The national spirit that had been aroused in France under the stimulus of Joan of Arc's inspiration served to unify the country, but the consolidation of modern France in this cen tury is mainly due to the machinations of Louis XI. Louis is one of the most despicable char acters in history. He succeeded however in bringing low the power of the nobles and con solidating France during his troubled reign with its devious political ways and his many broken pledges, in the midst of internal dissensions. until he created the beginning *of the modern France that we know. Louis succeeded in in corporating Burgundy and Picardy with the ter ritory of Boulogne into the royal domain, and obtained, moreover, the cession of Artois and Franche-Comte as the dowry of the daughter of Maximilian, while he extended his rule over Armagnac and Rousillon, so that the troublous times of the preceding reigns with the nobles against the king could be no more. As Com mines said on the death of the Duke of Burgundy, Charles the Bold, who for so long successfully opposed the king: *Never afterwards did the King of France find a man bold enough to raise his head against him or to contradict his The French literature of the 15th century contains some writers destined to world in fluence, at least among literary men, ever since. The most prominent of these is undoubtedly Francois Villon (1431-84), the vagabond poet, who has had a striking revival in our time. Another is the royal poet, Charles d'Orleans (1391-1467) whose ballade for his dead wife has been a favorite poem for poets at least, for some five centuries. Villon owed his life when forfeited to the state for theft to Charles, but the poetry of the ne'er-do-well far surpassed In interest for the modern time that of his royal contemporary and benefactor. A third poet was Alain Chartier (died 1449), better known however as an orator father of French eloquence.* French prose is very well represented by Commines (1445-1511), often spoken of as a chronicler, but really one of the first of modern historians. No one would think of trying to understand the period with regard to which he wrote without reading his work The Popes of the second half of the cen tury, once the effects of the Great Schism passed. bulk large in history. Pope Nicholas V (1448-55) was a generous patron of the New Learning and founded the Vatican Library. Pope Calixtus III (1455-58), the first Borgia pope, continued this liberal policy as a man of cultivated mind and fine taste. With Spanish zeal against the Mohammedans, he stirred up the rulers of Europe against the Turks. Menzel, the German historian, says *that anything at all that was done against the Turks was wholly due to the exertions of the Pope.* He encouraged the coming of Greek scholars into Italy and such men as Theodore Gaza, George of Trebizond, Chalcondyles of Athens, Argyrop ulos and Gemistes Pletho of Constantinople brought with them literary treasures while their teachings stimulated an enthusiasm for Greek learning. Calixtus began the unfortunate policy of Papal nepotism by creating two nephews Cardinals on the same day and the third Duke saf Spoleto and Governor of the Castle of Saint Angelo, thus initiating the prominence of the Borgia family in Italian politics. His successor was JEneas Silvius Piccolomini the distin guished Renaissance scholar who took the name Pius II (1458-64). Born in poverty because of his father's exile, he was 18 before he began his studies but he became famous for the ele gance of his Latinity, his poetry and—strange combination — of deep knowledge of canon and civil law. In the midst of a most successful career as a diplomat, a serious illness led him to realize the emptiness of earthly ambitions and taught him as he said himself that "the sum of all knowledge is to know how to die.* He be came as distinguished for his piety as for his learning and having passed through the various degrees of the hierarchy, was elected Pope. He made it the task of his life to rouse the Christian nations against the Turks but with little avail. He tried to bring about the con version of the Mohammedan ruler to Christian ity with like failure. The Christian Princes were divided by their own ambitions, the Sul tan Mohammed was bent on his. The failure of his efforts hastened his death. His suc cessor Pope Paul II (1464-71) feared the danger to religion of pagan learning unless properly regulated and endeavored to moderate the tide of enthusiasm. As a result he became the subject of bitter aspersion in the scholarly writings of the time. His successor, Pope Sixtus IV (1471-84), is a most difficult char acter to estimate. He enlarged the Vatican Library, appointing the scholarly Platina, in disgrace under his predecessor, its librarian. He built the Sistine Chapel and invited Peru gino, Ghirlandaio and other great painters to decorate it. He adorned Rome with a number
of magnificent public structures and was a munificent patron of literature and the printing press. He continued, however, the unfortunate nepotism which marked Papal policies at this time, and used some most dishonorable means to further his political aims. His successor Innocent VIII (1484-92) had been married 'earlier in life and his son had married the daughter of Lorenzo de' Medici. As Pope, he entered into a close alliance with the de' Medici and made Lorenzo's son, Giovanni, a Cardinal when only 13. He debased Papal power for political purposes, yet devoted himself to ally sag the Christian princes and peoples in a new ,r;ramade against the Turks but without success.
