Part 7

At the time that I received the letter which your Majesty did me the honour to write to me on the 12th of this month, having learned that the Count Matthioli was arrived at Venice, I sent to him to say that I desired to have a conference with him, in consequence of which he came to my house with the usual precautions. I first delivered into his hands the letter with which your Majesty had charged me for him, which he received with all possible marks of respect and gratitude; and I told him, as your Majesty had commanded me, that you would not content yourself with testifying with your own hand the satisfaction you feel at the zeal he has shown for your interests, but that you also ordered me expressly to assure him, that you were anxious to give him other marks of it. I added to this, that he ought to think himself happy to have found an occasion of meriting the kindness and favours of your Majesty, which he could easily do through the means of the implicit confidence placed in him by the Duke of Mantua, to whom he would also have the satisfaction, at the same time, of rendering the greatest service in his power. He answered me in a manner that does not permit me to doubt his being as grateful as it is possible to be for your Majesty’s goodness, and his having a very strong wish to serve you. Afterwards I read to him the obliging expressions your Majesty makes use of to mark your affection for the Duke of Mantua, and those other parts of your Majesty’s despatch, which I thought myself authorized to communicate, that he might know that you had learned with pleasure the proposals of that Prince, and that he might be aware of the considerable advantages, which would be derived from the strict alliance he (the Duke) would enter into with your Majesty by means of Casale, which you were willing to hold possession of on the same terms as formerly; that is to say, paying the garrison you should keep up in the place, and preserving it for the Duke of Mantua. We afterwards came to talk upon his differences with the Duke of Savoy, for the restitution claimed by him of the parts of the Montferrat, which have been ceded to the latter; and it was not till after some slight disputing, that I made the Count Matthioli agree, by means of the same reasons you did me the honour to detail to me, that _you_ could not enter into this affair in any other way, than by employing yourself to accommodate it; but that the intercession of your Majesty was sufficiently powerful to obtain a satisfactory result for the Duke of Mantua.

The Count Matthioli at length contented himself upon this point, but he had more difficulty to give way upon the demand of the present of one hundred thousand pistoles. He was the more obstinate in not taking off any thing from this sum, because he said that it was to be made use of for the interests of your Majesty; and that the Duke of Mantua having taken possession of Guastalla,[171] without giving notice to the Spaniards, he had judged it necessary to be upon his guard against the umbrage they might take at this measure; that for this purpose he had placed in Guastalla and in Casale the troops he had raised, and whom he was obliged to pay; that he had sent into the latter town great stores of corn and forage, and that he could not support this expense in the state to which he was reduced by his mother, who disposed entirely of his revenues. I answered him, that the sum of money, which the Duke of Mantua requested your Majesty to give him at present, was not necessary to him for the expenses which he alleged; that the augmentation of the garrison of Casale, and the provisions sent into it, were regarded by the Spaniards themselves as precautions that he wisely took against the enterprises of France, at a time when it was no longer doubted that the latter power intended to carry the war into Italy; and that therefore neither the partizans of the Spanish faction who are about him, nor his mother, could refuse him the money he wanted for that purpose; that I knew that his subjects would contribute with pleasure, and that they had shown the greatest joy at their Sovereign’s applying himself to his own affairs; that till the conclusion of the treaty, which was to unite him so firmly with your Majesty, he would have no occasion for any new expenses, and that he would then receive all the assistance and succour which he could expect from your Majesty; that your Majesty, by engaging yourself to pay and keep up the garrisons in Casale, ceded to the Duke the entire enjoyment of the property and revenues without any deduction, and that your Majesty would have no farther advantage in this affair, than that of delivering him from the yoke which the House of Austria had imposed upon him; and of facilitating the conquests in the Milanese, of which you were to give him a share; so that the present which he asked for, being to be considered purely in the light of a gratification, a hundred thousand pistoles was a demand so excessive, that your Majesty had not judged it right to make any offer in consequence, and that you had only ordered me to tell him, that you would have no objection to make a present to the Duke of a more moderate sum; that therefore it was necessary for him to explain himself clearly upon the subject.

The Count Matthioli for some time refused to say any thing, taking a line which was in appearance very civil, which was, that he threw himself upon the generosity of your Majesty. But seeing that I continued to desire him to speak, he reduced the sum by little and little to five hundred thousand livres. I told him, that I guessed pretty well what the Duke of Mantua might hope for from your Majesty, and that I could not charge myself to lay _this proposal_ before you, and that I also could not help telling him, that for a man who professed to be so well-intentioned, he appeared to me very unyielding upon a point of small moment, in a negociation from which he would allow, without doubt, that the Duke of Mantua would derive great and solid advantages. Finally, Sire, I brought him to content himself with one hundred thousand crowns, and that on condition that your Majesty was not to pay them till after the signature of the treaty, and the exchange of the ratifications; and then, if you chose not to give the whole sum at once, that the Duke of Mantua should receive fifty thousand crowns first, and then the other fifty thousand three months afterwards. Besides this, I declared to the Count Matthioli that I could not answer for your Majesty’s approving of my having fixed upon so large a sum, but that I promised him to do all that depended on me, to prevent my being disavowed.

