ance. He afterwards excused the Queen for not sending an Ambassador
extraordinary to compliment the King, giving as a reason, that such a
commission could only be executed by one of the first Lords of the
Kingdom, who were all employed in the army, or in the ministry; and the
Queen presumed his Majesty would like better that they should discharge
their duty, than undertake so long a journey. The King seemed much
pleased with the conclusion of this compliment. He promised to be
constant in his friendship, and faithful in the execution of his
treaties, and to continue the war with the fame ardour as his good
sister.

Grotius afterwards waited on the Queen, to whom he said, that his
complimenting her so late on the part of the Queen of Sweden, was owing
to the distance of Stockholm: he observed to her that Gothland was a
province of Sweden, from which the Kings of Spain were not ashamed to
derive their origin: he expressed his joy at seeing on the throne of
France a Queen descended from the Goths, and who had brought forth a
Prince who by his mother belonged to that nation: he assured her that of
all the Princes who had borne the name of Deodatus, none deserved it so
well as the Dauphin, whom Providence had given to the prayers of the
kingdom almost against all hope; that he was born on the day of the Sun,
which presaged that by his heat and light he would confer happiness on
France, and the friends of France, among whom her Swedish Majesty held
the first rank; that he was born in Autumn, the season of the year
abounding most in fruit, which denoted that with him would be found the
fruit of all virtues. The Queen received the compliment with great
politeness, and made an offer of her services to her Swedish Majesty.

The important fortress of Brisac having been obliged to surrender to the
Duke of Weymar in the end of the year 1638[359], Grotius went to
compliment the King on that event: he first thanked him for sending
reinforcements to the Duke, and afterwards enlarged on the advantages of
taking Brisac, the conquest of which contributed to the security of
Burgundy and Champaigne, facilitated the preservation of Lorain, the
towns of Alsace, and the liberty of the Swiss, and, in fine, enabled
them to make farther progress in Germany: he concluded with beseeching
his Majesty to order the money promised, to be paid to the Swedes, that
they might put Marshal Bannier in a condition to accomplish what might
be of service to th