Class JUL. 
 Book I 4 k 
 
THE PILGKIM. 
 
 a 
 
THE PILGRIM 
 
 A DIALOGUE 
 
 LIFE AND ACTIONS OE KING HENEY 
 THE EIGHTH. 
 
 BY 
 
 WILLIAM THOMAS, 
 
 CLERK OF THE COUNCIL TO EDWARD VI. 
 
 EDITED, WITH NOTES EKOM THE ARCHIVES AT PARIS 
 AND BRUSSELS, 
 
 BY 
 
 J. A. FROUDE, 
 
 AUTHOR OF " THE HISTORY OF ENGLAND, FROM THE FALL OF WOLSEY 
 TO THE DEATH OF ELIZABETH." 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 PARKER, SON, AND BOURN, WEST STRAND. 
 
 1861. 
 
' G 
 
 LONDON : 
 
 SAV1IL AND EDWARDS, PRINTERS, CHANDOS STREET, 
 
 COVEN T GARDEN. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 "TT7HEN I wrote tlie early volumes of my History 
 I * of England this book was unknown to me. I 
 was aware that a defence of Henry the Eighth had 
 been written after his death by a clerk of the Privy 
 Council ; but from the short mention of the thing hy 
 Strype, I could learn little either of its character or 
 value ; nor was I aware that a copy survived till I 
 encountered one by accident among the Harleian 
 MSS. in the British Museum. Subsequently, I met 
 with a second copy among the Lansdowne MSS. ; 
 and later still, I found that the book was printed 
 in the last century among a collection of tracts by 
 the same author. 
 
 The printed edition, however, is so rare that for 
 purposes of reference it is scarcely more accessible 
 than the MSS. I do not doubt that to the large 
 majority of English readers the book will be as new 
 as it was to me, and I believe myself to be doing 
 useful service in bringing it again before the world. 
 
 The outward events of the reign of Henry the 
 Eighth are patent and acknowledged. The ques- 
 tion, so far as question exists, is of the causes in 
 which those events originated. The Statute Book 
 
 b 
 
VI PREFACE. 
 
 gives one account of those causes ; popular tradition 
 gives another. The opinion of a contemporary 
 English gentleman, who had no object to gain by 
 dishonest advocacy, cannot but contribute some- 
 thing towards a just decision between the two 
 authorities. 
 
 To those who find an adequate explanation of the 
 Acts of Parliament in the cowardice and servility 
 of the Lords and Commons I put a question to which 
 no answer has ever been given or attempted. What 
 means had Henry the Eighth at his disposal to com- 
 pel their compliance or punish their disobedience ? 
 He had a mere handful of men, whose number he 
 never attempted to increase. The Council, under 
 Edward the Sixth, found it necessary to surround 
 themselves with a ' Gendarmerie •' Queen Mary's in- 
 cessant effort was to have a military force at her 
 private disposal ; Henry the Eighth was contented 
 with the yeomen of the guard, who might have 
 been scattered by a rising of the apprentices. Ex- 
 cept for the voluntary loyalty of his subjects, half- 
 a-dozen noblemen might at any moment have 
 overturned the throne. The House of Commons 
 when called on to stamp themselves with ignominy 
 by sanctioning Anne Boleyn's execution, need but 
 have adjourned in a body from Westminster to 
 Whitehall to have the King their prisoner. 
 
 It has been said that to find a difficulty in the 
 acquiescence of the Parliament is to betray an igno- 
 rance of the histories of other reigns of terror. I 
 reply that the annals of the world contain no record 
 of a reign of terror conducted under such extra- 
 ordinary conditions. The English were no mob of 
 
PREFACE. Vll 
 
 helpless peasants ; they were a nation of soldiers, 
 fierce, intractable, and turbnlent to a proverb. Lon- 
 don alone contained a drilled, force of twenty thou- 
 sand men at the disposal of the corporation ; and 
 so far was the Kino* from showing a wish to disarm 
 the people, that more than once at different periods 
 of his reign, he forced the whole strength of Eng- 
 land into the field, and himself with but a handful 
 of servants rode up and down along the highways 
 amidst thousands of armed men. If not contented 
 with indulging in private his abominable passions, 
 he had insulted Peers and Commons, Catholics and 
 Protestants, with requiring them to disguise his 
 crimes under a hypocritical aspect of justice, his 
 long impunity is a phenomenon inconceivably mar- 
 vellous. Our boasted parliamentary government 
 and trial by jury are but poor securities for justice 
 if they could be tortured into instruments of ty- 
 ranny by means so feeble. 
 
 I speak generally of the broad hypothesis of ser- 
 vility which has been employed to cover the whole 
 complications of this reign. They require far 
 subtler and more delicate explanation. Cruel deeds 
 were done ; but they were done by the alternating 
 influences of the two great parties in the State, to 
 whom nothing was wrong which furthered their 
 separate objects. The King himself was rather the 
 moderator than the instigator when either Protes- 
 tants suffered as heretics, or Catholics as traitors; and 
 deeds, which both sides alike must have known and 
 acknowledged to be enormous crimes, I see no reason 
 either to believe the King guilty of perpetrating, or 
 the Parliament of permitting or sanctioning. 
 
Vlll - PREFACE. 
 
 At all events, those who are capable of under- 
 standing the difficulties of the popular view will 
 welcome an opportunity of seeing the conduct of 
 Henry the Eighth as it appeared to an Englishman 
 of more than common ability, who himself witnessed 
 the scenes which he describes. 
 
 The history of the writer is soon told. He was 
 by birth a Welshman, and was brought up at Oxford. 
 Towards the end of Henry's reign he was obliged 
 to leave England, perhaps for his religious opinions ; 
 and repairing to Italy he composed among other 
 things an Italian grammar. He returned home the 
 year of Edward the Sixth's accession, when he was 
 appointed clerk of the Council, and became a sort 
 of political instructor of the young King. Without 
 the knowledge of the Government, he seems to have 
 secretly given Edward lessons on the principles of 
 government, on the state of the currency and similar 
 questions ; and his teaching, if not his hand, is per- 
 ceptible in the King's journal. Wlien Edward died, 
 he attached himself to the Protestant party. He 
 took part in Wyatt's conspiracy, and died in May, 
 1554, at Tyburn. 
 
 It was while he was at Bologna, two months 
 after Henry's death, that, (if the form of The Pilgrim 
 is more than a fiction,) the conversation took place 
 which gave rise to the composition of the book. 
 The internal evidence shows at any rate that it was 
 written while the author was still on the Continent. 
 He did not publish it ; there was no occasion for a 
 defence of Henry in England while the recollection 
 of him was fresh and before the Italian views of his 
 character had naturalized themselves : later in the 
 
PREFACE. IX 
 
 century, in a changed era of men and tilings, Eliza- 
 beth's position must have forbidden the appearance 
 of a production which reflected so hardly on her 
 mother. 
 
 Such as the book is, it will speak for itself. It 
 is not free from mistakes. The writer knew many 
 things which we have no means of knowing. By 
 the production of secret papers we, on our part, 
 know some things which he could not know. 
 His story has the accuracies and the inaccuracies 
 which we might naturally look for in any account 
 of a series of intricate events given by memory 
 without the assistance of documents. It has the 
 value which an account would have if given by any 
 able middle-aged man now living, of the first war 
 with China, for instance, of the war with Russia, 
 the Irish famine, or the political struggles in Parlia- 
 ment during the last fifteen years. The particulars 
 of such an account would be often inexact, but the 
 outline and effect would represent the impression 
 generally current in the country ; and in that way, 
 and to that degree, I believe the writer of The 
 Pilgrim to represent to us the popular view of the 
 conduct and character of Henry the Eighth, as 
 received in England at the time of his death. 
 
 So much for the book. I must add a few words 
 about the notes. 
 
 When for the story in the Statute Book is 
 claimed the support of the recently examined State 
 Papers, it is replied, that being the work of the 
 same hands, there is no wonder if they tell the 
 same story. 
 
 The answer is not strictly to the point ; because, 
 
X PREFACE. 
 
 under the term State .Papers, are comprised not 
 merely official letters or statements, but miscella- 
 neous reports of the most varied kind; depositions 
 of witnesses on trials ; examinations of accused 
 persons ; accounts of private conversations ; or of 
 casual expressions dropped in church or on high- 
 way, in private house or public hostelry. 
 
 But it is true that all the State Eecords passed 
 through the hands of the ministers of the day. If 
 they did not forge what made in their favour, 
 they had opportunities of destroying what made 
 against them. The records of the trial of Cathe- 
 rine Howard are perfect ; the records of the trial 
 of Anne Boleyn survive only in a faint epitome ; 
 and we know neither by whom nor why the evi- 
 dence was made away with. The support of dis- 
 interested testimony is therefore of more value to 
 the reputation of the statesmen whose conduct is 
 called in question, than any document which they 
 left behind in their own portfolios ; and the testi- 
 mony of enemies must be weighed beside the testi- 
 mony of friends. 
 
 From William Thomas we hear the best which 
 could be said for Henry by an ordinary unofficial 
 Englishman. I desired to hear the worst also — 
 the worst, I mean, which could be said at the time 
 by men who knew him, of actions passing under 
 their eyes — and this object I have endeavoured to 
 obtain from the despatches of the French and Impe- 
 rial ambassadors resident at the English Court. 
 French, Spaniards, and Flemings were alike Ca- 
 tholics, and alike regarded the revolt from the See 
 of Eome as an enormous crime. The Spaniards 
 
PREFACE. XI 
 
 had received mortal affront in the divorce of Queen 
 Catherine ; the French Court was the training- 
 school, the French Sovereign the patron, of Anne 
 Boleyn. Neither d'Inteville, Chastillon, nor Ma- 
 rillac, neither Mendoza nor Eustace Chappuys were 
 men to let their eyes be blinded in Henry's favour : 
 and in their safe and cyphered correspondence with 
 their own Governments, they would throw no plea- 
 sant veil over a series of crimes and scandals. 
 
 With a view, therefore, of seeing Henry in the 
 least favourable aspect, I have spent some part of 
 this past summer among the Archives of Paris and 
 Brussels. The result will be found in the notes 
 of this present volume. 
 
 I have not found all that I desired. The cor- 
 respondence of d'Inteville, the French minister, 
 for instance, continues to within a month of Anne 
 Boleyn's arrest ; it recommences a month after 
 her execution ; and the letters in which the story of 
 that tragedy was told were either destroyed, to 
 stifle the recollection of it, or were set apart from 
 their especial interest, and now are lost. 
 
 On the other hand, I have found many things 
 for which I did not look. The materials are abun- 
 dant, and from the mass of letters I have been 
 obliged to content myself with extracts. 
 
 I believe, however, that I have omitted nothing 
 of importance ; certainly, I have omitted nothing 
 knowingly which tells in the King's disfavour. 
 
 The letters at Paris are in French. The letters 
 at Brussels in. French, Spanish, and Latin. After 
 some hesitation what I ought to do, and being 
 certain that do what I would I could not please 
 
Xll PREFACE. 
 
 every one, I have studied the convenience of the 
 majority of my readers, and have rendered them all 
 into English. 
 
 My original copies are at the service of any one 
 who will give me good reason for wishing to see 
 them. 
 
Castigans castigavit me Dominus, 
 Et morti non tradidit me. — W. T. 
 
 To Mr. Peter Aretine, the Right Natural Poet. 
 
 T~ IKE as many times the wild woods and barren 
 -*-* mountains yield more delight unto the seldom - 
 travelled Citizen than do the pleasant orchards and 
 gardens, whose beanty and fruit he daily enjoy eth, 
 so hath it now pleased me rather to direct this my 
 little book unto thee, whose virtue consisteth only 
 in Nature without any art, than unto any other ; 
 whom I know both natural, virtuous, and learned 
 withal : specially because I understand that the 
 King, in defence of whose honour I have made it, 
 hath remembered thee with an honourable legacy* 
 by his Testament ; the which his enemies pretend 
 proceeded from the fear that he had lest thou 
 shouldest, after his death, defame him with thy 
 wonted ill speech. But to let them wit that no 
 man with right can slander him, and to open also 
 unto them part of his worthy and glorious doings, 
 whereof, if thou wilt, thou mayst fully speak unto 
 his great honour, I have in this little book briefly 
 declared the most part of such successes as have 
 
 * No legacy was left by Henry VIII. to Pietro Aretino. 
 B 
 
Z THE PILGRIM. 
 
 happened unto him in his lifetime, with the occa- 
 sions that thereunto moved me, and have thought 
 good to participate the same unto thee, to the 
 intent that if any person should repugn against it, 
 thou, with the mountain of thy natural reasons, 
 shouldest have matter sufficient accordingly to de- 
 fend it ; in which doing Thou shalt partly satisfy 
 both unto the very truth, and also unto the good 
 memory that so noble a King hath deserved of 
 thee. 
 
 Farewell. 
 
 W. T. 
 
A Relation of a Conference had between 
 William Thomas, Clerk of the Council 
 to King Edward VI., and certain Ita- 
 lian Gentlemen in his Travels, touching 
 the Actions of King Henry VIII., en- 
 titled Peregrine. Anno 1546. 
 
 He that dieth with honour liveth for ever, 
 And the defamed dead recovereth never. 
 
 rjONSTEAINED by misfortune to abandon the 
 ^ place of my nativity, and to walk at the ran- 
 dom of the wide world; in the month of February, 
 and after the Church of England the year of our 
 Lord God 1546, it happened me to arrive in the 
 city of Bonony in the region of Italy; where, in 
 company of certain gentlemen, known to be an 
 Englishman, I was earnestly apposed of the nature, 
 quality, and customs of my country, and especially 
 of divers particular things touching the estate of 
 our King's Majesty Henry the 8th, who then 
 nearly was departed out of this present life. And 
 albeit that my gross intelligence extended not to 
 the sufficient satisfaction of those important ques- 
 tions that were there demanded of me, yet, to avoid 
 occasioning of discourtesy towards those courteous 
 gentlemen who so courteously provoked me, and to 
 learn of them some notable things worth the know- 
 ledge (and being, as they were, men of singular 
 reputation and judgment), I enterprised liberally to 
 
 b 2 
 
4 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 commune with them and to say mine opinion touch- 
 ing the things in question. The discourse whereof 
 I have thought good to put in writing, not only for 
 the private defence of that noble Prince whose 
 honour hath been wrongfully touched, but also for 
 the general satisfaction of them whose ears may 
 happen to be occupied with unjust and false ru- 
 mours; beseeching thee, therefore, gentle reader, 
 to accept the truth of mine intent without offence, 
 in case thine appetite should move thee to niislike 
 my report : for, surely, if thou set apart affection to 
 govern thee with the discourse of reason, thou shalt 
 also perceive that mine answer proceeds more of 
 pure simplicity than of prepensed malice, in that 
 part specially that excuseth the blamed doings of 
 my foresaid King, who in his lifetime was much 
 more able indeed to justify himself against all the 
 world, than I now after his death am able to defend 
 him with my pen. 
 
 After supper on an evening, sitting by the fire in 
 company of seven or eight gentlemen in a rich mer- 
 chant's house in Bonony, among other things, 
 when they had reasoned of many matters, their 
 whole talk fell upon me, by occasion of the King 
 who then was newly departed this world. And 
 there was it first asked me of what circuit might the 
 whole isle of England be ; whereunto I answered, 
 that after the description of Cosmography it did ex- 
 tend in compass upon the points to 2000 Italian 
 miles; but in this, said I, you must understand 
 Scotland to be comprehended. 
 
 ' And what may Scotland contain ?' said one of 
 them. 
 
THE PILGRIM. 
 
 ' I think/ said I, ' that Scotland may be some- 
 what better than as it were a fourth part of the 
 island/ 
 
 ' And how is the country's fertility?' said he. 
 
 I answered, ' that it was abundant of grain and 
 cattle ; and to compare it unto Italy, I shall tell 
 you what difference there is. Here, in Italy, 
 groweth wine, oil, and divers sorts of fruits that 
 grow not with us ; as melons, pippins, pomegranates, 
 oranges, figs, raisins, and some other such ; because 
 the cold air of our country cannot nourish them, 
 being, as we are, six degrees further from the 
 sun than you be. But instead of these your com- 
 modities — first, for wine, we have great abundance 
 of barley, whereof our ale and beer are made, which, 
 for our common drink, agreeth better with our 
 nature than the continual drinkings of wine should 
 do. And then for oil, we have so much sweet 
 butter, that though well we had abundance thereof 
 as you have, yet, think I, there be few that would 
 use it in their meats as you do ; since butter 
 pleaseth our appetites much better than oil. And 
 in that you exceed us in fruits, we exceed you both 
 in the abundance, and also in the goodness, of 
 flesh, fowl, and fish, whereof the common people 
 there do no less feed than your common people here 
 of herbs and fruits. And again, for wines, we 
 have continually from France and Spain, as also out 
 of Almaine and out of Candia, great quantity of the 
 best that grow in those parts, and of oil and all 
 those other fruits that are rehearsed, the melon only 
 excepted. It is true that we pay dear for them, 
 ,and that we have not such plenty as you have : nor, 
 
6 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 to say the truth, we need it not ; for like as the 
 subtle air of Italy doth not allow you to feed 
 grossly, so the gross air of England doth not allow 
 us to feed subtilely. Here the temperate heat re- 
 quire th food of light digestion, as fruits, herbs, 
 little flesh and delicate diet ; and there the tempe- 
 rate cold requireth food of more substance, as abun- 
 dance of flesh and fish, which satisfy the appetite ; 
 and thereof groweth the proverb — Give the En- 
 glyshman beoffe and mustarde.' 
 
 * Yea, but what meaneth it/ said they, ' that 
 your nation supporteth no strangers, as by daily 
 proof it is right well seen ? When an outlandish 
 man passeth by, you call him whoreson knave, dog, 
 and other like. This seemeth unto us a very bar- 
 barous part.' 
 
 1 1 shall tell you why/ said I. ' In times past, our 
 nation hath practised as little abroad in strange 
 countries as any nation of the world; and the 
 commodities of our country are so great that the 
 ignorant persons, seeing strangers resort unto them 
 for traffic, and, as it is true, for gain, imagined they 
 came not to buy their commodities, but to rob 
 them, and that they who so used to traffic, for lack 
 of living in their own countries, applied the mer- 
 chandize of England as of necessity. But at this 
 day it is all otherwise ; for like as your merchants 
 do practise in England, so our merchants do now 
 traffic abroad, and by travel have attained such 
 knowledge of civility that I warrant you those 
 strangers who now repair into England are as well 
 received and seen, and as much made of as in any 
 other kingdom of all Europe, especially in the 
 
THE PILGRIM. 7 
 
 Prince's Court, and among the nobles, where surely 
 hath evermore been seen all honour and courtesy. 3 
 
 f We believe you/ said they ; ' but those commo- 
 dities that you speak of, what be they ?' 
 
 ' Beside the abundant meat,' said I, ' there groweth 
 in England great quantity of wool, the finest of all 
 the world, whereof the kerseys and broad-cloths of 
 London are made ; and all the fine cloths which are 
 called panni dijjiandra are also English cloths wrong 
 named by reason of the mart at Antwerp in Flanders, 
 where these cloths are most commonly bought and 
 sold. Then have we leather, whereof continually 
 goeth out of the realm a marvellous quantity, a 
 good witness of the great abundance of cattle that 
 the country doth nourish. We have also mines of 
 lead, tin, and, in some places, of silver ; but the silver 
 veins do prove so slender that in manner it yieldeth 
 not the miner's charge, so that it is left unsought 
 for. But the lead and tin prove so abundant that 
 there is continually bought and sold out of the 
 realm great quantities thereof. Then have we mines 
 of natural coal.' 
 
 ' What mean you by natural coal ?' said they. 
 
 ' Natural coal,' said I, ' is a certain black substance 
 of the earth, congealed in veins, as other metals be, 
 serving to none other purpose but to burn only, 
 which in the burning yieldeth a much greater heat 
 than doth the wood coal, and after that it is burned, 
 consumeth not into ashes, but resteth hard as a 
 stone. So that because it serveth much better for the 
 smith's occupation than doth the other coal, there 
 is yearly sold out of the realm a great quantity 
 thereof unto Dutchland, Flanders, and France. And 
 
o THE PILGRIM. 
 
 anotlier notable commodity we have ; whether the 
 cause be in our industry or in the goodness of our 
 waters, I cannot tell ; the Flemings do buy much of 
 our beer, because it is better than theirs, and pay 
 almost as much for it as we do to the Frenchmen 
 for their wine. And, finally, divers other commo- 
 dities there be of smaller moment, too long now to 
 rehearse/ 
 
 ' Yea,' said one of them, f that drunken beer it is 
 that fatteneth the Flemings like hogs. But surely 
 these your commodities rehearsed are very notable, 
 and I marvel not, though your Island be rich and 
 wealthy (as it is reported), seeing that it hath so 
 many means to draw money into it, when on the 
 other side that money that cometh into your hands 
 can never be had out again ; for your King hath 
 kept the passage so straitly that no man could 
 carry out of the realm in ready money above 10 
 ducats ; so that it is no marvel, 5 said he, ' though he 
 had mountains of gold, as they say he had/ 
 
 ' No/ said another of them, ' that law is finished. 
 It is true that whilst the English money was better 
 than other money, no man, as you say, could carry 
 it away ; but now that the said King, for his own 
 private gain, hath made it worse than any other 
 money, each man may carry away so much as him 
 liketh/ 
 
 ' Why/ said I, ' can ye blame him to take his 
 advantage as all other Princes do ? See you not 
 that all the gold and silver is abased in all the new 
 money that is now made anywhere? I suppose 
 he should have been reported a very simple man to 
 have holden up his fine money for a bait when other 
 
THE PILGRIM. 9 
 
 men's money decayed; and, as touching the Prince's 
 gain (how well in common I cannot see where any 
 man thereby snstaineth any loss), I think he did 
 better to gain so upon his own money, than, as 
 other Princes do, to borrow so of their private sub- 
 jects and never pay.' 
 
 ' What !' said that other unto me, ' you are earnest 
 in your King's favour ; but you consider not that 
 Cicero his eloquence should not suffice to defend 
 him of his tyranny, since he hath been known, and 
 noted over all, to be the greatest tyrant that ever 
 was in England.' 
 
 * In this case,' said I, ' you charge my patience, 
 and the answer of so outrageous a report requireth 
 more force than reason or writing. But, because 
 the place alloweth me not to speak, much less to 
 fight, I therefore will forbear. But tell me, I pray 
 you, have you ever been in England ?' 
 
 ' No,' said he, ' but in Picardy I have been, and 
 also in Flanders, where by report I have known all 
 the proceedings in England, and known them so 
 well that in every point I should be well able to 
 defend both with reason and force against you, not 
 only that I have said, but much more, if need were. 
 But because I am an Italian, and you a stranger, 
 your brags shall have place for this time.' 
 
 At the which words, somewhat troubled in my 
 mind, I sought leave to depart ; but the other gentle- 
 men present held me by force, and would in any 
 wise hear that matter resolutely disputed ; insomuch 
 that, having moved my Contrary to allege against 
 the King's Majesty what he could say, they tempe- 
 rately persuaded me to answer, to the intent it might 
 
10 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 appear who had the wrong. And thus both parties 
 quieted, after a little pause, seeming rather to have 
 studied this matter than to have conceived it by 
 hearing-say, this gentleman, my Contrary, thus be- 
 gan his argument. 
 
 ' If you,' said he, ' will grant me that the prin- 
 cipal token of a tyrant is the immoderate satisfaction 
 of an unlawful appetite, when the person, whether 
 by right or wrong, hath power to achieve his sensual 
 will, and that the person, also, who by force draweth 
 unto him that which of right is not his, in the un- 
 lawful usurping committeth express tyranny ; then 
 doubt I not right well to justify my report with 
 advantage. 
 
 c i. Your King his first wife, I pray you, being the 
 Emperor's aunt, did he not cast her off after that he 
 had lived in lawful matrimony with her 18 years? 
 
 1 %. And to acccomplish his will in the new mar- 
 riage of his second wife, because Pope Clement 
 would not consent to him, did he not disannul the 
 authority of the Holy Roman Church, which for 
 long time hath been honoured and obeyed of all 
 Christian Princes ? 
 
 ' 3. Thirdly — Because the Cardinal of Eochester, 
 and Thomas More, High Chancellor of England, 
 would not allow these his abominable errors, did he 
 not cause them to be beheaded ? men whose famous 
 doctrine hath merited eternal memory ; and when 
 he had rid them out of the world, who only with 
 learning and reason were able to resist his beastly 
 appetite. 
 
THE PILGRIM. 11 
 
 ' 4. Did lie not presume to take on him the Papal 
 title and authority ; disposing bishoprics and 
 benefices of the Church as Christ's Yicar on earth ; 
 like as it is manifest he did unto his dying day ? 
 
 '5. The poor St. Thomas of Canterbury, alas ! it 
 sufficed him not to spoil and devour the great 
 riches of the shrine, whose treasure amounted to 
 so many thousand crowns ; but, to be avenged on 
 the dead corpse, did he not cause his bones openly 
 to be burned ? 
 
 ' 6. And, consequently, all the places where God 
 by his saints vouchsafed to show so many miracles, 
 did he not cause them to be spoiled of their riches, 
 jewels, and ornaments, and after clean destroyed, 
 nor would not so much as suffer in those few 
 churches that remained the light to burn before 
 the images of God's most holy saints ? 
 
 ' 7. The monasteries wherein God was continually 
 served, did he not overthrow them, and take all 
 their riches and possessions unto his own use ; 
 crucifying and tormenting the poor religious persons 
 even unto the death, with whose goods he became 
 more puissant in gold than any Christian Prince ? 
 
 ' 8. After the insurrection in the North, when he 
 had pardoned the first rebellers against him, contrary 
 unto his promise did he not cause a number of 
 the most noble of them, by divers torments, to be 
 put to death ? 
 
 ' 9. And not his first wife, but three or four more, 
 did he not chop, change, and behead them, as his 
 horse coveted new pasture, to satisfy the inordinate 
 appetite of his lecherous will ? Two of his wives he 
 hath caused suffer death, and two remain yet alive. 
 
12 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 f 10. Did lie not persecute the Cardinal Pole, whose 
 virtue and learning seemeth rare unto the world ? 
 And hath he not wrongfully murdered the Car- 
 dinal's mother, his brother, and so many other 
 nobles that it should all be too long to rehearse ? 
 
 ' 1 1. He hath by force subdued the realm of Ireland, 
 whereunto he hath neither right nor title ; and 
 wasted, he hath, no small part of Scotland, with 
 intent to subdue the whole without cause or reason. 
 
 * 12. Against all conscience, he hath moved war 
 unto France, and by force usurped the strong town 
 of Bollogne, which he keepeth unto this hour. 
 
 '13. His daughter, the Lady Mar} r , that he had by 
 his first wife, being one of the fairest, the most vir- 
 tuous, and one of the gentlest creatures in all the 
 world, is now grown to the age of thirty-two or 
 thirty-three years, and, through his devilish ob- 
 stinacy, could never be married. 
 
 '14. And, finally, to finish his cruel life with bloody 
 rage, now, a little before his death, hath he not be- 
 headed the old Duke of Norfolk with his son, for 
 what cause no man can tell? So that I wot not 
 what Nero, what Dionysius, or what Mahomet may 
 be compared unto him, in whom, towards God, 
 rested no reverence of religion, nor, towards man, 
 no kind of compassion ; whose sword, inflamed by 
 continual heat of innocent blood, and whose bottom- 
 less belly could never be satisfied through the throat 
 of extreme avarice and rapine ; whose inconstant 
 mind, occupied with occasion of continual war, per- 
 mitted not his quiet neighbours to live in peace ; 
 and, in conclusion, whose unreasonable will had 
 place alway and in all things, against all equity and 
 
THE PILGRIM. 13 
 
 reason. All ! if I would go about to declare at 
 length the particular enormities that I have heard 
 reported against him, a part whereof I have briefly 
 recited unto you, I should give occasion of trouble 
 to a whole world ! But since this that I have said, 
 is, I doubt not, sufficient to justify my purpose, I 
 have thought it better with few words to let you 
 know how manifest his tyranny was, than with long 
 circumstance to occupy your quiet mind with the 
 terror of so much cruelty as I could justly allege. 
 Answer me now, who that will, for I am tired, not 
 with talk, but with the remembrance of so many 
 mischiefs as this reasoning representeth to my con- 
 science : and yet one thing I have to say; your King, 
 being environed with the ocean sea, thought it im- 
 possible that the fame of his wicked life and doings 
 should pass unto the firm land of other countries ; 
 and therefore the more hardily did enterprise the 
 fulfilling of his devilish desires. But in that behalf 
 he was no less deceived than blinded in his own 
 errors ; for not only his general proceedings, but 
 also every particular and private part thereof was 
 better known in Italy than in his own dominions, 
 where, for fear, no man durst either speak or wink/ 
 And thus having finished his heavy and fervent 
 talk, he gave me place of speech. But I, who in 
 this sudden case was not so promptly prepared with 
 distinct answers to satisfy the company as he thus 
 roundly had charged me, rested in manner amazed ; 
 partly because meseemed the other gentlemen in- 
 clined towards a certain credit of his report, and 
 partly also for fear of the place wherein I found 
 myself. For Bonony (though well with wrong) is of 
 
14 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 the Pope's territory, and lie that speaketh there 
 against the Pope incurreth no less danger than he 
 that in England would offend the King's Majesty. 
 Insomuch that one of them, perceiving me so op- 
 pressed with an inward passion, very courteously 
 encouraged me to defend the cause that I had taken 
 in hand, without respect of fear. So that after I 
 had told him that, without the Pope's offence, I 
 could not make my reason good, which the pre- 
 sence of the place prohibited me — assured of them 
 all, in one voice, to speak at liberty what I would, 
 without danger or displeasure, all joyfully imagin- 
 ing the victory in hand, I thus began to say : — 
 
 ' Universally in all things do I find one singular 
 and perfect rule, which is this, that the outward 
 appearance is always preferred before the inward 
 existence, and that most commonly do all things 
 otherwise appear to be than as they are indeed. As 
 for example, the fair woman (of him that by love 
 seeketh to rejoice her) is rather regarded for her 
 outward beauty than for her inward virtue ; and 
 many times under the veil of a smiling face is 
 covered the poison of a cankered heart. Yea, and 
 when I had no other proof unto this my purpose, 
 but that all living men are known to bear more 
 earnest love unto the presence of these vain earthy 
 riches, than to the hidden infinite virtue of the 
 everlasting God the Creator, I think the same 
 only should suffice to declare how ignorant that 
 man's common judgment is, as long as it is occu- 
 pied with the appearance of the thing, and pene- 
 trateth not into the essential substance, as in 
 
THE PILGRIM. 15 
 
 this our present matter you shall right well per- 
 ceive it hath happened. For the person that will 
 only regard the argument that the gentleman 
 here hath, with the particular witness of those 
 things that he hath rehearsed, which, in part, are 
 surely true, and discern no further, he, I say, must 
 rest undoubtedly persuaded that the deceased King 
 was no less than a cruel tyrant, by reason that in 
 all things it should seem he followed more his un- 
 lawful appetite than any reasonable virtue. But, 
 on the other side, he that will pass through the 
 outward discourse and recur unto the inward occa- 
 sion, how, why, and in what manner these things 
 have succeeded, shall clearly find the effect to con- 
 tain all another reason than it seemeth to do ; as 
 mine answer to his oppositions by one and one, 
 shall, I doubt not, prove sufficiently ; nothing mis- 
 trusting at all, but that they who covet the light of 
 the truth shall receive singular pleasure in hearing 
 me. Wherefore, I shall heartily beseech you of 
 quiet audience unto the full declaration of my pur- 
 pose. And yet, or ever it shall become me to dis- 
 pute in so weighty a cause, Eeason commendeth me 
 to know both the nature and religion of the person 
 whom it behoveth me to answer ; so that (said I 
 unto my Contrary), I shall pray you not to disdain 
 to tell me what is your profession and what your 
 religion : as for your quality, I nothing doubt but 
 that you are gentleman, for so doth your port 
 and gesture sufficiently assure me.' 
 
 ' As for that,' said he, ' I will not make it strange. 
 My profession is to serve the wars, though well I 
 live upon my lands ; and my religion is to believe 
 
16 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 in the Holy Mother Church, as my father and all 
 mine ancestors have done/ 
 
 ' Very well/ said I ; ' in the whole is evermore 
 comprehended the part, and therefore nnto the 
 particular, which, as I can remember, dependeth 
 thirteen or fourteen several points, I answer that 
 first, as touching the divorce had between the King's 
 Majesty to the Lady Katherine, his first wife, 
 which was the Emperor's aunt, it is to be considered 
 whether in that behalf his Highness's intent was to 
 proceed lawfully or unlawfully, privily or openly ; 
 for commonwealth or his own personal commodity; 
 in the trial of which three distinctions the matter 
 must appear. And thus standeth the case. 
 
 c The King's Majesty deceased, in the time of his 
 father Henry the 7th, had an elder brother named 
 Arthur, heir apparent to the crown of England, 
 unto whom this Lady Katherine was first married. 
 Whether they coupled in natural knowledge or not 
 God knoweth, for unto me it appertaineth not to 
 judge, but they were of lawful age. Now, sir, this 
 Prince Arthur died before the father, and during the 
 father's life this lady remained a widow ; but incon- 
 tinently as the father was dead and the King that 
 now is departed came to the crown, his Majesty 
 became enamoured in her, both because of her rare 
 beauty and also for her singular virtues, which 
 seemed then more to flourish in her than in any 
 other living woman. But because the law of God 
 in Christ permitteth not the brother to enjoy the 
 brother's wife, as the especial proof of Herod, 
 whom John Baptist therefore rebuked, doth well 
 declare, his Highness, as for extreme remedy 
 
THE PILGRIM. 17 
 
 unto his unlawful case, recurred unto the Pope's 
 dispensation, believing at that time (as many yet 
 do believe) the same to be of much more effect than 
 (rod's commandments. And so having unto great 
 suit and for extreme sums of money at length ob- 
 tained superstitious licence, he attempted the act of 
 matrimony, and quietly lived, as you have said, with 
 the Lady Katherine eighteen years or thereabouts ; 
 having issue by her that gentle Lady Mary, whose 
 beauty and virtue you have most worthily com- 
 mended. But when the time came that God opened 
 his Majesty's eyes and spirit to consider this his 
 unlawful act, not trusting yet altogether unto the 
 divine inspiration of the spirit, how well divers of 
 his prudent and learned counsellors had persuaded 
 him plainly that the matter could not stand well, 
 he nevertheless sent first unto Eome unto Clement 
 the 7th for the resolution of his judgment in that 
 behalf; prajdng him, if the matter appeared un- 
 lawful before Grod, to grant him not only a divorce, 
 but also a licence to marry again, for divers good 
 and Christian respects. 
 
 ' But Clement, smiling in his heart at so meet an 
 occasion, and thinking of this rich King to shear 
 such another golden fleece as Jason conquered in 
 Colchis, threw forth so weak a training -bait that the 
 great fish swallowed his hook and broke his line. 
 For straightway sent he the Cardinal Campeggio, 
 legate a latere, into England to determine this 
 matter ; who, sitting there in judgment, had such 
 courage of presumption that he caused the King, as 
 a private person, to appear before him, and the Lady 
 Katherine both ; and there was this matter so long 
 
18 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 disputed pro et contra, that finally, not only the civil 
 and moral laws, but also by the Pope's self canon 
 laws the commandment of Glod had place and the 
 error of the Pope's dispensation was discovered ; so 
 that, in conclusion, his Majesty was divorced from 
 the said Lady Katherine, not unlawfully by extorted 
 power, either of the King himself or of any of his 
 subjects, but lawfully by the true examination of 
 the verity before such a judge as coveted rather to 
 rule the King than to obey him : and it cannot be 
 said that he did it privily, for all the world was 
 present to the matter in question more than twenty 
 months or ever it took effect.* 
 
 ' And then as for his personal commodity, I think 
 no man so ignorant but that he may consider how 
 that he always might have had secretly at his plea- 
 sure numbers of fair women — England being, as it 
 were, replenished with the fairest creatures of the 
 world. But he did it first with reverence to God, 
 whose commandment each creature is bound to 
 obey, and after the commonwealth of his realm, the 
 inhabitants whereof are of all other most inclinable 
 to sedition upon every least occasion; so that in 
 time to come, whensoever any great man should 
 have rebelled against the royal blood, alleging the 
 King's children in their case not to be born in 
 lawful matrimony, it should have been like enough 
 to have moved mortal civil war, as small occasions 
 in times past have yielded manifest proof; whereas 
 now having had by the undoubted Queen Jane, his 
 lawful wife, a most gracious son named Edward, 
 
 * See Note A. p. 83. 
 
THE PILGRIM. 19 
 
 who lawfully hath received the crown, the whole 
 realm must needs persevere in happy peace and joy. 
 And therefore methinketh him much to blame that 
 for so reasonable a doing would defame so circum- 
 spect a prince. 
 
 ' 2. Now unto that you say that because Pope Cle- 
 ment would not dispense with this second matri- 
 mony, his Majesty extirpted out of England the 
 Papal authority, a thing of most ancient and godly 
 reverence as you take it ; I answer, that after the 
 King's Highness had so appeared in person before 
 the Cardinal Campeggio, one of the princes of his 
 realm, named the Duke of Suffolk, a great wise 
 man, and of more familiarity with the King than ' 
 any other person, asked his Majesty how this matter 
 might come to pass that a Prince in his own realm 
 should so humble himself before the feet of a vile, 
 strange, vicious priest (for Campeggio there in Eng- 
 land demeaned himself in very deed most carnally 
 in hunting of whores, playing at dice and cards, 
 and sundry such other cardinal exercises), whereto 
 the King answered, he could not tell, but only that 
 it seemed unto him that spiritual men ought to 
 judge spiritual matters. ' And yet, as you say/ said 
 the King, ' meseemeth there should be somewhat in 
 it ; and I could right gladly understand why and 
 how, were it not that I would be loth to appear 
 more curious than other Princes.' ' Why, sir/ said 
 the duke, ' your Majesty may cause the matter to 
 be discussed secretly by your learned men, without 
 any rumour at all/ 'Very well/ said the King, 
 1 and so shall it be/ And thus inspired by Grod, he 
 
 c2 
 
20 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 called divers of his great and trusty doctors unto 
 him, charging them distinctly to examine what law 
 of God should direct so carnal a man as Campeggio, 
 under the name of spiritual, to judge a king in his 
 own realm ; according unto whose commandment 
 these doctors resorting together into an appointed 
 place disputed this matter large et stride, as the 
 case required. And as the black hy the white is 
 known ; so, by conference of the oppositions together, 
 it appeared that the evangelical law varied much 
 from the canon law in this point ; so that, in effect, 
 because two contraries cannot stand in uno subjecto 
 eodem casu et tempore, they were constrained to 
 recur unto the King's Majesty's pleasure to know 
 whether of these two laws should be preferred : 
 who, smiling at the ignorance of so fond a question, 
 answered, that the Gospel of Christ ought to be the 
 absolute rule unto all others ; commanding them 
 therefore to follow the same without regard either 
 to the civil, canon, or whatsoever other law. 
 
 ' And here began the quick. For these doctors had 
 no sooner taken the Gospel for their absolute rule 
 but they found this Popish authority over the kings 
 and princes of the earth to be usurped. For Jeter 
 himself, whose successor the Pope presumeth to be, 
 commandeth all Christians, whatsoever they be, to 
 obey and honour kings and princes with fear and 
 reverence ; because the kings of the earth are or- 
 dained of God. And so saith Paul, so saith Solo- 
 mon, and so Christ himself by example hath com- 
 manded, when entering into Capernaum, he hum- 
 bled himself unto the payment of the Prince's 
 custom. And if Peter, Paul, Solomon, and Christ 
 
THE PILGRIM. 21 
 
 himself, said they, have directed us to the obedience 
 of kings in the time when there was no Christian 
 king in the world, how much more now ought all 
 Christians to obey their princes absolutely ; when 
 they, the kings themselves, are not only members 
 of the self-same body of Christ, but also members 
 of the Christian justice ? And what greater dis- 
 honour, said they, can a king receive than in his 
 own realm to be made a subject, and to appear, not 
 before another virtuous king or emperor, but before 
 a vile, vicious beast grown out of the dunghill? 
 And again, what more can be done unto a mur- 
 derer or a thief than to bring him to answer in judg- 
 ment? This, said they, proceedeth not of the 
 divine law, but rather contrary, forasmuch as the 
 spiritual office of the Christian religion proceedeth 
 altogether by charitable counsel. 
 
