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Panorama of Naples from the Romero.

NAPLES

THE CITY OF PARTHENOPE
ant) its Cnfcirong

BY

CLARA ERSKINE CLEMENT

AUTHOR OF "THE QUEEN OF THE ADRIATIC," "HANDBOOK OF

LEGENDARY AND MYTHOLOGICAL ART," " LIFE

OF CHARLOTTE CUSHMAN," ETC.

VEDI NAPOLI E POI MORI

Illustrated

BOSTON
ESTES AND LAURIAT

Copyright, 1894,
BY ESTES AND LAURIAT.

All rights reserved.

JOHN WILSON AND SON, CAMBRIDGE, U.S.A.

Hear then, oh, hear the sea-maid's airy shell;
Listen, oh, listen / 't is the siren sings, —
The spirit of the deep, — Parthenope, —
She who did once f the dreamy days of old
Sport on these golden sands beneath the moon,
Or poured the ravishing music of her song
Over the silent waters, and bequeathed
To all these sunny capes and dazzling shores
Her own immortal beauty and her name.

ANNA JAMESON.

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER PAGE

I. THE BEGINNING OF A NATION AND A LANGUAGE . . l

II. FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 1198-1516 . 11

III. CHARLES V. AND PHILIP II. 1516-1598 58

IV. PHILIP III. AND PHILIP IV. 1598-1647 85

V. MASANIELLO'S REBELLION. 1647-1700 108

VI. CARLO BORBONE AND FERDINAND IV. 1700-1806 . 136
VII. JOSEPH BONAPARTE, JOACHIM MURAT, FERDINAND I.,

AND FRANCIS I. 1806-1830 164

VIII. FERDINAND II., FRANCIS II., GARIBALDI, VICTOR

EMANUEL, AND HUMBERT I. 1830-1894 .... 189

IX. NEAPOLITAN LIFE 205

X. NEAPOLITAN LIFE — continued 226

XI. NEAPOLITAN ART AND LETTERS 244

XII. POZZUOLI, BAI.E, CUMJS, PROCIDA, AND ISCHIA . . 261

XIII. HERCULANEUM, VESUVIUS, POMPEII, SORRENTO, LA

CAVA, AMALFI, SALERNO, AND P.ESTUM .... 282

XIV. THE ISLAND OF CAPRI 297

INDEX 829

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

PAGE
PANORAMA OF NAPLES FROM THE VOMERO Frontispiece

INTERIOR OF THE CHURCH AT SANTA CHIARA 25

THE ISLAND OF NISIDA 34-

THE HEIGHTS OF SAN MARTINO FROM THE MOLE 59

THE PORTA CAPUANA 66

THE CASTEL DELL' Ovo 76

NEAPOLITAN COSTUMES 101

THE THEATRE OF SAN CARLO 142

THE CASTLE OF ISCHIA 169

SANTA LUCIA 217

GALLERIA UMBERTO 1 220

VIRGIL'S TOMB 263

THE AMPHITHEATRE AT POZZUOLI 271

THE TEMPLE OF VENUS AND DIANA AT BALE 275

LOOKING DOWN THE STREET OF THE TOMBS, POMPEII .... 282

THE HOUSE OF PANSA, POMPEII 285

PANORAMA OF SORRENTO 290

THE TEMPLE OF NEPTUNE AT P^ESTUM 295

THE STEPS AT CAPRI 321

THE BLUE GROTTO OF CAPRI 326

NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

CHAPTER I.

THE BEGINNING OF A NATION AND A LANGUAGE.

LONG centuries ago, when sirens dwelt on islands and
naiads haunted rivers and springs, when nymphs
thronged in forest glades where trees oft held imprisoned
dryads, when sibyls made their homes in caves and grot-
tos, the peninsula of Naples was a favorite haunt of these
mysterious beings ; and we can but count the Fates most
kind to Parthenope when she was cast upon a shore so
fitting for her home. That she should here have built
her Neapolis — New City — and here have been buried,
as Strabo tells us, seems but what any siren, ancient or
modern, would have done had she the power.

Here were the Elysian and the Phlegraan Fields : the
first —

" Clothed in the delicate atmosphere of Spring,
Sprouting with young vines, redolent of the fruit
And flower of orange, true Hesperian gold,
And the wide whisper of the violet ; "

while in sad contrast the second stood —

" Where Titan force still heaves
The uncertain bases of the vernal hills ;
Volcanic bowls, smouldering and boiling yet,
Or brimmed with cool oblivion of the wave."

1

2 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

Here, too, was Lake Avernus, very " gate of hell," through
which Ulysses passed to gloomier shades below ; and here
Amsanctus, then as now exhaling death. Of Avernus,
Virgil says, —

" Deep in the craggy gorge a cavern yawned ;
A pitchy lake and forests black as night
Girdled its depths profound. No bird unharmed
O'er that dread orifice might steer its flight, —
Such baneful exhalation through the air
Keeked from its murky jaws.

And famed Manduria's well, — as Pliny saw it, still it is ;
draw off or pour within a constant stream, and still the
water stands at the same height. Through this charmed
land the magic Crathis flowed o'er sands of gold, and those
who bathed therein had ever after hair like golden threads
by fairies spun. Here, too, that other river with its seven
streams, in which Orestes bathed, and lost the foul stains
of his mother's blood ; and here the fountain of Artacia,
where Ulysses met the daughter of the Laestrygonian king.
Historic mountains tower in all this land, and promon-
tories rise from out its seas that have been famed since
poets and historians sang and wrote. Horace tells of the
wondrous bees and honey of Mons Matinus, and of the
shipwreck of Archytas on the shore below, and begs each
passer-by to help in covering the unburied corpse, —

" O sailor-man, these bones, this skull to hide,
Grudge not a handful of the drifting sand ;
So may the East-wind on Venusia blow,
And spare thee on the waters far away.
Just guerdon for thy care may Jove bestow,
And Neptune, guardian of Tarentum's bay.
But if thou turn a deaf ear to my prayer,
Surely thy children's fortune shall be wrecked,
And thou, for lack of charity, shalt bear
The just requital of a like neglect.
No expiation shall undo the wrong,

THE BEGINNING OF A NATION AND A LANGUAGE. 8

No lustral waters purify thy heart ;

The boon I ask will not delay thee long, —

Three handfuls of gray dust, and then depart."

To the height of Gaeta, Virgil has given undying interest,
— the burial-place of Caieta, the unf orgotten nurse of brave
^Eneas; and to that other promontory, world renowned,
which bears his pilot's name, — as the Cumsean Sibyl prom-
ised that eternally it should, — the headland of Palinurus.
Far to the southeast, in old Lucania, the mountains of La
Sila furnish masts and timber to shipbuilders now, as in
the ancient days to the Athenians. There still lie per-
petual snows, and, lower down, the same impenetrable for-
ests, rich pastoral plains, and beautiful ravines that Strabo
describes and Virgil clothes in graceful imagery.

Volcanoes too are there : that Vesevus that still lives, —
which Goethe called a peak of hell rising from Paradise, —
and others that have died, hold their place in the story of
this land ; a place of " horrors on horrors multiplied," such
as it would seem could only be wrought by furious, im-
prisoned giants.

Here rose a chain of temples sacred to the gods of
Greece, many of which even now delight us, ruined as they
are. Still towers there, in its majestic loneliness, one
column of that fane, founded by Hercules, where Juno
Lacinia was worshipped. So sacred was it held that
Pyrrhus and Hannibal alike feared to profane its shrines,
rich as they were ; and upon its walls the great Cartha-
ginian inscribed his victories in Greek and Punic charac-
ters. Even the immortal Zeuxis contributed to its adorning,
and near by, at Croton, — famous alike for its beautiful
women and its wrestlers in the Olympic games, — he sought
a model for his picture of the divine Helen. The temple
of Proserpine stood in that grove now known as La Selva
di Agatocle, where it is said that the dread goddess
gathered flowers and wove them into garlands. The sites

4 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

of numberless shrines are known, and each contributes its
peculiar part to the surpassing interest of this peninsula.

Along its coasts are islands and rocks whose fame is as
old as the written words of classic song, — the Arimos
of Homer and Inariine of Virgil, where Typhceus makes
his bed beneath Epopeus ; Prochyta, " broken off " from
Arimos by the mighty struggles of the father of bad winds ;
and Capreae, or Cephorim, with all its storied heights and
wondrous grottos, not far from the dreaded island of the
sirens. Circd had warned Ulysses of his danger ; and
yet, so sweetly did they sing, that had he not been fast
bound he would have made a willing victim to their wiles.

Yet still farther south are found those rocky straits of
which Ulysses was again forewarned : —

" No mariner can boast
That he has passed by Scylla with a crew
Unharmed ; she snatches from the deck, and bears
Away in each grim mouth, a living man.

Another rock, Ulysses, thou wilt see,
Of lower height, so near her that a spear,
Cast by the hand, might reach it. On it grows
A huge wild fig-tree with luxuriant leaves.
Below, Charybdis, of immortal birth,
Draws the dark water down ; for thrice a day
She gives it forth, and thrice with fearful whirl
She draws it in. Oh, be it not thy lot
To come while the dark water rushes down !
Even Neptune could not then deliver thee.
Then turn thy course with speed toward Scylla's rock,
And pass that way ; 't were better far that six
Should perish from the ship than all be lost."

Thus, from the northernmost point to Capo Spartivento,
from Capo di Leuca to Terracina, one re-reads his classics
and his history in what he sees around him. No words
written now could better portray the natural features of
this land than do those of Homer, Strabo, Horace, and

THE BEGINNING OF A NATION AND A LANGUAGE. 5

Virgil; while all around it flow the seas made so fami-
liar to us in our youth, — those waters which Palinurus
watched ; and when he saw them calm, the heavens serene,
and the stars bright with gold, his clear signal called his
friends to strike their tents and " fly with winged sails."

" And ' Italy ' rings first
Achates' voice, and Italy with shouts
Of joy my comrades greet. My father then
Wreathes a great cup, and fills it up with wine,
And, standing in the stern, invokes the gods :

' Ye potent deities of sea and land,
And of the storms, grant us a passage safe,
And favoring breezes.' Soon the wished-for winds
Freshen, and wider grows the harbor now ;
Minerva's temple on a height appears ;
We furl the sails, and turn our prows to land."

It is said that over the Yergillus Hannibal erected a
bridge of human bodies, and the plain near by is still called
the Pezzo di Sangue ; and Belisarius, unable to conquer
Naples with its walls which had withstood Pyrrhus, Hanni-
bal, and Spartacus, turned aside the waters of the aque-
duct, and, entering by it, brought upon the city its first
calamity. In this Neapolitan territory the Roman army,
humbled by the Samnites, passed the Caudine Forks ; and
innumerable heroic achievements have here had place,
which are recounted to the wonder and delight of each
new generation as they learn of ancient days when gods
and men as giants walked the earth.

Besides the tales of sibyls and sirens and " spirits from
the vasty deep," both good and evil, with which these
coasts abound, we find that Hercules at Boaulia built the
stables for the oxen of Geryon, and that the bow and ar-
rows of this god of strength were suspended in the temple
of Apollo Alaeus, built by Philoctetes on the Punta dell'
Alice. But of all these marvellous tales of fact and fancy

6 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

none are more unusual and memorable than that of the
death and burial of Alaric, King of the Goths, suddenly
arrested in his triumphant course when seeking further
conquests. Fearing that his grave might be violated, his
followers determined to render that impossible, and afforded
him a burial such as no other hero is known to have had.
Gibbon says : —

" The ferocious character of the Barbarians was displayed
in the funeral of a hero whose valor and fortune they cele-
brated with mournful applause. By the labor of a captive
multitude, they forcibly diverted the course of the Busentinus.
The royal sepulchre, adorned with the splendid spoils and
trophies of Rome, was constructed in the vacant bed ; the
waters were then restored to their natural channel, and the
secret spot where the remains of Alaric had been deposited was
forever concealed by the inhuman massacre of the prisoners
who had been employed to execute the work."

Turn ye the waters from their course,
Bid Nature yield to human force,
And hollow in the torrent's bed
A chamber for the mighty dead.
The work is done, — the captive's hand
Hath well obeyed his lord's command.
Within that royal tomb are cast
The richest trophies of the past,
The wealth of many a stately dome,
The gold and gems of plundered Rome ;
And when the midnight stars are beaming,
And ocean waves in stillness gleaming,
Stern in their grief, his warriors bear
The Chastener of the Nations there,
To rest at length from victory's toil,
Alone, with all an Empire's spoil 1

Then the freed current's rushing wave
Rolls o'er the secret of the grave ;
Then streams the martyred captives' blood
To crimson that sepulchral flood,

THE BEGINNING OF A NATION AND A LANGUAGE. 7

Whose conscious tide alone shall keep
The mystery in its bosom deep.
Time hath passed on since then, and swept
From earth the urns where heroes slept ;
Temples of gods and domes of kings
Are mouldering with forgotten things ;
Yet shall not ages e'er molest
The viewless home of Alaric's rest :
Still rolls, like them, the unfailing river,
The guardian of his dust forever.

Felicia Hemans.

It is difficult to put aside the fascinating story of the
ancient days, and turn our attention to the modern life of
this peninsula. It would require volumes to describe in
detail the marvellous events of which history and tradition
make it the actual scene ; and many of them are character-
ized by such heroic romance as has rarely been excelled in
any land. We1 are tempted to echo the words of Dr. John-
son: " The great object of all travelling is to see the shores
of the Mediterranean, on which were the four great em-
pires of the world, the Assyrian, the Persian, the Grecian,
and the Roman."

It is not for us to attempt to fix the dates at which colo-
nies of various ancient races — nor, indeed, those at which
the Latin peoples — came to Southern Italy. It is believed
that Cumse was settled by Phoenicians 1400 B. c., and that
it was not a new city three centuries later is a well-estab-
lished fact. Sybaris was founded 720 B. c., and it is cer-
tain that the Marsi, Samnites, Brutii, Lucanians, Calabri,
Greeks, and others settled here at remote periods ; while
later, the descendants of the ancient Italian tribes were
mingled with those of Greeks, Lombards, Normans, Sara-
cens, Provengals, and Spaniards.

This mixture of races has produced a people in many
respects remarkable ; and men learned in such matters
claim that even now, especially in the more isolated dis-

8 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

tricts, habits and customs exist which can be traced to
these remote ancestors. The Marsi afford an example of
the truth of this. The banks of Lake Fucinus,1 near which
they dwelt, abounded with asps and vipers, and the water
with snakes, which the Marsi were skilled in charming, —
as Virgil describes (^Eneid, VII.) , — and still in various
parts of Southern Italy their descendants are seen support-
ing themselves on what they gain as snake-charmers.

In the third century B. c. the Romans were masters of
the peninsula ; after the fall of the Western Empire, Goths,
Lombards, and Romans of the Eastern Empire were power-
ful in turn, until, in A. D. 1042, the Normans became sole
masters of the land. It cannot be said, however, that they
established a government until Robert Guiscard, in a
quarter of a century (1060-1085), united the detached
sovereignties within the Neapolitan territory, and trans-
mitted to his successor a kingdom sufficiently organized to
be maintained and strengthened, until, in 1127, under the
nephew of Robert Guiscard, — Roger II., the great Count
of Sicily, — a monarchy was founded which united Sicily
and the Neapolitan territory, and remained under the rule
of the Normans until it passed to the House of Hohen-
staufen in 1194.

In spite of the incursions of Romans, Ostrogoths, and
Lombards, and the conquests of Normans and Suabians,
the customs of the ancestors of this people, such as that to
which we have referred, and notably the ancient language,
obstinately survived. After the earlier Samnite and Oscan
tongues were lost, Greek retained its hold, and was the lan-
guage of the people among themselves long after they had
found it needful to make Latin their mercantile tongue ;

1 Drained by Prince Torlonia, who opened the tunnel on which thirty thou-
sand men had worked eleven years in the time of the Emperor Claudius.
The modern work was done in thirteen years, and finished in 1875. The re-
claimed land, thirty-six thousand acres, is now a model farm, colonized hy
families from the Torlonia estates.

THE BEGINNING OF A NATION AND A LANGUAGE. 9

from this custom arose the Roman term for the Neapoli-
tans, Bilingues. Even now the traveller and the student
who are interested in such matters will find that Renan
spoke truly, when he said, " If we wish to see the life of
Greece prolonging itself to our own days, it is to Sicily and
to the Bay of Naples that we must go."

Not until the early part of the thirteenth century, during
the reign of Frederick II., who founded the University of
Naples, did the modern Italian language begin to be formed.
The first dawn of Italian literature appeared in the terri-
tory of Naples among its Greek colonies ; and a long and
noble line of writers, who greatly enriched the learning
of the world, were born here. Zaleucus declares himself
a native of Locri ; Pythagoras of Croton, where he estab-
lished his school of philosophy ; Archytas was of Tarentum,
and Alexis of Sibarum. Of later authors, Ennius, Cicero,
Sallust, Vitruvius, Ovid, Horace, and Cassiodorus, as well
as men famed for their science and learning, first saw the
light beneath the skies of the Neapolitan peninsula.

Thus, almost twenty-five hundred years later than the
earliest dates we have mentioned, more than ten centuries
after the birth of Jesus Christ, and nearly a thousand years
after Saint Paul had brought the knowledge of the Chris-
tian religion to these shores ; after millions of human
beings had here acted their parts for good or evil in the
drama of the universe, and various Southern races had
followed their customs in life and death ; after many his-
toric scenes in barbarous and deadly wars, and numberless
celebrations of the most exciting games and exquisite festi-
vals of peace, — the Normans came, full of energy, to found
a kingdom, to be shortly superseded by Teutons, who not
only strengthened the empire, but gave a beautiful common
language to these descendants of many nations, and estab-
lished the institutions of civilization in their midst.

It is a curious and interesting fact that while there are

10 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIKONS.

remarkable remains of Cyclopean and Pelasgic architec-
ture in the Neapolitan territory, while existing ruins show
the magnificence of the ancient temples erected here,
while mural painting and mosaic and bronze work reached
a rare perfection under Byzantine influence, while during
the centuries immediately preceding and following the
beginning of the Christian era many famous authors were
born in the cities of this peninsula, yet, since those days,
but a slight impression has been made oil the art and
literature of the world by native Southern Italians, while
in more northern Italy art has reached the most glorious
heights it has attained since the time of Pericles, and lit-
erature has been enriched and ennobled by famous scholars
and immortal poets.

Having thus traced the merest outline of the origin of
the Neapolitans and of the first steps in the evolution
of their nation and language, we turn to the more prosaic
time when their history is no longer veiled by myths and
traditions, — a time when sirens, sibyls, and fairy folk of
all degrees found this paradise of land and sky and sea
no longer to their taste, and fled, we know not whither,
leaving the country of Parthenope to a far less fascinating
and more tangible people.

CHAPTER II.

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V.
1198-1516.

T^REDERIGK II., sometimes called "The Wonder of the
-L World," is an important figure in mediaeval history.
He was the grandson of Frederick Barbarossa, and inherited
the kingdom of Naples and Sicily through his mother Con-
stance, daughter of Roger II. of the Norman dynasty. His
father, Henry VI., was in his full career of vice and op-
pression when Frederick was born in Sicily, in 1194, and
died when the child was but three years old ; a year later
Constance also died, and the infant king was left to the
guardianship of the Pope.

From his very cradle circumstances combined to fix
attention upon him. On account of his mother's age, his
birth was likened to those of Isaac, Samuel, and John the
Baptist ; he was a sovereign from his infancy, heir to the
vast power and possessions of the Norman kings and
the Suabian emperors. Married when fifteen years old,
he was the father of a future emperor at eighteen, and
after many experiences freighted with great importance
to all Christendom, but not appertaining strictly to our
present subject, he was crowned Emperor of the Romans
by Pope Honorius. This was one of the few occasions
when such a coronation was accomplished peacefully, and
there were many reasons why it was not to be expected in
this case ; but it may be accounted for on the supposition
that although he was the Emperor of the Germans, having
been born within the borders of Italy, of a Sicilian mother,

12 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

he was expected to make the southern portion of his realm
first in his care and affection.

During the childhood of Frederick, Sicily was the scene
of fierce contentions between the German and Saracen
troops and the soldiers sent to quiet them by Pope Inno-
cent III. ; and not until Frederick himself came into full
power was a wiser policy inaugurated. He transplanted
the Saracens to the city of Lucera in Apulia, and to Nocera
in Campania, where they became his most trusty soldiers ;
they were loyal to him, and could not be influenced by the
threats or the promised rewards of pope or priest. In
Sicily Frederick established a legal despotism, and sub-
dued both Normans and Infidels, the two turbulent and
rebellious classes.

His life was passed amid contentions and quarrels with
different Popes, and he was accused of being a traitor to
the Church and to his people. But these matters had little
or no effect upon his reign in Naples and Sicily, where he
must have found more abundant recompense for his cares
and anxieties, and greater personal happiness in the early
years of his sovereignty, than elsewhere in any portion of
his life. He not only founded the University of Naples
and laid the foundation of the Italian language, but he
interested himself in the universities of Bologna and
Salerno as well ; he encouraged native literature by his
own writing of Italian poetry, and generously devoted him-
self to the intellectual upbuilding of the kingdom of his
birth.

The old English historian, Matthew Paris, calls him " the
most remarkable man of a remarkable age ; " and Freeman
says : —

u We do not say the greatest, still less the best, man of his
time, but, as Matthew Paris calls him, the most wonderful
man ; the man, in short, who was in all things the most unlike
to all the other men who were about him. It is probable that

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 13

there never lived a human being endowed with greater natural
gifts, or whose natural gifts were, according to the means af-
forded him by his age, more sedulously cultivated, than the last
Emperor of the House of Suabia. There seems to be no aspect
of human nature that was not developed to the highest degree
in his person. In versatility of gifts, in what we may call
many-sidedness of character, he appears as a sort of mediaeval
Alkibiades, while he was far removed from Alkibiades' utter
lack of principle or steadiness of any kind. Warrior, states-
man, lawgiver, scholar, there was nothing in the compass of
the political or intellectual world of his age which he failed to
grasp. ... Of all men, Frederick II. might have been expected
to be the founder of something, the beginner of some new era,
political or intellectual. . . . But the most gifted of the sons
of men has left behind him no such memory. . . . Frederick,
in fact, founded nothing, and he sowed the seeds of the destruc-
tion of many things. ... In fact, in whatever aspect we look
at Frederick II. we find him, not the first, but the last, of every
series to which he belongs. . . . He was the last prince in
whose style the Imperial titles do not seem a mockery ; he
was the last under whose rule the three Imperial kingdoms
retained any practical connection with one another and with
the ancient capital of all. Frederick, who sent his trophies to
Rome to be guarded by his own subjects in his own city, was
a Roman Caesar in a sense in which no other Emperor was after
him. And he was not only the last Emperor of the whole
Empire ; he might also be called the last King of its several
Kingdoms. After his time Burgundy vanishes as a kingdom ;
. . . Italy, too, after Frederick, vanishes as a kingdom ;
any later exercise of the royal authority in Italy was some-
thing which came and went wholly by fits and starts. . . .
Germany did not utterly vanish, or utterly split in pieces, like
the sister kingdoms ; but after Frederick came the Great
Interregnum, and after the Great Interregnum the royal power
in Germany never was what it had been before. In his heredi-
tary Kingdom of Sicily he was not absolutely the last of his
dynasty, for his son Manfred ruled prosperously and gloriously

14 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

for some years after his death. But it is none the less clear
that from Frederick's time the Sicilian Kingdom was doomed ;
it was marked out to be, what it has been ever since, divided,
reunited, divided again, tossed to and fro between one foreign
sovereign and another. Still more conspicuously than all was
Frederick the last Christian King of Jerusalem, the last bap-
tized man who really ruled the Holy Land or wore a crown in
the Holy City. And yet, strangely enough, it was at Jeru-
salem, if anywhere, that Frederick might claim in some meas-
ure the honors of a founder. If he was the last more than
nominal King of Jerusalem, he was also, after a considerable
interval, the first ; he recovered the kingdom by his own
address, and, if he lost it, its loss was, of all the misfortunes
of his reign, that which could be with the least justice at-
tributed to him as a fault. In the world of elegant letters
Frederick has some claim to be looked on as the founder of
that modern Italian language and literature which first assumed
a distinctive shape at his Sicilian court. . . . It is a significant
fact that one who in mere genius, in mere accomplishments,
was surely the greatest prince who ever wore a crown, a prince
who held the greatest place on earth, and who was concerned
during a long reign in some of the greatest transactions of one
of the greatest ages, seems never, even from his own flatterers,
to have received that title of Great which has been so lavishly
bestowed on far smaller men. The world instinctively felt
that Frederick, by nature the more than peer of Alexander,
of Constantine, and of Charles, had left behind him no such
creation as they left, and had not influenced the world as they
influenced it. He was stupor mundi et immutator mirabilis^
but the name of Fridericus Magnus was kept in store for a
prince of quite another age and house, who, whatever else we
say of him, at least showed that he had learned the art of
Themistokles, and knew how to change a small state into a
great one."

Since many of the most important events in the life of
Frederick II., and especially the most interesting question

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 15

of his religious beliefs, have no bearing upon the story of
Naples, we can here give but this meagre hint of the rare
attractions of a full record of his remarkable life.

This great Emperor died in 1250, and was buried in the
Cathedral of Palermo, where his wife, Constance of Aragon,
also reposes. In 1783, more than five centuries after his
burial, the sarcophagus of Frederick was opened, and his
remains found in a good state of preservation.

Frederick II. was succeeded by his son Conrad, whose
reign of four years was a period of violence. This king
devoted himself to contending with William of Holland
for the imperial crown, and made his illegitimate brother,
Manfred, his regent in Italy ; although hated by Conrad,
Manfred bravely and faithfully defended his brother's rights
against Pope Innocent IV. At Conrad's death, his infant
son, Conradin, became king, and Manfred continued to
govern in his name, and in 1258, on a rumor of the young
king's death, was himself made King of Naples and Sicily,
and crowned at Palermo in August of that year.

Manfred made an alliance with the Ghibellines which
largely increased his power, but he was continually under
the displeasure of the Popes, and led a stormy and turbulent
life. Early in his reign he was forced to fly from the
curses of the Pontiff to the protection of the Saracens
whom his father had placed at Lucera. His journey was
full of danger ; leaving Venosa at midnight, with but few
attendants, — one of whom, Niccolo di Giansilla, wrote an
account of the adventure, — he encountered a frightful
storm, and would have been lost but for a chance meeting
with some huntsmen of his father's, who guided him to a
deserted hunting-lodge which had belonged to the late
Emperor. Manfred was here securely hidden from his
pursuers, and gained some hours of repose while his gar-
ments were dried before what he termed " a royal fire."

Next morning the huntsmen conducted him to the

16 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

castle of Lucera, and one of them, speaking in Arabic,
announced to the Saracens that the son of their Emperor
came to them for protection. These Infidels were enthu-
siastic in their loyalty to Manfred ; but the keeper of the
fortress, who held the keys, was his enemy, and refused
him admission. At this point a Saracen directed Manfred's
attention to a gutter made for the passage of rain-water
beneath the gate. Manfred threw himself from his horse
and had entered the ditch, when the garrison, enraged at
seeing their prince thus humiliated, rushed to the gates
and burst them open ; and .Manfred, remounting his horse,
was led triumphantly into the city, where he was received
with demonstrations of respect and affection, as the son of
their beloved Emperor.

In 1260 Manfred had successfully invaded the Papal
States, after being excommunicated by Urban IV., and
had conquered all Tuscany. He now found time to devote
himself to the improvement of his kingdom, as his father
had done ; and, like the great Frederick, Manfred knew how
to gain the affection of his people. He commenced the
construction of the port of Salerno, and founded the beau-
tiful city of Manfredonia, to which he gave the celebrated
bell, — the largest in Italy, — the tone of which surpassed
all others in its rich sweetness. He established schools
in the principal cities of his kingdom; and at his splendid
court, of which he was the brilliant centre, scholars and
poets were made welcome.

But the battle of Benevento, in 1266, where Manfred
was defeated by Charles I. of Anjou, ended his life, and
the sovereignty of his house in the kingdom of Naples.
Before the battle Manfred sent ambassadors to treat with
Charles, who dismissed them with this message : " Tell the
Sultan of Nocera that I will send him to hell, or he must
place me in paradise." There were traitors among the
nobles surrounding Manfred ; and when he saw that he

FKOM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 17

was losing the battle, he resolved to die in the midst of
his friends rather than survive the overthrow of his king-
dom, which, in the short period of sixteen years, he had
defended against four Popes.

As he put on his helmet, the silver eagle which sur-
mounted it fell on his saddle. " This," he exclaimed, " is
a sign from God. I fastened it there myself, and its fall
is no accident." He spurred his horse into the thick of
the fight, and, having no distinguishing badge, was slain as
a common soldier, and his body was not found for several
days. At length some attendants recognized it, and placed
it on an ass which they led before the victorious Charles,
who assembled his noble prisoners in order to make its
identity certain. The aged count, Giordano Lancia, threw
himself on the corpse and covered it with kisses, crying,
" Alas, alas, my lord, my lord good and wise ! Who has
thus cruelly taken thy life ? " The French soldiers were
so moved that they begged Charles to bury Manfred honor-
ably ; but he refused their request because the dead king
was under the sentence of excommunication, and his body
was thrown into a pit at the foot of the bridge of Bene-
vento. Every French soldier placed a stone above it, as a
mark of respect to their fallen enemy ; and this pile was
afterwards called the "Rock of Roses." But the Arch-
bishop of Cosenza, with the authority of Clement IV., disin-
terred the body and scattered it to the winds of the Abruzzi.

Manfred was a man of great personal courage and
magnanimity of character. He was also very attractive.
Dante described him as blond and handsome, although one
of his eyes had been injured by a wound. His favorite color
in dress was green. He was of gentle mien, and in times
of peace found his happiness in the society of troubadours
and poets ; indeed, his fame as a soldier is equalled by that
which he gained as the patron of Italian poetry.

His widow Sibylla — the daughter of Michael Comnenus

18 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

of Epirus — and his children took refuge in the castle of
Lucera, but were imprisoned by Charles at Castel del
Monte, the favorite hunting-seat of Frederick, which is still
an imposing edifice, and is maintained by the government.
These royal prisoners were afterwards removed to the
castle of Nocera, where Sibylla and her son Manfredino
died. Manfred's daughter Beatrice was one of the first
prisoners in the Castello di San Salvatore am Mare, — now
Castellammare, — a fortress erected by her grandfather,
Frederick II. After a long imprisonment she was released
in 1284 by the great Admiral of Aragon, of which king-
dom her sister Constance was queen. This release occurred
just after the Admiral, Roger de Loria, had fulfilled the
requirements of poetic justice by capturing the eldest son
of Charles I. of Anjou, who had so cruelly oppressed the
family of his fallen foe.

The story of Manfred, which is immortalized by the pen
of Dante, has never lost its interest; while the insatiable
cruelty of Charles of Anjou has left an indelible stain upon
his reign, in some respects brilliant and notable.

After the battle of Benevento, Charles, already crowned
as King of the Sicilies, believed himself secure on his
throne, when, in 1268, Conradin, the grandson of Fred-
erick II., — who had been reported dead, — appeared as
leader of the Ghibellines, supported by Pisa, and joined
battle with the troops of Charles at Tagliacozzo. The
young Suabian seemed about to defeat the French king,
when a fresh legion which Charles had held in reserve
was brought to the field, and Conradin's cause was lost.
He was taken prisoner, and a year later, this last repre-
sentative of the Hohenstaufen, not yet seventeen years old,
was cruelly beheaded in the Piazza del Mercato at Naples,
together with his cousin, Frederick of Baden. Thus,
through the dastardly murder of a boy, was Charles I. of
Anjou firmly established as King of Naples.

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 19

In the ancient church of S. Maria del Carmine, just off
the Piazza del Mercato, is the tomb of Conradin. He
was originally buried behind the high altar, but now rests
beneath the impressive monument erected to his memory
in 1847, almost four centuries after his death. It bears
this inscription : " Maximilian, Crown Prince of Bavaria,
erected this monument to a scion of his house, King
Conradin, the last of the Hohenstaufen."

When on the scaffold, Conradin threw his glove into the
crowd below, thus challenging his enemies. Mrs. Hemans,
at the end of her poem " Conradin," thus commemorates
his bravery : —

" The youth hath given

One glance of parting love to earth and heaven.
The sun rejoices in the unclouded sky,
Life all around him glows, — and he must die ?
Yet midst his people, undismayed, he throws
The gage of vengeance for a thousand woes, —
Vengeance that, like their own volcano's fire,
May sleep suppressed awhile, but not expire.

The lifted axe is glittering in the sun, —

It falls, — the race of Conradin is run !

Yet from the blood which flows that shore to stain,

A voice shall cry to Heaven, — and not in vain.

Gaze thou, triumphant from thy gorgeous throne,

In proud supremacy of guilt alone,

Charles of Anjou, — but that dread voice shall be

A fearful summoner e'en yet to thee ! "

Charles I. of Anjou — brother of Louis IX. of France,
called Saint Louis — had married Beatrice of Provence,
who had brought him vast riches, and made him ruler of
her native country. She was ambitious; three of her
sisters were reigning queens, and she desired to equal
them in rank, and exerted her influence to incite Charles
to the conquests he had made.

20 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

The first object to which he now devoted himself was
the extinction of the Saracens and all others who had
been faithful to Manfred and Conradin, an end which he
achieved by means of great cruelties. He aimed to be the
absolute master of his territory, and fondly hoped to wear
the Imperial Crown. But Pope Gregory X. had other
views ; and by favoring the return of the Ghibelline exiles
and making Rudolph of Hapsburg Emperor of Germany,
he effectually lessened the power and ambition of Charles.
His successor, Pope Nicholas III., still further humiliated
the King of Naples by depriving him of his senatorship in
Rome and his power in Tuscany.

Another obstacle to the attainment of his wishes was
his absence during two years in a crusade against the
Infidels ; but on the death of Nicholas III. and the election
of a French pope, Martin IV., Charles counted on regain-
ing all that he had lost. This hope was soon crushed by a
conspiracy led by Peter of Aragon, the husband of Man-
fred's daughter Constance, — the sole heir of the Hohen-
staufen, — who claimed the kingdom of Sicily in her right,
and was supported by the Emperor Michael Paleologus.

Charles was aware of their plans, and was preparing to
defend himself, when, in 1282, the sleeping hatred of the
Sicilians for the French was roused to vengeance by an
insult offered a Sicilian bride by a French soldier. The
massacre known as the " Sicilian Vespers " followed, and
eight thousand Frenchmen were slain, and the reign of
Charles essentially ended. He besieged Messina, but was
repulsed by Peter of Aragon, who was proclaimed king.
The Pope thundered his anathemas in vain ; Peter and his
ally gave them no heed. The capture of the son of Charles
in 1284, by the Admiral, Roger of Loria, completed the
mortification and sorrow of the Angevine king, and he
lived but two years longer.

Charles II. of Anjou ransomed himself from prison in

FROM FREDERICK H. TO CHARLES V. 21

1286, and a desultory war was carried on in Sicily and
Apulia for twenty years, until finally the Sicilians chose
Frederick II., son of Peter of Aragon, for their king, and
Naples was left under the rule of the House of Anjou.

Naples still possesses some splendid monuments to the
reigns of the first two rulers of this dynasty. Charles I.
devoted himself to making this city a place of importance,
with more energy than his predecessors had shown. He
removed the seat of government from Palermo thither,
thus making Naples the centre of the kingdom, and ex-
tended the city on the east as far as the Piazza del Mercato.
He filled in the marshes between the ancient walls and the
sea, and in 1283 founded the Castel Nuovo ; this became
a royal residence, and was adorned and strengthened from
time to time during five centuries. In 1862 a portion of
its fortifications were condemned to demolition because
of the possibility of their being used for the destruction
of the city, and the outer walls and bastions have been
removed.

Charles I. repaired the old walls of Naples, and paved its
streets ; he destroyed the ancient Palace of the Republic ;
to commemorate his victory at Benevento, he built the
church of S. Lorenzo ; he founded the church of S. Agos-
tino della Zecca and several monasteries ; and also began
to build the cathedral or churcli of S. Gennaro — Janua-
rius — in which his tomb is placed above the great door.
It is a majestic monument, and was restored by the Count
of Olivares, more than three centuries after the death of
the first Angevine King of Naples. His queen, Beatrice,
and his son Robert were buried in the monastery of Mater
Domini at Nocera, in the midst of the former city of the
Saracens, so cruelly exterminated by Charles.

Charles I. enlarged and beautified the Castel dell' Ovo,
and frequently resided there. This castle dates from 1154,
and takes its name from its oval form ; it was remodelled

22 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

in the middle of the sixteenth century. It is on the island
called Megaris by Pliny, which is connected with the Pizzo-
f alcone — a spur of the hill of S. Elmo — by an embank-
ment and bridge ; the castle is now a prison.

The fortified palace of Foggia, in which Charles died,
was erected by him ; and at Gallipoli, beautifully situated
on a rocky island in the Gulf of Taranto, he built a castle
which was later restored by Ferdinand I. He also sur-
rounded the castle which gave its name to Castellammare
with walls and fortifications, and during the nineteen years
of his reign conferred many benefits upon the Neapolitan
capital.

Charles II. of Anjou was a worthy successor of his
father in the conception and execution of public works.
He constructed the original Molo Grande and the Porto
Mercantile, or Porto Grande, in 1302; he continued the
building of the cathedral, and erected S. Domenico Mag-
giore, still one of the finest churches in Naples, and
founded the less important S. Pietro Martire. At Castel-
lammare, about 1300, he built the residence which he
called the Casa Sana; later it was known as the Royal
Villa Quisisana, which means " Here is health ; " it is now
the property of the city, and has been recently fitted up as
the Grand Hotel Margherita; the view from its terrace
and the walks in its park make it a charming resort. At
times Charles II. resided in the Rufolo Palace at Ravello,
— recently the home of an English gentleman ; but the
favorite residence of this king and of many of his suc-
cessors was at Vico Equense, on the road between Castel-
lammare and Sorrento, so famous for its beautiful views.
Vico was founded by Charles on the ruins of a city which
had been destroyed by the Goths ; it has always been cele-
brated for the excellence of its olive oil, as well as for its
charming site on the Bay of Vico, near the rocks known
as I Tre Fratelli. — The Three Brothers.

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 23

It was during the residence of Charles II. at Vico that
Philip the Hardy sent his ambassadors to demand the
hand of the Princess dementia for his third son, Charles
of Valois. The Queen of France, who knew that Charles
II. had been lame from his birth, desired that the ambas-
sadors should be accompanied by their wives, and that
these ladies should take means to assure themselves that
the Princess had no personal defects. The Queen of
Naples was full of resentment at this suspicious inquiry,
and attempted to evade the question, but at length stipu-
lated that her daughter should wear a delicate robe of silk
when she permitted the French ladies to examine her
person. This not seeming to be entirely satisfactory to
her judges, dementia, with much spirit, threw off her robe,
exclaiming, " Non amittam regnum Galliae pro ista interula "
— "I will not lose the kingdom of France for the sake of
this chemise.'' She was found worthy to become the queen
of France, and was the mother of Philip VI., who opposed
the Black Prince at Crecy.

In 1294 Charles II. and his son, Charles Martel, held
the bridle of the mule on which Pietro da Morone rode
into Aquila for his cpronation as Pope Celestine V. In
startling contrast to the sometime pious humility of this
monarch, was his brutal destruction of Ischia, with fire and
sword, in revenge for the part taken by the Ischians in the
revolt of John of Procida, the leader of the Sicilian Ves-
pers. But it was characteristic of the kings of the House
of Anjou to build and endow churches, and show great ven-
eration for the pontiffs who pleased them, while they per-
petrated revolting crimes within their palaces, and revenged
themselves upon their enemies with the utmost cruelty.
Few human hearts have been torn by more antagonistic
forces than was that of Charles II. of Anjou, now resting
in its silver casket in the grand old church of S. Domenico
Maggiore.

24 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

In 1309 Robert, Duke of Calabria, the third son of
Charles II., known as Robert the Wise, became King of
Naples. He was ambitious of wearing the imperial crown
of Italy ; but in 1327 King Louis of Bavaria succeeded in
obtaining this honor, and vowed vengeance upon Robert.
The Romans at first received Louis gladly, but when, in
1329, they saw the fleet of Naples at the mouth of the
Tiber, another sentiment prevailed among them, and the
Emperor was forced to retreat to the North of Italy.
Long years of serious disturbances succeeded these events.
Robert the Wise was now too old to lead the Guelfs to
victory, as he had formerly done, and the Ghibelline power
was vastly increased. When John of Bohemia became
their leader, Florence appealed to Robert for aid ; but he
merely sent them Walter of Brienne, Duke of Athens, who
did them harm rather than good ; and in 1343 King Robert
ended his reign in the midst of bitter contentions between
Guelf and Ghibelline, and the spirit of freedom and that of
tyranny which these terms represented.

While still Duke of Calabria, in 1308, Robert had
founded the town of Citta Ducale, then on the frontier
of the Neapolitan territory. After he came to the throne
he enlarged and completed the port of Salerno, which had
been commenced by Manfred, and proved his wisdom by
founding the Castel Sant' Elmo, which was later so im-
proved and strengthened as to be considered impregnable.
It is now a military prison ; from its ramparts one sees a
splendid panorama of the Bay of Naples, the city itself,
and the district on the west of the bay.

A delightful association with the memory of Robert the
Wise is his appreciation of Giotto, whom he summoned
from Florence on the advice of Boccaccio. Giotto deco-
rated the chapel in the Castel dell' Ovo and the church
of S. Chiara, which was founded by King Robert. No
traces of these frescos remain in the castle, and those in

Interior of the Church of Santa Chiara.

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 25

the church were whitewashed (!) when it was vulgarly
decorated in 1752. A picture called the Madonna della
Grazie is attributed to Giotto, but it is difficult to believe
it to have been his work. Vasari tells us how happy
Robert found himself in the society of this painter, the
friend of Dante and the witty comrade of the brilliant
Florentines of his day. King Robert was also the friend
of Petrarch, in whose company he took great pleasure.
Together they visited the tomb of Virgil. Before Petrarch
was crowned with laurels at Rome, he was examined by
King Robert, who not only gave the poet a satisfactory
diploma, but also conferred on him his own royal mantle
to wear at the ceremony, as he was too aged to assist at it
in person. King Robert was called a second Solomon, and
was wise and experienced in affairs of peace and of war.
His love of books was a passion, and in all circumstances
and places he had them at his side and in his hand. He
generously welcomed to his court scholars and artists, who
helped to revive the intellectual traditions of an earlier
century, when the poetry of Southern Italy had even influ-
enced that of Tuscany. The Greeks, too, were encouraged
to visit the court of Robert the Wise ; and their language
and the ancient literature, after half a century of neglect,
were again studied by the Neapolitans. In short, he seems
to have merited his sobriquet, and to have been a far more
attractive man than were his predecessors in the dynasty
of Anjou.

Robert displayed an admirable modesty in refusing to
have the monument which is said to have been designed by
Masuccio II. executed during his lifetime. It was erected
by his granddaughter, Joanna I., and is behind the high-
altar in S. Chiara. In the upper part of this monument
Robert appears as a monarch on his throne, beneath which
is the inscription, said to have been written by Petrarch,
" Cernite Robertum regem virtute refertum," which may

26 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

be rendered, " King Robert [here] ye gaze upon, Valor's
perfect paragon." Below this royal statue, on a splendid
sarcophagus, supported by saints, the king is again seen in
the dress of a Franciscan monk ; while above all is the
Madonna between SS. Francis and Clara.

The erection of this monument is almost the only repu-
table act recorded of Queen Joanna I. She is believed to
have instigated the murder of her first husband, Andrew
of Hungary, which occurred in 1345 in the garden of the
Celestine Convent at Aversa. This murder was made the
pretext for arousing the Neapolitans against the queen
by her cousins, Robert of Taranto and Charles Durazzo;
and she fled with her lover, Louis of Taranto, to Pope
Clement VI., at Avignon, where the guilty pair were
married. It was under the rule of Queen Joanna, and
during the life of King Andrew, that Petrarch witnessed
those gladiatorial combats at Naples, in the arena near
the church of S. Giovanni a Carbonara, which filled him
with disgust and horror. The tomb of the second spouse
of Queen Joanna is in the famous church of Monte Vergine,
beside that of his mother, Catherine of Valois, who gave to
this monastery the miraculous image of the Virgin, so
celebrated in Southern Italy, which she obtained from
Constantinople.

In 1347 Naples was desolated by a terrible war waged
by Louis the Great of Hungary, a brother of the murdered
Andrew. The leader of the invading army was that infa-
mous German mercenary, Werner, who boasted that he
was " the enemy of God, of pity, and of mercy ; " and not
until 1351 was peace made between Louis and Joanna,
and these mercenary troops withdrawn from her territory.

Meantime, in 1345, Italy had suffered from a famine,
and thousands had perished by starvation. Three years
later the plague raged with frightful violence ; sixty thou-
sand died in Naples alone ; and these successive scourges

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 27

of a cruel and licentious soldiery, famine, and plague, left
behind them a lawless and demoralized condition of things
from which the Neapolitans emerged in a state of semi-
barbarism.

Long before and after this terrible period (1305-1377),
the Popes had dwelt mostly at Avignon, which Joanna I. is
said to have given Pope Clement VI., together with eighty
thousand florins, she having inherited it through Beatrice
of Provence, wife of Charles I. of Anjou. At length, in
1377, Gregory XI. left Avignon and returned to Rome ;
and the papal residence in France, having endured seventy
years, was called the " Babylonish Captivity." But on the
death of Gregory a great schism again sprung up in the
Church, and two popes were elected. Urban VI., who
remained at Rome, was a violent man, and so offended
Queen Joanna that she upheld Clement VII., who dwelt at
Avignon ; while Charles of Durazzo, her cousin and heir,
was devoted to Pope Urban VI.

Joanna, who was now married to her fourth husband,
Otto of Brunswick, — the third having been James of
Aragon, — was still childless, and in order to thwart the
hopes of Charles she adopted, as her heir, the son of King
John of France, Louis of Anjou. But Urban crowned
Charles King of Naples ; and Louis of Hungary, who had
not forgotten the murder of his brother Andrew, sent an
army to Charles Durazzo to enable him to seize the throne.
Therefore, in 1381, Charles III. entered Naples ; and
Joanna, being speedily abandoned by the troops of her
husband, was made prisoner. Her crimes had been so
many and great — her support of Clement VII., which was
viewed as a crime by his opponents, being recently added
to the number — that Charles, although bound to her by
ties of blood, showed himself a pitiless captor. He sent
her, a close prisoner, to the castle of Muro, where, on
May 12, 1382, she was suffocated beneath a feather-bed by

28 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

two Hungarian soldiers, who acted, it is said, on the advice
of the aged king of Hungary.

The tomb of Joanna I. is next that of her father in
Santa Chiara ; and it is generally believed that Raimondo
Cabano, whom she raised from the degraded condition of a
Saracen slave to be the High Seneschal of her kingdom, as
a reward for his aid in her crimes, especially in the murder
of her first husband, is also buried in this church.

The name of Joanna I. is associated with the splendid
old Certosa of S. Martiuo, which she completed, it hav-
ing been begun by her father, Charles, Duke of Calabria,
who died before his father, King Robert. This convent,
near the castle of S. Elmo, is celebrated for its magnifi-
cent views, and, since its suppression as a monastery, is
used as an annex to the Museo Nazionale, being filled with
most interesting objects. It is scarcely possible that any-
thing remains from the time of Joanna ; but the cloisters,
the audience chamber, chapter house, and church, although
rebuilt in later days, still must, in a way, be associated
with this queen ; and, remembering her character, one
involuntarily wonders whether she built King Robert's
tomb and completed her father's work from filial affection
and respect, or because she liked to plan and execute mag-
nificent works for which she should be famous long centu-
ries after her fitful life was ended. She also built the
church of the Incoronata as a memorial of her coronation
and her marriage with Louis of Taranto.

Charles of Durazzo encountered great difficulties in mak-
ing himself supreme master of his kingdom. The adopted
son of Joanna I., Louis of Anjou, besieged Charles III. in
that Castel dell' Ovo where Giotto had painted his frescos,
and which Froissart represents as being at this time one of
the strongest castles in existence, " situated as it were by
enchantment in the sea, so that it is impossible to take it
but by necromancy, or by the help of the devil." Then,

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 29

too, the arrogant Urban VI., having for some reason
deserted the cause of Charles and espoused that of Louis,
established himself with his court and cardinals in the
famous castle of Nocera, and claimed to be the superior
of the monarch on whom he had himself bestowed a
crown.

Charles besieged the pontiff with a large army; but
the Pope, trusting to the strength of his fortress, simply
pronounced his curse upon the besiegers several times
a day, with bell and candle. He was at length released
by Raimondello Orsini and the Genoese, who compelled
Charles to raise the siege. While in the castle Urban sus-
pected the fidelity of his cardinals, and after witnessing the
most cruel tortures ,of six of their number, he confined
them in a cistern so long as he remained there. One of
these cardinals was a legate from Richard II. of England,
whom Urban pardoned at the intercession of that monarch ;
but the other five were tied in sacks and thrown into the
sea.

Louis of Anjou survived Queen Joanna but a year ; and
after his death Charles of Durazzo held the throne in secu-
rity during the short remnant of his life. After the death
of his uncle, Louis of Hungary, Charles went to that coun-
try to claim the throne in the right of his wife, was de-
clared a conspirator against the widow and daughter of
the late king, and in 1386 was murdered, in the midst of
their loyal subjects.

Ladislaus, the young son and heir of Charles III., was
destined to the same stormy life that his predecessors had
led. The adherents to the Angevine dynasty regarded
him, young as he was, as their sovereign, and faithfully
supported his claims ; but the French party endeavored to
establish Louis II. on the throne of Naples.

The long and bloody struggle which followed resulted in
the victory of Ladislaus. As the war proceeded, the young

80 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

king proved himself a valiant soldier ; and in 1389 his army
defeated Louis in a battle fought in Ischia, which island
the French had occupied.

Later, the great schism in the Church, and the violent
contentions in the election of a Pope, which engrossed all
parties, gave Ladislaus an opportunity to increase his power
in various directions ; and he used all the means at his
command to prolong the struggle, as a French Pope, if
elected, would have overthrown his government. At length
it was thought that the growing strength of the King of
Naples threatened the Florentines and other powers in
Italy ; and Braccio, a famous mercenary soldier — who had
previously fought for Ladislaus — was now lured, by larger
pay, to oppose him. In this emergency the young king
employed Attendolo Sforza, another celebrated free lance,
who from a peasant had risen to be a general of armies
and a worthy rival of Braccio.

Genoa had been hitherto the ally of the French, but by
some potent influence was now induced to forsake them
and join the Neapolitans ; and Louis, fearing lest he should
be hemmed in between two hostile armies, retreated while
he could. In 1410 the Florentines, with Braccio's aid,
entered Rome, and compelled the Romans to consent to
the election of Alexander V., believing that a universally
accepted pope would be the most efficient check upon the
power of Naples. But Alexander died before accomplish-
ing the desired end, and the French and Florentines
united to establish John XXIII. on the papal throne ; and
in 1411 these allies invaded the territory of Naples with
twelve thousand soldiers, among whom were the bravest
condottieri and other warriors in all Italy.

Ladislaus was defeated on his own ground. His army,
nearly as large as that of the allies, was drawn up at
Rocca Secca, awaiting the attack, which Louis led in person
with great impetuosity. Nearly all the nobles who served

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 31

under Ladislaus were captured, but he escaped to San Ger-
mano. Had Louis restrained his own desire and that of
his men for plunder, and pursued his rival, he would have
gained a complete victory ; but so eager were his troops for
money that they thought of nothing else, and even sold
their arms.

While his enemies were thus engaged in pillage, Ladis-
laus occupied, with his troops, all possible avenues to
Naples ; and Louis of Anjou, although the victor in the
famous battle of Rocca Secca, was in reality defeated as
to the main object of the war, and, being forced to withdraw
his army, left Ladislaus to make the real conquest and
become the master of the Papal States. When Ladislaus
learned that his enemies were actually in retreat, he said :
"The day after my defeat, my kingdom and my person
were equally in the power of my enemies; the next day
my person was safe, but they were still, if they chose,
masters of my kingdom ; the third day all the fruits of
their victory were lost."

Ladislaus now employed Sforza to compel Pope John,
who had made himself hated by his cruelty, to fly from
the sacred city. The Pope appealed to the Empire north
of the Alps for aid; and shortly after, Sigismund, the
brother of Wenceslaus, who had been deposed, was made
King of the Romans. The enemies of Ladislaus looked to
this new monarch for revenge on Naples, because Charles
of Durazzo had attempted to seize the crown of Hungary,
which Sigismund inherited by the right of his wife, Mary,
the daughter of Louis the Great, of Hungary.

But Sigismund was more occupied with his desire and
determination to end the scandals in the Church than with
his private schemes ; and as Ladislaus died in 1414, — it is
said by poison, — he escaped the punishment which Pope
John had hoped to see inflicted on him. In the following
year, at the Great Council at Constance, Martin V.' was

32 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIKONS.

elected Pope, and acknowledged by all Christendom ; thus
ended the great schism.

The stormy reign of Ladislaus afforded but small oppor-
tunity for the works of peace. However, he erected a large
part of the modern walls around the ancient town of Cora,
mentioned by Virgil, Pliny, and Plautus, where the most
important and interesting ruins repay the study of the
antiquarian.

At Naples he restored and enlarged the church of S.
Giovanni a Carbonara, where his tomb was erected by his
sister, Joanna II., and is called the masterpiece of Andrea
Ciccione. It is placed behind the high altar, and, its
height being nearly equal to that of the church, it is most
imposing in effect. An equestrian statue of Ladislaus, with
crown on head and sword in hand, spirited in pose, occu-
pies the summit. Below this is a sarcophagus on which is
a recumbent figure of the king ; a bishop is pronouncing
a benediction over it, thus indicating that the ban of the
Church, under which lie died, had been removed. Still
below this is a niche in which statues of Ladislaus and
Joanna are seated on thrones, while four Virtues are sit-
ting near them. Besides these principal figures there are
many statues, columns, and other ornaments, all carefully
executed, which serve to make this monument notable
even in a church which is celebrated for its tombs and
sculptures.

The reign of Joanna II. (1414-1435) is memorable for
the wars that divided all Italy in the interests of the
houses of Anjou and Aragon, and for the unusual charac-
ter of the Free Captains, or Mercenaries, and many of the
nobles who were engaged in these struggles.

The private life of Joanna was far from reputable ; she
was guilty of infidelity in all her relations, as a woman and
as a queen. But her second husband, Jacques de Bourbon,
treated her so cruelly as to arouse great sympathy in her

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 33

behalf, and her subjects drove him out of the kingdom.
She had no children, and the question as to whom she
would adopt as her heir interested her friends and foes
alike.

The great Attendolo Sforza, the general on whom she
relied, used his influence in favor of Louis III. of Anjou,
the grandson of that Louis who had been adopted by her
cousin, Joanna I. But the counsel of her favorite, Ser
Giovanni Caraccioli, prevailed; and Joanna II. adopted
Alfonso, King of Aragon and Sicily, as heir to her throne
and possessions.

As years passed, the number of those who favored the
succession of the Angevines was largely increased, and
Louis III. determined to seat himself upon the throne of
Naples. In 1420, with the approbation of Pope Martin V.
and the aid of the Genoese, Louis appeared before Naples
with his army. He was repulsed by Alfonso, and in spite
of his determination to succeed had apparently little ground
for hope ; but Joanna II. quarrelled with Alfonso, revoked
her adoption of him, — by reason of his ingratitude and
opposition to her will, — and substituted Louis III. of
Anjou in his stead. This occurred in June, 1423 ; and in
September of the same year Louis was formally adopted
at Aversa, the Norman town in which Andrew of Hungary
was murdered.

Louis entered Naples in triumph, Calabria submitted to
his authority, and in spite of the variable disposition of the
queen, all went well until he was recalled to France in
1426, by Charles VII., who required his aid against the
English. Louis distinguished himself in the French cam-
paigns, and in 1431, having married Margaret of Savoy,
daughter of Amadeus VIII., returned to Italy, and died at
Cosenza, the capital of Calabria, in 1434, and was buried
in the cathedral of that city. Queen Joanna survived him
but a few months, and by her last will and testament left

3

34 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

her kingdom to the brother of Louis III., Rend of Anjou,
who thus became the sovereign of all the vast domains of
the House of Anjou, over which no other ruler of that
dynasty had held full power.

The principal public works of Queen Joanna II. were
the tomb of her brother Ladislaus, — into which her vanity
led her to introduce her own statue, — and the restoration
of the church of S. Maria dell' Annunziata, in which is her
own sepulchre, — far too simple and unpretending a monu-
ment to represent the character of this proud and volup-
tuous queen. A fire in the Nunziata, in 1757, destroyed the
fine paintings with which it had been enriched by succes-
sive popes and sovereigns, and little now remains that is
older than its rebuilding by Luigi Yanvitelli in 1782.

A favorite residence with Joanna was a villa on the
island of Nisida, — the Nesis of the ancients, — which
island was the residence of Brutus after the murder of
Caesar, B. c. 44, where Cicero came to confer with him on
affairs of state, and where Brutus took leave of Portia
before sailing for Greece. Nisida was also the place to
which Augustulus was exiled by Odoacer after the fall of
the Roman Empire, and in the Augustan Age the Roman
epicures prized the asparagus of Nesis as superior to that
of any other spot ; their good judgment is still endorsed
by those who eat the Nisidian grapes, olives, figs, and
asparagus of the present day.

Joanna's villa was converted into a fort, in order to
repulse the fleet of Louis III. while the queen still favored
Alfonso of Aragon, and now serves as a prison. In
1624 the Duke of Alva erected the Lazaretto here, which
recently has been used as a quarantine station ; and in our
own century a port was constructed between Nisida and
the mainland, which is a fine example of the civil engineer-
ing of modern days.

Two interesting portraits of Joanna II. were painted by

The Island of Nisida.

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 35

Antonio Solario, called Lo Zingaro from his early trade of
a tinker. One of these pictures belongs to a private col-
lection, not easily seen by a traveller ; but in the Museum
of Naples, the Madonna surrounded by eight saints — in
the room of the Neapolitan school, painted by Solario —
is said to be a portrait of Queen Joanna ; while the figure
behind Saint Peter is a portrait of the daughter of Colan-
tonio del Fiore, for love of whom this artist renounced his
early calling, and, like Quintin Massys, took to the brush.
The figure at the extreme left, behind Saint Aspremus, is
also called a portrait of the Zingaro himself. There are
those who doubt the genuineness of these likenesses ; but
who can tell whether it be so or not?

Joanna's death was the signal for wars and contentions
for the throne of Naples between the French and Ara-
gonese claimants, — in which a large part of Europe was
involved, — which continued seventy years and ended in
its becoming a Spanish possession.

Alfonso of Aragon claimed the Neapolitan throne ; but
the Republic of Genoa, under the direction of the Duke of
Milan, declared itself in favor of Ren<5 of Anjou, who was
at this time the prisoner of Philip the Good, Duke of Bur-
gundy, in the Tower of Bar at Dijon. When his inher-
itance of a kingdom under the will of Queen Joanna was
made known to him, the joy it might have brought him
under other circumstances was turned to bitterness by the
fact of his imprisonment, which his added importance
would tend to make more rigorous.

As Rene* feared, so it proved. The Duke at once trans-
ferred his prisoner to Bracon, and determined, now that he
had a king in his power, to push to the last possible sou
the price of his ransom, and to profit as much as he might
by this change of circumstances. It may easily be under-
stood that Rene* was excited almost to madness by his
desire for freedom, that he might possess and enjoy his

36 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

brilliant heritage on the Bay of Naples, as well as add to
the glory and riches of the House of Anjou. The repre-
sentations of the Neapolitan ambassadors convinced him
that no time could be lost if he wished to prevent the King
of Aragon from seizing Naples, and he determined imme-
diately to send his wife, Isabella of Lorraine, as his regent,
with full powers for peace or war. The letters which
named her the Lieutenant-General of her husband were
signed at Dijon in 1435, four months after the death of
Joanna.

The tedious and complicated course of events which led
to the liberation of Rene* is not to be recited here, neither
will we recount the mingled success and failure which at-
tended the rule of Queen Isabella during the weary months
of her husband's confinement. Not until May, 1438, did
King Ren£ first feast his eyes on the marvellous panorama
of the Bay of Naples and the Mediterranean Sea, which
formed the southern boundary of his new inheritance.
While the unequalled natural beauties satisfied his artistic
nature, and the souvenirs of classic ages appealed to his
scholarly instincts, the sight of the Spanish flag floating
from the Castel dell' Ovo and the Castel Nuovo reminded
him that this heaven-endowed heritage could not be peace-
fully enjoyed until conquered through fierce and bloody
battles.

On landing, Isabella met him with their youngest son ;
while the eldest, John, with his wife, disembarked at the
same moment. This family reunion excited the quick
sympathy of the Neapolitans, who rent the air with sincere
shouts of welcome. A better acquaintance with the person
of their new sovereign served but to increase their enthusi-
asm. Rene", not yet thirty years old, and already so expe-
rienced in the chances and changes of human life, was
affable in bearing, and possessed of such personal charms
as could not fail to recommend him to his impressionable

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 37

subjects. They attended him to Castel Capuano, where
Queen Isabella was residing ; and three days later he made
his triumphal entry into Naples on horseback, and assumed
his seat upon the throne of the kingdom. The enthusiasm
of his reception knew no bounds. De la Marche tells us
that the people embraced each other and cried out, " The
war is ended ! " when, alas ! the war was about to begin.

The renowned general, Jacopo Caldora, soon presented
himself to King Rene*, who reviewed the troops he had
brought with him. He offered his soldiers to his sovereign,
but pleaded his own age as a reason why he should retire
from active service. But Rene* so well knew the worth of
his counsel that, far from consenting to his retirement, the
king conferred on Caldora the full command of the mili-
tary affairs of his kingdom, thus gaining an opportunity to
examine and reorganize the civil administration of the
government.

Rene" instituted important reforms in the conduct of the
University of Naples, of the Certosa of S. Martino, and
the Congregation of S. Martha. He made new and just
laws relative to commerce, duties, and taxes, and, so far as
he was able, rewarded those who had assisted Queen
Isabella in her struggle to maintain his authority until he
could gain his freedom and take the reins of government
in his own hands. King Rene* was not long permitted to
occupy himself with civil affairs; in August, but three
months after his arrival in Naples, he found it necessary
to go, with all the troops that he could muster, to the
assistance of Caldora in the Abruzzi, where he was opposed
to Alfonso with an army much larger than that of the
Neapolitans. Hostilities, which endured for some months,
first in the mountains, and finally at Naples itself, resulted
in the defeat of the Aragonese, who were driven into Cala-
bria, leaving Naples and the surrounding country in the
control of King Rend.

38 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

At this point the friends and allies of the two claimants
to the Neapolitan kingdom endeavored to negotiate a peace-
ful solution of the quarrel which should put an end to their
wars, and bring good government and prosperity to both
Sicily and Naples ; but each one of the powers claiming to
be interested in these objects had its own ends to gain,
and, in fact, pursued them in preference to the measures
which might have resulted in the good of all.

After long and futile arguments on one side and the
other, in November, 1441, Alfonso regularly besieged the
city of Naples, having previously, while Rene* awaited
the conclusion of the negotiations for peace, skilfully
worked his way here and there in the disputed territory,
and by one means and another prevailed on many towns
to favor his cause. Francesco Sforza and Antonio Caldora,
son of the famous Jacopo, had both proved traitors, of the
blackest dye, to the cause of Rene".

In spite of all his discouragements, the French prince
displayed undaunted courage and a character of the noblest
type. Could he have relied on any outside aid, his per-
sonal valor and daring deeds, if imitated by but a handful
of his followers, might have turned the tide of events in
his favor. But the Duke of Milan feared lest the power
of France should be too largely increased; Charles VII.
was engrossed with the English and his own affairs to the
exclusion of the cause of his brother-in-law, and, indeed,
he had never ceased to hold amicable relations with Al-
fonso of Aragon ; Pope Eugenius IV. was rendered almost
powerless by the divisions in the Church ; the mercenary
captains were unfaithful to their engagements ; the Vene-
tians were no reliance for Ren£ ; the aid which the Genoese
could give him was insufficient ; and of equal importance
with any one, or perhaps more than one, of these unfortu-
nate conditions, was his want of money.

Finally, seven months after the beginning of the siege,

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 39

after heroic efforts to repulse the enemy almost single-
handed, he embarked, with the few followers who wished
to share his fortunes, on some Genoese galleys, and, landing
at Pisa, made his way to Florence. Here an element of
comedy was mingled with the tragedy of his experiences,
when the Pope solemnly conferred on him the crown of
the kingdom which he had already lost.

Thus, after nearly four years of almost incessant war-
fare, was the reign of the House of Anjou ended in Naples.
Ren6 persisted in styling himself the King of Naples, and
so long as he lived indulged the dream of reclaiming the
throne he had lost. To this end he used all the diplomacy
at his command, as well as his own troops and those of his
son. If he failed to recover his throne, his race had con-
ferred a vast benefit on France ; for the reign of the House
of Anjou in Naples during one hundred and seventy-five
years had secured to the French that power in Italy which
endured, in greater or less degree, for centuries after the
failure of the Angevine princes.

De la Marche is right in affirming that the Aragonese
monarch had neither the bravery, the uprightness, the
chivalric gallantry, nor the popularity of King Rene'. Even
Alfonso recognized the furia francese of his rival, — which
always amazed the Italians and filled them with admira-
tion, — when he exclaimed, " Take care, the lion is un-
chained ! " But the Aragonese was a master in strategy ;
his patience was untiring, and he hesitated at nothing that
could further his cause ; and since address often surpasses
courage, and cunning overmasters integrity, the reasons
for the failure of Rene* and the success of Alfonso are not
far to seek. The latter was undoubtedly the most able
sovereign who had ruled at Naples since the days of the
Hohenstaufen Frederick.

The entrance to the Castel Nuovo, opposite the Strada
del Castello, leads to a Triumphal Arch which commemo-

40 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

rates the entrance of Alfonso into Naples after the defeat
of King Rene*, in 1442. This arch was erected in 1470,
twelve years after the death of Alfonso. Vasari calls it
the work of the architects, Pietro di Martino of Milan and
Giuliano da Maiano of Florence. Strictly speaking, this
arch formed the entrance to the fortifications, and is some-
times called the finest monument at Naples. On each side
are Corinthian columns which support a frieze and cornice ;
above is an attic with bas-reliefs representing the entrance
of Alfonso, by the sculptors Isaia da Pisa and Silvestro
delP Aquila. There are statues of the four Cardinal
Virtues, in niches ; and above are SS. Michael, Anthony
Abbot, and Sebastian, by Giovanni da Nola, which were
added by Don Pedro de Toledo. The celebrated bronze
gates are by the monk Guglielmo of Naples, and represent
the victories of Ferdinand I. over Duke John of Anjou
and his own rebellious barons. A cannon-ball embedded
in the left wing is a souvenir of the time of Gonsalvo da
Cordova, early in the sixteenth century.

When Alfonso died, in 1458, he left the kingdoms of
Aragon and Sicily to his legitimate heir, John, and Naples
to his illegitimate son, Ferdinand, who was known to be an
extremely cruel man. The Neapolitans begged of John,
Duke of Calabria and son of King Rene*, to come to their
aid. Duke John, who was the French Governor of Genoa
and already had a footing in Italy, was quite ready to
attempt the recovery of the throne which his father had
lost, and King Rene* encouraged his son to assume his
rights and act in his stead.

The Duke of Calabria repeated the experience of his
father in failing to obtain helpful allies. However, he
landed at Castellammare, and many Neapolitan nobles
hastened to range themselves under his banner. In July,
1460, near Sarno, he gained a brilliant victory over the
army of Ferdinand, which, had it been followed up with

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 41

energy, should have taken him triumphantly to Naples.
But neither the Duke of Milan, the Medici of Florence, nor
the King of France, was in favor of his cause ; the Genoese,
too, united with the Duke of Milan in opposing John, and
the Pope, Pius II., was avowedly the friend of Ferdinand.
In the face of such opposition the Duke of Calabria must
have known that the hopes of his house regarding the
throne of Naples rested on but slight foundations.

Nevertheless, he bravely continued his struggles until,
at Troja, in 1462, he was defeated in a decisive battle,
which endured six hours, and is celebrated as one of the
fiercest struggles of the fifteenth century. John retreated
to Castellammare, leaving three hundred prisoners and five
hundred horses in the hands of his foes. Here many
nobles surrounded the Duke ; and the great condottiere,
Piccinino, privately said to him, —

" To-day, if you wish, you may be master of this
kingdom."

" And how ? " demanded the Duke.

"Arrest all these men and send them to Provence. It
is they who continue the war, arid without them you will
have the advantage."

" No member of my family has been a traitor," answered
the Duke, " and I will not be the first. If it pleases God
that I shall be a king, I shall be ; if not, let His will be
done."

In 1463 the Duke of Calabria intrenched himself in the
island of Ischia, hoping always that France would come to
his assistance ; but in this very year Louis XI. made an
alliance with the Duke of Milan, and ceded to that noble
his claims on Genoa, thus indicating that France might
even become the friend of Ferdinand himself.

John returned to Provence in 1464, and two years later,
the vacant throne of Aragon being offered to King Rene",
the Duke was sent as lieutenant-general and commandant

42 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

of the forces, to Barcelona, where he spent years in con-
tention and warfare with John of Aragon. However, Rend,
by one means and another, had made alliances and brought
his plans to such a point, that, by increasing his army, in
1469 there seemed to be a prospect of success for the
much tried Duke of Calabria, when suddenly, in December,
1470, he died at Barcelona. Poison was suspected, and
the examination of his 'body justified this theory of the
cause of his death ; but the author of the crime was never
discovered.

After this terrible affliction, the ever persistent Rend,
still claiming the titles of King of Aragon and Sicily,
retired to Provence, where he lived nine years more, among
those who loved him and called him the "good King
Rend," until, in July, 1480, " the illustrious King Rend,
this Prince of Peace and Mercy, rendered his soul to God
amid the tears and sobs of all his people, and above all
of those of his capital." Fortunately, the passion of Rend
for music, painting, and poetry served to make him for-
getful of his defeats and misfortunes, which would have
driven another sort of man to madness.