He succeeded however in reconciling the rival ries of the great noble houses in Rome and putting an end to the feuds which had dis turbed the city so that the Romans conferred on him the honorable title of °Father of his country.* Innocent's successor was another Borgia, Pope Alexander VI (1492-1503), whose character is one of the most disputed in his tory. Roscoe, the English historian of Lorenzo de' Medici, began the protest against the tradi tional history of Alexander. His life was ir regular before he ascended the Papal throne. He has suffered for the faults of his children, whom he idolized. Historians are agreed now that he has been fearfully calumniated. The charges of poisoning and other horrible crimes imputed to him by the scandal mongers of the time have been completely disproved. As a Spaniard making his way in Italy, he was the subject of bitter and his repression of the feudal aristocracy at Rome and his political opposition to the Frencli made him enemies who stopped at no mode of discrediting him. His daughter Lucrezia has been completely vindi cated by Gregorovius and though her name was a by-word in history, her people of Ferrara followed her to the tomb as a saint and her husband, the Duke d' Este, was inconsolable.
The end of the century was the scene of the career of Girolamo Savonarola (1452-98) who about the time that Columbus discovered America, alarmed by the pagan elements which had been stealing into social customs during the Renaissance, preached penance and reform to the Florentines. He stirred them so deeply that the women brought their finery and jewelry and the ornaments, personal and of the household, and piled them in the streets to be burned. The fervid preacher then suggested that Florence should become a Theocracy and Christ be proclaimed king. This invasion of politics brought about his downfall, and he was condemned to death, burned, and his ashes thrown into the Arno.
Savonarola has often been proclaimed a pre Reformation reformer, but he was a faithful Dominican, the prior of his monastery,, and a devout adherent of the old Church. He recog nized abuses and strove to correct them and never doubted for a moment that the mission of the Church to men had been impaired by these abuses. Even popes since have suggested the possibility of his canonization and his name has been thoroughly vindicated.
The characteristic product of the time in contrast with Savonarola, showing how the same period may produce the opposite extremes, is Machiavelli. He was born in the next decade after Savonarola (1469), and went through the penitential period at Florence as an acquaint ance at least, of the great Dominican, and yet was the writer early in the next century of works in political philosophy that represent a climax of utter lack of principle.
The early century was the scene of the re bellion of John Hus, the Bohemian reformer, who had taken up Wyclif's doctrines and was condemned for them by the Council of Con stance (1415). He was handed over to the civil authorities and put to death because it was felt that the teaching of his doctrines would be subversive of authority in both Church and State. Hus's doctrines had been examined by Jean Gerson. the Chancellor of the University • of Paris, who warned against their heretical character. Hus's execution was followed the next year by that of Jerome of Prague, but this was only the beginning of very serious religious disturbances which waged in Bohemia for more than a generation. The most.impor tant question was whether the laity should par take of the chalice as well as of the Host of the Sacrament of communion, and it was not settled until 1485, when King Wladislaw granted equal liberties and rights to both parties. By degrees then, the Utraquists (from Latin, utraque, both, in reference to the Sacra ment in both kinds) conformed to the Roman rights and in the next century resisted the Lutheran reform even better than the Sub unists (under one kind).