to
Prince Albert the elder, who had written on the title-page, "accepi
d. 17. Julii, a. 1538, per Eliam Plesse, Wratislauiensem ;" which
proves that the letter was written earlier than has been supposed.
(Hist. Antitrin. torn. ii. p. 398.)

* Melanch. Epist. coll. 373, 443, 758. Preface by Cielio Secundo
Curio, to the Life of Francis Spira, by Matthew Gribaldi, first printed
anno 1.550.

tCierdes. Ital. Ref. pp. 274, 280, 338, 35L

X Uaynaldi Annal. ad an. 1535.

08 niSTOKY OF THE REFORMATIOX IN ITALY.

feet of anvsting the progress of tlie reformed doc-
trine, which was patronised, or at least connived at
an<l tolerated, by the local magistrates. For in a
papal rescript addressed to the doge and senate ten
years after, his lioliness represents, that he had re-
peatedly notified to them by letters and nnncios that
heresy had sprung up and been endn-aced by not a
few in their city of Vicenza, and that the governor
and magistrates of that place, though instnuted by
them to co-operate with their bishop in extirpating
it, had hitherto refused to grant that assistance
which was absolutely necessary to accomplish this
pious piu'pose ; so that the heretics had been em-
boldened, and there was reason to fear that these
pestilent tenets would take root and spread to ad-
joining cities, unless prompt measures were taken
to apprehend and punish the guilty. *

A letter addressed to Luther in the year 1542
by Altieri, '* in the name of the brethren of the
church of Venice, Vicenza, and Treviso,"is valuable,
as evincing the excellent spirit of the writer, and
throwing light on the state of the protestant inte-
rest in that quarter, and in Italy in general. They
felt ashamed, (he said) and were unable to account
for the fact, that they had so long failed to acknow-
ledge the deep obligations which they lay under to
him as the individual by whom they had been
brought to the knowledge of the way of salvation ;
whether it was that the suddenness of their eman-

* Raynaldi Annal. ad an. 15^5.

HISTORY OF THE REFORAfATION IN ITALY. 99

cipation had astounded their minds, or whether a
certain rustic bashfulness and servile dread had de-
terred them from addressing so grave and holy a
personage. But now necessity and the urgency of
their circumstances had driven them to that course
which ingratitude and culpable negligence had hi-
therto prevented them from taking. Antichrist
had begun to rage against them. Some of their
number had been obliged to leave the country, others
were thrown into prison, and the rest were in a
state of trepidation. As members of the same body,
they looked for the sympathy and assistance of their
brethren in Germany, at whose call they had come
forth, and espoused that cause for the sake of which
they were now exposed to such dangers. What
they begged of him was, to use his influence with
the evangelical princes of Germany to write to the
senate of Venice in their behalf, and to request it
to abstain from that violence which the ministers
of the pope urged it to employ against the poor
flock of Christ, and to permit them to enjoy their
own manner of worship, at least until the meet-
ing of a general council, in the way of adopting
measures to prevent all sedition and disturbance of
the public peace. " If God grant, (continue they,)
that we obtain a truce of this kind, what accessions
will be made to the kingdom of Christ in point of
faith and charity ! How many preachers will ap-
pear to announce Christ faithfully to the people !
How many prophets, who now lurk in corners ex-
animated with imdue fears, will come forth to ex-

100 IIISTOKY or THE llKFOR:\rATIOX IN ITALY.

pound the scriptures ! Tlie harvest is truly great,
but there are no labourers. You know what a great
increase your churches had, and what a wide door
was opened for the gospel, by the truce which, as we
understand, you have enjoyed for three years. Ex-
ert yourselves to procure the same favour fur us ;
cherish the common cause ; do your endeavour, that
by this means the consolation which is by Christ
may be imparted to us, who daily suffer for Christ ;
for it is our fervent desire that the word of God
may be spread abroad, but we have none to feed
us, unless our want be supplied out of your abun-
dance."*

The Milanese, as early as the year 1524, con-
tained adherents to tlie reformed doctrine.f Two
causes contributed to their spread in this country.
The first was its vicinity to Piedmont and Savoy,
where the remains of the persecuted Waudois had
long found a refuge. The second was the unsettled
state of the duchy, in consecpience of the protracted
contest for its sovereignty between Francis I. and
Charles V,, and its alternate occupation by the ar-
mies of the two monarchs; on account of which
the ettbrts of the reformers were overlooked. Pope
Paul III. in a brief addressed to the bishop of Mode -
na, in the year 1536, states that he was informed that
there had been lately discovered, in the religious and
illustrious state of Milan, some conventicles, consist-

HISTORY or THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 101

ing of noble persons of both sexes, belonging to a sect
holding and observing the tenets of one friar Batista
de Crema,by which many heresies, condemned by the
ancient church, ^vere fostered. His holiness therefore
connnands the bishop, who was then at Milan, to make
inquisition after these conventicles and heretics, and
to see that condign pum'shment was inflicted on the
guilty, so that the pravity sown by the devil might
be extirpated before it had time to shoot up and
strengthen.* Though the -impure tenets of ancient
heretics" are imputed to those " iimovators," accord-
ing to the usual language of the papal court, there
can be little doubt that they held the common
opinions of Luther and Zuingle.

This part of our history is intimately connected
with some interesting facts in the eventful and
chequered life of an individual, who had great influ-
ence in promoting the Reformation in Italy. Celio
Secundo Curione, or Curio, was born at Turin in
1503,and was the youngest of twenty-three children.
\\1ien only nine years of age he was left an orphan,
but being allied to several noble families of Pied-
mont, received a liberal education at the universi-
ty of his native city. In his youth, he was induced
to read the Bible with more than ordinary attention,
in consequence of his father having bequeathed
him a copy of that book beautifully written; and
when he reached his twentieth year, he had the
writings of the reformers put into his hands, by

* Seckcndorf, lib. iii. p. 401.

f Erasmi Epistola?, apud Gerdcs. Hist. llcf. torn. iv. p. 30.

Raynaldi Annales, ad au. 1536.

lO'J iiisTOKv or riir. in.FouiMA riox in italy.

means ot.FiToni Niger Fossianeus, and other indi-
viduals in theAngnstinian monastery of Turin. This
indamed him with a desire of visiting (Jerniany, to
whieh he set out, aeeompanied hy James Cornello
and Franeis Gnnrino, who afterwards !)eeame dis-
tiniruishc'd ministers of the reformed ehureh. Hav-
iiig on tlioir journey incautiously entered into <lis-
pulc on tlie controverted heads of religion, tliey were
inibrnied against and seized by the spies of tlie car-
dinal-hisliop of Tvrce, and thrown into separate
prisons, ("urio was released through the interces-
sion of his relations, and the cardinal, j)leased with
his talents, endeavoured to attach liini to liiniselfhy
oilers of jnoney to assist him in liis studies, and by
placing him in tlie neighbouring j)riory of St. lie-
nigno, the administration of whicii had been con-
ferred on him by Leo X. In this situation, Curio
exerted himself in enlightening the monks, and
freeing their minds from the influence of supersti-
tion. Having one day opened a box, placed on the
altar of the chapel, he abstracted the relics from it,
and substituted a copy of the Bible, with the follow-
ing inscription, " Tliis is the ark of the covenant,
which contains the genuine oracles of God, and the
true relics of the saints." This was discovered when
the box was opened on a solemn festival, and the sus-
picion having fallen on Curio, he fled and made
his escape to Milan. This hajipened about the year
1530. After visiting Rome and several cities inltaly,
he returned to the Milanese, where, having mar-
ried a lady belonging to the illustrious family of the

IILVIOIIY OF rUK I(i:i-ORMATION IN ITALY. 103

Jsacii, he devoted himself to the teaching of polite
letters, l,y wJ.ich he gained great reputation in the
City and vicinity of Milan. The ravages commit-
ted by the Spanislj troops obliging hirn to quit the
Milanese, he embraced an invitation from the count
of Montferrat, under whose protection he resided for
some years in great tranquillity at Casale.*

JJeing j)ersuaded to visit his native country, withthe
view of recovering his patrimony, he found it seized
by one of his sisters and her husband, who unnatur-
ally preferred a charge of heresy against him. L>
on this he retired to a village in the territories of
the duke of Savoy, where he was employed in teach-
iiig the children of the neighbouring gentlemen.
Having gone one day in company with some of his
patrons to hear a Dominican monk from Turin,
the j)reacher, in the course of his sermon, drew a
frightful picture of the German reformers, and, in
Jiroof of its justness, gave false quotations from a
work published by Luther. Curio went up to the
friar after sermon, and producing the book, which
he had along with him, read the passages re-
ferred to, in the presence of the most respec-
table part of the audience, who, indignant at the
impudent misrepresentations which had been palm-
ed on them, drove their ghostly instructor with dis-
grace from the town. Information was immediate-
ly given to the inquisitor, and Curio was appre-

• Stupani Oratio de CsUi Secundi Curionis Vita atque Obim ; in
bchclhorni Amccn. Liter, torn. xiv. pp. 32g Xi6.

104 HISTORY OF Tin: llErOUMATIOX IX ITALY.

hended and carried a prisoner to his native city,
when his meditated journey to Germany, and his
abstracting of the relics at St. Jk'uigno, were pro-
duced as aggravations of his crime, and strong pre-
sumptions of his heretical pravity. As his friends
were known to i)ossess great influence, the admini-
strator of the bishopric of Turin went to Rome to
secure his condemnation, leaving him under the
charge of a brother of cardinal Cibo, who, to pre-
vent any attempt at rescue, removed him to an in-
ner room of the prison, and ordered his feet to be
made last in the stocks. In this situation, a per-
son of less fortitude and ingenuity would have given
himself up for lost ; but Curio, having in his youth
lived in the neighbourhood of the jail, devised a me-
thod of escape, which, through the favour of pro-
vidence, succeeded. His feet being swoln by con-
finement, he prevailed on his keeper to allow him
to have his right foot loosed for a day or two. By
means of his shoe, together with a reed and a quan-
tity of rags which lay within his reach, he formed
an artificial leg, which he fastened to his right knee,
in such a manner as that he could move it with ease.
He then requested permission to have his other
foot relieved, upon which the artificial foot was in-
troduced by him into the stocks, and his left foot
was set free. }3eing thus at liberty, he, during the
ni<-ht, opened tlie door of his apartment, felt his
way through the passages in the dark, dropt from
a window, and having scaled the walls of his
prison with some difficulty, made his escape into

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 105

Italy. As he extracted the fictitious limb from
the stocks, and took it to pieces, before leaving
the prison, his persecutors could not account for his
escape, and circulated the report tliat he had effect-
ed it by magic; upon which he published an account
of the whole affair in a dialogue, interspersed with
humorous and satirical strictures upon some of the
popish errors.* After remaining some months with
his family at Sale, a remote village in the territory
of Milan, he was drawn from his retirement by his
former friends, and placed in the university of Pa-
via. As soon as this was known, orders were sent
from Rome to apj)reliend him, but so great was the
favour in which he was held by the principal inha-
bitants of the place, and by the students, many of
whom came from other seminaries to attend his
lectures, that he was protected for three years from
the attempts of the inquisitors ; a guard, composed
of his scholars, accompanying him to and from
his house every day, during a great part of that
time. At last, the pope threatening the senate of
the town with excommunication, he was forced to
retire to Venice, from which he removed to Fer-
rara. The labours of Curio were blessed for open-
ing the eyes of many to the corruptions and errors
of the Roman church, during his journeys through

* It is entitled, " Ca?lii Secundi Curionis Pasquillus Ecstaticus, una
cum aliis etiam aliquot Sanctis pariter et lepidis Dialogis;" without
date or place of printing. The book was reprinted at Geneva, in 1667;
which is the edition I have used. The Dialogue relating to his escape
from Turin, is inserted by Schelhorn in the second volume of his
Amocnitates Hist. Eccles. ct Hist. pp. 759—776.

10() HISTORY OF Tin: UEFOUMATION in ITALY.

Italy, and the ternpoiary residence which lie made
in several parts of it, especially in the Milanese.*

Natives and Su iey had for some time belong-
ed to the crown of Spain, and were now govern-
ed by separate viceroys under the emperor Charles
V. In Calabria, which formed one of the depart-
ments of the king(k)rn of Naj)les, the Vaudois
still existed ; and the doctrine of Luther and the
other reformers spread extensively in the Neapoli-
tan territory, and especially in its capital. It is
suj)j)osed to have been first introduced there by
the German soldiers, who, after the sack of Rome,
obliged Lautrec, the French general, to raise
the siege of Naples, and continued to garrison that
city for some time.f A rigorous edict, published by
Charles V. in the year 1536, by which he charged
Don Pedro de Toledo, his viceroy over Naples, with
the punishment of all who were infected with lie-
resy, or who inclined to it, was intended to extir-
pate the seeds sown by these foreigners.:}:

The Germans were succeeded by an individual,
who, according to the account of a contemporary po-
pish historian, *' caused a far greater slaughter of
souls than all the thousands of heretical soldiery."^
This was Juan Valdez, or, as he is sometimes called,
Valdesso, a Sj)anish gentleman, who went to Ger-
many along with Charles V.,by whom he was knight-
ed and sent to Naples, where he acted as secre-

* Stupani Oratio, ut supra, p. 349.
t Anton. Caraccioll, Collect, de Vita Pauli IV. p. 239.
J Giannone, Hist. Civ. de Naples, liv. xxxii. chap. 5.
§ Caraccioli, Collect, ut supra.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IX ITALY. 107

tary to Don Pedro de Toledo. In tracing the pro-
gress which the Reformation made in Spain, we shall
have an opi)ortunity of showing how the religious
oi>inions of Valdez were formed. His character was
admirably adapted to produce an impression favour-
able to the new opinions. Possessed of consider-
able learning and superior address, fervent in
piety, gentle in disposition, polite in manners,
and eloquent in conversation, he soon became a
favourite with the principal nobility, and with
all the enlightened men, w^ho, at certain seasons,
resorted in great numbers to the Neapolitan me-
tropolis. Valdez did not take on him the office
of a preacher, and he is an example of the extensive
good which may be done by one who keeps himself
strictly within the sphere of a private station. By
his private instructions, he not only imbued the
minds of many distinguished laymen with the
knowledge of evangelical truth, but contributed ma-
terially to advance the illumination and to stimulate
the zeal of others, whose station gave them an op-
portunity of preaching the gospel to the people, or
of instilling its docrines into the minds of the in-
genuous youth whose studies they superintended *
Among these were Ochino and Martyr, two indi-
viduals of whom it is proper to give an account, as
they produced a strong sensation in their native
country, and distinguished themselves afterwards
in the reformed churches on this side the Alps.

* Caraccioli, ut supra. Giannone, ut supra. Schelhorni Araoen.
Hist. Eccl. toni. ii. p. 49. Simleri Oratio de Vita, Martyris, sig. b iij.

108 HISTORY OF THE KKFOUMATIOX IN ITALY.

BtTiiarcliiio Ocliiiio, or, as lie is soinetiines called,
Ocello, was boni in the year 1487, at Sienna, a city
of Tuscany, of obscure j)arents. Feeling from his
earliest years a deep sense of religion, he devoted
himself, according to the notions of that age, to a
monastic life, and joined the Franciscan Observants,
as the strictest of all the orders of the regular cler-
gy. For the same reason he left them, and in 1534
became a mend)er of the Capuchin brotherhood,
which had been recently established according to
the most rigid rules of holy living, or rather volun-
tary humility and mortification.* During his mo-
nastic retirenu'nt, he acknowledges that lie escaped
those vices with which his life might have been
tainted if he had mixed with the world ; and from
the studies of the cloister, barren and unprofitable
as they were, he reaped a i)ortion of knowledge
which was afterwards of some use to him ;f but he
failed completely in gaining, what was the great
thing which induced him to choose that unnatural
and irksome mode of life — peace of mind and assur-
ance of salvation. But let us hear his own account
of liis feelings, and of the manner in which a change
was first wrought on his sentiments concerning
religion. " When I was a young man, I was un-
der the dominion of the common error by which

• De Vita, Religione et Fatis Bernardini Ochini Senensis ; in Ob-
serv. Select. Liter. Halenses, torn. iv. pp. 409-414. The author of this
Life of Ochino was Burch. (Jottlieb Struvius. Some popish writers had
incautiously stated that Ochino was the founder of the Capuchins, a
heretical blot which their successors were eager to remove.

+ Ochini Dialogi, torn. ii. p. 374. Basil. 1563.

HISTORY OF THE HEFORMATION IN ITALY. 109

the minds of all who live under the yoke of the
wicked Antichrist are enthralled; so that I believed
that we were to be saved by our own >vorks, fast-
nigs, prayers, abstinence, watchings, and other
th.ngs of the san.e kind, by which we were to make
satisfaction for our sins, and purchase heaven,
hrough the concurring graee of God. Wherefore,
hemg anxious to be saved, I deliberated with my-
self what man.a.r of life I should follow, and be-
l.evmg: that those modes of religion were holy which
n-ere a,,i.roved by the Roman church, which I re-
garded as infallible, and judging that the life of the
fnars of 8t. Lrancis, called de observantia, was above
all others severe, austere and rigid, and, on that ac-
count, more perfect, and conformable to the life of
Chnst I entered their society. Although I did not
find what I had expected, yet no better way pre-
senting itself to my blinded judgment, I continued
among them, until the Capuchin friars made theirap
pearance, wlien, being struck with the still greater

austerityoftheirmodeofliving.Iassumedtheir habit
m spite of the resistance made by my sensuality and
carnal prudence. Being „ow persuaded that I had
f-nind wliat I was seeking, I said to Christ, ' Lord
>f I am not saved now, I know nothing more thai
1 can do. In the course of my meditations, I
^^'as often perplexed, and felt at a loss to recon-
cile the views on which I acted with what the
&cnj,tures said about salvation being the gift of God
through the redemption wrought by Christ ; but
the authority of the church silenced these scruples
and ,n proportion as concern for my soul became

110 HISTORY OF THE REFOIllVrATION IN ITALY.

more intense, I applied myself with greater diligence
and ardour to those bodily exercises and mortifica-
tions which were prescribed by the doctrine of the
church, and by the rules of the order into which I had
entered. Still, however, I remained a stranger to
true peace of mind, which at last I found, by search-
ing the scriptures, and such helps for understand-
ing them as I had access to. I now came to be
satisfied of the three following truths : fiVHt, that
Christ, by his obedience and death, has made a pie-
nary satisfaction, and merited heaven, for the elect,
which is the only righteousness and ground of sal-
vation ; secondly, that religious vows of human in-
vention are not only useless, but hurtful and wick-
ed ; and, thirdly, that the Roman church, though
calculated to fascinate the senses by its external
pomp and splendour, is unscriptural and abomina-
ble in the sight of God."*

In Italy it was not the custom, as in Germany,
for the regular clergy to preach : this task was per-
formed exclusively by the monks and friars. The
chapters of the different orders chose sucli of tlieir
number as possessed the best pulpit talents, and
sent them to preach in the principal cities during
the time of Lent, which was almost the only sea-

* Bcrnardini Ocliini Rcsponsio^ qua rationem reddit discessus ex
Italia. Vcnet. 151-2. Ep. Dcdic. ; apud Obscrvat. Select. Halenses,
torn. iv. pp. il2— 41i. Epistre aux Magiiifiques Seigneurs de Sicnc,

parBernardiu Ochin. Avec un autre Epistre a Mutio Justinopoli-

tain, 154i. Tliis second epistle is a translation of the work first men-
tioned. See M. Aug. Beyeri Memor. Libr. Rariorum, pp. 259—261.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. Ill

son of the year in which the people enjoyed re-
hgious instruction. Ochino attained to the highest
distmction in this employment, to which he was
chosen by his brethren at an early period. His ori-
ginal talents compensated for his want of erudition.
He was a natural orator ; and the fervour of his
piety and the sanctity of his life gave an unction
and an odour to his discourses which ravished the
hearts of his hearers. - In such reputation was he
iield, (says the annalist of the Capuchins, after O-
chino had brought on them the stigma of heresy)
that he was esteemed incomparably the best preach-
er of Italy ; liis powers of elocution, accompanied
with the most admirable action, giving him the com-
plete command of liis audience, and the more so
that his life corresponded to his doctrine.''* His
external appearance, after he had passed middle age,
contributed to heighten this effect. His snow-white
head and beard flowing down to his middle, with a
pale countenance, which led the spectators to sup-
pose that he was in bad health, rendered him at
once venerable and deeply interesting.! He never
rode on horseback or in a carriage, but performed all
his journeys on foot ; a practice which he continued
after he was advanced in years. When he paid a visit
to the palaces of princes or bishops, he was always
met and received with the honours due to one of
superior rank; and he was accomj^anied, on his

• Bzovius, apud Bock, Hist. Antitrin. torn. ii. p. 485.
+ Graziani, Vita Card. Commendoni, lib. ii. cap. 9.

112 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IX ITALY.

departure, witli the same marks of distinction ; yet,
wherever he lodged, he retained all the simplicity
and austerity of the religious order to which he
belonged.* As a preacher, he was admired and
followed equally by the learned and illiterate, by
tlie great and the vulgar, diaries V., who used to
attend his sermons when in Italy, pronounced this
high encomium on him : " Thixi man would make
the stones weep !"t Sadolet and J3embo, who were
still better judges than his imperial majesty, assign-
ed to Ochino the palm of popular elo(pience4 At
Peruana, he prevailed on the inhabitants by his dis-
courses to bury all their animosities, and bring their
litigations to an amicable settlement. And in Na-
ples, he preached to so numerous an assendjly, and
with such persuasive eloquence, as to collect at one
time for a charitable purpose the almost incredible
sum of five thousand crowns. ^

The fame of the pious and eloquent Capuchin
was so great, that the most respectable inhabitants
of Venice, in the year 1538, employed cardinal Bem-
bo to procure him to preach to them during the en-
suing Lent, 'ilie cardinal wrote to Vittoria Colon-
na, marchioness of Pescaro, begging her to inter-

• Grazidni, nt supra.

t Schrockh, Christlicbe Kirchengeschichte seit der Reformation,

torn. ii. p- 780.

X Sadoleti Epist. in Oper. Aonii Palearii, p. 558. edit. Halbaucri.
Card. Quirini Diatriba, pnuftx. Epp. Reg. Poli, torn. iii. p. Ixxxvi.

§ Annali de' Fratri iMinori Capucoini coniposti dal P. Zaccaria Bo-
verio da Saluzzo, e tradotti en volgarc dal P. F. Benedetto Sanbene-
detti da Milano, torn. i. p, til. Venct. 1613.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 113

cede with Ochino, over whom she had great influ-
ence, to visit Venice, all the inhabitants of which
place were inflamed with the most passionate desire
to hear him.* He went accordingly, and the recep-
tion he met with is described by the elegant pen of
Bembo. In a letter to the marchioness, dated from
W^nice the 23d day of February 1539, he says:
" I send your highness the extracts of our very
reverend Frate Bernardino, to whom I have listen-
ed, during the small part of this Lent which is over,
with a pleasure which I cannot sufficiently express!
Assuredly I never have heard a preacher more
useful or holier than he. I do not wonder that
your highness esteems him so much as you do
He discourses very differently from, and in a more
Christian manner than, any other that has mounted
the pul])it in my day ; and with more lively charity
and love, brings forth truths of superior excellence
and usefulness. He pleases every body above mea-
sure, and will carry the hearts of all with him when
he leaves this place. From the whole cityl send your
Inghness immortal thanks for the favour you have
^»o»e us ; and I especially will ever feel obliged to
you.'' t In another letter to the same lady, dated
the loth of March, he says : ^* I talk with your
highness as I talked this morning with the rever-
end father, Frate Bernardino, to whom I have laid
open my whole heart and soul, as I would have
done to Jesus Christ, to whom I am persuaded he

no' YmT "' '^'"''" ^'"^^'' ^°^- ''' P- ''^'' Op--' -ol. viii. Mila-
t Ibid. p. 109.

lU inSTOKV oiTiir. UIUOUMATION' ix itai.v.

is accrptable and dear. Never have I had the plea-
sure to speak to a holier man than he. I sh..ul<l
have been now at Padua, both on account ol a
business which ha. engaged me for a whole year,
and also to shun the ai.plications with which I am
incessantly assailed in conseciuence of this blessed
cardinalate ;* but I was unwilling to deprive myselt
of the opportunity of hearing his most excellent, holy,
and edifying sermons.'-f And, on the 14th of April,
he writes : " Our Frate Bernardino, whom 1 desire
henceforth to call mine as well as yours, is at present
adored in this city. There is not a man or woman
who docs not extol him to the skies. O what plea-
sure I () wliat delight ' C) what joy has he given '
But I reserve his praises until I meet your high-
ness, and, in the mean time, supplicate our Lord to
order his life so as that it may endure longer to the
honour of God and the profit of man, than it can en-
dure according to the treatment which lie now gives
it." t The following letter addressed by the car-
dinal to the parson of the church of the Apostles,
is still more descriptive of the deep interest which
was felt for Ocliino at Venice. " I pray you to
entreat and oblige the reverend father, Frate Ber-
nardino, to eat flesh, not for the gratification and
benefit of his body, about which he is indiflerent,
but for the comfort of our souls— that he may be
able to preach the gospel to the praise of our bless-
ed Saviour. For he will not be able to continue
this exercise, nor to bear up under it, during the

• Bciiibo hail lately received a cardinal's hat from Rome,
t Letterc. ut supra, p. 1 11. t '^J- P- "^

imm

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 115

present Lent, unless he leave off the diet of the
season, which, as experience proves, always brings
on him a catarrh." ♦

These extracts will be considered as sufficient to
establish the character of Ochino for piety and elo-
quence ; but there is anotlier reflection which they
can scarcely fail to suggest. How deceitful are the
wannest feelings excited by hearing the gospel ! and
how do they vary with the external circumstances in
which the truth is presented to the mind ! Bembo
was delighted with the sentiments which he heard,
as well as the eloquence with which the preacher
adorned them ; and yet the future conduct of the
cardinal leaves us at no loss in determining, that he
would have felt and spoken very differently, had he
been told that the doctrine, to which he listened with
sucli devout ravishment, was essentially protestant.
Names exert great influence over mankind ; but let
not those who can laugh at this weakness flatter
themselves, that they have risen above all the pre-
judices by which the truth is excluded or expelled.
The love of the world outweighs both names and
things. Provided men could enjoy the gospel with-
in the pale of their own church, within the circle of
that society in which they have been accustomed to
move and shine, and without being required to fore-
go the profits, honours, or pleasures of life, « all the
world" might be seen wondering after Christ— as it
once " wondered after the beast.'*

tl,.* " t^^' ^^'c '!' ^^'''^''' ^^^^'" 'r*"« ^^"^^^ was published, from
tic archives of the Marquis Ugolii.o Barisone, by Chevalier Jacono
Morelh, m his edition of Bembo's works. (Tomo ix. p. 497.)

ll(i HISTORY OITHK KEFOKMATION IN IIALV.

In a general chapter of his order, held at Flo-
rence in the year 1538, Ochino was chosen chief
director or general of the Capuchins. And three
years after, in another chapter, held at Whitsuntide,
1541, in the city of Naples, he was, as an unexam-
pled mark of respect, and in opposition to his own
earnest request, unanimously re-elected to the same
honourable office.* Before Ochino was advanced to
these honours, or had acquired such extensive po-
pularity as a preacher, the change in his religious
sentiments, already described, had taken place.f It
produced a corresponding change on his strain of
preaching, which for some time was felt rather than
understood by his hearers. He appealed directly to
the scriptures in support of the doctrines which he
delivered, and exhorted the people to rest their
faith on the infallible authority of God in his word,
and to build their hopes of salvation on the obedience
and death of Christ alone. But a prudential regard
to his own safety, and to the edification of his hear-
ers, whose minds were not prepared for the disco-
very, prevented him for some time from expos-
ing the errors and superstition by which Christi-

* Boverio, Annali Capuccini ad aim. 1539, 15U. His official
dt'signation is expressed in the title of one of his first publications—
" Dialogi Sacri del Rev. Padre Frate B. Ochino, da Siena, Generale
dei Frati Capuzzini. Venetio, 15 12." (De Bure, Partie Theologique,

p. 432.)

t Observ. Sel. Ilal. torn. iv. p. 41 G. Caraccioli, Collect, p. 239.
Giannone, liv. xxxvii. chap. v. Bock, Hist. Antitr. torn. ii. pp. 489—
491. CaraccioU says, that Ochino's adoption of the protestant te-
nets was discovered as early as the year 1530. This error has been
corrected by Bock, who has himself fallen into a mistake in stating
that Ochino was drawn over to the evangelical party by Valdez in
the year 15U ; whereas the latter died in 1540.

I
I

HISTORV OF THE REFORMATION IN ITAEV. 11?

anity lia<l been corrupted. When he came to preach
at Naples, the sagacious eye of Juan ^\ildez quick-
ly detected the protestant under tlie patched rocket,
and sliarp-horned cowl of the capuchin ; and hav-
ing gained his friendship, he introduced him to the
private meetings held by the converts to evangeli-
cal doctrine in that city.

Pietro Martire Vermigli* was born, in the year
1500, of an honourable family in Florence, and re-
ceived that learned education which had been de-
nied to Ochino. In his youth he was taught La-
tin by his mother; and having, when he ar-
rived at the age of sixteen, entered, in opposition to
the will of his j)arents, among the canons regular of
St. Augustine, he passed his noviciate in their con-
vent at Fiezoli, which the liberality of the Medici
had furnished with an excellent library. From
this he was sent to the university of Padua, where
he made great ])roficiency in philosophy and the
Greek language. He afterwards visited the most
celebrated academies of his native country. At
Vercelli, by the persuasion of his intimate friend
Cusano, he interpreted Homer ; and at Bologna he
acquired the knowledge of Hebrew from a Jewish
physician, named Isaac. Being selected by the Au-

* His father's name was Stefano FermigH, from whom he is ordi-
narily designed Petrus Martyr Vermilius, to distinguish him from
Petrus Martyr Mediolanensis, a martyr after whom he was named,
in consequence of a vow of his parents ; and also, to distinguish him
from a learned countryman and contemporary of his own, Petrus
Martyr An^krius, (of Anghiera) whose epistles are known to the
learned, as throwing great light on the history of the early part of the
sixteenth centurv.

1 h

I \

118 HISTORY (M TlIK H ^FORMATION IN 1TA^V^

f^ustiniaiis as one of tlicir j)ii!)lif i)reachers, he dis-
tinguished himself* by the solidity and eloquence
of his discourses at Rome, I3ologna, Fermo, Pisa,
Venice, Mantua, Bergamo, and Montferrat. Hav-
ing recommended himself to those of his order by
his talents and labours, he was unanimously elected
abbot of Spoleto, and soon after provost of the col-
lege of St. Pietro ad aram, in the city of Najiles,
a situation of dignity and emolument. This was
about the year 1530, and in the thirtieth year of
his age. It was at this time, and when he had the
prosj)ect of certain and rai)id advancement in the
Romish church, that a change took place on his re-
ligious sentiments, which gave a complete turn to
his future life. From his vouth, as he himself has
told us, he had a decided preference for sacred stu-
dies, and having access to the scriptures in the
convent to which he belonged, applied himself to
read them with great care, and not altogether with-
out ])rofit to himself and others.* At a subsequent
period he fell in with the treatises of Zuingle on true
and false religion, and on j)rovidence, and with some
of Bucer's commentaries on scripture, which left
impressions in his mind. These were now con-
firmed and deepened by the conversation of \^aldez,
Flaminio, and others, with whom he became ac-
quainted at Naples, f

* Oratio (iiiam Tiguri priuuiin habiiit : Martyris Loc. Commiin.
p. 7 It.

t Simkri Oratio clc Vita tt Obitu Petri Martyris V'ennilii, pricfix.
ail Loc. C'oimnun. Martyris, sig. b ij, b iij. (Jeiiev. lG2i. Tliis lu-
neral oration was ri-piibli-ilinl by (Jcrdos, in his Svriniiim Antn/uariittN,
toni. iii. par. ii.

HISTORY Ol Tin: RErORMATION IN ITALY. 1 1|)

IMartyr excelled as mucli in judgment and learn-
ing as Ochino did in popular eloquence. To their
exertions in diflusing evangelical truth were added
those of John Mollio, formerly mentioned, who now
fdled the station of lector and j)reacher to the mo-
nastery of St. Lorenzo at Naples. Ochino emj)loyed
liis persuasive eloquence in the j)ulpit, while Mar-
tyr and Mollio read lectures, chiefly on Paul's epis-
tles, which were attended by the monks of differ-
ent convents, by many of the nobility, and by indi-
viduals of the episcopal order. They did not fail
to meet with opposition from the strenuous adhe-
rents of the established religion, who were support-
ed by the authority of the viceroy. But such was
the j)rudence with which they conducted themselves,
and tlie countenance wliich they received from per-
sons of the first consideration in the city, that they
were able to maintain tlieir ground, and for a time
to triumph over their adversaries. The favourite
doctrine of Ochino was justification by faith in
Christ, which, as appears from his printed sermons,
he perfectly understood, and explained with much
scriptural simj)licity. Purgatory, penances, and
papal pardons, fell before the preaching of this doc-
trine, as Dagon once did before the ark of Jehovah.
An Augustinian monk of Trevigio, probably as
much with the view of recommending himself to
liis superiors as from any hopes of success, chal-
lenged Ochino and his colleagues to a dispute on
these points; but he was worsted and put to silence
by their superior talents and acquaintance with
scripture. The church of Rome had long relied

120 HISTOHV Ol Tin: reformation in ITALY.

on the third chapter of the first epistle to the Co-
rinthians as one of the main piUars of pur^^atoiy ;
and from this j)assage the monks were aceustomed
to draw their most popuhir arguments in favour of
that lucrative doctrine. Martyr did not directly
attack this doctrine ; hut when he came to that pas-
sage,* in the course of his lectures on the ej)istle, he
gave it a quite different interj)retati()n, which he
confirmed hy arguments drawn from the text and
context, and hy appeals to the writings of the most
learned and judicious among the fathers. This
view of the passage occasioned great speculation ;
and the monks, provoked l)y the favourahle recep-
tion whicli it met with, and dreading that the most
fertile source of their gain would he dried up, mov-
ed heaven and earth against the daring innovator.
By the infhience of tlie viceroy, and tlieir own re-
presentations, they ohtained an order interdicting
him from preaching and lecturing. Martyr enjoy-
ed the favour of Gonzago, cardinal of Mantua, and
protector of his order, and he was well known to
the cardinals Contarini, Pole, 15end)o, and Freiroso,
all men of learning, and sonie of them favourable
to ecclesiastical reform. Relying- on tlieir i)atron-
age, he carried his cause by a[)i)eal to Rome, and
succeeded in obtaining the removal of the iuter-
dict.f

By tlie blessing of God on the labours of these
individuals, a reformed church was established in
Naples, which included persons of the first raiik

* 1 Corintli. chap. iii. ver. 13—15.
+ Sinilcr, Vila Martyris, sig. b iij.

JIISTOUY OF THE REFOUMATION IN ITALY. 121

in tlie kingdom, both male and female. Among
these were Galeazzo Caraccioli, son and heir of the
marquis of Vico, and his noble relation, Giovanni
Francesco Caserta, by wliom he was first led to at-
tend the discourses of Martyr.*

While the church at Naples was yet enjoying
peace, and daily increasing in nu.nbers, it was de-
prived ot \'aldez, to whom it chiefly owed its plan-
tation. He died in the year 1540, deeply lamented
by many distinguished persons, who owned him as
their spiritual father. « I wish we were again at
Naples, says Bonfadio, in a letter to Carnesecchi
"But when I consider the matter in another point
of view, to what jiurpose should we go there, now
M'hen Valdez is dead ? His death truly is a great
loss to us and to the world ; for Valdez «'as one of
the rarest men in Europe, as the writings left by
hini on the epistles of St. Paul and the psalms of
David abundantly demonstrate.! He was beyond
all doubt a most accomplished man in all his words
actions, and counsels. Life scarcely supported his
infirm and spare body ; but his nobler part and pure
intellect, as if it had been placed without the body
was wholly occupied with the contemjilation of
trutli and divine things. I condole with Marco
Antonio (Flaminio), for above all others he greatly

* Ibid. Life of Gal. Caraccioli, pp. 3—5.

+ These works must have been then in manuscript. His commen-
tary on the Romans was published in Spanish, at Venice in 1556 •
and his commentary on the Psalms at the same place in the folIowinK
5^-ar. His countryman and friend Juan Perez, the translator of the
New Itstamcnt into Spanish, prefixe<I an epistle ddicatory to each
( Baumgarton, apud Gordes. Ital. Rcf. p. 3U.)

\2'2 IIISTOIIY OF Tin: UEFOKMATION IN ITAl.V.

loved and adiiiiml him."* The fervent piety of
Wildez, and the unspotted purity of his life are
universally acknowledged. The charge of hetero-
doxy of sentiment, brought against him after his
death, rests chiefly on the very questionable ground
that some of those who were intimate with him
ultimately inclined to the sect denominated Soci-
nian ; for it cannot be pleaded that their tenets are to
be found in his writings, which, we must allow,
contain some other opinions which are untenable
or unguardedly expressed. f

The doctrines of the gosi)el were most eagerly re-
ceived in the ca})ital, but they spread also through the
kingdom of Naj)les, and even reached the island of
Sicilij, Jienedetti, surnamed Locarno from the place
of his birth, a minister of great sanctity, having

* Lcttcrc volgari di diversi nobilissimi huomini, p. 33. Aid. 154.3.

t i?iuidius (Hibl. Antrinit. p. 2.) claims him as an Anti-trinitarian ;
but that writer puts in the same claim to \\'olfgang Fabricius Ca-
pito, and others, who are known to have entertained very opposite
sentiments. (Schclhorni Ama^nit. Liter, tom. xiv. p. 38(). Ania*-
nit. Eccles. tom. ii. pp. 61 — o3.) If Ochino ever embraced that
creed, (which some have denied) it was unquestionably long al-
ter he left Italy. (Observ. Sel. Hal. tom. iv. obs. 20. tom. v. obs.
1.2.) JJcza, while he expresses his dissatisfaction with some things
in the Divine Cuusidcrations of Valdez, declares that he meant no-
thing disrespectful to his person, and docs not insinuate in the slightest
degree that he erred as to the doctrine of the Trinity. (Epistol;e,
pp. 43, 276.) borne remarks on the peculiar opinions of \'ahKz
will be made when we come to speak of his agency in enlightening
liis native country. The following is the title of the Cuusidcrations
in the Italian, which appears to have been the original edition : —
" Le Cento e Dieci Considerationi de Signore Valdesso, nelle (juaie
si ragiona cose piii utile, piu necessarie, et i)iu perfette della Cliris-
tiana Uehgione. In Basilea, 15o0." 8vo. In the French transhttien
of the Considerationi the author is called Jan dc Val d' Esso.

HISTOUY OV THE UliF OUMATIOX IX ITAI.V. 123

gained t!ie favour of the viceroy, preached the truth,
under his patronage, to crowded audiences in Pa-
lermo, and other parts of that island.* The seeds
of his doctrine afterwards sprung up, and gave am-
ple einpioyinent to the inquisitors. For many
years, persons charged with the Lutheran heresy
were produced in the public and private autos dafe
celebrated in Sicily.f

Lucca, the capital of a small but flourishing re-
public, situated on the lake of Genoa, had the honour
to reckon among its inhabitants a greater number
of converts to the reformed faith than perhai)s any
other city in Italy. This was chiefly owing to the
labours of Martyr. Finding, after a trial of several
years, that the climate of Naples was" injurious to
his health, he left it with the consent of his supe-
riors, and was chosen visitor-general of the Au"-us-
tinians in Italy. The rigid inspection which" he
exerted over them, and the reform which, with the
concurrence of cardinal Gonzago, he sought to in-
troduce into the monasteries, created alarm amon<^
the monks, who contrived to rid themselves of their
troublesome visitor, by getting him appointed prior
of St. Fridiaiio at Lucca, an Jionourable situation,
which invested him with episcopal power.s. His ad-
versaries hoped that he would be unacceptable in his

' /"• 'l'-:.-'^'."™!"', Oratio de Per.ceutionc Locarncnsi, sec. iii. et an.

• ■ ""■ ^"v"'; "' r'" "^''^■'"'•■*' ••""• '" I'l- "'•^' '«^' !««• Two
viceroys of Napk.., Uon I>cdro Cordova, and the .Manjuis do Ttrra-
nova, one of ll.e gran.loes of P,,ai„. were forced to ,Io penance for in-
tcrlering with the inquisition. ( Morcnte, ii. 82— S8.)

+ Lloronic, ii. l<2,t, iy<).

II ;

124 HISTORY OF THE UEFOUMATIOX IN ITALY.

newsituatioii as aFlorentine, on account of an ancient
grudge between the Lucchese and the inhabitants of
Florence; but with such prudence did he conduct him-
self, that he was as much esteemed as if he had been
a nativ^e of Lucca. One object which engaged the par-
ticular attention of Martyr was the education of the
noviciates in the priory, whose minds he was anxi-
ous to indjue with the love of sacred literature.
For th'*s purpose he established a private college or
seminary, to which he drew such teachers as he knew
to be both learned men and lovers of divine truth.*
Paulo Lacisio, a native of Verona, taught the Latin
language; Celso Martinengho, of the noble family of
the counts of that name, taught Greek ; and Ema-
nuel Tremellio, who afterwards distinguished him-
self as an oriental scholar, gave instructions in He-
brew. Martyr himself applied the literary know-
ledge which the young men imbibed from these
sources to the elucidation of the scriptures, by read-
in"* lectures to them on the New Testament and the
Psalter; which were attended by all the learned
men and many of the patricians of Lucca. He also
])reached publicly to the people ; confining himself
to the gospels during Advent and Lent, according
to the usual custom of the monks, but taking his
subjects from Paul's epistles during the rest of the
year. By means of these labours a separate church
w^as formed in that city, of w4iich Martyr became
pastor; and many, including individuals of the first

* Cclio Secuiulo Curio resided for some time at Lucca, where he
taught in the university, having been recommended to the senators by
the duchess of Ferrara. (Stupani Oratio, ut supra, pp. 3t3, 314.)

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 125

respectability in the place, gave the most decided
proofs of genuine piety and ardent attachment to
the reformed faith.*

AVhile these things were going on, pope Paul III.
paid a visit to Lucca, accompanied by the emperor,
who was at that time in Italy. It was feared that the
enemies of Martyr would embrace that opportunity
to inform against him, and that liis life would be
brought into danger ; but he was not molested, pro-
bably because it was deemed impolitic and prema-
ture to attack an individual whose reputation and
authority were at that time so high among the inha-
bitants. About the same time. Martyr received a
visit from cardinal Contarini, as he passed through
Lucca, on his return from Germany, where he had
been in the character of papal legate. They had a
confidential conversation on the state of the church,
and on the sentiments of the German reformers.f

The SiENNESE contained many converts to the
reformed doctrine. Ochino, in the course of his
preaching tours, frequently visited Sienna, which
was his native place. But the person to w^hom the
inhabitants of this city were most indebted for their
illumination was Aonio Paleario, a native of Veroli
in Campagna di Roma, who was on a footing of in-
timacy with the most learned men in Italy. About
the year 153i he was nominated public teacher of
Greek and Latin by the senate of Sienna, where he

* Simler, ut supra, sig. b iij.
t Ibid. sig. b iiij.

126 HISTORY OK THK RKFOUMATIOX IN ITALY.

afterwards read lectures on philosophy and Belles
Lettres. Having studied the scriptures, and read the
writino's of the German reformers, his lectures on
moral pliilosoi)liy were distinguished from those of
liis colleagues hy a liberal tone of tliinking. This
was not more gratifying to the students than it was
oftensive to those who adhered obstinately to tlie
old ideas.* Cardinal Sadoleti, in the name of his
friends, set before him the danger of his giving way
to innovations, and advised him, in consideration
of the times, to confine liimself to the safer task of
clothing the peripatetic ideas in elegant language.f
This prudential advice was not altogether conge-
nial to the open mind of Paleario, and the devotion
which he felt for truth. The freedom with which
he censured false pretenders to learning and reli-
gion irritated a class of men who scruple at no
means to oppress and ruin an adversary, and who
eagerly seized the opportunity to fasten on him the
charge of heresy4 His private conduct was watch-
ed, and expressions which had dropped from him in
the unsuspecting confidence of private conversation
were circulated to his prejudice. He liad laughed
at a rich priest who was seen every morning kneel-
ing at the shrine of a saint, but refused to pay liis
debts.§ " Cotta asserts, (says he, in one of his let-
ters) that, if I am allowed to live, there w^ill not be

* Palcarii Opera, p. ."^27. ctlit. Halbaueri, Jena*, 1728.

t Ibid. pp. 33G, 539.

X Ibid. pp. 88, Of), .5-^3— 5:}1, a38— 513.

§ Ibid. p. 545.

.- 'ViSm -'.'.V-fSSB^SVffl

HISTORV OF THE nF.FORMATION IN rrAI.V. 127

a vestige of religion left ir, the city. Why ^ Be
cause being asked one day ^vhat was the first ground
on which men should rest their salvation, I replied,
Unist ; being asked what was the second, I replied,
Clinst ; and being asked wliat was the third, I re-
plied, Christ."* But Paleario gave the greatest of-
ience by a book which he wrote on the Benefit of
the death of Christ, f of which he gives the follow-
ing account in his defence of himself pronounced
before the senate of Sienna. " There are some per-
sons so S0U1-, so morose, so censorious, as to be dis
pleased «hen we give the highest praise to the author
and God of our salvation, Christ, the king of all na
tions and people. ^Vhen I wrote this very year in the
Tuscan language, to show what great benefits accrue
to mankind from his death, it was made the ground
of a crnninal accusation against me ! Is it possible to
utter or conceive any thing more shameful ? I had

• Palcarii Opera, p. 519.

t ;J"l>i« book was printed in 1513 in Italian, under tl.e title // Be-

»W,. 71'";, '"f '"'' ^f^'-'"^^^ translated into Spanish and
trend,. (Schelh. Ama>n. Eccl. torn. i. pp. 1,5-159. Ergoetz-
hchkeiten vol. v. p. 27.) An Account of its contents is given in Rie-
derer Naclirichten zur kirchen-gelelirten, torn. iv. pn. 121 235-
2il. Vergerio says of it : " Many are of opinion that there is' scarce-
ly any book of this age, or at least in the Italian language, so sweet
so pious, so simple, so well fitted to instruct the ignorant and weak'
especially in the doctrine of justification. I will say more, Reginald
lole, the British cardinal, the intimate friend of Morone was cs
teemed the author of that book, or a part of it, at least it 'is known
that he, with Haminio, Priuli, and his other friends, defended and
circulated it. (Amcen. Eccl. ut supra, p. 158.) Laderchio asserts
that Flamn.io wrote an apology for the Bene/ido. (Ai.nal. xxii. f.

128 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

said, that since he in whom the divinity resided,
has poured out his life's blood so lovingly for our
salvation, we ought not to doubt of the good will of
heaven, but may promise ourselves the greatest tran-
quillity and peace. I had affirmed, agreeably to the
most unquestionable monuments of anticjuity, that
tliose who turn with their souls to Christ crucified,
connnit tliemselves to him by faitli, acquiesce in the
promises, and cleave with assured confidence to
him who cannot deceive, are delivered from all evil,
and enjoy a plenary pardon of their sins, l^'hese
things appeared so grievous, so detestable, so exe-
crable to the twelve — I cannot call them men, but —
inhuman beasts, that they judged that the author
should be committed to the flames. If I must un-
dergo this punishment for tlie foresaid testimony ;
(for I deem it a testimony rather tlian a libel ;)
then, senators, nothing more happy can befal me.
In such a time as this I do not think a Christ-
ian ouirht to die in his bed. To be accused, to be
dragged to prison, to be scourged, to be hung up by
the neck, to be sewed up in a sack, to be ex-
posed to wild beasts, is little : let me be roasted
before a fire, provided only the truth be brought
to light by such a death.*'* Addressing his ac-
cuser, he says : '' You accuse me of being of tlie
same sentiments witli the Germans. Good (xod, what
a vulgar charge ! Do you mean to bind up all the Ger-
mans in one bundle ? Are they all bad ? — Though
you should restrict your charge to their divines, still

• Palearii Opera, pp. UU, 102.

IllSTORV OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 129

it would be absurd. Are there not many excellent
divines in Germany ?_Bnt your accusation, though
full of trifling, has nevertheless a sting, which, as pro-
ceeding from you, is charged with poison. By Ger-
mans, you mean Ecolainpade, Erasmus, Melanchthon,
Luther, Pomeran, liucer, and others who have in-
curred suspicion. But surely there is not a divine
among us so stupid as not to perceive and confess,
that the writings of these men contain many things'
worthy of the higliest praise, many things gravely,
accurately, and faithfully stated, repeated from the
early fathers, who have left us the institutes of sal-
vation, and also from the commentaries of the
Greeks and Latins, who, though not to be com-
pared with those pillars, are still of use for interpre-
tation. ' liut do you approve all that the Germans
have done ?' This, Otho, is like the rest of your ques-
tions ; yet I will return an answer to it. I approve
of some things : of others I disapprove. To pass by
many things, I praise the Germans, and consider
them as entitled to public thanks, for their exer-
tions in restoring the purity of the Latin tongue,
^vhich till of late was oj)pressed by barbarism and
poverty of speech. Formerly sacred studies lay ne-
glected in the cells of idlers, who retired from the
world to enjoy their repose : (and yet, amidst their
snoring, they contrived to hear what was said by us
in cities and villages :) now these studies are in a
great measure revived in Germany. Chaldaic, Greek,
and Latin libraries are erected ; books are beautiful!
ly printed ; and honourable stipends are assigned to

130 HISTORY or THE UEFORMATIOX IN ITALY.

divines. AVliat can be more illustrious ? what more
glorious ? what more deserving of perpetual praise ?
Afterwards arose civil diseords, intestine wars, com-
motions, seditions, and otlier evils, which, for the
sake of charity and brotherly love among Christians,
I deplore. Who does not praise the former ? who
is not displeased with the latter ?"*

The eloquent defence of Paleario, of which one is
at a loss whether to admire most tlie boldness and
candour,or the prudence and address, triumphed over
the violence and intrigues of his adversaries. He
was, however, obliged soon after to quit L-^ienna ; but
though he changed the place of his residence, he
did not escape from tlie odium which he had incur-
red, and we shall afterwards find him enduring that
martyrdom which he carl}' anticipated, and for which
it appears to have been his object all along to ])re-
pare his thoughts. AVe may form some idea of the
extent to which the reformed o])inions had spread
in Sienna, from the nund)er of individuals belonging
to it, wdio, at a subsequent period, submitted to a vo-
luntary exile on their account, among whom were
Lactantio Ragnoni, Mino Celso,f and the Soccini,
who became celebrated by giving their name to a
new sect.

TliePiSAXOand the Duchy of Mantua were both
imbued in no small degree with evangelical doctrine.
Its converts were so numerous in the city of Pisa,

* Paloarii Opera, pp. 92 — 95.

-f- Giannone, Hist, de Naples, torn. iv. p. J 49. Schelhorn, Diss.
(\c Mino Celso, pp. 18, Gl.

insTORV OF Tin: reformation IN ITALY. 131

tliat in tlie year 1543 they formed themselves into
a cliurch, and had the sacrament of the Lord's sup-
J)er celel)rated among them. * In a brief addressed
to the cardinal of Mantua in the year 1545, his ho-
h'ness, Paul III. signifies, that he had received infor-
mation, tliat certain ecclesiastics, as well as illite-
rate i)ersons and mechanics, in the city of Mantua,
had presumptuously dared to dispute and doubt of
matters pertaining to the catholic faith and the sa-
cred institutions of the church of Rome, to the de-
struction of their souls and the great scandal of
others. f

Locarno is a city of Italy, and the capital of a pro-
vince or bailiwick of that name, situate on the lake
Maggiore, in the southern confines of the Alps. It
was one of four provinces wliich Maximilian Sforza,
duke of Milan, in the year L513, gave to the Swiss
cantons as a renunieration for the military aids
which they had furnished him ; and was governed
by- a i)refect, whom the cantons sent by turns every
two years. Thougli the territory was small, its inha-
bitants were possessed of considerable wealth, deriv-
ed from the riches of tlie country in their neighbour-
hood, and from their being the carriers in the trade
which was i>rosecuted between Italy and Switzerland.
So early as the year 1526, the reformed opinions were
introduced into it by Baldassare Fontana, whom we
iiave already had occasion to mention, j: The number

* Siiiileri Oratio, iit supra, sig. biiij.
f Raynaldi Annales, ad an. 1543.
i See before, p. 38.

132 insTouv oi' Tin: kkioumation in ii ai.v.

of converts was for some time very sinall. '• 'inhere
are hut three of us here (says that zealous and (Un-
voted servant of Christ, in a letter to Zuin«,de)
who have enlisted and eonfeder<ited in the eause ot
pr(>|)a<:^atini»' the truth. J5ut Midian was not van-
(juished hy the multitudes of hrave men who
flocked to the standard of (Jideon, hut hy a few se-
lected for that purpose hy (iod. Who knows hut he
may kindle a oreat ihc cmt of this inconsiderahle
smoke ? It is our duty to sow and plant : the Lord
must o-ive the increase."* 'Hie seed often re-
mains lon«»* hid in the gnmnd. Twenty years elaps-
ed })efore the fruit of the prayers and lahours of
these oood men made its appearance ; and it is not
imiu-ohahle that, hefore this happened, they had all
o-one to receive their reward in a hetter world. In
the year 1546, l^Miedetto Locarno returned to his
native place, after he had heen long employed in
jn-eaching the gospel in various ])arts of Italy, and
in the island of Sicily. His exertions to enlighten
the minds of his townsmen were zealously second-
ed hy John Beccaria, conunonly called tlie apostle of
Locarno, a man of good talents and excellent cha-
racter, who by reading the scrij)tures, withont the
aid of a teacher or any human writings, had discover-
ed the principal errors and corruptions of the church
of Rome. To these were soon added four indivi-
duals of great respectability, and animated by the
true spirit of confessors — Varnerio Castiglione, who

» Jo. de Muralto, Oratio de rersecutione Locarncnsium : in Tempc
Helvetica, torn. iv. p. HI.

msTOUY ov TIIF. RF. FORMATIOX IX ITALY. 15.3

.^.•"•'■.1 noiti.er fi,„c „or labour in promoting the
truth, Lu.h.via, Ituncho, a citizou, 'J'ad.leo a Dunis
a l.hvMc.a,.. who, as we'll as Ru„ch„, ,vas a youuiJ
)uan„f jrenius an.l undauute.l resolution, and Mar!
tuio a Muralto, a doctor of laws, and a person of ..oble
hirth who had jrreat influence in the bailiwick. In the
course of four years, the i)rotestants of Locarno had
increased to a numerous .hurch, which was retru-
larly organi^^ed, and had the sacraments administer
ed u. ,t by a pastor whom they called from the church
of Ch.avenna.* The daily accessions which it re
ccived to its numbers excited the envy and chagrin
of the clergy, who were warmly supported by the
prefect appointed, in the year 1.549, by the popish
canton of Underwald. A priest belonging to the

neighbounngbailiwickofLugano,whowas employed
to declaim fron. the pulpit against the Locarnian
Protestants, loaded them with calumnies of all kind«
and challenged their preacher to a public dispute on
the articles controverted between the two churches
He was completely silenced on the day of trial • and'
to revenge his defeat, the prefect ordered Beccaria
nito prison. This step excited such indignation in
the city, that the prisoner was immediately enlarrr
ed, and the enemies of the protestants were obliged
IhemT "" "°'"' ^'''""'^^'' oppoitunity to attack

ISTRiA, a peninsular district on the gulf of Ve
nice, belonged to the Venetian republic. It is men-

• Muralto, Oratio, ut supra, pp. I42-H4; conf. p. ISO.
T Ibid. pp. 144 — 148 r

134 IIISTOTIY OF THE REFOUMATIOX IX ITALY.

tioiicd separately, and in this place, because it was
the last spot which the light of the Ueturniation vi-
sited in its progress through Italy, and because it
gave birth to two distinguished protestants, both of
whom were bishops of the Roman Catholic church,
and one of them a papal legate. Pierpaolo Verge-
rio was a native of Capo d' Istria, and sprung from
a family which had shared in the literary rep^itation
of the fifteenth century. We have already liad oc-
casion to notice him as a young man of promising
talents and excellent character, who felt a desire to
visit Wittenberg for the purpose of fmishing his
studies.* Having devoted himself to the study ot
law, he obtained the degree of doctor from the uni-
versity of Padua, where he acted for some time as
a professor, and as vicar to the Podesta, and after-
wards distinguished himself as an orator at Venice.f
Such was his fame for learning and address, that pope
Clement VII. sent him into Germany as his legate
to Ferdinand, king of the Romans, at whose court
he remained for some years, advancing the interests
of the court of Rome, and opposing the progress of
Lutheranism.t On the death of Clement, his sue
cessor Paul III. recalled \^ergerio, and after receiv-
ing an account of his embassy, sent him back to
Germany, where he had interviews with the Ger-
man princes and with Luther, respecting the pro-
posed general council. On his return to Italy in

* See before, p. 31. t Tiraboschi, vii. 375-6.

J Sleidaii (lib. vii. torn. i. p. 395) represents Vergerio as sent to
Ferdinand in 1630 ; Tiraboschi says it was in 1532. (Tomo vii. p. 377.)

IIISTOllY or THE Ili:i ORMATION IN ITALY. 135

15C6, he was advanced to the episcopal dignit}^
being made first bishop of Modrusium in Croatia,'
a see in the patronage of Ferdinand, and afterwards
of Capo d'Istria, his native place. Having gone
into France, he appeared, in 1541, at the confe-
rence of Worms, in the name of his Christian Ma-
jesty, but, as was believed, with secret instructions
from the pope.* It is certain, that he drew up at
this time an oration on the unity of the church, in
opposition to the idea of a national council, which
was desired by the ])rotestants.

His mind appears to have received an impression
in favour of the Reformation during his residence in
Germany. Protestant writers assert, that the pope
intended to confer a cardinal's hat on him at his
return, but was diverted from this by the suspi-
cions raised against his soundness in the faith, lliis
is denied by Pallavicini and Tiraboschi ; but they
allow that the pope had received information against
him, as having cultivated undue familiarity with the
German heretics, and spoken favourably of them ;
and that, on this account, means were used to oblige
him to return to Italy, and to convince him that he
had incurred the displeasure of his superiors. This
is confirmed by the letters of cardinal Bembo. In
a letter to his nephew, who appears to have held a
high official situation in the Istrian government, the

• This is asserted by Father Paul, (lib. i.) and Sleidan, (lib. xiii.
torn. 11. 204) but contradicted by Pallavicini, (hb. iv. cap. 12) and
iiraboschi. (Utsup. p 380.) Courayer supports the former, in his
notes on Father Paul's History.

136 HISTORY or the reformation in italy.

cardinal signifies that he was " in a manner con-
strained by the bishop of Capo (Vlstria to recom-
mend some of his rehitions, who, though inno-
cent, as he alleged, liad been thrown into i)rison;'
This was on the 24th of September, 1541 ; but on
the 1st of February following, he expresses his sa-
tisfaction that his request had not been granted ;
and adds, " I hear some things of that bishop, which,
if true, are very bad — that he not only has ])ortraits
of Lutherans in his house, but also in the causes of
certain citizens, has eagerly sought to favour in
every way the one party, whether riglit or wrong,
and to bear down the other.'*

It was no easy matter for a person in W^rgerio's
circumstances to relinquish the honourable situa-
tion which he held, and to sacrifice the flattering
prospects of advancement which he liad long che-
rished. Besides, his convictions of the truth were
still imperfect. When he first retired from the
bustle of public life to his diocese, he set about fi-
nishing a work which he had begun, " Against the
apostates of Germany,'' tlie publication of which
might dissipate the susi)icions which he had in-
curred ; but, in the course of writing, and of ex-
amining the books of the reformers, his mind was
so struck with the force of the objections which it
behoved him to answer, that he tlirew away the pen,
and abandoned the work in despair. He now sought
relief by vmbosoming himself to his brother, Gio-

* Bembo, Opere, tomo ix. pp. 288, 201..

history of the reformation in ITALY. 137

vanni Batista Vergerio, bishop of Pola, in tlie same
district. The latter was thrown into great distress
by tlie comnmnication ; but, upon conference with
his brother, and hearing the reasons of liis change
of views, especially on the head of justification, he
became himself a convert to the protestant doctrine.
Tlie two brothers now concerted a plan for enlight-
ening their dioceses, by conveying instruction to the
people on the leading articles of the gospel, and
withdrawing tlieir minds from those ceremonial
services and bodily exercises, in which they were
disposed to place the whole of religion. This they
were able to effect in a good degree by means of
their own personal labours, and the assistance of
some individuals who had previously received the
knowledge of the truth ; so that before the year
1546, a great part of the inhabitants of that dis-
trict had embraced the reformed faith, and made
considerable advances in the knowledge of Chris-
tian doctrine.*

Beside the places which have been specified, ad-
herents to the reformed opinions were to be found
at this time in Genoa, in Verona, in Cittadella, in
Cremona, in Brescia, in Civita di P>iuli, in An-
cona, in various parts of the Roman territories, and
in Rome itself.f

* Sleidan, lib. xxi. torn. iii. pp. 150—152. Ughelli ItaUa Sacra
torn. V. pp. 3tl, 391. '

+ Gerdesii Specimen Italia? Reformatae. Martyris Epistols. Zan-
chii Epistolae. Melanchthonis Epistolse.

138 HISTOUV OF THE IIKFORMATIOX IX ITALY.

CHAPTER IV.

MISCELLANEOUS FACTS IlESPECTIXG THE STATE OF
THE REFORMED OriNIOXS IX ITALY.

Having given a general view of the introduction
of the reformed doctrine into Italy, and traced its
progress through the principal states and cities of
that country, I shall collect in this chapter some
facts of an interesting kind, whieli could not he
fitly interwoven with the preceding narrative. The
first class of these relates to the (li.sj)utus ludiappily
introduced among the Itnlinn })rotestants, hy which
they were divided among themselves, and thus he-
came an easier prey to their connnon enemy.

It is well known, that a controversy arose at an
early period hetween the t^\'o principal reformers
respecting the ])resence of Christ in the sacrament
of the supper ; Luther insisting that the words
of institution ought to be understood in a literal
sense, while Zuingle interpreted them figuratively.
At a conference held at Marburg in the year
1529, and procured chiefly I)y the influence of
Philip, landgrave of Hesse, the two parties, after

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 139

ascertaining tliat their sentiments liarmonized on
all other i)oints, agreed to bear with each other, and
to cultivate mutual peace and good will, notwith-
standing their diOerent views of this single article.
But tJie controversy broke out afresh, chiefly through
the ill oflfices of some forward and injudicious friends
of Luther, and being inflamed by publications on
both sides, laid the foundation of a lasting division
between the churches of Switzerland and Upper Ger-
many. After the deatli of Zuingle, his opinions
were vigorously defended by Ecolampade, Bullinger,
and Calvin.

The protestants of Italy had been equally indebt-
ed to the two reformers for the knowledge wliich
they had obtained of the truth. If the circum-
stance of the works of Zuingle having been chiefly
composed in Latin gave an advantage to his opin-
ions, by contributing to their more extensive cir-
culation, this was counterbalanced by the celebri-
ty of Luther's name, and the numbers of his coun-
trymen who frequented Italy, and carried his opin-
ions along witli them. It would appear, however,
that the Italian protestants were generally favour-
able to the opinion of the Swiss reformer. This
may be concluded both from their writings, and
from the fact, that by far the greater number of
those who were obliged to leave their native coun-
try sought an asylum in the protestant cantons of
Switzerland.*

* Vergerio had more connexion with the Germans than most of
hzs countrymen ; and yet we find Paulus Ebenis, a professor of Wit-

140 IIISTOKY OF THE llEFORMATIOX IN ITALY.

Tliat this dispute was warmly agitated among
the jirotestants of Modena, Bologna, and other parts
of Italy in 1541, we learn from three letters ad-
dressed to them in the eourse of that year by Bueer.
This reformer had all along been a strenuous friend
to peace and concord between the contending par-
ties. It seems to have been his sincere belief tliat
there was no real difference of sentiment between
them ; and although he evidently inclined to the
explications given by the Swiss divines, yet in his
efforts for i)acification, he alternately employed the
phrases of both sides, a method which threw an ob-
scurity over his writings, and is not tlie best calcu-
lated for promoting conciliation between men of
enlightened understanding. However, the advice
which he imparted on the present occasion was in
the main sound, and does great honour to his heart.
In a letter " to certain friends of the truth in Italy,"*
he says : " I hear, my good brethren, that Satan,
who has afflicted us long, and with great defection
in religion, has begun to disturb you also ; for it is
said, that a dispute has arisen among you respect-
ing the eucharist. This grieves me exceedingly.
For, what else can you expect from this controversy
than what we have experienced to the great damage
of our churches ? Dear brethren, let us rather seek

tenberg, writing of him as follows, in a letter dated June 21, 1556 ;
'' Jam ca^nabimus cum Tctro Paulo Vergerio, qui fuit Justinopoli-
tanus episcopus, et nunc vocatus a duce Alberto proficiscetur in Bo-
russiam. Eum audio non dissimulanter probare sententiam Calvini."
(Scrinium Antiquarium, torn. iv. p. 713.)
* « Augusti 17, 1541."