The church of S. Lorenzo at Naples, built in 1266 by
the first prince of the House of Anjou who reigned there,
is rich in a variety of historical associations. The nave
was almost entirely rebuilt three centuries after its foun-
dation, but the portal and choir still preserve the Gothic
architecture of the Angevine dynasty. Behind the high
altar are the funeral monuments of the House of Durazzo,
the second branch of the House of Anjou. They are
elaborate in design and execution, and are attributed to
Masuccio II.; but no reliable proof that they were his
work now exists.

In the pavement, near the entrance, may be read the
name of Giambattista della Porta, 1550-1616, famed as
the discoverer of the camera obscura, and the originator of

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 43

the plan of the encyclopaedia. In this church Boccaccio first
saw the " Fiammetta," whose beauty he celebrated, — sup-
posed to have been Mary, the natural daughter of King
Robert ; and in the monastery attached to this church the
monks were happy in entertaining Petrarch as their guest.

It was in the chapter-house of S. Lorenzo that Alfonso
I. — after the Pope had legitimized Ferdinand — held a
great parliament of priests and barons, and, under the
title of Duke of Calabria, proclaimed this son his heir to
the Neapolitan kingdom. Ferdinand's coronation occurred
later at the Cathedral of Barletta. We have seen that his
rights were disputed by John, the Angevine Duke of
Calabria, who was invited to the contest by the Neapoli-
tan barons who hated Ferdinand on account of his cruelties.
Not until 1462 was he freed from the Augevine claims to
his throne ; and during the succeeding twelve years he
was engaged in plots and plans which allied him with the
Milanese Sforza and the Florentine Medici, and enabled
him to maintain his authority in spite of the disaffection
of his subjects. Everything was accomplished by dishon-
esty and treachery ; neither in Ferdinand, nor in his allies,
nor in Pope Innocent VIII., did a spark of honesty exist.

After 1480, all Italy enjoyed a period of repose and
prosperity. Great tracts of wild land were brought under
cultivation, and the growth in population and wealth was
large and rapid. In some portions of Italy manufacturing
was greatly increased, and financial transactions yielded
enormous gains. From the more cultivated centres, nota-
bly from Florence, where idleness and sensuality reigned
supreme, the most demoralizing influences were dissemi-
nated ; the sickly philosophies proclaimed in metaphorical
and stilted periods were but poor guides in thought and
action, when compared with the devout and soul-stirring
religious teaching which they so largely displaced ; and in
the small feudal sovereignties — especially in the South

44 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

of Italy — tyranny was so sure of itself that such vices
and crimes as are utterly unspeakable were constantly
increasing.

In 1492 new disturbances arose. Pietro di Medici and
King Ferdinand made an alliance against the Pope and the
Duke of Milan, and the latter revenged himself by inviting
Charles VIII. of France to prosecute his claim to the
throne of Naples as the representative of the House of
Anjou. Ludovico Sforza succeeded in dazzling the eyes
and blinding the judgment of the son of the cautious
Louis XI., and in spite of the disapproval of his wisest
counsellors he enlisted in a campaign that he was persuaded
would make him the equal of the great Charlemagne in
glory.

His first conquest should be Naples; the second, Greece;
and continuing his triumphant course to the East, driving
all enemies before him, the Holy Sepulchre and the city of
Jerusalem should be rescued from the power of the Turks,
and brought safely into the bosom of the Christian Church.
Such was the sum of his anticipated triumphs.

Before entering upon so important an undertaking,
Charles VIII. made many preparations which he believed
would assure him success, the most momentous of which
were treaties of peace with the sovereigns of England and
Spain, the King of the Romans, and the Archduke Philip.

Ferdinand I. was greatly alarmed by the prospect of
this invasion. He knew how heartily his subjects hated
him, and how gladly they would welcome any change, since
they could not be more oppressed than they already were.
He hastened to make an alliance with Pope Alexander VI.,
promising to aid him in his chief ambition, — the advance-
ment of his children, — but had secured no other allies,
when, in the midst of these anxious preparations. — early
in 1494, — " the old Fox of Aragon " died, leaving his
kingdom to his son Alfonso II.

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 45

During the thirty-four years of his reign, cordially hated
as he was, Ferdinand I. conferred on Naples some benefits
for which he should be gratefully remembered. He intro-
duced the art of printing by inviting a German, Sixtus
Reissinger, to set up his press in his capital; and other
Germans following Reissinger, printing was firmly estab-
lished there during Ferdinand's life. The first book which
Reissinger printed at Naples may be seen in the Museo
Nazionale ; it is Bartolo's " Lectura super Codicem," and is
dated 1471. The enormous benefits which the kingdom
of Naples has enjoyed from the cultivation and manufac-
ture of silk, also established by Ferdinand, are too well
known to require more than a passing mention, while some
of his public works still cause his reign to be honorably
remembered.

Ferdinand built the massive Castel del Carmine, and
from it extended the city walls to S. Giovanni a Car-
bonara. He fortified these walls with towers, curtains,
fosses, and counterscarps, under the direction of Giuliano
da Maiano, and opened several new gates, placing his own
statue above each one of them. Some of these gates and
portions of the old walls still remain. The Porta Capuana
dates from 1484 ; it is of white marble, flanked by two
handsome round towers, and is not only a noble monument
to the art of Maiano, but is one of the finest Renaissance
gateways still in existence. The towers are inscribed with
the words " L'Onore " and " La Virtu," and were called by
those names ; the statue of Ferdinand was removed from
this gateway in 1535, when Charles V. passed beneath it
to make his triumphal entrance into Naples.

As the name of this gate indicates, the road to Capua
passed through it at the time of its building. Now the
Corso Garibaldi runs outside it, leading from the sea to
the Strada Foria, not far from the Botanical Garden.
Here, too, near the gate are railway-stations, while far

46 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

away stretch the Paduli, or marshes, which are the kitchen
garden of Naples, where one crop succeeds another through-
out the year. No other example of the Neapolitan archi-
tecture of the fifteenth century surpasses this gate in
artistic interest; while the historical associations which
connect it with the marching of armies, with triumphal
processions, with coronations and jubilant festivals, as
well as with scenes of sadness and sorrow, are too many to
be even catalogued here.

Ferdinand also strengthened the Castel Sant' Elmo,
known in his time as the Castello di San Martino, and
erected a lighthouse at the extremity of the Molo. With
the aid of some of his barons, he continued the rebuilding
of the cathedral, begun by his father ; and in commemora-
tion of this good work of the nobles, their arms are sculp-
tured on the pillars of the church.

In 1480 the Turks gained possession of Otranto, and
Ferdinand assembled a great parliament of priests and
barons at Foggia, to concert measures against the invaders.
The Turks were repelled by the son of Ferdinand, after-
wards Alphonso II. ; and Ferdinand, fearing lest Taranto
should also fall into the hands of the Mohammedans, cut
through the rocky isthmus on which the city is situated,
and thus converted its site into an island.

Ferdinand I. was buried in the sacristy of S. Domenico
Maggiore, where, of the forty-five crimson sarcophagi
ranged around the walls, ten contain all that remains of
that number of his royal house. They are surrounded by
the tombs of many famous men and women, among them
being that of the Marquis of Pescara, the husband of the
gifted and beloved Vittoria Colonna.

In the Museum at Naples there is a picture of the
Beato Nicolas Martyr, which has been called by some
writers a portrait of Ferdinand I. of Aragon ; but I find no
warrant for such a claim, which is certainly incapable of

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 47

proof, especially as Tesauro, the artist to whom it is
attributed, is said to have died in 1380.

Had Ferdinand lived, he would have avoided war with
France, if possible ; but Alfonso, who was as much hated
as his father had been, was of a proud and determined
character, and prepared to defend himself against his
enemy. He made an alliance with Pope Alexander, and
together they proposed friendship to the Sultan Bajazet,
and advised him to attack the French, warning him of the
plan that Charles VIII. had made against Constantinople.
The Sultan considered the threatened danger as too distant
to demand immediate attention, and declined the alliance
with the Holy Father and the King of Naples.

Meantime Charles built a fleet at Genoa, and equipped
an army in Dauphiny, hiring many Swiss and German
mercenaries. His preparations were made so leisurely
that the Italians under the command of Don Frederick,
son of King Alfonso, began hostilities by an attack on
Genoa, but were easily repulsed by French soldiers led by
the Duke of Orleans.

At length, in August, 1494, Charles VIII. crossed the
Alps, and made what might almost be termed a triumphal
march to Naples, where he was welcomed as a deliverer,
Alphonso II. having fled to Sicily, and his son, Ferdinand
II., — called Fernandino, — to whom he had resigned the
Neapolitan throne, to Ischia. It was not long, however,
before the Neapolitans, who had confidently looked for
good government under the French monarch, found that
they were little better off than they had been under the
Aragonese. While Charles was not the oppressive tyrant
that Ferdinand I. and Alphonso II. had each been, in turn,
he placed little value upon the kingdom he had so easily
acquired. The French officers were insolent to the Nea-
politans, and, from Charles down to his hired soldiers,
the army was devoted to riotous living and all kinds of

48 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

dissipation. The principal Neapolitans were disgusted and
angry at the high-handed manner in which Charles made
large grants of land to his followers, and conferred on them
the desirable offices in the kingdom.

In his passage through Italy, Charles had, in one way
and another, incurred the enmity of all the rulers with
whom he had come in contact. The Pope, the Florentines,
and even the Duke of Milan, who had invited him hither,
were now equally anxious to be rid of his presence in the
peninsula. Ferdinand of Spain, and Maximilian, King of
the Romans, each had their reasons for wishing Charles on
the other side of the Alps, and a league between all these
powers was speedily formed against the French monarch.

The knowledge of this league determined Charles to
return to France ; this he did with but few and slight hin-
drances, reaching his own country fourteen months after
he first entered Italy, having left the Count of Montpensier
with several captains and a small army to rule the Neapo-
litans, and complete the conquest of their country. As
neither reinforcements nor money were sent to the French
troops left in Naples, they soon considered themselves
deserted and forgotten, and became utterly demoralized.

Ferdinand II. returned to Naples, and with the aid of the
great Spanish captain, Gonsalvo da Cordova, had regained
nearly all that his father had lost, when, in October, 1496,
he was borne from Somma to Castel Capuano, sick unto
death. In the " Cronaca di Notar Giacomo," this account
is given : —

"On the following Thursday, the Most Reverend Lord
Archbishop, Alexander Carafa, led two solemn processions,
one of which went towards the Nunziata, bearing the head and
blood of the glorious martyr St. Januarius, followed by a
numberless troop of women with burning wax torches. As the
procession reached the castle, the queen mother appeared under
the portal and threw herself on the ground, upon which the

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 49

Archbishop uttered three prayers : the first to the Madonna,
the second for the sick King, and the third to St. Januarius.
Then they all exclaimed ' Misericordia ' so loudly and tumultu-
ously that the Archbishop could hardly finish the prayer amid
the lamentations of the people. On the following Friday, at
the seventh hour, another procession was about to march to
Santa Maria la Nuova: then came the intelligence that God
had taken the Lord King to himself. Cujus anima requiescat
in pace."

Ferdinand II. was succeeded by his uncle Frederick,
Prince of Altamura. Thus there were four sovereigns of
Naples — aside from Charles VIII. — in the three years
which succeeded the death of Ferdinand I. of Aragon.

The burial-case of Ferdinand II. is one of those faded
crimson sarcophagi of which we have spoken in the sacristy
of S. Domenico Maggiore. They are a melancholy spec-
tacle, with their gilt emblems affixed to decaying wooden,
coffins, — fit symbols of the race they hold ; a race want-
ing in solidity and earnestness. The remains of the first
Alfonso — called the Just and the Magnanimous, in his
time second only to Frederick of Hohenstaufen among the
rulers of Naples — were transported to Catalonia in the
seventeenth century, and buried near the tombs of his
ancestors.

Two interesting episodes in the life of Ferdinand II.
illustrate his cruelty and his bravery. When he fled to
Ischia, on the very day that his father's abdication made
him king, he took with him his bride — his aunt Joanna —
not yet fourteen years old. When he presented himself
before the castle of Ischia, having arrived with a fleet of
fourteen galleys, the castellan refused him admission.
After much discussion, the king and queen were permitted
to land ; and the moment that Ferdinand had entered the
castle, he drew his sword and killed the castellan. The
garrison, their commander being murdered before their

50 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIKONS.

eyes, made no resistance, and the guards and troops of the
king were soon within the castle.

At the battle of Seminara, when the French troops com-
pletely routed the Neapolitans under Gonsalvo da Cordova,
Ferdinand, while bravely endeavoring to rally his forces,
was in great personal danger. His horse fell under him
and he could not extricate himself, when the noble Gio-
vanni d' Altamura went to his aid, gave him his own horse,
and wishing his sovereign God speed to a place of safety,
fell dead, riddled by a hundred wounds.

Ferdinand IT. added nothing to the strength or beauty
of Naples. On the contrary, when he besieged the Castel
delP Ovo, while Charles VIII. was master of the city, he
entirely dismantled that fortress, already more than three
centuries old, having been founded by the Norman, Wil-
liam I. The present castle dates from the middle of the
sixteenth century.

As Alfonso II. had been king less than a year when he
fled to Sicily, he erected no monuments to his reign, and
escaped at the menace of danger as if chased by the ghosts
of those he had put to death. His stepmother urged him
to remain but three days, that he might complete a whole
year as sovereign. But so cruel a man could not be cour-
ageous, and he went, taking with him much wine of many
sorts, which he dearly loved, and seeds to plant a garden
which he intended to make. At Messina he lived with the
monks of Mount Oliveto, his favorite order ; and until his
death, in 1495, he fasted, prayed, and gave abundant alms,
as if to atone for the frightful sins he had committed, — if
we may believe Commines when he says : " He considered
himself no longer worthy to be king, he had been guilty of
such crimes and cruelties. There never was a man more
savage or worse than he, or more abandoned to debauch-
ery.*' On the morning of his birth a fiery meteor appeared
in the heavens, and his grandfather predicted that he

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 51

would bring ruin to his house and kindle a frightful war
in Italy.

While still Duke of Calabria, Alfonso II. had fully in-
dulged his love of building fine villas, surrounded by gar-
dens and parks in which were fountains, and hedges of
myrtle and citron, and roads for pleasure-riding. Doubtless
the example of this prince excited that love of architectural
enterprises which characterized the nobility, statesmen,
and all Neapolitans of wealth at the beginning of the six-
teenth century.

This sovereign was a great benefactor to the church and
monastery of Monte Oliveto, also called S. Anna dei Lom-
bardi. He adorned this church with numerous works of
art ; and as some most noble families vied with him in his
pious work, Monte Oliveto became a treasury of the art of
the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. As Alfonso affected
the Olivetan or White Benedictines more than any other
order, it was not unusual for him to sit at their table in
the refectory, where he was always welcome. He lavished
revenues and lands on this monastery, and his monument in
their church is the work of the celebrated Giovanni da
Nola. In the chapel of the Holy Sepulchre there is a sin-
gular group in terra cotta, rather coarsely conceived and
executed, by Guido Manzoni, called Modanino. It rep-
resents Jesus Christ in the sepulchre, surrounded by six
life-size figures, all kneeling. They are portraits of con-
temporaries of the sculptor ; Alfonso is represented as
S. John, and the figure next him is his son Ferdinand.

Frederick of Aragon was the last and the best of his
house to be King of Naples. Hitherto devoted to the arts
of peace, the people hailed him with joy, believing that in
him they should have a just and benevolent ruler ; indeed,
all parties, however hostile before, were now ready to make
him the centre of their hopes and interests. The principal
fortresses of the kingdom were in his power ; he had sons

52 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

whom lie hoped would inherit his throne, and when he was
crowned by the Cardinal Caesar Borgia, the sovereign, the
nobles and the people anticipated a prosperous future. In
four short years their hopes were cruelly blighted, and in
eight years the painful life of this last Aragonese-Neapo-
litan king was ended in a hated foreign land.

Ferdinand, the Catholic of Spain, had already deter-
mined to dispossess his -cousins of the kingdom of Naples.
He had proposed its division between France and Spain to
Charles VIII., and after that monarch's death he found a
ready listener to his schemes in Louis XII. who desired to
rule at Naples and to gain possession of Lombardy, which he
claimed in the right of his grandmother, Valentina Visconti.

In November, 1500, at Granada, a treaty of partition
was signed with the greatest secrecy. Louis XII. was to
be King of Naples with the Abruzzi and Terra di Lavoro ;
Ferdinand was to add to his greater honors the title of
Duke of Apulia and Calabria.

Frederick was first made aware of his betrayal by the
approach from Rome of the French army under D'Aubigne" ;
and so blind was he to the character of his Spanish cousin
that he confided his cause to Gonsalvo da Cordova, then
stationed in the Terra di Lavoro, who marched with Span-
ish troops to Capua, and joined D'Aubigne" in the storming
and pillage of that city. De Reumont says : —

" "When this unnatural alliance became known in Naples, the
barons, the gentry, and the people assembled themselves in the
cathedral ; they heard mass devoutly, and at the elevation of
the host they swore aloud to be united and one body, and faith-
ful to their lawful ruler ; but when the enemy stood at the,
gates, union and fidelity were at an end. Then was Naples
lost. Frederick, to save his capital from the fate of Capua,
concluded, in Aversa, a capitulation with the leader of the
victorious army, and promised to give up the castles. The
duplicity of Ferdinand had crushed his hopes."

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 53

In 1501 Frederick went, with his queen, Isabella del
Balzo, and their children, to Ischia. There, in that castle,
high on the rocky promontory which afforded him so exten-
sive a view of the beautiful inheritance which he had lost,
he was compelled to choose his future dwelling-place. A
month later he sailed for France. Louis XII. assigned to
Frederick a large domain in the garden of Anjou, with a
generous income ; but his hopes were wrecked, and he could
but fade away, with his heart-breaking sorrows weighing
him down. Not the least of these was the thought that
his eldest son was in the power of the perfidious Gonsalvo
da Cordova, who had carried him to Spain.

Ill and suffering, Frederick went from Amboise to Blois,
whence he was driven by a fire in the palace ; and seeking
a new refuge in Tours, he rapidly grew more feeble until
his end came, in thirteen months from the time when he
bade farewell to his beloved Bay of Naples. He was
buried with royal obsequies, and a holy brother depicted
his lovely character in a sermon, and proclaimed that his
soul was already in paradise, to which his patient endur-
ance of many cruel sufferings had earned for him a ready
welcome.

His queen Isabella refused to give her children up to
Ferdinand, as that king and Louis XII. had agreed that she
should do, and her jointure was taken from her. She and
her children died, one after another, until, in 1550, the
Duke of Calabria, the last of this ill-starred family, died
also, and was buried in Spain.

Such an alliance as that of Ferdinand and Louis XII. —
of Spain and France — could scarcely endure for long, or
be advantageous to either country during its existence.
After a series of misunderstandings and quarrels, actual
hostilities began in 1502; and, the French army being
defeated in four battles in eighteen months, the king-
dom of Naples became an absolute possession of Spain.

54 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

This result may be said to have been brought about by
Gousalvo da Cordova, one of the most brilliant and inter-
esting men of his time, whose character and achievements
have made him the hero of romance as well as of history.
The " Great Captain" — il gran capitano or el gran capitan
— he is called ; and he was also great in other important
positions. He proved himself a most skilful organizer, and
entirely changed the service of his army, the more success-
fully to oppose the tactics of the French. His control of
his soldiers was almost miraculous ; he demanded patience
and subordination when they were without food or clothing
and he had no money to pay them, and he so inspired them
with his own courage and with reliance on his genius that
they gave him what he required of them ; they were what
they felt that their Great Captain expected them to be.

Again, their very position compelled them to conquer or
die ; the sea on one hand, and impassable mountains on
the other, cut them off from Spain. Being thus continu.
ally under one great leader from whom they could not
escape, the Spanish infantry was gradually moulded, by
Gonsalvo, into what he desired ; and though small in num-
bers, it annihilated the famous French armies and generals
who opposed it, and afterwards carried the victories of
Spain to the countries of Europe most remote from that
in which the Great Captain had made it irresistible.

Severe when necessity demanded severity, and always
courteous to his inferiors, Gonsalvo was generous to a
vanquished foe, and promptly punished his own soldiers
who offered violence to his opponents when their battles
were over. Prescott says : —

" From the moment hostilities were brought to a close, Gon-
salvo displayed such generous sympathy for his late enemies,
and such humanity in relieving them, as to reflect more honor
on his character than all his victories. . . . His benign and
courteous demeanor towards the vanquished, so remote from

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 55

the images of terror with which he had been hitherto associated
in their minds, excited unqualified admiration ; and they testi-
fied their sense of his amiable qualities, by speaking of him as
the gentil capitaine et gentil cavalier."

The treaty of Lyons, which put an end to the French
and Spanish war, was signed in the spring of 1504 ; and
Gonsalvo remained in Naples, conducting the affairs of the
kingdom as Viceroy, until the autumn of 1506, when Fer-
dinand visited that city. Meantime there had been occur-
rences of vast interest and importance in Spain, with which
we may not here especially concern ourselves. Queen
Isabella had died ; Philip had reigned, and passed off the
earthly stage ; Joanna was hopelessly mad ; Ferdinand had
married the young niece of Louis XII., and now came to
Naples, not so much to visit his new kingdom as to satisfy
himself of the loyalty of the Great Captain, which he had
been led to suspect.

At Genoa, Gonsalvo met his sovereign ; and at Portofino,
while on their journey to Naples, they received the news
that Philip had died a few days after Ferdinand had sailed
from Barcelona. The Castilians sent messages imploring
the king to return to them at once ; but he continued his
course towards Naples, and was everywhere received with
enthusiasm. When he reached the capital, he was wel-
comed with every possible honor and shouts of joy. An
old chronicler, Los Palacios, described the entry into
Naples, and Prescott thus relates his story : —

" The monarch was arrayed in a long, flowing mantle of
crimson velvet, lined with satin of the same color. On his
head was a black velvet bonnet, garnished with a resplendent
ruby, and a pearl of inestimable price. He rode a noble white
charger, whose burnished caparisons dazzled the eye with their
splendor. By his side was his young queen, mounted on a
milk-white palfrey, and wearing a skirt or undergarment of

56 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

rich brocade, and a French robe simply fastened with clasps,
or loops of fine wrought gold.

" On the mole they were received by the Great Captain, who,
surrounded by his guard of halberdiers, and his silken array of
pages wearing his device, displayed all the pomp and magnifi-
cence of his household. After passing under a triumphal arch,
where Ferdinand swore to respect the liberties and privileges
of Naples, the royal pair moved forward under a gorgeous
canopy, borne by the members of the municipality, while the
reins of their steeds were held by some of the principal nobles.
After them followed the other lords and cavaliers of the king-
dom, with the clergy and ambassadors assembled from every
part of Italy and Europe, bearing congratulations and presents
from their respective courts. As the procession halted in
various quarters of the city, it was greeted with joyous bursts
of music from a brilliant assemblage of knights and ladies, who
did homage by kneeling down and saluting the hands of their
new sovereigns. At length, after defiling through the principal
streets and squares, it reached the great cathedral, where the
day was devoutly closed with solemn prayer and thanksgiving."

Gratified as Ferdinand was by all these demonstrations,
he turned, as soon as possible, to the serious affairs of the
kingdom. He instituted various reforms ; called a par-
liament in which important questions were settled ; oaths
of allegiance to his daughter Joanna and her posterity
were made ; the Angevine proprietors were re-established in
their old estates by a decree, which was, however, almost
ineffectual; and, in a word, the Neapolitans were disap-
pointed and dissatisfied with this king, from whom they
had hoped so much, and who had, in fact, burdened them
with new imposts. But finally, just before leaving the
city, he granted the request of the people for the re-estab-
lishment of the University, which somewhat soothed their
outraged feelings.

Ferdinand was ably seconded by Gonsalvo da Cordova
in all that he undertook, and he could not fail to see how

FROM FREDERICK II. TO CHARLES V. 57

much the people loved the great soldier. But in spite
of this knowledge ; in spite of the fact that the con-
quest of Naples and the defeat of the French were due to
this general ; in spite of the good service he had rendered
his country and the masterly qualities he had displayed,
both as soldier and ruler, — Ferdinand appointed a new
viceroy, and took the Great Captain with him on his return
to Castile. Each year, for three years, he made a similar
change ; and when he died, in 1516, Naples had little reason
to mourn his death. Prescott says : —

" Gonsalvo remained a day or two behind his royal master
in Naples, to settle his private affairs. In addition to the
heavy debts incurred by his own generous style of living, he
had assumed those of many of bis old companions in arms,
with whom the world had gone less prosperously than with
himself. The claims of his creditors, therefore, had swollen
to such an amount, that, in order to satisfy them fully, he was
driven to sacrifice part of the domains lately granted him.
Having discharged all the obligations of a man of honor, he
prepared to quit the land, over which he had ruled with so
much splendor and renown for nearly four years. The Nea-
politans in a body followed him to the vessel ; and nobles,
cavaliers, and even ladies of the highest rank lingered on the
shore to bid him a last adieu. Not a dry eye, says the histo-
rian, was to be seen. So completely had he dazzled their
imaginations and captivated their hearts by his brilliant and
popular manners, his munificent spirit, and the equity of his
administration, — qualities more useful, and probably more
rare in those turbulent times, than military talent."

After the death of Ferdinand, Naples passed nominally
into the hands of the mad Joanna of Castile, to be trans-
ferred, a year later, to the great Charles V., to remain for
many years under his memorable government.

CHAPTER III.

CHARLES V. AND PHILIP II.
1516-1598.

FROM 1127, when Roger II. established a monarchy in
Naples, to the partition of the kingdom in 1500, the
actual sovereigns had oftentimes resided in their capital,
and viceroys had been appointed only when the heirs to
the throne were too young to rule, or in the absence of
the monarchs themselves ; but after the treaty of Granada,
during two hundred and thirty-four years, no sovereign of
Naples resided there, and a long series of viceroys repre-
sented the Spanish, the Austrian-Spanish, and the German-
Austrian rulers, who were sometimes kings of Naples only,
and again of both Sicily and Naples.

The story of Naples from 1516 to 1527 is a confused
account of a certain part in the events which principally
concerned a trinity of Popes, Julius II., Leo X., and
Clement VII. During these years the French and Span-
iards were striving for power in Italy; but no French
troops invaded the Neapolitan territory until 1527, when
the last important effort was made to establish the claims
of the House of Anjou, then vested in the descendants of
Violante, daughter of the bon roi Men£, and represented by
the Count of Vaudemont.

When, in 1528, the great Marshal Lautrec entered the
peninsula with his army, his success in overthrowing the
existing government seemed almost a foregone conclusion.
The people, worn out in body and spirit by Spanish oppres-
sion, were glad of any new master. In the Abruzzi they

The Heights of San Martina from the Mole.

CHARLES V. AND PHILIP H. 59

even went out to meet the French, and welcomed them as
friends ; while the Spanish viceroy, Don Ugo de Monc,ada,
imputed no treachery to the barons who raised the French
standard in Naples itself. Capua and other cities yielded
to Lautrec, and he proceeded to blockade Naples on the
east. Thus far all was well with the army of Francis I.

But now the Prince of Orange, Captain-General of the
Imperial Roman Army, appeared on the scene. He forti-
fied the heights of S. Martino, which, with the monastery
and the castle of S. Elmo, commanded the city and shut off
all enemies from the west. Mon$ada and Orange disagreed
in a way that might have resulted in the advantage of the
French, had not the former fallen in a battle at Capo
d' Orso.

The siege was prolonged ; the heat of midsummer engen-
dered fevers ; the soldiers died by thousands, and Lautrec
himself fell a victim to disease in the middle of August.
All thought of the conquest of Naples was abandoned, and
under the command of the Marquis of Saluzzo, the miser-
able remnant of the French troops reached Aversa, where
they encountered the Prince of Orange. Most of the
French officers, as well as the Italians who had joined
them, were made prisoners of war. Many soldiers were
slain, others fled to the Abruzzi and escaped ; but after a
few days no Frenchman could be found in the Neapolitan
peninsula.

Philibert of Orange was viceroy for a single year ; but in
that time he so divided the properties of the Angevines
between the Aragonese whom he favored, that it required
the extinction of but one more family, the Sanseverini of
Salerno, to complete the final destruction of the Angevine
element, and make Naples the absolute possession of Spain.
Thus it resulted that when Don Pedro de Toledo — the
greatest viceroy of them all — assumed his place, in 1532,
no such questions as had troubled his predecessors, con-

60 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

cerning the rival claimants to the throne, remained to
embarrass him, and during two centuries Spain ruled su-
preme in this enchanting land. Of this issue De Reumont
says : —

" It was not accident or the mere force of arms that led to
this result : the causes of it lay deeper ; the volatile and sus-
ceptible Frenchman was not the ruler to preserve the dominion
over tbe innovation-loving, excitable, loquacious, and unsteady
Neapolitan. Their national characters resembled each other
too much in many points, and their difference in others was
so much the more offensive. Received with open arms, the
Frenchman soon made himself irreconcilable enemies by his
severity, scorn, and supercilious arrogance. The Italians shud-
dered at the desolating massacres of the French wars ; they
writhed under the iron grasp of people that came to them with
chivalrous demeanor, then trampled them under foot, and con-
taminated everything still remaining as precious and venerable
in their possession.

" Such were not the Spaniards, not those at least which Gon-
salvo da Cordova led from the Moorish wars to the conquest of
Naples. Their ascendancy was owing as well to an iron disci-
pline as to that inveterate character of their race, the firmness
of purpose which had gradually developed itself in the long
struggle for the country which they wrenched inch by inch
from their tenacious enemies. The Neapolitans found that
they had in the Spaniards different rulers from the French."

Few men have been confronted with a more serious prob-
lem than that which awaited Don Pedro de Toledo when
he reached Naples. In the light of our knowledge of what
he did and of his methods of action, we cannot doubt that
from the beginning he set himself the task of creating a
prosperous and well-ordered Spanish province out of the
wreck of a kingdom long harassed by the wars and claims
of the royal houses which had contended for its possession.
The whole country had been laid waste, and the people —
greatly reduced in numbers by plagues of war and pesti-

CHARLES V. AND PHILIP II. 61

lence — were in a semi-barbarous state. Many towns had
been entirely destroyed, and others so desolated that utter
extinction might have proved a blessing in comparison with
their misery and the impossibility of restoring them to
their former estate. The great families who belonged to
Naples by right of birth and inheritance had been exiled,
impoverished, and humiliated beyond endurance ; while
those who had no claim on the respect or affection of the
Neapolitans had achieved riches and usurped dignities.
No human ties seemed to bind one to another ; oaths were
no longer respected ; misery, discord, violence, and hatred
reigned supreme ; no laws were enforced, and no standard
of conduct, public or private, existed in all the kingdom.

Toledo, Marquis of Villafranca, had been trained to
deeds of courage as a soldier, and to an understanding of
statesmanship from his boyhood, by constant association
with King Ferdinand and Charles V. He was forty-eight
years old when he assumed his office at Naples, and at once
turned his attention to the reformation of the laws and the
establishment of competent tribunals of justice. He very
soon transformed the old Castel Capuano into a grand
court-house, where the different tribunals could be held,
as they are to this day, while the prisons, located below
the courts, have been abandoned.

Toledo's legal reforms were far too numerous to be men-
tioned ; in two cases he was severe even to cruelty, without
attaining his ends. The Neapolitans had never estimated
perjury as the deadly sin it is considered by other nations,
and no severity of punishment nor any other consideration
could absolutely insure the truth from any man among
them. Toledo decreed the death penalty for the second
offence, and false accusers were subject to the same law.

The second great evil was the insecurity to life and
property in Naples. The vilest outrages were of constant
occurrence, and were largely the work of the banditti in

62 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

the employ of the nobility. Toledo punished with death
those who broke into houses in the daytime by means of
ladders, and those found with arms upon their persons
from late evening until morning. In these matters he was
no respecter of persons ; and one of the first to be executed
for entering by ladder was a young nobleman, Col' Antonio
Brancaccio, who was simply bent on a love adventure.

The anger and disgust of the nobles, who found that the
viceroy showed them no favors, were equalled only by
the satisfaction of the people, when, for the first time, the
crime of a nobleman was estimated as equally reprehen-
sible with that of a peasant. In eighteen years 18,000
persons were hanged in Naples alone ; and yet, when the
establishment of the Inquisition was attempted, Toledo
gave it as his opinion that even against that institution
itself false witnesses would be numerous. Alicarnasseo,
in his Life of Don Pedro de Toledo, says : " On one occa-
sion, when the viceroy was in Siena, the Academy of the
Intronati made a feast for him, and he hesitated not to
say publicly, * I had rather be a member of your academy
and be guided by such worthy women, than go to Naples
to annihilate a pack of robbers in order to keep the favor
of my sovereign.' ':

The lawlessness of the time exposed the towns on the
Neapolitan coasts to great suffering. Turks, and other
barbarian pirates, roamed the Mediterranean and Adriatic
seas at will, while earthquakes and volcanic eruptions
added their horrors to the devastations of man. These
convulsions of nature destroyed Pozzuoli in 1538, after the
whole coast had been desolated by pirates. The towns on
the Bay of Gaeta were demolished. Ischia and Procida
were destroyed by fire ; while on the coasts of Calabria and
Apulia, not only had the cities been plundered and deso-
lated, but great numbers of the people had been carried
into slavery.

CHARLES V. AND PHILIP II. 63

Toledo did much for the rebuilding of Pozzuoli, and made
great exertions to induce the inhabitants to return to their
deserted city. He built castles and fortresses along the
entire coasts from Terracina round to the upper part of
Apulia. These towers are still seen, some in ruins, others
in a state of greater or less preservation, a few still serving
as watch-towers. He built the castle of Baiae — now used
as a garrison — to protect the shores of the lovely bay
below, and, in short, executed many remarkable works for
strengthening the defences of the kingdom, outside of all
that he did for the capital itself.

When fortifications were built, they must also be main-
tained and garrisoned, and this demanded a vast amount
of money ; when the sums sent to the Emperor Charles Y.
to aid in carrying on his constant wars were added to what
was needed at home, the total amount of taxes paid by the
Neapolitans is simply amazing. It is not surprising that
the first outbreak of the people under Toledo's rule was
occasioned by increased taxation. It was promptly quelled.
The plebeian leader was imprisoned ; and when his release
was demanded, he was hanged at evening, from a window
of the Palace of Justice, and torches placed on each side the
corpse, that all might see which way rebellion led. The
next day the principal revolutionists were executed, the
taxes were not lessened, and the people submitted ; but Don
Pedro de Toledo was no longer popular.

An attempt to establish the Inquisition aroused the
hatred and indignation of the Neapolitans of all classes.
They had submitted to a censorship of the press, to the
extinction of the Academy of the nobles, to an edict
against theological discussions and the reprinting of theo-
logical books such as had issued from their presses for
twenty years ; but when spies were to be authorized and
the Spanish Inquisition introduced, — the very name of
which inspired absolute terror, — the entire populace flew

64 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

to arms as with a common impulse. Don Pedro rode
through the city threatening punishment to the disturbers,
who had heretofore been of the common people, but were
now joined by the nobles ; Toledo summoned the Spanish
infantry from Pozzuoli to Naples, and a bloody fray suc-
ceeded between the soldiers and the people. When Don
Pedro appeared, not a hand was raised to salute him, and
he was driven to a fury which was not lessened when the
populace assembled at the summons of the bells of S.
Lorenzo, and resolved to obey Don Pedro de Toledo no
longer, and to send ambassadors to the Emperor. A
deputy was in great danger of being hurled from the top
of the spire when he endeavored to dissuade the people
from sounding the bells, which might be construed as
treason ; they also planted the imperial banners on the
belfry, and formed a procession which passed through the
principal streets, crying, " Union, union, in the service of
God and the Emperor, and of the town ! " The Marquis
of Pescara, still a child, bore a crucifix at the head of this
procession, in which all conditions of men were mingled ;
and any one who would not join it was henceforth suspected
as a traitor.

Don Pedro treated the whole matter lightly, and assured
the ambassadors that if they went on account of the Inqui-
sition only, he could promise them that it would not be
established ; he then added, " But if you go as my accusers,
depart at once, with the blessing of God." When he
learned that they were about to obey him, he said jocosely
to those about him, " We will henceforth let time run
merrily, my lords, for I have no longer any care, since I
am no more the Viceroy of Naples."

In reality he was most uneasy, and especially so because
the barriers between the nobles and the people, always a
great reliance for autocrats, were being broken down. The
people, too, had shown that they did not mean rebellion

CHARLES V. AND PHILIP H. 65

against Charles V. ; their demonstration was against Toledo,
and in opposition to the institution of the dreaded tribunal ;
their war-cries were : " Spain and the kingdom ; life to the
Emperor, death to the Inquisition ! "

There were now almost daily quarrels between the
Spanish troops and the citizens, and the condition of Naples
was most alarming. Shops were closed, and all business
suspended ; courts were no longer held ; many of (the prin-
cipal inhabitants fled ; adventurers delivered exciting ora-
tions in the streets ; and only by the most heroic exertions
of the deputies were the people restrained from pointing
the heavy cannon kept at S. Lorenzo on the Castel Nuovo,
from which the artillery had opened on the town.

At length one of the ambassadors to the Emperor re-
turned, bringing messages of comfort to the Neapolitans.
The Emperor would pardon their offences if they at once
laid down their arms, and assured them that he had never
intended to establish the Inquisition in their midst.

It was humiliating to the people to submit anew to Don
Pedro de Toledo, but it was done. The viceroy was not too
exacting, and appeared not to know that far fewer arms
were surrendered at Castel Nuovo than the insurgents
must have had: He informed the courts that, save thirty-
six men, who were excluded from the amnesty, none would
be tried for past offences. In the end but one man was
executed ; the others were warned and escaped. But the
result of this insurrection was most disastrous to Naples ;
it had endured but a month, and in that time two thousand
men had fallen and one hundred and fifty edifices had been
destroyed. In the midst of these losses the Emperor con-
firmed the title of " most faithful " to the city of Naples,
and at the same time fined it one hundred thousand
ducats.

The visit of Charles Y. to Naples — in 1535, three years
after Toledo had assumed his place there — apparently

5

66 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

satisfied the Emperor as to the conduct of the kingdom
under his viceroy. Charles complimented Toledo, and told
him that he did not find him as bad as he had been
painted ; and from this time no complaints against Toledo
had weight with the Emperor.

In honor of this visit the Porta Capuana was made the
most ornamental gate of Naples. The statue of its builder,
Ferdinand I. of Aragon, was removed, and sculptures in
marble, by Giovanni da Nola, were added ; its handsome
round towers, of which we have spoken, were found to be
a worthy support for its new ornamentation. It was on
the occasion of this visit that Charles admired the half-
finished Orsini or Gravina Palace, now the General Post
and Telegraph Office. To the Emperor's compliments
Orsini replied, " It is your Majesty's when finished ; " and
on account of this answer neither that duke nor his descen-
dants attempted its completion. This edifice is of interest
because it shows the condition of Neapolitan architecture
at the close of the fifteenth century, when it was begun as
a rival to the celebrated Palazzo Sanseverino.

At that period architecture was a passion with the
wealthy at Naples, and it is much to be regretted that so
few works of that era still exist, and thfese are by no
means in their first estate. Gabriele d' Agnolo, one of the
first to introduce the classical revival into Naples, built
the Orsini Palace. On the frieze the Duke had an inscrip-
tion, announcing that he built the palace for himself, his
family, and all his friends. These hospitable words have
disappeared, and the whole structure is much disfigured by
the most objectionable " modern improvements."

Interesting as the life of Don Pedro de Toledo is, it can-
not here be given in detail. Charles V. knew that he
owed the security of the crown of Naples to his viceroy,
as well as the large revenues which enabled him to prose-
cute his designs in other countries ; and yet it was through

The Porta Capuana.

CHARLES V. AND PHILIP II. 67

the bidding of the Emperor that Toledo lost his life. When
the Republic of Siena revolted, Charles chose Don Pedro
to command the army sent for its subjection. At Leghorn
the viceroy was seized with what is now called pneumonia ;
the physicians, unable to cope with the disease, explained
that Leghorn, being under the influence of Neptune, had
too severe a climate for an inhabitant of Pozzuoli, which
was within the province of Vulcan. Toledo was removed
to Pisa, and then to Florence, where he died, in February,
1553. His tomb is at the back of the high altar in the
church of S. Giacomo degli Spagnuoli, erected by Toledo
in 1540. This tomb is called the masterpiece of Giovanni
Merliano da Nola, who evidently intended to make this
monument to his patron as sumptuous as possible. A
sarcophagus rests on a richly decorated pedestal, at the
corners of which are four graceful female figures, repre-
senting Justice, Prudence, Fortitude, and Temperance.
Three sides of the sarcophagus are filled with bas-reliefs,
representing the achievements of the viceroy in the wars
with the Turks; the fourth side bears the inscription.
Statues of Don Pedro de Toledo and his wife, in the atti-
tude of prayer, surmount the sarcophagus. The whole
work is carefully and elaborately executed, although the
bas-reliefs are confused and overcrowded ; and the Neapoli-
tans may congratulate themselves that it was not removed
to Spain, as was at one time intended.

While the love of art had largely increased among the
Neapolitans, the frequent changes and disturbances which
occurred in their government previous to the reign of
Charles V., had rendered any essential enlargement or
improvement of the capital quite impossible. After 1530
it grew rapidly larger, gaining, as was estimated, a third
in thirty years. A large part of its improvement was
accomplished and much more inaugurated during the
twenty-one years when Toledo was viceroy ; two miles were

68 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

added to the circumference of Naples, and the population
was much increased, while the bustle and crowds in the
streets indicated industry and prosperity.

It is interesting to picture to ourselves the Naples of the
middle of the sixteenth century, and trace the changes which
three hundred years have made in it. The Riviera di
Chiaja did not exist until a century later, and in the time
of Toledo it was the site of the villas of noble and wealthy
families. Embowered in vines and trees, surrounded by
lovely gardens, sometimes near the shore, again farther
back on the points of the hills, were these picturesque
and beautiful homes. From them the expanse of the blue
Mediterranean could be seen, dotted here and there with
the craft peculiar to Southern seas, varying from the finest
galleys to the tiniest boat of the fisherman ; and Capri
looming boldly in the dim distance, while Nisida nestled
cosily near at hand. A peaceful, entrancing scene, in
strange contrast to the noisy tumult of the city streets,
and to the ever rumbling, smoking, threatening volcano,
the oracular thunder of whose voice thrills the very soul
and almost suspends the breath.

Motionless Victor ! Lord of fiery doom !

On thy dark helmet waves thy smoky plume ;

Wrapt in thy purple like a Syrian king,

While crouches at thy feet the shrinking Spring,

Thy fallen archangel's throne befits thee, — thou

Who canst not bless, but curse. Thy blasted brow

Scowls with dull eye of hate that nightly broods

On dire events in thy drear solitudes.

Tireless thou burnest on from age to age.

No winter's rains, though yearly they assuage

Thy hot cheeks, where the lava tear-drops run

Down the black furrows, — no joy-giving sun

Of balmy spring clothing thy ruggedness

With colors of all depth and tenderness, —

No clouds of summer smiling on thy sleep, —

No autumn vintage round thy fire-cloven steep, —

CHARLES V. AND PHILIP II. 69

Have charmed away the awful mystery

That burns within a heart no eye can see.

In the bright day thou mak'st the blue heavens dun,

Blotting with blasphemous smoke the blessed sun.

No calmest starlit night can still thy curse

Breathed upward through the silent universe.

Christopher Pearse Cranch.

On the Mergellina, at the western end of the present
Chiaja, the fishermen then drew their boats on shore and
plied their trade, while the nobles rode past in richly
decorated, clumsy coaches, or were more advantageously
seen curvetting their gayly caparisoned horses.

In the sixteenth century the wave-washed strand extended
from the present Piazza Umberto to the Largo della Vit-
toria, where solid breastworks and rock-built ramparts
now repel the sea, and the Via Carracciolo borders the
gardens of the Villa Nazionale. This strand was not even
levelled, nor a tree planted there for a century and a half
after the great viceroy succumbed to the malign influence
of Neptune. Comparing the then and now, and writing
in the middle of our century, De Reumont says : —

" Who thinks now, when he sees the procession of elegant
equipages rolling along upon the smooth lava pavement of the
Chiaja, — when he sees hundreds of horsemen hastening on to
the iron trellis of the villa, groups of pedestrians of high
station, mixed with people of lower rank, filling the alleys,
whilst the fisher-boys, not even half clad, go out upon the
rocks by the foundations of the ramparts, in quest of their
small earnings, — who now thinks of the times when, exposed
to the attacks of the barbarians, and for a protection against
the pirates of Algiers and Tunis, the forts already referred
to were built, and when — in the seventeenth century — the
Carraccioli of Torella sought to add to the strength of their
dwelling by the tower which since formed the angle of the
palace of the Count of Syracuse?"

70 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

This last palace was the first one erected on the present
Chiaja, and was built by a distinguished general of Charles
V., in 1535 ; so distant was it from the defences of the
city that a fortress of its own was necessary to protect it
from pirates, — a condition of things difficult to realize
when in the midst of the seething mass of humanity one
sees there to-day. East of the Vittoria to the Strada Santa
Lucia, all was a dreary, waste ; masses of tufa covered the
Pizzofalcone, and remained undisturbed until, early in the
sixteenth century, Andrea Carafa there built a palace on
one of the finest and most commanding sites in all Italy,
which was later converted into barracks and public offices.
The Ponte di Chiaja was not constructed until 1634 ; and
until then Pizzofalcone and the hill of S. Elmo were
separated by a great gulf.

Santa Lucia was a narrow, dirty street ; and the space
now filled by the broad quay, — constructed since 1846, —
the terrace below and the steps leading to it, was covered
with wretched huts which were taken away by Cardinal
Borgia. On this terrace is the fountain decorated with
sea-gods and nymphs, after the design of Giovanni da
Nola, which the fish-dealers erected at their own expense.
Here on summer evenings, above all on Sundays, a dense
crowd gathers, and affords an interesting study of Nea-
politan life, — all along the seaside of Santa Lucia are
the dealers in frutti di mare, as the Neapolitans pictu-
resquely term the crabs, oysters, sea-urchins, and other
small objects taken from the sea, which they eat with
avidity.

North from Santa Lucia is the Strada del Gigante, a work
of Olivarez at the very end of the sixteenth century. On
the eastern side of the city from the Castel dell' Ovo to the
Castel del Carmine, the changes have been too many to
be traced except in an exhaustive topographical sketch.
Again we quote De Reumont : —

CHAELES V. AND PHILIP II. 71

" The arsenal, and the sea front of the palace, harbor, and
mole, custom-house, and reservoir, have all been so incessantly
metamorphosed, even so late as in our time, that a contemporary
of Masaniello and Salvator Rosa could here scarcely find his
way aright, did not the gray towers of the Castel Nuovo, which
give the lie to the name of the Angevin fortress, serve him as
a landmark. Even the Castel Nuovo, however, has been abun-
dantly changed in form during the past century by the con-
tinuation of the bastions, by which Charles III. fortified it
towards the arsenal, after he had effected a breach at the siege
of the year 1734, and had taken the fortress. Wars and con-
flagrations had made much alteration in the course of time
upon this fortress ; and any one will discover at a glance that
the outer line of wall in the Largo di Castello — a square equally
hard to recognize — is of modern origin. The Marinella, the
southern quay along the old town wall from the harbor up to
the Carmine, has possibly preserved its former appearance more
than any other part of the sea front, although here also Charles
III., of whose name one is reminded almost at each step, exe-
cuted various great works for the regulation of the shore, and
the widening of the street, which, ever crowded with people,
has become, since the introduction of railroads, one of the most
busy of the town."

One who tries to trace old landmarks in the interior of
the city soon finds himself in need of some thread like that
of Ariadne to guide him in the perplexing labyrinth. The
last remnants of the castle which Toledo built to the west
of the Castel Nuovo, in which Charles V. resided, disap-
peared a half-century ago; but the Strada Toledo — now
Via Roma gi& Toledo — remains a notable monument to
this viceroy, although it has undergone such changes from
time to time as would render it a terra incognita to Don
Pedro himself could he now walk there.

Emerging from the Piazza del Plebiscite, and extended
by the Strada S. Teresa degli Scalzi and the Strada Nuova
di Capodimonte, about two miles in length, it almost bisects

72 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

the city from north to south. The streets leading from
it on the east extend to the railway stations, the harbor,
the botanical gardens, the great Reclusorio, or Poorhouse,
the cemeteries, and many other important points. On the
west there is a network of streets and gradoni, — as the
lanes with steps are called, — numbers of which ascend
to the Corso Emmanuele and the Castel S. Elmo. In the
seventeenth and eighteenth centuries the Toledo was
affected as a place of residence by noble and wealthy
families, and many fine edifices were erected here ; but in
the present day this street, sometimes called the noisiest
in Europe, is the main business artery of Naples, and a
stirring place at all hours of day and night, — a "paradise
of pickpockets."

When first I saw it, thirty years ago, the description of
Forsyth was accurate : —

" Naples, in its interior, has no parallel on earth. The crowd
of London is uniform and intelligible ; it is a double line in
quick motion ; it is the crowd of business. The crowd of
Naples consists in a general tide rolling up and down, and in
the middle of this tide a hundred eddies of men. Here you
are swept on by the current ; there you are wheeled round by
the vortex. A diversity of trades disputes the street with you.
You are stopped by a carpenter's bench, you are lost among
shoemakers' stools, — you dash behind the pots of a macaroni
stall, and you escape behind a lazzarone's night-basket. In
this region of caricature every bargain sounds like a battle.
The popular exhibitions are full of the grotesque, and some
of their church processions would frighten a war-horse."

On each of the six successive visits that I have made to
Naples I have thought that the confusion and hurly-burly
of the whole city were modified at times, and within the
last decade one moves about with much less inconvenience
than formerly ; but the Toledo could not be the Toledo, did
it not resound with the unearthly cries of every sort of

CHARLES V. AND PHILIP II. 73

street-vendor, while the lustrini — shoe-blacks — keep up
their knocking to attract attention. The whole population
seems to live out of doors ; letters are written by scribes in
the street ; iced water and cool lemonade are offered at every
turn, while the fumes of charcoal constantly arise, mingled
with the odor of roasting chestnuts and the smell of frying
sausages. When the lamps are lighted and the shouts of
the news-boys are added to the other cries, it is Pande-
monium itself. Later, the Trovatori appear with their
lanterns, hunting for lost articles, large or small, not even
disdaining cigar-ends ; and one and all of these Neapoli-
tans consider the strangers in their midst as providentially
provided for them to importune and cheat to the extent of
their ability. Alexandre Dumas said that, " for the noble,
the Toledo was a promenade ; for the merchant, a bazaar ;
for the lazzaroni, a dwelling-place."

Many of the lesser improvements — so-called — of Don
Pedro de Toledo were most important. He paved the
streets for the first time, and cleared away corners and
angles which interfered with cleanliness and ventilation.
He drained swamps near Naples, and converted them into
profitable fields; and not the least of his labors, from
whicli great benefits resulted, was the wholesale destruction
of ancient covered passages and porticos, which were not
only filthy, disease-producing labyrinths, but also afforded
concealment to thieves and cut-throats, who made them
places of terror by day, and emerged by night to commit
all sorts of grievous crimes.

Toledo also built separate edifices here and there ; re-
stored the subterranean aqueduct, and erected a fountain
with a statue of Atlas by Giovanni da Nola, in the heart
of the old town, where it is still difficult to thread one's
way, especially on market days. "While this viceroy con-
ferred all these benefits on Naples, he was not unmindful
of the surrounding districts. He widened and paved the

74 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

Grotto of Posilipo, and provided it with air-shafts, so that,
for the first time, it was possible to pass through it without
a light in the daytime.

At Pozzuoli, after the terror had suhsided which was
excited by the upheaval of Monte Nuovo in 1538, he
endeavored to induce the inhabitants to return. He erected
a palatial fortress, and employed the pupils of Raphael
in its decoration, the frescos imitating those which had
recently been discovered in some ancient tombs.

Unfortunately, there are associations of another sort con-
nected with the memory of Don Pedro de Toledo. That
he completed the ruin of Baiae by levelling all that remained
of the Roman temples and villas, as well as the churches
and dwellings of more modern days, in order to get mate-
rial for the grand, massive castle which he there erected,
is unpardonable from the standpoint of the antiquarian and
barbarous to every artistic sense. But his cruelties —
especially in the persecution of the Protestants in Calabria
— were so horrible as to make him hateful, even now,
when more than three centuries have rolled out a perspec-
tive in which many noble deeds of the same period are quite
imperceptible.

" The evil that men. do lives after them,
The good is oft interred with their bones."

At the desire of the Pope, Toledo marched in person
with a special commission from the Inquisition, and at S.
Sisto, La Guardia, and Cosenza perpetrated such atrocities
as can scarcely be named. Neither women nor children
were spared the most shocking tortures ; and one man,
who was covered with pitch and burned in the square of
Cosenza, may even be said to have been more mercifully
murdered than many others who suffered such cunning
tortures as fiends only could devise.

But Toledo accomplished the work that his sovereign
expected of him, and that he had set himself to do ; he

CHARLES V. AND PHILIP II. 75

left Naples a Spanish province, completely under the iron
rule of Spanish policy. The important posts in fortresses
and castles were held by Spaniards ; the reforms of the
government projected by Ferdinand were carried to com-
pletion by Toledo ; in fact, at the death of the great vice-
roy, Charles Y. could congratulate himself that his rule
over the Neapolitans was firmly established, and in good
faith he was bound to admit that this result had been
brought about by the wise and faithful service of Don
Pedro de Toledo.

Fine examples of mediaeval, castellated, domestic archi-
tecture exist here and there in Neapolitan territory, as in
the castles of Melfi, Catanzaro, Lucera, and many other
places ; and much of intense interest to the antiquarian
may be learned of Neapolitan architecture from the tenth
to the fifteenth century. But in the city of Naples little
remains of purely mediaeval construction ; here and there
fragments of it are seen, but so changed and modified that
the merest traces of its aspect survive, and we can no better
imagine how the entire edifices appeared, than we can say
what was the bearing of the living woman who was the
model for the Venus whose torso alone remains in the
Museo Borbonico.

The public edifices of modern times have been more essen-
tially and frequently changed in Naples than in any other
Italian city. The reasons for this are not far to seek.
Earthquakes have made it necessary to level and rebuild, and
the succession of opposing dynasties has left the churches
and edifices of a previous monarch to the courtesy of the
succeeding one. The Norman, Hohenstauffen, Angevine,
Aragonese, and Spaniard has, each in turn, desired to leave
his characteristic impress on the architecture of the city
and territory of Naples. Thus, for example, has the mag-
nificent Gothic of the Angevine been debased by the taste-
less ornamentation of a later period, and radical changes

76 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

made in the earlier edifices which nature and man hare
permitted to survive the ages.

It is also true that the architects of the finest early edi-
fices were not Neapolitans. From the building of the Castel
dell' Ovo, designed by the Venetian Buono for William I.
in 1154, to the beginning of the seventeenth century,
the facts we have — with few exceptions — are connected
with architects who 'were often Italians, but not Neapoli-
tans. Masuccio I. is far too mythical to be treated seri-
ously, and Masuccio II. cannot be proved to be the author
of much that is attributed to him, while some of the works
called his are known to have been executed by other artists.
In fact, the Masuccii are not mentioned in reliable docu-
ments of their time ; and their fame rests on the vaguest
traditions and the boldest assertions, alike lacking in proof.
Andrea Ciccione is frequently named as a Neapolitan archi-
tect and sculptor in the annals of the fifteenth century.
His remaining work stamps him as of mediocre talent, and
a poor imitator of the defects, rather than the virtues of
his predecessors. In fact, should one pass all Neapolitan
architects in review, it must finally be said that the good
work done in the Neapolitan peninsula was by artists not
native to its soil.

In sculpture the finest very early works are seen in
cathedrals outside of Naples — as in that of Ravello, for
example, where the magnificent Ambo, presented in 1272,
was made by Nicolo of Foggia. The fine bronze gates
here and elsewhere are of Byzantine origin ; and, in fact,
it is so difficult to distinguish between the Italian and
Byzantine artists of the Middle Ages that we have no space
to do it here. Coming down to a time of which we have
better knowledge, we have a list of names of sculptors, such
as Antonio di Domenico, Bamboccio, Agnolo Aniello Fiore,
and some others whose names we will omit since they are
almost as unreal as the Masuccii. They preceded Giovanni

The Castel dell' Ovo.

i

CHARLES V. AND PHILIP II. 77

Merliano da Nola, whose works are still seen in the churches
and palaces of the first half of the sixteenth century, and
in the streets of Naples, in such profusion that each visitor
to that city may make his own estimate of this fruitful
artist. He holds the leading place among Neapolitan sculp-
tors of his own century and those immediately following.
Many critics agree with De Reumont when he says : —

" Uniting the Tuscan and domestic elements of the Quattro-
cento with the yet more awakening study of the antique, Gio-
vanni Merliano created for himself a style which assigns to
him ... an independent, separate position in the history of
art, whilst a whole active and fruitful school has found in him
its origin and starting-point. Of a religious mind, in the midst
of the sympathies of the antique ; full of freedom in touch, but
repudiating caprice ; with peculiar characteristics, although, in
conformity with the manners of the times, devoted to the use
of allegory ; at once powerful and tender ; true in the expres-
sions of the affections ; and equally removed from flatness and
coldness as from affectation and extravagance ; with a refined
perception of the beautiful, which also, with the approach to
elegance, does not forget simplicity ; a correct draughtsman ;
retreating before no difficulty, but not seeking out difficulties
from caprice or vainglory ; indefatigably active and enter-
prising, as his numberless achievements in Naples testify :
such is Giovanni da Nola. By foreigners he is not known as
he deserves to be, because the Neapolitan school, especially in
foreign lands, is not sufficiently esteemed."

It is not possible here even to name all his works ; but
aside from those that are most in evidence, and among the
most interesting, are the small monument in S. Chiara
to Antonia Gaudino, who died on the day appointed for her
wedding ; the tomb of the child, Andrea Bonifacio, in S.
Severino ; and, better than these, the Tomb of the Three
Brothers in the last-named church. In his " Italian Sculp-
tors," Perkins says : —

78 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

" The monuments of three brothers . . . may be taken as
perhaps the best examples of Merliano's style. Few stories
are more tragical than that of lacopo, Ascanio, and Sigismund,
the ' virtuous, valorous, and handsome ' sons of Ugo San
Severino, Conte della Saponara, and his ' prudent and pious '
wife, Ippolita de' Monti. Scandalized by the shameless in-
trigues of Donna Lincia, the wife of her husband's brother
Geronimo, Donna Ippolita endeavored, but without success,
to open his eyes. The evil feeling thus engendered between
them was fanned into a flame by Donna Lincia, who, furious at
the death of one of her lovers, a servant of the three brothers,
persuaded Don Geronimo to compass the death of his nephews
by means of two Sicilian servants. The fatal deed was accom-
plished after a hunting-party, when the unsuspicious victims,
having stopped to refresh themselves, drank poison in their
wine, and, unable to obtain relief, died soon after reaching
home. Their unhappy parents sought to allay their grief
by the celebration of sumptuous funeral rites, in which all
the nobles of the city took part. Count Ugo, it is said, soon
after died mad, but Donna Ippolita survived him for many
years."

Geronimo and his wife were imprisoned at Castel Nnovo
and condemned to death, but were eventually liberated,
through the entreaties of their daughter Maria, who inter-
ceded for them with Isabella of Anjou. Perkins further
says : —

" The one striking feature of the monument is in the life-size
statues seated upon the sarcophagus. In each the head is
thrown back, and the limbs contracted as if by pain, not vio-
lently, but enough to hint at the cause of their approaching
death. The architecture is late Renaissance, and the bas-
reliefs represent the Madonna adored by angels ; God the
Father in a glory of cherubim, worshipped by Enoch and Elias ;
Christ with seraphs and angels ; and several saints. Though
very mediocre, they are among the best of Merliano's bas-reliefs,
which are generally in an ultra-picturesque style."

CHARLES V. AND PHILIP II. 79

Girolamo Santa Croce surpassed Merliano in technical
qualities. His best work is the tomb of the poet Sannazzaro,
in S. Maria del Parto. It is, however, uncertain as to
what part of it was finished when he died, and Montorsoli
completed it. A few later sculptors weakly followed in
the footsteps of Merliano, and at the end of their century
Neapolitan sculpture had almost expired.

So much uncertainty and tradition are mingled with the
stories of the earliest Neapolitan painters that one scarcely
dares to assert anything as positively true concerning them.
The origin and history of Antonio Solario, known as Lo
Zingaro, are enveloped in mystery. That his art was a
result of the deeply religious feeling of the Trecento, modi-
fied by the more realistic elements of the Flemish school,
cannot be doubted ; but little can be confidently asserted
of his pictures, since the principal works attributed to him
are either so badly restored that they afford no satisfac-
tion, or — as in the case of the Madonna in the Museum,
already described — are attributed to other masters.

In short, except one writes at length, stating the argu-
ments for and against the artists to whom pictures are
attributed, it is impossible to speak of Neapolitan painting
properly. Andrea di Salerno, or Sabbatini, who died in
1545, was the founder of the modern Neapolitan school,
and after being one of the favorite pupils of Raphael at
Rome, he executed numerous works, both in fresco and in
oils, at Naples. Few of these remain, but they are suffi-
cient to show that he was far superior to his pupils and
followers who degenerated into an insipidity of manner
which entitles them to no consideration, and not until the
seventeenth century was new life infused into Neapolitan
painting.

Soon after the death of Toledo, Charles V. retired to
the monastery of Yuste, and his son, Philip II., reigned in
his stead. During forty-four years this king had eight

80 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

viceroys and two lieutenants in Naples, no one of whom
remained five entire years. We shall not rehearse the
reasons for these changes, nor the special acts of these
officials in detail. So much had been accomplished under
Toledo, that in a certain sense the responsibilities of the
viceroys were much lessened, — especially as the Consejo de
Italia, at Madrid, for the oversight of Spanish interests in
Italy, actually governed the Italian provinces. The vice-
roy and the Consiglio Colaterale at Naples simply executed
the orders received from the Spanish capital. When the
viceroy was a man of great ability, he sometimes changed
this condition of things ; but, as a rule, he and his council
of five — the majority being Spaniards — were guided by
the higher authority of the council at Madrid.

Even so, the viceroy at Naples had immense power, since
the ministers of the principal departments were Spaniards,
and at the palace of the viceroy the offices for the adminis-
tration of justice, finance, and war were centred. Thus, so
far as the Neapolitans were concerned, the whole govern-
ment was concentrated in the viceroy, no matter who
directed his policy.

The reign of Philip II. was a dark epoch in the history
of Naples. All sorts of abuses were practised. The offices
conferred by the king were dependent upon the recommen-
dation of the viceroy, and were sold by him. This led to
the most cruel oppression. The taxes were enormous, as
the men who bought offices wrung the price of them from
their vassals ; houses were frequently unroofed, and the
beams sold to pay the taxes. The people, driven to despair,
became robbers and murderers ; and although the number
of executions and severe punishments was greater than in
Spain and the rest of Italy combined, yet the crimes were
not lessened.

The cruelties practised by the nobles on their own
estates made them seem to be all powerful, but the severity

CHARLES V. AND PHILIP II. 81

shown them in matters that came within the control of
the viceroy gave them the aspect of slaves. Lippomano,
sent from Venice on a mission to Naples in 1575, says : —

" In more important concerns, especially when the matter
comes before the viceroy, justice is well administered, par-
ticularly when there is question of the nobles seeking to oppress
their inferiors. Then their privileges do not help marquises,
dukes, and princes: they -are imprisoned for debt; and in
criminal cases the torture is applied to them with more severity
than it would be to their inferiors. The reason of it is this :
that the endeavor is to degrade the nobility, and set an example
to others ; and also that, in the case of law proceedings against
the nobles, a rich harvest is brought into the treasury of the
king, the viceroy, and the officers ; but the world believes that
justice is the same at Naples for great and small. A still
greater evil is the many imprisonments that take place, from
worldly favor and worldly motives, which could not happen
if only authentic information was attended to. For the smallest
debts tardy payers are imprisoned, by which the tribunal always
gains ten per cent. No asylum is of any use, as little so as in
criminal cases."

In military affairs Naples was singularly oppressed.
The wars to which she was forced to contribute money
and soldiers had, with very rare exceptions, no bearing on
her interests. The Neapolitans, commanded by their own
leaders, were sent to fight in all parts of the great territory
of Spain, while Naples was occupied by foreign troops.
The soldiers when sent out of the kingdom were often in
a frightful condition, as may be seen from this report by a
Tuscan agent in Naples : —

" Six companies of soldiers embarked in so pitiful a condi-
tion that, before they get to Genoa or Gaeta, they will most of
them be thrown into the sea, corpses. . . . One was, if I may
be allowed to say it, without a shirt, another without shoes ;
for they had sold everything to appease their hunger. Many

6

82 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

had fallen away to such a degree that, instead of wearing their
rifles and swords at their side, they were obliged to use them as
supports."

The quarrels between Philip and Paul IV., a Neapolitan,
who hated the Spaniards and desired to see the French
again in Naples, encouraged the Duke of Guise to attempt
its re-conquest in 1557 ; but the Duke of Alva made his
success impossible, and the story of the whole affair re-
sembles that of another famous Frenchman who, with
forty thousand men, " marched up a hill, and then marched
down again." The results at S. Quentin and Gravelines
compelled the French to make a treaty with Philip II.,
and to disturb Naples no more.

The religious questions and differences which distracted
Naples during the reign of Philip, constantly agitated the
people ; and although cardinal legates were sent from Rome
to Naples, and a resident nuncio was appointed for the
latter city, and Neapolitan ambassadors were again and
again in conclave with the Pope, no agreement resulted.
But the religious houses at Naples were constantly increas-
ing and becoming more firmly established. The Domini-
cans, Camaldolesi, Capuchins, and Servites, all of the older
orders, attained a firmer footing ; while the Theatines,
founded by Gian Pietro Carafa before he became Paul IV.,
the Jesuits, the bare-footed Carmelites, the Theresenians,
the Fratelli della Carita, the Sommayli,and the Oratorians,
all had their churches, monasteries, and other institutions
in Naples.

Naturally the personal character of the viceroy had its
influence. We have seen that under Toledo no attention
was given to science and letters, and this is also true under
the viceroys of Philip II. Their chief aim was the increase
of their revenues, which during the second half of the six-
teenth century amounted to 30,000 ducats a year. In
addition to their legitimate dues they averaged as much

CHARLES V. AND PHILIP IL 83

more from the sale of offices and presents; and it may
well be surmised that a portion of their enormous charges
for the so-called " secret expenses " found its way into the
pocket of the viceroy. We can see the force of the words
of the elder Olivarez : " One ought not to wish to be Vice-
roy of Naples, to avoid the pain that one should feel at
leaving it."

Under Philip II., the Mole at Naples was improved ; the
new arsenal erected and the barrack built which now, after
several transformations, is the National Museum, or Museo
Borbonico; the Strada di Chiaja was begun, and a new
road constructed from Fuorigrotta to Pozzuoli. Slight
changes and small improvement when compared with those
of the preceding reign !

Philip was devoted to the idea of founding a universal
Christian monarchy. He was ambitious of controlling
England and ruling France ; he alleged his claims as heir
to Burgundy and Provence ; he coveted the North of Europe,
and constantly endeavored to repulse the Turk from its
eastern and southern coasts ; the acknowledged Spanish
monarchy which he desired to rule absolutely, was com-
posed of such conflicting elements as could never be peace-
fully united ; Naples, Palermo, Cagliari, Mexico, Lima,
Aragon, Catalonia, and Valencia were under his viceroys ;
Lombardy, the Netherlands, and Franche-Comt6 were ruled
by his governors. Under such conditions it is not strange
that he did nothing well ; that no portion of his domain
prospered under his care, and that the provinces were
reduced to beggary. In some of them, whole villages were
actually deserted; the fields were uncultivated, and the
population largely decreased. In the midst of such condi-
tions it is not difficult to comprehend the violent hatred
of the Neapolitans for their Spanish masters.

Philip II. did not visit Naples, and the most important
memento of him existing there is his portrait by Titian

84 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

in the National Museum. It is a replica of that by
the same artist which was sent to England in 1553 to
forward the suit of Philip for the hand of Mary Tudor.
The original is now in Madrid; but this in Naples, and
others, are not inferior, since they were made by the same
great master.

CHAPTER IV.

PHILIP III. AND PHILIP IV.

1598-1647.

IN the seventeenth century Naples was governed by Philip
III., Philip IV., and Charles II. of Spain. Neither of
these sovereigns merit our attention, and in the long pro-
cession of their viceroys and lieutenants, there is rarely
one of whom we have occasion to speak at length. During
this epoch Naples suffered the results of the policy which
had been pursued by its preceding rulers. Industries, com-
merce, and everything that makes the financial prosperity
of a nation were at the lowest ebb. Villages deserted and
rich fields lying fallow spoke but too plainly of the decrease
in population, and the weak sovereigns at Madrid were
powerless to confer prosperity on their provinces; taken
for all in all, the story of Naples in this era is sad and
depressing.

It is, however, an interesting period in which to study
the character, manners, and customs of the Neapolitans.
At one time the artists acted a part curiously out of tune
with their art; the story of Masaniello is of absorbing
interest, and occasionally a viceroy appeared who makes a
picturesque feature in the general monotony of the time.

Don Pedro Giron, Duke of Ossuna, was one of these.
He was the second viceroy of his name, and came of an
important family, in whose chapel at Ossuna this elevated
sentiment holds a place of honor : " If life is beautiful,
death is gain." However much this duke endeavored to

86 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

make his earthly life beautiful from his point of view, he
sought a gain in no wise dependent on death. No viceroy
at Naples had assumed such state and magnificence as did
he from his first appearance at her gates. He frequently
drove through the city in a carriage drawn by six horses ;
it was covered with black velvet ornamented in silver with-
out and gold within ; two hundred pounds of silver in
addition to the gold and jewels on the sideposts increased
the price of this chariot to three or four thousand scudi.
Besides being showered with petitions which were thrown
into his carriage, he actually gave audiences in the street,
while crowds collected to admire and criticise his assump-
tion of super-regal splendor.

He professed himself greatly interested in the cause of
justice, and had a habit of going about the city late at
night, when he carefully noted everything irregular and
severely punished the offenders. In public he was all
generosity, and scattered coins among the people who
flattered him. With the unthinking rabble he gained a
certain popularity, so that when he made a feint of resign-
ing his office they petitioned him to remain their viceroy.

