The estates, empires, & principallities of the world Represented by ye description of countries, maners of inhabitants, riches of prouinces, forces, gouernment, religion; and the princes that haue gouerned in euery estate. With the begin[n]ing of all militarie and religious orders. Translated out of French by Edw: Grimstone, sargeant at armes.

¶ Kings of Naples.

THere was neuer realme like vnto that of Naples, which hath been so often taken and not ruined, and which being an enemie vnto it selfe, hath made a shew of libertie in a [ C] perpetuall seruitude, and of command, with the greatnesse of her enemies. For it hath but slipt from one hand to an other, and the succession hath beene so full of inconstancie, as they haue sooner seene a race extinct, than fully receiued, and quietly setled in the realme. I will abbridge my discourse, and the number of her kings as much as I may, to the end I be not tedious.

Roger Earle of Sicile, and by the testament of William Duke of Pouillia and Calabria, was descended from Tankred, sonne to Richard of Normandie: he tooke the citie of Na∣ples from the Emperor of Constantinople, about the end of September in the yeare 1130. and sodenly was declared king of Naples and Sicilie at Beneuent, by Pope Anacle∣tus 2. who retained the homage. [ D]

This realme continued to the discendants of Roger, vntill that king William, surnamed the good, being dead without lawful children, and the Barons of the realme hauing cho∣sen king, Tankred, base nephewe to this William, Clement 3. pretended that this realme was diuolued vnto the church, made warre in Pouillia, and after him Celestin 3. crowning and confirming the Emperor Henry 6. vpon condition that he should recouer this realm, as a fee of the church, inuested him publiquely, and so the S••••gneurie passed from the Normans to the Germans, who held it with little good fortune, for that the Emperor Fredericke 2. sonne to the said Henry, being a persecutor of the ••••urch, was depriued of the Empire by Innocent 4. and withal, of the realm of Naples, the which was giuen to a sonne of the king of England, but he did not indeauour to expel Fredericks children, who had [ E] made themselues Masters of the greatest part.

Vrbain 4. transported it to Charles of Anjou, Earle of Prouence, and brother to S. Lewis, who was inuested by Clement 4. vpon condition, that he ••hould pay 40000. duckats yerely vnto the holie See, with a white Hackeney.

The succession of this realme continued by direct line in the house of Anjou, vnto Ione 1. neece to king Robert, at what time Vrbain 6. transferred it to Charles of Duras, who descended from a brother of the said king Robert, and quite depriued this Queene, as excommunicate, for that shee had beene a Partisan in the creation of Clement 7. the Antipope, made at Fundy.

After Charles, the children of Ladislaus raigned successiuely, who was also king of Hun∣garie, [ F] and Ioane also, but not without difficultie. Lewis of Anjou, second sonne to the French king, was adopted by Ioane with the consent of Clement the Antipope: but he was slaine before Bar, iby the troopes of Charles of Duras.

Lewis his sonne was crowned and inuested in the realme by the same Clement: but hee

[ A] labo••••••d in vaine to become Maister thereof.

His sonne of the same name, being called to the conquest of this realme by Martin 5. who inuested him, gaue occasion to queen Ioane, to make offer thereof to Alphonso king of Arragon, who was then in Sardinia; but for that Alphonso, being come to Naples, could not endure that the whole gouernment of the realme should passe vnder the queenes 〈◊〉〈◊〉▪ he sought to put her in prison, but she fled away secretly and declared the said Lewis her heire, disanulling the first adoption of Alphonso, who notwithstanding, af∣ter the death of Lewis, the queene declared Rene brother to Lewis her successor, and that after the queenes death Eugenius 4. pretended the realme to be fallen vnto the Church: [ B] yet notwithstanding all this, Alphonso tooke Naples by force, and remained Maister there∣of, after which hee did easily obtaine the inuestiture of Eugenius; and in this manner the realme past from the French to the Catalans. Rene left Lewis 11. the French, king for his successor in the realme of Naples.

Charles 8. succeeded him, and made himselfe absolute Maister of the realme of Naples. In the end, Lewis the 12. the French king, and Ferdinand king of Spaine diuided it betwixt them, after the flight of king Fredericke: but the French lost it by their bad gouernment, so as the Spaniards enioyed it all: and the misfortune which fell vpon king Francis at Pa∣nia, and the troubles which haue since hapened in France, haue taken from our kings all [ C] meanes to recouer it, but the interest they haue vnto this realme remaines good.