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BOOK III
THE COUNCIL OF BASEL
1419-1444.
CHAPTER IV.
FIRST ATTEMPT OF EUGENIUS IV TO DISSOLVE THE COUNCIL
OF BASEL, 1431—1434.
The ancient city of Basel was well fitted to be the
seat of a great assemblage. High above the rushing Rhine raised its stately
minster on a rocky hill which seemed to brave the river's force. Round the
river and the minster clusters the city. It was surrounded by a fertile plain,
was easily accessible from Germany, France, and Italy, and as a free Imperial
city was a place of security and dignity for the Council. To the eye of an
Italian, accustomed to marbles and frescoes, the interior of the cathedral
looked bald and colorless; but its painted windows and the emblazoned shields
of nobles hung round the wall gave it a staid richness of its own. The Italians
owned that it was a comfortable place, and that the houses of the merchants of
Basel equalled those of Florence. It was well ordered by its magistrates, who
administered strict justice and organized admirably the supplies of food. The
citizens of Basel were devout, but little given to literature; they were
luxurious and fond of wine, but were steadfast, truthful, sincere, and
honest in their dealings.
The Council was long in assembling. It was natural
that, while the President was absent in Bohemia, few should care to undertake
the journey. If the crusade ended in a victory, it was doubtful how
long the Council would sit. Cesarini’s deputies, John of Palomar and John
of Ragusa, opened the Council with due ceremonial on July 23. It was only
sparsely attended, and its first business was to increase its numbers, and
obtain some guarantees for its safety and freedom from the city magistrates and
from Sigismund. On August 29 came the news of the flight of the Crusaders from
Tauss. It produced a deep impression on the assembled fathers, and convinced
them of the seriousness and importance of the work which they had before them.
They felt that the chastisement which had befallen the Church was due to her
shortcomings, and that penitence and reformation alone could avert further
disaster.
To this feeling the arrival of Cesarini on September 9
gave further force. Deeply impressed with the importance of the crisis, he sent
forth letters urging on the prelates that they should lose no time in coming to
the Council. Only three bishops, seven abbots, and a few doctors were
assembled, as the roads were unsafe, owing to a war between the Dukes of
Austria and Burgundy. He wrote also to the Pope to express his own convictions
and the common opinion of the work which the Council might do: it might
extirpate heresy, promote peace throughout Christendom, restore the Church to
its pristine glory, humble its enemies, treat of union with the Greeks, and
finally set on foot a crusade for the recovery of the Holy Land. An envoy was
sent to the Pope to explain to him how matters stood, and to urge the need of
his presence at Basel. Meanwhile there were many discussions relative to the
constitution of the Council, who were to take part in it, and what was to be
the method of voting. There was a general agreement that, as the great object
of the Council was to arrange a union with the Bohemians and the Greeks, it was
desirable to admit men of learning, that is, doctors of canon or civil law, as
well as prelates. The question of the method of voting was left until
the Council became more numerous.
The Council, moreover, lost no time in trying to bring
about its chief object. On October 10 a letter was sent to the Bohemians,
begging them to join with the Council for the promotion of unity. Perhaps God
has allowed discord so long that experience might teach the evils of
dissension. Christ's disciples are bound to labour for unity and peace. The
desolation of Bohemia must naturally incline it to wish for peace, and where
can that be obtained more surely than in a Council assembled in the Holy Ghost?
At Basel everything will be done with diligence and with freedom; every one may
speak, and the Holy Ghost will lead men's hearts to the truth, if only they will
have faith. The Bohemians have often complained that they could not get a free
hearing; at Basel they may both speak and hear freely, and the prayers of the
faithful will help both sides. The most ample safe-conduct was offered to
their representatives, and the fullest appreciation given to their
motives. “Send, we beseech you, men in whom you trust that the Spirit of
the Lord rests, gentle, God-fearing, humble, desirous of peace, seeking not
their own, but the things of Christ, whom we pray to give to us and you and all
Christian people peace on earth, and in the world to come life everlasting”.
This letter, which breathes profound sincerity and true Christian charity, was,
no doubt, an expression of the views of Cesarini, and was most probably written
by him. The greatest care was taken to make no allusion to the past, and to
approach the matter entirely afresh. But it was impossible for the Bohemians to
forget all that had gone before. The difficulty experienced in sending the
letter to the Bohemians showed the existence of a state of things very
different from what the Council wished to recognize. There was no intercourse
between Bohemia and the rest of Christendom; the Bohemians were under the ban
of the Council of Siena as heretics. It was finally agreed to send three copies
by different ways, in hopes that one at least might arrive. One was sent to
Sigismund for transmission, another to the magistrates of Nurnberg, and a
third to the magistrates of Eger. All three copies arrived safely in Bohemia in
the beginning of December.
This activity on the part of the Council necessarily
aroused the suspicion of Eugenius IV. The zeal of Cesarini, which had been
kindled by his Bohemian experiences, went far beyond the limits of Papal
prudence. The Bohemian question did not seem so important at Rome as it did at
Basel. A Council which under the pressure of necessity opened negotiations with
heretics, might greatly imperil the faith of the Church, and might certainly be
expected to do many things contrary to the Papal headship. A democratic spirit
prevailed in Basel, which had shown itself in the admission of all doctors; and
the discussion about the organization of the Council showed that it would be
very slightly amenable to the influence of the Pope and the Curia. Eugenius IV
resolved, therefore, at once to rid himself of the Council. He thought it
wisest to overturn it at once, before it had time to strike its roots deeper.
Accordingly, on November 12, he wrote to Cesarini, empowering him to dissolve
the Council at Basel and proclaim another to be held at Bologna in a year and a
half. The reasons given were the small attendance of prelates at Basel, the
difficulties of access owing to the war between Austria and Burgundy, the
distracted state of men's minds in that quarter owing to the spread of Hussite
opinions; but especially the fact that negotiations were now pending with the
Greek Emperor, who had promised to come to a Council which was to unite the
Greek and Latin Churches on condition that the Pope paid the expenses of his
journey and held the Council in some Italian city. As it would be useless to
hold two Councils at the same time, the Pope thought it better that the Fathers
of Basel should reassemble at Bologna when their business was ready.
A Bull dissolving the Council on these grounds was
also secretly prepared, and was signed by ten Cardinals. The Council, in entire
ignorance of the blow that was being aimed at it, was engaged in
preparations for its first public session, which took place under the presidency
of Cesarini on December 14. The Council declared itself to be duly constituted,
and laid down three objects for its activity: the extirpation of heresy, the
purification of Christendom, and the reformation of morals. It appointed its
officials and guarded by decrees its safety and freedom. On December 23 arrived
the Bishop of Parenzo, treasurer of Eugenius IV, and was honorably received;
but the coldness of his manner showed the object of his mission. The Council
was at once in a ferment of excitement. In a congregation on December 29, the
citizens of Basel appeared in force, and protested against the dissolution.
