iii., notes to Tale XIX. It was Leonora rather
than her husband who imparted lustre to the Court of Urbino
at this period by encouraging arts and letters. Among those
who flourished there were Raffaelle and Baldassare
Castiglione. Francesco Maria, born in March 1491, died in
1538 from the effects--so it is asserted by several
contemporary writers--of a poisonous lotion which a Mantuan
barber had dropped into his ear. His wife, who bore him two
sons (see post, note 3), died at the age of 72, in 1570.--L.
and Ed.
2 The French words are _Abbe de Farse_. Farse would appear
to be a locality, as abbots were then usually designated by
the names of their monasteries; still it may be intended for
the Abbot's surname, and some commentators, adopting this
view, have suggested that the proper reading would be
Farnese.--Ed.
3 The Duke's two sons were Federigo, born in March 1511,
and Guidobaldo, born in April 1514. The former according to
all authorities died when "young," and probably long before
reaching man's estate. Dennistoun, in his searching _Memoirs
of the Dukes of Urbino_ (London, 1851), clearly shows that
for many years prior to Francesco Maria's death his second
son Guidobaldo was the only child remaining to him.
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