The more intelligent of his subjects were not surprised
by his gradual assumption of illegal power, as they had
doubted him from the beginning. He soon showed himself
a cruel tyrant, and did not hesitate to condemn men to the
galleys for life, or even to death itself, without a trial ; and
this for trifling offences which were oftentimes personal to
himself, as when a dentist, who had broken a tooth of
Ossuna's some years previously, was sent to the galleys.
He paid small deference to official position, and even had
a member of the finance department flogged through the
town for an idle word. Some of his so-called acts of jus-
tice were such that one wonders that he was not murdered
once a day, at least, if that were possible.

On one occasion the presidents of the exchequer failed

PHILIP III. AND PHILIP IV. 87

to present their accounts on the appointed day. Ossuna
imprisoned them in their houses with threats of greater
severity. A few days later he summoned them before him,
and announced that they were to be carried to distant
castles. Carriages were waiting, and with no preparation,
and no leave-taking of family or friends, each one was put
in a separate coach and driven away, regardless of the
intercession of the few who knew what was being done.
When Ossuna was reminded that such journeys were often
fatal in the heat which prevailed, he replied that such a
thought did not disturb him. His daring and unexampled
brutality was doubtless the effect of his suspicion that these
men had reported his conduct to the court at Madrid.
Ossuna's fiendish cruelty was combined with superstitious
fear. He was constantly in horror of being spellbound,
and frequently had women whom he suspected as witches
flogged through the streets ; it was a mark of favor when
they were permitted to veil their faces ; a monk bore a
crucifix before them, and after the scourging they were
expelled from Naples.

Ossuna's private life was too low and indecent for descrip-
tion ; and yet, in spite of his abominable character in both
his public and private relations, he held some potent charm
by which he could attract a following among the very
people whom he outraged. At length, apparently weary
of so narrow a field as Naples afforded him, together with
the Spanish governor at Milan, Don Pedro de Toledo, and
the Spanish ambassador to Venice, the Marquis of Bedmar,
he entered into a conspiracy against the Venetian republic,
which presented the only bar to the Spanish dominion over
all Italy.

In the spring of 1617, Ossuna made vast preparations
for his attack on Venice. He appealed to the piratical
Usochi, who had long been the enemies of the Republic,
and opened to them the Neapolitan ports on the Adriatic ;

88 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

he enlisted men, prepared vessels, and even took away the
artillery of San Lorenzo. All prisoners and banditti were
offered pardon if they would enlist in the service of the
Duke, and 14,000 soldiers and sailors were ready for his
work when he commenced negotiations with the Pope rela-
tive to marching his army across Lombardy. Meantime
he had stationed twenty galleons and other vessels in the
Neapolitan harbors, and yet he continued his friendly rela-
tions with the representative of Venice, who did not leave
the court of Naples.

A naval conflict soon raged between Naples and Venice,
and Ossuna's anxiety can scarcely be exaggerated when he
perceived that he had overstepped the bounds of his author-
ity. He was not an autocrat at Madrid as at Naples, and
Spain did not desire a war with Italy. De Reumont
says : —

" It was a critical moment for Ossuna. He saw his daring
plans thwarted ; he felt how tottering was his position at
Naples ; his preparations had swallowed up vast sums of
money ; the land groaned under the burden of quartered sol-
diers ; the foreign troops, especially the Walloons, occasioned
daily bloody quarrels by their want of discipline. All the pub-
lic works were at a standstill, the treasury empty, even the
artillery concealed in the Sicilian fortresses was sold. Envoys
from the nobility and from the town were gone to Madrid to
allege their complaints against the viceroy. He had tried first
to prevent and then to weaken their complaints, but failed in
both cases ; then the idea seemed to occur to him of making
himself an independent ruler of Naples. He tried to make
himself a party among the common people of Naples, and
he succeeded. . . .

" The noblemen who had any influence with the better part
of the people did their possible to keep the peace and preserve
the allegiance due to their monarch ; but the state of things
was extremely critical, and a general terror prevailed that the
city would be pillaged."

PHILIP III. AND PHILIP IV. 89

Just at this time news carne that the Cardinal Gaspar
Borgia had received orders to leave Rome at once and
precede Ossuna at Naples. The Duke offered all possible
resistance to the entrance of the Cardinal into the city.
But Borgia was clever enough to gain the custodian of
Castel Nuovo to his side ; he landed from a fisherman's
boat, disguised as a soldier, and entered Naples at night, in
the company of a few friends. In the morning the thunder
of the forts proclaimed the new ruler. Ossuna still tried
in vain to defend himself ; during the ten days that he
remained in Naples, he witnessed the rejoicings of the
people at his overthrow ; he beheld illuminations three suc-
cessive nights ; he saw his friends disgraced, imprisoned,
exiled, and even executed, and he departed in June, 1620,
vowing vengeance on his enemies, and declaring that he
•would vindicate himself at Madrid.

After some delay he reached Madrid, and for a time it
seemed that he would succeed in re-instating himself in the
esteem of Philip III. ; but that monarch's death sounded
the knell of Ossuna. He was imprisoned, and died a raving
maniac in 1624.

If Naples was in a pitiably wretched state when Philip
III. came to the throne, it could not have improved during
his reign. In fact, Philip IV., had he thought of it at all,
might well have questioned if it were worth while to retain
a possession so distant and so wretched. But we may
doubt if the boy, a king at sixteen, knew anything of such
matters. He left the government of his monarchy to Count
Olivarez, who was too much occupied with the questions
that Cardinal Richelieu gave him to solve, and with the
more important countries under Spanish rule, to devote
much care or thought to the peninsula of Naples, except
to estimate the amount that could be wrung from it in
taxes. Industry and commerce were words with no vital
meaning to the Neapolitans ; science, literature, and art

90 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

could but feebly gasp at long intervals, weighed down as
they were by miseries of every sort.

In fact, no manner of suffering was spared Naples at
this period. Famine stalked the peninsula ; men were
sent to the north to fight for their tyrant at Madrid, while
their own coasts were left to the depredations of pirates ;
earthquakes added their horrors to those of famine ; in
Calabria whole cities were destroyed, and human beings
perished by tens of thousands. Never had the oppression
of Spain been greater, and the terrible system of taxation
was most severely felt by the poorest classes. Even these
distresses might have been less fatal had there been an
equable administration of justice ; but it can scarcely be
said that justice for Neapolitans existed at this time.

From a very earty date the banditti had been a source of
danger and trouble in the whole territory of Naples. They
had never been controlled, and about 1560 had elected a
king who had his officials, granted privileges, made out
patents, and paid each bandit nine scudi a month. At
times a reformation of the system or the extinction of the
robbers was attempted, without success, and the seven-
teenth century suffered the worst results of this evil.
Some of the bandit chiefs were noblemen of high degree ;
gangs of robbers came even to the gates of Naples, and the
efforts of the soldiers to contend with them in the moun-
tains were useless. Now and then an efficient viceroy
lessened their power ; but what could be done effectually
so long as whole bands of these robbers were taken into
military service, and those condemned to death were par-
doned to become soldiers ? By this means the army of
the sovereign was as much to be dreaded as that of the
bandit king; for not being regularly paid, the Spanish
soldiers thought it right to steal or take by force any food
that they could find, sometimes snatching it from the
mouths of those as famished as themselves. Terrible pun-

PHILIP III. AND PHILIP IV. 91

ishments were administered ; ears and hands were lopped
off ; the galleys were constantly filled by men sent there
without a trial of any sort, while for money or the head
of a bandit, even murder was overlooked.

Added to this utter absence of law or order was the
right of asylum in churches and monasteries, which per-
mitted the refuge of criminals in these sacred places in
order to avoid arrest. This privilege was so often violated
by the officers of the law that constant quarrels occurred
between them and the authorities of the Church, from
which numberless mandates and excommunications re-
sulted. In 1600 the Pope's nuncio, Giacomo Aldobrandini,
represented this evil to the court at Rome in the strongest
terms of condemnation. He reported that this intercourse
between these criminals and the clergy and monks was
bringing incredible harm to the Church ; that in some
places outside of Naples, the monks shared the spoils of
the robbers, and served them as a means of communication
with their friends. He saw no possible remedy unless the
magistrates should use such violent measures as would
greatly lessen the dignity of the Church.

The nuncio also reported the degradation of the priest-
hood. He explained that many assumed to be clergymen
who were not really so, and sometimes they did not even
wear the garb of a priest ; these were called " wild," Sal-
vatichi, — a term they well merited. He declared that the
monks hesitated at no evil ; and when the viceroy deplored
that the clergy were sent to the gallows, the nuncio replied
that no other punishment would serve the purpose, and
added the curious comment that the galleys often saved
them from the gallows. The Popes, one after another,
labored to suppress these outrages with small effect ; and
the story of the excesses, profanation, and crimes per-
petrated near and even in the churches would fill volumes.
The jealousy between the civil and clerical powers was an

92 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

insurmountable hindrance to a reform of these matters ;
these authorities regarded each other as rivals, which made
a better administration of affairs in which both were con-
cerned almost hopeless.

In the midst of such a condition one would scarcely look
for a luxurious and splendid court, and a merry life for
those who lived above the abject wretchedness of the
people, but could not have been ignorant of it. However,
since the days of Don Pedro de Toledo, the viceroys had
maintained a regal state, and in the beginning of the
seventeenth century the officers of the palace, the guard
of nobles, the various dignitaries in attendance, and the
immense corps of servants transformed the residence of a
subject into a royal dwelling in outward appearance. In
fact, the viceroys conducted themselves like absolute rulers.
The ceremonial observed when they assumed their office
is thus described : —

" On their arrival they usually remained at one of the villas
belonging to the nobility at Posilipo or Chiara, till their prede-
cessor had evacuated the palace. Then they were conducted
in a richly decorated felucca to the harbor, where a wooden
pier, covered with red damask, and a canopy of various colors
stretched over it, was erected for them. The viceroy landed
amidst music and volleys of artillery ; here the deputies of the
town received him, whilst the soldiers of the body-guard and
the sailors of the royal galleys, according to an old privilege,
plundered the pier and canopy, and fought skirmishes. His
Excellency and his suite were conveyed to the palace in magnifi-
cent carriages. On the following day a great cavalcade, joined
sometimes by two hundred nobles of the highest rank, went
first to the cathedral, at the gates of which the archbishop and
clergy received the representative of the monarch, the Te
Deum was chanted, and they proceeded through the town.
This was taking possession. It was performed with more or
less pomp, according to the character and taste of the
individual."

PHILIP III. AND PHILIP IV. 93

No autocrat could be more regardless of the rank of his
subjects, nor more insulting in his treatment of those who
offended him than were these Spanish viceroys in Naples.
De Reumont gives some examples of this : —

" In the year 1614 the Count of Lemos imprisoned the
Prince of Conca and the Duke of Bovino, the first Lord High
Admiral, and the other High Seneschal of the kingdom, and
sent one to Castel Nuovo and the other to S. Elmo, because, as
supporters of the dignity of the crown, they had refused to
appear at a review amongst the crowd of nobles, but claimed
reserved places. A year afterwards the same Count of Lemos
caused the Duke of Nocera, one of the most distinguished feu-
datories of the house of Carafa, to be seized in his palace by a
number of Sbirri, because he had disobeyed the injunction of
the king and married without his consent. Arrests for debt,
even for very small sums, were not unusual ; and the vanity as
well as the pretensions to rank of the Neapolitans was hurt by
the Spaniards in this and in all ways. . . .

" When the Duke of Alva, in August, 1629, made his first
visit to his successor, the Duke of Alcala, who had landed at
the Palazzo di Trajetto at Posilipo, he summoned almost the
whole body of the great nobility, that he might be attended by
a brilliant escort: after these nobles had waited for a long
hour in the hall, they were informed that his Excellency did
not require their services to-day, as he had changed his mind.
The princes and dukes left the house in disgust ; but the next
day Alva summoned them again, and they all hastened back
to the palace, — proof enough, says a contemporary chronicler,
that the worse they are treated, the more submissive they be-
come. Such things must the men submit to, whose origin may
be traced to the time of the Lombards, to the ancient Grecian-
Italian races who inhabited the shores of Amalfi, who were
descendants of the valiant followers of a Bras de Fer, of a
Guiscard, and of a Roger."

There were slight differences in the degree of personal
magnificence assumed by the viceroys, but the result was

94 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

the same. If they travelled, they made royal progresses,
were splendidly entertained by the nobles, and made regal
presents to their subjects. Occasionally a viceroy was
very rich ; but whether he were so or no, his wants could
be supplied by donatives, and they received enormous sums
in this way. Gifts varying from twenty to seventy-five
thousand ducats were frequently made to them, and it is
said that in six years the Count of Monterey received
43,000,000 ducats, of which but 17,000,000 reached the
royal treasury. Capecelatro says that this viceroy required
forty ships in which to transport his possessions, — 4,500
packages of furniture, gold and silver plate, works of art,
and other valuables, — although much had already been
sent away.

It was estimated that the Duke of Medina in six years
took, in one form and another, 30,000,000 ducats, and left
Naples in such poverty that scarcely a house existed in
which a good meal could be served. As we walk to-day in
the Strada Medina, or see the fountain bearing this name,
we wonder that the starving Neapolitans permitted him to
be thus honored, and are not surprised that when, three
years later, a defender of their cause presented himself,
they were ready for insurrection.

The court of a viceroy is apt to be a travesty on the
court of a sovereign, even when the sovereign and his
deputy are able men ; how much more so, when, as in the
case of Naples at this period, the sovereign was weak, and
the viceroy mercenary ! The pivot on which the affairs of
Naples turned was at Madrid ; there was no central point
at home ; no dignified relations abroad which opened a
field to diplomatic talent, and the Neapolitan nobles must
be either courtiers or soldiers. Many chose the military pro-
fession, raised troops at their own cost, conducted them to
other countries, and won admiration and respect from brave
enemies in various portions of the vast Spanish territory.

PHILIP III. AND PHILIP IV. 95

Those who remained at court were vain and quarrelsome.
They held themselves above all useful pursuits, not even
managing their own estates. They cherished numberless
jealousies, and were so punctilious as to rank and prece-
dence that even religious functions were interrupted by
quarrels ; processions were stopped, torches extinguished,
and tumults excited, in the midst of which the priests help-
lessly bore the Sacred Host, unable to proceed until order
could be restored. If an Eccellentissimo did not receive
his proper title, his sword was quickly in air, even among
his fellows, and the treatment of inferiors by these grandees
was too cruel and tyrannical for belief. At times the
viceroys permitted the nobles to indulge their pride to the
full, and again treated them like upper servants, in order to
humiliate the masters in the eyes of their vassals, in revenge
of the fact that the people respected Neapolitan nobles as
they could not be induced to respect the Spaniards.

This was everywhere a period of lethargy and inaction
in art and literature; imagination was stifled, and the
commonplace of luxury, expenditure, and ostentation filled
all great centres of life and power. The higher and finer
attainments of the human mind were conspicuous by their
infrequency, while pomps, pretensions, and the pursuit of
pleasure apparently satisfied the great and powerful. This
was eminently true of Naples, where the most sordid, de-
pressing, and even revolting spectacle was afforded by the
luxurious life of the rich and titled families in hideous
contrast with the misery and degradation of the masses of
the people.

The royal palace, designed by Fontana and begun in
1600, has been so changed by fire and rebuilding, as well
as by the needs and fancies of later rulers and architects,
that it has little present interest. But it was a fitting
place for the festivities which constantly occurred there
while it was still new. It is estimated that 50,000 ducats

96 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

were annually spent on them by some viceroys. Tourna-
ments, balls, suppers, and all the pleasures that could be
devised followed closely, one upon another. On one occa-
sion Ossuna invited more than a hundred ladies to a supper,
and appointed their lordly relatives to serve them at table.
He watched the affair through a distant window, and
appeared at the end of the meal in a magnificent costume ;
he ordered the windows to be opened and the remnants of
the feast thrown into the court of the Arsenal ; meantime
the ball-room was lighted, and the dancing lasted until long
after sunrising.

In the year 1618, during the carnival, a great masquerade
was held in the palace. A Turkish vessel passed through
the hall, from which knights jumped out and tilted with
each other ; a supper and ball followed. But the climax
of display and constant festivity was reached under Ossuna,
whose wife was devoted to gayety. On one occasion she
arranged a ball at which twelve maidens of high rank
formed a quadrille. The viceroy paid for their costumes
600 ducats fof each lady; they consisted of white satin
undergarments trimmed with gold lace, and petticoats,
reaching to the middle of the legs, of the same materials ;
their trains were of silver brocade, and were carried over
the arm in dancing ; they had dainty shoes, and beautiful
heron's plumes ornamented the white crowns on their
heads. When the time came for their dance, they ad-
vanced in pairs, bearing torches in the right hand, and as
they danced they made courtesies to the viceroy. A torch
dance followed, in which the viceroy joined ; and the re-
freshments were then served, which, curiously enough, were
always the same with high and low, and consisted of grapes
and melons. Sometimes the Greek gods and goddesses
appeared at the festivals, and angels sang madrigals in
honor of the giver of the feast.

Successive viceroys vied with each other in inventing

PHILIP III. AND PHILIP IV. 97

new and splendid entertainments. Dramatic representa-
tions were very popular, not only at the Palazzo Reale, but
in private palaces as well, and even in churches and con-
vents ; these last were by no means confined to mysteries
and moralities, but consisted of such dramas and comedies
as could be seen elsewhere. Ecclesiastics wrote plays, and
" L'Inconstante " by a Camaldolese Father was extremely
successful. The monasteries and nunneries were much oc-
cupied in these representations, and the Jesuits spent 7,000
ducats on a play in honor of the Queen of Hungary, — the
Infanta, — in which dancing boys and other secular features
were presented to an audience in which the clergy were
numerous, even cardinal archbishops being present. In
the Benedictine nunnery a play was acted to which noble
ladies were admitted by the Pope's permission ; others
looked on from the outside, and even cavaliers were spec-
tators from the church ; all of which occasioned a great
scandal.

The Count of Monterey had such a passion for the drama
that he heeded neither times nor seasons, but had a play
daily in some private or public theatre. He went from the
theatre to Mass, and from Mass to the theatre. He con-
stantly associated with actors ; and when he brought a
Spanish company to Naples at great expense and the
theatres were not well filled, he commanded the attendance
of the Spanish officers and of the questionable women of
the city, and fined these last for each absence.

Horsemanship had been much in vogue with the nobles,
and we have seen that royal stables and a riding-school
were established in 1586. But in the seventeenth century
even this custom declined. Horses deteriorated, and so
many mules were used that an edict was issued against
them on account of the injury which resulted to the breed-
ing of horses. Gaming of all sorts was carried to the
greatest excess; and finally, in the revolt of 1647, the

98 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

people visited the gaming-houses, made a heap of all the
furniture, dice, cards, and other implements that they
could seize, and set fire to them, as well as to one hundred
gambling-houses.

Disreputable women were forbidden to be seen on the
fashionable promenades by the Chiaja and Mergellina, to
go out in a carriage or sedan-chair, or sail in a felucca to
Posilipo, as was greatly the mode. They were not allowed
to pass the night in an inn, and were scourged for break-
ing these laws ; and yet their numbers constantly increased,
and abominable scandals were frequent, in which cavaliers
of high position were invariably involved. Scarcely a night
passed without quarrels over games and women, in which
wounds were received, often so severe as to maim for life
and even to cause death.

Duelling, against which edicts had been constantly issued
for a century, had reached such a height, in 1638, that in
a single week five duels were fought by young noblemen in
Naples. Sometimes bands of men fought with each other ;
and in these contests it was not uncommon for deaths to
occur and a dozen men to be wounded. All sorts of causes
led to duels. Rivalry in love, gaming, indifference in man-
ner of greeting, or even the treatment of one's lap-dog was
a quite sufficient reason for a challenge. It sometimes
seemed that the love of duelling was the sole reason for
its existence. But there were cases of a more serious
nature, as in the feud between the Carafas and Acquavivas
of Noja. The Duke of Noja cut off the nose and ears of
a vassal who had offended him, and sent him back to his
master, an Acquaviva. After many attempts at revenge,
the quarrel resulted in the determination of Francesco
Carafa and Giulio Acquaviva to fight until one should be
killed. In all Italy no spot could be found where this sort
of duel would be permitted, and a license was obtained
from the magistrates of Nuremberg. A great number of

PHILIP III. AND PHILIP IV. 99

men, and even of women, assembled to witness this unusual
combat, which proved to be a ridiculous affair. After so
much thirst for pure revenge, as soon as Carafa was
wounded the antagonists were reconciled. The journey
to Nuremberg was long enough to cool even the blood of
a Neapolitan.

This fashion of duelling among the nobles affected the
lower classes. Soldiers fought each other in great num-
bers and for slight causes, and the knives of the people
seemed to be always in the air. Under such conditions,
the greatest insecurity to life and property existed, and
this evil was further aggravated by the shameless employ-
ment of bravoes in deeds of violence. A noble having a
spite against a man of a lesser rank, or being actuated by
a cowardly desire for revenge, or having any other reason
for not wishing to appear personally in the conduct of his
schemes, did not hesitate to hire assassins to work his will ;
and it is a forcible comment on the spirit of the times that
this custom was accepted as permissible by all classes.
When the violence of the nobles reached the point of
murder and all sorts of cruelties to their own class, what
could be expected of them when their inferiors only were
involved ?

The diaries and chronicles of this century speak but
sparingly of the domestic life of the time, which fact shows
that it was considered as unimportant. Young girls of
fortune were placed in convents to be educated and pro-
tected from the many dangers which threatened them out-
side these asylums. When they reached the customary
age, a marriage was arranged, and they were led from
the convent to the altar.

At the balls and fetes where ladies appeared, fierce quar-
rels often arose concerning matters of etiquette and prece-
dence ; and they were not above boxing ears and scratching
faces. The Countess of Monterey publicly carried a slipper

100 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

about, and did not hesitate to beat such ladies as offended
her. The morals of women of position were conspicuous
by their absence, and it was thought no shame to be the
mistress of a viceroy. The ladies of the court exceeded
all bounds of decency in dress ; at a masquerade in 1639,
the Duchess of Medina and twenty-three other beautiful
women appeared in such a lack of costume as excited a
scandal, even at the court of Naples. But in spite of all
these faults, when the hour of danger came, these women
were not wanting in courage and devotion to their cause
and to their friends.

Visiting convents was a favorite pastime with noble
ladies ; and on one occasion when the Pope permitted them
to go to the house of the Donna Regina, they sent, in
advance, three wild boars, fifteen kids, twelve turkey cocks,
twelve capons, a variety of cheeses, a quantity of macaroni,
and many sweets. All these were served up in the refec-
tory ; and the ladies were not so much impressed by the
sanctity of the place, nor had the nuns sufficient dignity
to command their respect in such wise, as to make their
conduct refined or elegant ; on the contrary, their conver-
sation was seasoned with such expressions as will not bear
repetition-

in spite of the depressing facts we have given, Capaccio,
who wrote an exact account of Naples in 1634, says that
within sixty years the population and the number of houses
had largely increased ; the form and extent of the city had
varied but little in a century, but many quarters were more
thickly populated, and the inhabitants numbered 300,000.
The imports of luxuries, such as sugar, wax, almonds,
spices, fine cloths, gold and silk stuffs and embroideries,
amounted to many thousand ducats. Of the activity and
populousness, Capaccio says : —

" Besides the handicraftsmen who carry on their trade in
the open streets, besides those who have their workshops in

Neapolitan Costumes.

PHILIP III. AND PHILIP IV. 101

their houses, in every street, in every alley, in every corner is
to be seen a crowd of people, pressing, pushing, and pursuing
their callings, so that a man has often a hard matter to pass
through them. If you go into the churches where there is
preaching, as surely do you find them filled with human beings.
Should you betake yourself to the courts of judicature, you are
astonished at the concourse. And the streets themselves, not
one, not ten, but all, are full of people, on foot, on horseback,
and in vehicles ; so that there is a turmoil and a hum as though
it were a swarm of bees. Everywhere, and at all times, and
to anybody, nothing is more laborious than to wander about
Naples."

The situation of Naples was so advantageous for com-
merce that each year brought foreign merchants to dwell
here, and its business increased. This kind of growth did
not please the viceroys : it caused the taxes in Naples to
press less heavily on the poor than in the country, and the
villages were almost depopulated ; this massing of an
excitable people increased the danger of insurrections and
the difficulty of checking them. For these reasons the
castle of S. Elmo — which commanded the whole city —
was enlarged and strengthened in 1641. It is a curious
fact that, in the midst of this increasing commerce and
wealth, the short-sighted policy of the Spaniards crippled
the industries of Naples by foolish restrictions. The Duke
of Arcos subjected the silk-workers' guild to the oversight
of the police, and favored the monopoly of the industry by
the city itself ; while the Marquis of Carpio prohibited the
use of new inventions, and only such silk stuffs as were
made by the ancient Spanish rescripts and at a fixed price
were allowed to be sold. And yet — so great was the
industry of the people, and so pressing their needs — even
under such disadvantages the silk manufacture flourished,
and possibly was slightly increased in the first half of the
seventeenth century.

102 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

The palaces of the period displayed a vast array of splen-
did carpets and hangings of all kinds, called Arazzi ; lofty
mirrors, pictures, sculptures in marble and bronze, splen-
did vessels of gold, silver, crystal, glass, and Oriental por-
celains were much in use ; great care was taken that all
materials should be costly ; tableware was of the richest
silver and silver gilt, and furniture was heavily gilded.
Gilders were so greatly in demand that Ossuna, in
1618, forbade their employment by private individuals,
under pain of the galleys, until a certain galleon was
completed. Churches and monasteries were generously
endowed and ornamented with the same care as to the
intrinsic value of their decorations that was bestowed on
the palaces. In 1642, 200,000 ducats were spent on the
altar of the Annunziata. The treasury of S. Januarius
was endowed with its rarest treasures at this time, and
1,000,000 ducats spent on its chapel. The generosity of
this epoch was only exceeded in times of unusual danger,
such as that of the great plague, when the imminence of
death made all objects seem valueless, and yet men hoped
that God might be placated by such gifts.

The art of the seventeenth century in Naples is well
displayed in the church of S. Martino and in the chapel of
S. Januarius, also called the Cappella del Tesoro, in the ca-
thedral. S. Martino is rich in the most exquisite marbles
and beautiful porphyry. The walls are covered with
mosaic, and the altars finished with lapis-lazuli, agate,
jasper, and amethysts ; leaves, rosettes, and other designs
are executed in mezzo relievo from the richest materials,
and the extravagances of the architect, Fansaga of Ber-
gamo, are seen on every side, giving an effect of astonish-
ing splendor. The mark of Fansaga is on many edifices
in Naples. He designed the faQade of the Cappella del
Tesoro ; while Francesco Grimaldi of Oppido was the archi-
tect of the chapel itself, which was built in fulfilment of a

PHILIP III. AND PHILIP IV. 103

TOW made during the plague of 152T, and was completed
a century later, at a cost of 1,000,000 ducats, equal to
about the same sum in dollars. It is in the form of a
Greek cross, and has a large cupola ; it has eight altars,
and is rich in marbles and gold ; the finely wrought lattice-
work is magnificent, and the forty-two columns of Spanish
Brocatello add great splendor to the effect of the whole ;
porphyry and lapis-lazuli, statues in bronze and marble,
huge silver candlesticks and numerous objects in silver
gilt, render .this chapel bewildering in riches.

Several pictures by Domenichino still remain, although
he could not endure the persecution he suffered and ran
away, leaving his work unfinished, as Guido Reni had
previously done. The story of the persecution of artists
who came from other cities to work in Naples at this time,
proves it to have been ruled by anarchy and crime, else
how could artists who had made contracts with the proper
authorities for the decoration of such an edifice as this
chapel be threatened, insulted, and even murdered, as
Domenico, the assistant of Guido, is believed to have
been?

Belisario Corenzio and the Neapolitan painters of his
company carried matters with a high hand. They deter-
mined that no outside artist should work there ; and fol-
lowing the example constantly set them in other matters,
they hesitated at nothing that could further their aims.
Thus Belisario hired the assassin who killed Domenico ;
the assassin was sent to the galleys, and the painter was
a long time in prison. We cannot wonder that foreign
artists refused commissions in Naples ; the committee tried
native artists with no satisfactory result ; Belisario himself
was tested, and failed ; and at length, years after it should
have been completed, Ribera and Stanzioni finished the
altar-pieces, and Lanfranco filled the cupola of the Cappella
del Tesoro with figures unworthy of a second thought.

104 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

Michael Angelo da Caravaggio was a coarse man and an
unrefined artist, but a good colorist and a faithful student
of Nature. He may be said to have resurrected the Nea-
politan school of art, which, if not dead, was certainly sleep-
ing profoundly. The school of Caravaggio was gloomy to
horror ; it dealt with tragic, bloody motives, and its depress-
ing and repulsive character is felt to-day in the churches
and galleries of Naples. .Ribera and Caraccioli, with Beli-
sario Corenzio, were the comrades and aids of Caravaggio ;
and Ribera, who was made court painter by Ossuna, had
every possible opportunity to impress himself upon the city
of his adoption.

He lived in splendor, having carriages, servants in livery,
and other appointments such as few painters of his day
could afford. His wife, Leonora Cortes, held a conspi-
cuous position by reason of her wit and beauty, and received
much attention from the Neapolitan cavaliers. Ribera
was not of commanding stature, but his dignity of bearing
secured him respect. While at work, his servant held his
brushes, and reminded him that he should seek the fresh
air, after a certain number of hours. At evening a delight-
ful society gathered at his house ; his cheerfulness making
him an agreeable companion, in spite of the fact that
his jests were sarcastic, and his passionate temper easily
aroused. While one is disgusted and repulsed by many
of Ribera's works, he demands our sympathy when we
remember his suffering, and the cause which drove him
in shame from the city where he had lived in his pride,
and led him to so hide himself that neither the time, place,
nor manner of his death is known.

His eldest daughter, the lovely Maria Rosa, was a victim
to the seductions of Don John, son of Philip III. She
followed him first to the palace and then to Palermo.
Ribera cursed the pride which had led him into an ac-
quaintance with men so far above his rank, and retired to

PHILIP III. AND PHILIP IV. 105

Posilipo, refusing to go out or see guests at home. His
wife could not endure this life placidly, and her regrets
and upbraidings drove him to hide himself from all who
had ever known him. Maria Rosa soon died of a broken
heart. The striking feature of this story is that Ribera,
an humble painter, who from many of his works would
seem to be a coarse and even brutal man, — living, too, in
the midst of a society in which all possible crimes and
revolting relations were accepted as a matter of course, —
should have felt himself so utterly disgraced when his
child attracted the notice and became the toy of the son
of his sovereign.

With few exceptions, among which Ribera and Salvator
Rosa are important, the artists of Naples painted much in
fresco ; in amount of space covered and a certain magnifi-
cence of effect, they were notable, and Luca Giordano —
the latest Neapolitan of importance — showed, in an aston-
ishing manner, to what an extent decorative painting may
be carried.

Neapolitan artists were frequently cavaliers, and as skil-
ful with weapons as with brushes. Here, as in other parts
of Italy, painters were often knighted, and led, as a rule,
wild and adventurous lives. Michael Angelo da Cara-
vaggio, in spite of his well-known dissolute life, was deco-
rated with the Maltese cross on account of his picture of
the Beheading of John the Baptist.

Mattia Preti, a Calabrian, belonged to the Order of Hos-
pitallers. His manner of painting differed from time to
time, and was influenced by what he saw in his travels.
He was constantly involved in disreputable quarrels ; es-
caping from one in Rome, he went to Malta, where he again
avoided arrest by sailing for Leghorn. He then went to
Spain, and after a time reached Northern Italy, and painted
pictures in several different cities ; coming again to Rome,
he had another affair which made escape his only hope.

106 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

He now turned towards his native land, and reaching
Naples, with no passport, at a time when there was a strict
quarantine, he was arrested and imprisoned. The sanitary
committee desired his death ; but the viceroy investigated
his case, and by chance a man who had known Fra Mattia
at Rome defended him, and his offer to paint a votive pic-
ture for the city gate in exchange for his liberty was
accepted. This work has .disappeared ; but if we can trust
existing accounts of it, he portrayed the dragging off of
the victims of the plague with great truthfulness. After
many quarrels, and much trouble over his work in some
of the churches of Naples, Fra Mattia was summoned to
Malta. He lived there forty years, and died at the age of
eighty-six, having painted many pictures in the church of
S. John and in that of Citta Vecchia. He lived an indus-
trious, exemplary life, gave his earnings in charity, was
made the Commander of the Order of Syracuse, and was
a most popular knight. He was buried before the entrance
of the vestry in the church of S. John.

At the very beginning of the century, by the command
of Philip III., and under the viceroy, the Count of Lemos,
the Royal Palace was begun. Domenico Fontana was the
architect. He had already executed many fine works in
Rome, and filled that city with his fame, thereby exciting
the enmity of other artists to such a degree that on the
death of his patron, Pope Sixtus, he was glad to go to
Naples at the request of the Count of Miranda. He had
designed and built many other edifices before beginning
the Palazzo Reale, which has been called his masterpiece.
No proper judgment of what it was originally can now be
made ; the facade alone can claim to be in any just sense
the work of Fontana, and even that has been much
changed.

In 1607, under the viceroy Count de Benevente, a street
was built to the Poggio Reale. It was a long, straight

PHILIP III. AND PHILIP IV. 107

road beyond the Porta Capuana, leading to the palace built
by Alfonso II. at the close of the fifteenth century. Here
were gardens extending to the sea ; and the Due de Guise
in the middle of the seventeenth century thought it one of
the most lovely spots in the world. This street was bor-
dered by trees and ornamented by fountains, and became
a favorite promenade with the Neapolitans.

In 1615 a second Count of Lemos changed the viceregal
stables of Ossuna into a university. In 1624 the Duke
of Alva erected a Lazaretto at Nisida, and in 1634 the
Count of Monterey built the bridge of Chiaja, by means of
which the quarter of Pizzofalcone was connected with the
hill on which stands the castle of S. Elmo, by way of the
Strada Monte di Dio and the Strada Ponte di Chiaja.
Such were the important public works in Naples during
the first half of this century ; few and unimportant as they
seem when compared with other periods in its history,
they are almost momentous when we remember the des-
perate condition of the government and the people during
this epoch. Well did Guidiccioni portray the low estate
to which Naples had fallen under the Spanish yoke, when,
late in the sixteenth century, he wrote : —

" From ignominious sleep, where age on age
Thy torpid faculties have slumbering lain,
Mine Italy, enslaved, ay, more, insane, —
Wake, and behold thy wounds with noble rage 1
Rouse, and with generous energy engage
Once more thy long-lost freedom to obtain ;
The path of honor yet once more regain,
And leave no blot upon my country's page 1
Thy haughty lords, who trample o'er thee now,
Have worn the yoke which bows to earth thy neck,
And graced thy triumphs in thy days of fame.
Alas ! thine own most deadly foe art thou,
Unhappy land ! thy spoils the invader deck,
While self-wrought chains thine infamy proclaim ! "

CHAPTER Y.

MASANIELLO'S REBELLION.
1647-1700.

IT is a curious coincidence that exactly one hundred
years elapsed after the Neapolitans rebelled against
the attempt to establish the Inquisition among them —
under the government of Don Pedro di Toledo — when
their patience under oppression and suffering again gave
way, and they sought relief in insurrection. This occurred
when, under the Duke of Arcos, all kinds of food were
subject to heavy taxes; and that on fruit was especially
cruel to a people accustomed to a cooling diet, requiring
no cooking, which had been abundant and almost with-
out price. It is also singular that Tommaso Aniello of
Sorrento should have been a leader in 1547, and a second
of the same name, from Amain, not known to be a rela-
tive of the first, should have been so prominent in 1647
that the rebellion is known as that of Masaniello.

The diary of Francesco Capecelatro affords the fullest
and most generally accepted account of this rebellion.
According to his story there had been an unusual spirit of
unrest in Naples, when the news of an insurrection in
Palermo greatly excited the Neapolitans. Placards were
posted all over the city threatening revolution if the
gabelles were not taken off. The viceroy was stopped on
his way to church, and surrounded by a crowd from which
he was extricated with difficulty. He made specious
promises, threw the blame on the nobles who ordered the
taxes, and could not have apprehended the seriousness of

MASANIELLO'S REBELLION. 109

the situation, since he sent the greater part of the foreign
troops into Lombardy; his thoughts being so occupied
with the danger from the French in Northern Italy that
the peril which threatened the Spanish rule in Naples
escaped his notice.

Tommaso Aniello, or Masaniello, the able opponent of
this Spanish Duke, was twenty-seven years old. He was
of medium height, well-made, vigorous, and alert ; his fair
hair hung in curls about his head and neck ; his face was
grave, but his manner was cheerful and his brilliant black
eyes were fearless in expression; his fisherman's dress,
although of a well-chosen color, lent no advantage to his
appearance, and the impression of unusual character which
he made on others must have resulted from his genuine
claim to consideration. Masaniello had married Berar-
dina Pisa in 1641 ; and so greatly had the pair suffered
from poverty that he could not go out to fish, but was
forced to pick up a few coins here and there by services
far beneath even his humble occupation.

In the midst of their distress Berardina had attempted
to bring into the city a bundle of flour, wrapped up and
carried like a baby ; she was detected and imprisoned for
eight days, while the flour paid the fine by which she was
liberated. Masaniello deeply loved his wife; and this
experience, added to insults which he frequently received,
so wrought upon his mind and imagination that he
determined to attempt the liberation of his people, pre-
ferring death while fighting in a just cause to starvation
for his wife, his friends, and himself.

At times the desperate acts of the people increased the
cruelty of the tax-gatherers and other officials ; the blow-
ing up of the custom-house in the market-place had this
effect, while it but too clearly showed the dangerous
condition of the public pulse. In July, on the fete of
the Madonna of Carmel, it was the custom for a band of

110 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

about four hundred lads, of the poorest classes, to make
an assault on a castle of wood and canvas erected in the
market-place. The boys were drilled for their part in
this sham warfare, and in 1647 Masaniello was their chief
and trainer. He was doubtless looking forward to this
fete as a favorable time to incite the people to a demon-
stration, using his band of boys as a nucleus for a larger
and more effective force.

But he was not destined to await his opportunity so
long. On Sunday, July 7, a serious quarrel arose
between the fruit-sellers from Pozzuoli and the buyers at
Naples, concerning the division of the taxes between
them. The viceroy, hearing of the disturbance, sent the
deputy of the people to quell the excitement; and this
officer found himself in the midst of a great tumult.
Masaniello had brought his troop to the market-place for
a grand review ; a crowd had gathered to see it, and the
quarrels of the fruit-sellers had attracted still greater
numbers. The deputy could make no impression; the
tax-gatherers insisted on their dues, and when they
undertook to weigh the fruit, a general melee ensued.
The rabble first threw the fruit, and then hurled stones
at the officers, set fire to such ruins of the custom-house
as the explosion had left, burned the accounts, and, in
short, inaugurated the insurrection. The deputy escaped
to bear the news to the viceroy, who resolved to try
leniency, and despatched two nobles to the market-place,
who exceeded his commands, and assured the people that
the gabelles would be abolished, and that they might
rejoice and be content.

The people listened attentively, and when the message
was ended, Masaniello, who had mounted a horse, ex-
claimed, " Now let us go to the Palace. " The crowd had
provided themselves with such weapons as they could lay
hands on, and made a strange procession of old and young,

MASANIELLO'S KEBELLION. Ill

ragged and bare-footed, who whistled and sung and began
to be excited by the mere realization of their brute force.
Arrived at the palace, this passionate multitude thronged
its court, shouting again and again, "Long life to the
King of Spain ! down with the gabelles ! " Addresses
were made by some of the nobles, promising the people
many benefits, but not all that were demanded. The
viceroy, after showing himself on a balcony, made his
retreat, and after many dangers and narrow escapes
reached a convent, being indebted to the bravery of a
few friends who had protected him, and afterwards saved
themselves with difficulty.

The mob furiously strove to batter down the gates of the
convent, when, fortunately, the Archbishop of Naples,
Ascanio Filomarino, appeared, and having great influence
with the people, was able to hold them in check until he
could send to the viceroy for a written promise that the
taxes on food should be abolished, and the bread be of
better quality.

Meantime the viceroy had fled to the castle of S. Elmo,
and his wife and children to Castel Nuovo. All the
provisions that could be gathered were sent to these two
strongholds, and the soldiers within reach were massed
in the barracks on Pizzofalcone, a proper number being
detailed for guard duty in the park of the Palazzo Reale.
These preparations made, the Duke of Arcos awaited
further developments with all the equanimity at his com-
mand; but it is not difficult to imagine the wrath of a
proud Spaniard thus set at defiance by a people whom he
despised, and who were essentially as disgusting as he and
his class considered them, — as vile, let us say, as he and
other Spanish viceroys had made them.

Night brought new horrors; the churches were filled
with monks and others who went in processions singing
litanies and praying for peace, but were not permitted to

112 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

pass into the streets. The mob broke open the prisons,
and set the inmates free, while all robbers and murderers
who were concealed in the city left their hiding-places.
The archives of the prisons were burned, the toll-booths
destroyed, and after going from one gate to another the
rabble attacked the houses of those who had made money
by carrying out oppressive laws. The rebels met no resist-
ance ; the owners of these houses thought only of escape,
and paid any price to boatmen who rowed them to places
of safety along the coast. The fine furnishing, pictures,
and plate were thrown in a heap and burned, and a rebel
detected in concealing a jewel or any object of value was
compelled to throw it into the fire.

The people so urgently needed arms that they even
attempted to seize those at S. Lorenzo; but the Spanish
garrison fired .on the mob, and thus excited it to deeds of
greater cruelty. The city presented a frightful spectacle ;
the confusion became terrific, revealed as it was by con-
flagrations in various quarters.

As yet there was no leader, and the rebels were like
children wearied from unusual play, and in need of an
authority to direct their steps. They gathered in the
market-place, where, at midnight, four masked men ap-
peared wearing monks' robes, and were soon surrounded
by the very dregs of the populace. One of these was Masa-
niello; a second was Giulio Genuine, who from first to
last fanned the flame of passion in the people, and in every
way excited their thirst for revenge, while he so skilfully
concealed his part that long after this evening the viceroy
habitually confided in him and acted on his advice.

Genuine at once addressed the people, encouraging them
to persevere in their rebellion until the viceroy should
comply with their demands. Dwelling especially upon
their need of arms, he so wrought upon their passions
that before day came they broke into the shops where

MASANIELLO'S REBELLION. 113

weapons were sold, seized all they could find, and pos-
sessed themselves of several pieces of light artillery.
During this dreadful night Masaniello was first spoken
of as the leader of the insurrection.

The morning of July 8 revealed the vast change which
had occurred in the affairs of Naples since the preceding
sunrise. Then the people muttered under their breath;
now they shouted aloud and stated their ultimatum, —
cheap food and good food, or anarchy and the horrors that
follow in its train. But a day has passed since the proud
viceroy stood with his heel on the neck of the starving,
suffering people ; now he trembles in terror in his hiding-
place, ready to promise anything that is demanded, if so
his life can be assured.

As the day passed, the tumultuous crowds throughout the
city were greatly increased by the country people. Dis-
contented peasants, vagabonds, and robbers, and a multi-
tude of half-naked women and children suddenly appeared,
as if they arose from the very stones of the street, and
added their groans, shouts, and hisses to the terrific noises
that already existed. Armed with all sorts of imple-
ments, these crowds surged hither and thither doing in-
finite mischief, and occasionally firing a magazine or
committing some act fatal to their own numbers, thereby
increasing their violence.

Meantime the Duke of Arcos held a council, and deter-
mined to send an embassy to treat with the people.
Diomed Carafa, Duke of Maddaloni, and several other
noblemen rode to the market-place, where the Duke
addressed the people with all the persuasiveness at his
command, and in the name of the viceroy promised free
trade in food and a general pardon to all who laid down
their arms and returned to their homes and occupations.
The people listened only to reply in loud shouts, " No lying
promises! we will have the privileges of Charles V.,"

114 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

which meant, "We will have no taxes, and the people
shall share equally with the nobles in the government."
The Duke of Maddaloni could get no satisfaction beyond
this, and rode away, promising to bring them the veritable
document of Charles V.

Masaniello did not leave the market-place, and in con-
sultation with his advisers made a list of the palaces and
houses to be destroyed. At evening the conflagrations
began, to the infinite satisfaction of the mob, who shouted,
"We now burn our own blood; so may those who have
sucked it from us burn in hell ! " Again, as on the pre-
vious evening, the processions of monks appeared only to
be insulted and driven back, while the churches were
filled by suppliants for a divine interposition which
should save their city and their lives.

On July 9 the condition was more frightful still, and
the destruction of property such as makes one sigh in
reading of it even now. Splendid works of art, all kinds
of rich furniture, tapestries and stuffs, and even casks of
coins, boxes of pearls, and other priceless treasures were
cast into the flames, along with lap dogs and other pets,
while fine horses were stabbed in their stalls; and this
vandalism was raging in all the surrounding regions as
well as in Naples. From many castles tongues of forked
flames ascended, leaving blackened ruins and smouldering
ashes to mark the spots where they had so proudly raised
their massive towers, as if defying the world to conquer
them.

In spite of all these horrors the viceroy still hoped for
a reconciliation with the people, and this hope was the
only refuge from despair. Cowardly as it seems in one
view, in another it required great courage to send his
friends to face the hideous multitude and make promises
in his name. Some of his ambassadors were surrounded
by the mob, and only escaped by making the most abject

MASANIELLO'S KEBELLION. 115

submission to its demands. The second time that the
Duke of Maddaloni endeavored to be heard he carried a
manifesto declaring that all criminals should be pardoned,
and all taxes taken off that had been imposed since the
time of Charles V.

Suddenly Masaniello sprung upon the Duke, seized him
by his belt and his long hair, and tore him from his horse ;
others bound his hands tightly with a rope, and gave him
to the keeping of two of their leader's most trusted aids.
By this act Masaniello annihilated a superstition that had
controlled the people for centuries; no longer were the
persons of the nobles to be respected, and never again
could they be considered sacred as before.

The viceroy's amazement at this deed was inexpressible,
and, blaming himself for sending men into such dangers,
he hastily despatched a prior to beg for the Duke's release.
The people answered him with renewed shouts for the
privileges of Charles V. However, the Duke escaped, —
by the aid of one of his jailers for whom he had once
done a favor, — and after many adventures joined his family
in a place of safety to which they had retreated.

The Duke of Arcos now sought the aid of Cardinal Filo-
marino. He did this unwillingly, as the Spaniards dis-
trusted the Neapolitan pastors, with whom they were con-
stantly at war, and especially this man, who had been the
persistent friend of the people. The Cardinal assured
the viceroy that his mission to the market-place would be
worse than useless if he could not show them the old
document of which they had heard, together with a reli-
able promise that it should be ratified. On no other con-
dition would he go. The parchment was found; and thus
armed, the Cardinal proceeded on his mission. He was
welcomed heartily, but was soon convinced of the impos-
sibility of peace; he feared the total destruction of the
city, and resolved to remain in the midst of the people.

116 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

The rebellion had gained strength that day, and another
night of horrors was approaching. The mob had posses-
sion of S. Lorenzo and the artillery; two divisions of
troops had been made prisoners, and a list of thirty-six
houses to be burned had been made out; in fact, many
were already in flames, as well as vast piles of household
goods and decorations. Hundreds of strange, half-savage,
half-naked creatures from the lowest parts of the city,
and even from caves and grottos, danced about these
holocausts, screaming and adding their fiendish cries to
the unceasing din of ringing bells. A procession bore an
effigy of Philip IV. through the streets crying, "Long life
to the King of Spain," while the royal standard, together
with that of the people, waved above S. Lorenzo.

Meantime the Cardinal Filomarino met with endless
difficulties in his negotiations with the leaders of the
rebellion in the Carmelite convent, to which he had re-
tired. Some of the rebels even demanded that the castle
of S. Elmo should be surrendered to them, and when the
words "pardon" and "rebellion" were read in the mes-
sage of the viceroy, they were answered by angry declara-
tions that there was no question of pardons, as no rebels
existed. The Cardinal exhausted himself to no purpose,
and the sun rose on another day of wrath.

The news of the escape of the Duke of Maddaloni mad-
dened still more the already furious mob, and the destruc-
tion of the Duke's property was at once decreed; but his
palace was found to be filled with bravoes in his employ,
who fired on the people, who quietly deferred the ven-
geance they did not fail to take later.

During these troublous days Masaniello developed
rapidly, acquiring such coolness and ability to lead and
command others as is rarely found in older men of wide
experience; and it began to appear that, wild as were the
more apparent deeds of the rebellion, an organization

MASANIELLO'S REBELLION. 117

was forming of which the first positive proof was an edict
calling an assemblage in the market-place. Thither the
crowds hastened, savage men and repulsive women, all
in filth and rags. A procession was led by Masaniello,
whose followers, nearly all armed, were estimated at
114,000. Usually in his fisherman's shirt and stockings
of white linen, but at times barefooted and bareheaded,
Masaniello had an authority such as proud and magnifi-
cent rulers often lack. His absolute decrees were exe-
cuted with promptness and exactitude. Filomarino said
of him : —

" He shows discretion, wisdom, and moderation ; in short,
lie has become a king in this town, and the most glorious and
triumphant in the world. He who Las not seen him cannot
imagine him ; and he who has cannot describe him exactly to
others."

While the meeting in the market-place was in progress,
the Cardinal received a message from the viceroy consent-
ing to an agreement which had been proposed; and
Masaniello and others proceeded to the Carmelite monas-
tery to complete the conditions of the negotiation. Sud-
denly a shot was fired ; Masaniello hastened to the gate,
crying, " Treason ! " while ineffectual shots were repeated
behind him. The market-place was soon the scene of a
fierce struggle between the people and about three hun-
dred banditti, who had suddenly appeared on the scene,
having been sent by the Duke of Maddaloni to avenge the
insults he had received from Masaniello. A frightful
carnage ensued ; and even within the convent many were
dying, the Cardinal not being able to confess and absolve
them as fast as his services were required.

Masaniello had learned from an expiring bandit that
Giuseppe Carafa, a brother of the Duke of Maddaloni, and
his cousin, the Prior of the Johannites of Rocella, were

118 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

in the convent of S. Maria la Nuova. A party of attack
was organized, and difficult as was the ascent of the
height over the steep, slippery ways that led to the mon-
astery, four hundred armed men soon surrounded it.
Finding the gates closed, they set fire to them, thus forcing
the monks to throw them open. The mob soon filled the
corridors and refectory, crying out for the chief of the
bandits.

A well-known servant of Carafa was discovered, which
convinced the people that his master was not far away ;
but during the few moments gained by closing the gates
the relatives of the Duke had fled by a back way into a
mean street, and the Prior reached a house where he
dressed himself in the garb of a woman and so escaped to
safety. Giuseppe Carafa was less fortunate. He soon
realized that he was pursued, and ran into the cottage
of a low woman, who made a feint of concealing him
while in the act of betraying him, in spite of his promises
of untold treasures if she but saved his life. He was
seized and dragged away ; and though he offered twenty
thousand ducats for his life, no one listened, and he was
murdered in the Piazza del Cerrigl.io, — a place of bad
omen, where the crown fell from the head of Louis of
Taranto when on his way to the coronation of Joanna I.,
— and his head severed from his body, while all sorts of
horrible indecencies were perpetrated on his corpse. He
was the first noble slain in this rebellion, and few were
more hated ; he was of a rash temper, and had committed
many crimes himself, besides employing others to do des-
perate deeds for him. Masaniello made an address to the
pallid head, and had it set up in the centre of the market-
place, with seventeen others, above which was a tablet
inscribed " This is the penalty for Traitors. "

Masaniello gave Michele de Santis, who had cut off the
head of Carafa, a thousand ducats, and promised four

MASANIELLO'S REBELLION. 119

times that sum for the head of the Duke of Maddaloni.
Many of his most valuable possessions had been left in
the convent of S. Maria della Stella for safe keeping ; all
were now dragged out and gathered in the market-place,
where they were exposed to sun and dirt, but were not
burned, as so many other treasures had been. De Reu-
mont says : —

" The most beautiful curtains of gold brocade, and wrought
with stuffs, Arras carpets with compositions of many figures,
rare pictures, vessels of silver and gold adorned with jewels,
magnificent carriages and noble horses, and a quantity of gold,
— everything was brought out."

The insurrection was at its height. The populace were
like very fiends of hell, and the number of murders was
enormous. The more the power of Masaniello was
strengthened, the more was that of the viceroy weakened.
His position was one of rapidly increasing danger, for
aside from other perils starvation was looming up before
him. He disowned a knowledge of the Carafa plot in
writing, and besought the Cardinal to hasten an accom-
modation. This was easier said than done. The whole
city was becoming so dangerous, and pistols and daggers
were so readily used in the streets, that the fisherman was
forced to take measures to restrain the people. Lamps or
torches were ordered to be kept burning before every
dwelling ; long cloaks and such garments as might conceal
weapons were forbidden; women were not permitted to
wear the garde infante, and even the Cardinals put off their
robes. The Spaniards were masters of the castles and of
Pizzofalcone, and the people were masters of the town.
The people knew that the Spaniards could, by use of the
artillery, level the whole city and destroy thousands, but
in their desperation even that seemed preferable to a pro-
longation of such lives as they had lived. On the other

120 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

hand, the viceroy wished to save the city if possible, and
he realized, better than his enemies, the weakness of his
garrisons, and the difficulty he should have in increasing
his stock of provisions, already painfully small. His
great anxiety was to make some terms with the rebels ;
almost any terms which would put an end to the present
condition, and give him an opportunity to take such steps
as would enable him to break what he might well consider
an enforced agreement.

But even the wrath of man may be satiated ; and after
five days of horrible fury and bloodshed it was announced
in the Church of the Carmelites that the negotiations had
been satisfactorily ended. With great difficulty Masa-
niello had also been persuaded to have a conference with
the viceroy, as it was fitting for the leader of the people
to do.

The fisherman was strangely distrustful of his advisers.
He said he saw the gallows looming up before him, and
insisted on being shrived before the meeting; and even
after that the Cardinal had great difficulty in persuading
him to go at all. He refused to enter the castle, and
would only go to the palace, and before setting out he
sent to know how many armed men he could rely on. He
was told that he had 140,000, and could double the
number if only arms could be had.

One cause for the apparent indecision of the Captain-
General was his physical condition. After the assault
of the bandits there had been a report that the springs at
Poggio Reale were poisoned, and Masaniello had so feared
death by that means that he had suffered much from thirst,
and was almost starved. On this day he had taken but a
bit of bread and wine which the Cardinal's physician
had first tasted. At length Masaniello began to pre-
pare for the audience, and late in the day all was in
readiness.

MASANIELLO'S REBELLION. 121

The Cardinal entered his carriage with his steward, the
traitorous Genuino, and two others of his suite. Masa-
niello rode on one side, and the deputy of the people on
the other. The fisherman was dressed in silver brocade
with a jewelled sword by his side, while his head, usually
bare, was covered by a white hat with plumes.

Doinenico Gargiulo, called Micco Spadone, painted
pictures of many scenes in this rebellion. He represented
Masaniello in this costume, with a medallion of the
Madonna of Carmel on his breast, riding at the head of a
concourse of men and boys. His white horse gallops past
the market-place, where bloody heads are ranged around
a marble pedestal, and the gibbet and wheel await their
victims.

As the procession moved towards the palace, many
thousands assembled, and the armed bands lowered their
colors before the Cardinal and their chief. Over the gate
of the palace of the Prince of Cellamare, in the square of
the castle, effigies of Charles V. and Philip IV. were
placed, beneath a canopy. Here Masaniello stopped,
spread out the old and new charters before him, and
assured the multitude that everything was properly settled.
Shouts of " Long life to the King and his most faithful
people of Naples ! " rent the air. Masaniello saw that the
courtyard was full of Spanish and German soldiers.
Spanish infantry was drawn up at the entrance to the
square, so that the carriage passed with difficulty, and
ramparts of earth had been thrown up in various direc-
tions. While he heard words of peace, he saw such signs
of war as could not escape the keen sight of the fisherman.

The viceroy received Masaniello in the saloon of Alva ;
and once in his presence, the fisherman threw himself at
the feet of the Duke, who raised him up, embraced him,
and with him and the Cardinal retired to another room.
The tumult without became so great that the viceroy

122 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

begged the chief to show himself on a balcony, which he
did, and returning to the room, fell in a swoon, which
greatly alarmed the Duke, who feared the consequences
should anything befall this man while in his company.
But Masaniello soon revived, the articles of the treaty
were confirmed, and their publication in two days agreed
on. The viceroy then conducted him to the staircase,
called him the faithful servant of the King, and the de-
fender of the people, gave "him a gold chain, offered him a
hand to kiss, and finally dismissed him with a second
embrace.

It was said that a peace was concluded ; but the streets
were in a tumult, watch-fires were kindled, and there was
no seeming of order. Masaniello still governed the city ;
he had a scaffold before his house; his decrees were
issued "by the command of the illustrious Lord, Maso
Aniello of Amalfi, Captain-General of the most faithful
people. " During the night a cry of " Treason and Ban-
ditti!" was raised; and without a trial or hearing, more
than a dozen heads were cut off by his orders. A secre-
tary read to him petitions presented on the point of a
halberd, which he answered with the authority of a ruler.
Prices of food were fixed, and many decrees issued rela-
tive to the smallest matters of conduct and even of
costume.

It was soon apparent that order and discipline were
undermined in all the relations of life. Employers could
not rely on their servants, who were summoned to arms,
and even rewarded for betraying their masters, and in-
subordination was everywhere apparent, when, on July
13, the viceroy and Masaniello met in the cathedral to
publish the new treaty with fitting solemnity ; and here,
where so many scenes important in the history of Naples
had been enacted, the Spanish power was strangely
humiliated.

MASANIELLO'S REBELLION. 123

The Captain-General permitted no cavalier to accom-
pany the viceroy ; he disarmed the nobles, while the streets
were lined with the people bearing weapons. The Car-
dinal was seated under the Baldachin, and the treaty con-
firming the old privileges was read. It also pardoned all
excesses that had been committed, and consented to the
bearing of arms by the people until the ratification of the
treaty should be received from Madrid, — probably three
months.

The viceroy confirmed the treaty by an oath with his
hand on the Gospels. The Cardinal sang the Te Deum,
and the people shouted, " Long life to the King of Spain ! "
Masaniello, who had been very uneasy, declared that he
was now nobody, and attempted to throw off his silver
brocade in the middle of the cathedral; and this being
prevented, he threw himself at the feet of the Cardinal
and kissed them. The ceremony ended, the people fired
their rifles, the viceroy proceeded to the castle amid cries
of "Long life to the King and the Duke of Arcos!" and
Masaniello walked home, the colors being lowered as he
passed the soldiers.

Now, alas ! when the power of Masaniello was at its
height, his conduct was that of a madman. In a sense
he commands our respect; for vile as his methods had
been, and much as we shudder at his deeds, we yet admire
the one man who had been brave enough to lead a revolt
against Spanish oppression. But the excitement, the
unusual life, fasting, and fear of poison, the heat of sum-
mer, and a morbid dread of the Duke of Maddaloni which
haunted him incessantly, combined to produce insanity.
If a group of people displeased him, he rushed into their
midst, attacked and wounded them. He expelled a thou-
sand men, women, and children from their homes near
his own, that he might build a palace ; he lavished money
on most unworthy women, conferred titles, gave splendid

124 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

banquets, and by various acts that no sane man would
commit, he gave evidence of an unsettled brain; and in
the midst of it all he suffered agonies of torment because
he could not learn where the Duke of Maddaloni was
hiding, the thought of the Duke being the one incessant
horror of his distracted mind.

The letters of the Duke were intercepted, but the cipher
which he used disclosed ..nothing. Masaniello cut the
heads from portraits of the Duke and his father, put them
on pikes, and ordered them placed on the table before him
while dining at a convent. He dressed himself in the
clothes of Maddaloni, galloped furiously to the sea,
went on board the gondola of the viceroy, and there made
his toilet and committed numberless acts of folly. At
times he invited the viceroy to his banquets, and sent his
wife and mother, in very rich costumes, to pay their
respects to the Duchess of Arcos ; Berardina said to her
Highness, "If your Excellency is the Vicequeen of the
ladies, I am the Yicequeen of the women of the people. "

Masaniello appeared to be possessed by two fiends, —
madness and cruelty ; he ordered executions by the score,
and two hundred heads decomposing under the burning
sun made the air of the market-place like a plague. Many
nobles had fled from Naples, and his tyrannical rage
began to produce its effect on his followers ; even those
who had been most faithful to him were in fear for their
lives. At length the viceroy and some of the people came
to an understanding, and an approaching feast day, July
16, was fixed as the time when the power of Masaniello
must end.

All preparations were made, and a strange gloom
seemed to hang over the city. The Cardinal officiated in
the church of the Carmine, and the service was scarcely
ended when Masaniello seized a crucifix, and mounted the
pulpit. His address was that of a madman ; he confessed

MASANIELLO'S KEBELLION. 125

his sins, and called on all who heard him to do likewise ;
he desired to show his emaciation from anxiety and
sleeplessness, and began to undress himself, but a monk
seized him and conducted him into the convent, where
he threw himself on a bed and fell asleep from sheer
exhaustion.

The bravoes employed by the viceroy to murder Masa-
niello had been in church, and after the scandalous scene
which closed the service they followed him to the convent
and asked for the Captain-General. The monks, suspect-
ing their errand, and endeavoring to protect the wretched,
insane sleeper, caused a contention which aroused Masa-
niello, who, believing that his friends were seeking him,
went at once to the gates and showed himself to the
assassins. Shots were instantly fired; and as he fell,
mortally wounded, he cried out, "Oh, ye vagabonds!"
His head was cut off at once, and one of the bravoes,
seizing it by the hair, rushed out with it, shouting, "Long
life to the King of Spain ! "

The people in the streets were as if paralyzed, and not
a hand was raised against the murderers, who were soon
protected by Spanish troops. Capecelatro relates that he
was walking in the park with the Duke of Arcos and
other gentlemen ; the viceroy had said that he would give
ten thousand ducats to any one who would bring Masa-
niello to him, dead or alive ; and at that moment the news
of what had been done was received. A fierce tumult
ensued ; the head was carried to the viceroy on a pike, and
the body, after being roughly treated, was buried near the
gate of the market-place. Many of Masaniello's followers
were arrested, his relatives were taken into custody, and
so uncertain was the viceroy as to what might happen,
that he ordered the fortifications to be repaired at once.

The Cardinal Filomarino hastened to the palace, and
with the viceroy and many noblemen rode to the cathe-

126 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

dral, and thence to the market. Everywhere was heard
the cry, " Long life to the King and to the Duke of Arcos ! "
The brother and brother-in-law of Masaniello were the
only men excluded from the general pardon. The privi-
leges which had been granted to the fisherman were
confirmed, and the nobles began to re-enter their homes
on that very day. Through the night all was quiet; the
people seemed half stupefied ; but when, in the morning,
the Commissary-General announced that the price of bread
would be raised, they awoke, and declared their leader to
have been betrayed and assassinated.

They dug up the corpse, and sewed the head in its place ;
they washed and anointed the body, and dressed it in
splendid clothes ; they covered a bier with white silk, on
which their dead captain was laid, with his sword and
staff of command by his side. The officers who had been
appointed by Masaniello bore the bier; four thousand
priests conducted the procession by the order of the
Cardinal; muffled drums were beaten, banners dragged
on the ground, and the soldiers lowered their arms as the
dead captain was carried past them. Bells tolled from
every tower, and windows were illuminated in all the
streets ; forty thousand men and women followed the bier,
singing litanies and telling their rosaries; the cortege
left the Carmine at the twenty-second hour of the day, and
only returned at the third hour of the night. The inter-
ment was made, with all honorable ceremonies, near the
door of the church. No viceroy or prince — scarcely a
sovereign — could be buried with more imposing rites than
was the fisherman of Amalfi, Tommaso Aniello.

Unfortunately for both Neapolitans and Spaniards, the
death of Masaniello was but the close of the first act of
the rebellion. He had led his followers but nine days ;
the revolution endured as many months, during which law
and order were non-existent. Men were governed by their

MASANIELLO'S REBELLION. 127

worst passions; reason and right were overshadowed by
rage and lawlessness, and a reign of perfect anarchy
ensued. It soon appeared that the promises of the viceroy
were simply illusive; he was obliged to retire to Castel
Nuovo a second time, and a worse phase of the rebellion
was inaugurated than had yet been experienced.

After all the horrors that attend such periods, after two
months of the most frightful confusion and crime, on
September 7, 1647, a second treaty was made and con-
firmed with the same solemn ceremonies as the first. Its
terms were absolutely disgraceful to the Spaniards, and
cruel to a large number of the nobility, since both of these
classes were to leave Naples. The important offices were
to be filled by native Neapolitans, and the castle of S.
Elmo and all other commanding positions were to be in
the hands of the people. It is easily understood that a
viceroy could sign such a treaty only under compulsion,
in order to gain time, and with no intention of fulfilling
its conditions; otherwise he would be a traitor to his
sovereign, and in any case he must be forever despised for
his inefficiency and lack of moral courage.

Twenty-three days later the Duke of Arcos and all
Spaniards at Naples were gladdened by the arrival of forty-
eight ships under command of the natural son of Philip
IV. ; he bore the name of the conqueror of Lepanto, who
had been the observed of all observers at Naples more
than half a century before, — Don John of Austria. This
youth of eighteen had but four thousand men, and with
this fleet and force he was expected to drive the French
from the coasts of Italy. His charming manners, his
brilliancy and courage easily made him a conqueror of
hearts; but, alas! that pleasant pastime was not his
present errand.

We have not the space even to outline the various
phases of revolution and counter-revolution which rapidly

128 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

succeeded each other. The Spaniards, the nobility, and
the people each strove for authority, and each labored
under disadvantages which seemed to be insurmountable ;
and into the midst of this confusion the Duke of Guise
came and added his faction to the others. A lucid account
of the seven months which followed the arrival of Don
John of Austria demands a patient unravelling of claims
and counter-claims, and. an account of sieges, battles,
victories, reverses, treaties, and various other matters
which belong to a different kind of story from this ; the
details must be omitted here, and the principal results
alone be given.-

The final action occurred on April 5, 1648, when Don
John of Austria, whose forces had been increased, put an
end to the rebellion in the same market-place in which it
had begun. Don John required his troops to confess and
take the sacrament. The plan for the day's work had
been so made that the portions of the city held by the
rebels were surrounded by their opposers when the new
viceroy, the Count of Onate, came on with the cavalry.
The people made but slight resistance at the garrisons
which they held, and De Reumont tells us that —

" At the ninth hour of the day the Spaniards were masters of
the whole city. A Te Deum was sung in the cathedral, the
houses were adorned with tapestry, white flags and handker-
chiefs waved from the windows. In many places the image of
the king was set up and hailed with great rejoicings. Every
one appeared to rejoice in the restoration of peace ; the citizens
embraced each other in the streets. Nine months of mob
dominion, the insecurity, the war, the confusion and lawless-
ness, had made such an impression that the party of ' Peace at
any price ' carried off the victory without a struggle."

The Count of Onate had a task before him which would
have disheartened many brave men, but he was especially
fitted to cope with the momentous questions to be solved.

MASANIELLO'S REBELLION. 129

He was the right man to rivet the bonds with which the
Spaniards again fettered the Neapolitans. His phenome-
nal energy found full employment ; not Naples alone, but
the whole kingdom was completely unsettled; bands of
banditti and such vagabonds as always hang about an
army were now scattered throughout the country; the
entire population was suspicious, and apparently watching
for an excuse for another uprising; the need of more
Spanish troops was great; the defences required strength-
ening; the artillery must be placed in Castel Nuovo, and
no one of these things could be accomplished without the
danger of exciting fresh disturbances.

The viceroy met all these difficulties with firmness, and
his wisdom guided him safely through numberless dan-
gers. He made friends of the people, and held such an
attitude towards the aristocracy as tended so to raise the
estate of the vassals and lessen the arrogance and tyranny
of the nobility, as to make them all more orderly and
profitable subjects of his Majesty of Spain than they had
been for a long time. The nobles were soon afraid to
protect banditti, and a better condition existed at the
capital and in its neighborhood ; but there were enormous
difficulties to be overcome in the provinces, and the
account of Capecelatro, who was governor of Calabria,
shows a state of affairs which could only be met by a des-
potism which could not be vindicated in our time.

The Count of Onate brought greater tranquillity and
prosperity to Naples than had existed there for a long
period, which was vastly to his credit, since he assumed
its government when it was apparently lost to Spain ; but
in spite of this he was suddenly deposed in 1653, greatly
to his own surprise and to that of those who realized the
value of his services. His fall was doubtless due to the
influence of the nobles who had not been able to mould
him to their will. But their reign was over ; they could

9

130 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

not reinstate themselves in their former tyranny, and
they profited little by change of viceroys.

When the Count of Onate resigned his place to the
Count of Castrillo, he had driven the French from Naples
and from their strongholds at Piombino and Elba; the
administration of justice was well established; the rob-
bers and banditti were banished, and taxes were less
oppressive and more equally distributed than since the
days of Don Pedro de Toledo.

The Count of Castrillo was scarcely at home in his
new office when the French under the Duke of Guise
again appeared on the coasts ; but so little success attended
their projects that they soon sailed away, not to trouble
Naples again for more than a century. Three years
later a pestilence ravaged the whole kingdom, and was
probably fatal to a greater number than any plague of
modern times. Gradually, too, the effects of the rule of
Onate were lost; exorbitant rates were decreed, and a
tax again put on food ; all the old suffering was renewed,
and nothing better could be hoped for without a radical
change in the government, which was not to come until
half a century more of abject misery had ground the
Neapolitans into the depths of moral and physical
inferiority.

Naturally the manners and customs of those who could
be said to possess such qualities had become essentially
Spanish; this was largely true all over Italy, but espe-
cially so in Naples. The Spanish court dress was adopted
by cavaliers ; ladies wore stiff stays and absurd frills, and
dressed the hair in Spanish fashion ; even Spanish words
and idioms were used to express the affected courtesies
of ceremonious occasions which could not be sincere
between a ruling and a dependent people.

If Neapolitan literature could be said to exist in this
century, it too was largely moulded in Spanish form, as

MASANIELLO'S KEBELLION. 131

was true in France, where Corneille followed Spanish
models. In rare instances an author escaped this slavery ;
Giovan Battista Marini was one of these, and faulty as
his style was, it had the merit of not being Spanish. But
when Onate built a hall in the royal palace where balls
and theatrical entertainments were given, these festivities
were essentially like those at Madrid, although it is
recorded that on one occasion Onate witnessed an Italian
comedy.

