attachment of his friends, the gratitude of his countrymen, together with the fupport of the emperor, all confpired to facilitate his attaining the fupreme authority, and invited him to lay hold of it. But with a magnanimity of which there are few examples, he facrificed all thoughts of aggrandizing himself to the virtuous fatisfaction of eftablishing liberty in his country, the highest object at which ambition can aim. Having affembled the whole body of the people in the court before his palace, he affured them, that the happiness of feeing them once more in poffeffion of freedom, was to him a full reward for all his fervices; that more delighted with the name of citizen than of fovereign, he claimed no pre-eminence or power above his equals; but remitted entirely to them the right of fettling what form of government they would now chufe to be established among to them. The people liftened to him with tears of admiration, and of joy. Twelve perfons were elected to new-model the conftitution of the republick. The influence of Doria's virtue and example, communicated itself to his countrymen ; the factions which had long torn and ruined the ftates feemed to be forgotten; prudent precautions were taken to prevent their reviving; and the fame form of government, which hath fubfifted with little variation fince that time in Genoa, was established with univerfal applause. Doria lived to a great age, beloved, refpected, and honoured by his countrymen; and adhering uniformly to his profeffions of moderation, without arrogating any thing unbecoming a private citizen, he preferved a

The au

great afcendant over the councils of the republic, which owed its being to his generofity. thority he poffeffed was more flattering, as well as more fatisfactory, than that derived from fovereignty; a dominion founded in love and in gratitude; and upheld by veneration for his virtues, not by the dread of his power. His memory is still reverenced by the Genoefe, and he is diftinguished in their publick monuments, and celebrated in the works of their hiftorians by the most honourable of all appellations, THE FATHER OF HIS COUNTRY, AND THE

RESTORER OF ITS LIBERTY.

The life and character of Francis the Firft, fummarily compared with thofe of his great rival and antagonift Charles V. From the fame.

RANCIS died at Rambouillet,

Du

on the laft day of March, in the fifty-third year of his age, and the thirty-third of his reign. ring twenty-eight years of that time, an avowed rivalship fubfifted between him and. the Emperor, which involved not only their own dominions, but the greater part of Europe in wars, profecuted with more violent animofity, and drawn out to a greater length than had been known in any former period. Many circumftances contributed to both. Their animofity was founded in oppofition of interest, heightened, by perfonal emulation, and exafperated not only by mutual injuries, but by reciprocal infults. At the fame time, whatever advantage one feemed to poffefs towards gaining the afcendant, was wonderfully ballanced by fome favourable circum

ftance

ftance peculiar to the other. The Emperor's dominions were of great extent; the French king's lay more compact; Francis governed his kingdom with abfolute power; that of Charles was limited, but he fupplied the want of authority by adrefs; the troops of the former were more impetuous and enterprizing; thofe of the latter better difciplined, and more patient of fatigue. The talents and abilities of the two monarchs, were as diffe rent as the advantages which they poffeffed, and contributed no lefs to prolong the contest between them. Francis took his refolutions fuddenly, profecuted them at firft with warmth, and pushed them into execution with a moft adventrous courage; but being deftitute of the perfeverance neceffary to furmount difficulties, he often abandoned his defigns, or relaxed the vigour of purfuit, from impatience, and fometimes from levity. Charles deliberated long, and determined with coolnefs; but, having once fixed his plan, he adhered to it with inflexible obftinacy, and neither danger nor difcouragement could turn him afide from the execution of it. The fuccefs of their enterprizes was as different as their characters, and was uniformly influenced by them. Francis, by his impetuous activity, often difconcerted the Emperor's beft laid fchemes; Charles, by a more calm but fteady profecution of his defigns, checked the rapidity of his rival's career, and baffled or repulfed his most vigorous efforts. The former, at the opening of a var or of a campaign, broke in upon his enemy with the violence of a torrent, and carried all before him; the latter, waiting until he

