‘“O Goddess, thou that knowest what is hidden in my heart, witness how hard it was for me not to take my own life after the death of my dear husband, and with what weariness I have sustained the grief of remaining in this bitter life, which has held for me no advantage or pleasure other than the hope of the revenge which I know has been accomplished. Now, with joy and contentment, I go to seek the sweet company of the spirit whom I have loved in life and in death more than myself. And you, wretched man, who thought to be my husband, give orders that your tomb be prepared for you in place of the marriage bed, for I offer you as a sacrifice to the shade of Synattus.”
‘Aghast at these words and feeling already the effects of the poison at work, Sinoris sought various remedies, but with no success; and indeed before she died herself Camma enjoyed the good fortune, if such it was, of knowing that Sinoris was dead. After she had learned this, she lay down contentedly on her bed, and with her eyes raised to heaven, calling all the while the name of Synattus, she said: “O darling husband, now that I have given both tears and vengeance as my last offerings for your death, and cannot see what more remains to do for you, I leave this world and a life so cruel without you but once so dear solely because of you. Come to meet me, my lord, and receive this soul as eagerly as it seeks you.” And so saying, opening her arms as if to embrace him already, she died. And now, Frisio, tell us what you think of this woman?’
Answered Frisio: ‘I think you want to make the ladies weep. But even accepting the truth of your story, I tell you that such women are no longer to be found in the world.’
The Magnifico replied: ‘But they are indeed to be found; and to prove it, listen to this. In my time there was a gentleman living in Pisa who was called Tommaso; I do not recall his family, though I often heard them mentioned by my father, who was a great friend of his. This Tommaso, then, was one day making the crossing in a small boat from Pisa to Sicily, going about his business, when he was overtaken by some Moorish galleys which came up so suddenly that those in command of the boat did not see them; and, although the men on board fought back hard, since they were few and the enemy many the small boat and all those in her fell into the hands of the Moors, some wounded and others untouched, as their luck had it, and among them Tommaso who had fought bravely and killed with his own hands a brother of one of the captains of the galleys. As a consequence, angered, as you might imagine, by the loss of his brother, the captain demanded Tommaso for his own prisoner; and beating and torturing him every day he carried him off to Barbary, where he was resolved to keep him a captive for life, in great torment and suffering. After a time all the others, in one way or another, won their freedom, and they returned home to report to his wife, madonna Argentina, and to his children, the hard life and dreadful suffering in which Tommaso lived and would probably continue to live without hope, unless God saved him by a miracle. After his wife and family had been apprised of all this and had tried in various ways to secure his freedom, and when he himself was resigned to death, it came to pass that one of his sons, whose name was Paolo, emboldened and inspired by his anxious love for his father, contemptuous of all possible dangers, resolved either to liberate him or to die himself. He succeeded in doing what he wanted, bringing his father out so secretly that he was in Leghorn before it was realized in Barbary that he had gone. And from Leghorn, Tommaso, now safe, wrote to his wife explaining that he had been freed and where he was and that he hoped to see her the following day. Overwhelmed by the great and unexpected joy of being able to see again so soon the husband she had been convinced she would never meet again, and this through the enterprise and piety of her son, the good and gentle lady, after reading the letter, raised her eyes to heaven, called the name of her husband and then fell lifeless to the ground. Nor, for all the efforts that were made, did it prove possible to restore her soul to her body. This was surely a cruel spectacle, and enough to moderate our human desires and restrain us from longing too vehemently for complete and utter happiness!’
At this, Frisio said with a laugh:
‘How do you know that she didn’t die from vexation on learning that her husband was on his way home?’
The Magnifico retorted: ‘Because the rest of her life was not in keeping. On the contrary, I believe that her soul, not being able to bear waiting to see him through her bodily eyes, moved by desire, fled from her body to where, as she read that letter, her thoughts had already flown.’
Said signor Gaspare: ‘It could be that this lady was too much in love, for women always go to harmful extremes in everything; and you see that because she was too much in love she harmed herself, and her husband, and her children, whose rejoicing over his perilous and longed-for liberation she turned into bitterness. So you should not cite her as one of those women who have been the cause of so many blessings.’