Various speakers of the Council laid before the Bishop of Parenzo four
propositions; that the urgent needs of Christendom did not allow of the dissolution
of the Council; that such a step would cause great scandal and offence to the
Church; that if this Council were dissolved or prorogued, it was idle to talk
of summoning another; that a General Council ought to proceed against all who
tried to hinder it, and ought to call all Christian princes to its aid. The
Bishop of Parenzo was not prepared for this firm attitude; he found things at
Basel different from his expectations. He thought it wise to temporize, and
declared that if he had any Papal Bulls he would not publish them. Meanwhile he
tried to induce Cesarini to dissolve the Council. Cesarini was sorely divided
between his allegiance to the Pope and his sense of what was due to the welfare
of Christendom. It was agreed that two envoys should be sent to the Pope, one
from Cesarini and one from the Council. The Bishop of Parenzo thought it wise
to flee away on January 8, 1432, leaving his Bulls with John of Prato, who
attempted to publish them on January 13, but was interrupted, and his Bulls and
himself were taken in custody by the Council’s orders.
Cesarini was deeply moved by this attitude of the
Pope. To his fervent mind it was inconceivable that the head of Christendom
should behave with such levity at so grave a crisis. He wrote at once to Eugenius
IV a letter, in which he expressed with the utmost frankness his bitter
disappointment at the Pope’s conduct, his firm conviction of the need of
straightforward measures on the part of the ecclesiastical authorities to
restore the shattered confidence of Christian people. He began his letter by
saying that he was driven to speak freely and fearlessly by the manifest peril
of the faith, the danger of the loss of obedience to the Papacy, the obloquy
with which Eugenius was everywhere assailed. He recapitulated the facts
concerning his own mission to Bohemia and his presidency of the Council;
detailed the hopes which he and every one in Germany entertained of the
Council's mediation. “I was driven also to come here by observing the
dissoluteness and disorder of the German clergy, by which the laity are sorely
irritated against the Church—so much so, that there is reason to fear that, if
the clergy do not amend their ways, the laity will attack them, as the Hussites
do. If there had been no General Council, I should have thought it my duty as
legate to summon a provincial synod for the reform of the clergy: for unless
the clergy be reformed I fear that, even if the Bohemian heresy were
extinguished, another would rise up in its place”. Having these opinions, he
came to the Council and tried to conduct its business with
diligence, thinking that such was the Pope’s desire. “I did not suppose
that your holiness wished me to dissemble or act negligently; if you had
bid me do so, I would have answered that you must lay that duty on another, for
I have determined never to occupy the post of a dissembler”.
He then passed on to the question of the prorogation
of the Council, and laid before the Pope the considerations which he would have
urged if he had been in the Curia when the question was discussed.
(1) The Bohemians have been summoned to the Council;
its prorogation will be a flight before them on the part of the Church as
disgraceful as the flight of the German army. “By this flight we shall
approve their errors and condemn the truth and justice of our own cause. Men
will see in this the finger of God, and will see that the Bohemians can neither
be vanquished by arms nor by argument O luckless Christendom! O Catholic faith,
abandoned by all; soldiers and priests alike desert thee; no one dares
stand on thy side”.
(2) This flight will lose the allegiance of wavering
Catholics, amongst whom are already rife opinions contrary to the Holy See.
(3) The ignominy of the flight will fall on the
clergy, who will be universally attacked.
(4) “What will the world say when it hears of this?
Will it not judge that the clergy is incorrigible and wishes to moulder in its
abuses? So many Councils have been held in our time, but no reform has
followed. Men were expecting some results from this Council; if it be dissolved
they will say that we mock both God and men. The whole reproach, the whole
shame and ignominy, will fall upon the Roman Curia as the cause and author of
all these ills. Holy Father, may you never be the cause of such evils! At your
hands will be required the blood of those that perish; about all things you
will have to render a strict account at the judgment seat of God”,
(5 and 6) To promote the pacification of Christendom
ambassadors have been sent to make peace between England and France, between
Poland and the Teutonic Knights; the dissolution of the Council will stop their
valuable labours.
(7) There are disturbances in Magdeburg and Passau,
where the people have risen against their bishops and show signs of following
the Hussites. The Council may arrange these matters; if it bedissolved discord
will spread.
(8) The Duke of Burgundy has been asked by the Council
to undertake the part of leader against the Hussites. If the Council be
dissolved, he will be irritated against the Church, and his services will
be lost.
(9) Many German nobles are preparing for another
expedition into Bohemia if need be. If they are deluded by the Pope,
they will turn against the Church. “I myself will rather die than live
ignominiously. I will go perhaps to Nurnberg and place myself in the hands of
these nobles that they may do with me what they will, even sell me to the
heretics. All men shall know that I am innocent”.
(10) The Council sent envoys to confirm the wavering
on the Bohemian borders: if the Council be dissolved, their work will be undone
and there will be a large addition to the Hussites.
He then proceeded to answer the Pope’s objections. If
he cannot conveniently come to Basel in person on account of his health, let
him send a deputation of Cardinals and eminent persons. As to the safety of the
place, it is as secure as Constance. It is said that the Pope fears lest the
Council meddle with the temporalities of the Church. It is not reasonably to be
expected that an ecclesiastical assembly will act to its own detriment. There
have been many previous Councils with no such result. “I fear lest it
happen to us as it did to the Jews, who said: ‘If we let Him alone, the
Romans will come and take away our place and nation’. So we say: If we let this
Council alone, the laity will come and take away our temporalities. But by the
just judgment of God the Jews lost their place because they would not let
Christ alone; and by the just judgment of God, if we do not let this Council
alone we shall lose our temporalities, and (God forbid) our lives and souls as
well. Let the Pope, on the other hand, be friendly with the Council, reform his
Curia, and be ready to act for the good of the Church”.
The Council is likely, if pressed to extremities, to
refuse to dissolve, and there would be the danger of a schism. He begged to be
relieved of his commission and complained of the want of straightforwardness.
If he attempted to dissolve the Council, he would be stoned to death by the
fathers; if he were to go away, the Council would be certain to appoint for
itself another president.
This letter is remarkable for its clear
exhibition of the state of affairs in Europe at this time, and as we read it
now, it is still more remarkable for the political instinct which enabled its
writer to make so true a forecast of the future. It would have been well
for Eugenius IV if he had had the wisdom to appreciate its importance. It would
have been well for the future of the Papacy if Cesarini’s words had awakened an
echo in the Court of Rome. As it was, the politicians of the Curia only smiled
at the exalted enthusiasm of Cesarini, and Eugenius IV was too narrow-minded
and obstinate to reconsider the wisdom of a course of conduct which he had once
adopted. He did not understand, nor did he care to understand, the sentiments
of the Council. He had forgotten the current of feeling against the Papacy
which had been so strong at Constance. The decrees of Constance were not among
the Papal Archives; and one of the Cardinals who possessed a manuscript of
Filastre was heard with astonishment by the Curia when he called attention to
the decree which declared a General Council to be superior to the Pope. At
Basel, on the other hand, there were many copies of the Acts of the Council of
Constance, and it was held that the Pope could not dissolve a General Council
without its own consent. The rash step of Eugenius forced the Council into an
attitude of open hostility towards the Papacy, and a desperate struggle between
the two powers was inevitable.
