ment of all kinds, Barbarossa
decided to give a solemn audience to the ambassadors. They were invited
into the _hall of the throne_, and after a brief delay, the rich silken
hangings were drawn aside and the brilliant retinue of the Emperor
appeared. The nobles, clothed in costly robes, entered first, followed
by the Emperor, wearing all the insignia of royalty. The crown alone
was wanting:--he respected the vow which he had made before Milan.

The monarch ascended the throne; every word, every gesture indicated
unmistakably that he felt his importance, and that he considered
himself the most powerful sovereign of the world. The nobles surrounded
him, shining like brilliant planets around the Imperial sun. The Count
Palatine Otho and the Counts of Andechs and Bogen, were on guard,
before the doors of the hall, where, clad in complete armor, with their
hands resting on their sword-hilts, they resembled so many statues of
bronze.

The ambassadors, followed by their suites, then approached the throne,
and the Count of Guyenne, French ambassador, commenced in pompous terms
an harangue, in which he assured the Emperor of the friendship of his
royal master. He deplored and regretted in a diplomatic manner the
discord and dissension prevalent in the Church, using terms so vague
and meaningless that the Count Otho became impatient and let his sword
fall. The loud ring of the weapon had a calming effect upon the orator;
he concluded with a brief and high-sounding phrase, bowed respectfully,
and withdrew.

The English ambassador, on the other hand, was stiff and sententious,
his face retained a grave and stern expression, and Frederic's presence
alone gave some appearance of animation to the features of this
phlegmatic son of Albion. Frederic was neither excited by the
flatteries of the Frenchman, nor wounded by the Englishman's assumption
of importance. He knew Louis's crafty policy, as well as the ambition
and cruelty of the English King. Henry possessed certain territorial
rights in France which he was desirous of aggrandizing, and the
constant quarrels, resulting from these pretensions, rendered each
sovereign desirous of cultivating exclusively for himself the Emperor's
friendship and favor. Frederic knew all this, and he meant to profit by
his knowledge. The maxim, "Divide and conquer," was always present to
his mind. Alexander had used every effort to reconcile the two
sovereigns; Barbarossa, on the contrary, did everyt