The Magnifico answered: ‘I cite her as one of those who can bear witness that there are wives who love their husbands; as for those who have brought the world many blessings, I could tell you of an infinite number, and could include those fabled women of the ancient world and those such as Pallas and Ceres who have originated such things that they deserve to be hailed as goddesses. Then I could tell you about the sibyls, through whose mouth God spoke so often, revealing to the world things that were yet to come; and about those who have been the teachers of very great men, such as Aspasia and Diotima, who by her sacrifices delayed for ten years the plague that was to visit Athens. I could tell you of Nicostrata, mother of Evander, who taught letters to the Latins; and of yet another woman who was the teacher of the lyric poet, Pindar; and of Corinna and Sappho, who were such excellent poets.11 But I do not wish to go so far afield. I can say, however, forgetting the rest, that without doubt women were no less responsible for the greatness of Rome than men.’
‘And that,’ said signor Gaspare, ‘would be well worth hearing.’
‘Then listen,’ answered the Magnifico. ‘After the conquest of Troy, many Trojans who escaped from the devastation fled away, some in one direction, some another. Of these, one band, after being tossed by storms, came to Italy, to the spot where the Tiber enters the sea. After they had landed to search for their necessities, they began to explore the countryside; and then the women, who had remained in the ships, thought up by themselves a practical scheme that would mean the end of their long and perilous wanderings on the sea and win them a new homeland in place of the one they had lost. After they had conferred together, the men still being absent, they burned the ships; and the first woman to put her hand to this work was called Roma. However, they were afraid of the anger of their men, who were now returning, and so they went to meet them; and with a great show of affection, embracing and kissing, some their husbands and others their blood relations, they softened the first impulse of anger; and then they calmly explained the reason for their shrewd decision. Subsequently the Trojan men, partly because they had no choice and partly because they were kindly received by the native inhabitants, were more than pleased with what their women had done, and they settled there with the Latins in the place where Rome was eventually to be. And from this incident arose the ancient Roman custom by which the women kissed their relations whenever they met. So you see the great contribution made by these women to the founding of Rome.
‘And the Sabine women made no less a contribution to the expansion of Rome than did the Trojan women to its beginnings. For Romulus, after he had provoked widespread enmity among all his neighbours by carrying off their women, was harassed by attacks on every side. His prowess was such that from these wars he soon emerged triumphant, with the exception of his struggle with the Sabines, which was very bitter since their king, Titus Tatius, was exceptionally able and sagacious. Then after there had been a violent clash between the Romans and the Sabines, with very heavy losses on both sides, and a fresh and cruel conflict seemed imminent, the Sabine women, clothed in black, with their hair hanging loose and torn, weeping and lamenting, with no fear for the weapons already drawn to strik
e, went between their fathers and husbands, begging them not to stain their hands with the blood of their own in-laws; if they were displeased with the relationship between them, they added, they should turn their weapons against them, the women, since they far preferred to die than to live on as widows, or without fathers and brothers, remembering that their children were begotten of those who had slain their fathers or that they themselves were the daughters of those who had slain their husbands. Weeping and wailing, many of them were carrying in their arms little children who in some cases were already learning to form their words and who seemed to be trying to call out to their grandfathers and demonstrate their affection. And with tears in their eyes as they held the grandchildren out, the women cried:
‘“Look at your own blood, which you are seeking so wildly and angrily to shed with your own hands!”
‘The piety and wisdom of these women was in this instance so efficacious that not only did the two hostile kings make a pact of indissoluble friendship and alliance but, more wonderful still, the Sabines settled in Rome and the two peoples became one. And this agreement vastly increased the might of Rome, thanks to these shrewd and courageous women, to whom Romulus recorded his gratitude by giving to the thirty wards into which he divided the people the names of Sabine women.’12
After a moment’s pause, seeing that signor Gaspare was not going to speak, the Magnifico Giuliano added:
‘Doesn’t it seem to you that these women greatly benefited their menfolk and contributed to the greatness of Rome?’