Not only have the other articles of your Majesty’s despatch been agreed to without difficulty, but they have even served powerfully to confirm the Count Matthioli in his opinion, that the Duke of Mantua cannot take a better course than that of abandoning himself entirely to the protection of your Majesty. He has so firm a belief in the resolution he is convinced you have taken of sending a considerable army this year into Italy, that I should have no difficulty in persuading him still more strongly of it; but I am a little embarrassed with the anxiety of the Duke of Mantua to conclude this affair, which is caused to him by his continual terror of the design, which he understands the Spaniards continue to have, of seizing upon his fortresses on the least pretext, and on the first favourable occasion. Nevertheless, I will endeavour to lengthen the negociation as much as your Majesty shall find useful to your interests, as you have commanded me, and at the same time I will take care not to put it in any danger of being broken off. I implore your Majesty to be persuaded that I shall never be forgetful of any thing which may be for the good of your service, or which may testify the zeal and the profound respect, with which I am, Sire,

Your Majesty’s most humble, most obedient, and most faithful subject and servant,

THE ABBÉ D’ESTRADES.[172]

[171] On the occasion of the death of Ferdinand III. Duke of Guastalla, which occurred January 11th, 1678. The Duke of Mantua had married his eldest daughter.

[172] From the Archives of the Office for Foreign Affairs, at Paris.

No. 11.

ESTRADES TO POMPONNE.

The Duke of Mantua watched by the Spaniards.

Venice, February 12th, 1678.

SIR,

Though the Duke of Mantua has been for the last fortnight at Venice, I have not yet been able to see him; but he has sent me word several times, by the Count Matthioli, that he had still more impatience than even I have, that we should confer together; that he only deferred giving himself that satisfaction, in order that he might first get rid of those of his people whom he has the least confidence in, and particularly four men, whom his mother has sent with him here to observe all his actions, which they do with the greatest care; and that two days before he sets off to return to his own territories (where he is not afraid of any surprise, when he shall be once there himself), he will acquaint me with the time and place at which we may see one another. It is true, that the step he has taken, of at once seizing upon the territories of the late Duke of Guastalla, has very much disquieted the Spaniards; and one sees that they are endeavouring, by all sorts of means, to ascertain whether the Duke of Mantua has taken any measures to gain the support of the King. His resident at Venice, who is devoted to the Duchess his mother, came two days ago to the Sieur de Pinchesne to ask, on the part of his master, whether I was about to despatch an extraordinary courier to Paris, because his highness would be glad to make use of him to convey there a packet of consequence: he answered him, that affairs were so little of a pressing nature here, that I always wrote by the usual conveyance, and that I had not at present any reason for sending a courier; but that, if the Duke of Mantua wished it, I would send one on his account. I made this known to the Prince himself, who was surprized that his resident, in his name, and without his order, should have made a request of that nature; and as he was of opinion, as well as myself, that the intention of his resident was by this means to discover whether a packet, which, it was said, the Duke of Mantua had received from the Grand Duchess,[173] was of importance, he agreed to the expedient which I proposed to him, of sending publicly to make him the same offers as those which had been made to his resident, in order that he might be able to express before his ministers his disapprobation of their entering, without his knowledge, into communications with the French ambassador, being aware of the measures which it was necessary for him to keep. He charged Matthioli to tell me that he had had a letter from the Grand Duchess, to which he had sent an answer, for the purpose of begging her to support his claims to the King; having heard that the Duke of Modena[174] had complained to his Majesty of his having taken possession of the succession of the Duke of Guastalla, to which the Duke of Modena had pretensions. The Sieur de Pinchesne went to him from me, and the thing was executed as it had been previously determined upon; but his adventure, as well as many other things which the Duke of Mantua discovers daily, convince him that the Spaniards are suspicious of him, on which account he is so uneasy, that he is more than ever anxious for your Majesty to secure him quickly against their enterprises.

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THE ABBÉ D’ESTRADES.[175]

[173] Margaret Louisa, daughter of Gaston, Duke of Orleans; married in 1661, to Cosmo III., Grand Duke of Tuscany, whom she quarrelled with, and finally left, and returned to France, where she established herself in the Abbey of Montmartre. She died at an advanced age in 1721.

[174] Francis of Este, Duke of Modena, succeeded his father, Alphonso IV. in 1662. During his minority, his territories were wisely and ably governed by his mother, Laura Martinozzi, niece of Cardinal Mazarin. His only sister, Mary Beatrix, was the second wife of James II. of England. He died in 1694.

