The history of the popes, from the close of the middle ages : drawn ...

CONFESSION OF PALIANO. 159
and ordered that no other matter should be placed upon the
agenda for the consistory, in view of the probable length of the
report.^ Almost two whole months passed before this meeting
was held ;
the reason for the delay is to be found in the letters
which the Duke of Paliano addressed to the Pope from his
prison in the Tor di Nona.-
The first of these letters is dated January 17th, 1561. In it
the Duke begs for mercy for his young children, and at the
same time makes certain revelations which he had hitherto
concealed out of consideration for his brothers. These admis-
sions concern the beginning of the conflict of Paul IV. with the
Imperialists,^ the suit against the Colonna, and, above all, the
tragedy at Gallese. The Duke confesses as follows : " If I
remember correctly, the letter brought to me by Captain
Vico de' Nobili, contained the expression that the Cardinal
had said that he would no longer acknowledge me as his brother
if I did not clear myself from shame by means of the death of
the Duchess. I showed this letter to Leonardo de Cardena,
and we decided between ourselves that he should murder the
Duchess at Sant' Eutichio, on the road from Gallese to Soriano.
When Don Leonardo arrived at Soriano he found the Count
d' Alife there, who was himself just on the point of carrying
out the deed, but he prevented him from doing so. They then
sent Bernardino Olario to me, to whom I made answer as is
recorded in my iirst examination. I might have forbidden it,
but said that I wanted to have nothing to do with the matter.
It was my own wish to wait for my wife's confinement, and
what I said was with the object of delaying the deed. Never-
theless, the Duchess was killed. When I learned of her death
I was exceedingly grieved, and wept bitterly. In order to
find consolation I sent to my painter, by name Moragna, a
Spaniard living at Viterbo, and commissioned him to send the
143-
^ See Acta consist, in Gulik-Eubel, 38, and Angel, Disgrace,
2 *Hiera 1' altra, announces Giulio Grandi on January 16, 1561,
the Duke of Paliano was taken from the Castle of St. Angekj to
the Tor di Nona (State Archives, Modena).
^ Cf. Vol. XIV. of this work, p. 94 seq.