‘Certainly, they deserved great praise,’ answered signor Gaspare. ‘But if you had seen fit to tell us of the sins of women as well as of their good deeds, you would not have kept silent about the way in which, during the war against Titus Tatius, a woman betrayed Rome and showed the enemy the route they should take to seize the Capitol, where the Romans barely escaped total destruction.’13
The Magnifico replied: ‘You refer me to a single wicked woman, whereas I have reminded you of any number of good ones; and in addition to those I have mentioned I could quote for my purpose a thousand other instances of the benefits that women have conferred on Rome; and I could tell you why a temple was once built to Venus Armata, and another to Venus Calva, and how the Festival of the Maidens was instituted in honour of Juno, because the slave-girls once delivered Rome from the threats of the enemy. But apart from all these things, did not that noble deed for which Cicero praised himself so highly, namely, the discovery of Catiline’s conspiracy, have its beginning chiefly with just a common woman? And because of this it could be said that she was the cause of all the benefits that Cicero boasts of having secured for the Republic of Rome.14 If I now had the time, I would also doubtless be able to show you that women have also often corrected the errors of men; but I fear my speech is already so long as to prove displeasing; so now that I have performed the task set me by these ladies, to the best of my ability, I propose to give way to someone who may say things more worth hearing than my remarks can be.’
At this, signora Emilia commented:
‘Do not rob women of the true praises that are owing to them; and remember that if signor Gaspare and perhaps signor Ottaviano find what you say displeasing we and all these other gentlemen hear you with pleasure.’
The Magnifico was still anxious to have done, but all the ladies began to beg him to continue; and so, with a smile, he added:
‘In order not to make Signor Gaspare more my enemy than he is already, I shall just mention briefly a few women whom I recall, leaving out many whom I could tell you of.’
Then he went on as follows: ‘When Philip,15 the son of Demetrius, was investing the city of Chios, during the siege he issued a proclamation that all the slaves who fled the city and joined him should have both their freedom and the wives of their masters. The anger of the women of Chios at this shameful proclamation was so intense that they themselves took to arms and flocked to the walls, where they fought so boldly that before long, to Philip’s shame and loss, they succeeded where their men had failed and put him to flight. These same women accomplished a deed no less glorious than this, when they came to Leuconia with their husbands, fathers and brothers, who were going into exile: the Erythraeans, who were there with their allies, waged war against the Chians who, being unable to withstand them, made a pact to leave the city, dressed only in their cloaks and tunics. When the women heard of this shameful agreement, they protested and reproached the men for abandoning their arms and going almost naked among the enemy; and when they were told that the pact was already sealed, they said that in that case the men should leave their clothes and carry their shields and spears, and tell the enemy that this was how they dressed. So, acting on their women’s advice, the Chians largely, if not entirely, escaped the shame they deserved. Again, when Cyrus had routed an army of Persians in battle, as they fled in retreat towards the city they encountered their wives outside the gate; and as they approached the women said:
‘“Why are you fleeing, you cowards? Do you perhaps want to hide yourselves away inside the women you came out of?”
‘When the men heard these and similar remarks, realizing how much less courageous they were than their women, they grew ashamed and made their way back to renew the fight with the enemy, whom this time they routed.’
Having spoken thus far, the Magnifico Giuliano concluded:
‘And now, madam, you will allow me to remain silent?’
To this, signor Gaspare replied: ‘You will have to remain silent, since you’ve nothing more to say.’
The Magnifico laughed and retorted: ‘You provoke me so much that you run the risk of having to listen all night to the praises of women; and of having to hear of many Spartan women who rejoiced in the glorious deaths of their sons; and of those who disowned or even killed their sons themselves on seeing them act like cowards. And then of how, after the ruin of their country, the Saguntine women took up arms against the forces of Hannibal; and how after Marius had defeated the army of the Germans, their women, unable to win permission to live freely in Rome in the service of the Vestal Virgins, slew both themselves and their little children; and of thousands of others, of whom all the histories of the ancient world are full.’
Signor Gaspare remarked: ‘Ah, signor Magnifico, only God knows how those things happened; for those centuries are so remote from us that many lies can be told, and there is no one here who can test their truth.’
The Magnifico answered: ‘If you compare the merits of women with those of men in any age whatsoever you will find that they have never been, nor are they now, the slightest bit inferior. For leaving aside all those centuries of long ago, if you come to the time when the Goths ruled in Italy, you will discover that for a long time they had a queen, Amalasontha, who ruled with admirable wisdom; then there was Theodolinda, Queen of the Lombards, of exceptional ability; Theodora, the Greek Empress; and in Italy, among many others, Countess Matilda proved herself a truly exceptional woman, whose praises I will leave to Count Lodovico, since she was of his family.’16
‘On the contrary,’ the Count replied, ‘this concerns you, for you know full well that it isn’t right for someone to praise his own.’
