The solemn festivity which the magistrates30 were accustomed to hold in the H?tel de Ville, a banquet, always presided over by the Governor-General, was about to take place. D. John received several warnings not to attend it, as something was being contrived31 against his person; but he, even more afraid of showing that he distrusted the magistrates, came to occupy his place, accompanied by eighty musketeers of his guard, who had orders that, happen what might, they were to wound nobody. Half-way through the banquet a crowd of seditious people attacked the H?tel de Ville, intending to enter by force, uttering insults and threats against the Austrian. The musketeers drove them back without wounding any, but many of them were hurt. D. John retired32 with those who remained uninjured, leaving the magistrates to deal with the guilty ones, but they overlooked this and let them go free, to show D. John that they did not consider an affront33 to his person worth punishing. Then it came to D. John's knowledge that the Baron34 of Hesse and Count de Lalaing, with two other great lords, confirmed heretics, had assembled one night in the house of another noble, and had arranged with the English ambassador and more than 500 neighbours to take D. John at the first opportunity and to kill him if he resisted. They thought that the procession of the Holy Sacrament, called in Brussels the "Miracle," might afford a good one. It took place on the 3rd of July and was always presided over by the Governor-General. D. John did not wish to break with the States, who were consenting to all this, and preferred to avoid the danger by going to Mechlin on the pretence35 of settling the pay of the German troops, who were asking for their money, which was in arrears36. But his friends did not think him safe there and so they told him; because the conspirators37, furious at their prey38 having escaped them, armed the militia39 and took the road to Luxemburg, which was a quiet place where D. John and Alexander Farnese could take refuge, and to which the Spanish troops could return. With great patience D. John thought it wise still to dissimulate40, and found another plausible41 excuse for leaving Mechlin and not returning to Brussels and getting nearer to a strong and safe place. He went to Namur, very quietly and calmly, to receive the Queen of Navarre, Margaret of Valois, who was passing in order to take the waters of Spa at Liége. This lady was the celebrated42 Queen Margot, first wife of Henry IV of France, then at the summit of her vaunted beauty and in the waxing period of her coquetry, which at last degenerated43, as it generally does, into shameless and complete dissoluteness.
Queen Margot entered Namur on the 24th of July in a litter entirely44 made of glass, a present from D. John of Austria. The glass of the litter was engraved45 with forty verses in Spanish and Italian, all alluding46 to the sun and its effects, to which the poet gallantly47 compared the beautiful Queen. D. John rode on her right, and their persons were guarded by the forty archers48 who surrounded them; they were preceded by a company of arquebusiers on horseback and one hundred Germans forming two lines, and were followed by the Princess de la Roche sur Yonne and Mme. de Tournon in litters; ten maids of honour, as pretty, coquettish and flighty as their mistress, were riding amid a crowd of gentlemen, who waited on them and flirted49 with them; six coaches were in the rear with the rest of the ladies, and the female servants and an escort of lancers on horseback.
Queen Margot stayed four days in Namur, entertained all the time magnificently by D. John; at eleven o'clock they dined in one of the delicious gardens of the place, and then danced till the hour of vespers, which they went devoutly50 to attend in some convent of friars. Then they went for a ride and supped at six o'clock, also out of doors in the gardens, when more dancing followed, or romantic walks by the river in the moonlight with delightful51 music. The Bishop52 of Liége, who had come there, was present at all these gatherings53, also the Canons and a crowd of native and foreign gentlemen, among whom Margot made her treacherous54 propaganda, because this bad woman, (as she always was in many ways) was in connivance55 with the Prince of Orange, and was working secretly in favour of her brother the Duke of Alen?on, whom Orange wished to appoint Governor of Flanders, D. John being a prisoner or dead. Margot knew this, and she, being very much taken with him and not wishing any harm to befall him, gave him several very useful warnings; through her he knew that the conspirators of Brussels had plans for carrying out their evil designs there in Namur, and then it was that, in agreement with the loyal Count of Barlaimont and his sons, he resolved to retire to the castle of Namur and break with the States.
