Gynaikeion: or, Nine bookes of various history. Concerninge women inscribed by ye names of ye nine Muses. Written by Thom: Heywoode.

The reward due to Fertilitie, or many Children, with such as haue restored their decayed Families.

THere was a law amongst the Spartans, that whosoeuer had three sonnes that familie should be quit from watching and warding and such com∣mon seruice; but he that had stored the common weale with fiue, hee claimed immunitie in all publique offices, Aelian. lib. 6. de Var. Histor. Amongst the Persians those that had the most numerous offspring, were capable of the most honours, to whome the king yearely sent rich presents, Herodot. lib. 1.* 1.1 What merited honours then deserued Regina the daughter of M••scinus Scalliger and Thadaea Garroriensis, who beeing married to Prince Bernobonus Viscount of Mediolanum, had by him foure sonnes and twelue daughters: The first and eldest was married to Peter king of Cyprus; the second o Lewis Dolphin and first borne sonne to the French king; the third to the Duke of Bauaria; the fourth to the Duke of Austria; the fifth to Vicount Gallen••ius, the sixth to Leopoldus of Austria, grandfather to Fre∣derick the third Emperour; the seuenth to another Duke of Bauaria; the eighth to Frederick king of Sicilia; the ninth to Frederick Gonzage; the tenth to Duke Ernestus Monachus; the eleuenth to Frederick his younger brother, the twelfth and last to the Earle of Kent, eldest sonne to the king of great Brittaine, from whose generous offspring most of the royallest houses of Christendome (such as still flourish in their pristine honours) claime their descent, so that this fruitfull queene may bee called a Cibele or mother of the gods, Bernardus Scardeonus lib. 3. Histor. Pat. Plinie confers great felicitie vpon a Lacedemonian Ladie called Lampedo,* 1.2 because she was the daughter of a king, the wife of a king, and mother to a king; when a certaine rich Ladie of Ionia came to Lacena, and with great boasting and pride shewed her, her pretious iewells and rich garments, shee pointed to her foure faire children whom shee had liberally and vertuously educated, and sayd, These are treasures onely in which modest and discreet women ought to glorie. Plutarch in Apotheg. Luconic.* 1.3 Eumele the wife to Basilius Helenopontamos of Pontabus (as Nazianzenus testifies) had by him fiue sonnes of which three at one time were learned bishops and stour champions for the Gospell, namely, Gregorius Nissenus, Basilius Magnus Caesariensis, and Pe∣trus Sebasta, then I blame nor Epaminondas, who in all his noble exployts and prosperous successes in warre, was often heard to say, That nothing was so pleasing and delightfull to him, as that both his parents were yet aliue to participate with him in his honours: hee in the great battaile called Len∣ctricum, had a glorious victorie ouer the Lacedemonians, Plutarch in Grec. Apotheg. So Basilius Magnus Bishop of Cesaria, gloried of nothing so much (with dayly thankes to God) as that hee was borne of Christian parents, namely Helenopo••tanus his father and schoole maister, and Enmele Capadoce

his mother, and that hee was nourced by Macrina,* 1.4 who had beene a zealous and frequent auditor of Gregory Naeocae Soriensis, his grandfather in that bloo∣die persecution, vnder the Emperour Maximinus, with his kinsmen and fa∣milie retyred himselfe into a Caue in a moate, where with bread onely hee miraculously fed himselfe and the rest for the space of seuen yeares, and af∣ter for the Faith of the Gospell suffered a blessed and glorious Martyrdom, Licosck, in Theat. Human. Vitae. Saint Hierom commends Paula the religious Roman matron for her nobilitie of byrth, as being begot by Rogatas a Gre∣tian, who deriued himselfe from Agamemnon king of Mecene, and royall Generall of those famous expeditious against Troy, and borne of Blesilla Romana,* 1.5 of the antient familie of the Scipioes and the Gracchi, and was marri∣ed vnto Toxilius, illustrous in his blood, as claiming his descent from Aeneas and the Iulian pedegree: but nobility of byrth not being our owne but our ancestors, it is not my purpose to insist of it any further. It followes that I should speake something of such as haue beene the restorers of antient and decayde Families, euen when they were at the last gaspe and readie to perish and be as it were swept from the face of the Earth.

