Character of Philip II

Another transaction was carried on during this diet, with respect to an affair more nearly interesting to the emperor, and which occasioned likewise a general alarm among the princes of the empire.

Charles, though formed with talents which fitted him for conceiving and conducting great designs, was not capable, as has been often observed, of bearing extraordinary success. Its operation on his mind was so violent and intoxicating, that it elevated him beyond what was moderate or attainable, and turned his whole attention to the pursuit of vast but chimerical objects. Such had been the effect of his victory over the confederates of Smalkalde. He did not long rest satisfied with the substantial and certain advantages which were the result of that event, but, despising these, as poor or inconsiderable fruits of such great success, he aimed at nothing less than at bringing all Germany to a uniformity in religion, and at rendering the Imperial power despotic. These were objects extremely splendid indeed, and alluring to an ambitious mind; the pursuit of them, however, was attended with manifest danger, and the hope of attaining them very uncertain. But the steps which he had already taken towards them, having been accompanied with such success, his imagination, warmed with contemplating this alluring object, overlooked or despised all remaining difficulties. As he conceived the execution of his plan to be certain, he began to be solicitous how he might render the possession of such an important acquisition perpetual in his family, by transmitting the German empire, together with the kingdoms of Spain, and his dominions in Italy and the Low-Countries, to his son. Having long revolved this flattering idea in his mind, without communicating it, even to those ministers whom he most trusted, he had called Philip out of Spain, in hopes that his presence would facilitate the carrying forward the scheme.

Great obstacles, however, and such as would have deterred any ambition less accustomed to overcome difficulties, were to be surmounted. He had, in the year one thousand five hundred and thirty, imprudently assisted in procuring his brother Ferdinand the dignity of king of the Romans, and there was no probability that this prince, who was still in the prime of life, and had a son grown up to the years of manhood, would relinquish, in favor of his nephew, the near prospect of the Imperial throne, which Charles’s infirmities and declining state of health opened to himself. This did not deter the emperor from venturing to make the proposition; and when Ferdinand, notwithstanding his profound reverence for his brother, and obsequious submission to his will in other instances, rejected it in a peremptory tone, he was not discouraged by one repulse. He renewed his applications to him by his sister, Mary queen of Hungary, to whom Ferdinand stood indebted for the crowns both of Hungary and Bohemia, and who, by her great abilities, tempered with extreme gentleness of disposition, had acquired an extraordinary influence over both the brothers. She entered warmly into a measure, which tended so manifestly to aggrandize the house of Austria, and flattering herself that she could tempt Ferdinand to renounce the reversionary possession of the Imperial dignity for an immediate establishment, she assured him that the emperor, by way of compensation for his giving up his chance of succession, would instantly bestow upon him territories of very considerable value, and pointed out in particular those of the duke of Württemberg, which might be confiscated upon different pretexts. But neither by her address nor entreaties could she induce Ferdinand to approve of a plan, which would not only have degraded him from the highest rank among the monarchs of Europe to that of a subordinate and dependent prince, but would have involved both him and his posterity in perpetual contests. He was, at the same time, more attached to his children, than by a rash concession to frustrate all the high hopes, in prospect of which they had been educated.

Notwithstanding the immoveable firmness which Ferdinand discovered, the emperor did not abandon his scheme. He flattered himself that he might attain the object in view by another channel, and that it was not impossible to prevail on the electors to cancel their former choice of Ferdinand, or at least to elect Philip a second king of the Romans, substituting him as next in succession to his uncle. With this view, he took Philip along with him to the diet, that the Germans might have an opportunity to observe and become acquainted with the prince, in behalf of whom he courted their interest; and he himself employed all the arts of address or insinuation to gain the electors, and to prepare them for listening with a favorable ear to the proposal. But no sooner did he venture upon mentioning it to them, than they, at once saw and trembled at the consequences with which it would be attended. They had long felt all the inconveniences of having placed at the head of the empire a prince whose power and dominions were so extensive; if they should now repeat the folly, and continue the Imperial crown, like an hereditary dignity in the same family, they foresaw that they would give the son an opportunity of carrying on that system of oppression which the father had begun; and would put it in his power to overturn whatever was yet left entire in the ancient and venerable fabric of the German constitution.