 ' Of their just and evangelical conclusion his High- 
 ness resolved of that he had to do ; and with patience 
 of his past error, licensed the said Cardinal Campeggio 
 to return unto Eome, not so highly rewarded as the 
 said cardinal looked for, nor yet with such commission 
 as Pope Clement thought should have mended his 
 hungry purse for the new licence that he had pre- 
 pared unto the King's second marriage. For im- 
 mediately after Campeggio his departure, the King, 
 assoiled in cob science of his first divorced matri- 
 mony, both by the law of God and also by the 
 public consent of the whole Church of England and 
 his Barony and his Commons, proceeded unto his 
 second marriage without further bribe or suit unto 
 the Pope. So that Clement, seeing his line broken, 
 and the fish escaped with the hook and bait, like a 
 
22 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 mad raging dog vomited his fulminations, and by 
 consistorial censures excommunicated both King 
 and country, affirming that the King began to rebel 
 against the Eoman See for none other but because 
 his holy Fatherhood would not grant him the 
 licence of this new marriage; and with this new 
 leasing brought the King in slander of the ignorant 
 and superstitious world. And here may you see 
 how the multitude is blinded.* 
 
 ' But to let you know with how much reason he 
 hath disannulled the Papal authority, I doubt not 
 but that every humble heart doth know, that one 
 infinite God is He who governeth all, both heaven 
 and earth, and that utterly. Neither the name nor 
 the glory of God can be attributed to any creature ; 
 so that by consequence the Pope is no earthly god, 
 as the canon laws witness him to be ; and then how 
 foolish a thing it is to believe that he hath God's 
 power by Christ, I shall report me unto you when 
 I have said my reason. The Pope allegeth him- 
 self Christ's Yicar, Peter's successor, and by Peter's 
 keys to have power to loose and bind in heaven, 
 earth, and hell. First, for Christ's Yicar, it is 
 manifest, it is certain that in the whole Scripture 
 there is not one word mentioned how Christ ordained 
 any vicar or subject here in earth to be his broker 
 or factor in matters of salvation or damnation : but 
 the express contrary is found that Christ himself is 
 only the Way, the Verity, and the Life, without 
 whom none can have access unto the Father ; and 
 again, none knoweth the Father but the Son, and 
 
 * See Note B. page 85. 
 
THE PILGRIM. 23 
 
 to whom the Son vouchsafeth to reveal Him ; no 
 man cometh unto the Son, but whom the Father 
 draweth. Moreover, Christ saith that He is the 
 gate by which all they that be saved must enter ; 
 and besides Him, there is none other foundation, 
 nor in none other name health, saith Peter. Paul 
 crieth out that Christ only is justification and only 
 Mediator between God and man, and saith not be- 
 tween God and the Pope. So that it is impossible 
 to prove by the Holy Scriptures the Pope to be 
 another mediator to distribute the merits that 
 Christ saith He will distribute Himself. For if 
 Christ be perfect Grod, and God everywhere, then 
 God in Christ doth continually work His perfection — 
 that is to say, salvation in the faithful, and judgment 
 on the infidels, as the Holy Scriptures undoubtedly 
 do affirm, without any need of the Pope's help in 
 that behalf. And if Christ were but man only, and 
 imperfect as the Pope would make Him to be in 
 this case where he pretendeth to be His vicar or 
 attorney, then our faith being vain in Christ, a 
 fortiori must be more than vain in the Pope. For 
 the Pope dispenseth not earthly things, neither 
 treasure nor health of body, as his covetous gather- 
 ing of gold and self-infirmity of reason proveth; 
 and as for celestial things, I speak of the soul, 
 being a carnal man, though well he had the spirit 
 of prophecy, yet could he nought judge thereof. 
 
 ' Now unto that he presumeth of Peter's succes- 
 sion, it cannot be found in the Holy Scriptures that 
 ever Peter came to Rome, but dwelled in Antioch, 
 preaching there the word of God all the days of his 
 life. So the Bishop of Antioch should of reason be 
 
24 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 rather Peter's successor than the Bishop of Eome ; 
 and the keys that were given to Peter appear not 
 "by the Gospel to be given to any successor, but to 
 Peter only, who had no less of the Holy Ghost than 
 the Pope hath of the devil. And what effect those 
 keys have, it may well be seen, when we consider 
 our own miserable sins which ye believe lieth in 
 him to bind or to loose. If I never sin, how can 
 he bind me ? and if I sin, I bind myself. If it 
 please God in Christ to pardon me my sins, what 
 devil can annoy me ? And if God will not forgive 
 me, what creature can bring me unto heaven ? So 
 that, unless you will say that the Pope is greater 
 than God, and can enforce God and Christ to 
 make and mar as He will, you must needs confess 
 the Pope's authority to be utterly vain and super- 
 stitious. My duty of reverence reserved towards 
 religion, speaking by protestation, I shall tell you 
 merely bow these keys came to Peter. 
 
 1 Christ having bolted the gates of heaven and 
 barred the door on the inward side, bade Peter 
 keep those keys safe until the day of judgment. 
 Before that time, He would that none should cor- 
 porally enter in there by the gate, but fly in spirit 
 over the wall. So that Peter all the days of his life 
 sought to lead all true Christians thither by lively 
 faith, as his Master taught him, and not by opening 
 the gates ; and therefore hid the keys in his habita- 
 tion at Antioch, where they lay many years, un- 
 known. At length, in the time of Phocas, the 
 Emperor of Constantinople, a simple priest found 
 them, and marvelling at the curious workmanship 
 (being, as they were, of divine operation), to gratify 
 
THE PILGRIM. 25 
 
 his Lord the Emperor with so rare a thing, went 
 and presented them to his Majesty, who, not know- 
 ing how to use them, gave them after unto Pocky- 
 face (I would say Boniface the Third), by whom 
 they were first brought into the Eoman Church. 
 But in effect this Boniface, seeking the gates of 
 heaven, failed of his way, and, by misfortune, hap- 
 pened on the gates of hell, where, unwittingly, he 
 put those keys in use, and in very deed, at once 
 opened them ; quia porta inferni non prevalebunt 
 adversus eum ; in such wise that the devils got out 
 and, by plain force, after they had drawn Boniface in, 
 kept the gates so wide open, that all they who have 
 followed Boniface in the Papistical belief, thinking 
 to climb to heaven, are fallen there by the way. 
 
 ' Finally, to conclude of this Popish authority. 
 It was not only found that the Pope was a false 
 prophet, a deceiver and beguiler of human souls, but 
 also the same Antichrist whom John accuseth in so 
 many figures of his Apocalypse, forasmuch as Anti- 
 christ can be no otherwise expounded but Christ's 
 contrary. And the Pope is so contrary unto Christ 
 by Daniel, that the matter was toto evident ; for 
 whereas Christ was humble, patient, chaste, poor, 
 constant, and obedient, seeking always the fulfilling 
 of His Father's will and not His own, the Pope, 
 clean contrary, was proud, impatient, lecherous, 
 rich, inconstant, and disobedient, not seeking the 
 fulfilling of any part of Grod's will, but his own will 
 only, in despite of all the world. As for proof, 
 Christ humbled Himself to the washing of His 
 apostles' feet; patiently suffered the Scribes and 
 Pharisees to contend with Him; chastely resisted 
 
26 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 the worldly possessions of the devil's temptation in 
 the desert ; lived poorly without any habitation of 
 His own ; was constant in the fulfilling of the law, 
 for the. sins of His Father's elected ; and last of all, 
 obediently suffered death, offering Himself alone, 
 crowned with thorns, upon the tree of the cross, for 
 the redemption of all the number of the true 
 Christians. And the Pope that arrogantly maketh 
 not the mean people, but the Emperor himself, to 
 kiss his foot, impatiently can he abide any man 
 that would speak against his tyranny and abomina- 
 tion ; resisteth not, but rather embraceth, the un- 
 chaste, devilish temptation — that is to wit, omnia 
 regno, mundi ; liveth more richly in his sumptuous 
 and imperial palaces of his own ; hath no kind of 
 constancy in doing any good thing that God's law 
 commandeth, but hath so much to do with the 
 merchandize of other men's sins that he cannot see 
 to reckon with his own (for that little constancy 
 that he hath is only in persecuting Christ's faithful) ; 
 and, finally, is disobedient both unto Grod and 
 nature, offering himself crowned with so many 
 crowns of gold to the destruction of so many 
 numbers of men, as daily be slain of all hands for 
 his only cause. And it was not only proved that 
 the Pope was thus contrary unto Christ in his 
 doings, but also in his doctrine and ceremonies from 
 the first to the last, too long now to rehearse ; yea, 
 and that not this living Pope alone, but all they that 
 are dead, being comprehended under that name, 
 especially from the time of the said Boniface the 
 Third forwards. For though the Popes have been 
 diverse in outward customs, some less wicked than 
 
THE PILGRIM. 27 
 
 others, yet in their inward hypocrisy they have all 
 followed the devil's dam. But what need I to say 
 so much, since I hear say there is a tragedy, 
 entitled Free Will, which so well describeth his 
 colours that there needeth no more doubt of the 
 matter ?' 
 
 ' As you say/ said my Contrary, ' I have heard 
 much reasoning of this tragedy ; but the learned 
 men condemn it, and say that it hath neither form 
 nor fashion of a tragedy/ 
 
 ' And wot you why ?■' said I. ' Because the tragedy 
 condemneth the abomination of these your learned 
 men, and therefore now that they can find no 
 answer to deface the truth thereof, they only con- 
 tend with the proportion. And are these the 
 members of your Mother, the Holy Church ?' 
 ' Why/ said he, ' what can you say by our Mother, 
 Holy Church ?' ' I say/ quoth I, ' that she is an 
 arrant whore, a fornicatress, and an adultress with 
 the princes of the earth, and an express enemy of 
 the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, and of the lawful 
 Church, the Espouse of Christ ; for as Christ, the 
 Son of God, in lawful matrimony engendereth on 
 His Holy Church, by the spawn of His blood spread 
 on the cross, all the lawful begotten children of 
 salvation in faith and charity, so the Pope, son of 
 the devil, 'your god on earth, in fornication engen- 
 dereth on your whorish Mother Church all the 
 bastards of perdition that believe remission of sin 
 in him by ignorance and superstition/ 
 
 At the which words, my said adversary, all 
 swelling with anger, approached me with his dagger 
 to have stricken me ; but the other gentlemen 
 
28 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 present, and in my quarrel, threatened him, assuring 
 him that they would take my part when there 
 should happen me any need, and so pacified him 
 sooner than me, who, for the present fear, remem- 
 bered not where I was ; for his sudden fury gave 
 occasion of many words and much ado, and long it 
 was ere ever my spirits were quieted. Finally, my 
 memory returned, and being required of these gentle- 
 men to proceed unto the rest of my purpose, seeing 
 them earnestly attentive to hear me, in manner 
 of exclamation, thus I began to say : — 
 
 ' Oh, Free "Will ! where art thou ? Oh, Patience ! 
 oh, Humility ! oh, Discretion ! what have I offended 
 you ? And yet I wis I little need to marvel, since 
 common experience yieldeth me an approved an- 
 swer; for when I regard the discourse of Phi- 
 losophy, all said reckoned, I find the will of man in 
 the bosom of his appetite, notwithstanding that 
 the wise philosophers have ever coveted to place 
 the will between reason and the appetite, in- 
 differently inclinable unto either part at the man's 
 free election. But now, to prove that the appetite 
 against reason draweth no less the will unto him 
 than substance of the earth and water, against the 
 air and fire, draweth the body unto the heavy 
 centre, I will seek no other witness but this gentle- 
 man's own sudden motion against me. For you all 
 can testify there was no man interrupted him whilst 
 he said what he could against the honour of my 
 Sovereign Lord the King deceased, of whom he hath 
 used the extremest terms he could devise. And, 
 again, I presumed not to defend him until, with one 
 voice, you all had given me the charge and com- 
 
THE PILGRIM. 29 
 
 mission so to do. So that reason would he should 
 semblably have given me quiet audience, not to 
 speak as an indifferent, but as his plain contrary. 
 But when his appetite, hanging heavy in the balance, 
 had drawn his will so low that reason was clean 
 out of sight, then wrought his choler the venom 
 that he would have vomited against my truth. For 
 this will I offer, that if I be proved a liar, I am 
 content, not only to abide your sentence, but also 
 that punishment which he himself shall judge me 
 worthy/ With which words I paused, so that they, 
 fearing I would say no more, began of new to assure 
 me from hurt, and prayed me not to leave off so 
 rightly, but to return to my enterprised matter. 
 
 ' 3. ' Well/ said I, ' to satisfy you, I would take on 
 me much more labour than this, and therefore, 
 following my reason as touching the Bishop of 
 Bochester and Thomas More, whom the King's Ma- 
 jesty caused to be beheaded, if I should say that they 
 were not learned I should impugn the verity. But 
 in very deed their learning was much more grounded 
 on the Thomistical, Aristotelical, and Scholastical 
 philosophy, than in the Grospel of Christ, as here- 
 after you shall perceive. For when the King's High- 
 ness was fully persuaded to understand the Pope's 
 usurped power, not by these my rehearsed autho- 
 rities, but by more proofs than a whole Bible would 
 contain, and by the consent of the greatest learned 
 men's opinions of all the universities of Christen- 
 dom, as there be divers alive in Padua, Pavia, Bo- 
 logna, Paris, and elsewhere can testify, whose counsel 
 his Majesty examined or ever he would attempt 
 the disannulling and extirping thereof; his High- 
 
30 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 ness then, I say, called his general Parliament, 
 without which he determined no great matter. And 
 this Parliament, to let you wit, is divided into two 
 councils — the one of the Nobility and Prelates, and 
 the other of the Commons of the realm ; that is to 
 say, two of the wisest men of every city, of every 
 great borough, and of every province of his dominion. 
 Now, amongst these councils this Popish matter 
 was propounded, and there was pro et contra held 
 and kept more than a whole year long ; for in the 
 Parliament the law permitteth all men to speak 
 without danger, as well against as with the King. 
 So that the old superstition having more authority 
 in their obstinate hearts than the present verity, 
 would not give place unto the King's purpose, until 
 by open preaching throughout the realm, the blind 
 people began so manifestly to see, that many of 
 them who before most earnestly favoured the Pope 
 became then his greatest enemies. Whereof there 
 followed a statute, made by the same Parliament, 
 that no man upon pain of death should call the Pope 
 other than the Bishop of Eome, nor in any wise 
 maintain — and thus ceased the Pope's revenue — his 
 quarrel of Peter-pence, of jubilees, of indulgences, 
 of pardons and dispensations, and such other bag- 
 gage as beforetime availed the Pope's purpose better 
 than ioo,oco ducats a year out of England. 
 
 'You must now, nevertheless, understand that 
 though this act passed so in the Parliament, yet all 
 the parties in the same consented not unto it ; for 
 the judgment in the Parliament cases is given by 
 dividing the persons ; all that say yea on the one side 
 of the House, and all that say nay on the other 
 
THE PILGRIM. 31 
 
 side, and the most number do always attain the 
 sentence. And so the purpose of the Bishop of 
 Eochester, and More, among the rest, held with the 
 negative part, according to their consciences, as I 
 suppose. For when they saw the contrary to have 
 place then hanged they down their heads, and mur- 
 mured against the King, provoking his displeasure 
 otherwise than it became subjects to do, and his 
 Majesty thinking nevertheless by reason and fair 
 means and time to persuade them, supported their 
 ignorance more than nine months. But when their 
 predestinate mischief would not suffer his benignity 
 to overcome their hardened hearts, and that the 
 King at length perceived their invincible obstinacy 
 to have a beginning of operation — for the cardinal's 
 hat was already upon the way coming to the said 
 Bishop of Eochester, not only as a worthy reward 
 of his merit, but also as a buckler under the which 
 the Pope thought to handle his cruel sword — his 
 Highness, I say, fearing the example of his prede- 
 cessor, King John, or ever the hat arrived, shaved 
 the bishop's crown by the shoulders, to see after- 
 wards where the Pope could bestow his cardinal's 
 hat ; and served More of the same after he had left 
 them both four months in prison, and used all the 
 means possible to dissuade them from their errors.' 
 Here one of the gentlemen asked me what was 
 that King John that I had named. To whom I 
 answered that he was one that being King of Eng- 
 land more than 300 years agone, sought that time 
 to confound the Pope's usurped authority like as 
 the last King had done; but because his bishops 
 had at that time more power in his own realm than 
 
32 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 he, after seven years' excommunication he was con- 
 strained to renounce his royal crown into the Pope's 
 hands; remaining private a certain space, he at length 
 came on his knees before the Pope's legate to be 
 assoiled, and there thankfully received his crown 
 again. Was he not, trow you, well entreated ? I 
 wot he was, forsooth, and finally well rewarded ; for 
 a holy monk poisoned him, and so his miserable 
 reconcilement had a miserable end. 
 
 ' 4. And as for the King's usurping of the Papal 
 authority in dispensation of the Papal ecclesiastical 
 bishoprics and benefices, I am sure that it is not 
 unknown to you that every secular lord, as they call 
 them in most places of their dominions, have dis- 
 posed time out of mind, and given the private 
 benefices to what priests it hath pleased them by 
 the authority of the name of patrons of those bene- 
 fices. So that the King, having tried the substance 
 of the Papal authority with no less diligence than 
 alchemists do the metals at the fire, finding him- 
 self absolute patron of his private Christian domi- 
 nion, thought it more meet, as Prince and Apostle, 
 to attend himself unto the making and ordering of 
 the bishops of the English Church, than to suffer 
 one foreign bishop to make another by only infor- 
 mation of the great carrier Mr. Money ; and there- 
 fore enterprised to know both the person and 
 bishopric, or ever he would dispose the golden 
 mitre and silver pastoral. 
 
 1 But in the other things he hath nothing followed 
 the Papal dignity. For whereas the Pope, by his 
 indulgences and jubilees, draweth the person unto 
 idolatry to trust remission of sins in his beastly 
 
THE PILGRIM. 33 
 
 authority, and by dispensations encourageth men to 
 commit perjury, adultery, fornication, usury, murder, 
 and infinite other such, contrary to God's command- 
 ment, the King hath not willed to transform him- 
 self into the idol of neither of these two cases by 
 promising pardon of sins to them that believe in 
 him, or by dispensing with the damnable doings of 
 the wicked, but hath willed all men to be obedient 
 unto the laws of justice, acknowledging himself to 
 be less than a perfect man, and not more than a godly 
 Christian, as the Pope presumeth to be : — the trial 
 whereof is evident by the answer of Christ himself 
 unto the mother of the sons of Zebedee, when He 
 said it lay not with Him to grant the sitting in 
 heaven on His right hand or on His left unto John 
 and James, for they must sit there whom God the 
 Father hath ordained thereunto ; and the Pope, 
 remitting p&na el culpa, taketh out of heaven and 
 thrusteth into hell, and out of hell by the way of 
 his Purgatory carrieth into heaven whom it pleaseth 
 him, placing this saint amongst the quire of mar- 
 tyrs, and that other amongst the virgins, confessors, 
 and holy fathers, patriarchs, and false prophets, as 
 he list to canonize them ; of which canonization 
 our St. Thomas of Canterbury is one, whose spoiled 
 shrine and burned bones seemeth so greatly to 
 offend your conscience. 
 
 ' 5. And it is true, I cannot deny, but that the 
 King's Majesty found a wonderful great treasure 
 about the same : for in the space of more than 250 
 years, I think, there have been few kings or 
 princes of Christendom that did not either bring or 
 send some of their richest jewels thither ; and I re- 
 
34 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 port me unto you then, what the recourse of the 
 common people was to see that holy sepulchre, 
 being so preciously adorned with gold and stone, 
 that at midnight you might in some manner have 
 discovered all things as well as at noon day. 
 
 ' But now to speak of this saint's life and holiness 
 in few words — T shall relate unto you the effect of 
 this story. His father was an English merchant, hut 
 his mother was a Paynim, I wot not of what part 
 of Barbary ; and he, the said saint, was brought up 
 at school, where he studied so long that at length 
 he became well learned in the canon laws, and 
 then, grown unto man's years, he was brought 
 by friendship to the Court of the King, and made 
 the King's chaplain. This King was named Henry 
 the Second; and in process of time began so to 
 favour this blessed Saint Thomas for his courtly 
 behaviour, that, by little and little, he exalted him 
 from chaplain to a councillor, from councillor to 
 bishop, and from bishop to the highest unto him- 
 self — that is to say, Lord Chancellor of England. 
 Finally, this Henry the Second, by good occasion, 
 began to perceive the error of this malignant 
 Church that reigneth still here among you; and 
 like a good Christian Prince, would gladly have re- 
 formed it, first, with correcting of the ministers' 
 abominable life, and after with the due consequent 
 remedies. But this holy saint having for his part 
 the archbishopric of Canterbury, metropolitan of all 
 the others, with as good as 50,000 ducats of yearly 
 revenue, valiantly resisted him, and had that 
 courage that, apparelled in his pontificals, with the 
 mitre and golden cross, in the King's presence, he 
 
THE PILGRIM. 85 
 
 accursed all of them that, in deed or word, would 
 offend his Holy Mother Church, or any minister of 
 the same ; insomuch that the King, kindled by 
 his just disdain, banished him out of his sight, and 
 after remembering how villanously his unkind slave 
 in his own realm sought of a King to make him a 
 subject, sent some of his officers to lay hand on him. 
 But this saint, advised hereof by way of traitorous 
 intelligence, escaped out of the realm, and fled unto 
 Borne, where of the Pope he was worthily re- 
 ceived, quia mutuo militabant. And hereupon the 
 Holy Eoman Consistory excommunicated the King 
 and all his partakers, and openly interdicted the 
 realm of England, which interdiction had so much 
 the more effect, by as much as the other bishops 
 that remained at home were of more authority than 
 the King : so that, in term of four years there was 
 no mass sung, nor other like good thing said in the 
 churches. Finally, the Pope wrought so much 
 with the Most Christian King, and the Most Chris- 
 tian with the less Christian, that the saint was 
 reconciled, the priests licensed to consecrate, and 
 the Holy Mother Church in peace ; but there was a 
 triumph with ringing of bells, I trow. 
 
 'Well, sir, in conclusion, this blessed Saint 
 Thomas would not thus be contented, but after a 
 certain time his choler began to work, that he 
 ashamed not openly to use, I wot not what oppro- 
 brious words against the King, which one day were 
 referre'd to his Grace as he sat at meat. ' Yea/ said 
 the King, ' have I brought him up of nought to 
 drive me out of my realm ? If I were served with 
 men as I am with women, he should not thus con- 
 
 d 2 
 
36 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 tend with me in mine own house/ These words 
 were marked of them that waited at the table, in 
 such wise that, without more ado, even four of those 
 gentlemen waiters conferred together, and straight- 
 way took their journey to Canterbury, where, tarry- 
 ing their time, one evening finding the bishop in 
 the common cloister, after they had asked him cer- 
 tain questions, whereto he most arrogantly made 
 answer, they slew him. And thus began the holi- 
 ness. For incontinently as these gentlemen were 
 departed, the monks of that monastery locked up 
 the church doors, and persuaded the people that the 
 bells fell on ringing by themselves ; and there was 
 crying of ' Miracles ! miracles !' so earnestly, that 
 the devilish monks, to nourish the superstition of 
 this new-martyred saint, having the place long time 
 separate unto themselves, quia propter sanguinem 
 suspenduntur sacra, corrupted the fresh water of a 
 well there with a certain mixture, that many times 
 it appeared bloody, which, they persuaded, should 
 proceed by miracle of the holy martyrdom. And this 
 water marvellously cured all manner infirmities, in- 
 somuch that the ignorant multitude came running 
 thither of all lands ; especially after that these false 
 miracles were confirmed by the Pope's canonization, 
 which followed within four years after, as soon as 
 the Eoman See had ratified the saint's glory in 
 heaven. Yea, and more ; these feigned miracles had 
 such credit at length, that the poor King himself 
 was persuaded to believe them, and, in effect, came 
 in person to visit the holy place, with great re- 
 pentance for his passed well-doing; and for the 
 satisfaction of his sins, gave many great and fair 
 
THE PILGRIM. 37 
 
 possessions unto the monastery of the aforesaid 
 religious. And thus, finally, was this holy martyr 
 sanctified of all hands. But the King's Majesty 
 that now is dead, finding the manner of this saint's 
 life to agree ill with proportion to a very saint, and 
 marvelling at the virtue of this water that healed 
 all diseases, as the blind world believed, determined 
 to have substantial proof of this thing, and, in effect, 
 found these miracles to be utterly false. For when 
 the superstition was taken away from the ignorant 
 multitude, then ceased also the virtue of this water, 
 which now remaineth plain water, as all other waters 
 do. So that the King, moved of necessity, could no 
 less do than deface the shrine that was author of so 
 much idolatry. "Whether the doing thereof hath 
 been the undoing of the canonized saint or no, I 
 cannot tell; but this is true, that his bones are 
 spread amongst the bones of so many dead men, that, 
 without some great miracle, they will not be found 
 again.' 
 
 ' By my troth,' said one of the gentlemen, e in 
 this your King did as I would have done.' 
 
 ' What ?' said my adversary, ' do you credit 
 him ?' 
 
 ' Within a little,' said that other ; ' for his tale is 
 sensible. And I have known of the like false 
 miracles here in Italy proved before my face.' 
 
 ' 6. 'Now,' quoth I, ' hearken well unto me in 
 this mine answer against miracles, and you shall 
 hear things of another sort. In times past, Eng- 
 land hath been occupied with more pilgrimages 
 than Italy is now. For as you have here our Lady 
 in so many places — di Loretto, di Gracia, di Mira- 
 
38 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 coli, l'Annunciata, di Fiorenza, San Boches, San 
 Antonio di Padua that presented God's body to 
 an ass, and so many others as ye know ; even so 
 had we our Lady of Walsingham, of Penrice, of 
 Islington, St. Thomas, St. John of Salstone that 
 conjured the devil into a book, and so many holy 
 roods that it was a wonder. And here and there 
 ran all the world ; yea, the King himself, till God 
 opened his eyes, was as blind and obstinate as the 
 rest. I mean in the time when he wrote against 
 Martin Luther. And those roods and these our 
 Ladies were all of another sort than these your 
 saints be; for there were few of them but that 
 with engines that were in them could beckon, either 
 with their heads and hands, or move their eyes, or 
 manage some part of their bodies, to the purpose 
 that the friars and priests would use them ; and 
 especially one Christ Italianate, that with the head 
 answered yea and nay at all demands. 
 
 ' But, among the rest, I shall tell you one thing 
 especially. In a certain monastery called Hailes, 
 there was a great offering to the blood of Christ, 
 brought thither many years agone out of the Holy 
 Land of Jerusalem ; and this blood had such virtue 
 that, as long as the pilgrim was in deadly crime, his 
 sight would not serve him to regard it, but incon- 
 tinently as he was in the state of grace he should 
 clearly behold it. See here the craft of these devilish 
 soul-quellers ! It behoved each person that came 
 thither to see it, first to confess himself, and then, 
 paying a certain to the common of the monastery, 
 to enter into a chapel, upon the altar whereof this 
 blood should be showed him. There, meanwhile, 
 
THE PILGRIM. 39 
 
 by a secret way behind the altar, came the monk 
 that had confessed him, and presented upon the 
 altar a pix of crystal, great and thick as a ball on 
 the one side and thin as a glass on the other side ; 
 in the which the blood on the thin side was open 
 and clear to the sight, and on the thick side impos- 
 sible to be discerned. ~Now if this holy confessor 
 thought by the confession that he had heard that 
 the quality of the party confessed would yield him 
 more money, then showed he forth the thick side 
 of the pix, through which the blood was invisible ; 
 so that the person, seeing himself remain in deadly 
 sin, must turn and return to his confessor, till, by 
 paying for masses and other such alms, he had 
 purchased the light of the thin side of the crystal, 
 and then was he safe in the favour of Grod until he 
 fell in sin again. And what blood, trow you, was 
 this ? These monks (for there were two especially 
 and secretly appointed to this office) every Satur- 
 day killed a duck, and revived therewith this con- 
 secrated blood, as they themselves confessed, not 
 only in secret but also openly, and before an ap- 
 proved audience. 
 
 ' And was this miracle, think you, alone ? No, 
 no, alas ! if I should train you with the rehearsal 
 of spiritual miracles, I should tell you of thousands 
 as true as this, or rather better ; for we had holy 
 maidens that lived not by manna as the Jews in 
 the desert, but by food of impalpable spirits; 
 and such as could tell all the secrets of God, 
 and how all men's matters went in heaven ; where - 
 unto this your gallant auricular confession was 
 so diligent a minister that it were a wonder to 
 
40 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 tell. And can you blame the King though he 
 hanged and burned those hypocritical knaves and 
 whores that were authors and actors of so much 
 abomination and superstition ? And did he not as 
 good service unto God in destroying the places of 
 these imaginary saints that drew the people unto 
 the belief and trust of these false miracles, as the 
 good Hezekiah, King of Judah, did in destroying 
 the Mosaical brazen serpent and overthrowing the 
 excelsa, the images, and hallowed woods conse- 
 crated to their idols ? Yea, undoubtedly did he. 
 For all the miracles that the blind people conceive 
 to proceed from these images, or by means of these 
 represented saints, are clean repugnant to the 
 Christian faith, and also unto God's perfection. 
 And the reason is this : God is only divine and 
 perfect, who by His Divinity of nought hath created 
 all things, and in His perfection containeth and 
 governeth all things to that end that He immu- 
 tably hath determined. And every angel, every 
 devil, and every man is a creature without either 
 deity or perfection, since everything that hath 
 beginning or end is imperfect. And whereas God 
 is present everywhere, and worketh all in all things 
 as Paul affirmeth, the creature, contrarily, is pre- 
 sent only to the place of his service ; as the angels 
 in heaven, the devils in hell, and the men in earth. 
 Now to my purpose ; if the saints, who are crea- 
 tures, be in heaven, and want, as they do indeed, 
 the perfection of God's Divinity, how is it possible 
 that, absent from the earth, the saints, whom the 
 earthly man imagineth for his advocates, should 
 hear the man's prayer, though well he would cry 
 
THE PILGRIM. 41 
 
 with a trumpet's voice towards heaven, Bancta 
 Maria, ora pro me? And again, none knoweth 
 man's thoughts but Grod alone ; neither angel, 
 saint, nor devil ; for the Scriptures affirm God to be 
 the only Searcher of the heart; so that, neither 
 hearing me nor knowing my heart, it is impossible 
 how the saints should be means of my relief. And 
 as it is proved before, the Holy Scriptures affirm 
 Christ to be only Mediator betwixt Grod and man, 
 prohibiting all faithful Christians to seek other 
 means ; for who recurreth to the saint cannot deny 
 but that he trusteth sooner to speed that way than 
 by the immediate going unto Christ, and so 
 doubteth in Him in whom only he ought to trust. 
 For maintenance of which their infidelity these 
 sophistical theologians have made them a god of 
 glass, wherein they imagine the saints to behold 
 our necessities, appointing every one of them unto 
 a private office ; like as first one Dennis, and after 
 him Thomas of Aquinas, hath placed the offices of 
 angels, this to the cherubim and that to the flying 
 seraphim, that other to the dominations, and so 
 forth, after his own fantastical imagination, con- 
 trary to the doctrine of Paul, who, being ravished 
 to the third heavens, saw things not lawful to be 
 spoken : whereas this blessed Thomas, ravished in 
 his own conceit above all the heavens, hath spoken 
 of the celestial spirits things that he never heard 
 nor saw. But the ignorant multitude that are 
 always more inclinable unto error than unto the 
 truth, have tasted such a savour in their imagina- 
 tions, that because Grod commonly granteth not the 
 things that they most desire, they therefore have 
 
42 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 framed gods that will do for them when they be 
 prayed unto, believing the better to attain their 
 purpose by many than by one. 
 
 ' And hereof hath it followed that when some 
 person hath escaped any imminent danger, re- 
 covered health from a grievous sickness, or cure of 
 a sore wound, passed some dangerous tempests of 
 the sea, or obtained some victory in arms, or some 
 riches or possessions, incontinently he yieldeth 
 thanks therefore unto his familiar advocate in 
 heaven, bv whose means he imasrineth to have re- 
 ceived such benefits ; which otherwise the mutable 
 God, as he believeth, would never have granted 
 him ; and therefore runneth to this or that image 
 with candles, torches, lamps, incense, bells, and 
 a thousand other tricks ; affirming this and that 
 miracle, which in effect are no other but their 
 false and ignorant imaginations. And as to the 
 burning of lights before those images, it is so 
 foolish a thing that meseemeth it rather meriteth 
 to be laughed at than spoken against. But this 
 take I to be the reason that moveth them there- 
 unto ; because the light of the sun sumceth not to 
 direct the eyes of those their dumb idols by the 
 day, therefore in the daytime do they serve them 
 with enforced light that should serve for the night ; 
 Or else they do it to blemish withal the brightness 
 of the sun, whose light may perchance be no less 
 enemy to their nature than contrary to the light of 
 the night owl ; for by right they agree so well with 
 the dark, that till the sun's arising, they need no 
 light at all. This I speak for the formal saints ; 
 for that deformed body, which, of all others, is sup- 
 
THE PILGRIM. 43 
 
 posed to liave most life, may in no wise want light 
 in the night, but perchance he should happen to 
 arise at some inconvenient hour. But what need I 
 thus to occupy myself with those foolish saints and 
 pilgrims, since the thing is now so manifest unto 
 all men that have eyes, that who is he that 
 cannot with reason, beside the authority of the 
 Scriptures, confound this ignorance ? Wherefore I 
 will now despite me to speak of the monasteries 
 which his Majesty suppressed, to the intent that 
 you may understand what was the first occasion 
 thereof. 
 
 ' 7. And thus. When his Highness had found out 
 the falsehood of these jugglers, who led the people 
 unto tliis idolatry of worshipping of saints, believing 
 of miracles, and going on pilgrimage here and there 
 (as unto this hour you see it used here in Italy), 
 being persuaded by the presumption of these special 
 things that I have rehearsed, and of infinite others 
 too long now to be mentioned, that these abominable 
 friars were the very false prophets and roaring 
 wolves whom Christ prophesieth in the Gospel 
 should come under the apparel of lambs to devour 
 the flock of true Christians — his Majesty, for the 
 better discovering of these hypocrites, sent forth 
 commissioners into all the provinces of his realm, 
 to examine particularly the manner of living that 
 these ribalds used. Now came the matter fully to 
 light ; for when the commissioners had taken upon 
 them the charge of this examination, and began 
 one by one to examine these friars, monks, and nuns 
 upon their oaths, sworn upon the Evangelists, there 
 were discovered hypocrisies, murders, idolatries, 
 
44 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 miracles, sodomies, adulteries, fornications, pride, 
 and not 7, but more than 700,000 deadly sins. 
 
 ' Alas ! my heart maketh all my members to 
 tremble with another manner of fever than is the 
 quartain, when I remember all the abomination 
 that there was tried out. Oh Lord Grod (speaking 
 under correction), what canst Thou answer to the 
 Five Cities consumed with celestial fire, when 
 they shall allege before Thee the iniquities of 
 those religious whom Thou hast so long supported ? 
 Note well (said I), these few words, and I shall 
 tell you : — In their dark and sharp prisons there 
 were found dead so many of their brethren that it 
 was a wonder ; some crucified with more torments 
 than ever men heard of, and some famished only for 
 breaking of their superstitious silence, or some like 
 trifle; and especially on some children there was 
 used a cruelty not to be spoken with human 
 tongue. There was of the hermits some one that, 
 under colour of confession, had used carnally with 
 more than 200 or 300 gentlewomen and women 
 of reputation, whose names, enrolled by command- 
 ment, they showed unto the commissioners, inso- 
 much that some of the selfsame commissioners 
 found of their own wives titled among the rest, 
 with what conscience I report me unto you. There 
 was working of wonders ; the friars and nuns were 
 as whores and thieves in the open street, and 
 there were saints that made the barren women 
 bring forth children; unto whom there wanted 
 no resort from all parts of the kingdom. Alas ! 
 what should I say when Ptolemy his discourse, 
 Pliny his memory, and Augustine his pen, joined 
 
THE PILGRIM. 45 
 
 in one man, should not satisfy to make him an apt 
 author of so detestable a history as this abomina- 
 tion requireth ? 
 
 * Well, to my purpose. In conclusion, upon the 
 return of these commissioners, when the King was 
 fully informed of the case, incontinently he called 
 his Parliament ; but, or ever the councillors of the 
 same could assemble together, here came that abbot, 
 and there came that prior ; now came that abbess, 
 and there came that prioress from all parts of the 
 realm unto the King, offering their monasteries 
 into his hands ; beseeching him to pardon them 
 their sins de pcend only, and not de culpa; insomuch 
 that his Majesty accepted many of them, and par- 
 doned them all except a few only of the most 
 notable ribalds, whom, for the others' example, he 
 caused to suffer death in divers ways as their hor- 
 rible cases diversely merited. And thereupon fol- 
 lowing the said Parliament, in the which all these 
 matters were not only published, but also confessed by 
 the false religious persons brought openly in judg- 
 ment, it was concluded, both by the Barons and also 
 by the Commons of the said Parliament, that these 
 monasteries should be extirped, and the goods and 
 revenues thereof disposed as the King and his 
 council should think it expedient. He had made 
 his learned doctors to search out the grounds of 
 these many evils of religion, who, conferring the 
 same substantially with the Gospel, found it to be 
 clean contrary to the Christian religion, by many 
 more reasons than I can well remember. Never- 
 theless, for your satisfaction, I shall here rehearse 
 one or two of them, to the intent you may the 
 
46 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 better taste what wickedness that superstitious reli- 
 gion doth comprehend. 
 
 ' First, the religious do profess themselves to live 
 much more nobly than the secular people do, and 
 by as much as they can, will persuade the world 
 that they are no sinners, but just and upright 
 persons, by which reason they have wiped them- 
 selves clean out of Christ's vocation, who saith He 
 came not to call the just person but the sinner. 
 And then the good works that they pretended to 
 do are all outward works ; as apparelling themselves 
 in religious habits, singing and roaring in the quire, 
 saying of their service in Latin, with matins and 
 masses, and holy abstinence from flesh this day 
 and that morrow, when they have filled their bellies 
 with good fish, fruit, and wine. And such other 
 are their holy outward operations ; whereas Christ 
 exhort eth us to beware that we work not our justice 
 before man, but secretly in giving of alms, that 
 the one hand know not what the other doth ; in 
 quiet and hearty prayers ; in fastings, and charity, 
 and so forth j of which inward virtues those religious 
 are known to be utterly void. 
 
 ' Furthermore, the vows that these religious make, 
 and that they teach others to make, are clean re- 
 pugnant to Christ's doctrine, who teacheth His 
 faithful evermore humbly to submit themselves to 
 the will of the Father, as by the example of 
 His prayer which He made in the garden the 
 night before His death, it is manifest. For when 
 the flesh had prayed the Father to deliver Him 
 from that present passion, incontinent the spirit 
 rebuked Himself, saying, 'No, Father; not as I 
 
THE PILGRIM. 47 
 
 will, but as Thou wilt.' And yet these religious 
 promising unto God that which already they 
 are bound to observe — that is to say, chastity, 
 charity, obedience, and poverty, which in effect 
 the infirmity of the flesh alloweth no creature to 
 perform — will not that God deal with them as He 
 will, but as they will themselves ; who with their 
 superstitious works will enforce God to give them, 
 not only health and wealth in this world, but also 
 Paradise in the other world ; and by their example 
 have taught the ignorant multitude not to content 
 themselves with the infirmities, adversities, poverties, 
 persecutions, and passions that God sendeth them 
 in this world, but with vows of images, of tables, of 
 pilgrimage, of change of apparel, and of such other 
 baggage, to enforce God by His saints, and not by 
 Christ, to give them health, prosperity, riches, and 
 joy, according to their inconstant pleasure. And 
 hereof hath followed the building of monasteries, 
 synagogues, chapels, chantries, with burning of 
 lights, incense, singing of masses, and ringing of 
 bells, when the blind people have believed with these 
 worldly trifles to gratify the Divine Majesty. But 
 what saith the prophet ? what saith Stephen ? what 
 saith Paul ? c God/ say they, ' dwelleth not in 
 temples made with hands, nor can receive nothing 
 of any earthly matter; for what things have we 
 here that He hath not created, and what availeth 
 it unto God our foolish sacrifices ?' As David saith, 
 4 If thou, Lord, wouldst have sacrifices, I would 
 have offered them unto Thee, but the incense 
 pleaseth Thee not/ The true sacrifice, therefore, 
 unto God, is the humble, contrite, and contented 
 
48 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 spirit, and not these temples, incenses, images, 
 flesh, fish, or fruit. And so much found those 
 doctors to say against those religious that, in con- 
 clusion, they condemned them to be worse infidels 
 and enemies unto God than the idolater Caffraries 
 of India found out by the Portugals.' 
 
