HISTORY OP MALTA.

11

princess into Spain, and accompanied her himself to Madrid. Thegrand-master, in the midst of a court ever famous for its politics,proved himself as able a negotiator as he had formerly been deemeda great warrior: he had the honour of being admitted mediatorbetween two powerful monarchs, whose interests were extremelydifficult to conciliate, and to plead the cause of a noble-minded,frank, and generous king, against a haughty, interested, dissemblingprince, who had the advantage of having his enemy in his power.

The duchess of Alen^on employed every attractive charm ofthe wit she so eminently possessed, to soften the harsh and obsti-nate disposition of the emperor; but all in vain: and knowing itwas designed to make her prisoner, should she exceed the timelimited in her passport, she found herself obliged to leave Spain assoon as possible. Orders had been issued to detain her on thefrontiers; but being informed of the plan, she eluded the pursuit.

The grand-master remained sole mediator in the cause. Whata situation was his ! Deprived of his own state, he found himself,on one side, under the necessity of asking the emperor to grant hima new one; and, on the other, to solicit the liberty of a powerfulmonarch, with permission to return to his dominions. His en-deavours were, however, crowned with success, and his difficultieshappily surmounted. He engaged the two princes to agree to atreaty, and consent to a meeting. He also mediated between themin an affair of, indeed, far less importance, but which required muchdelicacy. Charles Y. and Francis I. going out together, the em-peror gave precedence to the king of France, which that prince re-

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