he had two daily masses, and was seen constantly at the altar mingling tears of penitence with his prayers. He sank under age and infirmity in 1108.—R. H.
GONGORA Y ARGOTE, Luis, a Spanish poet, chiefly noticeable as having given his name to the poetical extravagances known as Gongorism, or "cultismo"—an exaggeration of what is understood in England by "classical" poetry. Born at Cordova in 1561, he was intended for the law, but never followed this profession; and at the age of twenty-three he is spoken of by Cervantes as an author of repute. He lived twenty years, however, from this time in comparative obscurity. His early writings are as much marked by simplicity as the later ones are by the opposite quality. They are mostly in short lines, and consist of lyrical ballads—some of them very touching—religious poems, and odes. About 1603, finding that he gained neither reputation nor the means of living, he became a priest, and came to the court at Valladolid, where he soon distinguished himself by a style then entirely new. Not only was every line overloaded with extravagant metaphors, but Latin words were introduced, and Spanish words Latinized to an extent which makes the meaning absolutely unintelligible. He died in his native city in 1627. His larger works were not published till after his death; they consist of poems on "The Deserts," "Pyramus and Thisbe," "Polyphemus," a panegyric on the duke of Lerma, and three comedies, only one of which is finished.—F. M. W.
GONTAUT. See Biron.
GONTHIER, Johann, a distinguished German physician, as well as linguist, was born of poor parents at Andernach in 1487. With the assistance of some generous friends of his family, he studied languages and philosophy at Utrecht and Marburg, and then settled as teacher of Greek at Paris about 1525. Here he obtained the friendship of the cardinal de Bellay, and on his advice began the study of medicine, and was admitted M.D. in 1530. He now set up as a lecturer on medicine, and soon obtained an extraordinary popularity, which brought him the title of "Primus anatomes in academia Parisiensi restaurator." He was named chief physician of the court of Francis I., and King Christian III. of Denmark vainly tried to attract him to his states. However, in spite of his wish to remain at Paris, the religious dissensions of the time soon compelled him to leave, he being a zealous protestant, and not inclined to bear quietly the restrictions imposed on his church. He removed first to Metz and next to Strasburg, but being persecuted in both cities, finally took up his abode in Germany, devoting himself entirely to literature. He died October 4, 1574. Of the numerous works he composed the most notable are—"Syntaxis Græca;" "Anatomicarum Institutionum, secundum Galeni sententiam;" "De Victus et Medendi Ratione, tum alio, tum pestilentiæ maxime tempore observanda;" "Commentarius de Balneis et aquis medicatis, in tres dialogos distinctus;" and "De Medicina veteri et nova tum cognoscenda, tum faciunda."—F. M.
GONZAGA, princes of Mantua and Guastalla. From the twelfth century they had large estates and several castles in the neighbourhood of Mantua, and were ranked among the nobility of that town. They were Ghibelines, and allied with the Bonacorsi, who at the beginning of the fourteenth century were lords of Mantua. In a feud, however, which occurred between the two families, Passerino, the head of the Bonacorsi, was killed by a son of Luigi Gonzaga in 1328, and in that year Luigi, born in 1267, was called to the lordship of Mantua. He shared the government with his three sons, Filippino, Guido, and Feltrino. In 1335 they conquered Reggio from Delia Scala, lord of Verona, who was supported by Luchino Visconti of Milan; and in 1348 a battle took place in which the lords of Milan and Verona were completely defeated by Filippino. Luigi died in 1361, and was succeeded by his son, Guido, then in his seventieth year. He intrusted the government to his eldest son Ugolino, a gallant soldier, who, however, was assassinated by his brothers Luigi and Francesco in 1362. They thus came into possession of the power which was nominally held by their father, and were engaged in a series of plots and mutual recriminations when he died in 1369. He was succeeded by his son, Luigi II., who was no sooner seated in power than he caused the assassination of his younger brother Francesco. Notwithstanding this and other crimes, he was much beloved by the Mantuans, whom he ruled mildly till his death in 1382. His son and successor, Francesco I., born in 1363, was an enlightened prince and a liberal promoter of commerce. He was basely deceived into the commission of a most deplorable