He was, however, ignorant of the number of the soldiers in the castle, and how far it was safe to count on the Governor de Ives; time pressed and he then formed a scheme, the execution of which Vander Hammen refers to as follows: "Mos. de Hierges, eldest56 son of the Count of Barlaimont, said that he would go to sleep that night at the castle, as Mos. de Ives, the Governor, was a great friend of his; and that His Highness would come next morning to hunt, and as he passed, if he thought he could install himself in the castle, he would put his hand to his beard as a signal, and if not he was to commend himself to God and fly. They agreed on the plan and executed it the following day, without telling the Council of the States or the deputies or trusting them. He therefore pretended to go hunting, and passing by the gate of the castle asked what it was. They answered, 'One of the best in Flanders.' Monsieur de Barlaimont then said, 'My eldest son is there: would Y.H. like us to see if he wishes to go hunting?' D. John stopped and ordered him to be called. He came to the gate; His Highness asked why he had gone to sleep at a castle and had left the town, and then they began a conversation. In the middle of it he said, 'If you like to see it, it is still early and it will please them greatly,' and made the sign. D. John turned to the Duke of Arschot and the Marquis de Havré, and said to them, 'It is early, let us see it.' With this he reached the door and dismounted, carrying a pistol he had taken from the saddle-bow. Twenty-four Spanish lackeys57 preceded him. As relations were not ruptured58, Mos. de Ives ordered the few Walloons (they were old soldiers, wearied by long wars) to open the door, and the twenty-four lackeys entered and disarmed59 the guard. The Lord D. John, standing60 at the door, said, 'All who are servants of the King, my Lord, come here to me,' and turning to Ives, he told him 'not to fear, because he had taken the castle for the King, his Lord, to whom it belonged, to free himself from a conspiracy61 formed against him.' He gave him the keys and permission to leave to all those who did not wish to stay with him. Nobody stirred, all mounted with him. Upstairs he took Arschot and Havré on one side, and told them all that had passed and the treaty they had made, and showed them his letters. The Duke, being convinced, offered, in the name of the States, to acknowledge him Lord of Flanders, and said that all would readily obey him if he liked to take them as vassals62; but the Lord D. John reproved him very severely63 for the offer, and said many angry words. It was only his courage and loyalty64 which could do so heroic an action and resist such a great temptation. The talk ended by the two leaving the castle and going to the town, where their wives were; but on reaching it they, also Mos. de Capres and the soldiers who had come to capture His Highness fled, so hurriedly, that they scarcely collected their clothes, saying that there was nothing further to do there as he had escaped them. D. John's chief almoner, the Abbot de Meroles, who was crafty65 and untrustworthy, followed them with a few others. D. John heard of the flight of the Duke and the Marquis, and at once sent Octavio Gonzaga after them, with rather more than twenty gentlemen, to make them return, but they fled in such good earnest that he could not overtake them."
The Duchess of Arschot and the Marchioness of Havré, who were at Namur, indignant at the bad conduct of their husbands, wrote to D. John protesting and offering themselves as hostages. He answered that his mission was to serve ladies, not to make them captive, and sent them 600 crowns, so that they might rejoin their husbands. So impoverished66 was D. John that to obtain this money he had to borrow from the gentlemen and servants who had followed him. Bad as this was, the worst part of D. John's situation was that Philip II persisted in upholding that policy of peace, which was encouraging the States more and more, forbidding the Spanish regiments67 to return to Flanders to continue the war, which D. John thought absolutely necessary, and as a means of forcing him to this obedience68, against his opinions and wishes Philip adopted the plan of sending no money whatever to Flanders or answering the frequent and despairing letters the poor Prince wrote, which, after four centuries, give one pain to read. But what was the most extraordinary, and which immersed D. John in a sea of fears and perplexities and made him foresee grave catastrophes69, was that his false friend Antonio Pérez did not write either, and the good and loyal Escovedo preserved the same silence.
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1 followers | |
追随者( follower的名词复数 ); 用户; 契据的附面; 从动件 | |
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2 determined | |
adj.坚定的;有决心的 | |
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3 calumnies | |
n.诬蔑,诽谤,中伤(的话)( calumny的名词复数 ) | |
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4 maliciously | |
adv.有敌意地 | |
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5 enjoined | |
v.命令( enjoin的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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6 confided | |
v.吐露(秘密,心事等)( confide的过去式和过去分词 );(向某人)吐露(隐私、秘密等) | |
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7 mischievous | |
adj.调皮的,恶作剧的,有害的,伤人的 | |
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8 traitor | |
n.叛徒,卖国贼 | |
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9 apostasy | |
n.背教,脱党 | |
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10 infamous | |
adj.声名狼藉的,臭名昭著的,邪恶的 | |
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11 perfidious | |
adj.不忠的,背信弃义的 | |