Apparently the most distinguished Neapolitans had no
hesitation in paying court to the Spaniards in a somewhat
servile fashion. The Duke of Maddaloni gave a splendid
entertainment to the Duke and Duchess of Castrillo.
First a comedy was acted, and then supper followed, at
which the viceroy and his family had a separate table,
and were served by the Duke and Duchess of Maddaloni
themselves. The magnificence of the table appointments
was unusual, even for kings, and at the end of the feast
each guest received a royal gift.

When we remember the character of the artists of the
first half of this century, and their wild and desperate
deeds, we are not surprised to find that the rebellion of
Masaniello proved so attractive to men of their profession
that many were found in the hottest of the fray. The
story of the Compagnia della Morte is one of the most
interesting of the many exciting tales connected with
this rebellion.

Aniello Falcone was the leader of this society ; he was
a pupil of Ribera, and a painter of battle-scenes, as may
be seen in the Museum at Naples. Salvator Rosa was his
pupil, and, in fact, he may be called the head of a school
of artists who were only too ready to join him in seeking
vengeance on the Spaniards. Aniello loved fighting, and
had been engaged in many frays. On one occasion when
a relative of his was killed in a quarrel with two Spanish

132 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

soldiers, he rushed into his atelier and called out his
pupils, who with him made an attack on the murderers.
Other soldiers hastened to the relief of the first two, and
although the painters fought bravely they were finally
forced to fly, leaving one of their number dead. This
disturbance occurred a few days before the beginning of
the rebellion. The Compagnia della Morte had elected
Falcone their leader, and sworn to pursue Spaniards to the
death. The insurrection afforded them an unhoped for
opportunity to fulfil their vow. Forsaking their art, pro-
curing arms, and urging friends to enlist with them, they
began their desperate work.

Salvator Rosa was of their number. He had already
seen much of the exciting life of the period in Rome and
Florence, and was now thirty-two years old. Micco
Spadaro, — Domenico Gargiulo, — whose picture of the
" Revolt of Masaniello " is in the Museum at Naples, was
of this band, as well as Carlo Coppola, known from his
pictures of the plague in 1656. Both the Fracanzanos,
former pupils of Spagnoletto, joined the society, and
Viviano Codagora, whose quiet pictures of city streets
with their remarkable perspective are scarcely indicative
of his qualities as a bravo. Perhaps the most remarkable
case was that of Andrea Vaccaro, who, at the age of fifty,
left his wife and took with him his son of fourteen to
join this band of the most merciless bravadoes that can
be imagined.

These painters roamed the streets armed with swords
and daggers, pursuing and killing each Spaniard who was
alone, — not a very brave mode of warfare. As they were
poor and must earn bread enough to avoid starvation, they
painted by night. By this means Coppola became blind.
I have always wondered who bought their pictures. Such
a condition as prevailed at Naples would not be favorable
to the gentler arts. But as this is always set down in the

MASANIELLO'S REBELLION. 133

accounts of this Compagnia, perhaps it is best not to
reason too much about it, lest we lose this very pictur-
esque feature of their lives. Men who did not hesitate to
murder, but would yet religiously earn their daily bread,
offer so curious and interesting a phenomenon of human
nature that they should be preserved in the annals of their
time. A few wearied of this peculiar life and left the
band ; but most of them were more and more enamored of
their strange profession, especially when they knew Masa-
niello, and he smiled on them.

Several of these masters made portraits of the Captain-
General of the people. Salvator Rosa repeated his por-
trait many times, and both he and Aniello Falcone escaped
to Rome when Masaniello fell. The latter went to
France, where his battle-scenes won for him the favor of
Louis XIV. ; and after Castrillo became viceroy, at the
intercession of the powerful Colbert, Falcone was per-
mitted to return to Naples.

During the remainder of the century there was little
occupation for artists. Occasionally a chapel was deco-
rated, and the new apartments added to the royal palace
afforded an opportunity to a few painters. The Duke of
Onate intended to have the portraits of all the viceroys
since the time of Ferdinand the Catholic painted in the
great saloon by Massimo Stanzioni, an idea which was
carried out under his successors. But art, literature,
science, and all the gentler pursuits of life had received
such blows as could not be healed while every other
human interest was prostrated, while the heel of the
oppressor was inexorably treading out the very life-blood
of the people. Shakspeare makes the Duke say in the
forest of Arden : —

" Sweet are the uses of adversity,
Which, like the toad, ugly and venomous,
Wears yet a precious jewel in his head."

134 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

But here adversity had long since passed the point
where any sweetness could result, and the venomous
tyrants of Spain displayed no single beneficent character-
istic in their government of Naples. A radical change
alone could bring relief, and only the hope which would
come with a government by their own sovereigns could
arouse the Neapolitans to struggle for new attainments
of any sort.

The public works in Naples in the last half of this cen-
tury are almost too few and unimportant to be mentioned.
The Count of Onate erected the first theatre in Naples,
the Teatro di S. Bartolommeo, which was destroyed when
that of S. Carlo was built. This viceroy also erected the
Fontana della Selleria, which long since disappeared,
and in 1651 the grand staircase of the royal palace was
constructed by his command. In 1668 a dock adjoining
the arsenal was built under Don Pedro Antonio of Aragon.
Perhaps Don Federigo de Toledo, Marquis of Villafranca,
did greater injury to Naples than the others had done
good, when, in 1671, after being viceroy but two months,
he carried to Spain the bones of Alfonso I., which he
disinterred in the church of S. Dominico Maggiore,
together with the statues of the four rivers which he took
from the fountain of the Molo, the statue of Venus from
the fountain of Castel Nuovo, and the celebrated statues
and steps of the fountain Medina, the work of Giovanni
da Nola.

The sun of the seventeenth century set in darkness and
gloom in Naples, and the dawn was still more than thirty
years distant. Historians who delve more deeply than
we propose to do for the causes of effects now in opera-
tion, attribute all the evils that have since existed in
Naples to the influence of the Spanish dominion, which
cultivated no good, and developed all the evil tendencies
in the Neapolitan character. Much time is required for

MASANIELLO'S REBELLION. 135

recovery from such conditions as we have pictured ; and
certainly the people of this kingdom, as we see them
to-day, have made immense strides above the depths into
which two centuries of perpetual oppression had driven
them at the beginning of the eighteenth century.

Naples, thou heart of men, which ever pantest

Naked, beneath the lidless eye of heaven !
Elysian City, which to calm enchantest

The mutinous air and sea ! they round thee, even

As sleep round Love, are driven, —
Metropolis of a ruined Paradise

Long lost, late won, and yet but half regained !
Bright altar of the bloodless sacrifice,

Which armed Victory offers up unstained

To Love, the flower-enchained 1
Thou which wert once, then didst cease to be,
Now art, and henceforth ever shalt be, free,

If hope, and truth, and justice can avail.
Hail, hail, all hail '

Percy Bysshe Shelley.

CHAPTER VI.

CARLO BORBONE AND FERDINAND IV.

1700-1806.

A FTER the death of Charles II., in 1700, the war of the
-tjL Spanish Succession endured thirteen years, during
which Naples was still governed by viceroys; and after
the crown passed to the Archduke Charles, — afterwards
the Emperor Charles VI., — during twenty-one years,
eight German viceroys succeeded one another in authority
over the Neapolitans. The change in the nationality of
its rulers brought no benefits to the kingdom. The one
aim of its conquerors seems to have been to discover the
largest sum that could possibly be wrung from their sub-
jects, who, on their part, were striving to find what was
the smallest amount that they could pay and still retain
life and personal liberty.

During two hundred and thirty years under Spanish and
German rule, the history of Naples furnishes an example
of everything that a country and a government should not
be. The aristocracy had no moral character, and no
other class had risen to take its place ; the great fortunes
had disappeared ; idleness seemed to be actually consid-
ered an occupation ; and during all the years that Naples
had given men and money to her foreign rulers she had in
return been subjected to every possible loss, humiliation,
and misery

The departments of justice were in dire confusion.
One power after another had made new laws without

CARLO BORBONE AND FERDINAND IV. 137

repealing the old, or properly instituting the new codes.
Different parts of the kingdom were under different laws,
and it is said that in 1734 eleven methods of legislation
actually existed in this peninsula, while the courts were
filled with corrupt officials and lawyers. The army, too,
was completely demoralized; indeed, the profession of a
soldier, so honorable elsewhere, was regarded with scorn
in Naples in the early part of the eighteenth century.

Even the Church, to which an oppressed people ought
to be able to look for blessing, had been far from that to
Naples, as to all Italy, by reason of its schisms and the
intrigues of the Popes with those who had reigned here.
The claim of the Apostolic See to supremacy over all
other powers was supported by the immense army of eccle-
siastics and their enormous wealth. It is estimated that
in the Neapolitan kingdom the number of those whose
profession was that of religion — from archbishops to
monks and nuns — was 112,000, and in Naples alone
16,500. After the royal possessions were deducted from
the entire property of the kingdom, more than one half
the remainder belonged to the Church. Some writers
claim that the Church property was even larger than this ;
but their estimate may be exaggerated. In any case, little
enough was left for the people, and they were at that
stage of poverty and misery when any change would be
welcomed ; and the change was not long deferred.

The first of the Spanish Bourbon kings at Naples, best
known as Carlo Borbone, but also called Charles VII. and
Charles III., obtained his throne by violence; but he sin-
cerely desired the happiness and prosperity of his people.
He was the younger son of Philip Y. of Spain by his
second wife, Elisabetta Farnese. She was a bold, ambi-
tious woman, whose chief aim was to acquire for her sons
such power as should partly atone for the fact that their
elder half-brother inherited the throne of Spain.

138 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

•

Charles was but seventeen years old when he left the
court of his father, at which time Philip V. and the queen,
on their thrones, received him in presence of the court.
According to custom, Charles knelt before his father, who
made the sign of a large cross over the boy's head, and
raising him to his feet, girded on him a rich jewelled
sword, saying, "This is the sword which Louis XIV., my
grandfather, placed at my side when he sent me to conquer
these realms of Spain; may it bring thee entire success
without the calamity of a long war." Philip then kissed
his son and dismissed him.

Charles next appears in Perugia, where he reviewed
16,000 infantry and 5,000 cavalry, preparatory to the
conquest of Naples. This force was commanded by Mon-
temar; and among its officers were distinguished French,
Spanish, and Neapolitan nobles, and even the English
Duke of Berwick. During the review Charles was sur-
rounded by many distinguished men in magnificent cos-
tumes, while splendid banners floated above them. Their
flatteries of the young prince were quite enough to turn
his head, and there must have been a basis of true solidity
in his character which enabled him to choose the plainest
man among them all as his chief councillor and his
auditor of the Spanish army.

Bernardo Tanucci had attracted Charles by his knowl-
edge of law and his ability to plead his cause in court ;
and the statesmanlike qualities which he later developed
justified Charles in his choice of his minister.

We will not recite the incidents of his march to Naples.
He entered the city by the Capuan Gate, May 10, 1834.
He visited the churches, made a splendid gift to the
statue of S. Januarius, and freed the prisoners in S.
Giacomo and the Vicaria on his way to the palace. The
city was alive with rejoicings, and was brilliantly illu-
minated that night. While Count Montemar carefully

CARLO BORBONE AND FERDINAND IV. 139

disposed his army to guard the young king, Charles pub-
lished a decree favorable to his subjects, and made Tanucci
his minister of justice.

Montemar next dispersed the German troops which
remained in the kingdom, and at the end of a few weeks
the whole peninsula had submitted to Carlo Borbone.
A year later Charles triumphantly entered Palermo, and
having convened the Parliament and taken the proper
oath, he was crowned with unusual magnificence, the
crown alone costing 1,440,000 ducats. After many festiv-
ities he again reached Naples in June, 1735. His reign
and the care of his people may be essentially dated from
this time. We shall give its results rather than its
details ; and, boy as he was, Tanucci for some years ruled
him, as well as his kingdom, with an admirable tact that
induced Charles to approve of all that was done.

In 1738 Charles married a princess of Poland, Amalia
Walburga, not yet fifteen years old. Her reception as
she passed through Germany and Italy was suited to the
betrothed of a sovereign; and Charles awaited her at
Portella, and received her with a splendor which dazzled
her childish eyes. The royal pair made their entrance
into Naples on July 2; and on that day the king
founded the Order of S. Januarius, of which he was the
grand-master, the knights numbering but sixty, and all
being of noble descent. The insignia of the order is a
cross, each point terminating in lilies, with an image of
the saint in the centre, and the motto In sanguine fcedus.
The statutes of the order are strict enough for a body of
monks rather than a company of courtly knights ; but it
was in perfect accord with the religion of this king, who,
clothed in sackcloth, washed the feet of the poor, and
every year, with his own hands, modelled a representa-
tion of the Nativity of Christ.

To a monarch thus devoted in his religious life, we

140 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

must accord an unusual sense of justice for the age in
which he lived, when we remember that he abolished the
tribute paid by Naples to the Pope, limited the number
of priests to be ordained, and would not permit a papal
bull to be enforced without his signature of approval ; and
all this while he bound himself to hear Mass ever}7 day,
to communicate with unusual frequency, and to preserve
his faith in the Catholic Christian Church inviolate.

Charles reigned at Naples but twenty-five years, during
eight of which he was involved in a war with Germany;
yet he found the time and means to accomplish some
changes greatly to the good of his subjects. Besides
those already mentioned, he placed strict limits on the
right of asylum for criminals; he restricted the feudal
privileges, and established the right of appeal in the
baronial courts ; he protected the commons in their claims
on certain estates, and enacted many other measures
which lessened the power of the nobles, and opened the
way to influence and position to educated men of the
middle classes. These reforms brought vast energy and
intelligence to the service of the king, although the entire
result was not so noble as the thought which originated
them. Neither were the changes in the administration
of justice searching enough to abolish thieves, homicides,
banditti, and robbers from the provinces ; and so frequent
was the crime of poisoning in Naples that a special court,
the Junta of Poisons, was established to inquire into
these cases alone.

Charles made commercial treaties with various coun-
tries, sent consuls to important ports, and instituted a
tribunal for the decision of commercial suits and ques-
tions from which there was no appeal. Under this policy
Neapolitan commerce quickly sprang into importance,
and would have brought great prosperity to the kingdom
had not exorbitant duties been put on foreign goods, which

CARLO BORBONE AND FERDINAND IV. 141

drove the merchants to more favorable ports, and proved
fatal to the commercial interests of Naples.

The treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle apparently secured the
throne of Naples to Charles and his heirs ; and the anxie-
ties of war being ended, the king began to indulge his
natural taste for the improvement of his capital. Among
his most important achievements in this wise were the
enlargement and completion of the great harbor of the
Molo Grande and the bridge of the Immacolata at the Molo
Piccolo, the Strada Mergellina and that of the Marinella,
with the building called the Immacolatella, now the office
of the Board of Health and of the Customs. All the shore
along the Marinella and the Mergellina was transformed
from a miserable quarter, where the dirtiest population
was gathered, into a beautiful road where the people could
ride or walk with pleasure.

The king and queen when returning from Castellammare
were enchanted by the country about Portici, and decided
to build a villa there in spite of the suggestion that it
was too near Vesuvius. Charles replied, " God, the
Immaculate Virgin, and S. Januarius will protect us."
He also began the palace of Capo-di-Monte, which was
completed a century later.

The splendid theatre of S. Carlo was a work of this
king, and bears his name. It was erected by the architect
Angelo Carasale, from the plans of Medrano, who also
designed the Capo-di-Monte. Charles commanded that
this should be the largest theatre in Europe, and built in
the shortest time; it was begun in March, and finished in
October, 1737, and in November, eight months from its
commencement, a play was given on the name-day of the
king. To make room for S. Carlo many houses were taken
away, and the ground belonging to it extended at the
back, so that when the end of the stage was thrown open,
battles and other scenes, with chariots and horses, could

142 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

be seen in the distance. The interior of the auditorium
was lined with mirrors which reflected the light from the
candles, and produced a marvellous effect. The royal box
was richly fitted up; and when Charles saw the whole
completed and lighted, he sent for Carasale, and publicly
commended him, to the delight of the whole city. Cara-
sale thanked the king, who casually remarked that since
the theatre was so near the palace, it would have been
better for the royal family had there been a connecting
passage. Then saying, "But we will think about it,"
Carasale was dismissed.

When the play was over, Carasale awaited the king, and
asked him to enter the palace by the passage he had com-
manded. In three hours the architect had contrived to
have a great wall pulled down, and to construct a rough
passage, which by means of carpets, tapestries, and dra-
peries was truly artistic and beautiful in effect, and
appeared to the delighted monarch like a work of
enchantment.

But alas! when this wonderful Carasale rendered his
accounts to the auditors, they were dissatisfied, and
although he appealed to the king personally, he was
finally imprisoned at S. Elmo, where, after a long cap-
tivity, he died. His family disappeared, and except for
the wonderful qualities of his work, the very name of
Carasale would now be unknown.

Charles improved the Museo Borbonico, and erected
the House of Refuge, — Albergo dei Poveri, — which is
still but half completed, although in it and its dependen-
cies two thousand people are cared for. He built a bridge
over the Sebeto, which makes the eastern boundary of
Naples, and another over the Yolturno at Venafro. He
also constructed roads, called Strade di Caccia, which
enabled him to indulge his passion for the chase; while
the roads in various parts of the kingdom were dangerous

7be Theatre of San Carlo.

CARLO BORBONE AND FERDINAND IV. 143

even for those on horseback. In truth, his improvements
were confined to the environs of Naples, but afforded
many benefits to the people and villages near at hand.

The most magnificent work, however, under the reign
of this monarch was the palace of Caserta, fourteen miles
from Naples, which has been called by Valery and other
authorities the noblest conception of a palace in all
Europe. Luigi Vanvitelli was its architect, and it was
begun in 1752. The whole plan was that of Carlo Bor-
bone, and was carried to completion under his successor.
Dignified and splendid as it is, there is an atmosphere of
gloom about it ; it has never been continuously inhabited
for any long period, and is now a mere show place for
the curious. There is a singular monotony in its design
externally, which indicates that Vanvitelli was an artist
of small resources. The fa§ade was adorned with splendid
columns, arches, statues, and carvings, above all of
which was an equestrian statue in bronze. Its colonnade
traversing the courts, the staircase, chapel, and theatre
were all lavishly decorated with the most beautiful mar-
bles. It is built of travertine from Capua; the stairs are
of single blocks of Sicilian lumachella adorned with well-
sculptured lions and statues ; the breccias of Dragoni and
the marbles of Vitulano are freely used in the wall facings,
and there are many pillars of both red and yellow breccia
from Apulia. In the theatre are sixteen columns of Afri-
can marble taken from the Serapeon at Pozzuoli, and the
chapel is lavishly decorated in marbles and gilding, and
an imitation of lapis-lazuli. There are inlaid woods,
crystals, and even jewels in various parts of this bewilder-
ing labyrinth, as well as pictures, frescos, and statues.
On three sides is a garden decorated with statues, obe-
lisks, and wonderful cascades and fountains, to supply
which an aqueduct was constructed twenty-five miles in
length, which was a work worthy of the Romans. It

144 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

crosses the Tipatiue Mountains and three wide valleys;
it is carried over lofty, massive bridges, one over the
valley of Maddaloni being 1,618 feet long and 178 feet
high ; it is constructed in three tiers of arches, its sup-
porting piers being thirty-two feet through. The water,
after serving its purposes in the gardens at Caserta, flows
underground to Naples, and helps to make a sufficient
supply for that great city.

Charles renewed the pavement in the Grotta di Posilipo,
and built arches of stone to strengthen its roof. At Trani
he built fine stone quays around the circular harbor, and
executed many lesser but still important works.

In the Piazza del Plebiscite is an equestrian statue of
Charles III. by Canova; and when, in 1885-1888, statues
were made for the niches in the fagade of the royal palace,
this sovereign was not forgotten, and his statue is a testi-
monial to the fact that until a very recent period Naples
owed to him all that was fine in the modern city.

But the works of Carlo Borbone in which the whole
world is interested, are the excavations at Herculaneum,
Pompeii, Pozzuoli, and Cuma3, which will be spoken of
later, when a more detailed account is given of these
marvellous cities.

At Portici, in his palace, Charles opened a museum for
the antiquities of Herculaneum, and an academy was
founded for the study of the history of these remarkable
objects. New courses of lectures were instituted at the
university, and the grade of the colleges was raised ; but
the minor schools were not equally improved, owing to the
opposition of the bishops to all reforms. The result was
that while unusual men arose here and there from the
ignorance around them, and became eminent, there was
nothing which merited the name of general education.

Much as may be said in honor of Carlo Borbone, there
is another side to his character which cannot be ignored.

CARLO BORBONE AND FERDINAND IV. 145

His less praiseworthy acts were the introduction of the
lottery and of gambling into his kingdom. He later
abolished the latter, or endeavored to do so, although it
brought 40,000 ducats a year to his treasury. He proscribed
the society of the Freemasons, but did not severely punish
its members. His conduct towards the Jews is a dark
stain on his memory ; for, having invited them to Naples
with promises of good treatment, he cruelly banished
them seven years later to satisfy the prejudices of the
Neapolitans. Although thus controlled by religious
superstition, he boldly opposed the establishment of the
Inquisition. When Benedict XIV. undertook to plant the
Holy Office in Naples, Charles disregarded the initial
steps; but when the archbishop, encouraged by the king's
apparent indifference, placed the inscription Santo Uffizio
above his door, Charles issued an edict for its removal,
and forbade every form of secret meeting or secret discus-
sion of any subject.

Towards the end of his reign in Naples Charles enjoyed
a secure and peaceful life ; his people had accepted him,
and were engaged in no political rebellions; there was
sufficient comfort at court, and a large family was grow-
ing up in the palace. The clergy, while somewhat
opposed to his policy, thought it best to make no demon-
strations against it; and although the privileges of the
barons had been lessened, the gayety and fascination of
court life, presided over by a happy king and queen,
quite contented these nobles, who had no ambitions beyond
present enjoyment.

Into the midst of these agreeable surroundings came
the news of the death of Ferdinand VI., by which Carlo
Borbone inherited the throne of Spain, and had already
been proclaimed by the Spanish ministers. The first act
of the new monarch was the appointment of his mother as
regent until he could himself assume the government.

10

146 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

As Spain and Naples, under existing treaties, could not be
ruled jointly, his first care was to provide a sovereign for
Naples. His six sons and two daughters were still very
young ; and the eldest, a boy of twelve, was of weak mind
and infirm body.

Charles struggled with contending feelings. He could
not pass over his eldest son and give his throne to another
without stating his reasons to the world, and in any case
there must be a regent. - The poor boy might not live
long, and if declared king, the next heir might soon come
to the throne by natural causes. But the king's regard
for his people compelled him to be honest, and a document
in which the best medical authorities described the imbe-
cility of the young prince was read before the court and
the ambassadors, while Charles was moved to tears.
His second son, Charles Antony, was heir to Spain ; and
the third, Ferdinand, but seven years old, was the king of
Naples and Sicily.

A solemn scene followed, in which Charles made the
sign of the cross over his son as Philip V. had made it
over him, and gave the boy the same sword that he had
received, addressing his child as "your Majesty," and
saying, " Keep it for the defence of thy religion and thy
subjects." He then released Ferdinand from all obliga-
tions to himself, and gave him a council of regency until
he should reach sixteen years. The foreigners present
acknowledged the king, and his subjects took the oath of
allegiance. Charles, repeating his prayers for the pros-
perity of his son and his kingdom, left the assembly amid
the praises and blessings of all.

He at once prepared for his voyage, carefully leaving
behind every jewel and valuable belonging to the crown of
Naples, even to a ring which he had worn ever after it
was found at Pompeii ; it had no special value except as
it proved the conscientious honesty of the king, for which

CARLO BORBONE AND FERDINAND IV. 147

reason it is still seen in the museum at Naples. After
making presents and conferring honors on those who had
faithfully served him, confiding the invalid Philip to the
care of the preceptor of the young king, he sailed for
Spain with his wife and daughters and four sons.

The entire people witnessed his departure, which occurred
October 6, 1759. Those who could get no nearer point
of vantage crowded the flat roofs of the houses. The
remarkable silence of the thousands of spectators, and the
sincere grief at his loss, seem like a prophecy of all they
were to endure in the century which followed.

The regents appointed by Carlo Borbone to conduct
affairs for Ferdinand IV. were old men, with the excep-
tion of Tanucci, who now began to show the wrong side
of his character. If the young king should prove to be a
man of talent, who would not brook control, Tanucci could
retain absolute power but eight years. He therefore set
himself the task of making Ferdinand of no account. He
directed the tutor of the king to teach him as little as
possible ; and the boy, having robust health and the gay
spirits which it brings, was but too glad to spend his days
in athletic sports and the pleasures of the chase, as he was
encouraged to do; and whenever he exhibited a low or
vicious tendency, it was straightway gratified by Tanucci
and the tutor.

Thus the king grew up with an aversion to the society
of the refined and scholarly, and a preference for those
who sought such things as he desired. Tanucci meantime
governed with a certain degree of caution and wisdom;
and when Ferdinand reached his majority, the only notice-
able change was in the title of the regents, who were now
called ministers.

The first public act attributed to Ferdinand IV. , although
in reality that of Tanucci, was no less a thing than the
expulsion of the Jesuits from Naples. This was in accord

148 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

with the desire of the King of Spain, who had already
exiled the Order from his realm, as Joseph I. had done in
Portugal and Louis XV. in France. During one November
night in 1767 the Jesuits were put on board ships and sent
from Naples, their wealth being devoted to the support of
public schools, colleges, and asylums.

The next important event in Ferdinand's life was his
marriage. He was betrothed to Maria Josephine, daughter
of the Emperor of Austria; all preparations were made
for the wedding, when the bride fell ill and died. A little^
later a second sister was chosen to take her place ; and
after a journey through Italy, where she was received with
honors, she was welcomed by Ferdinand at Portella in
May, 1768. After a few days at the lovely palace of
Caserta, the royal pair made their public entrance into
Naples on May 22. The extensive fetes celebrating this
marriage were continued during several months, to the
delight of both the sovereigns, who were equally devoted
to a life of pleasure.

If the onlookers fancied that such amusements would
absorb Queen Caroline, they soon perceived their error.
Although but sixteen years old, she was a daughter of
Maria Theresa, and proposed to be an important element
in the government of her husband's kingdom, — the largest
in Italy. Her marriage contract had provided that after
the birth of a son she should have a seat in the Council
of State, and after one year she was able to claim this
privilege. She saw in Tanucci a hateful rival, and by her
influence he was dismissed in 1777, never again to emerge
from his retirement.

During the forty-three years that he administered the
affairs of Naples much good was accomplished, especially
after the exclusion of the Jesuits, when he devoted himself
to the advancement of education. The universities and
academies were improved, and the professors and literary

CARLO BORBONE AND FERDINAND IV. 149

men of the kingdom were received at court, and treated
with the consideration accorded them elsewhere ; all the
more as the queen aimed to be a patron of science and
letters.

After deposing Tanucci, the queen introduced many
changes. She succeeded in having an Austrian, the
Marquis della Sambuca, made minister in place of
Tanucci. The army was her first care ; and an Austrian
officer was put in authority over it, while an Englishman,
Sir Acton Bell, was made Minister of the Marine, then
Minister of War, and later Minister of Foreign Affairs.
A foreigner, a soldier of fortune, ambitious and covetous,
hie cared nothing for the fate of Naples ; but succeeding
in securing the absolute confidence of the king and the
extreme favor of the queen, he soon acquired unusual
powers.

Queen Caroline, now twenty-five years old, handsome
and proud with the dominating pride of her race, found
it easy to rule her husband, and ruling him to rule his
kingdom. She favored intimate relations with France and
England, and ended all connections with Spain; and
while entertaining many schemes for the welfare of the
Neapolitans, she was unwisely elated from feeling herself
to be the centre of the hopes of the people.

A detailed history of this period is most interesting,
and with the dramatis personce that I have indicated there
was an opportunity for many unusual situations in the
court, the political and the social circles of Naples. But
our space limits us to the most important features of this
reign.

The Emperor Joseph of Austria visited his sister in
1784, and disseminated his views of political reform
among the educated Neapolitans. Ferdinand and Caro-
line then visited Vienna, and returned to carry out a phi-
lanthropic scheme by establishing within their territory a

150 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

small model of their ideal of what a government should
be. It was called San Leucio, and for it they made a
code of laws based on the principle that a government
should emanate from the people, not from monarchs.
All this is very curious when viewed in the light of the
subsequent policy which these sovereigns pursued.

The news of the French Revolution and its horrors pro-
duced a great effect on Ferdinand and his queen, who was
the sister of Marie Antoinette ; and the idea of a Republic

— which had apparently appealed to Caroline with great
force — assumed a new aspect to her just when the Neapol-
itans, who had imbibed a desire for liberty, were hoping
that their dreams were about to be realized.

As soon as the execution of the royal family of France
was known at Naples, the court went into mourning, and
the celebration of the Carnival was forbidden. When the
French Republic sent its ambassador to Naples, he was not
acknowledged ; and Ferdinand IV. endeavored to prevent
the other Italian powers and the Ottoman court from
recognizing the new government.

But suddenly a fleet of fourteen French men-of-war
sailed into the Bay of- Naples in command of Admiral La
Touche, and in reply to Ferdinand's demand for the reason
of their coming, he was asked why he had refused to
receive the French ambassador, and why he was acting
as the enemy of France. For these offences La Touche
demanded reparation or war. The queen was so alarmed
that she begged for peace; she was supported by many
advisers of the king, and he soon satisfied La Touche by
a promise of neutrality in the wars of Europe and of
friendship for France. The fleet then departed ; but meet-
ing a severe storm, it put back and remained for repairs,

— a privilege that could not be refused to an ally.
During this time the Neapolitans, especially the young

men, were much in the company of La Touche and

CARLO BORBONE AND FERDINAND IV. 151

Makau, the ambassador. They were incited to hold
secret meetings, and to strive for Liberty and Equality;
and at a certain supper the Neapolitans hung little red
caps, the Jacobin symbol, on their breasts. The Neapol-
itan government knew of this, and the repairs of the ships
were hastened by effective help. Provisions and pure
water were abundantly supplied, and all being in proper
order the fleet again sailed away.

The hour of reckoning had now come, and many per-
sons who had been friendly to the French were seized by
night and imprisoned. Their friends believed that they
had been murdered or sent to distant fortresses ; but later
it was found that they were in the frightful dungeons of S.
Elmo, each in solitary confinement, sleeping on the bare
ground and eating the vilest prison fare. Many of these
prisoners were scholars, accustomed to luxury and a quiet
life ; and their jailers were ferocious, inhuman monsters.
The king now established a Junta of State for the trial of
traitors, and enlarged the prisons. All Naples was in
terror.

Attention was then given to increasing the army, and a
secret treaty was made with England against France. In
1793, in the siege of Toulon, where Napoleon Bonaparte
won his first honors, the Allies were defeated, and the
news of this increased the alarm of the Neapolitan govern-
ment; all possible means were used to raise money, but
little was obtained.

Meantime the Junta of State was indefatigable in its
work, and was said to have proofs of the treason of 20,000
persons, while more than twice that number were sus-
pected. A few executions occurred, and a reign of terror
existed among the people and in the palace. The royal
family feared for their own safety; the body-guard was
constantly changed, and attendants dismissed, while a
terrible anxiety made life a torment.

152 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

Ferdinand was so much alarmed by the successes of
Bonaparte in Italy that in spite of his alliance with Eng-
land he made a treaty with France in 1796, a secret con-
dition of which obliged Naples to pay 8,000,000 francs to
the French treasury. But when, two years later, it was
known that Bonaparte was in Egypt, and that Admiral
Nelson had destroyed a large part of the French fleet,
there was great rejoicing, which was soon increased when
Nelson himself arrived in the bay with English ships-of-
war. The king and queen, with Sir William and Lady
Hamilton, — the English ambassador, — went out to meet
the Admiral, who was regarded as the champion of sover-
eigns and the protector of thrones.

Ferdinand bestowed a rich sword upon the hero, and
accompanied the gift with the most extravagant praises of
the Admiral; Caroline presented several costly gifts to
Nelson, among them being a jewel inscribed " To the hero
of Aboukir;" while Sir William Hamilton thanked him
for all he had done in the name of England, and Lady
Hamilton expressed her admiration, while her beautiful
face was suffused with emotion. The whole city was
tumultuous with excitement and pleasure; the palace
was thronged, the great theatre was illuminated, and the
sovereigns, accompanied by Nelson, were received with
shouts of joy. The queen and the ladies of the court
wore girdles and badges on which was inscribed " Long
live Nelson ! " The French ambassador was naturally
curious to know the reason for this reception of the man
who had so successfully opposed his countrymen, while
Naples was an ally of France. He was told that Nelson
had threatened to bombard the city if not allowed to anchor
in the bay, no explanation of the welcome to the Admiral
and the honors heaped upon him being given.

The queen, haughty and ambitious, had not yet appre-
ciated the weakness of Naples nor the strength of other

CARLO BORBONE AND FERDINAND IV. 153

powers, and was eager to make war on France, in which
desire Sir William Hamilton supported and encouraged
her. All possible preparations were set on foot ; and when
the French officers on the frontier of Naples demanded
the reason for this activity, they were told that the object
was the discipline and improvement of the army. But a
few days later Ferdinand publicly declared his intention
of marching to Rome to reinstate the Pope, whom the
French had driven away.

The French army was soon in full march for an attack
on Naples. The king, with the forces which had been in
camp, retreated at once ; and the people rose, as one man,
to receive the French troops as a foe should be met. They
waged a deadly warfare, and their bravery when defending
their homes and families offered so great a contrast to
the cowardice of their professional troops in ordinary ser-
vice as to surprise all who witnessed this phenomenon.
But this outburst of patriotism could not defeat an army
to which the fortresses had been surrendered by traitors ;
it served to delay, but not to prevent, the approach of the
enemy. The situation was indeed desperate, but creditable
historians believe that a brave and loyal king might have
saved his crown.

But Ferdinand's cowardly fear so controlled him that
he listened to no counsels to courage and resistance. He
fled with his family to an English vessel, and embarked
for Sicily, leaving Naples placarded with the appointment
of a regent and the declaration that he would soon return
with a large army. Contrary winds detained his ship
in the bay for three days, during which time every pos-
sible influence was used to induce the king to return, but
without avail. He had scarcely sailed, when a terrific
storm arose. Nelson's ship, which carried the king, out-
rode the gale with great difficulty; her masts and yard
were badly injured. One of the young children of the

154 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

king died in Lady Hamilton's arms; all were in terror,
and the sovereigns believed that the ship must go down.
As they neared Palermo, help was sent out, and a pilot, to
whom Nelson gladly resigned the command of his vessel.

A Neapolitan man-of-war, commanded by Admiral
Caracciolo, appeared near Nelson's ship in the midst of
the tempest. It behaved well, and could easily have gone
on its way, but remained near at hand in order to aid the
king should it be needful. This vessel rode unscathed
where Nelson's ship was all but lost, and Caracciolo was
much praised and favorably compared with the English
Admiral. Nelson's pride was so touched, and his anger
so aroused, that he later revenged himself as only a cruel
coward could do.

At Naples all was dire confusion. Great indignation
was felt that Ferdinand had not only deserted, but also
robbed his people, taking away the crown jewels, many
antiquities, and rare works of art, and at least 20,000,000
ducats. He thus left the State convulsed by civil and
foreign war, with no proper government, and destitute of
money.

The French easily mastered a kingdom in this condition ;
and on January 23, 1799, General Championnet raised a
flag of peace, and addressed the people, persuading them
to sacrifice no more lives in warfare, but to yield to a
general who would bring peace, abundance, and good
government, respect their persons and property, the
church and their religious customs, and pay his devotions
to S. Januarius.

Championnet spoke Italian fluently, and was understood
by all. The leader of the Lazzaroni1 requested that a

1 The name Lazzaroni is said to have been derived from that of
Lazarus in the Scripture parable. In Naples it designated a class
that were employed in the humblest occupations in times of peace,
having no fixed homes or method of life. They played an important

CAKLO BORBONE AND FERDINAND IV. 155

guard of honor be placed around S. Januarius, and when
two companies of grenadiers were detailed for this duty,
the soldiers shouted, "All reverence to S. Januarius!"
while the Lazzaroni ran beside them, crying, " Long live
the French ! " Never was a peace made more quickly and
happily. As the news spread over the city, arms dropped
from the hands of the people ; the tricolor floated above
the castles, and French bands played inspiriting music.
The unclouded heavens seemed to smile, and all Naples
rejoiced. Even the republicans shared in the general
delight, and the sight of the thousands of dead still lying
in the streets was powerless to dim the happiness which
the cessation of hostilities brought.

General Chainpionnet, having published the following
edict, made a magnificent public entry into Naples : —

" Neapolitans, be free ; if you know how to enjoy the gift of
freedom, the French Republic will be amply rewarded in your
happiness for her dead and for the war. If any among you
still prefer the government which has ceased to exist, let them
disencumber this free soil of their presence ; let them fly from
us who are citizens, and let slaves go among slaves. The
French army will take the name of the army of Naples, as a
pledge and solemn vow to maintain your rights, and to use
those arms to advance your liberties. We French will respect
the national worship, and the sacred rights of property and
person. Your magistrates will, by their paternal administra-
tion, provide for the tranquillity and happiness of the citizens ;
let the terrors of ignorance disappear, let the fury of fanaticism
be dispelled, and may you be as solicitous to serve us, as the
perfidy of your fallen government was to injure us."

part in all revolutions and strife, and were accustomed annually to
elect a Capo Lazzaro, or chief, who had great power over them and
was recognized by the Neapolitan government. Recently the Lazza-
roni have lost many of their peculiarities, and the term is now almost
confined to the boatmen and fishermen, who are among the most
useful and industrious classes in Naples.

156 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

At evening the city was illuminated, and Vesuvius,
which had been dark for years, sent forth a brilliant
flame, which the Neapolitans regarded as an omen of
future prosperity. Thus was the Parthenopean Republic
established.

A provisional government was instituted, and important
changes made, such as dividing the kingdom into depart-
ments on the French plan, and many ancient customs
were abolished. At the same time an enormous tax was
imposed ; and although young orators constantly assured
the people that benefits would soon result from the new
system that would far outweigh the present disadvantages,
those who were suffering poverty and hunger did not find
that this eloquence clothed or fed them, and a threatening
spirit was awaking on all sides. Just as Championnet
perceived that palliative measures were necessary to keep
the peace, he was recalled, and General Macdonald, a
harsh, severe man, was sent to replace him.

Meantime Ferdinand had agents who did not lessen the
discontent; they were low creatures, but the queen even
held secret interviews with them in an apartment in the
palace of Palermo, called the Dark Chamber for this
reason. These men were leaders of marauding bands;
and the names of Pronio, Rodio, and F,ra Diavolo were
soon associated with deeds worthy of fiends alone. The
king learned that there were many Bourbonists in the
southern part of the peninsula, and authorized Cardinal
Ruffo to land in Calabria, and rouse the people to a revolt
against the Republic. Ruffo had long since proved him-
self cunning and corrupt. He was soon surrounded by a
rabble called by the high-sounding name of the Army of
the Holy Faith, the truth being that it was devoid of
faith, and simply sought an opportunity for plunder.

Troops were sent from Naples to oppose Ruffo, and
cruelties almost beyond belief were perpetrated by both

CARLO BORBONE AND FERDINAND IV. 157

armies. Whichever side the people of the country favored
they were butchered and robbed. Probably the atroci-
ties of Ruffo's men were the worst, as there was no pre-
tence of discipline among them, while a semblance of it
did exist among the French and Republican troops. The
English ships landed men at Castellammare, and Mac-
donald himself led his soldiers against them and put
them to flight, the beautiful city being desolated. He
then gave his attention to schemes for the establishment
of order and confidence in Naples ; but before he could put
them in practice he was recalled to France, and bade
adieu to the Neapolitans, saying, as he marched away
with his army, that the French would leave them to their
own devices.

The emissaries of the queen were now doubly active,
and the famous Baker conspiracy was formed, which
condemned many persons to murder arid their homes to
destruction. Certificates were secretly distributed to such
as were to be spared; and a young Captain Baker, brother
of the chief conspirator, who was much in love with
Luigia Sanfelice, received one of these, and gave it to
Luigia, explaining its meaning. She, being in love with
an officer named Ferri, — who she feared would be a victim
of the plot, — revealed what she knew to him, and he, in
turn, showed the paper and told the story to the govern-
ment officials. Luigia was called up for examination, and
by the clews she gave, the leaders of the plot were seized
and imprisoned, and the dreadful danger averted. Luigia
heard herself called the " Saviour of the Republic " and
the " Mother of the People ; " but a few months later, with
another turn of the wheel of fate, she was in the power of
the makers of the plot, and was executed in the historic
market-place.

The provisional government was but a weak attempt at
what a government should be, and was soon forced to seek

158 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

alliances with stronger powers. France and Spain prom-
ised their support, and sent ships with aid ; but the fleets
of the English and other nations friendly to the Bour-
bons, kept such watch in the bay that the Allies could not
enter. Meanwhile the army of Ruffo was Hearing the
capital, which was without defence. There was no money,
and even food was scarce; and when the fighting ap-
proached the gates, the government began to treat with
Ruffo. Terms were soon made by which the war was
ended, free pardons given to all, and those who did not
wish to live under a monarchy were allowed to depart.

But when the next day broke, Nelson entered the bay
with his fleet, bringing a declaration from the king and
queen which annulled the acts of Ruffo and announced
their purpose to punish all rebels. The vessels on which
many Republicans had embarked were searched, and
eighty-two who had been marked for vengeance were con-
ducted to prison, as well as others who had intended to
leave, according to the terms of the treaty. The Bour-
bonists, the Lazzaroni, and the Army of the Holy Faith
now repeated in Naples the atrocities they had committed
elsewhere, and the Bourbon standard soon floated from
all the castles.

Fatal and ruinous as the wars under the Republic had
been, the measures of the restored sovereigns were more
barbarous than any which the bitterest enemies of the
Neapolitans had enacted. Ferdinand sailed from Palermo
to Naples, and remained on board ship in the bay, issuing
edicts and instituting such a reign of terror as has rarely
been exceeded in any age or country. The worst feature
of the terrible vengeance for which both Ferdinand and
Caroline longed with an insatiable appetite was that while
the lowest and vilest men were treated as friends by the
king, others, who would have been an honor to any
country, were imprisoned and murdered by thousands.

CAELO BORBONE AND FERDINAND IV. 159

Although there was a form of trial maintained, the Junta
of State was simply a tool in the hands of the king; to it
he sent lists absolutely fixing the sentences to be pro-
nounced by the so-called judges. From the history of
these days it would appear that the sovereigns would
not have been satiated by the vengeance they enjoyed had
they acted quite independently; and, as is usual with
tyrants, they had advisers who urged them to follow
their most evil inclinations. The worst of these was that
Cardinal Ruffo who had collected and commanded the
army of the Holy Faith. Second to him we blush to name
Lord Nelson. A hero commanding our respect and
admiration at Aboukir becomes a despicable tool of
perjury and tyranny at Naples, whose debasing recom-
pense by Lady Hamilton makes him even more unworthy
of regard than does his political perfidy.

Ruffo was loaded with honors and riches, not only for
himself, but in perpetuity for his family ; and Ferdinand
conferred these gifts in letters expressive of his gratitude
and personal attachment to this personification of vice and
cruelty.

Seldom has the proverb, "Whom the gods wish to
destroy they first make mad " been so forcibly illustrated
as in the case of Nelson, over whom lust and revenge
obtained complete mastery. Lady Hamilton, who made
one of the party which welcomed Nelson on his arrival at
Naples, was a beautiful woman of low origin and character
who had married the English ambassador, and with
inimitable tact had at once adapted herself to a position
at court as if she had always been surrounded with dig-
nity and fortune. At first the queen had treated Lady
Hamilton with an air of extreme condescension ; but when
she perceived that Nelson was in love with the lady,
Caroline saw in her a tool that would be useful in carry-
ing out her plans. From that time the two women were

160 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

almost inseparable, and it is possible that their common
flight and misfortunes engendered a friendship even be-
tween two women so void of any noble sentiment as were
these two.

Thus it happened that when the queen learned of the
capitulation of the castles at Naples and the terms by
which pardon was extended, and those who wished it
allowed to depart, she sent her friend Emma with letters
to Nelson, who was sailing from Palermo to Naples.
These letters from both sovereigns persuaded Nelson to
revoke the treaty which had been so made as to deprive
the sovereigns of their revenge upon those whom they chose
to term rebels.

Lady Hamilton, in a fast-sailing corvette, overtook
Nelson as he was entering the bay. He was but too happy
to welcome her, but when he learned her errand he refused
to do what was desired of him; but Lady Hamilton so
soon succeeded in persuading him to her will that the
vessel which had brought her returned to the queen with
assurances of the success of her schemes. Lady Hamilton
remained with Nelson, and was still on his ship when he
published the reversal of the treaty, and showed himself
the perfidious wretch that he had become.

Rewards and favors were lavished on Sir William Ham-
ilton, and the queen lost no opportunity to testify her
gratitude and affection for his wife. A magnificent ban-
quet was served in honor of Nelson in a saloon in the
palace at Palermo, which was fitted up as a Temple of
Glory. When Lord Nelson entered, the royal family
advanced to meet him. Ferdinand presented to him a
magnificent sword, and a patent creating him Duke of
Bronte, with an annual pension of £6,000, and the prince
of Salerno crowned the Admiral with laurel. Thus was
the degraded lover of Lady Hamilton flattered by those
who had made him their tool.

CARLO BORBONE AND FERDINAND IV. 161

But his cup of crime was not yet full. Feeling his
power and cherishing a deep hatred of Admiral Caracciolo,
— for no other known cause than the glory his superior
seamanship had brought the Neapolitan, — when he heard
of the arrest of that brave officer, Nelson demanded him
of Cardinal Ruffo. It was supposed that his motive was
to save Caracciolo, and when Nelson's jealousy of him was
remembered all were ready to praise his magnanimity.
But their mistake was soon apparent. Nelson at once
called a court-martial on his own ship, and when the
judges were too lenient to please him, he demanded a
sentence of death for the brave Neapolitan. On that very
day Caracciolo was hung at the yard-arm of one of his
own frigates, and at evening the body was weighted and
cast into the sea.

Some days later, as Ferdinand arrived off Naples, he
saw a human corpse half out of the water, its face raised,
approaching his ship with a menacing air. As it came
near he recognized the face, and exclaimed, " Caracciolo !
What can this dead man want ? "

"He asks for Christian burial," responded a chaplain,
who was present.

"Let him have it," said the king; and the body was
later interred in a church built by poor fishermen in the
Strada S. Lucia.

Many interesting details could be given concerning the
scholars, nobles, and valuable men who perished to
satisfy the insane thirst for blood which possessed the
king and queen ; but want of space forbids. Every place
available for a prison was filled. At least thirty thousand
human beings were crowded into underground vaults and
dark, loathsome dungeons ; they were denied beds, lights,
and all sorts of utensils; were tormented by thirst and
hunger, loaded with chains, and even beaten by the brutal
keepers placed over them. Forty thousand were threat-

11

162 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

ened with death, and a greater number with exile; and
no words can portray the misery of the whole city.

At length these horrors palled upon the perpetrators of
them, and in order to be free from the Army of the Holy
Faith, it was sent to join the troops already with the
Germans at Rome, and on the withdrawal of the French
forces, the Neapolitans promptly took possession of the
Papal City. News was soon received of the increasing
success of Bonaparte, which was making him the dread of
all the enemies of France. The greatest uneasiness was
felt by the government at Naples, from the king down to
the lesser officials ; that the people hated their oppressors
and would welcome any deliverer from their present suffer-
ings had become but too evident.

Abject fear now inspired Ferdinand and Caroline to
attempt what no kindly feeling had ever suggested. An
amnesty was proclaimed ; three thousand men had escaped
from the country; four thousand had been exiled, and
great numbers had been executed; seven thousand were
released from prison, leaving many still immured in horrid
dungeons. When the amnesty relieved the people from
the fear of immediate calamity, they had time to remember
and reflect upon the cruelties that had been perpetrated
in their midst, and hatred was all too mild a word to
express their feelings toward their sovereigns. There
was great need of money, which could only be procured
by violent and unjust measures; and all the while the
news of the increasing achievements of Bonaparte inspired
the Neapolitans with the hope that he might even come
to them.

Ferdinand's eldest son had married an Austrian arch-
duchess, and an heir was born to the young couple about
this time, which strengthened the bond between Austria
and Naples. Queen Caroline was on her way to Vienna
to seek aid from her brother, the Emperor Francis, when,

CARLO BORBONE AND FERDINAND IV. 163

at Leghorn, she received an account of the battle of
Mareugo; this news caused her and her friends the gravest
alarm. But after two years of anxiety and fear the Peace
of Amiens brought them fresh courage. Ferdinand, not
having learned wisdom, restored the Junta of State, and
reopened the trials for political offences, ordering all
records of them to be burned, lest they should testify
against him in the future.

In 1804 the Peace was broken ; in 1805 Napoleon entered
Vienna; and his punishment of the Neapolitans, who had
so often played false to friends and enemies alike, was not
long delayed. No army could be gathered. Ferdinand
fled to Sicily, leaving his son as regent. The queen re-
mained for a time, but shortly went to rejoin the king,
taking with her all their family, save the two elder
princes, who went to Calabria to attempt still further
resistance. Their efforts were useless ; and on February
14, 1806, the French fleet entered the bay, and a new era
had dawned on Naples.

CHAPTER VII.

JOSEPH BONAPARTE, JOACHIM MURAT, FERDINAND I., AND
FRA-NCIS I.

1806-1830.

WHEN we remember the condition in which the run-
away royal family left Naples, we cannot think that
Napoleon Bonaparte conferred a favor on his brother
Joseph when he sent him, with an army of fifty thousand
French soldiers, to occupy the deserted throne under the
title of "Lieutenant to the Emperor Napoleon," and
clearly outlined the course he was to pursue in one sen-
tence : " All sentiments yield now to reasons of state.
I recognize as relatives only those who serve me."

King Ferdinand, when seeking his own safety, had
commanded his regents never to yield the fortresses of the
kingdom, no matter what the stress might be. But his
cowardly example was followed rather than his commands ;
and while the conquerors were as far away as Aversa,
Naples sent her submission to them. A few towns made
a slight resistance; but on February 14, 1806, the first
battalions of the invading army entered the capital, and
were quickly followed by the new ruler.

The Neapolitans showed a certain wisdom in their wel-
come to Joseph Bonaparte, since they were in his power,
and could have no fear of his making them worse off than
he found them. He established himself in the Palace, and
called himself "Prince of France, Grand Elector of the
Empire. Lieutenant of the Emperor, and Commander-in-

JOSEPH BONAPARTE. 165

chief of the Neapolitan Army." He at once published a
proclamation from Napoleon, which, after reciting the
various perfidies of Ferdinand, ended thus: —

" The House of Naples has ceased to reign ; its existence is
incompatible with the repose of Europe, and with the honor of
my crown. Soldiers, march ; and if the weak battalions of the
tyrants of the sea have the courage to await you, drive them
back into the waves. Show the world how we punish perjury.
Hasten to inform me that all Italy is ruled by my laws or by
those of my allies ; that the most beautiful land on earth is
at last delivered from the yoke imposed on it by the most
perfidious of mankind. . . . Soldiers, my brother is with you ;
he is the repository of my thoughts and of my authority. I
confide in him ; do you confide in him likewise."

The army essentially subdued the whole kingdom, and
although Joseph was not inclined to cruelty, the constant
discovery of conspiracies forced him to certain severities ;
the prisons were full, as before, and the number of the
accused was still enormous. The occupation of the island
of Capri by the English added to the unsettled condition
of Naples. Under the administration of Colonel Lowe —
later the jailer of Napoleon at St. Helena — the island
became a retreat for brigands, and a nest for the hatching
of plots. The island of Ponza, too, and certain ports in
Calabria, were still in favor of the Bourbons, and Queen
Caroline was active in sending her friends wherever they
could make trouble.

By a decree from Paris, Joseph was proclaimed King
of the Two Sicilies on March 30. Three French senators
were sent to Naples to apprise him of this honor, and as
the new king was in Calabria, they went thither and
accompanied him back to the capital, which he reached
in May, attended by a royal cortege. The people regarded
his entrance with silence and doubt. The kingdom
was so convulsed with plots and counterplots that even

166 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

the volatile Neapolitans could not be aroused to enthu-
siasm by such displays as had been but too frequently
repeated.

The assaults of the English and of Ferdinand's friends
became bolder and more effective until the battle of
Maida, in Calabria, brought them success and courage,
while the French, driven to the extreme of rage and
suspicion, pursued the most barbarous policy. Great
numbers of men, guilty, suspected, and innocent, were
executed with unheard of cruelties. Colletta relates that
he actually saw a man impaled in the town of Lagonegro
by the command of a French colonel.

Brigandage was encouraged by the English and Sici-
lians, who dignified it with the title of loyalty to Ferdinand,
and a guerilla chief who was captured bore on his person
the following order, signed by no less a person than Wil-
liam Sidney Smith: "You will rouse all your partisans
in the kingdom of Naples; you will excite tumults in the
country, and point out the houses to be burned and the
rebels to be killed."

The French army suffered greatly from the heat, and
was so much reduced in numbers that Joseph was inclined
to send it to the Abruzzi to await a cooler season; but
Saliceti, the minister of police, opposed this measure,
and the war went on. The military history of this period
in Naples is a mingling of romance and bravery with
cowardice and treachery. At length, however, in Febru-
ary, 1807, the hopes of the Bourbonists were extinguished
in the fall of Reggio and Scilla, and the French flag floated
above all the forts of the kingdom.

Fra Diavolo — after leading his band of three hundred
men taken from the galleys, and committing crimes and
depredations that could do little to restore Queen Caroline
to the throne — was captured with letters on his person
from both the queen and Sidney Smith, addressing him as

JOSEPH BONAPARTE. 167

a colonel of the Sicilian army. He died like a coward,
cursing these two for having urged him to his enterprise.
Queen Caroline hesitated at no crime which promised her
revenge. She hated Saliceti, and joined the Prince of
Canosa in a plot to kill him hy means of an infernal
machine, which exploded and buried Saliceti's daughter
in the ruins it made, and threw her husband to such a
distance as rendered him insensible. Saliceti fell into
the chasm opened by the explosion; but neither of the
three were seriously hurt, and the only results of the
murderous plot were the greater activity of the police,
the discovery of conspiracies, and the prompt execution
of those engaged in them. One assassin was arrested who
had a letter from Caroline urging him to murder Joseph
Bonaparte. He wore a bracelet which he said was a gift
from the queen and made of her own hair.

While these disturbances were occurring, various re-
forms were made in the civil administration. The twelve
codes of law which existed when Joseph became ruler
were replaced by the Code Napoleon, which embodied the
results of the advance of thought in the eighteenth cen-
tury. Much attention was given to the establishment of
schools, of various grades, for both sexes. When we
remember that Giordano Bruno perished at the stake,
that Tommaso Campanella was seven times tortured and
imprisoned twenty-seven years, and that Pietro Gian-
none, who published his History of Naples in 1713, had
been an exile and prisoner until his death, on account of
his censure of the court of Rome, it is little wonder that
ignorance prevailed in Naples under its tyrants. No
favorable conditions for literature having existed for cen-
turies, even the remembrance that this peninsula had once
been the home of learning and the birthplace of great
scholars had died out. Under the Hohenstaufen and the
Aragonese feeble attempts had been made to revive the

168 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

ancient literature ; but the viceroys and Bourbons had so
stifled all good and great thought as to extinguish every
aspiration, and during three centuries prior to 1806 no
ruler of Naples had apprehended the value of education
for the people.

Immediately after King Joseph had proclaimed his new
constitution, he was recalled to France and made king of
Spain. In July, 1808, he published the Statute of Bay-
onne, in which he expressed regret at leaving Naples before
the results of his reign there could be shown. His wife
and family had lived very quietly at Naples ; but when it
was known that this lady went to be Queen of Spain, she
was treated with great respect. French and native troops
lined the Toledo as she passed through it; many noble
gentlemen and ladies attended her to the frontier, and a
small number accompanied her to Bayonne.

This queen was the daughter of a wealthy merchant of
Marseilles, and the sister-in-law of Bernadotte, King of
Sweden. She led a quiet and blameless life, having no
love for the ceremonies of a court ; and as she never went
to Spain, she was a reigning queen during her short stay
in Naples only. After the many and great changes which
occurred in the fortune and position of Joseph Bonaparte,
he and his wife died in Florence, — he in 1844, and she
a year later. Colletta calls attention to the contrast be-
tween the fate of this lady and that of many daughters of
royal houses who were queens of Naples.

The Norman Constance, queen of the Emperor Henry,
was betrayed in Salerno, and sent in chains to her enemy,
King Tancred. Soon afterwards Sibilla was made a
prisoner and carried to Germany with her young children.
Helena, the wife of Manfred, was imprisoned in the Castel
delP Ovo, where she died. Sancia, the widow of Robert,
was obliged to seek safety from the persecutions of her
niece, Joanna, in a convent, where she ended her days ;

The Castle of hcbia.

JOACHIM MURAT. 169

and the same Joanna, after a disgraceful life, was stran-
gled, and her dead body exposed to public insults. Mar-
garet, widow of Charles of Durazzo, was imprisoned at
Gaeta ; while Constance was repudiated by Ladislaus, and
in spite of the great wealth she brought him, was reduced
to poverty. Joanna II. was forced to banish her husband
from her kingdom, and was attacked by her first adopted
son Alphonso ; her second adopted son Louis also proved
himself her enemy ; her lover was beheaded, and his body
dragged through the streets; her favorite was murdered
in the palace, and she died of grief. The wife of Rene* of
Anjou fled from Naples in order to save her life and free-
dom ; while a second Isabella, after being imprisoned in
France, was dependent on the charity of a few monks in
Ferrara. Colletta says : " I remember to have seen in the
little fortress on the rocky island of Ischia, two queens
prisoners, and the last remnant of the proud race of
Aragon humbled and degraded ; and I have lived to see
Caroline of Austria, three times a fugitive from Naples,
die in exile, and cursed by her subjects."

After the departure of Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleon soon
sent another ruler to Naples. From Bayonne, July 15,
1808, the emperor published the decree: "We concede to
our well beloved brother-in-law, Joachim Napoleon, Grand
Duke of Berg and Cleves, the throne of Naples and of
Sicily, vacant by the accession of Joseph Napoleon to the
throne of Spain and of the Indies."

Joachim Murat did not delay his arrival, and on Sep-
tember 6 made his public entry into Naples. His reputa-
tion for bravery had preceded him, and his personal
attractions predisposed the people in his favor. He wore
no royal mantle, and in Spirito Santo, when Cardinal
Firrao gave him the benediction, he stood erect on the
steps of the throne, but with a reverent manner. During
all the ceremonies attendant on his assumption of the

170 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

throne he carried himself as if born in a palace rather
than in the cottage of a Gascon cooper.

Murat's first acts were beneficial, and encouraged the
people to hope that in him they had found a benefactor,
and when, shortly after, his queen, Caroline Bonaparte,
arrived, she was welcomed with enthusiasm. The Neapol-
itans had heard of her prudence, gentleness, and beauty ;
and the charm of her bearing and the sight of her four
lovely children appealed to her emotional subjects, and
she became queen in their affections as well as in their
palace.

Murat at once decided to seize Capri, the centre of plots
for Ferdinand IV. and his allies, and the home of an
army of robbers. He confided his plan to his minister of
war, and to General Colletta, who was to lead the expe-
dition. The English were so sure of their position that
they called Capri the "Little Gibraltar," The taking of
this island is one of the most interesting episodes of
modern warfare ; and on October 18, Colonel Lowe yielded
himself and seven hundred and eighty soldiers as prisoners
to be sent to Sicily on their parole not to fight against the
Neapolitans nor the French nor their allies for a year
and a day.

Murat carried on the reforms of Joseph, and lightened
many oppressive burdens. He raised the standing of the
military profession, which had been held in disdain so
long as the army was recruited from the lowest classes ;
but now, when gentlemen became soldiers and good officers
were honored with distinctions, the profession was much
esteemed. Civil reforms and wise financial measures were
inaugurated, and it seemed that a hopeful era had dawned
upon Naples.

In 1809 an Anglo-Sicilian expedition appeared off the
Calabrian coast, and excited alarm in the seaports, even
to the capital. But the enemy was repulsed in a battle

JOACHIM MURAT. 171

which was watched from the shore by Murat, the queen,
and thousands of people. Murat was meditating an attack
on Sicily, and had he been fairly treated would doubtless
have put an end to the outrageous conditions existing
there. But Caroline of Austria had wearied of her life
at Palermo and of the dictation of her allies, and entered
into a correspondence with Napoleon, as appeared from
a letter intercepted in Spain. It is asserted and believed
by good authorities that she made a secret treaty with the
emperor, agreeing to drive the English from Sicily if
Naples were restored to her. She also engaged to govern
Naples by French laws, as a confederate dependency of
France. Of this scheme both Ferdinand and Murat were
to be kept in ignorance.

When Murat began his preparations for an attack on
Sicily, it devolved on Napoleon, as Caroline's ally, to
prevent his accomplishment of this object. This was
done through General Grenier, who received his orders
from the emperor, and succeeded in frustrating Murat's
plans until the autumn storms compelled him to give them
up for that year.

Joachim suspected that Grenier had acted by Napoleon's
commands, and determined, if possible, to make himself
an independent sovereign of the kingdom of Naples. Early
in 1811 he omitted the hoisting of the French colors, using
those of Naples alone, and soon dismissed his French
troops, and published a decree enforcing a condition of the
Statute of Bayonne, — which he had sworn to support, —
stipulating that foreigners, unless declared Neapolitan
citizens, could not remain in Naples nor be paid for
civil and military services. Napoleon was furious, and
reminded Murat that he was a foreigner whom he, Napo-
leon, had established on the throne of Naples. Caroline
Bonaparte was displeased and distressed, and used every
means at her command to reconcile her husband and

172 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

brother. In the end Murat yielded, but his mortification
was never forgotten nor forgiven ; it was the cause of all
his misfortunes, while to Napoleon the loss of Murat's
friendship was an irretrievable calamity.

In 1812 Murat obeyed Napoleon's summons to join him
in his Russian campaign, leaving Caroline as regent in
his absence. But after the retreat from Moscow, Murat
abandoned the army. Napoleon wrote to Caroline in
great wrath, calling Murat everything but good. Joachim
replied in a severe and dignified letter, in which he
plainly showed Napoleon his absolute selfishness. After
a time Caroline brought about an apparent reconciliation
between these two high-spirited men, and in the following
year Murat was again beside Napoleon on the battlefields
of Silesia and Bohemia, and when, late in 1813, they
separated — never to meet again in this life — they parted
with mutual sentiments of sincere affection.

When Murat again reached Naples, he was advised and
urged, both by Neapolitans and other Italians, to be the
leader of a new movement, and make himself the ruler
of a united Italy, — a thought which an Italian party
ardently cherished. Alas! this was a hope to be long
deferred. Here began a movement, which, if correctly
recounted, would require a separate volume; the result,
however, can be concisely given.

The English and Austrians so influenced Murat in the
South, and Beauharnais in the North of Italy, that instead
of uniting their forces and their aims, and working
together for the unification of Italy, as they might have
done, they were disunited. In the end they escaped from
French control only to fall into the power of the two-
headed eagle; and when, in 1814, the Italians hoped to
choose their own ruler, they were commanded by Austria
to receive those whom she would place over them. While
Austria had thus mastered Italy, there had been plots

FERDINAND I. 173

and counterplots, in which Murat, Lord Bentinck, Ferdi-
nand IV., and Caroline of Austria, as well as Caroline
Bonaparte, acting as regent at Naples, had all been
involved. But all had been useless. There was noth-
ing to be done out to await the decisions of the world-
renowned Congress of Vienna, which were declared on
June 9, 1815, by which Ferdinand, now to be known as
Ferdinand I., King of the Two Sicilies, was restored to
the throne of Naples.

The story of the two Carolines, queens of Naples, is
most interesting; and when we think of Caroline of
Austria dying at the Castle of Hetzendorf, in September,
1814, with no one to soothe her agonies, and without the
last rites of her religion, we cannot feel for her the pity
which she gave to none in her cruel and monstrous life.
No one regretted her death. The Emperor of Austria,
her nephew, forbade mourning to be worn, lest it should
shadow the gayety of his court. Her husband, two
months later, married a Sicilian widow, who entered
Naples as his queen when he returned to his throne under
the protection of Austria.

Shortly before this event Murat had escaped to France ;
and Caroline Bonaparte — having secured the safety of
her mother and other relatives, and left her children in
the keeping of the garrison at Gaeta — embarked on an
English vessel to sail for Trieste. While it still lay in
the harbor she heard the rejoicings of the fickle popu-
lace, who welcomed the return of their old tyrant, and
was, so to speak, the chief mourner at her own political
funeral.

From Sicily Ferdinand had sent such decrees, and the
Emperor of Austria through his agents had made such
promises, that the Neapolitans believed that at last they
were to have a kindly paternal government. Indeed, the
Hapsburg and Bourbon sovereigns had solemnly pledged

174 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

their faith to this, and the returning king was met with
acclamations of welcome.

The years which Ferdinand had passed in Sicily had
brought great changes of thought to the world; but,
Bourbon-like, the king ignored this, and in spite of his
promises endeavored to re-establish his former tyranny.
Ferdinand used all his old duplicity, and was met with
like deceit by his subjects, from his ministers and judges
down to the meanest brigand in his realm. No worse
political conditions are possible than those under which
Naples suffered after the return of the Despots.

A most painful episode of the year 1815 was that which
ended in the death of Murat. A plan had been formed
by which he was to land at Salerno, where his faithful
followers were greatly discontented with the government.
His projects were well known at Naples by means of a
spy, who had followed his movements in Corsica, whence
he sailed on September 28. He was driven out of his
course by a storm. His fleet of six vessels was scattered,
and he finally landed at Pizzo in Calabria, with but
twenty-eight followers, — a small number with which to
conquer a kingdom. Being coldly received on landing,
he started for Monteleone, but was followed, cruelly in-
sulted, and finally, after the bravest resistance, captured
and imprisoned in the dungeons of the castle of Pizzo.
After a mock trial, he was led forth and shot on October
14. He held in his hand a portrait of his family, which
was buried with him in the church which he had erected
at Pizzo five years before. Ferdinand gave lasting proofs
of his satisfaction at the death of Murat. He decreed
that Pizzo should be called " the most faithful city, that
its civic imposts should be abolished, and that salt should
be distributed to it every year free. "

The Neapolitans had not ceased to mourn for Murat
when the plague broke out, and raged violently during

FERDINAND I. 175

eight months. The theatre of S. Carlo was burned in
1816, and fever and famine destroyed thousands of human
beings in the same year. These calamities were regarded
by the people as God's vengeance for the murder of Murat.
The entire Neapolitan people were ill, depressed, and
suffering, and at the mercy of a king who understood
neither the causes of their condition nor the means by
which it could be improved.

The Council of State held secret deliberations, and
fawned on Ferdinand by proposing measures which they
believed would be agreeable to him. The cabinet con-
sisted of eight ministers and the Director of the Police ;
and as their position depended solely on the will of the
king, they concealed everything that might tell against
them. The Prince of Canosa, Director of Police, was
most influential with Ferdinand. He had served him
while in Sicily by collecting bands of ruffians, and land-
ing them on Neapolitan soil ; and he now employed the
vilest men to carry out his schemes. It was he who had
murdered Murat, and had made himself so notoriously a
persecutor, that the foreign ambassadors at Naples remon-
strated against him so strongly that the king was obliged
to dismiss Canosa; but he gave him an annual pension of
60,000 crowns, and added new titles to those he already
possessed.

Ferdinand was entirely responsible for the thousands
of brigands, thieves, and assassins that infested the king-
dom. He had constantly employed and paid them to
harass Joseph and Murat ; and after his return to Naples
these rascals worked their will until even the Bourbon
was ashamed, and took measures against them as secret
and cruel as those he had permitted them to use against
his enemies.

It is time to speak of the Carbonari, — the Charcoal-
burners, as their name signifies, — a secret society which

176 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

first claimed attention about 1808. and after a short time
had much to do with the political history of Naples.
There were many secret societies in Italy ; but the Car-
bonari were the most numerous and powerful of them all.
They essayed making themselves reverend by claiming
descent from a remote past, and reciting many untrust-
worthy legends regarding their origin, of which the time
and place is unknown. Not so their object, which was to
arouse the people to rebellion; and so rapidly did they
increase, so many and widely scattered were their lodges,
that the very name of Carbonaro soon inspired terror, and
was carefully whispered, as is that of Fra Diavolo in the
opera which perpetuates the memory of the famous
brigand.

In Sicily, Ferdinand had connived with the Carbonari,
hoping to make them instrumental in the overthrow of
Murat. After his return to the throne, and the drift of
his policy was apparent, they plotted against him ; and as
they could not frankly declare their revolutionary pur-
poses, they claimed to be an ethical organization. Their
confession of faith was simple, and the declarations of
their aims has been translated as follows : —

" To render to Almighty God the worship due to Him ; to
serve the fatherland with zeal ; to reverence religion and laws ;
to fulfil the obligations of nature and friendship ; to be faithful
to promises; to observe silence, discretion, and charity; to
cause harmony and good morals to prevail ; to conquer the
passions and submit the will ; and to abhor the seven deadly
sins."