The character of the prince, in whose favor this extraordinary proposition was made, rendered it still less agreeable. Philip, though possessed with an insatiable desire of power, was a stranger to all the arts of conciliating good will. Haughty, reserved, and severe, he, instead of gaining new friends, disgusted the ancient and most devoted partisans of the Austrian interest. He scorned to take the trouble of acquiring the language of the country to the government of which he aspired; nor would he condescend to pay the Germans the compliment of accommodating himself, during his residence among them, to their manners and customs. He allowed the electors and most illustrious princes in Germany to remain in his presence uncovered, affecting a stately and distant demeanor, which the greatest of the German emperors, and even Charles himself, amidst the pride of power and victory, had never assumed. On the other hand, Ferdinand, from the time of his arrival in Germany, had studied to render himself acceptable to the people, by a conformity to their manners, which seemed to flow from choice; and his son Maximilian, who was born in Germany, possessed, in an eminent degree, such amiable qualities as rendered him the darling of his countrymen, and induced them to look forward to his election as a most desirable event. Their esteem and affection for him fortified the resolution which sound policy had suggested; and determined the Germans to prefer the popular virtues of Ferdinand and his son, to the stubborn austerity of Philip, which interest could not soften, nor ambition teach him to disguise. All the electors, the ecclesiastical as well as secular, concurred in expressing such strong disapprobation of the measure, that Charles, notwithstanding the reluctance with which he gave up any point, was obliged to drop the scheme as impracticable. By his unseasonable perseverance in pushing it, he had not only filled the Germans with new jealousy of his ambitious designs, but laid the foundation of rivalship and discord in the Austrian family, and forced his brother Ferdinand, in self-defence, to court the electors, particularly Maurice of Saxony, and to form such connections with them, as cut off all prospect of renewing the proposal with success. Philip, soured by his disappoint­ment, was sent back to Spain, to be called thence when any new scheme of ambition should render his presence necessary.

Having relinquished this plan of domestic ambition which had long occupied and engrossed him, Charles imagined that he would now have leisure to turn all his attention towards his grand scheme of establishing uniformity of religion in the empire, by forcing, all the contending parties to acquiesce in the decisions of the council of Trent. But such was the extent of his dominions, the variety of connections in which this entangled him, and the multiplicity of events to which these gave rise, as seldom allowed him to apply his whole force to any one object. The machine which he had to conduct was so great and complicated, that an unforeseen irregularity or obstruction in one of the inferior wheels, often disconcerted the motion of the whole, and prevented his deriving from them all the beneficial effects which he expected. Such an unlooked-for occurrence happened at this juncture, and created new obstacles to the execution of his schemes with regard to religion. Julius III, though he had confirmed Octavio Farnese in the possession of the duchy of Parma, during the first effusions of his joy and gratitude on his promotion to the papal throne, soon began to repent of his own generosity, and to be apprehensive of consequences which either he did not foresee, or had disregarded, while the sense of his obligations to the family of Farnese was recent. The emperor still retained Placentia in his hands, and had not relinquished his pretensions to Parma as a fief of the empire. Gongaza the governor of Milan, having, by the part which he took in the murder of the late duke Peter Ludovico, offered an insult to the family of Farnese, which he knew could never be forgiven, had, for that reason, vowed its destruction; and employed all the influence which his great abilities, as well as long services, gave him with the emperor, in persuading him to seize Parma by force of arms. Charles, in compliance with his solicitations, and that he might gratify his own desire of annexing Parma to the Milanese, listened to the proposal; and Gonzaga, ready to take encouragement from the slightest appearance of approbation, began to assemble troops, and to make other preparations for the execution of his scheme.