 ■ Caffraries/ said one of the gentlemen, ' what 
 be they, I pray you f 
 
 1 They be/ said I, e a certain people that do wor- 
 ship the devil in images, as you do here the saints.' 
 
 ' And by what reason/ said he, ' should they 
 worship the devil?' 
 
 ' By such a reason/ said I, ' as will make you to 
 wonder. First, they believe one virtuous God to 
 be the universal Creator of all things, who, in His 
 perfection, must needs be just. And then, by the 
 only law of nature, and by the malice that reigneth 
 in the flesh, they acknowledge themselves in envy 
 and other such to be contrary unto the divine 
 virtue, so that the justice, as they believe, cannot 
 less do than condemn them unto perpetual damna- 
 tion, whereof the devil is minister ; and so imagining 
 that who most devoutly serveth the devil in this 
 world, must of reason receive of him most favour 
 when he cometh to him in the other world, they 
 therefore most diligently observe infinitely their 
 ceremonies unto the devil with fasting, alms, and 
 prayer, in hope that their present penance shall be 
 a mitigation of their pains to come. Tell me now, 
 I pray you, how you like all this.' 
 
 ' As I do all the rest/ said my Contrary ; f for in 
 this case you prefer them that serve the devil before 
 the servants of God.' 
 
THE PILGRIM. 49 
 
 * 'No,' said I, ' you mistake me. For your monks, 
 friars, and nuns, I say, serve not God, but serve 
 themselves, proudly presuming against God to be 
 just, holy, and righteous of themselves ; whereas the 
 other poor idolaters confessed God only to be vir- 
 tuous and themselves to be sinners ; and therefore 
 will I so prefer them, that if they had knowledge 
 of God's mercy in Christ as we have, I fear me 
 their works would prove much more Christian than 
 ours do. But come we to an end with these our 
 religious. Finally, these doctors found that Paul 
 in his Epistles had reproved the Christians for 
 dividing themselves after the manner of these 
 Christian preachers, who had been ministers unto 
 their conversion, because some one said, ' I am of 
 Paul / and another said, ' I am of Apollos / ' I of 
 Cephas ;' and ' I of Christ/ What said Paul ? 
 ' Was I crucified for you ? Is Christ divided among 
 you ? No/ said he, ' I have taught you to be one 
 self thing in Christ in those divisions, either of name 
 or of doing/ So that, in conclusion, these orders 
 of Francis and Dominick, of Bennet and Bridget, and 
 of so many others, were condemned by those doctors 
 as things clean contrary unto the true Christian 
 religion, in which all the faithful to Christ bound 
 in one knot of charity, in belief of clean remission 
 of sins, are regenerate to one self order and rule, 
 without difference either of name, habit, order, or 
 colour. Wherefore, the King being clearly per- 
 suaded of all hands that this unhappy, idle, and 
 devilish generation was to be rooted out of the 
 world, proceeded then to the destruction of these 
 synagogues with the self-same diligence Titus and 
 
 E 
 
50 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 Vespasian used towards the destruction of Jeru- 
 salem. And did he not there as he should do, 
 trow ye ?' 
 
 ' Yea/ said one of these gentlemen ; ' if he had 
 disposed these things to the use of the poor and 
 needful, and not taken it into his own private com- 
 modity.' 
 
 ' Against the poor/ said I, ' I will not speak ; hut 
 thus much I will say, that if all the substance had 
 been converted to the poor, the poor should have 
 become richer than the princes and nobles ; for our 
 religious in England were quasi nihil habentes et 
 omnia possidentes, not in spirit but in deed. I wot 
 how your friars here in Italy observe their sworn 
 poverty ; and yet this is well true that his Majesty 
 in divers provinces of the realm hath converted 
 divers of these monasteries towards the bringing 
 up of orphans and instruction of the poor, though 
 will that part be but a small quantity in respect of 
 the whole. 
 
 ' 8. And thus because I will not be tedious, having 
 said enough, as meseemeth, unto this point, I will 
 now answer unto the insurrection of the North,* 
 which was cause of the death of those noblemen 
 that my Contrary hath here spoken of. 
 
 ' True it is that when those commissioners who 
 had the charge of inquisitions on these friary 
 matters had passed throughout the realm, here and 
 there whereas their commissions led them, these 
 our holy spiritual religious, who had been shriven 
 of the lay persons with another manner of auri- 
 
 * See Note C. p. 104. 
 
THE PILGRIM. 51 
 
 • 
 
 cular confessions than the Lently penitential sacra- 
 ment requireth, suspecting the sequel of that which 
 justly followed indeed, hegan with sowing of sedi- 
 tions here and there, to corrupt the minds of the 
 ignorant and inconstant people ; insomuch that a 
 cobbler (mark these beginnings), encouraged by the 
 presumptuous audacity of one private monk in the 
 city of Lincoln, gathered unto him certain other 
 artisans and villains such as he was himself, and in 
 less than three daj^s made himself a head of better 
 than 3000 men, and under the name of Captain 
 Cobbler, began a brave rebellion, laying hands on 
 divers of the King's ministers, and putting some of 
 them unto death, with robbing and spoiling some 
 others, as it seemed them to make for their purpose, 
 so that, had not there been gentlemen who, by fair 
 means, by authority and friendship, pacified the 
 ignorant multitude, no doubt of it, there should 
 have followed such effusion of blood, such robberies 
 and flames, as an hundred thousand flattering friars, 
 with their catalogic sermons, could never have recom- 
 pensed. Behold here the peril of this nation, who, 
 for a cobbler and a knavish friar, not knowing any 
 cause why, and without either money or provisions, 
 would thus suddenly dispose themselves to war 
 against their own blood ! What, trow you, would 
 they have done under some nobleman, upon some 
 ground, with men and money? No, no, I shall 
 tell you more ; if this cobbler had had the know- 
 ledge how to govern these men when he had them 
 together, to have gone forwards towards some enter- 
 prise, within less than two days more he should 
 have found better than 20,000 men more to have 
 
 e 2 
 
52 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 followed him. But when they were together, they 
 wist not what to do, and therefore the authority 
 and the wisdom of the gentlemen the King's 
 friends, without force or stripes, so confounded 
 them, that they fled every man to his own home 
 with more diligence than they came forth ; and so 
 the matter quieted, and a few of the principalest 
 taken and hanged, the number was pardoned with- 
 out more ado. 
 
 1 But see what mischief followed of this possi- 
 bility. Those our religious men knowing right 
 well what this Captain Cobbler would have done, and 
 not regarding what became of him indeed, disposed 
 themselves anew to prove their fortune, being as- 
 sured that if the King's Majesty should continue, 
 there was none other but rack with them : and 
 therefore, in the furthest part of the North, began 
 another rebellion, the captain whereof was named 
 Aske, a man of mean degree. And this second 
 rebellion was of another sort than the first ; for in 
 few days they had made an army of 16 or 17,000 
 men, whereof there were certain noble persons, and 
 many men of reputation, especially of the prelates 
 of your Mother Church, for whose whorish defence 
 all this sedition was moved. And this army came 
 on, journey by journey, towards the heart of the 
 realm, little less than 100 miles, until, by force of 
 floody waters, and not by resistance of men, they 
 were stayed before Doncaster, in the county of 
 York. And mark here the judgment and provi- 
 dence of Grod ; the King was then at "Windsor 
 Castle, besides London, making of men and putting 
 of order here and there for his defence, as the case 
 
THE PILGRIM. 53 
 
 required • but his people came so slowly unto him, 
 his secret superstitious enemies within his realm 
 were so many, and the fury and power of this new- 
 raised army so great and sudden, that he wist not 
 well whom to trust, nor what to do ; so that for ex- 
 treme remedy, he sent his chief councillors unto 
 Doncaster to treat with the rebels, to hear what 
 they would demand, and to promise them what they 
 would ask : which councillors used all diligence to 
 arrive at the appointed place, where they treated 
 with these adversaries according to their commis- 
 sions. But had it not been that the waters letted 
 them so long of their passage that their victuals 
 and money were clean consumed, those rebels had, 
 for that time, given small audience to any treaty. 
 Finally, the presence of those councillors had so 
 much authority amongst the enemies, that, with 
 reason and fair promises, they were appeased. For 
 when they came to reasoning, in very deed they 
 wist not well what to demand, except the preserva- 
 tion of their Holy Mother Church, which their 
 prelates and religious did evermore beat into their 
 heads ; and so, in effect, the King at that time par- 
 doned them all, as you have alleged. Now, here 
 cometh the matter that ofTendeth you. Divers of 
 those persons, as well nobles as others, when they 
 were returned to their quiet houses, and saw plainly 
 that the King did constantly follow the reformation 
 of the abominable Church, could not for all this 
 be contented to see the things pass against their 
 superstitious belief, but incontinently renewed the 
 old practice of rebelling again; and in one place 
 there were gathered together 200, in another place 
 
54 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 ioo, here 50, there 20, and there 10, so that all the 
 country was in a new rumour. But the garrisons 
 of men that the King had this meanwhile spread 
 through those countries, incontinently overcame 
 those small commotions, in such wise that for fear 
 each man withdrew him to his house. And the 
 matter after substantially examined, the prin- 
 cipalest of them were taken, and certain of them 
 hanged and beheaded ; that is to say, the Captain 
 Aske, the Lord Darcy a baron, four or five knights 
 of account, and eight or nine gentlemen, besides 
 certain religious monks that were the ticklers of all 
 this mischief. So that they who were put to death 
 suffered not for their first rebellion — that they were 
 pardoned for — but for the second commotion, where- 
 in was found a continuance of their prepensed ma- 
 lice, not so much (as I believe) against the King's 
 person, as against the light of the verity which 
 their superstitious consciences would not allow. 
 And how say you now? Know you any Prince 
 that would have done less than this in so im- 
 portant a case ?' 
 
 f I cannot tell you/ said mine adversary, ' how 
 well here is manifest effusion of Christian blood/ 
 
 ' Alas V said I, ' can that hardened heart of yours 
 relent unto no reason ? Tell me, I pray you, but 
 your opinion in this one question I shall ask you. 
 When this body is burdened with an extreme fever, 
 or other sickness, through the corruption of corrupt 
 blood, the continuance whereof should put him in 
 danger of his life, doth the physician well, by in- 
 cisions of his veins, to draw away his blood that is 
 enemy of this man's health, or were it better, by 
 
THE PILGRIM. 55 
 
 suffering it to continue, he should let the man abide 
 in peril of destruction of his body ?' 
 
 'Oh/ said my Contrary, ' what a question is this !' 
 ' Why then,' said I, ' you must needs grant me 
 that better it was to draw blood of a few persons 
 who were the corruption of a whole realm, than to 
 suffer the whole realm to perish. For if they might 
 have had their wills, the least thing that could 
 have followed must needs have been the blood- 
 shedding of a stricken civil battle ; and when well 
 they had overcome the King, there would have fol- 
 lowed none other but perpetual contention, undoing 
 of themselves and of their neighbours, to bring 
 their country a prey unto strange nations. But 
 unto you there helpeth neither reason nor argu- 
 ments ; and therefore, since I see I cannot satisfy 
 you, I will dispose to satisfy these gentlemen as 
 near as I can. 
 
 ' 9. Now, as touching the King's so many wives, 
 whom he chopped and changed at his pleasure (as 
 you say), the truth is, that he hath had a great 
 many wives, and with some of them hath had as 
 ill-luck as any other poor man ; and I shall plainly 
 tell you, from one to one, how the matters have 
 passed. That gentle and virtuous Lady Katherine, 
 his first wife, was divorced from him, as you have 
 heard, because she had been wife unto his elder 
 brother; and in effect, within two or three years 
 after that the King was married anew, whether it 
 were by consumption of thought, or by course of 
 nature, I cannot tell, she yielded her spirit unto 
 God, leaving none other fruit behind her but her 
 daughter, that courteous Lady Mary, whom we 
 
56 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 have so often mentioned. Now, incontinently after 
 that divorce, the King married his second wife, as 
 I have said, named the Lady Anne Bolene, whose 
 liberal life were too shameful to rehearse.* Once 
 she was as wise a woman, indued with as many out- 
 ward good qualities in playing on instruments, 
 singing, and such other courtly graces, as few 
 women were of her time ; with such a certain out- 
 ward profession of gravity as was to be marvelled 
 at. But inwardly she was all another dame than 
 she seemed to be ; for in satisfying of her carnal 
 appetite, she fled not so much as the company of 
 her own natural brother, besides the company of 
 some three or four others of the gallantest gentle- 
 men that were about the King's proper person, who 
 were all so familiarly drawn into her train by her 
 own devilish devices, that it should seem she was 
 always well occupied : the busy doing whereof gave 
 the King great cause of suspicion ; so that finding 
 by search the imagined mischief to have effect, he 
 was forced to proceed therein by way of open justice, 
 where the matter was manifested unto the whole 
 world, and the sentence given against them : inso- 
 much that both she and her brother, and the four 
 other gentlemen, were beheaded : for adultery in a 
 King's wife weigheth no less than the wrong reign 
 of a bastard prince, which thing for a commonwealth 
 ought specially to be regarded. And, besides this, 
 it was laid to her charge, that she, with some 
 of the rest, had conspired the King's death, to 
 avoid the danger of the wickedness which they 
 
 * See Note D. p. 116. 
 
THE PILGRIM. 57 
 
 perceived could not long be kept secret. And this 
 second wife lived with the King about the space of 
 four years, having issue a daughter by him named 
 the Lady Elizabeth, which is at this present, at 
 the age of fourteen years or thereabouts, a very 
 witty and gentle young lady. 
 
 ' Now when the first wife was dead and the second 
 beheaded, then was the King undoubtedly clear of 
 all sides ; and in that estate took to wife the Lady 
 Jane Seymour, one of the humblest and chastest 
 maidens in the world, replete of all beauty and 
 wisdom ; who, living in perfect and loving matri- 
 mony with his Majesty the term of eighteen months 
 or thereabouts, brought into the world that happy 
 Prince Edward that now succeedeth the father unto 
 the crown, in whose birth she died ; a death surely 
 much lamented of all the King's subjects, as few 
 the like, for a woman, hath ever been heard of.* 
 
 ' But to be brief. After her death the King re- 
 mained a widower almost two years, till at length, 
 upon agreement, he coupled with the sister of the 
 Duke of Cleves, with whom he continued half a year, 
 until information was brought him that she, the 
 Lady Anne of Cleves, had been troth plight before 
 with the Duke of Lorraine his son. And this re- 
 port went sore unto the King's heart, who loved 
 this woman out of measure; for why? her per- 
 sonage, her beauty, and gesture did no less merit it. 
 But when he understood that she was indeed an- 
 other man's wife, what for his own conscience, and 
 what for respect of the inconvenience that in this 
 
 * See Note E. page nj. 
 
58 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 case might follow unto his succession, he called his 
 Parliament, where, after long reasoning and proof, 
 concluding that the promise made between man 
 and woman is it that maketh the marriage between 
 husband and wife, and not the ceremony of the 
 temple, his Majesty was there openly divorced 
 from her. Howbeit, for the singular love he bare 
 unto her, he offered her liberty to remain in Eng- 
 land at his honourable provision, or to return into 
 her country with worthy reward. So that she, 
 electing England's provision, was appointed by his 
 Majesty unto fo^: excellent fair palaces, with all 
 kinds of commodities, and better than 20,000 crowns 
 of yearly revenue; wherein she livethlike a Princess 
 as she is.* 
 
 ' And thus separated from her, he married his fifth 
 wife, named Katherine, of the house of Norfolk,! 
 a very beautiful gentlewoman, and, to worldly judg- 
 ment, a very virtuous and chaste creature, though 
 in effect the contrary was found afterwards. Eor 
 ere ever she continued two years the King's wife, 
 it was heard that before her marriage she had con- 
 taminated her virginity, and afterwards committed, 
 or, at the leastwise, sought means to commit, 
 adultery. So that, in conclusion, she and two other 
 gentlemen with her, after condemnation before the 
 justice, were beheaded. And finally, this his last 
 wife, likewise named Katherine, was married unto 
 him a widow, after that she had been wife unto two 
 noble barons of the realm, deceased. And it is 
 thought that his Majesty married more for the 
 
 * See Note F. p. 121. f See Note G. p. 158. 
 
THE PILGRIM. 59 
 
 same proof of her constant virtue than for any 
 carnal desire. For, remembering the dishonour 
 that he had received by the lightness of his other 
 two wives beheaded, he thought now good to fasten 
 upon an approved dame, as he did indeed : for this 
 lady hath lived thirty-three or thirty-four years with- 
 out spot of blame, how well she is right fair and excel- 
 lent, proportionable of body, beloved of all creatures, 
 and courteous as may be, whose fortune hath had 
 place to see the death of that husband that had 
 seen the death of so many wives. And, amongst all 
 the happy successes that the said King hath had in 
 this life, I reckon this one of the special, that, after 
 so many changes, his glorious chance hath brought 
 him to die in the arms of so faithful a spouse/ 
 
 ' The discourse of these wives/ said one of the 
 gentlemen, ' is a wonderful history. But one thing 
 maketh me to marvel/ said he, c that when those 
 wives had so offended the King, he did not rather 
 rid them by some fair means out of the way secretly, 
 than so openly to manifest his own dishonour to 
 the world/ 
 
 ' I shall tell you why/ said I. ' In such things 
 his Majesty had as upright a conscience as any living 
 man ; and, I dare say, would not have consented 
 unto the murder of one of them secretly for all the 
 goods of the world. And, again, he esteemed not 
 the dishonour of the matter, since the fault pro- 
 ceeded from the woman, who for the same suffered 
 open punishment; so that he accounted himself 
 always clear before Grod and man. And thus hath 
 he had six wives, whereof two have died in their 
 beds, two have suffered for adultery, and two are yet 
 
60 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 living (as you say). But the one of them, you must 
 consider, was the first wife before God of the Duke 
 of Lorraine's son, as I have said before, and not 
 unto the King. So that he that would learn the 
 truth of matters must covet to know as well the 
 contra as thejyro, or ever he can judge well. For 
 he that giveth credit unto the first information 
 without hearing the answer, is most commonly 
 deceived : and so were you, master mine/ said I 
 to my Contrary. 
 
 ' Good faith/ said he, ' I cannot tell what I should 
 say • for the reports that I have rehearsed I have 
 heard them of credible persons and of men of 
 good intelligence, who persuaded me undoubtedly 
 to believe as I have said. And though I have now 
 well heard your answer, yet am I not fully per- 
 suaded ; for methinketh you have set many things 
 forth to the largest : whether they be true or not, 
 God knoweth, for they pass my capacity.' 
 
 ' At the largest !' said I ; ' that is true, for I speak 
 without respect. But here you may see what dif- 
 ference there is between knowledge and hearingsay. 
 Because I know indeed, therefore I am sure of it 
 that I speak ; and because you know none otherwise 
 but by report, therefore are you from your surety 
 come now to doubt of your truth. Wherefore I 
 pray Grod, if it be His will, so to open your heart 
 that you be not among the number of them to 
 whom God giveth eyes without sight and ears with- 
 out hearing, to the end they should not understand 
 the remedy of His grace/ 
 
 ' As for that/ said he, ' let God do with me as 
 Him pleaseth. But I promise you of one thing ; 
 
THE PILGRIM. 61 
 
 I would it had cost me forty crowns on the condi- 
 tion I had "been twenty miles hence this night.' 
 
 'Why?' said I. 
 
 ' Because,' said he, ■ before this reasoning I was 
 as constant a Catholic man as any was living, and 
 now that I have heard these many arguments, I am 
 brought into a labyrinth that I know not what way 
 to get me out.' 
 
 ' A Catholic man !' said I ; ' nay, God grant you 
 are not worse than a Jew ; for whereas the Jew 
 trusteth in his own good works and ceremonies, and 
 nevertheless belie veth in the true divine Grod alone, 
 you not only trusted in your own good works (as 
 you call them), and in the foolish ceremonies of 
 your stepmother Church, but also have made you 
 an earthly god of the Pope, in whose pardons you 
 trusted more than in Christ's death. But this 
 pleaseth me that you are come to your doubt, for 
 so behoveth it him that out of an error will be 
 persuaded to know the truth. 
 
 ' 10. And therefore, returning unto my matter, 
 now will I answer unto the persecution of Cardinal 
 Pole, and unto the death of his mother and friends ; 
 which, in effect, is nothing so marvellous nor so 
 cruel as it is made here in Italy ; and so I doubt not 
 you shall well confess by that time you have heard 
 how the things have passed. I cannot deny but 
 that this Cardinal Pole, in very deed, is both virtuous 
 and learned as you have commended him ; for, by 
 all men's reports that knew him, I have heard such 
 laud and praise of his continent, patient, and cha- 
 ritable life, and of his great and profound doctrine, 
 that against his person will I say nothing; but 
 
62 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 against his being this will I say, that it had been 
 better he had died in his cradle than lived to be an 
 occasion of so much mischief as hath followed for 
 his sake, and is yet likely to follow.' 
 
 ' Beware !' said my Contrary ; ' speak not ill of 
 him, for here be of his friends that will not hear 
 him slandered.' 
 
 ' As for my part,' said I, ' I am not his particular 
 foe. But you must consider that I now defend not 
 only a King's honour, but also the quiet of a whole 
 realm, against such lewd and false reports as are 
 sufficient to corrupt a whole world of good con- 
 sciences, and to move sedition between brother and 
 brother. So that, because the defence of this case 
 enforceth me somewhat to touch the quick, I shall 
 pray you to pardon me if I happen to offend you, 
 assuring you I will for your sake forget some things 
 that should be too homely to be spoken. 
 
 ' In the time that the King's Majesty extirped and 
 disannulled the Bishop of Bome's usurped power, as 
 heretofore I have rehearsed, this Reginald Pole that 
 now is cardinal, practised here in Italy, sometimes 
 studied in the University of Padua, and sometimes 
 in Yenice, bearing the port of a gentleman, as the 
 nobility of his house required, and was from time 
 to time well advertised out of England of all the 
 occurrents there ; so that the law of the Parliament 
 against the Papists was right well known unto him. 
 Now, sir, being in Yenice, the great Contarine (who 
 of late days was by the Pope's means poisoned in 
 Bologna for subscribing the article of Justification 
 unto the Almaines), before his vocation unto the 
 cardinalate, fell into such a wonderful amity and 
 
THE PILGRIM. 63 
 
 knot of friendship with this our Pole, that the one 
 of them was never well without the other. And 
 here began this mischief. For Contarine was no 
 sooner crowned with the red hat but that unfor- 
 tunately he sued unto the Pope to bring Pole unto 
 the same degree ; so that with much ado the Pope 
 consented, and thus was our Pole placed in the 
 Holy Consistory. Whether it were the earnest love 
 of Contarine' s company that blinded him, or the 
 obstinate superstition of the Papal dignity that 
 persuaded him, or else the ambition of the carnal 
 glory that allured him, or what other devil moved 
 him I cannot tell : but once no man knew better 
 than he that the uniting of himself unto the 
 whorish Church of Eome should bring himself and 
 all his friends out of the King's favour, out of the 
 good will of his country, and in perpetual excom- 
 munication of the Church of England. And what 
 true man towards his Prince or country, if he were 
 not mad, would then have entered into such a fury, 
 seeing the example of the Bishop of Rochester and 
 More, with the present estate of the realm before 
 his face, unless he thought with the Papal power to 
 overcome the kingly puissance ? Alas ! sufficed it 
 not for a younger brother, as he is, to have an 
 honourable entertainment at home amongst his kin 
 and friends, where his virtue and learning might 
 have found to have done great and high service, 
 not only unto his Prince and King, but also 
 unto his whole native country, the contrary 
 whereof hath been the undoing of him and all 
 his blood ?' 
 
 ' Of himself/ said my Contrary, ' that is not so ; 
 
64 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 for he liveth as honourably and in as good reputa- 
 tion as any other cardinal, whatsoever he be/ 
 
 ' And if he were an emperor/ said I, ' being 
 erring to his country, as he is, I can reckon him no 
 better than most unhappy. For, if the proverb be 
 true, ' Sweet is the love of his country/ by conse- 
 quence, the hate of his country must needs be sour. 
 But to my purpose. This, our Pole, had not the 
 red hat warm on his head, but the Pope sent him 
 in post, now to the French King, now into Spain to 
 the Emperor, now into Flanders, now here, now 
 there, to solicit the wars against his own native 
 country and his Sovereign Lord and King, offering 
 himself always to be a minister of that effect. And 
 not contented with these outward provocations, he 
 also wrote secretly to his mother and eldest brother 
 to work sedition at home ; and some of his letters 
 had so ignorant recajjito that they came to the 
 King's hand ; who, moved not only thereby, but also 
 by many other sensible presumptions, to examine 
 the matter, at length found out the truth, more by 
 miracle than by human discourse. For he having 
 retained the cardinal's youngest brother, named 
 Sir Geoffrey Pole, only upon mistrust, without any 
 approved matter to lay unto his charge, he in the 
 prison desperately would have mischieved himself, 
 which by the diligence of his ready keeper, was de- 
 fended. And so being straitly examined where- 
 upon he could have attempted so wicked an act, at 
 last he confessed all the whole conspiracy for the 
 which his mother and brother and those other nobles 
 suffered, which also, or ever the year passed, was by 
 divers other ways discovered in the proof of more 
 
THE PILGRIM. 65 
 
 effects than you would believe. For the holy religious 
 abbots of Eeading and Glastonbury had conjured 
 the said cardinal's elder brother, named the Marquis 
 Montague, with the other Marquis of Exeter;'* 
 and so far was the matter gone from hand to hand, 
 that some of the King's most familiar friends, and 
 of his Majesty's privy chamber, and of his council, 
 were corrupted with that malicious person. Yea, 
 and moreover, it passed conspiracy to come to effect. 
 For part of these rebels, to the number of 800, in 
 the second insurrection in the North, were paid 
 with money sent them from those abbots out of the 
 South. How say you now ? Was it time, trow you, 
 for the King to look about him ?' 
 
 ' These be things,' said my Contrary, ' that I 
 never heard of.' 
 
 ' No/ said I, ' there blow so many winds between 
 the Alps and the ocean sea, that the true air of 
 England can never arrive here into Italy uncor- 
 rupted.' 
 
 * Oh,' said he, ' and well remembered ; tell me, I 
 pray you, next unto the King's children, ought not 
 the crown to have come unto Cardinal Pole ?' 
 
 ' And why unto Cardinal Pole ?' quoth I. 
 
 ' Because he is of the King's blood,' quoth he. 
 
 ' It is true,' said I, ' he is descended of a King's 
 blood, but it is so long ago that he is further off 
 from this King then living, than the living Jus- 
 tinians of Venice are from the ancient Emperor 
 Justinian, and as near is he to the crown as they to 
 the empire.' 
 
 * See Note H. p. 162. 
 
66 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 ' Oil Lord/ said he, ' how this gear joineth with 
 the fame of Italy/ 
 
 'And thus may yon see/ said I, 'how ignorance 
 and error reigneth amongst the multitude ; and were 
 it not for your sakes, I could tell you how the 
 cardinal secretly professeth to be a Protestant, and 
 openly maintaineth the Papacy with a little more 
 hypocrisy yet than that cometh to. 
 
 ' ii. But I will for this time forget him, because 
 of his new election unto the legation of England, 
 and will speak of Ireland and Scotland, which you 
 say the King wrongfully enforced. You must 
 understand that the Kings of England have had 
 dominion over a great part of Ireland these 300 
 years* and more, by reason whereof both the 
 country and nation hath been divided into two sundry 
 parts — that is to say, the English pale and the wild 
 Irish ; and like as they of the English pale always 
 used the self- same religion, customs, laws, and 
 manners of civil living that we use in England, so 
 contrariwise they of the wild Irish, as unreasonable 
 beasts, lived without any knowledge of God or good 
 manners, in common of their goods, cattle, women, 
 children, and every other thing, in such wise that 
 almost there was no father which knew his son, nor 
 no daughter that knew her father, nor yet any 
 justice executed for murder, robbery, or any other 
 like mischief; but the more force had ever the 
 more reason. And hereof it followed that because 
 their savage and idle life could not be satisfied with 
 the only fruit of the natural unlaboured earth, there- 
 
 See Note I. p. 169. 
 
THE PILGRIM. 67 
 
 fore continually they invaded the fertile possessions 
 of their Irish neighbours that inhabited the said 
 English pale, reaping and mowing the corn that 
 they sowed not, and carrying away the cattle that 
 they nourished not. And this beastly fury which 
 so long had reigned in this Irish nation, hath many 
 times moved the King's predecessors with all their 
 forces, and with great and puissant armies, to seek 
 their destruction ; but like as one poor fox in a 
 thicket maketh the hunter with twenty couple of 
 hounds to travail sometimes a whole day, and at 
 length to lose his labour ; so these wild Irish made 
 those Kings, with their huge numbers of men, to 
 beat so long the wild woods and marshes, that at 
 length they were fain to recoil with the only gain 
 of famine and weariness. And therefore the King's 
 Majesty that now is dead wrought another way 
 with them ; for he layed in such substantial garrisons 
 in the straits of his borders, that they could no 
 more enter unto the English pale, unless they would 
 either be slain or taken prisoners ; so that, being 
 prevented of their accustomed liberty to rob and 
 spoil, necessity constrained them to humble them- 
 selves not only to a perpetual peace, but also to a 
 quiet obedience and order. Yea, and when his 
 Majesty, by policy and by the good diligence of his 
 faithful deputy there, Sir Anthony Sillinger, had. 
 thus overcome them, to confirm his force with 
 mercy, he rewarded divers of those wild men with 
 great sums of his own money, appointing them 
 places of ' civil honour, as earls, barons, knights, 
 esquires, and such other as the quality of those 
 persons seemed unto him most convenient. And 
 
 r 2 
 
68 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 by this means hath brought the nation from rude, 
 beastly, ignorant, cruel, and unruly infidels, to the 
 state of civil, reasonable, patient, humble, and well- 
 governed Christians ; not for desire of dominion or 
 for avarice of revenue, but for God's honour and for 
 a Christian peace, at his Majesty's own cost and 
 charge, in the expense of so many thousand crowns 
 as were too long now to tell. And look how the 
 wild Irish before time warred against the same, even 
 so have the Scots ever done, and yet do, against the 
 Englishmen, like for like ; by paragon, I say, in the 
 wars only ; for in their living the Scots observe a 
 certain order both of religion and customs, though 
 well it be somewhat barbarous. But if God had 
 given the King his life but one or two years longer, 
 you should surely have seen the same success of 
 Scotland that you have heard me rehearse of Ire- 
 land ; for his Majesty was resolved, either by force or 
 by love, to have gotten in his hands that young 
 daughter that now is heir to the Scottish crown, 
 and by marriage of her to his son Edward, that 
 now is our King, to have made of one self-divided 
 nation a realm, one self perpetual united people, 
 and peace ; not for the wealth of the Scottish 
 dominion (which, in respect of England, is of as 
 good comparison as the barren mountains of Savoy 
 unto the beauty of the pleasant Tuscany), but for 
 the uniform quiet of their approved ancient con- 
 tention. In very deed, if his Majesty in this case 
 had followed the example of Joshua, to have brought 
 his people of the desert into the champaign, I would 
 never have gone about to excuse him ; but since, 
 contrariwise, his travail hath been to bring his 
 
THE PILGRIM. 69 
 
 people out of the champaign into the desert, which 
 is a manifest witness against his defamed avarice, 
 meseemeth that they are much to hlame that there- 
 fore would burden him with tyranny. 
 
 ' 11. And as for his conscience in the motion of 
 war against France, I would give the Emperor 
 place to answer, whose unfortunate persuasions 
 were occasion thereof. And what know I of the 
 practices between the Duke and the French King? 
 But as for the usurping of Boulogne, I say that not 
 the Boulognaise alone but the most part of all 
 Picardy is not sufficient to satisfy the debts that 
 the French King did owe unto our King's Majesty ; 
 what for the money lent him to pay his ran son? 
 withal unto the Emperor when his sons lay therefore 
 prisoners in Spain j what for the restitution of 
 Terouenne and Tournay, which our King's Majesty 
 conquered upon the French King in his youth ; 
 what for the tribute, and what for one thing and 
 what for another, that it were a marvel to reckon 
 the infinite sums of money in credit between them.' 
 
 ' Tribute 1' saith one of them. ' Why ? doth the 
 French King pay tribute to England ?' 
 
 ' Yea, that he doth,' saith I. 
 
 - And wherefore, I pray you ?' quoth he. 
 
 1 1 shall tell you,' said I. f More than 200 years 
 past, when the right line of the King of France 
 failed of heirs male, then was Isabel, the only 
 daughter and heir of France, wife unto Edward the 
 Second, then King of England, by whom she had 
 issue Edward the 3rd, that succeeded his father to 
 the crown of England. Now what did the barons 
 of France when they saw that, following the right 
 
70 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 succession, of force they must become subjects unto 
 England, the shame and servitude whereof could 
 not in the Frenchmen be supported ? They incon- 
 tinent! v studied a remedy, and made a law that no 
 heir female should inherit the crown of France ; 
 proceeding forthwith to the crowning of Philip de 
 Yalois, and after him of King John that followed. 
 And so rested in peace a certain time until this 
 Edward the 3rd, son of the said Isabel, came to the 
 possession of England; who had no sooner the 
 sword in hand, but into France he goeth, and there 
 hewed and burned so long, that at length in plain 
 battle he took this King John prisoner, and leading 
 him into England, kept him there more than three 
 years. Finally, seeing it impossible to govern 
 France in peace, being King of England, he fell at 
 a composition with the said King John for his 
 ransom, besides the which for a memory of his in- 
 terest, he reserved in the articles of record these 
 two covenants : that is to say, that the French King 
 and his successors should perpetually pay unto the 
 crown of England 50,000 crowns, or thereabouts, of 
 yearly tribute ; and should have, and should leave 
 also, the title of King of France unto the Kings of 
 England ; by authority whereof the King of Eng- 
 land writeth unto this day himself Rex Anglice et 
 Francice, and the French King writeth Rex Fran-' 
 cor urn. And this tribute hath the French King 
 foreborne to pay these sixteen or seventeen years 
 past, so that I thought it worth the reckoning 
 among other debts.' 
 
 c As you say/ said another of them, e the honour 
 is more worth than the money.' 
 
THE PILGRIM. 71 
 
 c It is very true,' said I ; ' but this will I speak 
 against myself, that a good Christian ought not to 
 fight, neither for money nor for honour. But 
 where am I now? Good faith, I remember not 
 well what resteth me to answer/ 
 
 ' Marry,' said my Contrary, ' the marriage of 
 the King's daughter, and the Duke of Norfolk's 
 death.' 
 
 ' Alas, alas ! ' said I, ' I am already tired ; but 
 because he that goeth to the battle loseth by his 
 blood- shedding if he fight it not out, I will see how 
 I can overcome this little rest with as few words as 
 I may possibly. 
 
 '13. If I should say that the Lady Mary, the 
 King's daughter that is, deserveth not a husband, 
 I should surely prove a silly young man ; and 
 therefore will I now make you my judges ; when 
 for a stature of a woman's body she is neither too 
 high nor too low ; for beauty of face she hath few 
 fellows that I know, and in proportion of members 
 my pen cannot paint her. But what is all this? 
 Nothing. For when I come to consider her virtue, 
 her shadow maketh me to tremble — all the pru- 
 dence, all the modesty, all the courtesy, all the 
 sober smiling cheer that may be in a woman is 
 surely in her ; prompt in invention, awares in 
 speech, learned in the tongues, perfect in music to 
 sing and play ; and on the lute and virginals, with- 
 out master in all the world ; yea, she is grateful to 
 all persons, that I wot not what living creature 
 were sufficiently worthy to describe her. So if a 
 husband might be a reward unto the bounty of so 
 gracious a lady, I will say she is and ever hath been 
 
72 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 worthy to have had the worthiest husband of the 
 world. But now to the purpose of that her father 
 would not consent she should marry (as I can 
 imagine — not that I know this for surety) two 
 several respects moved him thereto : the one, that 
 to marry her to any one of meaner estate than her 
 degree required, it should have been a great blemish 
 to her and her honours ; and the other, that to 
 marry her to a high personage until his son, the 
 King that now is, were established in his realm, it 
 might have been occasion of some civil sedition or 
 impediment of his son's quiet dominion. And were 
 not, trow you, these considerations good ?' 
 
 ' Yea,' said my Contrary, ' since this son was born; 
 but before?' 
 
 ' Before/ said I, ' he ever hoped to have a son ; 
 and then, also, was his divorce fresh and new, which 
 allowed him not at that time to dispose her in 
 marriage. And this sufficeth of her Grace. 
 
 ' 14. Finally, unto the death of the Duke of Nor- 
 folk, and of his son, the Earl of Surrey, I must 
 answer you by the same hearsay that you have 
 opposed me ; since, being in Italy, mine ears on 
 matters of England have more power than mine 
 eyes. Now, as I am informed, this Earl of Surrey, 
 who was a young man, that after his father's death 
 should have been the greatest lord in England 
 next the King, seeing the King sickly and not 
 like long to continue, imagined with himself how 
 he might attain the crown. First, he considered 
 well how the Prince was young, and not able to 
 govern himself; and then he perceived how the 
 multitude of inconstant people were diverse of 
 
THE PILGRIM. 7S 
 
 religion, some Protestants, some Papists ; so that 
 with a little power of his friends he thought it 
 possible to draw one of these parties to him, and by- 
 some foreign help to attain his purpose. But God, 
 that confound eth the vain men in their vain 
 thoughts, brought these imaginations to knowledge 
 by means of some of his friends, to whom in figure 
 he had promised the coming of a fair day ; which 
 words, revealed unto the King, and compared with 
 the suspected ambition of that young man, and with 
 other presumptions more than I know, caused his 
 Majesty more diligently to examine the matter; 
 insomuch that there were certain arms found set 
 forth by him the said Earl of Surrey, wherein the 
 royal arms of England were joined with his, and one 
 picture especially, in the which he had painted him- 
 self with the crown on his right hand and the King 
 on his left hand j so that when he was brought into 
 the open judgment he could not deny but that he 
 had devised means to bring his purpose to effect ; 
 whereunto the duke Lis father was privy, who there- 
 fore incurred the semblable danger. But, as I hear 
 say, the King that is dead pardoned the old duke's 
 life ; and I cannot hear for a truth he should be 
 dead. But if he were, I warrant you (said I) it is 
 not so without good cause ; for a poor soldier that 
 came even now from the Emperor's camp, told me, 
 in Florence, not four days agone, that he had heard 
 a whispering among the soldiers, how that the said 
 Earl of Surrey, at his being with the Emperor 
 before Landrecey, was entered into intelligence with 
 divers great captains, and had gotten promise of aid 
 towards the furniture of his intent. e Yea,' said 
 
74 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 he, 'and further; he should have been the Em- 
 peror's man for the self-same purpose.' I will not 
 say (quoth I), that this is true, but when the mean 
 private soldiers are grown so commonly to talk of 
 these things, it is to be presumed that amongst the 
 great captains there should be somewhat of import- 
 ance, for without some fire there was never smoke.' 
 
 ' It is possible enough/ said one of them ; ' for I 
 myself, who have been in the Emperor's camp, have 
 heard many reasonings of this matter, insomuch 
 that it was doubted whether this young Prince were 
 legitimate or no.' 
 