The chief lodge was at Salerno, and the entire society
was divided into four "tribes." Carbonaro councils,
senates, and courts were numerous. Nominally these
Good Cousins — Buoni Cugini, as they called themselves
— were to have a popular form of government, but were,

FERDINAND I. 177

in fact, ruled by their ablest men. Thayer thus describes
some of their customs : —

" The house where the meeting was held was called the
baracca, or hut ; the lodge itself was the vendita, or place
of sale. . . . God was honored with the title of Grand Master
of the Universe. Christ, an Honorary Grand Master, was
known as the Lamb ; and every Good Cousin pledged himself
to rescue the Lamb from the jaws of the Wolf — tyranny, that
is — which had long persecuted him. St. Theobald was patron
of the society. There were commonly two degrees, that of the
Apprentices and that of the Masters; but there were sometimes
others, — in Sicily we hear of eleven, — lifted above the vulgar
level. . . . The candidate for apprenticeship was conducted to
the barrack by his master, and left awhile in the ' closet of
reflection.' . . . Then he was brought, always bandaged, to the
door of the lodge, in which was a slide whereby certain ques-
tions were put to him from within. Having answered these
satisfactorily, he was admitted into the hall itself, where the
Grand Master, seated before a huge tree-trunk, thus addressed
him : ' Profane one ! the first qualities we seek are sincerity of
heart and a heroic constancy in scorning perils. Have you
these?' The neophyte replied, ; Yes,' and was then dis-
missed to take his ' first journey.' On his return he was
asked what he had observed. ' Noises and obstacles,' was
his answer, which the Grand Master expounded in this wise :
' This first journey is the emblem of human life ; the noise of
the bones and the obstacles indicate that, being of frail flesh,
as we swim in this vale of tears, we cannot arrive at virtue
unless we be guided by reason and assisted by good works.'
After that the neophyte must take a * second journey,' in which
he passed through a fire and beheld a trunkless human head, —
the former symbolized charity, which purges the heart ; the lat-
ter was a warning of the doom of traitors. Having been brought
back to the lodge, he was made to kneel before the Grand
Master's block, and to repeat the following oath : * I swear
and promise on the institution of this order in general, and on
this steel (the axe which served the Grand Master as a gavel),

12

178 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

the punisher of perjurers, to keep scrupulously the secrets of
the Carbonic Republic ; not to write, grave, nor paint anything
without having received written permission. I swear that I
will succor my fellow-men, and especially the Good Cousins
Carbonari, in case of their needs, and in so far as my means
permit, and likewise not to attaint the honor of their families.
If I prove forsworn, I consent that my body be hewn in
pieces, then burnt, and ray ashes scattered to the winds, that
my name be held in execration by all Good Cousins on earth.
And so God help me ! ' Then he demanded light, and was
unbandaged in the middle of the room, where the members
surrounded him, and brandished axes. ' These weapons,' the
Grand Master explained, ' will serve to slay you if you per-
jure yourself ; but they will fly to your aid if you prove faith-
ful.' Then the badge, countersign, and grip were given."

After this ceremony a year of probation was necessary
before the degree of Master could be obtained. The cere-
monies attendant upon this occasion were a reproduction
of the Passion of Christ, which was pursued to the binding
on the cross, when the Good Cousins cried out that mercy
must be shown, and the bandage being removed from the
eyes, the candidate stood forth a Master Carbonaro.

The colors of the Carbonari were black, signifying
charcoal and faith; red, fire and chastity; and blue,
smoke and hope. Every implement used had its sym-
bolic meaning; and in fact their system of symbolism was
far-reaching, stretching from the sublime and impressive
to the puerile and unmeaning. Their penalties were
severe, and must be promptly paid, death being the sure
result of treachery.

Many lodges were known by curious names, such as the
Unshirted, the Sleepers, and the American Hunters, who
numbered Lord Byron in their company. It is said that
women organized societies ; one existing at Naples under
the name of the Gardeneresses, whose pots and sprinklers

FERDINAND I. 179

were made mysterious by their symbolism. All Italy,
France, Germany, and other countries were the homes of
secret societies; but the first swarmed with them, and
while presenting a somewhat hardened and indifferent ap-
pearance outwardly, it was, in reality, torn and convulsed
within by vehement rebellion against present wrongs, and
a growing determination toward better conditions.

However faithful to their oaths the Carbonari might
be, so large an organization could not be wholly con-
cealed; but while its existence was known to the sover-
eigns of Europe, its danger was not appreciated. Ferdi-
nand, however, was in great fear of them; and his police
director, Canosa, employed spies and money for their
detection. His agents not only joined the society, but
they stirred up dissension within it. Canosa established
an opposition to the Carbonari in the secret society of
the Calderari, or Tinkers, who also had their rites and
oaths, and swore to befriend the Bourbons.

Had the Carbonari been blessed with a prudent and
able leader, no limit can be placed to what they might
have accomplished, having imbibed the revolutionary
spirit, after being goaded to desperation by centuries
of frightful oppression ; but wanting such a leader all
sorts of theories and disagreements sprung up in their
lodges. Doubts and jealousies existed where confidence
and good feeling alone could avail. They knew how
actively Canosa pursued them, and they distrusted each
other, in spite of the terrible fate which hung over a
Carbonaro who violated the ironclad oaths he had taken.

Even the astute Metternich, when he made a progress
through the kingdom in 1817, failed to apprehend the
full significance of the society of the Carbonari. He
perceived their want of union and their need of a leader.
He argued that as they had accomplished little they would
die out if left to themselves; and for a long time this

180 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

seemed to be true. There were occasional petty outbreaks ;
a few arrests were made, and all was quiet.

Ferdinand and the Pope fulminated decrees against all
secret societies; the king threatened their leaders with
death, and the pontiff declared the Carbonari irreligious
and worthy of extreme punishment. To this the Car-
bonari replied with the question, " Was not the Christian
Church a secret society from the time of its origin until
Constantine's victory over Maxentius ? "

At length, five years after Ferdinand's return, the fire
which had smouldered was blown into a blaze by the
news that the King of Spain had granted a constitution to
the rebels who demanded it; and on July 2, 1820, a revo-
lution was inaugurated at Nola, which so alarmed the
king that in four days he guaranteed a constitution to
his subjects. On the same day Ferdinand made Francis,
Duke of Calabria, his regent, with full power. On July 7
Francis issued a decree promising to adopt the Spanish
Constitution; and to allay the suspicions of the people,
the king made a proclamation ratifying the acts of his
son.

On July 9 General Pepe, who had long been a Car-
bonaro, led the entire army and the Carbonari through
the streets of Naples in a triumphal procession. The
royal family appeared on a balcony of the palace, wear-
ing stars in the Carbonari colors, which the Duchess of
Calabria had made. The regent received General Pepe,
and led him to the bedside of the king, who was feigning
illness. Ferdinand thanked Pepe — the real head of the
Carbonari, who had feared arrest but four days before,
and now knelt to kiss the old king's hand — for having
done a great service to his king and his country, and
gave him the supreme command of the army. The
wretched Ferdinand then thanked God that he had
permitted him to do this noble work in his old age.

FERDINAND I. 181

Pepe left this audience raised to a height which made him
a target for envy and jealousy. He was not the wise
and dauntless man that the needs of the hour demanded,
and the disturbances among his followers soon proved
that the training of secret societies is not an adequate
preparation for the leader of a great political movement.

However, on July 13, when Ferdinand heard Mass in
the royal chapel, and before the altar, with his hands on
the Bible, in the presence of the court, the Junta, and the
generals, took the following oath, the people could but
believe him sincere, and rejoice accordingly : —

" ' I, Ferdinand of Bourbon, by the grace of God and by the
Constitution of the Neapolitan monarchy, King of the Two
Sicilies, with the name of Ferdinand I., swear, in the name of
God and on the Holy Evangelists, that I will defend and pre-
serve the Constitution. Should I act contrary to my oath and
contrary to any article in this Constitution, I ought not to be
obeyed ; and every act by which I contravened it would be null
and void. Thus doing, may God aid and protect me, other-
wise may he call me to account.' He then prayed : ' Omnip-
otent God, who with thine infinite gaze readest the soul and
the future, if I lie or intend to break this oath, do thou at
this instant hurl on my head the lightnings of thy vengeance.'
Again he kissed the Bible, and meekly said to General Pepe,
' General, believe me, this time I have sworn from the bottom
of my heart.' "

Such is the account which Poggi gives of this scene,
which was made even more impressive by the repetition
of the oath by the regent and his brother, the Prince of
Salerno. The old king then embraced his sons and
blessed them, while tears were plainly seen running from
the eyes of these three Bourbons, magnificent actors as
they were.

The Carbonari exulted; they paraded the streets in
uniform; their orators made public addresses; thousands

182 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

hastened to join their ranks, and vendite were established
everywhere. Social barriers were broken down ; men
hitherto divided by impassable chasms exchanged grips
and watchwords. Even the Church seemed to pardon and
accept what it had cursed so recently. A celebration
was granted the Good Cousins ; and when they had filled a
church a priest blessed them, while other priests joined
the procession, wearing rosaries and poniards, and carry-
ing tricolored banners.

During the summer a much more orderly condition
than had existed for a long time was maintained in the
kingdom of Naples ; the credit of this was accorded to
the Carbonari, whose customs also changed the appear-
ance of the people. Beards and hair seemed greatly to
thrive under the summer sun, and the barbers were left
without an occupation. In point of fact, the various
parties, the king and viceroy, the Bourbonists and Repub-
licans, were no more harmonious in feeling than formerly,
but each deemed it prudent to be quiet and await
events.

The first constitutional Parliament was opened on
October 1, in the church of Santo Spirito ; and it takes
on vast proportions when we reflect that it was the first
representative body of constitutionally elected Italians
that met in this century, which has since brought so
many changes to all Italy. But if we look for any great
results from the deliberations of these men, we shall be
disappointed. They were like children who had not
learned their letters, but were still trying to read ; they
passed their days in inconsequential arguments for and
against everything that was proposed for their consid-
eration.

Meantime the sovereigns of Europe, angry at the exist-
ing conditions in Naples, met and consulted each other
at Troppau, where Metternich was the ruling spirit, and

FERDINAND I. 183

decided to ask Ferdinand to join them at Laybach. It
is said that Ferdinand had begged this invitation, and it
is certain that he had written Metternich that he desired
to leave Naples; he also besought the interference of
Austria to restore him to the throne and re-establish his
despotism. The Parliament consented to the king's jour-
ney to Laybach, stipulating only that before his departure
he should renew his oath to the Constitution. This he
did in writing, and volunteered a promise that in case the
other monarchs would not consent to the wishes of the
Neapolitans, he would return to make common cause with
them. The king sailed on December 14, with the Car-
bonari ribbons fluttering on his cowardly breast.

The Laybach conference resulted as might have been
foretold by any statesman. The Austrian army entered
Naples by the Capuan Gate, March 23, 1821, and thou-
sands of men were hastening to be rid of the long hair
and beards of the Carbonari ; the barbers alone profited
by the success of Ferdinand and Metternich. They had
triumphed over many thousands of Neapolitans, who
had a dim perception of the liberty they ought to enjoy,
and were groping like blind men after the means for
securing it. Ferdinand could not properly estimate the
subjects he had so long oppressed, but Metternich should
have known that a new government for Italy could not be
long deferred. But even Metternich failed to perceive
the full significance of what had happened. When leav-
ing Laybach he carelessly wrote: "While military opera-
tions are going on a minister takes his holidays. The
Neapolitan war gave me eight days ; the Piedmontese only
four. Everybody must acknowledge that no time has
been lost. " He had forgotten that although " the mills
of the gods grind slowly," when once in motion they do
not cease to grind.

After the Austrian occupation of Naples, Ferdinand

184 NAPLES ANp ITS ENVIRONS.

remained at Florence, and consulted Prince Canosa on
the policy now to be followed. The real conflict had not
been between the Neapolitans and their actual oppressors ;
it had been the conflict of the awakening desire for free-
dom with European autocracy, as represented at the Con-
gress of Laybach. As yet the time was not ripe; the new
thought was not strong enough to cope with the old. The
revolution of the Carbonari would have failed had their
leaders been a hundred fold greater and better than they
were. Having been overpowered, they must be punished
and made an example to intimidate all men who dared to
dream of freedom.

The sovereigns at the Congress had advised a firm but
clement treatment, which seems like a satire on their part
if they understood the nature of the beast, Ferdinand,
while the mention of mercy to Canosa was sufficient to
render him furious; he considered it a privilege to be
the instrument of wrath, and was only satisfied by its
extremest indulgence. Every promise and treaty that
Ferdinand had made were broken, and all men who had
been suspected of a wish for a change of government since
1793 were proscribed. The leaders of the revolt who
had been honored in the previous July by Ferdinand and
the Duke of Calabria were now denounced as traitors;
no assembly of any kind was permitted, even the educa-
tional institutions being closed. All imaginable horrors
ensued ; the low creatures who were base enough to turn
against their late confederates were made judges; the
accused were not permitted to face their accusers; sen-
tences were pronounced by a single judge, and no appeal
allowed ; spies were everywhere ; search was made without
warrant, and even the secrets of the confessional were
divulged ; the bells tolled for executions without ceasing,
and public scourging was revived by Canosa. This frusta
had been so long disused that the oldest living men had

FERDINAND I. 185

forgotten it, and the young had not heard of it. Imagine
the effect of a scene which Colletta thus describes : —

" At midday, in the populous Via di Toledo, a large detach-
ment of German soldiers were seen, drawn up in military array ;
next to them stood the assistant of the executioner, who at
intervals blew a trumpet, and a little behind him more Ger-
mans and several officers of police, who surrounded a man
naked from the waist upwards, his feet bare, his wrists tightly
bound, and with all the badges of the Carbonari hung round his
neck ; he wore a tricolored cap, on which was inscribed in large
letters ' Carbonaro.' This unhappy man was mounted on an
ass, and followed by the executioner, who, at every blast of the
trumpet, scourged his shoulders with a whip made of ropes and
nails, until his flesh was stained with his blood, and his agony
was shown by his pallor, while his head sank on his breast.
The mob followed this procession in silent horror. Respectable
citizens fled, or prudently concealed their pity and disgust. If
any asked the meaning of the punishment, they were told the
person flogged was a Carbonaro, a gentleman from the prov-
inces (and a gentleman he appeared to be both in face and
person), who, after being scourged, was to suffer the penalty of
the galleys for fifteen years ; and this not by the sentence of a
magistrate, but by the order of the Prince of Canosa, minister
of police, who had just arrived in the city."

On the two following days other scourgings occurred,
and even the brutal Austrian soldiers stayed away from
these spectacles. All over the kingdom the reign of terror
was fully established; and the Austrian officers, being
suspicious of all Neapolitans, so filled the prisons that the
speediest processes for executions were devised in order
to make room for new victims. At first the prisoners
were from the lower classes ; but when Canosa asked Fer-
dinand if he could punish without restriction, the king
answered in one word, "Punish." General Colletta and
many other prominent officials were sent to Austrian

186 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

prisons; men who were innocent of any political action
feared to remain at home, so unjust were the punish-
ments, and feared to flee as that would expose their
families to untold persecution. Violent measures were
instituted against books which inculcated a love of free-
dom, and severe punishments were inflicted upon those
who possessed them. Many of these were secretly de-
stroyed, while others were carried to the Piazza Medina
to be burned, and a heavy duty was put on foreign
publications.

Relying upon the protection of the Austrian soldiers,
Ferdinand returned to Naples. His entrance was cele-
brated with magnificence, and flattering addresses were
made to him by those who feared to do otherwise. We
can but think that he realized that those who flattered
would gladly have stabbed him; ever after this day he
used every possible precaution to protect himself from
violence. He at once gave the care of the public educa-
tion into the hands of the Jesuits, and was most puncti-
lious in his religious observances. He made a present of
200,000 ducats to the commander of the Austrian forces,
but showed no mercy to any Neapolitans, unless the occa-
sional change of the death sentence to the living death of
the galleys could be called merciful.

On the name-day of the king, May 30, he issued a gen-
eral pardon to all his subjects except the soldiers and
Carbonari who had been engaged in the late revolution ;
these were seized in a day, and the so-called " Monteforte
trial " begun. Its details cannot be given here. It lasted
three months, and resulted in most cruel punishments to
those Italians who had made the first organized struggle
for liberty. The king passed the short remnant of his
days in fear for his life, torturing his people by his
tyranny, and daily adding to his infamy. Thayer thus
describes his condition: —

FRANCIS I. 187

" Ferdinand passed the later years of his infamous reign as
if repudiated by the God and saints to whom he built churches,
and as if even Orcus itself loathed to receive him. Despised
by his parasites and by the princes whom he pompously enter-
tained, and hated by his subjects, he strove to banish his ter-
rors of death by the follies of the buffoon, by the antics of his
pet bears, and by the droning of his priests. Such was the
king, and such the government, that the Allied Powers of
Europe — Austria, Prussia, Russia, France, and England —
imposed on Naples during the fifth lustre of the nineteenth
century."

On the morning of Jan. 4, 1825, the king was found
dead, the condition of his bed and the appearance of his
body showing that the death struggle had been fierce and
long. At first the people could not believe that such good
news could be true, and many so manifested their joy
that they were arrested and punished as promptly as the
new king was proclaimed.

When the length of Ferdinand's reign is considered,
the public works which are associated with it are utterly
insignificant. He gave the name Museo Reale Borbonico
to a museum already established, and built the uninter-
esting church of S. Francesco di Paola. The Piazza del
Plebiscito was constructed during his reign; and his
equestrian statue erected there — the horse by Canova
and the rider by Call — serves to remind the present
generation of the tyranny from which it has escaped.
Many streets and roads were laid out and improved be-
tween 1759 and 1825; but it is not possible to say pre-
cisely what was due to each of the sovereigns and regents
who were in authority during those sixty-six weary years.

There was little to be hoped from the reign of Francis
I., who was already well known to the Neapolitans. He
was more cunning and cruel than his father, if that were
possible, and his reign of five years may be dismissed in

188 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

a paragraph. He left the kingdom in a worse state than
he found it. The people, sunk in poverty and supersti-
tion, lived in dread of the scaffold and the foreign sol-
diers, while the aristocracy pursued a life of vice and
pleasure. There is a certain satisfaction in knowing that
this king was not happy during an hour of his reign.
He sufficiently appreciated his treachery to the Liberals
to inspire him with an abject fear of their revenge. He
dared not pass through the streets until assured of safety
by the minister of police, and he so dreaded poison that
he would eat no food unless prepared and tasted in his
presence by Catherine de Siinone, a low chambermaid.

The Porto Militare was begun by Francis in 1826, but
has been so much enlarged and improved that it can now
by no means be considered a monument to his reign.

Politically, the Neapolitan kingdom was a dependant
of Austria, and year after year incurred an enormous
debt for the support of the army of its ruler. In 1827
this debt had reached the sum of 74,000,000 ducats. As
time brought still greater burdens and miseries to the
Liberals, and their want of union and sufficient organiza-
tion restricted them as with an iron hand, their discontent
and determination also increased. Their best men were
acquiring greater wisdom, and all were gaining in energy,
while awaiting a new turn of the wheel of fate, which
should bring the occasion for the conflict which must
come between the Italians and the tyrants.

CHAPTER VIII.

FERDINAND II., FRANCIS II., GARIBALDI, VICTOR EMMANUEL II. ,
AND HUMBERT I.

1830-1894.

IT was natural that each new king should be welcomed
by a people who constantly hoped for a better govern-
ment, and Ferdinand II. was received with enthusiasm.
He was young, and they believed him to be of a kindly
nature; at least he could assume that bearing. He dis-
missed the unworthy creatures who had surrounded his
father, and abolished certain of his extravagant customs ;
he permitted the soldiers to wear moustaches ; he remitted
the poll-tax, and instituted other reforms, which so
commended him to his people that they called him " the
new Titus."

The Liberals so rejoiced in what they believed him to
be that they even proposed that he should join them, and
become the sovereign of all Italy. To this he replied
that it was impossible, as he "should not know what to
do with the Pope."

But alas ! the veil of couleur de rose in which he had
enfolded himself soon dropped off, and it was seen that
he cared for no reform that did not increase his power
and prestige. He remodelled the army, and appointed
many new officers. He made the memory of Ignatius
Loyola a field-marshal, and paid the salary of the posi-
tion to the Jesuits. He selected despicable men for

190 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

his advisers. His confessor, Monsignor Cocle, used his
office for his own ends, and endeavored to control the
king, as did Delcarretto, the minister of police. By
flattery and by indulging the worst traits of Ferdinand's
nature, each one succeeded in turn. Offices were openly
bought and sold, and all departments of the public service
were full of corruption. Delcarretto made his son of ten
years a bank treasurer with a salary of 6,000 ducats;
and when these abuses were reported to the king, he
seemed to be simply amused by them.

At the same time he displayed great anxiety for the
public morals. He published severe edicts against
immoral women, apparently that they might pay enormous
bribes to be let alone. He prescribed unbecoming cos-
tumes for the ballet-dancers, in order to make them less
attractive and dangerous than they had sometimes proved
to the young Neapolitans. His own manners were
extremely rude. He is said to have pulled a stool away
just as the queen was about to sit on it, and to have
laughed immoderately when she fell to the floor. She
exclaimed, " I thought I had married a king, not a lazza-
rone." He amused himself in the most undignified ways,
frequently caning the legs of an attendant in order to see
him hop about in pain.

When the Liberals rightly understood the king's char-
acter, many conspiracies were formed, even that of killing
him ; but there was always a traitor who disclosed these
plots, and the indescribably filthy and cruelly managed
prisons were crowded with those who were simply suspects,
as well as those known to be plotters. In a word, the
confessor and the police director ruled the king, and thus
ruled the kingdom. But prison bars could not fetter
thought nor daunt the free-thinkers ; the principles which
Joseph Mazzini had formulated in his cell at Savona, and
to which he had given life in the Society of Young Italy

FERDINAND II. 191

— Italia Giovine — although slow in their effect, espe-
cially on the debased Neapolitans, were still ruling the
hearts and shaping the lives of thousands; and by the
following oath the members of this society swore to
further its aims : —

" In the name of God and of Italy ; in the name of all the
martyrs of the holy Italian cause who have fallen beneath
foreign and domestic tyranny ; by the duties which bind me
to the land wherein God has placed me, and to the brothers
whom God has given me ; by the love — innate in all men — I
bear to the country that gave my mother birth, and will be the
home of my children ; by the hatred — innate in all men —
I bear to evil, injustice, usurpation, and arbitrary rule ; by the
blush that rises to my brow when I stand before the citizens of
other lands, to know that I have no rights of citizenship, no
country, and no national flag ; by the aspiration that thrills my
soul towards that liberty for which it was created, and is impo-
tent to exert, — towards the good it was created to strive after,
and is impotent to achieve in the silence and isolation of
slavery ; by the memory of our former greatness, and the sense
of our present degradation ; by the tears of Italian mothers
for their sons dead on the scaffold, in prison, or in exile ; by
the sufferings of the millions, etc."

By all these sacred considerations the members of Young
Italy swore to keep its secrets and obey its officers.

Mazzini was a Carbonaro ; but his broad views impelled
him to formulate a creed looking to the union of all Italy.
Imprisoned, he had time for reflection; exiled in London,
he led a life of such untiring and ceaseless activity as few
men have passed. Thayer well summarizes his work and
character when he says : —

" Proscribed in Piedmont, expelled from Switzerland, denied
lodging in France, he took refuge in London, there to direct,
amid poverty and heartache, the whole vast scheme of plots.
His bread he earned by writing critical and literary essays for

192 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

the English reviews, — he quickly mastered the English lan-
guage so as to use it with remarkable vigor, — and all his
leisure he devoted to the preparation of political tracts, and to
correspondence with numberless confederates. He watched
the symptoms of every port of Italy ; he studied the map and
laid out campaigns ; he shipped arms and munition to various
points ; he indited proclamations, concerted signals, enrolled
volunteers, instigated, encouraged, and counselled. He was
the consulting physician for" all the revolutionary practitioners
of Europe. . . . The best proof of his power lies in the anxiety
he caused monarchs and cabinets, and the precautions they
took to guard against him. Their spies lurked in his shadow ;
they even induced the British postmaster-general to open his
letters, — a baseness which prevents the name of Graham from
being forgotten ; they sowed reports reeking with terrible insin-
uations against his character and methods. . . . Mazzini denied
the charge that he approved or condoned political assassina-
tion, although he admitted that he had given money and a
dagger to a young fanatic, Gallenga, who had vowed to kill
Charles Albert. In friendly intercourse he was so gentle, so
unselfish, so insistent in matters spiritual, that the few persons
who knew him well, could not believe that he would descend to
criminal methods in order to compass his reforms, which were
essentially moral.

" Mazzini and Metternich ! For nearly twenty years they
were the antipodes of European politics. One, in his London
garret, poor, despised, yet indomitable and sleepless, sending his
influence like an electric current through all barriers to revivify
the heart of Italy and of Liberal Europe ; the other in his
Vienna palace, haughty, famous, equally alert and cunning,
with all material and hierarchical powers to aid him, shedding
over Italy and over Europe his upas-doctrines of torpor and
decay ! . . . Then, as so often before in human history, the
Champion of the Past, — arrogant, materialist, and self-satis-
fied, but waning, — had a palace to his dwelling, while the
Apostle of the Future found only a cheap lodging and an
exile's welcome in a foreign land."

FERDINAND II. 193

In 1836 the cholera broke out in the Neapolitan king-
dom, and raged with great violence during the following
year. In Naples alone, 13,800 perished in five months.
The fear of it destroyed all human feeling. The dearest
and nearest deserted each other when attacked by the
plague ; priests no longer fulfilled their offices ; the poor
stricken wretches suffered their agonies and died alone ;
corpses remained unburied until their stench warned
men of the danger of leaving them above ground ; ditches
were dug, the bodies thrown in, and quicklime shovelled
over them. The silence of the city was broken only by
the shrieks of agony, the rumble of the death-carts, and
the fall of the bodies thrown out to them. Many men,
mad with fear, attempted to forget all these horrors in
debauchery, and the few whose nobility of character led
them to serve their fellows, while awaiting their own
doom, merit remembrance and blessing whenever these
frightful days are recalled.

Meantime the conduct of the king and his advisers had
destroyed all the hopes that had centred in him. While
mentally more vigorous than his predecessors, he was
equally cruel and selfish, and it was plain that so long as
the autocrats of Europe would support him, he would rule
by corruption and barbarity over a people who were
regarded as the veriest ulcer among the diseased nations
of his time.

Ferdinand affected a rigid personal morality, and ruled
his household accordingly. He was one of those who

" Compound for sins they are inclined to,
By damning those they have no mind to."

His chief sin was avarice. He hesitated at nothing
that could increase his wealth ; he reduced his people to
the lowest depths of ignorance rather than pay for an
education which might make them more difficult to govern ;

13

194 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

and the censorship of the press in the hands of Delcar-
retto made repression easy and complete.

In June, 1844, the plot of the Bandiera was revealed to
the Neapolitan government through the despicable act of
Sir James Graham, who opened Mazzini's letters, betrayed
their contents, and added to his cowardly conduct by
reclosing the letters and sending them to Mazzini. Thus,
when the conspirators landed in Calabria, they were met
by a spy sent for that purpose, who betrayed them to the
police.

But from the nine murdered bodies crowded into a
single grave, and the eight living men cast into a foul
dungeon to rot alive, an influence went forth through all
Italy such as tyrants cannot afford to ignore. The story
of their heroism, as they went to their execution

singing, —

" Chi per la patria muore,

Ha gia vissuto assai ; "
" He who for his country dies,
Has already lived long enough ; "

and that of the undaunted courage of Lupatelli, — who
found himself standing alone above the corpses of his
companions when the smoke of the first volley cleared
away, and in a ringing voice called out, "Fire again!"
— was repeated in undertones from one man to another
from the Bay of Naples to the Alps, and from the east to
the west of all Italy. These tales aroused such a flame
of enthusiasm for the cause in which these men had died
as no Bourbon and Metternich combined could ever
extinguish.

A new influence which was quietly permeating all
Italy emanated from the writings of Mazzini, Gioberti,
Balbo, D'Azelio, and Galeotti, which by one method and
another made their way past all censors and inspectors,
and reached the hands of the people, who were thus

FERDINAND II. 195

cheered and encouraged in their determination to resist
their tyrants.

In June, 1846, when Pius IX. came to the papal throne,
he declared a general amnesty for all political offenders.
Ferdinand did not permit the publication of this amnesty
in Naples. He allowed no honor to be shown to Pius by
his people ; he forbade the sale of prints or busts of the
Pope, and printed eulogies of Pius had to be smuggled
across the frontiers and read in secrecy. Reverently to
name the Vicegerent of Heaven exposed a Neapolitan to
suspicion and arrest.

In 1847 events marched rapidly all over Italy, and the
King of Naples suffered agonies of apprehension ; and in
spite of all that he could do, — including the bombard-
ments which gave him his title of King Bomba, — he was
compelled, in 1848, to give the Neapolitans a Constitu-
tion. Ferdinand acted his part well, always intending
to betray his people at the earliest opportunity; and
those who had scarcely ceased cursing him now shouted
his praises vehemently. On February 24, in the church
of S. Francesco di Paola, the king swore to defend the
Constitution, which guaranteed his people freedom of the
press, trial by jury, ministerial responsibility, parliamen-
tary representation and institutions. The young men
applauded Bomba, but the older men remembered that
this same solemn ceremony and sacred oath had been
turned into a farce by the grandfather of this Ferdinand.

But the Neapolitans did not know how to be freemen
and republicans, and all sorts of puerile dissatisfactions
arose to embarrass those who might have guided them to
better things. The Constitution seemed to mean Heaven
to the body of the people ; and when this blessing had been
given them, and sworn to by the king, they looked for such
immediate results as should feed the hungry, clothe the
naked, abolish taxes, increase trade, and bring universal

196 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

prosperity. The confusion that reigned was epitomized in
a sentence by Charles Poerio, when he resigned from the
cabinet. " Among the people which shouts, the king who
deceives, and the ministers who do not know what they
are doing, there is no place for an honest man. "

We cannot trace the story of these days step by step ;
but the overpowering interest of this period, all over
Italy, cannot be overestimated. The whole Neapolitan
Peninsula was in a state of exaltation and hope, never
before known. The northern Italians and the Venetians
were now one with the Neapolitans in their determination
to expel the Austrians from their country; and a beautiful
vision of Italy, free and united, rose before all patriotic
eyes. Alas that it was but a mirage, — albeit a pro-
phetic one, — to become reality only after long years of
brave endurance and patriotic heroism.

Ferdinand could not ignore the War of Independence,
and on April 7 he issued a manifesto declaring his deter-
mination to work with his might for the liberation of
Italy. He called himself Italiano e soldato, — an Italian
and a soldier, — and despatched a regiment to join the
Tuscans, while he secretly did everything in his power to
frustrate the plans of the patriots. He constantly found
means to delay the departure of troops, and in the end
sent less than a third of the 40,000 he had promised.

Meantime the Neapolitan elections were held, and Par-
liament was to be opened on May 15. An uneasy feeling
prevailed among all classes. The Liberals did not trust
the king, and he was exulting in the thought that his day
of triumph was not far distant. His agents lost no oppor-
tunity to arouse the suspicions and passions of the people.
The soldiers were told that a constitutional government
should have no need of an army, while the press so abused
the soldiers that they were frequently insulted, and an
absolute feud was created between the army and the

FERDINAND IL 197

people. Other agents of Bomba told the people that their
religion was in danger, since the Liberals were as inimical
to the Pope and the Church as to the king. On the day of
S. Januarius the miracle did not take place as usual ; only
after a long delay and great anxiety was this favor of
Heaven vouchsafed. Thus, as May 15 approached, great
excitement prevailed in all classes, and the few true
patriots who had hoped for a better government suffered
untold anxieties. Difficulties arose about the form of
oath to be taken ; but finally, late on the evening of the
14th, Bomba consented that the Parliament should be
opened the next day, and the oath omitted until the
united Legislature should decide upon its form.

But the king clandestinely ordered out the troops, and
his agents incited the people to construct barricades ; these
were soon thrown up along the Toledo, and other prepa-
rations made for defence. The deputies attempted to
quiet the people with the news that the king had granted
their request. They then petitioned the king to withdraw
the troops, but he replied that it was not possible so long
as the barricades remained.

In the morning the deputies assembled at Mont-Oliveto,
and sent a proclamation to be signed by the king accord-
ing to his promise of the preceding evening. Bomba
had again changed his mind; in fact, he was secretly
preparing to leave Naples. Some of his effects were
already on board his ships, and he only delayed his
departure in order to attend a Mass to the Virgin.

Suddenly a shot was heard from the barricades, which
is believed to have been fired by a servant of Bomba's
uncle ; and at once the royal guards began firing on the
people. The national guards discharged their guns in
return, and a battle ensued between the royal and national
troops. The red flag, the signal of war, was hoisted on
the castles, and their guns fired on the city. The contest

198 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

soon became a massacre, in which old and young, men,
women, and children, were slaughtered alike. In the
palace Bomba suffered the keenest alarm until assured of
the success of his schemes. Then his courage revived,
and when the ministers begged him to stop the carnage
and order his troops to their quarters, he replied: "The
time for clemency is past, and the people must now
render an account for their actions."

The troops surrounded the palace in which the deputies
were assembled, and threatened them with death, in
answer to which they sent requests for the cessation of
the massacre to the authorities of Naples and to the
French admiral, whose ships were in the port. At even-
ing a message from the king desired them to withdraw;
this they refused to do without a written order, after
which they were threatened with forcible removal. They
then drew up a dignified protest against the monarch
" who had attacked the rights of the elected of the nation
by fire and sword, had stifled liberty, and betrayed the
Constitution. "

The most terrible slaughter continued. Human beings
of all conditions were dropped into wells, thrown from
windows, and stabbed in their beds ; many, but half mur-
dered, perished in their burning houses. The Palazzo
Gravina was sacked and burned, and the Lazzaroni went
from house to house, carrying off whatever they wished
of their contents, and then setting them on fire. A
search for Saliceti was perseveringly made, the assassins
saying that they had promised his head to Bomba, while
members of the national guard were shot in the fosse of
Castel Nuovo. From the moment that the king felt him-
self to be the master, he devoted his energies to lopping
off every offshoot of liberalism. The full terrors of his
vengeance were not known until years later, when Mr.
Gladstone called this period of Bourbon government

FERDINAND II. 199

" the negation of God. " In the end the former tyranny,
with all its worst features, was re-established.

A second election took place, and Parliament met only
to be prorogued without results, and finally adjourned to
February, 1849. On November 27, the king and royal
family, with 1,400 soldiers, proceeded to Gaeta to wel-
come Pius IX., who had fled from Rome after desert-
ing the national cause, and now sought protection from
Bomba, who, together with Cardinal Antonelli, completely
ruled his Holiness. A week later Carlo Poerio wrote :

" Our misery has reached such a climax that it is enough to
drive us mad. Every faculty of the soul revolts against the
ferocious reactionary movement, the more disgraceful from its
execrable hypocrisy. . . . The laws have ceased to exist ; the
statute is buried ; a licentious soldiery rules over everything,
and the press is constantly employed to asperse honest men.
. . . Another night of St. Bartholomew is threatened to all who
will not sell body and soul. We deputies are resolved to die
in our places in Parliament rather than sacrifice the rights of
the nation ; our last cry will be for the freedom of our coun-
try ; our blood will bear fruit."

These conditions, and worse, existed until the people
sank into an apathy induced by their helpless discourage-
ment. After the Austrian victory at Novara in March,
1849, Bomba felt himself secure in his place, and re-
sumed the infliction of such cruelties as we are weary of
reciting. The true story of the barbarism of Bomba and
his tools, in the middle of the nineteenth century,
could not be believed was it not attested to by men
whose truth cannot be doubted. Fortunately, many
patriots escaped into exile, and were able to keep the desire
and determination for liberty alive in the hearts of the
Neapolitans until a leader, or rather a savior, should
arise who could guide them to freedom.

200 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

It is a curious and interesting fact that the battle of
Novara, which apparently tightened the Austrian fetters
more surely than ever on Italy, should also have conferred
the power to act on Victor Emmanuel, — that last Duke of
Savoy, who came to the throne of Sardinia under the
shadow of a great humiliation, but was destined to accom-
plish a glorious work for his country, and to die the first
king of United Italy.

It has been related that as Victor Emmanuel rode from
the field of Novara, defeated and followed by the shat-
tered remnants of his regiments, he brandished his
sword towards the Austrians, and with a deep curse cried
out, Ma V Italia sard ! It matters little whether this tale
was precisely true or not, since we now know the strength
of his determination that Italy should be. From that very
night, when his father in his royal tent, with his generals
around him, presented his son to them, and said, " Gentle-
men, behold your sovereign," the thought of the young
Prince never wavered from his one aim, which was only
accomplished twenty-two years later, when he entered
Rome as King. When, as in his address to the last
Parliament which met at Florence, he could say : —

"With Rome as the capital of Italy, I have fulfilled my
promise, and crowned the enterprise which, three and twenty
years ago, was undertaken by my illustrious father. My heart,
as a king and as a son, is filled with a solemn exultation at hav-
ing to salute here, for the first time, representatives assembled
from all parts of our beloved country, and at being able to say
to them, Italy is free and united ; henceforth it depends upon
us alone to make her also great and prosperous."

We return to Naples, and to the circumstances which
led to the union of that kingdom with the government of
Sardinia and Central Italy. King Bomba survived Novara
ten years, and died in 1859. He was succeeded by his son,

FRANCIS II. AND GARIBALDI. 201

Francis II., another genuine Bourbon. To him Count
Cavour proposed an offensive and defensive alliance
with Piedmont; this the king declined, adhering to the
Austrian alliance with the obstinate stupidity of his
race.

It is doubtful if the part which Victor Emmanuel and
Cavour took in promoting the union of Naples with the
rest of Italy has yet been fully understood. No exact
history of political events of such importance is likely to
be written in the century in which they occur. There
were excellent reasons against their appearing as the
chief promoters of this movement, and yet they must have
fully sympathized with the Sardinian Chancellor of the
Exchequer, who said to the Neapolitan Minister of
Finance, "Either you or I must go; there is not room
for both of us in Italy."

But let the interior historical truth be what it may, it
is a delight to re-read the story, and imagine the experi-
ences of those days when Garibaldi entered Naples trium-
phantly and put Francis II. to flight before the forts had
been surrendered to him or the army of the cowardly
king had been defeated. There is no doubt that this
army could have driven Garibaldi and his " thousand of
Marsala" into the sea; but without encountering an
enemy Garibaldi reached Naples, and on September 7,
1860, drove slowly through the streets in an open carriage,
passing beneath the guns of the Castel Nuovo, while the
gunners awaited the order to fire on the intruders, — an
order that was never given. Delightful as the romance of
the story thus related is, a second thought proposes several
questions. Would Garibaldi have taken such foolhardy
risks had he not known that the Neapolitans were ready
to welcome him, that the king's troops were at Gaeta,
and that Victor Emmanuel and his army were ready to
give him all necessary support?

202 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

The government of Naples was not overcome ; it fell to
pieces like the card house of the child : it had no supports.
From the king to the lowest official all were corrupt,
demoralized; and the people were too degraded to have
opinions to defend. The few intelligent Neapolitans
were but too anxious that their peninsula should make a
part of the New Italy, and all who thought at all believed
that submission to Garibaldi was the first step towards
being ruled by Victor Emmanuel. All this, seen from to-
day, does not lessen the heroism of Garibaldi in making
his attack ; he could not have known that he could march
from Marsala to Naples with but a single skirmish. He
could neither have anticipated nor hoped that the Swiss
regiments and the Neapolitan soldiers would be but men
of straw before his red-shirted followers, and his action
was that of a brave and unselfish patriot. Conqueror as
he was, Garibaldi might have followed a course which
would have brought still other miseries to the debased and
pitiable Neapolitans. A less loyal and honest nature than
his would have been sorely tempted in his position.
There were those, among whom was Mazzini, who wished
him to declare a Republic at Naples, — an act which could
have brought no benefits, and would have delayed the
unification of his beloved Italy.

The king having fled, the government devolved on
Garibaldi, whether he would or no. He declared himself
Dictator; and as soon as this was known, adventurers and
Red Republicans flocked about him in large numbers.
Great as had been the misrule of Naples, it had never been
more deplorable than during the Dictatorship of Garibaldi,
and nothing now seems more absurd than his demand for
a continuance in office for two years, and the dismissal
of Count Cavour from his position at Turin. The wisdom
of Cavour and Victor Emmanuel brought about an imme-
diate convocation of Parliament, and a vote for the

VICTOR EMMANUEL II. 203

annexation of the Two Sicilies to the Kingdom of United
Italy without delay.

By the time that this was accomplished other circum-
stances had arisen which made it impossible for Garibaldi,
had he wished it, to oppose the decisions made at Turin.
Francis II. , after taking refuge in the fortress of Gaeta,
was inspired by the courage of his young queen to attempt
resistance to Garibaldi. His troops were massed at Gaeta
and Capua ; and insufficient as their action was, with no
competent general to command them, they were yet too
formidable a foe for Garibaldi to overcome. The Neapol-
itans afforded him no support ; his curious volunteer army
gradually diminished when the siege of Capua gave it
real work to do; and but for the advance of the Sar-
dinian army, the Dictator's position would soon have
been hopeless.

Three weeks after Garibaldi entered Naples, Ancona
surrendered to the army of Victor Emmanuel. The king
at once proceeded to that city, and issued a proclamation
to the people of the Two Sicilies, informing them of his
immediate approach. Taking command of his troops,
and crossing the Tronto, he advanced to the Bay of
Naples with no other hindrance than that of the almost
impassable roads. He was received joyfully. At Teauo
Garibaldi met him, and in spite of the embarrassments
that must have existed for both of them, they entered
Naples on November 7, and drove through the city, side
by side, in an open carriage. But Garibaldi well knew
that the enthusiasm of their reception was awakened by
the presence of the king; and early next morning he
quietly sailed for Caprera, his island home, asking only
that the officers of his forces should have the same rank
in the royal army that they had held in his. For himself
he refused the honors which the king would gladly have
conferred on him.

204 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

Victor Emmanuel left Naples before the New Year.
The fall of Gaeta and the surrender of the other fortresses
completed the annexation of the Two Sicilies to the Italian
Monarchy, and from that time there has been but one
sovereign and one court in all Italy. Thus has the desire
of Manzoni been fulfilled : —

" No more let place be found where barriers rise to sever
Italian from Italian soil henceforth forever I "

With all that has been accomplished for Italy under the
determined struggles and the reign of the Re galantuomo,
— the honest king, — as well as during the wise and
equable rule of Humbert I., there are still great needs in
the Neapolitan peninsula, as is patent to the most super-
ficial observer. But when we remember that here in
1863 ninety per cent of the population could neither read
nor write, and that not only their mental but also their
moral intelligence had been extinguished, we cannot
wonder that thirty-one years have not brought all the
desirable changes, — we may rather congratulate the
Neapolitans, and ourselves be grateful, that the leaven of
Freedom and Unity is doing its work; and that this land
of beauty, — whose spell has fascinated all who have come
within its reach, from the dawn of the ages until now, —
having attained the majority of its independence, is
rapidly gaining the stature of a stalwart manhood.

CHAPTER IX.

NEAPOLITAN LIFE.

THE beauty of Naples and its immediate surroundings
is best appreciated when approaching it from the
sea. As one passes between the two natural guardians of
the Bay of Naples, — the islands of Capri and Ischia, — he
sees in the glorious panorama before him numerous types
of the works of God and man. In the background are
distant snowy mountains, while near at hand the living
volcano towers over all. The blue Mediterranean is the
foreground and setting of the beautiful islands and the
city of Parthenope ; and the coast line, with its general
effect of a broad and sweeping curve, on closer examina-
tion reveals capes, straits, smaller bays, exquisite islands,
and grand, bold promontories.

In the middle ground is the great city, encircling the
base of Vesuvius on the east and stretching to the lovely
Bay of Pozzuoli on the west. Beyond Vesuvius, farther to
the east, rises the promontory proudly bearing Castellam-
mare, Vico, and Sorrento, with many clustering villages
amid its orange groves and vineyards, all guarded by the
friendly, verdant Monte Sant' Angelo, clothed with noble
chestnut-trees, while below, almost completing the curve,
the Punta di Campanella approaches the towering preci-
pices of Capri.

Do not hasten from this point of vantage ; drink in its
beauty and leave no portion of it unappreciated. All the
calm and repose that can be gathered from it, all the

206 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

impressions of the grandeur and loveliness of nature, of
blue sea and sky, of snowy peak and purple haze, can
scarcely inspire one with sufficient equanimity to take him
patiently through the yelling rabble which welcomes the
stranger to this city, the entrance to which suggests the
thought that to " see Naples " is to " die " of indignation
and disgust.

But if you can possess, your soul in patience, you will
soon reflect that, together with its natural beauty, the
people of Naples — the street-life of Naples, in fact — make
its chief interest. Modern Naples is not distinguished by
many splendid edifices, and few remaining monuments
recall the part the older Naples played in mediaeval history ;
but, as a great hive of a peculiar race, it has an engrossing
interest for one who feels that " the proper study of man-
kind is man." There is no reserve about Naples ; its char-
acteristics are apparent from the hour one enters it, and
" the tide, the bustle, the activity, thronging the streets
as 't were a festive day," ever stands boldly in relief and
makes its impression, however often one may visit it.

Naples is semi-Oriental, as would naturally result from
the mingling of races which has gone to make up the
present Neapolitan. The Marsii, Samnites, Lucanians,
Arabians, Greeks, and other peoples of antiquity, who long
ago dwelt here, were not extinguished by Roman conquest
nor by the dynasties of the Middle Ages. The descendants
of these ancient races mingled their blood with that of
Normans, Suabians, Proven9als, and Spaniards, and many
Neapolitan customs may easily be traced to an Eastern
origin. But the dignified seriousness of the true Oriental
and the proud reserve of the Spaniard have here taken on
an elasticity and brightness that is not seen in more East-
ern cities, and certainly not in those of the North and
West. Perhaps it may be said that Naples has no distinct
nationality ; it undoubtedly is a rendezvous for all nations,

NEAPOLITAN LITE. 207

and is much less Italian than many cities of Italy ; but the
love of the Neapolitan for his home is deeply rooted in his
nature, and no skies can be so blue, no stars so bright, no
sea so beautiful as those of his beloved Napoli.

In any city one must be properly introduced in order to
frequent " society ; " and as this requires time, the usual
traveller is deprived of much enjoyment and information
that greater leisure would afford. But a goodly knowledge
of " the people " of Naples may be gathered in the streets,
where they so largely spend their lives. I have already
spoken of the movement and excitement of the Toledo and
Santa Lucia which can scarcely escape the observation of
any visitor to Naples ; but among the many hundreds of
lesser Neapolitan streets there are many which excite and
gratify the curiosity of those who can endure the disagree-
able sights and offensive odors encountered in them. All
this is vastly improved, in some quarters of the city, since
I first treated my eyes and olfactories to its peculiarities ;
but there is still much to be desired in those districts where
the people, pure and simple, dwell. If the promenaders on
the Via Carracciolo are compared with those in the Mercato
or in the precincts of the Castel Nuovo, it is as if one
visited two different worlds.

In the quarters of the poorer classes the men actually
live in the street; they sleep there, and dress themselves
with perfect composure in the face and eyes of any who
choose to observe them. The women rarely sleep outside
their miserable homes, but they make their own toilets and
attend to the wants of their children in public ; they dress
their magnificent hair, and in the most friendly manner
perform for each other such offices as make them less con-
scious of their heads than they would otherwise be. Food
is occasionally cooked by the women, — usually in the street
before what they please to call their homes, but more fre-
quently it is bought at the cookshops, such as line the

208 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

Strada del Castello, where fish and cakes are sold for about
one cent; there are fish soups and snail soup for the small-
est of prices, and many kinds of cakes, among which the
anise-flavored tarallo is a favorite, as it was more than
eighteen centuries ago at Pompeii. Then there are the
frutti di mare, — shell-fish, sea-urchins, — so delicious to
all classes of Neapolitans, and the sausages flavored with
garlic, as well as cheese, and various edibles of which I
cannot give the proper names. In fact, these wretched
little booths and shops furnish a greater variety of penny
food than the poor of other lands are blessed with. Fruit
and many vegetables that can be eaten raw are consumed
in great quantities by these people, who rarely have meat,
and are not fond of it. These cooking-stalls are centres of
great crowds, and are conspicuous by reason of their pol-
ished copper vessels.

In truth, the arrangement of the street-stalls affords an
amount of color that constantly reminds one that he is
in the South, where man is in full harmony with the sur-
rounding nature in his love for rich and brilliant colors.
The caps and vests of the men and the handkerchiefs
of the women give a color-emphasis to every act of their
lives. Even the heavily laden mules and donkeys have
fringes of gayly colored wools and touches of brightness
here and there, while the horses and ponies that are har-
nessed into vehicles are decorated with gaudy little flags
and shining metals ; they wear both pagan and Christian
symbols ; horns and crescents, and figures of the Madonna
and various saints who are kindly disposed towards ani-
mals. These poor beasts have sore need of some protec-
tor, for the Neapolitans overload, overwork, and beat their
animals in a way that constantly calls out one's sympathy
and indignation. Force is added to the stick and lash by
yells and oaths, and the poor beasts drag loads that are
simply amazing.

NEAPOLITAN LIFE. 209

The goats driven through the streets twice a day by the
caprajo afford a curious spectacle. These little animated
dairies seem to know exactly what is expected of them, and
do it cheerfully ; they mount staircases or stand in door-
ways to be milked, and then serenely descend to the street,
where the milking operation also goes on, pails being let
down from the higher stories and drawn up with strings.
Probably the goats are better fed than other Neapolitan
beasts, and certainly better than thousands of human
beings here. Cows are also driven about the streets for
the same purpose as the goats, and milk is the favorite
beverage of the people. The idiomatic expression for pov-
erty is Passa la vacca, which means that there is no
money to buy milk ; a serious condition of things when the
enormous numbers of babies are considered. These poor
people marry at seventeen, or even younger, and their
houses literally swarm with children.

At the stall of the acquaiolo, — water-seller, — a variety
of drinks may be had at a penny a glass ; his lemonade is
freshly made for each customer, as is also true of the
poorest kind of water-seller, who carries his tub on his
back and his basket of lemons on his arm ; and though all
his patrons must drink from his one tumbler, the water is
cold and the juice is squeezed into it from a fresh lemon,,
while he demands but one farthing for the cooling draught.
It is curious to note how little these people relish plain
water ; even since the introduction of the Serino water,
always icy cold, with hundreds of jets running in the
streets, the Neapolitan wants his water flavored with some-
thing ; oftentimes it is the disagreeable sambuco, which is
like a nauseous drug, and is said to be distilled from the
elder shrub. The fact that Naples now has the finest
water-supply in the world has failed to change the drink-
ing tastes of its people ; but though much wine is pro-
duced near Naples, and the people are fond of going out to

14

210 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

the little country taverns on holidays, — where the wines
are purer and cheaper than after passing the barriers and
paying the tax, — few drunken men are seen, and the
Neapolitans at home may be called a sober and frugal
race. On Sunday afternoons the restaurants on the Posi-
lipo and at Fuorigrotta are lively places, filled with careless
crowds who sing and joke as if care had been banished
from their world.

In certain quarters, on fixed days, a sort of special sale
occurs, such as the rag-fair all about the Porta Nolana on
Monday and Friday mornings. At four o'clock the public
readers gather at the Villa del Popolo, where an assem-
blage of rag-pickers and other worthy people who thirst for
knowledge pay two centesimi each to hear passages from
the classic poets. At other times these curious intellectual
symposia are held outside the Porta Capuana. In short,
he who knows his Naples can find what he requires, from
his food and clothes to the writer of his love-letters, and
the quacks who will sell him nostrums, in the proper pre-
cinct, at the accustomed " office hours " of these various
professionals.

Formerly each trade had its separate quarter, and streets
were named accordingly, as the Street of the Knife-grind-
ers, Via del Coltellari. Recent changes have somewhat
interfered with this custom ; but the little Square of the
Goldsmiths — Piazza degli Orefici — retains its old aspect
as well as any of these trade quarters. Here the women
of Naples and of the country buy the pearls, coral, and
amber that they love to wear, as well as quaint and curi-
ously wrought amulets and the votive offerings in silver to
be given to the Madonna ; these last are frequently in the
shape of the hands and feet that are believed to have been
cured of their deformity and ills by the Blessed Virgin,
quite regardless of any scientific treatment they may
have had.

NEAPOLITAN LIFE. 211

The peasant jewelry is growing less and less distinctive.
When each district had its special costume, as I had the
happiness of seeing, and even the ornaments revealed the
birthplace of the wearer, the peasants were quaint and
interesting as they can never be again. Thanks to their
Southern nature, their love of color still redeems their dress
from that ugliness seen in our own country, in England,
and many other lands, which seems to work its spell alike
on the Japanese, the Neapolitan, and even the women of
Cairo and Constantinople. It is only on rare occasions,
such as high festivals, that a few of the fascinating old
costumes are still seen on women who are no longer young.

Near the cathedral, as in the neighborhood of St. Peter's
at Rome, is a street where only crosses, rosaries, and kin-
dred objects are sold, while certain other quarters are
inhabited by dealers in second-hand clothing and a great
variety of half-used articles.

The homes of these poorer Neapolitans are called Sassi,
and are, in reality, little windowless shops with no chim-
neys. They are not devoted to the comfort and needs of
the family, but to the trade of the man, who in summer
time usually draws a mattress into the street for his own bed,
while any number of human beings, — frequently a dozen, —
of all ages and both sexes, take their repose on the enor-
mous bed which stands at the back of the basso, or on a
loft above it. These bedsteads with their mattresses make
the entire fortune of a bride of the working-classes, and
cost about twenty dollars. The other furnishing of a basso
is usually supplied by the husband ; there is always an
image of the Madonna on the wall, before which a light is
religiously kept burning ; a few rough pieces of furniture,
frequently home-made, and a charcoal stove make up the
conveniences which are deemed necessary. The stove is
often a necessity for the work of the man, — as the occu-
pants of the lassi are generally mechanics, — but is also

212 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

used for the cooking of the family, which is little more
than a vegetable soup flavored with garlic, and eaten with
the coarse bread which they buy. Maccaroni, which the
world at large seems to consider as the chief food of the
Neapolitan race, is far too expensive for these people, and
is rarely tasted by them. But how fond of it they are !
and when prepared with pomi d'oro — tomatoes — it is the
most delicious food that they can imagine.

Their marketing is done in a primitive fashion. A pado-
lano driving a mule on which hang two huge panniers,
filled with vegetables, arouses the whole street through
which he passes with frightful bellowings. He sells his
wares for the smallest possible prices ; five or six sous will
buy what will make soup for as many persons. As soon as
one pannier is emptied, he begins filling it with manure
from the piles of refuse in the streets. The goats, dogs,
cats, and fowls supplement the work of the padolano as
scavengers, and but for them how could the scavenging be
done in alleys where no cart can go ?

The door of the basso is always open by day, frankly dis-
closing all that takes place within ; but it must be carefully
closed at night, to guard against thieves. What must the
atmosphere be ? Certainly the women are patient and un-
selfish when they do not occasionally fasten the men inside
the basst and sleep in the fresh air themselves.

Great numbers of Neapolitans gain their living as fisher-
men, and do this at the hardest; for in spite of the many
kinds of fish which inhabit the bay, the great consumption
of fish in Naples makes an over demand, even on this fruit-
ful water. Few fishermen gain anything beyond a meagre
living, and that is toiled for beneath the scorching sun and
in spite of the debilitating sirocco in summer and in face
of the keen winds from the snow mountains in winter.

The different varieties of fish caught here necessitate
many methods of fishing, and even the little that one may

NEAPOLITAN LIFE. 213

see of them from the deck of the steamer or pleasure-boat
is interesting. The taking of the frutti di mare is most
fatiguing labor. It is done with a long pole to which are
fastened a rake and a bag ; the rake, pushed down with
force, pulls up a heavy weight of earth and sweeps it into
the bag ; when raised to the boat the shell-fish are picked
out, and the remaining earth thrown back into the water.
The best wages earned at this hard work do not exceed a
dollar a day, and it cannot be followed too long, as the men
are frequently injured by the continual strain of it. The
sea-eggs or sea-urchins are more easily taken, but are not
so profitable. Anchovy-fishing in the spring is very ex-
citing. The boats go out some distance and lie to ; sud-
denly a school of porpoises appears, seemingly in great
excitement ; the boatmen quickly row into the midst of the
porpoises, and cast their nets around the spot where the
school is feeding ; the porpoises get out of the way as
quickly as possible, and after a good deal of confusion the
nets are hauled in, filled with a mass of anchovies, and
hours of patient labor are required to disentangle them.
Sardines are also plenty in the spring, especially in the
Bay of Pozzuoli ; these are taken best at night.

We know of a single net in which ten different kinds of
fish were drawn up together, and were told that this is not
uncommon ; but alas ! many of them are only fit for the
soup-pot and bring the fishermen little money.

All Neapolitans are superstitious, but the implicit belief
of the fishermen in ghosts and black spirits is amazing.
They try to find an antidote to their fears of the dangerous
spirits which infest the coasts and seas in the strictness
of their religious observances. Whenever a new boat is
finished, an altar is raised on the forecastle and a priest
blesses the craft ; if bad luck follows a fisherman, a priest
is brought to break the spell and exorcise the evil spirit ;
and the numbers of churches dedicated to saints who favor

214 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

fishermen bear witness to the liberality of this class in the
large collections of votive offerings. Almost every Marina
has its church, and an annual festa is held, when the whole
Marina is illuminated ; these occasions afford an excellent
opportunity for studying the costumes and manners of the
poorer classes, by whom they are principally attended. At
Massa, on August 15, the festa is unusually pretty, and the
women seen there are famed for their beauty.

The people we have described are as poor and wretched
in appearance as any that the usual traveller is likely to
see in Naples, and it would seem to require great patience
to be cheerful, as they are, in the midst of their poverty ;
but when compared with many thousands who exist here,
they are absolutely wealthy and luxurious. The appalling
misery and degradation of the very poorest Neapolitans ex-
ceeds such conditions in other European cities, and cannot
be fully described in language that is not too expressive to
be acceptable. It is estimated that a quarter of a million
of human beings in Naples maintain their lives of absolute
want in a manner that cannot be explained. Thousands
and thousands have no claim on any home whatever ; they
crowd into dens and kennels such as decent beasts would
refuse to enter ; they have no occupation ; coming naked
into the world, they may be said to leave it in the same
condition, for, until recently, they were dropped into a hole
in the cemetery for the poor, in which all who had died on
the same day — .most of them with no garments whatever
— were hidden from the face of the earth.

Eight years ago, in 1876, the Senatore, Professore Pas-
quale Villari, was instrumental in making researches which
divulged horrors not before imagined, in the lives of these
people, as may be read in his " Southern Letters." Thou-
sands of children who have never known father or mother
live chiefly on the refuse of the streets, and sleep heaven
only knows where. They are seen curled up on church

NEAPOLITAN LIFE. 215

steps, or in strange corners of the market, and even in
empty fruit-boxes and fish-baskets ; and sad as this appears,
they are to be envied beside many others who live in the
fondaci — called, by Dr. Axel Munthe, " the most ghastly
human dwellings on the face of the earth."

These buildings are large, several stories in height, hav-
ing fifteen or more rooms on a floor, and are entirely with-
out windows. They are built in the vilest locations, off
dark alleys, while in the court the cesspool and well are
much too nearly related. In the court, too, are goats,
cows, mules, and other animals in the dirtiest condition ;
while odors from rotting tripe and other unmentionable
offal, and from fish that has been condemned by people
who are better off, rise and fill the otherwise stifling rooms
where from one to three hundred — possibly more — human
beings exist. The details of fondaci life are absolutely un-
speakable. Inside balconies furnish the only light and air
to the apartments, and the corner rooms are always dark ;
old rags hang about everywhere, and different families
occupying a single room can only make a pretence of sepa-
rating themselves from each other by suspending their
miserable garments on strings.

Public attention was called to these conditions in 1876,
when Senatore Villari, who went to London for the pur-
pose of seeing the poor, and visited the very worst quarters
where they live, declared that the conditions in London, un-
speakably vile as they were, were still better than in the cor-
responding precincts of Naples. From this time attempts
were made to mend matters, and in 1877 the municipality
gave land to a co-operative society, which built excellent
tenement-houses on spots where fondaci had stood. Other
good houses were built in the following years ; but, alas, the
inhabitants of the old quarters did not get them. They were
filled by a much superior class at such rents as entirely
defeated the supposed objects for which they were erected ;

216 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

and a part of the old fondaci being gone, those that re-
mained were crowded in an inconceivable manner.

In 1884, when the cholera raged furiously in Naples, and
many thousand of the wretched funnaehere died, King
Humbert went himself to visit them, and saw such horrors
as he had never imagined. He stood beside the stricken
wretches in their awful abodes, and promised that the poor
should be better housed in future. But even monarchs
cannot work their will ; and these miserables now complain
that, though the king tried to keep his promises, as he
certainly did, the signori have kept the new houses for
themselves. The truth seems to be that officials and con-
tractors are much the same the world over, that red tape
abounds everywhere, and that there are many ways of find-
ing how not to do what straightforward honesty requires.
Thus, although the king put his seal to a decree for the
better housing of the poor in Naples in 1885, and a gift
of fifty million francs and a loan of the same amount were
made for this purpose, in the autumn of 1892 very little
had been accomplished, and the greater crowding of the
fewer fondaci even made matters worse than ever.

Meantime the Serino water has been given freely to all
the people of Naples, and some improvements have been
made in the sewers. A more decent method of burial for
the poor has also been inaugurated in the new cemetery,
where each one can now have a coffin and a grave for
eighteen months at least ; but even this cemetery, but three
years in use, is already very full, so great is the mortality
among these wretched creatures. The Royal Commissary,
in his report in the autumn of 1892. says : —

" For six months a famished mob, turba famelica, have
thronged the stairs of the municipality, — children of both sexes,
utterly destitute, who must of necessity go to the bad ; mothers
clasping dying babies to their milkless breasts ; widows fol-
lowed by a tribe of almost naked children ; aged and infirm of

Santa Lucia.

NEAPOLITAN LIFE. 217

both sexes, hungry and in tatters, — and this spectacle, which
has wrung my heart, reveals but a small portion of the preva-
lent destitution. One can but marvel at the docile nature of
the lower orders of Neapolitans, who bear with such resignation
and patience their unutterable sufferings. One cannot think
without shuddering of this winter, which overtook whole fam-
ilies without a roof over their heads, without a rag to cover
them, without the slightest provision for their maintenance."

A little later the Commissary insisted that housing
should be provided for fifteen hundred people, no room to
cost more than a dollar a month. Even under this call
many people got the advantage of these tenements who
had never lived in fondaci. However, a few funnachere
were, for the first time in their lives, in clean and whole-
some habitations ; and still later, two thousand more, this
time of the very poorest, were taken from their squalor
and translated into decency. It would seem that these
changes must continue ; that so many having found what
can be, others will insist that it must be.

It is only fair to say that the poor people have often
been much opposed to changes that looked to their welfare.
In Santa Lucia there was great opposition to the widening
of the street and the making of the broad quay, now so
much enjoyed. The luciani scorned the new stalls for the
shell-fish traders, and prophesied that these, as well as the
new houses near the Castel dell' Ovo, would be carried out
to sea by the first strong wind. The fondaci of this quarter
are not quite so filthy and crowded as those of some other
neighborhoods, and the people are far more difficult to deal
with. They declare that their houses shall stand, and that
the rents of the new ones are too dear ; and thus far they
have had their own way, unless some change has been
made very recently.

It seems unnecessary to describe the best portions of
Naples, which must attract and charm all who visit them.

218 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

What city boasts a drive by the sea so beautiful as the
Carracciolo from the Castel dell' Ovo to Mergellina ? Other
charming drives are the Via Tasso, the road to Posilipo,
the Corso Vittore Emmanuele, and the Yomero. The Corso
Garibaldi, the Strada di Foria, and the Via del Duomo are
fine, new streets. An interesting episode is connected with
the making of the latter. It was laid out in such a way as
to preserve the cathedral and the church of S. Filippo
Neri, — the Gerolimini, — and by this method the Palazzo
Cuomo, the only remaining palace of the fifteenth century,
must have been sacrificed had not Prince Filangieri had it
carefully taken down, stone by stone, and rebuilt on the
side of the new street. The prince completed his noble
generosity by filling the palace with a good collection of
medieval objects, pictures, and Italian majolicas, which
make an interesting museum, and presenting it to the city.

The Villa Nazionale, a delightful fashionable resort, has
an unusual attraction in the magnificent aquarium, which,
under the care of Dr. Dohrn, and by the generous support of
his government, as well as that of Italy and of Great Brit-
ain, has been made the finest and most important aquarium
in the world. It affords splendid opportunities for study
to naturalists and students from all quarters of the globe ;
its library and laboratory, its steam, sailing, and rowing
boats, and many other needful equipments, make it an ideal
place for the investigation of the wonderful varieties of the
life of the sea which exist in the Mediterranean. The spot
where the Aquarium now is was probably the foulest beach
in Europe, perhaps in the world, before the laying out of
the Via Carracciolo.

When I remember the Naples of other days, it seems as
if fairies had already waved their wands over the city to
good purpose. The new palaces and houses on the east
and west of the city are fine ; and different societies and
institutions have erected convenient houses for a class that

NEAPOLITAN LIFE. 219

before inhabited unhealthy and undesirable quarters. These
are seen in the Rione Vasto at Capuano ; and in the Rione
Arenaccia Orientale one is amazed at the improvement.
In the Rione Vomero Arenella, to which cable railways
now extend, the population has increased surprisingly.
One happy improvement is in the trams and cable roads
which replace to a great extent the dirty vehicles of other
days, dragged by horses which excited one's pity, unmer-
cifully overloaded and driven as they were.

When other kindred improvements are made, — when wide
streets are cut through the city from east to west, when
the scheme for arterial drainage is carried out and the
sewage conducted twelve miles away, — and many other con-
templated betterments perfected, Naples will easily be the
most beautiful city in the world ; it will be the Paradise
the great German poet found it, and we believe that the
" devils " by which it was inhabited in his day will have
disappeared.

The most extensive and splendid edifice which has been
erected in Naples within the last decade is the Galleria
Umberto I. Di Mauro, a Roman architect, made the plan,
which is magnificently carried out in every detail. It is
said to have cost more than four million dollars, a large
sum having been contributed by the municipality. Its
exterior is not so fine as it would have been had not two
churches and several private houses been incorporated in
it. But the interior is most effective ; the centre octagon,
beneath a glass dome rising nearly two hundred feet above
it, is very imposing. The decorations in stucco and gilding
are fine, especially when seen by the electric light, and the
angels in copper, below the dome, are artistic and pleasing,
as well as the statues and reliefs about the main entrance
in the Strada S. Carlo.

At No. 8, in the gallery, a presepe is seen that is said
to have belonged to King Charles III. The antiquarian

220 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

Varelli superintended its arrangement here ; and it is
interesting as illustrating a custom of the fifteenth cen-
tury, when in all churches and many private houses a pre-
sepe was erected at Christmas time. It represents the
infant Jesus in the manger and the adoration of the Magi,
as well as scenes of Neapolitan life in addition. All Nea-
politans are fond of this realistic representation of the Na-
tivity ; and a really old presepe, like this one, is well worth
seeing on account of the curious historical costumes.

As yet the Galleria has not been successfully rented. In
fact, the Neapolitans love a more open place in which to
buy and sell ; and this Galleria, like that of the Principe di
Napoli, opposite the Museo Nazionale, is little frequented.

There are two hundred edifices in Naples devoted to
charitable institutions, having an annual income of eight
or ten millions of francs ; but abuses have crept into the
management of these charities which give the benefit of a
large part of this money to governors, deputies, councillors,
and priests.

The Albergo dei Poveri, before mentioned, has a family
of but two thousand poor, for the care of whom more than
seven hundred persons are employed, while the children
have scarcely a change of clothing. The schools of the
institution have been sadly neglected, and one well-informed
writer says : —

"One governor succeeds another; one sells five thousand
square metres of land to a building society for eleven lire per
metre, at a time when in certain portions of the city land is
worth three or four hundred lire. His successor brings an
action against the purchaser, and the costs are enormous. An-
other has farmed out the rents to some collector at far too low
a price ; another action is brought. The chemist is proved to
have substituted flour for quinine, Dover's powders without
opium, and is suspended. But the corpo delicto, i. e., the
analyzed medicines have disappeared ; the chemist will come

Galleria Umberto I.

NEAPOLITAN LIFE. 221

off triumphant, and the Albergo del Poveri will have to pay
costs and damages, and possibly to meet an action for libel.
Of course there is a deficit in the budget ; and this will con-
tinue to increase, whoever may be governor, as long as the
system remains, and as long as places are created for the pro-
teges of Senator A, Deputy B, or Councillor C."

The Foundling Hospital, Casa del Trovatelli, adjoins the
church of the Annunziata. Here the boys are kept until
they are seven years old, and the girls can remain as long
as they choose, finding employment as house-servants or
as seamstresses and embroiderers. Some of the customs
of this institution are admirable, — such as giving the boy
babies out to board ; the Neapolitans regard them as the
children of the Blessed Mother, and fully believe the legend
that the Madonna dell' Infrascata leaves her pedestal at
night to visit her children, and punishes the foster mother
who neglects them ; thus it results that the foundling fares
better than the baby of the home.

Formerly the foundlings were pushed through an aper-
ture in the wall, where a nun waited to receive them ; but
that having been closed since 1875, they are now received
inside the hospital, where all possible information about
them is obtained and recorded ; whatever clothing or orna-
ments these babies have are carefully put aside in the
hope that some day they may be claimed and identified by
means of these articles ; but this occurs very rarely. The
foundlings are at once baptized, and take the name of the
saint of the day on which they are brought to the hospital ;
they are given the surname of the Governor of the Hos-
pital, and as the governors are changed each year one
easily reckons the age of these children ; thus Anna Celotta
was born on St. Anna's Day in the year when Celotta was
governor of the Casa dei Trovatelli. At times the mortal-
ity in this hospital has reached more than ninety per cent ;
but the Serino water and some other improvements have

222 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

made its death-rate considerably less. A much needed
maternity hospital has been opened in connection with the
Foundling, and is admirably conducted.

A few years ago it was found that the enormous Hospital
for Incurables was shamefully mismanaged. Even the food
for the patients was stolen by the employe's, while there
were not sheets enough to make up the beds, although the
purser's report included a" charge of five thousand dollars
for linen. Special commissioners were appointed ; and not
only has this hospital been thoroughly cleaned and reno-
vated in various ways, but new regulations are enforced
which will prevent the recurrence of these abuses if only
they can be maintained.

The new laws looking to the better management of
charitable institutions in Naples have not had time to work
all the good expected from them ; but much has been ac-
complished, and the charities under private control amply
prove that an immense alleviation of the sufferings of the
poor ought to result from the revenues of the endowed
institutions. The Lina Hospital, founded by the Duchess
Ravaschiera in memory of her daughter, is a delightful
example of good management. Eighty beds are occupied
by children in need of surgical operations. The Duchess
does not leave its conduct entirely to others. She some-
times lives and sleeps there ; and the affection of the poor
little sufferers for " Mamma Duchessa" is most touching.

