o was already in secret treaty with the
Swiss, who sent a deputy to the French camp, asking for leave to lay
down their arms and return to their own country.

Antonio Grumello, who was in Novara at the time, describes how late one
evening, when the duke sat playing chess with Fracassa in the bishop's
palace, where he lodged, a spy was led in, who told him that Trivulzio
had boasted that the Moro would be his captive in less than a
fortnight. "What do you say?" asked Lodovico of Almodoro, the
astrologer, who had followed him into exile. But Almodoro shook his
head. It was impossible; no planet foretold such a disaster; on the
contrary, all the signs were propitious, and he spoke confidently of
coming victory. "On Wednesday in Holy Week," continued the chronicler,
"the betrayal of Judas began." That day, as Galeazzo was preparing for
another sally, the Swiss came to him in a body and laid down their arms,
saying they would not fight against their comrades in the other camp.
Already one of the gates had been treacherously opened, and the French
were in the city. In this extremity an Albanian captain offered the duke
a fleet Arab horse and begged him to escape. But Lodovico refused to
desert his friends, and would only accept the proposal of the Swiss
captains that he and his companions should assume the garb of common
soldiers and mingle in the ranks. He covered his crimson silk vest and
scarlet hose, hid his long hair under a tight cap, and took a halberd in
his hand. In this disguise he was preparing to file out of the camp in
the ranks of the Grison troops, when a Swiss captain named Turman, and
called Soprasasso by the Italians, betrayed him to the French. The
Swiss, it is said, received 30,000 ducats as the price of blood from
Trivulzio, but were discontented with the sum, and quarrelled violently
over the gold among themselves; while the traitor had his head cut off
on his return home, and such were the execrations heaped upon him by his
comrades, that his wife and children were forced to change their name.
"_E lo quello_"--"There he is"--were the words in which Turman pointed
Lodovico out to a French captain, who immediately laid his hand on the
duke's arm and arrested him in the name of King Louis. "_Son contento_,"
replied Lodovico, calmly; and made no further resistance. "I surrender,"
he said afterwards, "to my kinsman, Monsignore de Ligny." Accordingly he
was delivered to Ligny, who treated him with all respect,