When the fact is recalled that such contemporaries as Pomponius Laetus, Bartolommeo Sacchi, Molza, Alessandro Farnese (Paul III), Platina, Sabellicus at Rome; Pontanus, Sannazaro, and Porcello in Naples; and Pomponasso and Boiardo at Ferrara, were then at or nearing their prime, the position of Florence as the acknowledged centre of European culture was conceded by sense of right alone.

Such was the case with Alexander Farnese, the young prince of Parma.

In the midst of the action, the young Farnese sprang on board of the enemy, and with his stout broadsword hewed down all who opposed him, opening a path into which his comrades poured one after another; and after a short, but murderous contest, he succeeded in carrying the vessel.

As Farnese's galley lay just astern of Don John's, the latter could witness the achievement of his nephew, which filled him with an admiration he did not affect to conceal.

Parma: "L'Amfiteatro Farnese", paintings; birthplace of Cassius.

Elizabeth was trying to secure a peace with Spain, while Philip and Farnese were busy in contriving the means of an invasion of England; and up to the time the Spanish Armada appeared in the British seas, she and her government were thoroughly cajoled by Spanish craft.

Philip II., Farnese, and Mendoza,Olden-Barneveld, Paul Buys, St. Aldegonde, Hohenlo, Martin Schenk, and Maurice of Nassau,Henry III., Henry of Navarre, and the Duke of Guise,Queen Elizabeth, Burleigh, Walsingham, Buckhurst, Leicester, Davison, Raleigh, Sidney, Howard, Drake, Hawkins, Frobisher, and Norris,all, as delineated by him, have vital reality, all palpably live and move before the eye of his mind.

This man had charge of the Sistine as well as the Pauline Chapel; but his office does not seem to have been continued after the death of the Farnese.

Taken as a whole, the Palazzo Farnese remains the most splendid of the noble Roman houses, surpassing all the rest in pomp and pride, though falling short of Peruzzi's Palazzo Massimo in beauty.

" After this Ughi goes on to relate how Michelangelo's enemies are spreading all kinds of reports against his honour and good fame, criticising the cornice of the Palazzo Farnese, and hoping that its weight will drag the walls down.

They were employed to copy all the best pictures in the Farnese Palace, and every evening attended an academy of drawing.

The truth is, that Strada, who had access to no other manuscripts than those in possession of the Farnese family, never saw the "Samanca papers"; and Robertson, far from following Strada exclusively, relied much more on the authority of Sandoval and other Spanish writers.

She was first married (in 1553)to Horatio Farnese, Duc de Castro, who only survived their union six months; and subsequently to the Maréchal de Montmorency, the son of the Connétable, in 1557, of whom she became the widow in 1579.

The road leads in a direct line to the summit of the mountain, which is thirteen hundred feet in height, surmounted by a great structure, called the Giant's Castle, on the summit of which is a pyramid ninety-six feet high, supporting a statue of Hercules, copied after the Farnese, and thirty-one feet in height.

Giulia Bella was the mistress of Alexander VI., and a sister of the Farnese, who owed his cardinal's hat to her influence.

Farnese Palace and the tombs of the Medicis are noted examples.

that it was opened, when the beautiful marble sarcophagus of Caecilia Metella, now in the Palazzo Farnese, was found in it.

(Alexander Farnese), who, on the 13th of October, 1534, had succeeded Clement VII., came forward as mediator.

Charles knew that it was ill supplied with troops and munitions of war; and the court of Henry II., intoxicated with the deliverance of Metz, spoke disdainfully of the emperor, and paid no heed to anything but balls, festivities, and tournaments in honor of the marriage between Diana d'Angouleme, the king's natural daughter, and Horatio Farnese, Duke of Castro.

An early, and most scandalous example remains to us in one of the frescoes in the Vatican, which represents Giulia Farnese in the character of the Madonna, and Pope Alexander VI.

A few days after, Cardinal Farnese was elected as Pope Paul III.

FARNESE, the surname of a noble Italian family dating its rise from the 13th century.

FARNESE, ALESSANDRO, attained the papal chair as Paul III.

FARNESE, ALESSANDRO, grandson of the following, and 3rd duke of Parma, a famous general; distinguished himself at the battle of Lepanto; was governor of the Spanish Netherlands, and fought successfully against France, defeating Henry IV.

FARNESE, PIETRO LUIGI, a natural son of Pope Paul III., who figures in Benvenuto Cellini's Life; received in fief from the Papal See various estates, including the dukedom of Parma; he ill requited his father's trust and affection by a life of debauchery and finally suffered assassination in 1549.