HISTORY OF THE llEFOItM ATIOX IN ITALY. 141

to embrace Christ in the eucharist, that so we may
live m him and he in us. The bread and the wine
are symbols, not things of such great mystery. This
all confess ; but God forbid that, on the other hand,
any should imagine that eini)ty symbols are ex-
hibited in the supper of the Lord ; for the bread
whicli we break is the j)articipation of the Lord's
body, and not bread oiily.—Avoid strifes of words •
suj)port the weak. While our confidence is i)laced
m Christ, all is well : all cannot at once see the same
things. Studiously cultivate concord. The God upon
whom we call is not the God of division. Thus live,
and advance, and overcome every evil."* In another
letter to the same persons,! after giving his views of
the subject, this amiable man adds : " This is my
opinion on the whole matter in dispute. If I have
not explained n.yself with perspicuity, the reason is,
that from constitution, and owing to the defects of
my education, I am apt to be obscure and perplex-
ed, and also that I write in haste, and witliout the
helps necessary for discussing such a subject ; which
indeed appears too clearly in all my writino-s I
desire to avoid giving offence, whenever it is law-
ful ; yet, were I able, I would wish to explain as
clearly as possible those things which it concerns
the church to know. I exhort you, beloved bre-
thren, to avoid in these questions, with all possible
care, a spirit of curiosity and contention. Let those
who are strong in knowledge bear with the weak :

• Buceri Scripta Anglicana, p. 686.
t '' Anno \3U. 23. Decemb."

1 1.2 HISTOIIY OF TITF. IIEFORMATION IN FfAI-Y.

let the weak pay due (leferei)ce to the strong. We
ought to know nothing but Christ and him crucifi-
ed. All our exertions ought to be directed to this,
that he may be formed more fully in us, and por-
trayed in a more lively manner in the whole of our
conduct, ^'ou ascribe too much to me. I know my
own weakness. Express your love by praying to
(Jod for me, rather than by praising me."* In a
letter to the i)rotestants at Bologna and Modena,
he says : " The too sharp contention which has
taken place among lis in (Jermany respecting this
sacrament was a work of the flesh. AVe thought, that
Luther fixed Christ glorified to earthly signs by his
too strong language ; he and his friends, on the con-
trary, thought that we acknowledged and gave no-
thing in the supper but bread and wine. At length,
however, the Lord has brought us to a happy
agreement, both in words and as to the matter ; so
that botli i)arties should speak honourably of these
myteries, and that the one should not appear to
ascribe to Christ what is luiworthy of him, nor
the otiier to celebrate the Lord's supper without the
Lord.— I beseech you, keep this agreement along
with us; and if in any instance it has been injured,
restore it, imitating our conduct in what is of Christ,
and not in what is of the flesh : this should be the
oidy dispute and contest among saints."t

But the controversy was carried on with the
greatest heat within the \'enetian territories, where
the protestants had all along kept up a close corres-

• lUicori Script. Ansl. !>• 6«"- t IWd- P- 689.

HISTORY OF TIIF. REFOU.AIATIOX IX ITALY. 143

pondencewith the divines of Wittenberg, and where
a so there were individuals not disposed to yield im-
phot submission to the authority of any name, how-
ever h,gl. a„,, venerated. We learn tin's from the
letter wlncJi the excellent Baldassare Altierl address-
ed in the nan.e of his brethren, to Luther, and from
Mlncli I have already quoted.* The following ex-
tract contains also some additional particulars'as to
.estate of the refonned cause in that qnarter of
Italy at the period when it was written.f " There
IS another afiair which daily threatens our churches
with impending nun. That question concerning
the Lord's supper, «-hich arose first in Germany.
|.nd afterAvanls was brought to us, alas ! what dis-
turbances has it excited ! what dissensions has it
produced ! what offences to the weak, what losses
to the church of God, 1ms it caused ! what impedi-
"lents has it thrown in the way of the propagation
of the glory of Christ ! For if i„ Germany, where
there are so many clmrches rightly constituted, -^nd
so many holy men, fervent in sj,irit and eminent
for every kind of learning, its poison has prevailed so
ar as to form two parties througl, mutual alterca-
tion, (for although it behoved sud, things necessarily
to happen, yet are they to be guarded against as
<lire, dreadful, and abominable before God) how
>m.ch more is the prevalence and daily increase of
this plague to be dreaded with us ? AVith us, where
tliere are no public assemblies, but where every one

• See before, p. 98.

f '' Kal. Dec. 6, 1542."

144 HISTORY OF THE IIEFOIIMATION IN ITALY.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 145

is a cliiircli to liiniself, acting according to his own
willand pleasure; theweak exalting themselves above
the strong beyond the measure of their faith, and
the strong not receiving the weak, and ])earing with
them in tlie spirit of meekness and gentleness, mind-
ful tliat they are themselves encompassed with the
same infirmity and sin, instead of wliicli they proud-
ly neglect and despise them : all would be teachers
instead of disciples, although they know nothing,
and are not led by the Spirit of God. There are
many teachers who do not understand what they
say or whereof they affirm ; many evangelists who
would do better to learn than to teach others ; many
apostles who are not truly sent. All things here ,
are conducted in a disorderly and indecorous man-
ner." Altieri goes on to state, that Bucer had writ-
ten them that concord was established between
the two parties in Germany, and had exhorted
the friends of truth in Italy to lay aside their con-
tentions, and with one mouth to glorify him who
is the God of peace and not of confusion, add-
in<»\ that Melanchthon was about to publish a de-
fence of the agreement. This intelligence, he says,
had filled them with joy, and on a sudden all
was harmony and peace among them. But of late
again, at the instigation of the great adversary of
the truth, certain foolish and unreasonable men had
embroiled matters, and raised new disputes and
contentions. He therefore begs Luther to write to
them ; for though they were not ignorant of his
opinion on the disputed question, (to which they

meant to adhere as most consonant to the words
of Christ and Paul) and although they relied on
and rejoiced at the information of Bucer, yet they
were anxious to be certified of the mode of concilia-
tion from himself, to whose opinion they paid a
higher deference than to that of any other indivi-
dual, and to receive from him the above-mentioned
defence, or any other books lately published relating
to that subject or to the general cause. The letter
contains the warmest professions of regard for the
reformer, and of solicitude for the success of the re-
formation in Germany; " for," says the writer,
'' whatever befalls you, whether prosperous or ad-
verse, we consider as befalling ourselves, both be-
cause we have the same spirit of faith, and al-
so because on the issue of your affairs depends
our establishment or overthrow. Be mindful
of us, most indulgent Luther, not only before
God in your ardent prayers, that we may be fill-
e<l with the knowledge of him through the Spirit
of Christ, but also by the frequency of your
learned, pleasant, and fruitful writings and let-
ters ; that so those whom you have begotten by
the word of truth may the sooner grow up to
the stature of a perfect man in Christ. We labour
here under a great and painful scarcity of the word
of God, not so much owing to the cruelty and seve-
rity of the adherents of antichrist, as to the almost
incredible wickedness and avarice of the booksellers
who bring your writings here, and conceal them
u'ith tlie view of raising the price to an exorbitant

14(i iiisTOuy OF Tin: keformation in itai.v.

rate, to the great loss of the whole church. The
brethren, who are numerous here, salute you with
the kiss of peace." *

Luther had it in his power to do much at this
time for the advancement of the evangelical cause
in Italy. The flames of persecution were just
ready to hurst upon its friends, while they were
unhappily become a prey to intestine dissensions.
It appears that the greater part of the protes-
tants in the Venetian states were favourable to
the opinion of the German reformer ; but it is al-
so evident, that they, or at least the leading men
among them, were disposed to moderation, to live
in harmony with their brethren who thought in a
different manner on the controverted article, and to
wait till God, who had in a wonderful manner
brought them to the knowledge of many great
truths of which they had been profoundly ignorant,
should " reveal this also to them." They felt the
highest veneration for the character of Luther,
were disposed to pay a deference almost implicit to
his advice, and a single word from liim would either
allay or inflame the dissension which had arisen.
Unhappily he adopted that method which natively
produced the last of these effects. In his answer to
the letter from the Venetian protestants, he not only
dissipated the pleasing delusion which they were
under as to a reconciliation having been effected,
but inveighed in the most bitter terms against
the sacramentarians and fanatics, as he abusive-
ly denominated the Swiss divines ; and asserted

* Scckemlorf, lib. iii. p. 40^2.

HISTOKY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 147

that " the popish tenet of transubstantiation was
more tolerable than that of Zuingle."* Nor was he
a whit more moderate in another letter written by
him in the following year, in which he stimulated
the Italians to write against the opinions of Zuingle
and Ecolampade ; whom he did not scruple to stig-
matize as " poisonous teachers" and " false pro-
phets," who « did not dispute under the influence
of error, but opposed the truth knowingly, at the
instigation of Satan.^f In addition to this, he caused
some of his controversial writings against the Zuin^
glians to be translated and sent into Italy.

Alas ! wliat is man ? What are great men, who
would be thought, or are represented by their fond ad-
mirers, to be gods? A lie— lighter than vanity. Will-
ingly would I have passed over this portion of his-
tory, and spared the memory of a man who has de-
served so much of the world, and whose character,
notwithstanding all the infirmities and faults which
attach to it, will never cease to be contemplated with
admiration and gratitude. But the truth must be
told. The violence with which Luther acted in the
dispute that arose between him and his brethren re-
specting the sacrament is too well known ; but never
did the character of the reformer sink so much into
that of the petty leader of a party, as it did on the
present occasion. Some excuse may be found for

• Hospiniani Hist. Sacrament. Part. ii. p. 18i. The letter is publish-
ed in Huniraehi Neue Bibliotheck von seltenen Buchern, torn. L
pp. 2S9—216. Xurnb. 1775.

t Luthers Siimtliche Schriften, torn. xvii. p. 2632. edit. Walch.

Its irisToin' or the tteformation in itai y.

the iTiaiiner in wliich ho conducted liiniself toward^;
those who opposed his favourite dogma in (nrniany
or even in Switzerland ; hut one is utterly at a loss
to conceive the shadow of an apoloii^y for his havincj
acted as he did in reference to the Italians. Sure-
ly lie ou^^^ht to have considered tliat the whole cause
of evangelical religion was at stake among them,
that they were few in nund)er and rude in know-
ledge, that there were many things which they were
not yet ahle to hear, that they were as slieep in the
midst of wolves, and that the only tendency of his
advice was to set them hy the ears, to divide and
scatter, and drive them into the mouths of the wild
beasts which stood ready to devour them. This w\as
foreseen hy the amiable and pacific Melanchthon, who
had always written in a very dillerent strain to his
correspondents in Italy ; and who dei)lored this rash
step of his colleague, although the mildness and ti-
midity of his disposition prevented him on this, as
on other occasions, from adopting those decisive
measures which might have counteracted in some
degree its baneful effects.*

But another controversy had arisen among the
Italian protestants, bearing on points of vital im-
portance to Christianity, and calculated, provided
it had become general, to inflict a deeper injury on
the interests of religion than the dispute to which I
have just adverted. Tliis related primarily to the

• In a letter to Vitus Thcodoms, written in 15^3, IVklancthtbon
complains, " quod horricliiis scripscrit Luthcrus ad Italos." (Hos-
pin. ut supra.) *

niSTOKY or THE lilCl OJtilATlON IN 1TA1.V. 1 4<)

•lodriiie of (1,0 irinily, an.l l,y con«eque.u-o to the
pcTsoi. and ato.iemeiit of Cl.rist; a.i.l it extended to
i".;.st of ll.e anieles wliid, .,re j.ecnliar and distiu-
guisiiinir in the Cliristian faitli.

It lias been suj)])o.sed hy some writers, that i)er-
M)iKs attaclied to the opinions of Ariiis liad reniain-
od concealed i,i Italy down to the si.xteentli cen-
f'y ; and that the fame of the refonnation beLr„„
HI (Germany (h-ew them from tlieir hirkinir-plaees *
^ Some have even asserted tliat the mind oHhe well-

known Michael Servetiis was fu-st tainted hv inter-
course with Italian heretics.f l^ut there is ,',„ .rood
evidence for either of these opinions. It is ninch n.ore
probable that the Sj.aniar.I acquired his peculiar
views, so far as they were not the oflsjjring of hisown
invention, in Germany, subsequently to the visit
which he paid to Italy at a very early j,erio.l of hislife
Jiefore his name had been heard of, and within a
few years after tlie commencement of the Iteforma-
tion, certain confused notions, sometimes a])proacli-
"'i«- to the ancient tenets of Arius and Peh.gius,
and at other times assuming a form which bore a'
nearer resemblance to those afterwanJs called soci-
iiiaij, were afloat in Germany, and vented by some
of those who went by tlie common name of ana-
baptists. Among these were Iletzer and Denck,
who published translations of parts of scrij)ture be'
fore Luther. :f In the inference held at Marburg,

Bock, Hist. Antitrinit. toiii. ii. p. m.

+ L'Abbt a-Artigi.y, Nouvcaux Memoircs, torn. ii. pp. is, 59.

, Zuiiigl,, ct (Ecolainpa<lii Epistola., if. sa, 197. Bock, Hist. An.
titnn. ton), li. pp. 134-130. llucliat, Histoi.e dc la Reform, dc la
fc'uissc, torn. li. p. 509. Iletzer and Dcuck retracted their sentiments.

"*"ap"^'**'

150 HISTORY OF THE RKI ORMATION IN ITALY.

in 1529, between the Saxon and Swiss reformers,
it was stated by Melanchthon, as matter of com-
plaint, or at least of suspicion, that the latter had
among them persons who entertained erroneous
opinions concerning the trinity. Zuingle cleared
himself and his brethren from this imputation, with-
out denying, however, that there might be indivi-
duals lurking among them who cherished such te-
nets.* It is not improbable, that, on his return,
means were taken to discover these concealed here-
tics, and that being expelled from Switzerland, some
of them travelled into Italy. We know that the
reformed church at Naples was in its infancy dis-
turbed by Arians and Anabaptists ;t but this ap-
pears to have happened at a later period, and the per-
sons referred to might be disciples of Servetus. He
began to publish against the trinity in the year 1531,
and there is ground to believe that his books were
soon after conveyed to Italy4 Though he had not
formed his peculiar opinions when he was in that
country, yet he contracted, during the visit which he
paid to it, an intimate acquaintance with some indivi-
duals, with whom he maintained an epistolary cor-
respondence to a late period of his life ; and it is
known that he was as zealous in propagating his
notions by private letters as by the press. § Upon

* Zuinglii et (Ecol. Epist. f. 24. llucbat, ut supra, pp. tOl, 483.
t Life of Claleacius Caracciolus, Marquesse of Vico, p. 13. Lond.

1635.
+ Saiulii Nucleus Hist. Eccl. append, p. 90. Boxhornii Hist. Univ.

p. 70.

§ Calvini Opera, torn. viii. p. 517.

niSTOllY OF THE HEFOllMATION IX ITALY. 151

the whole, I am inclined to think that the antitri-

iiitarian opinions were introduced into Italy by

means of the writings of Servetus.

The genius of the Italians led them to indulge in

subtle and curious speculations, and this disposition
was fostered by the study of the eclectic and scepti-
cal philosophy to whicli many of them had of late
years been addicted.* Crude and indigested as
tlie new theories respecting the trinity and colla-
teral topics were, they fell in with this predisposi-
tion ; and some of the protestants found themselves
entangled, before they were aware, in the mazes of
an intricate and deceitful theology, into which they
had entered for the sake of intellectual exercise and
amusement. This happened chiefly within the ter-
ritories of Venice, where the friends of the Refor-
mation were numerous, and yet not organized into
congregations, nor placed under the superintendence
of regular teachers, f

The letter addressed by Melanchthon to the se-

♦ lllgen. Vita La-lii Socini, p. 7. Lips. 1814. Melanchthon speaks
repeatedly of the platonic and sceptical theories with which he found
the minds of his Italian correspondents and acquaintance enamoured.
(Epist. coll. 852, 941.) And Calvin, speaking of that vain curiosity
and insatiahle desire of novelty, which leads many into pernicious er-
rors, says: " In Italis, propter rarum acumen, magis emina." (Opera
torn. viii. p. 510.) v 1 >

t Altieri's letter, as quoted above, pp. U3, 1 U ; Bock (Hist. Antitr.
11. 405) refers to the academy at Venice, and its form and constitution,
which allowed great liberty in starting doubts, and examining opi.
nions, as confirming the accounts of the rise of Socinianism in that
state. But the learned writer does not appear to have been aware,
that academies of this description, and founded on the same princi-
ples, were in that age common throughout Italy.

152 HISTOllY OF THE UEl OllMATlON IN ITALY.

iiate of Venice in the year 1538, and from whicli a
quotation has ah-eady been made, shows that the
antitrinitarian tenets had then gained admission in-
to that state.* ** I know, (says he) that very differ-
ent judgments have always prevailed in the world
respecting religion, and that the devil has been in-
tent from the beginning on sowing impious doc-
trines, and inciting men of curious and depraved
minds to corrupt and overthrow the truth. Aware
of the dangers arising from this to the church, we
have been careful to keep within due bounds ; and
while we have rejected certain errors more recently
introduced, have not departed from the apostolical
writiuiTs, from the Nicene and Athanasian creeds,
nor even from the ancient consent of the catholic
church. — I understand there has lately been intro-
duced among you a book of Servetus, who has re-
vived the error of Samosatenus, condemned by the
primitive church, and seeks to overthrow the doc-
trine of the two natures in Christ by denying that
the Word is to be understood of a person, when
John says, ' In the beginning was the word.' Al-
though my opinion on that controversy is already
in print, and I hav^e condemned the sentiment of
Servetus by name in my Conunon Places, yet I

* Bock, in giving an account of this letter, has expressed himself
in such a way as may lead his reader to think that Melanchthon had
signified his havi'ig heard that ahove forty persons in the city and
territories of Wnice, distinguished by their rank and talents, had
embraced Servetianism. (Hist. Antitr. ii. 407.) Nothing of that
kind appears in the copy of that letter which is now before me.

HISTOllY or THE UEFOllMATIOX IX ITALY. 153

have thought it proper at present to admonish and
obtest you to use your utmost exertions to persuade
persons to avoid, reject, and execrate that impious
tenet." Having advanced some considerations in sup-
port of the orthodox doctrine on that head, he adds,
" I have written these things more largely than
the bounds of a letter admit, but too briefly, consi-
dering the importance of the subject. My object
was to let you know my opinion, not to enter at
length into the controversy ; but if any one desires
this, I shall be ready to discuss the question more
copiously."* The representations of Melanchthon
failed in checking the progress of these opinions.
In a letter to Camerarius, written in 1544, he says :
" I send you a letter of ^^itus, and another written
from A^enice, which contains disgraceful narratives ;
but we are admonished, by these distressing exam-
pies, to j)reserve discipline and good order with the
greater care and unanimity."! And in another let-
ter to the same correspondent, dated on the 31st
of May 1545, he writes : " I yesterday returned
an answer to the theological question of the Italians,
transmitted by Vitus last winter. Italian theology
abounds with platonic theories ; and it will be no
easy matter to bring them back, from that vain-
glorious science of which they are so fond, to truth
and simplicity of explication.:]:

Socinian writers have fixed the origin of their
sect at this period. According to their account.

* Melanch. Epi^t. coll. 150— lol.

i Ibid. col. 8J2.

t Ibid. col. S35,

154 IIISTOllY OF THK RCIOIIMATIOX IN ITALY.

ui)war(ls of forty individuals of great talents and
learning were in the habit of meeting in priv^ate
conferences or colleges within the territories of
Venice, and chiefly at ^"icenza, to deliberate on the
l)lan of forming a j)urer faith, by discarding a num-
ber of opinions lield by protestants as well as i)a-
I)ists ; but these meetings, being discovered by the
treachery of an individujil, were dispersed in the
year 1516; some of the members having been thrown
into prison, and others forced to flee into foreign
countries. Among the latter were Liielius Socinus,
Camillus Siculus, Franciscus Niger, Ochino, Alci-
ati, Gentilis, and Blandrata. These writers have
gone so far as to present us with a creed or system
of doctrine agreed upon by the collegiates of Vi-
cenza, as the result of their joint inquiries and dis-
cussion. *

Historians distinguished for their research and
discrimination have rejected this narrative, which,
it must be confessed, rests on very doubtful autho-
rity, t It was first published a century after the

* Liibieiiiccii Hist. Reforni. Polonictu, pp. 38, 39. Sandii Bibl.
Antitrin. p. 18; et Wissowatii Narratio adncx. pp. 209, 210.

t Moshcim, (Ecclcs. Hist. cent. xvi. sect. iii. part ii. chap. iv. § 3,)
and Fueslin, (Beytragezur Erlauterung der Kirchen-refor. Gescliich-
ten des Schweizerlandes, tom. iii. p, 327,) do not consider the narra-
tive as entitled to credit. Bock, (Hist. Antitrin. tom. ii. pp. 401- — 416,)
and Illgen (Vita La-lii Socini,pp. 8—14,) admit its general truth, whife
they acknowledge its incorrectness as to particular facts. A modern
writer has pronounced Mosheim's reasons " extremely weak," and *' ex-
tremely frivolous;" and maintains the opposite opinion on the grounds
which Bock has laid down in his history of the Antitrinitarians.
(Rees's Histurical Introduction to the Racovian Catechism, pp. xx —

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 155

time to which it refers, and by foreigners and per-
sons far removed from the sources of information.
No trace of the Vicentine colleges, as they have
been called, has been found, after the most accurate
research, in the contemporary history of Italy, or
in the letters and other writings of learned men,
popish, protestant, or socinian, which have since
been brought to light. No allusion is made to the
subject by Faustus Socinus in any part of his works,
or by the Polish knight, who wrote his life. * The
ambitious designation of " colleges," applied to the
alleged meetings, is suspicious ; while the mistakes
respecting the individuals who are said to have com-
posed them, give to the whole narrative the air of at
best a story made up of indistinct and ill-understood

xxiv.) Bock was an industrious and trust- worthy collector, but very
inferior in critical acumen to Mosheim, and he has brought forward
no fact in support of his opinion which was not known to his prede-
cessor.

* Lubieniecius professes to have taken the account " ex La^lii So-
cini vitae Curriculo, et Budzinii comment. MSS." But he does not
quote the words of these documents, which were never given to the
world. Mr. Rees says, *' Andrew Wissowatius may himself be re-
garded in the light of an original authority." (Ut Supra, p. 'xxii.)
But how a writer, who was born in 1608, could be an original autho-
rity for what happened in 1.54G, it is difficult to comprehend; nor does
AVissowatz pretend to have taken this fact from any original documents
of his grandfather, Faustus Socinus, which, if they had existed, would
undoubtedly have been communicated to Samuel Pryzcovius, when
he undertook to write the life of the founder of the sect. The work
of Pryzcovius was translated into English, and published under the
following title :— " The Life of that incomparable man, Faustus So^
cinus Seneusis, described by a Polonian Knight. London, printed
for Richard Moone, at the Seven Stars, 1653." The epistle to the
reader is subscribed " J. B." ; /. e, John Biddle.

156 HISTORY OF THE llKl OllMATIOX JX ITALY.

traditioiinry reports. Ocliiiio, Cainillo, and Ni«^'er,
had left Italy before these assemblies are represented
as having existed, and the writings which the first
of these continued for many years after that pe-
riod to publish, coincided exactly with the sentiments
of the Swiss reformers. Livlius Socinus belonged to
Sienna ; there is no evidence of his having resided
at Venice ; and, although we should suppose that
he visited that place occasionally, it is not probable
that a young man of twenty-one could possess that
authority in these assemblies which is ascribed to
him by the narrative we are examining. Besides,
the part assigned to him is at variance with the
whole of his conduct after he left his native coun-
try. Though it is evident that his mind was tinc-
tured with the tenets afterwards called socinian, yet
so far was lie from courting the honours and dan-
gers of a heresiarch, that he uniformly propounded
his opinions in the shape of doubts or difficulties
which he was anxious to have removed ; and he
continued till his death, notwithstanding tlie suspi-
cions of heterodoxy which he had incurred, to keep
up a friendly intercourse, not only with his coun-
trymen. Martyr and Zanchi, but with IMelanchthon,
Bullinger, and even Calvin. The assemblies sup-
pressed within the \\'netian territories in the
year 1546, were those of the protestants in ge-
neral ; and it was as belonging to these, and
not as forming a distinct sect, that the friends
of Servetus were at that tune exposed to suf-

nrsTOTjv or THE reformation ix ttai.v. 157

l^^^n-ng. Such are the reasons which incline me
to reject the narrative of the socinian historians.

Jiut wlule thereis no good ground for thinkinp- tliat

he favourers of the anti-tnnitarian tenets in^Italy

had ormed themselves into societies, or dio-ested I

regu ar systen. of belief, it is und niable' tt .

-nnber of the Italian protestants were, at th ne

iy probable that they were accustomed to confirm
one another m the belief of them when they oc 1
-nally met, and perhaps to introduce them as topics
of discussion into tlie common meetings of the pro
testants and by starting objections, ^to shake th^
convictions of such as adhered to the commonly r!
ceived doctrines. This was exactly the line of con-
cluct pursued by tliem after they left their native
country especially in the Orisons, where the expa-
triated Italians first took refuge. Soon after their
arrival, disputes arose in the Grison churches re-
spccting the trinity, the merit of Christ's death,
he perfection of the saints in this life, the necessity
and use of tlie sacraments, infant baptism, the re-
surrection of the body, and similar articles, in which
the chief opponents of the common doctrine, both
pnvily and openly, were natives of Italy, several of
whoin afterwards propagated their peculiar opinions
in Transylvania and Poland. * Subsequently to
the year 1546, adherents to anti-trinitarianism were

•De Porta, Hist. Ref.EccIes.Rh.Tticarum;aniul Bock Hist An

r: ^st^, :;!:-• ^-^^ -^--'e Mi "it

158 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

Still to be found in Italy. Such of them as had fled
maintained a correspondence with their friends at
home, and made converts to their opinions by means
of their letters. * About the year 1553, the learn-
ed visionary, William Hostel, published at Venice
an apology for Servetus, in which he mentions, that
this heresiarch had many favourers among the Ita-
lians, t And in the year 1555, pope Paul IV. issued
a bull against those who denied the doctrine of the
trinity, the proper divinity of Christ, and redemption
by his blood, t I close this part of the subject with
the words of a learned and judicious Italian, who
left his native country for the gospel, and laboured
with great zeal, and not without success, in oppos-
ing the spread of this heresy. " It is not difficult
to divine," says he, " whence this evil sprung, and
by whom it has been fostered. Spain produced the
hen ; Italy hatched the eggs ; and we in the Ori-
sons now hear the chicks pip." §

Another class of facts which I have thought de-
serving of a place in this chapter, relates to illus-
trious females who favoured the new opinions, al-
though their names are not associated with any
public transaction in the progress of the Reforma-
tion through Italy. The literary historians of Italy

• lllgen, Vita L^lii Socini, p. 58.
t Bock, ut supra, pp. 539—542.

+ Bullarium llomanum ab Angel. Mar. Cherubino, torn. i. p. 590.
§ Zancbius, apud Bock, ut supra, p- 415. I have not observed
these words in the writings of Zanchi.

"-TOnv 01.. T„B nKPOUMATlOX IN ITALV H9

nrN Ti • J ^ literature and the fine

niul wliose relioion w^c r.f ^ century,

»d. r„ our „go „.c behold the ..,,„,,„„, 'J

-"■ ".. ^-.4™of ht:j;r* ,r;;;tr

pa.,,„ Where I .,„,. ,„H.e. .he L, uZa ^fjC
•my beeome more lemu^ and holv bv a si„2 f
versatio,, with s„,„e women. I„ C' '"i'"™"

nuth in Italy, whose names have

' S'^""-!'. Hist, des Rep. .ritalie, torn. vii. p. 23.

t toIeng,us .n Psalmos; apud Gerdesii Ital. Ref p. ^ei.

IfiO IIISTOUY OF TTIF, RF.FOUMATIOX IN ITAI-Y.

come down to us, were chiefly of the higher ranks,
and had not taken the veil.

The first place is due here to Isahella Manricha of
Bresegna, who end>raced the reformed doctrine at
Naples under Valdez, and exerted herself zealously
in promoting it. Having given proofs of invinci-
ble fortitude by resisting the solicitations and threats
of her friends, this lady, finding that it behoved her
either to sacrifice her religion or her native country,
retired into Germany, from which she repaired to
Zurich, and finally settled at Chiavenna in the Gri-
sons, where she led a life of poverty and retirement
with as nuich cheerfulness as if she had never known
what it was to enjoy affluence and honours. *

One of the greatest female ornaments of the re-
formed church in Italy was Lavinia della Rovere,
daughter-in-law to the celebrated Camillo Ursino,
« than whom I know not a more learned, or, what
is still higher praise, a more pious v/oman in Italy,"
says Olympia Morata. The epistolary corres-
pondence carried on between these two female
friends is highly honourable to both. We learn
from it the interesting fact, that Lavinia, while
she resided at the court of Rome, not only kept her
conscience unspotted, but employed the influence of

• Simlcri Oratio, ut supra, sig. b iij. Bock, ii. 524. To this lady
Cclio Secundo Curio <kdicate.l the first edition of the works of Olym-
pia Fulvia Morata. (Xoltenius, Vita Olyiiipiic, I'P- », H9- e^"-
Hesse ) Ochino's work De Cor,m-i.s Christi Prtescntia m Cccnw Sa-
cramenio, is also dedicated" lUustri et piu- foemina- Isabella; ilan-
richffi Brcsegnie."

HISTORY OF THE IlEFORMATION IN ITALY. I6l

her father-in-lau-, whicii was great, with the pope
and catholic princes, in behalf of the protestants
wJio fell into the hands of the inquisition. From
various hints dropped in the course of the corres-
pondence, it is evitient that she felt her situation ex-
tremely delicate and painful, most probably from
the importunities of her husband, and the ruder at-
tempts of her other relations, to induce her to conform
to the established religion ; but these served only
to call forth her patience and magnanimity. * It
requires both reflection and sensibility to form a
proper estimate of the trials which a distinguished
female must endure when placed in the circumstances
of Lavinia della Rovere. A cup of cold water, or
even a kind message, sent to a prisoner in the cells
of the inquisition, a word siroken in behalf of the
trutli, or a modest refusal to be present at a su-
perstitious festival, aflbrd, in such cases, a stronger
and more unequivocal proof of a devoted soul, than
the most flam ing professions, or a fortune expended
for religious ijurposes, by one who lives in a free
country, and is surrounded by persons who are
friendly to the gospel.

By the same letters we are authorized to record
among the friends of the reformed doctrine two fe-
males of the Ursini family, Madonna lAIaddelena,
and Madonna Chereblna ; f as also Madonna He-
lena .Rangone of Bentivoglio, t who appears to have

* Opera Olympiie F. Morata;, pp. 89—92, 105, 107, 121, 12.S.
t Ibid. pp. 92, 212—222. '

* Ibid. p. 102.

162 HISTORY OF THE KE FORMATION IN ITALY.

belonged to the noble family of that name in Mo-
dena, which had long been distinguished, both on
the male and female side, for the cultivation and
patronage of learning. *

Julia Gonzago, duchess of Trajetto, and coun-
tess of Fondi, in the kingdom of Naples, is ranked
among ** illustrious women, suspected of heretical
pravity."! She was the sister of Luigi II. conte di
Sabioneta, a nobleman celebrated for his knowledge
of letters, as well as for his valour, and who was
surnamed Rodomonte, from his having killed a Moor-
ish champion in battle. Julia Gonzago is comme-
jnorated, by Ortensio Landi, among the learned la-
dies of Italy, and her name often occurs in writings
of that age.:]: After the death of her husband, Ves-
pasiano Colonna, she remained a widow, and exhi-
bited a pattern of the correctest virtue and piety.
She was esteemed one of the most beautiful women
in Italy ; and Brantome relates, that Solyman, the
Turkish emperor, having given orders to Hariadan

• The letters of Girolamo Muzio, the great opponent of heresy in
his time, throw light on what is mentioned in the text. In a letter
to Lucrezia, the wife of Count Claudio Rangone, he expresses his
apprehensions lest that lady should suffer herself to be ensnared by
the new heresy, and points to an enemy whom she had in her house.
In another letter he expresses the joy which he felt at hearing that
his fears were unnecessary. Both letters were written in 1547.
(Muzio, Lettere ; apud Tiraboschi, tom. vii. p. 100.) The families
of Rangone and Bentivoglio were allied by frequent intermarriages.
(Ibid. pp. 90, 93,96.)

t Thuani Hist. lib. xxxix. cap. 2.

J Tiraboschi, tom. vii. p. 1195. Ab. Bettinelli, Delle Lettere ed
Arte Montovane, p. 89.

HISTOllY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALV. 163

Baibaiossa, the commander of his fleet, to seize her
a party of Turks landed during the night, and
took possession of the town of Fondi ; but the
duchess, though at the risk of her life, eluded their
scarcl,. and made her escape.* She was a disciple
ot \ aldez.f and continued, after his death, to enter-
taui and protect the preachers of the new doctrine •
on which account she incurred the displeasure of the
pope to such a degree, that the fact of having cor-
responded with her by letters, was made a ground

ot cnnnnal charge against individuals, on trials for
lieresy.:j:

I place Vittoria Colonna last, because the claims
of the Protestants to the honour of her name have
been strongly contested. She was the daughter of
Fabrizio Colonna, grand constable of Naples, and
of Anne de Montefeltro, daughter of Federi-jo, duke
of Urbino ; and having been deprived of her hus-
band, Fernando Davalos, marquis of Pescara, in the
flower of youth, she dedicated her life to sacred
studies, and retirement from the gay world, with-
out, however, entangling herself with the vow. The
warmest tribute of praise was paid to the talents
and virtues of this lady, by the first writers of her
age.} " lu Tuscan song, (says one of them,) she
was inferior only to Petrarch ; and in her elegiac

•Vies dcs Dames lllustrcs, p. 282.

+ Valdcz dedicate,! to her his Oo.ninentaries on tlie Psalms, and on
tlie tpistle to tlie Romans.

I Laderchii Annales, tom. xxii. p. 325. Tliuanus, ut supra.
J Sclidhorn has collected a number of these in his Amoenit. Hist.
tccles. tom. ii. pp. 132-134. See also Tiraboschi, tom. vii. pp.

164 IIISTOIIY or TTIK KKFOUMATION IN ITALY.

poems on the death of her hiisl)aii{l, she has beauti-
fully expressed her contempt of the world, and the
ardent hreathino-s of ])er soul after the blessedness
of heaven."* The marchioness associated with the
reformers at Naples, and was ren^arded as one of
their most distin<ruished disciples.t \Mien Ochino,
for whom she felt the deepest veneration,!: deserted
the church of Rome, great ai)prehensions were en-
tertained that slie would follow his example ; and
cardinal Pole, wlio watched over her faith with the
utmost jeahmsy, exacted from her a ])romise that
she would not read any letters which mioht be ad-
dressed to lier by the fascinating ex-capuchin, or at
least would not answer them without consulting him
or cardinal Cervini. This appears from a letter to
Cervini, afterwards pope IVIarcellus II , in wliich she
says, that, from her knowledge of *^Monsegnor (I'liig-
helterra,'' she was convinced she could not err in
followino- his advice, and liad therefore obeved his
directions, by transmitting a packet sent her from
Bologna by " Fra Belardin." Her highness adds,
in a postscript, (which may be considered as a proof
that her new advisers had succeeded in alienating

• Toscanus, in IVplo Italiir.

t Giaiinone, 1. xxxii. c. .5. Thuatii Hist, ad an. 1666. The testi-
mony of tlicse writers is confirmed Viy a letter concerning her, written
in lo38, by Casper Crucigcr, to Theodorus \'itus, and publit^hed in
Humraelii Neue Uibliotheck von seltenen Biichern, Band ii. p. 12G.
To an Italian version of Bcza's Confession of faith, printed (probably
at Geneva) in 1360, the translator, Francesco Cattani, prefixed " Son-
etto della lUustriss. Marchesana di Pescaro xxxiiii. nel suo libro
stampato, col quale sfida i Papisti al combattere, raostranda la lor ma-
la causa."

J See before, p. 11 '2, ike.

■Wjll^sAlSll&WfiCJIlP , <M*«f ^B^J^.

HI.yrOHYOFTHK REFOK.UATION IN ITALY. 165

he. ,„,-nd fro,n Oc-hino and confinning her attach-

nn to .edau-choflW:) " f a.„ gneved to

set that the more he thinks to excuse hunself he

condeinns hin.self the n.ore, and the n.or: he b

ieves he wdl save others from shipwreck, the

-re he exposes hin.elf to the deh.ge, being Jut of

the ark, which saves and gives security.'-

The last ch,ss of u.iscellaneous facts, which I
have to state as throwing light on the progress
of the Ilefonnation in Italy, relates to those
earned n.en who never left the communion of
the church of Rome, but were favourable, in
a greater or less degree, to the views and senti-
ments of the reformers. These may be subdi-
vided into three classes. The first consisted of per-
sons who were convinced of the great corruptions
which reigned not only in the court of Rome, but .e-
literally among all orders in the catholic church ; a'ld
who, though they did not agree with the reformers in
heir doctrinal articles, yet cherished the hope that
their opposition, and the schism which it threatened
would force the clergy to correct abuses which
could no longer be either concealed or defended,
i he second class comprehended those who were
ot the same sentiments with the reformers as
to the leading doctrines of the gospel which had

• This letter was first published by Tiraboschi, (Storia, torn, vii „
1 1 S.) from the archives of the noble family of Cervini at Sie"na as J

vol. 111. n^pist. Card. Poli, p. 53, &c.

166 HISTORY OF THE REFORIvrATION IN ITALY.

been brouglit into dispute, but who wished to
maintain the principal forms of the established
worship, purified from the grosser superstitions,
and to maintain the hierarcliy, and even the pa-
pacy, after its tyranny had been checked, as a ne-
cessary or at least useful means of preserving the
unity of the catholic church. The third class con-
sisted of those who were entirely of the senti-
ments of the reformers, but were restrained from
declaring themselves, and taking that side which
their consciences approved, by lukewarmness, dread
of persecution, or despair of success, in a country
where the motives and the means to sui)port the es-
tablished religion were so many and so powerful.
It is not meant that the persons included under
these classes were formed into parties ; but by keep-
ing tliis distinction in our eye, we shall be the better
able to form a correct Judgment of the views and
conduct of certain individuals, who have been claim-
ed as friends both by papists and i)rotestants.

The instances which I shall produce, belong
chiefly to the second of these classes. That there
WTre many persons in Italy, eminent for their talents
and station, whose creed differed widely from that
which received the sanction of the council of Trent,
is established on the best evidence, though it has been
denied by the later historians and apologists of the
church of Rome. It is proved by the fact, that their
names and writings were suppressed and stigmatized
as heretical or as suspected, by the authorized censors
of the press. And it was acknowledged by writers
who had the best opportunities of information, and

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. Off

were under no temptation to misrepresent the fact.
" Those who at that time were disposed to exert
themselves seriously for the reformation of the
church," says the enlightened and impartial De
Thou, ^* had frequent conferences about faith,
works, grace, free-will, election, and glorification ;
and many of them, entertaining opinions on these
subjects different from what were publicly taught,
availed themselves of the authority of St. Augustine
to support their sentiments." *

Pier Angelo Manzolli was principal physician to
Hercules II. duke of Ferrara. Under the anagram-
matical name of Marcellus Palingenius, he published
an elegant Latin poem, in which he described hu^
man life in allusion to the twelve signs of the zo-
diac, f This poem abounds with complaints of the
corrupt manners of the clergy ; nor are there wanting
in it passages which prove the alienation of the au-
thor'smind from the churchof Rome, andhis satisfac-
tion at the growing success of the new opinions-t It

* Thuani Historia ad ann. 1651,

t It is generally allowed, that the author of the Zodiacus VHas con-
cealed himself under a fictitious name. Flaminio, Fulvio Peregrino
Morata, and several other learned men, have been supposed to be the
real author; but the most probable opinion is that which is stated in the
text, and which was first suggested by Facciolati. (Heuraanni Poecile,
torn. i. pp. 259-266 ;ii. p. 175.) Whether Facciolati replied to the
queries which Heuraann proposed to him, with the view of obtaining
fuller information respecting his countryman, I do not know. (Conf.
Noltenii Vita Olympia? Moratae, p. 82, edit. Hesse.)

X The following passage may serve as a specimen :—
Atque rogant quidnam Romana ageretur in urbe.
Cuncti luxuriap, atque gula?, furtisque dolisque.

^.M^f^'^-t'-)^

168 HISTORY OF THE IIEFORMA'IION IX ITALY.

was put into the index of prohibited books, and the
bones of the author, after his death, were taken out
of tlieir grave, and burnt to ashes as those of an
impious heretic. *

The claims of the protestants to rank Marco An-
tonio Flaminio among their converts, have been
keenly contested. It is undeniable, that, at one pe-
riod of his life at least, he cultivated the friendship
of the leading persons in his native country who
were favourable to the new opinions, was an admi-
rer of Valdez, encouraged Martyr and Ocliino, and
induced several individuals of rank to attend their
sermons and embrace their doctrine, f Nor is this
all. His writings i)rove, beyond all reasonable
doubt, that he entertained sentiments, on the princi-
pal points of controversy, coinciding with the pro-
testant creed, and at variance with the decisions of
the council of Trent. It would be easy to establish

Certatim incumbunt, iiosterque est sexus uterque,
llespoiulit : scd nunc sumnius parat anna sacerdos,
Clemens, iMartinum cupiens abolere Lutherum,
Atque idt'o Hispanas retinet nutritquc cohortes.
Non disccptando, aut subtilibus argumentis
Vincere, sed ferro maviilt sua jura tueri.
Pontiticcs nunc bella juvant, sunt caetera nugse.
Nee prtecepta patruni, nee Christi dogmata curant :
Jactant se dominos rerum, et sibi cuncta licere.

Zodiacus Vitae — Capricornus.
* Lil. Greg. Gyraldus, de Poetis sui avi, dial. ii. Opera, p. 569.
t Moncurtius, in Vita Flaminii, praefix. ejus Carmin. p. xxviii.

Diss, de Religione M. Flaminii : in Schclhornii Amoen. Eccles. torn.

ii. pp. 3 — 179. Epistolae Flaminii, edit, a Joacli. Camerario ; apud

Schelbornii Amccnit. Liter, torn. x. p. 116L

HISTORV OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. I6l)

tins by a multiplicity of extracts ; but the following
may suffice. « Human nature" (says be) " was so
depraved by the fall of Adam, that its corruption
IS propagated to all his posterity, in consequence of
which we contract in our very conception a stain
and an incredible proneness to sin, which urges
us to all kinds of wickedness and vice, unless our
mmds are purified and invigorated by the grace of
the Holy Spirit. A\-ithout this renovation, we will
always remain impure and defiled, although to men,
who cannot look into the iuuvard dispositions of
others, we may ai)pear to be pure and upright." *
"In these words, (Ps. xxxii. 1.) the Psalmist
pronounces blessed, not those who are perfect and
free from the spot of sin, (for no man is so in this
iite) but those whose sins God has pardoned in his
mercy ; and he i)ardons those who confess their
sms, and sincerely believe that the blood of our
Lord Jesus Christ is an expiation for all transgres-
sions and faults." I- God, for the sake of Christ

his bon, adopted them as his sons from all eternity •
those whom he adopted before they were born he
calls to godliness ; and having called them, he con-
fers on them first righteousness and then everlast-
ing lite. J « The creature, considered in itself

and in the corruption of its nature, is an impure
mass ; and whatever is worthy of praise in it is the
work of the Spirit of Christ, who purifies and re-

rari^rAlK'" ^''""™ P^^-taorun, brevia Explanatio, tf. 198, 199.
+ Ibid. f. U3, b. J Ibid. f. 2S8, a.

170 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

generates his elect by a living faith, and makes
them creatures by so much the nobler and more
perfect that they are disposed to count themselves
as nothing, and as having nothing in themselves,

but all in Christ." * ** Christian faith consists

in our believing the whole word of God, and parti-
cularly the gospel. The gospel is nothing else than
the message of good news announced to the whole
world by the apostles, telling us, that the only be-
gotten Son of God, having become incarnate, hath
satisfied the justice of his Father for all our sins.
Whosoever gives credit to these good tidings of good,
he believes the gospel, and having faith in the gos-
pel, which is the gift of God, he walks out of the
kingdom of this world into that of God, by enjoy-
ing the fruit of a general pardon ; from a carnal he
becomes a spiritual creature, from a child of wrath
a child of grace, from a son of Adam a son of God ;
he is governed by the Holy Spirit ; he feels a sweet
peace of conscience ; he studies to mortify the affec-
tions and lusts of the flesh, acknowledging that he
is dead with his head Jesus Christ ; and he studies to
vivify the spirit, and lead a heavenly life, acknow-
ledging that he is risen with the same Jesus Christ.
A lively faith in the soul of a Christian man pro-
duces all these and other admirable effects." f Such

* Flaminii Epist. ad quandam principem fceminara ; apud Schel-

hornii Amocn. Eccles. torn. ii. p. 103.

t Ibid. p. 115. This last extract is taken from a letter to 1 heo-

dora, or Thcodorina Sauli, a lady belonging to a noble family in

Genoa, whose name Gerdcs has added to his list of female protestanta,

merely upon the authority of this letter. (Ital. Reform, p. 158.)

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 171

were the sentiments of one who lived in the heart
of Italy during the lieat of the controversy between
the papists and protestants— the sentiments of a
poet, whose writings discover *' the simplicity and
tenderness of Catullus without his licentiousness,^'
and ** melt the heart of the reader with sweetness'."
If there be any truth in the maxim laid down by a
most catliolic historian of the council of Trent,*—
" that the doctrine of justification is a test by which
catliolics may be distinguished from heretics, and
the root from which all other doctrines, true or false,
germinate," — then Flaminio was unquestionably a
protestant.

On the other hand, there is a letter of Flaminio,
in whicJi he strenuously defends, in opposition to
his friend Carnesecchi, the doctrine of the real pre-
sence and commemorative oblation of Christ in the
eucharist, and expresses himself with considerable
acrimony in speaking of the reformers.f To re-
concile these apparently contradictory statements,
we must attend to the different periods in the life
of Flaminio. During the flower of his age he was

■ Pallavicini.

t This letter, dated from Trent, January 1, 1543, and Carnesecchi'*
reply to it, were inserted in a collection of Italian letters, published
by Ludovico Dolci in 153,5, and republished in Latin by Schelhorn,
in his Ama?nitates Ecclesiasticae, torn. ii. pp. 14.G— 179. Some writ-
ers have denied the genuineness of the letter of Flaminio, while others
suppose that Carnesecchi's reply induced him to retract his opinion,
(Hesse, Not. ad Nolten. Vit. Olympiae Morat«, p. 73.) A desire to
add a celebrated name to the protestant roll has led to the adoption
of these hypotheses.

172 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

entirely engrossed with secular literature, as his
juvenile poems evince. In middle life he applied
his mind to sacred letters, made the scriptures his
chief study, and derived his highest pleasure from
meditating on divine things. It was at this time
that he composed his paraphrases on the Psalms in
prose and verse, and lived in the society of Valdez,
Martyr, the ducliess of P\'rrara, and other i)ersons
addicted to the reformed opinions. The third pe-
riod of his life extends from the time that the court
of Rome adopted decisive measures for suppressing
the reformed opinions in Italy, to the year 1550, in
whicli he died. Ilis letter on the eucharist was
written immediately after some of his most in-
timate acquaintance liad been forced to fly from
their native country to avoid imprisonment or a
fiery death. The mild and yielding disposition
of Flaminio was more fitted for contemplation
and retirement than for controversy and sufler-
ing. Like many others, he might not have made
up his mind to separate formally from the church
of Rome, and the fate of those who had ventured
on that stej) would not help forward his resolu-
tion. His friends in the sacred college were anxious
to retain him ; and the article of the real presence,
from which many protestants could not extricate
themselves, was perhaps the means best fitted for
entangling the devout mind of Flaminio, and recon-
ciling him to remain in the communion of a church,
whose public creed was at variance with some of
the sentiments which were dearest to his heart.

• HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IX ITALY. 173

T«'o years after the time referred to, lie refused
the honourable employment of secretary to the
council of Trent ; " because," says Pallavicini, " he
favoured the new opinions, and would not employ
h.s pen for an assembly by which he Icnew these
opinions would be condemned."* The cardinal in
deed adds, that he had the happiness to be brought
subsequently to acknowledge his errors through his
acquanitaiice with Pole, and died a good catholic.
But there ,s no evidence that Jie ever retracted his
former sentiments ; and in none of his writin-s
earlier or later, do we read any thing of purgatory'
prayers for the .lead or to saints, pilgrimages, pe-
nances, or any of those voluntary services which
were so much insisted on by all the devoted adhe-
rents to Rome ; but everywhere we find the warm-
est piety and purest morality, founded on scriptural
principles and enforced by the most evangelical mo-
tives. We know, that the court of Rome, after
it was awakened to its danger, was eager to en-
gage the pens of the learned, in its defence against
the reformers.! If the advisers to whom Flaminio

* Istor. Cone. Trent, ad an. l&ts.

tit is well known what solicitations were used with Erasmus
before he drew his pen against Luther—Christopher Longolius in
a letter to Stefano and Flaminio Sauli, mentions with an air of no
small vanity, that he had heen solicited from Germany to write in de-
fence of Luther, and from Italy to write against him ; that both par-
ties had furnished him with memorials ; that he thought himself qua-
lified for either task; and that he had already, by way of essay, (like a
w-ise and prudent procurator,) drawn up a pleading for and against
the accused heretic. (Longolii Epist. lib. ii. p. 139.) The cautious

174 HISTORY OF THE REVORMATION IN ITALY.

committed himself during the last years of his life,
could have prevailed on him to write any thing of
this kind, it would have been triumphantly pro-
claimed ; but it was a sufficient victory for them to
be able to retain such a man in their chains, and to
publish the solitary letter on the eucharist, which
was written seven years before his death, as if it
had been his dying testimony, and as a proof that he
was not alienated from the catholic faith. Even
this was the opinion only of a few of his private
friends; for the verdict of the Vatican was very dif-
ferent. The report that it was intended to disinter
his body, after his death, might be groundless ;* but
it is certain that his writings were inserted in the
prohibitory index, though care was taken afterwards
to wipe ofi* this disgrace, by expunging from that
record the name of a man, who had lived on terms
of intimacy with the chief dignitaries of the church,
and whose genius and piety nmst always reflect cre-
dit on the society with which he was connected.!

The preceding account of the sentiments of Fla-
minio materially agrees with that of a contempor-
ary author who appears to have possessed good
means of information. The following quotation is
long, but it deserves a place here, as serving to throw

orator chose the safe side, and sent forth a Ciceronian Philippic against

Luther.

• ManUi Collect, p. 116. Georg. Fabricii Poem. Sacr. l\ i. p. 2G4.

t The article in the Index of Rome for 1559, runs thus : "Marci
Antonii Flaminii Paraphrases et Comment, in Psal. Item Uterse et
carrnina omnia." Sig. D 8.

HISTORY OF THE EEFOEMATION IN itaLV. 175

Hght o„ the state of religious opinion in Italy, and
on the character of an Englishman, who makes but
too conspicuous a figure in the history of his native

wSh .""f'^'J ^^ ''' ^^"^^ ^« Carneseect of
wh ch he had stated the substance, that writer goes

tei of Flamimo, that, while he professes to differ
from us on those heads which I have pointed out
he makes no such professions as to transubstantL

w"' ,: "''^"^° ''''''' '-^"^^^^^ <^-^. -hid

ZhIv'. ''%T''^^''' us in giving the cup to
he laity ; and I am persuaded that, had he 1 ved
longer, he would have made further progress and
come over to us completely. But 'ardlnT Po,'
kep hmi under restraint, and prevented him from
freely avowing his sentiments as he Hf!
others If ,0 1 IV , '"'^"^^' as He did many
otheis It ,s dreadful to think what injury Satan
chd to he resuscitated gospel, by the instru^^en I^
ty of this crafty Englishman, who acknowledged, r

:trwr:'rnin:ri:^-

n^inds of many. Nor:Zl'\tTlT:'n
known that John Morell, late minister 'th reT:"
church m Francfort on the Maine, a man of^rS
piety and learning. in,bibed this doctrine in th!
school, and was drawn by Pole into fj,! f

of those who had a relish for T T"'^

were saiVl ,^ °^ ^^^ gospel, and

were said to agree with us. How much did

he labour by all the influence of his character atd

176 HISTORY OF THE HEFOllMATION IN ITALY.

reputation to persuade others to rest satisfied with
a secret belief of the truth, and not make themselves
answerable for the errors and abuses of the church ;*
alleging that we should tolerate, and even give our
consent to these, in the expectation that God, at the
fit time, would afibrd a favourable opportunity for
having them removed. It is unnecessary to say,
that this is a doctrine very agreeable to those who
would have Christ without the cross. If Luther
and other faithful servants of God, by whose means
the truth has been clearly brought to light in our
days, had chosen in this manner to conceal and wink
at errors and abuses, how could they have been ex-
tirpated ? How could the pure voice of the gospel
ever have been heard in that case, when we see with
what difficulty it has prevailed to a very limited ex-
tent, through great contention and profusion of blood,
in opposition to the predominating power and cruel-
ty of Antichrist ? Pole however did not hesitate
to assert, that he could advance the i)ure doctrine
by concealment, dissimulation, and evasion. And
not only so, but when some individuals, more ardent
than the rest, threatened to break through these
restraints, his agents were always ready to urge the
propriety of waiting the fit season, and discover-
ing their sentiments gradually ; in consequence of
which some persons were so credulous as to be-
lieve that at a future period the cardinal and
his confidential friends would openly profess

• " L'huomo si havesse a contentare di quella sccreta cognitione,
senza tener poi couto se la chiesa havea degli abusi et degli erron."

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION' IX ITALY. 177

the truth before the p.p., and the whol. city of
Jtome, and by the general attention which "this
must excite, would singularly a<ivance the glory of
God. Atter waiting for tliis until tiiev were wea-
ned out, how did the matter issue ? i cannot re-
late It without tears. O wretched cardinal ! O mi-
serablc duj.es of his promises ! The purity of reli-
8;<on had been restored in England : the doctrines
of justification by taith, the assurance of salvation,
true rcj.entance, scriptural absolution, the due
'•so of the sacraments, and the sole headship of
Christ over the church, M^ere taught in that king-
dom. J ole went there ; and u-hat was the conse-
quence ? lie absolved the whole kingdom, includ-
ing the noble., tlie king and queen, on their knees,
ti-on. tlie crimes wliicl, they had committed against
the du.rch of Rome. And what were these ? The
teaching of those very doctrines which lie himself
Jiad favoured, and the triumph of which he had pro-
mised to secure by means of the arts of modera-
t.on and prudent delay. N„r did he rest, until, in
liis desire to gratify the pope and cardinals, he had
restored all the abuses, superstitions, and abomina-
t.ons which liad been removed ; and had sent a
printed account of i,is deeds through every country
HI JtL,iiro])e, * ^

Bi:st::;Tv;:.;:"iT.;" si '"■:" "■"^''' ^'-"'-'^ '^

np. I ,_i 5 ?.'\ , '■'•''• Schclhornii AmoDuit. Eccles. torn. ii.
Am En.IP T^ ,i ^^ "' ' '''^- ^'"- '°'"- "'• P- 190- edit.

(o,et:: pp. i:^zir ' "" '"'""""^ '^''^''""° ''^"■"'"-

178 HISTOllY or THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

Gasparo Contarini was one of the distinguished
individuals whom Paul III., aware of the necessity of
conciliating public favour, had judiciously advanced
to the purj)le. It is impossible to read the treatise
on justification,* drawn u]) by him when he acted
as legate at the diet and conference held at Ratis-
bon in 1541, togetlier with the letters which passed
between liim and Pole at that time, without being
convinced that both these prelates agreed with the
reformers on this article, and differed widely from
Sadolet and others, whose sentiments were after-
wards sanctioned by the council of Trent. Pole tells
liim, that " he knew long ago what his sentiments
on that subject were ;" that he rejoiced at what his
colleague had done, " not only because it laid a foun-
dation for agreement with the protestants, but such a
foundation as illustrated the glory of Christ — the
foundation of all Christian doctrine, which was not
well understood bv many ;" that he and all who were
with him at Viterbo, joined in giving thanks to God
" wlio had begun to reveal this sacred, salutary, and
necessarv doctrine;" and that its friends ouc^ht not to
be moved by the censures which it met with at Rome,
where it was '* charged with novelty," although ''it
lies at the foundation of all the doctrines held by the
ancient church."t — That cardinal Morone was of the

* This was republished from Contarini's works, by cardinal Quiri-
ni, in his collection of Pole's Letters, vol. iii. p. tic. &c.

tSec Pole's letters to Contarini, of the 17th May and ICth July,
15 11, and 1st May, 15i2. (Epistolic Reginal. Poli, vol. iii. pp. 25,
27 — 30, 53.) Quirini, beside what is contained in his dissertations pre-
fixed to Pole's letters, attempted to defend Contarini's orthodoxy, in

HISTOllY or Tin: lu: fokmation in italv. 179

same sentiments appears from tlie articles of charge
brought against liim, sup])orted by his known agree-
ment with Pole and Contarini.*— To these members
of the sacred college, we have to add Federigo Fre-
goso, a prelate e(pially distinguished by his birth,
learning, and virtues.} He gave great '' scandal,"
by declining to ai)pear at the court of the Vatican,
after the pope had honoured him with the purple.^
Disgusted with the manners of that court, he had
divested liimself of the archbishopric of Salerno,
and retired to the diocese of Gubbio, of which he
was administrator ; and perceiving that the people
conceived the whole of religion to lie in pronouncing,
at stated hours and with the prescribed gesticula-
tions, the pater noster, ave maria, and hymns in hon-
our of the saints, he, with the view of initiating them
into a more rational and scriptural devotion, com-
posed in Italian a treatise on the Method of pray-

a separate tract, entitled, EpisioJa adGregoHum Rothfincheruniy Brix-
UP 17 oO; to which Jo. Ilud. Kieslingius replied in his Epistola ad
Eni'uunt. Princ. AngcJum Mariam Quirinuin, dc Religione Lidherana
amubili, Lips. 1753, pp. 5 — 7.

*\\\)Ifii Lect. Memor. torn. ii. p. Q^5. When the articles
were afterwards published, with scholia, by Vergerio, the inqui-
sitors did not insert the book in their index, from fear of exciting at-
tention to the fact that a cardinal had been accused of heresy. (Ver-
geriiOper. tonn. i. p. 262. Schelhornii Araaniit. Liter, torn. xii. p. 3iQ,
cS:c.)

t lie was the nephew of Guidubaldc, duke of Urbino, and the bro-
ther of Ottaviano Frcgoso, doge of Genoa, a name celebrated in the
annals of that republic. (Tiraboschi, vii. 1076.) '' EgU e tutto buono,
e tutto santo, e tutto nelle sacre lettere, e Latine, e CJreche, e Ebraiche,"
says Bembo. (Opere, tomo vii. p. 267.)

J Bembo, Lettere, tomo i. p. 139.

180 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IX ITAI.Y.

ers, wliicli liad the honour of being ])roliil)iteil at
Rome.* The same honour was reserved for the
elegant commentaries of tlie learned and pious ab-
bot, Giambatista Folengo, which a!)ound with sen-
timents similar to tliose wJiich liave been quoted
from the writings of Flaminio, accompanied with
severe strictures on the suj)erstitious practices which
the priests and friars reconunended to the people.f

Angek) Huonarici, general of the canons reguhir
at W'liice, is another example of the extent to which
the leading opinions of the reformed had s})read in
Italy. In his exposition of tlie apostolical epistles,
he has stated the doctrine of justification by faith
with as nuich clearness and accuracy as either Luther
or Calvin. ** 'i'his passage of scripture (says he)
teaches us, that if we are true Christians, we nuist
acknowledge that we are saved and justified, with-
out the previous works of the law, by means of faith
alone. Not that we are to conclude, that those
who believe in Christ are not bound and obliged to
study the practice of holy, devout, and good works ;
but no one nuist think or believe that he can at-

* An account of this book is given by Ilicderer, in the tliird volume
of bis Nachrichten. Wolfii Lect. Memorab. torn. ii. p. 698. Index
Auct. Prohibit. Roma?, \539. There is a curious letter written in
15:il, by Bembo to Frcgoso, about a treatise in manuscript, which the
latter had sent to the former, on the subject of free-will and predestina-
tion. Bembo promises not to allow it to go into improper hands, but
refuses to burn it, as Frcgoso had requested him to do. (Uembo,
0])ere, torn. v. pp. l65, 16G.)

t See the extracts from his Commentary on the Psalms, in Gerdes.
Ital. Ref. pp. 267 — '2CK Comp. Ginguene, Hist. Liter, d' Italic, torn.
vii. p. o8. Teissier, Eloges, torn. i. p. 170. Tirabosclii, vii. 400.

HISTORY or THE RKFOUMATION IN ITALY. 181

tain to the l,onefit of justification by good works,
tor this is indeed obtained by faith, and good works
in the justified do not precede but follow their jus-
tification." Similar sentiments i)ervade this work,
which a]),,eared with the privilege of the inquisi-
tors of Venice; a circumstance which might have
excited our astonishment, had .ve not known that
still greater oversights have been committed by
these jealous and intolerant, but ignorant and in-
judicious, censors of the press.*— Still more remark-
able were the sentiments of Giovanni Grimani, a
lenetian of noble birth, and patriarch of Aquileia.
A Uoinmican monk of Udine had given offence
by teaching in a sermon, that the elect cannot in-
cur damnation, but will be recovered from the sins
into which they may fall ; and that salvation
and damnation depend upon election and predesti-
nation, and not on our free-will. The patriarch un-
dertook the defence of this doctrine, first in a letter
to the general of the Dominicans, and afterwards
in a treatise Avhich lie wrote expressly on the sub-
ject. I'his was subsequent to the decrees of the
council of Trent which determined the doctrine of
the church on these points. Grimani was not troub-
led for his opinions at this time, but liaving, at a
subsequent period, irritated his clergy bv attempting
to reform their manners, he was delated to the in-
quisitors ; and at the very time that pope Pius IV at
the request of the senate of Venice, was about to ad-

* Genlcsii Ital. Ucf. pii. 198—200.

182 IIISTOKY or THE KKFOHMATION IX ITALY.

vance him to the piirpks lie was accused of hokling
Lutheran and Calvinian errors on seven different ar-
ticles, 'j^'he republic of Wiiice procured an order
from the j)oj)e, to take the cause from the hands of
the in(|uisitors, and coimnit it to the judgiiient of
the fathers, who, in the year 1563, were still as-
sembled at Trent, and who, after an examination
whieh lasted twenty-four days, came at last to the
determination, that the writings of the patriarch
were not heretical, though they ought not to have
been made public on account of certain difficult
j)oints whieh were treated in them, and not explained
with sufficient accuracy. So great was the influence
of the senate of Venice with the j)ope and council !*
Of the mode of thinking, or ratlier feeling, among
a numerous class of enlii>'htened Italians, we have
an example in Celio Calcagnini, " one of the most
learned men of that age."f Ilis friend Peregrino
Morata had sent liim a booiv in defence of the re-
formed doctrine, and rcqnested his opinion of it.
The reply of Calcagnini M'as cantions,l)nt safficiently
intelligible. " I have read (says lie) the book relating
to the controversies so nuich agitated at present;^ I

• Raynalili Aiinal. ad ami. Ial9, IJG-J. rallavicini, apiiil Gerdcs.
Ital. Uel'. pp. 91 — 93. 1 have not adducoil llie examples of Foscarari,
bishop of Moilena, and San Fehcio, bisliop of Cava, with several
others, wlio have been ranked among the favourers of the reformed
opinions by Schelhorn ! (.Vmcf n. Ecelcs. torn. i. p. lol ;) because I am
not aware that lie had any other ground for doing this than the fact
that tliese distinguished prelates were thrown into the prisons of the
Inquisition by that violent pontiff, Paul IV.

+ Tirabo«hi, vii. 16.'!.

+ 'I'

I'iraboiiehi thinks that Morata was himself the author of the
book. (vii. 1199.)