 ' Legitimate !' said I, ' that were a doubt indeed ; 
 for I am sure there can no creature be legitimate if 
 he be not. Do you not remember how I have 
 showed you how the King that is dead, after the 
 decease of his two first wives, was cleared unto all 
 the world or ever he married the third wife, on 
 whom he begat the young King Edward that now 
 is ; so that there can be no kind of reasons made 
 against his legitimacy. Alas ! (said I), if you knew 
 the towardness of that young Prince, your heart 
 would melt to hear him named, and your stomach 
 abhor the malice of them that would him ill ; the 
 beautifullest creature that liveth under the sun; 
 the wittiest, the most amiable, and gentlest thing of 
 all the world ; such a spirit of capacity for learning 
 the thing taught him by his schoolmasters, that it is 
 a wonder to hear say ; and, finally, he hath such a 
 grace of port, and gesture, and gravity, when he 
 cometh into any presence, that it should seem he 
 were already a father, and yet passeth he not the 
 
THE PILGRIM. 75 
 
 age of ten years — a thing undoubtedly to be much 
 rather seen than believed, Alas ! (quoth I) ; nay, 
 alas ! again ; what cruelty should move these raven- 
 ing dragons to covet the devouring of so meek an 
 innocent lamb with the seditions of such devilish 
 rumours ?' 
 
 'No, no, I shall tell you why,' said my Contrary ; 
 ' the King was interdicted by the Church of Eome 
 when he begat the Prince, and therefore, perchance 
 it may be said his title is not good/ 
 
 ' Grood faith/ said I, ' and so may it be as well 
 said that because the realm hath been this fifteen 
 years no less interdicted than the King, therefore 
 shall the earth bring forth no fruit ; and yet, thanks 
 be to God, since the world began we had never 
 greater plenty of all things than we have had in 
 this time, by so much the more as the idle bellies 
 of the great multitude of our ancient religious 
 persons have now no more license to devour, spoil 
 and waste our ploughman's travail. But, believe 
 me well, they that make them such a church of 
 warm wax to serve all moulds, at length with 
 changing of their figure, may happen to lose their 
 form. How now (said I to my Contrary), are you 
 satisfied ? J 
 
 ' Unto all your arguments, I am and I am not,' 
 said he. 
 
 ' I wot not how, by the holy mass,' said one of 
 them who erst had spoken no words; 'thou hast 
 quit thyself like a tall fellow ; and if thou wilt go 
 with me to dispute in a case of contumacy that I 
 am called for before the Pope's legate, I will seek 
 
76 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 none other advocate, and thou shalt have a crown 
 for thy labour.' 
 
 ' I am no canonist, sir,' said I, - nor cannot 
 therein serve your purpose. Quia non protestor 
 protestationes appellandi! 
 
 ' No,' said he, ' I will that you do no more than 
 declare my reasons.' 
 
 1 Eeason !' quoth I, ' before the legate ! That 
 were a way indeed to bring me into limbo. Have 
 I not told you that the Pope and all his ministers 
 are express enemies to all good reason and verity ?•' 
 
 1 In faith, in faith/ quoth my Contrary, ' if the 
 legate did know of your reasoning here to-night, I 
 would not be in your coat for another crown.' 
 
 ' I know that well enough,' said I, ' for the least 
 reward I should receive would be the result of one 
 of these three — the sword, the prison, or the fire ; 
 and when well he had done his worst, because he 
 can do no more than bring me to my death, the 
 end of all my misery, and beginning of all my true 
 joy, I would not greatly pass of his tyranny; 
 remembering this saying of Job unto the Lord, 
 ' Short be the days of man, and Thou hast with thee 
 the number of his months • Thou hast ordained him 
 his terms, which he cannot pass.' Nevertheless I 
 will keep out of his danger as well as I may, for I 
 will straight to Venice, where I trust to be free.' 
 
 ' Nay, by our Lady,' said he, ' there are you de- 
 ceived ; for if you be known in Venice, the legate 
 that liveth there will straightways have you by the 
 back.' 
 
 ' Why,' said I, ' is it possible that the famous 
 liberty of that city should be in so much servitude 
 
THE PILGRIM. 77 
 
 that the lords thereof would suffer me for the just 
 defence of my Prince to endure persecution under 
 their wings ; specially since the amity between them 
 and my said King hath been so perfect, that when 
 the Pope, with all the other princes of Europe, 
 entered into a confederacy together for their de- 
 struction, our said King only remained their friend. 
 But let God work His will, for I have determined 
 in this case to trust more unto the justice of their 
 first glorious commonwealth than to fear the 
 tyranny of the Pope, who, under a counterfeit name, 
 not only usurpeth the monarchy over the princes of 
 the world, but also seeketh the blood of the poor 
 labourers of the earth. And if you will find out a 
 false knave by the changing of his right name, I 
 will you do but mark this little title that I shall 
 tell you. Papa in the Greek tongue, pronouncing 
 the first syllable short, and the last long, is under- 
 standed a priest in the English tongue; and the 
 Greeks unto this day call their priests JPape ; so 
 that Pope came first unto Home as a poor private 
 priest, none otherwise. But when, in process of 
 time, after the priests had converted emperors, 
 they began to take upon them temporal bishoprics, 
 usurping all manner of worldly possessions and 
 honours ; then the glorious Bishop of Eome, being 
 ashamed of so base a title as priest, made them pro- 
 nounce the short syllable for the long, calling him- 
 self Paapa for Papaa ; and so, with turning the 
 wrong side outwards of a poor priest, he is grown 
 to that glory that you see him in. And to prove 
 again that he is no less a counterfeit in his doings 
 than in his names, he writeth himself servus ser- 
 
78 THE PILGRIM, 
 
 vorumDei, whereas he in very deed servethno true ser- 
 vants of Grod, but rather utterly persecuteth them. So 
 that, to understand this title well, I can find no good 
 interpretation, unless you would say that the devil's 
 are Grod's servants, as the hangman is minister of 
 the justice, who, for his own private gain, would 
 hang all the men in the world if the justice would 
 suffer him : and as the hangman useth the pliant 
 halter to strangle withal the condemned persons, 
 so may we say the devils, God's servants, use the 
 popes as their ministers, to bring our poor souls 
 unto perdition. 
 
 ' But let me these trifles pass, to come unto a con- 
 clusion of our King, whose wisdom, virtue, and 
 bounty my wits suffice not to declare : of per- 
 sonage he was one of the goodliest men that lived 
 in his time, very high of stature, in manners more 
 than a man, and proportionable in all his members 
 unto that height; of countenance he was most 
 amiable, courteous and benign in gesture unto all 
 persons, and specially unto strangers; seldom or 
 never offended with anything, and of so constant a 
 nature in himself, that I believe few can say that 
 ever he changed his cheer for any novelty how con- 
 trary or sudden soever it were. Prudent he was 
 in council and forecasting ; most liberal in reward- 
 ing his faithful servants, and ever unto his enemies 
 as it behoveth a Prince to be : he was learned in 
 all sciences, and had the gift of many tongues ; he 
 was a perfect theologian, a good philosopher, and 
 a strong man at arms; a jeweller, a perfect builder 
 as well of fortresses as of pleasant palaces ; and from 
 one to another there was no necessary kind of 
 
THE PILGRIM. 79 
 
 knowledge from a king's degree to a carter's but 
 that he had an honest sight in it. What would 
 you I should say of him? He was undoubtedly 
 the rarest man that lived in his time. But I say 
 not this to make him a god, nor in all his doings I 
 will not say he hath been a saint ; for I believe 
 with the prophet, non est Justus quisquam, non est 
 requirens Deum, omnes declinaverunt, simul inutiles facti 
 sumus, non est qui facial bonum, non est usque ad 
 unum. I will confess that he did many evil things 
 as the publican sinner, but not as a cruel tyrant, or 
 as a pharisaical hypocrite ; for all his doings were 
 open to the whole world, wherein he governed him- 
 self with so much reason, prudence, courage, and cir- 
 cumspection, that I wot not where — in all the his- 
 tories I have read, to find one private king equal to 
 him ; who in the space of thirty-eight years' reign 
 never received notable displeasure, how well that at 
 one selfsame time he hath had open war on three 
 sides ; that is to say, with France, Scotland, and 
 Ireland; insomuch that being in person with his 
 army in France, he hath had a bloody battle 
 stricken in the Borders, between him and the Scots, 
 of 70,000 or 80,000 men, whereof his perpetual good 
 fortune granted him most famous victory, with the 
 triumph over his enemy the Scottish King, slain in 
 that battle. And, finally, mark well this proof; 
 the perfect present author for an extreme example 
 of a happy man can allege no greater than Pol?/ crates 
 Samian, who for all his prosperous days, finished his 
 life nevertheless in mischief in the cruel hands of 
 his enemies ; whereas this King Henry the 8th not 
 only hath lived most happily, but also hath died 
 
80 THE PILGRIM. 
 
 most quietly in the arms of his most dear friends, 
 leaving for witness of his most glorious fame the 
 fruit of such an heir as the earth is scarcely worthy 
 to nourish, who, I trust, shall with no less perfec- 
 tion reform the true church of Christ, not per- 
 mitted by his said father to be finished, than as 
 Solomon did the true Temple of Jerusalem, not 
 granted to David in the time of his life. For who 
 would speak against the dead King Harry might 
 much better say he did see with but one eye, and 
 so accuse him for lack of putting an end to the 
 reformation of the wicked Church than for doing of 
 the things he hath done against the apostolical 
 Roman law. And who will consider well the dis- 
 course of the truth shall find the root of all the 
 rehearsed mischiefs (if mischiefs they may be called) 
 to have grown either in the bosom of the Pope, of 
 the cardinals, and of their prelates and ministers, 
 or else of those superstitious lay people, as they call 
 them, who have borne more faith unto the members 
 of the malignant Church than unto the true God 
 Himself. So that to make a just exclamation, you 
 ought to cry out against the exterminate tyranny 
 of your whorish Mother Church, and say — Oh you 
 Romans, oh Bollognese, oh Eavennates, or Parme- 
 sans, or Placentines, or Avignons, how can you thus 
 abide, not only to be oppressed with so many cus- 
 toms, taxes, and tallages, that the poor can find no 
 food, but also to have your .blood drawn even unto 
 death ? Oh commonwealth of Florence, why suf- 
 fered thou Pope Clement to take from thee thy 
 liberty ? And thou Duke Cosmo di Medici, how 
 canst thou suffer those friars of St. Mark, proved 
 
THE PILGRIM. 81 
 
 for open ribalds, to dwell in thine own house in thy 
 despite ? No, no, I will forbear to speak of any 
 other things that I could allege as good as this ; 
 which indeed are so manifest, rebellions, or rather 
 tyrannies, against their just and lawful Princes, that 
 they cannot be denied, and yet is there no man that 
 dare once speak or open his mouth against those 
 ribalds. But it may chance the Turk will come 
 one day to put the office of Christian Prince in 
 execution, since they themselves will not attend 
 unto it. How say you, my masters (quoth I), are 
 these things true or not ?' 
 
 ' They be true,' answered they all ; and passing 
 from one matter to another whilst the time of 
 supper approached, we fell into divers talk of things 
 too long now to rehearse ; and albeit, gentle reader, 
 that unto the proof of my purpose in this one dis- 
 putation, I did truly allege many more reasons than 
 in this my little book are written, which, in case of 
 scrupulous doubt, might perchance some time more 
 perfectly have guided thee unto true knowledge, 
 yet shall I beseech thee in that behalf not to accuse 
 me of sloth ; for my intent in this doing tendeth to 
 none other but unto the just excuse of my wrong- 
 fully slandered Prince, whose good renown, fame, 
 and honour, I most heartily commend unto thee. 
 
 And thus farewell. 
 
 G 
 
NOTES. 
 
 Note A. 
 
 JUDGMENT was never pronounced in the Legates' Court ; 
 but the case arrived at a point where the sentence, if 
 sentence were given, could only be in the King's favour ; and 
 the Emperor, to protect Catherine, was obliged to insist on 
 the avocation of the suit to Borne. 
 
 The following letters add something to our knowledge of 
 the influences which were at work below the surface. Inigo 
 de Mendoza was a secret agent of Charles V. in England. De 
 Praet, who became afterwards celebrated, was Minister at 
 Home. 
 
 Inigo de Mendoza to Charles V. 
 June 17, 1529. [MS. Archives at Brussels.] 
 
 When I left London the Queen's affair was hardly spoken 
 of; the process was suspended. There seemed to be no 
 occasion to enter protests or register appeals ; and Campeggio 
 was uncertain whether the Cardinal of York w^iuld consent 
 to act under the commission. After arriving at Bruges, how- 
 ever, I heard that the King was again urgent for haste, and 
 that the Queen had received a summons to appear before the 
 Legates on the 28th of this present month. Her Majesty 
 wrote on the instant to give notice to the Begent, and to beg 
 that the two lawyers who were with her before might be sent 
 over. English advocates, she said, would not speak for her 
 with as much freedom as strangers. Notwithstanding this 
 letter, my Lady the Begent thought, that inasmuch as her 
 Majesty had pleaded that her cause could not have a fair 
 hearing in that realm, the lawyers had better not go. I conceive 
 myself, however, that the Queen of England desired their 
 presence merely that they might decline in her name the juris- 
 diction of the Legates' Court, and allege for her the grounds 
 of her objections. She will be distressed, as your Highness 
 may suppose, when she finds that they do not arrive ; and her 
 friends will lose heart, and believe that she is abandoned. But 
 
 g2 
 
84 NOTE A. 
 
 my Lady the Regent may alter her mind. At present she 
 thinks only of sending to Borne. 
 
 Dr. May has written to me of his interview with the 
 Pope. He has sent me a copy of the protest which he has 
 entered in the Queen's behalf. I should have forwarded it to 
 your Highness were I not sure that you were already informed 
 of everything. His Holiness is putting oif the fulfilment of 
 his promises till the last moment, and I fear that, notwithstand- 
 ing the doubts which have hitherto been entertained about it, 
 he may have directed the Legate to proceed on the first com- 
 mission. Should this be so, your Majesty may consider the 
 Queen's cause as lost. I have instructed her, however, through 
 a notary, whenever the court threatens sentence, to appeal, 
 and to demand to be heard at Borne, in arrest of judgment. 
 If this is done, the sentence will be invalid ; but I am afraid 
 that she is deceived by her advisers. No doubt she has some 
 good and true men about her, but there are others in whom I 
 have little confidence ; and for this reason it is most important 
 that she should have the assistance of the lawyers. Not only 
 is the Queen, as I have always assured your Majesty, a most 
 devout and honourable woman, but she unites in her person 
 a number of indirect advantages ; and she deserves all the 
 exertion which we can make, and all the assistance which we 
 can render. 
 
 M. de Praet to Charles the Fifth. 
 Rome, August 5, 1529. [MS. Archives at Brussels.] 
 
 Unless I mistake, the majority of the cardinals are better 
 disposed towards your Majesty than towards any other 
 sovereign. Space will not permit me to repeat what they 
 have said to me ; suffice it that their words are all that you 
 can desire. Dr. May has reported to your Majesty a con- 
 versation which he has held with some of them touching bene- 
 fices and the like. I should say myself (and I have said it 
 often before) that your Majesty may have the whole college 
 at your devotion for ever if you will spend twenty thousand 
 ducats among the leading cardinals in pensions and benefices. 
 Grive one of them a thousand, another two or three thou- 
 sand, and you will find the money well laid out to your advan- 
 tage. 
 
 The business of the Queen of England was despatched, as 
 you will have heard, two or three days before my arrival. 
 They have been so dilatory that I fear, before the ' avocation' 
 
NOTE B. 85 
 
 arrives in London, the King may have proceeded to some 
 scandalous act or other. Your ambassador was not to blame 
 for the delay. I have spoken to his Holiness. I have told 
 him that such conduct discredits the Holy See, as much as it 
 affects your Majesty. Pious Christians are offended, and the 
 Lutherans and heretics seek for nothing so much as an occasion 
 to calumniate his Holiness and the Papal chair. 
 
 A letter from the English ambassador here has been inter- 
 cepted. He writes largely, and, as it were, desperately, of the 
 whole business. We have shown it to his Holiness. Your 
 Majesty will find it in the present packet. 
 
 Note B. 
 
 With the avocation of the cause to Eome, the positions of 
 the Queen and King were reversed. Catherine declared that 
 she could not receive justice before the Legates in London. 
 Henry, with as much truth, asserted that there was no pre- 
 cedent for the appearance of a Sovereign Prince as a suitor in 
 the Papal Court. He could neither plead in person there, nor 
 acknowledge the lawfulness of the summons by deputing a 
 proctor, even were the case of such a nature that it could be 
 trusted to a proctor's management. The marriage question 
 merged itself into a discussion on the Papal privileges. 
 
 The King had from the commencement received the support 
 of the Court of France. Both Francis and his ministers en- 
 couraged him in a course which would separate England from 
 the Empire ; and as eagerly they invited the Pope to make 
 concessions which would be an injury and an affront to Charles 
 the Fifth. 
 
 The next group of letters illustrate the successive aspects 
 which the struggle assumed before it ended in the Act of 
 Supremacy and the revolt of England from the Papal com- 
 munion. 
 
 The Cardinal of Lorraine to Cardinal at Rome. 
 
 Paris, Jan. 8, 1531-2. [MS. B^bliot. Impdr. Paris.] 
 
 Bight Beyerend Father and Lord in Christ, — After our 
 most humble commendations — The King of England complains 
 loudly that his cause is not remanded into his own country ; 
 he says that it cannot be equitably dealt with at Borne, where 
 he cannot be present. He himself, the Queen, and the other 
 
86 NOTE B. 
 
 witnesses, are not to be dragged into Italy to give their 
 evidence ; and the suits of the Sovereigns of England and 
 France have always hitherto been determined in their respective 
 countries. 
 
 Nevertheless, by no entreaty can we prevail on the Pope 
 to nominate impartial judges who will decide the question in 
 Eugland. 
 
 The King's personal indignation is not the only evil which 
 has to be feared. When these proceedings are known 
 among the people, there will, perhaps, be a revolt, and the 
 Apostolic See may receive an injury which will not afterwards 
 be easily remedied. 
 
 I have explained these things more at length to his Holiness, 
 as my duty requires. Your affection towards him, my lord, 
 I am assured is no less than mine. I beseech you, therefore, 
 use your best endeavours with his Holiness, that the King of 
 England may no longer have occasion to exclaim against him. 
 In so doing you will gratify the Most Christian King, and 
 you will follow the course most honourable to yourself and most 
 favourable to the quiet of Christendom. 
 
 From Abbeville. 
 
 Francis the First to Pope Clement the Seventh. 
 Paris, Jan. 10, 1531-2. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 Most Holt Father, — You are not ignorant what our 
 good brother and ally the King of England demands at your 
 hands. He requires that the cognizance of his marriage be 
 remanded to his own realm, and that he be no further pressed 
 to pursue the process at Rome. The place is inconvenient 
 from its distance, and there are other good and reasonable 
 objections which he assures us that he has urged upon your 
 Holiuess's consideration. 
 
 Most Holy Father, we have written several times to you, 
 especially of late from St. Cloud, and afterwards from Chantilly, 
 in our good brother's behalf; and we have further entreated 
 you, through our ambassador residing at your Court, to put an 
 end to this business as nearly according to the wishes of our 
 said good brother as is compatible with the honour of Almighty 
 God. We have made this request of you as well for the 
 affection and close alliance which exist between ourselves and 
 our brother, as for the filial love and duty with which we both 
 in common regard your Holiness. 
 
 Seeing, nevertheless, Most Holy Father, that the affair in 
 
NOTE B. 87 
 
 question is still far from settlement, and knowing our good 
 brother to be displeased and dissatisfied, we fear that 
 some great scandal and inconvenience may arise at last 
 which may cause the diminution of your Holiness's autho- 
 rity. There is no longer that ready obedience to the Holy 
 See in England which was offered to your predecessors ; and 
 yet your Holiness persists in citing my good brother the King 
 of England to plead his cause before you in Rome. Surely it 
 is not without cause that he calls such treatment of him un- 
 reasonable We have ourselves examined into the law in this 
 matter, and we are assured that your Holiness's claim is un- 
 just and contrary to the privilege of kings. Eor a sovereign to 
 leave his realm and plead as a suitor in Home, is a thing wholly 
 impossible,* and therefore, Holy Eather, we have thought good 
 to address you once more in this matter. Bear with us, we 
 entreat you. Consider our words, and recall to your memory 
 what by letter and through our ministers we have urged upon 
 you. Look promptly to our brother's matter, and so act that 
 your Holiness may be seen to value and esteem our friendship. 
 "What you do for him, or what you do against him, we shall 
 take it as done to ourselves. 
 
 Holy Eather, we will pray the Son of Grod to pardon and 
 long preserve your Holiness to rule and govern our Holy 
 Mother the Church. Eiusois. 
 
 M. de la Pomeroy to Cardinal 
 
 London, March 23, 153 1-2. [MS. Bibliot. Imper. Paris.] 
 
 My Lord, — I sent two letters to your lordship on the 
 20th of this month. Since that day Parliament has been pro- 
 rogued, and will not meet again till after Easter. 
 
 It has been determined that the Pope's Holiness shall re- 
 ceive no more annates, and the collectors' office is to be 
 abolished. Everything is turning against the Holy See, but 
 the King has shown no little skill ; the Lords and Commons 
 have left the final decision of the question at his personal 
 pleasure, and the Pope is to understand that, if he will do 
 nothing for the King, the King has the means of making him 
 suffer. The clergy in convocation have consented to nothing, 
 nor will they, till they know the pleasure of their master the 
 Holy Eather ; but the other estates being agreed, the refusal 
 of the clergy is treated as of no consequence. 
 
 * Chose beaucoup plus impossible que possible. 
 
88 NOTE B. 
 
 Many other rights and privileges of the Church are 
 abolished also, too numerous to mention. 
 
 In July, 1532, Henry and Francis agreed to meet at Calais 
 and Boulogne, to arrange a common policy. The conference came 
 off in October. Charles the Fifth, meanwhile, having done his 
 worst to Henry, the latter had no objection to attack him, 
 should opportunity offer, in Flanders. The Government at 
 Brussels, it will be seen, were too well informed to be caught 
 off their guard. Henry took Anne Boleyn with him to 
 France, and originally intended to marry her during the con- 
 ference. 
 
 to Francis the First. 
 
 Ampthill, July 23, 1532. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 Siee, — Tour Majesty's promise to meet the King your 
 brother, is in every way delightful to him. I have informed 
 the Grand Master of the English proposals, but everything is 
 referred to your own good pleasure. 
 
 In the recent treaty with the Germans, Sire, the King 
 your brother thinks the Princes have the advantage of you ; 
 he supposes you to have undertaken to pay half their ex- 
 penses : but he leaves this to be talked over with you. He 
 spoke to me, as I told you a fortnight ago, of the inroad of 
 the Turks. He wanted to know, I thought, whether they were 
 instigated by your Majesty ; so I told him you had nothing to 
 do with them — you were a friend of King John of Hungary — 
 and if the Turks were acting in concert with him, all would go 
 well. 
 
 He answered at once that it was as he always thought. 
 The Emperor might say what he pleased ; but you and he were 
 as good Christians as the Emperor, though not perhaps as 
 good Papists. 
 
 He told me he had advices from Flanders that there were 
 not a thousand soldiers left in that country — all were gone 
 against the Turks. He bade me send you word, and ask, at 
 the same time, how their towns were furnished. I perceived, 
 Sire, from his words, that he would be ready to play a game 
 there,* but his information I knew to be incorrect. . Things 
 are not in the condition for such an enterprise ; so I dropped 
 the subject, and left him without an answer. Sire, may God 
 grant you a long and happy life. 
 
 The words underlined are in cypher. 
 
NOTE B. 89 
 
 Charles the Fifth to the Regent Mary. 
 Mantua, October 16, 1532. [MS. Archives at Brussels.] 
 
 I found your packets on arriving here, with, the ambas- 
 sadors' letters from Trance and England. The ambassadors 
 will themselves have informed you of the intended conference 
 of the Kings. The results will make themselves felt ere long. 
 We must be on our guard, and I highly approve of your pre- 
 cautions for the protection of the frontiers. 
 
 As to the report that the King of England means to take 
 the opportunity of the meeting to marry Anne Boleyn, I 
 can hardly believe that he will be so blind as to do so, or that 
 the King of Erance will lend himself to the other's sen- 
 suality. At all events, however, I have written to my ministers 
 at Rome, and I have instructed them to lay a complaint 
 before the Pope, that, while the process is yet pending, in 
 contempt of the authority of the Church, the King of England 
 is scandalously bringing over the said Anne with him, as if 
 she were his wife. 
 
 His Holiness and the Apostolic See will be the more in- 
 clined to do us justice, and to provide as the case shall require. 
 
 Should the King indeed venture the marriage — as I can- 
 not think he will — I have desired his Holiness not only not 
 to sanction such conduct openly, but not to pass it by in 
 silence. I have demanded that severe and fitting sentence be 
 passed at once on an act so wicked and so derogatory to the 
 Apostolic See. 
 
 Captain Thouard to M. D\jce. 
 Gravelines, November 12, 1532. [MS. Archives at Brussels.] 
 
 Sir, — I have been unable hitherto to send you further infor- 
 mation about the conference. But this evening Captain 
 
 has come in with news. 
 
 The King of England did really cross with the intention of 
 marrying ; but, happily for the Emperor, the ceremony is post- 
 poned. Of other secrets, my informant has learned thus much. 
 They have resolved to demand as the portion of the Queen of 
 Erance, Artois, Tournay, and part of Burgundy. They have 
 also sent two cardinals to Rome to require the Pope to relin- 
 quish the tenths, which they have begun to levy for them- 
 selves. If his Holiness refuse, the King of England will 
 simply appropriate them throughout his dominions. Captain 
 heard this from the King's proctor at Rome, who has 
 
90 
 
 NOTE B. 
 
 been with him at Calais, and from an Italian named Jeronymo, 
 whom the Lady Anne has roughly handled for managing her 
 business badly. She trusted that she would have been married 
 in September. 
 
 The proctor told her the Pope delayed sentence for fear of 
 the Emperor. The two Kings, when they heard this, de- 
 spatched the cardinals to quicken his movements ; and the 
 demand for the tenths is thought to have been invented to 
 frighten him. 
 
 They are afraid that the Emperor may force his Holiness into 
 giving sentence before the cardinal arrives. Jeronymo has been 
 therefore sent forward by post to give him notice of their 
 approach, and to require him to make no decision till they 
 have spoken with him. 
 
 Threatened on both sides, the Pope did nothing: and 
 Henry, though he had consented at the conference to post- 
 pone his marriage a short time longer, declined to wait 
 beyond the winter, and made Anne Boleyn his wife about the 
 25th of January. Parliament met in February, and as it was 
 now necessary to terminate somehow the suit for the divorce, 
 the Act of Appeals was passed, abolishing the Papal juris- 
 diction. 
 
 The Erench Court, in the hope of still preventing the rup- 
 ture, again laid a pressure on the Pope ; while M. Chastillon, 
 the ambassador in London, was instructed to implore the 
 King to delay the publication of the Act. The King, it will 
 be seen, was more inclined to moderation than his ministers. 
 The immediate object was to induce Henry so far to recog- 
 nise the Pope's authority as to send to Rome an ' Excusator ;' 
 some one who would ' excuse' his presence, and show why he 
 could not plead there. 
 
 Chastillon to Montmorency. 
 London, March 6, 1533. [MS. Bibliot. Imper. Paris.] 
 
 My Lord, — I have received your letter from Chantilly, 
 dated the 24th of February, with another in cypher from M. 
 de Paris, who gives me hope that the Holy Father will make 
 concessions, and desires me on my part to do two things here — 
 to prevent the King, if possible, from publishing the Anti- 
 papal resolutions passed in Parliament, and to persuade him to 
 send over an ' excusator,' to be kept in readiness in the 
 hospital at Rome in entire secresy. 
 
 I assure you, my lord, I have had enough to do. The 
 
NOTE B. 91 
 
 ministers in whom the King most confides are so opposed 
 to our Holy Father that they raise every imaginable diffi- 
 culty. They have failed, however, and that you may better 
 understand what has taken place, you must pardon a some- 
 what long despatch. 
 
 The morning after I had communicated to the King the 
 hopes entertained by M. de Paris, his Majesty sent for me and 
 desired me to repeat my words before the council. I obeyed; but 
 the majority declared that there was nothing in them to act 
 upon, and that the King must not put himself in subjection. 
 His Majesty himself, too, I found less warm than in his pre- 
 ceding conversation. I begged the council to be patient. 
 I said everything that I could think of likely to weigh with 
 the King. I promised him a sentence from our Holy Father 
 declaring his first marriage null, his present marriage good 
 I urged him on all grounds, public and private, to avoid a 
 rupture with the Holy See. Such a sentence, I said, would 
 ba the best security for the Queen, and the safest guarantee 
 for the unopposed succession of her offspring. If the mar- 
 riage was confirmed by the Holy Father's authority, the 
 Queen's enemies would lose the only ground where they could 
 make a stand. The peace of the realm was now menaced. 
 The Emperor talked loudly and made large preparations. 
 Let the King be allied with France, and through France with 
 the Holy See, and the Emperor could do him no harm. 
 Thus I said my proposals were for the benefit of the realm of 
 his Majesty, and of the children who might be born to him. 
 The King would act more prudently both for his own 
 interest, and for the interest of his children, in securing him- 
 self, than in running a risk of creating universal confusion ; 
 and, besides, he owed something to the King his brother, who 
 had worked so long and so hard for him. 
 
 After some further conversation, his Majesty took me aside 
 into a garden, where he told me that for himself he agreed 
 in what I had said ; but he begged me to keep his confidence 
 secret. He fears, I think, to appear to condescend too easily. 
 
 He will not, however, publish the Acts of Parliament till 
 he sees what is done at Rome. The vast sums of money which 
 used to be sent there out of the country w T ill go no longer ; 
 but in other respects he will be glad to return to good terms. 
 He will send the excusator when he hears again from M. de 
 Paris ; and for myself, I think, that although the whole coun- 
 try is in a blaze against the Pope, yet with the good will and 
 assistance of the King, the Holy Father will be reinstated in 
 the greater part of his prerogatives. 
 
92 
 
 NOTE E. 
 
 For the present all goes well. May it please your lordship 
 to allow M. de Morette to join me here. A second person is 
 required to observe, as well as myself. 
 
 The efforts of Chastillou and the Bishop of Paris were 
 thwarted. Actions were stronger than words, and again and 
 again when a hope seemed to offer itself of a reconciliation, 
 either the Pope, or the King of England, or both, took some 
 step which rent in pieces the efforts of diplomacy. A meet- 
 ing was to take place in the coming summer between the 
 Pope and Francis the First. The Duke of Orleans was to 
 marry Catherine de Medici ; and Francis nattered himself 
 that he could bring Clement conclusively to the Anglo-French 
 alliance. Within a few days of Chastillon's conversation, 
 Clement issued censures against Henry, commanding him, on 
 pain of instant excommunication, to separate from Anne 
 Boleyn. Henry replied with publishing the Act of Appeals, 
 and closing the long question of the divorce in an English 
 court. Meanwhile Chastillon was recalled, and succeeded for a 
 time by D'Inteville, the ' Bailly of Troyes,' a better Catholic 
 than his predecessor, and a secret confederate, as he turned 
 out afterwards, of the Papal faction. 
 
 D" Inteville to Francis the First. 
 London, May, 1533. [MS. Bibliot. Impdr. Paris.] 
 
 Sire, — The King your brother bids me tell you that you 
 should, in his opinion, give notice to the Germans of this 
 intended interview (with the Pope.) They may otherwise 
 suspect you of meaning something to their disadvantage ; 
 and fearing a change on your part towards them, they may fall 
 off themselves to the Emperor. 
 
 The English ambassador in Paris sends him word,he tells me, 
 that your Majesty fears the alterations introduced by the Act of 
 Appeals may retard this interview, and create fresh difficulties. 
 He says that he cannot help himself. The Pope forces him 
 to publish the Act by the censures which have been unjustly 
 issued against him. The Pope is acting towards him neither 
 as a friend nor as an impartial judge, but with an open enmity, 
 against which he must defend himself as he can. 
 
 You will hear more at length about things from the Duke 
 of Norfolk ; meanwhile the King has given me the enclosed list 
 of his grievances. The Archbishop of Canterbury will try 
 the divorce cause, and sentence will be passed in about three 
 
NOTE B. 93 
 
 days. I entreated that he would wait at least till the Holy 
 Father should arrive at Nice, but he would not consent. I asked 
 him to keep the sentence secret, so that the Pope might not 
 hear of it till he had seen your Majesty. The King answered, 
 1 Impossible ; the sentence must be published and generally 
 known before the Queen's coronation, and she is to be 
 crowned at Whitsuntide.' 
 
 The Queen is enceinte. The child is to be the heir of the 
 crown, and he will not leave it in the Pope's power to decide 
 against its legitimacy. He says, too, that it will be more 
 honourable to the Pope to accept the decision of the Arch- 
 bishop of Canterbury, than to pass sentence himself. 
 
 jyinteville to Cardinal Tournon, Ambassador at Borne. 
 London, June 9, 1533. [MS. Bibliot. Imper. Paris.] 
 
 My Lord, — The King of England desires me to write to 
 you in the same terms in which I have written to our Sovereign 
 Lord and to the Grand Master. 
 
 It has been declared in Rome, in full Consistory, that the 
 Most Christian King intends to employ his powers against 
 the Lutherans ; and that, if necessary, he will invade them in 
 person. The King of England is marvellously displeased. If 
 our Sovereign Lord relinquish the intelligence which has been 
 commenced with the Germans, all Europe, he says, will fall into 
 the hands of the Pope and the Emperor. You cannot conceive 
 how angry he is. He calls the Most Christian King the worst 
 adviser and the worst friend in the world. As to the inter- 
 view, our Sovereign Lord, he says, is too anxious for it. If 
 all were meant fairly, the Pope would be more eager than the 
 Most Christian King, and the many smooth words between 
 them indicate something underhand. 
 
 I did my best to soothe him. I said that our King only 
 desired the interview through his affection to his Majesty, 
 and as to manoeuvres there were none unless for the marriage 
 of which he had been informed long since.* But I never saw 
 him so angry. The news from Rome I suppose are the cause. 
 They have written to say that the Pope still makes delays, and 
 will do nothing of importance — that is, will pass no sentence 
 — before the interview. If the sentence, when it is given, be 
 against his wishes, I doubt whether the King will find his people 
 
 * Between the Duke of Orleans and Catherine de Medici. 
 
94 NOTE B. 
 
 as obedient as they might be. He is acting prudently in attach- 
 ing the nobles and the great men to himself, that the people 
 when they rise may be without head or leader. If G-od please, 
 things will not come to that point ; but you know the Eng- 
 lish people ; when they have the will to rebel, they do not 
 stay to calculate chances. 
 
 The Pope replied to Cranmer's sentence with fresh me- 
 naces. The King of France wrote to remonstrate, and on the 
 17th of August Cardinal Tournon answered thus : — 
 
 Cardinal Tournon to Francis the First. 
 Rome, August 17, 1533. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 Siee, — I have delivered your message to his Holiness on the 
 affair of the King of England, and I have told him how much 
 you were annoyed at the step which had been taken. His 
 Holiness said that he was sorry to have acted contrary to 
 your wishes, but the King of England obliged, and in a 
 manner drove him to it. The King of England was not con- 
 tent with disregarding briefs and inhibitions, and taking a 
 wife, but he had published laws in derogation of his Holiness' s 
 authority and of the rights of the Holy See. The Archbishop 
 of Canterbury had usurped the office of judge, and, in his 
 sentence, a copy of which was read in the Consistory, he 
 called himself Legatus Natus of that very See which he was 
 outraging. 
 
 In fact, Sire, as I have told you before, the cardinals would 
 have been in despair of the Pope had he acted otherwise. 
 But however it be, your Majesty can still do much for the 
 King of England, if you can keep the Duke of Norfolk with 
 you till the Pope's arrival. As I hinted in my last letter, 
 little as the King of England seems inclined to undo his work 
 and submit to the Holy See, the Pope will do for him with 
 the utmost readiness all that can be attempted in honour. 
 It may be that, when you are together, his Holiness will light 
 on some expedient. 
 
 The Pope spoke fairly, but, like a rower in a boat, his 
 face was one way, his movements were another. 
 
 He followed up his threats with censures, declaring Henry 
 ipso facto excommunicate. 
 
 Erancis again wrote in indignation to insist that the cen- 
 
NOTE B. 95 
 
 sures should be suspended, and on the birth of Elizabeth in 
 September, permitted his ambassador in England to attend 
 the baptism. 
 
 Cardinal Tournon to Francis the First. 
 Koine, September 27, 1533. [MS. Bibliot. Impdr. Paris.] 
 
 Sire, — Incontinently on the receipt of your letter requiring 
 the suspension of the censures against the King of England, I 
 waited on his Holiness and earnestly entreated his compli- 
 ance. His Holiness answered that for himself he would do 
 anything in his power, so great was his regard for your Ma- 
 jesty ; but your demand was of a kind which he could grant 
 only in Consistory, and he found that the cardinals would 
 make a difficulty. I begged his Holiness, in your name, to 
 do his best to persuade the said cardinals. Tour motive, I 
 said, was simply the hope that the approaching interview 
 might have good effects. 
 
 At last, Sire, his Holiness consented to use his influence 
 with them, and he did it so successfully that not one of them 
 said a word in opposition. 
 
 The censures, therefore, were suspended by the Consistory 
 yesterday. 
 
 The interview between the Pope and Francis the Eirst 
 came off at Marseilles at the end of October. Henry was 
 to have been represented there by the Duke of Norfolk ; 
 but Norfolk was recalled on the first issue of the censures. 
 Dr. Bonner attended in his place, but only to present an 
 appeal on behalf of the King of England from the Pope to the 
 next general council. The appeal was rejected ; but the Pope 
 promised, that if Henry would submit to be represented by a 
 proctor, and acknowledge the Pope's right to try the cause at 
 Borne, he would give judgment in his favour. Henry believed, 
 and perhaps rightly, that the Pope was playing him false. If 
 the Pope could promise to give judgment for him, the Pope 
 must have satisfied himself that his cause was just ; why then 
 so many conditions and delays ? The marriage of the Duke 
 of Orleans with Catherine de Medici while his own business 
 remained unsettled, aggravated his suspicions. The reports 
 of D'Inteville and Chastillon on the King's feelings and on 
 the condition of the country become now highly curious. 
 
96 NOTE B. 
 
 D"* Inteville to Montmorency 
 Greenwich, November 7, 1533. [MS. Bibliot. Imper. Paris.] 
 
 My Lobd, — You will have seen my letter to his Majesty, 
 and the report of my conversation with the King. He was 
 on the way from his room to chapel to hear mass. He stopped 
 as he passed me, and tried to make me believe that I had 
 been instructed to tell him that the marriage of the Duke of 
 Orleans should not come off until the Pope had despatched 
 his business as he desired. 
 
 I assured him that he was mistaken, that I had told him 
 no such thing, nor had been directed to tell him ; and I 
 offered to show him my instructions. He replied, that al- 
 though I had not said it, the King had said it, and said it to 
 himself ; nor was he the only witness ; for the same words 
 had been used to the Queen at Calais. 
 
 He then left me, and as he turned to the altar added, that 
 if the marriage took place while nothing had been done for 
 him, he would have small reason to thank the King's friend- 
 ship. 
 
 While he was at mass, I went to the Duke of Norfolk's 
 room to finish my letter, for which the courier was waiting. 
 I had no opportunity of speakiog with the King again after 
 the service, but I had a long conversation with my Lord of 
 Norfolk. 
 
 The King, I said, was marvellously importunate with our 
 master. He must be aware that our master was taking more 
 pains in this business than he had taken for himself and his 
 children ; and if his trouble and his expense (for the money it 
 cost him was no trifle) were to be so ill acknowledged, he would 
 not be very well pleased. I desired the duke and some other in- 
 fluential members of the council who were present to tell the 
 King what I said, and to tell him also that, if he went on 
 thus he might tire out our master's patience. If they were 
 true friends to the King of England, I said, they ought to be 
 glad to see the Most Christian King on good terms with the 
 Pope. The closest alliance which our master could form 
 with the Pope's Holiness would be the best in the end for 
 their master. If the Most Christian King were to act as their 
 master would have him act, the Pope's Holiness would throw 
 himself unreservedly on the Emperor, and their master's 
 prospects would not be mended. 
 
