1 Gabriel de Minut's _De la Beaute, Discours divers, &c._,
Lyons, 1587. p. 74.
2 _Nouvelles Lettres de Marguerite_, pp. 84 and 93.
She had centred many hopes upon her little boy, John, of whom she was
confined without accident, but he died, as already stated, in infancy,
and this misfortune was a great shock to her, though she tried to
conceal it by having the Te Deum sung at the funeral in lieu of the
ordinary service, and by setting up in the streets of Alencon the
inscription, "God gave him, God has taken him away." However, from that
time forward she never laid aside her black dress, though later on
she wore it trimmed with marten's fur. Her best known portrait (1)
represents her attired in this style with the quaint Bearnese cap, which
she had also adopted, set upon her head.
1 Bibliotheque Nationale, _Recueil de Portraits au crayon,
&c._, fol. 46.
Not only did Margaret lose her son by death, but she was prevented from
enjoying the companionship of her daughter Jane. Francis, who never once
lost sight of his own interests, deemed it advisable to possess himself
of this child, who was the heiress to the throne of Navarre.
Pages:
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70