HISTOKY OF THE UEFOIiSIATION IN ITALY. 183

have thonght on its contents, and weighed them in
the balance of reason. I find in it nothing which
may not be ai)proved and defended, but some things,
which, as mysteries, it is safer to suppress and
conceal tliau to bring before the common i)eople, in
as much as they pertained to the primitive and
infant state of the church. Now, wlien the decrees
ot the fathers and long usage have introduced
other n.odes, what necessity is there for revivin<r
antKiuated practices which have long fallen into det
suetude, especially as neither piety nor the salvation
ot the soul is concerned with them ? Let us then, I
pray you, allow these things to rest. Not that I dis-
approve of their being embraced by scholars and lov-
crs of antiquity ; but I would not have them commu-
nicated to the common peoi)le and those who are fond
of innovations, lest they give occasion to strife and
sedition. TJiere are unlearned and unqualified per-
sons who having, after long ignorance, read or
heard certain new opinions respecting baptism, the
marriage of the clergy, ordination, the distinction
of days and food, and public penitence, instantly
conceive that these things are to be stiffly maintain-
ed and observed. \\^herefore, in my opinion, the
discussion of these points ought to be confined to
the initiated, that so the seamless coat of our Lord
may not be rent and torn. It was this consideration,
I suppose, which moved those good men who lately
laid before pope Paul a plan of reforming Chris-
tianity, to advise that the Colloquies of Erasmus
should be banished from our republic, as Plato for-

184 HISTORY OP THE IIEFOUMATION IN ITALY.

merly banished the poems of Homer from his." Hav-
ing made some observations of a simihir kind on the
doetrine of j)redestination, taut»lit })y the author of
the book, he conchides thns : *'Seeinf>^ it is (hnigerous
to treat such things before the* midtitude and in i)ub-
lic discourses, I must deem it safest to * sj)eak with
the many and think with the few,' and to keej) in
mind the advice of Paul, ' Hast thou faith ? have
it to thyself l)efore God/ '" In this manner did the
learned Aj)ostolical Protonotary satisfy liis con-
science ; and very ])robably he was not aware, or
did not reflect, how much weiidit self-interest threw
into one of the scales of '' the balance of reason."
The temporizing maxim in which he takes refuge
was borrowed from his intimate friend Erasmus ;
and it is curious to fmd it here employed to jus-
tify the sentence j)r()nounce<l against one of the
most useful works of that elegant and accomplished
scholar. It will always be a favourite maxim with
those who are determined, like Erasmus, to escape
suffering, or who, as he expressed it, " feel that
they have not received the grace of martyrdom ;" a
mode of speaking, by the way, which shows that
those who are most shy to own the doctrine of pre-
destination are not the most averse to avail them-
selves of it, in its least defensible sense, as an apo-
logy for their weakness. Let us not, liowever,
imagine that this plea was confined to one age or
one description of persons. An attentive observa-

* C«lii Calcagnini Opera, p. 19j.

HISTORY OF TTTF T>rrr\-n^r

THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 185

Jioii Of the conduct of mankind will I .n. .fr • i

ever i ^ ^""'''" ^''^^^ ""'' ^^"^ ^^^ ^^ when-

to" r ' "''''' »^-^^-^^^ or a hardship ei dim

to u erve from the straight path of duty M^.ich he t
luibjassed indfrinonf l« i t ^ '* ^^^^n ineir

the nrincio " , tl.scerned, and to act on

'-uao-o " T ,f , expressed in plain Ian-

e,"a^c, Let us do evil that good may co.ne."

tl.e Xr: ";'^""""^7 ^"^^•'■^■"^'>' «'-- that
. V "P-n'ons, if they did not take deen

root, ^vere at least widely spread in Ita v T.^
number of those «.|„. f J '^''«' '« Jtaly. The

desired nnl ? ' " *""" '"''''''' ^^^ ^"^ther.
c^v 1 f f '"• •''"'' ^^'^'" "'«"''^ h«ve been

w filch piom.sed to be successful, M-as so great that if

at Kii head, or ,f the court of Rome had been
gu y of a,.y such aggression on the political rights
of ts neighbours as itconmiitted at a future pezfod
Jtaly might have follo^ved the example of Ge ma
"y. and Protestant cities and states have Tet

on the south as .ell as the north of the A PS "
Tl le prospect of this filled the n.inds of the friends

on^l-.it f%']? "' ''''" P^"' '''■' Sadolet
complain, that the ears of his holiness ;vere so pre-

• Bajlc, Die art. Acon.ius ; ad.iition in English translation. "

)

18G HISTORY OF THE REFORMATTON IN ITALY.

occupied with the false representations of iUitterer^,
as not to perceive that there was " an ahnost univer-
sal defection of the minds of men from the cliurch,
and an inclination to execrate ecclesiastical authori-
ty."* And cardinal Carafla signified to the Siinie
pope, " that the whole of Italy was infected with the
Lutheran heresy, which had been embraced not only
by statesmen but also by many ecclesiastics/'f

No wonder, in these circumstances, that the ar-
dent friends of the Reformation should at this period
have cherished the sanguine hope that Italy would
throw off the papal yoke. " See (says one) how the
gospel, even in Italy, where it is so much borne
down, exults in the near prospect of bursting forth,
like the sun from a cloud, in spite of all opposi-
tion."t " ^\'llole libraries (writes Melanchthon to
George, prince of Anhalt) have been carried from
the late fair into Italy, though the pope has publish-
ed fresh edicts against us. But the truth cannot be
wholly oppressed: our captain, the Lord Jesus Christ,
the Son of God, will vanquish and trample on the
dragon, the enemy of God ; and will liberate and go-
vern us."^ This issue of the religious movement in
his native country was hailed with still more enthu-

* Raynakli Ann. ad an. 1539.

t Spondani Annal. ad an. loV2.

1 Gabrieli Valliculi, De libcrali Dei Gratia, et servo hominis Ar-
bitrio. Norinib. io'SO ; apud IJock, lliai. Antitrin. ii. 39C.

§ Epistoki', col. 303. Tliis letter has no date ; but from compar-
ing its contents with Sleidan, Comment, tom. ii. p. 187, it appears
to have been written in 1510.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 187

siastic feelings by Ccdio Secundo Curio, in a dialogue
composed by him at the period now referred to, and
intended to prove that the kingdom of God or of the
elect is more extensive than that of the devil or of
the reprobate. He introduces his interlocutor, Mai-
nardi, as saying : "If the Lord shall continue, as he
has begun, to grant prosperous success to the gospel,
the delectable embassy of reconciliation and grace,
we shall behold the whole world thronging, more
than it has ever done at any former period, to this a-
sylum and fortified city, to Jesus Christ, the prince
of it, and to its three towers, faith, hope, and charity;
so that with our own eyes we may yet see the king-
dom of God of much larger extent than that which
the enemy of mankind has acquired, not by his own
power but by the providence of God." " O blessed
day ! O that I might live to see the ravishing pro-
spect realized !" exclaims Curio. — " You shall live,
Celio, be not afraid ; you shall live to see it. The
joyful sound of the gospel has within our own day
reached the Scythians, Thracians, Indians and Af-
ricans. Christ, the king of kings, has taken pos-
session of Rha^tia and Helvetia : Germany is under
his protection : he has reigned, and will again reign
in England : he sways his sceptre over Denmark
and the Cymbrian nations : Prussia is his : Poland
and the whole of Sarinatiaare on the point of yield-
ing to him : he is pressing forward to Pannonia :
Muscovy is in his eye : he beckons France to him :
Italy, our native country, is travailing in
mRTH : and Spain will speedily follow. Even the

188 IIISTOKY OF THE llKl OKMATION IN ITALY.

Jews, as you perceive, have abated tlieir former
aversion to Christianity. Since they saw that we
acknowledge one God, the creator of heaven ai d
earth, and Jesus Christ wlioin ]w sent ; that we wor-
ship neither images, nor symbols, nor j)ictures ; that
we no longer adore mystical bread or a wafer as
God ; that they are not despised by us as formerly ;
that we acknowledge we received Christ from them;
and that there is access for them to enter into that
kingdom from which they are secluded, as we
once were — their minds have undergone a great
cliange, and now at last they are provoked to enui-
lation."*

The striking contrast between this pleasing pic-
ture and the event which soon after took ])lace, ad-
monishes us not to allow our minds to be dazzled hy
flattering appearances, or to build theories of faith on
prospects which fancy may have sketched on the
deceitful horizon of public opinion ; and we should
recollect, that though persecution is one means, it is
not the only one, by which the march of Christianity
has been, and may yet again be, checked and ar-
rested.

* Coclius Sccundus Curio, Dc Aniplitudiiic Ucgiii Dei ; in Scheie
hornii Amtrii. Liter, torn. xii. pp. 594, 393.

HISTORY OF THE UEFORMATION IN ITALY. 189

CHAPTER V.

SUPPUESSIOV OF THE UEF010r.\TrON[ IM ITALY.

It was in the year 15-i2, that tlie coiut of Rome
first became seriously alarmed at the proo-ress of
the new oi)iiiions i„ Italy. Engrossed by^foreigu
politics, and believing that they could at any time
put down an evil which was within their reach, the
l)oi)e and his counsellors had either disregarded the
representations wliich were made to than on this
head as exaggerated, or contented themselves with is-
suing prohibitory bulls ai.d addressing to the bishops
of the suspected places monitory letters, which \vere
defeated by the lukewarnmess of the local magis-
trates, or the caution of the obnoxious individuals.
But in the course of tlie year referred to, the clergy
and particularly the friars, poured in their complaints
from all parts of the country, as to the danger to
winch the catholic faith was exposed from the bold-
ness of the reformers and the increase of conventicles
At the head of these was Pietro Caraffa, commonly cal-
led the Theatine cardinal, from an order of monks of
winch he was the founder, a prelate who made high
pretensions to sanctity, and distinguished himself

190 HISTORY OF THK REF01lM.\TIOX IN ITALY.

by liis violence, wlien he afterwards mounted the
pontifical throne, under the name of Paul IV. He
laid ])efore the sacred college the discoveries he had
made as to the extent to which heresy had taken root
in Naples and spread through various parts of Ita-
ly ; and convinced them of the necessity of adopting
the speediest and strongest measures for its extermi-
nation * It was resolved to proceed in the first place
against such of the ecclesiastics as were understood
to favour it, among whom Ochino and IMartyr were
the most distinguished ; but as these individuals
were in possession of great popularity, and had not
yet made open defection from the catholic faith,
spies were placed round their i)ersons, while a se-
cret investigation was instituted into their past con-
duct, with the view of i)rocuring direct evidence of

their heretical opinions.

Such a deep impression had the sermons delivered
by Ochino at Venice made on the minds of the citi-
zens, that they joined in an application to the
pope to grant them an opportunity of hearing him
a second time. His holiness accordingly directed
the cardinal of Carpi, who was protector of the
order of Capuchins, to send him to preach at Ve-
nice during Lent in the year 1542 ; and at the same
time instructions were given to the apostolical nuncio
to watch his conduct. The whole city ran in crowds
to hear their favourite preacher. It does not ap-
pear that he used greater freedom in his discourses

* Caracciolus, De \ iia Tauli IV. p. '^HO.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 191

on the present occasion than he had used on the
former; but a formal complaint was soon made
against him, of having advanced doctrines at vari-
ance with the catholic faith, particularly on the
head of Justification.* On his appearance before
the nuncio, however, he was able to defend himself
so powerfully against his accusers, tliat no plausible
pretext could be found for proceeding against him.
Perceiving that he was surrounded by spies, he exert-
ed a greater circumspection over his words in the pul-
pitfor some time; but having heard that Julio Teren-
tiano, of Milan, a convert of Valdez, with whom he
had been intimate at Naples, was thrown into pri-
son, he could no longer restrain himself. In the
course of a sermon, at which the senators and princi-
pal persons in the city were present, lie introduced
that subject, and broke out in these words : " What
remains for us to do, my lords? And to what
purpose do we fatigue and exhaust ourselves. If
those, O noble Venice, queen of the Adriatic, if
those who preach to you the truth, are to be thrown
into prisons, thrust into cells, and loaded with chains
and fetters ? What place will be left to us ? what
field will remain open to the truth ? O that we
had liberty to preach the truth ! How many blind,
who now grope their way in the dark, would be re-
stored to light !" On hearing of this bold appeal,
the nuncio instantly suspended him from preaching,

* Palearii Opera, p. 29 1. The same thing is stated by Ochino him-
self in his Apology to the Magistrates of Sienna, republished at the
end of the second volume of his Prediche,

192 HISTORY OF THE iu:roK:\rATiox ix italy.

HlSTOUY OF THE IIEFOUMATION IN ITALY. 193

* t

and reported the matter to tlie pope. But the ^"e-
netiaus were so iiriportuiiate in his helialf, that the
interdict was removed after three dnvs, and lieajraiu
appeared in the pulpit.'* Lent being enckd, he went
to Wrona, wliere he assembled those of his order
wlio were intended for tlie function of preachinj^',
and commenced readiniif to tliem a course of lectures
on the Epistles of Paul. I^ut he had not proceeded
far in this work, when he received a citation from
Rome to answer certain charges founded on his lec-
tures, and on the informations of the nuncio at Ve-
nice.f Having set out on his journey to the capital,
lie had an interview at J]ologna with cardinal Conta-
rini, then lying ou his death-bed, who assured him
tliat he agreed with the protesiants on the article of
justification, though he was oj)posed to them on the
otherpoints of controversy. - In the month of Au"-ust,
Ocliino went to Florence, where he received infor-
mation that his death was resolved on at Rome,
upon whicli he retired to Ferrara, and being assist-
ed in his flight by the duchess Renee, escaped the
hands of the armed men who liad been dispatched
to apj)rehend liim, and reached (leneva in safety.5

• Boveiio, Annali de Capuccini, torn. i. p. 42G.

I H)icl. p. 427.

:J:Ocliii!0, Prcdicho, torn. i. num. 10. This fact has hccn stron,'>ly
dtnied hy Bovcrio, (ut supra,) and hy Card. Quirini, (Diatrih. ad
vol. iii. Epist. Poli, cap. ix.) Btccatcllo says, he was i)rcsent at the in-
terview, and that the cardinal, who was very weak, merely requested
a share in Ochino's prayers. (Ibid. p. cxxxvii.)

§ Ochino has himself given an account of his departure from Italy
and the reasons of it, in his answer to Muzio, which is reprinted at

The defection and flight of Ochino struck his
countrymen with amazement, proportioned to the
adnn'ration in which they had held him.* Claudio
Tolomeo, one of the best epistolary writers of his
age, in a letter which he addressed to him, says
that the tidings of Jiis defection from the Catholic
to the Lutheran camp, had completely stunned him,
and aj)peared to him for some time utterly false
and incredible.! The lamentations of the Theatine
cardinal were still more tragical, and may be quoted
as a specimen of that mystical and sublimated devo-
tion which, at this i)eriod, was combined with a
spirit of ambition and bigotry, in a certain class of
the defenders of the i)apacy. " What has befallen
thee, Bernardino? What evil spirit has seized
thee, like the reprobate king of Israel of old ? My

the end of the second volume of his Prcdiche. Lubieniecius and San-
dius represent him as having gone to Rome, and in the presence of
the pope to have reproved from the pulpit the tyranny, pride, and
vices of the pontifical court. The latter adds, that in a sermon he
brought forward a number of arguments against the doctrine of the
trinity, deferring the answer to them till another time, under the pre-
tence that the hour had elapsed ; but as soon as he left the pulpit, he
mounted a horse which was ready for him, and quitting Rome and Italy,
eluded the inquisitors. This is a ridiculous story, evidently made up
from the manner in which Ochino brought forward the antitrinitari-
an sentiments a little before his death.

* In a letter to Melanchthon, dated from Geneva, on the 1 1th of
Feb. 1.5i3, Calvin says: ^Ulabemus hie Bernardinum Senensem, mag-
num et pneclarum virum, qui suo discessu non parum Italian! com-
movit. Is, ut vobis suo nomine salutera ascriberem, petiit." (Sylloge
Kpist. Burnian. tom. ii. p. 230.)

t Tolomeo, Lcttere, p. 237. Vencz. 1565. Schelhorns P>goetzHch-
keiten, tom. iii. p. 1006.

194 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

father, my father ! the chariot and the charioteer
of Israel 1 whom a little ago we with admiration be-
held ascending to heaven in the spirit and power
of Elias, must we now bewail thy descent to hell
with the chariots and horsemen of Pharaoh ? All
Italy flocked to thee ; they hung upon thy breast :
thou hast betrayed the land ; thou hast slain the in-
habitants. O doting old man, who has bewitched
thee to feign to thyself another Christ than thou
wert taught by the catholic church ? Ah I Ber-
nardino, how great wert thou in the eyes of all men !
oh, how beautiful and fair! Thy coarse but sacred
cap excelled the cnrdinaFs hat and the pope's mitre,
thy nakedness the most gorgeous apparel, thy bed
of wattles the softest and most delicious couch, thy
deep poverty the riches of the world. Thou wert
the lierald of the liighest, tlie trumpet sounding far
and wide ; thou wert full of wisdom and adorned
with knowledge; the Lord placed thee in the garden
of Eden, in his holy mount, as a light above the can-
dlestick, as the sun of the people, as a pillar in his
temple, as a watchman in his vineyard, as a shep-
herd to feed his flock. Still your eloquent discour-
ses sound in our ears— still we see your unshod feet.
AVhere now are all your magnificent words con-
cerning contempt of the world ? Where your in-
vectives against covetousness ? Thou that didst
teach that a man should not steal, dost thou steal ?"*

* Bock, Hist. Antitrin. torn. ii. p. 405. Quirini Diatr. ad vol. iu.
Epist. Toli, p. m.

HI8TOKY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 195

In this inflated style, which cardinal Quirini calls
" elegant and vehement," did Caraflfa proceed until
he had nearly exhausted all the metaphors in the
Fhwcrs of the saints.

Ochino was not silent on his part. Beside an
ai)ologetical letter to the magistrates of his native
city of Sienna, and another to Tolomeo, he publish,
ed a large collection of his sermons, and various po-
lemical treatises against the church of Rome, which,
being written in the Italian language and in a po-
pular style, produced a great effect upon his coun-
trymen, notwithstanding the antidotes administer-
ed by writers hired to refute and defame him.*
His flight was the signal for the apprehension of
some of his most intimate friends, and a rigorous
investigation into the sentiments of the religious
order to which he belonged ; some of whom made
their escape, and others saved their lives by recanting
tiKMr opinions. The pope was so incensed by the
apostasy of Ochino, and the number of those who
were found implicated in his heresy, that he propos-
ed at one time to suppress the order of Capuchins.t
Martyr, in the mean time, was in equal danger
at Lucca. The monks of his order, who were irri-
tated by the reformation of manners which, as ge-
neral visitor, he had introduced among them, were

* A list of Ochino's works is to be found in Hayni, Biblioteca,
toni. ii. p. ClG,&c. inObscrvat. Halenscs, torn. v. p. 65, &c. and in Bock,
ut supra, p. 515, &c. His principal antagonists were Girolarao Mu-
zio, the autlior of Lc Mentite Ochinianc, and Ambrogio Catarino,
who wrote Remedw a la pcstiknie dutirina di Bernardo Ochino.

t Bock, ut supra, p. 4^6.

19(i IlISTOllV OF THE UEFOUMATIOX IN ITALV.

forward to accuse hiin, and acted as s})ies on his con-
duct. For a whole year lie was exposed to their secret
machinations and open detraction, against which he
could not have maintained himself, if he had not
enjoyed the favour of the Lucchese. * With the
view of trying their disj)osition, his enemies obtain-
ed an order from Rome to a])prehend one of his
friends who was confessor to the Auo-ustinian con-
vent, as one susj)ected of heresy. Some noblemen,
who admired liis piety and were convinced of his
innocence, forced the doors of his prison, and set him
at liberty ; but having fallen and broken a limb in
his flight, he was again taken and conveyed to
Rome in triuniph. Encouraged by this success,
they lodged a formal accusation against Mar-
tyr before the papal court ; messengers were sent
through tlie different convents to exhort the monks
not to allow the opportunity of recovering "• their
ancient liberty," by inflicting punishment on their
adversary, to escape ; and a general congregation
of the order being convened at Genoa, he was cited
instantly to attend. Aware of the prejudice which
liad been excited against him, and warned by his
friends that snares were laid for his life, he re-
solved, after deliberation, to avoid the danger, by
withdrawing himself from the rage and craft of

* See before, p. 123. In the course of the inquiries wliicli lie had
instituted, several individuals had been deprived of their offices on
account of gross delinquencies, and the rector-general of the order,
with some others, was condemned to perpetual confinement in the
islands of Tremiti. (Simler, Oratio dc Martyrc, sig. b iij.)

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 197

his enemies. After allotting a part of his library to
the convent, he committed the remainder to Cristo-
foro Trenta, a patrician of Lucca, with the view of
its being sent after him to Germany ; and having
set the affairs of the convent in order, and commit-
ted the charge of it to his vicar, he left the city se-
cretly, accompanied by Paolo Lacisio, Theodosio
Trebellio, and Julio Terentiano, who had been re-
leased from prison. At Pisa he wrote letters to
cardinal Pole, and to the brethren of the monas-
tery at Lucca, which he committed to trusty per-
sons to be delivered a month after his departure.
In these he laid open the grievous errors and
abuses which attached to the popish religion in ge-
neral, and the monastic life in particular, to which
his conscience would no longer allow him to give
countenance; and, as additional grounds for his
withdrawing, referred to the odium which he had
incurred, and the j)lots formed against his life. At
the same time, he sent back the ring which he had
been accustomed to wear as the badge of his office,
that it might not be said that he had appropriated
any part of the property of the convent to his
private use. Having met with Ochino at Florence,
and settled with him their respective routes, he set
out, and travelling cautiously and with expedition
by Bologna, Ferrara, and Verona, reached Zurich
in safety, along with his three companions.* They
had not been long there when they received an in-

* Simler, Oratio de Martyre, sig. b iiij.

[

198 HISTORY or THE KEFOKMATIGN IN ITALY.

vitatioii from Biicer to come to Strasburg, where
they obtained situations as professors in the aca-
demy. From that place IMartyr wrote to the re-
forirjed church oF Lucca of which he had been pas-
tor, stating the reasons which had induced him to
quit his native country, and encouraging them to
persevere in their adherence to the gospel which
thev had embraced.^

It was no sooner known that Martyr had fled,
than a visitation of the monastery over which he
had presided was ordered, with tlie view of ascer-
taining the extent to which it was tainted with his
heretical opinions. A great many of the monks
were thrown into prison, and, before a year elaps-
ed, eighteen of them had deserted Italy and re-
tired to Switzerland.! The protestant church
which had been formed in the city, though dis-
couraged by the loss of its founder, and exj)ose(l to
the threats of its adversaries, was not dispersed or
broken up. Under the protection of some of the
principal persons of the state, it continued to hold
its meetings in private, enjoyed the instruction of
regular pastors, and increased in knowledge and
even in numbers. In a letter addressed to them,
more than twelve years after he left Lucca, and on
the back of a disastrous change in their situation,

• Marty ris Epist. universis Ecclesitt Lucensis fidelibus, 8 Calend.
Jan. 1.543 ; in Loc. Commun. pp. 750 — 752. He about the same time
published an Exposition of the Apostles Creed in Italian, to render
to all an account of his faith. (Simler, ut supra, sig. cj.)

f Simler, ut supra, sig. b iiij.

HISTOllY OF THE REFOllMATlOX IX ITALY. 199

iVIartyr says, " Such progress have you made for
many years in the gospel of Jesus Christ, that it
was unnecessary for me to excite you by my letters,
and all that remained for me to do was to make ho-
nourable mention of you everywhere, and to give
thanks to our Heavenly Father for the spiritual
blessings with which he had crowned you. To this I
had an additional motive, from reflecting that my
hand was honoured to lay the foundations of this good
work, in weakness I confess, but still, by the grace
of Christ, to your no small profit. My joy was in-
creased by learning that, after my labours among
you w^ere over, God provided you with other and
abler teachers, by whose prudent care and salutary
instructions the work begun in you was advanced." ^
One of the teachers to whom Martyr refers was
Celio Secundo Curio, who had obtained a situation
in the university. The senate protected him for
some time in spite of the outcries of the clergy ;
but the pope having, in the year 1543, addressed
letters to the magistrates complaining of this, and re-
quiring them to send him to Rome to answer charges
which had been brought against him from various
quarters, they gave him private intimation to con-
sult his safety. Upon. this he retired to Ferrara,
whence, by the advice of the duchess Renee, who
furnished him with letters of recommendation to
the magistrates of Zurich and Berne, he quitted
Italy, and took up his residence at Lausanne. In

• Martyris Epistola ad fratres Lucenses, anno 1556; in Loc. Com-
mun. p. 771.

wo HISTORY OI THE KErOlJ^rATION IN ITAEV

the course of the same year he returned for his wife
and children, whom lie had left !)ehind liim : on
which occasion he made one of those escaj)es which,
though well authenticated, throw (ui air of romance
over tlie narrative of his life. The inf[uisition liad
Just been erected at Rome, and its familiars, scat-
tered over all the country, had tracked the route of
Curio from the time he entered Italy. Not ventur-
ing to api)ear in Lucca, lie stoj)ped at the neighbour-
ing town of Pessa until his family should join him.
While he was sitting at dinner in the inn, a cap-
tain of the papal band, called in Italy Barisello,
suddenly made his appearance, and entering the
room, commanded him in the j)ope's name to yield
himself as a prisoner. Curio, despairing of escape,
rose to deliver himself uj), unconsciously retaining in
his hand the knife with which he had been carviiiir.
The Barisello seeing an athletic figure api)roacIiing
him with a large carving knife, was seized with
a sudden panic, and retreated to a corner of the
room ; upon which Curio, who possessed great })re-
sence of mind, walked deliberately out, passed with-
out interruption through the midst of the armed
men who were stationed at the door, took his horse
from the stable, and made good his flight.*

There had long been in Italy, as well as in France,
individuals, called inquisitors, whose employment
it was to conduct the examination of persons charged
with heresy; but they acted under the bishops, to

* Stupani Oratio tie S. C. Curione^ ut supra, pp. 31 1, 345.

-■ m

♦

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 201

whom the power of regulating the jn-ocess, and
pronouncing judgment properly belonged. In the
early part of the sixteenth century, there was no
separate and independent court for trying such
causes in either of these countries, as there had lone
been in Spain. The want of such a powerful en-
gine for suppressing free inquiry, and preserving
the authority of the church, had been strongly felt
since the new opinions spread so widely in Italy.
The bishops were in some instances lukewarm ;
they were accessible to the claims of humanity or of
friendship ; their forms of process were slow and
open ; and the accused individual often escajxnl be-
fore they could obtain from the civil power the ne-
cessary order for his arrest. On these accounts the
erection of a court of inquisition had been for some
years eagerly pressed by the more zealous Roman-
ists, with cardinal Caraffa at their head, as the only
means of preserving Italy from being overrun with
heresy. Accordingly, poi)e Paul III. founded at
Rome the congregation of the Holy Office, by a bull
dated the 1st of April 1.543, which granted the
title and rights of iiiquisitors^general of the faith to
six cardinals, and gave them authority, on both
sides of the Alps, to try all causes of heresy, with
the power of apprehending and incarcerating sus-
pected persons, and their abettors, of whatsoever
state, rank, or order, of nominating officers under
them, and appointing inferior tribunals in all places,
with the same or limited powers.*

* Limborch's Hist, of the Inquisition, vol. i. p. 1.51; Chandler's
transl. Llorcntc, Hist, de Tlnquis. torn. ii. p. 78.

202 HISTORY OF THE REFOFMATIOX IX ITALY.

This court instantly conuiienced its operations
within the ecclesiastical states ; and it was the great
object of the popes, during the remainder of this
century, to extend its power over Italy. The se-
nate of Venice refused to allow a branch of the in-
quisition to be set uj) within their territories ; but
they yielded so far as to admit inquisitors to
take the direction of trials for heresy, in the
way of prohibiting them to pronounce a defmitive
sentence, at least in the case of laics, and providing
that certain magistrates and lawyers should be al-
ways present on such occasions, to examine the
witnesses, and protect the citizens of the republic
against injustice and avarice concealed under the
cloak of zeal for religion.* The popes found less
opposition in the other states of Italy. In places
where they did not succeed in their attempts to set
up a local tribunal, they obtained liberty to em-
ploy their agents in searching for suspected persons ;
and prevailed with the authorities to send such as
were accused, especially if they were either ecclesi-
astical persons or strangers, to be tried by the inqui-
sition at Rome. Even the senate of Venice, jealous
as it was of any interference with its authority,
yielded, in some instances, to requests of this kind.f

No court ever knew so well as that of Rome
how to combine artifice with violence, to desist

• Busdragi Epistola; Scriniuni Antiquar. torn. i. pp. 321, 32G, 327.
Thuani Hist, ad an. 1548.

t Beztc Icones, sig. Hh. iij. Hist, des Martyrs, f. 444, 446. Ge-
neve, 1597.

t
1

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 203

for a time from urging its claims without relin-
quishing them, and dexterously to avail itself of
events which crossed its wishes in any instance, for
the purpose of advancing its general designs. The
A^eapolitans had twice successfully resisted the es^
tablisliment of the inquisition in their country, at
the beginning of the sixteenth century. In 1546,
the emperor Charles V., with the view of extirpat-
ing the Lutheran heresy, renewed the attempt, and
gave orders to set up that court in Naples, after the
same form in which it had long been established in
Spain. This measure created the greatest discontent,
and one day as the officers of the inquisition were
conducting some individuals to prison, the inhabi-
tants, having released the prisoners, rose in arms,
and broke out into open tumult. The revolt was
sui)pressed by military force, but it was judged
prudent to abandon the design. Nothing could be
conceived more agreeable to the court of Rome than
this formidable tribunal ; yet they took the part of
the people against the government of Naples, and
encouraged them in their opposition, by telling
them that they had reason for their fears, be-
cause the inquisition of Spain was extremely
severe, and refused to profit by the example of
that of Rome, of which none had had reason to
complain during the three years in which it had ex-
isted.* They pursued the same line of policy when
Philip II., at a subsequent period, endeavoured to

* Liinborch, vol. i. p. 143. Llorente, torn. i. p. 332; ii. 118, 121.

204 HISTORY OF THE llErORMATION IN ITALV.

establish his favourite tribunal in the duchy of Milan.
Tlie reigning pontifF, Pius IV., was at first favourable
to that scheme, from which he anticipated effectual
aid to his measures in keeping down the reformed
opinions ; but finding that the xMilanese were deter-
mined to resist tlie innovation, and had engaged the
greater part of the Italian bishops on their side, liis
holiness told the deputies who came to beg his in-
tercession in their favour, that " he knew the ex-
treme rigour of the Spanish inquisitors," and would
take care that the inquisition should be maintain-
ed in Milan as formerly in dependence on the court
of Rome, " whose decrees respecting the mode of pro-
cess were very mild, and reserved to the accused the
most entire liberty of defending themselves." * This
language was glaringly hypocritical, and (piite irre-
concilable with the conduct of the reigning pontifF,
as well as that of his predecessors, wdio had all sup-
ported the Spanish inquisition, and given their for-
mal sanction to the most cruel and unjust of its
modes of procedure. But it served the purpose of
preserving the authority of the holy see entire, and
of reconciling the minds of the Italians to the court
which had been lately erected at Rome. The Roman
inquisition was founded on the same principles as that
of Spain, nor did the forms of process in the two
courts differ in any essential or material point; and
yet the horror which the inhabitants of Italy had con-
ceived at the idea of the latter induced them to sub-
mit without reluctance to the former : so easy is it, by

• Limborch and Llorciite, ut supra.

IllSTOIlY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 205

a little management and humouring of their preju-
dices, to deprive the people of their liberties.

The peaceable establishment of the inquisition
in Italy was decisive of the unfortunate issue of
the movements in favour of religious reform in that
country. This iniquitous and cruel tribunal could
never obtain a footing either in France or in
Germany. The attempt to introduce it into the
Netherlands was resisted by the adherents of the
old as well as the patrons of the new religion ; and
it kindled a civil war, which, after a bloody and
protracted struggle, issued in rending seven flourish-
ing provinces from the Spanish crown, and esta-
blishing civil and religious liberty in them. The
ease with which it was introduced into Italy, show-
ed that, whatever illumination there was among the
Italians, and however desirous tiiey might be to share
in those blessings which other nations had secured
to themselves, they were destitute of that public spi-
rit and energy of principle which would have ena-
bled them to shake off the degrading yoke by which
they were oppressed. Popish historians do more
homage to truth than credit to their cause,
when they say that the erection of the inqui-
sition was the salvation of the catholic relio-ion
in Italy. * No sooner was this engine of tv-
ranny and torture erected, than those who had ren-
dered themselves obnoxious to it by the previous
avowal of their sentiments, fled in great numbers
from a country in which they could no longer look

• Pallavicini, Utor. Concil. Trent, lib. xiv. c. 0.

206 HISTORY OF THE IIEIOKMATION IN ITALY.

for protection from injustice and cruelty. The pri-
sons of the inquisition were -^Trywhere filled with
those who remained behind, and who, accordmg to
the policy of that court, were retained for years ni
silent and dark durance, with the view of inspiring
their friends with dread, and of subduing their own
minds to a recantation of their sentiments. With the
exception of a few places, the public profession which
had been made of the protestant religion was sup-
pressed. Its friends, however, were still numer-
ous ; many of them were animated by the most ar-
dent attachment to the cause ; they continued to
encourage and edify one another in their private
meetings ; and it required all the exertions and vio-
lence of the inquisitors during twenty years to dis-
cover and exterminate them.

It was natural for the protestants, when over-
taken by the storm, to retreat to the court of Fer-
rara, where they had found shelter at an early pe-
riod! But the court of Rome had taken the pre-
caution of gaining over the duke, and securing his
co-operation in its measures against the reformers.
The elfects of this change were firs^. felt at Modena.
We have already adverted to the countenance which
the reformed opinions received from the members
of the academy erected in that city. To detach
persons of such celebrity from the protestant party,
four of the most eminent members of the conclave
were now employed. Sadolet corresponded with Lu-
dovico Castelvetro, who was regarded as the most
influential person in the academy, and exerted all
his eloquence to persuade him and liis colleagues to

HISTOllY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 207

persevere in their obedience to the see of Rome.*
The affair, however, was managed chiefly by the
moderation and address of cardinal Morone, who
was at this time bishop of Modena, and generally
thought to be no enemy to ecclesia^tical reform.
Being desirous that such of his flock as had been
infected with the new opinions shoukl be reconciled
to the church in the easiest manner,f he prevailed
on his colleague Contarini, whose views coincided
with Ills own, to draw up a formnlary of faith to be
subscribed by them. This he pnt into the hands of
some of the leading persons who were inclined to
the reformed doctrine, and listened with much con-
descension to the objections which they started
against particular expressions in it. Their objec-
tions related chiefly to the sacraments ; the docu-
ment having been expressed in such a manner as to
be satisfactory to them, so far as it related to matters
of faith4 Among the persons consulted by the bishop
were Don Hieronymo da Sassolo, and Don Giovanni
Poliziano, called also de' Berettari, a priest, a mem-
ber of the academy, and distinguished as an Italian
poet, who having been summoned to Rome on
a charge of heresy, and not appearing, was laid
under an excommunication, from which, however,
he had been lately relieved through the interces-

* 'IV

Tiraboschi, tomo vii. pp. 169, 170.

t Bcccatelli, Vita del Card. Contarini, sect. 33.

t Letter from Card. Morone to Card. Contarini, 3d July 1 542. (Poll
Epist. vol. iii. p. ccJxxxiv.) Morone says : « Ben priego V. S. ileveren-
diss. non lascia che qiiestc niic letterc vadino in niano d'altrc, che del-
li suoi fcdcli Sccrctari."

208 HISTORY or the ueioumation in mwlv.

sioii of li-ieiids * To give tlie greater solemnity to
the transaction, cardinals IMorone, Contarini, Sado-
leti and Cortese, with several other ecclesiastics of
rank, assembled at Modena, in September 1542,
when the formulary was subscribed in their presence
by the members of the academy and the princii)al
citizens. Franciscus Portus, a native of Candia, who
at this time read lectures on Greek in the city, gave
great offence by absenting liimself on the day of
subscription ; but he appears to have afterwards
set his name to the articles.f

This accommodation of the difft- rences at Modena
was, however, of short (hiration. In the year 1544,
two Conventual friars of the order of St. Francis, the
one named Pergala, and the other Pontremolo, were
thrown into prison, and sul)jected to punishment for
venthig the new opinions from the pulpit; and the
academicians again incurred the suspicion of heresy4
Tlie most obnoxious of these was Filippo Valentino,
u young nobleman of great precocity of intellect
and versatility of genius.^^ Pellegrino Erri, a mem-
ber of the academy, having received an alfront from

• Muratori, Vita dtl Castclvetro ; Operc Critichc, p. IS.

t Ibid pp. 1% '20. Tiraboschi, vii. 170. To this affair cardinal
l»ole probably refers, when, in writing to Contarini, he tells him that
the n.archioness of Pcscara gave thanks to God, " per il gran dono di
eharita, il qual risplende piu in quello santo negozio di Modena.
(Toli Epist. vol. iii. p. 58.)

t Tiraboschi, vii. 171. , , •

t Castelvetro says, that at seven years of age he composed letters m a
stvle worthy of Cicero, and sonnets and canzoni which would have done
honour to a poet of mature age. He coukl repeat rcrbaiim sennons
or lectures which he had heard only once ; and had the principal poets
in Latin and Itahan by heart. (Afuratori, ut supra, pp. '^,'2^2.)

HISTORY OF THE REFOKMATION IN ITALY. 209

some of the members, went to Rome, and gave in-
formation to the Holy Office, that the literati of his
native city were generally disaffected to the catholic
church, and that some of them were industrious in
disseminating their heretical sentiments in private.*
In consequence of this, the pope addressed a brief
to the duke of Ferrara, stating, that he had received
information, tliat the Lutheran heresy was daily
gaining ground in Modena, and that the author and
prime cause of this was that son of wickedness,
Filippo Valentino, on which account his holiness,
knowing how grieving this must be to a person of
the duke's piety, requires him to cause the said Fi-
lippo to be immediately seized, and to detain him at
the instance of the pope ; so that, the ringleader being
quelled, his accomplices might be reduced to obedi-
ence, and a stop put to the alarming evil.f Erri
returned to IModena in the character of apostoli-
cal commissary ; and attended by an armed force,

That Erri was a man of learning, and acquainted with ifebrew,
appears from the following work : '^ Sahni di David, tradotti con
bellissimo e dotissimo stile dalla lingua Ebrca, nella Latina e volgarc,
dal S. Pellegrino ileri Modonesse." The dedication by the author,
to Conte Fulvio llangone, is dated " Di Modena il i de Gennaio,
1568;" but the work was published at Venice in 1573, with a preface
by Giordan Ziletti. Riederer, who has given extracts, both from the
translation and notes, says : " Ich bin versichert, wenn man das Buch
genauer priifen wolte, man wurde viele Spuren eines heimhchen Pro-
testanten, der doch noch die ausere Gemeinschaft der Rom. Kirche
beybehalten und der Inquisition sich nicht bios geben wollen, darin-
nen Hnden." (Nachrichten zur Kirchen-Gelerten und Bucher-Ges-
chichte, tom. iv. p. 28.) The learned writer was mistaken in suppos-
ing Heri to be a protestant.
t Piaynaldi Annal. ad an. 154.5.

210 HISTOKY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

which he had procured from the civil power, came
one night to the house of Filippo to apprehend him.
The latter having received warning of the design,
had made his escape ; but his books and papers were
seized by the inquisition, which proved the occasion
of great trouble to many of his fellow-citizens, and
especially those who had lived on terms of the
greatest intimacy with him. After remaining for
some time concealed, Filippo had sufficient influence
to get himself elected to the office of podesta, or chief
magistrate, of Trent, which protected him from tlie
attacks of his enemies* Matters being quieted
in his native city, he ventured to return to it in the
course of a few years ; but in the year 1556 a new
storm arose. The inquisitors commenced a strict
search after heretics, and many were committed to
prison. Ludovico Castelvetro, Filippo A^ilentino,
his cousin, Bonifacio, provost of the cathedral
church of Modena, and Antonio Gadaldino, a printer,
were cited, as persons of the greatest note, to appear
before the office of the Congregation at Rome. The
two last were apprehended and conducted under a
guard to the capital, where they were thrown into
the prisons of the inquisition. Gadaldino w^as con-
victed of having sold heretical books at Modena, and
detained in prison. Bonifacio Valentino, having
confessed his errors, made a solemn and public re-
cantation in the church of Minerva at Rome, on the
Cth day of May 1558, and being sent back to Mo-

* Muratori, ut supra, pp. 21—23.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 211

dena, went through the same ceremony, on the
29th of that month, in his own cathedral church.
Castelvetro and Filippo Valentino, perceiving the
danger to which they were exposed, had consulted
their safety by flight, in consequence of which sen-
tence of excommunication was passed against them
at Rome for contumacy.*

AVhile these measures were taken at Modena, the
papal court was still more intent on extirpating the
reformed opinions in Ferrara, which they regarded
as the great nursery and hotbed of heresy in Italy.
In the year 1545, his holiness addressed a brief to
the ecclesiastical authorities of that place, requiring
them to institute a strict investigation into the con-
duct of persons of every rank and order, who were
suspected of entertaining erroneous sentiments, and
after having taken the depositions, applied the torture,
and brought the trial as far as the definitive sen-
tence, to transmit the whole process to Rome for
judgment.! The distress caused by the execution
of this mandate was greatly increased by a base ex-
pedient lately adopted for discovering those who
wavered in their attachment to the church of Rome.
A horde of commissioned spies were dispersed over
Italy, who, by means of the recommendations with
which they were furnished, got admission into fami-
lies, insinuated themselves into the confidence of in-
dividuals, and conveyed the secret information which

* Tassoni Cronaca MS. ; apud Tiraboschi, vii. 1169.
t Raynaldi Annal. ad an. 154.5.

212 HISTORY or Tin: iiki ormatiox in ITALY.

they obtained in this way to the inquisitors. As-
suming a variety of characters, they haunted the
company of the learned and illiterate, and were to
be found ecjually in courts and cloisters.* A num-
ber of excellent persons at Ferrara were caught in
the toils spread by these pests of society. They
succeeded in alienating the mind of the duke from
the accomplished Olympia Morata, who, having
left the palace on the death of her father,-|- to take
charge of her widowed mother and the younger
branches of the family, was treated in a very harsh
and ungrateful manner by the court ; and would have
suffered still worse treatment, had not a German stu-
dent of medicine married her and carried her along
with him to his native countrv-t The persecution
became more severe, when, on the death of Paul III.,
the papal chair was fdled by cardinal DelNIonte, under
the title of Julius III. While this indolent pontiif wal-
lowed in voluptuousness,^ he signed, without scruple
or remorse, the most cruel orders which were dic-
tated by those to whom he intrusted the manage-
ment of public affairs. In the year 1550, the reformed

• Calcagnini Opera, p. 169. Olympiic Moratte Opera, pp. 102, 111.
In writings of that time, these spies are called Curycccans. Vide Sui-
dtp Lex. voc. KuovKotioi.

t He died in 1548.

X Olynipiir iMoratic Opera, pp. 93—95. Noltenii Vita Olympian,
pp. 122—125. Her husband's name was Andrew Gruntliler, whose
Hfe is to be seen in Melch. Adam. Vit. Medic. Germ. Conf. Englerti
Franconic. Acta, vol. ii. p. 269. Nolten says that the duchess also
was alienated from her ; but Olympia herself does not state this.

§ Bayle, Diet. art. Julius III. Tiraboschi, vii. 27.

■ f^ ...

HISTORY OF THE llEFOKMATION IN ITALY. 213

church, which had subsisted for a number of years at
Ferrara, was dispersed ; many were thrown into pri-
son, and one of their preachers, a person of great pie-
ty, was put to death.* Olympia Morata writes on this
subject :f '* Wq did not come here with the inten-
tion of returning to Italy ; for you are not ignorant
liow dangerous it is to profess Christianity in that
country where antichrist has his throne. I hear
that the rage against the saints is at present so vio-
lent, that former severities were but child's play
compared with those which are practised by the new
pope, who cannot, like his predecessor, be moved by
entreaties and intercession." And in another letter,
she says :t " I learn from lettei^s which I have lately
received from Italy, that the Christians are treated
with great cruelty at Ferrara ; neither high nor low
are spared ; some are imprisoned, others banished,
and others obliged to save their lives by flight."

The success of these measures in abolishing the face
of a reformed church, and silencing all opposition
to the established faith, in Ferrara, did not give sa-
tisfaction at Rome. All this availed nothing in the
eyes of the clergy, so long as there remained one

* Actiones et Monimenta J^Iartyrum, f. IG3. Joan. Crispin. 1560,
4to. Olympiic Moratte Opera, p. \02.

t To Celio Secundo Curione: Olympia.^ Oper. p. 101.

J To Chilian Senapi : Ibid. p. 143. conf. p. 158; where, after
speaking of some of her acquaintance who had weakly renounced their
faith, she says to Vergcrio, " jNlatrem vero meam constantem fuisse
in illis turbis, Deo gratias agimus, eique totum acceptum referimus.
Eam oravi, ut ex ilia Babylonia una cum sororibus ad nos proHcisca-
tur."

214 niSTOllY OF THE IIKFOUMATION IN ITALY.

individual, occupying the place nearest the prince,
who scrupled to yield obedience to their authority.
The high rank and distinguished accomplishments
of the duchess of Ferrara aggravated, instead
of extenuating, the ollence whicli she had given
to the clergy, who resolved to humble her pride
if they could not subdue her firiuness. Rente,
while she did not conceal her partiality to the re-
formed sentiments, testified great dissatisfaction at
the late persecution, and had exerted herself in
every way within her power to protect those who
were exposed to its violence. Repeated and strong
representations were made by the pope to the
duke, her husband, on this head. He was told that
the minds of his children and servants were cor-
rupted, and the most pernicious example held out
to his subjects ; that the house of Este, which had
been so long renowned for the purity of its faith
and its fealty to the holy see, was in danger of con-
tracting the indelible stain of heresy ; and that if he
did not speedily abate the nuisance, he would expose
himself to the censures of the church, and lose the
favour of all catholic princes. In consequence of
this, Hercules pressed the duchess to avert the dis-
pleasure of his holiness by renouncing the new opi-
nions, and conforming herself to the rites of the
established worship. As she persisted in refusing
to sacrifice her convictions, recourse was had to fo-
reign influence. Whether it was with the view of
overcoming the reluctance which her husband tes-
tified to proceed to extremities, or of atibrding him
a plausible excuse for adopting those severe mea-

IIISTOllY OF THE llEFORMATION IN ITALY. 215

sures which he had previously agreed to, the pope
procured the interference of the king of France, who
was nephew to the duchess. Henry II. according-
ly sent Oritz,* his inquisitor, to the court of Ferra-
ra. His instructions bore, that he was to acquaint
himself accurately with the extent to which the
mind of the duchess was infected with error ; he
was then to request a personal interview with
her, at which he was to inform her of the great
grief wliich his most Christian Majesty had con-
ceived at hearing that '^ his only aunt," whom he
had always loved and esteemed so highly, had in-
volved herself in the labyrinth of these detestable
and condemned opinions ; if, after all his remon-
strances and arguments, he could not recover her
by gentle means, he was next, with the concur-
rence of the duke, to endeavour to bring her to rea-
son by rigour and severity : he was to preach a
course of sermons on the principal points on which
she had been led astray, at which she and all her
family should be obliged to attend, *' whatever re-
fusal or objection she might think proper to make :"

* This appears to have been the same individual of whom we read
at an earlier period of the history of France. *^ Notre Maiire Oris,"
tlie Inquisitor of the faitli, was in the year 153i, sent to Sancerre to
search for heretics ; but the inhabitants, aware of his fondness for
good cheer, treated him with such hospitality that he reported them
to be a very good sort of people. His depute, Ilocheli, returned
with the same report. Upon which the Lieutenant Criminel, cha-
grined at missing his prey, said, that '^ good wine would at any time
make all these fellows quiet." (Beze, Hist, des Eglises Ref. de France,
torn. i. p. 20.) But " Notre Maitre" was then but young, and had
not yet tasted blood.

'216 HISTORY OF THE REFOllMAl ION IN ITALY.

if this proved unsuccessful in reclaiming her, he
was next, in her presence, to entreat the duke, in
liis majesty's name, to " sequester lier from all so-
ciety and conversation," that she might not have
it in her power to taint the minds of others, to re-
move her children from her, and not to allow any
of the family, of whatever nation they might be,
who were accused or strongly suspected of heretical
sentiments, to ai)proach her ; in fine, he was to bring
tliem to trial, and to pronounce a sentence of exem-
plary punishment on such as were found guilty,
only leaving it to the duke to give such directions
as to the mode of process and the infliction of the
punishment as that the affair might terminate, so
far as justice permitted, without scandal or bringing
any public stigma on tlie duchess and her depend-
ents.*

The daughter of Louis XII., whose spirit was
equal to her piety, spurned these conditions, and
refusing to violate her conscience, her children were
taken from under her management, her confidential
servants proceeded against as heretics, and she her-
self detained as a prisoner in the palace, f Renee
could have borne the insolence of Oritz, but felt in
the keenest manner the upbraidings of her husband,
who, without listening to her exculpations, told
her she must prepare herself to conform uncondi-
tionally, and without delay, to the practices of the

• Le Laboureur, Additions aux Memoircs dc Michel de Castelnau,
turn. i. p. 7 17.
t Ibid. y. 7 IS.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 217

Roman church ; — an unnatural demonstration of
zeal on the part of Hercules, which the court of
Rome rewarded, at a subsequent period, by de-
priving his grandson of the dukedom of Ferrara,
and adding it to the possessions of the church.* The
duchess continued for some time to bear with great
fortitude the harsh treatment which she received,
aggravated as it was by various acts of unkindness
from her husband ; but, on the accession of that tru-
culent pontiff; Paul IV., in the year 1555, the perse-
cution began to rage with greater violence ; and it
would seem that the threats with which she was
anew assailed, together with the desire which she
felt to be restored to the society of her children, in-
duced her to relent and make concessions.! On the
death of the duke in 1559, she returned to France
and took up her residence in the castle of Montar-
gis, where she made open profession of the reformed
religion, and extended her protection to the perse-
cuted protestants. The duke of Guise, her son-in-

* Giovannandrca Barotti, Diftesa dcgli Scrittori Fcrraresi, p. 112.
Muratori, Annali ditalia, toiu. x. pp. 553 — 558.

+ Calvin, in a letter to Farel, says : " Dc Ducissa Ferrariensi tristis
nuncius, et certius quani vcllcni, minis et probris victam cecidisse.
Quid dicam nisi rarum in proceribus esse constantia} exemplum."
(Senebier, catalogue des Manuscrits dans la Bibliothcque de Geneve,
p. 274-5.) Mons. Senebier informs us that this letter is dated '' du
1 Novembre," and he places it under the year 1554; but as Calvin
speaks in it of the defence which he had written for the Consensus, or
agreement, among the Swiss churches respecting the sacrament of the
Supper, and as the dedication of that work is dated, Nonis Januarii
1556, the letter to Farel was most probably written in 1555. (Calvi-
ni Opera, torn. viii. p. G60.)

218 HISTORY OF THE IIEFOIIMATION IN ITALY.

law, having one day come to the castle with an armed
force, sent a messenger to inform her that, if she did
not dismiss the rehels whom she harhoured, he would
batter the walls with his cannon, she boldly replied,
** Tell your master, that I will myself mount the bat-
tlements, and see if he dare kill a king's daugh-
ter."* Her eldest daughter, Anne of Este, " whose
integrity of understanding and sensibility of heart
were worthy of a better age,"f was married to the
first Francis, duke of (juise, and afterwards to
James of Savoy, duke of Nemours, two of the most
determined supporters of the Roman catholic reli-
gion in P'rance ; and if she did not, like her motlier,
avow her friendship to the reformed cause, she ex-
erted herself in moderatiuir the violence of both her
husbands against its friends.:]:

Next to the dominions of the duke of Ferrara, the
papal c(jurt felt most anxious for the suppression of
the reformed doctrine within the territories of the
Venetian republic. On the flight of Ochino, a ri-
gorous inquisition was made into the sentiments of
the Capuchins residing in that part of Italy. ^ For

• Bayle, Diet. art. Ferrara, note F.

•f- Coiidorcet, Elogc tie Chancclier d'Hopital.

:j: Bayle says that she became zealous against the Hugonots dur-
ing the League, which he imputes to the remembrance of the assas-
sination of her first husband by Poltrot ; but he produces no autho-
rity for his assertion. Calcagnini, lliccio, Paleurio, Rabelais, St.
Marthe, De Thou, and Condorcet, have vied with each other in ex-
tolling this amiable princess. There is a beautiful letter of Olympia
Morata, addressed " Annie Estensi, principi Guisianae," in the print-
ed works of the former, pp. l.'iO — 133.

§ Bock, Hist. Antitrin. torn. ii. p. 496.

HISTORY OF THK REFORxMATION IN ITALY. 219

several years after this, the pope ceased not to urge
the senate, both by letters and by nuncios, to root out
the Lutheran heresy which had been embraced by
many of their subjects, especially in Vicenza. Car-
dinal Rodolfo, who was administrator of the bishop-
ric of Vicenza, showed great zeal in this work ; but
the local magistrates, either from personal aversion
to the task, or because they knew that their supe-
riors did not wish the orders which they had pub-
licly given to be carried into execution, declined
lending the assistance of the secular arm. Informa-
tion of this having been conveyed to Rome, the
pope, in 1546, addressed a long and earnest brief
to the senate, in which, after complimenting them
on their zeal for religion and fidelity to the holy see,
and telling them that innovation in religion would
lead to civil dissensions and sedition among them,
as it had done elsewhere, he complained loudly of
the conduct of the podesta and capitano of Vicen-
za, who, instead of obeying the commands which
had been repeatedly given them, allowed the Lu-
theran doctrines to be openly professed before
the eyes of their masters, and of the univer-
sal council which had been called, and was now
assembled at Trent, chiefly for the purpose of extir-
pating these heresies ; on which account his holi-
ness earnestly required the doge and senators to en-
join these magistrates more peremptorily to com-
pensate for their past negligence, by yielding every
assistance to the vicars of the diocese in seizing and

220 HISTORY OF THE REFOllMxVTION IN ITALY.

punishing the heretics * The senate complied with
this request, and issued orders which led to the dis-
sipation of the church at \^icenza.f

They adopted similar measures in the rest of
their dominions. In the year 1548, an edict was
published, commanding all who had books opposed
to the catholic faith to deliver tliem up within
eight days, at the risk of being proceeded against
as heretics ; and offering a reward to informers4
Tliis was followed by great severities against the
protestants in Venice, and in all the territories of
that republic. " The persecution here increases
every day," writes Altieri. " Many are seized, of
whom some have been sent to the galleys, others
condennied to perpetual imprisonment, and some,
alas ! have been induced, by fear of punishment, to
recant. Many also have been banished along with
their wives and children, while still greater num-
bers have fled for their lives. jVlatters are come to
that pass, that I begin to fear for myself; for
though I have frequently been able to protect others
in this storm, there is reason to apprehend that the

• llaynaltU Annales, ad an. loiG.

t Ibid. This is the persecution by which Sacinian writers say that
their colleges were dispersed. (See before, p. 151.) But the only he-
resy mentioned in the apostolical brief, or by the annalist, is the Lu-
theran ; and it is reasonable to suppose, that, if it had been known
that antitrinitarians existed in that place, they woulil have been spe-
cified, as we find they were in a subsequent bull. (See before, p. 158.)

{ Thuani Hist, ad an. 1548. Surius, apud Bock, Hist. Antitrin.

torn. ii. p. 4l<i-

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. S21

same hard terms will be proposed to me ; but it is
the will of God that his people be tried by such afflic-
tions."* Altieri exerted himself with the most
laudable and unwearied zeal in behalf of his bre-
thren. He not only procured letters in their fa-
vour from the elector of Saxony and otlier German
princes, for whom he acted as agent witli the Ve-
netian republic ; but he undertook a journey into
Switzerland, with the express view of persuadino-
the proteslant cantons to exert their influence in
the same cause. On his way home he attended an
assembly of the deputies of tlie Grison confederation
at Coire, where he pleaded the cause of his perse-
cuted countrymen. In both places he succeeded so
far as to obtain letters interceding for lenity to the
protestants ; but he was disappointed in his expec-
tations of 2)rocuring a public commission to act for
these states, which would have given great weight
to any representations which he might make to the
doge and senate. The authorities in Switzerland,
and in the Grisons, might have good reasons for re-
fusing his recpiest ; but we cannot help sympathiz-
ing with the disappointment, and even with the
complaints, of this good man, as well as admiring
the rare example which he gave of disinterested
devotion to the cause of truth and the best inte-
rests of his country, at a time when the greater

* Alterius ad Bullingerum, d. 24. Mart. 1519, Venetiis : De Porta,
Hist. Reform. Eccles. Rh<Tticarum, torn. ii. p. 32. Curia? Rhset'
1774, 4to.

222 IIISTOKY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

part either knew them not, or cared not for them. In
a letter from Coire to Bullinger, a distinguished mi-
nister of Zurich, he says : " I have delivered your
letters and those of Myconius to the ministers of
this church ; I have also conversed with them on my
business, but fmd them ratlier lukewarm, either be-
cause this is their natural disposition, or because
they think the matter too difficult to be obtained,
especially after your friends in Switzerland have
refused it. They, however, give me some hopes of
success."* In another letter to the same correspond-
ent, he writes : ** From the assembly of the Grison
states, which has been held here, I have only been
able to obtain commendatory letters; had it not
been for the opposition made by some enemies of
religion, I would have also obtained a public com-
mission. They have concluded a treaty with
France : the emperor's ambassador was present,
but could do nothing."! A^^r mentioning the
discouragements he had met with from those of
whom he had hoped better things, he exclaims:
" Thus do the minds of men now cleave to the
world ! If the Spirit of the Lord had not long ago
taken possession of my heart, I would have follow-
ed the common example, and hiding myself in some
corner, would have attended to my private affairs,
instead of taking an active part in tlie cause of
Christ. But God forbid that I should entertain the

* Curia, ult. Jan. 15 49 : De Porta, ut supra, p. 34,
t Julii 22, 1549: Ibid.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 223

blasphemous thought of desisting to labour for him,
wlio never ceased labouring in my cause until he had
endured the reproach of the cross. Therefore, I re-
turn to Italy as ready as before to encounter whatever
may befall me, and willing to be bound for the name
of Christ."* Before leaving the Grisons he receiv-
ed intelligence that the persecution was daily wax-
ing hotter at Venice. ** It is not, therefore, with-
out danger that I return," says he '* for you know
how much I am liated by the papists and wicked.
I do not undertake the journey rashly : God will
preserve me from all evil : do you pray for me."f
On Iiis arrival at Venice, he found that his enemies
had incensed the magistrates against him ; and on
refusing to renounce his religion, he was ordered
instantly to quit the territories of the republic.
Without hesitation he chose the latter, but being
unwilling to despair of the reformation of his na-
tive country, and anxious to be at hand to lend
succour to his suffering brethren, he lingered in
Italy, wandered from one city to another, and when
he durst no longer appear in public, sought an
asylum in a retired place for himself, his wife, and
an only child. Soon after his banishment from
Venice he wrote to Bullinger : '' Take the follow-
ing particulars concerning my return to Italy. I
am well with my wife and little child. As to other
things : all the effect of my commendatory letters

* Sangallo, 28 Jan. 1549 : Ibid,
f Curia, 2S Jul. 1549: Ibid. p. 96.

224 HISTOllY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

was an offer on the part of the senate, that I should
be allowed to remain in safety among them, pro-
vided I would yield conformity to their religion,
that is, the Roman ; otherwise it behoved me to
withdraw without delay from all their dominions.
Having given myself to Christ, I chose exile rather
than to enjov pleasant Venice, with its execrable re-
ligion. I departed accordingly, and went first to Fer-
rara, and afterwards to Florence."* In another let-
ter, written from his place of hiding somewhere in
the' territory of Brescia, he says : - Know that I am
in great trouble and danger of my lite, nor is there
a place in Italy where I can be safe with my wife
and boy. My fears for myself increase daily, for I
know the wicked will never rest till they have swal-
lowed me up alive. Give me a share in your
prayers."! These are the last accounts we have of
this excellent person. It is probable (hat he never
escaped from Italy, and that his fate will remain a
secret until the horrid mysteries of the Roman in-
quisition shall be disclosed.

When the protestants were treated in this man-
ner in the capital, we need not be surprised to find
the magistrates of Venice permitting the greatest se-
verities to be used against them in their more distant
provinces. This was particularly the case in Istria,
where the agents of Rome were irritated beyond
measure by the more than suspected defection of the

*Epist. ad BuUing. Ex itinerc, 25 Aug. 1549: De Porta, lit

supra, p. 35.

t Ad Bulling. Ex agro Hrixiano, \.yU\. Kal. Nov. 15i9: Ibitl.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 225

two Vergerii, the bishops of Capo dTstria and
Pola. Annibale Grisone, who was sent into these
dioceses as inquisitor, in the year 1546, spread dis-
tress and alarm among the inhabitants. He read
everywhere from the pulpits the papal bull, re-
quiring all, under the pain of excommunication, to
inform against those whom they suspected of here-
sy, and to deliver up the prohibited books which
might be in their possession. Those who confessed
and supplicated forgiveness he promised to treat
with lenity, but threatened to condemn to the fire
all who, concealing their crime, should he convict-
ed on information. Not satisfied with public denun-
ciations, he entered into every house in search of
heretical books. Such as confessed that they had
read the New Testament in the vulgar tongue, he
charged to abstain from that dangerous practice for
the future, under the severest pains. The rich he
subjected to private penance, and obliged the poor
to make a public recantation. At first, only a few
individuals of weaker minds were induced to in-
form against themselves or their acquaintances ;
but at last consternation seized the multitude, and
every one became afraid that his neighbour would
get the start of him in giving information. The
ties of consanguinity and gratitude were disregard-
ed : the son did not spare his father, nor the wife
her husband, nor the client his patron. Taking ad-
vantage of the agitated state of the public mind,
Grisone ascended the pulpit, in the cathedral of Capo
dTstria, on a high festival day ; and after celebrat-

226 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

ing mass, harangued the crowded assembly. ** You
see (said he) the calamities which have befallen you
for some years past. At one time your fields, at
another your olive trees, at another your vines have
failed ; you have been afflicted in your cattle, and
in the whole of your substance. To what are all
these evils to be ascribed ? To your bishop and the
other heretics among you ; nor can you expect any
alleviation of your distress until they are punish-
ed. Why do you not rise up and stone them ?" So
much were the ignorant and frightened populace in-
flamed, that Vergerio found it necessary to conceal

himself.

In the midst of this confusion, the bishop of
Pola died, not without suspicion of having been
carried ofl' by poison.* His brother withdrew, and
took refuge at Mantua with his patron, cardinal
Gonzaga, who soon dismissed him, in consequence of
the representations made by the noted Delia Casa,
the papal nuncio, resident at Venice. Upon this
Vergerio went to the council of Trent, with the
view of vindicating himself; or, as some state, of
demanding his seat in that assembly. The pope
would have ordered him to be arrested, but was
afraid of giving any reason for asserting that the
council was not free, at a time when he professed
to wish the attendance of the German protestants.
In order to obtain the removal of so dangerous a

• A work by the bishop was afterwards pubhshed by his brother,
with this title : " Esposizione e Parafrasi sopra il Sahiio cxix. di M.
Gio. Battista Vergerio Vescovo di Tola, data d. 6. Gcnnajo, 1550."
(De Porta, Hist. lief, llhcet. torn. ii. p. 151.)

■1

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 227

person from Trent, the papal legates agreed to su-
persede the summons which had been given him to
appear at Rome, and remitted the trial of the charges
exhibited against him to the nuncio and patriarch
of Venice. Vergerio managed his defence with such
address as to protract the trial for two years, at the
end of which he was prohibited from returning to
his diocese.* At that time Francesco Spira, a lawyer
of Padua, died in a state of great mental horror, in
consequence of his having been induced, by the ter-
rors of the inquisition, to recant the protestant faith.
Vergerio, who had come from Venice to Padua, saw
him on his death-bed, and joined with some other
learned and pious persons in attempting to comfort
the wretched penitent.f The scene made such a
deep impression on the mind of Vergerio, that he

• Pallavicini, lib. vi. cap. 13. Tiraboschi, vii. 380.

f The History of Spira was first pubUshed by Vergerio, at Tubingen
in 1558, in Letters from Celio S. Curio, Matthaeus Gribaldus, a native
of Padua, Sigisraundus Gelous, a Pole, and Henricus Scotus. The
last named was our countryman, Henry Scrimger. In the Library of
the University of Leyden, I met with a manuscript volume, containing,
among others, a letter from Calvin to Bullinger, dated " 15th August
1549," in which he writes: *' I received lately a letter from Paulus
Vergerius, along witli a History of Franciscus Spira, which he wishes
printed here. He says the chief cause of his being obliged to leave
his native country was that the pope, irritated by this book, laid
snares for his life. At present he is residing in the Grisons, but ex-
presses a strong desire to see me. I have not yet read the history, but,
so far as I can judge from a slight glance, it is written with some-
what more prudence and gravity than in the letters translated by
Celio. When I have read the work more carefully, I shall think
of the preface which he urges me to write for it." — The history was
printed in 1550, with a preface by Calvin. (Miscell. Groningana,
tom. iii. p. 109.)

228 HISTORY OF THE KEFORMATION IX ITALY.

determined to relinquish his bishopric and native
country, and to seek an asyhim in a place where he
could witli safety make a public i)rofession of the
truth which he liad embraced. *' To tell the truth,"
says he, " I felt such a flame in my breast, that I
could scarcely restrain myself at times from going
to the chamber-door of the legate at Venice, and
crying out, ' Here I am: where are your prisons and
your fires ? Satisfy your utmost desire upon me ;
burn me for the cause of Christ, I beseech you, since
I have had an opportunity of comforting the miser-
able Spira, and of publishing what it was the will
of God should be published.'"* In the end of the
year 1548, he carried his purpose into execution,
by retiring into the Grisons, to the surprise equal-
ly of those whom he deserted, and of those whom

he joined.f

The inquisitor Grisone was succeeded ])y Tom-
maso de Santo Stella, who, after irritating the in-
habitants by his vexatious proceedings, endeavour-
ed to persuade the senate of Venice to put garri-
sons into their principal cities, imder the pretext
that Vergerio meditated an invasion of Istria^
This gave the latter an occasion to publish a de-
fence of his conduct, addressed to the doge and se-
nate, in which, beside complaining of the insidious
and violent methods adopted by the firebrands of

• Ilistoria Spierte, apud Dc Porta, torn. ii. p. Ut.

t Sleidan, lib. xxi. torn. iii. p. 123- i. Bayle, Diet. art. Vergier.
(Pierre Paul.) Ughelli Italia Sac. toni. v. p. 391.

