The courtyer of Count Baldessar Castilio diuided into foure bookes. Very necessary and profitable for yonge gentilmen and gentilwomen abiding in court, palaice or place, done into English by Thomas Hoby.

VNTO THE REVEREND and honorable Lorde Mychaell de Sylua Bisshop of viseo.

AFter the Lorde Guidubal∣do of Montefeltro Duke of Urbin was departed out of this life, cer∣tein other Gentilmen and I that had bine seruauntes to him, con∣tinued in seruyce wyth Duke Francescomaria Della Rouere hys heire & successor in the state: And whyle the sauour of the vertues of Duke Guidubaldo was fresh in my mynde, and the great delite I took in those yeeres in the louing companie of so excellent Personages as then were in the Court of Urbin: I was prouoked by the memorie therof to write these bookes of the Courtier. The which I accomplished in a fewe dayes, myndinge in time to amende those faultes that spronge of the desire that I had speedilie to paye this debt. But fortune now manie yeeres hath alwayes kept me vnder in suche continuall trauayles, that I coulde neuer gete leyser to bringe it to the passe that my feeble iudgement might be throughlie sa∣tisfied with all. At such time therfore as I was in Spayne, being aduertised out of Italy how

the Lady Uittoria Colonna Marquesse of Pes∣cara, vnto whom in foretime I had graunted a Copie of this booke, contrarie to her promise, had made a great part of it to be copied out: it greeued me somwhat whether I would or no, standinge in doubt of the sundrie inconuenien∣ces that in the like cases may happen. Yet had I a hope that the witt & wisdome of that Lady (whose troth I haue alwaies had in reuerence, as a matter from aboue) was sufficient to pro∣uide, not to be harmfull vnto me my beeinge o∣bedient to her commaundement. At last I hard an yncklinge that part of the booke was rief in Naples in many mens handes: and as men are alwayes desirous of noueltie, it was thought that they attempted to imprint it. Wherfore I, amased at this mischaunce, determined wyth my self to ouerlooke by and by that litle in the booke that time serued me therto, with entent to set it abrode, thinking it lesse hurtful to haue it somwhat corrected with mine owne hande, then much mangled with an other mannes. Therfore to haue this my pourpose take effect, I tooke in hande to reade it ouer afresh, and so∣deinlie at the first blush by reason of the title, I tooke no title grief, which in proceadinge for∣ward encreased much more, remembringe that the greater part of them that are brought in to reason, are now dead. For beside those that are mentioned in the Proheme of the last booke, M.

Alphonsus Ariosto him self is dead, vnto whom the booke was dedicated, a noble yonge Gentil∣man, discreete, full of good condicions, and apt vnto euery thing meete for one liuinge in court. Likewise Duke Iulian de Medicis, whose goodnesse and noble Courtesy deserued to haue bene a longer time enioyed of the world. Also M. Bernard, Cardinall of S. Maria in Por∣tico, who for his liuelie and pleasant prompt∣ness of witt, was most acceptable vnto as ma∣nie as knew him, and dead he is. The Lord Octauian Fregoso is also dead, a man in oure tymes verie rare, of a most noble courage, of a pure lief, full of goodnesse, witt, wisdome and Courtesie, and a verie frende vnto honour and vertue, and so worthy prayse, that his verie en∣nemies could say none other of hym, then what sounded to his renoume: And the mishappes he hath borne out with great steadinesse, were sufficient inoughe to geue euidence, that For∣tune, as she hath alwayes bene, so is she in these dayes also an enemie to vertue. There are dead in like maner manie other that are named in this boke, vnto whō a man wold haue thought that nature had promised a verie longe lief. But the thinge that should not be rehersed wythout teares is, that the Dutchesse she is also dead. And if my minde be troubled with the losse of so manye frindes and good Lordes of myne, that haue left me in this lief, as it were in a

wildernes full of sorow, reason would it should with much more grief beare the heauinesse of the Dutchesse death, then of al the rest, bicause she was more woorth then all the rest, and I was much more bounde vnto her then vnto all the rest. Therfore for leesinge time to bestowe that of dutye I ought vpon the memorye of so excellent a Ladye, and of the rest that are no more in lief, prouoked also by the ieopardye of the booke, I haue made him to be imprinted, and setforth in such sort, as the shortnes of time hath serued me. And bicause you had no ac∣queintance, neither with the Dutches, nor with any of the rest that are dead, sauing only with Duke Iulian, and with the Cardinal of S. Maria in Portico. while they liued, therfore to the entent, in what I can do, you may haue ac∣queintance with them after their death, I send vnto you this booke, as a purtraict in peinc∣tinge of the Court of Urbin: Not of the handi∣woorke of Raphael, or Michael Angelo, but of an vnknowen peincter, and that can do no more but draw the principall lines, without setting∣furth the truth with beawtifull coulours, or makinge it appeere by the art of Prospectiue that it is not. And wher I haue enforced my self to setfurth together with the comunication the propreties & condicions of such as are named in it, I confess I haue not only not fully expressed, but not somuch as touched the vertues of the

