P LORENZO AND ALESSANDRO DEI MEDICI. 257 gave ransom for their souls*; what was left by the French, the Spaniards devouredt. Behold, O Lord, and consider, to whom hast thou done this! And Monseigneur de Boris fled before them; and they pursued after him, and took him. alive. And the rest went their way; they looked not behind them, lest some evil should take them¶. And the duke came into the city, and was their shepherd**, as a provocation of their anger and their fury until this daytt. 942. And Lorenzo dei Medici was zealous for his land‡‡, and devised every day mischief against Alessandro the duke§§, who hated him not||||, neither sought his harm¶¶. And they went both of them together*+ daily; and they solaced themselves with lovest‡; and the duke confided in him and loved him much. In those days, the soul of the duke longed for one of the women of the city‡§, and they went both of them together in the darkness of the night, and walked in the streets of Florence all that night; and Lorenzo dei Medici *Exod. xxi. 30. Lam. ii. 20. בורי $ † Joel i. 4. || Gen. xix. 17, 21. ** Ezek. xxxiv. 23. †† Jer. xxxii. 31: i. e. The Florentines were displeased with his government. Comp. Joel ii. 18. §§ 1 Sam. xxxiii. 9. |||| Deut. iv. 42. ¶¶ Num. xxxv. 23; Deut. xix. 4. *+ Gen. xxii. 8. †‡ Prov. vii. 18. § Comp. Gen. xxxiv. 8. 258 LORENZO MURDERS ALESSANDRO. קר brought him to his house, and Alessandro removed to the chamber securely, and stripped off his coat of mail*, and lay down on the bed. And Lorenzo sent out his servant, and entered into the chamber and sat down on the bed‡. And the duke said, [p] "Art thou my very brother Lorenzo?" and he said, "I am§;" and drew nigh thither, and removed the covering of the bed and pierced him with a sword. And the bitter duke|| laid hold on the finger of Lorenzo between his teeth, but fainted and died¶. And Lorenzo hid him**, and went out into the street and shut the door after himtt, and went and proclaimed in the gates of the nobles of the city, saying, "I have taken off the yoke of Alessandro from you;" but they did not hearken unto him, for a deep sleep had fallen upon them‡‡. And when he saw that there was no man to help§§, he feared for his life; and mounted a horse, and went out by the way of the city-gate, and went his way unto Venice; for the duke had commanded him who was over his house|||| before he died¶¶, saying, "According to all that Lorenzo will say unto you, ye shall do*†, קו FILIPPO AND ROBERTO STROZZI. 259 for he is my brother." And it came to pass, when the men of the duke saw that he was long in coming*, they went into the palace, to see whether he was returned unto his house by another way; and when they found him not, their courage failed them, and they returned to the house of Lorenzo in haste, and called, but there was none to answert. And they brake its doors down to the ground, and came within; and behold there was no man nor human voice. And they went into the chamber, and found the duke on the bed fallen down dead. And they brought him out, and all the city was moved§. 943. And Lorenzo dei Medici spake with Filippo Strozzi at Venice, concerning the duke whom he had killed; and Filippo was glad, and honored him much. And Filippo hastened and armed his trained servants||, and went to Bologna, and gathered about two thousand men, besides the men who were driven away from Florence. And his son Roberto became head over them. And also the cardinals of Florence journeyed from Rome, and gathered soldiers and came to Cortona, for there was Filippo; and they encamped there. And the men of Florence 260 A. DORIA RETURNS FROM SPAIN, 1537. קר feared, and wrote unto the cardinal, saying, "All that ye shall tell us we will do; only let not these bitter-hearted men come into the city, lest they shed innocent blood in the midst thereof." And the thing was pleasing in their sight; and they said unto Roberto Strozzi, and to such as joined themselves unto him*. "Abide ye heret until we come into the city." And they did so; and the cardinals went into the city, and honored them much, and spake unto them with subtlety. And Alessandro Vitellos, the chief captain of the host of the deceased duke, came into the city; and some of his friends gathered themselves together, and chose Cosimo dei Medici to be their shepherd. And to the cardinals they spake, saying, "According to all that is pleasing in your sight we will do; only let not these bitter-hearted men come into the city: why should they shed innocent blood?" 944. And it came to pass, after other two days, on the eighth day of the month of January in the year one thousand five hundred and thirtyseven, that Andrea Doria returned from Spain, and about two thousand Spaniards with him. *Esther ix. 27. Comp. Gen. xxxiv. 13; Jos. ix. 4. | Comp. Gen. vii. 4. † Gen. xxii. 5. וויטילו 8 קו COSIMO I. MADE DUKE. 261 , And when he heard what was done at Florence* he sent them thither to watch the city in the name of the emperor. And they made Cosimo dei Medici, the son of Joaninot, duke over them; and the land had rest‡. And when the cardinals saw that the Florentines had deceived them§, they returned to Rome with shame. And Filippo Strozzi, and his son, and those bitter-hearted men who were with them, went hither and thither as fugitives and vagabonds||. 945. And Alessandro Vitello went unto the fort, and spake unto the commander thereof with subtlety, saying, "In the name of Cosimo, the duke, and in the name of the emperor, I am sent hither.” So he took it from his hand on that day, but gave it not unto the duke. 946. And Count Guido Rangon, the chief captain of the king's host, which was in Piedmont, sent Antonio Torisano** against the fortress of Caraiott, and about two thousand men with him. And the Marquess del Guasto sent also the Marquess Saluzzi and his men, and they went both of them into the city. And they joined battle there; and also the men of the fort fought with them. And the battle was against the French |