% Al Sereniss. Duce e alia Kccelsissima Kep. di Venczia, Orazione
e Pefensionc del Vergerio, di Vico Suprano, A x Aprile, 1551 ; apud
De Porta, tom.ii. p. 152.

HISTOllY or THE REFORMATION IX ITALY. 229

persecution through Italy,* he states several facts
as to their conduct in the Venetian dominions.
*' Nothing (says he) can be more shameful than
what this pope has done ; who, while there are
many useless and godless bishops and archbishops
in your state, has honoured and rewarded them ;
and the bishop of Bergamo alone, who is your
countryman of the house of Soranzo,f he has thrown
into j)rison, for no other reason than that he stood
up for residence, and testified a love and concern
for evangelical doctrine, and a hatred to supersti-
tion. AVliat is it to exercise oppression and ty-
ranny over you, if this is not ? Is it possible that
this should not awaken vou ?"i The senate about
this time showed a disposition to check the violent
proceedings of the papal agents, by opposing a
stronger barrier to their encroachments on criminal
jurisdiction. " The news from Italy are," says Ver-
gerio, " that the senate of Venice have made a decree,
that no papal legate, nor bishop, nor inquisitor shall
proceed against any subject, except in the presence
of a civil magistrate; and that the pope, enraged

* Girolamo Muzio, who had fomented the persecution in Istria, and
afterwards wrote against Vergerio, he thus characterises : '' Un certo
Muzio, le cui profcssione e di dettar cartello, e condurre gli uomini ad
ammazzarsi negli steccati, e fatto Teologo papesco in tre giorni, e di
piu Barigello de' papisti." In another work, (Giudicio sopra le Let-
tere di XIII. Uomini lllustri,) he names, as the leading persecutors at
a period somewhat later, the Archinti, Buldragi, Todeschini, Fal-
zetti, and Crivelli.

t Laderchius mentions Victor iSoraw::/;/;?, bishop of Bergamo, among
those whom he calls Valdesians, Lutherans, Zuinglians and C'alvin-
ists. (Annales ad an. 1567.)

♦ Orazione e Defensione, ut supra, p. 253,

■f
i

230 lllSTOUY or Tin: RErOllMATION IN ITAI.T.

at this, has fuhninated a bull, interdicting, under
the heaviest pains, any secular prince from inter-
posing the least hindrance to trials for heresy. It re-
mains to be seen whether the Venetians will obey.
But the court of Rome, by its perseverance and
intrigues, ultimately triumphed over patrician jea-
lousy. Even foreigners who visited the republic in
the course of trade, were seized and detained by the
inquisition. Frederic a Salice, who had been sent to Ve-
nice from the republic of the Orisons, to demand the
release of some of its subjects, gives the following
account of the state of matters in the year 1557 :
« In this commonwealth, and in general through-
out Italy, where the pope possesses what they call
spiritual jurisdiction, the faithful are subjected to
tlie severest inquisition. Ample authority is given
to the inquisitors, on the smallest information, to
seize any one at their pleasure, to put him to the
torture, and (what is worse than death) to send him
to Rome ; which was not wont to be the case until
the time of the reigning pontiff. I am detained here
longer than I could wish, and know not when I
shaTl be able to extricate myself from this laby-
rinth."t Scarcely had this ambassador returned
home, after accomplishing his object, when another
of his countrymen, a merchant, was thrown into
prison by the inquisition at Vicenza. To procure
his release, it was necessary to dispatch Hercules a
Salice, late governor of the Grisons. His remon-

• Vcrgerio al Gualt. On. FratcUo ; <U Samadenoin Agncdina, a' 2*
Ainil. liil : l)e Porta, ut supra, p. "2i2.
t Dc Porta, p. 299.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 231

straiices, though seconded by the influence of the
French ambassador, were for some time disregard-
ed by the senate, who sought to evade the terras of
the treaty between the two countries, and the con*
cessions which they had made during the preceding
year ; until, having demanded a public audience, he
inveighed, amidst the murmurs of the elder patri-
clans, with such bold eloquence against the intoler-
able arrogance of the papal claims, that the majo-
rity of the senate ordered the instant discharge of

the prisoner.*

In spite of the keen search made for them, many
protestants still remained in the city of Venice.
In the year 1560, they sent for a minister to form
them into a church, and had the Lord's supper
administered to them in a private house. But
soon after this, information having been given
of their meetings by one of those spies whom the
court of Rome kept in its pay, all who failed in
making their escape were committed to prison.
Numbers fled to the province of Istria ; and after
concealing themselves there for some time, a party
of them, amounting to twenty-three, purchased a ves-
sel to carry them to a foreign country. When they
were about to set sail, an avaricious foreigner, who
had obtained a knowledge of their design, preferred
a claim before the magistrates of the place against
three of them for a debt which he alleged they

• Ibid. p. 299— 301. The ambassador was afterwards thanked by
several of the senators, who admired the boldness with which he, be-
ing a foreigner, and formerly in the military service of the republic^
had dared to state what might have cost any patrician his life.

232 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

owed him, and failing in liis object of extorting the
money, accused them as heretics who fled from jus-
tice ; in consequence of which they were arrested,
conveyed to Venice, and lodged in the same prisons
Avith their brethren.* Hitherto the senate had not
visited the protestants witli capital punishment ;
though it would appear that, before this period,
the inquisitors had, in some instances, prevailed on
the local magistrates of the remoter provinces to
gratify them to that extent.f But now the senate
yielded to those counsels which they had so long
resisted ; and acts of cruelty commenced which con-
tinued for years to disgrace the criminal jurisdic-
tion of the republic. Drowning was the mode of
death to which they doomed the protestants, either
because it was less cruel and odious than committing
them to the flames, or because it accorded with the
customs of \'enice. But if the autoes da fe of the
queen of the Adriatic were less barbarous than those
of Spain, the solitude and silence with which they
were accompanied was calculated to excite the deep-
est horror. At the dead hour of midnight, the prison-
er was taken from his cell, and put into a gondola or
Venetian boat, attended only, beside the sailors, by a
sino-le priest, to act as confessor. He was rowed out
into the sea beyond the Two Castles, where another
boat was in waiting. A plank was then laid across the
two gondolas, upon which the prisoner, having his
body chained, and a heavy stone affixed to his feet,

• llistoire tics Martyrs, f. G80, a Geneve, 1597, folio.
I Calvini Epibt. p. 85 : Oper. toui. ix.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 233

was placed ; and, on a signal given, the gondolas re-
tiring from one another, he was precipitated into the
deep.*

The first person who appears to liave suffered
martyrdom at Venice, was Julio Guirlauda, a native
of the Trevisano.f AMien set on the plank, he cheer-
fully bade the captain farewell, and sank calling on
the Lord Jesus.^ Antonio Ricetto, of Vicenza,
was held in such respect, that, subsequently to his
conviction, the senators offered to restore him not
only to his liberty, but also to the whole of his pro-
perty, part of which had been sold, and the rest
promised away, provided he would conform to the
church of Rome. The firmness of Ricetto was put
to a still severer test : his son, a boy of twelve years
of age, having been admitted into the prison, fell at
his feet, and supplicated him in the most meltino-
strains, to accept of the offers made him, and not leave
his child an orphan. The keeper of the prison hav-

• Histoire des Martyrs, f. 6S1. De Forta, ii. 33.
t The Socinian historians, formerly quoted, (p. 154, 220,) in giving
an account of the suppression of their colleges at Vicenza in 154G, say
that two individuals belonging to them, "Julius Trevisanus'and
Franciscus de Rucgo were strangled at Venice." This could not have
happened at that time; for it is a well-authenticated fact that none
was capitally punished for religion at Venice before the year 1560.
(Busdragi Epist. ut supra, p. 326. Flistoire des Martyrs, f. 680.)
But I have little doubt that the two persons referred to were Julio
Guirlauda of the Trevisano, and Francesco Sega of Rovigo, mention-
ed in the text as drowned ; and the Martyrology represents them as of
the common protestant faith. The author of that work, speaking of
their death, uses the phrase " persecutee par nouveaux Ebionites."
Did the Socinian historians read poui^ instead of par?

t On the 19th October, 1562. He was in his fortieth year. (Hist,
des Martyrs, f. 680.)

234^ HISTORY OF Tin: iii:ioumation in italy.

i„g told him one clay, with the view of inducing him
to recant, that one of his companions had yielded, he
merely rei)licd, " What is that to me T And m the
gondola, and on the plank, he retained his firmness ;
praying for those who ignonnitly pnt him to death,
and commending his soul to his Saviour.* Frances-
co Sega, a native of Rovigo, composed several pious
works during his confinement, for the comfort of his
fellow. prisoners, part of which was preserved after
his death.f Francesco Spinula, a native of the
Milanese, heing a priest, was more severely ques-
tioned than his hrethren. He was thrice hrought
before the judges, and on one of these occasions the
papal legate and a number of the chief clergy at-
tended. In their presence, and when threatened
with a fiery death, he professed openly the various
articles of the protestant faith, and bore an explicit
testimony against the usurpations of the pope, the
doctrine of purgatory, and the invocation of saints.
During a fit of sickness, brought on by the length and
rigour of his confinement, some concessions were ex-
torted from him, but on his recovery he instantly re-
tracted them, and being formally degraded from the
priesthood, obtained the same watery grave with
his brethren.^ But the most distinguished ot those

• He died on the 15th of February i5G«. (Ibid.)
t He was drowned ten days after llicetto. (Ibid.)
X He suffered on the 31st of January 15G7. (Ibid. p. 081.)
Gerdes makes Spinula, the martyr, the same individual who composed
SicLatin poetical version of the Psalms, which has been severannes
printed along with that of Flaminio. (Spec. Itah« lUf. p. 336.)

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY, 235

who suffered death at Venice, was the venerable
Fra Baldo Lupetino.* The following account of
him by his nephew, in a book now become very rare,
deserves to be preserved entire. " The reverend
Baldus Lupctinus, sprung from a noble and ancient
family, a learned monk and provincial of the order
to which he belonged, after having long preached
the word of God in both the vulgar languages, (the
Itahan and Sclavonian) in many cities, and defend-
ed it by public disputation in several places of cele-
brity with great applause, was at last thrown into
close prison at Venice, by the inquisitor and papal
legate. In this condition he continued, during
nearly twenty years, to bear an undaunted testi-
mony to the gospel of Christ ; so that his bonds
and doctrine were made known, not only to that
city, but almost the whole of Italy, and by it to
Europe at large, by which means evangelical truth
was more widely spread. Two things, among many
others, may be mentioned as marks of the singular
providence of God towards this person during his
imprisonment. In the first place, the princes of
Germany often interceded for his liberation, but
without success. And, secondly, on the other hand,
the papal legate, the inquisitor, and even the pope
himself, laboured with all their might, and by
repeated applications, to have him from the very
first committed to the flames, as a noted heresiarch.
This was refused by the doge and senate, who, when

• Sec before, p. 94.

236 IIISTOIIY OF THE KKF OU^fATION IX ITALV.

lie was at last condcinned, freed him from the pu-
nishment of the fire by an express decree. It was
the will of God that he should bear his testimony to
the truth for so long a time ; and that, like a person
affixed to a cross, he should, as from an eminence,
prochiim to all the world the restoration of Christi-
anity, and the revelation of antichrist. At last, this
pious and excellent man, whom neither threatenings
nor promises could move, sealed his doctrine by an
undaunted martyrdom, and exchanged the filth and
protracted tortures of a prison for a watery grave."*
We have good reason to think that many others,
whose names have not come down to us, suffered
the same deatli at Venice ;t beside those who pe-
rished by diseases contracted during a tedious and
unwholesome imprisonment. Among the latter was
Jeronimo Galateo, who evinced his constancy in
the faith by enduring a rigorous confinement of
ten years, t It may naturally be supposed that
these violent measures would dissipate the protest-

• Matth. Flacius, Dc Scctis, Disscnsionibus, &c. Scriptorum Pon-
tificioruni ; Pr.Tfat. ad Ducem ct Senat. Venet. p. 43. Conf. Vergcrio,
Lcttere al Mons. DelHno, Vescovo de Lesina ; apud De Porta, ii. 33.

+ « Vencti in sua ditione pcrsecutioncm satis gra vein Christo faciunt
Bergorai, Brixia?, Verontr, Patavii. Omnia bona Ulixi coniitis (neinpe
Martinengi) ad fiscum rcdacta sunt Brixiiu. Comes Ulysses mihi
tuas legit." (Aug. Maynardus ad Fabritium, 7 Mart. 1563: De
Porta, Ti. 4.59.) " Veneti, cicterique Italia? Principes savam adver-
sus pios persecutionem prosequuntur." (Ullysses Martinengus, Comes
a Barcho, ad Bullingerum, idib. Decembr. 1563 : Ibid. p. 4S6.)

+ Eusebius Captivus, per Hieronymum Marium, p. 249, Basil.
1553. Curionis Pasquillus Ecstaticus, p. 31.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATIOX IN ITALY. 237

ants in Venice; and yet we learn that they had se-
cret meetings for worship in the seventeenth cen-
tury, distinct from those which the ambassadors of
protestant states were permitted to hold.*

Everywhere throughout Italy, during the period
under consideration, those suspected of favouring
the new opinions were sought out with equal keen-
ness, and treated with at least equal cruelty, as in
the Venetian territories. An account of the barba-
rous measures adopted for extirpating the protest-
ant doctrine in the Milanese will be given when we
come to si)eak of the affairs of the Italian exiles
who settled in the Grisons, with which the former
are closely and almost inseparably connected. As
the archives of the inquisition are locked up, we
are left in general to judge of its proceedings in
the interior states, whose political or commercial
relations with protestant countries were slender,
from collateral circumstances and incidental notices.
From the number of th )se who escaped we may
form some idea of the far greater numbers M^ho
must have been caught in the fangs of that vigi*
lant and insatiable tribunal ; and there was not a
city of any note in Italy from which there were not
refugees in some part of protestant Europe. The
execution done by the inquisition at Cremona may
be conjectured from the notice bestowed on it by

* Jacobi Grynaei Epistola ad Ilippolytum a Collibus 1609 scripta;
in Monument. Pietatis, torn. ii. p. 157. Franc, ad Moen. 1701.
Conf. Gerdes. Ital. Ref. p. 93.

238 HISTOUY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

the popish historians, who often refer with peculiar
satisfaction to the sui>erior strictness of its regula-
tions and celerity of its movements * A single fact
is sufficient, in the absence of other evidence, to
prove the unrelenting severity practised in the
Lchy of Mantua. A person allied to the duke
being seized by the inquisition on suspicion of he-
resy, his highness begged the chief inquisitor to
set him at liberty. This request was refused by
he haughty monk, who replied that he acknow-
dged the duke as his lord, but that the pope, for
whom he acted in this cause, possessed a power
paramount to that of any temporal prince. Some
days after the duke sent a second message, press-
ing his former request, when the inquisitor repeat-
ed his refusal, and showing the keys of the prison
told the messengers that if they chose to re ease the
prisoner by force, they would do it at their peril.t
^Ve have 'an equally striking and more horrid
proof of the fury with which P^-'J^-^.-f^^^^,
Faenza. A nobleman, revered for his high birth
rrdistinguished virtues, fell under the suspicion
of the inqixisitors of that city as a Lutheran. Af-
ter being long detained in a foul prison, he was put
rthrtfrturi Not being able to extort -njiun
what they wished, the inquisitors ordered the infer-
nd operation to be repeated, and their victim ex-
pired among their hands. The report of this bar-

. LimborcVs History of the Inquisition, part iij^f ""
t Eglinus aa Bullingerum, 2 Mart. 1569: Do Porta, a. 486.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 239

barous deed spreading through the city created a
tumult, in which the house of the inquisition was
attacked, its altars and images torn down, and some
of the priests trodden to death by the incensed mul-
titude.* The persecution was also severe in the
duchy of Parma ; the duke having entered into a
treaty with that violent pontiff, Paul IV., by which
he delivered up the properties and lives of his in-
nocent subjects to the mercy of the inquisition.f

The flourishing church at Locarno was a great
eye-sore to the popes, distant as it was from Rome.
In the measures taken for its suppression it was
necessary to proceed with much caution ; as it in-
eluded persons of wealtli and high respectability,
and as the sovereignty of the place belonged to the
Swiss cantons, some of which were protestant, and
all of them jealous of their authority. From the
year 1 549, when tlie disputation, formerly mention-
ed, X took place between a priest of Lugano and the
chief Locarnese protestants, every means was taken
to excite odium against the latter in the minds of
their fellow-citizens, and to involve them in quar-
rels with the inhabitants of the neighbouring dis-
tricts and with the government of Milan. Beccaria,
their most zealous advocate, though dismissed from
prison, was exposed to such personal danger, that he
deemed it prudent, by the advice of his friends, to

• Id. ad eund. 29 Mart. 1569 : De Porta, p. 487-8.

t Fridericus Saliceus ad BuUingerum, 10 Jan. 1558 : Ibid. torn. ii.

X See before, p. 133.

.*.

2i0 HISTORY OV THE nElOUMATIOX IX ITALY.

banish himself, and retire to Chiavenna.* Next to
him the individual most obnoxious, from his talents
and activity, was Ta.l.leo a Dunis. His fame as a
physician having made his advice to be sought tor
throughout the adjacent country, he found it ne-
cessary to remove to a more centrical place witli-
in the Milanese. No sooner was it known that he
was without the protection of the Swiss confederacy
than his old antagonist, the priest of Lugano, in-
formed against him as a ringleader of the heretics, to
the incpiisitor at Milan, who sent a party to inter-
cept and seize him on one of his professional jour-
neys. Being warned of his danger, he secured liim-
self by retreating hastily to the mountains. Trust-
ing, however, to his innocence, or to the powerful
iiUerest of the families which he attended, he after-
wards appeared voluntarily before the inquisitor,
and was so fortunate as to be dismissed, on condi-
tion of his quitting the Milanese, and confining his
medical aid for the future to his native district, f

During four years the protestants at Locarno
were subjected to every species of indignity short of
open violence. They had for some time desisted
from emploving the priests to confess their sick, and
from burying their dead, after the popish manner,
with torches and the cross ; and they had their
children baptized by ministers whom they brought
for that purpose from Chiavenna, when they had
no pastor of their own. The increase of the pro-

• Muralti Oratio, in Tcnipc Helvetica, tom.iv. p. 16.5.
■\ Ibid. p. 1 19.

fii

HISTORY OF THK REFORMATION IX ITALY. 241

testants lessened in this way tlie gains of the mer-
cenary priesthood, who endeavoured to move heaven
and eartli against the innovators, as at once sacrile-
gious and unnatural. They circulated the base re-
port that the protestants were guilty of tlie most
licentious jiractices in their secret meetings; and
such calumnious rumours, while they met with ea.sy
credit from the ignorant and superstitious multi-
tude, were encouraged by others wlio were too en-
lightened not to know their falsehood. In the mean
time a deep plot was laid by one Walther, a native
of tlie popish canton of Uri, who was at that time
town-clerk of Locarno, and some years after was
banished for Jiolding a treasonable correspondence
with tlie duke of Alva, governor of Milan. He
fbrged a deed, purporting that the senators, citizens,
and inhabitants of the town and bailiewic of Locar-
no, bound themselves by oath, to the seven popish
cantons, that they would adhere to the pope and
tlie Koinan religion, until the meeting of a general
council. This paper, after being kept secret for
several years, was sent, as a genuine deed, to an
assembly of the seven cantons, held in March 1554,
who, without making any inquiries, immediately
passed a decree, that all the Locarnese should
agreeably to their bond, make confession to the
priests during the ensuing Lent, that they should
give their names to the superior of the church, and
that the rites of sepulture should be denied to those
who had not received mass on their death-bed.*

• -March 10, Uo4. Muralti Oratio, pp. ]iO-l J2.

242 HISTORY OF THE REVORMATIOX IN ITALY.

The promulgation of this decree at Locarno came on
the Protestants as a thunderbolt. They instantly
dispatched a commissioner to the protestant cantons
with instructions to represent the utter falsehood of
the alleged bond on which the decree proceeded, and
to intreat them, as their joint temporal superiors,
and as professors of the same faith, to exert their
influence to avert the ruin which threatened two
hundred heads of families, who had never swerv-
ed from their allegiance, and against whom no
occasion or fault had been found, except concern-
ing the law of their God. In consetpience ot this
representation, the deputies of the protestant can-
tons, having assembled at Aran, wrote to those ot
the popish persuasion, desiring them not to pro-
ceed farther in the affair of Locarno until the
meeting of the next diet of the confederacy, nor to
take ally step which would infringe the rights
of the protestant cantons in that territory. lo
defeat this interposition, the enemies of the per-
secuted Locarnese industriously circulated through
Switzerland that they were not entitled to the pro-
tection of the protestant cantons, inasmuch as they
were infected with Servetianism, anabaptisin and
other fanatical opinions. * Being informed of this

• 1..1 n moaern Swiss historian, who, speaking
. This report has uusle. a noaern S« ^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^

of Locarno, says :— L«^li"s ei r du

cette centre, une ^^^^^^^^ J:^:T::1 adherens
Zwingli ct de ♦-"I""- ^'•"Vv,„reux Bcccaria dcvint a Locar-
^"':;r ( n- tl^r t"N lloSrVar Hen. Zseho.Ue, trad,
no, ^c. ("'^'O';^ ''^ j,^„^,„3 s„einus «as only born m

n;o?'ai;lr:t L ZIJ evidence that his «nc. Lelius ev.r
visited Locarno.

4
I

HISTORY OF THE REFOKJIATION IN ITALY. 243

by their commissioner, they transmitted to Zurich a
confession of their faith, in which tliey avowed their
agreement with tlie reformed churches concerning
the Trinity, the incarnation and mediatory work
of Christ, Justification, and the sacraments ; which
had the effect of silencing this unfounded calumny.
Two general diets were held in the end of the year
155i, for discns.sing tliis subject. The fictitious
bond was unanimonsly set aside ; but when they
came to the main point, the enemies of the reformed
at Locarno insisted that it should be decided by the
majority of votes in the diet, contrary to the rule
usually observed in questions relating to religion.
Ottaviano Kiverda, bishop of Terracino, who had
been sent as papal nuncio, stimulated the popish de-
puties to violent measures, Avhile those of the pro-
testant cantons were influenced, partly by jealousy
of one another, and i)artly by dread of interrupting
the peace of the confederacy. The matter was refer-
red at last to arbiters chosen from the two mixed can-
tons, wlio gave it as their judgment, that the inhabit-
ants of Locarno, who were free from crime, should
either embrace the Roman catholic religion, or leave
their native country, taking with them their families
and property ; that they should not return thither,
nor ])e jicrmitted to settle in the territories of the
seven catholic cantons; that those chargeable with
reproaching the Virgin Mary, with anabaptism, or
other opinions contrary to both confessions, should be
pnnished; that this sentence should be intimated to
the prefect of Locarno ; and that it should be carried
into effect by deputies sent by the seven catholic can-

244 tllSTOUY OF THE llKl OUMATIOX IN ITALY.

tons, provided those of the four protestant ones refus-
ed to take part in the affair, or absented then.selves.
A-vainst this decision the deputies of Zuneh protest-
ed! declaring that, though they were resolved to
abide by the league and not to exeitc any eonnno-
tion, they could not agree to have this sentence ni-
tinuited in their name, and still less to take any
share in carrying it into execution ; which protest
was afterwards formally approved of by their consti-
tuents. It was no small part of the indignity of-
fered to the protestauts by this decree, that Locarno
was that year under the government ot Isaiah
Reuchlin, tlie prefect appointed by the canton of
Zurich. This excellent man, who had already ex-
perieiiccd repeated vexations in the discharge of his
office from the violence of the Roman Catholics,
was thrown into great perplexity by the intelligence
of what was concluded at the diet ; from which,
however, he was relieved by instructions from home
to regulate his conduct by the protest taken by the
deputies of his native city. *

So bent were the popish cantons on the execution
of their edict, and so much were they afraid lest any
thing might intervene to prevent it, that they ordered
their deputies to cross the Alps in the depth of win-
ter On their arrival at Locarno the latter assembled
the inhabitants, and in a threatening harangue told
them, that, having by their rebellious and perverse
innovations in religion disturbed the peace, and
nearly broken the unity of the Helvetic body, they

• Mural ti Oratio, pp. 1j2 — I'iO.

HISTORY OF THE HEFORMATION IX ITALY. 245

might justly have been visited with exemplary pun -
ishment, but that the diet, graciously overlooking
their past faults, had ordained a law by which their
future conduct should be imperiously regulated.
The decree liaving been read, the municipal autho-
rities immediately gave their consent to it by their
subscriptions : the inhabitants, being divided in sen-
timent, were allowed till next day to give in their
answer. On the following morning such as were re-
solved to adhere to the popish religion appeared before
the de])uties, and l)egging forgiveness for any thing in
their ])ast conduct which might have been offensive,
promised an entire obedience and conformity to the
laws for the future. In the afternoon, the protest ants,
in a regular order, two men, followed by their wives,
walking abreast, the women carrying their infants
in their arms and leading their little children, and
those who were most respectable for their rank tak-
ing the lead, proceeded to the council-room, where
tliey were received by the deputies with marks of
indecent levity, instead of that re.^pect and sympathy
to which their appearance and prospects entitled
them. One of their number, addressing the depu-
ties in the name of his brethren, said, That beinff
heavily accused of embracing novelties and danger-
ous opinions, they begged leave humbly to declare
that they professed that faith which was prefigured
under the Old Testament, and more clearly revealed
by Christ and his apostles ; that after searching the
scriptures, and comparing the Latin and Italian trans-
lations, with prayer for divine illumination, they

246 HISTORY OF THE llEFOlOrATION IX ITALY.

had oin])race(l that doctrine which was summarily
comprehended in tlie apostles creed, and rejected
all human traditions contrary to the word of God ;
that they disclaimed Novatianism and all novel opi-
nions, and held in ahhorrence every thing that fa-
voured licentiousness of manners, as they had often
protested to the seven popish and four protestant
cantons; that, committing themselves to Provi-
dence, they were prepared to sutler any thing ra-
ther than foment strife, or be the occasion of war
in the confederation; that they had always preserved
their allegiance to the confederate cantons inviolate,
and were%villing to spend their blood and treasure
in their defence ; that they threw themselves on the
generosity and mercy of the lords of the seven can-
tons, and supplicated them, in the bjwels of Jesus
Christ, to take pity on such a multitude, including
delicate females and helpless infants, who, if driven
from their native country, nmst be reduced to the
greatest distress; but that whatever resolution
might be come to respecting this, they intreated
that a rigorous investigation should be made into
the crimes, affecting their honour and the credit of
their religion, with which they had been charged ;
and that,^f found guilty, they should be punished,
according to their demerit, with the utmost sever-
ity. With hearts as rigid and haughty as the Alps
which they had lately passed, the deputies replied to
this touching and magnanimous appeal,** We are not
come here to listen to your faith. The lords of the
seven cantons have, by the deed now made known to

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 247

you, declared what their religion is, and they will
not suffer it to be called in question or disputed.*
AMierefore say, in one word. Are you ready to quit
your faith, or are you not ?" To this the protest-
ants with one voice replied, " We will live in it, we
will die in it;" while the exclamations " we will never
renounce it"—" it is the only true faith"— ^' it is the
only holy faith"—" it is the only saving faith," con-
tinued for a considerable time to resound from dif-
ferent parts of the assembly, like the murmurs
which succeed the principal peal in a thunder storm.
Before leaving the room they were required indi^
vidually to give their names to the clerk, when two
hundred persons immediately came forward with
the greatest alacrity, and with mutual congratula-
tions.f

Perceiving that they could look for no favour
from the deputies, who sternly refused them per-
mission to remain till the rigour of winter was
over, the protestants made preparations for their
departure, and sent Taddeo a Dunis before them to
request an asylum at Zurich from the magistrates of
that city. But they had still to suffer greater trials.
Kiverda, the papal nuncio, following up his success
in Switzerland, appeared at Locarno. Having ob-
tained an audience of the deputies, and thanked them
in tlie pope's name for the care they had testified for
the catholic faith, he requested, first, that they should

• " das wollen sie unarguieret und ungedisputieret haben."
t Muralti Oratio^ pp. IGO— 164.

248 HISTORY Ol- THE IIEIOKMATION IN ITALY.

require the Grison League to deliver up the fugi-
tive Bec-caria, that he might be punished for the
darin- crime which he had committed iu corrupting
the faith of his countrymen ; and, secondly, that
they would not permit the Locarnese em.grants to
carry along with them their property and children ;
but that the former shouUl be forfeited, and the latter
retained and brought up in the faith of tlie church of
Rome. 'IMie <leputies readily acceded to the first ot
these requests, but excused themselves from com-
plying with the second, with which their instructions
would not allow them to interfere. At the same tune,
they begged the nuncio to grant power to the priests
of Locarno to receive such of the protestants as
might be induced to return into the bosom of the
church. This Kiverda not only granted, but also
offered his services, along with those of two Domi-
iiicau doctors of theology, whom he had brought
along with him, for convincing the deluded heretics.
liut though he harassed the protestants, by obliging
them to listen to harangues delivered by the monks,
and to wait on conferences with himself, he did not
succeed in making a single convert. Having heard
of three ladies of great respectability, Catanna Ro-
salina, Lucia di Orello, and liarbara di Montalto,
who were zealous protestants, the nuncio felt a
strong inelinatiou to enter the lists of controversy
with thein ; but they parried his attacks with so
much dexterity, and exposed the idolatry and
abuses of the Romish church witii such boldness
and severitv, as at ouce to mortify and irritate las

IIISTOUY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 249

eminence. Barbara di Montalto, the wife of the
first i)hysician of the place, having incurred liis
greatest resentment, he prevailed on the depu-
ties to issue an order to apprehend her for blas-
phemies which she liad uttered against the sacrifice
of the mass. Her husband's house, whicli had been
constructed as a place of defence during the violent
feuds between the Guelphs and Ghibellines, was
built on the Lake Maggiore, and had a concealed
door, which it required the strength of six men to
move, opening upon the water, where a boat was
kept in waiting, to carry off the inmates upon any
sudden alarm. Tliis door he had caused his ser-
vants to open at night, in consequence of an alarm-
ing dream, which led him to apprehend danger,
not to his wife indeed, but to himself. Early next
morning the officers of justice entered the house,
and bursting into the apartment where the lady
was in the act of dressing herself, presented a war-
rant from the deputies to convey her to prison.
Rising up with great presence of mind, she begged
them, with an air of feminine delicacy, to permit
her to retire to an adjoining apartment, for the
purpose of putting on some article of apparel.
This being granted, she descended the stairs, and
leaping into the boat, was rowed off in safety, before
the eyes of her enemies, who were assembled in
the court-room to receive her. Provoked at this
disappointment, the nuncio and deputies wreaked
their vengeance upon the husband of the lady,
wlioni they stripped of his property. Not satisfied

pi
r

250 HISTORY OF THE IlEFOUMATIoy IX ITALY.

with this, they amerced in a large sum two mem-
bers of the reformed church who had refused to
have their children baptized after the popish forms.
But the severest punishment fell on a poor trades-
man, named Nicolas, who belonged to the reformed
church. He had been informed against, some time
before, for using, in a conversation with some of
his neighbours, certain expressions derogatory to the
Virgin Mary, who had a celebrated chapel intlie vi-
cinity, called Madonna del Sasso ; and the prefect
Reuchlin, with the view of silencing tlie clamours of
the priests, had punished his imprudence, by con-
denniing him to an imprisonment of sixteen weeks.
Tliis poor man was now brought a second time to
trial for that ollence, and, after being put to the tor-
ture, had sentence of death passed upon him, which
was unrelentingly executed by order of the depu-
ties, notwithstanding the intercession of the Roman
catholic citizens in his behalf. *

The protestants had fixed on the 3d of March,
1555, for setting out on their journey ; and so bitter
had their life been for some time, that, attached as
they were to their native place, they looked forward
to the day of their departure with joy. But before
it arrived, they received intelligence which damped
their spirits. The government of Milan, yielding
to the instigations of the priesthood, published
an edict, commanding all their subjects not to en-
tertain the exiles from Locarno on their journey,

• Muralti Oratio, pp. 157, IGi— 170.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 251

nor allow them to remain above three days within
the Milanese territory, under the pain of death ; and
imposing a fine on those who should afford them
any assistance, or enter into conversation with them,
especially on any matter connected with religion.
Being thus preduded from taking the road which
led to the easiest j)assage across the Alps, they set
out early on the morning of the day fixed, and after
sailing to the northern point of the Lake Maggiore,
passed the Helvetian bailliages, by the way of Bel-
linzone, and before night came on, reached Rogoreto,
a town subject to the Grison League. Here the
Alps, covered with snow and ice, presented a bar-
rier which it was vain attempting to pass, and
obliged them to take up their winter quarters,
amidst the inconveniences necessarily attending the
residence of such a number of ]}ersons among stran-
gers. After two months, the thaw having opened
a passage for tljem, they proceeded to the Grisons,
where they w^ere welcomed by their brethren of the
same faith. Being offered a j^ermanent residence,
with admission to the privileges of citizenship, near-
ly the half of their number took up their abode in
that country ; the remainder, amounting to a hun-
dred and fourteen persons, went forward to Zurich,
the inhabitants of which came out to meet them
at their approach, and by the kind and fraternal
reception which they gave them, consoled and re-
vived the hearts of the sad and weary exiles. *

* Muralti Oratio, pp. 171, 172. Sleidan, torn. iii. lib. xxvi. p. 506.
Sclidhorn makes the number of those who reached Zurich J 33. (Er-

252 HISTORY Ol- THE llEl'OUMATION IN ITALY.

In the inean time tlie city of Locarno rejoiced at the
expulsion of therefornied.as if it had been the remov-
al of a plasiue ; l)ul this exultation was ot short con-
tinuance. 'The most industrious part of the commu-
nity being expelle.1, the trade of the place began to
languish. As if visibly to punish the cruelty with
which tliey had acted towards their brethren, their
lands were laid waste during tiie succeeding year
by a tempest, while the pestilence raged with still
more destructive violence among the inhabitants.
To these calamities were added intestine animosi-
ties and dissensions. The two powerful tamihes ot
the J?uchiaclii and Uinahli, wlio had been leagued
ao-ainst the protestaiits, now became competitors for
the superiority of the neighbouring village of Bn-
sa-o, vacant by the expulsion of the Orelli ; and ui
support of their claims, they raised hands of armed
men, attacked each other, and committed depreda-
tions mi the peaceable inhabitants ; in consecpience
of which the Swiss government was obliged to main-
tain a garrison at great expense in Locarno. *

Hard as was the fate of the Locarnese protestaiits,
it was mild, compared with that of their brethren in
the interior of Italy, who had no friendly power to
save them from the vengeance of Kmne, and no asy-
lum at liand to which they could repair when re-
fused the protection of their own governments. To
retire in a body was out of the question ; they were

-otzlidikoitcn aus der Kirchcnhistorio uml Litiratur, torn. iii. p.
1 102.) A few inrsons attacheil to the reforii.c.l .loctriue sliU rcinain-
uil at Locarno. (Uo I'orta, ii. 3Ki.)
• Muralti Oratio, p. 1 7 1-5.

iiisTOjjY or Tin: reformation in italy. 25.'i

obliged to fly singly ; and when tlicy ventured to
return for the purpose of carrying away their fami-
lies or recovering the wreck of their fortunes, they
were often seized by the familiars of the inquisition
and lodged in the same prisons with their brethren
whom they had left behind them. AVliile tlie pro-
fession of the truth exposed persons to such hardships
and perils, we need not wonder that many were in-
duced to recant, while still greater numbers, with
the view of avoiding or allaying suspicion, gave ex-
ternal countenance to a worshi]) which they inward-
ly detested as superstitious and idolatrous. This
was the case at Lucca. Averse to quit their native
country, and to relinquish their honours and posses-
sions, trusting in their numbers and influence, and
deceived by the connivance of the court of Rome at
their private meetings for a course of years, the pro-
testants in that republic became secure, and began
to boast of tJieir superior resolution in maintaining
their ground, while many of their brethren had ti-
midly deserted it, and suffered the banner of truth
which had been displayed in different quarters of
Italy to fall. But this pleasing dream was soon to
be dissipated. Scarcely had Paul IV. mounted the
pai)al throne wlien orders were issued for the sup-
pression of the Lucchese conventicle ; according to
a preconcerted plan, its principal members were in
one day thrown into the dungeons of the inquisi-
tion ; and at the sight of the instruments of tor-
ture the stoutest of them lost their courage, and
were fain to make their peace with Rome on the

■.hi

254 HISTORY OF TIIF. IlETORMATION IN ITALY.

easiest tcr.ns which they couhl purchase. Peter ^lar-
tyr, whose apology for his flight they had with chfh-
cilty sustained, and whose example they had re-
fused to follow when it was in their power felt
deeply afilicted at the dissipation of a church in
which he took a tender interest, an.l at the sudden
defection of so many persons in whose praises he
had often heen so warm. In a letter which he ad-
dressed to them on the occasion, he says IIow
can I refrain from lamentations, when I think
tiutt such a pleasant garden as the reformed
church at Lucca presented to the view, has heen
so laid waste hy the cruel tempest as scarcely to
retain a vestige of its former cultivation. Ihose
who did not know you might entertain tears that
vou would not he al.le to resist the storm ; it never
could have entered into my mind that you woiUd
fall so foully. After the knowledge you had of the
fury of antichrist, and the danger which hung
over your l,eads,-when you did not choose to retire,
by availing yourselves of what some call the com-
nmn remedy of the weak, hut which, m certain
.-ircumstances, I deem a prudent preca«tion,-those
who had a good opinion of you said, < These tried
and brave soKliers of Christ will not fly, because
thev are determined, by their martyrdom and blood,
to open a way for the progress of the gospel in
their native country, emulating the noble examples
which are given every day by their brethren in
France, Belgium, and England.' Ah, how much
have these hopes been disappointed ! A\ hat mat-

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALV. 255

ter of boasting has been given to our antichristian
oppressors ! But this confounding catastrophe is
to be deplored with tears rather than words."*
The seeds of the reformed doctrine were not how-
ever extirpated in Lucca. We find the popish
writers complaining that, in the year 1562, the
heretics in that city kept up a correspondence with
their brethren in foreign countries, by means of
merdiants, who imported protestant books from
Lyons and Geneva. f

At Naples, the protestants enjoyed a reprieve
from persecution, during the dissensions excited by
the renewed attempts to introduce the Spanish in-
quisition.t- But the people were satisfied with the
abandonment of this measure by the Neapolitan
government, which, in its turn, not only forgave the
pope for fomenting the late opi)osition to its mea-
sures, but entered into a treaty with him, in which
it was agreed to take common measures for rooting
out the new opinions. In consequence of this, a
rigorous search after heretics commenced in the
capital, which Avas afterwards extended to other
parts of the kingdom. Many were thrown into pri-
son, and not a few sent to Rome to be subjected to
the fiery ordeal. Two things conspired with this
violence to ruin the reformed cause in Naples.
The first was, the coming of certain adherents of
anabaptism and arianism, who got introduced to

* Martyris Loc. Com. p. 771-2.
t Raynaldi Annalcs, ad an. 1562.

t See before, p. 203. Gon^alo de lllescas, Historia Pontitical y Ca-
tliolica. Parte ii. pp. 313 — 315.

25() HISTORY OF THE HKIOUMATION IN ITALY.

the secret meetings of the protestants, and made
disciples to their peculiar tenets.* The second was,
the practice uhich some of them indulged, of at-
tending the popish worship, partaking ot mass, and
conducting then.selves in public in every respect as
if they had been papists. These have been called
Valdesians by some writers, because they just. hed
themselves by appealing to the example ot ^ aldez,
and to the advice which he gave those whom
he had instructed in the doctrine of justification,
but whose minds were yet trammelled by preju-
dices in favour of the church of Rome and the
ancient rites. This practice, which became dai y
more general as the persecution increase.l, not only
oireiulcd those conscientious individuals who shun-
ned the popish worship as idolatrous, hut it gradu.
nllv wore o(V from the minds of the confornnsts the
h.Lessimis of that faith which they had embraced,
and prepared then, for sacrificing it on the slight-
est temptation. Notwithstanding all their caution,
not a few of them were seii^ed as suspected per-
sons, ami purchased their lives by recanting those
truths which they had professed to hohl m the
hicrhest estimation. ]5ut this was not all : having
on"ce incurred the jealousy of the inquisitors and
exposed themselves to the malice or avarice of in-
formers, some of them were seized a second tune,
and subjected to tortures and a cruel death, as re-
lapsed heretics.! Afraid of incurring the same

• Life of the Marquis of Vico, chap. vii. p. 13. Lon.l. 163.5.
t Ibid. p. 11.

HISTORY OF niK REFOIiJIATIOX IN ITALY. 257

punishment, or actuated by a desire to enjoy the
pure worship of God, a considerable number of
protestants agreed to quit Italy, ; but when they
came to the Alps, and stopped to take a last view
of their beloved country, the greater part, struck
with its beauties, and calling to mind the friends
and the comforts whicli they had left behind, aban-
doned their purpose, parted with their companions,
and returned to Naples ; wliere they liad scarcely
arrived, when tiiey were thrown into prison, and
liaving submitted to penance, spent the remainder
of their lives distrusted by those around tlieni, and
preyed upon by remorse and a consciousness of
self-degradation. *

^Yben the reformed opinions had been sup-
pressed in the cai)ita!, the Neapolitan government
permitted the inquisitors to roam through the
country like wild beasts let loose, and to devour its
innocent subjects. Of all the barbarities of which
Rome was guilty at this period, none was more
horrible than those wliich M'ere inflicted on the
descendants of the ancient Waldenses. It would
seem as if she wished to exceed the cruelties com-
mitted during the dark ages, in the crusades wliidi
Simon de Montfort, of bloody memory, liad con-
ducted against the ancestors of that people, under
the consecrated banners of the church.

Tlie Waldensian colony in Calabria Citerioref
had increased in the sixteenth century to four thou-

• Life of the Marquis of Vico, chap. x. p. 21.
t See before, p. 1.

258 HISTOllY or the RFVORMATTOX in ITALY.

sand persons, who possessed two towns, Santo Xisto,
belonging to the duke of Montalto, and La CJuardia,
situate on the seacoast. Cut olV from intercourse
with their Invthren of the same faith, and destitute
of the means of education for their pastors, this
simple people, at the same time that they observed
their own forms of worship, had gradually become
habituated to attend on mass, without wliich they
found it difficult to maintain a friendly intercourse
with the original inhabitants of tlie place. Their
curiosity was awakened by hearing that a doctrine
bearing a strong affinity to that of their fathers
was propagated in Italy ; they eagerly sought to
become ac(iuainted with it, and being convinced
that they had erred hitherto in countenancing the
popish worship, they applied to their brethren in
the valleys of Pragela, and to the ministers of
Geneva, to obtain teachers who should instruct them
more perfectly, and organize their churches after
the scripture pattern.*

No sooner was this known at Rome than the
sacred college sent two monks, Valerio Malvicino
and Alfonso Urbino, into Calabria, to suppress the
churclies of the Waldenses, and reduce them to the
obedience of the Holy See. On their first arrival,
the monks assumed an air of great gentleness. Hav-
ing assembled the inhabitants of Santo Xisto, they
tofd them, that they had not come with the view of
hurting any person, but merely to warn them in a
friendly manner to desist from hearing any teachers

* Zanchii Epistolir, lib. ii. p. '100.

HISTORY OF THE REI OUMATION IX ITALY. 253

but those appointed by their ordinary ; that if they
would dismiss those who had led them astray, and live
for the future according to the rules of the Roman
church, they had nothing to fear; but that, if they
acted otlierwise, they would expose themselves to
the danger of losing their lives and property, by in-
curring the punishment of heretics. They then ap-
pointed a time for celebration of mass, which they
required all present to attend. But instead of com-
plying witli this injunction, the inhabitants, in a
body, quitted the town, and retired to the woods,
leaving beliind them oidy a few aged persons and
children. Concealing their chagrin, the monks im-
mediately went to La Gnardia, and having caused
the gates to be shut, and assembled the inhabitants,
told them that their brethren of Santo Xisto had re-
nounced their erroneous opinions, and gone to mass,
exiiorting them to imitate so dutiful and wise an
example. Tlie poor simple people, crediting the re-
port of the monks, and alarmed at the danger which
they held out, complied ; but no sooner did they
ascertain tlie truth, than over\vIielmed with shame
and vexation, they resolved instantly to leave the
place with their wives and children, and to join
their brethren who had taken refuge in the woods ;
a resolution from which they were with difficultv
diverted by the representations and promises Jf
Salvatore Spinello, the feudatory superior of the
town. In the mean time the monks procured two
companies of foot soldiers to be sent into the wooih
who hunted the inhabitants of Santo Xisto like

260 irisTOiiY oi- nil', imuoumation in itai.v.

beasts of prey, aiul Imvinp; aiscovere.l their lurking
place, fell on them vith erics of yt,»mazx,,annnaxx>,
« Murder then., murder then.." A part ot the tugi-
tives took refuge on a n.ountai... and having secured
themselves on the roeks, demanded a parley M.th tl.e
captain. After intreating hini to take pity «.. them,
their M-ives andchildreu,theysaid, that they and then-
father, had h.habiled that country for several ages,
without having given any person cause to c.nnp am
of their conduct ; that if they coukl .lot he allowed to
re.uain in it auy longer, without reuouncmg the.r
ilh, they hoped they would he per.nitted to ^.t,re
to son.e ..ther country ; that they would go, by sea
Z land, to any place which their superiors were
pleased to appoint ; that they would engage not to
'urn ; a..d that they would take no n.ore along
w th then. tha.. what was necessary for the.r sup-
t ou the journey, for they were ready to part
•th their piiperty rather than do violence to hen
"use enees by practising idolatry. They .mplored
•to withdraw his n.en, and not oblige thenj re-
ic antly to defend themselves, as they could not
answer for the consequences, if reduced to despa.r.
I ead of listening to this reasonable ofler and e-
p^ . it to his superiors, the captain ordered his
" n tt advance by a defile, upon which those on
the hill attacked the..i, killed the greater part, and
put the rest to flight.*

, ■.- 1 • .,or. i nn 199— 202. Pcriin relates
* Pcrrin, Hist. ^^- ^ ^^^^^ l'^^' ^^^^ ' ^vL taken place after
this umler the year 1 560, and speaks of it as ha^ ing 1

IILSTOllY OF THE IIEFOIIMATION IX ITALY. 2Gl

It was iiniiiediately resolved to avenge on the whole
bod}' this unpremeditated act of resistance on the part
of a few. Tlie monks wrote to Naples that tlie coun-
try w\as in a state of rebellion, upon which the vice-
roy dis])atched several companies of soldiers to Ca-
labria, and, to gratify the pope, followed them in
])crson. On his arrival, listening to the advice of
the inquisitors, he caused a proclamation to be made
delivering up Santo Xisto to fire and sword, which
obliged the inhabitants to remain in their conceal-
ments. By another proclamation, he offered a par-
don to the bannilii, or persons proscribed for crimes,
(who are a numerous class in A^aples,) on the con-
dition of their assisting in the war against the here-
tics. This brought a number of desperate characters
to his standard, who, being acquainted with the re-
cesses of the woods, tracked out the fugitives, the
greater i)art of whom were slaughtered by the sol-
diers, while the remainder took refuge in the ca-
verns of the high rocks, where many of them died
of hunger. Pretending to be displeased with the
severity of military execution, the inquisitors re-
tired to some distance from the place, and cited the
inhabitants of La Guardia to appear before them.
Encouraged by the reports which they had heard, the
people complied ; but they had no sooner made their

Louis Paschal came to Calahria. But I suspect he has placed it too
late. At least the author of Busdragi Epistola, which is dated loth
l^ecembcr, 15o8, speaking of the progress of the reformed doctrine in
Italy, says: '' Nam quotidie aliquid novi sentitur, nunc in hac civi-
tutc, nunc in ilia. Calabria miper fere tota tumultuata est." (Serin.
Antiq. tom. i. p. 322.)

2G2 HISTORY OF THE UEFOUMATION in ITALY.

appearance,tliaiiseventyof them were seized and con-
ducted in chains to Montalto. They were put to the
question by the orders of the inquisitor Panza, to in-
duce them not only to renounce their taith,but also to
accuse themselves and their brethren of having com-
im'tted odious crimes in their religious assemblies.
To wrinir a confession of this from him, Stefano Car-
lino was tortured until his bowels gushed out. Ano-
ther prisoner, named \\Tminel, having, in the extre-
mity of pain, promised to go to mass, the inquisitor
flattered himself that, by increasing the violence of
the torture, he could extort a confession of the
charge which he was so anxious to fasten on the pro-
testants. But though the exhausted sufferer was
kept during eight hours on the instrument called Mc^
//('//, he persisted in denying the atrocious calumny.
A person of the name of Marzone was stripped naked,
beaten with iron reds, dragged through the streets,
and then felled with the blows of torches. One of
his sons, a boy, having resisted the attempts made
for his conversion, was conveyed to the top of a
tower, from which they threatened to precipitate
him, if he would not end)race a crucifix, which was
presented to him. He refused; and the inquisitor,
in a rage, ordered him instantly to be thrown down.
Bernardino Conte, on his way to the stake, threw
awav a crucifix which the executioner had forced
into his hands ; upon which Panza remanded him to
prison, until a more dreadful mode of punishment
should be devised. He was conveyed to Cosenza,
where his body was covered with j)itch, in which he

HISTOKY OF THE REFOUMATIOX IN ITALY. 26S

was burnt to death before the people.* The manner
in which those of the tender sex were treated by this
brutal inquisitor, is too disgusting to be related here.
Suffice it to say, that he put sixty females to the
torture, the greater ])art of whom died in prison in
consequence of their wounds remaining undressed.
On his return to Naples, he delivered a great num-
ber of protestants to the secular arm at St. Agata,
where he inspired the inhabitants with the greatest
terror ; for, if any individual came forward to in-
tercede for the prisoners, he was inunediately put
to the torture as a favourer of heresy. t

Horrid as these facts are, they fall short of the
barbarity perpetrated on the same people at ]VIon-
talto in the year 1560, under the government of the
Marquis di Buccianici, to whose brother, it is said,
tlie pope had promised a cardinal's hat, provided the
province of Calabria was cleared of heresy. I shall
give the account in the words of a Roman catholic,
servant to Ascanio Caraccioli, who witnessed the
scene. The letter in which he describes it was pub-
lished in Italy, along with other narratives of the
bloody transaction. " Most illustrious Sir, — Having
written you from time to time wiiat has been done
here in the affair of heresy, I have now to inform you
of the dreadful justice which began to be executed on
these Lutherans early this morning, being the 11th
of June. And, to tell you the truth, I can compare

* Pcrri»i, ut supra, pj>. 202— 20 1.

t Ibid. p. 205-6'.

'2iji IIISTOUY 01- THE UEFOUMATION IN ITALY.

it to nothing but the slaughter of so many sheep.
They were all shut up in one house as in a sheep-
fold. The executioner went, and bringing out one
of them, covered his face with a napkin, or heiida,
as we call it, led hiui out to a field near the house,
and causing him to kneel down, cut his throat with
a knife. 'i'hen taking olf the bloody napkin,
he went and brought out another, whom he put
to death after the same manner. In this way, the
whole number, amounting to eiglity-eight men,
were butchered. I leave you to figure to yourself
the lamentable spectacle ; for I can scarcely refrain
from tears while I write ; nor was there any per-
son who, after witnessing the execution of one,
could stand to look on a second. The meekness
and patience with which they went to martyrdom
and death was incredible. Some of them at their
death professed themselves of tlie same faith with
us, but the greater part died in their cursed obsti-
nacy. AH the old men met their death with cheer-
fulness, but tlie young exhibited symptoms of fear.
I shudder while I think of the executioner with the
bloody knife in his teeth, the dripping napkin in
his hand, and his arms besmeared with gore, going
to the house and taking out one after another, just
as a butcher does the sheep which he means to kill.
According to orders waggons are already come to
carry away the dead bodies, which are appointed
to be quartered, and hung up on the public roads
from one end of Calabria to tlie other. Unless his
holiness and the viceroy of Naples coimuand the

IIISTOUY OF THE REIOIIMATION IN ITALY. 265

marquis de Buccianici, the governor of this province,
to stay his hand and leave off, he will go on to put
others to the torture, and multiply the executions
until he has destroyed the whole. Even to-day a
decree has passed that a hundred grown up women
shall he put to the question, and afterwards ex-
ecuted ; so that there may be a complete mixture,
and we may be able to say, in well-sounding lan-
guage, that so many persons were punished, partly
men and partly women. This is all that I have to
say of this act of justice. It is now eight o'clock,
and I shall presently hear accounts of what was said
by these obstinate people as they were led to ex-
ecution. Some have testified such obstinacy and
stubbornness as to refuse to look on a crucifix, or
confess to a priest ; and they are to be burnt alive.
The heretics taken in Calabria amount to sixteen
hundred, all of whom are condemned ; but only
eighty-eight have as yet been put to death. This
people came originally from the valley of Angro-
gna, near Savoy, and in Calabria are called Ultra-
montani. Four other places in the kingdom of
Naples are inhabited by the same race, but I do not
know that they behave ill ; for they are a simple
unlettered people, entirely occupied with the spade
and plough, and, I am told, show themselves suffi-
ciently religious at the hour of death."* Lest the
reader should be inclined to doubt the truth of such

* Tantalcon, Rcrum in Eccles. Cicst. Hibt. f. 337-8. Dc Porta, ii.
SOi)— 312.

266 HISTORY OF the llErOIlMATION IN ITALY.

horrid atrocities, the following summary account of
them by a Neapolitan historian of that age, may be
addeci. After giving some account of the Calabrian
heretics, he says : -Some had their throats cut, others
were sawn through the middle, and others thi-own
from the top of a high clitf : all were cruelly but de-
servedlv i)ut to death. It was strange to hear ot
their obstinacy ; for while the father saw his son put
to death, and the son his father, they not only gave
.0 symptoms of grief, but said joyfully that hey

would be angels of God : so much had the devil, to
whom they had given themselves up as a prey, de-
ceived them."* ,
IW the time that the persecutors were glutted
with blood, it was not difficult to dispose ot the
prisoners who remained. The men were sent to the
Spanish galleys ; the women and children wcn^esod
for slaves ; and, with the exception of a tew w ho
renounced their taith, the whole colony was exter-
minnted+ '' Many a time have they afthcted me
froin my youth," may the race of the Waldenses say,
.niany a tin.e have they afflicted me from my
youth. My blood,— the violence done to me and to
my flesh, be upon" Rome !

While the popes exerted themselves in the sup-
pression of the reformed doctrines in other parts ot
Italy, it may be taken for granted that they were

. Tommaso Costo, Seccnda Parte del Compcndio dell 'Istoria di
""Tt 'h' u; supra, p. 200-7. Hist, dcs Martyrs, f. .16, a.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 267

not idle within the territories of the cliurch. It
has !)eeii observed, that the procedure of the in-
quisition was milder in Italy than in Spain ; but
both the statement of the fact, and the reasons by
which it is usually accounted for, require to be
qualified. One of these reasons is, the policy with
^vhkh the ItaHans, including the popes, have al-
ways consulted their pecuniary interests, to which
they postponed every other consideration. This
however will be found to hold true as to their treat-
ment of the Jews, rather than of the Lutherans.
The second reason is, that the popes being tempo-
ral princes in the states of the church, had no oc-
casion to employ the inquisition to undermine the
rights of the secular authorities in them, as in otlier
countries. This is unquestionably true; and it
accounts for the fact that the court of inquisition,
long after its operations had been suspended in Italy,
continued to be warmly supported by papal in-
fluence in Spain. But at the time of which I
write, and during the remainder of the sixteenth
century, it was in full and constant operation, and
the popes found that it enabled them to accomplish
what would have baffled their power as secular so-
vereigns. The chief difference between the Italian
and Spanish inquisitions at that period, appears to
have lain in their policy respecting the mode of
punishment. The latter sought to inspire terror
hy the solemn spectacle of a public act of justice in
which the scaffold was crowded with criminals.

268 HISTORY or THE REVORMATION IN ITALY.

Except in the case of the remote and friendless Ca-
lahrians, it was the object of tlie former to avoid
all unnecessary publicity and eclat. With this view,
the mode of punishment usual at Venice was some-
times adopted at Rome ; as in the case of Barto-
lommeo Fonzio. * In other cases the victims were
brought to the stake singly or in small mimbers,
and often strangled before being committed to the
flames. The report of the uutos da fc of Seville
and Valladolid blazed at once over Europe : the
executions at Rome made less noise in the city, be-
cause they were less splendid as well as more fre-
quent ; and the rumour of them died away before
it could reach the ear of foreigners.

Paul III. threw many of the protestants into
the prisons of Rome ; they were brought forth
to execution by Julius III. ; and Paul IV. follow-
ed in the bloody track of his predecessor. Under
the latter the inquisition spread alarm everywhere,

. De Porta, ii. 33. Hciacgger states that Fo.io was .Irowncd
along with thirteen preachers of the gospel. (Diss, de M.racuhs
Eeeles. Evang. § «.) I conjecture that this writer was misled by
a cursory inspection of a letter, (then probably unpr.nted, from
Frechtus to BuUinger, dated July 2i, li3H, wh.chsays:- Bar-
tholoma^um Fontium Venetum. publiea fide s.bi a Romano 1 ont-
fice data, Romam pervenisse et fidei sua- rationem dedisse, ac sta-
tim ab Antichristo saceo impositum et Tiber, immersum m Don,.-
nummortuum, in hujus locum XIII. emersisse evangchcos pr.d.-
catores, qui Roma-, invito etiam Antichristo, Chr.stum annunctent.
(Fueslin, Epist. Reform. Helvet. p. 177.) U is rather a serious m.s-
take to confouud (mi:rgo with inimergu.

JIISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 2G9

and created the very evils which it sought to allay.
Princes and princesses, priests, friars and bishops,
entire academies, the sacred college, and even the
holy office itself, fell under the suspicion of heretical
l)ravity. The conclave was subjected to an expur-
gatory process. Cardinals Morone and Pole, with
Foscarari, bishop of IModena, Aloysio Priuli, and
other persons of eminence, were prosecuted as heri-
tics. It was at last found necessary to introduce
laymen into the inquisition, '' because," to use the
words of a contemporary Avriter, " not only many
bishops, and vicars, and friars, but also many of
the inquisitors themselves, were tainted with here-
sy." * Much of the extravagance displayed at
this time, is, no doubt, to be ascribed to the person-
al fanaticism and jealousy of the pontiff, who sent
for some of tlie cardinals to his death-bed, and re-
commended the inquisition to their support with
his latest breath. Such was the frenzied zeal of
this infallible dotard, that, if his life had been
spared a little longer, the poet's description of tlie
effects of superstition would have been realized,
" and one capricious curse enveloped all." Ir-
ritated by his violent proceedings, and by the
extortion and rapine with which they were ac-
companied, the inhabitants of Rome, as soon as
the tidings of his death transpired, rose in tumult,
burnt the house of inquisition to the ground,

• Bernini, Lstoria di tutte L'Heresia, secol. xvi. cap. vii. ; Piiig-
blanch's History of the Inquisition, i. 61-2.

270 IIISTOIIY OF THE REFORMATIOX IX ITALY.

after having liberated all the prisoners * broke down
the statue which Paul had erected for himself, and
dragging its members with ropes through the streets,
threw them into the Tiber.f

Pius IV. overturned several of the measures pur-
sued by his predecessor; but this proceeded more
from hatred to the house of Caralla than from mo-
deration or the love of justice. His pontificate, in
fact, exceeded that of Paul IV. in cruelty, being
disgraced by the massacres in Calabria, and nume-
rous executions in Rome, Venice, and other parts
of Italy. In the room of that which had been de-
molished in the tunuilt, he appropriated to the in-
quisition a house beyond the Tiber, whicli had be-
longed to one of the cardinals ; and added cells to
it for the reception of prisoners. This was com-
nundy called the Lutheran prison, and is said to
have been built on the site of the ancient Circus of
Nero, in which so many Christians were delivered
to the wild beasts. Here it was that Philip Came-
rarius, the son of Joachim Camerarius, and Peter
Rieter de Kornburg, a Bavarian gentleman, were
confined for two months during the year 15()5 ;
having been seized when visiting Rome on their
travels, in consequence of the information of a Jew,
who mistook Rieter for another German, with
whom he had quarrelled. But although the mis-

* Amon^ these prisoners was John Craig, one of our Reformers,
who drew up tlie National Covenant, in which Scotland abjured the
popish religion. (Life of John Knox, ii. 55.)

t Natalis Comes, Hist, sui Temporis, lib. xii. f. 2G3, 269.

HISTORY or THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 271

take was acknowledged by the informer, they were
detained as heretics, and obtained their Hberty only
through the interference of the imperial ambassa-
dor, accompanied with threats that the agents of
Rome would be treated in the same manner in
travelling through Germany.* Pompeio di Monti,
a Neapolitan nobleman, who had been seized by the
familiars of the inquisition, as he was crossing the
bridge of St. Angelo on horseback, along with his
relation, INIarcantonio Colonna, was lodged in the
same apartment with Camerarius, who derived from
liis conversation both Christian comfort and useful
counsel to avoid the snares which the inquisitors
were in tlie habit of spreading for their prisoners.f
During the subsequent year Di Monti was sentenced
to be burnt alive ; but, in consideration of a sum of
seven thousand crowns beingadvanced by his friends,
he was only strangled, and his body afterwards
committed to the flames. 4:

* Schelhorn, Vita Philippi Camerarii, pp. 8G— 101. Relatio de Cap-

tivitate Romana, ike. Philippi Camerarii et Petri Rieteri, pp. 7 30

51—64. This last work was published by Camerarius himself, and
contains a particular account of the examinations which he under-
went, and the causes of his release, accompanied with documents.

t Relatio, ut supra, p. 73- 1. They shared together the use of a
Latin Bible, which the baron had procured and kept concealed in his
bed. Camerarius having applied for a Psalter, to assist him in his
devotions, the noted Jesuit, Petrus Canisius, by whom he was visited
pressed on him the OJice of the Holy Virgin, as more conducive to
edification; and, when it was declined, sent him AmaJis de Gaul
and Cncsar's Commentaries, in Italian. (Ibid. pp. li, \5.)
X Relatio, ut supra, pp. 7, 8.

272 niSTORV of the IIEFOUMATIOX in ITALY.

Nor (lid the persecution slacken under Pius V. who
was created pope in the year 156G. The name of this
fierce and inexorable pontifT was Michele Ghisleri ;
and the cruelties conniiitted during the two preceding
pontificates are in no small degree to be ascribed to
his infhience, as president of the inquisition, a situ-
ation which he had held, under the designation of
the Alexandrine cardinal, since the late establish-
ment of that tribunal.- His elevation to the pope-
dom was followed by a hot persecution in Rome and
the states of the church. It raged with great vio-
lence in Bologna, where " persons of all ranks were
promiscuously subjected to the same imprisonment,
and tortures and death."t " Three persons," says a
writer of that time, '• have lately been burnt alive
in that city, and two brothers of the noble family
of Ercolani have been seized on suspicion of heresy,
and sent bound to Rome." At the same time many
of the German students in the university were
imprisoned, or obliged to fly.^ The following de-
scription of the state of matters in the year 1568 is
from the pen of one who was residing at that time
on the borders of Italy. '' At Rome some are every
day burnt, hanged, or beheaded ; all the prisons
and places of confinement are filled ; and they are
obliged to build new ones. Tliat large city cannot
furnisli gaols for the numbers of pious persons who

* Thuani Hist. lib. xxxix. ad an. UG(J. Vita Philippi Camcrarii,

p. 102. r^ n *

t Thobias Eglinus ad Bullingcrum, 20 Dcccni. 1567: Ue 1 orta,

ii. 460. T^ . . 11 * •

X Epistola Joachimi Camcrarii, 16 ¥vh. \:a\G: ct Epist. 1 otn

llietcri, prid. Id. Mali 1>G7 : Vita Phil. Camcrarii, pp. 17 ^, 107.

IlISTOUY OF THE JIEFOKMATIOX IN ITALY. 27ti

are continually apprehended. A distinguished per-
.son, named Carnesecclii, formerly ambassador to the
duke of Tuscany, has been committed to the flames.
Two persons of still greater distinction, baron Ber-
nardo di Angole, and count a Petiliano, a genuine
and brave Roman, are in prison. After long re-
sistance, they were at last induced to recant on a
promise that they should be set at liberty. But
what was the consequence ? The one was condemn-
ed to pay a fine of eighty thousand crowns, and to
suffer perpetual imprisonment; and the other to
pay one thousand crowns, and be confined for life
ill the convent of the Jesuits. Thus have they, by
a dislionourable defection, purchased a life worse
than death."* The same writer relates the follow-
ing anecdote, which shows the base stratagems whicli
llie Roman inquisition employed to get hold of its vic-
tims. " A letter from Genoa to Messere Bonetti states,
that a rich nobleman at Modena in the duchy of Fer-
rara was lately informed against as a heretic to the
pope, who liad recourse to the following method of
getting him into liis claws. The nobleman had a
cousin at Rome, wiio was sent for to the castle of
St. Angelo, and told, ' Either you must die, or write
to your cousin at Modena, desiring him to meet
you in Bologna at a certain hour, as you wish to
speak to him on important business.' The letter

* Thobias Eglinus ad Bullingeruin, 2 Mart. 1568: De Porta, ii.
ISO.

