grandfather, who transferred to them all the affection he had felt for
the son. In 1331, when Joanna was about four years old, the king
declared her the heiress of his crown; and at a solemn feudal gathering
in the great audience room of the castle Nuovo, he called upon his
nobles and barons to take oaths of allegiance to her as the Duchess of
Calabria; and this they did, solemnly and in turn, each bending the knee
in token of submission. With the title of Duchess of Calabria, she was
to inherit all her father's right to the thrones of Naples and
Provence.

As soon as she came under his guardianship, the education of the small
Joanna became the constant preoccupation of her kindly grandfather, for
he was filled with enthusiasm for the manifold advantages of learning,
and spared no pains to surround the little duchess with the best
preceptors in art and in literature that Italy afforded. All
contemporary writers agree that the young girl gave quick and ready
response to these influences, and she soon proved her possession of most
unusual talents, combined with a great love for literary study; it is
said that, at the age of twelve, she was not only distinguished by her
superior endowments, but already surpassed in understanding not only
every other child of her own age, but many women of mature years. To
these mental accomplishments, we are told that there were added a gentle
and engaging temper, a graceful person, a beautiful countenance, and the
most captivating manners. And so things went along, and the old king did
all in his power to shield her from the corrupting influences which were
at work all about her. In that he seems to have been successful, for
there is every reason to believe that she grew up to womanhood untainted
by her surroundings.

Various forces were at work, however, which were soon to undermine the