Octavio, who saw the impending danger, found it necessary, for his own safety, to increase the garrison of his capital, and to levy soldiers for defending the rest of the country. But as the expense of such an effort far exceeded his scanty revenues, he represented his situation to the pope, and implored that protection and assistance which was due to him as a vassal of the church. The Imperial minister, however, had already preoccupied the pope’s ear; and by discoursing continually concerning the danger of giving offence to the emperor, as well as the imprudence of supporting Octavio in an usurpation so detrimental to the holy see, had totally alienated him from the family of Farnese. Octavio’s remonstrance and petition met, of consequence, with a cold reception; and he, despairing of any assistance from Julius, began to look round for protection from sonic other quarter. Henry II of France was the only prince powerful enough to afford him this protection, and fortunately he was now in a situation which allowed him to grant it. He had brought his transactions with the two British kingdoms, which had hitherto diverted his attention from the affairs of the continent, to such an issue as he desired. This he had effected partly by the vigour of his arms, partly by his dexterity in taking advantage of the political factions which raged in both kingdoms to such a degree, as rendered the councils of the Scots violent and precipitate, and the operations of the English feeble and unsteady. He had procured from the English favorable conditions of peace for his allies the Scots; he had prevailed on the nobles of Scotland not only to affiance their young queen to his son the dauphin, but even to send her into France, that she might be educated under his eye; and had recovered Boulogne, together with its depend­encies, which had been conquered by Henry VIII.

The French king having gained points of so much consequence to his crown, and disengaged himself with such honor from the burden of supporting the Scots, and maintaining a war against England, was now at full leisure to pursue the measures which his hereditary jealousy of the emperor’s power naturally suggested. He listened accordingly, to the first overtures which Octavio Farnese made him; and embracing eagerly an opportunity of recovering footing in Italy, he instantly concluded a treaty, in which he bound himself to espouse his cause, and to furnish him all the assistance which he desired. This transaction could not be long kept secret from the pope, who, foreseeing the calamities which must follow if war were rekindled so near the ecclesiastical state, immediately issued monitory letters requiring Octavio to relinquish his new alliance. Upon his refusal to comply with the requisition, he soon after pronounced his fief to be forfeited, and declared war against him as a disobedient and rebellious vassal. But as, with his own forces alone, he could not hope to subdue Octavio while supported by such a powerful ally as the king of France, he had recourse to the emperor, who being extremely solicitous to prevent the establishment of the French in Parma, ordered Gonzaga to second Julius with all his troops. Thus the French took the field as the allies of Octavio, the Imperialists as the protectors of the holy see ; and hostilities commenced between them, while Charles and Henry themselves still affected to give out that they would adhere inviolably to the peace of Crespy. The war of Palma was not distinguished by any memorable event. Many small rencounters happened with alternate success; the French ravaged part of the ecclesiastical territories; the Imperialists laid waste the Par­mesan; and the latter, after having begun to besiege Parma in form, were obliged to abandon the enterprise with disgrace.

But the motions and alarm which this war, or the preparations for it, occasioned in Italy, prevented most of the Italian prelates from repairing to Trent on the first of May, the day appointed for reassembling the council; and though the papal legate and nuncios resorted thither, they were obliged to adjourn the council to the first of September, hoping such a number of prelates might then assemble, that they might with decency begin their deliberations. At that time about sixty prelates, mostly from the ecclesiastical state, or from Spain, together with a few Germans, convened. The session was opened with the accustomed formalities, and the fathers were about to proceed to business, when the abbot of Bellozane appeared, and presenting letters of credence as ambassador from the king of France, demanded audience. Having obtained it, he protested, in Henry’s name, against an assembly called at such an improper juncture, when a war, wantonly kindled by the pope, made it impossible for the deputies from the Gallican church to resort to Trent in safety, or to deliberate concerning articles of faith and discipline with the requisite tranquility; he declared, that his master did not acknowledge this to be a general or ecumenical council, but must consider, and would treat it, as a particular and partial convention. The legate affected to despise this protest; and the prelates proceeded, notwithstanding, to examine and decide the great points in controversy concerning the sacrament of the Lord’s supper, penance, and extreme unction. This measure of the French monarch, however, gave a deep wound to the credit of the council, at the very commencement of its deliberations. The Germans would not pay much regard to an assembly, the authority of which the second prince in Christendom had formally disclaimed, or feel any great reverence for the decisions of a few men, who arrogated to themselves all the rights belonging to the representatives of the church universal, a title to which they had such poor pretensions.