Twenty thousand dollars a year supports two hundred
and eighty-five boarders, and but a few less day scholars,
in the Asylum for Girls orphaned by the cholera in 1884.
This is a private charity, and makes rich returns for the
money expended, as the old, endowed institutions ought to
do. The girls are all taught a trade, and fitted to support
themselves well.

The crying want of Naples is schools. It already has
some elementary and industrial schools which are excel-

NEAPOLITAN LIFE. 223

lent, but many more are needed. The Tstituto Casanova is
named for its founder ; established in 1862, it was carried
on as a private work eighteen years, when its importance
and excellence were recognized by a government grant of
a large building and eleven new workshops with land for
gymnastic exercises, and other similar purposes. A sin-
gular method is followed here, which is thus described by
Mrs. Mario : —

" The boys for the first two years, or until they are nine,
attend the elementary schools exclusively ; then they or their
parents choose a trade, and as soon as their work becomes
profitable they are paid a certain sum, fixed by the master-
workman and the director of the establishment, who receives
the pay of the boys weekly, and gives half to them and half to
the establishment."

The graduates from this school are sought by all the
workshops of Naples. A similar school is that founded by
Signer Florenzano in the old convent of S. Antonio a
Tarsia, where the boys are taken from the worst slums,
and number about three hundred. This school is not so
rich as it ought to be ; it makes a splendid return for the
money spent. Could Signer Florenzano and a few other
men of his sort command the means, they would soon
revolutionize the street life of Naples to the inestimable ad-
vantage of its boys. The excellent private charity schools
for the blind merit high praise, and shine by contrast with
the corresponding school of the Albergo dei Poveri.

I have the pleasure of knowing a lady who has been
connected with the Victor Emmanuel International Insti-
tute— formerly Froebel Institute — about twenty years.
This school was founded by Julia Salis Schwabe in 1860.
She was a devoted admirer of Garibaldi, and began this
work in response to his appeal for the education of the
poor in Southern Italy. Senatore Villari undertook its care,

224 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

and the old college of S. Aniello was devoted to its uses.
There are day schools — infant and elementary classes —
as well as a boarding-school for girls. Some children who
can afford to pay attend these schools, and the way in
which the " haves " care for the " have nots " is very curi-
ous and interesting. They endow them with their cast-
off clothes, and by the tuition they pay furnish soup for
four hundred daily. The pupils here are being admirably
trained as teachers of the Pestalozzian system. As my
friend — whose home is in Munich — has told me of this
and similar work which is being done in Naples, I have
felt that there is a promise of better things for the pez-
zenti — miserables — and all the wretchedness one sees,
which is so out of harmony with the wealth of beauty
which the Almighty has lavished on the location and sur-
roundings of the city of Parthenope.

The industries of Naples are far too few and unimpor-
tant for the size of its population. We have spoken of the
fisheries ; perhaps market-gardening is equally important,
and employs women as well as men. The cameo-cutting
in such shells as are always for sale at S. Lucia, is almost
a thing of the past. It has greatly deteriorated in design
and execution, although the Museum offers so rich a store
of splendid antique cameos, — copies of which, if well
made, would be valuable, even in shell.

The tortoise-shell industry is almost a specialty of Naples ;
at least, the finest of this work is made here and in great
quantities. The wages paid the tortoise-shell workers are
better than formerly, although the frightful rooms — at the
top of the fondaci in order to get light — where these beau-
tiful objects are made, are totally unfit for human habita-
tions. The exquisite lorgnettes, combs, brooches, and other
articles in tortoise-shell are produced by a veritably out-
rageous " sweating system."

Bronze factories have been established here recently, in

NEAPOLITAN LITE. 225

which the cera perduta — wasted wax — method is carried
to perfection. The antique bronzes existing in Naples
make this casting especially suitable here, and it promises
to be an important industry in the future. Some English
firms, like that of Sir W. Armstrong & Co., cannon and
armor-plate manufacturers, have erected works at Cantiere
Armstrong and in other locations, which have been a boon
in the employment afforded in their erection, and have no
doubt somewhat checked emigration. But the silk-trade of
Italy is much less than formerly ; the adherence to old
modes of labor by preference, and the poverty which would
prevent buying improved machines and implements in any
case, combine to hinder the progress here which has been
reached elsewhere ; and as one becomes better acquainted
with what Aunt Ophelia, in " Uncle Tom's Cabin," would
have termed " real shiftlessness " in almost all industrial
directions, he becomes convinced that any greater pros-
perity is somewhat distant. But, again, when we reflect
upon the short time that has elapsed since Naples was born,
so to speak, — since she was given anything that could in any
sense be called her freedom, — we must admit that any criti-
cism of her conditions should be made in true charity and
with friendly caution.

15

CHAPTER X.

NEAPOLITAN LIFE — continued.

"T) EFERENCE has been made to the superstitions of the
A-V fishermen ; but what Neapolitan, from the lowest to
the highest, is not superstitious ? The usual harmless cre-
dulities that are met all over the world exist here also ; but
belief in the evil eye, fascination, the jettatura, is all-pre-
vailing. The theory is that certain people have the quality
of fatal fascination, and exert it both intentionally and in-
voluntarily on any person or object on which they cast their
eye. How to avoid this danger is a serious problem ; and
so sincere is the belief in this power and its prevalence,
that almost every ill that can possibly happen is attributed
to the evil eye. Children are thought to be especially sus-
ceptible to this influence ; and no matter how scantily clothed
and fed the little Neapolitans may be, they have some sort
of amulet to protect them from the jettatura, almost with-
out exception.

If one loses anything, it is supposed that a fascinator has
cast an eye on it ; or if a fragile article falls and is broken,
it has been done by the power of a jettatore ; in fact, no
one who accepts this theory can be comfortable without the
proper amulet or charm, which performs its office by fixing
the attention of the evil eye, and thus receiving the fatal
glance which would be so dangerous to the wearer of the
amulet. The medals of saints and Madonnas are not
charms ; they are an expression of religious devotion to the
Blessed Mother and the patron saint of the wearer. Amu-
lets have quite different forms, the most common being the

NEAPOLITAN LIFE. 227

horn of the antelope or its antlers, a sprig of rue, a crescent
moon with a face in it, a hand with the index and little
finger extended and the other fingers doubled down. They
are made of silver, coral, or gold, and are worn in some con-
spicuous place about the person.

Amulets in the form of horns and crescents are put on
animals as religiously as they are taken to be blessed on
S. Anthony's Day, when the certificate of the blessing is
tied on to the creature to remain as long as the wear and
tear of its life permits.

The most curious and interesting amulet is made of silver,
and called the cimaruta, — a sprig of rue, — which combines
seven different symbols. The rue was called the " herb o'
grace " in the old days, and various magical qualities were
ascribed to it, as in " Paradise Lost," when the Archangel
Michael wished to have Adam clear of sight : " Then purged
with euphrasy and rue the visual nerve, for he had much to
see." Rue was used in England as a brush from which to
sprinkle holy water in the benediction of houses ; it was
held in the hand by criminals when executed, and hung be-
tween the judge's bench and the prisoner's bar to ward off
gaol-fever, and its medicinal properties were well known to
midwives. The sprig of rue may be said to make the foun-
dation of the cimaruta; and combined with it are the ser-
pent, the half-moon, the key, the heart, the hand, and the
horn. The serpent, which has symbolized evil for many
ages and peoples, is at times the symbol of wisdom, and
again of JEsculapius or healing; it would seem that it
must have the latter quality when used in this wonderful
amulet. The half-moon I suppose to be for luck, as it is
all over the world and with ourselves, when we courtesy to
it and endeavor to give it our right shoulder, or turn our
silver over as we see it. The key and the heart are sym-
bolical of prudence and affection ; while the hand grasping
a horn — which frequently makes an amulet with no other

228 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

combination — symbolizes strength holding fast on luck, of
which the horn has long been the symbol.

It is curious to note that not one of these emblems is
essentially Christian. Although the serpent is sometimes
placed beneath the feet of the Virgin Mary, it symbolized
evil in the earliest ages; and though the key is now given to
S. Peter, it was also in the hands of Isis and Diana. It is
probable that the entire form of this amulet is an absolute
survival from ante-Christian days. Two other amulets of
similar character — the sirena, the siren, and the cavallo
marine, or sea-horse — are much in favor with Neapolitan
peasants. As Naples was founded by and bore the name
of the siren Parthenope, according to the precious old
legends, it is fitting that her likeness should be thought to
protect one from evil ; and the figure of a crowned siren
who holds her two fishy tails in her hands so that the fins
on the ends are above her head, while five little tinkling
bells hang beneath her, is a representation that suggests
Parthenope with all needful exactness.

The sea-horse amulet — cavallo marino — is also a relic
of past ages, since one was found at Herculaneum, and the
horse itself is frequently repeated in the pictures at Pompeii.
There are amulets shaped like the sea-horse alone, with its
accustomed fish-tail, that are almost exact reproductions
of the little sea-horse so numerous on the coast of Baia3.
Other amulets have winged horses with little bells hung
below, as in the sirena ; and the most elaborate of all have
a siren seated on two winged horses: the heads being
turned to the right and left, the two backs coming together,
afford a sort of cradle-seat to the goddess, the wings rising
on each side of her; she holds her tails high above her
head, as usual, and a bell is hung in the mouth of each
horse, while a third is suspended from the bottom of the
amulet. When made by skilful workmen, these amulets
are very beautiful.

NEAPOLITAN LIFE. 229

The amulets of the very poor are not expensive ; a piece
of rock salt is often tied on the neck of a child, and the
palms blessed at Easter time are burned to ward off evil.
Whenever Vesuvius is in eruption, every possible amulet is
in request ; and the people, kneeling in the streets, recite
litanies with fervor, while the clergy carry the Blessed
Sacrament and sacred relics through the city. But the
moment that the danger is thought to be over, the usual
confusion prevails ; the Babel of singing, quarrelling, curs-
ing, the fighting, gambling, and dancing, are resumed with
new zest, in consequence of the time that has been lost.

Another curious custom of the Neapolitans, which is
observed in Lent, is frequently noticed by strangers. A
little figure hangs on a wire suspended across the street or
alley, from the upper windows. In the figure are stuck
seven feathers, — six black and one white. This figure
indicates that the inhabitants have had no dispensation in
fulfilling their Lenten duties ; each Sunday a black feather
is pulled out, the white one remaining until Easter, and in
the end the little figure is filled with explosives and blown
to atoms.

The gestures of the Neapolitans make a language almost
as expressive as speech, and much has been written of it.
The most common gesture is that in which the hand is in
the position of the amulet already described. That it has
long been in use is proved by its representation in Pom-
peian pictures. The modern Neapolitan uses this gesture
incessantly : first and foremost, when he sees a person
whom he believes might, could, would, or should cast the
evil eye on him ; if he receives a message, letter, or tele-
gram that disturbs him. If a slight accident happens, he
makes it at the person who happens to be nearest to him ;
or he makes it if he is jostled, or if any one steps on his
toe, or even if he sees a person looking at him in the street.
Originally this gesture was insulting ; but now, except when

230 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

one is angry, it is simply a custom, and used much in the
same manner as the priest or nun makes the sign of the
cross. Stamer, in his " Dolce Napoli," thus defines some
signs of the gesture language : —

" An outward wave of the hand, adieu ; an inward, come ;
a downward, stop. The thumb pointed backwards, look ; to
the lips, with a slight toss of the head, drinking ; passed across
the forehead as though wiping away perspiration, fatigue. The
index finger drawn across the mouth, anger ; across the clenched
teeth, defiance ; rapping the closed fingers against the lips,
eating ; passing the extended index and thumb in front of the
mouth, hunger ; twisting the end of the mustache, is n't it
good to eat ; a backward wave of the hand beneath the chin
and a simultaneous toss of the head, not at any price, no, noth-
ing ; closing the fingers consecutively with a drawing motion
of the hand, thievery ; thumb and forefinger rubbed together,
money, as with us ; a prolonged shrug of the shoulders and
both arms drawn back, gesture deprecatory ; the open fingers
of both hands crossed in front of the face to represent bars,
prison ; and so on ad infinitum."

But the most wonderful effect of gesture is seen in the
dance of the tarantella, which originated in the old belief
that the bite of the tarantula caused a peculiar madness
that could only be cured by music and dancing. The
ancient customs, of which the dance is a remnant, were
very interesting, and remind one of the Bacchic festivals.
An account of this ceremony is given by Mr. Keppel
Craven : —

" Musicians, expert in the art, are summoned, and the
patient, attired in white, and gaudily adorned with various
colored ribands, vine leaves, and trinkets of all kinds, is led
out, holding a drawn sword in her hand, on a terrace, in the
midst of her sympathizing friends ; she sits with her head
reclining on her hands, while the musical performers try the
different chords, keys, tones, and tunes that may arrest her

NEAPOLITAN LIFE. 231

wandering attention, or suit her taste or caprice. . . . The
suflerer usually rises to some melancholy melody in a minor
key, and slowly follows its movements by her steps ; it is then
that the musician has an opportunity of displaying his skill by
imperceptibly accelerating the time, till it falls into the merry
measure of the pizzica, which is, in fact, that of the tarantella
or national dance, only that in the composition of the tarentine
air greater variety, and a more polished and even scientific
style, is observable. She continues dancing to various succes-
sions of these tunes as long as her breath and strength allow,
occasionally selecting one of the bystanders as her partner, and
sprinkling her face with cold water, a large vessel of which is
always placed near at hand. While she rests at times, the
guests invited relieve her by dancing by turns after the fashion
of the country ; and when, overcome by resistless lassitude and
faintness, she determines to give over for the day, she takes
the pail or jar of water, and pours its contents over her person
from her head downwards. This is the signal for her friends
to undress her and convey her to bed ; after which the rest of
the company endeavor to further her recovery by devouring a
substantial repast, which is always prepared for the occasion."

The present popular dance, which is the outcome of the
older and called by the same name, is most exciting and
interesting. Stamer's account of it reproduces so per-
fectly what 1 have seen, and is so concisely put, that I
will quote it : —

uThe tarantella is a choreographic love-story, the two
dancers representing an enamored swain and his mistress. It
is the old theme, * the quarrels of lovers are the renewal of
love.' Enraptured gaze, coy side-look ; gallant advance, timid
retrocession ; impassioned declaration, supercilious rejection ;
piteous supplication, softening hesitation ; worldly goods' obla-
tion, gracious acceptation ; frantic jubilation, maidenly resigna-
tion. Petting, wooing, billing, cooing. Jealous accusation,
sharp recrimination ; manly expostulation, shrewish aggrava-
tion ; angry threat, summary dismissal. Fuming on one side,

232 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

pouting on the other. Reaction, approximation, explanation,
exoneration, reconciliation, osculation, winding up with a pas
de circonstance, expressive of confidence re-established and joy
unbounded."

The superstitious nature of the Neapolitan is one quality
— and a very important one — that helps to make him a
gambler. It is curious to note how, even among the most
enlightened people, superstitions are connected with games
of chance ; it has even been laid down as a rule that a man
who is free from superstition cannot be a gambler. Be
this as it may, Neapolitans are eminently superstitious and
eminent gamblers.

In the clubs of the better classes, the games correspond
to those of like clubs elsewhere, except that the stakes are
higher. The games of the middle classes are played in
restaurants principally. They dislike billiards on account
of the exercise required ; but they constantly play various
games of cards, and are fond of dominos. Their queer
little packs of forty cards are the source of more pleasure
and more quarrels than any other equally small and
inexpensive object could afford. No Neapolitan could
imagine playing a game without a stake ; and this stake is
naturally the cause of his intense emotions in his play, —
emotions which frequently lead to serious and even fatal
results.

Groups of laborers who have eaten their midday meal
play cards in the street, and both men and boys play
morra ; and although this latter game is played with the
fingers only, it is the most exciting method of gambling
imaginable. It is less common now than formerly, but
twenty-five years ago the streets were literally full of
morra-players. I have seen groups of boys, ragged,
dirty, and doubtless hungry, so engaged in morra that no
other thought occurred to them for hours ; and the num-
ber and fierceness of their quarrels was almost beyond

NEAPOLITAN LITE. 233

belief. Bowls is another game played in the streets in
winter for stakes ; and even some serious business mat-
ters are customarily decided by chance, such as selecting
a workman from a number of applicants. In this case
the candidates stand in a ring, and at a given signal throw
down their hands with some of the fingers extended, each
one calling out the number. The would-be employer adds
the number of the extended fingers together, and then
counts the men round and round the ring until he reaches
a man counted by the number that has been so singularly
chosen, and he must be taken for the required service.
This is more satisfactory to the workmen than it would
be to have one of their number selected for his excellence ;
but the employer runs the risk of getting the least desir-
able man among them.

Lamentable as the universal gambling is, it is difficult
to conceive of a plan by which it can be lessened while the
government is the chief promoter of the vice by means of
its authorized lottery, no others being allowed. The State
also protects itself by refusing to pay up more than six
million francs, — a safe proviso, as the prizes never reach
that sum. Tickets are sold as low as two cents, and the
prizes may be from fourteen to sixty thousand times the
price of the ticket. The amount of superstition and curious
calculation which enters into the choice of a number is
amazing. A dictionary of numbers is extensively used,
and every circumstance of daily life is taken into account.
Does one se'e a carriage overturned, he will find a number
for the accident ; another for the horses, whether they run
or stand still ; another for the carriage if empty ; and still
another if it had passengers ; and one or more of these
numbers will be selected for the venture. The same
method is followed regarding the events in a dream, or
any important public occurrence, such as an earthquake,
a fire, a murder, or an epidemic.

234 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

Some Neapolitans will not select their own numbers, but
ask a monk, because monks are believed to be very lucky ;
or they consult professional cabalisti, who are supposed to
know all that one wishes by some magical power. The
balance in the lottery account is always in favor of the
government, and this is the only method of tax-paying to
which the Neapolitans submit cheerfully. At times, how-
ever, enormous sums are. won by the poorest people ; as
was the case when the cholera broke out in 1884. The
dictionary number for this emergency was bought by
thousands, and happening to turn out a prize number, it
made a heavy strain on the government. The uncon-
trollable passion for the lottery causes no end of wrong-
doing and theft among the working-classes. The prizes
are drawn on Saturday, and if on Friday they have not
the money for the chances they wish to buy, they will take
almost any means to get it. If they steal it, they say a
prayer for their success at the same moment, and are
sanguine that the prize will enable them to return what
they have stolen. If they cannot steal the money, they
frequently pawn objects belonging to others, and, in short,
are very clever in inventing methods by which to get the
coveted tickets.

The drawing of the Tombola, or Lotto, occurs about four
o'clock on Saturday afternoon in the Via Mezzo-cannone,
and the winning numbers are posted where all may see
them. The faces of the winners are bright and joyous ;
they are pleased that the method of their choice proved a
wise one ; but the expressions on the faces of the losers
are a sad and depressing study. Poor, half-clothed crea-
tures, whose appearance shows how meagrely they are fed,
have lost, perhaps, their all ; they tear up their tickets,
throw them on the ground, and move away, doubtless
already planning how they can save even one penny in
the six succeeding days.

NEAPOLITAN LIFE. 235

Statistics show that the government made more than
ninety million dollars in profits from the lottery system
in all Italy from 1871 to 1887. When we remember that
a large portion of this was paid by the very poor of a
country in which poverty is at its worst, it is a frightful
comment on the system. Thoughtful Italians feel this ;
but there are two questions which they have not the wis-
dom to answer, — how to abolish the lottery without ex-
citing a revolution, and after that, how to make up the
deficiency in the revenue.

Horse-races have not been customary in Italy until
recently. Those which occur at Naples on Tuesday and
Thursday in Easter week are popular festivals, and present
a fine spectacle. The great race is held in five different
cities alternately, and so comes to Naples only once in five
years. When this or any other race is held on the Campo
di Marte, the procession of carriages filled with gentlemen
and ladies, the last in gorgeous toilets, makes an imposing
appearance as it passes up the Toledo. But horse-racing
here does not seem quite at home ; it is not a " custom of
the country," but an importation, and although a good
amount of betting is done, there is no such apparent enjoy-
ment as one sees at the Derby or the Grand Prix.

That Neapolitans adore everything that is or is near
being dramatic is proved by the crowds who listen to the
public readers ; and when a really gifted cantastorie recites
a favorite poem and makes his impressive gesticulations,
his hearers are filled with delight. How much more, then,
when to the charm of the story and its recitation is added
the illustrative action of the marionettes or puppets which
are so wonderfully managed by the showmen of Italy !
Punch and Judy and other plays thus given are too well
known to require notice ; and fortunately some of the so-
called religious plays that were performed at Christmas
and Easter are less popular than formerly, since many of

236 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

them were far from reverent or reputable in spirit. But
if one can endure disagreeable odors, the marionette
theatres in the Strada Foria and on the Marinella are very
curious.

Wherever the Neapolitan appears as an actor, he has the
grace and spontaneity so universal in Naples, especially in
the Naples of the poor. These people habitually use ges-
tures, facial expressions,- and a dramatic mode of speech
that would make the fortune of the so-called trained actors,
who, in years of study, fail to acquire the dramatic power
which is the birthright of the Neapolitan.

Naples is, par excellence, a city of festivals. The two
which may be called national are the King's Birthday,
March 14, and the festival of the Constitution, on the
first Sunday in June. These are celebrated by military
parades, and the illumination of all public buildings, and
many others, at evening. These festas correspond almost
precisely to patriotic celebrations elsewhere.

The annual festivals which are more or less ecclesiasti-
cal begin with that of S. Anthony Abbot, on January
17, when the animals are taken to the church of their
patron to be blessed. They are decorated with ribbons,
amulets, and other ornaments, and after the benediction are
walked around the court of the church three times. This
ceremony is continued on every Sunday until Lent.

The Carnival is not celebrated regularly. "When it
occurs, the people make merry in the restaurants of the
suburbs on the afternoon of Ash Wednesday; and the
Toledo and the vicinity of the Villa Nazionale are the most
advantageous places for seeing whatever spectacle occurs
in Naples.

On Maundy Thursday the shops on the Toledo are
decorated and brilliantly lighted until a late hour in the
evening; no carriages are permitted to enter the street,
which is thronged with people making a promenade called

NEAPOLITAN LIFE. 237

Lo Struscio, from the rustling of silk garments. This
peculiar observance is also continued on the morning of
Good Friday.

On Ascension Day an interesting festival occurs at
Scafati, near Pompeii, called that of the Madonna del
Bagno ; and on Whitmonday the return of the pilgrims
from Monte Yergine is a remarkable sight.

The shrine of Monte Yergine is near Avellino, about
twenty miles from Naples, and is annually visited by
seventy or eighty thousand pilgrims, a quarter of them, at
least, going from Naples. The convent of Monte Yergine
was erected in 1119 on the site of a temple of Cybele,
some fragments of which are now seen in the convent.
Marriage contracts in Naples frequently have a clause
which binds the husband to take his wife on this pil-
grimage annually, and clubs are formed to which each
subscriber pays a weekly sum in order to lay aside
money enough for the cost of this journey, which re-
quires three days. At the shrine, to which many of the
devotees make the final ascent on their knees, crowds
of pilgrims assemble from all parts of the old Neapolitan
kingdom. Here the national costumes and the curious
ornaments of the peasants are seen to great advantage.
The heads of both sexes are decorated with flowers and
fruits, and many also carry garlands and fruits on long
poles. Those who ride have pictures of the Madonna and
other ornaments for their carriages, while the horses are
decorated with gay ribbons and plumes. Returning, the
Neapolitans visit the sanctuary of the Madonna dell' Arco
at Nola, where they dance the tarantella and sing their
national songs. From this point to Naples they present
the appearance of a merry Bacchanalian rather than a
Christian procession. At Naples they are welcomed by
great crowds of people, who assemble in the streets
bordering the harbor.

238 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIKONS.

Formerly the relics of S. Januarius were at Monte
Vergine, but the sacred objects now there are scarcely of
importance enough to demand this pilgrimage were it not
an old custom which is continued from love of it. The
view from Monte Vergine is glorious ; seaward it extends
to the bays of Naples and Salerno and along the coast to
Caeta, while the snowy Abruzzi and the neighboring villages
afford an interesting prospect inland. The spectacle of the
ascending pilgrims, winding up through all the roads and
paths on all sides, is very impressive, especially at night,
when thousands of them carry torches ; and their chants
are heard while they are still far distant.

The observances of Corpus Christi, Easter, and Christ-
mas are now much the same in Naples as in other cities.
In the churches at Easter there are representations of the
Holy Sepulchre, as is customary elsewhere. Christmas is
heralded by the Zampognari from the Abruzzi, who still
play hymns and carols on their bagpipes, before the images
of the Madonna, though in lesser numbers than formerly.
The churches have the presepe, and retain it until the day
of the Purification.

The festival of Capodimonte occurs on August 15, when
the grounds of the palace are open to the public, and are
greatly enjoyed by the people, who flock there in large
numbers. The Fishermen's Festival at S. Lucia, on the
last Sunday in August, presents a novel scene, and affords
an interesting opportunity to observe the manners and cus-
toms of the people. The festival of Piedigrotta, on Sep-
tember 8, has lost its importance, and requires no special
notice. The Ottobrate occur on Sundays and Thursdays
in October, and are little more than excursions made with
gayly trimmed horses and carriages, or in humbler ways by
the poorer classes. It is on the occasions of the Ottobrate
that the new wines of the year are tasted while still
fermenting.

NEAPOLITAN LIFE. 239

On All Souls' Day, November 2, and even more on its
eve, November 1, the cemeteries are crowded. Services
are held in the chapels, and the graves are decorated ac-
cording to the custom all over Italy ; but there are some
observances at Naples that I have not seen elsewhere.
One of these, in the burial-ground of the poor, — Cimitero
della Piet&, — is the exhumation of bodies that have been
buried eighteen mouths ; the bones of those whose friends
can afford the cost are placed in a niche and walled up : the
others are thrown into a large cistern outside the cemetery.
A similar method of burial is in use in the Campo Santo
Nuovo, where guilds and societies have erected what may
be described as small temples, in the lower part of which
bodies are buried, and after eighteen months the bones are
placed in niches in the upper portion of the temple. This
most sickening operation may be seen very frequently,
especially on Sunday afternoons.

Another singular and almost equally disagreeable cus-
tom in the Campo Santo Nuovo is that of displaying, on
All Souls' Eve, certain bodies that have been petrified.
These poor remnants of humanity are dressed with ele-
gance, and the family chapels in which they are placed
are decorated with rich hangings in black and gold, and
masses of fresh, lovely flowers ; they are brilliantly lighted
and guarded by servants, or even by members of the family,
who spend the entire day there, while the public are at
liberty to observe this as they might any other curious
spectacle in a place less sacred than this should be. For-
tunately, while many bodies are thus prepared, the exhibi-
tion of them is less frequent than formerly.

The great distinctive ecclesiastical function at Naples,
the liquefaction of the blood of S. Januarius, occurs three
times a year, — on the first Saturday in May, September 19,
and December 16, — and is repeated on the six days follow-
ing each of these dates. These are the most notable days

240 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

of the year, as it is believed that the welfare of Naples and
its inhabitants depends on this miracle.

S. Januarius, — or Gennaro, — now the patron saint of
Naples, was a bishop of Beneventum, who came with six
of his companions to comfort the Christians of Naples in
the reign of Diocletian. This emperor condemned him to
be burned, but angels rescued him from the flames ; he
was then tied to the imperial chariot and taken to Poz-
zuoli, where he was thrown to the beasts of the amphi-
theatre, who did him no harm ; finally, he was beheaded at
Solfatara, September 19, 305. A Christian woman pre-
served the blood which flowed from the head of the saint
in two phials, which she gave to the Bishop S. Severo in
the reign of Constantino. As the bishop took the phials
in his hand, the blood liquefied. There is no record of the
miracle from that time until the eleventh century, during
which interval the phials and relics of the saint are said
to have been hidden for safety. In the ninth century they
were removed to Beneventum ; but Frederick II. com-
manded them to be taken to Monte Yergine, where they
were discovered near the end of the fifteenth century and
deposited in the Cathedral of Naples, in which the splendid
Capella del Tesoro has been erected in honor of these
sacred relics.

The tabernacle which contains the miraculous blood is
secured by three locks, the keys being kept by two repre-
sentatives of the Church and one of the city, all of whom
must be present when it is opened, or be represented by
authorized substitutes.

In order to see the whole ceremony well, one must be
within the altar-rails, as the chapel is so crowded that but
few people actually see the miracle ; others are obliged to
believe the word of the priest. On the left of the altar-
rails, a disreputable, dirty rabble is stationed, called " the
relatives of S. Gennaro." Why thus honored, I have been

NEAPOLITAN LIFE. 241

unable to discover ; but they take as many liberties as they
could if they were his nearest relatives, and his family a
very unpleasant one. If the miracle proceeds to their
liking, they praise the saint as heartily as they curse him
if he disappoints them or takes too much time for the
liquefaction ; taken altogether, they make a revolting part
of the spectacle.

At the appointed hour the great, solid silver box con-
taining the relics is opened. A silver-gilt bust of S. Janu-
arius is placed on the altar ; a mitre is put on the head,
and a splendid jewelled collar clasped around the neck.
The reliquary containing the blood is reverently taken
from its case ; it resembles a small carriage lamp, inside
the glass of which two small bottles are seen, partly filled
with a red, coagulated substance which does not move
when turned over. This reliquary is secured by a waist-
band to the officiating priest, while a chain from this band,
attached to the reliquary, permits its being moved freely.
Prayers are constantly repeated ; and the priest, holding
the reliquary where it can be plainly seen, — by the light
of a large candle held by an acolyte, — says in a loud
voice, fi duro, — " It is solid." He turns it up and down,
again and again, while the kneeling congregation pray for
the miracle. Still the priest repeats fi duro, until the
excitement becomes intense, and the relatives of the saint
are noisy and demonstrative in their prayers and their
criticisms of his obstinacy in thus keeping them waiting.
They even call him names, such as " Ugly yellow face,"
referring to the color of the bust. But sooner or later the
priest calls loudly, Muove, — " It moves," — and the news
passes through the cathedral and the city like wild-fire.
Formerly cannon were fired from the forts ; but this custom
has been discontinued, and the soldiers are no longer
turned out in honor of the miracle.

16

242 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

After the liquefaction the kissing of the reliquary begins,
and continues throughout the day. After the seven days
are passed, the relics are again put in their magnificent
box, — a gift, I have been told, from the present king, — the
three keys are turned in their locks and taken away, not
to be used again until the next day fixed for this ceremony
to be repeated, except in case of some great danger to
Naples, when these precious relics may even be carried
through the streets. When S. Januarius is represented
as the patron saint of Naples, Vesuvius is seen in the
background, as he is believed to have stayed the streams
of lava and saved the city.

Naturally this saint is the chief of all saints to the Nea-
politans ; but he is followed, at a greater or less distance,
by an almost innumerable host. Saint worship in Naples
exceeds that cult in other parts of Italy. Every separate
precinct celebrates the day of its saint, and so many ex-
plosives have been used on these occasions that the au-
thorities have attempted to modify their customs, and
have partly succeeded within the city ; but in the suburbs
the feste are still in full force. An image of the
saint who is honored is carried through the town dressed
in a gorgeous manner; and at intervals, on the route of
the procession, explosives are fired which sound like the
boom of a cannon.

One would think that these public festivals are numer-
ous enough to satisfy all possible desires in this direction ;
but the Neapolitans are of another opinion, and constantly
celebrate the days of the family saints — each man, woman,
and child thus having &festa of his or her own. On these
occasions fire-crackers and other small explosives are
used ; and so much is the noise of these prized, and so
necessary are they thought to be in the propitiation of
saints, that they are even taken into the churches and

NEAPOLITAN LIFE. 243

fired off at the most solemn moment of the service, such
as the Elevation of the Host, or the Gloria. This is a
delight to Neapolitan congregations; their impulsive na-
tures and religious enthusiasm — which could scarcely be
exceeded — seem to find appropriate expression in these
tumultuous methods.

CHAPTER XI.

NEAPOLITAN ART AND LETTERS.

WE have already spoken at some length of the early
architecture of Naples, which was so largely in-
fluenced by that of the East that it may be fitly termed
Italian-Byzantine. So few traces of it remain that it is
almost unknown, and the Saracenic features which the
Normans added to the older edifices and introduced in the
new, after their conquest in the middle of the eleventh
century, may be said to have put an end to the Italian-
Byzantine style in its purity.

The beauty of this architecture was in its ornamentation
rather than in its form or plan of arrangement. The
cathedral of S. Nicolo at Bari is probably the best exist-
ing example of this earliest Neapolitan art. No perfect
models of the Norman edifices are known to me, but ruins
of those overthrown by earthquakes still remain, like those
of the abbey of S. Trinit£, founded by Roger of Sicily at
Mileto.

After the advent of the Angevine kings the architecture
of Naples may be called Gothic, although the Suabian rulers
had doubtless introduced the German pointed style to some
extent. Our present purpose, however, is but to speak of
the architects who were natives of the Neapolitan penin-
sula, of whom we shall find so small a number who
achieved a name in this art that we shall clearly recog-
nize the debt of Naples to foreign architects.

After the beginning of the fifteenth century the rulers
of Naples employed architects from other parts of Italy, to

NEAPOLITAN ART AND LETTERS. 245

whom the Neapolitan artists .were simple assistants. Co-
simo Fansaga, of Bergamo, settled at Naples, and his name
is associated with churches, altars, palaces, doorways, and
staircases. In this latter specialty Ferdinando Sanfelice,
born at Naples in 1675, acquired much fame ; but I know
of no remaining example of his much praised geometric
and double staircases.

Luigi Vanvitelli (1700-1773), born at Naples of a Dutch
family, after studying in other cities of Italy, was sum-
moned by Carlo Borbone to build the palace of Caserta,
which is his masterpiece. Vanvitelli could scarcely have
received such a commission in the days of really great
architects ; it was both his good and bad fortune to live
in an age when art was sadly in decadence, as is proved
by the tiresome monotony in the design of this great
palace, which afforded the finest opportunity in architec-
ture that had been offered to any master in Italy since the
time of the Renaissance. In short, the whole story of
Neapolitan architecture is well summarized by Fergusson
when he says, in speaking of Italian art, —

" During the fifteenth century it was original, appropriate,
and grand ; during the sixteenth it became correct and elegant,
though too often also tinctured with pedantry ; and in the
seventeenth it broke out into caprice and affectation, till it
became as bizarre as it was tasteless. During the eighteenth
century it sank down to a uniform level of timid mediocrity,
as devoid of life as it is of art. In the present century it has
been, if anything, French. But now that the country is again
a nation, and has a future before it, it remains to be seen what
her art will become. If the Italians are capable of freedom
and of national greatness, their architecture cannot fail to be
a reflex of whatever is great or good in their character or
institutions."

As in architecture, so in sculpture, the earliest examples
of this art in Neapolitan territory are of Byzantine origin.

246 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

The celebrated bronze doors of Amalfi were made by
Byzantine masters ; those of Monte Cassino were cast at
Constantinople ; while those of Atrani, Salerno, Benevento,
and Ravello are undoubtedly of like origin. All these fine
bronzes date from 1000 to 1179.

Little can be said with assurance concerning the remain-
ing work of the earliest Neapolitan sculptors. Much that
was attributed to them half a century ago has now been
identified as the work of other masters, and the authorities
in art sadly disagree ; and since men wise in these mat-
ters have failed to satisfy themselves of the truth, it can-
not be expected that I should know it. Fascinating as
such investigations are, I can only make them for myself,
lest in giving my conclusions I should mislead others.

That Andrea Ciccione was the sculptor of the monument
to King Ladislaus, in S. Giovanni a Carbonara, of which
we have spoken, there is no doubt. He also erected that
of the lover of Queen Joanna II., the Grand Seneschal
Carracciolo, in a chapel of the same church ; it is scarcely
a creditable work to any sculptor of any age. It is faulty
in design and coarse in execution, and, as Perkins has
remarked, " has but one original feature, of doubtful taste,
namely, the representation of the Virtues in military
garb."

The works of the contemporary of Ciccione, the Abbate
Antonio di Domenico Bamboccio are little better than
those we have mentioned. Bamboccio died in 1422 ; and
very soon after Michelozzo, Antonio, Rosellino, Benedetto
and Giuliano da Maiano, and other artists from the North
of Italy, executed works in Naples which were not only of
value in themselves, but of great benefit in their influence
upon other sculptors.

Of Giovanni Merliano da Nola we have already spoken,
and when we compare him with other Neapolitan sculptors
we may well praise his work ; but when contrasted with

NEAPOLITAN ART AND LETTERS. 247

truly great artists, his weakness and want of originality
are at once apparent. His works are numerous in the
churches of Naples, and Domenici and other Neapolitan
writers on art are proud of him and loud in his praises.

That Girolamo Santa Croce (1502 ?-1537) was superior
to Da Nola may be seen in his chef d'ceuvre, already men-
tioned, the Arcadian bas-relief on the tomb of the poet
Sannazzaro. Benedetto Menzini thus praises it : —

" On the marble scrolled
Foliage and fruits intwine in graceful fold :
And central, as a goddess, Naples awes.
On one side nets extended on the sand,
And in the distance a small bark, appear :
Flutes on the other, and a sylvan band."

Whether Santa Croce executed other parts of the tomb
or not is a matter of dispute, but this bas-relief is clearly
his. It displays an unusual study of the antique ; the in-
fluence of Michael Angelo is also detected in the muscles
and hands, while the details are finished with care and
taste. No other Neapolitan sculptors are so important as
to demand any part of our limited space, as we do not pro-
pose speaking of those of the present day.

Authoritative writers on art are so far from agreeing in
their estimates of the earliest painters of Naples — some of
them even considering artists who have been written and
talked of as absolute myths — that it is best to leave this
misty dawn of Neapolitan art out of our consideration. In
the fifteenth century, the time of Jan van Eyck, there
were artists in Naples who, however we may esteem their
pictures, were ambitious to gain a knowledge of all new
methods and discoveries that could improve their work.
While seeking a knowledge of vehicles from Van Eyck, they
imbibed some of his artistic qualities as well ; and their
Italian sentiment for grace and beauty, when modified by
Flemish realism, produced the attractive manner of Lo

248 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

Zingaro. From this time until new heights were revealed
to them by Perugino, Michael Angelo, and Raphael, the
works of what may be termed the Zingaresque school are
very interesting. The sincerity of expression and the strik-
ing individuality of their portraits, their naivete in com-
position, and the absolute realism in their accessories —
costumes, jewels, and furniture — go to make a curious and
attractive whole. The painters of whom I have already
spoken with more or less detail are Antonio Solario,
called Lo Zingaro, 1382 (?)-1455 ; Sabbatini, or Andrea da
Salerno, 1480-1545; Girolamo Sante Croce, 1520-1549;
Belisario Corenzio, 1558 (?)-1643 (?); Michael Angelo Ameri-
ghi, called Caravaggio, 1569-1609 ; Giovanni Battista
Caracciolo, 1580-1641 ; Massimo Stanzioni, 1585-1656 ;
Andrea Vaccaro, 1598-1670; Aniello Falcone, 1600 (?)-
1665 ; Domenico Gargiuoli, or Micco Spadro, 1612-1679 ;
Mattia Preti, called II Calabrese, 1613-1699; Salvator
Rosa, 1615-1675 ; Viviano Codagora, middle of the seven-
teenth century ; Luca Giordano, 1632-1705.

When Neapolitan painting is carefully studied, an impor-
tant change in style is manifest towards the end of the
sixteenth century, which later becomes more pronounced.
Neapolitan artists had travelled, and some of them had
studied in Rome, Venice, and Parma, and finally, at Naples,
practised what may be called an art of their own. They
were also fiercely determined that no other artists should
be permitted to execute important commissions in Naples.
The methods by which they accomplished their purpose have
already been referred to, and are too well known to require
an account of them here.

The painting of this school — the Naturalisti — has been
called " the poetry of the repulsive," and is much the same
in art that extremely realistic novels are in literature.
Their power, which cannot be denied, in the representation
of passion — of love and hate — holds one for a time in

NEAPOLITAN ART AND LETTERS. 249

wonder at such audacity and recklessness ; but the moment
of disgust succeeds, when one would sweep all these works
— pictures and books alike — from the face of the earth, if
that were possible.

Late in the seventeenth century, Luca Giordano, called
Fa Presto (1632-1705), proved himself a marvellous painter,
though he sacrificed all other qualities to a slight and rapid
execution. His pictures have beauty of color and form,
pronounced character, and even dramatic action ; but all
these are rendered in an " impressionist " manner that
must delight a large following of that school at the present
time. A splendid example of Giordano's work is above the
principal entrance to the church of S. Filippo Neri, or de'
Gerolomini ; the subject is " Christ driving the Money-
changers from the Temple." It is colossal in size, and the
profaners of the sanctuary are just such Lazzaroni as so
exhaust one's patience in Naples as to render the treat-
ment they are receiving in Luca's picture acceptable and
even soothing to the feelings of the spectator.

With the close of the seventeenth century an era of the
commonplace was ushered in throughout Italy. The chief
aim of the artists of this period was to fill great spaces
with a decorative painting not much above the requisites
of the theatre ; not equal, in many cases, to the best scene-
painting of modern days. Since that time Italy has never
held the absolute priority in art which was so long her
right. Let us hope that the past two centuries have been
a fallow time which shall be succeeded by new glory.

We have spoken in our earliest pages of Frederick II.,
" the wonder of the world," and attributed to him the first
impulse that was given to learning and letters in the Nea-
politan kingdom. The so-called " Sicilian epoch " in the
literature of Southern Italy, with which Frederick is asso-
ciated, began in the twelfth century, when William II.
encouraged the Troubadours at Palermo, and ended with

250 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

the death of Manfred. It was at its best from 1210 to 1250,
when Frederick, whom Dante called Cherico grande, in-
spired men by his appreciation of their best work as well
as by his example. He was described as veramente
specchio del mondo in parlare et in costumi. Even Salim-
bene, who was far from admiring Frederick, calls him a
poet of no mean pretensions.

"While Frederick adopted Provencal literature, he gave it
an Italian form. Aiming first of all to establish a power-
ful Italian dynasty, he promoted purely Italian studies ; and
in the circle that surrounded him, the Italian language un-
doubtedly had its birth, and was used in versification very
early in its existence. It is a curious fact that one year
before the death of Manfred — with whose life the flame of
learning that had been lighted in the Neapolitan peninsula
went out — Dante was born in Florence, the poet who was
to express the fullest beauty and power which this new
language could be made to convey.

Robert the Wise (1309-1343) was the next king of
Naples who loved letters and the company of scholars.
His friendship for Petrarch has been mentioned, as well as
that Boccaccio found an inspiration at Naples in the Fiam-
meta of whom he became so fond, a natural daughter of
King Robert. Symonds calls the death of Boccaccio, who
died seventeen months after the death of Petrarch, in 1374,
and about the same time with that of the painter, Andrea
Orcagna, the end of the Middle Age.

The chief importance of the fourteenth century — the
quattrocento — in regard to Italian literature lies in
the fact that at this time the learned men of Italy and the
popular element of the nation came to know each other,
and the Tuscan and Neo-classic tongues made way for
Italian in literature. A detailed account of all the
scholars and writers of Naples cannot be given here. There
were those who struggled to keep the literary flame alive

NEAPOLITAN ART AND LETTERS. 251

during the years of its greatest eclipse, but their genius
shed too dim and uncertain a light to be clearly discerned
at this distance of time. We shall consider those only of
whom some clear account can be given.

The reign of Alfonso of Aragon, called the Magnani-
mous (1441-1458), was a fortunate period for Neapolitan
scholars. After Nicholas V., Alfonso was the most muni-
ficent patron of learning of his time. He found his chief
pleasure and satisfaction in the company of scholars, and
in promoting their pursuits by supplying them with books
and maintaining them in comfort while they were occu-
pied in research and writing. When on his campaigns
he insisted on having scholars in his camp, and was
accustomed to gather his officers about him to listen to
Beccadelli's expositions of Livy and the reading of ancient
poets.

Valla described the concourse of students which Alfonso
welcomed to his court and table to listen to discourses or
to readings and recitations from the classics. He excluded
mere courtiers from these symposia, and welcomed poor
youths who hungered for such opportunities. In these cus-
toms he resembled Lorenzo de' Medici. His reverence for
antiquities was such that when on the march he visited all
famous sites and preserved them from desecration. When
a bone from the skeleton of Livy was sent him as a gift
from Venice, he received and prized it as sacred. Alfonso
collected a fine library in the palace at Naples, which was
scattered, no one knows whither, while Charles VIII. oc-
cupied the capital.

Antonio Beccadelli, a native of Palermo, was a favored
friend of this sovereign ; and although the immorality of his
writing had subjected Beccadelli to severe criticism from
the Pope and churchmen, yet Alfonso, after calling the
scholar to his court, ennobled him, made him tutor to the
crown prince Ferdinand, and greatly enjoyed his wit and

252 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

society. Beccadelli's favor survived the reign of Alfonso ;
and he died, aged and wealthy, in 1471.

Alfonso invited the great free-thinker Lorenzo Valla to
Naples in 1437, and besides honoring him as a poet, in-
stalled him as his private secretary. Being thus in a posi-
tion of safety, Valla launched his criticisms and accusations
of the rulers of the Church, from Pope to friar, with fear-
lessness and freedom. At length he was summoned to a
Court of Inquisition, from which Alfonso rescued him ; and
when Nicholas V. became Pope, he invited Valla to Rome,
that he might have this eminent scholar in his court. This
Pope was too enlightened a man to heed the heresy and
scepticism of one who could translate from the Greek, and
aid him in other ways so essentially as Lorenzo Valla
could do.

Bartolommeo Fazio, the historiographer of Alfonso, wrote
of celebrated men, and excited Valla's wrath by criticising
his style. Both these scholars were of a determined nature,
and their recriminations were so interminable that when
they both died, in 1457, it was predicted that their animos-
ities would disturb the world to which they had gone.

Giovannantonio Porcello, born at Naples, was also a
favorite with Alfonso. His fluency in versification made
him acceptable as an improvvisatore. He dedicated his
principal work to Alfonso, according to the custom of the
time, for scholars in all parts of Italy paid this honor to
the King of Naples.

The Neapolitan writers were not men of deep learning ;
they especially prized the freedom they were allowed in
speculation and in the expression of their attitude towards
the dogmas of the Church, which could scarcely have been
permitted in any other part of Italy. Whatever one may
think of the immorality of the literature of the Two
Sicilies at this period, it had the charms of lightness and
freedom from conventionality, bigotry, and superstition.

NEAPOLITAN ART AND LETTERS. 253

Jovianus Pontanus, born at Cereto in 1426, was intro-
duced to Alfonso by Beccadelli, and later was made Presi-
dent of the Neapolitan Academy. Under three kings —
Ferdinand I., Alfonso II., and Ferdinand II. — he held
posts of honor at Naples, and was sent as an ambassador
to other courts ; he also accompanied his sovereigns in their
military campaigns.

The meetings of the Academy doubtless originated in
the social circle of scholars that habitually surrounded
Alfonso I. When that circle was broken up, these men
met in what was called the Portions Antonianus, Pontanus
being the leader of this more formal assembly. The mem-
bers latinized their names, and some of them are better
known by their academic than by their family cognomens.

It is difficult to imagine any honest reasoning by which
Pontanus could justify himself in welcoming Charles VIII.
to Naples with a flattering address, and equally difficult to
understand how his friends could pardon his so doing.
We are glad to know that this act did lessen his prestige
among his companions. The only excuse that has been
made for him is, that, having perceived and boldly de-
nounced the vices of Italian princes, he hoped for a refor-
mation under the new sovereign.

Whatever personal faults Pontanus had, as a scholar he
was of great importance. Symonds says : —

" Throughout his writings Pontanus shows himself to have
been an original and vigorous thinker, a complete master of
Latin scholarship, unwilling to abide contented with bare imi-
tation, and bent upon expressing the facts of modern life, the
actualities of personal emotion, in a style of accurate Latinity.
When he died in 1503, he left at Naples one of the most flour-
ishing schools of neopagan poets to be found in Italy ; Lilius
Gyraldus employs the old metaphor of the Trojan horse to
describe the number and the vigor of the scholars who issued
from it"

254 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

Much of Pontanus' writing would shock a modern
reader, so frankly does he present the sentiments and
experiences which are customarily thought to be too per-
sonal and too sacred to be spoken of, even to intimate
friends ; but Pontanus did not hesitate to publish these to
the world. Of his love poetry Symonds says : —

" His Muse is no mere vagrant Venus. She is a respectable,
if not, according to our .present views, an altogether decent
Juno. The final truth about her is that she revealed to her
uniquely gifted bard, on earth and in the shrine of home, that
poetry of love which Milton afterwards mythologized in Eden.
The note of unadulterated humanity sounds with a clearness
that demands commemoration in this poetry of passion. It
is, if not the highest, yet the frankest and most decided utter-
ance of mutual, legitimate desire. As such, it occupies an
enviable place in the history of Italian love, — equally apart
from trecento sickliness and cinquecento corruption ; unrefined,
perchance, but healthy ; doing justice to the proletariate of
Naples whence it sprung."

Pontanus' descriptions of nature, of the people and their
customs, — in fact, of whatever he considers, — reveal to us
all that he saw as clearly as if these scenes were mirrored
before our eyes ; and all that he wrote is overflowing with
vitality.

I have referred to the curious terra-cotta Pietd in the
church of Monte Oliveto, in which Pontanus and Sannaz-
zaro kneel beside Alfonso II. Pontanus, who personates
Nicodemus, is a man of powerful frame and a serious
expression of countenance, with no possible indication of
the poet about him. The devotional act in which he is
here represented is so out of keeping with some of his
writing and with our customary estimate of his habit of
life, that it suggests the thought of his having assumed
what he deemed the proper expression for the occasion.

The friendship between the two poets represented in

NEAPOLITAN ART AND LETTERS. 255

this group continued as long as both lived. Sannazzaro
was born in Naples in 1458, and made his studies there.
His proficiency in the classics was acknowledged by his
admission to Pontanus' academy. As a youth, Sannazzaro
was a friend of Prince Frederick ; and when the latter
became king, he gave the scholar a pension of 600 ducats
and the Villa Mergellina, on the road to Posilipo. This
modest provision enabled Sannazzaro to live in comfort
until the destruction of his villa by the troops of the
Prince of Orange in 1528, which was a great affliction to
him. The poet gave the land to the Servite monks, who
built the church of S. Maria del Parto, thus named in
honor of the poem of their benefactor, "De Partu Vir-
ginis ; " it is also called Sannazzaro's Church, and contains
his tomb, of which we have spoken. In a chapel of this
church is a picture of S. Michael trampling on Satan; it
is said that the saint is represented by a portrait of Diomede
Carafa, Bishop of Ariano, who is buried near this spot ;
while the devil has the head of a beautiful woman of
Naples, who tempted the bishop in his early life. The in-
scription " Fecit Victoriam Alleluja " refers to the bishop's
victory over temptation ; and from this picture comes
the Neapolitan proverb which is applied to all women of
seductive power, " Una diavola della Mergellina."

Sannazzaro proved a faithful follower to the House of
Aragon, and even shared the exile of Frederick, remaining
with him as long as he lived. The poet did not long sur-
vive his king, as he died at Naples in 1530.

Sannazzaro's earliest verses were inspired by his love
for Carmosina Bonifacia, who was young and of a noble
family. He was distracted by jealousy, and attempted to
cure himself by leaving the scene of his passion ; he went
to France, and during his absence Carmosina died. Some
of the finest passages in his poems refer to this early and
enduring affection.

256 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

After his return to Naples at this time, he wrote his
Piscatorial Eclogues, which were justly celebrated ; in
them, it has been said, he surrounded himself by the
pastoral Muses on the seashore. Where else in the world
are the combined charms of land and sea so full of poetry
as on the Bay of Naples ? Where else are the fishermen
so picturesque ? Then, too, it is the very home of sirens
and nereids, and we musjb believe it to have had its attrac-
tions for Poseidon and the tritons. It would seem that
a poet who loved the sea, and knew his classics well, could
scarcely prevent such eclogues from flowing off his pen
when living with this entrancing bay always before his
eyes, and its associations in his mind. Sannazzaro's second
love was of a platonic nature and most creditable to him,
since Cassandra Marchesa remained his devoted friend
through life ; her companionship was the joy of his latest
years, and he is said to have died in her house.

Sannazzaro is best known by his " Arcadia," which is
a most valuable exponent of the classical revival at its
height, — midway between its untutored youth and its too
conscious age. Its title suggests its nature ; and although
it is full of shepherds, nymphs, fauns, and allegorical tales,
it is a truly valuable picture of Southern Italy in the fif-
teenth century. It was immensely popular in its time, and
is now a masterpiece of its epoch, and has a double interest
for us, since it is believed to have inspired Sir Philip
Sidney's work of the same nature.

Masuccio Guardato, a noble of Salerno, passed his life
at the court of Naples, and wrote the " Novellino," which
appeared in 1476. He called himself the disciple of
Boccaccio and Juvenal. Each of his tales is dedicated to
some noble man or woman well known in Naples ; they
are a curious mixture of the language of the cultivated
with that of the common people, and are an important
contribution to our knowledge of the manners of his time,

NEAPOLITAN ART AND LETTERS. 257

although they are inferior to the tales of the Decameron,
which were recited first in Naples.

Masuccio's "Novelle" cover a wide range of subjects ; with
few touches he sets his scenes before us, and we understand
his intense love of beauty. His hatred of hypocrisy, espe-
cially in the clergy, his passion and his pleasure, his anger
and his humor, fix our attention by their absolute sincerity.
Symonds places a high estimate on Masuccio, and says :

" It is the blending of so many elements, — the interweaving
of tragedy and comedy, satire and pathos, grossness and senti-
ment, in a style of unadorned sincerity, that places Masuccio
high among novelists. Had his language been as pure as that
of the earlier Tuscan or the later Italian authors, he would
probably rank second only to Boccaccio in the estimation even
of his fellow-countrymen. A foreigner, less sensitive to nice-
ties of idiom, may be excused for recognizing him as at least
Bandello's equal in the story-teller's art. In moral quality he
is superior not only to Bandello, but also to Boccaccio."

The study of the songs of the people is fascinating. But
too much space is required even to outline the differences
between Canzune, Rispetti, Villotte, Strambotti, Stornelli,
and others, for us to do more than suggest their interest
here. Much has been written concerning the origin of
these songs which may to-day be heard among the peas-
ants and common people of all Italy, and many authorities
agree in believing them to have originated in Southern
Italy in the Suabian period, — the Sicilian epoch.

The Calabrian philosophy of the sixteenth century is of
profound interest, represented as it was by Telesio of
Cosenza, Bruno of Nola, and Campanella of Stilo, — who
may well be called forerunners of modern science; men
who were brave enough to suffer tortures and even die for
the truth as they believed it. When we read of the suf-
ferings of Campanella on account of his belief that a

17

258 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

greater truth existed than could be learned from " scholas-
tic philosophy," we burn with indignation. Confined in a
Neapolitan dungeon twenty-seven years, tortured seven
times, brought to trial five times, accused of heresy and
of writing a book which existed thirty years before he was
born, — after all this how truly he must have been com-
forted by the friendship of Urban VIII. and Cardinal
Richelieu ! His bold and clear opinions stand out in his
writings from a curious background of the superstition
and confusion of ideas which characterized his age ; but
to be entirely free of these he must have been some-
thing more than a man who had spent half a life in a
dungeon could be expected to be.

Giordano Bruno, a Dominican, who could not accept the
dogmas of Transubstantiation and the Immaculate Con-
ception, was less fortunate. After long travels and two
years spent in England, after friendships with many of
the most learned men in Europe, after lecturing in Paris
and filling a professorship at Wittenberg, he returned to
Italy, and after long persecutions was burned at the stake
in 1600. Modern philosophers like Spinoza and Descartes,
as well as many Germans, have justly valued the writings
of Bruno.

Telesio of Cosenza, whose ideas were given to the world
in his work " On the Nature of Things according to Proper
Principles," paid the penalty with his life ; and a little
later, Yanini, who wrote "On the Admirable Secrets of
Nature, the Queen and Goddess of Mortals," suffered death
three years after its publication, his tongue being torn out
before his execution. There were many Italian martyrs
to like opinions, and many others who, like Galileo, did
not insist upon their views ; but these of whom I have
spoken were Neapolitans, and of this school of men, in-
spired with lofty thoughts in the midst of surroundings
which would seem to forbid their growth, Symonds says :

NEAPOLITAN ART AND LETTERS. 259

"Telesio and Campanella, long before Bacon, founded em-
pirical science. Campanella and Bruno, long before Descartes,
established the principle of idealistic philosophy in the self-
conscious thinking faculty of man. The sensualism of Telesio,
the spiritualism of Bruno, and Campanella's dualism fore-
shadow all possible secrets of empiricists, rationalists, and
eclectics, which have since divided the field of modern specu-
lation. It is easy enough now to look down either from the
height of full-blown transcendental metaphysics or from the
more modest eminence of solid physical science upon the intel-
lectual abortions generated by this potent conception in its
earliest fusion with medieval theology. Yet it is impossible to
neglect the negative importance of the work effected by men
who declared their independence of ecclesiastical and classical
authority in an age when the Church and antiquity contended
for the empire of the human reason. Still less possible is it to
deny the place of Galileo, Descartes, Bacon, Spinoza, among
the offspring begotten of the movement which Pomponazzi,
Telesio, Campanella, and Bruno inaugurated and developed."

1 have hastily outlined the literature of Southern Italy
during the awakening which gradually followed the reign
of William I., died out, was again vivified, and culminated
in the height of the fifteenth century. The political history
of the Neapolitans after this period has shown us a con-
dition of life, from the highest to the lowest classes, that
forbade an intellectual growth, — a condition in which
learning and literature could find no nourishment.

After the middle of the fifteenth century, when Alfonso
the Magnanimous shed an unwonted lustre on his office
and his kingdom, the prestige of Naples was gradually
lessened until she was but a scorn and a byword among
the nations. We have seen how her rulers, her clergy, her
nobles, and her soldiers were wanting in patriotism and
religion; how the oppression of the people and the self-
indulgence of the nobles wrought their deadly work, until
Naples might well be described by the five potent words

260 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIEONS.

with which Machiavelli characterized all Italy, — "the
corruption of the world."

With such an acknowledgment — from so high a source
as that last quoted — of the value of the legacy bequeathed
to us by some Neapolitans of the Renaissance, we conclude
this scanty resume. May the debt which we of this pro-
gressive century owe to men who, just emerging from
the darkness of the Middle Ages, had the wisdom to
perceive, to study, to declare, and even to die for truths
higher than those they had been taught, be clearly per-
ceived and justly estimated!

CHAPTER XII.

POZZUOLI, BAI^E, CUM.E, PROCIDA, AND ISCHIA.

THE excursions about Naples afford rare pleasure,
especially in the springtime. The putting forth of
trees, vines, and flowers, the fascinating views o'er land
and sea, and the glamour of associations with ancient
peoples, sovereigns, warriors, and poets, which may be
traced at every step, make up a whole, in which every
one — no matter what the individual taste may be — can
find a charm or interest.

Many historic associations cluster about Posilipo, the
first hill west of the city ; its name in Greek, Pausilypon,
signifies cessation from sorrow. Here the Emperor Au-
gustus came to drink in health and peace ; while Pollio,
Lucullus, and many Roman patricians had villas here to
which they gladly escaped from Imperial Rome, seeking
rest and pleasure. Poets too, like Virgil, Silius Italicus,
and Sannazzaro found the hill of Posilipo a most grateful
abiding-place ; and here Virgil wrote the Georgics and the

The old Grotto of Posilipo has been closed since the open-
ing of the new tunnel, through which the steam tramway
passes. This fine example of Roman engineering and
masonry probably dates from the time of Augustus. An-
cient writers speak of its gloom ; and in the Middle Ages
many superstitions were connected with this locality, one
of which attributed magic arts to Virgil. Alfonso I., Don
Pedro de Toledo, and Carlo Borbone each improved this

262 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

venerable grotto, which is superseded in these progressive
days ; and one is glad that the screeching, rushing trains
of the tram pass by another way.

In a garden above the grotto is the Roman columbarium
called Virgil's Tomb. Doubts as to the genuineness of
this claim seem to be unfounded, since we know that the
poet desired to be brought here from Brundusium, where
he died, B. c. 19. Virgil was making a journey with
Augustus when attacked by a fatal illness, and his remains
were removed to Naples by the emperor's command.
About a century later, Statius, the Neapolitan, wrote : —

" At Virgil's honored tomb I sit and sing ;
Warm'd by the hallow'd spot, my Muse takes fire ;
And sweeps with bolder hand my humble lyre ; "

and Silius Italicus, a contemporary of Statius, purchased
the tomb and religiously visited it on Virgil's birthday.

The tomb originally resembled a small temple ; in the
centre, resting on pillars of white marble, was the urn
containing the poet's ashes, on which was the inscription,
well known to have been written by Virgil, shortly before
his death, —

" Mantua me genuit, Calabri rapuere, tenet nunc
Parthenope, cecini pascua, rura, duces."

In Mantua [first] I saw the light of day ;
Calabria snatched the cup of life away ;
Parthenope contains my grave.
I sang of flocks and fields, and heroes brave.

Petrarch and King Robert came to this spot together, and
honored it as Virgil's tomb ; Boccaccio here found courage
to renounce the pursuits to which his father destined him,
and dedicate himself to his art ; writers of the fourteenth
century speak of it with assurance; and the Bishop of
Ariano, about 1500, wrote that he had records which
proved the tomb to be that of Virgil. He declared it to

Virgil's Tomb.

POZZUOLI, BALE, CUM^J, PROCIDA, AND ISCHIA. 263

have been perfect as late as 1326, when Robert of Anjou
gave the urn, the columns, and some small statues which
ornamented the columbarium to the Cardinal of Mantua
to be taken to the poet's birthplace ; but the Cardinal
having died at Genoa when returning to Mantua, the
relics were lost. Another legend relates that Robert re-
moved the urn to Castel Nuovo for safe keeping.

Not only has the urn disappeared, but the laurel which
Petrarch planted has been stolen, bit by bit, and carried to
other countries, Voltaire, the Margravine of Baireuth, and
other notable persons sharing in this sacrilege. But were
Virgil not buried here, we know that all this hill of Posi-
lipo was familiar ground, and dear to him ; here, in the
villa of Lucullus, he spent many happy days, and his feet
have doubtless trod where we now walk with thoughts of
him in mind, more than nineteen centuries after his im-
mortal work was done. As one sits on the terrace near
by, and enjoys the stupendous panorama spread before
him, the verse which commemorates S. Paul's visit to
this spot, and was long in use in the cathedral of Mantua
on that saint's day, is involuntarily remembered. It is
thus translated by J. A. Symonds : —

" When to Maro's tomb they brought him,
Tender grief and pity wrought him

To bedew the stone with tears ;
What a saint I might have crowned thee,
Had I only living found thee

Poet first and without peers ! "

The Corniche of Posilipo, skirting the cliffs of the pro-
montory, is one of the famous drives of the world. After
the Mergellina, with its exquisite villas and gardens, the
views from this road afford delightful contrasts, embracing,
as they do, the city of Naples and the coast-line far to the
east of it. At sunset there is a weird effect of flame that
gives the appearance of a vast conflagration to the succes-

264 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

sion of villages extending from Naples to Castellammare,
and one can easily imagine that the thin blue smoke from
the summit of Vesuvius is about to burst into forked
flames, while the volcano vomits forth destruction as it
has so often done and may again do, at any moment.
From the height of Posilipo, where one has the sense of
safety, this thought of possible imminent danger is most
exciting.

The less distant views of Bagnoli, Camaldoli, Pozzuoli,
Baiae, and the islands of Nisida, Procida, and Ischia, are
exquisite in their variety of sea and mountain and indented
shore. The road winds through pines and near vineyards,
surrounding scattered villas, while occasionally picturesque
ruins peep out from clumps of shrubs and masses of
myrtle. The wine of Posilipo has been celebrated for cen-
turies ; Tasso wrote a sonnet in its praise, and begged a
gift of it from Alfonso II.

Descending the Posilipo on the west, the road passes
near a long tunnel called the Grotto of Sejanus, which,
however, is believed to have existed long before the time
of the favorite of Tiberius. This side the hill, as one ap-
proaches the sea and Capo Coroglio, is covered with the
ruins of the villa of Lucullus, which was later enlarged
by Vedius Pollio. In fact, not only on the hill and the
shore, but in the sea itself there are masses of substructure
extending for some distance into the water. The ruins
of the small theatre of Lucullus, as well as those of galler-
ies, porticoes, reservoirs, and other structures, can be traced,
many of them being overgrown with plants and draped
with vines. The fishponds where the favorite lampreys
of Vedius Pollio were fed on the flesh of his slaves — if
we may trust the old tales — are at some distance from
the road.

The excursion to Nisida, of which we have spoken, may
be made from Capo Coroglio. The little island is a charm-

POZZUOLI, BALE, CUM^E, PROCIDA, AND ISCHIA. 265

ing feature of the views from Posilipo, nestling close to the
shore as it does, with the fresh green color which its luxu-
rious gardens give ; but one must regret that the woods
described by Statius are now replaced by a Lazaretto.

Going towards Pozzuoli from Capo Coroglio, the road fol-
lows the shore, passing through the little town of Bagnoli,
much affected by Neapolitans in summer on account of its
hot springs and baths. Before reaching Pozzuoli a narrow
road on the right leads to the Solfatara, the crater of a
half-extinct volcano, named from the sulphureous nature
of the gases which rise from numerous fissures, and have
the appearance of flames at night. It has the effect of
being a decapitated mountain, and it is not impossible that
in 1198, when its one known eruption occurred, its top was
blown to atoms. There is considerable heat in the gases
thrown off, and by listening at the fissures a sound as of
boiling water is heard, which indicates a subterranean fire ;
a stone thrown on the ground produces a rumbling report,
as if it were hollow underneath. These peculiar features
do not make the Solfatara attractive, although scientists
are positive that there will be no more explosions here.
Some learned men think that it is connected with Vesuvius,
others say with the volcano on Iscliia ; while ancient poets
made it the scene of the battle between Hercules and the
Giants, and a much more recent Neapolitan scholar proved
to his own satisfaction that it is the opening of the infernal
regions. One may here give free rein to imagination,
since the wildest speculations cannot be authoritatively
contradicted.

The alum hills to the east of the Solfatara were called
Colles LeucogoBi by the ancients, and their dust was prized
for coloring the alica, or groats, of the Romans ; and the
waters boiling at their feet, the Fontes Leucogcei, were said
by Pliny to be of great benefit in diseases of the eye.

The Solfatara is but one of the interesting features of the

266 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

Phlegrsean Plain, so full of associations with classical tra-
ditions, Hellenic legends, and Roman history ; where the
Patricians built almost numberless villas, amphitheatres,
and temples, of which little remains. But the chaotic ruins
— some in shapeless masses, others with splendid arches as
fresh and firm as if just completed, and beautiful columns
lying where thrown by the convulsions of nature — draped
with delicate foliage fed by percolating drops issuing from
invisible fissures, are fascinating to us of the New World.
No more delightful experience can be had than wandering
here on a soft spring day, when sea and sky are of that
heavenly blue which is a benediction of itself. The inex-
pressible beauty of islands and headlands, bays and coast-
line, is the same as when Statius wrote : —

" Tempered by breezy summers, winters bland,
The waveless seas glide slumbering to the land :
Safe peace is here ; life's careless ease is ours ;

A thousand pleasures could my verse expand,
And darling loves of this, my native land."

Pozzuoli, the Puteoli of the Romans, is rich in associa-
tions with ancient days, and Cicero called it a miniature
Rome. It was an important mercantile port to the Romans
and Alexandrians. Fabius, with 6,000 men, defended it
against Hannibal ; Sulla came here B. c. 79, and here killed
himself by his debaucheries. Augustus made it a Roman
colony ; and the shore was doubtless as full of docks and
warehouses as were the surrounding hills of temples, am-
phitheatres, and patrician villas. The fall of the Roman
Empire sounded the note of its destruction, which the
physical forces ably seconded by their upheavals ; and the
plunder of the Goths in the fifth century completed its
desolation, which continued until the Saracens settled here
500 years later. In the twelfth century the eruption of
the Solfatara injured it greatly ; in the fifteenth and six-

POZZUOLI, BALE, CUM.1E, PROCIDA, AND ISCHIA. 267

teenth centuries it suffered from earthquakes and the
attacks of the Turks, whose ravages, together with those
of malaria, caused Pozzuoli to be essentially abandoned.

Don Pedro de Toledo, as we have seen, attempted to re-
store Pozzuoli to some importance ; but the unhealthfulness
of the whole precinct forbade its prosperity, and it is now a
quiet town, which in many particulars recalls the lines of
W. W. Story,—

" The streets, too, through whose narrow, dusty track
We ride in files, each on our donkey's back,
When evening's shadow o'er the high gray walls,
O'ertopped with oranges and olives, falls,
And at each corner 'neath its roof of tiles,
Hung with poor offerings, the Madonna smiles
In her rude shrine so picturesque with dirt.
Is this not Italy ? Your nerves are hurt
By that expression, — dirt, — nay, then I see
You love not nature, art, nor Italy."

But the association with Pozzuoli which most interests
us hangs on the 13th verse of the 28th chapter of the
Acts of the Apostles : " And after one day the south wind
blew, and we came the next day to Puteoli : where we
found brethren, and were desired to tarry with them seven
days."

It was on May 3, A. D. 59, that S. Paul landed from the
" Castor and Pollux," the third ship of his voyage ; for he
left Cesarea in a vessel belonging to Adramyttium, and at
Myra was transferred to an Alexandrian ship, laden with
wheat for the Roman market, which was wrecked at
Melita, where he embarked on the third, which brought
him safely to this most attractive city.

The inscriptions which have been discovered at Pozzuoli
explain the word " brethren " which S. Luke used. These
inscriptions show that there were Tyrians dwelling at
Puteoli, which was called a " station " or Tyrian factory,
a second being at Rome, and these being the only two in

268 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

Italy. S. Luke does not use the word " brethren " after
leaving his " friends " at Sidon, until he reaches Puteoli.
The mercantile connection between Alexandria and this
Italian port must necessarily have brought Jews here, and
Christians as well ; and it is stated in the " Life of S.
Paul," by Conybeare and Howson, that " the Italian Chris-
tians had long been, looking for a visit from the famous
Apostle."