Dutchesse Bicause not onlye my stile is vnsuf∣ficient to express them, but also mine vnderstan∣ding to conceiue them. And if in this behalf, or in anie other matter woorthy reprehention (as I know well there want not manie in the booke) fault be found in me, I will not speake a∣gainst the truth. But bicause men somtime take such delite in finding fault, that they find fault also in that deserueth not reproof, vnto some y^t blame me bicause I haue not folowed Boccac∣cio, nor bound my self to the maner of the Tus∣cane speach vsed nowadayes, I will not let to say, for all Boccaccio was of a fine witt, accor∣ding to those times, and in some part writt with great aduisement and diligence: yet did he write much better whan he lett him self be gui∣ded with witt and his owne naturall inclinati∣on, without anie other maner studie or regarde to polish his writinges, then whan with al tra∣uaile and bent studye he enforced him self to be most fine and eloquent. For his verie fauourers affirme that in his own matters he was far de∣ceiued in iudgement, litle regarding such thin∣ges as haue gotten him a name, and greatlye esteaminge that is nothing woorth. Had I then folowed that trade of writing which is blamed in him by such as praise him in the rest, I could not haue eschewed the verye same reprooffes that are laied to Boccaccio himself as touching this. And I had deserued somuch the more, for

that his errour was then, in beleauyng he did well, and mine should be nowe, in knowinge I do amisse. Again if I had folowed that trade which is reckened of many to be good, and was litle regarded of him, I should appeere in folo∣wing it to disagree from the iudgement of him whom I folowed: the which thing (in mine opi∣nion) were an inconuenience. And beeside yf this respect had not moued me, I could not fo∣lowe him in the matter, forsomuch as he neuer wrott any thing in treatise like vnto these boo∣kes of the Courtier: And in the tunge, I ought not in mine aduise, bicause the force or rule of speach doeth consist more in vse, then in anye thinge els: and it is alwayes a vice to vse woor∣des that are not in commune speach. Therfore it was not meete I should haue vsed many that are in Boccaccio, which in his time were vsed, and now are out of vse emonge the Tuscanes them selues. Neyther would I binde my self to the maner of the Tuscane tunge in vse nowe a dayes, bicause the practising emonge sundrye Nations, hath alwayes bene of force to trans∣port from one to an other (in a maner) as mer∣chaundise, so also new woordes, which after∣ward remaine or decaye, according as they are admitted by custome or refused. And this beside the record of auntient writers, is to be euident∣ly seene in Boccaccio, in whom there are so ma∣nie woordes French, Spanish, and prouincial,

and some perhappes not well vnderstood of the Tuscanes in these dayes, that whoso woulde pick them out, should make the booke much the lesser. And bicause (in mine opinion) the kinde of speach of the other noble Cities of Italy, where there resorte men of wisdome, vnderstandinge and eloquence, which practise great matters of gouernment of states, of letters, armes, and diuerse affayres, ought not altogether to be neglected for the woordes whiche in these pla∣ces are vsed in cōmune speach: I suppose that they maye be vsed welinough, writing such as haue a grace and comlynesse in the pronunti∣ation, and communly counted good and of pro∣pre signification, though they be not Tuscane, and haue also their origion out of Italy. Bee∣side this in Tuscane they vse many woordes cleane corrupte from the Latin, the which in Lumbardye and in the other partes of Italy re¦maine wholl and without anye chaunge at al, and they are so vniuersallye vsed of euerye man, that of the best sorte they are allowed for good, & of the commune people vnderstood with out difficulty. Therfore I thinke I haue com∣mitted no errour at all. Yf in writing I haue v∣sed any of these, and rather taken the wholl and pure woord of mine owne Countrey, then the corrupt & mangled of an other. Neyther doeth that rule seeme good vnto me, where many say y^e vulgar tung, the lesse it is like vnto the La∣tin,

