The Italian Woman Read online

  The Italian Woman

  Виктория Холт

  When Catherine de’ Medici was forced to marry Henry of Orleans, hers was not the only heart broken. Jeanne of Navarre once dreamed of marrying this same prince, but like Catherine her future must bend to the will of King Francis’s political needs. And so both Catherine and Jeanne’s lives are set on unwanted paths, destined to cross in affairs of state, love and faith, driving them to become deadly political rivals.

  Years later Jeanne is happily married to the dashing but politically inept Antoine de Bourbon, whilst the widowed Catherine continues to be loved by few and feared by many – including her children. But Catherine is now the powerful mother of kings, who will do anything to see her beloved second son, Henry, rule France. As civil war ravages the country and Jeanne fights for the Huguenot cause, Catherine advances along her unholy road, making enemies at every turn …

  CHAPTER I

  In her apartments at the castle of Plessis-les-Tours a little girl knelt on a window seat and looked disconsolately out on the sunlit grounds. The sunshine out there, she felt, made the castle itself more gloomy by contrast. She hated the place.

  ‘What am I,’ she said aloud, ‘but a prisoner?’

  The lady who was stitching industriously at her embroidery, her back to the window and to the little girl, that the best of the light might fall on her work, clicked her tongue in answer. She had no wish to enter into a discussion of her wrongs with Jeanne, for although the child was only twelve years old, her tongue was so quick that even her tutor had learned not to enter lightly into wordy battles with her, since, with her logic and quick wits, Jeanne had a way of coming out of such encounters victorious. As for Madame de Silly, the Baillive of Caen and governess of Jeanne, she knew herself no match for the child when it came to an argument.

  ‘I hear the wind howling through the trees in the forest sometimes at night,’ went on Jeanne. ‘Then I think that perhaps it is the souls of those who died in torment before they could make their peace with God. Do you think that is what we hear, Aymée?’

  ‘Nonsense!’ cried Aymée de Silly. ‘You have just said it was the wind in the trees.’

  ‘It is a prison, Aymée. Can you not feel it? Too much misery has been suffered in this place for me to be happy here. Think of those prisoners of my ancestor. Think of the iron cages in which he kept them … so small that they could not move; and there they remained for years. Think of the men who have been tortured in this dark and miserable place. Look out there at the lovely river. Men have been cruelly drowned in that river. When I go out at dusk, I seem to see the bodies of men hanging on the trees, as they did all those years ago.’

  ‘You think too much,’ said Aymée.

  ‘How can one think too much?’ demanded Jeanne scornfully. ‘I am determined not to stay here. I shall run away and join my mother and father. Why should I be kept from them?’

  ‘Because it is the will of the King of France. And what do you think would happen were you to run away? If – which, seems hardly likely – you were to have the good fortune to arrive at your father’s court of Navarre, what do you think would happen? I can tell you. You would be sent back here.’

  ‘That might not be,’ said Jeanne. ‘If my father, the King of Navarre, were there, he would hide me, since he at least wishes me to be with him. I know it.’

  ‘But it is the will of your uncle that you should stay here. And have you forgotten that your uncle is the King of France?’

  ‘That is something Uncle Francis never lets anyone forget.’ Jeanne smiled, for in spite of her grievances against him, she loved her uncle. He was handsome and charming and always delightful to her; he was amused rather than angry when she pleaded to be allowed to join her parents, even though she knew it was his wish that she should remain where she was.

  ‘When I see the little peasant children with their mothers, I envy them,’ she said.

  ‘You do nothing of the sort!’ retorted Aymée. ‘You only fancy you do. Imagine your feelings, my child, if you were told tomorrow that you were stripped of your rank! How would you like that?’

  ‘Not at all. But all the same, I long to see my mother. Tell me of her, Aymée.’

  ‘She is very beautiful; she is respected and loved by her husband, the King of Navarre …’

  ‘And adored by her brother the King of France,’ interrupted Jeanne. ‘Do you remember that when I was very small, I used to make you repeat over and over again the story of how, when Uncle Francis was a prisoner in Spain, it was my mother who went to his prison in Madrid and nursed him back to health?’