The first question for both parties was the attitude
of Sigismund. His personal interest in the settlement of the Hussite rebellion
naturally inclined him to favour in every way the assembling of the Council. In
July, 1431, he took the Council under his Imperial protection, and in August
wrote in its interest to make peace between the Dukes of Austria and Burgundy.
But Sigismund felt that the years which had elapsed since the Council of
Constance had not been glorious to his reputation. He had failed ignominiously
in Bohemia and had exercised little influence in Germany, where he had
quarrelled with Frederick of Brandenburg, who was the most distinguished
amongst the electors. His early enthusiasm for acting with dignity the part of
secular head of Christendom had been damped at Constance, and he did not care
to appear at Basel without some accession to his dignity. With characteristic
desire for outward show, he determined on an expedition to Italy, to assume the
Imperial crown. He hoped to establish once more the Imperial claims, to check
the power of Venice, which was the enemy of Hungary, and to induce the Pope to
come to Basel. Yet to attain all these objects he had only a following of some
2000 Hungarian and German knights. His hopes were entirely built on the help of
Filippo Maria Visconti, who was at war with Venice and Florence, and with whom
Sigismund made a treaty in July. Before setting out for Italy he appointed
William of Bavaria his vicegerent as Protector of the Council: then early in
November he crossed the Alps, and on November 21 arrived in Milan. But the
jealous and suspicious character of Filippo Maria Visconti could not bear the
presence of a superior; he was afraid that Sigismund's presence might be the
occasion of a rising against himself. Accordingly he gave orders that Sigismund
should be honorably received in Milan; but he himself withdrew from the city,
and remained secluded in one of his castles. He refused to visit Sigismund, and
gave the ridiculous excuse that his emotions were too strong; “if he saw
Sigismund he would die of joy”. Disappointed of his host, Sigismund could only
hasten his coronation with the iron crown of Lombardy, which took place in the
church of S. Ambrogio on November 25. He did not stay long in Milan, where he
was treated with much suspicion, but in December passed on to Piacenza, where,
on January 10, 1432, he received news of the Papal Bull dissolving the Council
of Basel.
Sigismund had left Germany as the avowed Protector of
the Council: but it was felt that his desire to obtain the Imperial crown gave
the Pope considerable power of affixing stipulations to the coronation. In
fact, Sigismund’s relations with Eugenius IV were not fortunate for the object
which he had in view. Not only did the question of the Council an obstacle to
their good understand, but Sigismund’s alliance with the Duke of Milan was
displeasing to Eugenius IV, who as a Venetian was on the side of his native
city. When Sigismund discovered how little he could depend on Filippo Maria
Visconti his political position in Italy was sufficiently helpless. There were
grave fears in Basel that he might abandon the cause of the Council as a means
of reconciling himself with the Pope.
At first, however, Sigismund's attitude seemed firm
enough. Immediately on hearing of the proposed dissolution of the Council he
wrote to Basel, exhorting the fathers to stand firm, and saying that he had
written to beg the Pope to reconsider his decision. The Council, on its side,
wrote to Sigismund, affecting to disbelieve the genuineness of the Bull brought
by the Bishop of Parenzo, and begging Sigismund to send William of Bavaria at
once to Basel. On receipt of this letter Sigismund wrote again, thanking them
for their zeal, saying that he was going at once to Rome to arrange matters
with the Pope, and exhorting them to persevere in their course.
Before it received the news of Sigismund’s constancy
the Council on January 21 issued a summons to all Christendom, begging those
who were coming to the Council not to be discouraged at the rumours of its
dissolution, as it was improbable that the Vicar of Christ, if well informed,
would set aside the decrees of Constance, and bring ruin on the Church by
dissolving the Council which was to extirpate heresy and reform abuses.
Congregations were continued as usual to arrange preliminaries, and on February
3 William of Bavaria arrived in Basel, and was solemnly received as
Sigismund’s vicegerent. Prelates poured in to the Council, which daily became
more numerous. The Dukes of Milan, Burgundy, and Savoy all wrote to express
their cooperation with the Council. Cardinal Cesarini could not reconcile it
with his allegiance to the Pope to continue as President of the Council in
spite of the Pope’s wishes, and the breach with the Papacy was made more
notorious by the election of a new President, Philibert, Bishop of Coutances.
As a further sign of its determination the Council ordered a seal to be made for
its documents. Its impress was God the Father sending down the Holy Spirit on
the Pope and Emperor sitting in Council surrounded by Cardinals, prelates, and
doctors.
On February 15 was held the second general session, in
which was rehearsed the famous decree of Constance, that a General Council has
its power immediately from Christ and that all of every rank, even the Papal,
are bound to obey it in matters pertaining to the faith, the extirpation of
heresy, and the reformation of the Church in head and members. It was decreed
that the Council could not be dissolved against its will, and that all
proceedings of the Pope against any of its members, or any who were coming to
incorporate themselves with it, were null and void. This was the Council's
answer to the Pope’s Bull of dissolution. The two powers now stood in open
antagonism, and each claimed the allegiance of Christendom. The movement
against the Papal monarchy, which had been started by the Schism, found its
full expression at Basel. The Council of Pisa had merely aided the Cardinals in
their efforts to restore peace to the disturbed Church; the Council of
Constance had been a more resolute endeavor for the same purpose of the
temporal and spiritual authorities of Christendom. But the Council of Basel
asserted against a legitimate Pope, who was universally recognized, the
superiority of a General Council over the Papacy. It was a revolt of the
ecclesiastical aristocracy against the Papal absolutism, and the fate of the
revolt was a question of momentous consequences for the future of the Church.
After this declaration the Council busily sent envoys
throughout Christendom, and set to work to organize itself for the transaction
of business. The means for this purpose had been under discussion since September,
1431, and in the plan adopted we recognize the statesmanlike capacity of
Cesarini. The fortunes of the Council of Constance showed the danger of
national jealousies and political complications in an ecclesiastical synod. It
was resolved at Basel to avoid the division by nations, and to work by means of
four committees, which were to prepare business for the general sessions of the
Council. As the objects of the Council were the suppression of heresy, the
reform of the Church, and the pacification of Christendom, these objects were
confided to the care of deputations of Faith, of Reformation, and of Peace,
while a fourth was added for common and necessary business. The deputations
were formed equally out of every nation and every rank of the hierarchy. They
elected their own officers, and chose a new president every month. Every four
months the deputations were dissolved and reconstituted, care being taken that
a few of the old members remained. As a link between the four deputations was
appointed monthly a committee of twelve, chosen equally from the four nations,
who decided about the incorporation of new members with the Council, and their
distribution among the deputations. They decided also the allotment of business
to the several deputations, received their reports, and submitted them to a
general congregation. At each election four of the old members were left to
maintain the continuity of tradition; but the same men might not be reappointed
twice. For the formal supervision of the Council’s business was a small
committee of four, one appointed by each deputation, through whom passed all
the letters of the Council, which it was their duty to seal. If they were
dissatisfied with the form of the contents, they remitted the letter, with a
statement of their reasons, to the deputation from which it originated.
