ering to settle the crown of Naples
upon her descendants. To conciliate Philip, he proposed to share with
him the regency. Upon the arrival of the latter at Coruna in the month
of May, Martyr was chosen by the King to repair thither and obtain
the archduke's adhesion to this proposal. That the latter had
distinguished the Italian savant by admitting him to his intimacy
during his former stay in Spain, did not save the mission from
failure, and where Peter Martyr failed, Cardinal Ximenes was later
equally unsuccessful. Ferdinand ended by yielding and, after a final
interview with his son-in-law in Remesal, at which Peter Martyr was
present, he left Spain on his way to Naples, the latter remaining with
the mad queen to observe and report the course of events.

The sudden death of King Philip augmented the unrest throughout the
country, for the disappearance of this ineffective sovereign left the
state without even a nominal head. Ferdinand, who had reached Porto
Fino when the news was brought to him, made no move to return,
confident that the Castilians would soon be forced to invite him to
resume the government; on the contrary, he tranquilly continued his
journey to Naples. Rivals, he had none, for his grandson, Charles,
was still a child, while the unfortunate Juana passed her time in
celebrating funeral rites for her dead husband, whose coffin she
carried about with her, opening it to contemplate the body, of which
she continued to be so jealous that all women were kept rigorously at
a distance. A provisional government, formed to act for her, consisted
of Cardinal Ximenes, the Constable of Castile and the Duke of Najera,
but inspired little confidence. Peter Martyr perceived that, besides
Ferdinand, there was no one capable of restoring order and governing
the state. He wrote repeatedly to the secretary, Perez Almazen, and to
the King himself, urging the latter's speedy return as the country's
only salvation from anarchy. Events proved the soundness of his
judgment, for the mere news of the King's landing at Valencia sufficed
to restore confidence; he resumed the regency unopposed and continued
to govern Castile, in his daughter's name, until his own death.

Dona Juana ceased her lugubrious peregrinations and took up her
residence in the monastery of Santa Clara at Tordesillas, where she
consented to the burial of her husband's body in a spot visible from
her windows. Peter Martyr was one of the few persons who saw