Then the poor lady, clad only in her chemise, threw herself upon her knees before her brother and said to him—­

“Sir, spare the life of my husband, for I have indeed married him; and if you are offended punish only me, for what he did was done at my request.”

Her brother, beside himself with wrath, could only reply—­

“Even if he be your husband one hundred thousand times over, yet will I punish him as a rascally servant who has deceived me.”

So saying, he went to the window and called out loudly to kill him, which was speedily done before the eyes of himself and his sister.  The latter, on beholding the pitiful sight which no prayers on her part had been able to prevent, spoke to her brother like a woman bereft of reason.

“Brother,” she said, “I have neither father nor mother, and I am old enough to marry according to my own pleasure.  I chose one whom many a time you said you would gladly have me marry, and for doing by your own counsels that which the law permits me to do without them, you have put to death the man whom you loved best of all the world.  Well, since my prayers have been of no avail to preserve his life, I implore you, by all the love you have ever borne me, to make me now a sharer in his death even as I have been a sharer in all his living fortunes.  In this way, while sating your unjust and cruel anger, you will give repose to the body and soul of one who cannot and will not live without him.”  Although her brother was almost distracted with passion, (4) he had pity upon his sister, and so, without granting or denying her request, withdrew.  After weighing well what he had done, and hearing that the gentleman had in fact married his sister, he would gladly have undone his grievous crime.  Nevertheless, being afraid that his sister would seek justice or vengeance for it, he caused a castle to be built in the midst of a forest, (5) and, placing her therein, forbade that any should have speech with her.

4 John II. of Rohan was a man of the most passionate, resentful disposition, and the greater part of his life was spent in furthering ambitious schemes, stirring up feuds and factions, and desolating Brittany with civil war.  In 1470 we find him leaving the service of the Duke, his master, to enter that of Louis XI., on whose side he fought till the peace of Senlis in 1475.  Four years later the Duke of Brittany caused him to be arrested on the charge of murdering the Count of Keradreux, and he appears to have remained in prison till 1484, when it is recorded that he fled to France, and thence to Lorraine.  In 1487 he leagued himself with several discontented nobles to drive away the Chancellor of Brittany and various foreign favourites around the Duke, and carried civil war into several parts of the duchy.  Then for a brief space he made his peace with the Duke, but again took up arms for the French King, fought at St. Aubin du Cormier, captured Dinan