In thinking of S. Paul's voyage up this coast from
Rhegium, — a city whose protectors were the same Gemini
to whose care Paul's ship was confided, — we question as
to what existing features of the coast are the same as
when he saw it. We can scarcely picture the glory that
he beheld when passing between Capri and the promontory
of Minerva ; on Capri were the twelve splendid villas of
Tiberius, while opposite, the wonderful temple of Minerva
crowned that point where we now see but olive-trees and
myrtle. The majestic sweep of the bay and coast were
the same as now ; but Neapolis had a lovelier background
than the Vesuvius of to-day, for the great mountain was
then green and beautiful, its western slope bearing luxu-
rious vineyards. The ancients knew that its summit showed
signs of volcanic action, but who could imagine that in a
score of years it should change its form, send death and
destruction to the cities clustering at its feet, and end
the lives of thousands ? How could S. Paul suspect that
Drusilla, the wife of the Roman governor Felix, who had
talked with him in his prison at Cesarea, would lose her
life, with that of her son, in the vast tomb covered by the
ashes of Vesuvius ?

Seneca relates that the Alexandrine corn-ships were
recognized at Puteoli while still distant, as they were the
only ships that did not strike the topsail when rounding
the Cape of Minerva. The news of their arrival attracted
crowds to the pier, and we can imagine the scene on which

POZZUOLI, BALE, CU1\LE, PROCIDA, AND ISCHIA. 269

S. Paul, S. Luke, and Aristarchus gazed, as the " Castor
and Pollux " reached her destination.

The bay between Puteoli and Baiae is calm and beautiful,
affording a sheltered harbor for pleasure-boats or mer-
chantmen, and in S. Paul's time was filled with both ; for
Baiae was a favorite resort of the luxurious class that
sailed these lovely seas in its own yachts, with their bril-
liantly tinted sails, while Puteoli was a great commercial
centre. Between these two cities, in an indentation of the
coast, was Lucrine Lake, the Styx of Virgil, separated
from the sea by a causeway, the building of which was
attributed to Hercules. In this lake were the oyster-beds
that supplied the "Lucrinenses" of the Roman epicures,
and were praised even by the poets. An artificial canal,
built by order of Augustus, connected Lucrine with Aver-
nus, and first dispelled the gloomy superstitions that hung
about that lake, which Virgil had made the gate to hell,
and Homer the abode of the dismal Cimmerii. In S. Paul's
time the lake was bordered by fine edifices, magnificent
baths rising on its eastern margin ; but the upheaval of
1538 filled up a large part of Lake Lucrine, and left only
ruins in its neighborhood.

Baiae was then at the zenith of its glory. Horace said,
" Nothing in the world can be compared with the lovely
bay of Baiae ; " and on its borders rose the luxurious villas
and imposing baths where the profligate Romans held their
orgies and hastened to their ruin. The remnants of these
edifices were tossed out into the sea ; in the eighth century
the Saracens devastated the city with a cruelty which ex-
ceeded that of the earthquake, and a few centuries later
malaria completed its desolation ; it is only now regaining
a tithe of its importance.

We know no scene to-day which can be likened to that
on the Bay of Puteoli in the first century of our era in any
considerable degree ; and as we trace the journeys of S.

270 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

Paul, and remember that he was familiar with Jerusalem,
" the joy of the whole earth," that he saw the glories of
Athens and of many cities now buried from sight on the
coasts and islands of the Mediterranean, and landing at
Puteoli journeyed to Imperial Rome, we realize that all
the glories of the earth were known to him when lie
solemnly declared that he counted " all things but loss for
the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord :
for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do
count them but dung, that I may win Christ."

Though S. Paul came to his " brethren " a prisoner, in
chains, having barely escaped the dangers of the sea, the
centurion Julius was no hard master, and did not refuse
to rest at Puteoli, as was proposed to him. The Scripture
does not say in what manner these seven days were passed ;
but we cannot doubt that he comforted his brethren, and
spoke to them as he later wrote to the Ephesians, asking
their prayers " that utterance may be given unto me, that
I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery
of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in bonds."

Traditions exist, however, which tell of the preaching of
Paul, and of numerous conversions among those who heard
of Jesus for the first time. It is also said that he visited
the temples, the amphitheatre, and even the tomb of Vir-
gil. Whatever may be our estimate of these traditions, we
may reasonably believe that S. Paul first preached in Italy
in the city of Pozzuoli.

Paul's stay at Pozzuoli occurred when the city was at
its best; for Nero had just renewed its ancient privileges,
which stimulated its activity and prosperity. On the
mole enclosing the harbor of the merchantmen, where S.
Paul landed, the lighthouse stood; and so enduring was
the concrete of which its piers were built, that sixteen of
them still remain, affording the most perfect existing ruin
of a Roman harbor.

The Amphitheatre at

POZZUOLI, BALE, CUALE, PROCIDA, AND ISCHIA. 271

The amphitheatre of Pozzuoli is unusually perfect, and
is a splendid specimen of such structures which existed
in all Roman cities. This one seated 30,000 spectators ;
here Nero entertained Tiridates, and descending into the
arena, the emperor seized a lance from a guard and
killed two bulls at one blow. Here S. Januarius and his
companions were exposed to wild beasts without harm,
which converted 5,000 persons to the religion of the saint.
The apartments of the arena in which these godly men
are believed to have been confined are now consecrated
as a chapel called the " Carceri di S. Gennaro." This
arena was sometimes flooded for the exhibition of naval
battles, which with bull-fights and gladiatorial contests
made up the usual spectacles of this theatre. The sub-
terranean story for the accommodation of gladiators and
wild beasts is enormously extensive ; its prostrate columns
and other architectural fragments are picturesquely veiled
by verdant foliage and mosses. Each time one rambles
through these ancient theatres, the thought of the enor-
mous sacrifice of life which occurred in them during the
centuries in which Roman monsters thus took their pleas-
ure, grows more and more appalling.

The Temple of Serapis, built in the sixth century of
Rome, was not unearthed until 1750 ; and one cannot be
reconciled to the fact that it was not preserved, with its
ornaments, statues, and vases intact, or even restored as it
might easily have been. Goths and Vandals could scarcely
have been more unappreciative of ancient art than Chris-
tians of recent centuries have frequently proved to be.
There are fragments of other temples at Pozzuoli and
remnants of the villa of Cicero, in which he lived and
wrote, and where the Emperor Hadrian was buried.
Pliny tells us that when Cicero died, a warm spring burst
forth, its waters being beneficial to weary eyes.

Going farther west from Pozzuoli, the lovely views of its

272 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

bay and coasts are still before us, and we try to fancy how
Caligula's bridge must have disfigured this exquisite pros-
pect. He seized every vessel in the ports of Italy ; and
Suetonius says : —

" Caligula invented a new kind of spectacle, for he made a
bridge, about three miles and a half long, from Baiae to the
mole of Puteoli, collecting trading-vessels from all directions,
mooring them in two ro.ws by their anchors, and spreading
earth upon them to form a viaduct, after the fashion of the
Appian Way. This bridge he crossed and recrossed for two
days together : the first day mounted on a horse richly capari-
soned, having on his head a crown of oak leaves, armed with
a battle-axe, a Spanish buckler and sword, and wearing a cloak
of cloth of gold ; the following day, dressed as a charioteer,
standing in a chariot, drawn by two high-bred horses, having
with him a young boy, named Darius, one of the Parthian host-
ages, and attended by a cohort of Praetorian Guards, and a
number of his friends in Gaulish fashion."

Various reasons have been given for this curious freak
of Caligula, in which he simply copied what Xerxes had
done when he bridged the Hellespont ; the most satisfac-
tory one being found in the fact that an astrologer fore-
told that Cains could no more be emperor than he could
ride on horseback across the Gulf of Baiae.

Leaving the shore and^ skirting Monte Nuovo and Lake
Avernus, we go towards Cumae. It is difficult to realize
that this baby volcano, less than 500 feet high, was thrown
up in a night in 1538. Dumas calls it the great event of
Pozzuoli, and says, —

" One morning Pozzuoli awoke, looked about, and did not
know herself. Where she had left a lake at evening she found
a mountain ; where she had left a forest she found ashes ;
where she left a village she found nothing whatever."

If one is well up in the classics, Lake Avernus is dis-
appointing. The " Tartarean woods " are gone ; no Cim-

POZZUOLI, BALE, CUMJE, PROCIDA, AND ISCHIA. 273

merian gypsies enliven the surrounding hills, and their city
of caves is no longer shut in by thick forests. Few de-
scriptions of any spot are as inexact as this of Virgil's
now is : —

" Deep in the craggy gorge a cavern yawned ;
A pitchy lake and forests black as night
Girdled its depths profound. No bird unharmed
O'er that dread orifice might steer its flight, —
Such baneful exhalation through the air
Reeked from its murky jaws ; by Grecians hence
Aornos named."

Ascending the hill called Monte Barbaro, the next
prominent relic of the past is the Arce Felice, which spans
a hollow, the banks of which are filled with tombs. Sixty-
three feet in height, this arch is a striking and picturesque
feature in the landscape ; it has traces of having borne an
aqueduct on its summit ; it may have been a gateway to
the town, and its pavement is a part of the old road from
Pozzuoli to Cumas.

This latter city is believed to have existed B. c. 1050,
and to have been the earliest Greek settlement in Italy.
Its influence on Italian civilization can scarcely be exag-
gerated ; all the Italian alphabets are derived from the
Cumaean ; not only so, but Hellenic worship and culture
were diffused from this centre, and here Tarquinius Super-
bus purchased the Sibylline books, so long cherished at
Rome.

The fifth century saw the beginning of the decline of
Cumae, and eight centuries later it had become such a
stronghold for the pirates of the Tyrrhenean seas that
its neighbors, Naples and Aversa, determined on its
destruction.

The hill of the Acropolis commands an exquisite view,
and is believed to be the spot where the first Greek colony
in Italy had its home. The broad blue sea, the Ponza

18

274 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

Islands, Ischia, and Lake Fusaro unite in a prospect that
does honor to their selection of a site. The citadel was
destroyed early in our century, for the sake of its materials,
and little remains of the amphitheatre and temples to
interest the usual traveller ; while the archaeologist and
classical scholar desire to see the spot so rich in historical
and legendary associations.

The hill of the Acropolis is full of caves and passages,
some of which are believed to have made a part of

" that dim cave

Secluded, where the awful Sibyl dwells,
Whose soul with Divination's mystic lore
The prophet-god inspires.

. Before the place

An hundred doors an hundred entries grace ;
As many voices issue, and the sound
Of Sibyl's words as many times rebound."

The various attacks on the citadel of Cuma? have de-
stroyed so many landmarks that it is not possible to say
much more than that Cumae was here ; each one must,
from his own knowledge of its history, rebuild in imagina-
tion the citadel, the temple of Apollo, roofed with gold,
and all the ancient beauty and grandeur of the city of
oracles.

South of Cumae is Lake Fusaro, the Acherusian Lake,
celebrated for its oysters since classic days ; and hence the
road to Baiae passes ruined tombs and architectural frag-
ments which serve to fix the thoughts on the past with its
vanished glories, until that watering-place of antiquity is
reached which was celebrated by poets and scholars for its
beauty, and disgraced by emperors and patricians with un-
restrained crimes and follies. Its situation is magnificent ;
on the west of the bay are lofty hills, whose precipices
descend majestically to the sea. The wealthy Romans who
built villas here permitted no common people to come near,

The Temple of Venus and Diana at Baice.

POZZUOLI, BAI^E, CUM^E, PROCIDA, AND ISCHIA. 275

and an acre was denied to men who could buy a province
elsewhere. Sulla, Pompey, Caesar, Tiberius, and Nero af»
fected these baths, and, the land not being sufficient, the
substructures of their palatial homes extended into the sea.
Now, alas ! there are no reminders of luxury or pride ; wars
and malaria have ravaged it and made it to be dreaded ;
and the castle of Toledo, on its commanding promontory,
may be called the only monument of the ancient glory of
Baiae, built as it was with the stones of its temples, baths,
and exquisite villas. The Roman writers bear testimony
to the immorality of Baiae ; Martial says that the Pene-
lopes who came here were changed to Helens ; and Ponta-
nus, in his day, called it the ruin of women, old and young
alike. But all other crimes are insignificant before Nero's
murder of his mother, on account of which Tacitus says that
Nero fled, — for "the face of a country cannot change its
aspect like the countenances of men ; the offensive prospect
of that sea and those shores lay ever before his eyes, and
there were even those who believed that the sound of a
trumpet was heard from the surrounding hills, and that
wailings arose from Agrippina's grave."

Baiae was a favorite resort until the early part of the
sixteenth century. Joanna, Ladislaus, and Ferdinand I.
were fond of coming here, and as late as the time of San-
nazzaro parts of the old city still existed ; a little later it
was deserted, and is only now beginning to regain life and
importance.

From Baiae to Cape Misenum is not far, and from this
headland one sees a wonderful panorama. It seems to
stand in the midst of a grand convocation of the natural
features we were taught to define in our earliest study of
the earth's surface; and involuntarily the definitions of
capes, headlands, straits, bays, lakes, and peninsulas repeat
themselves in the practical side of consciousness, while the
aesthetic side is in an ecstasy over this vision of wonderful

276 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS,

beauty. Here Misenus, the trumpeter of JEneas, was buried,
and here Tiberius died.

The Roman port of Misenum consisted of three basins.
The inner one, the crater of an extinct volcano, is the Mare
Morto, between the northwest boundary of which and the
southern margin of Lake Fusaro are the Elysian Fields.
They are beautifully cultivated ; poplars and mulberries
abound, and vines festoon all objects that they can reach,
let them be trees or the numerous tombs of the sailors who
have been buried here. The vineyards are luxuriant and
produce good wine ; but the purple light over ever-verdant
and mossy meadows, which Virgil here saw, does not now
appear, and one can but wonder a little at the glamour
which the poetic imagination makes so real a thing, where
more commonplace minds fail to discern the least sugges-
tion of such beauties.

The island of Procida — the ancient Prochyta — is gener-
ally believed to have been broken off from Ischia. It is two
and a half miles long, and has but one height, the Punta di
Rocciola, on which is the old castle, now a house of correc-
tion. The town of Procida stretches from the shore up the
side of the castle hill, and is picturesque with its glistening
white houses in the midst of trees, vineyards, orange-groves,
and fruit-gardens. A large portion of this island belonged
to John of Procida, the hero of the Sicilian Vespers.

Juvenal called Procida a dreary place ; it is now as
cheerful as the busy and contented life of 14,000 inhabi-
tants can make it. The industries are fruit-raising and
fishing. Many fruit vessels are owned here, and are loaded
for various distant ports. The Greek origin of the inhabi-
tants may still be recognized in the costumes of the women
on May 8 and September 29, the two principal fete
days of the island ; characteristic dances are then seen,
for which a few years ago the timbrel was played and the
tarantella danced with great spirit.

POZZUOLI, BAI^E, CUM^E, PROCIDA, AND ISCHIA. 277

The island of Ischia — the vEnaria and Inarima of the
ancients — is the largest island near Naples, though not
so wonderful in its natural formation nor historically of
so much interest as Capri. In the earliest days of which
we have any knowledge of Ischia, its Greek colonists fled
from it by reason of its frequent earthquakes and volcanic
eruptions. The ancient poets made the depths of Monte
Epomeo the prison of Typhoaus as ^Etna was that of En-
celadus ; but since 1302 the struggles of the giant have
ceased, and no eruptions have occurred. At its summit
are a small hermitage and chapel hewn in the rock, dedi-
cated to S. Nicolas, by whose name the mountain is now
frequently called.

The Emperor Augustus exchanged Ischia for Capri with
the Neapolitans ; it suffered the attacks of the Saracens,
and in 1135 was sacked by the Pisans. From that time,
during four centuries, it was the scene of insurrections
and invasions, and was frequently an asylum for the sov-
ereigns of Naples when fleeing from their enemies.

The names of three famous women are intimately asso-
ciated with Ischia, — Costanza d'Avalos, Yittoria Colonna,
and the widow of still another D'Avalos, the Marchioness
del Vasto. Costanza d'Avalos, in 1501, defended Ischia
against the French, with great skill and bravery. Her
services were rewarded by the settlement of the civil and
military government of the island on the D'Avalos family,
which power it retained until 1734, when its military com-
mand was transferred to Naples.

Ischia was the home of Vittoria Colonna in her girl-
hood ; here she was married, and here passed her honey-
moon. It was also the birthplace of her husband, Ferdi-
nand d'Avalos, Marquis of Pescara; and after his death
Vittoria returned to live in the castle, and give herself up
to the grief, which she expressed not only in her life, but
in the many sonnets which commemorate her affliction,

278 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

her lofty estimate of Pescara's character, and her undying
love for him. Here her life was not so lonely as would at
first appear ; for Costanza, Marchesa di Francavilla, main-
tained a court which was celebrated throughout Europe,
as especially favored by Apollo and the Muses. Doubtless
the presence of Vittoria was the attraction to many of the
poets who loved to linger here ; and Tasso has thus cele-
brated this Ischian Paradise : —

" Proud rock ! the loved retreat of such a band

Of earth's best, noblest, greatest, that their light
Pales other glories to the dazzled sight,
And like a beacon shines throughout the land.
If truest worth can reach the perfect state,
And man may hope to merit heavenly rest,
Those whom thou harborest in thy rocky breast,
First in the race will reach the heavenly gate.
Glory of martial deeds is thine. In thee,
Brightest the world e'er saw or heaven gave,

Dwell chastest beauty, worth, and courtesy !
Well be it with thee ! May both wind and sea
Respect thee : and thy native air and wave
Be temper'd ever by a genial sky I "

T. Adolphus Trollope assures his readers that worse son-
nets than the above can be found by the ream among the
imitators of Petrarch, and adds that Vittoria Colonna later
reached a much greater height. She has told us, —

" I only write to vent that inward pain,
On which my heart doth feed itself, nor wills
Aught other nourishment."

Trollope says : —

"The enthusiasm created by these tuneful wailings of a
young widow as lovely as inconsolable, as irreproachable as
noble, learned enough to correspond with the most learned
men of the day on their own subjects, and with all this a Co-
lonna, was intense. Vittoria became speedily the most famous

POZZUOLI, EAIJE, CUM^E, PROCIDA, AND ISCHIA. 279

woman of her time, was termed by universal consent 'the
divine,' and lived to see three editions of the grief-cries which
escaped from her ' without her will.' "

The third of these notable women was the widow of
another D'Avalos, the Marquis of Vasto, who went to live
at Ischia in 1548. Like Vittoria Colonna, she was famed
for virtue and beauty. It is said that at one period of her
life Vittoria was called the most beautiful living woman ;
and the beauty of the Marchesa del Vasto when beyond
middle life was declared to excel that of other women in
their springtime ; and when more than sixty years old, she
inspired the Grand Prior of France with a veritable passion
of love, so irresistible were her charms.

In 1717 Bishop Berkeley described Ischia in terms not
too enthusiastic now, if one sees it in summer. Indeed,
he did not name the beautiful orchids and ferns, the olives
and bananas, nor the hedges of aloe and prickly pear.
He says, in writing to Pope : —

"The island of Inarime is an epitome of the whole earth,
containing within a compass of eighteen miles a wonderful va-
riety of hills, vales, rugged rocks, fruitful plains, and barren
mountains, all thrown together in a most romantic confusion.
The air is, in the hottest season, constantly refreshed by cool
breezes from the sea ; the vales produce excellent Indian corn,
but are mostly covered with vineyards interspersed with fruit-
trees. Besides the common kinds, as cherries, apricots,
peaches, etc., they produce oranges, limes, almonds, pome-
granates, figs, water-melons, and many other fruits unknown
to our climates, which lie everywhere open to the passenger.
The hills are the greater part covered to the top with vines,
some with chestnut groves, and others with thickets of myrtle
and lentiscus. But that which crowns the scene is Mons
Epomeus. Its lower parts are adorned with vines and other
fruits ; the middle afford pasture to flocks of goats and sheep ;

280 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

and the top is a sandy pointed rock from which you have the
finest prospect in the world, surveying at one view, besides
several pleasant islands lying at your feet, a tract of Italy
about 300 miles in length, from the promontory of Antium to
the Cape of Palinurus."

The mineral waters of Ischia are greatly esteemed, and
before 1883 the island had become a popular sanitarium.
Porto d' Ischia has a large bathing-establishment and a
royal park, but Casamicciola was the favorite resort. The
earthquake of July 28, 1883, left but a few houses stand-
ing ; 7,500 lives were lost, and many who escaped with life
were wounded and maimed. An Englishman who has
long resided in Naples gives a touching account of the
generosity and kindness of the very poor in Naples in
their sympathy for the sufferers of their own class in
Casamicciola. Many Neapolitans who could scarcely feed
themselves and their families, went with their boats and
brought the Ischians to their poor homes, where they gave
them their beds and the few comforts they had. The re-
building has progressed but slowly ; and the wooden sheds,
hastily erected at the time of the catastrophe, are still the
homes of many of the people.

Beautiful straw plaiting is done at Lacco, where a school
for this industry has been established. In this village is
the Cathedral of S. Restituta, the patroness of the island,
whose fe'te is celebrated on May 17 by the illumination
of Monte Yico. The costumes of the Ischiajole are fre-
quently striking and attractive.

The excursions about the island are charming, and the
ascent of Epomeo through pine woods and vineyards to
the home of the hermit, cut in the volcanic rock, is full
of interest. Many of the old towers which fortified the
island in the days of Costanza d'Avalos, are still pictur-
esque and attractive, rising amid gardens and vineyards

POZZUOLI, BALE, CUJVOE, PEOCIDA, AND ISCHIA. 281

as they now do; and the same lovely views that have
wrought their spell on sirens and mortals, from Parthe-
nope to ourselves, are as enchanting from Ischia as from
each and every vantage-ground about this crescent-coasted
Bay of the Sirens.

CHAPTER XIII.

HERCULANEDM, VESUVIUS, POMPEII, SORRENTO, LA CAVA,
AMALFI, SALERNO, AND P^STUM.

HPHE excursion to Herculaneum and Pompeii is far
J- more interesting when made by carriage than by
train. The suburbs to the east of Naples are so thickly
populated that the boundary between the city and S. Gio-
vanni a Teduccio is quite invisible, and when passing to
Portici and Resina nothing indicates the division of these
towns. Street life is seen to great advantage on this drive :
macaroni is hung out to dry on all sides ; dirty, ragged
children play games with noisy glee ; dogs lie asleep in the
sun ; men smoke and idly loll about, while the women
have many occupations, and yet find time for plenty of
gossip.

At Portici the road runs through the court of the palace
built by Carlo Borbone, in which Murat preferred to live
while at Naples, and thence passes almost immediately into
Resina, from which point the visit to Herculaneum is made.
This is a curiously unpleasant experience, and yet it is
more emphatically impressive of the horror which de-
stroyed this city and Pompeii than is the visit to the latter
place. This underground darkness, lighted by smoking
torches, where only bits of a villa, temple, or theatre can
be seen, where everything is mutilated and disjointed, and
one feels oppressed for want of air to breathe, is vastly
more dreadful than the open streets of the excavated
Pompeii, where one feels the sun and sees the sky.

Looking down the Street of the Tombs, Pompeii.

HERCULANEUM, VESUVIUS, POMPEII, ETC. 283

The blackness and solidity of the tufa, which is only cut
out with great difficulty, is, of itself, more depressing than
the ashes and rubbish which were so much more easily
removed from Pompeii. Tradition attributes the founda-
tion of this city to Hercules himself, and in ancient days
Oscans, Etruscans, and Samnites lived here, while in the
prosperous days of Rome it was the site of many patrician
villas. After the earthquake, A. D. 63, and the eruption of
79, other waves of ashes and lava buried it to a depth vary-
ing from forty to one hundred feet, and it was lost to
human knowledge until 1719, when the Prince d'Elbceuf,
in digging a well, came upon parts of the ancient theatre.

There is but little to be seen, as portions of the exca-
vations are filled up ; they extended under Portici and
Resina, and threatened to undermine these towns ; but the
discovery itself and the little that has been done are of
vast interest to the world. The bronzes, mural decora-
tions, papyri, and especially the portrait statues of the Balbi,
now in the Naples Museum, are extremely valuable, and
give to the buried city the seeming of a vast treasure-
house which rolling centuries have effectually closed, even
to the irrepressible curiosity and enterprise of the present
era.

Beyond Resina is Torre del Greco, a bustling town built
in a most unsafe position. It has repeatedly suffered from
eruptions and earthquakes ; but the inhabitants never hesi-
tate to rebuild what is thrown down, and to live on here
with a faith so daring that it commands a certain respect
for those who have it. The Neapolitan proverb runs,
"Napoli fa i peccati, e la Torre li paga," — "Naples
commits the sins, and la Torre pays for them."

From Torre del Greco many coral-fishers go forth each
spring to their arduous labors on the Sicilian and African
coasts, and here a great quantity of coral ornaments are
manufactured. In June a great popular festival is held iu

284 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

Torre, commemorating the abolition of feudalism in 1700,
and is called the Festa dei quattro Altari.

The monastery of the Camaldoli della Torre has a safer
position than the town, for, though situated on a volcanic
hill, it is not in danger from lava streams. It commands
a splendid view of the Bay of Naples, and an extraordinary
one of the desolated sides of Vesuvius. The fresh and
even Oriental aspect of the vegetation which surrounds the
convent ; its domes, and the revolving wheels of the wells,
and the hedges of prickly pear, — also reminders of the
East, — help to make an impressive contrast between the
estates of the monastery and the black lava fields by which
they are bordered ; no view on the eastern side of the bay
surpasses that seen from the summit of this hill of the
Camaldoli.

It is not far to Torre dell' Annunziata, which is full of
life. Its manufacture of macaroni, its fishing, and its
powder-factory furnish occupation for all its people ; while
the fame of its mineral waters attracts many invalids to
this charming spot.

If one does not make the excursion to Vesuvius from
Naples in the regulation manner, — under the care of
Thomas Cook & Sons, which is certainly the least trouble,
— it may be made from Torre dell' Annunziata. It is a
wonderful experience, which no one can afford to lose.
Goethe called Vesuvius " a peak of hell rising from para-
dise," and a more suitable description of this volcano could
scarcely be given in many pages ; volumes are required to
speak fully of this wonderful mountain, while all guide-
books give the information necessary to one who sees it for
himself.

Torre dell' Annunziata is also a convenient point from
which to reach Pompeii, — that wonderful city from whicli
we so largely draw our knowledge of the domestic life of
the beginning of our era. The emotions experienced in

The House of Pansa, Pompeii.

HERCULANEUM, VESUVIUS, POMPEII, ETC. 285

this visit differ as widely as do the views and tempera-
ments of the visitors, but in any case it is a unique ex-
perience. Nowhere else can one so step back into the past,
leaving century on century behind, and bring himself into
intimate relations with the earliest decades of our era.

Pompeii differs so essentially from all other places that
some time must elapse before one can be sufficiently forget-
ful of the usual, every-day world and its life to comprehend,
in any proper sense, the meaning and spirit of that which
surrounds him. He is in the midst of a past so distant
that it has no resemblance to the present.

The dainty dwellings of a refined and luxurious people
are here, but how simple in taste and arrangement ! These
small homes with their succession of tiny apartments could
not satisfy the needs of modern life. The court, with its
fountain in the centre, was the gathering-place for family
and friends. The men lived in the Forum, the Baths, the
Gymnasium, or the Theatre, and prided themselves on their
city, its Acropolis, its edifices. Individual pride as we now
know it, and the strife by which each man endeavors to
surpass others in his individual attainments and mode of
life, were turned into widely differing channels in the city
of antiquity. Public life was first, private life secondary,
and the women in their apartments — the Gynaeceum —
were luxuriously indolent, or, with some slight, Penelope-
like pursuit, awaited the time when their male relatives
and friends should turn to their homes for a few hours of
repose.

Entering the theatre which crowns the hill, Vesuvius
looms before us in awful grandeur, while the sea sparkles
and shimmers merrily, as if mocking all desolation. We
try to imagine what it was like here in the year 79. We
endeavor to fancy it filled with the gracefully draped forms
that here in open day, with but an awning between them
and the sky, reclining on the seats of Parian marble, listened

286 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

to the tragedy or comedy with one portion of their con-
sciousness, while another portion was entranced by the
beauty of the surrounding Nature.

The amphitheatre here, as everywhere, recalls the cruelty
of which the Romans never wearied, and its associations
are strangely out of keeping with the present peacef ulness
of this resurrected city. The baths with their numerous
apartments, exquisite .decorations, and fresh pavements,
give the impression that time must have been more elastic
in Pompeii than in any city of our day ; else how could so
much of it have been devoted to attaining that suppleness
of skin and muscle which the processes of the Pompeian
bath induced ?

We turn from these centres of ancient life to the tombs,
in which death was not made repulsive and lugubrious,
but solemn, with a noble seriousness. It was treated as
the natural termination of life, — bringing sorrow, indeed,
to those who still lived, but a sorrow free from dread and
shuddering doubts.

The curious, narrow streets, with their stepping-stones
for wet weather, seem like the paths of a miniature, make-
believe city ; the houses and places of business remind one
of a toy-shop ; and, in a word, nothing has an air of gran-
deur and magnificence — rather that of effeminacy and
pleasure-seeking.

One can but wish that all the wonderful objects found
here — the fresh, charming pictures, bright as if painted
but a day ; the ornaments of the women ; the mosaics,
statues, lamps, vases, coins, food, and many other things —
had been left where found ; and even the petrified skele-
tons of those who in the midst of life were in death, so
that the realization of the human life that was once here
might be clearer and more impressive.

But with time and thought and the subtle power which
helps us to appreciate conditions that we have never

HERCULANEUM, VESUVIUS, POMPEII, ETC. 287

known, we attain to a fuller sense of what has happened
here, and involuntarily Moore's song recurs to us, —
" I feel like one

Who treads alone
Some banquet-hall deserted,
Whose lights are fled,
Whose garlands dead,
And all but he departed ! " —

so well expressing one phase of thought and feeling that
Pompeii induces. The oppressive silence and unspeakable
loneliness are well expressed by Thomas Gold Appleton :

" The silence there was what most haunted me.
Long speechless streets, whose stepping-stones invite
Feet which shall never come ; to left and right
Gay colonnades and courts, — beyond, the glee,
Heartless, of that forgetful Pagan sea ;
On roofless homes and waiting streets the light
Lies with a pathos sorrowfuller than night."

And all this sombreness is emphasized by that dread
presence from which there is no escape, — Vesuvius, which
is like the presiding genius of the place. Wherever one
goes, of whatever he thinks, at whatever he looks, be it the
ruins themselves, or the deep blue heaven above, or the
distant rolling sea, \iQfeeh the mountain, mysterious, awful.
The little wreath of smoke mounting to the sky slowly,
quietly, seems at times to indicate the satisfaction of the
power that has worked its will ; the desolation it has
wrought has sated its desire for evil. But again this ever-
breathing monster impresses one as threatening to vomit
forth its flame, its lava, and its ashes, pouring out whole-
sale death on man and beast, on tree and vine and flower ;
and as one reflects on this side of its possibilities, he is
possessed by an almost absolutely compelling instinct to
flee, while he wonders at the courage of those who on its
mid-height cultivate the vine, and live in the villages upon
its sides and at its feet.

288 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

On two occasions I have been in Naples when Vesuvius
was pouring out many small streams of lava. By day the
appearance of the mountain was not unusual, except that
occasionally showers of small stones and ashes were
thrown out and made the air thick about the crater for a
few moments. But at night, from our windows in Naples,
it presented a never-to-be-forgotten spectacle. All down
its sides innumerable serpent-like streams of living fire
were writhing, producing an effect of awful power and
wrath, such as no picture drawn with brush or pen could
reproduce.

It was strangely fascinating in its unusualness and in
the thoughts that it induced ; fascinating even in the
dread of what might occur at any moment. Although at
a safe distance and free from fear, it was difficult to look
away from the volcano, more difficult to go to bed, and
sleeping soundly was quite out of the question. In
the daytime, when I stood on moving streams of half-
cooled lava, they seemed to move very slowly ; but when
darkness brought out their fiery glow, they appeared to
hasten, as if in search of prey. At times these red-hot
rivers of lava assumed the shapes of reptiles, crocodiles,
lizards, and the like ; and one was almost forced to ques-
tion, as did Madame de Stael, whether benevolence alone
directs the phenomena of creation, or whether some secret
principle of ferocity shows its power in them. At least,
the spectacle of Vesuvius in action explains how men have
been led to believe in an evil power which is sufficient to
overcome at times the designs of a merciful Providence;
and the conclusion of Martial's lines affords a momentary
satisfaction, —

" Vesuvio, covered with the fruitful vine,
Here flourished once, and ran with floods of wine ;
Here Bacchus oft to the cool shades retired,
And his own native Nisa less admired ;

HERCULANEUM, VESUVIUS, POMPEII, ETC. 289

Oft to the mountain's airy top advanced,

The frisking satyrs on the summits danced ;

Alcides here, here Venus graced the shore,

Nor loved her favorite Lacedaemon more.

Now piles of ashes, spreading all around,

In undistinguished heaps deform the ground ;

The gods themselves the ruined seats bemoan,

And blame the mischiefs that themselves have done."

Returning from Pompeii to Torre dell' Annunziata and
proceeding east, Castellammare is soon reached. It is a
busy, unattractive town until one ascends to the Quissisana,
already mentioned. Here one has magnificent views, and
the delightful, shaded walks are thronged by Neapolitans
in summer, while many foreigners come here in spring and
autumn to drink the mineral waters, make donkey excur-
sions, and climb Monte S. Angelo, to the Cappella de S.
Michele, where, on the 1st of August, a miracle is said
to occur, of no less importance than the sweating of
the statue of S. Michael. A monk collects the miracu-
lous moisture on bits of cotton-wool, puts them in little
bottles, and distributes them to those who have faith in the-
miracle.

The drive from Castellammare to Sorrento is one of the
finest in the world, passing through lovely valleys and over
promontories affording magnificent views of the bay, its*
shores and its islands. Vineyards and olive plantations
are numerous ; and when the Piano di Sorrento is reached,
the luxurious beauty of its vegetation is a delight. This
plain is intersected by ravines, and sheltered from harsh
winds by surrounding mountains. Orange, fig, pomegran-
ate, and mulberry trees abound ; the aloe lends an Oriental
aspect, and the olive adds its restful coloring in this garden
of Campania.

The road is a veritable corniche, with pinnacles, crags,
and fortress-like rocks on one hand, while on the other lie
huge boulders that have split off and fallen even into the

19

290 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

waves themselves. Cultivation has even crept into the
gorges in -the mountains, so that their sides glow with
verdant trees and shrubs interspersed with the blossom
and fruit of the orange and with paler lemons which fill
the air with their delicious aroma. The orange thrives
wonderfully here, and strikes its roots into every possible
crevice, — beside wild precipices and tumble-down flights
of steps, in dilapidated courts, forsaken gardens, and wild
fields alike. Its delhnous fragrance and luscious fruit are,
like God's rain, for the just and the unjust, the prince and
the beggar alike.

Many brilliantly tinted blossoms add their beauty to the
vegetation, while the colors of sea and sky are indescrib-
able. The sea changes with emerald, ruby, topaz, and
sapphire tints, from the varying shadows and lights above
and the different colors of the rocks beneath, while the
sky serenely maintains its heavenly azure until the evening
glow deepens, and, inflaming the western horizon, flashes
up the purplish wine-color, the scarlet and orange, to mid-
heaven, and is reflected in the sea, while the distant coasts
grow black, the little boats that were visible a moment
before are no longer seen, and a softly stealing darkness
broods over the waves.

High up toward the twinkling stars the atmosphere has
a luminous, pearly radiance that makes one wonder into
what entrancing heights he might come, could he but soar
on wings from the topmost crag of Capri, which in this
light is like a ghost of the island we saw an hour ago.

Sorrento is built on three ravines, all crowded with trees.
The town hangs over the sea, and its pergolas and shrines
are high in air, while steep, narrow flights of steps — some-
times cut in the rocks and again hung on them — afford
a precarious means of passing here and there among the
draping vines, the ivy, the cytizus, and hundreds of blos-
soming plants. Little bridges overhang the ravines at a

Panorama of Sorrento.

HERCULANEUM, VESUVIUS, POMPEII, ETC. 291

tremendous height above the water. S. Antonio, who in
836 so beat the Prince of Beneventum with a stick as to
save Sorrento from his powerful grasp, is still the pro-
tector of the city and its bridges, and is much reverenced
and loved by its people. They are civil to strangers, and
as a rule, have a more robust physique than the Neapoli-
tans ; in their festa costumes they are exceedingly effective
and picturesque.

Many delightful excursions are made from Sorrento ; and
the foreigners sojourning there, after a morning bath and
mid-day siesta, when the sun is dropping to the west, usu-
ally visit some interesting point on shore, or some island
that was loved by the sirens ; in the later evening there is a
gathering in the Piazza, where there is music. Where, out-
side Sorrento, can so much be found to help one to live in
utter forgetfulness of haste and care?

No traces of the Roman Surrentum remain, and the most
interesting associations with the past now cherished are
connected with Torquato Tasso, whose statue stands in
the Piazza, and whose birthplace is claimed to be a part of
the hotel which bears his name. Of this there are grave
doubts ; but that he was born of a noble family at Sorrento
is true, and after his captivity of seven years at Ferrara he
embarked from Caeta, disguised as a shepherd, and, reach-
ing Sorrento, made himself known to his sister and her
sons. Her neighbors believed him to be a cousin from
Bergamo.

In the garden of Tasso's sister, the Vigna Sersale, one
has a view which well repays the trouble of reaching it.
Here are splendid specimens of the umbrella pine ; and
looking over a picturesque valley and across the ever-
shimmering sea, the cliffs of Capri loom up in wild and
jagged grandeur.

If one goes from Sorrento to La Cava dei Tirreni, he is
within easy reach of several points of interest. Cava is a

292 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

favorite resort, except in winter. It consists principally of a
street with arcades. The one object worthy of notice is its
famous abbey ; but the whole neighborhood is picturesque,
and affords delightful walks and donkey rides.

After the convent of Monte Cassino, no other in South-
ern Italy is so celebrated as La Trinita della Cava. Its
history is most interesting, and its position, in the very
heart of the mountains, is romantic and beautiful ; " a
Swiss valley, with the sky and vegetation of Southern
Italy," well describes the way leading to it. The archives
of this abbey are of inestimable value, comprising more
than 100,000 valuable parchments as well as priceless
manuscripts, such as the " Codex Legum Longobarum,"
the oldest digest of Lombard law, and a Bible on vellum
attributed to the seventh century. There is a mine of
historical lore in this library, including not only judicial,
ecclesiastical, and political history, but also that of mediae-
val, domestic, and social life, especially of the Lombard
period.

The church of the monastery has the tombs of Queen
Sibilla and several noted ecclesiastics ; and it is said that
Pope Calixtus III. was a prisoner in this monastery, to
which he was consigned by Alexander III.

Salvator Rosa lived at La Cava, and studied these soli-
tudes, as may be readily seen in some of his works.

There is a curious custom at La Cava of covering up the
small figs in the autumn, and exposing them to ripen in the
spring; the figs here are of unusual excellence. Another
custom is that of catching pigeons in October. It is the
popular amusement of the upper classes, and for this pur-
pose little towers have been erected on all the hills ; as the
pigeons pass the towers, small white pebbles are thrown
out which the birds mistake for food, and descending to
eat it, they are caught in nets.

A delightful excursion may be made from La Cava to

HERCULANEUM, VESUVIUS, POMPEII, ETC. 293

Amalfi, Salerno, and Paestum. One who sees Amalfi to-
day realizes with difficulty that this little town with its
paper, soap, and macaroni factories was a rival of the great
mediaeval seaports, owned factories and trading-stations in
the Levant, and was once called the first naval power in
Europe. At all events, its maritime code is now a part of
modern international law.

It is shut off from all the world by bulwarks of preci-
pices on the one side, and is washed by the sea on the
other. It is most picturesque in effect, being built on the
sides of a gorge, and is a medley of loggias, cupolas, domes,
and balconies, all rich in colors, strongly contrasting with
its whitewashed roofs.

Amalfi has no classical associations, but was of great
importance in the Middle Ages. Mentioned first in the
sixth century, it was governed by its own doges a hun-
dred years later, and here the Emperor of Constantinople
founded a court for the adjustment of all naval questions.
The founding of the Order of the Hospitallers of S. John
may be attributed to the merchants of Amalfi. After the
middle of the twelfth century the Pisans were the declared
enemies of Amalfi ; in one of their attacks they stole and
carried away the priceless Pandects of Justinian, which, in
turn, the Florentines robbed from them three centuries
later. At length the Pisans forced Amalfi to secure peace
by tribute money, and from that day its power was gone ;
it also suffered an inroad of the sea, and gradually faded
and wasted into its present unimportance.

If one can escape the beggars of Amalfi, it is a most
interesting place, and is concisely described by Hans Chris-
tian Andersen in his charming improvvisatore : —

" The city lies, if I may say so, singularly piled upon itself.
Beside it, the narrow Ghetto in Rome would be a Corso. The
streets are little passages between the tall houses, and right
through them. Now one comes through a door into a long

294 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

landing-place, with small openings on the sides leading into
dark chambers, then into a narrow lane between brickwork and
walls of rock, steps up and steps down, a half-dark labyrinth
of dirty passages. I often did not know whether it was a room
or a lane in which we were. In most places lamps were burn-
ing ; and if it had not been so, although it was midday, it
would have been dark as night."

The road, or Riviera, between Ainalfi and Salerno excels
even that between Nice and Genoa in grandeur and pictur-
esqueness, and, above all, in coloring. Dean Alford says,
in speaking of the sea as it appears from this point : " It is
not blue, it is not purple, it is not green, but it is all these
by turns, nay, all of these together, flashing into and flash-
ing through one another, and passing in the distance into
an indescribable blended hue of all three, — the reflection
of the amethyst in the surface of the turquoise."

The extreme irregularity of the coast is most pictur-
esque. Each little bay is bordered by tiny towns and vil-
lages, with quaint towers and richly tinted old walls and
houses, and these are separated by steep hills and preci-
pices, on the sides of which still other towns are piled up,
while on the promontories rise curiously machicolated
towers.

Salerno, the ancient Salernum, is very interesting his-
torically, and has retained to this day its precedence as
being the chosen residence of the aristocracy of its sur-
rounding country. It has also preserved its mediaeval
characteristics far more than other cities of the peninsula,
and its history is involved with many most interesting
episodes and men. Here died in exile " the Caesar of spirit-
ual conquest, the great and inflexible assertor of the su-
premacy of the sacerdotal order," Gregory VII., to whom
Pius IX. erected a fine statue ; it is in that cathedral of
S. Matteo which Forsyth described as " a pile so antique
and so modern, so repaired and rhapsodic, that it exhibits

The Temple of Neptune at Pcestum.

HERCULANEUM, VESUVIUS, POMPEII, ETC. 295

patches of every style, and is in no style itself." In
the same place is buried Margaret of Durazzo, wife of
Charles III., and many other men and women whose names
send our thoughts back to ancient times and deeds. We
remember that the heirs of the Angevine kings were known
as Princes of Salerno ; that here the son of William the
Conqueror was treated for the cure of his wound received
in Palestine, from which his wife Sibylla had sucked the
first poison. And this brings to mind those great schools
which flourished at Salerno, and the philosophers and wise
men who went forth from them, of which we have already
spoken. For us, at this day, the fact that it was such a
centre of learning has more interest than the story of its
ecclesiastical, princely, or warlike associations.

Its school of medicine is said to have been founded by
Saracens, and fostered by Charlemagne.; Petrarch called
Salerno Fans Medicince, and Thomas Aquinas declared it
to be as remarkable for medicine as was Bologna for
law, or Paris for science. Other branches of learning
were also carried to an unusual perfection in Salerno, and
from that city went forth an influence which had an impor-
tant effect on the thought of all Europe. Its schools were
much enriched by Frederick II. The cathedral is surrounded
by twenty-eight very beautiful antique columns from the
ruined temples of Paestum, about twenty-four miles from
Salerno. This Poseidonia, or City of Neptune, was very
ancient, — the Romans conquered it B. c. 273 ; but so deadly
was its malaria that it rapidly declined. Its walls, three
miles in length, are still discernible, and the eastern gate
still perfect.

The temples of Psestum are very beautiful, — perhaps
none outside of Athens so well show the full effect and
majestic simplicity of Doric architecture ; but as all guide-
books give their measurements and describe their peculiar
features, we prefer to speak of the roses, blooming twice a

296 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

year, and breathing a fragrance such as is rarely found else-
where, and still sweetening this poisonous air in May and
November, although the vandalism of travellers has left
but a few plants. The violets of Paestum, too, have been
famed since Martial wrote, but like the roses have been
almost exterminated. When beholding the ruin of this
city which must sometime have been so rich and splendid,
one must sincerely sympathize with Lord Carlisle when he
wrote thus of these temples : —

" 'T is past — the echoes of the plain are mute,
E'en to the herdsman's voice or shepherd's flute ;
The toils of art, the charms of nature fail,
And death triumphant rides the tainted gale.
From the lone spot the trembling peasants haste ;
A wild, the garden ; and the town, a waste.
But they are still the same — alike they mock
Th' invader's menace, and the tempest's shock.
Such, ere the world had bow'd at Caesar's throne
Ere yet proud Rome's all-conquering name was known,
They stood — and fleeting centuries in vain
Have pour'd their fury o'er th' enduring fane !
Such, long shall stand ; proud relics of a clime,
Where man was glorious, and his works sublime ;
While in the progress of their long decay,
Thrones sink to dust, and nations pass away."

CHAPTER XIV.

THE ISLAND OP CAPEI.

A LTHOUGH the island of Capri is but eleven miles
«tA. in circumference, it is a miniature world. Its his-
tory begins with the dawn of the kingdoms and peoples of
whom we know; the myths of the ancients are associ-
ated with it; the history of Rome tells its story at
important periods; it has sustained sieges in modern
warfare ; has been an apple of discord between the Eng-
lish, French, and Italians, and is now a lovely retreat from
the bustling life of to-day, and a sanitarium for Naples
and the rest of the world; while it has lost somewhat of
its ingenuousness, and thereby its original charm for the
artists of all lands.

Within its narrow confines all the mysteries and pas-
sions of humanity are known. Birth begins, and death
ends life ; love makes its sweet sacrifice of self, and hate
grows into murder ; rivalry incites to attainments, humble
though they may be ; and even ambition here finds a place,
and pushes the children of this Cephorim — the villages —
out into the great world, where they find nothing of the
essential realities that does not exist here, only more of
them in quantity.

Capri is first seen from a distance by the traveller, and
has been likened by various writers to very different
objects. Jean Paul compared it to a sphinx ; Gregorovius
to a splendidly carved sarcophagus, with an emperor
extended on it; but I, a much humbler writer, have had

298 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

in mind a far more homely comparison. Most American
girls have a period of domesticity, a bread and cake baking-
mania, in the course of which they have an experience
with occasional loaves that rise to an incredible height
into excrescences and cracking summits which are delight-
ful to gaze upon; but, alas! when those loaves are cut,
hollow caves are revealed in their depths, and unexpected
openings, which, while they would do very well as grottos
in an island, are not desirable in loaves, and sadly detract
from the symmetry of slices. Such a loaf, to me,
resembles Capri.

I know that those who are wise in such matters, whose
opinions I ought to accept, teach that Capri is a portion
of the promontory of Sorrento, which has broken off and
anchored itself a short distance — about three miles —
away. But my theory, which I like much better, is that
on some occasion, when the depths of earth and sea and
"the waters under the earth" were boiling, and Vesuvius
and ^Btna, and scores of smaller craters all about this
region, were smoking and vomiting flame and lava and red-
hot stones and ashes, when " the sea seemed to roll back
upon itself," and the whole earth was shaken to its
foundations, a huge bubble was thrown up in the sea,
which, surrounded by the air above and the water below,
cooled into the skeleton of Capri. The ages have dressed
parts of it in verdure, vines, and blossoms, leaving many
of its bones still bare, to assure us that it is strongly built
upon its bed, and is something more than a hanging
garden. Cherishing such a theory, one cannot hope to be
considered a scientific thinker.

There are those who "see" Capri in a day's excursion,
as they are wise to do if they have no more time to give
it; but weeks are not too long for its enjoyment, and
while there is no luxury in its inns, there is cleanliness
and all needful comfort. Each day that one's stay is

THE ISLAND OF CAPRI. 299

prolonged, the beauty and mystery of the island, of the
surrounding sea and the cities and promontories across
the glittering bay, above which Vesuvius towers in awful
grandeur, become more impressive, while there seems to
steal over one a dim appreciation of the supreme wisdom
and power which fills the universe.

The earliest ruler of Capri, of whom we have know-
ledge, was the Greek Telone, who lived eight centuries
B. c. ; but it is believed that a Phoenician colony had pre-
viously existed here, and both Virgil and Tacitus speak
of the Teleboans, who preceded the Greeks. In the
Phoenician language, the name of the island, Cephorim,
signifies " two cities ; " and there are now, as there have
ever been, Capri and Ana • — or Upper — Capri.

Tradition teaches that the Greeks of Capri were skilful
in the games of the paleestra, and unusual in their grace
and strength. Far-off ancestors as they are of the present
Capriotes, the dark, low-browed women, with their hair
knotted low on the back of the head, in which a silver
arrow gleams, and their free, graceful carriage, involun-
tarily recall the figures of Hellenic art. The men are
farmers, vine-growers, and fishermen. They are fre-
quently large and powerful. Many of them are handsome ;
and their brown faces, full of life, are very striking
beneath their Phrygian caps. The population varies but
little from 4,500; and, taken for all in all, while they are
very poor, they are peaceful and contented, courteous in
manner, vivacious, and cheerfully hard-working.

Many of the young men, the larger number being from
Anacapri, go each spring in search of coral for the mer-
chants of Torre del Greco. Some of their voyages are
long, and they bring home coins and various trifles to
their sisters and sweethearts, with many tales of " heathen
lands," with which to shorten the long winter evenings.
On their return, in the autumn., those who have a hundred

300 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

ducats — about eighty dollars — can wed their true loves,
and settle down for life, so few are the wants of these
people. The bits of coral that are offered to the stranger,
as he walks about Capri, are gathered on the island itself
by the children, who weave little straw baskets and put
in them, with the coral, small, pearly shells, starfish,
and the like, and ask one to buy so prettily that a collec-
tion of them is made quite unawares.

One is impressed by the srnallness of everything in
Capri. The piazza is very small, and, with its surround-
ings, has the general air of what in our childhood we
called " a make-believe ; " the streets, through which no
carriages roll, are so narrow that but two persons can
walk abreast; the houses are small, white, and pictur-
esque, with their flat roofs and domes and covering of
luxuriant vines. On the roofs — from which, at evening,
the Capriotes are accustomed to gaze on the sunset-tinted
sea — are flowers ; oleanders, hortensias, and other
familiar plants, whose blossoms in this sea air are large
and rich in color. The inside rooms are arched, and
frequently open on an arched loggia, over which grows a
grape-vine ; and here again are flowers. If the house opens
on a garden, near the door is a pergola, or arbor, with
rows of white plastered pillars, twined with vines, which
also cover the arbor; and the whole reminds one of a
temple arcade or a cloister, and gives to the whole house
a touch of antique grace and elegance, such as more
elaborate attempts usually fail to attain.

Here and there are palms. The numerous carob-trees
are large and vigorous, while the cypress and pine, the wal-
nut and chestnut, are in lesser numbers. The mulberry
and oak flourish in abundance, as do the olive, fig, orange,
and lemon, all plentifully yielding fruit of great size and
beauty, while there is a profusion of the prickly pear,
which well accords with the semi-tropical aspect of the

THE ISLAND OF CAPRI. 301

island. All sorts of sweet-scented herbs spring out of
crevices and crannies, from which the light winds bring
whiffs of spicy fragrance. The ivy, blackberry, and clem-
atis drape the bare rocks with beauty; while the yellow
broom throws its golden, and the caper bush its white
and lilac, coloring from walls and ledges everywhere.
The indigenous flora of the island numbers 800 species,
— the caper bush, which takes its name from the island,
being the most beautiful of them all. The olive-oil of
Capri rivals that of the mainland; and while the grapes are
not so luscious as those of some other localities, the " vino
Tiberiano " is choice, and famous for its glowing richness.

Many of the vine-growers are tenants on their land, the
owners living in Naples. As a rule, their rent is from
eighty to a hundred dollars a year; and when the grape
disease attacks the vines, there is great distress for both
tenant farmers and those who own their vineyards. A
summer festival is observed as a sort of penance, and
sacrifice offered to ward off the grape disease, which is
religious in its intention, but Bacchic in its aspect. Its
picturesqueness accords so perfectly with what one ima-
gines as occurring here in past centuries that it greatly
aids one's understanding of the older Capri to see it;
in fact, summer is the delightful season here for many
reasons.

The festival procession is led by a large cross borne
by priests, followed by men and women in white Capuchin
hoods twined with wreaths of blackberry vine. They
have ropes on their shoulders, to indicate the penitential
character of the observance. Behind those who wear the
cowl are men whose bare heads are wreathed in the same
manner. Some of them so resemble satyrs and the disci-
ples of Bacchus that it is difficult to remember that we are
almost at the end of the nineteenth century of our era.
After the men come women and maidens in long white

302 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

veils. All are singing or chanting, in a subdued, rhythmic
measure, words unknown to me, but undoubtedly suited to
this ceremony. As the procession is formed in couples,
the street is quite filled as it passes, and the whole affair
is singularly weird and unreal in appearance.

Besides the profits from the fruits of the island, there is
a certain amount of cheese-making, which pays well, as
this product of Capri is a favorite in the markets of Italy.
In the spring and autumn great numbers of birds, that
are making their northern and southern journeys, are shot
here or taken in nets placed across chasms and ravines,
especially quails, which Capri has furnished to the tables
of the wealthy since the days of the Roman epicures. As
the bishop of the island obtained his chief revenue from
these birds, he was sometimes called the "Bishop of
Quails."

But it is on the sea that the Capriotes depend as a never-
failing benefactor. The life of the fishermen is hard;
but they are fond of it, and it has much pleasurable
excitement. They enjoy a wild sea, and guide their
boats through a dashing surf with real delight. The
Mediterranean yields a large variety of fish that are sold
in immense quantities at Naples and the neighboring
cities, and at Capri there is an abundance of sardines and
cuttle-fish. This last frightful sea-creature — neither fish
nor beast — is taken at night; it is attracted to the sur-
face of the water by lighted torches ; sharply barbed sticks
are extended to it, at which it clutches, and cannot free
itself from the prongs that have pierced it before it is
skilfully landed in the fisherman's boat.

The Marina Grande is a busy place, and constantly
affords interest and amusement to the stranger, especially
when the larger boats leave for Naples or return from
there, as they do, several times a week. The beach is
quite crowded. All who wish to send, or expect to receive

THE ISLAND OF CAPRI. 303

anything, are gathered there, and for an hour or two
before " boat-time " there is unusual activity on all paths
leading to the Marina, while many seat themselves on the
steps to Anacapri to wait. It is quite like a fair in other
localities. The women and girls from Capri and Ana-
capri meet here, where they bring the ribbons that are
finished, and receive fresh supplies of silk to be spun
and woven.

Necessaries, too, of clothes and utensils, an occasional
letter from a Capriote in the United States or some other
foreign land, and perhaps a new song or a slight remem-
brance from friends in Napoli, make up the cargo. But
the interest taken in it and its distribution, the gathering
of a group around the person who reads the letter, and
the pretty blush of the girl who has received the "token,"
as she parries the good-natured pleasantry of the others,
make a tableau vivant well worth seeing, and to be remem-
bered with pleasure.

Sometimes, however, the wrong side of the life-web will
show itself here, as in all days, and at all places since
Adam and Eve invented it, with the aid of the serpent.
A young girl of Anacapri, named Teresa, as beautiful as
any Greek maiden could have been, was selected by a
young artist as the object of his devoted attentions. She
was soon much in love with him, but never saw him except
in the company of her elder sister, who was her only
surviving relative. She accepted his offer of marriage,
but declined to be wedded until he was ready to take her
home. After more than a year — during which he several
times left the island for short intervals — he went away,
promising to come soon, with one of his family, to marry
her, and take her to his mother. He went to Rome,
Florence, and other Italian cities, from which she had
less and less frequent letters ; and although they had no
tangible proof, her neighbors began to feel that Teresa

304 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

had some cause for sadness. The boat never came from
Naples that she was not there ; and what she lacked of her
old-time gayety her sister atoned for by her never-failing
high spirits.

One autumn day, when a threatening storm made the
gathering on the beach much smaller than usual, Teresa
was there, looking pale and weary. A young fisherman,
who had loved her from childhood, spread a tarpaulin for
her to rest on, and watched her anxiously. When the
mail-bag was open, there was a letter and a small parcel
for Teresa. Her face lighted with joy, and she gave the
parcel to be opened by the sister, while she read the
letter. A little box containing a string of pearls and a
pendant fit for a princess was exposed to the view of the
knot of sympathizing friends, when suddenly Teresa looked
up from her letter, seized the necklace, and with a shriek
threw it into the sea, as if it had been a scorpion, and
sank on the sand at her sister's feet.

The letter was clutched in her hand, and during weeks
of delirium no one could take it from her. When, at
last, her friends read it, they learned that the artist had
gone to his home without her; and while he protested
undying love for her, of which the purity of the pearls was
an emblem, he released her from her promises to him,
and hoped that her life would be happier than he could
have made it. The letter was buried with her, and on
the evening after her funeral her faithful Capriote lover
disappeared. It may well be feared that he went in pur-
suit of the artist.

Wandering here and there, along the slopes and terraces
of the island, one comes upon the little houses of the
vine-growers, which seem the very homes of peace and
innocence, and oftentimes young girls are seen within
busily reeling and spinning brilliantly colored silks, or
weaving them into gay ribbons. It is not difficult to

THE ISLAND OF CAPRI. 305

fancy one's self in the midst of an Homeric scene, and
walking the earth in some long past age of Eden-like
simplicity. These girls are not strictly beautiful by
any acknowledged standard, but beautiful in spite of
standards.

When they suddenly look up from out the shadow of
their little rooms, one wonders which feature it is that
gives the strange, poetic charm. Is it the eyes flashing
out beneath the careless confusion of the hair ? or the
matchless beauty of the teeth, which the smile discloses ?
or the head-kerchief draped with exquisite grace or rising
in a turban worthy an Ethiopian's praise ? Their peculiar
beauty is usually " set off " by the half-barbaric jewelry
which they constantly wear, and which is their only
treasure. When seen at some of their menial occupations,
the long gold ear-rings, necklaces, and finger-rings look
sadly out of place, but on these ribbon-makers they seem
entirely suitable. When misfortunes come through crop
failure, sickness, or other ills, and the Capriote women
and girls are forced to sell their ornaments, they consider
that the greatest possible calamity has overtaken them,
and they endure great privations before consenting to-
this last resort.

Perhaps the charm of these women and girls depends on,
no feature of face or dress, but is in their most attractive
naivete, — a grace and fascination which we are sometimes
fearful is not a "lost art," but a lost want of art, — a
bewitching quality now almost extinct in the world at
large. In the midst of the poverty, industry, and content
of these people, suspicion and coldness vanish, and the
stranger who wishes it may easily become a friend.

But to know all the beauty of these young girls, they
must be seen in groups, filled with animation, telling or
listening to some interesting story, or walking with
burdens on their heads, talking and laughing as they go.

20

306 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

So great is their poverty that they are glad to earn money
as beasts of burden, and from fourteen years they carry
the heavy antique jars full of water, or baskets of stone or
earth from the bottom of the island to the town, bearing
weights upon their slender necks that many a stalwart man
would shrink from having laid upon his shoulders.

It frequently happens that a boat lands a cargo of stone
to be carried up the hill for a building. At once a
procession of twenty-five or thirty girls is seen mounting
the steep path with their painful burdens. They go up
and down from twelve to sixteen times daily for several
successive days, even in midsummer heat. These files
of burden-bearers are very attractive to artists, who indus-
triously sketch their graceful figures; and no wonder,
for they recall the women of the Nile and India, and all
models of living, active grace that one can remember.
They are gay and merry at their work, and when at noon
they seek the friendly shade of some spreading tree to eat
their bread and a bit of fruit, they laugh and chatter,
and return to their toil as light of heart as of feet, on
which they are like gazelles. Gregorovius * thus describes
one of these girls, who was his friend : —

" If I wished to draw a picture of poverty, the most peaceful
and cheerful that could be found, I should describe it in the
person of the fair Costanziella. After she has spent a long
hot day in transporting on her head a whole pyramid of stones
from the shore up to the old picturesque convent, she reposes
during the evening in the doorway of her house, and refreshes
herself with the most beautiful music ; for she is an accom-
plished performer on the jews-harp. She has played for me
upon this instrument, with inimitable grace and skill, many
charming airs, — all kinds of sea-fancies, songs of sirens in the
Blue Grotto, songs without words, strange airs to which no

1 " The Island of Capri," by Ferdinand Gregorovius, translated by
Lilian Clarke.

THE ISLAND OF CAPRI. 307

mortal has yet given a name. She played them all in a most
masterly manner ; while her dark eyes sparkled like a siren's,
and her black rippling hair clustered around her forehead as if
each lock were dancing for pleasure. When Costanziella had
finished her concert, she invited me, in the most courteous
manner, to share with herself and her mother the evening meal ;
the table being spread upon the roof above. The repast con-
sisted of ripe Indian figs, from the single cactus-tree which
grew before the house, which she had very skilfully cut off with
a knife, without wounding her little finger with the thorns.
Literary subjects we did not discuss. Costanziella knew
nothing of Schiller and Goethe ; of English and French litera-
ture she was equally ignorant. Her whole literary world con-
sisted of a few songs from the Bay of Naples. Her mother
was like a picture to look at, but her conversation was chiefly
upon different articles of food. Costanziella never ate meat.
She carried stones all day, and in the evening played upon the
jews-harp, while her food consisted of dry bread, and potatoes
with salt and oil. When I asked her whether she had ever in
her life eaten roast meat, she laughed aloud. But neither Hebe
nor Circe, nor the Diana of Delos, was fresher or more bloom-
ing, or possessed a greater wealth of clustering curls ; and cer-
tainly none of these was more skilful upon the jews-harp."

The simplicity of expression which we look for in the
faces of children endures through life with many Capriotes,
and renders the old men and women very attractive. The
children themselves are frequently beautiful, and are
bright and quick in their intelligence. They wear amulets
to keep all harm away ; the wee ones have a little horn,
which is supposed to protect them from the evil eye;
others wear a picture of the Virgin Mary or a coin with
her image on it. They are apt to ask for a soldo, and they
do it very sweetly, and if refused appear to think it quite
right. Some older children ask for gifts in a different
way, — a flower is presented or a pretty wish for happi-
ness spoken, a return for these civilities in the form of a

308 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

present being expected. One who knows his Capri well
will not fail to carry to the island a stock of trifles for
the charming creatures who dearly love pretty things.

So much for the native Capriotes. There are about
three hundred of another class of people, who are seen
wandering about in many parts of the island. They are
old soldiers from all parts of the kingdom. The halt and
blind predominate, although some of them can roam as
far as they like, having lost their arms or being otherwise
afflicted than as to eyes or legs. Capri, innocent as it is
of horses and carriages, is a heaven for the blind, and yet
it seems like the irony of fate to put one who cannot see
where the most exquisite views are ever spread out before
him, or to place the cripple where the steepness of the
ways demand at least one pair of strong and perfect legs,
and two pairs would be better, if that were possible.

These old soldiers all seem fond of music. They sing
songs in high, cracked voices with much apparent pleas-
ure. Some of them play on guitars, pipes, and other small
instruments, and make strange sounds, especially when
accompanied by the singers. They even follow this music
to the piazza, as they once followed the bands of their
regiments. Through the fields on the border of the Valley
of Tragara there is a more level path than the others
within reach of the old men ; and here, under the olive-
trees, they spend much time, and have an air of peaceful
content. In one view they are superior to the natives
of the island, having no care of themselves. They have
served their country, and feel no humility in accepting the
support she gives them. Poor crops and grape disease
can do them no harm. They appreciate all this, and
speak of Capri as a peaceful haven after the storms of life.

Of the temples and other edifices built by the Greeks,
eight centuries B. c., nothing remains that can be identi-
fied; and all traces of the architecture of the time of

THE ISLAND OF CAPRI. 809

Augustus have also disappeared. We are told that he fell
in love with the island when a weary old man, and gladly
gave Ischia to the Neapolitans in exchange for the island
of the two cities; that the happy augury of fresh leaves
putting forth from a withered tree greeted him at the very
moment that his foot first pressed these shores ; that he
made gardens and built his villa, in which he delighted
to dwell, breathing the pure delicious air of the island,
gazing on the many beauties of mountain, sea, and sky,
which were within his vision, and learning to know the
Capriotes, whom he admired for many reasons. A visit
of four days in company with Tiberius and Thrasyllus was
the last, as he died soon after at Nola, A. D. 14. Suetonius
thus describes some episodes of this farewell to Capri : —

" As he happened to sail by the Bay of Puteoli, an Alexan-
drian ship had just landed, whose passengers and crew dressed
themselves in white garments with chaplets upon their heads,
and, offering incense, loaded him with praises and joyful accla-
mations, since from him they had received life, a prosperous
voyage, freedom, and good fortune. This pleased him so much,
that he divided among his followers four hundred pieces of
gold, and caused them to bind themselves by oath to use this
gold for no other purpose than to buy the wares of the Alexan-
drians. And each day that the merchants remained, he dis-
tributed other gifts of togas and pallia, and commanded that
the Romans should use the Greek and the Greeks the Roman
dress and language. He likewise constantly attended the ex-
ercises of the Ephebi, according to an ancient custom still con-
tinued at Capri. He gave them a banquet in his own presence,
and not only permitted, but required from them the utmost
freedom in jesting with each other, and in snatching apples
and fruit and presents thrown to them from each other's hands.
He looked coldly upon no kind of cheerful amusement."

Such kindness and good fellowship on the part of the
aged emperor could not fail to win the affection of the

310 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

islanders ; and the remembrance of it doubtless made his
successor even more hated than he would have been had
they not known Augustus.

Tiberius came to Capri, A.D. 26, and during eleven years
he perpetrated such cruelties, and so filled the island with
horrors, that eighteen centuries and more have not
sufficed to lessen the hatred he incurred. The people
speak of him as Timberio. The wine of Capri is called
by his name, and all over the island are traces of " that
deified beast, Tiberius."

If one can forget his monstrosities and the terrible
sufferings that were crowded into and pressed down upon
this island during every hour of his reign, and can fix the
thoughts upon his material achievements alone, the ima-
gination is filled with scenes of rare beauty. Capri then
overflowed with everything that could minister to the
pleasure of the senses. Its sublime rocks were crowned
with twelve imperial villas, each vying with the other
in magnificence. Luxurious theatres existed, and many
other beautiful edifices were scattered here and there.
Splendid statues and ornamental objects adorned the
pleasure groves and gardens, and all were reflected in
the blue sea, with which the azure sky seemed to be ever
exchanging smiles or frowns, now exquisite in its peace,
and again magnificent in its wrath.

To complete the picture, we must fill the streets with
Romans in their flowing togas, walking with proud step
and mien, — a whole court, with ambassadors from many
nations. And now, the emperor passes, — the handsomest
man of his time in all the earth, whose beauty among
Roman emperors was second only to Augustus. Beautiful
women of the Orient are in the groves and gardens ; nymphs
and bacchantes pass on their way to dance before their
masters ; and everything suggests the voluptuousness which
alternates with brutal violence in the life of Tiberius.

THE ISLAND OF CAPRI. 311

Amid such fancies how strangely thought wanders!
This reign of Bacchus, and the rites of a religion about
to die, involuntarily remind one that during a certain
three days when these orgies were at their flood in Capri,
the death and resurrection of the Nazarene gave life to the
religion which for many centuries has been that of the
great Rome from which the minions of Tiberius went forth
to crucify its founder.

A popular tradition in Capri relates that in the depths
of the mountain, below the spot where the Villa of Tibe-
rius stood, is a bronze horse of enormous size, on which
is seated a bronze Tiberius. Both rider and horse have
eyes of cold, sparkling diamonds. Rosario Mangone
mentions this in his book on Capri. It seems a meaning-
less legend, since there is no prophecy that this bronze
emperor will come to life again, as is foretold in some
similar tales; but, Tiberius once dead, it is doubtless
better not to speak of his re-incarnation. Napoleon
Bonaparte defended Tiberius, and some modern scholars
have dissented from the severest views of his character;
but we are speaking of Capri, and there, where the im-
pression has descended through many generations, given
and taken by father and son, his name is the synonym
of everything which is cruel, fiendish, and morally
monstrous.

Several successors of Tiberius visited Capri, but nothing
of interest connected with the Romans occurred here
until the later time of Commodus, when his wife and
daughter here passed a long and cruel banishment. After
the fall of Rome the island was in the possession of the
barbarians, until, with Naples, it passed to the Greek
Duke of Naples, and then, in the ninth century, was
given to the Republic of Amalfi.

From the days of Roger of Sicily, Capri has shared the
fate of Naples, and was governed by the same rulers

312 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

until 1806, when it was occupied by the English in the
name of the King of Sicily.

It is a curious fact, but fact it is, that all the rulers
that have been powerful here during more than eighteen
centuries, and all the events that occurred during their
reigns, are forgotten. One hears neither blessings nor
curses on them. They are ignored, while the whole
island is so filled with the memory of Tiberius that one is
almost tempted to believe that his spirit has remained
here in some more potent form than that of a bronze,
diamond-eyed rider of an equally lifeless steed. When
one thinks of all the hours that have been spent by each
generation in reciting the wonders and horrors of the
Tiberiana to their children, and remembers how much
nervous force and even strong emotion has been put into
this story-telling, in order to have it make the inefface-
able impression which it has made, the whole thing
becomes marvellous, and one regrets the thought that
will follow, — that cruelty is longer remembered than
kindness.

In the midst of the present life of Capri one cannot
realize its tragic past. The wonderful contrasts in its
scenery alone suggest anything outside the monotonous
toil and content of to-day. Within short distances of its
peaceful homes and luxuriant vineyards, one may stand
where all is bare, grim rock and awful precipice, where
Nature' frowns, and the spirit of loneliness and desolation
broods, where all is gloom and awfulness.

The Marina Grande, besides being the busy place it is,
with all the Capri boats and fishermen, their goings and
comings, net-mendings, boat-cleanings, and all that, is
also the landing for the steamers and smaller craft that
bring visitors from all the neighboring ports. Several
hotels and a group of fishermen's cottages are also here,
and altogether it is an amusing and interesting place,

THE ISLAND OF CAPRI. 313

especially to one who wishes to study human nature
rather than scenery and ruins.