[175] From the Archives of the Office for Foreign Affairs, at Paris.

No. 12.

ESTRADES TO POMPONNE.

Impatience of the Duke of Mantua to conclude the Negociation.

Venice, February 19th, 1678.

SIR,

YOU will have seen by the last letters I did myself the honour to write to you, that I take care to keep up the negociation I have entered into with the Duke of Mantua, and to hold it always in that state that it may be terminated in whatever way the King shall judge most according to his interests. Thus, Sir, I have only to assure you, that I shall apply myself, as you command me in your last letter of the 2d of this month, to gain time, and to confirm the Duke of Mantua in the resolution he has taken of abandoning himself to the King’s protection. He is as thoroughly persuaded as one could wish, that he cannot take a better course, although the Spaniards have lately been making him large offers of money and of employment, in order to oblige him to declare himself openly in their favour, and to allow of the introduction of a garrison of Germans into Casale; but as he is always apprehensive, lest his want of affection for the House of Austria should be discovered, he can never think himself in security till he shall be supported by a treaty; and it is this which gives him so much impatience to conclude the one he intends making with the King.

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THE ABBÉ D’ESTRADES.[176]

[176] From the Archives of the Office for Foreign Affairs, at Paris.

No. 13.

ESTRADES TO POMPONNE.

Plans of the Spaniards.--Dispositions of the Venetian Government.

Venice, February 26th, 1678.

SIR,

I HAVE not had the honour of receiving any letters from you this week. Indeed, I expected that the hurry of the King’s departure would prevent your writing. I have learned from good authority, that the government here have received intelligence, that the Spaniards have renewed their proposals to form a league of the Princes of Italy against France, and that it was at Rome that they concerted the means to succeed in it: this is, without doubt, what has given occasion to the report which has been current for some days, that the Cardinal Porto Carrero[177], in his way to Spain, where he is going to take possession of the Archbishopric of Toledo, is to visit the different Courts of Italy, to try to engage them in the party which they call _the common cause_. It is said, that the Grand Duke[178] has already made known his opinion, that if they intend to unite, it ought to be for the maintenance of their liberty, and that they ought not to engage themselves in an extensive war, or to assist in enabling one of the two belligerent powers to oppress them eventually with greater ease. This intelligence has obliged me to give all my attention to penetrate the sentiments of the Venetian government upon this subject; and I have been informed, upon good authority, that thus far the determination is to deliver themselves from the importunities of the Spaniards, if they should be too pressing, by a similar reply to that which is said to have been given at Florence; but it now appears to me, that the fear and jealousy of the power of the King, which existed here formerly, is very much reviving, and they are becoming apprehensive that the designs of his Majesty are not confined to the preservation of the conquests he has already made, nor even to those he may make in Flanders. The senate is confirmed in this opinion, by the letters of M. Contarini,[179] who sends them word that they must not look for peace, because the King is against it. This way of talking persuades me, that M. Contarini is either ill-intentioned or ignorant--and his intelligence is very capable of augmenting the disquietudes of the senate. I have shewn, as well as I was able, to those I have spoken to upon the subject, that it is impossible to act with more sincerity in favour of peace, or to facilitate more the means of procuring it, than his Majesty has done. There is, however, no probability that, in the present state of the affairs of the Republic of Venice, and under the perpetual fear she is in of the Grand Vizier,[180] she will dare to declare herself in favour of the enemies of the King; but, Sir, I can assure you, from the knowledge I have upon the subject, that at the present time, we must only reckon upon the weakness of the Venetians, and upon the poverty of their finances, and not upon their good intentions towards us. If I might be permitted to give my opinion upon the present conjuncture, I should say that there is not a more ready, or more certain way of ruining all the measures of the Spaniards in Italy, and of terminating in the King’s favour the irresolutions of the Senate, than by binding the Duke of Mantua by the treaty which he is willing to make with his Majesty: not only is he always in the same resolution of concluding this affair, on account of the Emperor’s having sent word to him that he does not wish to deprive him of the succession of the Duke[181] his father-in-law, but that he only desires him to withdraw the garrison he has placed in Guastalla: but besides, because his Imperial Majesty presses him to execute a treaty made by the late Duke, his father; which was an engagement that he should never have any but a German garrison in Casale. The Duke of Mantua shows me the greatest confidence, sends me word, by the Count Matthioli, what is deliberating on the state of affairs, in order to know my opinions before he decides any thing. You may be sure, Sir, that I omit nothing on my part to encourage his good dispositions, and to keep the negociation always in that state, that the King may be the complete master of it. The Duke of Mantua requested me, ten days ago, to come and see him ride at the academy. I went accordingly, and found that he was really very firm on horseback, though he has not a graceful seat, on account of his leg having been formerly broke, and that it is the custom here to wear the stirrups very short. As he piques himself upon being a good horseman, he was much pleased at my praises, which were repeated to him by the Count Matthioli; and at my promising to repeat them in the first letter I should have occasion to write to you.

