ained both
princes at a grand banquet in a house outside the cloister precincts. In
the evenings, comedies were acted or musical entertainments given in the
Castello for the king's amusement.

At the time of Charles's visit to Pavia, the Duke and Duchess of Milan
and their children were occupying their rooms in the Castello, but
during the last few weeks Giangaleazzo had become seriously ill and was
unable to leave his bed. Both his wife and his mother Bona were
assiduous in their attentions to the sick prince, and Isabella hardly
ever left his bedside. The chronicler Godefroy, who has left us so
faithful and accurate an account of Charles VIII.'s expedition,
describes the splendid _fetes_ given to the king at Pavia, and says that
the Duchess Isabella, with her young son Francesco, herself received him
at the portico of the Castello, but does not mention his visit to the
sick duke. Another trustworthy authority, Corio, tells us that Charles
with great thoughtfulness paid a visit to his cousin, who was suffering
from an incurable disease, and growing visibly worse, and that the
unfortunate duke recommended his wife and children to the king's care.
Commines, who was at Pavia three days before Charles, on his way to
Venice, says that he saw the little four-year-old prince Francesco, but
not the duke, since he was very ill and his wife very sorrowful,
watching by his bedside. "However," he adds, "the king spoke with him,
and told me their words, which only related to general subjects, for he
feared to displease Lodovico; all the same, he told me afterwards that
he would have willingly given him a warning. And the duchess threw
herself on her knees before Lodovico, begging him to have pity upon her
father and brother. To which he replied that he could do nothing, and
told her to pray rather for her husband and for herself, who was still
so young and fair a lady."

The Venetian chronicler, Marino Sanuto, gives a more sensational account
of the interview. According to him, Isabella absolutely refused to see
the king, and, seizing a dagger, declared she would stab herself rather
than meet her father's mortal enemy. Lodovico, however, in the end
induced her to receive the king, upon which she threw herself in tears
at the feet of Charles VIII., and implored him to spare her father and
brother and the house of Aragon. The king's kindly heart was touched
with compassion at the grief of the unhappy princess, but he only spoke
a f