27^ inSTOllY OF THE UEFOIJMATIOX IX ITAI.Y.

was dispatdieil, and the nobleman having ridden hi
haste to Bologna, was seized as soon as he had dis-
monnted from his horse. His friend was then set at
liberty. This is dragon's game."*

It is not my intention to write a martyrology ;
but I cannot altogether pass over the names of those
men who intrepidly displayed the standard of truth
before tlie walls of Rome, and fell within the breach
of the antichristian citadel.

Faventino Fanino, or Fannio, a native of Faenza,
within the states of the church, is usually, though not
correctly, said to be the first who suOered martyrdom
for the protestant faith in Italy. Having received
the knowledge of tlie truth by reading the Bible
and other religious books in his native language, he
imparted it to his neighbours, and was soon thrown
into prison. Tlirough the persuasion of his friends
he purchased his liberty by recantation, which threw
him into great distress of mind. On recovering
from this dejection, he resolved to exert himself
more zealously than before in discovering to his
countrymen the errors by which they were deluded,
and in acquainting them with the way of salvation.
For this purpose, he travelled through the province
of Romagna. His plan was, after succeeding with
a few individuals, to leave them to instruct others,
while he removed to another place ; by which means
he disseminated extensively, in a short time, the

♦ Thol)ias Eglimis ad Bullii.geruni, 20 Mart. I.>(i8: ibid. p. ^87.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 275

knowledge of evangelical doctrine. He was at last
seized at a place called Bagnacavallo, and conducted
in chains to Ferrara. Neither threats nor solicita-
tions could now move him to waver in his confes-
sion of the truth. To the lamentations of his wife
and sister, wlio came to see him in prison, he replied,
** Let it suffice you, that, for your sakes, I once denied
my Saviour. Had I then had the knowledge which
by the grace of God I have acquired since my fall, I
would not have yielded to your entreaties. Go home
in peace." Of Fannio's imprisonment, which last-
ed two years, it may be said, that it fell out " to the
furtherance of the gospel, so that his bonds in Christ
were manifest in all the palace." He was visited by
the princess Lavinia dellaRovere, by Olympia Mora-
ta, and other persons of distinction, who were edi-
fied by his instructions and prayers, and took a
deep interest in his fate. AMien orders were issued
to prevent strangers from having access to him, he
employed himself in doing good to his fellow-pri-
soners, including several persons of rank, confined
for state crimes, upon whom his piety, joined with
uncommon modesty and meekness, produced such
an effect, that they acknowledged, after their en-
largement, that they never knew what true liberty
and happiness was, until they found it within the
walls of a prison. Orders were next given to put
him in solitary confinement, when he spent his time
in writing religious letters and essays, which he
found means of conveying to his friends, and several

27() HISTORY OF TTIK IIKVORMATIOX IX ITALY.

of which were published after his death. So much
were the priests afraid of the influence which he
exerted over those who approached hiin, that both
his prison and his keeper were repeatedly changed.
In the year 1550, Julius III. rejecting every inter-
cession made for his life, ordered him to be execut-
ed. He was accordingly brought out to the stake
at an early hour in the morning, to prevent the
people from witnessing the scene, and being first
strangled, was committed to the flames.*

At the same tinie, and in the same manner, did
Domenica della Casa Bianca suiter death. He was a
native of Basano in the Venetian states, and acquir-
ed the knowledge of the truth in Germany, whither
he had gone in the army of Charles V. With the zeal
of a young convert he endeavoured, on his return
to Italy, to disabuse the minds of his deluded coun-
trymen. After labouring with success in Naples
and other places, he was thrown into prison at
Piacenza, and refusing to retract what he had
taught, suffered martyrdom with great fortitude,
in the thirtieth year of his age.f

We have already met repeatedly with Giovanni
Mollio, the Bolognese professor, who was held in
the highest esteem through Italy for his learning

• Olympiic Morat.T Opera, pp. 90, 102, 107. Nolten, Vita Olyiti.
MorataN pp. 127-131. Hist, des Martyrs, f. 18(i.7. Bczx Icones,

sig. nil i.j. , , ,

t Hist, des Martyrs, f. 187, b. The following work I have not
seen : " De Fannii Faventini ac Doniinici Hassanensis mortc, qui
niiper ob Christum in Itaha Rom. PontiHeis jussu impie occisi sunt,
brevis historia ; Fran. Nip;ro Hassancnsi auctore. 1.550."

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALV. 277

and holy life.* After the flight of his brethren
Ochino and Martyr, in 1542, he was frequently in
great danger, and more than once in confinement,
from which he had always providentially escaped.
But after tlie accession of pope Julius III. he was
sought for with great eagerness, and being seized
at Ravenna, was conducted under a strong guard to
Home, and lodged in a strait prison.f On the 5th
of September 1553, a public assembly of the inqui-
sition was held with great pomp, which was attend-
ed by the six cardinals and their episcopal assessors,
before wliom a number of prisoners were brought
with torches in their hands. All of them re-
canted and had penances imposed on them, except
Mollio, and a native of Perugia, named Tisserano.
AMien the articles of accusation against Mollio were
read, permission was given him to speak. He de-
fended the different doctrines which he had taught
respecting justification, the merit of good works,
auricular confession, and the sacraments ; pronoun-
ced the power claimed by the pope and his clergy
to be usuri)C'd and antichristian ; and addressed his
judges in a strain of bold and fervid invective, which
silenced and chained them to their seats, at the same
time that it cut them to the quick. '' As for you,
cardinals and bishops," said lie, " if I were satisfied
that you had justly obtained that power which you
assume to yourselves, and that you had risen to

See before, pp. 79, 119.
t During liis imprisomnent he composed a connnentary on Genesis,
^vhieh is praised by Rabus. (Gcrdesii Italia Reform, p. 302.)

27H HISTORY OV Tin: llEFORMATION IN ITALY.

your eminence by virtuous deeds, and not by blind
ambition and tbe arts of profligacy, I would not say
a word to you. But since I see and know on tbe best
grounds, tliat you bave set moderation, and modes-
ty, and bonour, and virtue at defiance, I am con-
strained to treat you witbout ceremony, and to de-
Clare tbat your power is not from God but tbe devil.
If it were apostolical, as you would make tbe poor
world believe, tben your doctrine and life would re-
semble tbose of tbe apostles. Wben I perceive tbe
filtb and falsebood and profaneness witb wbicb it is
overspread, wbat cani tbink or say of your cburcb but
tbat it is a receptacle of tbieves and a den of robbers?
Wbat is your doctrine but a dream,— a lie forged by
bypocrites ^ Your very countenances proclaim tbat
your belly is your god. Your great object is to seize
and amass wealtb by every species of injustice and
cruelty You tliirst witbout ceasing for tbe blood
of tbe saints. Can you be tbe successors of tbe boly
apostles, and vicars of Jesus Cbrist-you wbo despise
Cbrist and bis word, wbo act as if you did not be-
lieve tbat tbere is a God in beaven, wbo persecute
to tbe deatb bis faitbful ministers, make bis com-
mandments of no effect, and tyrannize over tbe con-
sciences of bis saints ? Wberefore I appeal trom
your sentence, and summon you, O cruel tyrants
and murderers, to answer before tbe judgment seat
of Cbrist at tbe last day, wbere your pompous titles
and gorgeous trappings will not dazzle, nor your
miards and torturing apparatus terrify us. And m
Testimmiy of tbis, take back that wbicb you bave

HISTORY OF THE KEFORMATIOX IN ITALY. 279

given me." In saying tbis, be tlirew tbe flaming
torch which he held in his hand on the ground, and
extinguislied it. Galled and gnashing upon him with
their teeth, like the persecutors of the first Christian
martyr, the cardinals ordered Mollio and his com-
])aiiion, wlio a])proved of the testimony lie had borne,
to instant execution. They were conveyed, accord-
ingly', to the Cainpo del Fior, where they died with
the most pious fortitude.*

Pomponio Algieri, a native of Nola, in the king-
dom of Naples, was seized when attending the uni-
versity of Padua, and after being examined in the
presence of the podesta, was sent bound to Venice.
His answers, on the different examinations which
lie underwent, contain a luminous view of the truth,
and form one of the most succinct and nervous re-
futations of the principal articles of popery, from
scripture and the decretals, which is anywhere to
be found. They had the effect of spreading his
fame through Italy. The senators of Venice, from
regard to his learning and youth, were anxious to

* Hist, des Martyrs, f. 264-5. Gerdesii I tal. Reform, p. lOL. Zanchi
gives the following anecdote of this martyr in a letter to Bullinger :
" I will relate what (Mollio of) Montalcino, the monk who was af-
terwards burnt at Rome for the gospel, once said to rae respecting
your book, De origine erroris. As I had not read or seen the work,
he exhorted me to purchase it ; ' and (said he) if you have not mo-
ney, pluck out your right eye to enable you to buy it, and read it
with the left.' By the favour of providence, I soon found the book
without losing my eye ; for I bought it for a crown, and abridged it in
such a character as that not even an inquisitor could read it, and in
such a form, that, if he had read it, he could not have discovered what
"ly sentiments were." (Zanchii Epist. Hb. ii. p. 278.)

280 lUSTOllY OF THE KEFOUMATION IN ITALY.

set him at liberty, but as he refused to abandon his
sentiments, they condemned him to the galleys.
Yet yielding to the importunities of the nuncio, they
afterwards sent him to Rome, as an acceptable pre-
sent to the newly-elected pope, Paul I\'., by whom
he was doomed to be burnt alive, in the twenty-fourth
year of his age. The Christian magnanimity with
which the youthful martyr bore that cruel death
terrified the cardinals who attended to grace the
spectacle. — A letter written by Algieri, in his pri-
son at Venice, describes the consolations by which
he was refreshed and upheld under his sufferings,
in language to which I scarcely know a parallel.
It appears from this interesting document, that the
friends of evangelical truth were still numerous in

Padua.*

Equally distinguished was the constancy of Fran-
cesco Gamba, a native of Como. He was in the
habit of visiting Geneva for the sake of conversa-
tion with the learned men of that city. Having,
on one of these occasions, participated along witli
them of the Lord's supper, the news of this fact
reached home before him, and he was seized on the
Lake of Como, thrown into prison, and condemned
to the flames. His execution was prevented for a
few days by the interposition of the imperial am-
bassador and some of tlie Milanese nobility, during

* The iiutuiiiaph of this IcUcr, together with the lacts rcspeeting
the writer, were comnumicated l)y C'clio t^eeundo Curio to the histo-
rian Henry I'antaleon. (Uerum in Eccles. Cnst. part. ii. app. 3'29—
XV>. Conf. Bezic Icones, sit;. Ilh iij.)

HISTORY OF THE KEFORMATION IX ITALY. 281

which interval his firmness was assailed by the so-
phistry of the monks, the entreaties of his friends,
and the interest which many of his townsmen of
the popish persuasion took in his welfare. He mo-
destly declined the last services of the friars, ex-
l)ressed his gratitude to those who had testified a
concern for his life, and assured the judge, M^io la-
mented the necessity which he was under of exe-
cuting the law, tliat lie forgave him, and prayed
God to forgive him also. His tongue having been per-
forated to prevent him from addressing the specta-
tors, he kneeled down and prayed at the place of
execution ; then rising, he looked round the crowd,
which consisted of several thousands, for a friend,
to whom he waved his right hand, which was loose,
as the appointed sign that he retained his confi-
dence ; after which he stretched out his neck to the
executioner, who had been authorized, by way of
favour, to strangle him before committing his body
to the fire.*

Godfredo Varaglia, though a Piemontese, and put
to death in his native country, deserves a place
here from his intimate connexion with Italy. He
belonged to the order of Capuchins, and acquired
great celebrity as one of their preachers. Inherit-
ing from his father a strong antipathy to the Wal-
denses, he received a mission to labour in their con-

• 'I

This account is taken from a letter written by a gentleman of
Como to the martyr's brother. (Acta ct Monim. Marty rum, f. 270 —
VJi2. Woltii Lcct. Memorab. tom. ii. p. 68C.) Gamba suffered on
the 21st of Julv \o5i.

282 IIISTOIIV Ol- Tin: UErOHMATION IX ITALY.

HISTORY OF THE KEFORMATION IX ITALY. 283

version, from vv^hich the highest hopes, founded on
his elo({uence and zeal, were formed ; but the issue
turned out very diil'erent, for he ])ecamc a convert
to the opinions of his opponents, and, like another
Paul, began to i)reach the faith wliich he had sought
to destroy.* From that time he acted in concert
with Ochino. When the latter left Italy, he and
twelve others of his order were ai)])rehended and
conveyed to Rome. As the suspicions against them
were slight, or their interest i)owerful, they were
admitted to make an abjuration of heresy in gene-
ral terms, and confined to the capital on their parole
for five years. At the end of tliat period \\araglia
was persuaded to lay aside the cowl, and enter into
secular orders. His talents had procured him the
friendship of a dignitary of the church, from whom
he enjoyed a pension for some time ; and his patron
being appointed legate from the pope to the king
of France in the year 1556, he accompanied him to
that country. But his conscience not permitting
him any longer to conceal his sentiments, he parted
from the legate at Lyons and repaired to Geneva,
where he accepted an appointment to preach the
gospel to the Waldenses in the valley of Angrogna.f

* Lcgcr, llistoire ties Ej^lises Vaudoises, p. 29. Hospiniari, by mis-
take, makes Varaglia to have been the founder of the Capuchins.
(Dc Grig. Monach. cap. ix. p. 297.) This order of monks was insti-
tuted by Matthirus do Baschi. (Observationes Halenses, torn. iv.

p. 410.)

f This is the account which he gave of liimself on liis examination
before the supreme court of justice at Turin. (Hist, des Martyrs,
f. il8().)

1^^

Me had not laboured many months among that
people, when he was apprehended, conveyed to Tu-
rin, and condeuHied to death, which he endured
with great fortitude on the 29th of March 1558, in
the 50th year of his age. When interrogated on
his trial as to Iiis companions, he told his judges
that lie had lately been in company with twenty-
four preachers, who had mostly come from Geneva ;
and that the number of those who were ready to
follow them was so great that the inquisitors would
not find wood wherewith to burn them.*

Ludovico Paschali was a native of Cuni in Pie-
mont, and having acciuired a taste for evangelical
doctrine at Nice, left the army to which he had been
bred, and went to study at Lausanne. When the
A\\aldenses of Calabria applied to the Italian church
at Geneva for preachers, Paschali was fixed upon
as eminently qualified for that station. Having ob-
tained the consent of Camilla Guerina, a young wo-
man to whom he had previously been affianced, he
set out along with Stefano Negrino. On their ar-
rival in Calabria, they found the country in that
state of agitation which we have already described,
and after labouring for some time to quiet the minds
of the people and comfort them under persecution,
they were both apprehended at the instance of the

* The account of V^aragHa was transmitted to Pantaleon by CeHo
Secundo Curio. (Rerum in Eccl. Gcst. pp. 334, 33.5. Hist, des Mar-
tyrs, f. us — i21.) In 1j63, the nuncio Visconti wrote to cardinal
Borromeo, that more than the half of the Piemontese were Hugonots.
(Kpist. apud Gerdes. Ital. Ref. p. 94.)

2Hi IIISTOUY Ol Tin: UKIOUMATION IN ITALV.

inc[iusit()r. xXegrino was allowed to perish of hun-
ger in the prison. Paschali, after being kei)t eight
months in confinement at (^osenza, was conducted
to Nai)U's, from which lie was transferred to Rome.
Ili^ sufferings were great, and he bore them with
the most unconnnon fortitude and patience, as ap-
pears from the letters, equally remarkable for their
sentiment and pious unction, which he wrote from his
prisons to the persecuted flock in Calabria, to his
attlicted spouse, and to the church of Geneva. Giv-
ing an account of his joiu-ney from C^osenza to Na-
ples, he says : *' Two of our companions had been
prevailed mi to recant, but they were no better treat-
ed on that acnmnt ; and God knows what they will
sufVer at Rome, where they are to be conveyed, as
well as Manpiet and myself. The ^ood Spaniard,
our conductor, wished us to give him money to
be relieved from the chain by which we were
bound to one another ; yet in addition to this he put
on me a pair of handculTs so strait that they enter-
ed into the llesh and deprived me of all sleep ; and I
ibund that, if at all, he would not remove them un-
til he had drawn from me all the money I had,
amounting only to two ducats, which I needed for
my support. At night the beasts were better treat-
ed than we, for their litter was spread for them, ^v bile
we were obliged to lie on the hard ground without
any covering ; and in this condition we remained
for nine nights. On our arrival at Naples, we wc;i'e
thrust into a cell, noisome in the highest degree from
the damp and the putrid breath of the prisoners."

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALV. 285

His brother, who had come fromCuni, witli letters of
recommendation to endeavour to procure his liberty,
gives the following account of the first interview
which, after great difficulty, he obtained with him at
Iconic, in the presence of a judge of the inquisition.
** It was hideous to see him, with his bare head and
his hands and arms lacerated with the small cords
with which he was bound, like one about to be led
to the gibbet. On advancing to embrace him, I sank
to the ground. ' My brother !* said he, * if you are
a Christian, why do you distress yourself thus ?
Uo you not know, that a leaf cannot fall to the
earth without the will of God ? Comfort yourself
in Christ Jesus, for the present troubles are not
worthy to be compared M'ith the glory to come.'
' No more of that talk !' exclaimed the judge. AV^hen
we were about to i)art, my brother begged the
judge to remove him to a less horrid prison.

* There is no other prison for you than this.' —

* At least show me a little pity in my last days,
and God will show it to you.' — ' There is no pity
fur such obstinate and hardened criminals as you.'
A Piemontese doctor who was present joined me
in entreating the judge to grant this favour ; but
lie remained inflexible. ' He will do it for the
love of God,' said my brother. — ' All the other pri-
sons are full,' replied the judge. — * They are not
so full but that a small corner can be spared for
iiie.' — * You would infect all who were near you by
your smooth speeches.' — ' I will speak to none who
<loes not speak to me.' — ' Be content : you cannot

286 HISTORY or the heformatiox in italy.

have another phice/— * I must then have patience/
replied my brother." How convincing a proof of
the power of the gospel do we see in the confidence
and joy displayed hy Paschali under such protract-
ed and exhausted sufferings. ** My state is this,"
says he, in a letter to his former hearers : " I feel
my joy increase every day as I approach nearer to
the hour in which I shall be offered as a sweet-
smelling sacrifice to the Lord Jesus Christ, my
faithful Saviour ; yea, so inexpressible is my joy,
that I seem to myself to be free from captivity, and
am prepared to die not only once, but many thou-
sand times, for Christ, if it were possible ; never-
theless, I persevere in imploring the divine assist-
ance by prayer, for I am convinced that man is a
miserable creature, when left to himself, and not
upheld and directed by God." And a short time
before his death, he said to his brother, " I give
thanks to my God, tliat, in the midst of my long-
continued and severe affliction, there are some who
wish me well ; and I thank you, my dearest brother,
for the friendly interest you have taken in my wel-
fare. But as for me, God has bestowed on me that
knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ which assures
me that I am not in an error, and I know that I
must go by the narrow way of the cross, and seal
my testimony with my blood. I do not dread
death, and still less the loss of my earthly goods ;
for I am certain of eternal life and a celestial in-
heritance, and my heart is united to my Lord and
Saviour." When his brother was urging him to

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 287

yield somewhat, with the view of saving his life
and property, he replied, " O ! my brother, the
danger in which you are involved gives me more
distress than all that I suffer, or have the prospect
of suffering ; for I perceive that your mind is so
addicted to earthly things as to be indifferent to
heaven." At last, on the 8th of September L560,
lie was brought out to the conventual church of
Minerva, to hear his process publicly read ; and
next day he a])peared, without any diminution of
his courage, in the court adjoining the castle of
St. Angelo, ^vllere he was strangled and burnt, in
the view of the pope and a party of cardinals as-
sembled to witness the spectacle.*

Passing over others, I shall give an account of
two individuals of great celebrity for their talents
and stations, but whose names, owing to the
secrecy with which they were put to death, have
not obtained a place in the martyrology of the
protest ant church.

Pietro Carnesecchi was a Florentine of good
birth, and liberally educated.f From his youth it
appeared that he was destined to " stand before
kings and not before mean men." Possessing a
fine person, and a quick and penetrating judgment,
he united affability with dignity in his manners, and

* Hist, des Martyrs, f. 506—516. Leger, Hist, des Eglises Vau-
doises, part. i. p. 204.

t Canierarius says, that Francesco llobcrtello was his preceptor.
(Epistok' Flaminii, &c. apud Schelhornii Ama-nit. Literaria?, torn. x.
p. I'-iOO.) If this was the case, the master must have been as young
as the scholar. (Tiraboschi, torn. vii. p. 811.)

08.S lllSIOliV Ol llir. Kl.rOUMATION IN- ITAl.V.

' was at once .lisc.vet an.l generous. Sadolet praises
}iini as " a young u>au of .listinguisl.e.l virtue and
liberal am.n.i.lislin.ents ;"* and Henibo speaks of
l.in. in terms of the highest respect and afTection-t
He was n.a<le secretary, and afterwards apostohcal
protonotary, to Clement VII., who bestowed on Inm
two abbacies, one in Naples, and the other in France ;
and so great was liis influence witli that pope, that
it was connnonly said, " that the church was go-
verned by Carnesecchi rather than Cknsent.' \ et
he conducted himself with so nuuh modesty and
propriety in his delicate situation, as not to incur
envy during the life of his patron, an<l to escape dis-
.vrace at his death. Hut the advancement ot Car-
nesecchi in the career of worldly honour which he
had commenced so auspiciously, was arrested by a
dillerent cause. At Naples he formed an mt.macy
with Valdez, from whom he imbibed the reformed
doctrine;; and, as he possessed great candour and
love of truth, his attachment to these doctrines daily
acquired strength from reading, meditation, and con-
ference with Ic'arned men. During the better days
of cardinal Pole, ho made one of the select party
which met in that prelate's house at Viterbo, and
spent the time in religious exercises.^ ^^ lien his

* Epist. Fauiil. vol. ii. p. ISii.
+ 1/ctterc, torn. lii. pp- *•*' — *39.
t Laikrcliii Amialcs, aiUn. 1•'>«7•
| " II resto del giorno pass,, con qucsta santa c utile couipapn.a
de"Sig. Carnesecchi, e Mr. Marco Antonio Fla.uinio nostro. Utile
io chiamo, perclK. la sera poi Mr. Marco Antonio da pasto a me e
alia miglior parte .lella fan,i?Ua, ,le illo cibo qui non pent, .n tal ma-

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 289

friend Flaminio, startling at the Ihoiiglit of leaving
the church of Rome, stopped short in his inquiries,
Carnesecchi displayed that mental courage which
welcomes truth when she tramples on received pre-
judices, and follows her in spite of the hazards which
environ her path.* After the fliglit of Ochino and
Martyr, he incurred the violent suspicions of those
who prosecuted the search after heresy, and in 1546',
he was cited to Rome, where cardinal de Ruriros.
one of the inquisitors, was ordered to investigate the
cliarges brought against him. lie was accused of cor-
responding with the lieretics who had fled from
justice, supplying suspected persons with money
to enable them to retire to foreign i)arts, giving tes-
timonials to schoolmasters, who, under the pretext
of teaching the rudiments of knowledge, poisoned the
minds of the youth with their heretical catechisms,
and j)articularly with having recommended to the
duchess of Trajettof two apostates, whom he praised
to the skies as apostles sent to preach the gospel to
the heathen. t Through the favour of the mild poii-
tiff Paul III. the matter was accommodated, but
Carnesecchi, to avoid the odium which had been
excited against him, found it necessary to quit Italy

niera che io non so quando io abbia sentito maggior consolatione, ne
niaggior edificaiione." Lettere, il Card. Reg. Polo al Card. Gasp.
Contarini; di Viterbo, alii ix di Decenibrc loH. (Poli Epibtola^
vol. iii. p. 42.)

* See before, p. 171.

t See before, p. 162.

X Ladtrchii Annal. ad an, 1.jG7.

290 IIISTOUY OI THE IlFrOllMATlON IN ITALY.

for a season. After spending some time with Mar-
garet, dueliess of Savoy, who was not unfriendly to
the reformed doetrines, he Avent to France, wliere
he enjoyed the favour of the new monarch, Henry
II., and his queen, Catharine de Medicis. In the
year 1552, he returned to liis native country, con-
firmed in his opinions hy the intercourse which he
liad had with foreign protestants,* and took up his
residence chiefly at Padua, within the Venetian ter-
ritories, hecause he was in k^ss danger there from the
intrigues of the court of Konus and could enjoy the
socie'ty of those wlio were of the same religicms sen-
timents with himself. Paul IV. had not heen long
seated on the papal throne when a criminal process
was commenced against him. As he did not choose
to put himself at the mercy of that furious pope, lie
was formally sunnnoned at Rome and Venice, and
failing to appear within the prescrihed term, the sen-
tence of excommunication was launched against him,
by which he was delivered over to the secular
power to be punished, wlien taken, as a contu-
macious heretic.f When (iiovanni Angelo de' Me-
dici ascended the chair of St. l^eter, under the

* Ladcrchiiis says he formed an intimacy with Philip Mclanclithon.
But as the latter was never in France, Schelhorn thinks the person
referred to might be Andrew Melanchthon, a relation of that reform-
er, who was imprisoned for preaching in the Agenois. (Amtrn. Hist.
Eccles. tom.ii. p. 19'2.)

t The process against him was commenced October 25, 1557 ; the
monitory smiimons was issued March 2I-, 155S ; and the excommuni-
cation was passed April (i, 155<). ( Laderchius, ut supra.)

.s.

■ '::<

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 291

name of Pius IV., Carnesecchi, who liad always
lived on terms of great intimacy with the family
of this pontiff, obtained from him the removal of
the sentence of excommunication without being
required to make any abjuration of his opinions.
Tlie popish writers complain, that, notwithstanding
these repeated favours, he still kept up his corre-
spondence with Jieretics in Naples, Rome, Florence,
\'enice, Pa(hia, and other ])laces both within and
without Italy; that he gave supplies of money to
Peter Gelid, a sacramentarian heretic, Leone Mari-
onio, and others who had gone to Geneva; and
that he recommended the writings of the Lutherans
while he spoke degradingly of those of the catholics.
On the accession of Pius V. he retired to Florence,
and j)ut himself under the protection of Cosmo, the
grand duke of Tuscany, justly dreading the venge-
ance of the new pontiffl From papers afterwards
found in his possession, it appears that he had in-
tended to retire to Geneva, but was induced by the
confidence which he placed in his protector to delay
the execution of his purpose until it was too late. The
pope despatched the master of the sacred palace to
Florence with a flattering letter to Cosmo, and in-
structions to request that he would deliver up Car-
nesecchi as a dangerous lieretic, who had long la-
houred in various ways to destroy the catholic faith,
and been the instrument of corrupting the minds
of multitudes. Wlien the master of the palace
arrived, and delivered his letter, Carnesecchi was

292 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IX ITALY.

sitting at table with the grand duke, who, to ingra-
tiate himself with the pope, ordered his guest to
be immediately arrested as a prisoner, and con-
ducted to Ronie ; a violation of the laws of hos-
pitality and friendship for wliich he received the
warm thanks of his lioliness.* The prisoner was
proceeded against without delay, before the court of
inquisition, on a charge consisting of thirty-four
articles, which comprehended all the i)eculiar doc-
trines held by protestants in opposition to the church
of Roine.t These articles were proved by witnesses,
and by the letters of the prisoner, who, after defend-
ing himself for some time, admitted the truth of the
charge, and owned the articles generally. We have
the testimony of a poi)ish historian, who consulted
the records of the inquisition, to the constancy with
which Carnesecchi adhered to his sentiments. *' With
hardened heart (says he) and uncircumcised ears
he refused to yield to the necessity of his circum-
stances, and rendered the admonitions and the often
repeated delays granted him for deliberation use-
less, so that he could not by any means be induced

* Thuani Hist, ad an. UOG. Ladercliius, who has inserted in
his Annals the pope's letters to Cosmo, admits the truth of l)e Thou's
narrative as to the manner of Carnesecchi's ai)prehcnsion, which he
applauds, — " ex bene acta re et optima Cosmi mente." The letter
demanding Carnesecchi is dated June 20, and the letter of thanks

July 1, loG6.

f The articles are given at large by Ladcrchius, in his Annals,
from which they have been reprinted by Schclhorn, (Araocn. Hist.
Eccles. torn. ii. pp. 197 — 205,) and by Gcrdesius with some abridg-
ment. (Ital. Kef. pp. lU—liH.)

HISTORY OF THE REFOR:NrATION IN ITALY. 293.

to abjure his errors and return to the bosom of the
true religion, as Pius wished, who had resolved, if
lie repented, to visit liis ])ast crimes with a milder
j)unisliment than they merited."* We will not run
great risk of transgressing the law of charity by
sujiposing that the inquisitors detained him fifteen
months in prison with the view of having the credit
of proclaiming liim a i)enitent; and that no confession
would have saved him from a capital punishment.
On the fid of October 1567, he was beheaded, and
Iiis body committed to the flames.f

It has been the barbarous policy of the church of
Rome to destroy the fame, however well earned,
and, if possible, to abolish the memory and blot out
the verv names, of those whose lives she has taken
away for heresy. When we consider that Flaminio
did not altogether escape this occulta censura, and
that his name was expunged from letters which
were j)ublished after his death, though he was
never formally convicted of heresy, and had seve-

* Ladcrchiup, ut supra.

t Laderchius, Annales ad an. 15G7. — Thuani Hist, ad an. 1566.
Tiraboschi, Storiadella Lett. Ital. tomo vii. pp. 3Si-, 385. Laderchius
says, the sentence was passed Aug. 16, and publicly read Sept. 21.
Tiraboschi has given the date of the execution from Storia del Gran
iJucato di Toscano, by Sig. Galluzzi, a work which I regret not hav-
ing seen. Laderchius expresses great displeasure at De Thou for
saying that Carnesecchi was condemned to the fire without saying
whether he was to be committed to it dead or alive; and he asserts
that the Roman church never determined that heretics should be
burnt alive. But in his next volume he found it necessary to cor-
rect his own error, and to admit the truth of what he had denied.
(AnnaL torn, xxiii. f. 200.)

294? insTOiiY OF Tin: reformation in italy.

IIISTOllV OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 295

ral friends in the sacred college, need we wonder
that the name of Carnesecchi should have suffered
the same fate ?* The suhject is curious, and it may
not be improj)er to adduce an example or two. The
celebrated Muretus was engaged in publishing a
work which was intended to contain a poem in
praise of Carnesecchi. In the mean time a prosecu-
tion for heresy was commenced against the object
of his panegyric, which threw the delicate author
into great perj)lexity. Averse to lose the ode, but
afraid to associate himself with a person suspected
of heresy, he held a consultation on the subject, and
the result was, that liis caution conquered his vanity
and the poem was suppressed. f — Carnesecchi was the
intimate friend of the learned printer Aldus Manu-
tius, and was godfather to one of his sons ; but in
a collection of the letters of Manutius, published af-
ter Carnesecchi had incurred tlie heretical stigma,
the o'odfather sinks into one Pero. In an edition
of his letters published in 1 55S, the same scholar,
writing to Muretus, speaks in the most kindly man-
ner of /?M' Carnesecchi ; but in subsequent editions,

* " Neque tamen occultam ccnsuram cfFugit, (Flaminius) ejus no-
mine passim in e})istolis, quiu jwstca publicata' sunt, cxpuncto."
(Thuani Hist, ad an. 15ol.) Schclhorn has produced a number of
instances in illustration of the truth of De Thou's assertion. (Er-
gotzlichkeitcn, torn. i. pp. 201 — 203.)

t The passage relating to this subject is in a letter to Aldus Ma-
nutius, and begins in the following characteristic strain : " Erat ad Pe-
truin Tov Ir.ooK^iti (^finge ali<juod ijusniodi nomen aut latinum aut ver-
naculum, ita quern dicuni intelliges) ode una jam pridem scripta ; de
qua, quid faciam, nescio," &c. (Mureti Orat. et Epist. lib. i. p. 4^2-
Lips. 1672.)

including those which proceeded from his own press,
we find the harsh name of his friend gratefully soft-
ened down to MoHni Again, in dedicating an edi-
tion of the works of Sallust to cardinal Trivulzi, Ma-
nutius mentions " Petrus Carneseccus, the protono-
tarv, an honoured person, distinguished for every vir-
tue, and excelling in a cultivated mind any that I have
met with in the course of my life j" but in the sub-
se(iuent editions of the dedication we look in vain
for the name of the '' honoured" protonotary ! *
To come nearer to our own times, about the mid-
dle of the eighteenth century, an edition of the
])oems of Flaminio was published by Mancurti, one
of his countrymen, who found it necessary, or judg-
ed it j)roper, to omit the odes addressed to Car-
nesecchi, " lest he should incur the censure of those
who have said and written that Marcus Antonius
Flaminius was a heretic, because he cultivated the
friendship of Carnesecchi."! Nor is this all ; for the

* Schclhorn, Ergiitzlichkeiten, tom. i. pp. 205 — 209.

t Flaminii Carmina, ex prelo Cominiano, 1743, p. 375. The editor,
Franciscus Maria Mancurtius, had included the odes referred to in
a former edition of the work, printed in 1727. (Schclhorn, Ergcitz-
lichkeiten, tom. i. pp. 189, 191, 197. Conf. Amoen. Hist. Eccl. tom.
ii. p. 209.) 1 subjoin one of the poems, from which the learned
reader will judge of the violence which the editor must have done to
his taste, when he prevailed on himself to exclude it :

Ad Petrum Carnesecum.

O dulce hospitium, O lares beati,
O mores faciles, O Atticorum
Conditip sale coUocutiones,
Quam vos a.gro animo, et laborioso,
Quantis cum lacrymis miser relinquo !

296 IIISTOIIV OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

learned editor, in quoting from a dedication to a
former edition of the poems in whicli Carnesecchi
was highly praised,* suppresses his name ; forget-
ting, perhaps, that his excellent author had himself
been formerly subjected to tlie same unworthy treat-
ment. These facts are not irrelative to our subject.
They will suggest to the intelligent reader a train
of reflections as to the fatal influence which bigotry
and intolerance must have exerted at this time in
Italy over all that is liberal in letters or generous
in spirit. If it is only after the most laborious
search, and often in the way of catching at obscure
liints, detecting fallacious names, and cross-examin-
ing and confronting editions of the works of the
learned, that we have been able to discover much of
what we know of the Reformation and its friends in
that country, how many facts respecting them must

Cur nie sfpva neccssitas abire,
Cur vultum, atque oculos, jocosque suaves
Cogit linqucre tarn veinisti amici?
Ah rcges valeant, opesque rcguin,
Et quisquis potuit doinos potentum
Anteponcrc camlidi sodalis
lilaiulis alloquiis, facctiisquc ;
Sed quanquam procul a tuis ocellis,
Jucundissiine Carncsecc, abibo
Regis iinperiuin iiiei secutus,
Non loci tanieii ulla, temporisve
Intervalla, tuos mihi lepores,
Non mors ipsa adiniet. Manebo tecum.
Tecum semper ero, tibique semper
Magnam partem animie mete reliiiquam,
Mellite, optime, mi venuste amice.
* Scbelhorn, Ergiitz. torn. i. p. 196-7.

i
J

■^

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 297

remain hid, or have been irrecoverably lost, in con-
sequence of the long-continued practice of such sys-
tematic sui)pression and combined imi)osture ?

Wc have already spoken of Aonio Paleario, *
or, according to his ])roper name, Antonio dalla
Paglia.f On quitting the Siennes^^ about the year
1543, hii embraced an invitation from the senate of
Lucca, where he taught the Latin classics, and act-
ed as orator to the republic on solemn occasions. To
this place he was followed by Maco J31aterone, one of
his former adversaries, a sciolist who possessed that
volubility of tongue which captivates the vulgar
ear, and whose ignorance and loquacity had been
severely chastised, but not corrected, by the satiri-
cal ])en of Aretino. Lucca at that time abounded
with men of enlightened and honourable minds ;
and tlie genuine eloquence of Paleario, sustained by
the lofty bearing of his spirit, enabled him easily
to triumph over his unw^orthy rival, who, disgraced
and driven from tlie city, sought his revenge from
the Dominicans at Rome. By means of his friends
in the conclave, Paleario counteracted at that
time the informations of his accuser, which, how-

^ See before, p. 12a, &c,

t Tiraboschi, vii. Uo2.— The wretched iambics in which Latinus
Latinius charges Paleario with having renounced his baptism by
clianging his Christian name, and alleges that his dropping the letter
T trom it was ominous of the manner in which " the wretched
old man expiated his crimes on a gibbet," have been thought wor-
thy of a place in the Menagiana. De la Monnoye, who wrote an
epigram in Greek and Latin in opposition to them, says, " They are
so frigid that they would have quenched the flames in which Palea^
no was consumed." (Menag. torn. i. p. 217.)

298 HISTORY Ol THE REFORMATION IN ITALV.

ever, ^vcre produced against him at a future period.*
Meanwhile, his spirit submitted with rehictauce to
the drudwrv of teaching languages, while his income
was insufhcient for supporting the domestic esta-
blisliment which liis wife, who had been genteel-
ly bred, aspired to.f I" these circumstances, after
remaining about ten years at Lucca, he accepted an
invitation from the senate of Milan, which conferred
on him a liberal salary, together with special im-
nninities, as professor of elocpience.t He kept his
place in that city during seven years, though in
great perils amidst the severities practised towards
those susjiected of favouring the new opinions. But
in the year 1. >()(), while deliberating about his re-
moval to liologna,^' lie was caught in the storm
which burst on so many learned and excellent men
at the elevation of Pius V. to the pontifical chair.
Being seized by Frate Angelo de Cremona, the
inquisitor, and conveyed to Rome, he was commit-
ted to close confinement in the Torre Nona. His
book on the Benefit of Christ's death, his commend-
ations of ()chino,|| his defence of himself before the
senators at Sienna, and the susi)icions which he had
incurred during his residence at that place and at
Lucca, were all revived against him. After the
whole had been collected and sifted, the charge at last

• Epistoliv, lib. iii. 10, 17 : Opera Palcarii, pp. 5^25—^31, 550—
551. edit. Ilalbaiieri.

+ Epist. lib. iv. i : ibid. p. 563.

+ Ilalbaucr has given the diploma of the civic authorities, in his

Life of Taleario, pp. 27— '29.

§ Tirabosclii, vii. 1451.. |l Pahaiii Opera, p. 10^2-3.

HISTORY OE THE REFORMATION IN ITALV. 299

resolved itself into the four following articles :— that

Jie denied purgatory ; disapproved of burying thedead
in churclies, preferring the ancient Roman method
of sepulture without the walls of cities ; ridiculed
the monastic hfe; and appeared to ascribe justifi-
cation solely to confidence in the mercy of God for-
giving our sins through Jesus Christ.* For holding
these opinions, he was condemned, after an imt
prisonment of three years, to be suspended on a
gibbet and his body to be given to the flames ; and
the sentence was executed on the :3d of July 1570,
in the seventieth year of his age.f A minute',
whi( h professes to be an official document of the
Dominicans ^vllo attended him in his last mo-
ments, but which has neither names nor signa-
tuivs, states that Paleario died confessed and con-
trite.}: The testimony of such interested report-
ers, tliough it liad been better authenticated, is
not to be implicitly received ; as it is well kno'wn
that they were accustomed to boast, withgut the
slightest foundation, of the conversions which they
made on such occasions.^ In the present instance

• Laderchii Annales, torn. xxii. p. 202.

t ^Vriters have varied as to the year of his martyrdom, wliich
however may be considered as determined by an extract from a re-
gister kept m San Giovanni de' Eiorentini di Roma, which was print-
ed in Novelle Letterarie dell' Anno 17i5, p. 328, and reprinted by
bchclhorn. (Dissert, de Mino Celso Senensi, p. 25-6'.)

t Diss, de Mino Celso, p. 26. Tiraboschi, following Padra Lago-
marsmi and Abbate Lazzeri, has adopted this opinion, but solely
on the ground referred to in the text.

§ Conringius has shown this from a variety of examples. (Prce-
tat. ad Cassandri et Wicelii Libr. de Sacris nostri temporis Contro-
versiis, p. 148.;

■j,-

,»,;

300 iiisToiiY OF Tin: iii:roiiMATiox ix italy.

HISTORY OF THE RKFORMATIOX IN ITALY. 301

it is contradicted })y tlic |)()j)i>h coiitiiiuator of the
annals of tlic cliurcli, w lio drew his materials from
the records of the inciuisilioii, and represents Pale-
ario as dyini^- impenitent. His words are: '* When
it aj)pe[ired that this son of 15elial was ohstinate
and refractory, and could hy no means be recovered
from the darkness of error to the lij^ht of truth, he
was deservedly delivered to the fire, that, after suf-
fering' its nu)mentary pains here, he mi«^ht !)e hound
in everlasting flames hereafter."* The unnatural and
disordered concei)tions which certain persons have
of right and wrong prompt them to imi)art facts
which their more judicious hut not less guilty as-
sociates would have concealed or coloured. To
this we owe the following account of Paleario's be-
haviour on his trial before the cardinals of the in-
quisition. " When he saw that he could produce
nothing in defence of his pravity," says tlie annal-
ist just quoted, " falling into a rage, he broke out
in these words : ' Seeing your eminences have so
many credible witnesses against me, it is unneces-
sary for you to give yourselves or me longer trou-
ble. I am resolved to act according to the ad-
vice of the blessed apostle Peter, when he says,
Christ sulfered for us, leaving us an example that
we should follow his steps ; who did no evil, nei-
ther was guile found in his mouth ; who, when he
was reviled, reviled not again, when he sulfered
threatened not, but committed himself to him that

* LiuUrcliii Annal. toiii. xx. f. 20 1.

judgeth righteously. Proceed then to give judg-
ment — ])ronounce sentence on Aonio ; and thus
gratify his adversaries and fulfil your oflfice.' "*
Instead of supposing that the person who uttered
these words was under the influence of passion,
every reader of right feeling will be dis])osed to ex-
claim, ** Here is the patience and the faith of the
saints !" Before leaving his cell for the place of
execution, lie was permitted to write two letters,
one to ln*s wife, and another to his sons, Lampri-
dio and Fedro.f They are short, but the more af-
fecting from this very circumstance ; because it is
evident, that he was restrained by the fear of
saying any thing which, by giving offence to his
judges, might lead to the suppression of the letters,
or to the harsh treatment of his family after his
death. They testify the pious fortitude with which
he met his death, as an issue which lie had long an-
ticipated and wished for, and that m armth of con-
jngal and ])aternal afifection which breathes in all
his letters. t- They also afiford a negative proof that
the report of his recantation was unfounded ; for if
he had really changed his sentiments, would he not
have felt anxious to acquaint his family with the
fact? and if his repentance had been merely feigned,
would the monks have insisted on his noticing the
subject when they granted him permission to write ?
Paleario had, before liis apprehension, taken care

* Laderchius, ut supra^ f. 206. .

t He left two sons and two daughters.

t The letters will be found in the Appendix.

. %.\

•.f

!% ^I

302 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

to secure his writinGfs against the risk of suppres-
sion, by coininitting them to the care of friends
whom he could trust ; and their repeated publication
in protestant countries has saved them from those
mutilations to which the works of so many of his
countrymen have been su})jected. From his letters
it appears that lie enjoyed the friendship and corre-
spondence of the most celebrated persons of that time
both in the church and iu the republic of letters.
Among- the former were cardinals Sadolet, Jiembo,
Pole, IVIaffei, Badia, Filonardo, and Sfondrati ; and
among the latter Flaminio, Riccio, Alciati, \"ittorio,
Lampridio, and liuonamici. His poem on the Im-
mortality of the soul was received with applause by
the learned.* It is perhaps no high praise to say
of his Orations, that they placed him above all the
moderns who obtained the name of Ciceronians from
their studious imitation of the style of the Roman
orator ; but they are certainly written with much
elegance and spirit.f His Letter, addressed to the
reformers, on the council of '^Frent, and his Testi-
mony and Pleading against the Roman pontiffs,

* Tiraboschi, toiii. vii. j)]). Mot — 14oC. Sadolet says of it, in a
letter to Sebastian (iry]>hn?iiP, " Tarn gravitcr, tarn criulite, tarn
etiani ct verbis et numeris apte et eleganter tractatuni esse ; nibil ut
ferine nostrormn tcniporiun legerini, quod me in eo genere delectavit
raagis." (Palearii Opera, p. G27 ; conf. p. 621..)

t Morlioff says, "■ Longe aliter sonat quod Palcarius scribit, quani
Longolius et alii inepti Ciceronis irnitatores." (Colleg. Kpistolic.
p. 17.) Crenius has collected several testimonies to the merit of Pa-
learius. (Animad. Philolog. ct Historic, part. ii. pp. 18 — 23. Conf.
jMiscell. Groning, torn. iii. p. 02-.S. Des Maizeaux, Scaligerana, tSic.
tom. ii. p. 183.) A Life of Paleario is in Bayle, and in Niccron.

HISTORY OF THE UEI ORMATIOX IN ITALY. 303

evince a knowledge of the scriptures, soundness in
the faith, candour, and fervent zeal, worthy of a
reformer and confessor of tlie truth.* His tract on
the Benefit of the death of Christ was uncommonly
useful, and made a great noise at its first publica-
tion. Forty thousand copies of it were sold in tlie
course of six years.f It is said that cardinal Pole
had a share in composing it, and that Flaminio
wrote a defence of it ;t and activity in circulating it
formed one of the charges on which cardinal Mo-
rone was imprisoned and Carnesecchi committed to
the flames.^ AVhen we take into consideration his

* The Letter appears to have hcen written with the view of heing sent
along with Ochino, when he retired from Italy ; and one copy of it was
addressed to Bucer and another to Calvin. Salig gave an account of
It, without knowing the author ; (Historic der A ugspurgischen Con-
fession, tom. ii. lib. v. p. (JG ;) but it was published for the first time in
1737, by Schelhorn, along with a short account of the martvrdom of
the author. (Amwnit. Hist. Ecclcs. tom. i. pp. 125—462.) The other
work, entitled Tcsiimonia ct Actio hi Ponlifices Rnnanos ct eorum
Asscclas, though intended also by the author to be sent across the
Alps, was first found in his hand-writing at Sienna in the year 15'Ki
and printed in 160G at Lcipsic. (Halbauer, Vita Palearii, p. to.)
1 he only peculiar opinion which the author adopted was the unlaw-
fulness of an oath in any case, which he endeavours to support at
some length. (Opera, p. 317, c^c.) M'hen he calls marriage a sa-
crament, he appears to me merely to mean that it was a divine or sa-
cred ordinance. (Ibid. pp. 305, 315.)

t Schelhorn, Ergotzlichkeiten, torn. i. p. 27.

X Schelhorn, AmaMiit. Hist. Eccl. tom. i. p. 15G. Laderchii An-
nal. tom. xxii. p. 32G.

§ Wollii Lect. Memorab. tom. ii. p. (^oQ. Schelhorn, ut supra,
torn. ii. p. 205. The only writer for two centuries, so far as I know'
who lias seen this rare work is Ileiderer. The proper title is : Trat-
tato utilissimo del beneficio de Giesu Christo crucifisso, verso i Chris-
tiani. \'enetiis apud Bernardinum de Bindonis, Anno Do. 154.3.

304- JIISTOUY OF THE REFOllMATIOX IX ITALY.

talents, his zeal, the utility of his writings, and the
sufFerings which he endured, Paleario must !)e view-
ed as one of the greatest ornaments of the reformed
cause in Italy.^

A numht'r of other excellent men suflered about
the same tiinc with Carnesecchi iuid Paleario, of
whom the most noted were Julio Zannetti and J5ar-
tolonnneo liartoccio.j The latter was the son of a
wealthy citizen of (Jastel in the duchy of Spoletto, and
imhihed the reformed doctrine from Fabrizio I'om-
massi of (iubbio, a learned young gentleman, who
was his comjianion in arms at the siege of Sienna, j:
On returning honie he zeidously i)roj)agate(l the
truth, and made converts of several of iiis relations.
Durino; a daiifjcerous sickness bv whicli he was at-
tacked, he refused to avail himself of the services of
the family confessor, and resisted all the arguments

(Nacliriclitcn ziir Kirclieii-gelerten und Buclicr-geschichte, torn. iv.
p. 121.) An answer was made to it by Aiiibrogio (atarinoj after-
wards rewarded with an arclibisliopric.

* The Italian works of Paleario, printed and in MS. including some
poems, are mentioned by Tirabosclii. (Tom. vii. p. li.5G.) Joannes
Matthanis Toscanns, the author of Pvjihis Ilnliw, who was a pupil of
Paleario, composed the following verses, among others, on his mas-
ter :

Aonio Aonidcs Graios prompsere leporcs,

Et quascunque vctus protulit Hellas opes.
Aonio Latiie tinxerunt mellc C'amaMiiT

Verba ligata modis, verba soluta modis.
C^Uiu nee longa dies, ncc ((jua} scelcrata cremasti
Aonii corpus) perdere flamnia potest.
f Thuani Ilist. ad an. 15(>0. Mat. Flacii (atal. Tc-t. \\r\\. ap-
pend.

J In 1j.>5.

HISTORY OF THE REFOiniATION IX ITALY. 305

by which the bishop of the diocese attempted to
bring him back to the catholic faith ; upon which
he was summoned, along with his com[)anions, be-
fore the governor Paolo Mtelli. Though still weak
with the effects of his distemper, he rose in the
night time, surmounted the wall of the city by the
lielj) of a pike, and esca[)ed first to Sienna and af-
terwards to Wniice. Having ascertained by letters
that tliere was no Iiope of his !)eing allowed to re-
turn to his native place, or of his receiving support
from his father, except in the way of recanting his
o])inions, lie retired to Geneva, where he married
and became a manufacturer of silk. In the end of
the year 1567 wliile visiting Genoa in the course
of trade, liaving imprudently given his real name
to a merchant, lie was a])prehended by the in-
quisition. The magistrates of Geneva and Berne
sent to demand his liberation from the Genoese re-
public, but before their envoy arrived the prisoner
Ijad been sent to Rome at the request of the pope.
After sulfering an imprisonment of nearly tvv^o
years, he was sentenced to be burnt alive. The
courage which liartocci had all along displayed did
not forsake him in the trying hour. He walked
to the place of execution with a firm step and un-
altered countenance ; and the cry, Viltoria, vittoria !
was distinctly heard from him after he was wrap-
ped in the flames.*

But it is time to bring this distressing part of
our narrative to a close. Suflfice it to say, that

* Ilistoirc des Martyrs, f. 7 57, 7.58.
X

i '^1

306 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 307

during the whole of this century the prisons of tlie
inquisition in Italy, and particularly at Rome, were
filled with victims, including persons of noble birth,
male and female, men of letters and mechanics.
Multitudes were condemned to penance, to the gal-
leys, or other arbitrary punishments ; and from
time to time individuals were put to death. Several
of the prisoners were foreigners, who had visited
the country in the course of business or of their
travels. Englishmen were peculiarly obnoxious to
this treatment.* In the year 1595 two persons
were burnt alive in Rome, the one a native of Sile-
sia and the other of England. The latter, having
in a fit of zeal oftered an indignity to the host when
it was carrying in procession, had his hand cut off
at the stake, and was then connnittcd to the fkimes.
The nobleman from whose letter this fact is taken
adds in a postscript, that he had just heard that

* Hist, ties Martyrs, f. 758, a. I omitted to mention in the pro-
per place, that Dr. Thomas Wilson, afterwards secretary to Queen
Elizabeth, was among the prisoners who escaped in 1559, when the
house of the inquisition was destroyed by the populace of Rome on
the death of Paul IV. He had been apprehended in the preceding
year on account of some things contained in his books on Logic and
Rhetoric. After giving an account of this, in a preface to a new
edition of one of these works in 1500, he adds facetiously: "And
now that 1 am come home, this booke is shewed me, and I am de-
sired to looke upon it and to amende it where 1 thought meete.
Amende it? quoth I. Nay; let the book first amende itself, and
make me amendes. For surely 1 have no cause to acknowledge it for
my booke ; because I have so smarted for it. U the sonne were the
occasion of the father's imprisonment, would not the father be of-
fended witli him, think you }" &c. (Art of Ilhctorike, Prologue, sig.
A 5. Lond. 1583.)

some other Englishmen were thrown into the inqui-
sition at Rome.* Notwithstanding all these severi-
ties, persons secretly attached to the reformed doc-
trines were to be found in that country during the
seventeenth century ; and some of our own coun-
trymen, who had been induced to expatriate them-
selves out of zeal for popery, were converted to the
protestant faith during their residence in Italy.f

* Letter from John, earl of GowTie, dated from Padua, the
28th of November 1595, and printed in the appendix to Life of An-
drew Melville, vol. ii. p. 525-6.

+ Mr. Evelyn, in his travels through Italy in 1646, met with a
Scotsman, an officer of the army, at Milan, who treated him courte-
ously, and who, together with an Irish friar, his confidant, concealed
their protestantism from dread of the inquisition. (Evelyn's Me-
moirs, vol. i. pp. 215 — 217.)

308 HISTORY OF THE REFOUMATION IN ITALY.

CHAPTER VL

FOREIGN ITALIAN CHURCHES, WITH ILLUSTRA-
TIONS OF THE REFORMATION IN THE GRISONS.

An account of those exiles wlio left Italy from
attachment to the protestant cause forms an im-
portant hranch of our undertaking. It is impor-
tant, whether we take into view the testimony
which was given to the autliority of religious prin-
ciple and the reformed faith, hy the fact of so many
persons quitting their homes and all that was dear
to them in ohedience to its dictates ; or the loss
which their ungrateful and deluded countrv sus-
tained l)y their emigration ; or the benefits which
accrued to those countries which opened an asylum
to the unfortunate strangers, and treated them with
hospitality and fraternal regard.

It was calculated that in the year 1,550 the exiles
amounted to two hundred, of whom a fourth or
fifth part were men of letters, and these not of the
meanest name."^ Before the year 1559, the num-
ber had increased to eight hundred, f From that

• Vcrgcrio, Lettere al Vcscovo di Lcsina: Dc Porta, ii. 3(i.
t Busdragi Kpist. ut supra, p. 32'2.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 309

time to the year 1568, we have ground to believe
that the increase was fully as great in proportion ;
and down to the close of that century individuals
were to be seen, after short intervals, flying to the
north, and throwing themselves on tlie glaciers of
the Alps to escape from the fires of the inquisition.
The settlements which the Italian refugees made
in the Orisons claim our first notice. With a few
exceptions they all visited that country in the first
instance, and a great part of them made it the
place of their permanent abode. This w^as chiefly
owing to its proximity to Italy, and its aflfording
them the best opportunities of corresponding w^ith
the friends they had left behind them, or of^rati-
fying the hope, to which exiles long fondly cling,
of revisiting their natal soil, as soon as such a
change should occur as would render this step prac-
ticable and safe. But in choosing this as a place of
residence, they must also have been influenced by
the consideration that the native tongue of the in-
habitants in the southern dependencies of the Orison
republic was Italian, while a language bearing a
near affinity to it was spoken over the greater part
of the republic itself. The affairs of the Italian
settlers in the Orisons are so interwoven with the
progress of the Reformation in that country, that
the former cannot be understood without some ac-
count of the latter. I shall be the less scrupulous
in entering into details on this subject, because it
relates to a portion of the history of the reformed
church which is comparatively little known anion

i'*i

Of;

310 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IX ITALY.

US ; for while the interesting fates of the Vaudois,
who took refuge in the Valais and Pieniont, have
attracted the attention of ecclesiastical historians to
the Cottian or western range of the Alps, the Rheti-
an or eastern has been in a great measure overlooked.
To the south-east of Switzerland, in the higher
region of the Alps, where these gigantic mountains,
covered with ice and clouds, are cleft into narrow
valleys, and around the sources of the Rhine and
Inn, lies the country of the ancient Rhetians and
modern Orisons. Secluded from the rest of the
world, and occupied in feeding their cattle on the
mountains, and cultivating corn and the vine within
their more fertile valleys, the inhabitants who came
originally from Italy had preserved their ancient
language and manners, with little variation, from a
period considerably anterior to the Christian era.
During the middle ages they fell under the dominion
of the bishops of Coire, the abbots of Disentis, and a
crowd of other chiefs, ecclesiastical and secular, who
kept them in awe by means of innumerable castles, the
ruins of which are still to be seen in all parts of the
country. Worn out by the injuries which they suf-
fered from these petty tyrants, and animated by the
example which had been lately set them by their
neighbours the Swiss, the miserable inhabitants, in
tlie course of the fifteenth century, threw ofl^ the
yoke of their oppressors one by one ; and, having
established a popular government in their several
districts, entered into a common league for the de-
fence of their independence and rights. The Orison

■\

}

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 311

league or republic consisted of a union of three diss-
tinct leagues, the Orey League, that of God's House,
and that of the Ten Jurisdictions ; each of which
was composed of a number of smaller communities,
which retained the right of managing all its internal
affairs, as well as of sending deputies to the general
diet, whose powers were extremely circumscribed.
In no nation, ancient or modern, have the princi-
ples of democracy been carried to such extent as in
the Orison republic ; and as the checks necessary to
prevent its abuse were not provided by a rude peo-
ple smarting under the recent effects of tyranny, its
form of government, according to the confession of
its own as well as foreign writers, not only created
great dissensions, but led to gross corruption and
bribery in election to offices and in the administra-
tion of justice.* Toward the beginning of the six-
teenth century, the Orison republic obtained a large
accession to their territories by the possession of the
Valteline, Chiavenna, and Bormio, fertile districts si-
tuate between the Alps, and the Milanese and Ve*
netian territories.

The corruptions which had overspread the catho*
lie church before the Reformation were to be found
in the Orisons with all the aggravations arising
from the credulity of a rude people utterly ignorant
of letters. The clergy lived openly in concubinage,
figured at revels, rode about the country in complete

• Dc Porta, Hist. Ruf. Ecd. Rict. torn. i. p. 15; ii.264. Zbchokke,
l>cs Schweizcr lands Geschiclitc, pp. 275—279. Id. traduit par Mon-
iiard, pp. 222— 22 1. Coxe's Travels in Switzerland, vol. iii. let. 85,

, »4

312 HISTORY or THE RErOliMATIOX IX ITALY.

armour, and claimed and enjoyed, under a republi-
can government, a complete exemption from the
laws, even when they were guilty of the most flag-
rant crimes and outrages.* Bands of foreign i)riests,
furnished with bulls from the i)ope, continually
prowled about in search of vacant benefices ; and as
they were ignorant of the language of the country,
could do nothing but say mass in Latin. Preaching
was unknown even among the native clergy for the
most part, and when they did attempt it on theaj^
pearance of the reformers among them, their per-
formances were such as to excite at once ridicule
and pity.f In many of the communities the people
were as ignorant as brutes. Half a centurv after the
light of the Keformation had penetrated into the
Rhetian valleys, tlie government found it necessary
to issue a decree that the Roman catholic j)riests
should recite the Lord's prayer, apostles creed and
ten comiijandments for the instruction of the peo-

* 111 the ciglitcciith century this exemption continued to be enjoy-
ed in tlic Vahtline, not only by the clergy, but also by all who pur-
chased permission from the Hishop of Coino to wear a clerical dress.
(Coxe's Travels in Switzerland, vol. iii. p. I'AO.)

t Theodore Schlegel, abbot nf St. Luke in the city of Coirc, vicar
of the diocese, and one of the acutcst opponents of the Keforma-
tion, in a sermon preached by him on C hristmas 1.523, told the peo-
ple : *' St. John was the most excellent of all the Evangehsts on ac-
count of his virginity, which enabled him to write in an elevated
strain, and under divine inspiration concerning the Godhead. I5ut,
you will say, Peter returned a good answer to the question of the
Lord, when he said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
I answer, he spoke this r.r (xtcriore conjvcfura, coviputaiionc, he had
acfjuircd the knowledge of it from external things, when he saw him

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATIOX IN ITALY. 313

j)le. There were however a few honourable excep-
tions both among the clergy and laity.

The inhabitants of the Grisons first causfht their
love of evangelical reform, as they had done their
love of civil liberty, from the Swiss. A year had
scarcely elapsed from the time that Zuingle embark-
ed in the reform of the church of Zurich, when a
schoolmaster at Coire, the capital of the league of
God's House, became his correspondent, and inform-
ed him that his name was known to many in that
country, who approved of his doctrine, and were
weary of the simony of the church of Rome.*
He soon after received a letter to the same purpose
from the Stadtvogt, or chief magistrate, of the town
of Mayenfeld within the league of the Ten Jurisdic-
tions. In the year 1524, the government of the
Grisons imitated the example of the popish can-
tons of Switzerland, who, as a means of checking
the progress of innovation, had enacted laws for
the reformation of the clergy. In a diet held at
Ilantz, the capital of the Grey League, it was de-
creed, among other articles, that parish priests should
discharge their duty in instructing the people ac-

walking on the sea and doing other w^onders; but he did not call him
the Son of God from divine inspiration, as St. John did. As the in-
carnation of Christ was brought about through the figures of the law,
the promise of the Father and the writings of the prophets, so truly
does he come into the hands of the priest in the bread in the service
of the mass; and whoever denies the latter denies also file former."
— The writer who has reported this passage adds : " May we not apj'ly
to the preacher the adage. Anions cows an ox is an abb(ji V (Co-
mander ail Zuinglium, an. L526 : De Porta, i. 48.)
* De Forta, i. pp. 10—51.

.11

314 IIISTOUV OF Tin: RKFOUMATIOX in ITALY.

IIISTOUY OF THE REFOIIMATION IN ITALY. 315

cording to the word of God ; and tliat, provid-
ed they failed in this or were unfit for it, the pa-
rishioners should have lil>erty to choose others in
their room. These regulations were evaded by
the clergy, but they were the means of fixing the
attention of the people on a subject to which they
had hitherto been indifferent, and produced unfore-
seen consequences of the greatest importance. The
first public reformation in the Orisons took place in
the years 1524 and 1525, when the inhabitants of
the valley of St. Anthony, of Flesch, and of Ma-
lantz, in the high jurisdiction of Mayenfeld,
though surroiuided by powerful neighbours ad-
dicted to popery, embraced with one consent the
protestant doctrine and abolished the mass. * This
produced so great an effect, that within a short
time the new doctrine began to be preached by
priests, and was eagerly listened to by the people,
in various places throughout the three leagues.
Among these preachers, the most distinguished
were Andrew Sigfrid and Andrew Fabritz at Da-
vos, the chief town in the league of the Ten Ju-
risdictions ; and in the league of God's House,
James Tutschet or Biveron, in Upper Engadi-
na ; Philip Salutz or Gallitz, in Lower Enga-
dina ; and John Dorfman or Comander, who, in
consequence of the late regulations of the diet, had
been chosen parson of St. Martin's church in the town
of Coire.f The two last afterwards became col-

* De Porta, i. o7— G8.
t Ibid. pp. 58, 59, 7G — 7S.
Suisse, toin. i. p. '2ri'i.

Uiulitit, Hist, lie la Ucroiiii. ile la

leagues at Coire, and they may with propriety be
designed the joint reformers of the Grisons, having
contributed beyond all others to the advancement of
knowledge and religion in their native country.
Comander was a man of learning, sound judgment,
and warm piety. To these qualities Gallitz added
great dexterity in the management of public busi-
ness, an invincible command of temper, and uncom-
mon eloquence both in liis native tongue and in
Latin.* The conversion of John Frick, parish priest
of Mayenfeld, was brought about in a singular man-
ner. Being a zealous catholic and of great note
among his brethren, he had warmly resisted the
new opinions when they first made their appear-
ance. Filled with chagrin and alarm at the progress
which he saw them making in his immediate
neighbourhood, he repaired to Rome to implore the
assistance of his holiness, and to consult on the best
method of preventing his native country from being
overrun with heresy. But he was so struck with
the irreligion which he observed in the court of
Rome, and the ignorance and vice prevailing in
Italy, that, returning home, he joined the party
which he had opposed, and became the reformer of
Mayenfeld. In his old age he used to say to his
friends pleasantly, that he learned the gospel at

Rome.f

In the mean time the clergy, aroused from the
slumbers into which they had sunk through indo-

* De Porta, 1. 67, 79; ii. 278.

t Schclhorn, Anurn. Hist. Ecd. ii. 237. Ruchat, i. 275.