 I assure you, my lord, many of the council agreed in what 
 I said most fully, especially the Duke of Norfolk, who did 
 
NOTE B. 97 
 
 not scruple to tell me so ; but the duke said that the whole 
 business had so inflamed and irritated the King their master's 
 brain, that he did not trust one of them. He was himself, he said, 
 one of those in whom the King had most confidence, but both 
 King and Queen often held him in suspicion. Believe me, 
 my lord, there are some here, and those of the greatest in the 
 land, who will be indignant if the Pope confirm the sentence 
 against the late Queen. There is little love for the one who 
 is Queen now, or for any of her race.* My lord, I hear that 
 M. Chastillon is again in England. On Sunday I shall pre- 
 sent him to the King, and myself take my leave. Before I 
 go, I shall speak my mind plainly to his Majesty. The lords 
 of the council will hardly tell him the truth as roundly as I 
 shall do. 
 
 D'Inteville. 
 
 Notes of the Complaints of the King of England, apparently in 
 
 D 'Inteville 's hand. 
 November, 1533. [MS. Bibliot. Imper. Paris.] 
 
 He complained that all Christian princes now knew the 
 alliance between Prance and England to be no longer what it 
 was. The division between them was everywhere notorious. 
 
 As to the innovations which the King of France undertook 
 that the King his brother should not make, the King said he 
 had kept promise, and his honour was untouched. The Pope 
 began by issuing censures., and by refusing to admit his reasons 
 for declining to plead at Borne. 
 
 He complained that he was required to send a proctor. 
 He was told that the cause should be decided in favour of 
 whichever party was thus represented ; but he said that for 
 the sake of all other sovereigns, as well as himself, he would 
 send no proctor, since, by so doing, he would acquiesce in the 
 rejection of his excuser. The laws passed in Parliament, he 
 declared, were for the welfare of the commonwealth, and he 
 would not suspend them. The King of Prance had told him 
 that the Pope admitted his cause to be just. The Prench 
 lawyers unanimously affirmed the same, and he was therefore 
 astonished that the Most Christian King should now advise 
 him to let a proctor go. 
 
 If the Pope complains of injuries which the Holy See has 
 
 * Underlined in the original. 
 H 
 
98 NOTE B. 
 
 received from England, the Pope has injured England in turn, 
 and has been the first to begin. The question of injuries had 
 better be dropped on both sides. The King says that he demands 
 no reparation, nor will he make any reparation. He asks only 
 for justice ; and if he cannot obtain that justice, it is enough 
 for him that he has God and right on his side, as the Pope 
 has admitted. 
 
 He complained of all this prodigious humility and kissing 
 of feet, so unlike what was promised him at Calais, so unlike 
 the ' want of confidence' which was then to be the rule with 
 the Pope. His advice had not been followed — faith had not 
 been kept with him. The marriage was not to have been 
 contracted till the Pope had done justice. 
 
 He complained of the French council, who overpersuaded 
 the Most Christian King against his better judgment. They 
 wished to deal with him, also, he supposed, in French fashion, 
 playing with him, and entertaining him with false hopes, and 
 cheating him after all. But he was not a man to be toyed 
 with thus — he had known the world too long. He himself 
 spoke what he meant, and he would have others speak as 
 they meant. Those who would deal frankly with him, he 
 would stand by with life and goods, but otherwise he would 
 not ; and his friendship, he thought, was of another sort than 
 the Pope's, and better worth. 
 
 As to the interview, he had been told that * was talked 
 
 of. He said that he could hardly believe it ; but whatever was 
 done, it would be only trifling, and instead of drawing the 
 friendship closer, would weaken it. He had not mentioned 
 the interview before for two full months. 
 
 Moreover, he said, that for himself his council do not govern 
 him, but that he governs his council. He desires their opinions, 
 but the resolution is with himself, and every King ought to 
 do the same. He bade me give his best respects to our master, 
 and tell him that he still hoped the Most Christian King 
 would be his good brother and friend. In spite of appear- 
 ances hitherto to the contrary, he would not yet give up his 
 confidence. 
 
 At the end of all this, he bade me say something. I an- 
 swered that the King his brother had never ceased to exert 
 himself in his behalf; that the Most Christian King, he might 
 be assured, never took so much pains for himself or his chil- 
 dren when in captivity. 
 
 * Word illegible in MS. 
 
NOTE B. 99 
 
 He began again, and went to the other end of the room to 
 M. Chastillon, to whom he said the truth was plain enough. 
 The Most Christian King, he repeated again and again, was 
 no longer the friend to him which he had been. The French 
 council were entangling him with their affection for the Pope. 
 
 For his own part, he declares that he will never more ac- 
 knowledge the Pope in England. He will allow him as Bishop 
 of Rome, or as Pope (if he so please to be called), but he will 
 concede him no more authority over himself or his subjects ; 
 and he will be none the worse Christian for that, but rather 
 the better. Above all things, and in all places, he will acknow- 
 ledge Jesus Christ as the only Lord of Christian men. 
 Christ's word, he says, shall be preached in England, and not 
 the canons and decrees of Popes. He professes to have heard 
 from his ambassador at the Court of the Emperor that the 
 Spaniards will come and make war upon him. But he says 
 he has no fear of them. They may come to England if they 
 will ; they may find it not so easy to return. 
 
 The Queen sends her regards to his Majesty, and trusts that 
 he will give proofs of the affection which he has professed to 
 feel for her, as she in turn will do him service as occasion 
 may offer. 
 
 Chastillon to tlie Bishop of Paris. 
 Greenwich, November 17, 1533. [MS. Bibliot. Inipe'r. Paris.] 
 
 My Lord, — M. d'Inteville returns to-morrow. I will add, 
 at present, but one word on the state of things here. 
 
 The King of England falls away every day more and more 
 from the friendship which he once felt for our King. He 
 supposes our King to have neglected his interests with the 
 Pope, and to have shown little value for the English alliance. 
 
 He has made up his mind to a final and complete revolt 
 from the Holy See. He says that he will have the ' holy word of 
 God ' preached throughout the country ; and our Lord, he 
 believes, will aid him in defending his rights. 
 
 It is a bad business, and a bad example to other princes. 
 He is determined, however, and the lords about the court 
 and the greater part of the people go along with him. 
 
 May the Creator grant you a long and happy life. 
 Your humble servant, 
 
 Chastillon. 
 
 H 2 
 
100 NOTE B. 
 
 In the beginning of the ensning year, Parliament passed the 
 first Act of Succession, determining the crown to the children 
 of Anne Boleyn. The Pope's authority was conditionally 
 abolished, with a proviso, however, that he might have three 
 months to consider himself; and the Nun of Kent and her 
 accomplices were attainted. Henry, at the same time, threat- 
 ened to form a Protestant league, and the Bishop of Paris 
 started for Rome to make one last effort to preserve the 
 peace. 
 
 But it was too late. On the 23rd of March the Pope 
 gave final sentence in the divorce cause. The King of England 
 was enjoined to take back Queen Catherine within four months, 
 or he was declared excommunicate. His subjects were 
 absolved from their allegiance : and the Imperialists undertook 
 to execute the censures, invade England, and depose the 
 king. 
 
 D'Inteville to M. de Tarbes. 
 October, 1534. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 My Lord, — Tou will be so good as to tell the Most Christian 
 King that the Emperor's ambassador has communicated with 
 the old Queen. The Emperor sends a message to her and to her 
 daughter, that he will not return to Spain till he has seen 
 them restored to their rights. 
 
 The people are so much attached to the said ladies that 
 they will rise in rebellion, and join any prince who will 
 undertake their quarrel. Tou probably know from other 
 quarters the intensity of this feeling. It is shared by all 
 classes, high and low, and penetrates even into the royal 
 household. 
 
 The nation is in marvellous discontent. Every one but the 
 relations of the present Queen, are indignant on the ladies' 
 account. Some fear the overthrow of religion ; others fear war 
 and injury to trade. Up to this time, the cloth, hides, wool, 
 lead, and other merchandize of England have found markets 
 in Elanders, Spain, and Italy ; now it is thought navigation 
 will be so dangerous that English merchants must equip 
 their ships for war if they trade to foreign countries ; and 
 besides the risk of losing all to the enemy, the expense of the 
 armament will swallow the profit of the voyage. In like 
 manner, the Emperor's subjects and the Pope's subjects will 
 not be able to trade with England. The coasts will be 
 blockaded by the ships of the Emperor and his allies ; and at 
 this moment men's fears are aggravated by the unseason- 
 able weather throughout the summer, and the failure of the 
 
NOTE B. 101 
 
 crops. There is not corn enough for half the ordinary con- 
 sumption. 
 
 The common people, foreseeing these inconveniences, are so 
 violent against the Queen, that they say a thousand shameful 
 things of her, and of all who have supported her in her in- 
 trigues. On them is cast the odium of all the calamities 
 anticipated from the war. 
 
 When the war comes, no one doubts that the people will rebel 
 as much from fear of the dangers which I have mentioned, as 
 from the love which is felt for the two ladies, and especially 
 for the Princess. She is so entirely beloved that, notwith- 
 standing the law made at the last Parliament, and the menace 
 of death contained in it, they persist in regarding her as Princess. 
 No Parliament, they say, can make her anything but the King's 
 daughter, born in marriage ; and so the King and every one 
 else regarded her before that Parliament. 
 
 Lately, when she was removed from Greenwich, a vast 
 crowd of women, wives of citizens and others, walked before 
 her at their husbands' desire, weeping and crying that not- 
 withstanding all she was Princess. Some of them were sent 
 to the Tower, but they would not retract. 
 
 Things are now so critical, and the fear of war is so 
 general, that many of the greatest merchants in London have 
 placed themselves in communication with the Emperor's am- 
 bassador, telling him, that if the Emperor will declare war, 
 the English nation will join him for the love they bear the 
 Princess. 
 
 You, my lord, will remember that when you were here, it 
 was said you were come to tell the King that he was excom- 
 municated, and to demand the hand of the Princess for the 
 Dauphin. The people were so delighted that they have never 
 ceased to pray for you.* We too, when we arrived in London, 
 were told that the people were praying for us. They thought 
 our embassy was to the Princess. , They imagined her marriage 
 with the Dauphin had been determined on by the two Kings, 
 and the satisfaction was intense and universal. 
 
 They believe that, except by this marriage, they cannot 
 possibly escape war ; whereas, can it be brought about, they 
 
 * The marriage between Mary and the Dauphin had been proposed some 
 years before. It was the occasion of the doubt raised by M. de Tarbes of 
 Mary's legitimacy. The reopening of the question came from the Emperor, 
 who hoped to bribe Francis to join him against England, and compel 
 Hem-y, by force or fear, to acquiesce. 
 
102 NOTE B. 
 
 will have peace with the Emperor and all other Christian 
 princes. They are now so disturbed and so desperate that, 
 although at one time they would have preferred a husband for 
 her from among themselves, that they might not have a foreign 
 King, there now is nothing which they desire more. Unless the 
 Dauphin will take her, they say she will continue disinherited ; 
 or, if she come to her rights, it can only be by battle, to the 
 great incommodity of the country. The Princess herself says 
 publicly that the Dauphin is her husband, and that she has no 
 hope but in him. I have been told this by persons who have 
 heard it from her own lips. 
 
 The Emperor's ambassador inquired, after you came, whether 
 we had seen her. He said he knew she was most anxious to 
 speak with us ; she thought we had permission to visit her, 
 and she looked for good news. He told us, among other 
 things, that she had been more strictly guarded of late, 
 by the orders of the Queen that now is, who, knowing her 
 feeling for the Dauphin, feared there might be some practice 
 with her, or some attempt to carry her off. 
 
 The Princess's ladies say that she calls herself the Dauphin's 
 wife. A time will come, she says, when God will see that 
 she has suffered pain and tribulation sufficient ; the Dauphin 
 will then demand her of the King her father, and the King 
 her father will not be able to refuse. 
 
 The lady who was my informant heard, also, from the 
 Princess, that her governess, and the other attendants whom 
 the Queen had set to watch her, had assured her that the Dau- 
 phin was married to the daughter of the Emperor ; but she, the 
 Princess, had answered it was not true — the Dauphin could 
 not have two wives, and they well knew that she was his wife : 
 they told her that story, she said, to make her despair, and agree 
 to give up her rights ; but she would never part with her 
 hopes. 
 
 You may have heard of the storm that broke out between 
 her and her governess when we went to visit her little sister. 
 She was carried off by force to her room, that she might not 
 speak with us ; and they could neither pacify her nor keep 
 her still, till the gentleman who escorted us told her he had 
 the King's commands that she was not to show herself while 
 we were in the house. Tou remember the message the same 
 gentleman brought to you from her, and the charge which was 
 given by the Queen. 
 
 Could the King be brought to consent to the marriage, it 
 would be a fair union of two realms, and to annex Britain to the 
 
NOTE B. 103 
 
 crown of France would be a great honour to our Sovereign ; 
 the English party desire nothing better ; the Pope will be glad 
 of it ; the Pope fears that, if war break out again, Prance 
 will draw closer to England on the terms which the King of 
 Englaud desires ; and he may thus lose the French tribute as 
 he has lost the English. He therefore will urge the Emperor 
 to agree, and the Emperor will assist gladly for the love which 
 he bears to his cousin. 
 
 If the Emperor be willing, the King of England can then be 
 informed; and he can be made to feel that, if he will avoid war, 
 he must not refuse his consent. The King, in fact, has no wish 
 to disown the Princess, and he knows well that the marriage 
 with the Dauphin was once agreed on. 
 
 Should he be unwilling, and should his wife's persuasions 
 still have influence with him, he will hesitate before he will 
 defy, for her sake, the King of France and the Emperor 
 united. His regard for the Queen is less than it was, and di- 
 minishes every day. He has a new fancy,* as you are aware. 
 
 The Emperor entered warmly into the project for marrying 
 Mary to a French prince — the Dauphin, or one of his brothers 
 — and in November the Count de Nassau went to Paris to see 
 what could be done. 
 
 Charles V. to Ms Ambassador at Paris. 
 November, 1534. [MS. Archives at Brussels.] 
 
 In addition, the Count de Nassau and 
 
 yourself may go further in sounding the King about the 
 count's proposal — I mean for the marriage of our cousin the 
 Princess of England with the Duke d' Angoulesme. The Grand 
 Master, I understand, when the count spoke of it, seemed 
 to enter into the suggestion, and mentioned the displeasure 
 which the King of England had conceived against Anne 
 Boleyn. I am therefore sincerely desirous that the proposal 
 should be well considered, and you will bring it forward as you 
 shall see opportunity. You will make the King and the 
 Grand Master feel the importance of the connexion, the great- 
 ness which it would confer on the Duke d' Angoulesme, the 
 release of the English debt which can be easily arranged, and 
 the assurance of the realm of France. 
 
 Such a marriage will be, beyond comparison, more advan- 
 tageous to the King, his realm, and his children, than any 
 
 * II a des nouvelles amours. 
 
104 NOTE C. 
 
 benefit for which he could hope from Milan ; while it can be 
 brought about with no considerable difficulty. But be care- 
 ful what you say, and how you say it. Speak alone to the 
 King and alone to the Grand Master, letting neither of them 
 know that you have spoken to the other. Observe carefully 
 how the King is inclined, and, at all events, be secret ; so that 
 if he does not like the thing, the world need not know that it 
 has been thought of. 
 
 Should it be suggested to you — as it may be — that Anne 
 Boleyn may be driven desperate, and may contrive something 
 against the Princess's life, we answer that we can hardly 
 believe her so utterly abandoned by conscience : or, again, 
 the Duke of Anjou may possibly object to the exaltation of 
 his brother ; in which case we shall consent willingly to have 
 our cousin marry the Duke of Anjou ; and, in that case, 
 beyond the right which appertains to the Duke and Princess 
 from their fathers and mothers, they and either of them 
 shall have the kingdom of Denmark, and we will exert our- 
 selves to compose any difficulties with our Holy Father the 
 Pope. 
 
 Note C. 
 
 The attitude of the foreign Powers, the insurrectionary 
 spirit in England, and the intrigues so largely carried on 
 between the disaffected Catholics and the agents of Charles 
 the Fifth, led to the Act of Supremacy. The plea for the in- 
 tended rebellion against Henry was to be the Papal excom- 
 munication. By the Act of Supremacy every man, on pain of 
 death, was compelled to disclaim the Pope's pretence to absolve 
 subjects from their allegiance, and to accept and admit the 
 supreme sovereignty of the King in Church and State, Under 
 this Act Fisher and More were executed. Paul the Third, 
 who had succeeded Clement, invited the Catholic Powers 
 to avenge their deaths and the wrongs of the Holy See. 
 
 Paul the Third to Francis the First. 
 July 26, J 535. [MS. Bibliot. Implr. Paris.] 
 
 Dearly Beloved in Christ, — Health and our blessing. 
 We committed to your Majesty the defence of the Cardinal of 
 Rochester, and from your excellent goodness, and from your 
 influence with Henry, King of England, we promised our- 
 selves that we should speedily hear of his release. We are 
 
NOTE C. 105 
 
 now shocked to learn that, after a long imprisonment, he has 
 been put to death. We doubt not that, after your earnest, 
 though, alas ! unavailing efforts in behalf of the said car- 
 dinal, your Majesty feels deeply how atrocious is this deed. 
 Tour Majesty's intercession not only failed, but seems to have 
 hastened the catastrophe. But we, my son, we and this Holy 
 See, what must we feel when the Church of Christ is thus 
 lacerated ! Shall we mourn for his innocence and piety, his 
 wisdom, his zeal for the Catholic faith, so famed throughout 
 the world ? Shall we deplore the outraged dignity of a prelate 
 and cardinal ? Shall we lament his cruel death — a fate befitting 
 a traitor inflicted on a saint ? These things are all most 
 miserable ; but saddest of all is the cause for which he died. 
 He offered up his sainted life for God, for the Catholic religion, 
 for justice, and truth. He persisted, not like St. Thomas of 
 Canterbury, in defence of special and peculiar privileges, but 
 in behalf of the whole Church ; and therefore this Henry has 
 not only repeated, but far outdone, the evil deeds of his 
 ancestor, both in the rank of the person slain, and in the 
 weightiness of the cause. To the grievous ulcers already eat- 
 ing into his soul, he has added this the last and worst. He 
 has despised the censures launched upon him by our prede- 
 cessor. For two whole years he has continued in insolent and 
 notorious adultery, causing public scandal in the Church. He 
 has sacrilegiously murdered our clergy and friars. He has 
 been guilty of heresy and schism, in rending away his realm 
 from obedience to the Apostolic See. And now, last of all, 
 when this most excellent prelate had for his wisdom and holy 
 life been promoted to the dignity of a cardinal, he first tempted 
 him to deny the truth, and when he could not prevail, he 
 caused the blessed saint to be put to a public and shameful 
 death by the hand of the executioner. 
 
 He slew him the more readily, because he had heard that we 
 had named him cardinal. And thus, among his manifold enor- 
 mities, this King has committed the crime of high treason, and 
 has incurred, ipso facto, the legitimate penalty of deprivation.* 
 
 Other enormous deeds also he has dared to perpetrate, no 
 lighter than those of which we have spoken. We are not ignorant 
 how, at the late conference at Calais, he tempted you, most pious 
 and worthy Prince, with accursed proposals, fraught with ruin 
 to the Church. He was not ashamed to assail your virtue 
 
 * In accusing Henry of high treason, Icesce majestatis, the Pope ad- 
 vanced precisely the claim which the Act of Supremacy was designed to 
 meet. 
 
108 NOTE C. 
 
 with his perfidious counsels, which, however, were by you de- 
 servedly repelled. 
 
 As his conduct towards you has been full of evil, so has 
 yours been most excellent. Therefore for now three years, 
 partly in regard for your Majesty, partly in the hope that Henry 
 might repent, the Holy See has endured these iniquities at his 
 hand. But her forbearance has availed nothing. Her patience 
 under his crimes has rather invited fresh oppression ; and we 
 are now called, as by the very voice of God and the outcries 
 of mankiod, to take vengeance. With grief of mind, but 
 driven by necessity, and supported by the unanimous counsel 
 of the holy fathers of the Church, we now proceed to those 
 measures which the cause of God and man enjoins upon us. 
 This Henry, who, by rebellion, by heresy, by schism, and 
 other enormous crimes, and now at last by the iniquitous 
 murder of a cardinal, has rendered himself unworthy of his 
 realm and dignity, we do declare deposed. Your Majesty, 
 we doubt not, being a most Christian Sovereign, and most 
 unlike to him in all things, holds those his deeds in abhor- 
 rence ; we are assured that, mindful of God, the Church, and 
 your duty, you will consider him unworthy of your alliance ; 
 that you will not look on him as King, but as usurper of the 
 name of King. With you, therefore, dearly beloved in Christ, 
 the Holy Church seeks for that refuge, which not in vain she 
 has sought with your forefathers. We cast ourselves and our 
 necessities upon your piety ; and we entreat you, remembering 
 how mightily in times past your ancestors avenged the wrongs 
 of Holy Church, to execute our sentence upon the said Henry, 
 when by ourselves you shall be invited to take arms. 
 
 Thus much we commit to letter, the bearer of which, our 
 nuncio, will confer with your Majesty at greater length on 
 our behalf. To his words we refer ourselves ; and to your 
 Majesty's protection we commend the dignity of the Apostolic 
 See and the honour of Almighty God. 
 
 Given at Rome, under the Fisherman's ring, July 26, 1535, 
 the year of our Pontificate I. 
 
 Eustace Chajppuys to Chancellor Granvelle. 
 [Decyphered Copy.] 
 London, November 21, 1535. [MS. Archives at Brussels.] 
 
 Sir, — Considering my duty, the desire of the person you 
 know of, and the importance of the cause, I suppose I ought 
 
NOTE C. 107 
 
 not to have made any fresh demand in the affairs of the good 
 ladies. The King is so blinded, and so given over to a repro- 
 bate sense, that we may look to see God permit him to entangle 
 himself deeper and deeper in the devil's labyrinth. He will 
 make himself more and more abominable in the sight of man- 
 kind, and thus come to utter ruin and destruction. He talks 
 of providing a number of harquebusses, but they will not save 
 him, and he must look for them in some other place than 
 Flanders : but the intention means something ; he wishes pro- 
 bably to awe his subjects into quiet, and prepare against 
 foreign invasion. 
 
 Sir, Master Cromwell, of whose origin and antecedents 
 your Secretary Antoine tells me you desire to be informed, is 
 the son of a poor blacksmith, who lived in a small village four 
 miles from this place, and is buried in a common grave in the 
 parish churchyard. His uncle, the father of a cousin whom 
 he has since enriched, was cook to the late Archbishop of 
 Canterbury. The said Cromwell, in his youth, was an ill-condi- 
 tioned scapegrace. For some offence he was thrown into prison, 
 and was obliged afterwards to leave the country. He went to 
 Flanders, and thence to Rome and other places in Italy. 
 Returning after a time to England, he married the daughter of 
 a wool-comber, and lived in his father-in-law's house, carrying 
 on the business. Afterwards he was a law-pleader, and thus 
 became known to the Cardinal of York, who, perceiving his 
 talents and industry, and finding him ready at all things, evil or 
 good, took him into his service, and employed him in the demoli- 
 tion of five or six religious houses. On the cardinal's down- 
 fall Cromwell acquitted himself towards him with marked 
 fidelity, and afterwards fell under the displeasure of Sir John 
 Wallop, now ambassador in France, who threatened him with 
 violence. 
 
 Not knowing how else to defend himself, Cromwell con- 
 trived with presents and entreaties to obtain an audience of 
 the King, whom he undertook to make the richest sovereign 
 that ever reigned in England. He promised so fairly that 
 the King at once retained him upon the council, although his 
 promotion was for several months kept a secret from the 
 rest. Since that time he has risen above every one, except it 
 be the lady, and the world says he has more credit with his 
 master than ever the cardinal had. The cardinal shared his 
 influence with the Duke of Suffolk and several others. Now 
 there is not a person who does anything except Cromwell. 
 The Chancellor is only his tool ; and although he has, so far, 
 
108 NOTE C. 
 
 refused to take the Great Seal himself, people say he will be 
 persuaded to catch at it before long. 
 
 He can speak his own language remarkably well, and Latin, 
 French, and Italian tolerably. For the rest, he is a person of 
 good cheer, gracious in words and generous in actions ; his 
 equipage and his palace are magnificent. My servant can tell 
 you more if you wish for further information. 
 
 Sir, the person mentioned in my letter to his Majesty, 
 has told me that the King, speaking to some one four or 
 five days ago of the Princess, said that he would soon 
 provide for her in such a way that she should need neither 
 household nor company, and she should serve as an example 
 to show the world that no one should disobey the law. 
 He said that there was a prophecy about him that at 
 the beginning of his reign he would be gentle as a lamb, 
 and at the end worse than a lion ; and he would prove the 
 prophet true. The person I speak of, feels so uncertain what 
 he may do, that he has sent to beg me not to put off the 
 ladies any more with smooth words. He will himself, he told me, 
 give them notice to look to themselves, and warn them they 
 had better send immediately to the Emperor's Majesty. 
 
 On the 7th of January, 1536, Queen Catherine died, and 
 Mary's chief anxiety was then to escape from England, as a 
 preface to the Emperor's intended declaration of war. 
 
 Chappuys to Charles the Fifth. 
 Feb. 10, 1536. [MS. Archives at Brussels.] 
 
 Sire, — Yesterday arrived the personage sent by M. de 
 Rceulx to examine the plans for the enterprise, and to 
 instruct me in the order to be taken. I fear, for the reasons 
 which I stated in my last letter to your Majesty, the oppor- 
 tunity is gone. I have not, however, as yet received the answer 
 of the person whom the affair concerns, and as that answer shall 
 be, we will act to the best of our ability. Tour Majesty shall 
 have notice in time. 
 
 Chappuys to Charles the Fifth. 
 Feb. 17, 1536. [MS. Archives at Brussels.] 
 
 Sire, — In my letter of the 10th I informed your Majesty of 
 the arrival of the person despatched by M.deBoeulx,and I forth- 
 with sent notice to the Princess by her confidential servant. 
 The servant returned yesterday with an answer, that I 
 
NOTE C. 109 
 
 need not keep her informed in detail of the plans for 
 carrying her off; she left the whole arrangemenb to my dis- 
 cretion, having entire confidence in me, and I was to settle 
 everything ; she herself would be in readiness to leave the 
 house, and this she thought she could do if we would provide 
 her with a sleeping draught for the women who were placed 
 about her ; she would have to pass the window of her gover- 
 ness ; but once outside the house she could find means to 
 unlock or break open the door of the garden. 
 
 Sire, her anxiety to escape from her present unhappy situa- 
 tion is so great that I think if I told her to go to sea in a 
 sieve she would do it, and this makes me fear that her eager- 
 ness blinds her to the difficulties of the enterprise. "When 
 the experiment is tried, those difficulties will be found more 
 considerable than she anticipates, and she has no person of 
 experience to advise her. If the house in which they 
 have placed her be really so easy to leave, they may have 
 purposely laid the temptation in her way, that they may have 
 an excuse for treating her more harshly. She believes that 
 there is no guard ; but a guard there may be, notwithstand- 
 ing, without her knowledge, as there was last year at 
 Greenwich. 
 
 Sire, her present residence is for many reasons less con- 
 venient than the house where she was before. It is fifteen 
 miles further from G-ravesend, and at Grravesend M. de Rceulx 
 says that she must embark, the mariners not caring to ven- 
 ture further up the river. She would have forty miles to ride, 
 which she could not accomplish without relays of horses, and do 
 what we would, I think she could not escape being detected and 
 overtaken. The town adjoining is full of men and horses, and 
 there are towns and villages along the road where she might 
 easily be discovered and stopped. 
 
 Doubtless, could she be brought below G-ravesend as the 
 captain desires, the rest would then be easy ; but the difficulty 
 is the distance she must ride. If she embark near London, 
 there will be danger on the passage down before she can be 
 brought clear of the river. The captain says, among other 
 excuses, that the scrutiny is so close that he cannot venture to 
 bring any men with him below deck. There is no real ob- 
 stacle here, however ; the men might be dispersed in other 
 vessels and landed at Grravesend, where they could rejoin him. 
 The Princess thinks, and I learn the same thing elsewhere, 
 that about Easter she will be removed again, perhaps to the 
 old house, or it may be even nearer. 
 
110 NOTE C. 
 
 Nevertheless, Sire, ardently as the Princess longs to escape 
 from her trouble, she would deem it far better and far safer that 
 something should be undertaken of a larger kind, and a general 
 remedy be devised for the service of God, for the salvation of 
 the unnumbered souls which are now going the way to perdi- 
 tion, and for the repose and tranquillity of Christendom. 
 Supposing her carried off, which will not be without difficulty 
 and hazard, the question will not be settled. She says herseif 
 that stronger measures may be required, and the victory 
 perhaps, after all, might then be less easy to achieve. The King 
 is now off his guard ; the realm is undefended, and he scarcely 
 thinks of making preparations. Her escape might drive him 
 to despair, and with the help of his money he might do many 
 things. 
 
 For my own part, I think if the Princess were once in your 
 Majesty's hands, the King would drop his bravado, and would not 
 kick against the pricks. The Princess at any rate never ceases 
 to entreat me to implore your Majesty to take up the matter 
 promptly and swiftly ; events move too slowly for her ; 
 and when the time comes she is prepared for death. She 
 wishes me to despatch a messenger expressly to solicit your 
 Majesty ; in fact, she would have had the late Queen's physi- 
 cian go, were he willing to leave England. But I urged that 
 in doing so she would show some distrust of your Majesty's 
 good will ; I assured her that the opportunity was watched 
 for with the utmost vigilance, and I satisfied her that I ought 
 not to send. I persuaded the physician to stay where he was, 
 by telling him that the Princess might require his help, and 
 could trust no one but himself. The King sent him to attend 
 upon her. I spoke myself about it after the Queen's death ; 
 and the King gave permission that he should have access to 
 her apartments at all times and seasons. 
 
 Keport says, Sire, that a number of the old servants of the 
 Queen her mother are to be transferred to the Princess's 
 household, especially the head groom of the chamber, who is 
 to hold the same office. Should this turn out true, there will 
 be far less difficulty in carrying her off ; the groom of the 
 chamber being a man of ability — as fit a person for such a 
 business as could be found anywhere. If only she return to 
 her old house at Easter, so much the better, also. The time 
 will be more convenient. The King at that season is usually 
 at a distance, and the sea will be less dangerous. 
 
 Should it be determined finally to make the attempt, it will 
 not be for your Majesty's honour that I should remain here ; 
 
NOTE C. Ill 
 
 for all the world will not be able to persuade the King that I 
 was not the contriver and promoter of the business, and things 
 might, perhaps, go hard with me. He has a large opinion of 
 his own greatness, and he would like to show that he neither 
 fears nor regards man ; his concubine hates me because I 
 have always told him the truth, and opposed his accursed 
 obstinacy ; and, as soon as the preparations are complete, I 
 had better hasten off, with two or three of my people, to make 
 a tour in Flanders. As I am known to have communicated 
 with M. de Koeulx's servant, it is next to impossible that he 
 should not discover my hand ; if he find me out, he will 
 certainly destroy me ; while my going away may, perhaps, 
 divert their attention. 
 
 Tour Majesty will let me know your pleasure, and I will 
 forthwith obey you. I will only beseech your Majesty not to 
 impute what I have written to a want of will or courage. I 
 am ever ready to die in your Majesty's service. 
 
 The Emperor, when Chappuys's letter reached him, was no 
 longer in a condition to respond to Mary's expectations. In the 
 midst of his designs upon England he was overtaken by a 
 rupture with Erance ; and, instead of encouraging the Princess 
 to escape, and defying her father, he made the death of 
 Catherine an excuse for burying the quarrel, he sent to 
 Henry to court his alliance, and requested him to forget the 
 differences of the last few years. 
 
 Instructions to D'Inteville and De Tarbes. 
 April 29, 1536. [MS. Bibliot. Impdr. Paris.] 
 
 Since the departure of M. d'Inteville for England, the 
 Most Christian King has received a letter from M. de Tarbes, 
 dated the 19th of this month. He has therefore drawn these 
 present instructions to serve alike for the Bishop and for 
 M. d'Inteville, and to advertise them what they shall say to 
 the King of England on the Most Christian King's behalf. 
 And first : — 
 
 M. de Tarbes has informed the King of tbe arrival of a 
 courier from the Emperor at the English Court, of the causes 
 which induced the King of England to grant him an audience, 
 of the language used towards him, on his arrival, by the Duke 
 of Norfolk, and of the assurances given to M. de Tarbes, that 
 whatever overtures the Emperor might make to the King of 
 
112 NOTE C. 
 
 England, the present relations between Trance and England 
 would remain unaffected. 
 
 This last declaration has given the Most Christian King 
 unfeigned pleasure. 
 
 In like manner, M. de Tarbes informs the King of the 
 annoyance expressed by the King of England at the non- 
 arrival of the person whom the Most Christian King was to 
 send over, with the answer thereto made by M. de Tarbes ; 
 which answer the Most Christian King thought so good that 
 it did not need another word. 
 
 M. de Tarbes states, that in his letter to the King of Eng- 
 land, the Emperor brings forward five points. In the order 
 in which these points are arranged by the bishop — 
 
 The first declares that the Emperor was about to enter 
 Home. 
 
 The second relates to the invasion of Savoy by the King of 
 Erance. The Emperor requests the King of England to 
 intercede with the King of Erance for the restoration of the 
 Duke of Savoy's dominions. 
 
 In the third, the Emperor expresses a fear that the Most 
 Christian King will make war upon him for the Duchy of 
 Milan ; and, in that event, requests assistance from the King 
 of England. 
 
 In the fourth, the Emperor desires the King of England 
 to consent to forget what has passed between them on account 
 of his late aunt. The occasion having ceased to exist, the 
 Emperor hopes that the King of England will put away his 
 suspicion and resentment, and will return to the old terms of 
 cordial friendship and alliance. 
 
 In the last, the Emperor says he is about to send an army 
 against the Turks, and he invites the King of England to co- 
 operate with him against the enemy of the Christian faith. 
 
 On all these points the King of England has explained 
 himself to the Bishop of Tarbes and to M. d'Inteville. His 
 Majesty is especially pleased with the sage and prudent 
 answer given by the King of England to the Emperor touch- 
 ing the Duchy of Savoy. The said bishop and M. d'Inteville 
 are to thank the King warmly on his Majesty's behalf, and 
 to thank him also for so graciously communicating to 
 them the contents of the Emperor's letter. 
 
 His Majesty has been made to entertain the greatest possible 
 confidence in the King of England's regard and affection. 
 
 The insurrection so long threatened broke out at last in 
 
NOTE C. 113 
 
 October, l53 / 5 ; but, unfortunately for the prospects of the 
 insurgents, at a time when the state of the Continent no longer 
 permitted the Emperor to assist or countenance them. An 
 emissary of the Flemish Court, in sending an account of the 
 first successes of the rebels, in vain pointed out that the 
 opportunity which had been waited for was come. 
 
 to her Majesty the Queen Regent. 
 
 London, October, 1536. [MS. Archives at Brussels.] 
 
 Most noble Ladt, — I am instructed to inform your 
 Majesty that on Monday, the 2nd of this present October, 
 in the northern counties in the diocese of Lincoln, the King's 
 officers and commissioners were proceeding with the demoli- 
 tion of four abbeys, when certain peasants, by G-od's will, com- 
 menced a riot under the conduct of a brave shoemaker named 
 William King.* The chief commissioner, Doctor Lee, who was 
 especially obnoxious to the people, as the summoner who cited 
 the late Queen your aunt, now in glory, before the Arch- 
 bishop of Canterbury, contrived to escape ; but his cook was 
 taken, and, as a beginning, the people hanged him. A gentle- 
 man belonging to the Lord Privy Seal, otherwise called 
 Master Cromwell, tried to stop them ; and he too was im- 
 mediately laid hands on, wrapped in the hide of a newly-killed 
 calf, and worried and devoured by dogs ; the mob swearing 
 they would do as much for his master. 
 
 The people went next to the house of the Bishop of Lincoln, 
 whom they could not find ; but they caught his chancellor, and 
 to spite the bishop, who is said to have been the first person to 
 advise the King to divorce your aunt, they killed him. 
 
 The next day being Tuesday, there were more than ten 
 thousand of them in arms ; and they proceeded to take the 
 gentlemen of the neighbourhood, and swear them to be true 
 to their cause. The cobbler assumed a cloak of crimson 
 velvet, with the words embroidered in large letters upon it, 
 
 TOR GOD, THE KING, AND THE COMMONWEALTH. 
 
 Some of the gentlemen who had been sworn escaped and gave 
 notice to the King, and on Wednesday, at nine in the 
 morning, an order came out that all the gentlemen in London 
 should place themselves under the command of Eichard Crom- 
 well. The Lord Mayor undertook to provide horses, and 
 
 * Nicholas Melton was the name of the man who was called Captain 
 Cobbler. 
 
114 NOTE C. 
 
 went In person from stable to stable, borrowing on all sides 
 from natives and foreigners alike. To appease the complaints 
 which began to be heard, it was given out that the horses 
 were required for the Count of Nassau, who, they pretended, 
 had come over with a train of men as ambassador, and had 
 nothing to mount them on. On Saturday the number of in- 
 surgents had risen to fifty thousand, and there were said to be 
 as many as ten thousand priests among them, who never 
 ceased to stir them on to their work, and to tell them what 
 great things they would achieve. The same day Lord 
 Clinton's retinue joined them ; Lord Clinton himself (it was he 
 who married the Duke of Eichmond's mother) had to fly with a 
 single servant ; and many other gentlemen were forced to fly 
 also, who intended to have done service for the King. 
 
 "When these news reached London, the King called a 
 council ; and immediately after the meeting, the Dukes of 
 Norfolk and Suffolk, and the other lords, dispersed in dif- 
 ferent directions, as it was said, to prevent the insurrection 
 from spreading. The admiral and Sir Francis Brian went 
 down to Ampthill, and collected about ten thousand men out 
 of Northamptonshire and the counties adjoining. On Sunday 
 the King was said to be going to Ampthill also, and the 
 royal standard was expected to be displayed. Sunday after- 
 noon I saw thirty-four of the falconets which the King has been 
 making during the last year leave the Tower of London. There 
 was no shot or powder, however, that I could see, and they 
 were badly provided with artillerymen. The next day, w r hen 
 they were drawn out of the City, the horses were found so bad, 
 that, for want of better, thirteen of the guns went but a mile, 
 and then returned to the Tower ; while the remainder were 
 taken but a small distance. 
 
 Men are hired, as many as can be obtained, in Kent and 
 elsewhere ; but the chances are that when in face of the enemy 
 they will turn their coats, and join the rebels in their good 
 quarrel. Those who have risen say they will live like their 
 forefathers ; they will maintain the abbeys and the churches, 
 and pay no more imposts and subsidies. They demand the 
 repayment of the sums which they have been forced to contri- 
 bute already, especially the great loan exacted from them 
 in the cardinal's time ; and, finally, they will have sur- 
 rendered into their hands the wool-comber (by whom they 
 mean Cromwell), the tavern-keeper (which is their name for 
 the Archbishop of Canterbury), and divers other bishops and 
 lords of the council. 
 
NOTE C. 115 
 
 It was reported in London on Monday that the Earl of 
 Northumberland's brother had joined the Commons with 
 thirty thousand men. He wanted lately to be declared the 
 earl's heir ; the King made difficulties, and he now means to 
 be revenged. It was also said that a number of other lords 
 and great men had been forced to join, by a threat that they 
 should have their houses pillaged ; this has been done already 
 with the houses of those who, after taking the oath, have de- 
 serted to the King. A priest and a shoemaker were stated to 
 have been hanged the same morning for merely saying it was 
 a pity to collect an army to put down such poor people. The 
 King declared that they cared more for a set of rascals than 
 for him. 
 