the more beawtiful it is: And I can not per∣ceiue why more authoritie should consist in one custome of speach, then in an other. For if Tus∣cane be sufficient to authorise corrupt & mang∣led▪ Latin woordes, and to geue them so greate a grace, that mangled in such sort euerye man may vse them for good (the which no man de∣nieth) should not Lumbardy or any other coun∣trey haue the authoritye to allow the very La∣tin woordes that be pure, sounde, propre and not broken in any part so, but they may be well borne? And assuredly as it may be called a rash presumption to take in hand to forge new wor¦des, or to set vp y^e olde in spite of custome: So is it no lesse, to take in hande against the force of the same custome to bring to naught, and (as it were) to burye aliue such as haue lasted nowe many yeeres, & haue ben defended from the ma∣lice of the time with the shield of vse, & haue pre∣serued their estimation and dignitye, whan in the warres and turmoiles of Italy, alterations were brought vp both of the tunge, buildinges, garmentes and maners. And beeside the hard∣nesse of the matter, it seemeth to be (as it were) a certein wickednesse. Therfore where I haue not thought good in my writing to vse the wor¦des of Boccaccio which are vsed no more in Tuscane, nor to binde my self to their law that think it not lawful to vse them that y^e Tuscan••s

vse not nowadayes, me thynke I ought to be held excused. But I suppose both in the matter of the booke and in the tunge, forsomuch as one tung may help an other, I haue folowed Au∣thores asmuch woorthie praise, as Boccaccio. And I beleaue it ought not to be imputed vnto me for an errour, that I haue chosen to make my self rather knowen for a Lumbard, in spea∣king of Lumbard, then for no Tuscan, in spea∣king of tomuch Tuscan. Bicause I wil not do as Theophrastus did, which for speaking to∣much the meere Athenian tunge, was of a sim∣ple olde woman knowen not to be of Athens. But bycause in thys point there is sufficyent talke in the first booke, I will make no more a do. And to auoid al contention I confesse to my faultfinders, that I haue no knowleage in this their Tuscan tunge so hard and secrete: and I say that I haue written it in mine owne, and as I speak, & vnto such as speake as I speake: and so I trust I haue offended no man. For I beleaue it is forbed no man that is, to wryte & speake in his owne tunge, neyther is anye man bound to reade or heare that contenteth hym not. Therfore if they will not reade my Cour∣tier, they shall offende me nothing at all. Other say, bicause it is so hard a matter and (in a ma∣ner) vnpossible to finde out a man of such per∣fection, as I would haue the Courtier to be, it is but superfluous to write it: For it is a vaine

thing to teach that can not be learned. To these men I answere, I am content, to err with Pla∣to, Xenophon, and M. Tullius, leauing apart the disputing of the intelligible world and of the Ideas or imagined fourmes: in which nū∣ber, as (according to that opinion) the Idea or figure conceyued in imagination of a perfect commune weale, and of a perfect king, and of a perfect Oratour are conteined: So is it also of a perfect Courtier. To the image wherof if my power could not draw nigh in stile, so much the lesse peynes shall Courtiers haue to drawe nigh in effect to the ende and marke that I in writing haue set beefore them. And if with all this they can not compasse that perfection, such as it is, which I haue endeuoured to expresse, he that cummeth nighest shall be the most per∣fect: As emong many Archers that shute at one marke, where none of them hitteth the pinn, he that is nighest is out of doubt better then y^e rest. Some again say that my meaning was to fa∣cion my self, perswading my self that all suche qualities as I appoint to the Courtier are in me. Unto these men I will not cleane deny that I haue attempted all that my mynde is the Courtier shoulde haue knowleage in. And I thinke who so hath not the knowleage of the thinges intreated vpon in this booke, how lear¦ned so euer he be, he can full il write them. But I am not of so sclender a iudgment in knowing

my self, that I wil take vpon me to know what soeuer I can wish. The defēce therfore of these accusations & perauēture of many mo, I leaue for this once▪ to the iudgement of the commune opinion: bicause for the most part the multy∣tude, though they haue no perfect knowleage, yet do they feele by the instinct of nature a cer∣tein sauour of good and ill, and can geue none other reason for it: One tasteth and taketh de∣lite, an other refuseth & is against his stomake.

Therfore if the booke shall generally please, I wil count him good, and think that he ought to liue: But if he shall displease, I will count him naught, and beleaue that the memorye of him shall soone perish. And if for all this mine accusers will not be satisfied with this com∣mune iudgemente, let them content them selues with the iudgement of time, which at length discouereth the priuie faul∣tes of euery thing: And bicause it is father to truth and a iudge without passion, it accusto∣meth euermore to pro∣nounce true sentence of the life or death of writynges.

Notes

• Francescoma∣ria della Ro∣u••r••.
• L. vittoria Colonna.
• M. Alphon∣sus Ariosto.
• Duke of Ne∣mours.
• Cardinal of S. Maria in Por¦tico.
• Duke of Ge∣nua.
• Dutchesse of Vrbin.
• Boccaccio.
• Tuscane tung.
• New Woor∣des.
• Deriued wor¦des from the Latin.
• Cicero in Biuto.
• Courtier.