31() IIISTOIIV OF Tin: KKFOUMATIOX IX ITALY.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IX ITAEY. 317

lence and the absence of all o])i)osition, had recourse
to every means within their j)ower in order to
check the progress of the new opinions. 15onds of
adherence to the catholic faith were exacted from
the parisli priests. 7'he most odious and horrid re-
presentations of the reformers and their tenets were
circulated among the ])eople. Individuals belonging
to the anabaptists who had been banished from
Switzerland came to the Grisons, and laboured to
make proselytes among the reformed by i)reacliing
uj) a purer and more elevated religion than that
which was taught by Luther and Zuinglius, whom
they put on a level with the poj)e. Tlie po])ish
clergy secretly encouraged these enthusiasts,* at
the sariie time that they made use of their excesses
to excite prejudice against the cause of the Keforma-

♦ Their leader, who went by the name of Blaurok, in allusion to
the colour of his cloak, was an ex-monk of the Giisons, who haihnade
a nrreat noise in Switzerland. At Zurich he said, *' he would under-
take to prove that Zuinglius had offered greater violence to the scrip-
tures than the llonian pontiff himself." (Acta Senat. Tigur. apud De
Torta, ii. SG.) The following is an extract from one of his letters : —
" I am the door, he that enterelh in by me shall Hnd pasture; he that
entereth by any other way is a thief and a robber. As it is written,
' 1 am the good shepherd, the good she])herd giveth his life for the
sheep,' so I give my life and my spirit for my sheep, my body to the
tower, my life to the sword, or the fire, or the wine-press to squeeze
out the blood and flesh, as Christ gave his on the cross. I am ihc
restorer of the baptism of Christ, and the bread of the Lord, I and
my beloved brethren Conrad (Jrebel and Felix Manx, 'i'hereforc
the pope, along with his followers, is a thief and a robber • and
so also are Luther with his, and Zuinglius and Leo Juda, with their
followers." (De Porta, ii. 8J).) Blaurok and his associates were ba-
mshal from the Grisons in the year I.>li-J.

tion. * When the general diet of the republic met
at Coire in the year 1525, the bishop and clergy
presented a formal ac-cusation against Comander and
the other reforming preachers, praying that they
nn*ght be punished by the secular arm for propagat-
ing impious, scandalous, and seditious heresies, con-
trary to the faith of the catholic church durin^r fif-
teen centuries, and tending to produce that rebel-
lion and outrage which had lately been witnessed
at Munster and other places. Comander having, in
the name of his brethren, declared their readiness to
vindicate the doctrine which they held against these
criminations, a day was appointed for a conference
or dispute between the two parties at Ilantz, in the
presence of certain members of the diet.f The dis-
pute which ensued added seven to the number of
the reformed preachers, who were previously above
forty ; while the articles which formed the subject
of dispute having been printed and circulated
throughout the valleys, multiplied their converts
among the laity.t

In the mean time an event occurred wliich had
well nigh proved fatal to the reformed party. Irri-
tated by the assistance which the Grisons had given
to Francis I., the emperor and duke of Milan en-
couraged the turbulent John de Medicis, marquis
of Muss, to attack their southern territories. Hav-

• De Porta, pp. 87—92.

t Ruchat, i. 408—410. De Porta, i. 96—100.

X Kucbat, i. 4 IT)— 416. De Porta, i. 102—130.

'■J

318 HISTORY or THE REFORMATION IX ITALY.

ing possessed himself of the castle and town of
Chiavenna, he threatened to attack the Valteline.
This obliged the republic to recall their troops from
Italy before the famous battle of Pavia ; but having
failed, after all, in recovering the castle, they had
recourse to the mediation of the Swiss cantons. The
deputies sent by the Swiss were keen Roman catholics,
and asserted that they had it in charge from their
constituents to obtain a pledge that heresy should
not be permitted to spread in the Orisons, without
which they could not co-operate in bringing the
negotiations to a favourable issue. The marquis
was ready to cover his ambitious project with the
pretext of zeal for the church, and was besides un-
der the influence of his brother, then an ecclesiastic
in the Valteline, and afterwards raised to the ponti-
fical chair under the designation of Pius IV. Avail-
ing himself of these circumstances, the bishop of
Coire prevailed on them to insert in the treaty an
article, which provided for the maintenance of the an-
cient iTligion and the punishment of all who refused
conformity to it. An extraordinary diet was called
to deliberate on this affair ; and so great was the in-
fluence of the bishop and mediators, together with the
anxiety of the nation to put an end to the war, that
a majority of the diet voted for the article respect-
ing religion. It was however warmly opposed by
the representatives of several districts, including
the city of Coire, which refused to affix its seal to
the decree. Tlie manner in which the decree was
expressed seems to intimate that it partook of

HISTORY or THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 319

the nature of an understood compromise and tem-
porary measure; for while it provided that the
mass, auricular confession, and other rites should
be observed, it added that " along vith these the
gospel and word of God should be preached ;" and
in declaring tliat non-conformists should be sub-
jected to an arbitrary punishment, the diet " reserv-
ed to itself the liberty of altering its measures
upon being better informed by disputations, coun-
cils, or any other way."* The first effect of this
law was tlie banishment of Gallitz, whose talents
and success rendered him peculiarly obnoxious to
the abettors of popery. Several of his brethren were
also obliged to retire from the country to avoid the
processes intended against them. But the city of
Coire, in spite of their bishop, maintained Comander
in his situation; their example was followed in
other places; and though the clergy endeavoured to
push the advantage which they had gained, they
found that a spirit was abroad in the nation too
powerful for all their efforts, even when supported
by legislative enactments. The subject was brought
before the next national diet by the report of the
commissioners appointed to attend the dispute at
Ilantz ; and after consultation it was moved and
agreed to, ** That it shall be free to all persons of
both sexes, and of whatever condition or rank, with-
in the territories of the Grison confederation, to
choose, embrace, and profess either the Roman ca-

• De Porta, i. 131— 13 i.

.ii

"fl

320 insrouv or Tin: IlKroI{^rATIO^r ix itat.v.

tliolic or the Kv%'iii[^clical religion ; and tliat no
one shall, publicly or priv.-itely, harass another
with reproaches or odious speeches on accoimt of
his religion, uinh^r an arl)itrary penalty.*' To tliis
was a(hle<l a renovation of a former Iavv% '' tliat the
ministers of religion should teach nothing to the
})eople hut what was contained in the scriptures of
the Old (Old New Testament, an<l what they coidd
prove by them ; and that ])arish priests should i)e
enjoiiu'd to giv^e themselves assiduously to the study
of the scriptures as the only rule of faith and man-

ners. "

This remarkahle statute, which, wliatever infrac-
tions it may have sulfered, and whatever attemi)ts may
have been made to overthrow it, remains to this day
the charter of religi(ms lii)erty in the Orisons, was
formally sealed and solemnly confirmed by the oaths
of all the deputies at Ilantz on the iiOth of June 1526,
along with a number of other regulations of great im-
portance. The i)ower of a])pointing magistrates and
iud<>-es was taken from the bishop of Coire and other
ecclesiastics, and given to the people in their seve-
ral communities. AA'here persons had bequeathed
sums of money to churches and convents for offering
anniversary masses and prayers for their souls, both
they and their heirs were declared free from any obli-
gation to make such payments for the future, "because
no good ground could be shown for believing that this

* Rucliat, i. ilG. Dc Porta, i. 146. Anabaptists and those of
other sects, if they retaintil and propagated their errors after due
information and admonition^ were subjected to banishment.

iriSTOIlY OF THE IIEFOIIMATION IN ITALY. 321

\vi\H of any benefit to the deceased." It was de-
creed that no new members, male or female, should
henceforth be admitted into monasteries ; that the
existing monks should be restrained from begging ;
and that after a})propriating a certain sum for
their support during life, the remainder of the
funds should be returned to the heirs of those who
originally bestowed them, and failing them be dis-
posed of as each league thougljt best. The power of
choosing their respective ministers was given to
jiarislies.* All appeals from secular courts to the
jurisdiction of the bishop were strictly prohibit-
ed ; annats and small titles were abolished, and the
great tithes reduced to a fifth part.f

It thus appears that a great deal more was done
on this occasion by the authorities of the Grisons,
than merely recognising and sanctioning religious
liberty. A national reformation was introduced,
which so far as it went must have been attended
with the most beneficial consequences to the state,
and to individuals whether popish or protestant. The
grand principle of the protestant reformation was
in fact recognised by the legislature, when it declar-
ed the sacred scriptures to be the only rule of reli-
gion. Some of the grossest abuses of popery, and
those which draw many others after them, were abo-

♦ The words of this article are : " Ad hinc etiam penes singulaa
l^arochias esto suos pastores orani tempore eligendi, conducendi atque
rursusquando lubitum fuerit, dimittendi." (De Porta, i. 130.) For-
iDcrly the bishop of Coire had the power of appointing and removing
the parish-priests throughout the whole of his diocese.

+ De Porta, i. US— 15!. Ruchat, i. 416, 417.

322 IIISTOIIY OF THE REFOllMATION IN ITALY.

lislied. And the liberties of the Roman catliolics
were secured, not only against attacks from the pro-
testants, but also against the jiiore dangerous en-
croachments and demands of their own clergy, and
of a foreign j)riest who claimed dominion over both.
It is impossible to read the document on which we
are commenting witliout being convinced that there
were at this])eriod in the Orisons statesmen of enlight-
ened minds and liberal principles. The historians
of that country have gratefully preserved the names
of the individuals by whom the deed was drawn up,
and through whose influence chiefly it was adopted
by the supreme council of the republic. Two of
them were distinguished above the rest — John Gul-
er, whose name often occurs in the history of his
country, and John Travers, neither of whom had at
that time joined the reformers. The latter, who be-
longed to a noble and ancient family of Zutz in Upper
Engadina, had received his education at Munich, and
improved his mind by travelling in diflerent parts of
Europe. Ilis abilities and learning, adorned by the
most unimpeachable integrity, secured the confidence
of his coujitrymen, who intrusted him with the high-
est oftices of the state and the management of their
most delicate affairs. lie was equally distinguished
as a soldier and a scholar, a politieian and a di-
vine. The hrst book ever composed in the Oris-
on language came from his pen,*' being a i)oem on
the war against the marquis of Muss, in which he

* It docs not appear that tins work was printed.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IX ITALY. 323

had himself commanded the forces of his country.
The late period at which he renounced the connnu-
nion of the church of Rome was beneficial to the
reformed cause, as his colleagues in the senate, and
his countrymen at large,"entertained on that account
thelessjealousy of the measures which he proposed
in favour of religious liberty. After adjoining him-
self to tlie reformed church, he promoted its inter-
ests with the utmost zeal. As the protestant mini-
ster settled in liis native city was a young man, and
met witli great opposition from the principal fa-
milies of the place, Travers asked and readily ob-
tained from the ministers permission to act as assist-
ant to him. The whole country was struck with as-
tonishment to see a man of such rank, and so renown-
ed for his services in the senate, the field, and foreign
courts, mount the pulpit. The Roman catholics
tried to conceal the chagrin and alarm which they
felt by circulating the report that he was mad or
in dotage; but his performances soon put to silence
these invidious and artful allegations.*

The publication of the edict in favour of religi-
ous liberty was followed by the rapid spread of the
new opinions. The formation of churches was how-

* De Porta, i. 229,233—211. Coxe's Travels in Switzerland, iii.
295 — 298. — A fine letter which GaUitz addressed to him on his appli-
cation for liberty to preach, has been preserved. "O felicem terram
qua? tales nanciscitur doctores et magistros !— Sed quae mcdestia est
ista cxplodenda, imo quod facinus hoc, quod permittis tibi, petere a
nol)is auctoritatem, quuni feccrit opus concionandi ? Tu, inquam, qui
lUiietiic nostra} priinoribus auctor fuisti, veniam nobis conccdendi ut
priidiccmus cvangdium/' ike.

324- HISTORY or the IIEFORMATION in ITALY.

ever slower. This proceeded partly from the plan
pursued by the first reformers, who, to use their own
expression, "sought to remove idols from the hearts
of the people before they removed them from the
churches ;" and partly from the democratical nature
of the government, which required the unanimous
or at least general concurrence of each community
previously to any change on the public worship.
In the year 1527, the mass was abolished, images
removed, and the sacrament of the supper celebrated
after the reformed mode, in St. Martin's church at
Coire, under the direction of Comander. The same
thing was done at Lavin in Lower Engadina^ un-
der the direction of Gallitz ; at Davos in the Ten
Jurisdictions, under the direction of Andrew Fa-
britz ; and at Ilantz in the Grey League, under the
direction of Christian Hartman. And the example
set by these places was soon imitated by others.
The reformed religion was embraced earliest in the
leao-ue of the Ten Jurisdictions, where it soon be-
came almost universal. Within the league of God's
House it prevailed generally in the neighbourhood
of Coire, but it made little progress in Eiigadina and
other places to the south until 1542, when the Ita-
lian exiles arrived. In the High or Grey League
the number of its adherents was smaller.*

The reformed doctrine spread rapidly in the Gri-
sons during the six years which succeeded innnedi-
ately to the declaration of religious liberty; and had

• l)c Porta, i. cap. 8. lluchat, i. 27 t, U7-8. Coxc, iii. 2^0— 233.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 325

it continued to advance as it began, the ancient re-
ligion must soon have disappeared before it. Vari-
ous causes contributed to arrest its progress. One
of these is to be found in the languages of the coun-
try. The Rhetian, Italian, and German languages
were all spoken in the Grisons, and the inhabitants
of two adjacent valleys were often incapable of un-
derstanding one another. This of itself must have
proved a great hiiulrance to the communication of
knowledge at a time when the number of teachers
was small. But this was not all. The Rhetian or
Grison tongue is divided into two dialects, the Ro-
mansh and the Lad in, and there was not a single
hook in either of them at the time of the Reforma-
tion. Nobody had ever seen a word written in that
tongue, and it was the common opinion that it
could not be committed to writing.* There can be
little doubt that the rapid and extensive spread of
the reformed doctrine among the inhabitants of the
Ten Jurisdictions was owing in a great degree to
their speaking the German tongue, and consequently
having access to the scriptures and other books in
their native language. The same remark applies to

• De Porta, i. 19 ; ii. 403. Coxe, iii. 294. In addition to a collec-
tion of words and phrases in Komansh, Ebel has inserted a dissertation
on the history of that language, (which he calls "la langiie Hetrus-
co-Uhetienne/') by Placidus a Specha, capitular of Disentis. From
this it would appear that a number of old MSS. written in that lan-
guage during the middle ages were preserved, the greater part of
which, however, were destroyed when the French burnt the monas-
tery of Disentis in 1799. (iManuel du Voyageur en Suisse, torn. i.
pp. 318— 337.)

326 irisTORY OF the hefotimation ix italy.

the citizens of C x)irc and of some other places. Those
who knew only the original hmgua^je of the country,
were lonirconhned to oral instruction. The reformed
ministers lahoured assiduously in supplying this de-
fect, and tlicy at last i)ractically demonstrated the fal-
lacy of an ignorant prejudice which the priests had
eagerly cherished in the minds of the people. In tliis
respect their country is under unspeakableohligations
to them. Other nations owe their literature to the
Reformation ; the Orisons are indebted to it for
their ali)habet. But a nund)er of years elapsed be-
fore the preachers, occupied with other labours
and straitened in their finances, could bring their
WTitings from the press, and by that time the de-
sire for knowledge which the first promulgation
of the reformed doctrines had excited must have
been in some degree worn off from the minds of
the people. A translation of Comander's German
catechism into the Ladin by James Tutchet or Bi-
veroni, printed at Puschiavo in the year 1552, was
the first work which had appeared in the Rhetian
laniTua^^-e. " At the si^ht of this work," says a his-
torian then alive, " the Grisons stood amazed, like
the Israelites of old at tlie sight of the manna." Bive-
roni printed, in 1560, his translation of the New
Testament into the same language, which w\as fol-
lowed in 1562 by a metrical version of the Psalms,
and a collection of hymns, composed by Ulrich Cam-
pel.*

♦ De Porta, ii. W\ — 1-07. The Bible was published in the Ladin of
Lower Engadina, for the first time, in 1079; and in the llomansh
of the Grey League so late as 1718. (Coxe, iii. 301— 30i.)

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. SST

Another cause was the poverty of the pastors,
which inflicted a lasting injury on the reformed
church.^ While the popish priests possessed for
the most part the tythes, beside what they gained
by private masses and confessions, the protestant
ministers received a small stipend from their congre-
gations, and in many cases were reduced to the ne-
cessity of supporting themselves by manual labour.
Gallitz, a man of liberal education, states, in one of
his familiar letters, that he and his family had been
for two years in great straits, were obliged to sleep
during the night in the clothes which they wore
through the day, seldom tasted flesh, were often
without bread, and for weeks together lived solely
on vegetables seasoned with salt. Ytt he trained his
son for the church ; and when the young man had an
advantageous offer made him during liis attendance
at the academy of Basle, his father declared it would
be impiety in him to accept it when there were so few
capable of preaching to his countrymen in their na-
tive language.! ^^^^t it was not to be expected that
the first reformers would be succeeded by per-
sons of the same nobility of mind. The con-
sequence was, that the people in many parts
of the country remained destitute of pastors, or

* In Travellers Guides through the Grisons it is to this day a
common direction, "If the town to which you come be catholic, call
for the cure of the parish, who will entertain you hospitably ; if it
be protestant, you may ask for the pastor, who will direct you to the
best inn, for the salaries of the pastors are so sorry, and their houses
Ro bad, that, however willing, they cannot show hospitality."

t De Porta, i. 181, 186, 187.

328 HISTORY OF Tin: kefoumation in italy.

were induced to receive illiterate persons of low
character, who disgraced their office hy their mean-
ness or their vices. ** Assuredly," says the excel-
lent man last mentioned, '* covetous j)ersons are
most cruel to themselves, while they choose rather
to be witliout good pastors than to he at the expense
of maintaining them. O the ingratitude of men,
who a little ago cheerfully gave a hundred crowns
for teaching lies, and now grudge to give twenty
for preaching the truth !" * — Another radical defect
of the Grison reformation consisted in neglecting
entirely to provide the means of education for youth.
This the reformed ministers exerted themselves to
remedy, and they succeeded at last, not only in pro-
viding parochial teachers for the chief towns, but
in persuading the legislature to appropriate tlie re-
siduary funds of such of the monasteries as were
suppressed to the establishment of a national semi-
nary at Coire. f These evils arose from or were ag-
gravated by tiie political state of the country. I^roud
of their liberty, the Grisons were weakly jealous of
those common measures which were in fact neces-
sary to preserve it ; while they roamed about their
valleys without control they forgot that savages
are free; and pleased to hear their mountains re-echo
the votes which they gave at the election of a mu-
nicipal landarnnKUt, or of a deputy to the diet, they

• Gallicius ad BuUingeriinij 6 Mart. 1553: De Porta, i. 180.

+ This academy was opened in the year 154-2; the individual first
placed at the head of it was John Pontisella, a native of Pregalia, for
whom lUiIlinger, at the request of the Grison reformers, had obtained
a gratuitous education at Zurich. (Ibid. i. 187, 192 — 197.)

history of the reformation in ITALY. 329

(lid not perceive that tlieir voices were in reality at
the command of a few men of superior intelligence,
many of whom had sold themselves, and would sell
tliem to the highest bidder. Foreign princes liad their
constant pensioners in the Grisons ; the chief states-
men were secretly in tlie interest either of the emperor
or of the king of France ; and between the two fac-
tions the country was at once distracted, corrupted,
and betrayed. Nc^xt to his labours in reforming re-
ligion, Zuingle is entitled to immortal praise for de-
nouncing, at the expense of incurring the odium of
liis countrymen, the i)ractice of hiring themselves out
as mercenaries to fight the battles of foreign princes.
The Grison reformers imitated his example and they
met his reward : their countrymen, imagining that
they were hirelings like themselves, punished them
by reducing their stipends. *

The churches in the Grisons were or<xanized in
tlie same manner as those in the protestant cantons
of Switzerland, as to government as well as doc-
trine and worship. From the beginning congre-
gations had their consistories. To these were add-
ed, probably at a later period, colloquies or presby-

• In answer to a letterfroni Bullinger, (Feb. IS, lo4-4-,) dissuading
liim from leaving his station at Coire, Comander writes: " Another rea-
son is, that six years ago, when I opposed myself to the worthless pen-
sioners in a sermon, as I was in duty bound to do, I excited their rage
against me, and they took away thirty-three florins from my benefice,
which was before sufficiently small. Hitherto I have digested this
injury, and have supplied the deficiency from my own and my wife's
fortune; but if I continue to do this much longer, my children must
be reduced to beggary after my death." (De Porta, i. 183; conf.
p. 2oO".)

330 HISTORY or THE REFORMATION IX ITALY.

teries, of which there were two in each league. The
pastors were accustomed to meet together occasion-
ally for consultation about the connnon interests of
the reformed body, for examining and ordaining can-
didates for the ministry, and for rectifying the disor-
ders which occurred. iJut these meetings were vo-
luntary, and their determinations were given out in
the form of advices. 1'he report having gone
abroad that a great scarcity of lu'eachers was felt
in the Grisons, numbers flocked*' *nto the country
from Switzerhind and Germany, pretending to be
preachers, althougli they were both illiterate and of
disreputable character. Repairing to the valleys,
they insinuated themselves into the affections of
the country people, and having clandestinely con-
cluded a bargain with them to serve their churches
for a small sum of money, behaved in such a man-
ner cis to open the mouths of the Koman catholics,
and bring great discredit on the evangelical cause.
To remedy this evil the ministers applied to the
diet of the republic for their sanction to the holding-
of a national synod, which should have power to
call to account those who had come from foreio-u
parts, inquire into their (xualifications and exact
from them certificates of character, to examine all
who should afterwards be admitted to the ministry,
watch over their conduct, censure the disorderly,
and in general to preserve the order and promote
tlie edification of the whole reformed body. This
petition was granted by the diet on the 14th of
January 1537, and from that time the synod was

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 331

held regularly every year in the month of June,
when the passage across the mountains was easiest.*

Such was the state of the reformed churches in the
Grisons, when the exiles from Italy first made their
appearance in that country. The encouragement
presented to them, in a worldly point of view, was
certainly not flattering. But they had come seeking
a refuge, not a fortune. They had left a land flowing
with milk and honey ; what they wanted was a land
of relioious libertv, and in which there was not a fa-
mine of hearing the word of God. They were re-
ceived in a very dillerent manner from the vagrants
formerly mentioned. The tale of their distress had
arrived before them, and their sufferings were held
to be sufficient testimonials.

Their first arrival in the country produced an im-
pression highly favourable to the interests of the
Reformation. The very sight of so many persons,
many of them illustrious for birth, learning, and
rank, civil and ecclesiastical, who had voluntarily
renounced their honours and estates, left their
dearest friends,f and encountered poverty with all

• Dc Porta, i. 188—192.

•j- Julio de Milano, writing to Bullingcr, from Tirano in the Val-
tclinc, 23d June 15.52, says: *^ The circumstances of the person
who will deliver you this letter are as follows. God has permitted
his two sons to be thrown into prison for confessing Christ, and they
will soon either suffer martyrdom or be condemned for life to the gal-
leys. They have wives and thirteen children, the eldest of whom,
who may be about thirteen years of age, accompanies the unfortunate
old man. Do something to prevent this family from perishing with
want." (Ibid. ii. U5.)

332 HISTORY OF the reformation in ITALY

the other liardsliips attendant on exile, ratlier than
do violence to their consciences, while it esta-
blished the protestants in the doctrine which they
had embraced, struck the minds of their adver-
saries with amazement, and forced on the most
reluctant the suspicion that such sacrifices could
not have been made for no reason. No sooner did
the exiles find themselves safe than they detailed the
cruelties of the inquisition, and laid open the arts
of the court of Home, with the ignorance, supersti-
tion, and vice which reigned in it. They dwelt with
enthusiasm on the liberty of conscience and the pure
preaching of the gospel enjoyed in the Grisons.
They grudged no labour in conununicating instruc-
tion privately and publicly wherever an opportunity
offered, by which means they gained many souls
to Christ, especially among those who spoke Italian.
Some of them made themselves masters of the lan-
guage of the country, so as to be able within a short
time to preach to the inhabitants. They made at-
tempts, and often successfully, to preach in parts of
the country from which the native ministers deem-
ed it prudent to abstain ; and in every place in which
they remained for any time, new churches were sure
to spring up.*

Bartolonnneo Maturo arrived in the Orisons at a
mucli earlier j)eriod than any of his countrymen.
lie had been prior of a Dominican convent at Cre-
mona, and being disgusted at the lives of the monks
and the fictitious miracles by which they deluded

De Porta, ii. 36, 37.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 333

the people, he threw off the cowl and left Italy.
Having preached the reformed doctrines in the Val-
teline he was accused to the diet which met at Ilantz
in 1529, and had sentence of banishment passed
against him. But he was taken under the protection
of one of the deputies, and conducted to Pregalia,
where he commenced preaching with success. From
that place he went into the neighbouring district of
Engadina, where Gallitz had hitherto gained very
little ground on account of the determined hostility
of the most powerful inhabitants. The first appear-
ance of Maturo threatened a tumult, but he perse-
vered, and the matter being referred to the sufliages
of the community, he obtained a majority in his fa-
vour, and preached openly before the eyes of those
who in the late diet had voted for his banishment.*
Returning to Pregalia, he undertook the pastoral
charge of Vico Soprano and Stampa, where he con-
tinued until 1547, and died a pastor in the valley of
Tomliasco.t

Soon after Maturo's removal, Vico Soprano ob-
tained for its pastor the celebrated Vergerio. It is true
the bishop did not distinguish himself by observing
the law of residence, having frequently visited the
Valteline, beside the journeys which he undertook
into Switzerland and Germany, during the period in
which he held this cure4 Some allowance must how-

• Uuchat, ii. i58, 459. + De Porta, i. 158; ii. U, 27—30.

i De Porta says that at this time Vergerio drew the yearly stipend
of 150 crowns, as ordinary pastor of A'ico Soprano, (ii. 46.)

ri34? JIISTOUV Ol' THE Ui:rOUMA'llOX IN ITALY.

ever be made for the ]ia!)its of a man who had l)een
«aeeustomed all liis life to a eliaii^e of seene and em-
ployments. Jiesides, he was never idle ; and con-
sidering' the state of the country at that time,
he perhaps did more good by his j)reaehing ex-
cursions than he could have done by confining him-
self to a parish, 'i'he stateliness of his figure, liis
ekxpience, and the nndc which he had kitely held
in the pa[)al churcli, consjiired in fixing tlie eyes of
the j)ul)lic ui)on him ; and persons of all classes were
anxious to see and hear a man who had repeatedly
sustained theollice of and)assader from the court of
Home, M-as su])posed to be accpiainted with all its se-
crets, and was not scrupulous about divulging what
lie knew. In returning from one of his visits to the
^^altelinehel(><lwd a nii»ht at Pontresina, a town si-
tuate on the northern base of mount J5ernino. It
happened that the parish i)riest had died that day,
and the inhabitants assendjled in the evening at the
imi to converse with the landlord, who was judge of
the village, about choosing a successor. After
ena'aainir tlieir attention by conversing on the sub-
ject which had called them together, Vergerio ask-
ed them if they would not hear a sermon from him.
The greater part objecting to this, " Come," said
the judge, " let us hear what this new-come Ita-
lian will say." So highly gratified were the people
with his sermon, that they insisted on his preaching
to them again before his departure. Accordingly
be did preach next day to a crovv'ded audience on the
merits of Christ's death and justification, with such

HISTORY OF THE IIEEOIIMATION IX ITALY. 3iJo

effect that the inhabitants soon after agreed harmo-
niously in abolishing the mas.s and giving a call to a
protestant minister. Having preached, during one
of his short excursions, in the town of Casauccia,
at the foot of mount Maloggia, all the images in
the church of St. Gaudentius were thrown down
during the following night ; and the same thin^
happened after a visit which he paid to Samada.
An accusation was brought against him for instigat-
ing these disorderly practices, but he was acquit-
ted.* His countrymen were no less diligent in plant-
ing and watering cliurches in tliat part of the coun-
try. In general, it ap})ears that the greater part of
the important districts of Upper and Lower Enga-
dina, and the whole of Pregalia, a district lying on
the southern declivity of the Alps, were reformed by
means of the Italian refugees. This took place be-
tween 15V2 and l.j.52, and from that time the pro-
testants became decidedly the majority, compre-
hending the greater part of the population as well
as the wealth of the republic, f

* De Porta, i. 231, 232 ; ii. iC, 4-7.

t Castanet was reformed by Jeronimo Ferlino, a Sicilian, who was
succeeded as pastor by Agostino, a Venetian, Giovanni Batista, a na-
tive of Vicenza, &c. Jeronimo Turriano of Cremona was the first
minister of liondo, which enjoyed a succeidon of Itahan ministers.
lievers was reformed by Pietro Parisctti of Bergamo ; and Sidio by
Giovanni Francesco, who had for successor Antonio Cortesio of Bres-
cia. Bartolommco Sylvio of Cremona was pastor at Pontresina; and Leo-
nardo Kremita and a number of his countrymen were successively pas-
tors in Casauccia. Vcttan was refonncd by an Italian named Evandro,
who was succeeded by Francesco Calabro. (Ibid. i. 220, 232, 233 ; ii.
Ki— 4s.)

33G HISTORY OF Tin: Ui:i ORMATION IX ITALY.

Ikit the principal scene of tlie labours of the refu-
gees was in the provinces su!)ject to the republic, and
situate betvv^een the Alps and Italy. These consisted
of the \^ilteliiR% a rich, beautiiiii, and p()i)ulous val-
ley, fifty miles lon^ and from twelve to fifteen
broad ; the county of Chiavenna, which forms the
point of communication for the trade between Italy
and (Germany ; and the county of Borinio. To these
may be added the valley of Puscliiavo, a jurisdiction
or community within the rei)ublic, and lying to the
north of the Valteline. In all these districts the
lan<niaire spoken by the inhabitants was Italian.
From the time that the new opinions began to pre-
vail in the (Jrisons, the attention of the court of Rome
was directed to this quarter, and i)recautionary
measures were adopted to prevent them from spread-
ing into Italy. As early as 152,'i, the bishop of Co-
me sent a friar nauR'd Modestainto the Valteline to
make iiupiisition after heretics, but the inhabitants
w^ere so incensed at the extortion of which he was
guilty that they forced him to depart, and a decree
was passed that no inquisitor should afterwards be
allowed to enter that territory. The reformed opin-
ions were brought across the Alps by inhabitants
of the Orisons who came to reside in the Valteline
for the purpose of trade, or on account of the mild-
ness of the climate ; and subsequently to the decla-
ration of religious liberty by the diet, it was na-
tural for them to think that they had a right to pro-
fess in the subject states that religion which had
been authorized within the bounds of the governing

IIISTOJIY OF Tin: REFORMATION IN ITALY. 337

country.* The increase of their numbers, particular-
ly at Chiavenna, where they were joined by some of
the princij)al fann'lies, alarmed the priests. They
durst not attack the j)ersons or property of the ob-
jects of their hatred, for fear of being called to ac-
count by the public authorities, but every thing short
of force was employed to intimidate and distress
them. The minds of the jjcople were inflamed by the
most violent invectives against the Lutheran heresies
from the pul])it ; and recourse was had to arts of a
still worse description. A simple maid was decoyed
into the belief that the \'irgin Mary had appeared
to her and given her a charge to acquaint the in-
habitants of Chiavenna, that heaven, provoked by
the encouragement given to heresy, was about to
visit the jdace with an awful calamity, unless
the heretics were speedily exterminated. Proces-
sions, accompanied with fasting and prayers, were
immediately proclaimed and observed with great
solemnity in the town and surrounding villages,
and every thing tended to some violent explo-
sion of poi)ular hatred against the protestants. But,
in consequence of a judicial investigation, it was
found that the whole affair had originated in the
wicked device of a parish priest to gratify his lust,
at the same time that he testified his zeal for the
catholic faith, f The detection of this imposture,
under a governor who was unsuspected of any lean-
ing to the new opinions, together with the subse-
quent conviction of some other priests of notorious

* De Porta, ii. \.

t \b. ii. 15— ac).

338 uisTORv or Tin: ia:rouMATioN in italv.

UISTOUY or THE llErOllMATlON IN ITALY. 339

crimes, silenced the clergy, and contributed to check
the delusions under which the minds of the people
had fallen.*

The greater part of the learned Italians who fled
to the Valteline between 1540 and 1543, after re-
freshing themselves from the fatigues of their jour-
ney, crossed the Alps. But a considerable number
of them were induced to remain by the pleasantness
of the country, the importunity of some of the prin-
cipal inhabitants who were anxious to have the
benefit of their private instructions, and the pros-
pect which they had of being useful among a peo-
ple who were entirely destitute of the means of
religious knowledge. Among these was Agostino
Mainardi, a Piemontese, and an Augustinian monk.
Having been thrown into i)risou in the town of
Asti for maintaining certain propositions contrary
to the received faith, he was liberated upon the
explications which he gave, and went to Italy.
At Pavia and other places he acquired great repu-
tation by his preaching and disputing in b^'half of
the truth; and after escaping repeatedly the snares
laid for liis life, was obliged at last to betake him-
self to (light. His learning, mildness, and prudence
qualified him for the difficult situation in which he
was now placed, f Julio da Milano, a secular priest,
and doctor of theology, who had escaped from the
imprisonment into which he had been thrown at Ve-

• Do Porta, ii. 20, 21.

t llaynaldi Aunales ail an. 1335. Celio Secumlo Curio, Dc am-
plitudine legni Dei, p. 13. Museum Ilelvet. apud Gerdesii Ital. Re-
form, p. 300. Schelhorn, Ergotz. toni. ii. p. 16.

nice,* i)rovxHl a zealous and able coadjutor to Main-
ardi. They were joined by Camillo, a native of
Sicily, who, on embracing the protestant doctrine,
took the name of Renato ; and by Francesco Negri of
Bassano, who is known as the author of several books
against the church of Rome which had an extensive
circulation at the time of their publication.! The

* Following Gerdes, (Italia lltf. pp. 279, 280,) I have confounded
this person with Julio Terenziano. (See before, pp. 191, 197.) They
were different individuals. Fueslin has published a letter from Ju-
lius Tereutiunusj and another from Julius 3IciIiolanensis. (Epistolai
Kef. pp. 301, 36:i.) The former, aceording to Simler, continued with
Martyr from the time he left Italy till his death. (Vita Martyris,
sig. b iiij.) He was with him in England in lo48 and 1553, retired
with him to Strasburg in the end of that year, and was still with
him in 1558 at Zurich. (Serin. Antiq. torn. iv. pp. 6Gi, 667, 674.
Fueslin, pp. 313, 318.) But Julius Mcdiolanensii, was in the neigh-
bourhood of Chiavenna during all that period. (Fueslin, p. 359. De
Porta, ii. 30, 40.) Argelati, in his Bibl. Script. MedioL, as quoted by
Tiraboschi, (Storia, vii. p. 383,) says that some sermons by '* Giulio
Terenziano da Milano" were printed at Venice; but I suspect that
these learned writers have mistaken the real author, and that the ser-
mons, as well as the work which appeared under the concealed name
of Girolamo Savonesej were the production, not of Giulio Terenziano,
but of Giulio da Milano.

t Bock, Hist. Antitrin. torn. ii. p. 482. Beside the work formerly
mentioned, (p. 276,) Negri was the author of Tragcdia di libero ar-
bitrio, which Fontanini characterizes as " empia e diabohca," and
from which Sclielhorn has given extracts. (Ergotzlichkeiten, torn. ii.
pp. 09 — 31.) Verci has given an account of his writings; and the do-
cuments which he has produced refute the opinion of Quadrio and
others, that Negri was a native of Lovcro in the Valteline. (Scrittori
Bassan. i. 60 : Tiraboschi, vii. 383.) *' Antonius Nigrus, medicus,"
is mentioned, as having come from Italy, by Melanchthon. (Epist.
col. 749.) And " Theobaldus Nigrus" is spoken of, as at Strasburg
in 1551, by Martyr. (Loc. Commun. p. 763.)

340 HISTOUV OF THE UErOKMATlOX IN ITAl.V.

two last were not i)rcafliers, as lias been erroneous-
ly stated by some writers,* but confined themselves
to the teaching of youtli. Camillo had under his
charge the sons of several of the ])rinci])al gentry,
and took up his residence at C'a.span in the \"alteline,
while Negri fixed his abode at Chiavenna.f To them
may be added Francesco Stancari, a native of Man-
tua, who reniained some time in the Valteline, and
commenced teaching the IIei)rew language, of which,
before he left his native country, he had been pro-
fessor at Terra di Spilimbergo, in tlie province of

Friuli.t

Amonu' the distini>uished citizens of the Grisons
who resided in C'hiavenna was Hercules a Salice or
de Salis, the descendant of a noble family, who had
already gained great reputation as a soldier, and af-
terwards rose to the first employments in the repub-
lic, lie entertained Mainardi, who ])leased liim and
the friends who frccpiented his house so highly, that
they determined to have the obstacles which stood
in the way of his remaining with them removed.
The zealous lloman catholics insisted that it was a
fundamental law of the democracy, that no religious
service could be set up or observed in any commu-
nity, town or village, without the formal permission
of the majority of the inhabitants. The protcstants

* Futslin, Fpist. Ktf. p. 254. Genlcbii Italia Kef. \). 307.

t Vc Porta, i. 197 ; ii. U.

^^ Ibid. p. I<i7. Tirabosihi, vii. 1087.

IlISTOKV or THE REEOllM ATIOX IN ITAEY. 341

])leaded the liberty which had been granted to use the
reformed worship within the republic. De Salis
brought the affair before the national diet held at
Davos in the year 154 k which determined that it
should be lawful to such as embraced the evangeli-
cal religion in the \^alteline, Chiavenna, and other
places within the dominions of the Grisons, to enter-
tain and keep privately teachers and schoolmasters
for the spiritual instruction of their families ; and
that those who had fled from their native country
on account of that religion should be permitted to
settle in any part of the Grison territory, upon sub-
scribing the received protestant confession and giv-
ing such other securities as the laws required. * In
consequence of this law, Mainardi was established
as pastor of the flock which had already been ga-
thered by his private instructions at Chiavenna. To
this congregation De Salis gaye his chapel, called
Santa Maria del Paterino, together with a house,
garden and salary to the minister. It increased
rapidly, and great care was afterwards taken to pro-
vide Chiavenna with learned pastors. f

About the same time, Julio da Milano, after
preaching with great success in Lower Engadina,
founded a congregation at Puschiavo which enjoyed

* De Porta, ii. 37*.S8.

+ Mainardi was succeeded by the celebrated Jeronimo Zaiichi, who
had Simone Florillo, a Neapolitan, for his colleague ; after whom
Scipione Lentulo of Naples, and Ottaviano Meio of Lucca, successive-
ly occupied this important post. (Zanchii Epist. lib. ii. p. 376. De
Porta, ii. If) — .u.)

34)2 IIISTOKYOF Tin: HEFOHIMATION IX ITALY.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IX ITALY. 343

his ministry for nearly tliirty years, and con-
tinued lon^ to be one of the most flourishing
churches in the republic. Julio also laid the foun-
dation of a niu(d)er of churches in his neighbour-
hood. * About the time of In's death, which liap-
pened soon after 1571, an able successor was provid-
ed for liim by the opportune arrival of Cesare Gaf-
fori, a native of Piacenza, wdio had been guardian
of the Franciscans, f The first printing press in
the Grisons was erected in the town of Puschiavo
by Rodolfino Landolfo, the descendant of a noble
family in that place, wdio expended a large sum on
the luidertaking. It contrilnited greatly to the illu-
mination of the country, but was very annoying to
the Roman catliolics ; and in 1561 the pope and
king of Spain made a demand for its suppression
as a miisance, with which however the diet did not
think proper to comply.!

Hie church of Caspan was the first fruits of the
Valteline, having, so early as the year 1546, met
for worship in a house provided by the Paravi-

* Brusio, Ponteilla, Prada, Mcschin, and Piiiri or Plurs were all in
a short time provided with pastors from among the Italian refugees.
(Schclhorn, Dissert, de Mino Celso Senensi, pp. 3i, i6. De Porta,
torn. ii. part. ii. p. 179.) The village of Plurs was overwhelmed in
the year 1618 by the falling of mount Conto, on which occasion all
the inhabitants, to the number of more than 2()0(), were buried in the
ruins, with the exception of three individuals, who happened at the
time to be in the fields. (Ebel, Manuel du Voyageur en Suisse, torn,
ii. pp. 390, 391.)

t De Porta, ii. U), U.

t Ebel, tom. iv. p. 5'3.

cini, one of the most honovirable families in that
country. It was, however, nearly ruined by the
imprudence of an individual belonging to the fa-
mily to whicli it owed its erection. A crucifix
having been found broken in one of the churches,
the clergy directed the suspicions of the inflamed
populace against the ]U'otestant minister, who, on
being arraigned and put to the rack, was made to
confess that he had committed the sacrilegious deed.
On being liberated from confinement he repaired to
Coire, and protesting that the extremity of the tor-
ture had wrung from him the confession of a crime
in which he had no participation, demanded a fair
trial. On examination it w^as found that the out-
rage on the crucifix had been committed by Barto-
lommeo Paravicino, a boy of thirteen, on the night
before he set out for the university at Zurich.
But thoufifh the innocence of the minister was clear-
ed, so strong were the j)rejudices of the Roman
catholics, that it was not judged prudent to permit
him to return to Caspan, and his congregation was
directed to choose another pastor in his room. *
IVglio, the chief town of the most populous district
in the \\ilteline, obtained for its pastor the pious
and learned Paolo Gaddio, a native of the Cre-
monese, who, after visiting Geneva, had acted as
a temporary assistant to the venerable pastor of
Puschiavo. f Sondrio, which was the seat of the

'^ De Porta, ii. tl— U.

+ Fucslin, p. 359. Zanchii Opera, tom. vii. p. I-.

344 HISTORY OF Tin: kkfoumatiox tx italy.

government, enjoyed for some time the labours of
Scipione Lentulo, a learned Neapolitan, who had
devoted himself to the service of the Waldensian
churches in the vallevs of Lucerna and Ane:roe:na,
and been exposed to the severe persecution which
they suffered in 15G0 and 1561 from Emanuel Phi-
libert, duke of Savoy. * His talents and learning
were of the greatest utility to the reformed cause
during Iiis residence at Sondrio, and afterwards at
Chiavenna. f Churches were also erected in a
number of other places in the Valteline; j: and they
spread subsequently into the county of Bormio.g
Upon the whole, the number of protestant churches
to the south of the Alps appears to have exceeded
twenty, which were all served, and continued till
the end of the sixteenth century to be for the most
part served, by exiles from Italy.

I have brought into one view what concerns the
formation of Italian churches in this part of the
country; but it was after a considerable interval, and
the most violent opposition, that permission was ob-
tained to erect the greater part of them. No soon-
er did the priests perceive the success of the re-

• Lcger has inserted an account of the deliverance of the AValdenses,
in a letter from Lcntulus to an illustrious person at Geneva. (Ilist.
des Eglises V^audoises, torn. ii. pp. 34 — 3(>.)

t Gerdesii Ital. Ref. pp. 281— 28k De Porta, ii. 335, 495—500.

X Those of Tirano, Rovoledo, Mellio, Morbegno, and Dubino, are
particularly mentioned.

§ Coxe, iii. 102. De Porta, ii. 286, 287.

HISTORY OF THK REFORMATION IN ITALY. 34.5

formed doctrine at Chiavenna and Caspan, than
they began to exclaim against the edict of 1544.
Xot being able, with any decency, to object to the
first part of it, they directed their invectives acrainst
the liberty which it granted to the Italian exiles to
settle among them, exclaiming that it was disgrace-
ful to the republic of the Grisons to give entertain-
ment to hcnidtft}, (as they called them,) whom
other Christian princes and states had expelled
from their dominions. The popular mind was still
farther inflamed by a crowd of monks who came
from the Milanese, and especially by Capuchins
sent by tlie bishop of Como, who in the fanatical
harangues which they delivered during the time of
Lent did all but. exhort the people to rebel against
their rulers. Failing in their applications to the
diet for a repeal of the obnoxious edict, the oppo-
nents of the Reformation had recourse to the local
government. In the year 1551 a petition was
presented, demanding that it should be declared,
agreeably to the spirit of an ancient law, that no
exile or evangelical preacher should be permitted to
remain above three days in the Valteline. Antho-
ny de Planta, the governor, was a protestant ; but
dreading, from the irritated feelings of the popu-
lace, a massacre of the refugees, he gave his con-
sent to the measure. In consequence of this, the
preachers were obliged to retire for a time to Chia-
venna ; and several distinguished individuals, both
male and female, among whom were count Celso

346 iriSTOllY OF Tin: KErORMATIOX IX italy.

IVIartiiienji^lio and Isabella Manricba, prepared to
remove into Switzerland * The diet was highly
offended at these illegal and disorderly proceedings,
but contented itself with renewing in 1552 its for-
mer edict, and charging the governor and vicar of
the Valteline to see it strictly observed.

The firmness of the government repressed, with-
out allaying, the hostility of those who had gained
the command over the passions of the Roman ca-
tholics, which burst forth on the slightest occasions
in acts of violence against the protestant preachers.
They felt a strong hatred and dread of Vergerio, and
during a visit which he paid to the Valteline in 1553,
a deputation waited on the governor and insisted on
the instant banishment of the bishop, adding, that if
their demand was not complied with, " they would
not be answerable for the scandals which might
ensue." Understanding the meaning of this threat,
Vergerio agreed voluntarily to retire ; " for," says he,
" they meant to oppose me with the dagger, and
pistol and poison." One of the basest methods

* De Porta, ii. 50. Frederic tie Salis writes, June 20, 1559, that
Isabella Maiiriclm (see before, p. I(i0) was still at Chiaveinia waiting
for her household, and uncertain whether to remain in that place or
to remove elsewhere. (Ibid. p. 34-3; conf. p. 170.) Annibale Caro ad-
dressed a letter from Rome, April 27, 15i8, to this lady, who was
then at Naples. There are four letters by the same learned man to
her son George Manricha, from the last of which it appears that this
young man was at Milan on the 18th of June 1562. (Lctterc Famil.
del C'ommendatore Annibal Caro, tomo i. pp 269, 270, 293; ii. 16,
279. edit. 1572.)

HISTORY OF THE RKFOR:\rATION IX ITALV. 347

adopted by the monkish trumpeters of sedition,
was to impress on the minds of their hearers that
it was unlawful for true catholics to hold civil in-
tercourse witli lieretics, or to live with them as
masters or servants, husbands or wives ; by which
means they disturbed the peace and broke up the har-
mony of some of the principal families in the coun-
try. A Dominican monk of Cremona, named Fra
Angelo, declaiming from the puljnt at Teglio dur-
ing the festival of Easter 1556, accused the rulers
of the Orisons of listening to heretical teachers, and
gave a formal challenge to any of the evangelical
party, offering to prove from the scri})tures that
those who refused the mass were diabolical he-
retics, and that their spouses were not legitimate
wives, but worse than strumpets. On leaving
the church the infuriated audience rushed to the
protestant place of worship, attacked Gaddio the
pastor, and ^rounded several of the protestants
who attempted to defend him. Instead of call-
ing Angelo to account for instigating this tu-
mult, the Orison government invited him to Coire
to maintain the dispute which he had provoked ;
but, although offered a safe-conduct, he refused to
make his appearance, and orders being afterwards
issued to apprehend him, he made his escape into
Italy. The procurator who appeared for those
who had been active in the riot, did not deny that
it was caused by the monks, and had the effrontery
to declare before the judges appointed to examine

.'US iiisroiiv or thk in:roiiMATiON ix itai.v.

the aflair, " tlint tlirro would never !)e (piietness in
the repiililie until that relif^ion of the devil (the
I)n)testant) was externiinated." Vet so forhearinc^
was the ^overnrnent, that it not only passed over
the tumult with ijnj)unity, l)ut saerifiein<^^ private
interests, and in some de'^ree the eharaeter of the
innoeent sullerers, to puhlie peaee, a^^reed that
fJaddio sliould remove to anotlier plaee, althou^^h
his con^^re^i^ation earnestly petitioned tor his heing
allowed to eontiniu' with them.*

This lenity was entirely thrown away on tlie
enemies of the protestants l)otli within and without
the repuhlie. At the very time that the ii^overn-
nient was lahourin^- to allay animosities, two !)ro-
tliers, Francesco and Alessandro Jiellinchetti, were
seized in Italy. 'J'hey were natives of Her<^amo,
wlio, on emhraeing the reformed reli<>'ion, Iiad re-
tired into the Orisons and settled in the village of
Berirun at the foot of mount Alhnla, where thev
wrought an iron mine. Having paid a visit to their
native place, they were thrown into the incjuisition,
and proceeded against on a charge of heresy. On
hearing of this tlie authorities of the Grisons im-
mediately sent an ambassador to demand their libe-
ration as citizens of the republic; and as the magis-
trates of liergamo and the senate of Venice referred
them to the inquisitors, they wrote to the prior of
the Dominican monastery at Morbegno in the Valte-

• Pc Porta, ii. Ii7— lif), 2()i— 272.

HISTOUY OF Tin: KEI'OllMATIOX IX ITALY. 349

line to use his influence with his brethren to ob-
tain the release of the prisoners ; but he paid no re-
gard to the ai)plication. Upon this the diet met and
came to a i)eremj)tory resolution, that if the two
brothers were not released within the space of a
month, all the Dominicans within the territories of
the three leagues should be banished, and the pro-
jxTty of the monastery of Morbegno, movable and
immovable, forfeited and applied to the relief of
the ])oor or to other pious uses. An extract of this
deed being sent to the prior, the prisoners were im-
mediately set at liberty/^"

In the mean time the foreign monks who in-
vaded the Valteline, confiding in the support
of their governments, became every day bolder
in their inv.ctives and macliinations against the
public peace. Througli their influence persons of
the first respectability for birth, probity and talents
were not only excluded from civil offices, but deni-
ed the rites of sepulture, prevented from building
places of worship, and exposed to every species of
insult. Seeing no end to this illegal and degrading-
oppression, they at last resolved on laying their grie-
vances formally before the government. Aware of
the justice of their complaints, impressed with the
equity of extending to the subject states that reli-
gious liberty which had been found so advantageous
to the governing country, perceiving that the threats

* De Porta, ii. 272, 273.

' m

350 HISTORY OF THi: UEFOKMATIOX IX ITALY.

of Strangers were heard above the voice of the law
in their southern dominions, and convinced that it
w^as high time to adopt decisive measures unless
they chose to allow their authority to sink into ab-
solute contempt, the diet, which met at Ilautz in
the beginnino- of the year 15.57, unanimously adopt-
ed tlie following decree, which, being ratified by tlie
several comihunities, was enrolled among the fun-
damental and standing laws of the republic. It was
decreed, that it should be lawful to preach the sacred
word of God and the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ
in all places belonging to the Valteline, and to the coun-
ties of Chiavenna, Bormio, and Teglio; that in those
villages in which there was a plurality of churches,
the Roman catholics should have their choice of one,
and the other should be given to the protestants ;
that in any village in which there w^as only one
church, the Roman catholics should have the privi-
lege of using it in the former part of the day, and
the protestants in the latter; that each party should
be allowed to i)erform all the parts of their worship,
and to bury their dead, without opposition from the
other; that the professors of the protestant faith
should enjoy all honours and be admissible to all
offices equally with their fellow-subjects ; that no
foreign monk or presbyter, of w^iatever religious
persuasion, should be admitted to reside w^ithin these
territories unless he had been previously examined
and approved by the ordinary authorities in the
church to which he belonged— the ministers by the

IIISTOKY OF THE KEFOllMATIOX IN ITALY. 351

protestant synod in the three leagues, and the priests
by the bishop and chapter of Coire ; and that none
should be admitted unless he declared his intention to
reside at least for a year, and gave security for his
good behaviour. In the course of the same year an
act was passed, freeing the protestants from penal-
ties for not observing the popish holydays. And in
the following year two statutes w^ere enacted, one
for extending to the subject provinces the law which
prevented the admission of new members into monas-
teries, and the other making stated provision for the
pastors of the protestant churches. The former
was not executed. In pursuance of the latter, a
third of the ecclesiastic rents of Chiavenna was al-
lotted to the minister of the reformed church in
that village, which by this time included the half
of the population. To the pastors in other places
forty crowns a year were allotted, to be taken in
the first instance from the benefices of absentees
and pluralists, and failing these, from the revenues
which the bishop of Coire drew from the Valteline,
from the funds of the abbacy of Abundio, or, as
the last resource, from the common funds of each
parish.*

This was the only legislative enactment by
Miiich positive encouragement was given to the
reformed religion in the Valteline ; but the pro-
testant ministers derived little from it except en-
vy, the clergy contriving by concealment, litigation

• De Porta, ii. 273—276, 283—287.

352 IIISTOKY OF THE REIORMATION IX ITALY.

and violence to retain nearly the whole of the
funds. It was granted in consequence of the re-
presentation of the protestants, wlio pleaded, that,
though the minority in point of numbers, they con-
tributed the largest proportion to the funds of the
clergy, many of whom performed no duty, and the
rest confined themselves chiefly to the saying of
mass. As is usual on such occasions, those of the
laity who contributed next to nothing were loudest
in exclaiming, *' that they were taxed for upholding
an heretical religion ;" while the clergy called upon
«* the Italian deserters of monasteries" to imitate the
example of the apostle Paul, who laboured witli
his hands that lie might not be burdensome to tlie
churches, and of the Egyptian anchorites, with Peter
the hermit at their head ; and insisted that they could
not be the followers of Christ and his apostles, in-
asmuch as they did not work miracles nor live on
alms.* I may mention here another act, passed
at a later period, which gave great offence to
the Roman catholics. The diet of the Grison
re])ublic agreed to erect a college at Sondrio in the
Valteline. f It did not partake of the nature of a
theological seminary, but was confined to the teacli-
ing of languages and the arts. The children of
papists and protestants were equally admissible to
it, and provision was made for teachers of both
persuasions. But notwithstanding the liberal priu-

* De Porta, ii. 287, 289, 5G0, 561.

t Though not erected till 1584, this college was planned so early
as 1563. (Zanchii Epist. lib. ii. p. .'^6.)

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 353

ciples on which it was founded, the clergy cried
out against it as a Lutheran seminary; formal
representations were made against it by the po-
pish cantons of Switzerland and by the court of
Milan ; and the republic was obliged to send back
the principal, a learned and moderate man, whom
they had brought from Zurich, and to remove the
institution, after it had subsisted for only one year,
to the city of Coire. *

The Italian exiles were elated by the laws passed
in their favour, and looked forward with sanguine
hopes to the speedy triumph of the reformed cause
in the Valteline ; but their ultramontane brethren,
who were better acquainted with the genius of the
inhabitants, and more indifferent judges of the op-
position which might be expected from foreign
powers, repressed their fervour, and wisely urged
upon them the propriety of trusting for success' to
the gradual illumination of tlie people, rather than to
legislative decrees which required external force to
carry them into execution, f The court of Rome
was highly displeased from the beginning at the
reception given to the Italian exiles in the Orisons ;
but its displeasure was converted into a mingled

De Porta, torn. li. part. ii. 32, 37, 48, 53, 57-8, 332. The erection
of a snnilar seminary in IGU, but on a smaller scale, and without
deriving any support from the funds of the Valteline, excited equal
hostihty, and was made one pretext for the rebellion which followed
soon after. (Ibid. pp. 252— 254., 322.)
t De Porta, ii. 280, 281.

2 A

354i HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

feeling of indignation and alarm, when it saw the
standard of evangelical truth planted in one of the
suburbs of Italy, from which, if not speedily dis-
lodired, it mi^ht be carried into the interior, and at
once insult and endanger the head of the church ni
his capital. The extirpation of the colony was re-
solved on ; and to accomplish it the popes exert-
ed themselves in securing the co-operation of the
neighbouring catholic powers, especially the Spanish
monarch, who had lately obtained the sovereignty
of Milan. It is difficult to say M^iether ambition
or bigotry had the ascendant in the character of
Philip II., but l>oth principles led him to embark
in this scheme with the utmost cordiality. The
Valteline bordered on the Milanese, and had for-
merly belonged to that dutchy. Philip, as well as
the dukes who preceded him, had ratified the ces-
sion of it to the republic of the Grisons, but that
did not prevent him from cherishing the idea of
recovering a territory which was the key to the
communication between Milan and Germany, and
the command of which would enable him at all times
with safety to convey troops from Austria to his
dominions in the north of Italy. P'or interfering with
the affairs of the Valteline, he found a pretext in the
plea, that it was necessary for him to avert heresy
from the Milanese, which had already been to no
inconsiderable extent tainted by that pestilential ma-
lady.

In no quarter of Italy had more cruel methods

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 355

been used to extirpate the new opinions than in the
Milanese. Galeazzo Trezio, a nobleman of Laude
Pompeia, while attending the university of Pavia,
had imbibed the reformed doctrines from Maynardi,
who acted at that time as an Augustinian preacher,
and was confirmed in them by the instructions of
Celio Secundo Curio. Having fallen into the hands
of the inquisition in 1551, and retracted some conces-
sions which he had been induced to make at his first
ai)prehension, he was sentenced to be burnt alive, a
punishment which he bore with the greatest for-
titude.* The persecution became more general when
the duke of Alva was made governor. In the year
1558 two persons were committed alive to the
flames. One of them, a monk, being forced by an
attending priest into a pulpit erected beside the
stake to make his recantation, confessed the truth
with great boldness, and was driven into the fire
with blows and curses. During the course of the
following year scarcely a week elapsed without some
individual being brought out to suffer for heresv ;
and in 1563 eleven citizens of rank were thrown into
prison. The execution of a young priest in 1569
was accompanied with circumstances of peculiar
barbarity. He was condemned to be hanged and
dragged to the gibbet at a horse's tail. In conse-
quence of entreaty the last part of the sentence was

* The account of this martyr was furnished by Celio S. Curio to
Pantaleon. (Uerum in Eccl. Gest. pp. 247-249. Conf. Hieronymi Ma-
rii Kusebius Captivus, f. 105.)

■ r

356 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

dispensed with ; but after being half-strangled, he
was cut down, and refusing to recant, was literal-
ly roasted to death, and his body thrown to the
dogs.*

In the year 1559 the government of Milan erect-
ed forts on the confines of the ^"alteline. Under the
coverof these the inquisitors entered the country, and
astheydurst not seize the persons of the inhabitants,
collected a large quantity of heretical books which
they burnt with great solemnity. They were fol-
lowed by a swarm of foreign monks, who, trusting
to the garrisons as places of retreat, despised the
edict which ])rohibited them from entering the
country, and went about inflaming the minds of the
people against the protestant preachers, and the
rulers by whom they were protected and favour-
ed. f A college of Jesuits also was established
at Ponte, and maintained itself in spite of repeat-
ed orders issued by the diet for its removal, t
These strangers kept up a regular correspond-
ence with the heads of their respective orders at

* De Porta, ii. 293-6, iS6, iS8. Tlic following notice may be add-
ed to what has been already stated respecting the duke of Man-
tua. '^ Gulielnio duke of Mantua, by refusing to send some persons
accused of heresy to Rome, incurred the serious resentment of the
pope, who threatened to declare war against him if he j)erniittcd
Mantua to become a nest for heretics. And beyond all doubt he
woultl have attacked him, had not the princes of Italy prevailed on
him by their intercessions to pardon the duke on his submission."
(Bzovii Annal. ad an. 1560.)

t De Porta, ii. 297— 'J99. t Ibid. pp. 302— 30 1.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITxVLY. 357

Como, Milan, Rome, and other places in Italy, the
eftects of which were soon after made apparent. It
has been already mentioned that Pius IV., who
filled the papal throne between 1559 and 1566, had
been a priest in the Valteline ; a circumstance which
at once disposed him to take an interest in the af-
fairs of that country, and made his interposition the
more effective. In 15C1 his legate Bianchi, provost
of Santa Maria della Scala at Milan, appeared at
Coire. Supported by the presence and influence of
Ritzio, the Milanese ambassador, the legate made
a formal demand on the diet, in the name of his
lioliness, that they should banish the Italian exiles
from the Valteline and Chiavenna, allow free in-
gress and egress to foreign monks, make no oppo-
sition to the Jesuit college at Ponte, prevent the is-
suing of books derogatory to the church of Rome
from the press at Puschiavo, and in general over-
turn all that they had done in relation to religion in
that part of their dominions.* But the influence of
Pius, who had not left behind him the odour of sanc-
tity in the Grisons, was small, compared with that
of his nephew, the celebrated cardinal Borromeo,
archbishop of Milan. Thougli this prelate owed
liis canonization more to his zeal for Catholicism
than to his piety, yet his talents and the decorum
of his private character rendered him by far the
most formidable adversary that appeared against
the protestant interest. It was the great object of

• De Porta, ii. 301—571.

358 iiisTOiiY or Tin: ueformatiox in italv.

his ambition from an early period of life to oppose
an eliectual barrier to the progress of heresy, and to
repair and prop the fabric of popery which he saw
tottering on its base. AMth this view he applied
himself to the removal of abuses in Italy ; intro-
duced reforms into the morals of the clergy, parti-
cularly of the monastic orders ; and erected semi-
naries in which young persons of talents should ob-
tain such an education as might qualify them for
entering the lists with the protestants, and fighting
them with their own weaj)ons. Hitherto those
who had appeared as the champions of the church
of Kome, though often not destitute of talents, w^ere
almost always deficient in learning, and could do
little more than ring changes, and that for the most
part rudely, on the popular prejudices against inno-
vation and in favour of the catholic church. But men
of learning now came forward who could " make the
worse ai)pear the better cause," — who, if theydid not
convince by the solidity of tlieir arguments, could
entangle the minds of their readers by their subtlety,
or dazzle them l)y the sj)lcndour of their eloquence,
and Mho couJd artfully withdraw attention from
the real image of the church as she existed, to one
which was the pure creation of their own imagina-
tion. All the celebrated champions of the catholic
faith, fromlkdlarmine toBossuet,i)rocceded from the
school of Borromeo. It would liave been well if
the cardinal had confined himself to methods of

this kind ; but, beside abetting the most violent

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALV. 359

measures for suppressing the reformed opinions
within his own diocese, he industriously fomented
dissensions in foreign countries, leagued with men
who were capable of any desperate attempt, and
busied himself in providing arms for subjects who
were ready to rebel against their lawful rulers, and
to shed the blood of their peaceable fellow-citizens.*
It is only a general account which I can here give
of the course pursued for disturbing the peace of
the Orisons, and expelling the refugees from the
settlement which they had obtained in the Valteline.
The goods belonging to citizens of the republic who
traded with the Milanese were seized by the inqui-
sitors, and applications for restitution and redress
were almost in every instance refused or evaded.
Merchants who visited that country were appre-
hended on a charge of heresy, detained in j^rison,
forced to purchase their liberty with large sums of
money, or condemned to different kinds of punish-
ment. Borromeo was not afraid to incarcerate the
chief magistrate of the jurisdiction of Mayenfeld.f
At last a new species of outrage, unheard of among*
civilized nations, was resorted to. Bands of armed
men haunted the roads of the Valteline, seized the
j)rotestants unawares, and carried them into Italy.
Francesco Cellario, the protestant minister at Mor-

* The most serious of these charges is supported by the cardinal's
letter of the 24th May 1584- to the nuncio Spezzani, published by
(^uadrio, the catholic historian of the Valteline, and reprinted by De
Porta. (Tom. ii. part. ii. pp. 33 — 35; conf. part. i. pji, 454,482.)

t Ibid, ii. 455, 461, 482.

3C0 iiibTOiiv or THE heiohmation in italv.

begno, was retuniiiig in 1568 from a meeting of the
synod held at Zutz in Upper Engadina. He had
scarcely left the town of Chiavenna, when some vil-
lains rushed from a thicket on the margin of the
lake Lario, forced him into a boat wliich they had
ready, and conveying him first to Como and af-
terwards to Milan, delivered him to the inquisition.
Ambassadors were sent to demand the prisoner,
but they found that lie had been sent to Rome, and
were told by the duke De 'J'erranova, the governor,
that his abduction was the work of the inquisi-
tors, over whom he had no control.* After being
detained nearly a year in prison, Cellario was tried
by the inquisition at Jiome, and connnitted to the
flames on the 20th of May 15G9.t '^^^^^ practice of
manstealing now became a constant traffic in theVal-
teline; and at every meeting of the diet, for a course
of years, complaints were made thatsome personshad

♦Gabutius, in liis Life of Pius IV. gives the duke's answer in these
woitls: " That the pope has an absolute and lawful power over all
parts of the world to seize, as often as he pleases, and infliet merited
punishment on heretics." (Laderchii Annal. tcni. xxxiii. (i, 198.)

t Laderchius, ut supra. De Porta, ii. i04 — 176. The first of these
writers gives, from the records of the inquisition, the sentence con-
demning Cellario to be burnt alive. Gabutius says he recanted wlicn
lie came in sight of the fire. De Porta, on the contrary, states that
a native of the Grisons, who was in Home and witnessed the execu-
tion, deponed, that the martyr en being taken from the fiery stake
refused to confess, and was again thrown into the flames. — Cellario
had been a Minorite monk of the order Be OLscrvaniia, and was
twice imprisoned at Pavia. 'J'he first time, he was released on mak-
ing some confession ; the second time, he broke his chains and made
his escape into the Grii-ons in the year loJ8.