This system, which was conceived in the spirit of a
liberal oligarchy, was calculated to promote freedom of discussion and to
eliminate as much as possible political and national feeling. Secrecy in the
conduct of business was forbidden, and members of one deputation were
encouraged to discuss their affairs with members of the other deputations. The
deputations met three times a week, and could only undertake the business laid
before them by the president. When they were agreed about a matter, it was laid
before a general congregation; if three of the deputations, at least, were then
in favour of it, it was brought before the Council in general session in the
cathedral, and was finally adopted. Every precaution was taken to ensure full
discussion and practical unanimity before the final settlement of any question.
The organization of the Council was as democratic as anything at that time
could be.
The first deputations were appointed on the last day
of February. It was not long before cheering news reached the Council. The
French clergy, in a synod held at Bourges on February 26, declared their
adhesion to the objects set forth by the Council, and besought the King to send
envoys to the Pope to beg him to recall his dissolution; and at the same time
to send envoys to Sigismund to urge that nothingshould be done by the Council
against the ecclesiastical authority, lest thereby a plausible pretext for
transferring the Council elsewhere be afforded to the Pope. The letters of
Sigismund to the Council assured it of his fidelity; and his ambassadors to the
Pope on March 17 affirmed that Sigismund's coming to Italy aimed only at a
peaceful solution of the religious and political difficulties of Europe, and was
prompted by no motives of personal ambition. He wished the Pope to understand
that he was not prepared to win his coronation by a desertion of the Council’s
cause. From Bohemia also came the news that the Praguers had consented to
negotiate with the Council on the basis of the Four Articles, and had desired a
preliminary conference at Eger with the envoys of the Council, to which the
Fathers at Basel readily assented.
Yet the success of the Council and the entreaties of
Sigismund were alike unavailing to move the stubborn mind of the Pope. Envoys
and letters passed between Sigismund and Eugenius IV, with the sole result of
ultimately bringing the two into a position of avowed hostility. Sigismund said
that no one could dissolve the Council, which had been duly summoned. Eugenius
IV answered with savage sarcasm, “In what you write touching the
celebration and continuation of the Council you have said several things
contrary to the Gospel of Christ, the Holy Scripture, the sacred canons and the
civil laws; although we know these assertions do not proceed from you, because
you are unskilled in such matters and know better how to fight, as you do
manfully, against the Turks and elsewhere, in which pursuit, I trust, you may
prosper Sigismund must have felt keenly, the sneer at his failures in the
field. He fancied himself mighty with the pen and with the tongue, but even his
vanity could not claim the glory of a successful general”.
Sigismund had gone to Italy with the light-heartedness
which characterized his doings. He hoped to indulge his love of display and at
the same time fill his empty pockets. His coronation would give him the right
of granting new privileges and would bring presents from the Jews. He was not
sorry to send William of Bavaria to Basel in his stead, for he did not at first
wish to commit himself too definitely to the Council’s side; if the Council
could restore peace in Bohemia, he was ready to support it; otherwise its
action might come into collision with the Imperial pretensions. So long as Sigismund
was doubtful about the Bohemian acceptance of the Council’s invitation,
and about the Pope’s pliancy, he wished not to commit himself too far. Hence
William of Bavaria had a delicate part to play at Basel, where he distinguished
himself at first by care for the Council’s decorum, and forbade dancing on fast
days, to the indignation of the ladies of Basel. But soon William had more
important work to do, as Sigismund found that he needed the Council’s help for
his Italian projects. He had hoped, with the help of Milan, Savoy, and Ferrara,
to overcome Florence and Venice, and so force the Pope to crown him. But when
the Duke of Milan openly mocked him, Sigismund was driven to make a desperate
effort to retrieve his ignominious position. He could not leave Italy without
the Imperial crown; if he set himself to win it by submission to the Pope,
Bohemia would be lost for ever. He had tried to reconcile the Pope and the
Council; but Eugenius IV scornfully refused his mediation. The only remaining
course was to cast in his lot with the Council, and use it as a means to force
the Pope to satisfy his demands. On April 1, 1432, he wrote to William begging
him to keep the Council together, and not to allow it to dissolve before the
threats of the Papal dissolution. He advised the Council to invite the Pope and
Cardinals to appear at Basel; he even suggested that if the Council called him
to its aid, its summons would afford him an honorable pretext for leaving
Italy. Acting on these instructions, William prompted the Fathers at Basel to
take steps to prevent Eugenius IV from holding his Council in Bologna as he
proposed to do. Accordingly, on April 29, the Council in a general session
called on Eugenius IV to revoke his Bull of dissolution, and summoned him and the
Cardinals to appear at Basel within three months; in case Eugenius could not
come personally he was to send representatives.
The support of Sigismund and the obvious necessity of
endeavoring to find some peaceable settlement for the Bohemian question made
Europe in general acquiesce in the proceedings of the Council. No nation openly
espoused the Papal side or refused to recognize the Council, which gradually
increased in numbers. In the beginning of April the deputations contained in
all eighty-one members; and the hostility between the Pope and the Council
became more decidedly pronounced, all who were on personal grounds opposed to
Eugenius IV began to flock to Basel. Foremost amongst these was Domenico
Capranica, Bishop of Fermo, who had been a favorite official of Martin,
and had been by him created Cardinal, though the creation had not been
published at the time of his death. This secrecy on the part of Martin V arose
from a desire to abide as closely as possible by the decrees of Constance
forbidding the excessive increase of the Cardinalate. He endeavored, however,
to secure himself at the expense of his successor by binding the Cardinals to
an undertaking that in case he died before the publication of such creations,
they would, nevertheless, admit those so created to the Conclave. On Martin V’s
death Capranica hastened to Rome and presented himself as a member of the
Conclave: but the Cardinals were in violent reaction against Martin V and the
Colonna, and refused to admit one of their adherents. The new Pope
involved Capranica in his general hatred of the Colonna party, denied him
the Cardinal’s hat, and showed the greatest animosity against him. Capranica
for a time was driven to hide himself, and at last set off to Basel to obtain
from the Council the justice which was refused him by the Pope. On his way
through Siena he engaged as secretary a young man, aged twenty-six, Eneas
Sylvius Piccolomini, sprung from an old but impoverished family. Eneas found
the need of making his way in the world, and eagerly embraced this opportunity
of finding a wider field for the talents which he had already begun to display
in the University of Siena. No one suspected that this young Sienese secretary
was destined to play a more important part in the history of the Council and of
the Church than any of those already at Basel; when in May Capranica entered
Basel, where he was received with distinction, and in time received full
recognition of his rank, which Eugenius IV afterwards confirmed.
