With these two
affectionate clients the Pope maintained his station in the
fortress of Canossa, while the Emperor, barefoot on the
frozen ground, fasted and prayed three days at the foot of
the rock; they were witnesses to the abject ceremony of the
penance and pardon of Henry IV.; and in the triumph of the
Church a patriot might foresee the deliverance of Italy from
the German yoke. At the time of this event the Marquis of
Este was above fourscore; but in the twenty following years
he was still alive and active amidst the revolutions of
peace and war. The last act which he subscribed is dated
above a century after his birth; and in that the venerable
chief possesses the command of his faculties, his family,
and his fortune. In this rare prerogative the longevity of
Albert Azo the Second stands alone. Nor can I remember in
the _authentic_ annals of mortality a single example of a
king or prince, of a statesman or general, of a philosopher
or poet, whose life has been extended beyond the period of a
hundred years.
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