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And long have I thought that if I wed a man it should be such a man as could thrive by learning of envoys' secrets. He leaned towards her earnestly. 'You know wherefore the man from Cleves is come? 'You are, even as I have heard it said, a spy of Thomas Cromwell? she asked in return. He looked suddenly abashed, but she held to her question. 'I pass for Privy Seal's man, he answered at last.
Than hers, as I have said, there is in history no sadder story. The Assassination of Henry IV In the year 1609 died the last Duke of Cleves, and King Henry IV. of France and Navarre fell in love with Charlotte de Montmorency. In their conjunction these two events were to influence the destinies of Europe.
As soon as this journey was talked of, Madam de Cleves, who had stayed at home all this while under pretence of illness, entreated her husband to dispense with her following the Court, and to give her leave to go to take the air at Colomiers for her health: he answered, that whether her health was the reason or not of her desire, however he consented to it: nor was it very difficult for him to consent to a thing he had resolved upon before: as good an opinion as he had of his wife's virtue, he thought it imprudent to expose her any longer to the sight of a man she was in love with.
The unknown knight, vaulting once more into his saddle, made a graceful obeisance to the Prince of Cleves and his daughter, without a word, and galloped back into the forest, whence he had issued an hour before sunset. The consternation which ensued on the death of the Rowski, speedily sent all his camp-followers, army, &c. to the right-about.
By obtaining possession of these important provinces wedged as they were between the territory of the republic, the obedient Netherlands, and Germany an excellent military position would be gained for making war upon the rebellious districts from the east, for crushing Protestantism in the duchies, for holding important passages of the Rhine, and for circumventing the designs of the Protestant sons-in-law and daughters of the old Duke of Cleves.
Madam de Mercoeur asked him if he was ill, but he looked upon Madam de Cleves without being perceived by anybody else, and made her sensible by his looks that he had no other illness besides despair: however, there was no remedy but he must let them go together without daring to follow them; after what he had told his sister, that he was to go directly to Court, he could not return with her, but went to Paris, and set out from thence the next day.
To come to see Madam de Cleves without being seen by her had no impudence in it, but to think of showing himself appeared very unwise; a thousand things now came into his mind which he had not thought of before; it carried in it somewhat extremely bold and extravagant, to surprise in the middle of the night a person to whom he had never yet spoke of his passion.
Having spoke these words, Monsieur de Cleves left his wife, and set out the next day without seeing her; but he wrote her a letter full of sorrow, and at the same time very kind and obliging: she gave an answer to it so moving and so full of assurances both as to her past and future conduct, that as those assurances were grounded in truth, and were the real effect of her sentiments, the letter made great impressions on Monsieur de Cleves, and gave him some tranquillity; add to this that the Duke de Nemours going to the King as well as himself, he had the satisfaction to know that he would not be in the same place with Madam de Cleves.
Now I learnt from Francis that he had spent months in the vicinity of Cleves, and I was not surprised to find, when I outlined this plan to him, that he knew the Reichswald pretty well.
Vote of the States-General on the groundwork of the treaty Meeting of the plenipotentiaries for arrangement of the truce Signing of the twelve years' truce Its purport The negotiations concluded Ratification by the States-General, the Archdukes, and the King of Spain Question of toleration Appeal of President Jeannin on behalf of the Catholics Religious liberty the fruit of the war Internal arrangements of the States under the rule of peace Deaths of John Duke of Cleves and Jacob Arminius Doctrines of Arminius and Gomarus Theological warfare Twenty years' truce between the Turkish and Roman empires Ferdinand of Styria Religious peace Prospects of the future.
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