In Italy Eugenius IV found that things were going
against him. In Rome the Cardinals were by no means satisfied with the aspect
of affairs and many of them secretly left the city. The efforts of Eugenius IV
to stop Sigismund’s progress and raise up enemies to him in Italy were not
successful. From Piacenza Sigismund passed to Parma and thence in May to Lucca,
where he was threatened with siege by the Florentines. In July he advanced
safely to Siena, where he fixed his abode till he could go to Rome. In Basel
the Council pursued its course with firmness and discretion. The conference
with the Bohemians at Eger resulted in the settlement of preliminaries about
the appearance of Bohemian representatives at Basel. The Bohemians claimed that
they should be received honorably, allowed a fair hearing, be regarded in the
discussion as free from all ecclesiastical censures, be allowed to use their
own worship, and be permitted to argue on the grounds of God’s law, the
practice of Christ, the Apostles, and the primitive Church, as well as Councils
and doctors founded on the same true and impartial judge. Their proposals were
willingly received by the majority at Basel, and in the fourth session, on June
20, a safe-conduct to their representatives was issued. At the same time a blow
was aimed against the Pope by a decree that, if a vacancy occurred in the
Papacy, the new election should be made at Basel and not elsewhere. Another and
still bolder proceeding was the appointment by the Council of the Cardinal of
S. Eustachio as legate for Avignon and the Venaisin, on the ground that the
city was dissatisfied with the Papal governor and the Council thought it right
to interfere in the interests of peace.
Eugenius IV saw that unless he took some steps to
prevent it another schism was imminent. He attempted to renew negotiations with
Sigismund, and sent four envoys, headed by the Archbishops of Tarento and
Colocza, to Basel, where they arrived on August 14. They proposed a future
Council at Avignon, Mantua, or Ferrara. It was evident that the sole object of
the Papal envoys was to shake the allegiance of waverers and spread discord in
the Council. To repel this insidious attempt the promoters of the Council, in
its sixth session, on September 6, accused the Pope and Cardinals of contumacy,
for not appearing in answer to the summons, and demanded that sentence should
be passed against them. The Papal envoys were driven to demand a prolongation
of the term allowed, which was granted. After this, on September 6, Cesarini
again resumed the presidency of the Council, judging, it would seem, that
moderation was more than ever necessary.
Eugenius IV now turned his attention to Sigismund,
whose position in Siena was sufficiently pitiable. Deserted by the Duke of
Milan and his Italian allies, he was cut off by the Florentine forces from
advancing to Rome, and was, as he himself said, caged like a wild beast within
the walls of Siena. It was natural that Sigismund should be anxious to
catch at the Pope’s help to release him from such an ignominious position. When
Eugenius IV promised to send two Cardinals to confer with him, Sigismund wrote
to the Council urging it to suspend its process against the Pope, until he
tried the result of negotiations, or of a personal interview. The Council was
uneasy at this, and begged Sigismund to have no dealings with the Pope until he
recognized its authority. Sigismund answered, on October 31, that such was his
intention, but that he judged it wise to see the Pope personally, and so
arrange things peaceably. The Council grew increasingly suspicious, and
Sigismund did not find that his negotiations with the Pope were leading to any
satisfactory conclusion. Again he swung round to the Council’s side, which,
strengthened by his support, in its eighth session, on December 12, granted
Eugenius IV and the Cardinals a further term of sixty days, within which they
were to give in their adhesion to the Council, or the charge of contumacy
against them would be proceeded with.
So far Sigismund and the Council were agreed; but
their ends were not the same. Sigismund wished only for a pacification of
Bohemia and his own coronation; so far as the Council promoted these ends it
was useful to him, and he was resolved to use it to the uttermost. Accordingly,
on January 22, 1433, William of Bavaria prevailed on the Council to pass a
decree taking the King under its protection. By this means Sigismund was helped
both against the Pope and the Council; for if the Council made good its
claim to elect a new Pope, it might proceed to elect a new King of the
Romans as well. The reason of this decree was a rumour that Eugenius IV
intended to excommunicate Sigismund. The Council pronounced all Papal
proceedings against him to be null and void.
Eugenius IV at last felt himself beaten. The Council
had taken precautions against every means of attack which the Papal authority
possessed. The Pope had succeeded in driving Sigismund to espouse warmly the
Council’s cause, and was alarmed to hear that he was engaged in negotiating
peace with the Florentines. The arrival of the Bohemian envoys at Basel, on
January 4, gave the Council a real importance in the eyes of Europe. The
Council was conscious of its strength, and on February 18appointed judges
to examine the process against Eugenius IV. But Eugenius had been preparing to retreat
step by step from a position which he felt to be untenable, and strove to
discover the smallest amount of concession which would free him from his
embarrassment. He sent envoys to Basel, who proposed that the Council should
transfer itself to Bologna; when this was refused, they asked that it should
select some place in Italy for a future Council. Next they offered that the
question whether the Council should be held in Germany or Italy should be
referred to a committee of twelve; finally they proposed that any city in
Germany except Basel should be the seat of a new Council. When the Fathers at
Basel would have none of these things, Eugenius IV at last issued a Bull
announcing his willingness that the Council should be held at Basel, whither he
proposed to send his legates; on March 1 he nominated four Cardinals to
that office.
Sigismund rejoiced at this removal of the obstacles
which stood in the way of his coronation; he was anxious that the Council
should accept the Pope’s Bull and so do away with all hostility between himself
and Eugenius IV. But the Fathers at Basel looked somewhat suspiciously on the
concessions which had been wrung with such difficulty from the Pope. They
observed that the Bull did not recognize the existing Council, but declared
that a Council should be held by his legates. Moreover, he limited the scope of
the Council to the two points of the reduction of heretics and the pacification
of Christendom, omitting the reformation of the Church. It was argued that
Eugenius IV had not complied with their demand that he should withdraw his
dissolution; he refused to recognize anything done at Basel before the coming
of his legates. Determined to affirm its authority before the arrival of the
Papal legates, the Council passed a decree on April 27, renewing the decree of
Constance about the celebration of General Councils at least every tenth year;
asserting that the members of a Council might assemble of their own accord at
the fixed period; and that a Pope who tried to impede or prorogue a Council
should after four months' warning be suspended, and then after two months be
deprived of office. It was decreed that the present Council could not be
dissolved nor transferred without the consent of two-thirds of each deputation
and the subsequent approbation of two-thirds of a general congregation. The
Cardinals were henceforth to make oath before entering the Conclave that
whoever was elected Pope would obey the Constance decrees. To give all possible
notoriety to these decrees, all prelates were ordered to publish them in their
synods or chapters. So far as a new constitution can be secured on paper, the
Council of Basel made sure for the future the new principles of Church
Government on which it claimed to act. It was a transference to ecclesiastical
matters of the parliamentary opposition to monarchy which was making itself
felt in European politics.