Vital is Michael duke of Venice returning with his weather-beaten Nauie out of Greece, where almost for the space of two yeares together without cessation he had opposed Prince Emanuel Constantinopolitanus, beeing so ex∣hausted, that scarce Commanders, Marreners, or any nauall protection suf∣ficiently accommodated was left to bring backe his fleete; whether by a pestilentiall mortallitie, or that Prince Manuell had poysoned the Springs and Fountaines, where the Venetian souldiers furnished themselues with fresh water is not certaine, but most sure it is, besides many other disasters and discommodities, that which hee held to be the greatest, was, that there was not any of male issue of the Iustinian Familie left aliue, but all of them in that infortunate expedition perished to one man, not any of that noble stocke suruiuing, by whom the memorie thereof might bee restored to po∣steritie: This the Duke Michaell often pondering with himselfe in great sad∣nesse and sorrow, at length he bethought him of one Nicholaus, a young man, who had deuoted himselfe to a sequestred and religious life, and was of the order of the Benedictan Fryers; he had besides, one onely daughter whose name was Anna,* 1.6 her he had a great desire to conferre vpon Nicholaus, so he could any way admit a dispensation from Alexander then Pope: there∣fore to that purpose hee earnestly petitioned him, and made great friends to sollicite him in that behalfe, who willing to repaire the ruines of so noble a familie now altogether spent and wasted, gaue approbation touching the marriage, which was accordingly publikely and with great pompe solem∣nised. These two, now the onely hopes of that future posteritie, had faire and fortunate issue, males and females, who were no sooner growne to any perfection and disposed of to liberall and vertuous education, but (which is remarkable in two so yong) they conferd together to this purpose, that since Heauen had blessed them with that for which marriage was ordained, and the purpose for which the dispensation was granted (namely issue, and to re∣uiue a dying familie) that they would with an vnanimous consent, againe enter into religious vowes and orders, This motion was betwixt them re∣solued, and hauing nobly disposed of their children, hee tooke vpon him holy orders, and retyred himselfe to the monasterie of Saint Nicholas; his wife Anna erected a Nunnerie not far from Torcellus, which shee made

sacred to Saint Adrian, how great and almost miraculous was their absti∣nence and Pietie, that abandoning all worldly pleasures and delights, when they flowed about them in all aboundance, euen then vowed themselues to solitude and heauenly meditations, in which profession they both in a faire and full age deseased, Egnat, lib. 4. cap. 3. and Marullus in Vita Vitalis. Not much different from this is that which wee reade of Pharon Meliensis a no∣ble Prelat, who with his wife after some yeares of affectionate consocietie passed betwixt them, made by a vnited consent a strict vow of future cha∣stitie; shee betooke her selfe to a Nunnerie, hee to a Monasterie: but after seuen sollitarie winters passed, hee was still troubled in his thoughts, for often calling to remembrance the beautie of his wife, he repented himselfe of his former vow, and often sollicited her for a priuat meeting, which shee still denying, and he more and more importuning, at length shee yeelded to giue him visitation; but the prudent and chast Ladie had her face couered, her eyes deiected, and presented herselfe in a base and sordid garment, where with her intreaties mixt with teares, she so farre preuailed with him that without breach of their promise made to Heauen they tooke their la∣sting leaue, he still remaining in his Couent, and shee repairing to her Cloy∣ster, Marul. lib. 4. cap. 7. Volateran. writes of Petrus Vrseolus duke of Venice, who after he had one sonne by his wife, by their vnanimous consent, they vowed perpetuall abstinence from all venerall actions. So likewise Aloysius de Caballis a noble Venecian with his wife (a Ladie deriued from the blood of the Patritians) these two agreed together neuer to haue carnall congres∣sion but onely for issue sake, neither would they suffer any motion, tempta∣tion, or any word, looke, or gesture that might tend to the least prouocati∣on, in so much that (if we may beleeue report) the verie linnen which they wore next them, was so interwoauen and disposed about them, that when they lay together, with great difficultie one might touch the others naked bodie, Egnat. lib. 4. cap. 3. Now what meede these deserue I am not able to iudge, I leaue it to his wisedome who is the rewarder of all goodnesse and is the searcher of the hearts and reines, and knowes who are Hippocrites, who true prosessors, who pretend deuotion meerely for deuotion sake, and who professe it for sincere zeale and religious pietie.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Regina.
• * 1.2

  Lampedo.
• * 1.3

  Eumele.
• * 1.4

  Macrina.
• * 1.5

  Blesilla.
• * 1.6

  Anna Veneta.