Catherine of Tarentum,carrying off the treasure she had so gained,arrived at the court of Naples,proud of her triumph and contemplating vast schemes.But new troubles had come about in her absence.Charles of Durazzo,for the last time desiring the queen to give him the duchy of Calabria,a title which had always belonged to the heir presumptive,and angered by her refusal,had written to Louis of Hungary,inviting him to take possession of the kingdom,and promising to help in the enterprise with all his own forces,and to give up the principal authors of his brother's death,who till now had escaped justice.
The King of Hungary eagerly accepted these offers,and got ready an army to avenge Andre's death and proceed to the conquest of Naples.
The tears of his mother Elizabeth and the advice of Friar Robert,the old minister,who had fled to Buda,confirmed him in his projects of vengeance.He had already lodged a bitter complaint at the court of Avignon that,while the inferior assassins had been punished,she who was above all others guilty had been shamefully let off scot free,and though still stained with her husband's blood,continued to live a life of debauchery and adultery.The pope replied soothingly that,so far as it depended upon him,he would not be found slow to give satisfaction to a lawful grievance;but the accusation ought to be properly formulated and supported by proof;that no doubt Joan's conduct during and after her husband's death was blamable;but His Majesty must consider that the Church of Rome,which before all things seeks truth and justice,always proceeds with the utmost circumspection,and in so grave a matter more especially must not judge by appearances only.
Joan,frightened by the preparations for war,sent ambassadors to the Florentine Republic,to assert her innocence of the crime imputed to her by public opinion,and did not hesitate to send excuses even to the Hungarian court;but Andre's brother replied in a letter laconic and threatening:--"Your former disorderly life,the arrogation to yourself of exclusive power,your neglect to punish your husband's murderers,your marriage to another husband,moreover your own excuses,are all sufficient proofs that you were an accomplice in the murder."Catherine would not be put out of heart by the King of Hungary's threats,and looking at the position of the queen and her son with a coolness that was never deceived,she was convinced that there was no other means of safety except a reconciliation with Charles,their mortal foe,which could only be brought about by giving him all he wanted.It was one of two things:either he would help them to repulse the King of Hungary,and later on they would pay the cost when the dangers were less pressing,or he would be beaten himself,and thus they would at least have the pleasure of drawing him down with them in their own destruction.
The agreement was made in the gardens of Castel Nuovo,whither Charles had repaired on the invitation of the queen and her aunt.To her cousin of Durazzo Joan accorded the title so much desired of Duke of Calabria,and Charles,feeling that he was hereby made heir to the kingdom,marched at once on Aquila,which town already was flying the Hungarian colours.The wretched man did not foresee that he was going straight to his destruction.
When the Empress of Constantinople saw this man,whom she hated above all others,depart in joy,she looked contemptuously upon him,divining by a woman's instinct that mischief would befall him;then,having no further mischief to do,no further treachery on earth,no further revenge to satisfy,she all at once succumbed to some unknown malady,and died suddenly,without uttering a cry or exciting a single regret.
But the King of Hungary,who had crossed Italy with a formidable army,now entered the kingdom from the side of Aquila:on his way he had everywhere received marks of interest and sympathy;and Alberto and Mertino delta Scala,lords of Verona,had given him three hundred horse to prove that all their goodwill was with him in his enterprise.The news of the arrival of the Hungarians threw the court into a state of confusion impossible to describe.They had hoped that the king would be stopped by the pope's legate,who had come to Foligno to forbid him,in the name of the Holy Father,and on pain of excommunication to proceed any further without his consent;but Louis of Hungary replied to the pope's legate that,once master of Naples,he should consider himself a feudatory of the Church,but till then he had no obligations except to God and his own conscience.