HISTORY OF THE RErORMATION IN ITALY. 361

been carried off, including not only exiles from Italy
but native citizens of the Grison republic* The in-
vestigations into these acts of violence implicated
in most instances the monks of Morbegno, who were
in the habit of regularly giving such information to
the inquisitors as enabled them to seize their prey.f
Nor did they confine themselves to the service.
After the abduction of Cellario, Ulixio Martinengho,
count De Barclio, a learned and pious nobleman who
had resided for a number of years in the Valteline,
officiated in his room until the admission of Scipione
Calandrino, a native of Lucca, whom the congrega-
tion had chosen for their pastor. The monks, who
had looked forward to the dispersion of that flock,
were greatly irritated at their disappointment ; and
two of them entering one day the church at Mellio,
fired a pistol at Calandrino while he was in the act of
preaching. An old man observed them levelling the
piece, and gave warning to Calandrino, who evaded
the shot ; upon which the rufl[ians stabbed the old man
mortally, and rushingforward to the pulpit, wounded
the preacher, and made their escape amidst the con-
fusion into wliich the congregation was thrown.^:

The most humiliating circumstance in the whole
of this affair is the disgraceful timidity and irreso-
lution witli which the Grison government acted.
They sent ambassadors, they craved redress, they
ordered investigations, and, on making discoveries,

* IV Porta, ii. i77, 178, ISO, 482; part. ii. 7—9, .^0, 88, 96,
t Ibid. ii. 45 J, 4j7, IGj, 483.
;|: Ibid. ii. iS3, iSl.

362 HISTORY OF THE llEI ORMATIOX IN ITALY.

they passed threatening votes ; but tliey took no
step becoming the character of a free people in de-
fence of their violated independence and insulted
honour. Tlieir neighbours showed tliem an exam-
ple worthy of their imitation. Cardinal Borromeo,
in one of his archiepiscopal visitations, entered the
territories of Switzerland. The Swiss government,
not relishing the visit, dispatched an envoy to re-
quest the governor of the Milanese to recall him.
No sooner had the envoy arrived at Milan, than he
was seized by the inquisitor and thrown into pri-
son ; but the governor, as soon as he learnt the fact,
ordered his release, and treated him with marks of
great respect. On being informed of what had liap-
pened, the Swiss authorities sent a message to the
governor, signifying that if the same post which
brought the news of the imprisonment of their en-
voy had not acquainted them with his enlargement,
they would instantly have seized the cardinal and
detained him as a hostage ; upon hearing which,
his eminence retired from the Swiss territories with
less ceremony than he had entered them. * If the
authorities of theGrisons had acted in this manner —
if they had, as they were advised, confiscated the
property belonging to the inhabitants of Milan and
Como, and retained it until their own merchants
were indemnified for the losses which they had sus-
tained y and above all, if tliey had issued peremp-
tory orders to level the monaster)' of Morbegno with
the ground, as a watchtower of spies and a den of

* Fra PaoIO; Discoiso tlcll* In<j[uisitionc di \'cnctia, p. i7.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 363

thieves, the boldness of the measure, supported by
its justice, while it gave courage to the loyal and
checked the disaffected among their own subjects,
would have secured the respect and forbearance of
foreign powers. But the counsels of the republic
were distracted by dissensions, and its arm palsied
by corruption. The Grey league, which was com-
posed chiefly of Roman catholics, refused its consent
to any vigorous measure. Spanish gold had found
its way into the other leagues ; and a protestant am-
bassador returned from Milan, bearing the insignia
of an order of knighthood conferred on him by a
papal brief, instead of bringing the prisoner whose
liberty he was sent to demand. France, on whose
aid the party opposed to Spain placed its chief de-
pendence, had fallen under the rule of the house of
Guise, which was secretly engaged in the league for
the extirpation of protestantism ; and the report of
the massacre of St. Bartholomew, while it blew up
the hopes entertained from the north, gave dreadful
note of a similar explosion from the south, which was
soon to shake the Grisons to its centre. The proper
season of applying the remedy being neglected, the
evil became inveterate, and all attempts to cure it
served only to inflame and exasperate. Provoked
by persevering injuries, alarmed by repeated con-
spiracles, and betrayed without being able to disco-
ver or convict the traitors, the authorities had re-
course to violent measures; and courts of justice, com-
posed cliiefly of protestants, were erected, by which
arbitrary and heavy punishments were inflicted, and

36h iiisTOiiY or THE heformation in italy.

iiulividuals were coiuleinned on slight or suspi-
cious evidence. These severities were artfully heigh-
tened by the representations of foreign agents,
and ministered fresh fuel to the existino- disaf-
fection. The joint influence of these causes led
to the catastrophe of 1620, of which no person
acquainted with the general history of Europe
is ignorant — the indiscriminate and barbarous mas-
sacre of the protestants in the Valteline, the re-
volt of all the southern dependencies of the repub-
lic, and the temporary subjugation of the Orisons
by the cond)ined arms of Austria and Spain. Writ-
ers professing to have formed an impartial judg-
ment* im])ute these disastrous events, in a great
measure, to the impolitic zeal with which the Ori-
sons attempted to introduce the Reformation into
the Valteline. There can be no question that if the
Reformation had not been admitted into the Ori-
sons, the republic would not have been exposed to
that hostility which they actually encountered from
neighbouring powers. J3ut ought they on that
ground to have prevented its reception ? And hav-
ing allowed it in the governing country, would they
liave been warranted in prohibiting it within the sub-
ject states ? Or, are they greatly to be blamed for
having given encouragement to those who were their
best subjects, and on whom they could rely for an en-
tire and undivided allegiance ? If the subject be ini-

t'oxc's Travciii in Switzerland, vol. iii. p. 9Q,

HISTOUY OF THE REFOUMATIOX IN ITALY. S65

partiallyconsidered, it will be found, lapprehend, that
the radical and main cause of the disturbances was
the retaining of the southern provinces in a state of
vassalage, together with the oppressions and pecu-
lation to which this led on the part of the indivi-
duals to whom the government of them was com-
mitted,— evils which are almost inseparable from
the government of colonies and dependent provinces,
whether they belong to monarchies or republics.
Had the Valteline and the adjoining districts been re-
ceived at first into the confederation as a fourth
league, and admitted to all its privileges, the inha-
bitants would have turned a deaf ear to the insi-
dious proi)osals made to them from Milan and In-
spruck, and the obstacles to the Reformation would
not have been greater in the Cisalpine than they
were in the Transalpine departments of the re-
public.

Jiefore leaving the Orisons, it will be proper to
give some account of the internal dissensions which
in-evailed among the Italian exiles. Though the great-
erpart of them were distinguished for their learnin^^,
zeal and piety, and by their services amply repaid
the kindness of the country which afforded them an
asylum, it was soon found that others cherished in
their breasts a variety of subtle and dangerous opin-
ions, which they at first insinuated in private, and
afterwards taught and maintained with such factious
pertinacity as to bring scandal on the whole body of
the exiles, and to give great offence and uneasiness
to those who had been most active in procuring them

3G6 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

a hospitable reception. It is impossible to give such
an account of the opinions of this party as will ai)ply
to all the individuals who composed it. AV hile they
agreed in refusing their assent to the received
creed, some of them cavilled at one of its articles
and otliers at another. The leaders cautiously ab-
stained from disclosing their system, and contented
themselves with imparting privately to the initiat-
ed such of their views as they knew to be most
offensive and startling to the minds of serious
Christians. The more forward, who were usually
the most unlearned, advanced crude and contradic-
tory notions ; and, their minds being unhinged
and tossed to and fro with every wind of doctrine,
they veered suddenly to opposite extremes, so that
it was not uncommon to find individuals main-
taining one day that God was the author of sinful
actions and that holiness had no connexion with
salvation, and the next day inveighing against the
doctrine of predestination as leading to these odious
consequences. In general, however, they were dis-
ciples of Servetus, w^hose creed was a compound of
anabaptism and antitrinitarianism, and had, as we
have seen, been embraced by a immber of the pro-
testants in Italy.*

Francesco, a Calabrian, and Jeronimo, a Mantuan,
were the first who excited a noise by venting these
opinions. They had not been long settled as pas-
tors in the district of Engadina w^hen the report

See before, pp. 1 IS — 158.

f^?":*.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 367

arose that they were inculcating, that infants ouglit
not to be baptized ; that God is the author of sinful
actions; that the body, flesh or death of Christ can
be of no avail for the salvation of men ; and that
the souls of the just sleep till the resurrection. The
church of Lavin dismissed Jeronimo as soon as they
ascertained his sentiments ; but the Calabrian, by
his address and eloquence, had so fascinated his flock
at Vettan, that they clung to him and regarded all
his sayings as oracular. This encouraged him to
persevere in the course which he had begun, and to
despise the admonitions of his brethren. Loud
eomi)laints being made that his doctrine was cor-
rupting the morals of the people, a public disputa-
tion, according to the mode of those times, was held
in the year 1544 at Zutz, which was attended by
Roman catholic priests as well as protestant mini-
sters. Francesco, having appeared before this assem-
bly,was convicted of the chief errors imputed to him,
and was afterwards expelled the country.*

But it was in the Italian churches erected on the
south of the Alps that these opinions were most in-
dustriously propagated and excited the greatest stirs.
The author and chief fomenter of these was Camillo
Benato,a man of considerable acuteness and learning,
but addicted to novelties, captious yet cool, opinion-
ative yet artful and insinuating. As long as he
remained at Caspan he had little opportunity of
making disciples, though he tainted the mind of

• Bock, Hist. Antitrin. torn. ii. p. 410. De Porta, ii. 67—75.

368 IIISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IX ITALY.

Paraviciiio, in whose house he lived as tutor. But
on his coming to Chiavenna, where the protestants
were numerous, he found a more extensive field for
propagating his peculiar notions. Mainardi,the mi-
nister of the protestant church in that town, perceiv-
ing that the minds of some of his flock were corrupt-
ed, and those of others scandalized by the opinions
which were secretly sown among them, remonstrat-
ed with Camillo, and endeavoured by private con-
ferences to effect a change on his views, or at least
to prevail on him to retain them within his own
breast. Failing to accomplish this, lie first gave
warning to his people from the j)ulpit of the danger
to which they were exposed, and afterwards drew
up, in the name of his congregation, a confession of
faith, in which, without mentioning the name of
Camillo, he explicitly condemned his errors. Upon
this Camillo and his followers withdrew from the
ministry of Mainardi, and began to meet by them-
selves.

The following are the opinions which are said
to have been held by Camillo : That the soul dies
with the body, or sleeps until the resurrection ;
that the same body substantially shall not be raised
at the last day ; that there shall be no resurrection
of the wicked ; that man was created mortal, and
would have died though he had not sinned ; that
there is no natural law by which men can know
what to do or avoid ; that unregenerate men are
irrational creatures like the brutes ; that the de-
calogue is useless to believers, Miio have no law but

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 369

the Spirit ; that the scripture says nothing of the
merit of Christ ; that he had concupiscence "residing
in liim, was capable of sinning though lie did not ac-
tually sin, and that he is said to have been made a
curse because he was conceived in original sin, and
not because he was made a sacrifice for sin or
suffered the death of the cross for sinners ; that
justifying faith has no need of being confirmed by
sacraments ; that there is no resemblance between
baptism and circumcision ; and that baptism and
the Lord's supper are merely signs of what is past,
do not seal any blessing, and have no promise an-
nexed to them.* It is not difficult to perceive in
these propositions the elements which were after-
wards formed into a system by Faustus Socinus.
It is true, Camillo did not profess his disbelief of
the doctrine of the trinity, but some of his disciples
who enjoyed a large share of his confidence made
no scruple of openly disavowing it. He was also
wary as to what he advanced on the immortality of
the soul, and when pushed on that point by his
opponents was wont to reply, " Camillo is igno-
rant whether tlie soul be immortal or not ; he
does not affirm that the soul dies with the body, he
only says so for the sake of dispute."

• Mainardi's confession which contained these articles is lost; but
Pictro Leonis, a disciple of Camillo, inserted them in a book which he
published at Milan, from which they were extracted by De Porta, (ii.
83 — 8G.) That Camillo carried his scepticism into philosophy as well
as divinity, appears from the following article: "Quod memoria
rci alicujus non fiat, ut is qui illam facit, rei vcl facti certior fiat."

2 B

370 HISTORY OF THE KEFORMATIOX IN ITALY.

Irritated at the detection of his scheme before
he had time to mature it, Camillo complained
loudly of tlie conduct of Mainardi. He drew up
several writings against him, in which, confining
himself to the subject of tlie sacraments, he endea-
voured to hold uj) Ills ojiponent as at once ignorant
and intolerant, and the true cause of all the discord
which had arisen. In this he was encouraged by
Stancari and Negri. The former, who at a subse-
quent period excited great contentions in Poland and
in Germany, fomented the schism in the congrega-
tion of Chiavenna, although in his sentiments re-
specting the sacraments he went to the opposite ex-
treme from Camillo. Negri, a good but weak man,
vacillated between the views of Camillo and Stan-
cari, and lent his aid to the faction.* The conse-
quence of all this was, that Mainardi incurred the
censures of some of his countrymen who occasion-
ally visited the place, such as W'rgerio and Altieri ;
and received letters from the Grisons and Switzer-
land, admonishing him to conduct himself with
greater moderation. Knowing that lie had good
grounds for all which he had done, and that the pre-
judices raised against him would give way as soon
as the cause came to be investigated, Mainardi did
not relax in his vioilance. " The favourers of Ca-
millo (says he in a letter to Bullinger) tear my
sermons in pieces. If I hold my peace, the truth is

+ Museum Helveticum, torn. xix. pp. 481 — 4S7 ; wlicre extracts
are given from the letters of Altieri and other distinguished persons
at \'enice, describing tlic turbulent temper of Stancari.

HISTORY OF THE REFOllMATIOX IN ITALY. 371

exposed to imminent danger : if I speak, I am a
morose old man, and intolerant. Write to Blasio
and Comander not to listen to the statements of one
party, but to come and examine the matter before
the whole congregation. I purposed to retire
into England, but providence has kept me from de-
serting this little flock. Yet I wish they could ob-
tain a better pastor and one of greater fortitude than
I." From the time that he came to the Valteline,
Camillo had kept up a correspondence with Bullin-
ger by letters, in which he endeavoured to ingra-
tiate himself with him, by professing his agreement
with the cliurch of Zurich ; but when his opponent
offered to submit the controversy between them to
the judgment of that venerable divine he declined
the proposal. The Orison synod which met in 1547
called the parties before them, but Camillo neither
attended nor sent a letter of excuse, upon which
they enjoined him to desist from opposing his mi-
nister and disturbing the peace of the church. As
he disregarded this injunction and continued his
former practices, a deputation, consisting of four
of the principal ministers in the Grisons, was sent
to Chiavenna in the close of the year 1549, to in-
quire into the affair, and to put an end to a dissen-
sion which now made a great noise, and caused no
small scandal both among Roman catholics and
protestants.* The deputation found all the charges

• On this occasion, a correspondence of a rather singular kind took
place between the deputies and the Uoman catholic chapter of Chi-

372 HISTORY OF THE HEFORMATION IN ITALY.

brought against Camillo proved, and declared tliat
Mainardi had acted the part of a faithful and vigi-
lant minister ; but without censuring the former,
they, with the view of restoring harmony, drew up
certain articles upon the subjects which had been con-
troverted, to which they required both parties to
agree. But although Camillo subscribed this
agreement, the de[)uties had scarcely left the place
when he resumed his former practices, in conse-
quence of which the consistory of Chiavenna sus-
pended liim from church privileges, and on his
proving contumacious, publicly i)ronounced the sen-
tence of exconnnunication against him.*

After this we hear little of Camillo.f I have
been the more particular in my account of him,
because there is every reason to think lie had great
influence in forming the opinions of Lelius Socinus.
By their contemporaries the former is usually spo-
ken of as the master and the latter as the disciple.

avcnna. The former, on their arrival, addressed a letter to tlic chai>-
ter, intimating the design on \vhich they had conic, and inviting
them to meet with them, and '^ confer on tliose common articles of
Christianity ahout which they were both agreed." The cliapter re-
turned a poHtc answer, but dechned the meeting, " because there
was a great gulf between them;" adding a number of exhortations to
unity and against divisions, the drift of which it was not difficult io
perceive.

Hettinger, Helvetische Kirchengeschichte, torn. iii. IQZ, 791 :
I)e Porta, tom. ii. cap. i.

t That he was alive, and in Chiavenna or the neighbourhood of
it, in 1555, appears from a letter of Julio da IVIilano to Bullinger, in
which he speaks of him as requiring still to be narrowly wa°ched.
(Fueslin,p. 357.)

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 373

It is certain that Socinus had interviews with
Camillo at Chiavenna; and the resemblance be-
tween their opinions, and the cautious and artful
manner in which they uttered them, is very strik-
big.*

Finding themselves baffled in their attempts to
propagate their peculiar tenets, the innovators had
recourse to a device which had nearly proved suc-
cessful. They got Celso Martinengho, Vergerio, and
some other respectable names to subscribe a peti-
tion for liberty to the Italian ministers to hold a
synod of their own, distinct from that which met
in the Orisons. In supi)ort of tliis proposal, they
pleaded the difficulty of the journey across the
Alps, the difference of languages, and certain rites
practised by the Orisons which the Italians dis-
liked, and which other reformed churches had laid
aside. f ]3ut the measure was quashed by the wiser
part, who saw that the preservation of the Italian

• Illgen, Vita La?lii Socini, pp. 17,41. Bock, ii. 581-2. Hot-
tinger, iii. 791. Fueshn, p. 35G. He Porta, ii. 86.

t These rites were the use of unleavened bread in the eucharist, the
pronouncing of the angelical salutation (commonly called Salve lic^
ffina) after the Lord's prayer, and the admitting of godfathers in
baptism. In this last character Roman catholics were sometimes ad-
mitted; and Paul Iter, the popish bishop of Coire, occasionally pre-
sented the child for baptism to Comander. The ministers of the
Grisons were not rigidly attached to any of these rites, and they dis-
approved of the last-mentioned practice, though they scrupled to pro-
hibit it, (especially after the violence manifested by the priests of the
Valteline,) lest it should interrupt the friendly intercourse which
subsisted between popish and protestant families. The Italians ex-
claimed against every thing of this kind as syiobohzing with anti-
christ. (De Porta, ii. 66, 226.)

{■ '

"^1

374; iiistohy ov the ueformation in italy.

churches, both from the arts of internal agitators
and from the attacks of their popisli adversaries,
depended on their maintaining tlieir union with the
churches of the Grisons inviolate. *

The noted antitrinitarians, Alciati and Blan-
drata, stirred the ashes of the late controversy,
during a visit which they paid to the Grisons in
1553, on their way from Italy to Switzerland. Af-
ter this Michael Angelo Florio, minister of Soglio,
and Jeronimo Turriano of Plurs, began to under-
mine the faith of their hearers in the doctrine of
the atonement bv ascribine: salvation solelv to the
grace of God ; while the divinity of Christ was di-
rectly attacked by others, particularly by Ludovico
Fieri, a Bolognese, and a member of the church of
Chiavenna. In 1561 the synod summoned these
persons before them, and drew wp certain articles
condemnatory of their opinions, which Florio and
Turriano subscribed ; but Fieri, avowing his senti-
ments, was excomnuuiicated and retired to Mora-
via.f There were, however, still individuals se-
cretly attached to antitrinitarianism, wlio continued
to correspond with their friends in other countries ;
and in 1570 the controversy was revived, in conse-
quence of the arrival of some distinguished i)ersons
belonging to the sect, Avho found it dangerous to
remain any longer in Switzerland. Among these
were Camillo Soccini, a brother of Lelius Socinus,
Marctllo Squarciahi])o, a physician of Piombino,

Bock, ii. 160.

t Pc Torta, ii. 397, 197.

IIISTOIIY or THE IIEFOIIMATION IN ITALY. 375

and Niccolo Camulio, an opulent merchant, who
liberally patronised persons of this persuasion.*
Their presence encouraged Turriano to resume his
former course, in which he was joined by Sylvio,f
the minister of Trahona, and some other indivi-
duals. 13ut the proceedings of the synod which
met at Coire in the year 1571 induced the strangers
to withdraw from the Grisons. Turriano and the
other ministers were deposed, but subsequently re-
stored to their churches on making acknowledg-
ments for their offensive behaviour, t Alciati and
lllandrata visited the Grisons a second time in the
beginning of 1579, but were ordered by the magi-
strates instantly to depart, after which the coun-
try does not appear to have been disturbed with
these controversies.^ When we consider that the
Italians were strangers, that they had obtained an
asylum on condition of their joining themselves
to the protestant church already settled in the coun-
try and submitting to its discipline, and that the
republic was subjected to great odium on account of
the harbour and protection which it afforded them,
we will be cautious in condemning the magistrates
for expelling individuals who fomented discord and
endangered the existence of the whole colony, by

• Schelhorn, Diss, de Mino Celso, p. 35. Bock, ii. 483, 331, 576;
conf. i. 907—910. De Porta, ii. 508, 543, 541.

•f- Bartolommco Sylvio was the author of a tract on the Eucharist,
printed in 1551.

+ De Mino Celso, pp. 35—37. De Porta, ii. t97— 502, 513, 555.

§ Ibid. ii. C32.

376 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

propagating sentiments equally shocking to the ears
of papists and protestants. Expulsion was the
highest punishment which they inflicted ; and in
one instance in which they threatened to proceed
farther against an individual, named Titiano, who
had provoked them, the ministers interposed and
prevailed on them to desist from their intention. *
I cannot, however, speak so favourably of the sen-
timents entertained by many of the ministers re-
specting the punishment of heretics. This question
was keenly agitated after the execution of Ser-
vetus at Geneva. Gantner, one of the ministers
of Coire, maintained that heresy ought not to
be punished by magistrates, and was warmly
opposed by Eglin, his colleague. The dispute
was brought under the consideration of the synod
in 1571, which decided in favour of Eglin. It
is true the proposition adopted by the synod re-
fers to seditious heretics ; but several of the argu-
ments on which it appears to have been grounded,
and by which it was afterwards defended, would
(if they had any force) justify the punishment, and
even the capital punishment of persons who are
chargeable with simple heresy, and consequently
must have tended to lead those who held them
into measures of persecution, f

Though it appears from what has been stated, that a
number of the Italian exiles were tainted with Arian-
ism, yet several individuals among them have been

• Dc Porta, ii. 76.

t Ibid. ii. 533—510. Diss, dc Mino Ctlso, pp. 37 — U.

> .

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 377

suspected of this without the slightest reason. Even
Zanchi, who succeeded Mainardi,* has not escaped
the suspicion with some writers,! although he was
the individual selected by his brethren as most fit
for opposing this heresy, a task which he perform-
ed with distinguished ability. His assertion that
he was " neither a Lutheran, Zuinglian, nor Calvi-
nian, but a Christian," is what every person may
adopt whose faith is founded on the word of God,
and not on the wisdom and authority of men. The
suspicions against Celso Martinengho and Vergerioj:
appear to have originated entirely in their having
at first taken part with Camillo against Mainardi,
before they discovered the real sentiments of the for-
mer. Martinengho afterwards enjoyed the confidence
of Calvin during all the time that he was pastor of
the Italian church at Geneva. Vergerio declared
himself openly against the anabaptists, and gave

* Mainardi died in the end of July 1563, in the 81st year of his
age. (Zanchii Opera, torn. vii. p. 35.) He was the author of the three
following works: (1.) Trattato dell' unica et perfetta sattisfattione
di Christo, a. 1551. (2.) Uno pio et utile sermone della Gratia di
Dio contra Ii meriti humani, a. 1552. (3.) L'Anatcmia della Messa.
The question concerning the real author of this last work, which Bayle
has discussed at great length, but unsatisfactorily, (Diet. art. Verge-
rio,) had been previously settled by Zanchi. (Ut supra.) — I may add
here, that Alessandro Trissino, a native of Vicenza, wrote a long let-
ter to count Leonardo Tiene, exhorting him and his fellow-citi-
zens to embrace the reformed opinions. It was dated from Chiavcn-
na, July 20, 1570, and printed two years after. (Tiraboschi, vii.
383.)

t liock, ii. 42G, 5G3.

J Ibid. ii. 410, 551—553. Dc Porta, ii. 63, 151—156.

378 IIISTOllYOr TIIC Ui:rORMATION IN ITALY.

early warning of the defection of bis countrymen
Socinus and Gribaldi to the opinions of Servetus.*
The fate of this distinguished man was in some
respects hard. He forfeited the high character
which he had held in the church of Ilome,j witliout
gaining the confidence of the protestants. By wav-
ering between the sentiments of the Lutherans and
Zuinglians, he incurred the displeasure of both.
lie excited the jealousy of the ministers in the Ori-
sons hy aflecting a species of ej)iscopal authority as
superintendent or visitor of the Italian churches;
and they complained that he had not laid aside the
mitre, nor forgotten the arts which he liad learned
at courts.:]: It is not imj)robable that, in addition
to the finesse which has been supposed to enter in-
to the Italian character, Vcrgerio had acquired from
his employments the habit of using policy to accom-
plish his ends, and that he felt some difiiculty in re-
conciling himself to the simple life of a protestant pas-
tor after the splendour and opulence to which he had
been accustomed. But if he had not been attached
to the Reformation, he would have listened to the
proposals made to him by the court of Rome, which,
though it would have preferred seizing his person,
was not unwilling to purchase his faith. Though
his writings were not profound, and his conduct was
marked with versatility, protestants might have
treated with a little more tenderness the memory
of a man whose name lent at least a temporary ere-

• Pt' Porta, ii. IJS, 1J9. f 15eiiibo, LcUero, tomo iii. p. 3S9.

J l)c Torta, ii. I3i, I(i0~l66.

HISTORY OF THE RErOUlSJATION IN ITALY. 379

dit to their cause, and who gave the rare example
of sacrificing worldly honours and aftluence to reli-
gious principle. He died on the 4th of October
1565, at Tubingen in the dutchy of Wirtemburg,
where lie had resided since the year 1553, although
he repeatedly visited the Orisons during that inter-
val.*

Ludovico Castelvetro, of whom we have already
spoken, w\as among the learned men who found a
refuge from persecution in the Orisons. After the
apprehension of liis brethren of the academy at
Modena in 1557,t ^^e concealed himself in the ter-
ritories of Ferrara until the death of Paul IV. In
1561, having ol)tained a safe-conduct, he was per-
suaded to go to Home, along with his brother Oian-
maria, to give an account of his faith, and had the
convent of San Maria in ^'ia assigned to him as a
prison, with liberty to receive his friends. But af-
ter undergoing several examinations he deemed it
prudent to withdraw in the night-time from the
city, and escaped with great difficulty to Chiavenna,
where he met his old friend Franciscus Portus. The
sentence of excommunication was in consequence
passed against him and his brother. Through the
interest of his friend Foscarari, bishop of Modena,
hopes were given him of a favourable issue to his
process provided he would return to Italy ; but he

* Salig, Hist. Auspurg. Confes. torn. ii. p. 1180. Bayle, Diet. art.
Vergcrio. Dc Porta, lib. ii. cap. v. Gerdesii Ital. Ref. pp. 3ia— 3o0.'
He was employed before his death in publishing a collection of his
>vorks, the first volume of which was printed in 1603. The Apohgta
pro Vvrgeriu advcrsvs Casam, by ^chclhorn, I have not seen.

t See before, p. 211.

I i

380 HISTORY OF THE IIEIOIIMATION IN ITALY.

declined this as well as the proposals made by the
nuncio Delfnio, who Avas sent into Switzerland to
treat with him, Vergerio, and Zanchi. It was most
probably the fears which he entertained for his
safety, at a time when many individuals were sur-
prised and carried off by force into Italy, that in-
duced him to leave Chiavenna and repair to Lyons.
But finding himself exposed to new dangers from
the civil war, which then raged in France between
the Catholics and Ilugonots, he retired to Geneva,
and soon after returned to Chiavenna, where he
opened a private school at the desire of some young
students, to whom he read daily two lectures, one on
Homer and another on the Khetorica ad Ilerennium.
Encouraged by the reception which his brother had
met with at the court of Vienna, he went there
in 15G7, and put to press his celebrated commen-
tary on Aristotle's Art of Poetry, which lie dedi-
cated to the cmj^eror Maximilian II. But the
plague breaking out in that place, he returned again
to Chiavenna, where he continued till his death on
the 21st of February 1571, in the sixty-seventh
year of his age. Castelvetro was one of the great
literary ornaments of his country ; an acute and
ingenious critic ; and extensively acquainted with
Provencal and Italian poetry as well as with the
classics of Greece and Rome, to which he added the
knowledge of Hebrew.*

• Muratori, Vita del Castelvetro: Operc Critiebe, pp. 33—49.
Tirabosclii, vii. 1 170—1173. Frcytag, Analcct. Libr. Uar. p. 219.
Jacopo, tbe son of Giamnaria Castelvetro, wlio accoiupanied his
father and uncle into exile, paid a visit to Edinburgh in the year 1592.
(MS. in Bibl. Jurid. Edin. A. 1. 18.)

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 381

It is now time that we should quit tlie Alps,
and take a rapid survey of the Italian churches
formed in Switzerland, and other countries to the
north.

At Zurich the exiles from Locarno obtained from
the senate the use of a church, with liberty to cele-
brate i)ublic worship in their own language. They
enjoyed at first the instructions of their townsman
Beccaria; but as he had come merely to supply
their present necessities, after labouring among
them for a few months, he resigned his place to a
person of superior talents.* Returning to the
Orisons, he took up his residence in the valley of
Misocco, a part of the country which remained in
a state of gross ignorance, and in which he was
extremely useful, in the double character of school-
master and preacher, until 1561 when he was ex-
pelled through the agency of cardinal Borromeo ;
after wliich he retired to Chiavenna.f

Ochino was the person chosen to succeed Bec-
caria at Zurich. After leaving his native country,^
he had remained for some time at Geneva, where
he acquired the esteem of Calvin ; § but finding
himself shut out from employment there, as the

* Schclhorn, Ergotzlichkeiten, torn. iii. p. 11G2.

t Beccaria, who also went by the name of Canesa, continued to
vibit his flock in Misocco down to the year 1571. (Tcmpe Helve-
tica, torn. iv. pp. 200-202. De Porta, ii. pp. 311—350: couf.
p. 169.)

X See before, p. 102.

§ Bunnanni Sylloge Epist. torn. ii. p. 230. Lettres de Calvin a
Jaqne de Bourgogne, pp. 36, lOS;

I-

i -3

382 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITAEY.

S
I

only language of which he was master was the
Italian, and none of his countrymen had as yet
come to that place, he repaired to liasle, for the
purpose of printing some of his works, and from that
went to Augsburg. The magistrates of this city
appointed him Italian preacher with an annual
salary of two hundred florins, partly to provide
for his support, and partly to gratify the mer-
chants and other inhabitants who knew that lan-
guage. * He accordingly conunenced preaching on
the epistles of Paul, in the church of St. Anne, to
munbers attracted by curiosity and by the report of
liis eloquence. For the sake of those who could
not understand him his discourses were translated
into German and printed. But the emperor Charles
v., having come to Augsburg with his army in July
1547, demanded that Ochino should be delivered
up to him, upon which he fled, along with Fran-
cesco Stancari, to Constance, whence he went by
Basle to Strasburg. f Here he found several of
his countrymen, and particularly his intimate friend
Peter Martyr, with whom he repaired in the end
of that year to England, upon the invitation of

• Schelhorn, in his interesting collections relating to the life anil
writings of Ochino, has published two decrees of the senate of Augs-
burg ; in one of which, dated October 20, loi.^, they give permission
to " Frater Bernhardin Ochinus," along with his brother-in-law and
sister, to reside in the city ; and in the other, dated December 3, lo 13,
they assign him the salary mentioned in the text as '* ^V^^lschcr Prc-
dicant." (Ergotzlichkeitcn, torn. iii. p. 1141-2.)

t Ibid. pp. 994—098, 11 12-3. Salig, torn. ii. p. 419. Seckcndorf,
lib. iii. p. 013 ; et SuppUm. num. Ivi.

"s
■^

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IX ITALY. 383

arc]d)ishop Cranmer. Martyr obtained a professor's
chair in the university of Oxford, while Ochino ex-
ercised his talent of preacliing in the metropolis.
But in consequence of the change of religion pro-
duced by the death of Edward VI., both of them
retired in 1554, the former to Strasburg and the
latter to Basle.* From this place Ochino was call-
ed to be minister of the Locarnese congregation at
Zurich, to the charge of which he was solemnly ad-
mitted on the 13th of June 1555, after making an
orthodox confession of faith, and swearing to ob-
serve the rites of the Helvetian church and the or-
dinances of its synods. f

Soon after tlie settlement of Ochino, his country-
man Martyr came to Zurich, to fill the chair of
theology and Hebrew wliicli liad become vacant in
the university by the death of the learned Conrad
Pellican. t This was of great advantage to the Lo-
carnese congregation. His interest with the magi-
strates and pastors of the city was exerted in their
behalf; they had the benefit of his sound advice in
the management of their internal affairs ; and he
preached to them as often as Ochino was unwell or
absent.^ They must therefore have sustained a
great loss by his death, which happened on the 12th

• Strype's Memorials, vol. ii. p. 189. Burnet's Hist, of the Ref.
vol. ii. pp. 53, 2K). Sanders, De Schism. Anglic, p. 319.

t Schelhorn, Ergutz. tom. iii. p. 11G2.

: He came to Zurich in July 1550. (Melch. Adam, Vitii^ Exter.
rheolog. p. 49. De Porta, ii. 228.)

§ Zanchii Epist. lib. ii. p, 281..

384 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IX ITALY.

of November 1562, after an illness of a few days.
Of all the Italian exiles none left behind him a-
fairer and better-earned fame than Peter Martyr.
He possessed eminently the good qnalities of his
countrymen without the vices which have been as-
cribed to them ; acuteness without subtlety, ardour
without enthusiasm, and dexterity without cunning.
In Italy he gave great offence by deserting the reli-
gion of his ancestors and violating the monastic
vow ; in England he was opposed to the champions
of the catholic faith after the government had de-
clared itself decidedly in their favour ; at the con-
fei-ence of Poissi he appeared in support of the pro-
testant doctrine, at a crisis when its adversaries
trembled at the prospect of its success within the
kingdom of France ; and at Strasburg he was in-
volved in a dispute with those who maintained
the peculiar sentiments of Lutlier on the eucha-
rist with less moderation than their master had
shown. But in none of these places did prejiulice,
strong as it then was, and loud as it often lifted its
voice, whisper any thing unfavourable to the per-
sonal character of Martyr.* His piety and learning
were recommended by modesty, candour, and gentle-
ness of manners. As an author his talents were al-
lowed by his adversaries ; and in the reformed church
his writings were by general agreement placed next to

* SpcakingofBuccr and Martyr, Walter IlatUlon exclaims: " O
aurcum par scnuiu fclicissiiiuu mcmoria?, quorum doctriiuc testes libri
sunt ab illis confcctiv,inoruni tot habuerunt approbatores quot unquam
convictorcs invenirc potucrunt !" (lladtloni Lucubrationcs, p. 22i.)

IIISTOKV OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 385

those of Calvin for judiciousness and perspicuity.
His last years were spent happily in the most unin-
terrupted harmony and cordial friendship with his
colleagues in Zurich. Bullinger, who loved him
as a brother, closed his eyes, and Conrad Gesner
spread the cloth over his face, while the pastor and
elders of the Locarnian church wept around his bed.*
The year in which Martyr died was remarkable
for the death of one of his countrymen, whose name
obtained still greater notoriety than his, though
on difterent grounds. This was Lelius Socinus,
who had for a number of years been a mem-
ber of the Locarnese congregation.! He was born
at Sienna in 1525, and educated under the eye of
his father Mariano Soccini, the younger, a celebrat-
ed professor of law. Having testified a decided
partiality to the Reformation, he left Italy in 1548,:]:
partly from regard to his safety and partly from a
desire to see and confer with the leading divines of
the protestant church, whose writings he had read

• Josias Simler, who had been appointed his colleague in the theo-
logical chair, drew up his life in the Oraiio de Vita ct Obita D. Petri
Martyris Vtr-milii, to which we have repeatedly referred. There is
a beautiful letter in commendation of him, written soon after his death,
by Wolfgang Haller to Zanchi. (Zanchii Epist. ut supra.) Beside
the collection of epistles appended to his Loci Comftiunes, a number
of Martyr's letters were published by Gerdes, in his Scriniuvi Anti'
guariuDi, torn. iv.

•f Illgen, Vita Liclii Socini, p. 48. Fueslin, pp. 356, 358.

t Cornclio, Camillo and Celso, three of the brothers of Lelius,
embraced the same sentiments, and followed him at a later period in-
to Switzerland ; as did also his nephew Faustus. (Schelhorn, De
Mino Celso, p. 35. Bock, ii, 576, 577, 624.)

386 HISTORY OF THE IlEI ORMATION IX ITALY.

IIISTOUY or THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 387

with delight. He came to Zurich at an early pe-
riod, and lodged with Pellican, under whom he com-
menced the study of the Hebrew language. Be-
tween 1549 and 1551 he resided at Wittemberg,
after which he returned to Zurich, where he spent
the remainder of his life, with the exception of
what was devoted to short excursions into France,
Poland and Italy. I have already given my rea-
sons for thinking, that, before leaving his native
country, he had not adopted the creed which has
obtained from liim and his nephew the name of So-
cinian ; and that his interviews with Camillo Re-
nato at Chiavenna had great influence in leading
his mind into that train of thinking.* Soon after
his arrival in Switzerland he began, in his conver-
sations and epistolary correspondence witli learned
men, to start doubts as to the commonly received
opinions concerning the sacraments and the resurrec-
tion, and afterwards concerning redemption and the
trinity. But he uniformly proposed these in the
character of a learner, not of a teacher or dispu-
tant, and as difficulties which he was anxious to have
solved, not sentiments which he held or wished to
patronise. The modesty with which he propound-
ed his doubts, together with the eager desire he

* The reader may compare the opinions of Camillo, as already
stated, with the doubts started by Socinus in his correspondence with
Calvin. The letters of Socinus indeed are not extant, but the sub-
stance of them is preserved in Calvin's replies. (Calvini Epist. pp. 52,
57 ; Opera, tom. ix.)

showed for knowledge, his courteousness, and the
correctness of his morals gained hiin the esteem
not only of Melanchthon and Bullinger but also
of Calvin and Beza. If at any time he gave offence
or alarm by the boldness with which he pushed his
speculations into high and inscrutable mysteries, or
by pertinaciousiiess in urging his objections, he
knew how to allay these feelings by prudent con-
cession and ample apologies ; and Calvin, after de-
clining farther correspondence with him, was in-
duced to renew it and to return a friendly answer to
his doubts respecting the doctrine of the trinity.*
In adopting this method toward the more learned
reformers, it was probably the object of Socinus to
ascertain what they could say against his opinions ;
but in other instances he exerted himself in secretly
making proselytes, and not without success, f He
carefully concealed his sentiments respecting the
trinity from the divines of Zurich.t On receiving
warning from the Grisons, Bullinger, whose affec-
tions he had gained, laid the matter before him, and
in a very friendly manner advised him to remove
the suspicions which had arisen as to his orthodoxy.
Socinus protested that he agreed in all points with
the church of Zurich, and complained of the reports

• Colomcsii Opera, p. o02. Conf. Calvini Epist. p. 57 ; Opera,
tom. ix.

t Zanchii Praef. in Libr. de tribus Elohim ; Opera, tom. i.

i Simler, Assertio Orthod. Doctrinoc de duabus naturis Christi,
pra*f. p. 4.

%■■

388 HISTOKY OF THE RKIORMATION IN ITALV.

circulated to his prejudice; but on being dealt with
more closely, he owned that he had indulged too
much in abstruse and vain speculations, promised
that he would p'uard against this for the future and
subscribed a declaration of his faith which was sa-
tisfactory to BuUinger.* Julio da Milano, wlio was
one of those from whom the information had come,
and knew the correspondence which Socinus held
with the antitrinitarians in the Valteline, was sus-
picious of the sincerity of his professions ; and
though he promised to use his influence to induce
his brethren to accept of the pledge which had been
given, implored Ihillinger to watch over the purity
of the Locarnese congregation.! After this Socinus
was more circumspect ; Me find no more noise made
about his opinions during his lifetime ; and there is
every reason to think that he continued to commu-
nicate, as he had formerly done, with the Ita-
lian church in Zurich. But after his death, the
antitrinitarians who had enjoyed his confidence,
thinking themselves no longer bound to secrecy,
proclaimed that he was of their sentiments, and as
a proof of this, circulated such of his writings as
were in their possession.:}: On hearing of his death,

* lUgen, pp. iG— 5o. Bock, ii. 597— C02.

-f Fueslin, pp. 353 — 359.

{ Bock has given an account of his writings. (Hist. Antitrin. tona.
ii. pp. 635 — 654.) But Illgen has shown greater discrimination in
distinguishing his genuine works from those which are supposititious,
or were written hy others. (Vita La?hi Socini, pp. 71—85.) His
work written on occasion of the punishment of Servetus, and entitled

HISTOKY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 389

his nephew Faustus Socinus came from Lyons to
Zurich, and took possession of his papers, which he
afterwards made use of in composing his own works.
To this, however, he applied his mind at a period
much later; for he went immediately to Florence,
where lie spent twelve years in the service of the
grand duke of Tuscany, not in preparing his mind
for the task of illuminating the world, (as the Polish
knight who wrote his life has asserted,) but in the
idleness and amusements of a court, as he himself
has acknowledged.*

" Martini BclHi Farrago de hiereticis, an sint prosequendi, et omnino
quomodo sit cum eis agendum," was first printed at Basle in 1553'
The edition which I have examined wants the words " Martini Bel-
lii Farrago" in the title, and was printed " Magdeburgi 1554."
The following is a specimen of the style of reasoning: " Sujipose one
accused at Tubingen, who makes this defence for himself, ' I believe
that Christopher is my prince, and I desire to obey him in all things;
but as to what you say about his coming in a chariot, this I do not
believe, but believe he will come on horseback; and whereas you say
that he is clothed in scarlet, I believe that he is clothed in white ;
and as to his ordering us to wash in this river, I believe that this
ought to be done in the afternoon, and you beheve it ought to be done
in the forenoon.' I ask of you, prince, if you would wish your sub-
ject to be condemned for this? I think not; and if you were present
you would rather praise the candour and obedience of the man than
blame his ignorance ; and if any should put him to death on this
ground, you would punish them. So is it in the question under con-
sideration. A certain citizen of Christ says, I beheve in God the
Father and Jesus Christ his Son," &c. (De Ha^reticis, ike. p. 8.)
—No copy has for a long time been seen of his " Paraphrasis in Initi-
um Evangehi S. Johannis, scripta in 1561 ;" which contained the
famed interpretation of that passage, " In Evangehi principio erat
Dei sermo," &c. This Paraphrase must not be confounded with the
'' Explicatio Initii Evangehi Johannis," which was the work of his
nephew Faustus.

* Bock, ii. 663, 60i.

!>-S

390 HISTORY OF THE llErOllMATION IN ITALY.

The Locarnese exiles were surprised and dis-
tressed at learning that so respectable a member of
their church as Socinus had made defection from
the evangelical faith ; but their surprise and distress
were heightened by the discovery which was soon
after made that their pastor had followed his ex-
ample. Socinus had failed in making any impression
on the mind of his countryman Zanchi;* but his
acuteness and address were too powerful for one
who was now advanced in years, and who, though
possessed of good talents, had read but little on the-
ology, in consequence of his ignorance of ancient and
foreign hmguages. Without supposing him to have
been the slave of popularity, Ochino could scarce-
ly have failed to be flattered with the crowds which
flocked to his preaching in Italy ; and he must have
felt the change, when, on coming to a foreign coun-
try, his hearers were necessarily few, from the cir-
cumstance of their being confined to those who un-
derstood his native tongue. Add to this, that he
had taken up the idea that the divines of Zurich de-
spised him for his want of learning, and though this
appears to have been groundless, we have his own
authority for saying that it soured his mind.t In
this state of his feelings, he was more ready to lis-
ten to the objections of his artful townsman, though
they struck at the root of sentiments which had
been the favourite topics of his sermons, and in
which he had gloried most when he left the church

* Zanchii Opera, toin. i. pra?f. ad fiiietn.

t Ochino, Dialogo, in Schelliorn, Ergotz., torn. iii. p. 2030.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 391

of Rome. In 1558 Martyr received a letter from
Chiavenna, stating that Ochino and the brothers of
Lelius Socinus were secretly undermining the doc-
trine of the merit and satisfaction of Christ. Even
according to his own explanation, Ochino had for-
saken his former views on that point ; but the matter
was accommodated by the friendship and prudence
of Martyr.* About the same time he gave great of-
fence to some of the divines of Switzerland by one
of his books ; on which occasion also, though the
work was printed without their knowledge and was
far from pleasing them, the ministers of Zurich in-
terposed in his favour.f But he forfeited their pro-
tection, and exhausted their forbearance, by a work
which he published in the course of the year after
his countryman Martyr died. It was printed pri-
vately, not at Zurich but at Basle, and consisted of
thirty dialogues, divided into two parts.t In the
first part he proves, in opposition to a Jew, that Je-

♦ A letter which Ochino wrote on this occasion has been preserved
by Do Porta, torn. ii. pp. 392, 393.

'+ Schelhorn, ErgotzUchkeiten, torn. iii. p. 2164.. The book refer-
red to was his Lahyrinlhi, in which he discusses the questions re-
specting freewill and predestination.

:;: Bemardini Ochini Senensis Dialogi XXX. Basileas 15C3. The
work was printed from a translation into Latin by Castalio. It was
afterwards disputed whether the work had undergone the examinatioH
which the laws prescribed before its being printed. It appeared on
investigation that the Italian original in manuscript had been put
into the hands of Amerbachius, the rector of the university, who,
not understanding the language, gave it to CeUo Secundo Curio, who
denied that he had ever given it his approbation. (Schelhorn, Er-
gotzlichkeiten, torn. iii. pp. 1185—1188.)

39J<5 iiisTOiiv or Tin: iii.roitMATiox ix italv.

BUS is the true Messiah ; and on the i^eneral ar<^ii-
ment his proofs are strong-, |)ut when he comes to
defend the sacrifice and satisfaction of Christ he ar-
gues feehly. It was, however, the second j)art of tlie
Work, in which lie treats of polygamy and tlie tri-
nity, wliich chiefly gave odence. The first of these
questions is discussed in a dialogue hetween 'i'eli-
poligamus, an advocate of polygamy, and Ocliinus.
Every argument whidi had been urged in favour of
the practice, or which the ingenuity of the author
could devise, is put into the mouth of the former,
vt^ho reasons at great length and with much elo-
quence; while Ocliinus replies at once with brevity
and feebleness, and in the end materiallv, thou^rh
not in so many words, yields the point in dispute to
his supposed antagonist. The dialogues on the trinity
are conducted in the same manner. Some writers in-
sist that Ochino cannot be charged with maintain-
ing polygamy and antitrinitarianism ; but I think
it nuist be difficult for any person impartially to read
the dialogues without coming to a contrary conclu-
sion.*

Certain citizens of Zurich, on a visit wliich they
paid to Basle, were told in a public company that
their town would soon become a sink of vile liere-
sies, as their ministers had already begun to write
in favour of polygamy ; and on their resenting this
as a calumny, they were silenced by the production

* The dialogue on Polygamy has been published, and translated
into our own language, among others, by the friends of that prac-
tice.

IIISTOUY OF Tin: REFORMATION IX ITALY. 393

of the work of Ocliino, wliich had been lately pub-
lished. Keturning home, they called on the minis-
ters to wipe off a disgrace which had fallen upon
their order, and u])on the whole city.* The divines
of Zurich had, at a former period, been greatly dis-
pleased at the conduct of such of the German re-
formers as had countenanced the bigamy of the land-
grave of riesse,t which brought so much scandal on
the whole evangelical body ; and they now felt both
grieved and indignant at the conduct of their col-
league. At the desire of the cliief magistrate, they
translated the dialogue on polygamy into German,
and laid it, with remarks on the other dialogues, be-
fore the senate, which came to the resolution of ba-
nishing him from the territories of the canton. Be-
ing unable to prevent this sentence, he petitioned for
liberty to remain during the winter ; but this was
refused, and he was ordered to depart within three
weeks4

The banishment of an old man of seventy-six,
with four young children, in the depth of winter,
was a severe measure, calculated to excite compassion
for the suflerer ; and had Ochino left this feeling
to its own operation, it is probable that the magi-
strates and ministers of Zurich would have incur-
red public odium. But he published an apology
for himself, which was answered by the mini-

* Schelhorn, Ergotzlichkeiten, torn. iii. 2160, 2161.
+ Fueslin, Epist. Rcf. pp. 198 — 200, 205.
X Schelhorn, ErgOtz. iii. 2022, 2161, 2166, 2174—2179.
jOI— 504.

Bock, ii.

394 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN riALY.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 395

sters, and injured instead of helping his cause.*
Beside the charges which he brought against the
senate and pastors in general, he made a personal
attack on I^ullinger, whom he represented as one
who disliked all foreigners, especially Italians, wish-
ed to ruin the Locarnese congregation, had opposed
his election to be their pastor, and persecuted him
because he would not worship him as a pope or a
god. t Now all this was so contrary to the charac-
ter of that divine ; and his kindness to exiles, his
care about the Italian church, t the tenderness with
which he had treated Socinus, and the respect which
he had shown for Ochino himself, were all so well
known, that the ministers scarcely needed to use
their sponge in wiping off these aspersions, which
served only to throw suspicion on the charges which
accompanied them. Nor was Ochino happier in
the defence of his book. His chief apology for the
manner in which he had conducted the argument
was, that " truth does not stand in need of many
words like falsehood, for it can defend itself." § As

• His apology, entitled '' Dialogo, Favellatori— Prudeiiza humana
c Ochino," and the reply to it, entitled " Spongia adversus aspergi-
nes Bernardini Ochini," are both published by Schelhorn in the
third volume of his Ergotzlichkeiten. It would appear Ire m the re-
ply that Ochino's apology was printed at that time, though Schelhorn
thinks it was only circulated in manuscript.

t Dialogo, ut supra, pp. 2021, 2029, 2030.

X There is an excellent letter by him to the protestants suffering
persecution in Italy, dated Gth January, lo(il, and published by
Fueslin. (Epist. Ref. pp. 44o— 4o().)

§ " La verita non ha bisogno di raolte parole, sicome il mendacio ;
impcroche la verita per se stessa si difendi, resiste, supera e trionfa ;
ma il contrario e del mendacio." (Dialogo, ut supra, p. 201S.)

if we were warranted to strip truth and place her
on the pillory, to be insulted and pelted by the mob,
w^hile we stood by and contented ourselves with
crying out, " Great is the truth and will prevail !"
Ochino alleges, that one chief reason of the keenness
with which the ministers of Zurich had persecuted
him was, that in the obnoxious dialogues he had
exposed their errors, and pointed out the defects of
their boasted reformation. But, as any thing of
this kind was put into the mouth of the interlocu-
tor whom he opposed, he by this allegation virtually
acknowledged the deception which he had practised,
and deprived himself of his principal defence. *
Whatever the faults of Ochino were, it is im-
possible to contemplate the termination of the career
of a man who had been held in such high estima-
tion, without feelings of deep regret. On coming
to Basle, he was given to understand by the magi-
strates that his continuing there would be offensive.
After residing for some time at Mulhausen, he set
out with the view of joining his countrymen of the
antitrinitarian persuasion who had gone to Poland.

• Dialogo, ut supra, pp. 2030 — 2034. Schelhorn is of opinion that
Ochino's Dialogue on Polygamy is not original, and that the greater
part of it was borrowed from a dialogue on the same subject, written
in defence of Philip, Landgrave of Hesse, and published in 1541 un-
der the fictitious name of Hulderichus Neobulus. (Ergotzlichkeiten,
torn. i. pp. C31 — 63G ; iii. 213C — 2156.) There is certainly a striking
coincidence between the extracts he has produced from this dialogue
and that of Ochino, not only in argument but also in arrangement
and expression. The charge of plagiarism is, however, weakened
by the fact that Ochino was ignorant of the German language.

*.lif

'it 4

396 IllSTOllV OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

But cardinal Borroiiieo, by express orders from the
pope, wrote to cardinal Hosius to keep his eye upon
him and prevent his settlement in that country, a
service which was also given in charge to the nun-
cio Commendone. In consequence of this, he was
obliged to retire into Moravia, and died at Slacovia
in the end of the year l^C^, after having lost two
sons and a daugbter hy the plague, which then
raged in that country.*

The Locarnese congregation continued to flourish,
and was provided with a succession of pastors, until
the emigration from Italy ceased, and it was no
longer necessary to have the j)ub]ic service perform-
ed in the language of that country.f Some of the
most distinguished families at this day in Zurich
are descended from these exiles, who first intro-
duced into it the art of manufacturing silk, set up
mills and dye-houses, and so enriched the city by
their industry and ingenuity that within a short
time it became celebrated beyond the limits of
Switzerland.:!:

Basle had long been distinguished as a resort of
learned men, wliich induced many of the Italian pro-
testants to select it as the place of their residence.
I can only name a k^w of them. Paolo di Colli, the
father of Hippolytus aCollibus, a celebrated lawyer

* Bock, ii. .501 — 308.

t Hottinger, Iltbretiscbe Kirchcngcscliichtc, torn. iii. p. 762-3 :
Gerdesii Ital. Ilef. p. 10.

X Zschokkc, Schweizerlands Geschichtc, p. 258. Tempe Helve-
tica, torn. iv. p. 1 73.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 397

and counsellor of the Elector Palatine Frederic IV.,

was a native of Alexandria in the Milanese, from

which he fled in consequence of the discovery of a

I)rotestant conventicle wliich was ke])t in his house.*

Gulielmo Grataroli, a physician of Bergamo, was

equally distinguished by his piety, by his chissical

learning, and by his skill in his own art, on which

he published several works, f Alfonso Corrado, a

Mantuan, and said to have been the instructor of

the wife of Alfonso duke of Ferrara, preached for

some time in the Grisons, and published at Basle

a commentary on the Apocalyj)se, " filled (says Ti-

raboschi) with invectives and reproaches against

the Roman pontiff.''^ Silvestro Teglio and Francesco

Betti, a Roman knight, were both learned men.^

Mino Celso, a native of Sienna, is praised by Clau-

dio Tolomeo, and an edition of the letters of that

learned man was dedicated to him by Fabio Ben-

voglienti.il Having left his native country from

love to the reformed religion, he became corrector of

the press to Petrus Perna, a Lucchese and long a

* Adami Vitae Jureconsult. p. 207. Tonjol£p Moimnient. Basil.
p. 124.

t Thuani Hist, ad an. 1568. Beza^ Epistohe, pp. 218, 231. Speak-
ing of Grataroli, Zanchi says : " In his native country he enjoyed an
honourable rank and riches: his piety alone has impoverished him."
(Epist. lib. ii. p. 390.)

t Gerdesii Ital. Ref. pp. 231—234. De Porta, ii. 35. Tiraboschi
vii. 383. '

§ Teglio translated into Latin the Principe of Macchiavelli.
Betti was the author of a letter to the marchioness of Pescaro, and
afterwards a friend of Faustus Socinus. (Schelhorn, Dissert, de
Mino Celso, p. 62. Bock, ii. pp. 665, 817.)

II De Mino Celso Senensi, pp. U — is.

398 HISTORY OF THE IlErOR:srATION IX ITALY.

celebrated printer at Basle, " whose memory (says
Tirabosdii) would have been still more deserving
of honour, if he had not tarnished it by apostasy
from the catholic religion."* IMino Celso was the
author of a rare work against the capital punish-
ment of heretics, in which he has treated the ques-
tion with great solidity and learning.f But the
most learned person among the refugees who re-
sided in this city, was Celio Secundo Curio, whom
we have already met with repeatedly in the course
of this history. At his first coming from Italy,
the senate of Berne placed him at the head of the
college of Lausanne, from which he was translated
in 1547 to the chair of Roman Eloquence in the uni-
versity of Basle. On that occasion the degree of
doctor of laws was conferred on him sitting, a mark
of respect which had been shown to none but Bucer.
But greater honour w^as done him by the nund)ers
who came from all parts of Europe to attend his
lectures. He received an invitation from the em-

• Storia, vii. 1 763. A Life of Perna was published at Lucca in
17G3, by Domenica Maria Manni.

t It is entitled " Mini Celsi Senensis dc Hereticis capitali sup-
plicio non afficiendis. Anno 1584." This is the edition I have
consulted, but the work was first printed in 1577. The author
mentions that he was led to treat the question in consequence of his
finding it disputed among the protestants when he passed through
the Orisons in 1569. In the work he points out the distinction be-
tween the kingdom of Christ and secular kingdoms, examines the
doctrine of scripture on the subject, produces testimonies from the
fathers and reformers in favour of the opinion which he maintains,
and shows that it is not inconsistent with the exercise of civil autho-
rity in reforming and supporting religion. His reasoning is not con-
fined to capital punishment.

HISTORY OF THE IIEFOIIMATION IN ITALY. 399

peror Maximilian to the university of Vienna, from
Vaivod king of Transylvania to Weissemburg, and
from tlie duke of Savoy to Turin ; while the pope
emplo}'ed the bishop of Terracino to persuade him
to return to Italy, on the promise of an ample sal-
ary, with provision for his daughters, and on no
other condition than that of his abstaining from in-
culcating his religious opinions. But he rejected
these offers, and remained at Basle till his death in
1569.* Beside his writings on religious subjects,
he published various works on grammar, and edi-
tions of the Latin classics, accompanied w^ith notes,
by which he did great service to Roman literature
and education. Of all the refugees the loss of none
has been more regretted by Italian writers than
that of Curio.f The testimonies which they have
borne to him deserve the more attention on this
ground, among others, that some of the most im-
portant facts concerning the progress and suppres-
sion of the Reformation in Italy have been attested
by him ; and the greater part of the narratives of
Italian martyrs proceeded from his pen, or were sub-
mitted to his revision before they were published
by his friend Pantaleon. The children of Curio,
female as well as male, were Idistinguished for their
talents and learning, and among his descendants we

* Stupani Oratio de Caelio Secundo Curione, ut supra, pp. 347

t Tiraboschi, Storia, tomo vii. pp. 1559—1561. Ginguenc, Hist.
Litter, d'ltalie, tome vii. pp. 233 — 23G.

400 IIISTOUY OF THE llErORM ATION IX ITALY.

find some of tlie most eminent persons in tlie pro-
testant diureli."^'

In takin": leave of Curio, I am reminded of his
amiable and accomi)lislied friend Olympia Morata.
On retiring into Germany,t she and her husband
were kindly entertained by George Hermann, the
enliirhtened counsellor of Ferdinand, king of the
Ilomans, through whose influence they were oftered
an advantageous situation in tlie Austrian domin-
ions, which they declined on account of its being
]ncomj)atible with tlieir religious profession. In
Schweinfurt, an imperial town, and the native
place of her husband, Olympia resumed her fa-
vourite studies, but the muses were soon disturb-
ed by the trumpet of war. 'J'he turbulent Al-
bert, marquis of Brandenburg, having thrown his
forces into Schweinfurt, was besieged by the Ger-
man princes. During the siege, which was te-
dious and severe,^ Olympia was obliged to live in a
cellar, and when the town was taken she escaped
with great difficulty from the fury of the soldiers,
and reached the village of Ilammelburg in a state of
exhaustion. " If you had seen me (she writes to
Curio) with my feet bare and bleeding, my hair
dishevelled, and my borrowed and torn clothes, you
would have pronounced me the queen of beggars."^

* It is sufficient to mention licre the names of Buxtorf, Gryna?us,
Freyus,aiid Werenftls. (Stupani Oratio, pp. 3G3, 381, 398. Kyhine-
riis. Vita Sam. Wercnfclsii, in Tempo Helvetica, tom. vi. p. 47.)

t See before, p. 212. J Sleidan, tern. iii. pp. 410, 449, 468.

§ Olympitc Moratie Opera, pp. 160—162. Nolten, Vita Olympiie
Moratte, pp. 138 — 147.

i I

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IX ITALY. 401

In the mean time, her library, including her manu-
scripts, was entirely destroyed. The counts of Er-
bach showed her much attention during her adver-
sity ; the Elector Palatine provided her husband
with a place in the university of Heidelberg ; and her
literary friends united in sending her books to fur-
nish a new library. But her delicate constitution
had received an irreparable shock from the agitation
and fatigue which she had undergone, the symptoms
of consumption became decided, and after a linger-
ing illness, during which the sweetness of her tem-
per and the strength of her faith displayed them-
selves in such a manner as to console her husband
who doated upon her, she expired on the 26th of
October 1555, in the 29th year of her age.* She
ceased not to the last to remember her ungrateful
but beloved Italy, though every desire to return to
it had been quenched in her breast from the time
she saw the apathy with which her countrymen al-
lowed the standard of truth to fall, and the blood of
its friends to be shed like water in their streets.
Before she was confined to bed, she employed her
leisure time in transcribing from memory some of
Iier poems, which she bequeathed to her friend Curio,
by whom her works were published soon after her
death. They consist of dialogues and letters in La-
tin and Italian, and of Greek poems, chiefly para-
phrases of the Psalms, in heroic and sapphic verse;

• OlympitL' Morata? Opera, pp. 167, 177, 18
supra, pp. 148 — 163.

2 D

5 — 192. Nolten, ut

402 HISTORY or THE RKFOUMATTOX IN ITALY.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 403

all of them the productions of a highly cultivated
and pious mind.*

Strasburg, one of the free cities of Germany,
opened its gates to the Italian refugees. Paolo
Lacisio of Verona, highly praised by Kobortello
for his skill in the three learned languages, came
to it along with Martyr, and obtained the situa-
tion of professor of Greek in the academy.f Je-
ronimo Massario of Vicenza was about the same
time admitted professor of medicine. This learn-
ed man, beside what he wrote on the subject of
his own art, was the author of a description of the
mode of procedure in the court of inquisition at
Rome. In this work he describes the trial of a fic-
titious prisoner, whom he calls Eusebius Uranius,
and puts into his mouth, during an examination
which lasted three days, the principal arguments
from scripture and the fathers against the churcli
of Rome. Though it contains several facts, yet it is
rather a controversial than an historical work, and
much inferior in usefulness to the account of the
Spanish inquisition by Gonsalvo-t The Italians were

• Iler works were published in 15.5.'3, and went through four edi-
tions in the course of twenty- two years. The first edition was dedi-
cated to Isabella IManricha, and the subsequent ones to Queen Eliza-
beth.

t Simler, Vita Martyris, sig. b iiij. Gerdes, Scrinium Antiq. tom.
iii. p. 17. Colomesii Italia Orientalis, pp. 67, 688.

:;: It is entitled, " Eusebius Captivus, sive modus procedendi in cu-
ria Roniana contra Lutheranos— per Ilieronymuni Marium. Basileic."
The dedication is dated, " Basilete iiii. Nonas Novembris, Anno
1553." Colomies says that Ilieronynuis Marius is the disguised name

not so numerous in Strasburg as to require the use
of a church, but they met in private and enjoyed for
some time the instructions of Jerom Zanchi.* This
celebrated divine was a native of Alzano in the Ber-
gamasco, and descended from a family distinguished
in the republic of letters.f He was persuaded by his
relation Basilio to enter a convent of Canons Regular,
where he formed an intimate acquaintance withCelso
Martinengho. They were associated in their stu-
dies, in reading the works of Melanchthon, Bullin-
ger, Musculus and other reformers, and in attend-
ing the lectures of Martyr. They left Italy about
the same time, and their friendship continued un-
interrupted till the death of Martinengho. Having
come to Geneva in 1553, by the way of the Ori-
sons, Zanchi agreed to accompany Martyr into Eng-
land ; but when about to set out for this country,
he received an invitation to be professor of divi-
nity in the college of St. Thomas at Strasburg.

of Caelius Secundus Curio. (Des Maizeaux, Colomesiana, torn. ii.
p. 594.) But Zanchi, in a letter to Musculus, expressly says that Mas-
sario had gone to Basle to get the work printed. (Zanchii Epist. lib. ii.
pp. 312, 317.) He died of the plague at Strasburg in 1564. (VVolfii
Notffi in Colomesii Italia Orient, pp. 74, 75. Sturmii Institutiones
Literata?, p. 140. Torun. Boruss. 1586.)

• Zanchii Epist. lib. i. p. 131.

t His father Francesco is enumerated among the historians of
Italy. (Tiraboschi, tom. vii. p. 369.) His second cousins Dionigi,
Grisostomo, and Basilio Zanchi, were all learned men. The last was
reckoned one of the finest Latin poets in Italy, and a mystery hangs
over the manner and cause of his death. It is supposed that he died
in prison, into which he had been thrown by pope Paul IV. (Ibid,
pp. 1182—1184; comp. pp. 387—389, and Roscoe's Leo X. vol. i.
p. 76.)

404? HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

Tliis situation he filled with great credit and com-
fort for several years, until, after the death of James
Sturmius, the great patron of the academy, who
liad been his steady friend, he was involved in
controversy with some of the keen Lutherans, led
on by John Marliach, who took offence at him for
opposing their novel notion of the omnipresence of
the luiman nature of Christ, and teaching the doc-
trines of predestination and the perseverance of the
saints. * In the midst of the uneasiness which this
quarrel gave him, he rejected the j)roposals made to
him by the papal nuncio, j but accepted, in tlie end of
the year 1,563, a call from the Italian cliurch at Chia-
veima. ^ In the beginning of 15()8 he came to the
university of Heidelberg, where he taught during tea
years ; but finding that the ])rejudice which he had
encountered at Strasburg followed him to this place,
he gave way to it a second time, and removed to
Neustadt, where count John Casimir, the admi-
nistrator of the Electorate Palatine, had recently

* He gives an account of this dispute in his letter to the Landgrave
of Hesse. (Opera, torn. vii. pp. I — 16. Zanchii Opera, torn. iii. epist.
dedic. Conf. Melch. Adami Vitiv Exter. Theolog. p. Ii9.) John
Sturmius, rector of the academy of Strasburg, and celebrated for the
elegance of his Latin style, wrote a philippic against the adversaries
of Zanchi, to which Melchior Speccer replied in a letter published
by Schelhorn. In this letter he says: — *' Altcrum caput crimina-
tionis tua? — Zanchium, suavissimas tuas delicias, vitam tuam, et ani-
mulam tuam continet." (Erg()tzlichkeiten, torn. iii. p. 113G.) In a
letter to Hullinger, Sturmius praises the learning, piety, courteous-
ness, and placability of Zanchi. (Zanchii Epist. lib. ii. p. 2H7.)

t Tiraboschi, vii. 3GJ).