 Thursday morning a knight went down to the coast to 
 fetch off the workmen employed by the King. The town of 
 Sandwich also has provided sixty poorly furnished men-at- 
 arms. The frontiers are now unprotected, and a landing can 
 be easily effected. Even the French tailors in London are 
 pressed to serve. They give them harquebusses and two 
 groats a-day, making four ducats the month, for their pay, 
 with a groat to drink for every five miles* they march. The 
 Flemish shoemakers are made to go on the same terms. To 
 the English they give but sixpence a-day, with the same drink 
 money as they allow the French. 
 
 Madame, it appears to the person who has been sent to me 
 by your Majesty, that it is good fishing in troubled waters ; 
 and that now, in these disturbances, there is an opportunity 
 such as there has not been these hundred years, to take 
 vengeance upon the schismatic for the wrongs which he has 
 done with his Erench alliances to his Majesty the Emperor, 
 for the injuries of your late aunt, his lawful wife, and for the 
 iniquitous treatment of his patient daughter the Princess. A 
 portion of the army now in readiness in Zealand would suffice 
 to restore the Princess to her place and rank. Two thousand 
 harquebuss men (it is of those that the need is greatest) 
 should be landed at the mouth of the river which runs from 
 York. 
 
 * Cinque milles, which, however, is incredible. The strongest ale then 
 made was twopence a gallon, and to drink two gallons every five miles 
 would have been beyond mortal capacity. The letter from which I tran- 
 scribe is a copy, so that there is room to suppose a mistake. 'Cinque,' I 
 think, should be cinquante, and for ' five ' we should read fifty. 
 
 i2 
 
116 NOTE D. 
 
 Note D. 
 
 to — 
 
 London, May 16, 1536. [MS. Archives at Brussels.*] 
 
 Lord Eochfort, brother of the wicked Queen Anne Boleyn, 
 has been beheaded with an axe on a scaffold in front of the 
 Tower. 
 
 The said lord made a good Catholic address to the people. 
 He said that he had not come there to preach to them, but 
 rather to serve as a mirror and an example. He acknowledged 
 the crimes which he had committed against God, and against 
 the King his sovereign ; there was no occasion for him, he said, 
 to repeat the cause for which he was condemned ; they would 
 have little pleasure in hearing him tell it. He prayed God, 
 and he prayed the King, to pardon his offences ; and all others 
 whom he might have injured he also prayed to forgive him as 
 heartily as he forgave every one. He bade his hearers avoid 
 the vanities of the world, and the flatteries of the Court which 
 had brought him to the shameful end which had overtaken 
 him. Had he obeyed the lessons of that Gospel which he had 
 so often read, he said he should not have fallen so far ; it 
 was worth more to be a good doer than a good reader. Finally, 
 he forgave those who had adjudged him to die, and he desired 
 them to pray God for his soul. 
 
 After Lord Eochfort came Mr. Norris, first gentleman of 
 the bedchamber to the King ; next to him "Weston and 
 Brereton, gentlemen of the bedchamber also ; and then Mark 
 the musician. These four said nothing except to pray for 
 God's and the King's forgiveness, and to bid us pray for their 
 souls. Brereton and Mark were afterwards quartered. 
 
 The wicked Queen herself suffered last on a scaffold within 
 the Tower, the gates being open. She was led up by the 
 lieutenant, feeble and half-stupified [elle etoit foible et 
 etonnee], and she looked back from time to time at four 
 of her ladies by whom she was attended. On reaching 
 the platform she prayed to be allowed to say something to 
 the people. She would not speak a word, she said, which 
 was not good. The lieutenant gave permission, and, raising 
 her eyes to heaven, she begged God and the King to forgive 
 her offences, and she bade the people pray God to protect 
 the King, for he was a good, kind, gracious, and loving Prince. 
 
 This done, they removed an ermine cloak which she had on, 
 
 * Partially printed by Gachard, Analectts Jlistoriques. 
 
NOTE E. 117 
 
 and she herself took off her head-dress, which was in the 
 English fashion. One of her attendants gave her a cap into 
 which she gathered her hair. She then knelt ; a lady bonnd 
 her eyes, and incontinently the executioner did his office. 
 When the head fell, a white handkerchief was thrown over it, 
 and one of the four ladies took it up and carried it away. The 
 other three lifted the body, and bore it with the head into the 
 adjoining chapel in the Tower. 
 
 It is said that she was condemned to be burnt alive, bat the 
 King commuted the sentence into decapitation. 
 
 Extract from a Letter of tlie Regent Mary to Ferdinand of 
 
 Austria. 
 May 23, 1536. [MS. Archives at Brussels.*] 
 
 The English, I think, will not give us much trouble, espe- 
 cially now that we are quit of that damsel who was so good a 
 Frenchwoman. You have no doubt heard that she has been 
 beheaded, and in order that vengeance should fall on her from 
 the subjects of his Majesty the Emperor, the King sent for the 
 headsman from St. Omer's to do the work. There was no 
 one in England skilful enough. 
 
 The King has, I understand, already married another woman, 
 who, they say, is a good Imperialist. I knownot whether she will 
 so continue. He had shown an inclination for her before the 
 other's death ; and as neither that other herself, nor any of the 
 rest who were put to death, confessed their guilt, except one 
 who was a musician, some people think he invented the charge 
 to get rid of her. However it be, no great wrong can have 
 been done to the woman herself. She is known to have been 
 a worthless person. It has been her character for a long time. 
 
 I suppose, if one may speak so lightly of such things, that 
 when he is tired of his new wife he will find some occasion 
 to quit himself of her also. Our sex will not be too well 
 satisfied if these practices come into vogue ; and, though I have 
 no fancy to expose myself to danger, yet, being a woman, I 
 will pray with the rest that God will have mercy on us. 
 
 Note E. 
 
 After Jane Seymour's death, both Charles and Erancis 
 affected an anxiety to secure the vacant hand of Henry. The 
 
 * Printed by Gachard, Analectes Bistoriqms. 
 
118 NOTE E. 
 
 Imperial candidate was the Duchess of Milan. Among the 
 many ladies at the French Court whose names were mentioned 
 to him, Henry's fancy inclined to the only one whom he 
 could not obtain, the Duchesse de Longueville. TheDuchesse 
 de Longueville, or Mary of Guise, had engaged herself to 
 James of Scotland. M. de Chastillon, the ambassador in Eng- 
 land, was occupied in endeavouring to persuade the King to 
 content himself with one of her sisters, or with a daughter of 
 the house of Lorraine or of Vendosme. The King, who had, 
 perhaps, seen her, would have accepted the Duchesse de 
 Longueville upon the spot. Chastillon's correspondence 
 relates his efforts, at once fruitless and grotesque, to induce 
 Henry to select either of the others. The King said he 
 would not choose a wife in the dark, or act in such a busi- 
 ness on another man's judgment. The young ladies must be 
 sent to Calais, and he would go over and see them. 
 
 The French Court were anxious to keep him from the 
 Duchess of Milan ; and yet they could not consent to trot out 
 their Princesses, as Montmorency said, like horses at a fair. 
 If the King chose none, they would be all made ridiculous ; 
 and whether he made a choice or not, to send them to Calais 
 on such an errand was disrespectful and discourteous. Chas- 
 tillon's last letter on the subject will serve as a specimen of 
 the rest. 
 
 Chastillon to Francis the First. 
 August 12, 1538. [MS. Bibliot. Impdr. Paris.] 
 
 Siee, — On Wednesday, the 9th of this month, I received 
 the letter which you were pleased to write to me from Villa 
 Franca, and I have laid before the King your brother the letter 
 which preceded it, dated from Yienne the 28th of July. 
 
 I already knew from M. de Lassigny the terms on which 
 you stood with the Emperor ; and I had therefore anticipated 
 the instructions with which you have now favoured me. I 
 entreat your pardon if I have listened too readily to things 
 told me here. I am not, I assure you, too well inclined to 
 give credence to English rumours ; but they were so positive 
 in their story, and it tallied so nearly with my information 
 from other quarters, that not having then heard from 
 yourself, I may hope for your forgiveness. Dismiss me from 
 your service if, in future, I let them use such language to me. 
 
 Sire, my last conversation with the King your brother 
 followed on the delivery of your letter. I wished to keep him 
 in as good a humour as I could, and without asking favours of 
 
NOTE E. 119 
 
 liim, I Lave somewhat improved his spirits. He has not been 
 easy since he heard from De Lassigny that yon were 
 certainly friends with the Emperor, and he liked still less 
 De Lassigny's going to Scotland. I have assured him, how- 
 ever, that notwithstanding the cordial friendship now esta- 
 blished between your Majesty and the Emperor, he would 
 always find you as well disposed to him as in times past. Tour 
 Majesty, I said, hoped that on his side he would be the same 
 to you ; and if you could be of any service to him with any- 
 thing in your realm, you would be at his command. 
 
 ' Well, well, ' said he, ' but the King sends no message 
 about the marriage.' 
 
 ' Saving your presence, Sire,' said I, ' he writes that he does 
 not think it honourable, as I have always told you, to send the 
 young ladies to Calais. Send yourself some person or persons 
 whom you can trust, and act on their report.' 
 
 1 Par Dieu] he replied, ' I will trust no one but myself; 
 marriage touches a man too nearly. I will have them sing to 
 me a few times before I settle.' 
 
 With a half smile I answered, ' Your Majesty would, 
 perhaps, like to try them all, one after the other, and keep 
 the one that suits you best. It was not thus, Sire, that the 
 Knights of the Round Table treated their ladies in old times 
 in this country.' 
 
 I think I made him ashamed; he laughed and coloured ; and 
 you will see at the end of my letter that he perceived he had 
 been wanting in courtesy. 
 
 Eubbing his nose a little, he said, 
 
 ' But since the King my brother is on such good terms 
 with the Emperor, what, after all, will become of his alliance 
 with me ? I ask, because I am resolved not to marry at 
 either Court, unless the Emperor, or the King my brother, 
 prefer my alliance to that which they have made with one 
 another.' 
 
 ' By our Lady, Sire,' replied I, ' your question demands 
 a wiser man than I am to answer it. Do you think if 
 you marry the Duchess of Milan, the Emperor will prefer you 
 to the King my master ?' 
 
 ' Yes, to be sure,' said he ; 'I am certain of it.' 
 ' Would you like me to tell the King my master this ?' said I. 
 ' Par Dieu, yes,' said he ; ' for it is true.' 
 ' Sire,' I said, ' I have no commission to answer such ques- 
 tions. You must tell your ambassador at my master's Court 
 to ask the King.' 
 
120 NOTE E. 
 
 1 Far Dieu^ he replied,' I will do nothing of the kind till 
 I have Doctor Bonner there for ambassador. The others 
 have been led astray by "Wyatt ; they are not honest, and I 
 am ill pleased with them.' 
 
 ' Indeed, Sire,' said I, ' the Bishop of Winchester and 
 Sir Francis Brian will have no pleasant time over there. 
 Complaints have been made to me very unlike yours. I do not 
 know what has been the matter, but they have behaved ill to us.' 
 
 The King then begged me to write to you to learn your 
 intentions, and to let him know. 
 
 Wishing him to see that he was of no great consequence to 
 your Majesty, I replied, 
 
 ' Sire, I will speak to you frankly and openly. I am of 
 opinion that you press too hard upon the King your brother. 
 Tor the last ten years, as you are aware, he has never been at 
 war but by his own choice : and, since he is willing to 
 remain on the same friendly terms with you as before his 
 agreement with the Emperor, I would advise you to accept 
 his offers. He is a great and powerful sovereign, and the 
 relations in which you stand with him are of no small moment 
 to you. The King of Scots is as much at his beck as if he 
 were his son ; the King of Denmark is devoted to him ; and 
 France, Scotland, and Denmark are your near neighbours. If 
 my master break with you, the other two will break also, and of 
 what will happen you are a better judge than I. Secure his 
 friendship if you will be guided by me, and do not look too 
 closely into niceties.' 
 
 I went no further, being without instructions from your 
 Majesty. Had there been time, I should have urged him to 
 relinquish the pension, but this can be done hereafter if you 
 please to direct me. I spoke as I did to put him out 
 of conceit with his notion of a preferential alliance, on which 
 he seemed inclined to insist ; and also to make him feel that 
 without looking to find five feet upon a sheep, your friend- 
 ship was of as much consequence to him as his could be to 
 your Majesty. I mixed some bitter with the sweet, because 
 he never forgets his own greatness and thinks so little of 
 others. 
 
 Shaking his head, and as it were thinking aloud, he an- 
 swered, ' Far JDieu, I have good subjects, and a good trench 
 about me' \_fai de bonnes hommes et de bonnes fossez.~] 
 
 Then he added, that since you, Sire, were unwilling to let 
 the ladies come to Calais, he would ask you to fix upon some 
 place — the chateau of Madame de Yendosme, for instance, or 
 
NOTE F. 121 
 
 any other house not far from Calais. No one need know the 
 cause of the visit. The Duke of Gruise might go with them 
 as if on business of State, while he would himself send persons 
 of equal rank with the duke to see them. 
 
 This time he said nothing about preference. Tou will un- 
 derstand, Sire, the terms on which T parted from him. I 
 cannot tell whether he will do as the King of Scots did, and 
 go in person to see for a wife. He certainly said he would 
 trust no opinion but his own, and two or three times he 
 begged that the place selected might be near Calais. More- 
 over, I do not know who in this country, except himself, is the 
 equal in rank of the Duke of Gruise. However, this is but 
 guessing. At all events, unless he change his mind, he will 
 send the most considerable persons to be found in the realm. 
 
 May it please you, Sire, to let me hear what further an- 
 swers I shall give the King. The ladies that he means are 
 Mademoiselles de Yendosme, de Lorraine, and de Gruise. The 
 younger of the two Mademoiselles de Gruise has been much 
 spoken of here, and in my opinion she it is that he will prefer. 
 He thinks highly of the birth and breeding of the Gruise 
 family. 
 
 Note F. 
 
 The author of the Dialogue goes beyond his knowledge in 
 his account of the divorce of Anne of Cleves. She was very 
 far from beautiful ; the King's distaste for her was from the 
 first emphatic ; and the marriage did not go beyond the 
 ceremony. 
 
 Thomas, perhaps, never saw Anne, and may have seen instead 
 Holbein's portrait, the instrument by which the King was 
 deceived. He may have judged of Henry's regard from the 
 splendid settlement which was made upon the Queen on the 
 separation, and from the easy terms on which they afterwards 
 continued. The real story was of a kind which could not 
 be communicated to the world. 
 
 The history of the connexion, so unfortunate in itself, so scan- 
 dalous in its consequences, is related in a series of letters from 
 Marillac, Chastillon's successor as resident and minister in 
 England. The reconciliation between Charles and Francis in 
 the summer of 1538 was followed by an energetic effort on 
 the part of the Pope to enlist them in a joint crusade against 
 
122 NOTE F. 
 
 England. Eeginald Pole was sent to Spain to work on the Em- 
 peror ; and his brother with Lord Montague, and the Marquis 
 of Exeter, prepared to move at home as soon as war should be 
 declared. The domestic treason was discovered, and the 
 conspirators were executed : but preparations on a large 
 scale were commenced in Elanders. After Lord Exeter's 
 execution, Chastillon suddenly demanded his passports, and 
 left the country. Eustace Chappuys, the Flemish ambas- 
 sador, followed his example ; and through February, March, 
 and April, nothing was looked for in England but immediate 
 invasion. Eorts and bulwarks were thrown up along the 
 coast. The musters were called out ; the beacons were 
 trimmed ; the highways swarmed with armed men ; and every 
 morning was expected to reveal an enemy's flotilla at anchor in 
 the Downs. 
 
 The promptitude of the King, the unexpected acquiescence 
 of the country in Lord Exeter's death, and perhaps some differ- 
 ence at the last moment between the Emperor and the French 
 King, arrested the action of the Catholic coalition. Chas- 
 tillon 5 s departure was explained away, and at the end of March 
 M. Marillac was sent over to take his place. The internal 
 condition of England on his arrival ; the subsequent endea- 
 vours of Cromwell to oppose a Protestant league to the 
 Catholic ; the marriage with Anne of Cleves, intended as an 
 indissoluble link between England and Germany, and proving 
 in the end a most fatal cause of disunion ; the desperate mea- 
 sures to which Cromwell's failure drove him, and his final 
 arrest and fall, together form the subject of a correspondence 
 too interesting to be mutilated. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 April 3, 1539. [MS. Bibliot. Imp^r. Paris.] 
 
 My Loed, — I sent you word from Boulogne of the causes 
 which had delayed my departure. The weather when I sailed 
 was so wild that I was two days and a half at sea, and it was 
 not till the 28th of last month that I reached London. The 
 council were absent, and the King made me wait three days 
 before I could be admitted to an audience to present my 
 letters. 
 
 The King, my lord, is in marvellous distrust as well of the 
 King our master, as of the Emperor. He is confident that 
 they intend to declare war against him ; and he is therefore 
 taking measures with the utmost haste for the defence of the 
 realm. He foresees that if attacked at all, he will be attacked 
 
NOTE F. 123 
 
 in force, and he is calling under arms the whole strength of 
 the realm. As I passed through Dover I saw new ramparts 
 and bulwarks on the rocks which face the sea. They had all 
 been made since the return of M. de Chastillon, and were 
 well furnished with artillery, large and small. No landing at 
 Dover could be attempted now with a prospect of success. 
 
 In Canterbury, and the other towns upon the road, I found 
 every English subject in arms who was capable of serving. 
 Boys of seventeen or eighteen have been called out, without 
 exemption of place or person. The inhabitants of London are 
 formed into a corps by themselves for the protection of the 
 City. French subjects residing here for trade have not been 
 spared ; they too have been required to serve, whether they 
 desire it or no. Some have answered bravely that they 
 would not bear arms against their natural Sovereign. Others, 
 taken unawares, have yielded through timidity. 
 
 On the road I met a body of men. I was told there were 
 six thousand of them, going as a garrison to Sandwich. As I 
 approached the City I saw the King's ships and galleys all 
 armed and ready to sail. A multitude of private vessels were 
 fitting at their side with all speed ; and when this flotilla goes 
 to sea, and unites with the five-and-twenty or thirty ships 
 at Portsmouth, the whole force will amount to a hundred and 
 fifty sail. 
 
 Merchants' traffic outward or inward is interdicted. Every 
 vessel is under arrest, and no one is allowed to leave the realm. 
 English subjects abroad have received orders to return, and 
 are most of them by this time at home. Artillery and ammu- 
 nition pass out incessantly from the Tower, and are despatched 
 to all points on the coast where a landing is likely to be 
 attempted. In short, my lord, they have made such progress 
 that an invading force will not find them unprovided. They 
 are prepared on all sides to the very extent of their ability, 
 and the great lords are at their posts as if the enemy were 
 already at their doors. 
 
 The cause of the excitement, my lord, is a conviction 
 on the part of their King that the Emperor, the Pope, and 
 our master, are in a league to destroy him and his realm. The 
 King told me himself that he knew from the best authority 
 that the Most Christian King was concerting measures with 
 the Emperor to fall upon him. Your secretary, my lord, he 
 said, was waiting in Spain to bring you the Emperor's latest in- 
 structions. M. de Chastillon' s sudden departure gave a show 
 of reason to the alarm. The Emperor's ambassador demanded 
 
124 NOTE F. 
 
 his passports directly after, and went away without speak- 
 ing of a successor ; and where before there was little doubt 
 that mischief was meant, the uncertainty was then at an end. 
 They looked for nothing but immediate hostilities. 
 
 At this moment there is especial agitation on account of 
 the appearance of sixty sail of Flemings, said to be on their 
 way to Spain for the expedition to Algiers. People here 
 do not believe that Algiers is their real destination. They 
 are vessels of large burden, unsuited to the Levant, and 
 the impression is that they are transports. Fifty or sixty 
 more have been discovered by scouts in the harbours of Zealand, 
 and report says that they have ten thousand men on board 
 them. 
 
 These things have placed the King upon his mettle. He 
 has sent troops northward, for he looks to be invaded over the 
 Scottish Border. But his preparations are defensive merely, 
 not aggressive. He will never choose such a time as the 
 present to meddle with his neighbours of his own will, or to 
 seize and fortify any second Calais on the French coast. As 
 matters stand, his great anxiety is to be on friendly terms 
 with our master, for never was our master's friendship of more 
 importance to him. 
 
 My lord, when I was at Boulogne I heard that the Dean 
 of Cambray was to be Flemish ambassador, and that he 
 had arrived at Calais. He reached London two days after 
 me. I have not seen him because he has not yet had audience 
 of the King, but I shall not fail to visit him immediately on 
 his reception. 
 
 Marillac to Francis the First. 
 April 15, 1539. [MS. Bibliot. Imper. Paris.] 
 
 At this moment there are not less than from eighty to a 
 hundred ships of war ready for action. The musters of London 
 will be reviewed on St. George's day, and the King is expected 
 to be present. The expense, so far, of the fortifications, arms, 
 ships, etc., must amount to two hundred thousand crowns at least. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 April 15, 1539. [MS. Bibliot. Impdr. Paris.] 
 
 My Lord, — They are mustering, drilling, and fortifying their 
 exposed frontiers in all directions. They think of nothing 
 
NOTE F. 125 
 
 else. The Dukes of Norfolk and Suffolk, with the other great 
 lords, are away in their counties, providing for the public 
 safety. My lord, no invading force could show itself with- 
 out the whole nation being warned, and every man will be 
 ready to march wherever danger threatens. Most of the ships 
 have already sailed. Those which remain are chiefly the 
 property of private persons, English or foreign ; but there are 
 very few of them which are not in fighting order. Lord Crom- 
 well has ten thousand men twenty-five miles off; and next 
 Friday, St. Greorge's day, will be the review in London. 
 There will be from fifty to sixty thousand men, perhaps, for 
 not a man who can bear arms is excused. The foreigners 
 resident have received orders to provide weapons and to appear 
 in the City livery. Indeed, my lord, they are thoroughly pre- 
 pared ; and on the sea, although they have now but a hundred 
 or a hundred and twenty ships, they say they will shortly 
 have a hundred and fifty. Considering the time they have 
 been at work, they have not done badly. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 May i, 1539. [MS. Bibliot. Impdr. Paris.] 
 
 My Lord, — You will understand by my letter to the King 
 the satisfaction with which his despatch was received here. 
 The whole Court seems to have received good news. Men's 
 faces are all altered for the better ; and, if one may judge their 
 feelings by their outward demonstrations, I should think they 
 are satisfied that for this year, at least, they will be let alone. 
 Our King's letter and yours, as I am told, have been read 
 out in Parliament. In return for my good news, they give 
 me a better reception, and, great and small, caress me with all 
 their might. The King himself talked to me for two long hours, 
 and I perceived by his words that for the present they are 
 out of alarm. 
 
 My lord, I must not omit to tell you that the King 
 is again showing an inclination for the Germans. The 
 Duke of Saxe's chancellor, with a deputation from some of 
 the other States, has just arrived. Some say the King's 
 daughter is to be married to the Duke of Saxe's son ; others, 
 that they are coming to an agreement in religion at last. 
 Nothing certain can be known till it is seen how things will 
 go in Parliament, and to the proceedings there, my lord, I 
 
126 NOTE F. 
 
 shall attend closely, and send you information at length.* The 
 fortifications and the other preparations for war continue, but 
 they are doing their work more soberly, and at their leisure. 
 The great review in London has gone off. Such a spectacle 
 was never seen here before. 
 
 The Constable of France to Marillac. 
 May 13, 1539. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 Lord Cromwell demands the release of the Bibles printed 
 here in the English vulgar tongue. 
 
 I imagine that before you left Paris you were made 
 acquainted with the answer which we have given to the 
 reiterated demands of the English minister. The King has 
 been informed that there are many errors in the translation, 
 and he will not countenance the issue of it. What is good can 
 be printed in England as well as in Erance ; what is false his 
 Majesty will not allow to be printed here. He will lend no 
 colour nor authority to the publishers to put out bad things. 
 This is our answer. 
 
 Marillac to Francis the First. 
 May 20, 1539. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 Siee, — The Government continue to throw up works where- 
 ever an enemy can land, though they are going on more 
 slowly. They have made up their fleet to a hundred and 
 twenty sail, which will carry ten thousand men. The whole 
 nation, as I have already told your Majesty, is under arms. 
 At the late review in London I counted about fifteen thousand 
 English, without reckoning foreigners. They were in white 
 uniform from head to foot, and ten thousand of them were 
 well found in all points. 
 
 The Parliament, Sire, is in full session ; but as yet we cannot 
 say certainly what will be done. They have been busy so far 
 in finding money to meet the cost of the defences. There has 
 been some difficulty about the abbeys. A party here wish 
 to apply the monastic estates to the foundation of new 
 bishopricks, educational colleges, and hospitals for the poor. 
 Objections have been taken, too, touching the prosecution of 
 the ladies who are prisoners -in the Tower — the wife of the 
 
 * Parliament met on the 27th of April. 
 
NOTE P. 127 
 
 Marquis of Exeter the King's cousin, and the mother of Car- 
 dinal Pole, who is also one of his relations. Their sentence, 
 however, is daily expected, and from present appearances it 
 will go hard with them. 
 
 JKarillac to the Constable. 
 May 20, 1539. [MS. Bibliot. ImpeY. Paris.] 
 
 My Loud, — After the reply which you were pleased to 
 make to Lord Cromwell's request for the release of the Bibles, 
 they have said no more to me about th# matter ; and I have 
 not myself cared to reopen it. If Lord Cromwell demands 
 a further answer, I shall reply in the words of his Majesty's 
 council to the English ambassador. 
 
 The Parliament, I am told, is likely to separate without 
 having arrived at a resolution on some points, and it will 
 reassemble in September. Sentence of death, however, will 
 probably be passed against the ladies of whom I spoke in my 
 letter to the King, and against a gentleman and a chaplain of 
 the late marquis's household. In three or four days they will 
 be brought from the Tower to "Westminster to be condemned. 
 This is a serious matter. I have not thought well to write 
 more fully to the King about it until I could tell him the 
 exact truth ; but persons who profess to know assure me 
 that it is as I have said ; and unless the King pardon them, 
 so the event will prove. 
 
 Marillac to Francis the First. 
 June 9, 1539. [MS. Bibliot. ImpeV. Paris.] 
 
 Sire, — Your Majesty desires to be informed of everything 
 which passes in this country. At present I have nothing to 
 add to my late letters unless it be that, whereas a few days 
 since it was thought that Parliament would rise at Whitsun- 
 tide and be prorogued till September, the King, immediately 
 after the holidays, said it must sit on till St. John's day, and 
 finish the business which had been taken in hand. Several points, 
 therefore, points especially affecting religion, have now been 
 brought to a conclusion. The bishops have had a grand 
 struggle. Part desired to maintain the mass complete, part 
 to make a new service. The majority were with the conser- 
 vatives, who have carried the day. The King, as the leader of 
 this party, said all which ought to have been said. He main- 
 
128 NOTE F. 
 
 4 
 
 tained that the Holy Sacrament ought to be believed and 
 adored, and to be honoured with the ceremonies observed in 
 the church from immemorial time. Evil speaking, therefore, 
 against the sacrament is prohibited under pain of death ; and 
 priests, to the great displeasure of the ambassador of Saxe, 
 are forbidden to marry — so angry was he that he went off two 
 days since in the worst imaginable humour. 
 
 The appropriation of the abbey lands and the fate of the 
 ladies in the Tower, will be disposed of before Parliament 
 now separates. The ladies are the mother of Cardinal Pole, 
 and the wife of the late Marquis of Exeter. The two Houses 
 have attainted them of high treason, and according to the 
 custom of the country, their goods are confiscated and their 
 lives are at the King's mercy. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 June 9, 1539. [MS. Bibliot. Imp^r. Paris.] 
 
 My Lord, — Parliament, you will see by my letter to the 
 Kicg, is to last till St. John's. The reason, I suppose, is the 
 news from the Levant, and the talked-of council. There is 
 as much excitement about the latter as if it were already a 
 settled thing. 
 
 Leave was given to the lords and gentlemen before Whit- 
 suntide to return to their estates ; but now the King insists 
 on their remaining in session. 
 
 The King's declaration about the sacrament has given wide 
 pleasure and satisfaction. The people in general are inclined 
 to the old religion, and only a few bishops support the new 
 opinions. These bishops are in a bad humour. They wanted 
 leave for the clergy to take wives, and they cannot get it. 
 They desired to make church preferment hereditary, and to 
 convert the benefices into family estates. The gentlemen 
 from Germany did their best to forward the business of 
 priests' marriages, and they are sadly disturbed at their failure. 
 Nor is this their only ground of annoyance. They wanted 
 the King to subsidize them. He refused distinctly, and they 
 now experience what others have found before them, that an 
 Englishman's purse-strings are not easily opened. Thus 
 they are gone off in high dudgeon, and they leave the council 
 equally disgusted with them. 
 
 My lord, I need not enlarge on the naval preparations 
 here : there are eighty ships at Portsmouth ready to sail, and 
 
NOTE F. 129 
 
 they carry guns of heavier calibre than any hitherto in use at 
 sea. This may be because the light guns are a]l exhausted ; 
 there are not half-a-dozen of any kind remaining in the 
 Tower ; seven or eight vessels have been purchased lately from 
 the Venetians and Florentines, the smallest of which is from 
 four to five hundred tons ; but even in ships so large as these, 
 the large artillery is dangerous. 
 
 So, too, guns are in continual demand for the coast bat- 
 teries, although for the present year the alarm has passed over. 
 
 The King, unlike himself, is in good spirits. For some 
 vears past he has been melancholy, and has avoided society. 
 Now he forces himself to join in the current amusements. 
 Every evening he goes on the Thames with musicians and 
 singers. He takespleasurein paintings and embroideries; he has 
 sent to France, Flanders, and Italy for the most accomplished 
 masters in music and other elegant arts ; and those who are 
 about him think it is a sign that he would marry could he 
 find a lady to please him. 
 
 The Emperor's ambassador is treated with marvellous 
 civility, and, strange to say, the Queen Regent has allowed the 
 English agent to buy three thousand harquebusses in Flanders 
 for the King's service. She has even gone so far as to tell 
 them, that if they desire they may have as many more. They 
 are astonished themselves at her condescension. 
 
 There has been a funeral service for the late Empress, and 
 all the great men attended ; the two dukes, the lord admiral, 
 the Lord Cromwell, and other noblemen, with fifteen or 
 twenty bishops. The mourning will last a fortnight. My 
 attendance was requested by the King and the Spanish ambas- 
 sador, so that I could not decline. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 June 20, 1539. [MS. Bibliot. Imp^r. Paris.] 
 
 For the rest, my lord, may it please you to under- 
 stand that the day before yesterday there was a grand pas- 
 time on the Thames in the King's presence. The affair was 
 stupid enough. There were two galleys, one of which carried 
 the royal arms, the other the arms of the Pope, with a number 
 of cardinals' hats. The galleys encountered and fought a 
 good while, at last the royal galley had the victory, and Pope, 
 cardinals, and arms, were all thrown into the water. The 
 object was to give the people confidence in the King, and to 
 teach them not to be afraid of the Holy Father and his friends. 
 
 K 
 
130 NOTE E. 
 
 More and more cannon are founded, and as soon as Parlia- 
 ment rises the King is going on progress two or three hun- 
 dred miles to survey the works. 
 
 Mar iliac to Francis the First. 
 July 13, 1539. [MS. Bibliot. ImpeV. Paris] 
 
 Sike, — The King is all kindness. He speaks in the warmest 
 terms of your Majesty, and I see no trace of unpleasant feel- 
 ing. So little is he inclined to meddle with your Majesty 
 that he is far more afraid of losing your support ; and the dis- 
 missal of the musters to their homes is sufficient proof that 
 he has no sinister intentions. The foreign ships are restored 
 to their owners ; the ports are opened ; the merchants are 
 free to go and come ; the dukes and lords who were in 
 London for the Parliament are gone to their own estates ; 
 the King is left with scarcely a hundred horse in his train. 
 All these symptoms convince me, Sire, under your correction, 
 that the fleet, the fortresses, and the cannon are merely for 
 defence ; and if there were nothing else, the state of feeling 
 about religion is far too critical to allow the King to trifle 
 with the situation. He has been forced to arrest many 
 changes which were in progress before this last Parliament. 
 To satisfy the country, and to silence the Christian Powers, 
 he has restored all the old opinions and constitutions, save 
 the authority of the See of Kome and the orders of monks 
 and nuns ; while two bishops who were the chief promoters of 
 the new opinions have been deprived of their sees, and if they 
 will save their lives they must make the best of the time of 
 grace which is allowed them and relinquish their errors. 
 Under these circumstances the King will surely keep on terms 
 with his allies ; he will think more of defending the country 
 from attack than of rushing into unprovoked quarrels ; and 
 he will never seek a war with one of the strongest countries 
 in the world. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 July 13, 1539. [MS. Bibliot. Imp 6r. Paris.] 
 
 My Lokd, — The King complained in Parliament that the 
 Pope was urging the Emperor and the King of Prance to 
 attack England on thepretence that the people were heretics 
 and infidels. He said that the belief of the countrv must be 
 
NOTE F. 131 
 
 defined, that Christian princes might see the untruth of the 
 Holy Father's accusation. 
 
 At the same time, he said, he was ready to meet his Holi- 
 ness in the field, if necessary, with all his friends. He trusted 
 his subjects would grant him money for the defence of English 
 liberty, and as an example and warning, he demanded justice 
 against those who had plotted treason at home. 
 
 England, however, will not seek a quarrel with Erance. It 
 is true, my lord, that the common people when they had 
 arms in their hands, said, that if the Erench came over to at- 
 tack them they would go themselves to Erance. But these 
 were the vain words of ignorant persons who are our here- 
 ditary enemies. To ascertain the King's real views, I spoke 
 the other day to Lord Cromwell about the Anglo-Erench 
 alliance. He told me, among other strange things, that the 
 Pope and the Emperor had worked hard to incite his master 
 against ours on the ground of the pension : but his Majesty, 
 he said, would not listen to them. As he had begun the sub- 
 ject I went on with it ; and said I was told that the King 
 would go to war about the pension, and that Parliament had 
 agreed to it. Lord Cromwell assured me that such a thing 
 had never been so much as thought of. 
 
 ILarillao to the Constable. 
 
 August 12, 1539. [MS. Bibliot. Imper. Paris.] 
 
 My Lokd, — I have been more dilatory in writing than you 
 may have expected. The King suddenly left the neighbour- 
 hood of London, and came off into Hampshire, sixty miles 
 away. 
 
 Eeing so near Portsmouth and Southampton, I took the 
 opportunity of examining the vessels and works with my own 
 eyes. 
 
 Of the fleet lately at Spithead, there remain not more 
 than seven or eight ships in commission, and one large and 
 beautiful galleon. The rest have gone round into the Thames 
 to disembark their armaments. The newly-made fortifications 
 are of great extent, and would serve for a time to protect the 
 place effectively. They are not, however, very durable, having 
 been run up in a hurry, and consisting of double lines of stakes 
 filled in with earth. The King continues his progress, and 
 will return to London to meet Parliament at Michaelmas. 
 
 k2 
 
132 NOTE F. 
 
 Marillac to Francis the First. 
 October 25, 1539. [MS. Bibliot. ImpeY Paris.] 
 
 Sire, — I learn from your letter of the 1 2th, written at Com- 
 piegne, that your Majesty wishes to know about the proposed 
 marriage between the King and the sister of the Duke of 
 Cleves. 
 
 I have taken the utmost pains to learn the terms of it ; 
 but things are kept so secret that for the present I cannot 
 ascertain anything. The King, however, is satisfied, and 
 says openly that he is pleased with the alliance. He will 
 now, he maintains, complete the long-desired league with the 
 Princes of Germany ; he will first gain the Duke of Saxe, 
 who has married another sister of the same house ; the Duke 
 of Saxe will bring with him the confederation ; and the King 
 will find them the means of providing so large an army that 
 no one will venture to meddle with them. 
 
 As to religion, his Highness thinks that, with the joint in- 
 fluence of himself and the Duke of Cleves, he can soften down 
 the asperities which are now distracting Germany, and find 
 some honourable middle course by which the troubles there 
 may be composed. 
 
 Further, his Highness having but one son, desires to marry 
 for the sake of children, and he considers that he can do 
 no better than take this lady, who is of convenient age, sound 
 health, and fair stature, with many other graces which his 
 Majesty says that she possesses. He has failed to find a wife 
 for himself in France or Spain; and next to your alliance, Sire, 
 or the Emperor's, he considers a connexion with the House of 
 Cleves the best that he can make, especially at this moment, 
 when so many novelties menace the principles of religion, and 
 the German princes show themselves so prompt to defend 
 the doctrines which they were the first to introduce. 
 
 News have arrived within the last few days from Flanders, 
 that people there complain that the King ought to have 
 married the Duchess of Milan. The Lady Anne was to have 
 come to England by Calais ; but to prevent mischance they talk 
 now of sending for her to the Ealtic. Some people say that 
 she will be here in a few days ; others, not without show of 
 reason, maintain that she will not be in England till Christ- 
 mas. Anyhow, they are preparing a splendid reception for 
 her, and in London there will be an especial demonstration, so 
 many advantages are anticipated from the connexion. 
 
NOTE F. 133 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 October 25, 1539. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 My Lord, — In my letter of the 14th I told you that the 
 new Queen might be looked for very shortly. I have since 
 learnt that she cannot arrive as soon as was expected. We 
 hear from Elanders that the ambassadors of Cleves, who con- 
 cluded the marriage, returned from Calais to their own 
 country in disguise, and that, since their departure, there has 
 been a great outburst of indignation in Flanders itself. The 
 King, they exclaim, is engaged to the Duchess of Milan, and 
 if he will not keep his word as a man of honour, he shall be 
 compelled to keep it. At all events, they say he shall never 
 have this lady to whom he is now devoting himself. 
 
 The report is a strange one, and, in itself, not very credible ; 
 but it has troubled those who are easily alarmed, and the 
 council sits at extraordinary hours to devise precautions 
 against accident. So at least I am told. The truth is hard to 
 come at ; but they are certainly disturbed about something. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 December 24, 1539. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 My Lord, — The new Queen of England arrived at Calais 
 two days ago, and waits a favourable wind to cross. Eor some 
 time past it has been blowing hard from the westward, and 
 the gale still continues so violent that it is thought she can- 
 not be here for a week at soonest. 
 
 Rumour gives the King's eldest daughter to the young 
 Duke of Bavaria, who, as I informed his Majesty, has come 
 over to this country. I see no great likelihood of the truth 
 of the report, except it be that they will probably marry the 
 young lady to a Prince of no great power, for fear of the pre- 
 tence to the crown, which may be advanced hereafter in her 
 name. 
 
 The King is at Greenwich, waiting the arrival of his bride. 
 He proposes to meet her two miles out upon the road ; and I 
 and the Emperor's ambassador will be invited, probably, to 
 attend. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 December 27, 1539. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 My Lord, — Since I wrote to you on the 24th, I have 
 learnt that the story, the probability of which I doubted, is 
 
134 NOTE F. 
 
 true. The Lady Mary is really to be married to the Duke 
 of Bavaria. He was taken a few days ago, as secretly 
 as possible, to . the gardens at "Westminster Abbey. The 
 lady was brought there to meet him, and the Duke gave 
 her a kiss, a thing never done in England by any but near 
 relations unless it means marriage. Since the death of the 
 Marquis of Exeter there has been no man in Eugland of 
 sufficient rank to kiss the Lady Mary. 
 
 The Duke talked to her at length, partly in broken Grerman, 
 partly in Latin, which she can speak tolerably well. He told 
 her at last, that the King would let him marry her if she did 
 not find his person displeasing, while she, on her part, replied 
 that her father's pleasure was her own. 
 
 "When the marriage will come off, I am unable to tell you. 
 People say, however, that it will take place soon ; and, from 
 what I hear, I expect it will be in a fortnight, or three weeks 
 at latest. Others think it will be even soouer. The King's 
 nuptials will be celebrated immediately on the lady's arrival, 
 and they say father and daughter will be married on the same 
 dav. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 December 30. [MS. Bibliot. Impdr. Paris.] 
 
 My Loed, — M. de Noyon has come to England in disguise. 
 He has been detected ; and his presence in such a condition 
 has roused suspicions, in which the Government concur, that 
 his coming has been for something else than amusement. The 
 season of the year, so unsuited for travelling, the rank of the 
 person, whom they know to be both a bishop and a peer of 
 Erance, with the few servants who were found in his company, 
 have combined to persuade them that he had some secret 
 practice in hand either in Scotland, or with the Church 
 party in England. 
 
