t of his
attachment to the Princesse de Conti,[161] ventured to impress upon his
royal mistress, not only the inexpediency of utterly estranging from her
interests so powerful a family, but also the policy of recognizing with
indulgence and pardon the ready obedience and loyalty of the Duke, who
had not scrupled to sacrifice the safety of a brother to whom he was
tenderly attached to his sense of duty towards herself. Marie suffered
him to proceed for some time in silence; but at length his zeal was
rewarded by her consent to receive M. de Guise, and to listen to his
offered justification, provided he came to the Louvre at nightfall,
and alone.

After expressing his deep sense of this concession Bassompierre hastened
to communicate his success to the Duke, who lost no time in presenting
himself before his offended mistress; and so ably did he plead his
cause, replacing his accustomed haughtiness and impetuosity by a
demeanour at once respectful and submissive, that Marie de Medicis,
whose attachment to his house had long been notorious, declared herself
satisfied, and assured him that thenceforward she should hold him
exonerated from any participation in the crime of his brother. Upon one
point, however, the Regent remained firm; and although the Duke
earnestly implored the recall of M. de la Rochefoucauld, he was met by
so decided a refusal that he was compelled to abandon all immediate hope
of success. He had, nevertheless, save in this respect, every reason to
congratulate himself upon his reception; and the affair would probably
have elicited no further consequences, had not the Duchess his mother,
whose pride of birth, and natural arrogance, led her to believe herself
inferior to no crowned head in Europe, and who ill-brooked the authority
of one whom she was accustomed to consider as a mere petty Princess,
indebted to circumstances for her temporary position of command,
resolved to demand an interview upon the same subject; which having been
accorded by the Regent, renewed with greater violence than ever the
anger of Marie, who, justly irritated at finding herself defied and
braved by one of her own subjects, dismissed the imprudent Duchess with
so much harshness that the position of the offending parties became more
onerous than before, and the interference of Bassompierre was rendered
worse than useless.

Disconcerted by this unexpected disappointment, M. de Guise, aware that
no influence less than that posses