crime. He had married the daughter of Bernardo Visconti, lord of Milan, who had been poisoned by Galeazzo Visconti. The latter, fearing the vengeance of the daughter of his victim, accused her of infidelity to her husband, and caused a forged love-correspondence to be found in her apartment. On this ground Francesco condemned his wife to be beheaded in 1391. Having subsequently discovered the perfidy of Visconti, he waged war against him for several years. He died in 1407. His son, Gian Francesco I., fifth lord and first marquis of Mantua, was only thirteen years of age, when he succeeded his father under the tutelage of his uncle. Carlo Malatesti, lord of Rimini. He distinguished himself in the war of the republic of Venice against Filippo Maria Visconti. In 1432, Gonzaga for some time held the command of the Venetian troops; but, disgusted with the dark policy of the government, he soon passed over with his son Luigi to the ranks of the Milanese. In 1433 the Emperor Sigismund, in acknowledgment of services which Gonzaga had rendered him during his expedition into Italy, erected the lordship of Mantua into a marquisate. Francesco died in 1444, and was succeeded by his eldest son, Luigi III., sixth lord and second marquis of Mantua, distinguished for his literary tastes, as well as for his military talents. It was in 1459-60, during the reign of this prince, that the congress of christian sovereigns under the auspices of Pope Pius II. was held at Mantua, affording occasion to Gonzaga for a brilliant display of the elegance and luxury of his court. He died in 1478. His son and successor, Federico I., third marquis of Mantua, born in 1439, learned the trade of arms in the service of other states, became a distinguished condottiere, and in 1482 signalized himself in the defence of the house of Este against the attacks of the Venetians and Pope Sixtus IV. He died in 1484, and was succeeded by his son, Gian Francesco II., who in 1490 married Isabella d'Este, daughter of the duke of Ferrara. He distinguished himself both as a military commander and a patron of literature, and was himself the author of several poems. As general-in-chief of the Italian league against Charles VIII., he fought the battle of Val di Taro in 1495. In 1498 he defended Pisa against the Florentines; served under Louis XII. of France in 1503; and afterwards took part in the hostilities of Julius II. against the Venetians. In 1509 he was taken prisoner, and suffered a year's captivity at Venice. He died in 1519, leaving three sons, Ercole, afterwards cardinal, of whom a separate notice is given below; Ferdinand, a gallant soldier, who founded the dukedom of Molfetta and Guastalla, noticed at the end of this article; and, Federico II., ninth lord, fifth marquis, and first duke of Mantua, who was born in 1500. During the war between Francis I. and Charles V., Federico hesitated for a time in his policy; but in 1521 he decided for the imperial alliance, was named by Leo X. captain-general of the troops of the church, and served as a condottiere under Prospero Colonna and the marquis of Pescara. After a short defection in 1527 he returned to the imperial banner in 1529, and in the following year Charles V. rewarded his services by erecting the marquisate of Mantua into a duchy. In 1536, Federico came into possession of Montferrato in right of his wife, a sister of the deceased marquis. He died in 1540, and was succeeded by his son, Francesco III., then a minor. In 1549 he married Catherine, daughter of Ferdinand of Austria, and remained faithful to the Austrian alliance. His brother Louis married in 1565 Henrietta of Cleves, heiress of the duchy of Nevers, and hence the line of Nevers was called in the following century to the succession of Mantua. Francesco III. was drowned in the Lake of Mantua in 1550, and, leaving no children, was succeeded by his brother Guglielmo, third duke of Mantua, who married Eleonora of Austria, another daughter of the Emperor Ferdinand I. His reign was only marked by the prodigality and the abuses of his court. He died in 1587, and was succeeded by his son, Vincenzo I., who, in 1585, had married Eleonora de Medici, daughter of the grand-duke of Florence. Accounts differ greatly as to the character of this prince. In 1595 he offered his services to Rodolph II. against the Turks, and, after an unfortunate military career, died in 1612, leaving three sons. The eldest, Francesco IV., born in 1586, survived his father only ten months, and was succeeded by his brother, Ferdinand, sixth duke of Mantua, who, being a cardinal, resigned his ecclesiastical dignity for the duchy. During his rule a contest took place between the Gonzagas and Charles