When the Papal legates arrived and claimed to share
with Cesarini the office of president, Cesarini answered that he was the
officer of the Council and must obey their will in the matter. The Council, in
a congregation on June 13, answered that they could not admit the claim of the
Pope to influence their deliberations by means of his legates: not only the
President, but the Pope himself, was bound to obey the Council's decrees. They
were bent upon asserting most fully the supremacy of a General Council, and
aimed at converting the Pope into its chief official. The concessions made by
Eugenius IV had not ended the conflict between him and the Fathers at Basel.
They had rather brought more clearly to light the full opposition that had
arisen between the ecclesiastical hierarchy and the Papal monarchy.
But Eugenius IV had not so much aimed at a
reconciliation with the Council as a reconciliation with Sigismund. He saw that
for this purpose concessions must be made to the Council; but he hoped with
Sigismund’s help to reduce the Council in course of time. Sigismund's position
in Italy made him eager to catch at any concession on the part of Eugenius
which would allow him to proceed to his coronation without abandoning the
Council, from which he hoped for a settlement of his Bohemian difficulties. He
received with joy the Pope’s advances; and Eugenius on his side felt the
need of Sigismund’s protection even in Rome. Five Cardinals besides Capranica
had already left him and joined the Council. The officials of the Curia grew
doubtful in their allegiance, and began to think that their interests would be
better served in Basel than in Rome. On March 2, the anniversary of the
Pope’s coronation, as he went from the commemoration service he was beset by
members of the Curia, who craved with tears leave to depart, and followed
him with their cries to the door of the Consistory. A few had leave given them,
and all were bent on departure.
In this state of affairs Eugenius IV saw the wisdom of
gratifying Sigismund in the two matters which he had at heart, the
pacification of Italy and his coronation as Emperor. There were not many
difficulties in the way of peace. Florence, Venice, and the Duke of Milan were
all equally weary of war; and the Pope had little difficulty in inducing them
to submit their grievances to Niccolo of Este, Lord of Ferrara, who at that
time played the honorable part of mediator in Italian affairs. By his help the
preliminaries of peace were arranged at Ferrara on April 7; and on the same day
Sigismund's envoys arranged with the Pope the preliminaries of the Imperial
coronation. Sigismund acknowledged that “he had always held and holds Eugenius
as the true and undoubted Pope, canonically elected; and with all reverence,
diligence, care, and labour, among all kings and princes, all persons in the
world ecclesiastical as well as secular, venerates, protests, and acts in
defense of his holiness, and the Church of God, so long as he shall live,
faithfully and with a true heart, according to his knowledge and power, without
fraud or guile, so far as with God's help he may”. He agreed also to stay at
Rome for a time after his coronation, and labour for the peace of Christendom
and especially of Italy.
This alliance of the Pope and Sigismund was naturally
regarded with growing suspicion at Basel. Sigismund's letters to the Council
changed in tone, and dwelt upon the evils of scandal in the Church and the
disastrous effects of a schism. On May 9 he urged the Council to treat the
Papal legates with kindness, and to abstain from anything that might lead to an
open rupture. The Council loudly exclaimed that the Pope had beguiled the King
under the pretence of a coronation, and meant to keep him in Rome as a
protection to himself. Sigismund, however, hastened his coronation, and on May
21 entered Rome with an escort of 600 knights and 800 foot. Riding beneath a
golden canopy he was met by the city magistrates and a crowd of people. The
bystanders thought that his deportment showed a just mixture of affability and
dignity; his smiling face wore an expression of refinement and geniality, while
his long grizzly beard lent majesty to his appearance. On the steps of S.
Peter’s, Eugenius in pontifical robes greeted Sigismund, who kissed his foot, his
hand, his face. After mass was said Sigismund took up his abode in the palace
of the Cardinal of Arles, close to S. Peter’s. On Whit Sunday, May 31, the
coronation took place. Before the silver door of S. Peter’s, Sigismund swore to
observe all the constitutions made by his predecessors, as far back as
Constantine, in favour of the Church. Then the Pope proceeded to the high altar
and Sigismund was conducted by three Cardinals to the Church of S. John
Lateran, where before the altar of S. Maurice he was consecrated canon of
the Church. He returned to S. Peter’s, and took his place by the side of
the Pope, each seated under a tabernacle erected for the purpose. The mass was
begun, and after the epistle the Pope and Sigismund advanced to the altar. The
Pope set on Sigismund's head first the white mitre of a bishop and then the
golden crown; he took from the altar, and gave into his hands, the sword, the
sceptre, and the golden apple of the Empire. When the mass was ended the Pope
and Emperor gave one another the kiss of peace. Then Sigismund took the sword
in his hand, and Eugenius, holding the crucifix, gave him his solemn
benediction. When this was over they walked side by side to the church door:
the Pope mounted his mule, which Sigismund led by the bridle for a few paces
and then mounted his horse. Eugenius accompanied him to the bridge of S.
Angelo, where Sigismund kissed his hand and he returned to the Vatican. On the
bridge Sigismund, according to custom, exercised his new authority by dubbing a
number of knights, Romans and Germans, amongst others his chancellor Caspar
Schlick. The Imperial procession went through the streets to the Lateran, where
Sigismund dismounted.
The days that followed were spent in formal business
such as Sigismund delighted in. Letters had to be written and all grants and
diplomas given by the King of the Romans needed the Imperial confirmation,
which was a source of no small profit to the Imperial chancery. It is worth
noticing that after his coronation Sigismund engraved on his seal a double
eagle, to mark the union of his dignities of Emperor and Roman King. From this
time dates the use of the double-headed eagle as the Imperial ensign.
