Paheologus, the nephew of the emperor of Constantinople. Having made a treaty with the Pope, Charles in 1495 entered Naples unresisted. But he showed no favour to the Neapolitan nobility, and gave all offices to his own soldiers. In consequence much discontent arose, and a league was formed against him by the Tope, the emperor, Spain, and Venice. With 5000 men he defeated at Fornova an army greatly outnumbering his own ; but the victory merely enabled him to reach France. Naples soon fell into the hands of Ferdinand of Spain ; and Charles died at Amboise, through an accident, at the age of twenty-eight, before he could carry out his intention of returning to Italy
(1498)CHARLES IX. (1550-1574), king of France, was the second son of Henry II. and Catherine de Medici. At the age of ten he succeeded his brother Francis II. His mother became regent, and Anthony of Navarre lieutenant of the kingdom. During Charles s youth there was fierce and continual war between the Huguenots, under Conde and Coligny, and the duke of Guise and his adherents In the second period of the contest Catherine opposed the former party ; but in 1570 Charles, declaring himself convinced that conformity in religion is impossible, and avowedly acting on his own judgment and in opposition to his mother, brought about a reconciliation with the Huguenots. His sister was married to the young Huguenot king of Navarre, Charles protesting that their union should not be prevented even by the Pope Admiral Coligny was received into familiar friendship, made one of the council, and treated as the chief adviser of the king, while on the attempt to assassinate him Charles expressed deep regret and an earnest intention to punish the crime. His sincerity in this course of conduct has been questioned ; we are reminded that he was neither scrupulous nor merciful, and it is said that his restless and apparently open manner concealed a long- conceived and terrible treachery. According to another and more probable account, he was not acquainted with the plots of his mother till their fulfilment was almost at hand, and it was on the ground that the Huguenots were conspir ing against the throne that he was prevailed upon not to interfere in preventing the massacre of St Bartholomew s day 1572. His consent was wrung from him. it is said, in an agony of passion, and the memory of the event tortured him till his death, which occurred at Vincennes only two years later. But there is no doubt that his con sent was given, for next day he avowed the act, declaring that it had proved necessary in order to check a dangerous rebellion. Charles left a work on hunting, entitled La Ckassc Royale, an edition of which, published in 1857, contains also several poems by him.
Contemporary accounts of tins reign were published by Dos Fortes, Sainte-Foy, and Favier in 1574, the year of Charles s death, and by Vaiillas in 1584.
CHARLES X (1757-1S3C), king of France, a younger brother of Louis XVI., known before his accession as Charles Philippe, Count of Artois, was born in 1757 At the age of sixteen he married Maria Theresa of Savoy. His youth was passed in a course of scandalous dissipa tion ; but for a short time he joined the French army at Gibraltar, and during the disturbances immediately prior to the Revolution he took a minor part in politics. In July 1789 he left France, and visited several of the European courts, in order to procure assistance for the royalist cause On the execution of Louis XVI., he assumed the title of Monsieur, and in the campaign of 1792 he commanded a regiment of French gentlemen ; but in February 1793 he retired to Russia, where he was warmly welcomed by Catherine. In August 1795 he led an expedition, fitted out by the English, to assist the revolt in L-i Vendee but he displayed no energy, and effected nothing. Retiring after this to England, he re sided for a time at Holyrood Palace, and afterwards with his brother Louis at Hartwell. In April 1814 he was cordially welcomed back to Paris by the Provisional Government. During the reign of his brother, Louis XVIII., hs was the leader of the extreme royalist party, who aimed at bringing back the state of affairs which had existed before the Revolution ; and on succeeding to the throne in September 1824 he continued to follow the same policy. His frequent appearances in public, and the dignity of his address, at first awoke considerable enthusiasm ; but his popularity was brief. M. Villele, who had already directed the government for some time, continued to be chief minister. A bill was passed by which a thousand millions of francs were devoted to recompense the losses of the emigre s (March 1825). The Jesuits were, it was believed, encouraged to return to France. Severe laws were made against sacrilege, death being assigned as the penalty for theft from consecrated ground, and profanation of the consecrated elements being regarded as a crime equal to parricide ; and the censorship of the press, which he had abolished at his accession, was re-imposed. At length, in January 1828, Charles made a compromise by replacing the unpopular ministry of Villele by a ministry headed by the Marquis of Martignac. But the change was temporary ; soon after he called to the head of affairs Prince Polignac, a personal friend, whose views exactly coincided with his own, and the choice of whom conse quently aroused the deepest dissatisfaction. But Charles refused to give way, and the address of the Chambers requesting the dismissal of the prince was answered with a dissolution. His foreign policy, meanwhile, was popular, for his troops gave assistance to Greece and conquered Algiers. But this could not save a king who so little understood the temper of his people. On the 25th June 1830 he issued ordinances, of which one forbade the publication of any periodical without Government permission, another dissolved the new House of Deputies which had not yet met, and a third placed the elections under the power of the prefects. This excited a spirit of resistance which spread rapidly through Paris ; barricades were thrown up; the troops were repulsed; and in three days the revolution was completed, Charles meantime doing absolutely nothing. At length he recalled his edicts; and he afterwards resigned in favour of his grandson, the duke of Bordeaux. But all was now in vain. Louis Philippe was elected king ; and Charles retreated from St Cloud toi A rianon, from Trianon to Rambouillet, and finally returned to Holy- rood, where he lived four years. He died at Gortz in 1836. The close of his life was spent in religious austerities, which svere intended to atone for his former dissoluteness.
CHARLES I., emperor. See Charlemagne.
CHARLES II., emperor. See Charles I. of France.
CHARLES III., emperor. See Charles II. of France.
was the son of John of Luxembourg, king of Bohemia. As A child he spent five years at Paris, but at the age of twelve he returned to his father s court. While only sixteen he was appointed viceroy of Italy, a post of the greatest difficulty, from which it was not long before he was obliged to retire. He next took part in the Carinthian war against the Emperor Louis of Bavaria, the great enemy of the Pope. In 1346, on the death of his father at Crccy, he became king of Bohemia ; and in the same year he was elected emperor in place of Louis, through the influence of Pope Clement VI. But Charles only gained this dignity at the cost of many humiliating concessions, which made him appear the mere tool of the Pope and robbed him of the respect of the electors. On the death of Louis in the
next year, they refused to recognize him, and chose first