  ‘I remember clearly,’ said Aymée, smiling.

  ‘But,’ went on Jeanne, ‘do you think that a woman should love her brother more than she loves her husband and her own child?’

  Aymée’s face was pink suddenly; she pursed her lips as she frequently did when challenged with a question she was going to refuse to answer. ‘Your mother is a great queen,’ she said. ‘She is the noblest woman in France …’

  ‘I know, dear Aymée, but that was not the point we were discussing. Should a woman love her brother more than her husband and her child? That was what I said. And you dare not answer it. My mother could have had me with her, had she insisted. Uncle Francis would have given way had she pleaded, for he can deny her nothing. But she loves him, and because she wishes to please him more than anything in the world, when he says: It is my wish that your daughter should be kept a prisoner at that most hateful, that most gloomy, that most miserable of all my castles … my mother answers: “Thy will be done.” She has no will but his. You yourself have said so.’

  ‘It is very right and proper that all his subjects should obey the King, and even the Queen of Navarre is a subject of the King of France.’

  Jeanne jumped down from the window-seat in exasperation. There were times when Aymée’s method of skirting round a difficult subject infuriated her. Jeanne was vehement by nature; her temper rose quickly and subsided at the same speed. But how absurd it was to pretend things were not as one knew them to be!

  ‘How I hate all insincerity!’ she cried.

  ‘And, Mademoiselle,’ said her governess sternly, ‘how I abhor such precocity! You know a good deal more than it is good for you to know.’

  ‘How can that be when all knowledge is good to have? Aymée, you make me angry when you keep up this pretence. I am loved by my father and mother; my uncle has nothing but my good at heart. And yet, all these years when I have longed to be with my parents, I am kept from them. Now you will try to pretend, will you not, that my uncle, the King of France, and my father, the King of Navarre, are the greatest of friends. Let us have the truth. They hate each other. They are suspicious of each other; and it is because the King of France suspects my father of trying to arrange a match between me and Philip of Spain that he insists on my being kept here, so that he himself may be sure that I am not given to his enemy.’ She laughed to see the dismay in the eyes of her governess. ‘Oh, Aymée, it is not your fault. You have done all you can to keep these facts from me. But you know how I hate pretence. And I will not have it here.’

  Aymée shrugged her shoulders and went on with her embroidery. ‘Jeanne,’ she said, ‘why not forget all this? You are young. You keep good state here. You have nothing with which to worry yourself. You are happy; and one day you will be able to join your parents.’

  ‘Listen!’ cried Jeanne. ‘I hear the sound of a horn.’

  Aymée rose and came to the window. Her heart was beating uncomfortably fast. It was a habit of King Francis when he was staying at Amboise to ride over to Plessis-les-Tours. Sometimes he came with just a few of his followers – a brief, informal call on his little niece. At such times Aymé
e was terrified, for Jeanne never seemed to remember that this magnificent and charming man, besides being her uncle, was also the King of France. She could be pert, disrespectful, and at times resentful. If the King were in a good mood he might be amused; but if he were not, who could know what might happen?

  ‘Is the court at Amboise?’ asked Jeanne.

  ‘That I do not know.’

  They stood for some seconds looking beyond the grass slopes to the trees of the forest; and then, as a group of riders emerged and came straight towards the castle, Jeanne turned to her governess. ‘The King’s court is at Amboise; and here comes the King to visit me.’

  Aymée laid a trembling hand on her charge’s shoulder.

  ‘Have a care …’

  Jeanne retorted: ‘If you mean, tell him that I am happy here and pleased with my state, that I like to be kept from my parents, then rest assured I shall not have a care. I shall tell no lies.’