It soon, however, became obvious that Sigismund's
coronation had affected his relations towards the Council. He was still anxious
for its success in the important points of the reconciliation of the Bohemians; but he had no longer any interest in the constitutional question of
the relations which ought to exist between Popes and General Councils. No doubt
this question had been a useful means of bringing Eugenius IV to acknowledge
the Council; now that he had done so, and Sigismund had obtained from the Pope
what he wanted, his instincts as a practical statesman taught him that in the
midst of the agitation of European politics it was hopeless for a Council to
continue on abstract grounds a struggle against the Pope, which could only lead
to another schism. On June 4 he wrote to the Council announcing his coronation,
and saying that he found in the Pope the best intentions towards furthering all
the objects which the Council had at heart. His envoys on their arrival at
Basel found the Council preparing accusations against Eugenius, and the seven
Cardinals present engaged in discussing the canonicity of his election. They
had some difficulty in persuading the Council to moderation, but at last
obtained on July 13 a decree which, while denouncing in no measured terms the
contumacy of Eugenius IV, extended again for sixty days the period for an
unreserved withdrawal of his Bull of dissolution, and for a declaration of his
entire adhesion to the Council. If he did not comply within that time the
Council would at once proceed to his suspension. Eugenius, trusting to the help
of Sigismund, showed a less conciliatory spirit; for he issued a Bull
withdrawing from the Council all private questions, and limiting its activity
to the three points of the extirpation of heresy, the pacification of
Christendom, and the reform of manners. In the same sense Sigismund’s envoys on
August 18 brought a message to the Council, exhorting to greater diligence in
the matters of pacification and reform, for so far no fruits of its energies
were apparent. He warned it against creating a schism, for after extinguishing
one at Constance he would rather die than see another. He begged the Fathers to
suspend all proceedings against the Pope till his arrival at Basel, when he
hoped to remove all difficulties between them and the Pope. The Council
answered that it was the Pope and not the Council that was causing a schism;
the relations of the Pope to a General Council was a matter concerning the
faith and the reformation of the Church, and nothing could be done on these
points till the present scandal was removed. Sigismund, in fact, was asking the
Council to desist from measures which he had formerly urged. The Council
naturally demanded securities for the future. Its position was undoubtedly
logical,though practically unwise. Eugenius IV, to strengthen Sigismund's
hands, issued a Bull on August 1 expressing, at Sigismund's request, his
willingness and acquiescence that the Council should be recognized as valid
from its commencement He declared that he entirely accepted the Council, and
demanded that his legates should be admitted as presidents, and that all
proceedings against his person and authority should be rescinded. The Fathers
at Basel naturally looked closely into the language of the Bull. They were not
satisfied that the validity of the Council from the beginning should merely be
tolerated by the Pope. They wished for the Papal 'decree and declaration' that
it had been valid all along. Every step towards conciliation only brought into
greater prominence the fact that the Council claimed to be superior to the
Pope, and that Eugenius was determined not to suffer any derogation from the
Papal autocracy
In this view of Eugenius IV Sigismund acquiesced. He
wished the Council to engage in more practical business, and he dreaded as a
statesman the consequences of another schism. In this he was joined by the
Kings of England and France, the German Electors, and the Duke of Burgundy. All
of them urged upon the Council the inexpediency of provoking a schism.
Eugenius IV’s repeated attempts at compromise at length created a feeling of
sympathy in his favour. He had given way, it was urged, on the practical points
at issue. The Council did not meet with much attention when it answered that he
had not conceded the principle which was at stake in the conflict. The great
majority were in favour of proceeding to the suspension of Eugenius IV when the
term expired; but the remonstrances of the Imperial ambassadors, and the
consideration that an open breach with Sigismund would render Basel an insecure
place for the Council, so far prevailed that in the session of September 11 a
further term of thirty days was granted to Eugenius IV, on the understanding
that within that time Sigismund would appear in Basel.
Sigismund meanwhile at Rome had been employing his
versatile mind in studying the antiquities of the city, and drinking in the
enthusiasm of the Renaissance under the guidance of the famous antiquary
Ciriaco of Ancona. He lived in familiar intercourse with Eugenius IV, and a
story is told which illustrates the mixture of penetration and levity which
marked Sigismund's character. One day he said to the Pope, “Holy Father, there
are three things in which we are alike, and three in which we are different.
You sleep in the morning, I rise before daybreak; you drink water, I wine; you
shun women, I pursue them. But in some things we agree : you distribute the
treasures of the Church, I keep nothing for myself; you have gouty hands, I
gouty feet; you are bringing the Church and I the Empire to the ground”. But
these days of peaceful enjoyment were disturbed by the news from Basel, where
it was clear that Sigismund’s presence was needed. On August 21 he left Rome,
and journeyed through Perugia, Rimini, and Ferrara to Mantua. He would not go
through the territories of the Duke of Milan, against whom he nourished the
deepest anger. Venice took occasion of his wrath to make an alliance with him
for five years, in return for which they gave the needy Emperor ten thousand
ducats to pay the expenses of his journey from Rome to Germany. From Mantua
Sigismund hastened to Basel, so as to reach it at the end of the term granted
to the Pope. He arrived unexpectedly on October 11, having come through the
Tyrol to the Lake of Constance, and thence by boat to Basel. So hasty had been
his journey that he brought little baggage with him, and before entering Basel
the Imperial beggar had to send to the magistrates for a pair of shoes.
The Fathers of the Council hastily assembled to show
Sigismund such honor as they could. He was escorted to the cathedral, where he
took his place on the raised seat generally occupied by the Cardinals, who now
sat on lower benches. There he addressed the congregation, setting forth his
zeal for the Council’s cause, as his hasty journey testified; he asked for
further delay in the proceedings against the Pope, that he might carry out
successfully the work of pacification on which he was engaged. To this the
Council did not at once assent, but urged that the Pope’s suspension might help
on Sigismund’s endeavors. Murmurs were heard on all sides, and it was clear
that Sigismund’s authority was not omnipotent at Basel. The Council was filled
with the enemies of Eugenius IV, and was convinced of its own power and
importance. Sigismund reminded the Fathers that the Emperor was guardian of the
temporalities of the Church. He was answered that it was also his duty to
execute the decrees of the Church. He angrily asserted that neither he nor any
of the kings and princes of Christendom would permit the horrors of
another schism. In his vehemence he forgot his Latin, and gave schisma the
feminine gender. It was maliciously said that he wished to show the Council how
dear the matter was to his heart. At last the Council, which was not really in
a position to resist, reluctantly granted a prolongation of the term to
Eugenius IV for eight days.
Sigismund found it necessary to change his tactics and
listen to the Council’s side of the quarrel, as at Rome he had listened to the
Pope. He conferred with the ambassadors and with the chiefs of the Council, and
was present at a public disputation on October 16 between the president,
Cesarini, and the Papal envoys. Cesarini spoke for three hours in behalf of a
Council’s superiority over a Pope. He argued that the Bulls of Eugenius IV
refused to admit this proposition, and that without securing the means of a
reformation of the head of the Church it was useless to reform the members; as
to the Pope’s demand that all proceedings against himself should be revoked,
there were no proceedings if only he did his duty. On behalf of Eugenius IV the
Archbishop of Spoleto urged the sufficiency and reasonableness of his proposal,
to revoke his decrees against the Council if the Council would revoke its
proceedings against himself. There were replies and counter-replies, but both
parties were equally far from an agreement. A second prolongation of eight days
to Eugenius IV was obtained by Sigismund by a repetition of his former
assertion, that he could not endure a schism. This was succeeded by a third, on
which Sigismund repeated an old doggerel about the three Emperors Otto, which
afforded him a pun on the eight days of the prolongation.
Sigismund and the ambassadors of France united in
urging the Council to give Eugenius IV a security that no proceedings would be
taken affecting his title to the Papacy. Words ran high on this proposal, and
at length, on November 7, Sigismund's persistency succeeded in extorting from
the Council a further term of ninety days, within which the Pope was to explain
the ambiguities in his decrees by revoking anything which could be
construed to the derogation or prejudice of the Council.