Two of the most considerable gentlemen of this republic, whose names are, Cornaro the elder, called “of the great House,” and a Foscarini, are already intriguing to succeed M. Contarini, in the embassy to France, although the choice cannot be made till the month of September; upon whichever of the two it shall fall, he will fill the situation worthily, above all in the article of expense, as they are both very rich and very generous.

Although I took the liberty, Sir, to request, in my last letter, your protection with M. Colbert,[182] for the payment of my appointment, and, above all, for the payment of those of the first six months of the year 1676, for which I have long had the orders, I have not yet been able to obtain them. I am, however, forced by my pressing necessities to renew my request, and to supplicate you most humbly to procure me this favour from M. Colbert. I trust, Sir, you will be kind enough to afford me this mark of your affection, which is the greatest I can possibly receive, in the embarrassment in which I at present find myself; and that you will be always persuaded that I am, with profound respect, and unalterable attachment,

Sir, &c.

THE ABBÉ D’ESTRADES.[183]

[177] Lewis Emmanuel Ferdinand Portocarrero, second son of the Marquis of Almenara: created a Cardinal in 1669, by Clement IX.; Archbishop of Toledo and Primate of Spain, 1677; commander of the order of the St. Esprit, and Bishop of Palestrina. Was also, at different periods of his life, Viceroy of Sicily, Ambassador at Rome, Lieutenant-General at sea, and twice Governor of Spain. Died at Madrid, September 14th, 1709.

[178] Cosmo III., Grand Duke of Tuscany, son of Ferdinand II. and Victoria Della Rovere, heiress of the Dukes of Urbino. Succeeded his father in 1670, and died in 1723, aged 81 years. He was a weak, narrow-minded, and bigoted Prince; and was the Duke of Tuscany, whose travels in England, in the reign of Charles II. have been published.

[179] At that time Ambassador to France, from the Republic of Venice.

[180] The Grand Vizier, at this moment, was Achmet Coprogli, the most illustrious, perhaps, of all the ministers who have ever governed the Ottoman Empire. He inherited the eminent talents of his father, Mahomet Coprogli, whom he succeeded as Grand Vizier, in 1661; and was superior to him in humanity and generosity. His military exploits were also more considerable. In 1669, he successfully concluded the siege of Candia, which had lasted twenty-two years. He died in 1678; having for seventeen years sustained the throne, and rendered illustrious the reign of his feeble and indolent master, Mahomet IV.

[181] Of Guastalla.

[182] John Baptist Colbert, one of the most eminent men of the many who adorned and illustrated the reign of Lewis XIV. He was an able and honest financier, a great statesman, and an enlightened patron of letters and arts. The blots in his character were, his persecution of Fouquet, and his enmity to the virtuous Arnaud de Pomponne, to the disgrace of whom he largely contributed. He was made Comptroller-general of the Finances, in 1664; Secretary of State for the Marine, in 1669; and died in 1683.

[183] From the Archives of the Office for Foreign Affairs, at Paris.

No. 14.

POMPONNE TO ESTRADES.

Recommendations of Delay in the Negociation.

Cambray, March 1st, 1678.

SIR,

I have rendered an account to the King, during his journey, of your despatches of the 29th of January and 5th of February. I shall not now have time enough to send you a long answer to them. I shall therefore only tell you, that his Majesty saw in them the continuation of the negociation which you have entered into with the Count Matthioli; that you had been discussing the points which he proposed to you, and those which his Majesty wishes neither to grant nor to refuse; that you had even descended to the detail of the sum which had been demanded, and that you had reduced it to one hundred thousand crowns. On these subjects I have to inform you, Sir, that his Majesty approves entirely of your continuing a negociation, which may eventually be of very considerable importance; but for this it is necessary that the opportunities should be favourable, and the more so, as the basis of whatever treaty is concluded, must necessarily be the King’s sending a powerful army across the Alps. You, I am sure, are sufficiently aware, that thus far events do not seem to favour such a project; it is, however, always advisable to continue to encourage the belief of it, and this is what his Majesty thinks it will be best for you to do; but he does not see the necessity for your entering into any engagement upon a point, which must fail of success, and which would render useless any expense his Majesty may go to. Therefore, Sir, your best course to pursue is, to cultivate always the good intentions of the Count Matthioli, and through him those of his master; not to put an end to the hope they have to see the arms of France in Italy; but to defer the answer they expect from you, partly upon the ground of the journey and the campaign in which his Majesty is at present engaged, which prevents his writing to you, and partly upon other reasons; but still to keep the negociation, as much as you are able, in such a state as his Majesty may be able to take advantage of, according to the conjuncture of affairs. * * *