The Magnifico continued: ‘And then, how many famous women do you find in history, belonging to this noble house of Montefeltro! how many belonging to the families of Gonzaga, and Este and Pio! And if we wish to speak of present times, we do not have to go too far afield for our examples, for we have them in this very house. But I will not avail myself of those who are here with us, lest you pretend to grant me simply out of courtesy what you cannot possibly deny. And, to go outside of Italy, remember that in our own time we have seen Queen Anne of France, a very great lady no less as regards virtue than rank, and one whom, if you wish to compare her with King Charles and King Louis, to both of whom she was married, you will find not the slightest bit inferior. Then, consider madonna Margherita, daughter of the Emperor Maximilian, who till now has governed and still governs he
r state with the greatest prudence and justice.
‘But, leaving aside all others, tell me, signor Gaspare, what king or prince has there been in our own time, or even for many years past, in the whole of Christendom to compare with Queen Isabella of Spain?’17
Signor Gaspare replied: ‘King Ferdinand, her husband.’
‘Well,’ added the Magnifico, ‘that I will not deny. For since the Queen judged him worthy to be her husband, and loved and respected him so much, one cannot say that he does not deserve to be compared with her. Yet I maintain that the fame he acquired because of her was a dowry as valuable as the Kingdom of Castile.’
‘I would rather say,’ argued signor Gaspare, ‘that Queen Isabella was praised for many acts for which King Ferdinand was responsible.’
‘Well,’ answered the Magnifico, ‘unless it’s the case that the people of Spain, the lords and commoners, men and women, rich and poor, have all come to an agreement deliberately to lie in her favour, there has been nowhere in the world in our time any more distinguished example of true goodness and religion, of greatness of spirit, of prudence and chaste behaviour, of courtesy and liberality, and, in short, of every virtue, than Queen Isabella; and although her fame is very great and universally known, those who lived with her and were able to witness her actions all affirm that this reputation sprang from her own merits and virtue. And whoever considers what she did, will soon recognize the truth of this. For, leaving aside countless other things that prove what I am saying and could be told were this my purpose, everyone knows that when she came to the throne she found the greater part of Castile held by the grandees; nevertheless, she recovered it all by acting so justly and in such a manner that the very same men who were deprived stayed loyal to her and content to give up what they held. Another notable thing is the great courage and prudence with which she continuously defended her realms against most powerful enemies; and similarly to her only can go the honour of the glorious conquest of the Kingdom of Granada; for in so long and difficult a war against obstinate enemies, who were fighting for their property, their lives, their religion and, as they saw it, for God, she always displayed such great ability in her deliberations and her own person that probably few rulers in our time have dared, I shall not say to imitate but even to be envious of her. Moreover, all those who knew her affirm that her government was so inspired that it seemed necessary for her simply to express her wish, and then with no more fuss everyone did what he should; and even in their own homes and privately, men hardly dared do what might displease her. And to a great extent the cause of this was the superb judgement she displayed in finding and appointing able ministers for the posts in which she meant to use them. Then so well did she marry rigorous standards of justice with the gentle touch of clemency and with generosity that in her day there was not one good man who complained that he was too little rewarded, and not one bad man that he was too harshly punished. Therefore among the people there grew towards her an attitude of the greatest reverence, composed of both fear and love; and this still influences their minds so securely that they appear to believe that she is watching them still from heaven and may well be praising or blaming them from up there; thus those realms are still governed by her fame and by the methods she instituted, in such a way that, although she is no longer living, her authority endures, like a wheel that has been spun vigorously for a long time and then, though no one is turning it any longer, continues to turn for a good space by itself. Consider in addition to this, signor Gaspare, that in our time almost all the great men of Spain and those with any claims to fame were raised up by Queen Isabella; and Gonsalvo Ferrando, the Great Captain, took far greater pride in this than in all his famous victories and all those extraordinary and powerful deeds which have made him both in peace and war so distinguished and illustrious that, unless Fame is without gratitude, she will always publish his immortal glory to the world and testify that in our time we have had few kings or great princes who have not been surpassed by him in magnanimity, knowledge and all other virtues.
The Book of the Courtier Page 26