The emperor, nevertheless, was straining his authority to the utmost, in order to establish the reputation and jurisdiction of the council. He had prevailed on the three ecclesiastical electors, the prelates of greatest power and dignity in the church next to the pope, to repair thither in person. He had obliged several German bishops of inferior rank, to go to Trent themselves, or to send their proxies. He granted an Imperial safe-conduct to the ambassadors nominated by the elector of Brandenburg, the duke of Württemberg, and other protestants, to attend the council and exhorted them to send their divines thither, in order to propound, explain, and defend their doctrine. At the same time, his zeal anticipated the decrees of the council; and as if the opinions of the protestants had already been condemned, he took large steps towards exterminating them. With this intention, he called together the ministers of Augsburg; and after interrogating them concerning several controverted points, enjoined them to teach nothing with respect to these contrary to the tenets of the Romish church. Upon their declining to comply with a requisition so contrary to the dictates of their consciences, he commanded them to leave the town in three days, without revealing to any person the cause of their banishment; he prohibited them to preach for the future in any province of the empire; and obliged them to take an oath that they would punctually obey these injunctions.

They were not the only victims to his zeal. The protestant clergy, in most of the cities in the circle of Swabia, were ejected with the same violence; and in many places, such magistrates as had distinguished themselves by their attachment to the new opinions, were dismissed with the most abrupt irregularity, and their offices filled, in consequence of the emperor's arbitrary appointment, with the most bigotted of their adversaries. The reformed worship was almost entirely suppressed throughout that extensive province. The ancient and fundamental privileges of the free cities were violated. The people were compelled to attend the ministration of priests, whom they regarded with horror as idolaters; and to submit to the jurisdiction of magistrates, whom they detested as usurpers.

The emperor, after this discovery; which was more explicit than any that he had hitherto made, of his intention to subvert the German constitution, as well as to extirpate the protestant religion, set out for Innsbruck in the Tyrol. He fixed his residence in that city [Novem.], as, by its situation in the neighborhood of Trent, and on the confines of Italy, it appeared a commodious station, whence he might inspect the operations of the council, and observe the progress of the war in the Parmesan without losing sight of such occurrences as might happen in Germany.

During these transactions, the siege of Magdeburg was carried on with various success. At the time when Charles proscribed the citizens of Magdeburg, and put them under the ban of the empire, he had exhorted and even enjoined all the neighboring states to take arms against them, as rebels arid common enemies. Encouraged by his exhortations as well as promises, George of Mecklenburg, a younger brother of the reigning duke, an active and ambitious prince, collected a considerable number of those soldiers of fortune who had accompanied Henry of Brunswick in all his wild enterprises; and though a zealous Lutheran himself, invaded the territories of the Magdeburgers, hoping that, by the merit of this service, he might procure some part of their domains to be allotted to him as an establishment. The citizens, unaccustomed as yet to endure patiently the calamities of war, could not be restrained from sallying out in order to save their lands from being laid waste. They attacked the duke of Mecklenburg with more resolution than conduct, and were repulsed with great slaughter. But as they were animated with that unconquerable spirit, which flows from zeal for religion co-operating with the love of civil liberty, far from being disheartened by their misfortune, they prepared to defend themselves with vigour. Many of the veteran soldiers who had served in the long wars between the emperor and king of France, crowding to their standards under able and experienced officers, the citizens acquired military skill by degrees, and added all the advantages of that to the efforts of undaunted courage. The duke of Mecklenburg, notwithstanding the severe blow which he had given the Magdeburgers, not daring to invest a town strongly fortified, and defended by such a garrison, continued to ravage the open country.

 

The Siege of Magdeburg