PARTITION OF NAPLES. 5
and to the lust of territorial acquisition, consented to ciiaptkk
unite her arms with those of France against Milan, • '- —
in consideration of a share (not the lion's share) of
the spoils of victory. Florence, and many other
inferior powers, whether from fear or weakness, or
the shortsighted hope of assistance in their petty
international feuds, consented either to throw their
weight into the same scale, or to remain neutral. ^
Having thus secured himself from molestation in
Italy, Louis the Twelfth entered into negotiations
with such other European powers, as were most
likely to interfere with his designs. The Emperor
Maximilian, whose relations with Milan would
most naturally have demanded his interposition,
was deeply entangled in a war with the Swiss.
The neutrality of Spain was secured by the treaty
of Marcoussis, August 5th, 1498, which settled all
the existing differences with that country. And a
treaty with Savoy in the following year guarantied
a free passage through her mountain passes to the
French army into Italy. ^
Having completed these arrangements. Louis lost Jo'Jf ye^'^Mi
no time in mustering his forces, which, descending '^°'
1499 .
like a torrent on the fair plains of Lombardy, sept
effected the conquest of the entire duchy in little
more than a fortnight ; and, although the prize was
snatched for a moment from his grasp, yet French
valor and Swiss perfidy soon restored it. The
miserable Sforza, the dupe of arts which he had so
1 Guicciardini, Istoria, torn. i. 2 Dumont, Corps Diplomatique,
lib. 4, p. 214. ed. 1645. — Flassan, torn. iii. pp. 397-400. — Flassan,
Diplomatie Francaise, torn. i. pp. Diplomatic Francaise, torn. i. p.
275, 277. 279.
Page:History of the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella the Catholic Vol. III.djvu/31
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