THE KING OF FRANCE SENDS AMBASSADORS TO POPE NICHOLAS V.—THE TOWN OF FINAL[143] IS BESIEGED BY THE GENOESE.—IT IS REVICTUALLED BY SEA.—THE DUKE OF ORLEANS MAKES PREPARATIONS TO RAISE THIS SIEGE BY LAND.
IN the year 1448, the king of France celebrated the feast of Easter in the city of Tours,—and immediately after, his ambassadors to pope Nicholas departed on their embassy. Some of them went by sea on board of vessels belonging to Jacques Coeur, master of the wardrobe to the king, and embarked at Marseilles. At the same time, a fleet of victuallers sailed from Marseilles, to the relief of the town and castle of Final, near to Genoa, then besieged by the Genoese. It was defended for the king by sir Galiot du Garet[144], lord of the place, who had made war on the Genoese, and they in return had besieged him. Notwithstanding their opposition, the town and castle were revictualled, and the vessels returned to Marseilles.
When this was done, Tanneguy and the master of the wardrobe, with three galleys, sailed for a port near Rome called Finette Vielle[145], where they arrived in safety, although pursued closely by a numerous fleet of the Genoese.
The duke of Orleans was at this time in his town of Asti, and having heard of the relief thrown into Final collected a large body of men to raise the siege: but when the Genoese learnt his intentions, they quitted their siege and marched away.
The french ambassadors met, by appointment in the city of Sienne; and, being all assembled, they set out for Rome, where they arrived on the 10th day of July in such grand magnificence that the like had not been seen or heard of before: with the king of France's ambassadors were those from the king of Sicily and the dauphin.
The english ambassadors had arrived at Rome long before them, and had laid before the pope the articles that had been agreed to at Geneva; but he had replied, that they were unworthy of his attention, and that he would not by any means consent to them. These ambassadors had on this left Rome for Viterbo, where they met the french embassy, to whom they related what had passed, and said that they would stay a short time at Viterbo, to learn from them whether it would be expedient for them to return to Rome,—as in fact they did, from the intelligence they received from the french ambassadors.
On the 12th day of July, the ambassadors from the kings of France, of Sicily, and from the dauphin, had an audience of the pope, on the matters they were come upon,—when the archbishop of Rheims, having declared the solemn obedience of their princes to the pope, explained the articles that had been agreed on as a ground-work for a general union of the church, reserving to himself to discuss them hereafter more fully in detail.
The pope made them a solemn answer, and from that day treated them with greater kindness and attention than ever any former embassy had experienced. They had several conferences with the pope and the cardinals on the articles of union,—to some of which the pope agreed, to others not.
When they had obtained all they could from the pope, they departed, and went to Lausanne, where pope Felix resided. Having explained to him all they had done at Rome, and what pope Nicholas was willing to agree to, they persuaded him to give peace to the church by renouncing his claims to the papacy. Pope Felix replied, that he would consult with the duke of Savoy his son who was on his road to Lausanne, and his principal counsellors, how he should act, and requested the ambassadors to wait the return of those he intended to send to the king of France in the city of Geneva, which, for the furtherance of peace, they assented to. They also, in compliance with the wishes of pope Felix, desired the lord de Tollette, ambassador from pope Nicholas, to come to Lausanne from Lyons, where he was waiting the effect of their conferences with pope Felix, with the bulls, to publish them, in case he should agree to the articles as settled at Rome.
Pope Felix, and his son the duke of Savoy, lost no time in dispatching ambassadors to king Charles, to solicit his interference with pope Nicholas, that he would consent to more of the original articles than he had done. The king on this, assembled his council, and, after mature deliberation, it was resolved to send other ambassadors with those from Savoy, to assist the archbishop of Rheims in the procuring a peace. He had with him the patriarch of Antioch, the bishop of Poitiers and the bishop of Alet, who, with sir John le Boursier, were to proceed to Rome to obtain certain letters, the form of which they were to draw up, for the more speedy accomplishment of union in the church.
After many persuasions, the above mentioned letters were obtained from pope Nicholas, and the ambassadors returned with them to Lausanne, when pope Felix V. relinquished all right or claim he might have to the papacy. He was after this, made perpetual legate of all Savoy. Those who had assembled at Lausanne, pretending to be the general council transferred from Basil, declared their submission to pope Nicholas as the true father of the church, and dissolved their assembly as a council.
This being done, the ambassadors returned to their respective princes. The patriarch of Antioch, the bishop of Alet, and sir John le Boursier, took the road to Rome, with the ambassadors from the pope, for the confirmation of all the acts done at Lausanne, and then returned to the king of France with the bulls of confirmation. Thus was this whole assembly broken up, and each went whithersoever he pleased,—and thus was healed that deep wound in the church, by the re-establishment of peace and union, through the indefatigable exertions of the king of France, who had taken great personal pains to bring it about, and had expended very large sums in sending embassies to the different kings in Christendom to unite them in so praiseworthy an object; for the kings of France would never support any schisms,—taking for their guide the holy scriptures, which have always led them in the right way.
At this time, the king of France ordered every parish throughout his realm to have one archer ready armed to march whithersoever he might be commanded, to make war, should there be occasion; and that they might the more readily obey this order, they would be relieved from paying any future subsidies. The bailiffs were commanded to select the most expert and able in all the parishes throughout their bailiwicks.