  * * *

  In the magnificent hall, the King greeted his niece. This hall brought back memories to Francis; here he, as Duke of Valois, had been betrothed to Claude, the Princess of France; he had not been sure then that he would ever sit on the throne of France. His sister Marguerite, dearest of all women as far as he was concerned, had encouraged him in those days. What would his life have been without Marguerite? He thought of that always when he looked at Marguerite’s daughter; and that meant that he must be fond of the child. He could not help but be fond of her for her own sake, since, with those blunt manners, that directness of speech, she was not without charm; and one grew weary of sycophancy. He wished, though, that Jeanne had inherited a little more of her mother’s beauty. He wished that he did not see in her a resemblance to that sly old villain, her father, the King of Navarre.

  She knelt before him and kissed his hand; and his lips twitched. He was remembering the tale Marguerite had told him of how this child had, in a fit of temper, once cut off the heads of the saints in her mother’s tapestry and substituted for them the heads of foxes. That was a crime which had amused both Francis and his sister.

  ‘Rise, child,’ he said. ‘You are looking well. The air of Plessis agrees with you.’

  He watched the flush rise in her cheeks. He enjoyed teasing her.

  ‘Indeed, Sire, it does not agree with me!’

  He was aware of Madame de Silly, trembling in the background, waiting in trepidation for what the child would say next.

  ‘You surprise me, niece. I was about to congratulate Madame de Silly on your healthy appearance.’

  ‘The air of Navarre – my native air – would suit me better, Sire.’

  ‘When you hear the good news I have brought you, you will cease to fret for the air of Navarre. I have ridden over from Amboise with the sole purpose of imparting this news to you. What would you say if I told you I had a husband for you?’

  Jeanne caught her breath in horror. ‘A husband … for me, Sire?’

  ‘I see that you are enchanted. That is well. You are growing up, my darling, and it is time we thought about a match for you. How does it appeal to you – the married state?’

  ‘Not greatly, Sire. Unless, of course, it were with some great King.’

  He frowned, and Aymée trembled. It would seem that Jeanne was daring to refer to the match her father wished for her – an alliance with the man who would one day be King of Spain.

  ‘You prize yourself highly,’ said Francis coldly.

  ‘Unless there were great honour in a marriage I should not care for it,’ said Jeanne. ‘Many husbands give honour to women not their wives, so it is necessary for a wife to make a marriage which brings her honour, since she may not receive it from her husband afterwards.’

  The King was always pleased with those who amused him; and the precocity of the child reminded him of his sister. His momentary displeasure disappeared, and he laughed aloud.

  ‘My dearest niece, I have no fear that you will be unable to keep Monsieur le Duc de Clèves under control.’

  ‘The Duc de Clèves!’ she cried. ‘What … do you mean, Sire?’

  ‘That he is to be your husband.’

  Jeanne forgot the homage she owed to the King, and her mouth hardened. ‘You would give me in marriage to a duke of some small kingdom?’

  ‘Oh come, child, the Duke of Clèves is not so insignificant as you appear to think. I can see that here in Plessis you do not learn things concerning the outside world. Now, on your knees and thank me for having your welfare so near my heart that I have arranged a match for you.’

  ‘I fear, Sire,’ she said haughtily, ‘that I cannot thank you for arranging such an alliance for me.’

  Madame de Silly stepped forward; the noblemen who had accompanied the King waited in dismay for him to express his anger. But it did not come; instead, he turned to them smiling.

  ‘Leave me alone with my niece,’ he said. ‘I think it necessary for us two to have a talk together.’

  They, with Aymée and Jeanne’s attendants, bowed and retired.

  Jeanne – terrified, though nothing would have made her admit that this was the case, and humiliated by her uncle’s suggestion – tossed her head to convey that whatever the consequences of her boldness, she did not care.

  When they were alone, the King said: ‘Sit at my feet. That is right. Lean your head against me.’

  He caressed her hair and, as she smelt the faint perfume of musk and Russia leather which clung to his clothes, she thought she would hate those scents as long as she lived.

  ‘It grieves me, Jeanne,’ he said, ‘that I should be the cause of unhappiness to you. As you know, your mother is dearer to me than any living person; and because you are her daughter, I love you also. But, my child, it is not for us of royal blood to question the alliances which are made for us. As you are a sensible girl, you must know that. You are right to have your decided views and to show no fear in expressing them. I would not have it otherwise. But you know also that it is your duty to obey your King. You have nothing to fear. The Duke will be enchanted with you, and he is not without good looks.’