 Had I not used my best skill and played them a trick 
 their misgivings would not have been easily removed. I took 
 care, however, neither to see the bishop nor to speak with 
 him till he had been with the King, that they might not think 
 I had put his story into his mouth ; and in this way I have 
 satisfied them that he came over on his own account merely. 
 To stop the world's mouth, I have insisted that he shall im- 
 mediately return, and he has made no difficulty. He is as 
 disgusted at having been discovered, as I am at his having 
 
NOTE F. 135 
 
 come at all. People were never in a more suspicious humour 
 than at this moment. 
 
 The affair has turned out better than might have been ex- 
 pected. The King was gracious enough, and talked pleasantly 
 to him about the King his brother. This, however, does not 
 prevent others from using their tongues, and talking spitefully 
 of the French. 
 
 Marillac to Francis the First. 
 Jan. 5, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 Siee, — On Friday, the second of this month, notice was 
 given by the public crier that the Lady Anne of Cleves 
 was coming to Greenwich, and that the King's liege subjects 
 were expected to be present to receive her. I and the Em- 
 peror's ambassador had an invitation in the King's name ; 
 and the concourse of people, which was large and imposing, 
 went off without disorder or confusion. Five or six thousand 
 horse, with the Dukes of Norfolk and Suffolk, were in attend- 
 ance on the lady. The King and his household, and five 
 thousand more, rode out from Greenwich to meet her. 
 
 She was in a Flemish costume. The King received 
 her with all politeness, and conducted her to the palace, 
 where a splendid suite of rooms was prepared for her. 
 Her age one would guess at about thirty. She is tall and 
 thin, and not particularly pretty. Her countenance shows 
 assurance and resolution. She has twelve or fifteen ladies 
 with her, all dressed as strangely as herself; and in her train 
 is the ambassador of Saxe also, who, people say, is. come to 
 conclude the so-often-commenced treaty between his master 
 and the King. Henceforward they say the King and the 
 German league are to be at one, and will share each other's 
 fortunes for good and ill. The truth will be known in the 
 next Parliament, which meets in Lent. A round sum of 
 money has to be demanded ; and the King supposes, and the 
 council say, that he may have a million crowns without dis- 
 tressing his subjects. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 Jan. 5, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Imp^r. Paris.] 
 
 People who have seen the lady close 
 
 say that she is neither as young as was expected, nor as pretty 
 as she was reported to be. She is tall, and her face and carriage 
 
136 NOTE F. 
 
 have a force in them which shows she is not without mind. 
 The spirit and sense will perhaps supply the deficiency of 
 beauty. 
 
 The twelve or fifteen ladies she has brought with her are 
 even less good-looking than their mistress ; and they are 
 dressed so hideously that, if they were beauties, they would 
 look detestable. 
 
 The King met her at the bottom of the hill, two miles from 
 Greenwich. Including her own retinue, she had five or six 
 thousand horse with her. I would describe the procession, 
 had you not yourself seen many such here. The English wore 
 no ornaments but massive gold chains ; and for general 
 splendour there were twenty scenes more striking in France 
 during the late passage of the Emperor.* 
 
 Marillac to Francis the First. 
 Jan. 28, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Imper. Paris.] 
 
 Sire, — The German ambassadors went a week ago. Duke 
 Philip of Bavaria, after being made a Knight of the Garter, 
 started yesterday with a present of five or six thousand 
 crowns from the King. His marriage, I am told, is finally 
 settled, and he will return shortly. 
 
 They were in a panic here while the Emperor was in 
 Erance. Since he went they have recovered their spirits. 
 The German league is perhaps succeeding to their satisfaction, 
 or they are on better terms with the Emperor again. I shall 
 know more in a few days. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 Feb. 2, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Impe"r. Paris.] 
 
 My Lord, — My cousin will have informed you of the 
 general course of events here. As to the league between 
 Erance and England, the council have more than once felt their 
 way towards it with me, and the King himself touched the 
 subject in a word or two. There is nothing they are more 
 anxious about than to remain on good terms with us. They 
 know the advantage which they derive from our King's support, 
 
 * In December and January, 1539- 1 540, Charles Y. crossed France 
 from Spain to the Low Countries. His reception at Pai'is was supposed to 
 have a political meaning most unfavourable to England. 
 
NOTE F. 137 
 
 and tlie injury which they might sustain if they lost it. Their 
 public policy had two mainstays, and both have failed them. 
 They anticipate the utmost mischief from the good under- 
 standing between our master and the Emperor, and their 
 alarm is increased by the report that peace is probable between 
 the Emperor, the Turks, and the Venetians. They expected 
 our master, the Turks, and the Emperor, to be so busy with 
 one another, as to have no leisure to meddle with them ; and 
 now, unless there be truth in the rumour that the Emperor 
 means to recover Grueldres, they consider themselves quite 
 certain to be attacked. 
 
 If the Grueldres affair goes forward, they will perhaps sub- 
 sidize the Duke of Cleves and the princes of the League, so as 
 to divert the war from this country, and keep it as far distant 
 from them as possible, till they can make terms with the 
 Emperor, and settle their own concerns. 
 
 At the same time, my lord, I am sure that they will court 
 France as long as they know the Emperor to be ill disposed 
 towards them. And when they talk to me of the King's 
 friendship, if I do my master no good by listening graciously 
 to them, at least I am doing no harm. 
 
 Marillac to Francis the First. 
 Feb. 16, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Imp&r. Paris.] 
 
 Siee, — I informed the King of the indecent and insolent 
 behaviour of the English ambassador, and I requested his 
 Highness on your behalf, and in the words which you were 
 pleased to command, to recall the said ambassador at his 
 earliest convenience, and to send some one in his place who 
 would discharge the office more properly. The King and 
 council were most courteous. After many gracious expres- 
 sions of regret, the King promised, as a proof of his desire to 
 preserve your Majesty's friendship, that an order should be 
 sent to the ambassador, by the bearer of this present letter, 
 commanding him to return immediately. Sir John Wallop, 
 the G-overnor of Calais, will receive instructions to take his 
 place. 
 
 His Highness, however, while consenting to the recall, de- 
 sired that I would ask your Majesty to show some tokens of 
 forgiveness to the said ambassador ; and when he should pre- 
 sent himself to take leave, he hoped you would speak less 
 harshly to him than his fault had merited. He said he would 
 
138 NOTE F. 
 
 gladly spare an old servant, who had done good work in times 
 past, and might do good work again when better instructed 
 in his duty, the ignominy of a public dismissal. The ambas- 
 sador holds a high office in the Church also, being Bishop of 
 the Metropolitan See of London. 
 
 MariUac to the Constable. 
 March 7, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 My Lobd, — In default of matters of greater importance, I 
 may tell you of an occurrence of which more may be heard 
 hereafter. 
 
 A controversy about religion has broken out between the 
 Bishop of Winchester, and the late ambassador in France the 
 Bishop of London, on one side, and on the other a doctor 
 named Barnes, a noted preacher of German opinions. The 
 dispute began thus : — On a Sunday at the beginning of Lent, 
 the Bishop of Winchester preached a sermon at Paul's Cross, 
 in which he discussed and refuted these opinions like a man 
 of learning. This Doctor Barnes was unable to endure. A 
 few days after, although it was not his turn to preach, he found 
 means to take the place of the proper person, and from the 
 same pulpit contradicted what the bishop had said. He 
 spoke with much heat and ill temper ; and, at length, he 
 flung his glove among the crowd in defiance of his adver- 
 sary, saying, he would maintain his doctrines against him to 
 the death. 
 
 The King, when informed of what had passed, was much 
 troubled and scandalized. His Highness and council will sit 
 as judges, and the bishop and doctor are to dispute before 
 them. They are to produce their sermons in writing, and 
 whichever is proved to be in the wrong will be punished as 
 his oifence shall deserve. 
 
 MariUac to the Constable. 
 March 26, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 Mi Lord, — Nothing worth noticing has happened since 
 my last letter. They seem chiefly anxious to avoid war, and 
 to be on good terms with France. 
 
 Lord Cromwell says that the differences between the Em- 
 peror and the Duke of Cleves are on the point of arrange- 
 
NOTE F. 
 
 139 
 
 ment. He perhaps likes to think so. Englishmen are always 
 glad of excuses to escape finding their friends in money. 
 
 The appointment of the Pope's nephew as legate at the 
 Imperial Court is talked of. It is thought he will bring the 
 excommunication with him, and try again to form a coalition 
 against England. 
 
 They protest that in all points but the Papal supremacy 
 and the religious orders, their creed is identical with ours ; 
 but they think the Turks will leave Christian Powers no 
 leisure to make war on one another, and they feel little 
 anxiety. 
 
 They talk of the approach of their usual season of amuse- 
 ments after Easter. The Queen's coronation will be at Whit- 
 suntide. 
 
 Mar iliac to Francis the First. 
 April 10, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Imper. Paris.] 
 
 Stee, — Since the return of the Duke of Norfolk from 
 France, nothing of moment has happened here. The King 
 only gives constant proofs of his desire to be on good terms 
 with your Majesty. 
 
 He is not exactly afraid that you will desert him ; yet his 
 confidence is not so strong but that he has moments of mis- 
 giving. He dreads to lose your support, from the greatness 
 of his anxiety to retain it. 
 
 Eor other matters, Sire, you may remember that last year 
 there was an Act of Parliament bringing religion into con- 
 formity with Catholic doctrine. The See of Rome and the 
 institution of monks were the sole points on which differences 
 were left remaining ; and as to the monks, there is not one in 
 all England who is not now dressed as a secular priest. But 
 in matters of doctrine the orders then taken have been ill 
 observed. The statute has been infringed by the Anabaptists 
 and the Grermanizers. There have been outbreaks in Calais and 
 Southampton, and, in defiance of the King's injunctions, meat 
 has been eaten in Lent, and sermons openly preached against 
 abstinence. 
 
 Commissioners have gone to the two towns to punish the 
 rioters, and since Easter three doctors have been committed to 
 the Tower as the authors of the new opinions. Of these, the most 
 considerable is Doctor Barnes, who has lately returned from 
 Germany, and has published more than one heretical book. 
 
140 NOTE F. 
 
 The same Doctor Barnes (it shows what a fool the man is) 
 possessed himself irregularly one day in Lent of the pulpit at 
 St. Paul's, and broke into outrageous abuse of the Bishop of 
 Winchester, who had preached there the Sunday before. Such 
 a proceeding was likely to lead to a breach of the peace. 
 The King, therefore, sharply reprimanded the doctor, sent 
 him to beg the bishop's pardon, and ordered him afterwards 
 to preach another sermon, withdrawing his errors, and 
 apologizing for his conduct. He obeyed, but in a manner 
 which showed he was acting merely in constrained obedience 
 to the King. He is therefore now in the Tower, with two of 
 his accomplices : and ten or twelve London citizens and fifteen 
 or twenty foreigners have been arrested with him. The 
 latter are chiefly Flemish Anabaptists. 
 
 The trials will soon come forward — in the next session of 
 Parliament at latest, which begins the 20th of this month. 
 
 There will be a fresh Act of B-eligion. This subject fills all 
 men's minds, and nothing else is talked of, unless it be the 
 return of the Duke of Bavaria to complete his marriage with 
 the Lady Mary, and the intended jousts at the Queen's 
 coronation. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 April 14, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Imper. Paris.] 
 
 Duke Philip is soon looked for. I am assured 
 
 more positively than ever that the marriage is to come oiF. 
 The Duke is to have but 40,000 crowns with the Lady Mary, 
 or 9000Z. sterling — payable, too, in three years. Moreover, 
 she is held illegitimate. 
 
 You are perhaps aware that the wife of the late marquis 
 who was beheaded has been liberated from the Tower. Her 
 son remains there, and the nephew and mother of Cardinal 
 Pole. The latter, however, will, it is said, be soon released ; 
 the boys will most likely remain where they are, to prevent 
 trouble to the succession. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 April 24, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 I have this important news for you since I last wrote. 
 
 The Lord Cromwell has been appointed Earl of Essex and Grand 
 Chamberlain of England. He is now in as high favour with 
 
NOTE F. 141 
 
 iris master as ever he was ; "but lie Las been nearly shaken from 
 his place by the Bishop of Winchester and the rest. 
 
 Four hundred harquebuss men have been levied for Ireland. 
 The majority of those who were sent last year have been killed 
 by the insurgents. 
 
 Mar iliac to the Constable. 
 May 8, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Imp£r. Paris.] 
 
 Mv Lokd, — Erom my conversation with the King and his 
 ministers, I should gather that each of them have a part al- 
 lotted them to play one after the other. 
 
 Lord Cromwell, to whom I went on some police business, 
 began with telling me of the singular affection of his master 
 for the most Christian King. He said that, like others, he 
 had once been more Imperialist than Trench ; but he had 
 ascertained that the Emperor, while he amused the world with 
 fair words, was designing, when opportunity offered, to make 
 himself sole monarch of Christendom. He had opened his 
 eyes, and English statesmen, he said, thought now only of 
 extinguishing a fire which else would burn up the world, 
 
 The day after the King spoke to me His 
 
 language was far more sober, and without the passion of his 
 ministers. Either he thought moderation more dignified, or 
 he has more prudence in keeping his thoughts to himself. 
 
 After him the Duke of Norfolk took up the tale respecting 
 what had been said by Lord Cromwell, and the Duke of Suf- 
 folk and the rest followed in the same strain. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 May 21, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. ImpeY. Paris.] 
 
 My Loed, — I was with the King a few days since at 
 Greenwich. I had to attend divine service there, as usual, at 
 "Whitsuntide, and I wanted information on a variety of matters 
 of which I am about to speak. 
 
 The Parliament, my lord, was to have ended before the 
 holidays. The work was done. The King's subsidy was 
 granted — two shillings in the pound, payable in three years. 
 The Knights of St. John are to surrender their white crosses. 
 Their lands go to the crown ; and the two grants together will 
 yield, it is expected, above three million crowns. All, in short, 
 which was demanded had been acceded to without opposition, 
 
142 NOTE F. 
 
 and the Houses would have broken up had it not been for diffi- 
 culties with religion where the bishops have been unable to 
 come to an agreement. In the way they go on they would 
 make things worse rather than better, were it not that the 
 King keeps them in some sort of order. He hears their ar- 
 guments and listens to their opinions ; but the determination 
 will be with himself; and the ministers assure me that a book 
 will soon appear, with the sanction of Parliament, where every 
 man may learn what he is to believe, and doubtful points will 
 be decided neither by German views nor Papal views, but by 
 the authority of the early Christian Church. 
 
 The Duke of Saxe and the league have lately sent over the 
 articles on which they have themselves agreed, and they ex- 
 pect to see them accepted in England ; but I feel pretty sure 
 that they will find themselves mistaken. People say the 
 articles are full of heresies. 
 
 My lord, the day before yesterday, at ten o'clock at night, 
 the Deputy of Calais, the King's uncle, was brought prisoner 
 to the Tower. To-day one of his chaplains has been arrested 
 also. I do not know the reason. The world say the deputy 
 was in correspondence with Cardinal Pole, and that there was 
 some practice for the betrayal of Calais. Ten or twelve Calais 
 pensioners are charged with having spoken treasonable words ; 
 and I learn from a credible quarter that a great personage, I 
 know not who, is about to be arrested also. Anything passes 
 for high treason here now. Men are laid hold of day after 
 day for the most opposite reasons. A person named Lee, who 
 has been ten or twelve years abroad, is in the Tower for having 
 communicated with Pole. Others have been seized for eating 
 meat in Lent — others for not observing Easter. They are 
 busy with their fleet again. Twenty or thirty ships are gone 
 to the coast of Scotland to watch the movements of the 
 Erench, who are said to be in communication with tbe Irish 
 rebels. 
 
 Marillac to Francis the First. 
 June I, 1 540. [MS. Bibliot. Imper. Paris.] 
 
 Siee, — Since the Deputy of Calais was brought over pri- 
 soner, two other men — men of some note — from the same 
 town, have been sent for, and are in the Tower. The Bishop 
 of Chichester and the Dean of the Chapel Eoyal, whom your 
 Majesty may remember as ambassador at your Court, have 
 been arrested on a charge of high treason ; and with them 
 
NOTE F. 143 
 
 one of the King's chaplains, a man of reputation for learning. 
 This last is said to have been in correspondence with Eome in 
 the times of the late marquis. The rest of the bishops are in 
 terror. They are afraid that they also may be made out guilty ; 
 and their fate will be certain. The religious strife has become so 
 bitter that each party will destroy their antagonists if they 
 can. There will be prisoners enough between them by and 
 by ; and when Parliament will now end, it is impossible to say. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 June i, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Impdr. Paris.] 
 
 My Loed, — A few days since the Dean of the Chapel 
 Royal and the Bishop of Chichester were conducting the ser- 
 vice in state at "Westminster Abbey, when they were arrested, 
 and sent to the Tower for treason, and before night their goods 
 were seized and confiscated. 
 
 Lord Cromwell, I hear from a credible quarter, says that 
 other bishops are about to follow. I did not learn their 
 names, but we may presume them to be those who lately 
 shook Cromwell 1 s credit, and brought him nearly to his ruin. 
 However that be, things are now at a pass when either Crom- 
 well's party or the Bishop of Winchester's party must fall ; and 
 although they are both high in favour and authority with the 
 King their master, fortune will most probably turn in favour 
 of Cromwell. The Dean of the Chapel, the Bishop of Win- 
 chester's best friend, is struck down ; the Archbishop of 
 Canterbury, his greatest adversary, has been deputed to preach 
 in the bishop's place at St. Paul's, and has begun to argue 
 against his doctrines in the same pulpit where the bishop 
 preached in Lent. Doctor Barnes, who was lately imprisoned, 
 is likely to be soon released at the intercession of the Ger- 
 mans ; and another doctor, named Latimer, who last year sur- 
 rendered his see rather than subscribe to the Six Articles, is 
 recalled, and will shortly be replaced upon the bench. 
 
 So great is the inconstancy here, and so lightly opinion 
 changes. 
 
 The state of religion continues most unfortunate. The 
 bishops are divided, and hate one another. The people know 
 not what to believe ; for those who are inclined to the re- 
 formed views are called heretics ; those who adhere to the old 
 faith are charged with Papistry and treason. They ought to 
 dissolve Parliament, and find some middle way for the country 
 
144 NOTE F. 
 
 to follow. But as far as I can see, it will be as with the 
 Diets in Germany, and the confusion, instead of being 
 pacified, will grow worse and worse. 
 
 Marillac to Francis the First. 
 June 10, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Tmpe'r. Paris.] 
 
 Sire, — I am this moment informed that Mr. Thomas Crom- 
 well,* Keeper of the Privy Seal, and the King's Vicar- 
 G-eneral in matters spiritual, who since the death of the 
 cardinal has had the chief conduct of the affairs of this realm, 
 and was lately made Grand Chamberlain of England, has, 
 within an hour, been sent prisoner to the Tower, and his goods 
 are in the hands of justice. 
 
 This news need not have been of especial consequence. Such 
 persons are often reduced to the rank out of which they have 
 been raised, and are treated as every one declares this man 
 has deserved to be treated. Cromwell, however, has been the 
 chief author of all the innovations in religion ; and in the 
 present state of affairs, and from the probability that there 
 will now be a change, his downfall is so important that it is 
 my duty to inform you of it immediately. At this time I can 
 say no more. The doctrinal questions are still unsettled, and 
 the bishops as far from a conclusion as ever. 
 
 Sire, as I was about to close my letter, there came a 
 gentleman of the Court to me with a message from the King. 
 His Highness desires me not to be alarmed by the arrest of 
 Lord Cromwell ; and because the common people talk wildly 
 and ignorantly, and that I may have something better than 
 conjecture to send to your Majesty, he wishes me to learn the 
 exact truth from himself. 
 
 The substance of his explanation is this. The King has 
 endeavoured, by all the means in his power, to compose the 
 religious differences in this realm. Cromwell has lent him- 
 self to the Lutherans, and has abused his authority to show 
 favour to the teachers of false opinions, and to oppress and 
 hinder their opponents. 
 
 Being admonished of late by some of his servants that he 
 was acting contrary to his master's wishes and to the statutes 
 of the realm, he betrayed himself, and revealed his secret 
 intentions. He said that he hoped to put down alto- 
 
 * The reader will observe the change in Cromwell's designation. 
 
NOTE F. 145 
 
 gether the old preachers, and leave none but the new ; that in 
 brief time he would bring things to such a pass, that the King, 
 with all his power, should not be able to hinder him; and that 
 his party would be so strong, that whether the King would or 
 no, the King should accept the new doctrines, if he had himself 
 to take arms and fight for them. The victory in the struggle 
 would be with him, and thus he would establish at last the views 
 for which he had long contended. 
 
 The persons to whom Cromwell said these words revealed 
 them to the King, more regarding their duties than the 
 favour of their own master. 
 
 His Majesty says also that the first time he is in conversa- 
 sion with me he will tell me other things which will prove 
 how deep Lord Cromwell's fault has been. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable.. 
 June 10, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Imper. Paris.] 
 
 My Lord, — I explained to you in my last letter the divi- 
 sions of the Privy Council, how one part was trying to 
 destroy the other. Lord Cromwell's party appeared the 
 strongest ; a few days since he was able to arrest the Dean 
 of the Chapel and the Bishop of Chichester. But the party 
 have now fallen in the fall of Lord Cromwell himself ; there 
 remain of them only the Archbishop of Canterbury, whose 
 mouth for the future will be closed, and the lord admiral, 
 who has long learnt to trim his sails to the wind. Against 
 them are the Duke of Norfolk and all the rest. 
 
 It is indeed a marvellous change, and passes expecta- 
 tion. 
 
 Francis the First to Marillac. 
 June 15, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Irnper. Paris.] 
 
 M. Marillac, — Sir John Wallop, the minister of my 
 good brother the King of England, has this day informed me, 
 on the part of my said brother, of the arrest of Mr. Crom- 
 well. 
 
 The news is more than grateful to me. It is such as I give 
 most hearty thanks for to Almighty God, who has been my 
 brother's perpetual friend and support. 
 
 You will lay my letter to yourself before the King. I send 
 
 L 
 
146 NOTE F. 
 
 a duplicate for the purpose. You will tell him from me that 
 he has occasion to show himself grateful to the Almighty, who 
 has thus revealed to him the crimes and misdoings of this 
 unhappy man. 
 
 It was this Cromwell who was the cause of the suspicions 
 which my good brother has entertained against his most faith- 
 ful subjects. God has made the truth to be known, and now, 
 when my good brother has removed the wicked wretch from 
 his councils, he will perceive what God has done for the 
 tranquillity of the realm, and the common welfare of nobles 
 and people. 
 
 For the regard I bear him, M. Marillac, I feel myself 
 obliged to dwell on this thing. I entreat him to take my 
 words in good part as proceeding from a sincere and honest 
 good- will towards him. My cousin, the Duke of Norfolk, will 
 remember my language when he was last at this Court. I would 
 have you show him this letter before you communicate it to 
 the King. 
 
 M. Marillac, I pray God have you in his keeping. 
 Written at Fontainebleau, June 15, 1540. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 June 23, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 My Lord, — There is nothing to tell you except what con- 
 cerns Lord Cromwell ; all other business is cast aside that 
 they may attend exclusively to him ; and they are so swift in 
 their operations that it is thought in a week, at latest, he will 
 die the traitor's death that he has deserved. 
 
 The arrest took place in the council chamber at the Palace 
 at Westminster. The Lieutenant of the Tower entered with 
 the King's commands to take him prisoner. In a burst of 
 passion he clutched his cap and flung it on the ground. ' This, 
 then,' he said to the Duke of Norfork and the rest of the 
 council assembled there, ' this, then, is my guerdon for the ser- 
 vice that I have done. On your consciences, I ask you, am 
 I a traitor ? I may have offended, but never with my will. 
 Such faults as I have committed deserve grace and pardon ; 
 but if the King my master believes so ill of me, let him make 
 quick work and not leave me to languish in prison.' 
 
 Part of the council exclaimed that he was a traitor ; part 
 said he should be judged by the bloody laws which he had him- 
 self made ; words idly spoken he had twisted into treason ; the 
 
NOTE F. 147 
 
 measure which he had dealt to others should now be meted 
 out to him. 
 
 The Duke of Norfolk, after reproaching him with his many 
 villanies, tore the St. George from his neck. The admiral,* 
 to show that he was as much his enemy in adversity as in 
 prosperity he had pretended to be his friend, stripped off the 
 G-arter. He was then led down into a barge by a gate which 
 opened on the river, and was conducted to the Tower. The 
 people in the City knew nothing of his arrest until they saw 
 Mr. Cheyne and two archers of the guards at his house door. 
 
 His effects appear by the inventory to be of less value than 
 was expected : though enough, and too much, for so base a 
 fellow. He had £7,000 sterling in silver money. The silver 
 vessels, crosses, chalices, mitres, goblets, and other spoils of the 
 Church, might amount to rather more. The whole was carried 
 in the night to the royal treasury, a sign that there was no 
 intention of restoring it. 
 
 The following morning many letters were found — letters 
 which he had himself written to the Germans ; others which 
 he had received from them. I do not know the contents ; 
 but the King is so exasperated that he will not hear him 
 speak, and is only anxious to put away the very memory 
 of him as of the vilest wretch that ever was born in the 
 realm. His offices will be bestowed as you will see below ; 
 and the public criers have gone through the City, proclaiming 
 that he is not to be called Lord Privy Seal or by any other 
 title of honour, but solely Master Thomas Cromwell. His 
 privileges and prerogatives of nobility are taken from him. 
 The less valuable of his effects are distributed among his ser- 
 vants, who are forbidden to wear their master's livery, and it 
 is thought he will not be admitted to trial as a peer of the 
 realm,t or be executed with a peer's privilege by the axe. 
 He will be hanged like any common villain. 
 
 The fate of the other prisoners in the Tower is uncertain. 
 There are hopes for the Deputy of Calais. The King said 
 a few days ago, he could not find that the deputy had erred 
 through malice. His faults had arisen more from ignorance 
 than any other cause. 
 
 My lord, it remains to tell you who have succeeded to 
 Cromwell's offices. The admiral becomes Privy Seal. Lord 
 Russell goes to the Admiralty. The Bishop of Durham is 
 
 * Fitzwilliam, Earl of Southampton. 
 + This is, perhaps, the explanation of the process against Cromwell being 
 by attainder. The lords would not acknowledge him as their peer. 
 
 l2 
 
148 NOTE F. 
 
 Chief Secretary. About the Vicar-generalship of the spiri- 
 tualty no resolution is yet taken. If they appoint any one, it 
 will be the Bishop of Winchester, who since the fall of his 
 great adversary has returned to the Privy Council. 
 
 Judicial matters will be managed by the chancellor, who, 
 in addition to his other merits, speaks neither French nor 
 Latin, and is a most accomplished seller of justice whenever 
 he can find a merchant to buy it. His colleague is the 
 Chancellor of Augmentations,* the worst man in all England ; 
 the first inventor of the dissolution of the abbeys, and of 
 all subsequent changes. The Chancellor of Augmentations 
 invented, Cromwell furnished the authority. He held his 
 office for the increase of the revenue of the crown ; but 
 for all that he might be more fitly called the ' Chancellor 
 of Diminutions.' He is able and learned, but he uses his 
 talents only for evil. 
 
 Marillac to Francis the First. 
 July 6, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 Sire, — The Parliament will last till the end of this month ; 
 when it is over we shall see how things will be. Eor the 
 present I have nothing to write, unless it be that the King 
 tells me he means to grant a general pardon of all crimes and 
 offences committed by his subjects, those persons only being 
 excepted from the benefit of it who are attainted by Act of 
 Parliament for high treason. Among these last is Cromwell, 
 who will be executed, the Duke of Norfolk desires me to tell 
 you, as soon as ever Parliament rises. The mode of his death, 
 the duke says, will be the most ignominious which is practised 
 n this country. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 July 6, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 My Lord, — I have received the letters which his Majesty 
 and your lordship were pleased to write to me, dated the 28th 
 of last month, and have seen by the enclosure the account of the 
 conversation which the Most Christian King held with the 
 Pope's ambassador. I see nothing in this to cause surprise. 
 This King has often used the same language to myself. As 
 to the Pope and the Emperor, you know, my lord, he not 
 
 * Sir B. Byche, afterwards Lord Byche. 
 
NOTE F. 149 
 
 only calls his Holiness mere Bishop of Borne — which is the 
 title by which his Holiness is now uniformly designated here 
 — but he heaps upon him contumelious expressions, calling 
 him abomination, child of perdition, an idol, and an Anti- 
 christ ; and as to the Emperor, I never speak to his Majesty 
 but what he uses much the same words of him also. On the 
 other hand, when talking of France, he never once makes 
 mention either of pension or tribute ; he never complains of 
 the fortifications of Ardes, or of any other thing, unless it be 
 that we are holding off from him, and preferring others to him, 
 who will never be our sincere friends. 
 
 As to other things ; you will have understood by my 
 cyphered letter of the first of this month, that there was some 
 diminution of regard towards the Queen on the King's part, 
 and a disposition toward another woman. The Queen has 
 been sent to Richmond. The King promised to follow her 
 two days later ; but I know for certain that he has not been 
 there, nor does he talk of going. The route which he has 
 appointed for his progress does not approach that neighbour- 
 hood. It is said in the Court that she has withdrawn to be 
 out of danger of the plague, which they pretend has ap- 
 peared in the City. But that is false. There are no signs of 
 the plague. If there were, the King would not stay for the 
 most important business in the world. I do not know a man 
 so timid in such cases as he. 
 
 Marillac to Franeis the First. 
 July 8, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Imper. Paris.] 
 
 Sire, — I had a message from the King yesterday morning, 
 requiring my presence at the Court. The Emperor's ambas- 
 sador had a similar invitation, and on our appearance we were 
 conducted into the council chamber, neither of us knowing 
 why we were sent for. 
 
 The Privy Council were assembled, and the Bishop of Dur- 
 ham then addressed us in Latin. He said that the clergy, and 
 the lords and commons assembled in Parliament, had ascertained 
 that there were certain hindrances to the marriage celebrated 
 five months previously between his Majesty and the sister of 
 the Duke of Cleves ; and that no disputes might hereafter arise 
 touching the inheritance to the crown, they had entreated his 
 Majesty, for his own welfare and for theirs, to allow the said 
 hindrances to be examined by Parliament, in order that the 
 
150 NOTE F. 
 
 question whether the marriage was or was not valid might 
 receive a conclusive answer. 
 
 To this request the King had been pleased to consent, and his 
 Majesty had desired that we should be informed of what had 
 taken place, that we might send a true account to our re- 
 spective Courts, and not be at the mercy of rumour. 
 
 To this harangue I replied, that for my part I never ven- 
 tured to speak of Kings without due discretion, and in a 
 matter of such importance I should not dream of writing 
 without accurate knowledge ; the honour of Sovereigns re- 
 quired to be treated with more reverence. Nevertheless, I said, 
 I thanked the King much for having thus openly informed me 
 of the truth, and I would transmit it faithfully, as my master's 
 service required. I added, that if they desired I would fur- 
 nish them with a copy of my letter ; but this they graciously 
 refused. They were satisfied, they said, that I should write 
 nothing but the truth ; and I then returned to my lodgings. 
 The courier should have set out immediately, but the passages 
 have remained for two days closed. They were afraid, I 
 suppose, of the story transpiring through an unauthorized 
 channel. 
 
 Marillac to Francis the First. 
 July 21, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Imp^r. Paris.] 
 
 Sire, — The marriage between the King and the Lady Anne 
 of Cleves is still under discussion, and things have gone so 
 far that by the joint sentence of all the bishops in England, and 
 with the sanction of Parliament, the said marriage is declared 
 null and at an end. The King has sworn in the presence of 
 the council, that the Lady Anne has never been more than 
 formally his wife, that the marriage had not been consum- 
 mated, and that the consent required to give it emcacy was 
 wanting from the first. It is also declared that she was before 
 engaged to the son of the Duke of Lorraine, and that the 
 King, having entered into the contract in ignorance of those 
 conditions, is not bound to it. 
 
 The lady being asked if she would accept the bishops 
 for her judges, assented willingly. The Duke her brother's 
 ambassador urged her again and again, as he himself assured 
 me, to consent to nothing ; but she declared that she would 
 do only what would please the King her lord ; she had re- 
 ceived nothing but kindness from him, and she would submit 
 
NOTE F. 151 
 
 to anything that he thought proper. If he wished it, she 
 would remain in the realm and not return to her own country. 
 
 In return for the lady's readiness, the King has settled 
 upon her an honourable maintenance. He has given her 
 either Richmond Palace or Moor Park for her life. She may 
 take which she will, with twelve thousand crowns a year. 
 
 No one, however, is to call her Queen any more, but simply 
 the Lady Anne of Cleves, to the great regret of the people, who 
 esteemed and loved her as the most gentle and gracious 
 princess that they had ever known. 
 
 For the rest, Sire, it is said generally that the King is going 
 to marry a lady of great beauty, daughter of a brother of the 
 Duke of Norfolk. Indeed, if I were to report a scandal which 
 I have heard from more quarters than one, the marriage has 
 already taken place. I cannot certainly say, however, that 
 this is so. I shall know more in a few days. 
 
 Parliament concludes to-morrow. The Act on Religion will 
 be in unison with the teaching of the Church; and the separation 
 from Rome and the suppression of the monks will remain the 
 sole points of discrepancy. Another thing, strange enough, has 
 been resolved on. All foreigners residing in this realm are 
 required to leave it before Michaelmas, excepting such as are 
 engaged in trade ; and of those who are so engaged, none 
 may be householders unless they are married, or unless they 
 have letters granted them of nationality. 
 
 A number of poor creatures are in consternation at this 
 order, especially Flemings, who are here in large numbers. 
 
 Marillac to ilie Constable. 
 July 29, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Imper. Paris.] 
 
 My Lobd, — Master Thomas Cromwell was beheaded this 
 morning at the usual place. Grace was shown him in the 
 fashion of his death, which was to have been more ignominious. 
 
 With him suffered also the Lord Hungerford, a man about 
 forty years old, who had committed sodomy, had violated his 
 daughter, had practised magic, and dealt with the devil. 
 
 There will be more executions this week. There are several 
 persons condemned by Act of Parliament, and not compre- 
 hended in the general pardon, who lie at the King's mercy, 
 either to die or to remain in prison for their lives. 
 
152 NOTE F. 
 
 Marillac to Francis the First. 
 August 6, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Imp£r. Paris.] 
 
 Siee, — You will have heard of the execution of Master 
 Cromwell and Lord Hungerford. Two days after, six 
 more were put to death ; three were hanged as traitors, 
 Eetherstone, Abel, and Cook, late Prior of Doncaster, for 
 having spoken in favour of the Pope ; three were burnt as 
 heretics, Garret, Jerome, and Doctor Barnes. It was a strange 
 spectacle to see the adherents of two opposite parties die 
 thus on the same day and at the same hour, and it was equally 
 disgraceful to the two divisions of the Government who 
 pretended to have received offence. The scene was as pain- 
 ful as it was monstrous. Both groups of sufferers were 
 obstinate or constant : both alike complained of the mode of 
 sentence under which they were condemned. They had never 
 been called to answer for their supposed offences ; and Chris- 
 tians under grace, they said, were now worse off than Jews 
 under the law. The law would have no man die unless he were 
 first heard in his defence, and Heathen and Christian, sage 
 and emperor, the whole world, except England, observed the 
 same rule. 
 
 Here in England, if two witnesses will swear and affirm 
 before the council that they have heard a man speak 
 against his duty to his King, or contrary to the articles 
 of religion, that man may be condemned to suffer death, with 
 the pains appointed by the law, although he be absent or igno- 
 rant of the charge, and without any other form of proof. 
 Innocence is no safeguard when such an opening is offered to 
 malice or revenge. Corruption or passion may breed false 
 witness ; and the good may be sacrificed, and the wicked, who 
 have sworn away their lives, may escape with impunity. There 
 is no security for any man, unless the person accused is 
 brought face to face with the witnesses who depose against 
 him. 
 
 Of the iniquity of the system no other evidence is needed 
 than these executions just passed. One who suffered for 
 treason declared that he had never spoken good or bad of the 
 Pope's authority, nor could he tell how he had provoked the 
 King's displeasure, unless it were, that ten years ago his 
 opinion was required on the divorce of Queen Catherine, the 
 Emperor's aunt, and he had said he considered her the King's 
 lawful wife. The rest spoke equally firmly and equally simply, 
 and such loud murmurs rose among the people, and their 
 
NOTE E. 153 
 
 natural disposition to turbulence was so excited, that had 
 there been any one to lead them, they would have broken out 
 into dangerous sedition. Inquiries were made instantly into 
 the origin of the riot. The names of those who have repeated 
 the words of the suiferers have been demanded, and this, I 
 suppose, will be made the occasion of a worse butchery. It 
 is no easy thing to keep a people in revolt against the 
 Holy See and the authority of the Church, and yet free from 
 the infection of the new doctrines — or, on the other hand, if 
 they remain orthodox, to prevent them from looking with 
 attachment to the Papacy. But the council here will have 
 neither the one nor the other. They will have their ordinances 
 obeyed, however often they change them, and however little 
 the people can comprehend what they are required to believe. 
 
 The King is ten miles off at Hampton Court, thinly at- 
 tended, and has been lately at Richmond to visit the Queen 
 that was. He is on the best possible terms with her, and they 
 supped so pleasantly together that some thought she was to 
 be restored to her place. Others say, however, that the King 
 merely wanted to tell her what had been done, and required 
 her signature to the deed of separation ; and this is most likely 
 the true account of the thing, for three of the Privy Council 
 were brought in, who are not in general admitted to such terms 
 of familiarity. It would argue too great inconstancy, it 
 would reflect too much on the King's honour, to put her away 
 on a plea of conscience and take her back so easily. If she 
 might justly be his wife, why did he put her away so precipi- 
 tately ? If there were lawful impediments to the marriage, 
 by what right could he take her back ? Moreover, she was 
 not treated with as much distinction as when Queen. She 
 had then a seat at his side. On this occasion she sat at a 
 little distance at a table joining the corner of the table where 
 the King sat. 
 
 However, I will write more fully when I can obtain certain 
 intelligence. 
 
 Marillac to tlie Constable. 
 
 August 15, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Imp^r. Paris.] 
 
 My Loed, — The King, with a small retinue, is gone to the 
 chase, and the nobility are scattered to their homes. Till now 
 there has been some uncertainty about the new Queen who 
 has succeeded the Duke of Cleves' sister ; but this morning 
 
154 
 
 NOTE F. 
 
 she was prayed for in the churches in the usual form, with the 
 King and the Prince. 
 
 The Lady of Cleves, so far from being troubled at what has 
 befallen her, appears as happy as ever she was in her life. 
 Every day she comes out in a new dress of some strange 
 fashion or other, and either she is preternaturally prudent in 
 concealing her feelings, or, considering how much her honour 
 has been touched, she is utterly stupid and insensible. 
 
 However that be, the ambassador of Cleves has fretted him- 
 self into a fever. He begs me every day to let him know 
 what I hear about his master, and what is said about the new 
 marriage. 
 
 Marillac to Francis the First. 
 September 3, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Imper. Paris.] 
 
 Sire, — I have already informed your Majesty of the 
 nuptials of the new Queen, the niece of the Duke of Norfolk, 
 who has been substituted for the lady now called only my 
 Lady of Cleves. » 
 
 The latter, so far from being miserable at her treatment, 
 betrays in her face no signs of dissatisfaction whatever, and 
 amuses herself in all possible ways with dresses and enter- 
 tainments. 
 
 Out hunting the other day, the King talked to me with 
 much graciousness, and spoke at length of his regard for your 
 Majesty. Among other things, he bade me tell you that the 
 time was approaching when you would find the truth of what 
 he had always predicted — meaning, the reopening of the 
 quarrel between your Majesty and the Emperor. 
 
