Page:Historyoffranc00yong.djvu/110

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86 HISTORY OF FRANCE. [chap. Duke Philip as an appanage, and not as a fief which ■would pass in the female line. Flanders and Artois went in the female line. Lewis tried to treat with the states, and likewise with Mary's advisers, the Lord of Huinbercourt and the Chancellor Hitgiienonj and the Flemings, discovering that these two had a separate correspondence with him, declared them traitors, and beheaded them in the market-place of Ghent, in the very sight of their lady. The act was scarcely done before Lewis's barber, Oliver le Daim, came to offer his son's hand to Mary. She deemed herself insulted and refused ; therefore Lewis laid waste her lands with all the horrors of war, routed the remnant of her father's army, and over- threw all attempts at defence. In despair, Mary sent a ring to her former suitor, Maximilian of Austria, who hurried to Ghent, and, with the full consent of the states of Flanders, was married to her eight months after her father's death. He so ably defended her cause that Lewis was forced to make a truce, which was renewed again and again, till, in 1482, Mary was killed by a fall from her horse, leaving two infants, Philip and Margaret. A peace was now concluded at Arras, by which Margaret was be- trothed to the Dauphin and placed in the keeping of Lewis. She was to bring as her dower the counties of Artois and Burgundy with some smaller lordships. Lewis thus for a while was able to incorporate with France a considerable state of the empire, in the shape of the county of Burgundy. This however was only for a sea- son, but he was presently able to incorporate a still more important state of the empire for ever. 46. Annexation of Provence. — Meantime Lewis grew more suspicious, as his cold sneering manner, greed of land and money, evident delight in tormenting, and systematic depression of the noliles made him more and more hated as well as feared. He shut himself up in his castle of Plessis les Tours, which was closely fortified and guarded by the Scottish archers, and kept all his nobles aloof. The Duke of Nemours, when tortured be- fore he was put to death for his many treasons in 1477, had named so many accomplices that Lewis distrusted almost all his great nobles. Above all the King was jealous of Lewis, duke of Orleans, son of him who had been made prisoner at Ai^incourt, and not lu-irlntlir thi one after the sickly dauphin. Lewis had forced him to marry his second daughter, Joany a ]xilc, deformed girl, whom father and