  ‘Sire, am I not too young for marriage?’

  ‘Nay. You are twelve years of age … old enough for a princess to marry.’

  ‘But could I not have some choice in the matter?’

  ‘Dear child, that is a privilege which is denied us, and you must console yourself that one husband is very like another. If you start with passion, you lose it quickly. And, dear Jeanne, marriage need not be an obstacle to the pursuit of passion. Moreover, happiness is sometimes found outside marriage, if it is not granted within. You are wise beyond your years, and I can see that I may talk to you as I do to your mother.’

  ‘But … the Duke of Clèves! You promised me your son Henry.’

  ‘Ah yes; but Henry has a little Italian for his wife … and you would not have liked Henry.’

  ‘I liked him well enough.’

  ‘As a cousin. Not as a husband. He is gauche and scarcely speaks. He is unfaithful to his wife. Poor Catherine! She is pleasant enough, but he spends all his time with Diane de Poitiers. You would not like Henry as a husband, my dear.’

  ‘It might be that if he had had a French princess for a wife instead of that Italian woman, he would have spent more time with her.’

  ‘You have been listening to gossip. So it reaches Plessis, then? Nay! Henry pledged himself to Madame Diane years ago; and he is faithful – dull and faithful. Do not regret Henry. And now, because I respect your courage, I am going to tell you why this marriage must be. There is trouble all about us, my little Jeanne. My Constable has been pursuing a policy which is not to my taste. I am sad to think that he works for Henry the Dauphin more than for Francis the King. You see, like you, I have my sorrows. The Emperor Charles has given the Milanese to his son Philip, and I am angry because the Milanese should be mine. You are too young for these politics, but you must try to understand. It is necessary for me to show my displeasure to Spain, and I want you to help me to d
o this through your marriage with this man of Clèves, who, in his rebellion against the Emperor, has become my friend. You see, we must keep a balance of power about us, and it is with the marriages of the young members of our family that we can do this. So you will be reasonable; you will agree to this marriage, and you will know that, in doing so, you are serving your King.’

  ‘Sire, I beg of you, do not use me in this way. You are mighty. You are all-powerful. You can subdue your enemies without my help’

  ‘Not all-powerful, alas! And my enemies are legion. The greatest of these is the Emperor, with whom I must be continually on the alert. Then there is the sly old hypocrite of England. I am unsafe, child. That is why you, my loyal subject, must do all in your power to help me. Come, little Jeanne, a marriage is not all that important. Why, I have had two of them, and have managed to find much in life to please me. Both of my marriages were marriages of state – as yours must be. Did I complain? Not I. I respected my duty, and my destiny. First I married poor little Claude, who enabled me to do my duty to my country by bearing me many children. Then she died and, for reasons of state, I took a second wife. She is a very good woman and she troubles me not. Believe me, it is possible to live pleasantly and be married at the same time.’

  ‘But I would not care for that sort of life, Sire. I wish my marriage, if I have one, to be a good marriage. I wish to love and serve my husband and I wish him to be faithful to me.’

  The King lifted her in his arms and laid his cheek against hers. ‘And you are right to have such thoughts. Rest assured that I will do all in my power to help you. Now you must prepare to leave Plessis at once. I want you to travel to Alençon, where you will be with your mother. That will delight you, will it not?’

  ‘Yes, Sire, but … I do not wish for this marriage.’

  He smiled with charming regret.

  * * *

  There would be a halt at Paris on the way to Alençon. Usually Jeanne looked forward with zest to her visits to Paris. She would enjoy the long journey which some found so tedious, riding with the procession of attendants with the baggage stacked on the backs of the mules. The magnificence of her uncle’s court never ceased to amaze her; she enjoyed seeing her cousins; she was enchanted by the balls and masques; and the ceremonies of court were such a contrast with the dull life of Plessis-les-Tours.