Siege

'Of course,' Sofia replied. That was one problem solved. But there was still the letter to deal with. How to make the pope understand that the only way to deal with the Synaxis was to call their bluff? Perhaps Cardinal Bessarion could be of help. Indeed, he looked like the only hope that she had. A little over an hour later Sofia followed a young priest into Bessarion's study, a square room occupying one of the upper floors of the papal palace's south tower. Books filled the room, overflowing the bookshelves and covering much of the floor as well. In the centre of the room a desk floated amongst the sea of books, and seated at the desk was Bessarion. The ageing scholar's appearance contrasted sharply with the clutter of his study. He was immaculately dressed in the red robes of a cardinal, his white hair cut short beneath a red skullcap and his white beard neatly trimmed. He looked up from the manuscript laid out before him, and his face brightened. 'Princess Sofia, you are most welcome,' he said, his voice quiet and deep. 'I have heard great things of you.'

Sofia curtsied. 'Thank you for seeing me at such short notice, Your Eminence. You do me great honour.'

'Please, call me Bessarion. "Your Eminence" is far too lofty a title for an old man such as me,' he replied with a smile. 'Now, Princess, I presume that it is not questions of scholarship that have brought you to me. You wish to discuss union and support for Constantinople, I have no doubt. Of course, you know that the pope wishes to give what aid he can, so long as the Union is enforced. But I must warn you, this letter of the Synaxis has not helped your cause.'

'You have read the letter, then?'

'Yes. The pope summoned me to him as soon as he left his audience with you. The letter left him quite upset. He is very clear where he stands. The pope will never agree to another council, nor will he agree to a union in which he is not the absolute head of the Church.'

'And what do you think?' Sofia asked.

Bessarion shrugged his shoulders. 'Me? What does it matter what an old fool like me thinks?' It mattered very much indeed, Sofia thought. Bessarion was the only person with enough influence to convince the pope to support Constantinople. After a pause, Bessarion continued. 'I think that union is good for the faith, and good for the empire. I have always believed that. That is why I am here in Rome. That is why I am a cardinal. I also believe that Constantinople must be helped. It is not so very far, after all, from Constantinople to Vienna, or from Vienna to Rome. If we could have aid for Constantinople without union, then I would be for that. But that is not to be, and I understand the pope's reluctance. Nicholas is more concerned with the Church than with Constantinople. If he could be convinced that the Union will be implemented, then he might act. But after this letter from the Synaxis, I fear he will be very hard to convince.'

'But not impossible?'

'Nothing is impossible with God's help, my child,' Bessarion replied. 'But God will have to work a small miracle to change the pope's mind. I am not so sure, however, that the pope is wrong. My fellow bishops ran me out of Constantinople for supporting the Union, and just look at how they have treated poor Patriarch Mammas. I do not believe that union is possible as long as such men control the Orthodox Church.'

'I agree,' Sofia concurred. 'But what if these men were not in power? What if we could break the Synaxis?'

Bessarion nodded. 'Go on, Princess. You have my attention.'

'Give the Synaxis what they want,' Sofia said. 'That is the way to break them.'

Bessarion frowned. 'I'm not quite sure I follow you.'

'The bishops of the Synaxis draw all of their strength from their opposition to the Union,' Sofia explained. 'Agree with them on the small issues, and they will be forced to agree with the Union. Once they do, they will lose all of their power with the people.'

'But these are hardly small issues. Surely you are not suggesting that the pope agree to the doctrine of the equality of all bishops, or that he deny one thousand years of teaching and accept that the Holy Spirit proceeds only from God?'

Sofia nodded emphatically. 'That is exactly what I am suggesting. The pope must condone the Greek liturgy, overlook any theological differences, and at least formally accept the equality of all bishops. If he does all of this, then the Synaxis will have no choice but to embrace the Union.'

'But what you ask for is nothing less than a complete renunciation of the Roman Catholic position!'

'Not a renunciation, Bessarion,' Sofia insisted. 'A compromise, and a temporary one at that. The important thing is that the pope will retain real control of the Church. In a few years time, once the people have grown used to the Union, then he can reverse his decrees and slowly bring the Orthodox Church into line with the Latin Church. This is the only way that union can be achieved – slowly, or not at all.'

'There are others who have thought as you do,' Bessarion mused. 'But you ask much of the pope. I know what Nicholas will say to this. Is not protecting the truth of God to be placed above whatever secular gains the Union might bring about? I wonder the same.'

'But what does the truth matter, if there is no one left to teach it to?' Sofia replied. 'If Constantinople falls to the Turks, then any chance to save the Greeks will be lost. Surely it is better for the pope to bring the Orthodox Church into the fold, however imperfectly, than to leave it outside true salvation forever.'

'Enough, enough,' Bessarion said. 'You have made your point, Princess. I will discuss what you have told me with the pope.'

'And?'

'And,' Bessarion smiled, 'I will do my utmost to ensure that he finds your arguments convincing.' Dinner that night was held in the pope's private dining room around a table that accommodated only ten guests. The room was decorated on three sides with frescos depicting the deaths of saints, and the paintings seemed to come alive under the flickering candlelight. The fourth side of the room was lined with arched windows looking out on the lights of Rome, burning brightly in the clear February sky.

The pope sat at the head of the table, with Sofia and Bessarion to his right and left. The rest of the guests were cardinals and bishops who Sofia did not recognize. The table was set with silver, gold and crystal – a sharp contrast to the plain wooden dishes that served the Greek court. Each course was more delicious than the last: a tartara of egg, cheese and ground almonds, spiced with cinnamon and served with sweet white wine; fried sardines stuffed with marjoram, sage, rosemary and saffron, accompanied with a sparkling Lambrusco; hare with a fennel and almond sauce and a full-bodied red from Montepulciano. While the assembled cardinals and bishops gorged themselves, Pope Nicholas ate little and spoke much, engaging Sofia and Bessarion in philosophical debate upon the merits of Saint Augustine and the brilliance of Averoes.

As the evening dragged on with no mention of union or the Synaxis' letter, Sofia's mind drifted away from the conversation, which currently focused on the question of free will. She found herself thinking of Longo, of their kiss. She wondered what he was doing now, if he thought of her, and at the same time wondered why she should care so much.

She was brought back to the present by a tap on the shoulder from Pope Nicholas. To her embarrassment, she realized that he had just asked her a question. 'I fear you were somewhere else for a while, Princess,' Nicholas said, smiling. 'Perhaps you were contemplating the beautiful logic of Aquinas.'

Sofia blushed. 'Something very like, yes Your Holiness,' she murmured.

'I was asking what you think of the basilica of Saint Peter,' Nicholas said. 'I am contemplating tearing it down and replacing it with a grander structure.'

Sofia was surprised at this. The basilica was a spectacular building. Its towering entrance – massive columns leading to two tiers of arches that held up a peaked roof – was justly famous around the world as a symbol of the papacy. 'Saint Peter's has stood for over a thousand years,' she said. 'I would hesitate to destroy something so ancient.'