faw the force of his rival begin to abate, recovered in the end not only all that he had loft, but made new acquifitions. Few of the French monarch's attempts towards conqueft, whatever promising aspect they might wear at firft, were conducted to an happy iffue; many of the Emperor's enterprizes, even after they appeared defperate and impracticable, terminated in the most profperous manner. Francis was dazzled with the splendour of an undertaking; Charles was allured by the profpect of its turning to his advantage. The degree, however, of their comparative merit and reputation, has not been fixed either by a strict scrutiny into their abilities for government, or by an impartial confideration of the greatnefs and fuccefs of their undertakings; and Francis is one of thofe monarchs who occupies a higher rank in the temple of fame, than either his talents or performances intitle him to hold. This pre-eminence he owed to many different circumftances. The fuperiority which Charles acquired by the victory of Pavia, and which from that period he preferved thro' the remainder of his reign, was fo manifeft, that Francis's ftruggle against his exorbitant and growing dominion was viewed by most of the other powers, not only with the partiality which naturally arifes for those who gallantly maintain an unequal contest, but with the favour due to one who was refifting a common enemy, and endeavouring to fet bounds to a monarch equally formidable to them all. The characters of princes, too, efpecially among their contemporaries, depend not only upon their talents for for government, but upon their

qualities

qualities as men. Francis, notwithitanding the many errors confpicuous in his foreign policy and domestic adminiftration, was nevertheless humane, beneficent, generous. He poffeffed dignity without pride; affability free from meannefs; and courtesy exempt from deceit. All who had accefs to him, and no man of merit was ever denied that privilege, refpected and loved him. Captivated with his perfonal qualities, his fubjects forgot his defects as a monarch, and admiring him as the most accomplished and amiable gentleman in his dominions, they never murmured at acts of male-adminiftration, which in a prince of lefs engaging difpofitions would have been deemed unpardonable. This admiration, however, must have been temporary only, and would have died away with the courtiers who beftowed it; the illufion arifing from his private virtues must have ceased, and pofterity would have judged of his public conduct with its ufual impartiality; but another circumftance prevented this, and his name hath been tranfmitted to pofterity with increasing reputation. Science and the arts had, at that time, made little progress in France. They were just beginning to advance beyond the limits of Italy, where they had revived, and which had hitherto been their only feat. Francis took them immediately under his protection, and vied with Leo himself, in the zeal and munifi

men, not more prone to complain when denied the respect to which they fancy themfelves entitled, than apt to be pleased when treated with the diftinction which they confider as their due, thought they could not exceed in gratitude to fuch a benefactor, and strained their invention, and employed all their ingenuity in panegyric. Succeeding authors, warmed with their defcriptions of Francis's bounty, adopted their encomiums, and refined upon them. The appellation of Father of Letters bestowed upon Francis, hath rendered his memory facred among hiftorians, and they feem to have regarded it as a fort of impiety to uncover his infirmities, or to point out his defects. Thus Francis, notwithstanding his inferior abilities, and want of fuccefs, hath more than equalled the fame of Charles. The virtues which he poffeffed as a man, have entitled him to greater admiration and praife, than have been bestowed upon the extenfive genius, and fortunate arts of a more capable, but lefs amiable rival.

The following short characters, which contain many curious anecdotes, are taken from Mr. Granger's Biographical Hiftory of England.

them. He invited learned men to his court, he converfed with them familiarly, he employed them in bufinefs, he raised them to offices of dignity, and honoured them with his confidence. That race of

original.

MARY, queen of France, and CHARLES BRANDON, duke of Suffolk; G. Vertue fc. From an original in the poffeffion of the late

"Cloth of gold, do not despise, "Tho' thou be matched with cloth "" of frize:

"Cloth of frize, be not too bold, "Tho' thou be match'd with cloth "of gold." Large fh.