There are horses and donkeys for those who prefer to
ride ; and two paths lead to the town of Capri, — steep, like
most paths on the island, the shorter one being in steps.
Neither of them is pleasant, as both are shut in between
garden walls much of the way, and are warm when the
sun shines. Both end in the little piazza in the centre
of the town, which is situated on a sort of saddle connect-
ing the eastern and western heights of the island. Two
lower hills, on which are the ruins of castles, also over-
look the village, which — itself 460 feet above the sea —
is as if guarded by sentinels. The little church has its
tower and bells, the hotels are scarcely more pretentious
than the houses, and the whole town, in its frank sim-
plicity, is in accord with the people whose home it is.
The tiny piazza is the exchange and centre of trade.
Here, by the gate, the few utensils and articles needed
by the Capriotes can be bought; here the people meet to
talk and rest when not at work, on ordinary days ; while
on festival days, and the occasions of other unusual
happenings, it is the important locality.

The old town of Capri was destroyed by the Saracens ;
and the Cathedral of Costanza — now in the midst of
gardens — is the only remaining edifice; while the bits
of old walls which still stand, and a marble sarcophagus,
which has been unearthed, are the only visible signs that
men once dwelt on this spot. The cathedral looks like
an ugly village church, and merits no attention ; while the
Palazzo a Mare — one of the twelve villas of Tiberius,
near by — is no more interesting. A century ago the
objects of value which excavations disclosed, were car-
ried away. The walls have toppled over, some por-
tions of them falling sheer into the sea, and others still
lying scattered on the slope to the coast, the whole being

314 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

a mere heap of rubbish and a scene of desolation. This
is true of most of those villas which were dedicated to
the twelve great gods, such as that a little to the south of
the present town, on the hill of Castello. More than a
hundred years since, numerous chambers and baths were
uncovered here, and many valuable objects — such as
pavements, pillars, and vases — were sold and carried to
different countries of Europe. The Castello is on the very
border of the island, and towards the sea there is but a
wall of rock, in the midst of which is a grotto. The hill
is crowned by a small fort with towers and battlements,
quite mediaeval in character; on the land side are luxu-
riant vineyards. To the south the view is over the
Sicilian Sea, — a blue expanse, broken only by passing
vessels, and here and there a small boat near at hand.
Above rise the majestic rocks of Anacapri, and not far
away are the three obelisks, the Faraglioni, more than a
hundred feet high, on which the sea-birds love to build
their nests, and about which they circle, teaching their
young to fly. These cliffs are absolutely inaccessible.
One is smooth, as if polished by hand; the others look
as if they had been carved in fantastic designs ; and one is
pierced by an arched opening, through which a boat can
pass. On their tops grasses wave, and a few dwarf trees
have grown up with the ages, — mysterious, solemn cones ;
one is glad that there are three of them, a single one
would be so lonely. Looking down from the Castello, the
steepest cliff on this side the island is seen ; and at the
foot is a bit of a beach, the Piccola Marina, where we will
land when making the giro of Capri.

Between the hill of Castello and that of Tuoro Grande
lies the valley of Tragara, where vines and olive-trees
abound. On the border of this valley stands La Certosa,
— a splendid old monastery built after the model of that
of San Martino, above Naples. It is now the home of the

THE ISLAND OF CAPRI. 315

disabled soldiers, who are so constantly en evidence all
about the lower part of the island. The Certosa is
believed to be on the site of one of the villas of Tiberius,
and was founded in 1363, in fulfilment of a vow, after the
birth of a son to Giacomo Arcucci, who had hitherto been
childless. It is large, and has numerous bell-towers and
domes. Nestled amongst the olives against the blue
background of the sea, it is the most picturesque object
on the island. When I saw it, more than a quarter of a
century ago, the weeds and vines were as a thicket
around it; its courtyard, cloister, and cells were the home
of birds and insects, and the frescos on the walls, of
which there were a goodly number, were suffering from
neglect. It is pleasant to think of the old soldiers now
wandering about its corridors and cloisters, and made
comfortable through the same spirit of Christian charity
which inspired S. Bruno, the founder of the Order of
Monks, who once dwelt there. At one time La Certosa
was very rich, and much of the best land in Capri
belonged to the monks. Together with other convents on
the island, it was suppressed by the Parthenopeian Re-
public in 1799. In 1808 it was the headquarters of the
English commandant, Sir Hudson Lowe, and under the
French was a military station.

There are many remains of antique walls in the valley
of Tragara, which are called Camerelle, but no positive
knowledge exists concerning their original purpose.
Rosario Mangone thinks that the Camerelle formed a
street leading to the Villa of Tiberius. Gregorovius
agrees with this view, and adds that they were divided
into three parts: one led to Monte Tuoro, a second to
the Villa of San Michele, and the third to the Villa Jovis
or Zeus, which was called the Villa of Tiberius, par
excellence.

San Michele is the most symmetrically formed hill on

316 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

the island. It rises above the Camerelle, and doubtless
one of the ancient villas was on its 'top. The city of
Capri is seen to great advantage from this point, and it is
needless to add that the whole view is magnificent. There
are spots on San Michele where the earth gives forth a
hollow sound, as if there were vaulted chambers beneath,
such as are seen in rows at the foot of the hill. It is
doubtful if anything of unusual interest or value is buried
there ; and since the vine-growers have made their terraces
and planted olive-trees on all the land side of the moun-
tain, there are serious reasons against its excavation.
[Near the foot of San Michele the rocks extend out so near
the houses of the town that a man can easily leap from
them to the roofs, and if allowed to pass through a house
can thus gain the street.

Monte Tuoro is interesting for its splendid view and
for its telegraph station ; but though there was doubtless
a villa here, no traces of it remain. In a small white
house, at a table between two windows, in each of which
is a telescope, the telegrapher sits. He continually
jumps up to look through one or both telescopes. He has
a large record-book open before him, and from time to time
writes a few words in it, and again looks through the tele-
scopes; and this is daily repeated until dark, when he
climbs 560 steps to go to his house in Anacapri, and
descends next morning to go through the same monotonous
round of sitting down and jumping up to gaze seaward,
for all which he probably is paid less than a dollar a
day. His real occupation is to send the messages which
he receives from the operator on Monte Solaro to Massa,
across the Straits of Capri, whence it is forwarded to
Naples, these messages being chiefly concerned with the
vessels which are traversing the Sicilian Sea.

To visit the site of the Villa Jovis, one must ascend
Lo Capo, the eastern promontory of the island. It was

THE ISLAND OF CAPRI. 317

probably here that Tiberius secluded himself for nine
months after the fall of Sejanus. Near the site of the villa
are the foundations of the wonderful Pharos, which
Suetonius says was thrown down by an earthquake a few
days before Tiberius was murdered at the Villa Misenen-
sis. This light-house equalled those of Alexandria and
Puteoli, and the poet Statius calls it "the rival of the
night-piercing moon."

Between the light-house and the villa is the " Salto di
Tiberio," or "Leap," the rock — 745 feet in height —
from which the tyrant hurled his victims to the merciful
sea below. Suetonius says: "In Capri is shown the
place of his murders, where, in his own presence, he
caused those whom he had sentenced to death to be thrown
into the sea, after protracted and exquisite tortures. A
number of sailors were stationed below to receive the
bodies, and beat them with oars and sail-yards until
life was extinct. " Or, as Samuel Rogers more poetically
pictures it, —

" 'T is where a monster dwelt,
Hurling his victims from the topmost cliff ;
Then and then only merciful, so slow,
So subtle, were the tortures they endured.
Fearing and feared he lived, cursing and cursed ;
And still the dungeons in the rock breathe out
Darkness, distemper. Strange, that one so vile
Should from his den strike terror through the world ;
Should, where withdrawn in his decrepitude,
Say to the noblest, be they where they might,
' Go from the earth ! ' and from the earth they went ;
Yet such things were, and will be, when mankind,
Losing all virtue, lose all energy ;
And for the loss incur the penalty,
Trodden down and trampled."

Near the "Leap" there is now a little tavern, and a
projecting platform with a railing enables one to look down

318 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

into the sea below. Gregorovius found " a kind of hor-
rible pleasure in rolling stones down this steep declivity,
which hasten in frightful leaps from point to point, and
make the rocks resound with the thunder of their fall. "

The extent of the ruins, the commanding position,
and the fact that the remains found here are among the
most splendid which date from the time of the Romans,
leave no doubt that this Capo — the highest point of
the northeast shore — -'was the site of this remarkable
Villa Jovis. To quote again from the last-mentioned
author : —

" Here you may wander in a labyrinth of arched passages
and subterranean galleries, countless chambers now used for
vintages or cow-stalls. Capitals, pediments, architraves,
marble steps, lie around in fragments. A few isolated rooms
have still the remains of stucco-work, and decorations in the
deep yellow or dark red of Pompeii may still be recognized.
Some of the floors still retain their mosaic of white bits of
marble with black borders, and here and there staircases to the
rooms below are well preserved.

" The villa appears to have been built in several stories, the
lowest of all still covered with earth not yet excavated. The
upper part surprises the beholder by the yet well-preserved
plan of its rooms, which, on the side toward the water, form a
semicircle, perhaps around a theatre. Niches and circular
walls, however, suggest a temple. This villa unites everything
that belongs to the transcendent magnificence of royal life;
and since it was so long the seat of the emperor, before any
buildings by Nero or Hadrian existed, must have surpassed in
splendor all the other villas of Rome. Add to this the incom-
parable situation above the straits, where the two bays lie
spread out before the eye.

" Here sat Tiberius, like an eagle in his eyry, beholding
everything that passed upon the island, and also the ships that
entered the bay, coming from Greece, Asia, Africa, or Rome.
The view from the water, sailing between Capri and the Cape

THE ISLAND OF CAPRI. 319

of Minerva, must also have been superb, — here the marble
palaces and the light-house, there the beautiful temples ; for
Tiberius looked out upon that promontory which is to-day
crowned by a tower, and beheld both the far-renowned temples
of Minerva and of the Sirens, and the Temple of Heracles."

On the highest point of Lo Capo, 1,050 feet, and built
upon the very ruins themselves, is the chapel of Santa
Maria del Soccorso. Here dwells a hermit, who offers
his visitors wine and a book in which to write their
names. Some of these autographs may well be coveted
by collectors. No potentate to-day can boast of such a
site for his palace as this, which has attracted Tiberius
and this poor monk to make a home here. The hermit
has a few curiously interesting " antiques, " found, as one
may say, in his own door-yard. Many valuable pillars of
lapis lazuli, and other precious substances, as well as
magnificent pavements, — one of which is in the church of
Capri, — have been found amid these ruins.

No word-painting can adequately describe the splendor
of the view from the Capo, and its extent makes it hope-
less for the master of the brush. It is as if one looked
into a vast amphitheatre, and in some directions the
distant objects seem to rise in circles, one above the other,
until they fade into the beyond, which the vision cannot
pierce. Its grandeur is not comprehended in a single
visit. A certain adjustment of one's self to the scene is
necessary before its unusual vastness can be justly esti-
mated. Naturally the most splendid coloring is at sunset,
when all the enchantments of Nature seem spread before
one ; below is the lovely island, and for miles around it
the blue sea, with sails here and there, like the wings of
birds; the bays of Naples and Salerno lie sparkling with
the colors of the rainbow, in strange contrast with the
barren Punta di Campanella, where the Temple of Minerva
once stood ; far to the southeast lies Paestum, and in the

320 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

distant northwest are the Ponza Islands; while between
these points are numberless towns and cities, promon-
tories and mountains, with dread Vesuvius, "the Tiberius
of Nature," pouring forth its smoke, the very emblem of
the most terrific destruction.

One of the most curious and interesting spots in all
Capri is the Grotto of Matromania, reached by the valley
of the same name, descending from the Tuoro Grande to
the sea. This mysterious cavern, one hundred feet deep,
and more than half as wide, is entered through a magnifi-
cent natural archway. Within are traces of Roman
masonry, and an arrangement like seats, and of steps,
such as might lead to the spot where the image of the
god there worshipped was placed, for it seems to have
been a temple. A bas-relief found here represented the
worship of the Persian Mithras, and it is believed that in
this grotto that sun-god was propitiated and adored. The
grotto faces the east, and the sunrise must be a glorious
sight when seen from its opening. The dim mysterious-
ness which pervades it, the evidences that human be-
ings have made some important use of it, the silence
which is profound save for the trickling of water, unite
to make it impressive even to a sensation of awe. A
marble tablet found here bore the following inscription
in Greek : —

"Ye kind demons who dwell in the Stygian land,
Receive me also, me unhappy, into Hades ;
For not by the command of Moira, by the power of the ruler,
Was I suddenly struck with death, which, innocent, I did not fear.
The emperor was still loading me with gifts ;
But he has now refused hope to me and to my parents.
I have not attained twenty years ; no, not fifteen.
Alas ! and I see no more the light of the shining day.
Hypatos is my name : I call to thee, my brother ;
My parents, I mourn unto you. Oh, weep no longer,
Ye poor ones ! "

7 be Steps at Capri.

THE ISLAND OF CAPRI. 321

The excursions already mentioned are made from Capri,
and above them all are Anacapri and Monte Solaro. One
hears much of the 784 steps from the Marina to Ana-
capri; 535 of these are above the lower town, and the
ascent is broken half-way by the chapel of S. Anthony,
where one may rest. But this fatiguing climb is no longer
a necessity, as a road has been constructed, in long wind-
ings, from which are many delightful views.

The really short distance which separates upper and
lower Capri, if on a level, would make the towns near
neighbors ; but the difficult ascent has separated them as
effectually as many miles could have done, and before
the road was made the people of the two villages, who
even speak in different dialects, had almost nothing in
common.

The rocks or cliffs between the towns are like colossal
walls, in strange, weird shapes; while above them a por-
tion of Monte Solaro projects like a great roof, and on the
slopes of the mountain lies the "upper city." The con-
struction of the steps is attributed to the Phoanicians or
the Greeks. They are wonderfully made in a zigzag
course, and end in a platform from which there are two
paths, leading to the village and to Monte Solaro. The
platform is called Capo di Monte, and affords one of the
charming outlooks with which Capri abounds, and from
here the view of the island itself is unique. The great
skeleton rocks rise to heights above, and plunge into
depths far below this point; in spots they are like gar-
dens with waving vines and even trees; again they are
gray and bare, and seem to frown on all the world.
Lower Capri and the seas are beneath; Solaro reaches
toward the skies above, and the picturesque ruins of
Castle Barbarossa remind one that human beings have
lived on these desolate, dizzy heights.

From this platform Anacapri, embowered in trees and

21

322 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

shrubs, looks like a doll's village. The houses seem
like arbors in the midst of gardens, so small are they
when seen from a distance ; and even when near at hand
they are the tiniest of homes. The trees, around many of
which grapevines twine, grow even more luxuriantly
here than in the lower town, for the sun has great power
on this slope of Solaro, and the pure air makes stalwart
trees as well as stalwart men.

The quiet of the town impresses one at once. In sum-
mer, when the men are coral-fishing, the women are
almost alone. They care for the gardens, raise silk-
worms on the mulberry leaves, spin and weave, and sing
their songs, and seem to dwell in the city of peacefulness.
Their industry is marvellous, but their work is lighter
than that of the women of the lower town. They carry
no burdens unless the cisterns run dry, when they must
go down the steps for water; but they weave and spin
from sunrise to sunset through all their lives, which
oftentimes extend into great age. At the end they are
carried to "Paradise," which is represented by the pave-
ment of their church, and from that they pass to their
beautiful Campo Santo, and are laid beneath its cypress-
trees, while flowers bloom above their graves. In no
place could more appropriately be inscribed those sweet
old words, Requiescat in pace.

Few ruins have been found in Anacapri, the most
important being on the plain of Damecuta, which slopes
gently down to the coast, to the point of the entrance to
the famous Blue Grotto. It is singular that both on the
north and west Solaro slopes down to a lower shore than
that of the under part of the island; and yet this shore
has neither beach nor harbor, and is certain destruction
to any boat thrown on it.

There is a tradition that Anacapri was founded by two
lovers, who desired even greater solitude than Capri

THE ISLAND OF CAPKI. 323

afforded, and climbing the steep rocks built themselves a
shelter at the foot of Solaro. The ascent of this moun-
tain will complete the " sights " on land that are usually
enjoyed by the loiterer on this bewitching island. The
mountain is 1,100 feet higher than Anacapri, but 400
feet short of the summit the Hermitage is reached. This
is very interesting ; the entrance to the cell is through an
old chapel; there is a cheerful little garden, and if the
hermit whom I saw is still there, he is gentle and cour-
teous in manner, and has an expression of composure,
such as is rarely seen except in the images of Buddha.

The hermit's nearest neighbor is the telegraph operator,
on the summit above him, who passes his life peering
down into the sea, identifying sails, and straightway
sending the results of his observations to all who care to
hear them. How many people in Naples, when they
read that a P. and 0. steamer is about to arrive, think of
that man on the highest peak of Solaro, who has told them
this news ?

No pen could give a just description of the view from
Monte Solaro ; even the simple list of what may be seen
from its height in a clear day is impressive, and lest my
own geography should be at fault, I will give that of
Gregorovius. Of course the most comprehensive view of
the island itself is had from this summit, and it is a
panorama of great interest and beauty. On the south lies
the open sea.

" Toward the west and north the islands of Ponza, the high
peaks of Ischia, the island of Vivara, the gentle slopes of
Procida ; behind them, dreamy and distant, the mountains of
Gaeta and Terracina, with the Cape of Circe ; farther the
mountain pyramids of Misenum, at the foot of which Tiberius
was murdered ; the shores of Cimbria and of the Elysian Fields ;
the blue coasts of Baiae and Pozzuoli ; Cumae, with the moun-
tains of Gaurus and of Solfaterra ; the castle-crowned island

324 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

of Nisida ; the slender Pausilippo ; the sharp peak of Camal-
doli ; the far mountains of Capua ; then the gleaming shore of
Naples, a long line from the city to Torre del Greco ; the two-
peaked, smoking Vesuvius above Pompeii, and behind it the
beautiful mountains of Sarno and Nocera, with their wealth of
spurs and gorges : to the east the brown, sharply chiselled
coast of Massa, with the capes of Sorrento and Minerva ; be-
hind, the gigantic mountain of St. Angelo ; farther still, the
Rocks of the Sirens, and the high, mountainous shores of
Amalfi and Salerno ; and last, far away, the white, distant
mountains of Calabria, Paestum, — a mere line of shore, — and
Cape Licosa in Lucania."

To think of such an horizon is an effort; and when to
the bare fact of its comprehensiveness one tries to add the
thought of all the wonderful events that have taken place
within sight of Solaro, it is as if ages rolled over one,
and the brain grows dizzy and refuses to lend itself to
such unending labors.

A sunset from Solaro on a clear summer evening leaves
an impression not to be forgotten. The whole sea is of a
glowing gold and crimson, as is the western sky. Even
the rocks rising here and there from its bosom — espe-
cially the rock of Ponza, from which so many Christian
martyrs' souls have taken their flight — seem to be on
fire ; and although this very brilliancy warns one of the
darkness that will soon follow, it is with many such
looks as were forbidden to Lot's wife that the descent
is slowly and regretfully made.

A delightful excursion is the giro of the whole island ;
and from the water the great variety in the formation of
the cliffs and promontories is best seen. These views
are most impressive; and at the foot of Castello, and not
far from the majestic Faraglioni, is the Piccola Marina,
one of the delightful surprises of this mysterious shore.
Lying on the southern coast, and sheltered by rocks, it is

THE ISLAND OF CAPRI. 325

isolated from all the world. A few fishermen's cottages
are built into the rocky arcades, and but a small number
of boats can find safe mooring in the little harbor ; the
beach is very small, and is the only place on Capri known
to me from which there is no view. Barren rocks and
the broad sea hem in this tiny Marina, and the silence is
broken only by the lapping of the waves and the cries of
the birds far, far above on the heights of the cliffs. An
occasional vessel going or coming from far-away Africa or
the neighboring Palermo, as may suit one's fancy, is the
only moving thing besides the rolling sea and the fleecy,
passing clouds.

Capri is so rich in grottos that one scarcely knows where
to begin in speaking of them; and, indeed, it would be
quite impossible here to mention all that are known, or
to do justice to any. The shores of the island are liter-
ally honey-combed by these caverns, and it is not probable
that they have all been visited by human beings. The
Grotto of the Stalactites, the White Grotto, the Marmo-
lata, Marinella, and several others along the shore from
Monte Solaro beyond the Faraglioni, are well worth
exploring. In some of them exquisite seaweed abounds ;
in others, the walls and stones are of various colors, and
all beautiful. Again, the peculiar formation of the
chambers produces such sounds and cadences from the
waves as make a grander " Ocean Symphony " than any
heaven-endowed composer could either dream or write.

The celebrated Green Grotto — Grotta Verde — excels
all others in its beautifully arched shape and the splendor
of its surrounding peaks of rock. It is not entirely sub-
terranean, and at noon it might be most fittingly called
the Grotto of Hope, since it is lighted by that exquisite
emerald-green which is the symbol of that virtue which
S. Paul mentions in the celestial company of faith and
charity.

326 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

So much Blue Grotto literature already exists that
nothing could be added to increase its value. It is better
to select some of the excellent things that have already
been said of it. Doubtless this cave was well known to
former generations and peoples ; but the knowledge of it
had long been lost when it was re-discovered by August
Kopisch, the artist Fries, and Angelo Ferraro, a sailor,
on August 17, 1826. After giving notice of his discovery
and the names of his* companions, and announcing the
name they had bestowed on it, Kopisch says : —

" It is a remarkable phenomenon, the water seeming to fill
the grotto with blue fire. Every wave appears like a flame.
At the back part of the grotto is an old passage leading into
the rock, perhaps to the Tower of Damecuta above, where
tradition reports that young maidens were formerly imprisoned
by Tiberius ; and it is possible that the grotto was his secret
landing-place. ... It is most beautiful in the morning, be-
cause in the afternoon the light is stronger and the mysterious
charm thereby diminished. The picturesque effect will be in-
creased, if the visitor can, like ourselves, carry with him into
the cave burning torches."

The author of " Notes on Naples " says : —

" A sparry roof worked by the living waters spreads, like a
pavilion, its low wide arches on every hand ; cells and shelves
and adamantine halls, bluer than the blue heaven you have left
and they will never see, are above you, and beneath, and far
within, and all around ; silent, too, as sleep, except for the
infant echoes of the rippling water, and the light drip, at inter-
vals, of the suspended oar. The waves, which are the cavern's
pavement, are like the turquoise stone, as delicate, but more
luminous, and transparent as light, as they undulate around in
their soft hues, suffusing the sunken rocks, the submarine wall,
and the arched roof above you fretted with its stalactites. A
color as of violet is in the air, and in the vault's more distant
depths there is a purple like the starry night. Nay, the very

The Blue Grotto of Capri

. THE ISLAND OF CAPEI. 327

fish among the broken rocks below your keel seem blue as the
bird's wing. This Grotta Azzurra is a hall for a sea-god, where
Tethys might repose her limbs in sultry noon, or the translated
Glaucus, enamored of his Nereid, make his home."

And Gregorovius thus adds his testimony to the charm
of this unique cave of the blues : —

" When I entered the grotto, I felt as if I had gone back into
one of those fairy-tales in which we live as children. Daylight
and the upper world have suddenly disappeared ; and you find
yourself in the hollow earth, in the midst of a twilight of blue
fire. The waves cast up sparkling, pearly drops, as if thou-
sands of shining sapphires, red rubies and carbuncles, were
thrown up from the depths. The walls are of a ghostly and
mysterious blue, like the palaces of fairies. A sense of foreign
substance and spirit pervades the place, making it in the
strangest way at once mysterious and familiar. All is silent,
as if in a world of shadows ; no one ventures to speak. First
comes a cry of admiration, then perfect stillness ; and the only
sound is the dipping of the oar, or the rippling of the waves,
which weave wreaths of phosphorescent light on the rocky walls.
The blue water is irresistibly alluring ; it rouses an intense de-
sire to plunge therein, and sink, drowning, into a sea of light.
I have seen upon a Greek vase a figure of a siren, a very
beautiful figure, raising both arms, white as lilies, while she
laughs, and strikes together two shining brass cymbals : thus
do the sirens rise in this cave out of the waves of blue fire,
strike their cymbals, laughing, and dive into the waves, and
rise again. But they can be seen only by little children, and
by men and women born on Sunday."

Many an archdd roof is bent

Over the wave,
But none like thine, from the firmament

To the shells that at thy threshold lave.
What name shall shadow thy rich-blue sheen,
Violet, sapphire, or ultramarine,

Beautiful cave ?

328 NAPLES AND ITS ENVIRONS.

Blue, — blue, — beautiful and intense, —

Everywhere :

Spirits, or some one spirit immense,
Breathing and burning in the air ;
Making an ardent presence felt,
Till the rocks seem as like to melt

In the glare I

No 1 they emit no. heat,

Those prisoned beams.
At noontide, in thy coolness sweet,

The glowing Italian summer dreams,
And the limpid and sparkling lymph
Bath of beauty, in form of nymph,
Well beseems.

World of wonders and strange delights,

Submontane sea,
Bowers of branching stalactites,

Islands of lapis lazuli,
And waves so clear, and air so rich,
That, gazing, we know not which is which, —
Adieu to thee I

William Gibson

INDEX.

A.

Acquaiolo (water-seller), 209.

Acquaviva, Giulio, 98.

JEtn&, 277, 298.

Agatocle, La Selva di, 3.

Agnolo Aniello Fiore, 76.

Agnolo, Gabriele d', 66.

Agostino della Zecca, church of, 21.

Agrippina, 275.

Aix-la-Chapelle, treaty of, 141.

Alaric, 6.

Albergo dei Poveri, 142, 220, 223.

Alcala, Duke of, 93.

Aldobrandini, Giacomo, 91.

Alexander III., Pope, 292; V., Pope,

30; VI., Pope, 44.
Alfonso I. (the Just), 33, 37, 39, 40, 49,

134, 251, 253, 259, 261; II., 44, 46, 47,

50, 51, 107, 253, 254.
Alford, Dean, quoted, 293.
Alicarnasseo, quoted, 02.
Alice, Punta dell', 5.
Altamura, Frederick, Prince of, 49, 51.
Alva, Duke of, 34, 82, 93, 107.
Amalfi, 293; bronze doors of, 246.
Amalia Walburga, 139.
Amerighi, Michael Angelo (Caravag-

gio), 104, 105, 248.
Amiens, Peace of, 163.
Amsanctus, 2.

Amulets, 226, 227, 228, 229.
Anacapri, 299, 303, 321.
Andersen, Hans Christian, quoted, 293.
Andrea Ciccione, 32, 76, 246.
Andrea di Salerno, 79, 248.
Andrea Orcagna, 250.
Andrea Vaccaro, 132, 248.
Andrew of Hungary, 26, 27.
Aniello Falcone, 131, 133, 248.
Aniello, Tommaso, of Sorrento, 108.

See Masauiello.

Anjou, House of, 39.

Anna, Santa, dei Lombard!, church
of, 51.

Annunziata, Maria dell', church of, 34,
35, 48, 102, 221.

Antonelli, Cardinal, 199.

Antonio, 246.

Antonio a Tarsia, convent of, 223.

Antonio di Domenico, 76.

Antonio Solario, 35, 79, 248.

Appleton, Thomas Gold, quoted, 287.

Aquarium, 218.

Aqueduct, 5, 143, 144.

Aquila, Silvestro dell', 40.

Aquinas, Thomas, 295.

"Arcadia," Sannazzaro's, 256.

Arch, Triumphal, 39, 40.

Architecture, 244.

Archytas, 9; shipwreck of, 2.

Arco Felice, 273.

Arco, Madonna del, 237.

Arcos, Duke of, 101, 108, 111, 113, 115,
116, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125, 127.

Arcucci, Giacomo, 315.

Ariano, Bishop of, 255, 262.

Arimos, 4.

Aristarchus, 269.

Armstrong, Cantiere, 225.

Artasia, fountain of, 2.

Ascanio Filomarino, 111, 115, 116, 117,
120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125.

Atlas, fountain and statue of, 73.

Atrani, bronze doors of, 246.

Attendolo Sforza, 30, 31, 33.

Augustus, Emperor, 261, 262, 266, 277,
309.

Avalos, Costanza d', 277, 280; Ferdi-
nand, 277.

Avernus, Lake, 2, 272.

Aversa, 26, 33, 52, 59.

330

INDEX.

B.

Bacon, Lord, 259.

Bagnoli, 264.

Baise, Castle of, 63, 74, 269, 275.

Baireuth, Margravine of, 263.

Bajazet, Sultan, 47.

Baker, Captain, 157.

Balbi, statues of the, 283.

Balbo, 194.

Bamboccio, Abbate Antonio di Dome-

nico, 76, 246.
Bandello, 257.
Bandiera, plot of the, 194.
Banditti, 61, 62, 87, 90, 129, 130, 166.
Barbarossa, Castle, 321.
Barletta, Cathedral of, 43.
" Bassi," 211, 212.
Bayonne, Statute of, 168.
Beatrice of Provence, 19, 27.
Beauharnais, 172.
Beccadelli, Antonio, 251.
Bedmar, Marquis of, 87.
Belisario Corenzio, 103, 248.
Belisarius, 5.
Bell, Sir Acton, 149.
Benedetto, 246.
Benedict XIV., Pope, 145.
Benevente, Count of, 106.
Benevento, battle of, 16, 18, 21 ; bronze

doors of, 246.

Beneventum, Prince of, 291.
Bentinck, Lord, 173.
Berardina Pisa, 109, 124.
Berkeley, Bishop, quoted, 279.
Bernadotte, King, 168.
Bernardo Tanucci, 138, 139, 147, 148, 149.
Berwick, Duke of, 138.
Bilingues, 9.
Blue Grotto, 306, 326.
Boccaccio, 24, 43, 250, 256, 257, 262.
Bonaparte, Caroline, 170, 171, 172, 173.
Bonaparte, Joseph, 164, 165, 166, 167,

168, 169.
Bonaparte, Napoleon, 151, 152, 162, 164,

167, 168, 169, 311.
Bonifacio, Andrea, 77.
Borbone, Carlo (Charles III. or VII.),

137, 138, 139, 140, 141, 142, 143, 144,

145, 146, 261, 282.
Borgia, Cardinal Caesar, 52, 70 ; Cardinal

Caspar, 89.
Botanical Garden, 45.
Bo vino, Duke of, 93.

Braccio, mercenary, 30.
Brancaccio, Col' Antonio, 62.
Bronze doors, 40, 76, 246.
Bruno, Giordano, 167, 257, 258.
Brutus, 34.

Buoni Cugini, 176, 178, 182.
Buono, of Venice, 76.
Busentinus, the, 6.
Byron, Lord, 178.

C.

Cabano, Raimondo, Seneschal, 28.
Calabrese, II (Mattia Preti), 105, 106,

248.
Calabria, Charles, Duke of, 28; John,

Duke of, 40, 41, 42 ; Francis, Duke of,

180, 184.
Calderari, 179.

Caldora, Jacopo, 37 ; Antonio, 38.
Call, 187.
Caligula, 272.
Calixtus HI., Pope, 292.
Camaldoli, 264, 284, 324.
Camaldoli della Torre, Monastery of, 284.
Camera obscura, invention of, 42.
Camerelle, 315, 316.
Campanella, Tommaso, 167, 257, 258,

259.

Campo di Marte, 235.
Canosa, Prince of, 167, 175, 179, 184.
Canova, 144, 187.
Capaccio, quoted, 100.
Capecelatro, Francesco, 94, 108, 125, 129.
Capo Caroglio, 264.
Capodimonte, festival of, 238.
Capo di Monte, 321.
Capo-di-Monte, palace of, 141.
Cappella del Tesoro, 102, 103, 240.
Cappella di San Michele, 289.
Caprajo (goatherd), 209.
Capri (Caprea?), 4, 68, 165, 170, 205,

208, 277, 290, 291, 297, 298-328.
Capuana, Porta (Capuan Gate), 45, 66,

107, 138, 183, 210.

Caraccioli, Ser Giovanni, 33, 69, 104, 246.
Caracciolo, Admiral, 154, 161.
Caracciolo, Giovanni Battista, 248.
Carafa, Archbishop Alexander, 48.
Carafa, Andrea, 70.
Carafa, Diomed, 113, 114, 115, 116, 117,

123, 124, 131, 255.
Carafa, Francesco, 98.
Carafa, Gian Pietro (Paul IV.), 82.

INDEX.

331

Carafa, Giuseppe, 117, 118.

Carasale, Angelo, 141.

Caravaggio, Michael Angelo da, 104,

105, 248.
Carbonari, 175, 176, 177, 178, 179, 180,

181, 182, 183.

Carlisle, Lord, quoted, 296.
Carlo, San, Theatre, see Theatre.
Carmosina Bonifacia, 255.
Carnival, 236.
Caroline, Queen, 148, 149, 152, 158, 162,

165, 166, 167, 169, 171, 173.
Caroline Bonaparte, 170, 171, 172, 173.
Carpio, Marquis of, 101.
Casa del Trovatelli (Foundling Asy-
lum), 221.
Casamicciola, 280.
Caserta, palace of, 143, 148, 245.
Cassandra, Marchesa, 256.
Cassiodorus, 9.
Castel Capuano, 37, 48, 61.
Castel del Carmine, 45, 70.
Castel dell' Ovo, 21, 24, 28, 36, 50, 76,

168, 217.

Castel del Monte, 18.
Castellammare, 18, 22, 40, 141, 157, 205,

264, 289.

Castello di San Martino, 46.
Castello, hill of, 314, 324.
Castel Nuovo, 21, 36, 39, 65, 71, 78, 89,

93, 111, 127, 129, 134, 198, 201,207, 263.
Castel Sant' Elmo, 24, 28, 46, 59, 72, 93,

101, 107, 111, 116, 127, 142, 151.
Castrillo, Count of, 130, 131, 133.
Catanzaro, castle of, 75.
Catherine de Simone, 188.
Catherine of Valois, 26.
Caudine Forks, 5.
Cava dei Tirreni, La, 291.
Cava, Trinita della, 292.
Cavour, Count, 201, 202.
Celestine V., Pope, 23.
Cellamare, Prince of, 121.
Cemeteries, 239.
Cephorim (Capri), 4, 297, 299.
Certosa of San Martino, La, 28, 37, 314,

315.

Championnet, General, 154, 155.
Charlemagne, 295.
Charles, Duke of Calabria, 28.
Charles I. of Anjou, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20.
Charles II. of Anjou, 20, 21, 22, 23; of

Spain, 136.

Charles III. of Durazzo, 26, 27, 28, 31;
(Borbone) 71, 137, 138, 139, 140, 141,
142, 143, 144, 145, 146, 169.
Charles V., 45, 57, 65, 66, 75, 79.
Charles VI., Emperor, 136, 138, 139, 140.
Charles VII. of France, 33, 38; VIII. of
France, 44, 46, 47, 48, 50, 52, 251, 253.
Charles Martel, 23.
Chiaja, 69, 98.

Chiara, Santa, church of, 24, 25, 77.
Cholera, 193, 216, 234.
Churches: —

Cappella del Tesoro (San Gennaro),

102, 103, 240.

Cappella di San Michele, 289.
Carmelites', 120.

Cathedral of Barletta, 43; of Co-
senza, 33; of Ossuna, 85; of Pa-
lermo, 15; of Ravello, 76; of
Salerno, 295.

Costanza (Cathedral), 313.
Incoronata, 28.
Monte Oliveto, 51, 197, 254.
Monte Vergine, 26, 237, 240.
San Agostino della Zecca, 21.
San Domenico Maggiore, 22, 23, 46,

49, 134.

San Felippo Neri, 218, 249.
San Francesco di Paola, 187, 195,

249.

San Gennaro, Career! di, 271.
San Gennaro, 21, 102.
San Giacomo degli Spagnuoli, 67.
San Giovanni a Carbonara, 26, 32,

45, 246.
San Lorenzo, 21, 42, 43, 64, 65, 112,

116.

San Martino, 102, 314.
San Matteo, 294.
San Nicolo at Bari, 244.
San Pietro Martire, 22.
San Severino, 77.
Santa Anna dei Lombard!, 51.
Santa Chiara, 24, 25, 28, 77.
Santa Maria del Carmine, 19, 124.
Santa Maria del Parto, 79, 255.
Santa Maria del Soccorso, 319.
Santa Maria dell' Annunziata, 35,

48,102,221.

Santa Restituta (Cathedral), 280.
Spirito Santo, 169, 182.
Ciccione, Andrea, 32, 76, 246.
Cicero, 9, 34, 266, 271.

332

INDEX.

Circe", 4.

Citta Ducale, 24.

Clarke, Lilian, 306.

Claudius, Emperor, 9.

Clement, IV., Pope, 17; VI., Pope, 27;

VII., Pope, 27, 58; VIII., Pope, 58.
Clementia, Princess, 23.
Code, Monsignor, 190.
Codagora, Viviano, 132, 248.
Colantonio del Fiore, 35.
Colbert, 133.

Colletta, quoted, 166, 168, 169, 170, 185.
Colonna, Vittoria, 46, 277, 278, 27§.
Commerce, 101, 140.
Commines, 50.

Commissar}', Royal, 216, 217.
Commodus, 311.

Compagnia della Morte, 131, 132.
Conca, Prince of, 93.
Conrad, 15.
Conradin, 15, 18, 19.
Consejo de Italia, 80.
Consiglio Colaterale, 80.
Constance of Normandy, 11, 168; of

Aragon, 15; heir of the Hohenstau-

fens, 20.

Conybeare and Howson, 268.
Cook, Thomas, & Sons, 284.
Coppola, Carlo, 132.
Coral fisheries, 283.
Corenzio, Belisarso, 103, 248.
Corneille, 131.
Corniche road, 263-
Corso Garibaldi, 45, 218.
Corso Vittore Emmanuele, 72, 218.
Cortes, Leonora, 104.
Cosenza, 33, 74.
Costanza, Cathedral of, 313.
Costanza d'Avalos, 277, 280.
Costanza di Francavilla, 278.
Cranch, Christopher Pearse, 68.
Crathis, 2.

Craven, Mr. Keppel, quoted, 230.
Cronaca di Notar Giacomo, 48.
Croton, 3, 9.
Cumae, settlement of, 7; excavations

at, 144; city of, 273,323-
Cuttle-fish, 302.

D.

D'Altamura, Giovanni, 50.
Damecuta, plain of, 322, 326.

Dante, 17. 25, 250.

D'AubigiK5, 52.

D'Azelio, 194.

Decameron, The, 257.

Ue la Marche, 37, 39.

D'Elboeuf, Prince, 283.

Delcaretto, 190, 194.

Descartes, 258, 259.

Di Mauro of Rome, 219.

Dohrn, Dr., 218.

Domenichino, 103.

Domenico, Fontana, 95. 106.

Domenico Gargiulo, 121, 132, 248.

Domenico, murder of, 103.

Domenico, San (Maggiore), church of,

22, 23, 46, 49, 134.
Donna Regina, House of, 100.
Drama, The, 97.
Drusilla, 268.
Duelling, 98.

Dumas, Alexandre, quoted, 73, 272.
Durazzo, Charles III., 26, 27, 28, 31.

E.

Elisabetta Farnese, 137.

Elmo, Sant', Hill of, 22, 70.

Elmo, Sant', Monastery of, 24, 46, 59,

72, 101, 107, 111, 116, 127, 142, 151.
Elysian Fields, 1, 276, 323.
Enceladus, 277.
Ennius, 9.
Epomeo, Monte (Mons Epomeus), 277,

279.

Eugenius IV., Pope, 38.
Eyk, Jan van, 247.

F.

Fabius, 266.

Falcone, Aniello, 131, 133, 248.
Fansaga, Cosimo, of Bergamo, 102, 245.
"Fa Presto" (Luca Giordano), 105,

248, 249.

Faraglioni, 314, 324.
Farnese, Elisabetta, 137.
Fazio, B irtolommeo, 252.
Federigo di Toledo, 134.
Felippo Neri, San, Church of, 218,249.
Ferdinand I., 22. 40, 41, 42, 43, 45, 46,

66,253; II., 47,48, 49.
Ferdinand II. (Bomba), 189, 190, 193,

195, 196, 197, 198, 199, 200.
Ferdinand IV. (I.), 146, 147, 148, 149,

150, 152, 156, 158, 161, 164, 170, 173,

INDEX.

333

175, 179, 180, 181, 183, 184, 185, 186,

187, 253, 275.
Ferdinand of Spain, 52, 53, 55, 56, 57;

VI., 145.

Fergusson, quoted, 245.
Festivals, 96, 109, 131, 148. 214, 236,

2.38, 242, 276, 280, 283, 30L
"Fiammetta," 43, 250.
Filangieri, Prince, 218.
Filomarino, Cardinal Ascanio, 111, 115,

116, 117, 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125.
Firrao, Cardinal, 169.
Fish, 212, 213.
Florenzano, Signer, 223.
Foggia, palace of, 22.
"Foudaci," 215,216, 217.
Fontana della Selleria, 134.
Fontana, Uomenico, 95, 106.
Forsyth, quoted, 72, 294.
Foundling Hospital, 221.
Fra Diavolo, 156, 166, 167, 176.
Francavilla, Costanza Marchesa di, 278.
Francesco di Paola, San, Church of, 187,

195, 249.

Francesco Grimaldi, 102.
Francis I., 59, 187; II., 201.
Frederick II., 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 39,

240, 249, 250. 255, 295.
Frederick of Aragon (Prince of Alta-

mura), 49, 50, 51, 53.
Freeman, Edward A., quoted, 12.
Freemasons, The, 145.
Froissart, 28.

Frutti di mare, 70, 208, 213.
Fucinus, Lake, 8.
Fusaro, Lake, 274, 276.

G.

Gabriele d' Agnolo, 66.

Gaeta, 3.

Galeotti, 194.

Galileo, 258, 259.

Gallenga, 192.

Galleria Umberto I., 219.

Gargiulo, Domenico, 121, 132, 248.

Garibaldi, 201, 202, 203, 223.

Gennaro, San. See under Januarius.

Gandino, Antonia, 77.

Genuino, Giulio, 112, 121.

Ghibellines, 15, 18, 21, 24.

Giacomo degli Spagnuoli, Sun, church

of, 67.
Giambattista della Porta, 42.

Giannone, Pietro, 167.

Giansilla, Niccolo di, 15.

Gibbon, Edward, quoted, 6.

Gibson, William, quoted, 328.

Gioberti, 194.

Giordano Bruno, of Nola, 167, 257,

258.
Giordano, Luca (" Fa Presto "), 105, 248,

249.

Giotto, 24, 25, 28.
Giovanni a Carbonara, San, church of,

26, 32, 45, 246.
Giovanni d' Altamura, 50.
Giovanni da Nola, 40, 51, 66, 67, 70, 73,

77, 134, 24G.

Girolamo Santa Croce, 79, 247.
Giron, Don Pedro, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 96,

102, 104.

Giuliano da Maiano, 40, 45, 246.
Giulio Genuino, 112, 121.
Gladstone, William, 198.
Goethe, 3, 219, 284.
Gonsalvo da Cordova, 40, 48, 50, 52, 53,

54, 55, 56, 57, 60.
Gradoni, 72.

Graham, Sir James, 192, 194.
Granada, Treat}- of, 52, 58.
Graviua Palace, 66.
Green Grotto, 325.
Gregorovius, Ferdinand, 297, 306, 315,

318, 323, 327.
Gregory VII., Pope, 294; X., Pope, 20;

XL, 27.

Grenier, General, 171.
Grimaldi, Francesco, of Oppido, 102.
Guardato, Masuccio, 256.
Guelfs, 24.

Guglielmo of Naples, 40.
Guidiccioni, quoted, 107.
Guido Manzoni, 51.
Guido Reni, 103.
Gtiiscard, Robert. 8.
Guise, Duke of, 82, 107, 127, 128, 130.
Gyraldus, Lilius, 253.

H.

Hadrian, 271.

Hamilton, Lady, 159, 160.

Hamilton, Sir William, 152, 153, 160.

Hannibal, 3, 5, 266.

Remans, Felicia, quoted, 6, 19.

Henry VI., 11.

Ilerculaneum, 144, 228, 282.

334

INDEX.

Hercules, 3, 5, 265, 269, 283.

Hermitage (Capri), 322.

Hohenstaufen, House of, 8, 18.

Homer, 269.

Honorius, Pope, 11.

Horace, 2, 9, 269.

Horsemanship, 97.

Horse-racing, 235.

Hospital for Incurables, 222.

Hospital, Lima, 222.

Hospitallers of St. John, Order of, 293.

Humbert I., 204, 216.

I.

Immacolata, bridge of the, 141.

Immacolatella, The, 141.

Inarime (Ischia), 4, 279.

Incoronata, church of the, 28.

Industries, 101, 224, 276, 280, 283, 293,
301.

Innocent III., Pope, 12; IV., 15;
VIII., 43.

Inquisition, 62, 63, 65, 74, 108, 145, 252.

Institute, Victor Emmanuel Interna-
tional, 223.

Instituto Casanova, 223.

Intronati, Academy of the, 62.

Isabella del Balzo/53, 55.

Isabella of Lorraine, 36, 169.

Isaia da Pisa, 40.

Ischia, 23, 30, 41, 47, 49, 53, 62, 205, 264,
265, 274, 276, 277, 279, 323.

J.

Jacques de Bourbon, 32.

Jamiarius, St., 48, 49, 102, 141, 155,
240, 271; church of, 21; miracle of,
197, 239, 240, 241; order of, 139; rel-
ics of, 48, 238.

Jean Paul, 297.

Jesuits, The, 147, 186, 189.

Jettatura, 226.

Jews, The, 145.

Joachim, King Olnrat). 169, 170, 171,
172, 173, 174. 176, 283.

Joanna I., 25, 26, 28, 118, 169; II., 32,
33, 34, 169, 246.

Joanna of Castile, 55, 57.

John XXIII., Pope, 30, 31.

John of Bohemia, 24.

John, Don, of Austria, 127. 128.

John, Duke of Calabria, 40, 41.

John of Procida, 23, 276.
Johnson, Dr. Samuel, quoted, 7.
Joseph of Austria, 149; Bonaparte, 164,

165, 166, 167, 168, 169.
Julius II., Pope, 58.
Junta of Poisons, 140; of State, 151,

159, 163, 181.

Justinian, Pandects of, 293.
Juvenal, 256, 276.

K.

Kopisch, August, quoted, 326.

L.

Ladislaus, King, 29, 30, 31, 32, 169, 246,
275.

Lancia, Count Giordano, 17.

Lanfranco, 103.

Largo della Vittoria, 69, 70.

Largo di Castello, 71.

La Sila, forests of, 3.

La Touche, Admiral, 150.

Lautrec, Marshal, 58, 59.

Laybach, Congress of, 183, 184.

Lazzaroni, 73, 154, 158, 198, 249.

Lemos, Count of, 93, 106.

Leo X., Pope, 58.

Lippomano of Venice, quoted, 81.

Literature, 10, 12, 25, 82, 130, 131, 167,
168, 194, 250, 253, 254, 255, 256, 257,
258, 259.

Livy, 251.

Lo Capo, 318, 319.

Lorenzo, San, church of, 21, 42, 43, 65,
112, 116.

Lorenzo de' Medici, 251.

Loria, Admiral Roger de, 18, 20.

Los Palacios, 55.

Letter}-, 233, 234.

Louis of Anjou, 27, 28; II., 29, 30; III.,
33, 34; of Bavaria, 24; XI. of
France, 41 ; XII. of France, 52, 53 ;
XIV., of France, 133, 138; of Hun-
gary, 27, 29; of Taranto, 26, 28, 118.

Lowe, Colonel (Sir Hudson), 165, 170,
315.

Loyola, Ignatius, 189.

Luca Giordano, 105, 248, 249.

Lucania, 3.

Lucera, 12, 15, 16, 18, 75.

Lucrine, Lake, 269.

Lucullus, 261, 263, 264.

INDEX.

335

Luigi Vanvitelli, 34, 143, 245.
Luigia Sanfelice, 157.
Luke, St., 267, 268, 269.
Lupatelli, 194.
Lyons, Treaty of, 55.

M.

Macdonald, General, 156.

Machiavelli, 260.

Maddaloni, Duke of, 113, 114, 115, 116,

117, 123, 124, 131, 255.
Maiano, Giuliano da, 40, 45, 246.
Maida, Battle of, 166.
Makau, 151.
Manduria, 2.

Manfred, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 250.
Manfredonia, 16.
Mangone, Rosario, 311, 315.
Manufactures, 101.
Manzoni, 204.

Manzoni, Guido (Modanino), 51.
Margaret of Savoy, 33.
Maria del Carmine, church of, 19, 124;

del Parto, 79, 255 ; del Soccorso, 319.
Maria Josephine, death of, 148.
Maria Theresa, 148.
Marie Antoinette, 150.
Marina Grande, 302, 312.
Marina, Piccola, 314, 324.
Marinella, The, 71, 141, 236.
Marini, Giovan Battista, 131.
Mario, Mrs., 223.
Martial, 275, 288, 296.
Martin IV., Pope, 20; V., 31, 33.
Martino, Pietro di, 40.
Martino, San, church of, 102, 314.
Mary of Hungary, 31 ; Tudor, 84.
Masaniello, 71,85,108,109,110,112, 114,

115, 116, 119, 120, 121, 122, 123, 124,

125, 126, 133.

Massimo Stanzioni, 103, 133, 248.
Massys, Quentin, 35.
Masuccio I., 76; II., 25, 42, 76.
Masuccio Guardato, 256.
Matinus, Mons, 2.
Matromania, Grotto of, 320.
Matteo, San, Church of, 294.
Mattia Preti, 105, 106, 248.
Mauro, di, of Rome, 219.
Maximilian, 19; King of the Romans,

48.

Mazzini, Joseph, 190, 191, 192, 202.
Medici, Lorenzo de', 251 ; Pietro de', 44.

Medina, Duke of, 94; Duchess of, 100.

Medina, Fountain, 134.

Medrano, 141.

Melfi, castle of, 75.

Menzini, Benedetto, quoted, 247.

Mergellina, the, 69, 98, 141, 218, 263.

Merliano da Nola, Giovanni, 40, 51, 66,

67, 70, 73, 77, 134, 246.
Metternich, Prince, 179, 182, 183, 192.
Micco Spadaro (Spadone), 121, 132, 248.
Michael Angelo, 247.
Michael Angelo da Caravaggio, 104, 105.
Michele de Santis, 118.
Michelozzo, 246.
Milan, Duke of, 35, 38, 41, 48.
Milton, John, 254.
Miranda, Count of, 106.
Misenum, Cape, 3, 275.
Modanino, 51.

Molo (The Mole), 22, 46, 56, 83, 134, 141.
Moncada, Don Ugo de, 59.
Monte Barbara, hill of, 273.
Monte Cassino, bronze doors of, 246;

convent of, 292.
Monte Epomeo, 277.
Monteforte trial, the, 186.
Montemar, Count, 138, 139.
Monte Nuovo, 74, 75, 272.
Monte Oliveto, church of, 50, 61, 197,

254.
Monterey, Count of, 94, 97, 107;

Countess of, 99.
Monte Sant' Angelo, 205, 289.
Monte Solaro, 321, 322, 323, 324.
Monte Vergine, 26, 237, 240.
Monte Vico, 280.
Montorsoli, 79.
Montpensier, Count of, 48.
Moore, Thomas, quoted, 287.
Morals, 99, 100.
Munthe, Dr. Axel, 215.
Murat, Joachim, 169, 170, 171, 172, 173,

283.

Mureto, castle of, 27.
Muro, castle of, 27.
Museo (Borbonico) Nazionale, 28, 35,

45, 46, 75, 83, 84, 131, 142, 187, 220,

224, 283.

N.

Naples, besieged by Belisarius, 5;
Charles I. of Anjou established as
king, 18; monuments of Charles I.

336

INDEX.

and II., 21; gladiatorial combats at,
26; war with Louis of Hungary, 26;
besieged by Ladislaus, 31; entrance
of Louis of Anjou, 30; occupied by
King Rene", 37; besieged by Alfonso
of Aragon, 38 ; victory of Alfonso, 39 ;
claimed by Charles VIII. of France,
44; welcomes Charles VIII., 47;
under Ferdinand II., 48; four sov-
ereigns, 49; under Louis XII. of
France, 53; in possession of Spain,
53; reception of Ferdinand, 55;
blockaded by the army of Francis I.,
59; governed by Don Pedro de To-
ledo, 61, 62; revolts against Toledo,
64; disastrous results, 65; changes in
eastern Naples, 71; improvements of
Don Toledo, 73; characteristic archi-
tecture, 75; famous artists, 76-79;
religious orders, 82; under Philip II.,
80-84; under the Duke of Ossuna,
85-89; war with Venice, 87, 88;
wretchedness under Philip IV., 89,
90; trouble with bandits, 90, 91; de-
moralization, 91-100; ceremonial of
viceroys, 92; population, 100; advan-
tageous situation, 101 ; luxury and art,
102; painters, 103-105 ; important pub-
lic works, 107; rebellion of Masaniello
under Duke of Arcos, 108-125 ; restored
tranquillity under the Count of Onate,
129; evil effects of Spanish rule, 134;
under German rule, 136; demoraliza-
tion, 137; entrance of Carlo Borbone,
138, 139 ; improvement under Carlo
Borbone, 140; theatre of San Carlo,
141, 142; palace of Caserta, 142;
water supply, 144; peaceful condi-
tions, 145; expulsion of the Jesuits,
147; entrance of Ferdinand IV., 148;
good accomplished by Tanucci, 149;
rule of Queen Caroline, 149; visited
by Admiral La Touche, 150; terror-
ism, 151; desertion of the king, 153;
occupied by the French. 154, 155;
Parthenopean Republic, 156; Baker
conspiracy, 157; atrocities under the
Bourbons, 158 ; perfidy of Admiral
Nelson, 160; Ferdinand's revenge,
161; flight of Ferdinand, 163; entry
of French fleet, 163; severities of
Joseph Bonaparte, 165; attempts of
the Bourbons foiled, 166; reforms,

167 ; fate of Neapolitan queens, 168,
169; entrance of Murat, 169; capture
of Capri, 170; flight of Murat, 173;
restoration of Ferdinand, 174; pesti-
lence and persecutions, 175 ; customs
of the Carbonari, 177; Constitution
adopted, 180; Ferdinand's oath, 181;
more orderly conditions, 182; Aus-
trian occupation of Naples, 183; reign
of terror, 184, 185; " Monteforte "
trial, 186; death of Ferdinand, 187;
character of Ferdinand II., 190; so-
ciety of Young Italy, 191; character
of Mazzini, 192; Ferdinand's moral-
ity, 193; plot of the Bandiera re-
vealed, 194; Constitution of 1848,
195; elections, 196; massacre of the
people, 197, 198; "the negation of
God," 199; new election, 199; Bom-
ba's vengeance, 199 ; entrance of Gari-
baldi, 201; Garibaldi Dictator, 202;
entrance of Victor Emmanuel, 203;
beauty of Naples, 205; characteristics,
206 : cheap foods, 208; milk and water
sellers, 209; trade-quarters, 210;
peasant jewelry, 211; marketing,
212; fisheries, 212, 213; superstitions,
213; poverty, 214; efforts at improve-
ment, 216 ; beautiful drives, 218; Villa
Nazionale. 218; drainage, 219; char-
itable institutions, 220; Foundling
Hospital, 221; Hospital for Incura-
bles, 222; schools, 222, 223; indus-
tries, 224; the jettaturct, 226 ; amulets,
226-229; a Lenten custom, 229; ges-
tures, 229, 230; the tarantella, 231;
gambling, 232, 233; lottery, 234;
horse-racing, 235; theatricals, 235,
236; festivals, 237, 238; liquefaction
of the blood of San Gennaro, 240, 241;
saint worship, 242; Neapolitan ar-
chitects, 244, 245; sculptors, 246;
painters, 247, 248; Naturalist!, 248;
literature, 250; reign of Alfonso I.,
251 ; Jovianus Pontanus and his writ-
ings, 253, 254; Sannazzaro, 255;
Masuccio's " Novelle," 257; songs of
the people, 257; Calabrian philoso-
phers: Campanella, Bruno, Telesio,
257, 258, 259; excursions about Na-
ples, 261.

Napoleon Bonaparte, 151, 152, 162, 164,
167, 168, 169, 311.

INDEX.

337

Naturalisti, 248.

Nelson, Admiral, 152, 153, 154, 158,

159, 160.

Nero, 270, 271, 275.
Nesis, 34.
Nicholas III., Pope, 20 ; V., Pope, 251,

252.

Nicolo of Foggia, 76.
Nicolo, San, church of, 244.
Nisida, 34, 68, 107, 264, 324.
Nocera, 12, 18, 21, 29, 324.
Nocera, Duke of, 93.
Noja, Duke of, 98.
Nolana, Gate of, 210.
Normans, masters of the peninsula,

8, 9.

Novara, battle of, 199, 200.
Novellino, the, 256.
Nunziata, church of, 35, 48, 102, 221.

o.

Odoacer, 34.

Olivares, Count of, 21.

Olivarez, 70, 83, 89.

Onate, Count of, 128, 129, 130, 131,

133, 134.

Orange, Philibert, Prince of, 59, 255.
Orcagna, Andrea, 250.
Orsini Palace, 66.
Orsini, Raimondello, 29.
Ossuna, Duke of, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 96,

102, 104.

Otto of Brunswick, 27.
Ovid, 9.

P.

Paduli (marshes), 46.

Paestum, 295, 319.

Painters, 103, 104, 105, 131, 132, 133.

Palace, Royal (Palazzo Reale), 95, 96,

97, 106, ill, 134, 144.
Palazzo Capo-di-monte, 171.
Palazzo Cuomo, 218.
Palazzo di Trajetto, 93.
Palazzo Gravina, 198.
Palazzo Sanseverino, 66.
Palermo, cathedral of, 15.
Palinurus, 4; headland of, 3.
Paris, Matthew, 12.
Parliament, Constitutional, 182, 196,

199.

Parthenope, 1, 205, 228, 281.
Parthenopean Republic, 156, 315.

Paul, Jean, 297.

Paul IV., Pope, 82.

Paul, St., 263, 267, 268, 269, 270, 325.

Pedro Antonio of Aragon, 134.

Pedro de Toledo, Don, 40, 59, 60, 61,

62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 72, 73, 74, 267.
Pepe, General, 180, 181.
Perkins, C. C., quoted, 78. 246.
Pescara, Marquis of, 46, 64, 277.
Peter of Aragon, 20.
Petrarch, 25, 43, 250, 262, 295.
Pezzo di Sangue, 5.
Philip the Good, 35 ; the Hardy, 23.
Philip II., 79, 80, 81, 83, 84; III., 85,

87, 89, 106, 107; IV., 89; V., 137,

138, 146; VI., 23.
Phlegrsean Plain, 1, 266.
Piazza degli Orefici, 210.
Piazza del Cerriglio, 118.
Piazza del Mercato, 18, 19, 21.
Piazza del Plebiscite, 71, 144, 187.
Piazza Medina, 186.
Piazza Umberto, 69.
Piccinino, 41.
Piccola Marina, 314, 324.
Piedigrotta, festival of, 238.
Pietro da Morone, 23.
Pietro di Martino, 40.
Pietro Martire, church of, 22.
Piscatorial Eclogues, Sannazzaro's, 255.
Pius II., Pope, 41; IX., 195, 199, 294.
Pizzo, 174.

Pizzofalcone, 22, 70, 107, 111, 119.
Pliny, 2, 22, 32, 265, 271.
Poerio, Carlo (Charles), 196, 199.
Poggi, quoted, 181.
Poggio Reale, 106, 120.
Pollio, Vedius, 264.
Pompeii, 144, 146, 208, 228, 237, 282,

284, 285, 286, 287.
Pompey, 275.
Pomponazzi, 259.
Pontanus, Jovianus, 253, 254, 275.
Ponte di Chiaja, 70, 107.
Ponza, 165, 273, 320, 323.
Porcello, Giovannantonio, 252.
Porta Capuana, 45, 66, 107, 138, 183,

210.

Porta, Giambattista della, 42.
Porta Nolana, 210.
Portella, 139, 148.
Portici, 141, 144, 282.
Porticus Antonianus, 253.

22

338

INDEX.

Porto Mercantile (Grande), 22.

Porto Militare, 188.

Poseidonia, 295.

Posilipo, 74, 91, 92, 03, 98, 144, 261, 263,

324.
Pozzuoli, 62, 63, 64, 67, 74, 110, 143, 144,

264, 266, 270, 271, 323.
Prescott, William H., quoted, 54, 55,

57.

Preti, Mattia, 105, 106, 248.
Principe di Napoli, 220.
Procida, 264, 276, 323, John of, 23, 276.
Proserpine, Temple of, 3.
Punta di Campanella, 205, 319.
Pyrrhus, 3.
Pythagoras, 9.

Q.

Quans, Bishop of, 302.
Quintin Massys, 35.
Quissisana, Villa, 22, 289.

R.

Ravaschiera, Duchess, 222.

Ravello, 76 ; bronze doors of, 246.

Reclusorio (Poorhouse), 72.

Reissinger, Sixtus, 45.

Renan, quoted, 9.

Rend of Anjou, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40,

41, 42.

Resina, 282, 283.

Restituta, Santa, cathedral of, 280.
Reumont, De, 52, 60, 69, 71, 77, 88, 93,

119, 128.

Ribera, 103, 104, 131.
Ribera, Maria Rosa, 104, 105.
Richard II. of England, 29.
Richelieu, Cardinal, 89, 258.
Rione, Arenaccia Orientale, 219.
Rione, Vomerone Arenella, 219.
Rione Vasto, 219.
Riviera di Chiaja, 68.
Riviera, The, 294.
Robert Guiscard, 8.
Robert of Taranto, 26.
Robert the Wise, 24, 25, 250, 262, 263.
Rocca Secca, battle of, 30, 31.
Rocciola, Punta di, 276.
Rock of Roses, 17.
Roger II., Count of Sicily, 8, 11, 58,

311: of Loria, Admiral, 18,20.
Rogers, Samuel, quoted, 317.

Rosa, Salvator, 71, 105, 131, 132, 133,

248, 292.

Rosario Mangone, 311, 315.
Rosellino, 246.
Rudolph of Hapsburg, 20.
Ruffo, Cardinal, 156, 158, 159.
Rufolo Palace, 22.

S.

Sabbatini, 79, 248.

Salerno, 12, 2«4; Prince of, 160. 181;

bronze doors of, 246.
Saliceti, 166, 167, 198.
Salimbene, 250.
Sallust, 9.

Salto di Tiberio, 317.
Saluzzo, Marquis of, 59.
Salvator Rosa, 71, 105, 131, 132, 133,

248, 292.

Sambuca, Marquis della, 149.
San Antonio, 291.
San Antonio, della Zecca, church of, 21;

a Tarsia, convent of, 223.
San Domenico Maggiore, church of, 22,

23, 46, 49, 134.

Sanfelice, Ferdinando, 245; Luigia, 157.
San Filippo Neri. church of, 218, 249.
San Francesco di Paola, church of, 187,

195.

San Gennaro, church of, 21, 102.
San Germano, 31.
San Giacomo degli Spagnuoli, church

of, 67.

San Giovanni a Carbonara, 26, 32, 246.
San Leucio, government of, 150.
San Lorenzo, church of, 21, 42, 65, 112,

116.
San Martino, castle of, 45; church of,

102, 314 ; heights of, 59.
San Matteo, church of, 294.
San Michele, 315.
Sannazzaro, 79, 247, 254, 255, 256, 261,

275.

San Nicolo at Bari, church of, 244.
San Pietro Martire, church of, 221.
Sanseverini of Salerno, 59.
San Severino, church of, 77.
San Severino, Ugo, 78; Geronimo, 78.
Sanseverino, Palazzo, 66.
Santa Anna dei Lombardi, church

of, 51.
Santa Chiara, church of, 24, 25, 77.

INDEX.

339

Santa Croce, Girolamo, 79, 247.

Santa Maria del Carmine, church of, 19.

Santa Maria della Stella, convent of,

119.
Santa Maria del Parto, church of, 79,

255.

Santa Maria del Soccorso, church of, 319.
Santa Maria La Nuova, Convent of,

118.

Santa Martha, Congregation of, 37.
Santa Restituta, cathedral of, 280.
San Trinita, abbey of, 244.
Sarno, battle of, 40.
Scafati, 237.

Schwab, Julia Salis, 223.
Sebeto, The, 142.
Sejanus, Grotto of, 264.
Seminara, battle of, 50.
Seneca, 268.

Serino water, 209, 216, 221.
Serapis, Temple of, 271.
Sersale, Vigna, 291.
Sforza, Attendolo, 30, 31, 33; Francesco,

38; Ludovico, 44.
Shakspeare, quoted, 133.
Shelley, Percy Bysshe, quoted, 135.
Sibilla", Queen, 168, 292.
Sibylla (Comnena). 17, 295.
Sicilian Vespers, 20, 23, 276.
Sidney, Sir Philip, 256.
Sigismund, King of the Romans, 31.
Sila, La, forests of, 3.
Silius Italicus, 261, 262.
Silk manufacture, 45, 101, 225.
Simone, Catherine de, 188.
Smith, William Sidney, 166.
Society of Young Italy, 191.
Solario Antonio, 35, 79, 248.
Solaro. Monte, 321, 322, 323, 324.
Solfatara, the, 265, 266, 323.
Sorrento, 205, 289, 290, 298.
Spagnoletto, 132.
Spartacus, 5.
Spinoza, 258.

Spirito Santo, church of, 169, 182.
Stael, Madame de, 288.
Stamer, quoted, 230, 231.
SUinzioni, Massimo, 103, 133, 248.
Statius. 262. 265, 266, 317.
Story, W. W., quoted, 267.
Strabo, 1, 3, 4.
Streets —

Strada del Castello, 39, 208.

Strada del Gigante, 70.

Strada di Chiaja, 83.

Strada (di; Foria, 45, 218, 236.

Strada Medina, 94.

Strada Mergellina, 141.

Strada Monte di Dio, 107.

Strada Nuova di Capodimonte, 71.

Strada Ponte di Chiaja, 107.

Strada San Carlo, 219.

Strada Santa Lucia, 70, 161, 207.

Strada S. Teresa degli Scalzi, 71.

Strada Toledo, 71, 72, 168, 185, 197,
207, 235, 236.

Strade di Caccia, 142.

See under Corso, Via.
Suetonius, quoted, 272, 309, 317.
Sulla, 266, 275.
Sybaris, founding of, 7.
Symonds, J. A., 250, 253, 254, 257, 259,

263.
Syracuse, Count of, 69, 70.

T.

Tacitus, 299.

Tagliacozzo, battle of, 18.

Taimcci, Bernardo, 138, 139, 147, 148,

149.

Tarantella, 230, 237.
Tarquinius Superbus, 273.
Tasso, Torquato, 264, 278, 291.
Taxes, 37, 56, 63, 80, 108, 110, 130, 156,

234.

Teatro di San Bartolommeo, 134.
Teatro di San Carlo, 134, 141, 175.
Teduccio, San Giovanni a, 282.
Telesio of Cosenza, 257, 258, 259.
Teresa of Anacapri, 303, 304.
Terracina, 4, 63.
Terra di Lavoro, 52.
Tesauro. 47.

Tesoro, Capella del, 102.
Thayer, W. R., quoted, 177, 187, 191.
Three Brothers, 77.
Tiberius, Emperor, 268, 275, 309, 310,

311, 318, 319, 323, 326.
Titian, 83.

Toledo, Don Federigo de, 134.
Toledo, Don Pedro de, 40, 59, 60, 61, 62,

63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 261, 267.
Toledo, the, see Strada Toledo.
Torlonia, Prince, 8.
Torre dell' Annunzinta, 284, 289.
Torre del Greco, 285, 299, 324.

340

INDEX.

Tragara, Valley of, 308, 314, 315.

Trinita della Cava, convent of, 292.

Troja, battle of, 41.

Trollope, T. Adolphus, 278.

Trovatori, 73.

Tuoro Grande, 314, 315, 316, 320.

Typhceus, 4, 277.

u.

Ulysses, 2, 4.

University of Naples, 9, 12, 37, 56,

144.
Urban IV., Pope, 16; VI., Pope, 27, 29;

VIII., Pope, 258.
Usochi, 87.

V.

Vaccaro, Andrea, 132, 248.

Valery, 143.

Valla, Lorenzo, 251, 252.

Vanini, 258.

Vanvitelli, Luigi, 34, 143, 245.

Varelli, 220.

Vasari, 25, 40.

Vasto, Marchesa del, 279.

Vaudemont, Count of, 58.

Vedius Pollio, 264.

Venice, 87, 88.

Vergellus, the, 5.

Vesuvius, 3, 141, 156, 205, 225, 242, 264,

265, 268, 284, 285, 287, 288, 298, 320,

324.

Via Carracciolo, 69, 207, 217, 218.
Via dei Colterari, 210.
Via del Duomo, 218.
Via Mezzo-cannone, 234.
Via Roma gia Toledo, 71.
Via Tasso, 218.
Vico Equense, 22, 205.
Victor Emmanuel, King, 200, 201, 202,

203, 204.

Vigna Sersale, 291.

Villa del Popolo, 210.

Villafranca, Marquis of, Federigo de

Toledo, 134. See Toledo.
Villa Jovis, 315, 316.
Villa Mergellina, 255.
Villa Nazionale, 69, 218, 236.
Villari, Professore Pasquale, 214, 215.
Vino tiberiano, 301, 310.
Violante of Anjou, 58.
Virgil, 8, 25, 32, 261, 262, 270, 276, 299;

quoted, 2, 5, 273.
Visconti, Valentina, 52.
Vitruvius, 9.

Vittoria Colonna, 46, 277, 278, 279.
Vittoria, Largo della, 69, 70.
Vivara, island of, 323.
Viviano, Codagora, 132, 248.
Voltaire, 263.
Volturno, the, 142.
Vomero, the, 218.

w.

Walloons, 88.
Walter of Brienne, 24.
Werner the mercenary, 26.
Western Empire, Fall of, 8.
William I., 76, 259.
William II. (of Palermo), 249.

Y.

Young Italy, society of, 191.
Yuste, monastery of, 79.

Z.

Zaleucus, 9.
Zampagnari, 238.
Zeuxis, 3.
Zingaro, Lo, 35, 79, 248.