People always show their true colours in times of crisis. We can then recognize our true friends, true priorities, and the best and worst pars of our own character. Hardship makes the hero come forth, while the cowards sink into misery.
Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) faced the hardest period in his life precisely when he was expecting to enjoy the easiest. He had quit his stressful job in Bordeaux and retired to live in the countryside, expecting to lead a quiet, predictable lifestyle.
Unfortunately, his began to suffer from kidney stones in his early forties and the pain only got worse over time. It did not help to try the herbal remedies recommended by Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179), a German nun that had written a detailed handbook of home medicine.
Montaigne was forty-seven years old when he published his essays, which comprised ninety-four titles. Most of them don’t take more than ten pages; the first edition of the essays saw the light in Bordeaux.
By far, the longest work in the collection is the “Apology for Raymond Sebond,” a theological defence that predates the other titles by a decade. Montaigne had written this work while he was still practising law in Bordeaux.
Michel de Montaigne’s travel across Europe
After the publication of the essays, Montaigne undertook a journey across Europe in the hope of finding a remedy for his kidney stones. The physicians he had consulted in France had not been able to alleviate his pain, but they had told him about thermal waters in central Europe and Italy as possible cures.
Even with a generous budget, travel in the sixteenth century was uncomfortable and dangerous. Travellers had to take with them gold and silver coins to procure horses, food and lodging, but those coins turned them into targets for criminals; and even in the best weather conditions, the speed of travel was slow.
Montaigne travelled accompanied by a few servants who doubled as guards. Those rendered his trip safer, but not faster. It was a long journey, interrupted by six-week stays at spas in Germany and Switzerland.
After six months of travelling, Montaigne arrived in Italy in the autumn of 1580. He visited Venice, Florence and Pisa, and then continued south until he reached Rome.
He wanted to see with his own eyes the ruins of the Roman Empire, and the landmark edifices, fountains and gardens built by the Catholic Church. His travel diary records his admiration for the buildings and his doubts about the institutions that had sponsored them.
Unfortunately, none of the spa treatments proved effective. They had alleviated Montaigne’s kidney pain for a little while, but as soon as he resumed his travelling, the pain returned and grew more acute.
A positive aspect of Montaigne’s travel across Europe is that the guards served their purpose remarkably well. He had gone through war areas in France and Germany without suffering an attack or pillage attempt.
Michel de Montaigne’s difficult decision
Montaigne returned to France in 1581 after twelve months of travelling; he had practically given up the goal of alleviating his kidney pain because the physicians’ advice had not helped.
Upon returning to his manor, he learned that he had been elected mayor of Bordeaux. While he was still in Italy, friends of his had registered him as a candidate. Thanks to his good reputation, he had carried the day even if he had not deployed any effort to win the election.
Apparently, they had sent him letters asking if he agreed to stand for office, but the letters had never reached him. During his return trip from Italy, Montaigne had been longing to arrive home and resume his writing, but now he had to decide if he accepted to become mayor of Bordeaux.
Montaigne was almost fifty at that time, and the term of the appointment as mayor was two years. He weighed carefully the pros and cons of accepting, since he knew the inordinate demands of the post.
The major disadvantage of saying yes is that he would forgo the possibility of writing more essays. Instead of quiet reading and writing in the tower of his manor, his days would be spent in difficult meetings, debates and bargaining.
Conversely, the advantage of saying yes is that Montaigne would be able to put his ideas into practice. He had devoted a decade to writing essays about truth, tolerance and justice. This was a unique opportunity to bring about real improvements.
Montaigne and the worsening environment
Montaigne accepted the appointment and served a two-year term, which was then followed by another term; he took part in various attempts at conciliation to end the hostilities between Catholics and Protestants, but it was to no avail.
Historian praise Montaigne for his decisive management of a public health emergency in 1585, three months before ending his second term as mayor of Bordeaux.
The emergency is categorised by historians as “the plague,” due to its resemblance to similar outbreaks in other European cities such as Pisa and Florence.
Montaigne imitated their policies, that is, a strict quarantine and improvements in sanitation. I find it hard to judge whether the quarantine made things better or worse, but the improved sanitation (clean streets, access to fresh water) certainly helped solve the problem.
At the end of his four years as mayor, Montaigne said no to standing again for election. Despite his good intentions, he had the feeling of not having achieved much.
The hatred between Catholics and Protestants had become more intense despite all attempts at conciliation. The social and economic environment in France had continued to worsen. No wonder that Montaigne had the feeling of having wasted four years of his life.
If you are interested in putting rational ideas into practice in all sort of situations, I recommend you my book “Against all odds: How to achieve great victories in desperate times.”