Mary queen of France, youngest fifter to Henry VIII. was one of the most beautiful women of her age. It is pretty clear that Charles Brandon gained her affections before she was married to Lewis XII. as, foon after the death of that monarch, which was in about three months after his marriage, fhe plainly told him, that if he did not free her from all her fcruples within a certain time, fhe would never marry him. His cafuiftry fucceeded within the time limited, and fhe became his wife. This was probably with the king's connivance. It is however certain, that no other fubject durft have ventured upon a queen of France, and a fifter of the implacable Henry the Eighth. Ob. 1533.

Charles Brandon was remarkable for the dignity and gracefulness of his perfon, and his robuft and athletic conftitution. He diftinguished himself in tilts and tournaments, the favourite exercises of Henry. He was brought up with that prince, ftudied his difpofition, and exactly conformed to it. That conformity gradually brought on a ftricter intimacy; and the king, to bring him nearer to himself, raifed him from a private person to a duke.

Sir THOMAS CHALONER.

HIS gallant foldier attend

TH

ed Charles V. in his wars; particularly in his unfortunate expedition to Algiers.. Soon after the fleet left that place, he was fhipwrecked on the coast of Barbary, in a very dark night; and having exhaufted his ftrength by fwimming, he chanced to strike his head against a cable, which he had the prefence of mind to catch hold of with his teeth; and with the lòfs of several of them, was drawn up by it into the fhip to which he belonged. The duke of Somerset, who was an eyewitness of his diftinguished bravery at Muffelburgh, rewarded him with the honour of knighthood.

So various were the talents of Sir Thomas Chaloner, that he excelled in every thing to which he applied himself. He made a confiderable figure as a poet. His poetical works were published by William Malim, mafter of St. Paul's school in 1579. His capital work was that of reftoring the English Republic, in ten books, which he wrote when he was ambaffador in Spain, in the reign of Elizabeth. It is remarkable that this great man, who knew how to tranfact, as well as to write upon the most important affairs of states and kingdoms, could defcend to compofe a dictionary for children, and to translate from the Latin a book of the office of fervants, merely for the utility of the fubjects. Ob. 7. O&. 1565. He was father of Sir Thomas Chaloner, tutor to prince Henry.

Sir

Sir PHILIP SIDNEY.

IR Philip Sidney was governor of Flushing, and general of the horfe under his uncle the earl of Leicester. His valour, which was efteemed his moft fhining quality, was not exceeded by any of the heroes of his age: but even this was equalled by his humanity. After he had received his death's wound at the battle of Zutphen, and was overcome with thirst from exceffive bleeding, he called for drink, which was presently brought him. At the fame time, a poor foldier was carried along defperately wounded, who fixed his eager eyes upon the bottle, juft as he was lifting it to his mouth; upon which he instantly delivered it to him, with these words: " Thy neceffity " is yet greater than mine*."

This accomplished gentleman feems to have been the delight and admiration of the age of Eliza beth, rather for the variety, than the greatness of his genius. He that was the ornament of the univerfity, was alfo the ornament of the court; and appeared with equal advantage in a field of battle, or at a tournament; in a private converfation among his friends, or in a public character as an ambassador. His talents were equally adapted to profe or verfe, to original compofition, or translation. His Ar"cadia" was not only admired for its novelty, but continued to

IR Walter Raleigh ferved in the

wars in the Low-Countries, and in Ireland; and was afterwards employed in discoveries in the WestIndies, and in the improvement of navigation, to which his genius was ftrongly inclined. In 1584 he difcovered Virginia, to which he made no lefs than five voyages. He was one of the most diftinguished officers on board the fleet which engaged the Armada. He was conftantly employed in literary purs fuits at fea and land. His learning was continually improved into habits of life, and helped greatly to advance his knowledge of men and things; and he became a better foldier, a better fea-officer, an abler ftatefman, and a more accomplished courtier, in proportion as he was a better fcholar.

Sir Walter Raleigh was author of "The Hiftory of the World;" the defign of which was equal to the greatnefs of his mind, and the execution to the strength of his parts,

and

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