X De Porta, ii. U2—\'2\.

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY. 405

endowed an academy. He died in 1590, during a
visit wliich he paid to his friends at Heidelberg,
in the 76th year of his age. * The moderation of
Zanchi has been praised by writers of the Roman
catholic church, though his love of peace did not
lead him to sacrifice or compromise the truth. His
celebrity as a teacher procured him invitations from
the academies of Zurich, Lausanne and Leyden.
John Sturmius, called the German Cicero, was wont
to say, that he would not be afraid to trust Zanchi
alone in a dispute against all the fathers assembled
at Trent. Nor was he less esteemed as an author af-
ter his death. His writings, consisting of commen-
taries on scripture and treatises on almost all ques-
tions in theology, abound with proofs of learning;
but they are too ponderous for the arms of a modern
divine.t

Lyons, in the sixteenth centuiy, was a i)lace of
resort for merchants from all parts of Europe. The
Italian ])rotestants in that city were so numerous,
that the ])opes reckoned it necessary to keep agents
among them to labour in their conversion. But so

* Thuani Hist, ad an. 1590. Teissier, Eloges, torn. iv. pp. 99—103.
Melch. Adami X'itic Exter. Theolog. pp. us— 153. A Life of Zan-
chi by Sig. Conte Cav. Gianibatista GaUizioli, a patrician of Berga-
niasco, was printed at lierganio in 1785. (Tiraboschi, vii. 369.)

t His works were collected and printed in eight volumes folio, at
Geneva, in 1613. Fridericus Sylburgius, celebrated as the author of
several learned works, and the editor of many of the Greek and Jlo-
man classics which came from the presses of Wechel and Commelin,
was for some time the servant of Zanchi, to whom he was indebted for
his education. (Zanchii Epist. lib. ii. pp. 4*0, 442.)

406 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ITALY.

far were they from succeeding in this work, that
Lyons came to be regarded at Rome as " the chief
seat of heresy," and all who visited it fell under sus-
picion.* Several editions of the New Testament, and
other religious books in the Italian language, pro-
ceeded from the Lionese press.f In the beginning of
1562, the Italians obtained permission to hold meet-
ings for worship, and called Zanchi to be their mini-
ster. The magistrates of S trasburg having refused
to part with him, he, in the following year, receiv-
ed another pressing invitation from the celebrated
Viret, in the name of the protestant consistory at
Lyons ; but he had previously engaged himself to
the church of Chiavenna. When afterwards depriv-
ed of the preacher whom they had chosen, Zanchi
received a third call from his countrymen in Lyons,
who were again disappointed.:):

Antwerp was in tliat age reckoned the emporium
of the world, and frequented by men of all nations.
The reformed doctrine had been early introduced into
it, and continued to spread among the inhabitants in
spite of the severities employed for its suppression. J

* Fontanini Biblioteca Italiana, tom.i. p. 119.

t Besitle the translation of the New Testament by Massimo Teo-
filo in 1551, an edition of Brucioli's was printed at Lyons in 1553,
and an anonymous translation in 1558. Whether the Itahan and
French translation by Ludovico Paschali, the martyr, was printed at
Lyons or Geneva is uncertain. (Schelhorn, Ergotzlichkeiten, torn. i.
pp. 417— 419.)

+ Zanchii Epist. lib. ii. pp. 287, 375—378, 390.

§ Gerdesii Hist. Reform, torn. iii. pp. 217,243.

UISTOUY OF THE KKl ORMATION IN ITALY. 40?

The Italian protestants satisfied themselves for many
years witli meeting for worship along with the
French church, which was erected in that city after
tlie Netherlands threw off the Spanish yoke. But
as their number had increased,* they resolved in the
year 1580 to form themselves into a separate church,
and invited their countryman Zanchi to be their
pastor. With this invitation, though warmly second-
ed by letters from the senate and ministers, he did
not think it prudent to comply.f It is however pro-
bable that they obtained Ulixio Martinengho \ for
their minister ; for we find Zanchi, about this time,
writing his opinion of that nobleman, at the desire of
one of the ministers of Antwerp. "I know him well,"
says he, " and can, with a good conscience and be-
fore the Lord, attest that he is incorrupt and well
grounded as to doctrine, possesses no common share
of learning, is unblamable in his life as a Chris-
tian, zealous toward God, charitable toward his
brethren, and distinguished for prudence and dex-
terity in the management of business, which, as you
well know, is a qualification very necessary in the
rulers of churches. The only thing of which I

* The Italian version of the New Testament by Brucioli was print-
ed at Antwerp in the year 1338, accompanied with two prefaces, in
which the advantages of reading the scriptures, and the propriety of
translating them into the vulgar language of every people, are urged
with great force. (Ergotzlichkeiten, torn. i. p. 408.) Schelhorn in
this work has thrown much light on the hfe and writings of Brucioli.

t Zanchii Epist. lib. ii. pp. 409 — 414, 424.

t See before, p. 361.

408 IIISTOKY OF TIIK llEFOKMATION IN ITALY.

cannot .speak is liis gift for preaching, for I never
heard liim from the pulpit; but he s})eaks Italian well.
O that I could spend what remains of my life in tlie
company of this excellent servant of God ! Believe
me, you will find him on acquaintance still better
than he ai)pears to be ; sincere, frank, kind, oblig-
ing, courteous, and one who adds lustre to the no-
bility of his birth by the correctness of his morals
as a Christian. I am sure he will greatly please
your illustrious prince." *

Of all the foreign Italian churches, none was
so distinguished as those which were established in
Geneva and in London. But as their affairs were
intimately connected with those of the Spanish re-
fugees who settled in these cities, I shall introduce
the account of them into the history of the progress
and suppression of the Reformation in Spain. For
that work I shall also reserve the remarks I Iiave
to make on the influence which the supj)ression of
the reformed opinions had on the national literature
and character of the Italians, which are applicable,
with a very little variation, to those of the Span-
iards.

* Zaiichiud Joanni Taffino: Epist. lib. ii. p. Ul; conf. p. 3b(i.

1 TT>1>

APPENDIX.

No. I.

Extracts from a Treatise of Gabriek VaUicuU, De Uberuli Dei Gra-

iia, et Servo hominis Arhitrio.*

To the very reverend father in Christ and worthy bishop of Luna,
Doctor Sylvestro Benedetto of Sarsina, with the greatest respect and
veneration, Gabriele Valliculi, in Jesus the only son of the Vir^-in,
wishes grace by which we are freely justified, and peace, according to
what the angels announced at the nativity of Christ, Peace on earth
and good will towards men.

I am placed in a strait betwixt two, being doubtful wliether I
should keep silence respecting the free grace of God and the enslaved
will of man, in which case death awaits me ; or whether I should
treat of them, and run the risk of falling into the hands of the
wicked. But the Holy Spirit teaches me that I should choose to fall

• Nothing is known concerning tJie author of this book. It was
jirinted at Nurenberg in the year 1536; but it had most probably
been previously published in Italy. Melanchthon, in a letter to Veit
Dietrich, written in 1530, says: '' In Italy there has arisen a new
Luther, whose propositions I send yon." (Epistolae, p. 432. edit. Lugd.)
But we have no evidence that he refers to the author of this book. Val-
liculi ajipears not to have been a man of talents, but of warm pietv ; and
most probably wrote this treatise after reading Luther's celebrated work Dc
Servo Arbilrw. Silvestro Benetto, to whom it is dedicated, was the ne-
phew of Thomas, bishop of Sarsina and Luna, succeeded his uncle in the
l»ishopric in 1497, and died in 1537. (1 glielii Itaha Sacra, torn. i. p. 556.)
The extracts are taken from Riederer, Nathrichten zur Kirchen-Gelehr-
ten und Bucher-Geschichte, torn. iv. p. 112, &c. Aldorf, 1768.

410

APPEXDIX.

into the hands of the wicked rather than to sin in the sight of God.
Help mc, O Lord, thou who art my hope, my refuge, my leader, my
justification, my protector and defender. All my safety and confidence
is placed in thee, not in human aid, much less in the enslaved will of
man. In thee alone, O God, have I hoped, and on this account shall
never be moved. But why am I not confounded when the Holy Spirit
cries in my ear, What fruit hast thou of those things whereof thou
are now ashamed.'* It is because I come to thee, my Christ, (not to
the enslaved will of man,) and my countenance is enlightened and not
covered with shame. AVhen 1 am confounded by the enslaved will
of sin in Adam, I will by the free grace of God fly from him to Jesus
Christ my Saviour, and then I shall not be confounded. • • • • •Free
an<l deliver me for thy righteousness sake, not for mine, but for thine :
if 1 should say for mine, then 1 would belong to the number of those
of whom the Holy Spirit has said. Being ignorant of God's righteous-
ness they go about to establish a righteousness of their own. Being
wholly depraved, I am not justified by my own, but by thy righteous-
ness, and if not by mine but by thine, then is righteousness imputed
to me by thy sovereign grace.

* • * • • In tlie first place, then, we are of opinion that the human
understanding, from its very nature, is incapable of comprehending
any thing but what is carnal, or of distinguishing between good and
evil except by a carnal discernment. Poverty, want, ignominy, tem-
poral losses, disease, death, and all worldly misfortunes, it judges to
be evil ; but wealth, glory, reputation, health, long life, and all
worldly blessings, it reckons to be good. It knows nothing of a God
merciful, angry, avenging, prescient, predestinating, and producing
all things ; and this the apostle testifies when he says, For we have
not received the spirit of this world, nor of reason, intellect and will,
but of the free grace of God, that we may know the things which are
given us by God, and not by the understanding and the will — given,
saith the apostle, on account of no preceding merit. If they be given,
then they must be free, if free, what merit is there in them ? These
things I have said, not in the learned words of human wisdom, nor
in the dreams of the sophists, but by the teaching of the Spirit, com-
paring spiritual things with spiritual.

• • " * Observe to what length this blindness of heart and foolish-
ness of understanding have proceeded. Men have adulterated the
majesty of the immortal God, by shadowing out the image of perish-
ing man, and not of man only, but of brute creatures also ; they have
become corrupt in their own enslaved will, and stupidity of heart,

APPENDIX.

411

and abominable in their pursuits, because human reason is wholly
ignorant of God, and neither comprehends nor seeks after him ; and
accordingly they have turned aside to unprofitable things, not per-
ceiving the things of God. But as, by the enslaved will of man, sin
abounded, so the free grace of God hath abounded much more; and
as by the enslaved will of man, sin reigned to eternal punishment,
so by the free grace of God the king of Salm reigns to life everlast-
ing. And who is it then that reigns? Not the understanding or will
of man, but our Lord Jesus Christ the Saviour, who has given us
grace without any merit on our part. The plain truth is, that in
respect of spiritual judgment the human understanding is en-
tirely unacquainted with God, and though it were by day and by
night incessantly employed in examining, perusing and ruminating
upon the whole Talmud, the holy scriptures, and the books of phi-
losophers and divines, both ancient and modern, it could never, with-
out the assistance of the Spirit, comprehend truly his omnipotence,
prescience, providence, mercy, or anger. It listens to discourses, pro-
fesses to beheve them, and hypocritically imitates them, though in
reality it is quite ignorant of God, and looks upon heavenly things
as fabulous. O the profound blindness of man ! as Jeremiah testi-
fies, saying. The human heart is depraved and unsearchable, who
can understand it? The Lord searches the heart and reins, but the
reason of man is incapable of discerning the things of heaven.

No. II.

Extracts from a treatise on the Benefit of Christ crucified, by Aonio

PaUario*

God has fulfilled his promise in sending us that
great prophet, who is his only begotten Son, that we might be freed
from the curse of the law and reconciled to our God, and has inclined
our hearts to every good work, in the way of curing the freewill
and restoring in us the divine image which we had lost by the
sin of our first parents, and causing us to know that under heaven
there is no other name given to men by which they can be saved ex-
> . ccpt the name of Jesus Christ. Let us fly then with the wings of a

• These extracts are taken from a review of the original Italian in Rie-
dcrcr, Nachrichten, torn. iv. pp. 239—211. See before, p. 333.

412

APPENDIX.

lively faith into his embraces, when we hear him inviting us in these
words. Come unto me all ye who are troubled and heavy-laden, and
I will give you joy. What consolation, what delight can be compar-
ed to that which is experienced by the person, who, feeling himself
overwhelmed with the intolerable weight of his iniquities, hears such
grateful and tender words from the Son of God, who promises thus
mercifully to comfort him and free him from so heavy a burden ! }iut
one great object wc should have in view is to be acquainted in good
earnest with our weakness and miserable condition by nature ; for we
cannot relish the good, unless we have tasted evil. Christ accordingly
says. Let him that thirsteth come to me and drink ; as if he would
imply that the man who is ignorant of his being a sinner, and has ne-
ver thirsted after righteousncas, is incapable of tasting how sweet the
Lord is, and how delightful it is to think and to speak of him and to
imitate his most holy life. M'lien, therefore, through the instrumen-
tality of the law, we arc made to see our infirmity, let us look to the
benign physician whom John Baptist points out to us with the finger,
saying, Jkhold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world ;
who, I repeat, frees us from the galling bondage of the law, by abro-
gutii.g and annihilating its bitter curses and threatenings, healing all
our diseases, reforming our freewill, bringing us back to our pristine
iimocence, and restoring in us the image of Ciod. If, according to St.
Paul, as by Adam all died, so by Christ we are all revived, then we
cannot believe that the sin of Adam, which we have by inheritance,
is of greater efficacy than the righteousness of Christ, which in like
manner we have inherited through faith. Once indeed, man might, with
some show of reason, have complained that without his own instru-
mentality he was conceived and brought forth in iniquity, and in the
sin of his first parents, through whom death has reigned overall men ;
but now all occasion of complaint is removed, since eternal life, toge-
ther with victory over death, is obtained, in the very same method,
without any instrumentaHty of ours, by the righteousness of Christ
which is imputed to us. Upon this subject St. Paul has written a
most beautiful discourse in Romans v. 12— 31. • • • From these
words of St. Paul, it is clear that the law was given in order that sin
might be known, and that we might understand thai it is not of
greater efficacy than the righteousness of Christ, by which we are jus-
tified in the iight of (iod ; for if Christ be more powerful than Adam,
and if the sin of Adam was cajjable of rendering us sinners and chil-
clren of wrath, without any actual transgression of our own, much
more will the righteousness of Christ be able to justify us and make

APPENDIX.

41. 'j

us children of grace, without any good works on our part, works
ch cannot be acceptable, unless, before we perfbnn tlen , .ve be
'nadegood and righteous through faith.

ofourLrd^''"%7-^''''',^ ^'''^'''"' "'^^^^^^ '^'^ righteousness
Of our Lord Jesus Christ, and make it our own by means of faith

^z:^'^'i''''''\ T ^^^""-^^ "- 'y - - w:ks,^'bu: ;

tne merits of Christ; and let us live in joy and securitv • for hi^

wi h ^S^'X'T '''''''' ^'^^ ^^^^" ''^ seesusincorpo;ated

Adam, hut as his own chddren, and constitutes us heirs of all his
riches along with his legitimate Son.

No. IH.

Leifers written by Aonio Paleario^ to his r.ife an.l chilJren, on tU.

morning of his execution,*

Monclay tl.o 3.1 Jay of July, ujO. Our confraternity I.av.W
been cal ed on Sunday night, i,nn,ediately preeeding Monday th 3d
.lay of July Uro, in Tordinona.t Mr. Aonio Paleario of Veml

esulent on the hill of Valdenza, was delivered into its hand! eTi-
. emned to death in .1«. course of justiee by the n^inister 1;f e
ho y>nqu.sa.on who having confessed and contritely asked pardon
of Go.1 and of Ins glorious mother,, the Virgin Mary, and of all the

our of heaven, said that he wished to die a good Christian, and
to believe all that the holy Roman church believes. He did no
...ake any testament, except what is contained in the two under

to his wife and children at the hill of Valdenza.

• SeeW.<-ore, p. 301. These letters, with the in.r^lnctory memorial
of the fnars, „^e reprinted in the ori^nal Italian by Schelho™, in
D sortat-o do ,.„o Celso Senensi, pp. 2o-21, f™„. N„,.elle Leteraric
dell Anno 1715, p. 328, &c. Firenzc.

i" Torre Nona.

414

APPENDIX.

Copies of the letters, verbatim.

My Dkarkst Wife,
I would not wisli that you nhould receive sorrow from my plea-
sure, nor ill from my good. I'he hour is now come when I must
pass from this life to my Lord and Father and (iml- I depart as joy-
fully as if I were going to the nuptials of the Son of the great King,
which I have always prayed my Lord to grant me, through his good-
ness and infinite mercy. Wherefore, my dearest wife, comfort your-
self with the will of (i(Kl, and with my resignation, and attend to the
desponding family which still survives, training them up and pre-
serving them in the fear of (lod, and heing to them a father and a
mother. 1 am now an old man of 70 years, and useless. Our chil-
dren must provide for themselves hy their virtue and their industry,
and lead an honourahle life. Ood the Father, and our Lord Jesus
Christ, and the communion of the Holy Si)irit, be with your spirit !

Romcy^idJuhjy 1570.

Thy Husband,

AoNio Palkari.

The other letter follows, verbatim.

LAMruiDio ANU Fkoro, bkloved childrkn,
These my very courteous Lords do not relax their kindness to mc
even in this extremity, and give me permission to write to you.
It pleases Ctod to call me to himself by this means, which may appear
to you harsh and painful ; but if you regard it properly, as happen-
ing with my full resignation and pleasure, you will acquiesce in the
will of God, as you have hitherto done. Virtue and industry I leave
you for a patrimony, along with the little property you already pos-
sess. I do not leave you in debt ; many are always asking when they

ought to give.

You were freed more than eighteen years ago ; you arc not bound
for my debts. When you arc called upon to discharge them, have re-
course to his excellency the Duke, who will not see you wronged. I
have requested from Luca Pridio an account of what is due to me,
and what 1 am owing. Take the dowry of your mother, and bring up
your little sister as God will give you grace. Salute Aspasia and sis-

APPKNDIX.

415

l^r Aonilla, my beloved daughtc-rs in the Lord. \ry hour approacl
I he Spirit of (iod console and preserve you in his grace '
Home, 2dJnlf/, U70.

Sui>erscription.

grace

Your Father,

AONIO Pateari.

To his .learest wife Alariceia Paleari, and to his belovd son, Lam-
pn. ho a„,l tedro Paleari, at the hill of Valdcnza, in the suburbs of
St. Catcnna,

Xo. IV.

Extract of a Letter written in prhon h,j V.mj^nu, Algie.ri to hi,
friends in the University iif Piidua*

To allay the pricf you feel on rny account, I am anxious to impart
o you a s},are of my consolation, that we may rejoice together, and
return thanks to the Lord with songs. I speak what to man will an.
pear incredible: I have found honey in the bowels of the lion, (who
will beheve .t .-) pleasantness in a dismal pit, soothing prospects of
hfe .n the gloomy mansions of death, joy in an infernal gulf '
Where others weep, I rejoice; where others tremble, I am strong-
the most distressing situation has afforded me the highest delight so-'
luude an intercourse with the good, and galling chains rest. But in-
stea.I of this deluded world believing these things, it will be rather dis-
posed to ask m an incrclulous tone : " How, think you, will vou be
able to endure the reproaches and threats of men, the fires, the snow,
storms, the crosses, the thousand inconveniences of your situation ?
Do you not look back with regret on your beloved native land your
possessions, your relations, your pleasures, your honours ? Have vou
forgot the delights of science, and the solace which it yielded vou
under all your labours .> Will you at once throw away all the t,;ils
watchings, and laudable exertions devoted to study from your childl
hood .> Have you no dread of that death which hangs over you as if
forsooth, you had committed no crime ? O foolish and infatuated man'
who can by a single word secure all these blessings and escape death'

416

APPENDIX.

yet will not ! How nule to be inexorable to tbe requests of senators
the most august, pious, just, wise, and good ; to turn an obstinate ear
when men so illustrious entreat you !"

But hear me, blind worldlings, what is hotter than the fire which
is laid up for you, and what colder than your hearts which dwell
in darkness and have no light ? M'hat can be more unpleasant, per-
plexed and agitated than the life you lead, or more odious and
mean than the present world ? Say, what native country is sweeter
than heaven, what treasure greater than eternal life? Who are my
relations but those who hear the word of God ? and where shall riches
more abundant or honours more worthy be found than in heaven ?
Say, foolish man, were not the sciences given to conduct us to the
knowledge of CJod, whom if it so be we know not, our labours, our
watchings, and all our painful exertions are doubtless utterly lost. —
The prison is severe indeed to the guilty, but sweet to the innocent,
distilling on the one side dew and nectar, sending forth on the other
milk and abundance of all things. It is a desert place and wild, but
to me a spacious valley, the noblest spot on earth. Listen to me, un-
happy man, and judge whether there be in the world a more pleasant
meadow. Here kings and princes, cities and people, are presented
to my view. Here I behold the fate of battles ; some are vanquished,
others victorious, some trodden to dust, others lifted into the triumphal
car. This is Mount Sion, this is heaven. Jesus Christ stands in the
front, and around are the patriarchs, prophets, evangelists, apostles,
and all the servants of God : he embraces and cljcrishes me, they en-
courage me, and spread the sacrament; some ofter consolations, while
others attend me with songs. Can I be said to be alone, while sur-
rounded by so many and so illustrious attendants ? Here I find an
intercourse which affords me example as well as comfort; for in that
circle 1 behold some crucified and slain, others stoned and sawn
asunder, some roasted, others fryed in the pan and in brazen vessels,
one with his eyes dug out, another with his tongue cut oft', one be-
headed, another maimed of hand and foot, some thrown into the
fiery furnace, others left a prey to the ravenous birds. Here I have
no fixed habitation, and seek for myself in the heavens the first New
Jerusalem which presents itself. I have entered upon a path which
conducts to a pleasant dwelling, and where I doubt not to find wealth,
and rtliitions, and pleasures, and honours. Those earthly enjoynjents
(all of them shadowy, and fading, and vanity of vanities, without the
substantial hope of a coming eternity) which the supreme Lord was
pleased to bestow upon me, have been made my companions and fo-

APPENDIX.

417

lace. Now they bring forth good fruits. I have burned with heat,
and shuddered with cold, I have earnestly watched day and night;
and now these struggles have come to a close. Not an hour nor a
day has passed without some exertion : the true worship of God is
now engraven on my heart, and the Lord has filled me with joy and
peacefulncss. Who then will venture to condemn this life of mine,
and to pronounce my years unhappy? AV^ho so rash as to declare his
labours lost who has found the Lord of the world, who has exchang-
ed death for life ? " The Lord is my portion, saith my soul, there-
fore will I seek him." If then to die be to begin a blessed life, why
does rebellious man cast death in my teeth ? O how pleasant is that
death which gives me to drink of the cup of God ! What surer earn-
est of salvation than to suffer as Christ suffered ! # # * * *
Be comforted, my most beloved fellow- servants of God, be comforted
when tem))tations assail you; let your patience be perfect in all
things, for suffering is our promised portion in this life ; as it is writ-
ten, *' The time cometh, when he who slays you will think he docth
God service." Tribulation and death therefore are our signs of elec-
tion and future life: let us rejoice and praise the Lord that we are
innocent ; for it is better, if sucli be the will of God, that we suffer
for well-doing, than for evil-doing. Wc have a noble pattern in Christ,
and the prophets who have spoken in the name of the Lord, whom the
children of iniquity have slain. Behold we call those blessed who
bore up under their trials. Let us rejoice in our innocence and
righteousness: God will reward our persecutors, for vengeance is his.
As to what they say concerning the Venetian nobility and senators,
extolling them as the most august, wise, just, pious, pacific, and of the
highest character and fame, I give this its due weight. The Apostle
teaches us, " that we ought to obey God rather than man." And ac*
cordingly, after first giving service to God, then and not till then are
wc bound to obey the official powers of this world. I grant they are
august, but as yet they require to be perfected in Christ; they arejust,
but the foundation and seat of justice, Jesus Christ, is wanting; they
are wise, but where is the beginning of wisdom, the fear of God ?
they are called pious, but I could wish they were made perfect in Chris-
tian charity ; they are called good, but I look in vain for the founda-
tion of goodness in them, even God the supreme good ; they are called
illustrious, but they have not yet received our Saviour, the Lord of
glory. Lift up your eyes, my dearly beloved, and consider the ways
of God ; the Lord has lately threatened with pestilence, and this he
has done for our correction : if we do not receive hhn he will un-

2 K

418

APPENDIX.

shcatli liis sword and attack those wlio rise up apjainst ('lirist, with
sword, pestilence, and famine. These things, hrethren, have I writ-
ten for your consolation. Fray for me: I salute with a holy kiss my
masters Sylvio, IVrgula, Justo, along with Fidelis a Petra, and the
j>erson who goes hy the name of Ltelia, whom though absent I
knew, and the Lord Syndic of the university, with all others, whose
names are written in the book of life.

Farewell, all my fellow-servants of God ; farewell in the Lord, and
pray earnestly for me. From the delectable garden of the Leonine
prison, 21st July 1555, the most devoted servant of the faithful, the
bound

POMrONIUS Al.GIER.

No. V.

Extract of a Letter from Carnesecchi to FInminio*

I liave received your letter, in which you enlarge both in the way
of instruction and admonition on those topics which we have often
discussed in conversation ; and I return you my sincere thanks, as in
duty bound, for the affection and good will you have displayed to-
wards me. When I reflect on the bitter animosities, and furious dis-
cord, which these disputes on ecclesiastical matters have engendered,
and on the license with which the contending parties have inveighed
against each other, forgetful of their own credit, as well as the good
of others, and violating the duties of charity, which requires us to ab-
stain from offending any professed Christian, I am charmed with the
mildness and moderation which you have shown, never casting abuse
upon your adversaries, or wounding them with cutting sarcasm, but
contenting yourself with pronouncing their sect execrable ; and, in
full possession of your temper, commending such of them as are dis-

• This letter is priutetl at length in Schelhorn, Amoenitates Ilistorla;
Ecclosiasticip ct Literariap, torn. ii. pp. 155 — 170. It is the only production
of Carnesocchi's pen whitli I have met witli. As my ohject is merely to
give the reader an idea of his character, I have not inserted that part of
the letter which enters into the merits of the controversy respecting the
encharist.

APPENDIX.

419

tinguished for their talents, and superior to the rest in modesty and
manners. Conduct like this was highly approved of among the an-
cients, and has adorned our own age, as well as that which preceded
It. We are told that Jovianus Pontanus commended the studies
of all, and never abused the character of any man, either in public
or private. M. Sabellicus would not revenge himself upon his
opponents by retorting even their most violent and malevolent taunts,
although he was by no means deficient in the graces of a copious and
fine style; a display of good nature which has led some over-rigid
critics to form too low an estimate of his talents. Pomponius La>tus,
an inhabitant of Rome, did not trouble himself with entering the
lists against those who had unjustly attacked him with their calum-
nies. Not to mention others in our own times, are not Nicholaus
Leonicus and Jacobus Sadolctus striking examples of modesty and
forbearance? But with respect to the Philelphi, the Poggii, the
Valla? and others, (for I will not mention by name any of the present
age,) what contumelies have they not thrown out against their an-
tagonists in defamation of their character? You, however, content
yourself with barely mentioning the names of those person's who in
your opinion have departed from the purity of religion, and treat the
points you condemn with accuracy and mildness. As to the question
Itself, I will, for the purpose of enabling us to consider it with greater
attention, state, with your leave, what has occurred to me in opposi-
tion to your sentiments, and expect that you will take this in good
part, observing, according to your piety and learning, whether I have
adduced any thing in support of the other side. As in all discussions
of this kind, the discovery of the truth ought to be the grand aim,
you should remove every obstacle that stands in the way of its attain-
ment, all respect to customs, prescription of time, and authority of
human institutions, and pressing on to this one point, steadily fix
your eyes upon its light, that you may not, by walking in darkness,
stumble into error. You recommend me to read certain volumes, at
once numerous and bulky, but afterwards inform me, and I take it
exceedingly kindly in you, that in order to spare trouble on my part
you think it sufficient to rest your cause solely on the authority of
Irenaeus, an ancient and highly approved writer. To have sought out
and perused all the books you named, would have indeed proved a
difficult and inconvenient, and even Herculean labour. If, as be-
comes an impartial judge, I should read the writings of the opposite
party in order to know the arguments they make use of in their defence.

420

APPENDIX.

Iww could I ever ilischarge bo weighty a task ? For you well know the
conseciiunces of contentions, disputes, and altercations such as these,
when both parties wish to be victorious ; how they search out every
argument that may confute their opponents, and devise whatever may
favour or assist their own cause. It is well known that this itch of
disputation is equally strong on both sides— in perverting truth as
well as in overthrowing falsehood ; and hence it happens, that even
truth, by being mixed up with artifice, has become suspected, as if by
this crafty policy the understanding were depraved, and the simplicity
of truth destroyed. Let us then pass over these, and giving to each
his due, proceed to weigh with diligence and accuracy the testimony
of those ancient writers who have treated the subject with most judg-
ment and impartiality. You had no occasion, in writing to me, to esta-
blish the authority of Irentcus's works, or to comm.end the author so
warmly ; for 1 know well the universal esteem in which he and his
writings' are held, and am myself an admirer of both. I often regret
that hh works have not reached us in the original (ireek, which, as
ai^pearet from the extracts inserted in the books of Eusebius, Epipha-
nius, and others, he seems to have written with much fluency and
elegance. I am astonished that a certain learned writer has express-
ed a doubt, whether he wrote in Greek. As to those of his writings
which have been translated into Latin, (such as it is,) I cannot vouch
for their fidehty to the original, but certainly the j^tyle is by no means
good or chaste ; for the translator makes use of unmeaning words,
and his foreign idiom necessarily mars the understanding of the
reader. iJut in this, as in many other cases, we must take what we
can get, not what we would wish ; and in those books which have
been^'publishcd, there is a good deal of discussion on subjects of great
importance. Let us for a moment examine the excerpt from the
fourth book of Iremeus against heretics. It is necessary, however,
for the understanding of whatever is said, that we know the design,
the occasion, and the subject ; for otherwise the mind of the reader
will wander, and be unable to receive any certain information. For
example, Christ says, " Without me ye can do nothing ;" to commit
sin is to do something; does it therefore follow that without Christ
no sin is committed ? Again lie says, *' Give to every one that ask-
eth ;" are we therefore to give some heretic or other what he may ask
for a base and villainous purpose ? I could bring forward many ex-
amples of this kind, but these will explain what 1 mean. • • • •

Nor does the universal agreement of the catholic church concerning
ceremonies, among the (J reeks, the Armenians, the Indi.ns, and, if

APPENDIX.

421

you please, the Ethiopians, help the matter ; for the frequency or ex-
tent of its use is no defence of a corrupt ])ractice. 1 1 is evident that
in every nation carelessness in preserving^truth and pure doctrine,
ignorance of the polite arts, and the turbulency of the times have ob-
structec^ the fruits of true religion and piety. Consider, I jtray you,
what is now the universal oj)inion concerning a barbarous style.''
Shall we condemn those who exploded the rude diction which had
long been in use, and introvluced a better and more elegant one in its
room? JJut I need not enlarge on this subject to one of your learn-
ing. The rest of your letter consists in several accusations, which,
though in some respects severe, I do not impute to you, but to those
who prefer defending falsehood to embracing truth. These per-
sons, if they had common sense, would consider that no reproaches
are more futile and ridiculous than those which recoil, or at least
are easily thrown back on the head of the author. In your letter you
censure with great severity and justice the obstinacy of those who
remain blindly attached to their own opinion, cloak their pride under
a false zeal, arrogantly accuse general and established customs, and,
a£ you add, are actuated by fears of losing worldly dignities and
emoluments. All of these are pestilent things; and I grant that
general and ancient custcni ought to be retained, lest the very
foundations be sapped ; but this is the very question in dispute, and
it remains still undeterm.ined, Wlio have transgressed or opposed the
cathohc agreement ? You say that some have their minds puffed up
with contumacy, and are blinded by zeal, too confident in their bold-
ness, ambitious, avaritious. Let it then, I would say, be determined
who are the individuals chargeable with this. We know too well how
bitterly each party reproaches the other, and how faf this evil has
proceeded in these dissolute and undisciplined times ; and according-
ly we should consider what is true, proper and laudable, attending
to what ought to be done, not to what has been done by this or that
person. Thus after deliberation, let us pronounce our sentiments
concerning the subject, and then, if we think proper, concerning the
persons. Of these, as 1 have already signified, I will say nothing,
either in the way of accusation or defence; for what Horace said of
the Trojan war, may, if I am not mistaken, be justly applied to this
controversy:

liiacos intra muros jjcccatur ct extra.
A man of probity will consider wlut he says of another, k.,t he

422

APPENDIX.

spread abroad any ill-t'ouuded reports. 1 am led to mention this
from your naming Bucer, of whom you seem to speak from the re-
port of some malevolent person, and not from your own knowledge.
I have heard many and various accounts, both respecting the man, and
that affair in reference to which you wish to depreciate him in my
esteem. Many letters celebrate the piety and learning of Bucer ; and
it is well known how zealous he has been in healing the wounds of
the church. 1 have been informed that he is of a mild temper, and
by no means pertinacious, litigious, or severe, although so firm in the
cause of the truth as not to be drawn from its defence by any respect
either to dignity, fortune, or life. But, as I have already said, we are
not to judge of persons but of things. You have my reply to your
letter, less accurate, and perhaps less to your mind, than you expect-
ed. 1 hope you will take it in good part, and that it will not pre-
vent you from prolonging the discussion, if you think proper, and con-
tinuing to repeat your instructions and advices. For in the cool dis-
putations of friends, though they should happen to differ in senti-
ment, the truth is often discovered, and, contrary to expectation, is
elicited by the very contention, as fiire by the collision of flints.
Adieu.

No. VI.
LtetterJ'roni Ofi/rn/iia Morata to 3[adonna Cheruhina Orsini.*

My Dearest Lady Ciiekudina,

To the letter I have already written you, I wish to add a few lines
for the purpose of exhorting you to pray to God that he would give you
strength, lest, through fear of those who can kill the body only, you of-
fend that gracious Redeemer who has suffered for our sakes ; and that
he would enable you gratefully to confess him, according to his will,
before this perverse generation, and ever to keep in remembrance the
words of David, " I hate the congregation of sinners,and will not sit in

• Translated from the original Italian, in Olympiie 31oratac Opera,
pp. 218—222. Basilcac, lo80.

APPENDIX.

423

the company of the wicked." I am weak, you will be apt to say, and
cannot do this. Oh do you imagine that so many saints and prophets,
that so many martyrs, even in our day, have remained tirm in their
own unaided virtue, and that it was not God who gave them strength ?
Then consider that those whose weakness is mentioned in the scrip-
tures did not continue always infirm. St. Peter's denial of his Mas-
ter is not recorded as an example for our imitation, but in order to
display the great mercy of Christ, and to show us our own frailty, not
to excuse it. He soon recovered from his weakness, and obtained
such a degree of strength, that he afterwards rejoiced to suffer for the
cause of Christ. From these considerations we should be induced,
when we are sensible of our infirmity, to apply by prayer to the phy-
sician, and request that he would make us strong Provided we pray
to him, he will not fail to perform his promise ; only he does not wish
us to be idle and unemployed, but to be continually exercising our-
selves with that armour of which St. Paul speaks in the sixth chapter
of his epistle to the Ephesians. We have a powerful enemy who is
never at rest, and Christ by his example has showed us that he is to
be overcome by prayer and the word of God. For the love of Christ,
then, who has redeemed you with his precious blood, I entreat you
to study diligently the holy scriptures, praying that the Lord would
enable you to understand them. Mark how frequently and with

what ardour the great prophet David prays, " Lord, enlighten me

teach me thy ways — renew in me a clean heart ;" while wt, as if we
were already perfect, neither study nor read. Paul, that illustrious
apostle, tells the Philippians, that he did not yet understand, but was
still engaged in learning. We ought to be advancing from day to day
in the knowledge of the Lord, and praying all the time with the apos-
tles that our faith may be increased, and with David, *' Hold up my
steps in thy ways." W^e have ourselves to blame for our weakness,
because we are continually excusing it, and neglecting the remedies
which Christ has prescribed, viz. prayer and his word. Do you
think that, after having done and suffered so much from love to you,
he will not fulfil the gracious promises he has made by granting your
petitions for strength? Had he not intended to bestow it, he would
not have invited you by so many promises to ask it ; and lest you
should entertain any doubts on this point, he has sworn that all that
you request of the Father in his name shall be given you. Nor does
he say that he will give this or that thing, but every thing you soli-
cit ; and St. John declares that he will bestow whatever we ask ac-
cording to the will of God. Now is it not agreeable to his will that

424

Ari'KNDlX.

we desire of hini faith and fortitude sufficient to enable us to conftsa
him ? Ah ! liovv backward are we, and how ready to excuse ourselves !
We ought to acquaint the physician with our disease, in order
that he may cure us. Oh, is it not the proper office of Christ to
save us froni our initjuities, and to overcome sin ? Knock, knock,
and it shall be opened to you. Never forget that he is omnii)otent,
and that, before your hour is arrived, no one shall be able to touch a
liairof your head ; for greater is lie that is in us, than lie that is in
the world. Do not be influenced by what the majority do, but by
what the godly have done, and .still do to this day. May the word
of the Lord be a lanip to your feet, for if you do not read and listen
to it, you will fall before many stuniblin;^-blocks in the world. I
beg you to read this letter to Vittoria, exhorting her by precept and
by example to honour and confess (iod : read also along with her the
holy scri])tures. Entreat niy dear lady Lavinia to peruse frequently
a portion of them, and so she will experience the efficacy of the word
ofCiod. The Lord knows that I have written these exhortations
with sincere concern for your salvation, and I beg of you to read them
with the same feeling. I pray (iod that you may be enlightened and
fonified in Clnist, so as to overcome Satan, the world, and the flesh,
and to obtain that crown which is given only to those who overcome.
I have no doubt but that, in following my admonitions, you will find
the Lord strengthening you. J)o not consider that it is a womrin
only who is giving you advice ; but rest assured that God, speaking
by my mouth, kindly invites you to come to him. All false opi-
nions, all errors, all disputes arise solely from not studying the
scriptures with sufficient care. David says. Thou hast made me
wiser than all my enemies by thy law. Do not listen to those who,
despising the commandments of (Jod and the means which he has
appointed for their salvation, say. If we be predestinated, we shall
be saved, altliough we neither pray nor study the IJible. lie who is
called of God will not utter such blasphemy, but will strive to obey
Gcd, and avoid tempting him. The Lcrd has done us tlie honcrr
and the benefit to speak to us, to in^itiuct and console us by his
word, and sliould we despi:»e such a valuable treasure? lie invites
us to draw near to him in prayer ; but we, neglecting the cpportu-
nity, and remaining inactive, are busied with dij-putes concerning the
high counsels cf Ciod, and the things which are to ccnic to pass.
Let us use the remedies he has prescribed, and thus jirove ourselves
to be olcdient and predestinated childrtn. Head and observe how
highly God weuld have his word prized. Faith, j^ays Paul, ccmes by

APrENDIX,

425

heanng, and hearing by the word of God. Charity and faith I
assure you, would soon become cold, were you to remain idle. And
It IS not enough, as Christ remarks, to have begun ; we must per-
severe to the end. Let him that stands, says Paul, take heed lest he
fall. J entreat you, for the love of Christ, not to confine yourself to
the maxuns of men, but to conduct yourself according to the word of
God ; let It be a lamp to your feet, otherwise Satan will be able to
deceive you in a variety of ways. Deliver these admonitions to my
sister also. Never consider who the person may be that speaks to
you but examine whether she speaks the words of God or her own
words ; and provided the scriptures, and not the authority of man
be your rule, you will not fail to discover the path of duty. Ask'
seek, knock, and it will be opened to you. Draw near to your heavenly
spouse, contemplating him in the Bible, that true and bright mirror
in which shines all the knowledge which is necessary for us. May
God, for the sake of Christ, grant that I have not written in vain,
i he pain in my breast has been considerably increased by the excr-
tion, but I sincerely wish I were able by my death to assist you and
others in the things which pertain to salvation. Do me the favour
to send me a single hne, to acquaint me with the state of your

Your Olympia.

No. VII.

Letter of Ol^mpia Morata to Cdio Secundo Curio.

My Dj- arest Father Celio,
You rr.ay conceive how tenderly those who are united by true, that
is. Christian friendship, feel for one another, when I tell you thit the
perusal of your letter drew tears from my eyes; for on learning that
you had been rescued from th^ jiws of the grave. I wept for joy
May God long preserve you to be a blessing to his church. It grieves
me much to hear of the indisposition of your daughter, but I comfort
myself with the hopes you entertain of her recovery. As to myeclf
my dear Celio, I must infcrm you that there are now no hopes of my
surviving long. No medicine gives me any relief. Every day, and
indeed every hour my friends look for my dissolution. It is probable

426

AP1»EN1)1X.

this may be the last letter you will receive from me. My body an.l
stren-th are wasted ; my appetite is gone; night and day the cough
threatens to suttbcate me. The fever is strong and unremitting, and
the pains which 1 feel over the whole of my body, deprive mc ot
sleep. Nothing therefore remains but that I breathe out my spirit.
But so long as life continues, I will remember my friends, and the
benefits I have received from them. I return my warmest thanks to
you for the books you sent me, and to those worthy men who have
bestowed upon me such valuable presents. Had I been spared I
would have shown my gratitude. It is my opinion that my departure
is at hand. I commend the church to your care ; O let all you do
be directed to its advantage. Farewell, excellent Celio, and do not
distress yourself when you hear of my death ; for 1 know that I shall
be victorious at last, and am desirous to depart and be with Christ.
My brother, about whom you inquire, is making proficiency in his
studies, though he needs the spur rather than the curb. Heidelberg
seems deserted on account of the numbers who have died of the
plague or fied for fear of it. My husband sends his compliments to
you. Salute your family in my name. 1 send you such of the poems
as I have been able to write out from memory since the destruction
of Schweinfurt. All my other writings have perished. 1 request that
you will be my Aristarchus, and polish them. Again farewell.
From Heidelberg.*

• Curio received this letter by the same post which brought him the in-
telligence of the doatli of the amiable writer. It was the last exertion she
made. On looking over what she had written, she i)erceived some mis-
takes, and insisted on transcribing it; but, after making tlie attempt, was
obliged to desist, and said to her husband, with a smile whicli almost un-
nerved him, " I see it will not do l"

INDEX.

^ curio, Joseph, 46.
Albigcnites. See \raldenses.
Alciaii^ Paolo, I5i, 302, 374, 375.
Aleandcr Cardinal, 49, 81-, 88.
Alexander VI., Pope, 8, 20.
Alexandrine Cardinal. See Pius V.
Algirri, Pomponio, 279-280, 415.
Alticri, Baldassare, 83, 94, 95, 98,

100, 14,3-146, 151, 22U-221., 370.
Alva, Duke of. 355.
Amhrogio, Teseo, 45, 46.
A,ico,ux, Progress of Reformation in,

137.
Andrew of Asolo, 47.
Angela, Frate, 298, 347.
Angole, Baron Bernardo di, 273.
Annius of Viterbo, 42.
Antitrinitarianism in Italy, 148-158.

hi the Grisons, 365-376.
Arahic language, studied in Italy,
41. ^

Badia, Cardinal, 84, 302.
Baptista 3Iantnanus, iQ.
Bartoccio, Bartolommeo, 304, 305.
Beccaria, John, 132, 133, 239, 248
381.

BcUinchctti, Francesco and Alexan-
dre, 348,349.

Bcmbo, Cardinal, 9, 10, 57, 73, 112-
115, 120, 135,136,288,302.

Bcnedetti. See Locarno, Benedetti.

Bcrettari de*. See Poliziano.
Bergamo, Progress of Reformation
in, 97.

Betti, Francesco, 397.
Beua, Theodore, 387.
Bianca, Domenica della Casa, 276.
Bianchi, legate of Pius IV., 357.
Biveion. See Tutschet, James.
Blandrata, Georgius, 154, 374, 375.
Blatcronc, Maco, 297.
Bocaccio, 6, 7, 14.

Bologna, Progress of Reformation \n.
79-88.

Bomherg, Daniel, 40, 45.
Bonfadio, Jacopo, 121.

Borromco, Cardinal, 3.57-9,362, 381
396. '

Bracciolini, Poggio, 15, 16.
Brescia, Progress of Reformation in,
97, 137.

Brucioli, Antonio, translator of the

Scriptures, 54-56, 78, 400, 407.
Buccianici, Marquis di, 263, 265.
Bucer, Martin, 34, 36, 77, 83. 118,

129,140-142,144,145,197,303,
384.

Bullinger, Henry, 139, 222-4, 227,
273, 328, 329, 331, 370-2, 385,
387, 388, 394, 403.

Buonarici, Angelo, 180, 181, 302.

Cujetau, Cardinal, 48.
Calabtia, Waldenses in, 4, 257.

428

INDEX.

CalandrinOt Scipionc, 301.
CalcagniHi, Celio, 73, 91, 182-181.,

218.
Calvin, John, 70, 139, Ul, loO,
193, 217, 227, 212, 303, 377,
381, 385, 3ft7.
Cilvns, (Calvi) Francesco, 32.
Ciimcrariiis, Joachim, 153, 270, 272.
Cumcrarius, VWxWy, 270, 272.
Oimillu Renato. See Renato.
Ciinosa. See Paradisi Paolo.
Cajmio. See Renchlin.
Caraccioli., (Jalea/.zo, 121.
Carafii, Caniinal, St, 8(>, lOG, 18G,
189, 193, 19->, 201. See Paul IV.
Curlino, Stefano, 2G2.
Carricsccch'h (Carncseca) Pietro, 79,
94, 121, 171,175,273, 287-2%,
303, 418.
Cnro, Annihale, 3iG.
Ctrpi, Cardinal of, 190.
Qua, Delia, papal Nuncio, 226.
Ciscrta, Giovanni Francesco, 121.
Cmntir, Count John, 105.
Oistchdro, (fianniaria, 279.
Custclvdro, Jacopo, 280.
OistclvctrOy Ludovico, 7(>, 206, 209,

210,211,379,380.
Castiglioni\ Varnerio, 132.
Ccllar'io, Francesco, 359, 360.
Cdso, 3Iino, 130, 397, 398.
CcrvinU Cardinal. See 3Iarcellus

II.

Chaldaic language, studied in Italy,

41, U.

Charles V., the Emperor, 58, 59, Gl,
81,100,106, 112,203, 276,317,

382.
Chiavcnna, 336, 340, 311, 368, 370,

379, 404, 406.
Ciriaco of Ancona, 40.
Cittadclla, Progress of Reformation

in, 137.
CluriOy Isidoro, 48, 40, 51.

Clamh Bisliop of Turin, 2.

Coire, Rishops of, 310, 317, 321,

351, 373.
Colre, Town of, 313, 315, 321, 375,

376.
Clement VII., Pope, 58, 60, 61, 62,

65, 68. 134, 288.
Colli, Paolo di, 396, 397.
Colonna, Marco Ant«)nio, 28, 271.
Colonua, Vittoria, marchioness of

Pescaro, 112, 163- 165.
Cotnandtr, John, 313, 314, 315,317,

319,321,326, 329,371,373.
Comu, 37, 280, 336, 345.
ConUirnii, Cardinal, 78, 8I-, 120, 125,

178,179,102, 207, 2()H.
Conte, Bernardino, 2(;2.
Ccrmllo, James, 102.
Corrada, Alfonso, 397.
Cottcsc, Cardinal, 84, 208.
Cosmo. Sec Tuscany, grand duke

of, 383.
Craig, Jolui, 270.
Cratimcrj Archhishoj), 383.
Crcma, Batista de, 101.
Cremona, Progress of Reformation

in, 137.
Curio, (Curione) Celio Secundo, 74,
lOl-lOG, 187, 188, 199, 200, 355,
391, 398-400, 403, 425.

Dante, 13, 52.

Dorfmun. See Comander, John.

Duni!!, Taddeo a, 133, 240, 247.

Ecolampadf, John, 39, 129, 139, 117.
Egidio of Viterho, 18, 44, 40.
Eglinus, Thohias, 272-274.
Elias, an Ahyssinian, 46.
Erasmus, 30, 47, 48, 87. 129, 173,

184.
Erastiis, Thomas, 88.

INDEX.

429

Erri, Pellegrino, 209-210.
Este, Anne of, 74, 218.
Ethtnpic language, studied in Italy,
41., 45.

Fuhrif-, Andrew, 314, 324.
Eacnza, Progress of Reformation in,
88, 89.

Fanino, (Fannio) Farentino, 274-

276.
Felicia, San, hishop of Cava, 182.
Felix of Prato, 43.
Ferrara, Progress of Reformation in,
67, 75. Suppression of Reforma-
tion in, 211-213.
Fcrrara, Hercules II., Duke of, G7

-70,73,78, 167,209,214-218.
Ferrara, Renee, Dutchess of, 68-

72, 172, 192, 199,214-218.
Fieri, Ludovico, 374.
Fikno, Lisia. See Ricci, Paolo.
FiLmardo, Cardinal, 302.
Flacio, 3Iatteo, 94.
Fluminio^ Marco Antonio, 73, 118,
121, 127, 168-177, 180, 288,289,
293, 295, 302, 303, 418.
Florence, Progress of Reformation in,

78, 79.
Florio, 3Iichele Angelo, 374.
Folengo, Giamhatista, 48, Io9, 180.
Font ana, Balthasar, 39, 39, 131,

132.
Fonzio, Bartolommeo, 268.
Foscarari, Bishop of JModena, 182,

269, 379.
Fossianeus, Jerom Niger, 102.
Framcsco of Calahria, 366, 367.
Francis I. of France, 43, 44, 58,

100, 317.
Frederick II., 3.

Fregoso, Cardinal Federigo, 36, 49,
84, 120, 179, 180.

Fregoso, Ottavlano, doge of Genoa,

179.
Frick, John, 315.
Friuli, Progress of Reformation in,

137.
Frohen, John, printer, 31.

Gadaldino, Antonio, printer, 210.
Cniddio, Paolo, 343, 347, 348.
Gajbri, Cesare, 342.
Galateo, Jeronimo, 236.
Galaiino, (Colonna) Pietro, 47.
Gallitz, (Salutz) Philip, 311., 315,

319,324,327, 328,333.
Gamha, Francesco, 280, 281.
Gantner, 376.
Genoa, Waldenses in, 4. Progress of

Reformation in, 137.
Gent His, Valentino, 134.
Gesner, Conrad, 385.
Ghislcri, Michele. See Pius V
Giber t, Archhishopof V^erona, 84.
Giraldi, Lilio, 73.

Gonzago, Cardinal of Mantua, 120,

123, 226.
Gon::ago, Julia, Dutchess of Trajet-

to, 162, 163, 289.
Grataroli, Gulielmo, 397.
Greek language, taught in Italy, 6.
Gregory IX., Pope, 3.

Grillcnzonc, a physician of JModena,
76.

Gri?nani, Giovanni, 181, 182.

Grisone, Annihale, 225, 22Q, 228.
Grisons, 157, 230, 251, 308, 380.
Grnnthler, Andrew, 212.
Grnnxoald, a soldier personating the

pope, 60, 61.
Gualtieri, Pierpaolo, 45.
Gnarino, Francis, 102.
Guicciardini, the historian, 20-22.
Guidacerio, Agathias, 43.

430

INDEX.

431

Iff

Gnlrlauda^ Julio, 833.

Gnler, John, 322.

Guise, Francis, duke of, 217, 218.

Hurtman, Christian, 324.

Hebrew language, cultivated in Italy,

29, 39-56, 383.
Henry II. of France, 215, 290.
Hercukt, II. See Fen-ara, Duke of.
Jlosius, Cardinal, 396.
Hutton, Ulric, 31.

Ignatius^ Patriarch of Antioch, 46.

Imola, Progress of the Reformation
in, 88, 89.

Istria^ Progress of Reformation in,
133-137. Sui>pressi(m of Refor-
mation in, 224.

Jamct, liVon, 70, 72.

Jeronimo of Mantua, 366, 367.

Jochana, a teacher of Hehrew, 41.

Julius II., Pope, 20, 43.

Julius III., Pope, 212, 268, 276,
277.

Justinian^ Atigustine, 43, 44.

Kimchi^ David, 42.

Lacisio, Paulo, 12t, 197, 402.

Lampi idio^ 302.

Landolfo, Rodolfiuo, printer, 342.

Languet^ Hubert, 75.

Lentulo^ Scipione, 344.

Leo X., Pope, 20, 46, 102.

Lcon^ Juan, (Leo Africamis) 44.

Licher^ Thomas. Sec Erastus.

Locarno, Progress of Reformation in,
131-133. Suppression of Reforma-
tion in, 239-252.

Locarno, Bcnedetti, 122, 123, 132.

LongoUusy Christopher, 137.

Louis XII. of France, 6S, 216.
Luccdy Progress of Reformation in,

1 23- 1 25. Suppression of Reforma-

tion in, 253-255.
Lupctino, Raldo, 94, 235, 236.
Luther, Martin, 30, 31, 33, 34, 37,

39, 61, 75, 86, 87, 91, 98-100,

129, 134, 138, 139, 142-148, 173,

316, 384.
Lyonsj Italian church in, 405, 406.

Majeiy Cardinal, 302.

Mainatdi, Agostino, 338, 341, 355,

368, 370, 372, 377.
Malcrmi, (Malerbi) Nicolo, 52, 53.
Malhesiniy Tesso-Sionis, (Peter Sio-

nita,) 45.
JMauctliy Giaiuiozzo, 40.
Mamicha, Isabella, 160, 346, 402.
Mantua, Progress of Reformation in,

130, 131.
Mantua, (lulielmo, duke of, 356.
Mauutius, Aldus, 294, 295.
Manzolli, Pier Angelo, 73, 167, 168.
MarceUus II., Pope, 45, 164, 165.
Mardiueus, Moses, 46.
Alarhach, John, 404.
IMannocchini, Sante, 56.
Marot, Clement, 70-72.
Martinengho, Celso, 124, 346, 373,

377, 403.
MartinengUo, Ulixio, count de Bar-

cho, 361, 407,408.
Martyr, Peter, (Pietro Martire Ver-

migh) 79, 107, 117-120, 123, 124,

125, 168, 172, 190,195-199,254,

277, 382-385, 391, 402, 403.
Mar zone, 262,

Massario, Jeronimo, 402, 403.
Maturo, Bartolommeo, 332, 333.
Medici, Angelo de. See Pius IV.
Medici, John de. Marquis of Muss,

317.
Medici, Lorenzo de, 9.

Mclanchthon, Philip, 34, 35, 39, 57, o.

87, 91-96, 129, 144, 145, 148, Ochino, (Ocello) Bernardino, 107-

150-153, 156, 186, 193, 290,387, 117, 119, 122, 125, 154, 156, 164,

,,^/^^* „ 165, 168, 172, 190-195, 197, 298,

i»///./«r.r. Progress of Reformation in, 303, 381-383, 390-396.

100-106. Suppression of Reforma- OrcUo, Lucia di, 248.

tion in, 353-365. oW/r, Inquisitor of Henry II., 215.

Milan, Dukes of, 317, 354. 216.

Milano, Julio da, 191, 331, 338, Orsini' Sec Ursini.

339, 341,342,372,388.
Mithridatcs, Teacher of oriental Ian-

gufiges, 41.
Modcna, Progress of Reformation in,
75-78. Suppression of Reforma-
tion in, 206-211.

Padua, Progress of Reformation in,

97.
Pagnini, Sante, 47.
Pagnino de Pagninis, 43.

Modena, Bishops of. See Morone Paleario, Aonio, 125-130, 218, 297.

and Foscarari.
Mol/io, John, 79, 80, 119, 276-279.
Montalto, Barbara di, 248, 249.
Monte, ('ardinal de. See Julius III.
Monti, Pompoio di, 271.
Montferat, Count, 103.

304, 411,413.

PaUaviciui, 86, 173.

Palingenius. See Manzolli, Pier An-
gelo.

Panza, Inquisitor, 262, 263.
Paradisi, (Canossa) Paolo, 43.

Morata, Fulvio Peregrino, 73,74, /^^mr/d/H', Family of. 342, 3t3, 368.

^^*^' ^^^- Parma, Duke of, 239.

Morata, Olympia, 74, 160, 212, 213, Parthcnai, Anne de, 69, 74.

218, 275, 400, 402, 422-426, Parthenai, Jean de, sieur de Soubise,

MoreU, John, 175. cp,

Morone, Cardinal, 78, 100, 101, 178, Paschali, Ludovico, 283-287, 406

207, 208, 269, 303. Paul HI, Pope, 73, 84, 97, 100,

ilfo^f^, an Abyssinian deacon, 46. 125, 131, 134, 176, 185, 201,

Muralto, 3Iartino a, 133.
Muretus, 294.
Musculus, 403.
Muzio, Girolamo, 229.

212, 268, 289.
Paul IV., Pope, 28, 86, 158, 190,
217, 239, 253, 268, 270, 280,
290, 306, 379, 403. See CarafTa.
Cardinal.
Pcllican, Conrad, 383.
JVfl/jZtr^, Progress of Reformation in, Perez, Jnan, 121.

106-123. Suppression of Reforma- Pcrna, Petrus, printer, 397, 398.
tion in, 255.257. Pescaro, JMarchioness of. See Co-

Navarre, Margaret, Queen of, 69- lonna.

^^ ' -P''^^*J'atriarchoftJjeMaronites,46.

^egri, Francesco, 154, 156, 339, P^///w«o, Count, 273.

340, 370. Petrarch, 6 14 52.

Negrino, Stefano, 283, 284. PhUip II. of Spain,' 342, 354

Nicholas v., Pope, 16. pi^o, John, count of Mirandula, 41.

432

INDEX.

P'tcoy John Francis, count of Mir-

andula, 18, 42.
Pisano^ Progress of Reformation in,

130.
Plus IV., Pope, 191, 201., 270, 290,

291, 3 IH, 357, 3()0.
Pius v., Pops 272, 291, 293, 298.
Plantitz, John, 81-83.
Pole, Cardinal, Hi, 85, 120, 127,

l(>i, 173, 175-179, 197,208,269,

288, 302, 303.
Pulhiano, Don Ciiovanni, 207.
Ponsy Antoinc de, count de Ma-

rennes, 69.
Pontkdla, John, 328.
Porta, Egitlio a, 37, 38.
Port us J Franciscus, 208, 379.
Postti, William, loB.
Poikcn, J(»hn, 45.
Priul'h Aloysio, 127, 2(59.

Qriirini, Cardinal, 85, 8G, IGj, 178,

195.

Ragnoni, Lattantlo, 130.

Raugonc, Madonna Helena, of Ben-

tiv'oglio, 161, 162.
Rennlo, Camillo, 154-, 156, 339, 31-0,

367.373, 377, 386.
Rente. See Ferrara, Dxitchess of.
Reuehliriy Isaiah, 244, 250.
Rcnchlin. (Capnio) John, 29, 30,42.
Ria% (Lisia Fileno) Paolo, 77, 78.
Riccio, Bartolomr,ie<», 73, 302.
Ricctto, Antonio, 233, 234.
Ricolilo, Fra, 40.
Ru'tcr, Peter, de Kornburg, 270,

271.
Rivcnhh Ottaviano, bishop of Ter-

racino, 243, 217, 248.
Rodolpho, Cardinal, 219.
Rome, Progress of Reformation in,

137.

Rosalina, Catarina, 248.
RosselU, Lucio Paolo, 92.
Rove re, Lavinia della, IGO, 101,

275.
Runcho, Ludovico, 133.
Rustlci, Filippo, 56.

S.
Sjdolet, Cardinal, 9, 10, 48, 57, 75,

84, 87, 88, 112, 126, 178, 185,

206, 208, 288, 302.
Salice, Frederica, 230, 316.
Salke, Hercules a, 230, 231, 310,

341.
Sulmonius, Blasius, 31.
Salutz. See GuUitz, Philip.
Sannazzaro, 20.

Sasullo, Don Ilieronymo da, 207.
Sauli, Theodorina, (Theodora,) 170.
Savonarola, Jerome, 16-18.
Savoy, Duke of, 103.
Savoy, Margaret, Dutchess of, 290.
Seafiger, the eUler, 35.
Scfienk, Burchard, 33, 34.
Sehlegel, Theodore, 312, 313.
Seftonberg, Cardinal, 88.
Scrimger, Henry, 227.
Sega, Francesco, 233, 234.
Seraphin, Cardinal, 35.
Servetus, Michael, 149-152, 366,

376, 378.
Sfroiidati, Cardinal, 302.
Sicily, Progress of the Reformation

in, 122, 123.
Siculus, Camillus Renatus. See Rc-

nato.
Sienncsc, Progress of the Reformation

in the, 125-130.
Sigfrid, Andrew, 314.
Sigismund, a German, 97.
Sigonio, Carlo, 75.
Slnapi, Chilian, 73.
Siuapi, John, 73.
SioJiita, Sec Malhesini.

INDEX.

433

Sixtus IV., Pope, 19.

Socciui, Camillo, 374, 385.

Soccini, Celso, 385.

Sopcini, Cornelio, 385.

Socciui, Mariano, 385.

Socinus, Faustus, 155, 242,369, 389.

Socinus, UvVms, 154, 156, 212, 372,

374, 378, 385-389, 391, 394.
Sociniatiism. See Antitrinitarianism.
Soncinati, Printers, 39.
Soruuzo, Bishoj) of Bergamo, 229,
Souhisc, Madame de, C9-71. See

Parthenai.
Spalatinus, .33, .34.
Spinello, Salvatore, 259.
Sj)iuula, Francesco, 234.
Sjjtra, Francesco. 227, 228.
Stancar, Francis, 42, 340, 370, 382.
Stapliylo, Bishop of Sibari, 62-64.
Stello, Toniaso de Santo, 228.
Steuchi, (Steuco) Augustine, 48.
Sturrnius, James, 401.
Stunnius, John, 86, 405.

Tasso, Bernardo, 67, 73.

Teglio, Silvestro, 397.

Te(>/ilo, Massimo, 56, 78, 406.

Terentiano, Julio, 191, 197, 339.

Tisserano, 277.

Toledo, Don Pedro de, A'iceroy of

Naples, 106, 107.
Tolomco, Claudio, 193, 195.
Tojiimassi, Fabrizio, 304.
Trovers, John, 322, 323.
Trebellio, Theodosio, 197.
Trcniellio, Emanuel, 124.
Trciita, Cristofero, 197.
TrevisanOy Progress of Reformation

in, 97.
Trczio, Galleazzo, 355.
Troubadours, 12, 13.
Turriano, Jeronimo, 374, 375.
Tuscany, Cosmo, grand duke of, 78,

291, 292.

2 F

Tutschct, (Biveron) James, 314,
326.

Ursino, (Orsini) Camillo, 160.
UrsinOy Madonna Cherubina, 161,

422.
Ursino, Madonna Magdalena, 161.

Valdez, (Valdesso) Juan, 106, 107,
116, 117, 118, 121, 122, 163, 172,
191, 256, 288.

Valenlino, Bonifacio, 210.

Valentino, Filippo, 208-211.

Valla, Laurentius, 15, 48.

Valliculi, Gabriele, 409.

Valtcline, 336, 342-376.

VaragUa, Godfredo, 281-283.

Vaudois* See Waldenses.

Venice, Progress of Reformation in,
89-100. Suppression of Reforma-
tion in, 218-237.

Vcrgerio, Giovanni Batista, bishop
of Pola, 137, 225, 226.

Vcrgerio, Pierpaolo, bishop of Capo
d'Istria, 34, 57, 134, 137, 139,
140, 213, 225,227, 2:iO, 333-335,
346, 370, 373, 377, 379, 380.

Vcrmincl^ 262.

Verona, Progress of Reformation in,
97, 137.

Viccntino, Progress of Reformation
in, 97. Suppression of Reforma-
tion in, 219.

Vittorio, 3Iariano, 45, 302.

Vitus, (Veit) Theodorus, 91, 148,
153, 104.

Voragine, Jacopo da, 52.

Waldenses, Settlement of, in Italy,
3-6. Extirpation of, 257, 266, 282,
283, 344.

Walthcr, Town-clerk of Locarno,
241.

434

INDEX.

Widmamtddter ^ Albert, 4G, 47.
Wihon, Dr. Thomas, 306.

Zaccario, Fra, 56.
Zutichi^ Basilit), 403.
ZafK'fii^ Dionif^i, ■1-03.
Zancftiy Fraucesco, 403.

Zanc/tiy Grisostomo, 403.

Zancfii, .Jeronirao, 156, 341, 377,

380, 390, 403, 408.
Znnnctn, Julio, 304, 305.
Zirgler^ James, 91.
Zuivglc, Ulrich, 34,36-39, 118, 132,

138, 139. 147, loU, 313, 316,

329.

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