* * * *
*
Gonzaga, I offer thee this hand, which often
Thou hast pressed upon the morn of battle, when
We knew not if we e’er should meet again:
Wilt press it now once more, and give to me
Thy faith that thou wilt be defense and guard
Of these poor women, till they are returned
Unto their kinsmen?
Gonzaga. I do promise thee.
Count. When thou go’st back to camp,
Salute my brothers for me; and say to them
That I die innocent; witness thou hast been
Of all my deeds and thoughts—thou knowest
it.
Tell them that I did never stain my sword
With treason—I did never stain it—and
I am betrayed.—And when the trumpets blow,
And when the banners beat against the wind,
Give thou a thought to thine old comrade then!
And on some mighty day of battle, when
Upon the field of slaughter the priest lifts
His hands amid the doleful noises, offering up
The sacrifice to heaven for the dead,
Bethink thyself of me, for I too thought
To die in battle.
Antonietta. O God, have pity on us!
Count. O wife! Matilde! now the hour is
near We needs must part. Farewell!
Matilde. No, father—
Count. Yet Once
more, come to my heart! Once more, and now, In
mercy, go!
Antonietta. Ah, no! they shall unclasp us
By force!
[A sound of armed men
is heard without.
Matilde. What sound is that?
Antonietta. Almighty God!
[The door opens in the
middle; armed men
are seen. Their leader advances
toward
the Count; the women swoon.
Count. Merciful God! Thou hast removed
from them
This cruel moment, and I thank Thee! Friend,
Succor them, and from this unhappy place
Bear them! And when they see the light again,
Tell them that nothing more is left to fear.
In the Carmagnola having dealt with the internal wars
which desolated medieval Italy, Manzoni in the Adelchi
takes a step further back in time, and evolves his
tragedy from the downfall of the Longobard kingdom
and the invasion of the Franks. These enter Italy
at the bidding of the priests, to sustain the Church
against the disobedience and contumacy of the Longobards.
Desiderio and his son Adelchi are kings of the Longobards,
and the tragedy opens with the return to their city
Pavia of Ermenegarda, Adelchi’s sister, who
was espoused to Carlo, king of the Franks, and has
been repudiated by him. The Longobards have seized
certain territories belonging to the Church, and as
they refuse to restore them, the ecclesiastics send
a messenger, who crosses the Alps on foot, to the
camp of the Franks, and invites their king into Italy