In the interval Sigismund urged the Council to proceed
with the question of reform, a matter which had been making little progress
during the excitement of this conflict with the Pope. The only point inwhich
the Council had taken up reform was to use it as a Weapon against the Pope. On
July 13 a decree had been passed abolishing reservations and provisions except
in the domain of the Holy See, and enacting that elections should be made only
by those to whom the right belonged, and that no dues be paid for Papal
confirmation. This was merely an onslaught on the Pope’s revenues, and was
scarcely meant seriously. In answer to Sigismund's exhortations the Council
embodied, in a decree on November 26, the only point on which there was
agreement, the revival of the synodal system of the Church. The Council’s
scheme of reform was to extend the conciliar system to all parts of the
ecclesiastical organization. By means of diocesan synods the bishops were to
put down heresies and remedy scandals in their respective dioceses, and were to
be themselves restrained by provincial synods, whose activity was to be in turn
ensured by the recurrence of General Councils. It was on all grounds easier to
agree on machinery which was to deal with questions in the future than to amend
abuses in the present.
Even this measure of reform was secondary to a violent
dispute which convulsed the Council concerning precedence in seats at the
sessions between the ambassadors of the Imperial Electors and those of the Duke
of Burgundy. So keen was the contention that it almost prevented the solemn
celebration of the Christmas services, and was only ended in July, 1434, by
assigning a separate bench to the representatives of the Electors immediately
below the Cardinals, and arranging that the Burgundian envoys should sit next
to those of kings. This burning question was further complicated by the claims
of the envoys of the Duke of Brittany to be as good as those of the Duke of
Burgundy; at last it was arranged that the Burgundians should sit on the right,
the Bretons on the left.
In the middle of the controversy came envoys from
Eugenius IV, on January 30, 1434, announcing that he had at last given way.
They brought a Bull revoking all previous Bulls against the Council,
acknowledging its legitimacy from its beginning, and declaring fully the Pope’s
adhesion to it. Great was Sigismund's joy at this triumph of his mediatorial
policy. Great was the relief of all parties at Basel when, in the sixteenth
session on February 3, the Council decreed that Eugenius IV had fully satisfied
their admonition and summons. It was under the pressure of necessity that
Eugenius IV had given way. His impetuous rashness had raised up enemies against
him on every side. He had begun his pontificate by attacking the powerful
family of the Colonna. He had plunged into Italian politics as a strong friend
of Venice, and thereby had drawn upon himself the animosity of the wily Duke of
Milan. With these elements of disturbance at his doors he had not hesitated to
bid defiance to a Council which had the support of the whole of Christendom.
Basel had become in consequence the resort of the personal and political
enemies of the Pope, and on Sigismund's departure from Rome Eugenius was
threatened in his own city. The Duke of Milan sent against him the condottiere
Niccolo de Fortebracchio, nephew of Braccio da Montone, who on August 25, 1433,
captured Ponte Molle. The Pope fled for safety to the Church of S. Lorenzo in
Damaso, and in vain called for help. Fortebracchio, aided by the Colonna party,
took possession of Tivoli and styled himself 'the General of the Holy Council'.
Francesco Sforza, won over to the side of the Duke of Milan by the promise of
the hand of his natural daughter Bianca, invaded the March of Ancona, and
scornfully dated his letters ‘invito Petro at Paulo’, ‘against the will of
Peter and Paul’. The Duke of Milan was supported by the Council, which
Sigismund in vain tried to interest in the pacification of Italy. The name of
the Council lent a colourable pretext to all acts of aggression. Eugenius IV
found himself destitute of allies. Never had the Papacy been in a more helpless
condition. No course was possible except submission.
Accordingly Eugenius IV made his peace with the
Council, and then proceeded to face his enemies at home. He detached Francesco
Sforza from the side of Milan by appointing him, on March 25, Vicar of the
March of Ancona which he had overrun. Sforza willingly exchanged the dubious
promises of Filippo Maria Visconti for an assured position. But the Duke of
Milan sent to the aid of Fortebracchio the condottiere Niccolo Piccinino;
before their superior forces Sforza was driven to retire, and the blockade of
Rome was continued. The sufferings of a siege were more than the Romans cared
to endure for the sake of an unpopular Pope. It was easy for the foes of
Eugenius IV to raise the people in rebellion.
A crowd flocked to S. Maria in Trastevere, whither
Eugenius had retired for safety, to lay their grievances before the Pope. They
were referred to his nephew, the Cardinal Francesco Correr, who listened to
them with haughty indifference. When they complained of the loss of their
cattle, he answered that they busied themselves too much about cattle; the
Venetians who had none led a much more refined and civilized life. The remark
might be true, but it was not consoling. The people resolved to take matters
into their own hands, and on the evening of May 29 raised the old cry of “The people
and freedom!”, stormed the Capitol, and set up once more their old republic
under seven governors. Next day they demanded of the Pope that he should hand
over to them the castles of S. Angelo and Ostia, give them his nephew as a
hostage, and come himself to take up his abode in the palace of his predecessor
by the Church of SS. Apostoli. When Eugenius refused, his nephew was dragged
away by force in spite of his entreaties, and he was threatened with
imprisonment. Eugenius heard that the palace of SS. Apostoli was being prepared
for his custody, and he knew that there he would be the prisoner of
the Council and the Duke of Milan.
There was no escape except by flight, which was
difficult, as his abode was closely guarded. At last a pirate of Ischia, Vitellio,
who had a ship at Ostia, was prevailed upon to help the Pope in his need. His
Florence, aid was secured just in time, as on the evening of June 4 the Pope
was to be removed to the palace of SS. Apostoli. At midday, when everyone
was taking his siesta, Eugenius and one of his attendants, disguised as
Benedictine monks, escaped the vigilance of the sleepy guards, mounted a couple
of mules and rode to the Tiber bank, where a small dirty boat was prepared for
them. A few bishops professed to be waiting for an audience with the Pope, so
as to lull the suspicion of his guards. But the two mules left riderless on the
bank, and the unwonted energy of the rowers, made the spectators give the
alarm. The people of Trastevere gave chase along the bank, hurling stones and
shooting arrows at the boat. The wind was contrary, the bark was crazy, the
crowd of pursuers increased along both banks; Eugenius lay at the bottom of the
boat covered by a shield. When the Church of S. Paolo was passed, and the river
became broader, the fugitives hoped that their danger was over; but the Romans
ran on before, and seized a fishing boat, which, filled with armed men, they
laid across the stream. Luckily for Eugenius his boat was commanded by one
of the pirate’s crew whose courage was equal to the occasion. In vain the
Romans hurled their darts, and promised him large sums of money if he would
deliver up the Pope. He ordered his boat to charge the enemy. Their boat was
old and rotten, and they feared the encounter. The prow turned aside
and the Pope’s boat shot safely past. Eugenius could now rise from his covering
of shields, and sit upright with a sigh of thankfulness. He reached Ostia in
safety and went on board the pirate's ship. There he was joined by a few
members of the Curia who had succeeded in fleeing. He sailed to Pisa and thence
made his way to Florence, where he was honorably received on June 23, and like
his predecessor, Martin V, took up his abode in the cloister of S. Maria
Novella. There he could reflect that his inconsiderate obstinacy had endangered
at Basel his spiritual supremacy, and handed over his temporal possessions to
the condottieri of the Duke of Milan.
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