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Politique Observation.
IT is Common upon the marrying of great Princesses with a Forraign King, to give them officers of their own Country, but it is seldome seen, that they con∣tinue any long time neer them. It cannot be avoided, but that there will jealousies and heart burnings arise between them and the Natives of the Country, concerning their enjoying those offices, which they believe are due to themselves? which jea∣lousie doth usually raise such storms; that their ruine is included in it: but admit, no jealousie did arise, yet the meer diversity of their language and Customes, were enough to create differences and divisions between them; Forraign officers cannot forbear discoursing together in their own language, which createth suspitions in those who understand it not. By reason of the diversity of their fashions, they laugh at one another, which commonly breeds quarrels between them; and withall, let a man be never so complaisant in his humour, yet there is alwayes a jea∣lous eye upon them, that they contrive some thing against the State. Of this, there are divers examples in all times, as particularly in the raign of Francis the first, in which Bellay reporteth that Affairs were very much imbroyled by strangers, in∣stancing, the Bishop of Liege, the Prince of Orange, the Marquis of Mantua, and Andreas Doria; hence Bodin in his Commonwealth, doeth much blame the Vene∣tians, for admitting of all kind of strangers amongst them, Lypsius observeth, That as when many crickets come into a house, it is one assured sign, of their sodaine de∣struction, so when a great multitude of strangers shall live in a Nation, it is a cer∣tain, Index of some revolution neer at hand. Indeed, they have not usually any great deal of affection, for the Country where they live, so that they do not heartily embrace the Interests of it, and in case a war should break out, none would be so ready as they to entertain intelligence and give advices to the enemies. They are also easily provoked against the natural inhabitants of the Country, upon any su∣spition, that they are lesse esteemed by them, then others, which induceth them to stick close together and to raise Factions against the State: withal their bodies may not be punished, though there be some kind of reason for it, least they should ge∣nerally resent it, and raise up a thousand Broyles. These are the chief reasons why it is impossible to preserve a Family of Officers, Strangers in a Queens Court. This was it which did oblige those of Sparta, as Xenophon reporteth it, not to suffer any strangers to live in their Commonwealth, which made the Athenians take the same resolution, as Plutarch observeth in the life of Pericles, and which made Sue∣tonius commend Augustus, that he would rarely grant to any the being free or na∣turals of his Kingdome, and which induced Polydore Virgil to say in his History of England, That it was not the custome of English to admit of many strangers amongst them, least the difference of their customes and fashions, might cause them, not to live in a good intelligence with the natives of the Country.