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12 intrigues | |
n.密谋策划( intrigue的名词复数 );神秘气氛;引人入胜的复杂情节v.搞阴谋诡计( intrigue的第三人称单数 );激起…的好奇心 | |
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13 effrontery | |
n.厚颜无耻 | |
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14 persecuting | |
(尤指宗教或政治信仰的)迫害(~sb. for sth.)( persecute的现在分词 ); 烦扰,困扰或骚扰某人 | |
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15 clergy | |
n.[总称]牧师,神职人员 | |
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16 monks | |
n.修道士,僧侣( monk的名词复数 ) | |
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17 nuns | |
n.(通常指基督教的)修女, (佛教的)尼姑( nun的名词复数 ) | |
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18 cannon | |
n.大炮,火炮;飞机上的机关炮 | |
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19 confiscating | |
没收(confiscate的现在分词形式) | |
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20 partisans | |
游击队员( partisan的名词复数 ); 党人; 党羽; 帮伙 | |
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21 doctrines | |
n.教条( doctrine的名词复数 );教义;学说;(政府政策的)正式声明 | |
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22 insolence | |
n.傲慢;无礼;厚颜;傲慢的态度 | |
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23 usurped | |
篡夺,霸占( usurp的过去式和过去分词 ); 盗用; 篡夺,篡权 | |
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24 mutual | |
adj.相互的,彼此的;共同的,共有的 | |
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25 hatred | |
n.憎恶,憎恨,仇恨 | |
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26 barefaced | |
adj.厚颜无耻的,公然的 | |
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27 allusive | |
adj.暗示的;引用典故的 | |
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28 arrogant | |
adj.傲慢的,自大的 | |
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29 magistrate | |
n.地方行政官,地方法官,治安官 | |
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30 magistrates | |
地方法官,治安官( magistrate的名词复数 ) | |
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31 contrived | |
adj.不自然的,做作的;虚构的 | |
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32 retired | |
adj.隐退的,退休的,退役的 | |
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33 affront | |
n./v.侮辱,触怒 | |
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34 baron | |
n.男爵;(商业界等)巨头,大王 | |
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35 pretence | |
n.假装,作假;借口,口实;虚伪;虚饰 | |
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36 arrears | |
n.到期未付之债,拖欠的款项;待做的工作 | |
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37 conspirators | |
n.共谋者,阴谋家( conspirator的名词复数 ) | |
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38 prey | |
n.被掠食者,牺牲者,掠食;v.捕食,掠夺,折磨 | |
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39 militia | |
n.民兵,民兵组织 | |
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40 dissimulate | |
v.掩饰,隐藏 | |
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41 plausible | |
adj.似真实的,似乎有理的,似乎可信的 | |
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42 celebrated | |
adj.有名的,声誉卓著的 | |
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43 degenerated | |
衰退,堕落,退化( degenerate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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44 entirely | |
ad.全部地,完整地;完全地,彻底地 | |
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45 engraved | |
v.在(硬物)上雕刻(字,画等)( engrave的过去式和过去分词 );将某事物深深印在(记忆或头脑中) | |
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46 alluding | |
提及,暗指( allude的现在分词 ) | |
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47 gallantly | |
adv. 漂亮地,勇敢地,献殷勤地 | |
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48 archers | |
n.弓箭手,射箭运动员( archer的名词复数 ) | |
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49 flirted | |
v.调情,打情骂俏( flirt的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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50 devoutly | |
adv.虔诚地,虔敬地,衷心地 | |
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51 delightful | |
adj.令人高兴的,使人快乐的 | |
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52 bishop | |
n.主教,(国际象棋)象 | |
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53 gatherings | |
聚集( gathering的名词复数 ); 收集; 采集; 搜集 | |
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54 treacherous | |
adj.不可靠的,有暗藏的危险的;adj.背叛的,背信弃义的 | |
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55 connivance | |
n.纵容;默许 | |
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56 eldest | |
adj.最年长的,最年老的 | |
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57 lackeys | |
n.听差( lackey的名词复数 );男仆(通常穿制服);卑躬屈膝的人;被待为奴仆的人 | |
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58 ruptured | |
v.(使)破裂( rupture的过去式和过去分词 );(使体内组织等)断裂;使(友好关系)破裂;使绝交 | |
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59 disarmed | |
v.裁军( disarm的过去式和过去分词 );使息怒 | |
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60 standing | |
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的 | |
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61 conspiracy | |
n.阴谋,密谋,共谋 | |
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62 vassals | |
n.奴仆( vassal的名词复数 );(封建时代)诸侯;从属者;下属 | |
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63 severely | |
adv.严格地;严厉地;非常恶劣地 | |
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64 loyalty | |
n.忠诚,忠心 | |
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65 crafty | |
adj.狡猾的,诡诈的 | |
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66 impoverished | |
adj.穷困的,无力的,用尽了的v.使(某人)贫穷( impoverish的过去式和过去分词 );使(某物)贫瘠或恶化 | |
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67 regiments | |
(军队的)团( regiment的名词复数 ); 大量的人或物 | |
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68 obedience | |
n.服从,顺从 | |
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69 catastrophes | |
n.灾祸( catastrophe的名词复数 );灾难;不幸事件;困难 | |
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