-
Articles/Ads
Article REVIEW OF NEW PUBLICATIONS. Page 1 of 9 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Review Of New Publications.
REVIEW OF NEW PUBLICATIONS .
The Life of Lore / tzi de Medici , called the Magnificent . B y William JWoc 2 vol . ifto . Price 2 / . zs . Edwards . CONCLUDED FROM OVU LAST .
T N the second volume , we are led to the political life of the hero ; to whom f- his biographer , on the best grounds , ascribes the merit of havin . o- first formed that political arrangement which was more fully developed , and ° hore widely extended , in the succeeding century , and has since been denominated the balance of power . His endeavour to secure the peace of Italy was crowned with success . < This epoch forms one of those scanty portions in the history of mankind
on which we may dwell , without weeping over the calamities , or bkishin" for the crimes , of our species . Accordingly , the fancy of the poet , expanding in the gleam of prosperity , has celebrated these times as realizing the beautiful fictions of the golden age . This scene of tranquility is the interval ' to which Guicciardmi so strikingly adverts in the commencement of his history as being « prosperous beyond any other that Ital y had experienced din-ins . the long term of a thousand years . When the whole extent of that fertile and beautiful country cultivatednot
was , only through its wide plains and fruitful valleys , but even amidst its most sterile and mountainous regions - ana , under no controul but that of its native nobility and rulers , exulte-t not onl y in the number and riches of its inhabitants , but in the magnificence ot its princes , m the splendor of many superb and noble cities , and in the residence and majesty of religion itself : abounding with men eminent in the administration of public affairs , skilled in every honourable science , m every useful art , it stood high 111 the estimation of foreign nations mW , rh * ir , _„ .. '
tlmary tehcity , acquired at many different opportunities , several circumstances contributed to preserve ; but , among the . rest , no small share of it was by general consent , ascribed to the industry aud virtue of Lorenz / . de Medici ' a citizen who rose so far beyond the mediocrity of a private station , that he regulated by Ins counsels the affairs of Florence , then more important by i " s situation , by tue genius of its inhabitants , and the promptitude of its resources than by the extent of its dominions ; and , having obtained the implicit con ' Mence of the Roman pontiffInnocent his "
, VIII . name became so areat and his authority important , in the affairs of Italy , Convinced of the perils that might arise both to the Florentine republic and himself , if any of" the mo-e powerful states should be allowed to extend their dominions , he used even , e * ertion that the affairs of Italy might be so balanced that there should be no inclination in favour of any particular state j a circumstance which could not take place without the permanent establishment of and the
peace , minuted attention to every event , however trivial it mi ght appear . " Such are the re presentations of that celebrated historian . It is only to be regretted that the = e prosperous days were of such short duration . Like a momentary cd ,- -i which precedes the ravages of the tempest , they were scarcel y enjoyed before thev » tre past . I he abvic 01 the public happiness , erefted by the vigilance and VOL . VII . B b " " A > - -= d « u
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Review Of New Publications.
REVIEW OF NEW PUBLICATIONS .
The Life of Lore / tzi de Medici , called the Magnificent . B y William JWoc 2 vol . ifto . Price 2 / . zs . Edwards . CONCLUDED FROM OVU LAST .
T N the second volume , we are led to the political life of the hero ; to whom f- his biographer , on the best grounds , ascribes the merit of havin . o- first formed that political arrangement which was more fully developed , and ° hore widely extended , in the succeeding century , and has since been denominated the balance of power . His endeavour to secure the peace of Italy was crowned with success . < This epoch forms one of those scanty portions in the history of mankind
on which we may dwell , without weeping over the calamities , or bkishin" for the crimes , of our species . Accordingly , the fancy of the poet , expanding in the gleam of prosperity , has celebrated these times as realizing the beautiful fictions of the golden age . This scene of tranquility is the interval ' to which Guicciardmi so strikingly adverts in the commencement of his history as being « prosperous beyond any other that Ital y had experienced din-ins . the long term of a thousand years . When the whole extent of that fertile and beautiful country cultivatednot
was , only through its wide plains and fruitful valleys , but even amidst its most sterile and mountainous regions - ana , under no controul but that of its native nobility and rulers , exulte-t not onl y in the number and riches of its inhabitants , but in the magnificence ot its princes , m the splendor of many superb and noble cities , and in the residence and majesty of religion itself : abounding with men eminent in the administration of public affairs , skilled in every honourable science , m every useful art , it stood high 111 the estimation of foreign nations mW , rh * ir , _„ .. '
tlmary tehcity , acquired at many different opportunities , several circumstances contributed to preserve ; but , among the . rest , no small share of it was by general consent , ascribed to the industry aud virtue of Lorenz / . de Medici ' a citizen who rose so far beyond the mediocrity of a private station , that he regulated by Ins counsels the affairs of Florence , then more important by i " s situation , by tue genius of its inhabitants , and the promptitude of its resources than by the extent of its dominions ; and , having obtained the implicit con ' Mence of the Roman pontiffInnocent his "
, VIII . name became so areat and his authority important , in the affairs of Italy , Convinced of the perils that might arise both to the Florentine republic and himself , if any of" the mo-e powerful states should be allowed to extend their dominions , he used even , e * ertion that the affairs of Italy might be so balanced that there should be no inclination in favour of any particular state j a circumstance which could not take place without the permanent establishment of and the
peace , minuted attention to every event , however trivial it mi ght appear . " Such are the re presentations of that celebrated historian . It is only to be regretted that the = e prosperous days were of such short duration . Like a momentary cd ,- -i which precedes the ravages of the tempest , they were scarcel y enjoyed before thev » tre past . I he abvic 01 the public happiness , erefted by the vigilance and VOL . VII . B b " " A > - -= d « u