He had mistaken his vocation, and already recognized the false position in which he was placed.

He was contending against the monarch in whom he might find the surest ally against the arch enemy of both kingdoms, and of the world.

The French monarch held heresy in horror, while, for himself, Philip had already decided upon his life's mission.
The crafty Bishop was more than a match for the vain and ambitious Cardinal.

That prelate was assured that Philip considered the captivity of Coligny and Montmorency a special dispensation of Providence, while the tutelar genius of France, notwithstanding the reverses sustained by that kingdom, was still preserved.

The Cardinal and his brother, it was suggested, now held in their hands the destiny of the kingdom, and of Europe.