 The Emperor, he said, had for some days past been endea- 
 vouring to draw him over to his side ; but experience of the 
 past had made him wary ; he had received many fine words 
 from the Emperor, but the words had flown away, and no 
 effect had followed. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 September 3, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 My Loed, — I have nothing particular to write to you, 
 except that during this progress I have seen the new Queen. 
 Her beauty is nothing particular, and she is very small and slight; 
 but she is remarkably graceful ; her countenance is modest, 
 
NOTE F. 155 
 
 soft, and gentle ; and the King is so fond of her that he knows 
 not how to express his affection. She dresses in French 
 fashion like the other ladies of the Court, and she reigns su- 
 preme. The Lady of Cleves, meanwhile, shows herself per- 
 fectly happy. Her brother's ambassador tells me she is in 
 the best spirits in the world. 
 
 In November an embassy was sent to the Emperor, and 
 Marillac was instructed to find out the object of it. 
 
 Marillac to Francis the First. 
 November 16. [MS. Bibliot. Imper. Paris.] 
 
 Siee, — I have no certainty to tell you. Nevertheless, it 
 may be to the purpose to give you generally the results of 
 the many opinions expressed about this embassy. 
 
 The first possibility is, that the King may desire to clear 
 his conduct to the Emperor and the German princes in di- 
 vorcing the Duke of Cleves' sister and in marrying his pre- 
 sent Queen. 
 
 Secondly, he may wish to explain the order which he has 
 introduced in religion ; the council pretending that they have 
 established nothing which is not in conformity with the apos- 
 tolic constitutions and the doctrines of the primitive church. 
 
 The King probably knows that on these two points the 
 Germans are offended and scandalized. The majority have 
 renounced the friendship which they had commenced with 
 him, and when occasion serves, they will show their resent- 
 ment to the extent of their power. It is probable, also, that 
 in their Diets and assemblies they will give some marked proof 
 of the indignation which they have conceived against the 
 King. They will be able to allege that he has never observed 
 the marriage law, except so far as has suited his inclination ; 
 and that in religion the English have done nothing except to 
 gratify their ambition and avarice. 
 
 To reply to these and similar charges, it is thought that 
 the King has despatched the Bishop of Winchester, who was 
 the chief adviser of this last marriage, by which he worked the 
 ruin of the late Lord Cromwell ; while the bishop also, being a 
 man of some knowledge, may explain how, in religion, things 
 are restored unto their original condition, and by the number 
 of his retinue may show that the Church of England is neither 
 so impoverished nor despoiled as the world has thought. 
 
156 NOTE E. 
 
 These views, Sire, have appearance of reason in them, and 
 have been suggested to me by persons who have means of 
 knowing what they speak of. For myself, were I permitted 
 to guess with the rest, I should think the King's chief motive 
 was to practise with the Emperor through this embassy, as 
 he practised with you, Sire, through the Duke of Norfolk. 
 The Euglish know that they have offended all the world, and 
 therefore they distrust all the world. They fear that the 
 princes of Christendom may one day unite to punish them, 
 and they can find no better security for themselves than in 
 the differences which they can excite between the two chief 
 States of Christendom. They suppose that when these two 
 heads move, all the members must move with them, and that 
 when you are in discord you will have no leisure to interfere 
 with them. 
 
 The fortifications are continued throughout the island 
 wherever an enemy can land. A German engineer, who has 
 designed the ramparts at Guisnes and Calais, has been brought 
 over to plan some other works at home. 
 
 The Duke of Suffolk, I am told, is going in three or four 
 days to Calais to inspect. Some say he will go further; but 
 it is unlikely. He is not of an age to undertake a long 
 journey. 
 
 The King, with a few servants only, has been for two days 
 in London, as it were incognito. He wanted to see certain 
 machines of war, and contrivances for throwing fire, invented 
 by his German and Italian workmen. His Majesty has lately 
 fitted out six light galleys, which he has armed and equipped 
 like your Highness' s at Marseilles. They will go to sea be- 
 fore next Easter, and they are to ply between Calais and this 
 coast, where they will make the passage with more certainty 
 than sailing vessels. 
 
 Marillac to the Constable. 
 November 16, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 My Lord, — I have written so fully to the King that I 
 think I have nothing to add, unless it be touching the mission 
 of the Bishop of Winchester, which some think is to arrange 
 a marriage between the Lady Mary and the Emperor. I can- 
 not but believe such a match to be out of the question. In the 
 first place, by all Estates of the Realm she has been declared 
 illegitimate. Eor this reason only the Duke of Cleves would 
 not have her; and she was offered, with the insignificant 
 
NOTE F. 157 
 
 dowry of thirty or forty thousand crowns, to Duke Philip of 
 Bavaria. 
 
 The King, I consider, has resolved that she shall not 
 marry out of the realm, for fear a claim should be made in 
 her name to the crown, she being the only child whose 
 legitimacy is recognised by the Church, and the Prince having 
 been born since the schism from the Apostolic See. 
 
 Moreover, my lord, they cannot recall the Act of Parlia- 
 ment by which she was illegitimatized, without acknowledging 
 the Pope's authority ; and to this they will not condescend, if 
 only because he would compel them to restore the property 
 of the Church and the holy places which they have desecrated. 
 Besides the danger of being called on for restitution, sub- 
 mission to the Pope would also be an evidence of great in- 
 constancy ; they have sent men of rank and note to the scaffold 
 for maintaining the Pap^l authority ; and to restore that 
 authority would cause scandal and mistrust, and, possibly, 
 tumult and sedition. 
 
 Marillac to Francis the First. 
 December 4, 1540. [MS. Bibliot. Impe'r. Paris.] 
 
 The embassy has departed to the Emperor. The Bishop 
 of Winchester is waiting at Calais and G-uisnes, pretending 
 that his boxes have not yet all crossed the water, and it is 
 plain enough that he means to follow the Emperor into 
 Germany. 
 
 There is more talk of the Duke of Suffolk going to Calais, 
 as at one time was confidently expected. The arrangement 
 is somehow at an end. Things seem quieter and more 
 tranquil here than they appeared when I last wrote, and 
 nothing is talked of except rejoicings and amusements. I, for 
 one, have never seen the King in such good spirits or in so 
 good a humour as he is at present. He has adopted a new 
 rule of life. He rises in the morning between five and six ; 
 at seven he hears mass ; and afterwards he rides till dinner, 
 which is at ten a.m. He tells me that being so much in the 
 country, and changing his place so often, he finds himself 
 much better in health than in the winter, when he was re- 
 siding in London. 
 
158 NOTE G. 
 
 Note G. 
 
 Eustace Chappuys to Charles the Fifth. 
 London, November 19, 1541. [Archives at Brussels.*] 
 
 Sire, — The day before yesterday, the lord admiral sent, 
 by one of my servants, to tell me that the Queen had con- 
 fessed to an intrigue, before her marriage, with Master 
 Derham who is in the Tower. The Privy Seal (Lord Russell) 
 confirmed the account yesterday. In the three years that the 
 affair lasted, they slept together more than eighty nights 
 without word or talk of marriage between them. 
 
 It has been discovered lately that Master Culpepper, 
 gentleman of the bedchamber to the King, has received love 
 presents from her, and, within these two months, has been with 
 her twice in private five or six hours at a time. Lady Roch- 
 fort acted as their go-between, and is also sent to the Tower. 
 
 When I asked the Privy Seal (Lord Eussell) what the 
 King meant to do in the matter, he told me that his Majesty 
 would be more patient and merciful with her than people 
 would suppose, and even than her own relations desired. He 
 meant the Duke of Norfolk, who (God knows why) would 
 have the Queen burnt. I do not know that as yet she has 
 been sent to the Tower. There was a talk of putting her 
 in a suppressed nunnery near Richmond, attended by four 
 women and some men. 
 
 The Lady of Cleves, I am told, is delighted, and she is to 
 come to Richmond (if she be not already there) to be nearer 
 the King. On all accounts I thought best to say nothing 
 about her to the Privy Seal till I should have a better oppor- 
 tunity when again at the Court. 
 
 The Princess has been sent away with the Prince, and all 
 the other ladies have gone to their homes. 
 
 Eustace Chappuys to Charles the Fifth. 
 London, December 3. 
 
 Sihe, — The clerk of the council was sent to me on St. An- 
 drew's day, with a message from the lords of the said council, 
 that the next day Culpepper and Derham would be tried. 
 
 * This and the four following letters have been printed by M. Gachard, 
 Analectes Historiques, vol. i. p. 237. 
 
NOTE G. 159 
 
 They begged that one of my people might be present, and the 
 same desire was expressed to the ambassador of France, the 
 Venetian secretary, and the minister of the Duke of Cleves, 
 who is still here. 
 
 I sent a man to the trial. The King's council were all 
 present, and after a long examination, which lasted full six 
 hours, the said two gentlemen were found guilty, and sentenced 
 to be quartered as traitors. 
 
 Derham confessed that he had been often with the Queen, 
 before she was affianced or eDgaged to the King, and he said 
 he did not know that he had done wrong, as there was a 
 promise of marriage between them. 
 
 Culpepper denied positively that he had ever had to do with 
 her, or had ever solicited her. She had importuned him, 
 through Lady Eochfort, to give her a secret meeting at Lin- 
 coln, and she had told him then what she had before let him 
 know through Lady Eochfort, that she was languishing and 
 dying of love for him. 
 
 It is thought that they will be executed to-day. 
 
 Lady Eochfort would have been condemned at the same 
 time were it not for a frenzy into which she fell three days 
 after her arrest. She returns to herself at times, and the King 
 sees that great pains are taken for her cure. The admiral's wife 
 is with her, and she is attended by physicians ; her recovery 
 being desired, that she may be the subject afterwards of 
 exemplary punishment. 
 
 The Queen remains at Sion, and it is thought that the 
 King, to show his clemency, will take no further steps about 
 her until the Estates of the Eealm, which have been summoned, 
 decide how it shall be. 
 
 The King has gone away somewhere in the neighbourhood 
 to divert his thoughts ; and people fancied he would pay 
 a visit to the Lady of Cleves ; but he has chosen another 
 route, and, so far, I cannot perceive that he has any idea of 
 taking her again. 
 
 The clerk of the council (Paget) having been long a friend 
 of mine, I could not help saying to him that, if the King 
 separated from his present Queen on the ground of her 
 previous conduct, according to the common report in the Low 
 Countries, he had equally good reason to part with the Lady of 
 Cleves. He did not deny this . . . and he told me he did not think 
 that the King would ever return to her, or that he would 
 marry again at all unless the Parliament constrained him. 
 
160 NOTE G. 
 
 Eustace Chappuys to Charles the Fifth. 
 London, Jan. 29, 1542. 
 
 Sire, — The session of Parliament, or of the Estates of the 
 Realm, has just commenced. The chief point on which the 
 chancellor dwelt in his opening speech was the crime com- 
 mitted by the Queen, of which he made the very worst 
 possible. 
 
 The lords spiritual and temporal went into the business 
 four days ago. They declared the Queen and Lady Eochfort 
 guilty of high treason. The old Duchess of Norfolk and her 
 daughter are sentenced to be imprisoned for life ; and Lord 
 William, his wife, and the other accomplices, also, for the 
 same offence. 
 
 The resolution of the peers will be laid before the repre- 
 sentatives of the people in two days. 
 
 At the very moment while I was writing the above, I 
 was informed that the Commons House had this morning come 
 to the same resolution about the Queen and the ladies, as the 
 bishops and peers have done, and the Queen, it is to be feared, 
 will be soon sent to the Tower. She is still at Syon, very cheer- 
 ful and more plump and pretty than ever : she is as careful 
 about her dress, she is as imperious and wilful, as at the time 
 when she was with the King; notwithstanding that she expects 
 to be put to death, that she confesses that she has well deserved 
 it, and asks for no favour except that the execution shall be 
 secret and not under the eyes of the world. Perhaps, if the King 
 does not mean to marry again, he may show mercy to her ; 
 or if he find that he can divorce her on the plea of adultery, 
 he may take another thus. The question, I am told, has been 
 already debated among the learned theologians, although, so 
 far, there is no appearance that the King thinks of any further 
 marriage or of any other woman. The Lady of Cleves, as I 
 understand, has less hope of a reconciliation than ever. She 
 has sent the King a new-year's gift of certain pieces of velvet, 
 and the King has presented her with some goblets and 
 flagons. 
 
 Eustace Chappuys to Charles the Fifth. 
 Feb. 19, 1542. 
 
 Sire, — In my letter of the 29th of January I informed 
 your Majesty of the resolution taken by Parliament in the 
 matter of the Queen and the ladies. 
 
NOTE G. 161 
 
 The King, from the time he had been informed of the said 
 Queen's misconduct,had showed no signs of cheerfulness. Since 
 the sentence he has recovered his spirits, and on the 29th he 
 gave a supper and banquet to the ladies of the Court. There 
 were twenty-six of them, with the lords, at his own table, and at a 
 table adjoining there were thirty -five. The lady to whom fcr 
 the time he was most attentive was the sister of Lord Cobham, 
 and of the wife of Master Wyatt, lately divorced for adultery. 
 She is a pretty young creature, with spirit enough, if she tries 
 it, to play as bad a game as the others. He is said, also, to 
 have a fancy for the daughter of Madame Albert, niece of the 
 master of the horse, Sir Anthony Brown.* 
 
 Eustace Chappuys to Charles the Fifth. 
 Feb. 25, 1542. 
 
 Siee, — In my letter of the 10th I informed your Majesty 
 of all that had been done in the affair of the Queen ; only I 
 forgot to tell you that the King, after the vote of Parliament 
 in her condemnation, wishing to proceed more humanely and 
 more according to forms of law, sent some of his council with 
 a deputation from the Houses to propose to her to come to 
 the Parliament chamber to defend herself. She refused, how- 
 ever : she submitted herself to the King's mercy and good 
 pleasure, and confessed that she had deserved to die. 
 
 Since that time, on the afternoon of the loth, the Queen, 
 after some resistance, and with some difficulty, was taken 
 down the river to the Tower, preceded by a barge containing the 
 Lord Privy Seal, several members of the council, and a number 
 of servants. The Queen followed in a small close barge, with 
 three or four men and as many women. The Duke of Suffolk 
 came behind as a rear guard, in a large boat crowded with 
 his retinue. 
 
 When they reached the Tower stairs, the lords disem- 
 
 * Henry, however, did not so easily forget Catherine Howard's conduct. 
 On the 16th of April, Chappuys wrote : — 
 
 ' There is no sign or hint that the King thinks of marrying again, either 
 with the Lady of Cleves or any one else. Ever since the misconduct of his 
 last wife he has become so sad and melancholy that he is altogether unlike 
 himself. In every interview I have had with him I have found him full of 
 sorrow, heaviness, and sighs.' 
 
 On the 15th of the following January Chappuys wrote again : — 
 
 ' The King, from the time when he was made first aware of his last wife's 
 wickedness, has been never anything but sad and pensive. He has shown 
 no inclination for giving entertainments to ladies, or seeking their society.' 
 
 M 
 
162 NOTE H. 
 
 barked first, and afterwards the Queen, in a dress of black 
 velvet. The same forms of respect were shown to her as 
 when she was on the throne. 
 
 Two days after, being Sunday the t 2th, in the evening, she 
 was instructed to disburden her conscience ; she was to die 
 the following day. She desired that the block on which 
 she was to be beheaded might be brought her, that she might 
 learn how she was to place herself. This was done, and she 
 made the experiment. 
 
 At seven o'clock the next morning, all the King's council, 
 except the Duke of Suffolk, who was indisposed, and the Duke 
 of Norfolk, presented themselves at the Tower, with a num- 
 ber of lords and gentlemen, amongst the rest being the Earl 
 of Surrey, the Duke of Norfolk's son and the Queen's cousin. 
 The Queen herself was shortly after beheaded, in the same 
 place where Anne Boleyn suffered. A cloth was thrown over 
 the body, which was taken away by some ladies, and Lady 
 Eochfort was brought out, who seemed to be in a kind of 
 frenzy till she died. Neither one nor the other said much, 
 except to confess their misdeeds, and to pray for the King's 
 welfare. 
 
 Note H. 
 
 Chappuys to the Emperor. 
 Jan. 10, 1539. [MS. Archives at Brussels.] 
 
 Sire, — The 30th December now past, Lord Cromwell 
 sent for the French ambassador, and entreated him, as the 
 ambassador tells me, earnestly and anxiously, to write to the 
 King his master to put a stop to the slanderous charges of 
 heresy with which the King was defamed in Prance. 
 
 There was no cause or ground, Lord Cromwell said, for such 
 accusations. The ambassador knew, and could himself see, 
 that except in what concerned the Pope's authority, there was 
 no innovation whatever. Religion and the Catholic faith re- 
 mained inviolate. 
 
 Further, the King heard that he was accused of tyranny 
 and cruelty, and that these things were said of him, not only by 
 the vulgar and ignorant, but by some of the principal persons 
 in France. The Cardinal of Paris, in the Most Christian 
 King's own council, had talked vehemently to that effect, and 
 no one had contradicted him or shown signs of being dis- 
 pleased. 
 
NOTE H. 163 
 
 The King thought this marvellously strange, and very 
 little consonant with the good turns which he had done to the 
 Most Christian King. He thought he had deserved to be 
 spoken better of. He had not expected that they would have 
 allowed his honour to be tainted without cause. The Prince 
 who punished traitors by law, and under the forms of justice, 
 did not deserve to be called cruel or tyrannical ; and as to the 
 execution of the Marquis of Exeter and his two accomplices, 
 which seemed to have been the occasion of the report, the 
 ambassador ought to know that their treason had been proved 
 beyond all doubt since their death, by certain copies of letters 
 to them from Cardinal Pole, as well as by other letters addressed 
 by them to the cardinal. These copies, the originals of which 
 had been burnt, were in the hands of the marchioness, and 
 were found in a casket which, she kept at the house of a confi- 
 dential friend. In the same casket there were letters found 
 of the late good Queen and of the Princess ; and Lord Crom- 
 well said it was quite certain that the marquis intended to 
 usurp the crown at the King's death, to marry his son to the 
 Princess, to despatch the Prince, and to destroy the family of 
 the Seymours. 
 
 The marquis and marchioness had in time past worked 
 upon the Princess, putting fancies into her head, and advising 
 her to stand out against her father and disobey the law. 
 
 Lord Cromwell said too, that the marquis and his accom- 
 plices, or some one among them, must have had intelligence 
 with me, and betrayed secrets of State to me ; for they had many 
 times found that your Majesty was informed of their most 
 private intentions. The conspirators had been in communica- 
 tion, therefore, with me, or with some ambassador or agent of 
 your Majesty, and these persons had carried messages between 
 them and Cardinal Pole. He therefore begged the ambassador to 
 write to the Most Christian King, and request that the defama- 
 tions against the King might cease. 
 
 May it please your Majesty, the King himself, two days 
 before, spoke to the Prench ambassador in the same language 
 exactly, word for word, except only that he said nothing of 
 the defamation of his character. Of the rest he omitted 
 nothing, especially where it affected me. 
 
 Further, Lord Cromwell informed the ambassador that he 
 had had the Bibles in English printed at Paris, which had cost 
 him two thousand crowns, and which, when finished and paid 
 for, had been arrested and sequestered by the university. 
 This he considered very strange, and he required the ambas- 
 
 M 2 
 
164 NOTE H. 
 
 sador to write for a release, and to assure the Most Christian 
 King, on his behalf, that, if the release was granted at once, he 
 would take it as a service which he would find means to re- 
 compense. 
 
 Thereupon, Sire, he went on to bid the ambassador tell him 
 if there was a thing in the world which would increase and 
 strengthen the alliance between their Majesties ; and he said 
 he could not fail to bring the King his master to consent to it, 
 as well as to remove all causes and occasions which might at 
 any time engender differences. He pressed the ambassador 
 extremely to say if he could think of anything, and the 
 ambassador conceives that Lord Cromwell wanted him to 
 answer that, for the removal of all scruples, it would be well to 
 abolish the pension which the King claims from France. The 
 ambassador might be surprised, Lord Cromwell continued, at 
 hearing such language from him, when language so unlike it 
 had been used in time past. The King's bad ministers had 
 been to blame, the Bishop of Winchester, Sir Francis Brian, 
 and Sir Anthony Brown ; and they were not rid of them yet. 
 Before a year was over he hoped to speak in person with the 
 Most Christian King, and to tell him things as much to his 
 honour and profit as he had heard for a long time. 
 
 Sire, being at court afterwards, as the King was leaving 
 his room to go to mass, he addressed himself to me. I told 
 him I was come to wish him a happy new year, and I asked 
 if he had any commands for me. He thanked me, saying 
 that whenever I liked to come to see him I should be wel- 
 come ; and thereupon he began to express his surprise at the 
 delays about his marriage.* 
 
 Your Majesty had told his ambassador and Sir Philip Hoby, 
 that the- Queen Kegent had full powers to settle everything. 
 Tour Majesty had sent her instructions so ample that she 
 could not pretend that she had to consult you further ; and 
 he had not deserved, he said, to be trified with and dissembled 
 with on all sides, alluding to France. Notwithstanding your 
 Majesty's words, the Queen persisted that she had insufficient 
 authority, and he was forced to doubt whether she had that 
 real desire for the completion of the affair which she affected 
 to the English ambassador. 
 
 She was not to be excused, he said, for having neglected to 
 communicate with the ambassador, after he had himself relin- 
 quished his demand for Milan. In the marriage of the Prin- 
 
 * With the Duchess of Milan. 
 
NOTE H. 165 
 
 cess Mary with Don Louis there might, perhaps, be difficul- 
 ties ; about his own there could be none. 
 
 To this, Sire, I replied, that he ought not to take it ill if her 
 Highness could not come to a final resolution till she had re- 
 ceived your Majesty's directions on more points than one. 
 There was the state of Milan ; there was the French pension ; 
 there was the dispensation for the affinity between himself 
 and the Duchess of Milan ; and at the date of your Majesty's 
 last letter, her courier had not reached you. Though he had 
 given up his pretensions to Milan, your Majesty's pleasure had 
 still to be ascertained about it. The dispensation was an 
 unconsidered subject. The recovery of the pension was a 
 new one, and had no natural connexion with the marriage ; 
 and if there had been no other reason for delay, it was enough 
 that he no longer contemplated the marriage of the Princess. 
 It might well be a question with your Majesty whether you 
 would allow one marriage without the other. Moreover, 
 it might be that the Queen had heard that Duke Frederick 
 was going to your Majesty, and before giving her answer she 
 might have wished to know if a resolution had been arrived at 
 touching the Danish succession. True, he had himself said 
 that he did not care for any large settlement with the Duchess ; 
 but your Majesty and the Queen were bound in honour to 
 consider the children who might be born of the marriage. 
 There was already a Prince who would succeed to the crown 
 of England, and the Danish title might be of great importance 
 to them. 
 
 He made me no answer, but left me, and I went to mass ; 
 Lord Cromwell then joined me, and said he had news from 
 Germany. The Estates, or at least part of them, he told me, 
 were about to assemble at Cologne. By degrees he changed 
 the subject, and said he marvelled at your Majesty's coldness 
 about the marriage of his master with the Duchess of Milan. 
 Your Majesty, he concluded, meant to give her to the Princes 
 of Cleves and Lorraine. 
 
 That would be a pretty business, I replied, to give her to 
 both, to gain two sons-in-law with one daughter. I told him 
 your Majesty understood well enough the difference between 
 his master and such connexions as those — only the condi- 
 tions had to be looked to. He said nothing to that, but 
 pretended he had some business to despatch, and left me for the 
 usual reason, that he wished to avoid suspicion. 
 
 After dinner, Sire, the King began to talk to me of the 
 wars which his Holiness was commencing. He said your 
 
166 NOTE H. 
 
 Majesty would not be pleased for a great many reasons .... 
 Afterwards tie returned to the marriage, and repeated part of 
 what he had said in the morning. He said that his subjects 
 were extremely importunate with him about taking a wife, 
 and his age did not allow him to delay too long. The French 
 boasted that your Majesty would not venture to conclude the 
 treaty without their consent, and this he supposed was the 
 real cause of the hesitation. A few days would show what 
 was to be looked for. Sire, I am unable to say how he will 
 act ; but he seemed to me perplexed and thoughtful. He is 
 none the less vexed because it suits him to talk largely and 
 haughtily, and to treat the world as if they were sheep. 
 
 Everyone tells me (and I am myself of the same opinion), 
 that he has a strong regard for the Duchess of Milan ; and 
 three days ago, a gentleman who knows all his secrets told 
 me he would take her, if she came to him without a farthing. 
 
 As to the Princess's marriage, the French ambassador says 
 he has heard from good authority (though he may not 
 reveal his informant's name) that the King intends to give 
 her to the young Duke of Cleves, and to connect himself with 
 the King of Denmark, the Duke of Saxony and Prussia, and 
 the Landgrave of Hesse. He undertakes to find money for 
 
 them if they go to war with your Majesty For myself, 
 
 I can believe that the King will be glad to make alliances 
 there and wherever he can, to defend himself against your 
 Majesty. He is not a man to go to sleep, and he will do his 
 best to find your Majesty in work elsewhere, that you may 
 have no leisure to meddle with him here. But I cannot 
 think that he will marry the Princess out of the realm. If it be 
 so, we shall soon know it, for the King is going in a few days 
 to see his son ; and if he has any thought of the kind he will 
 not fail to speak to her on the subject. Suspecting or be- 
 lieving that the Dukes of Cleves and Lorraine are in commu- 
 nication with your Majesty about the Duchess of Milan, he 
 will endeavour to cross them by an offer of the Princess with 
 all the conditions which they can desire ; and he knows well 
 that if he misses this chance with the Duchess, he will have 
 lost his last hope of returning to good terms with your Ma- 
 jesty. He is prepared for all contingencies, however. He is 
 collecting ammunition and materials for war, and within these 
 five days the master of the ordnance has been with me to take 
 leave, being sent down to the Scottish Borders to examine 
 the fortifications in the northern counties. Trusty persons 
 are on their way to Guisnes and Calais also, and to all parts 
 
NOTE H. 167 
 
 of the realm. The King has taken alarm at the transports 
 which are collected in Handera. Two or three times lately 
 he has said to me that he conld not conceive why those 
 vessels should be taking on board ammunition and ordnance 
 in Flanders, if they were meant for use in the Mediterranean. 
 There must be enough of such things in Spain. 
 
 For general news here, Sire, on the last of December the 
 master of the horse, Carew, was arrested and carried a prisoner 
 to the Tower. Instantly that the order was issued for his 
 arrest, officers were sent to take possession of his property : 
 and people think the King will not forget to give directions 
 to secure the beautiful diamonds, pearls, and numberless jewels 
 he gave to the grand master's wife, the greater part of which 
 were taken from the late good Queen. 
 
 As to the offices held by the said Carew, it seems that it 
 was settled before his arrest how they should be distributed ; 
 for the order came out the following morning. Sir Anthony 
 Brown is master of the horse, although it is not more than 
 two days since Lord Cromwell spoke to the French ambas- 
 sador of the ill offices which he had lately done in France, 
 complaining that, like an arrogant blockhead, he had mixed 
 his private quarrels and complaints with the affairs of his 
 commission ; the King had given him an honourable situ- 
 ation, but he should content himself with what he had got, 
 without looking for more. 
 
 The evidence against Carew, people tell me, is a letter 
 found in the marchioness's casket, giving her information of 
 things which had been discussed in the King's private room. 
 Since his imprisonment, he has been pressed to confess some- 
 thing against the marquis. It seems the evidence of young 
 Pole was not enough ; and these people will follow the Carin- 
 thian practice — execution first, and process after. As to 
 the copies of letters which the King and Cromwell pretended 
 to have found in a casket, among them being letters of mine, 
 I cannot tell what these letters could be. I never wrote 
 a letter to any person in the realm that I should care to 
 see published, unless it were to the late good Queen and the 
 Princess ; and anything written to them must have been 
 burned immediately. 
 
 The marquis and the others who were executed, were 
 charged, and heavily charged, because no letters were found. 
 They had received letters, and it was pretended that they 
 were burned, because they would have compromised them. 
 For myself, I have many times written to the Princess, to 
 
168 NOTE H. 
 
 advise her not to expose herself to suspicion. I have sent 
 her a dozen letters, which she has to show if necessary, and I 
 should be glad if anything was to make the King ask for 
 th'em and read them. 
 
 To return to the master of the horse. I have been given 
 to understand that, in hopes of pardon, he has discovered 
 various things affecting both himself and the marquis. No- 
 thing, however, has been specified, except that when the 
 master of the horse brought news to the marquis that the late 
 Queen Jane was delivered of a male child, the marquis was 
 much vexed. If this was true, it could only be from the love 
 and affection which he bore towards the Princess, in whose 
 service he would gladly have shed his blood, as he often sent 
 to me to say. 
 
 If any letter of the master of the horse was found among 
 the marchioness's papers, it must have been about something 
 that concerned the Princess, to whom he was always him- 
 self most devoted. It seems they wish to leave her as few such 
 friends as possible. However, notwithstanding the fine pre- 
 sents your Majesty made the said master of the horse when 
 he came to swrar to the peace, he has always inclined towards 
 Prance. The good Edward Neville many times reproached 
 him for it. 
 
 As to interceding with the King in behalf of young Pole, 
 I think, for the considerations mentioned in my other letters, 
 your Majesty has acted with your accustomed prudence in 
 abstaining from interference. There was good reason for re- 
 maining passive, and the execution since that time of his eldest 
 brother, makes one inclined to desist from saying anything. 
 People tell me that his life will be spared, but that he will 
 remain in perpetual prison. I was informed that in Christmas 
 week he tried to smother himself with a cushion. 
 
 Sire, this morning, as I was melting the wax to seal this letter, 
 the Prench ambassador's secretary came to me with a message 
 from his master. Lord Cromwell, returning late yesterday 
 from the Court, passed the ambassador's house, and went in 
 to tell him that two hours previously the King had received 
 letters from the Court of Prance, informing him that the Most 
 Christian King had imprisoned two Pranciscans for defaming 
 the King of England in their sermons. The Pranciscans were to 
 be severely punished ; and on the first day of the year the Most 
 Christian King gave a grand entertainment to the English 
 ambassador. 
 
 Orders had been given also for the release of the printed 
 
NOTE I. 169 
 
 sheets of the Bible ; and this news had marvellously delighted 
 the King. He declared himself under great obligations to the 
 Most Christian King, and to the French ambassador as well, for 
 his many good offices in perpetuating the alliance between 
 the Most Christian King and himself. 
 
 The said ambassador, however, desired that I should be told 
 that all that had been done in France was an artifice only to de- 
 ceive the English into confidence ; and that he had himself in 
 his own letters directed the measures which had been taken, 
 or, at all events, those which affected the defamation and the 
 sequestration of the Bibles. 
 
 The said ambassador desired also to know if it was true 
 that the King of England had presented the Duchess of 
 Milan with a diamond worth 60,000 ducats, as the world said. 
 I told him it was the first that I had heard of it, as indeed 
 it was. 
 
 London, Jan. 9, 1539. 
 
 Note I. 
 
 The Irish chiefs, who, as long as Erance was at enmity with 
 England, had sought the support of the Court of Paris, trans- 
 ferred their allegiance to the Empire on the agitation of the 
 divorce of Queen Catherine. Charles the Fifth endeavoured 
 to frighten Henry into giving way, by fomenting sedition 
 among his subjects. The Irish did not wait to be sought, but 
 placed themselves and their swords, of their own accord, at 
 the Emperor's feet. In the winter of 1528-9, the Earl of 
 Desmond wrote, with offers of service, to Charles the Fifth, 
 who was then at Toledo. Charles replied by sending his 
 chaplain Gonzalo Fernandez, to see whether Desmond's 
 powers were equal to his promises. 
 
 Instructions for Gonzalo Fernandez sent by us to Ireland 
 to the Earl of Desmond. 
 Feb. 24, 1529. [MS. Archives at Brussels.] 
 
 Seeing that you, Gronzalo Fernandez, Chaplain of my Court, 
 are going to Ireland to the Earl of Desmond, to open negotia- 
 tions with the said earl in our behalf, your instructions are 
 as follows : — 
 
 First, you will use all diligence to arrive at the place where 
 the earl resides ; and after presenting your credentials, you 
 shall say to him that, inasmuch as one of his followers, named 
 
170 
 
 NOTE I. 
 
 Godfrey, has within these few days brought a letter to us, 
 signifying a desire ou the part of the said earl to be our ally 
 and confederate, and with all his vassals and subjects to be 
 friend of our friends and enemy of our enemies ; and inas- 
 much as the said earl desires that we would send some con- 
 fidential person who might learn his intentions, and see and 
 report upon his resources ; conformably with his request, we 
 have sent you to speak with him ; and in accepting his offer 
 of goodwill, you shall tell him that he shall ever find in us a 
 like disposition, and that he may hold himself assured of all 
 the support which it may be in our power to give him. 
 
 Tou shall inform yourself of the force which the earl, with 
 his friends, can command ; and you shall desire him to explain 
 in writing his expectations and plans, and to let us know what 
 he will be able to effect against our common enemy. 
 
 The earl requests, further, that in case he declare openly 
 for us, and we come hereafter to make peace w r ith the King of 
 England, we will not leave him uncomprehended in our treaty. 
 You shall say that we have ever desired to be on good terms 
 with the King of England. Our predecessors and his prede- 
 cessors, our subjects and his subjects, have hitherto been 
 friends and allies. We have ourselves borne an especial 
 affection towards the English nation, and, for our own part, we 
 have done all that lay in our power to remain at peace with 
 the King. Notwithstanding, as is notorious to all the world, he 
 has declared against us in favour of our enemy the King of 
 Erance. He has given ear to evil and accursed advisers, who have 
 persuaded him to separate from the Queen, our aunt, his lawful 
 wife, and he has given the vice-royalty of Ireland to his 
 bastard son. 
 
 This his conductwe have been unable to endure with patience. 
 He has placed himself at enmity with God and the constitu- 
 tion of our Holy Mother Church. He has caused a scandal 
 among all good princes and faithful Christians. He has in- 
 jured the Queen, our aunt, and prejudiced the rights of the 
 Princess, his only daughter and heiress of the realm ; and 
 things are now at such a point, that we are resolved to oppose 
 him by all means in our power. We are assured that the 
 said earl will join us, as he has proposed, with all the force 
 which he can raise, and will assist us now and ever against 
 our enemies. 
 
 You may assure him, further, that we will make no treaty 
 with the King of England, in which he shall not be compre- 
 hended ; and he, his friends, and subjects, shall ever find us 
 
NOTE I. 171 
 
 fulfilling towards them the part of a faithful ally and con- 
 federate. 
 
 Done at Toledo, Feb. 24, 1529. 
 
 Report of Gonzalo Fernandez. 
 April 28, 1529. 
 
 On arriving at the coast of Ireland we touched at a port 
 belonging to the King of England named Cork. Many of 
 the Irish people came on board the ship, and told me that the 
 gentleman of the Earl of Desmond had just returned from 
 Spain with presents from the Emperor to the earl. 
 
 Leaving Cork, we were driven by bad weather into another 
 harbour called Beran,* from whence I sent one of my servants 
 to inform the earl of my arrival. In four days the earl's 
 answer came, telling me that I was welcome, and that he was 
 at a place called Dingle, where he hoped to see me. He 
 addressed his letter to me as ' Chaplain of our Sovereign Lord 
 the Emperor ;' and this, I understand, is his usual mode of 
 expression when speaking of his Majesty. He had also sent 
 to some of the other noblemen of the country, with whom he 
 proposed to form a league, to tell them of my arrival. 
 
 I set out again, and on the way five of the earl's people 
 came to me to say that their master had gone to a harbour a 
 few miles off to capture some French and English vessels 
 there, and would be glad of my assistance. This I declined, 
 and the earl, I understand, was satisfied with my excuses. 
 
 The day after, the 2 1 st of April, we reached the said har- 
 bour of Dingle, and were honourably received by the towns- 
 people, and by a party of the earl's attendants. About four 
 o'clock the earl returned himself, attended by fifty horse and 
 as many halberdiers. He came at once to my quarters, and 
 asked after the welfare of ' our Lord the Emperor.' I replied 
 that, by the grace of God, his Majesty was well, and I had sent 
 his commendations to his lordship. 
 
 We then dined ; and afterwards the earl and his council 
 repaired to my chamber, where we presented him with his 
 Majesty's letter. He read it and his council read it. His 
 Majesty, he said, referred him to me. I was commissioned to 
 make known his Majesty's pleasure to him. I at once de- 
 clared my instructions, first in English to the earl, and after- 
 ward in Latin to his council; which I said were to this effect. 
 
 * Beerhaven, perhaps. 
 
172 NOTE I. 
 
 ' One Godfrey, a friend of their lord, bad lately presented 
 ' himself to the Emperor with their lord's letter, in which their 
 ' lord, after speaking of the goodwill and affection which he 
 ' entertained towards the Emperor's Majesty, had expressed a 
 4 desire to enter into close alliance with his Majesty, as friend ■ 
 ' to friend and enemy to enemy, declaring himself ready, in all 
 ' things and at all times, to obey his Majesty's commands. 
 
 ' Eurther, the said Godfrey had requested the Emperor to 
 ' send a confidential person to Ireland, to learn more particu- 
 ' lariy their lord's intentions, and his resources and power ; and 
 ' further, to negotiate a treaty and establish a firm and complete 
 ' alliance. Eor these purposes the Emperor commissioned my- 
 1 self. I was the bearer to them of his Majesty's thanks for 
 ' their proposals, and I said I was so far in my master's confi- 
 ' dence that I was assured their lord might expect all possible 
 'assistance at the Emperor's hands.' 
 
 When I had done, the earl spoke a few words to his council. 
 He then took off his cap, and said he thanked his Majesty for 
 his gracious condescension. He had addressed himself to his 
 Majesty as to his sovereign lord, to entreat his protection. 
 His Majesty was placed in this world in his high position, in 
 order that no one prince might oppress or injure another. He 
 related his descent to me. He said that, between his family 
 and the English, there had ever existed a mortal enmity, and 
 he explained the cause to me. 
 
 I replied that his Majesty never failed to support his allies 
 and his subjects, and should he claim assistance in that capa- 
 city, his Majesty would help him as he helped all his other 
 good friends. I advised the earl to put in writing the words 
 which he had used to me. He thought it would be enough if 
 I repeated them ; but when I said the story was too long, and 
 my memory might not retain it with accuracy, he said he 
 would do as I desired. 
 
 We then spoke of the support for which he was looking, of 
 his projects and resources, and of the places in which he pro- 
 posed to serve. He said he wanted from his Majesty four 
 large vessels, two hundred tons each, six pinnaces well pro- 
 vided with artillery, and five hundred Flemings to work them. 
 I said at once and earnestly, that such a demand was out of all 
 reason, before he, on his part, had achieved something in his 
 Majesty's service. I remonstrated fully and largely, although, 
 to avoid being tedious, I omit the details. In the end his 
 council were satisfied that he must reduce his demands till his 
 Majesty had more reason to know what was to be expected 
 from him, and he consented, as will be seen by his own memoir. 
 
NOTE I. 173 
 
 Of all men in the world the earl hates most deeply the 
 Cardinal of York. Hd told me he had been in alliance with 
 Prance, and had a relation called De Quindel, now with the 
 French army in Italy. In future, he said he would have no 
 dealings with the French. As your Majesty's enemies, they 
 were his enemies. 
 
 Tour Majesty will be pleased to understand that there are 
 in Ireland four principal cities. The city of Dublin is the 
 largest and richest in the island, and neither in the town nor 
 in the neighbourhood has the Earl of Desmond land or subjects. 
 The Earl of Kildare is sovereign in that district, but that earl is 
 a kinsman of the Earl of Desmond, and has married his cousin. 
 The Earl of Kildare, however, is at present a prisoner in 
 the Tower of London. 
 
 Of the other three cities, one is called Waterford, the second 
 Cork, the third Limerick ; and in all of these the Earl of 
 Desmond has lordships and vassals. He has dominions, also, 
 among the wild tribes ; he has lords and knights on his estates 
 who pay him tribute. He has some allies, but not so many, 
 by a great deal, as he has enemies. 
 
 He has ten castles of his own, some of which are strong 
 and well built, especially one named Dungarvan, which the 
 King has often attempted to take without success. 
 
 The earl himself is from thirty to forty years old, and is 
 rather above the middle height. He keeps better justice 
 throughout his dominions than any other chief in Ireland. 
 Robbers and homicides find no mercy, and are executed out 
 of hand. His people are in high order and discipline. They 
 are armed with short bows and swords. The earl's guard are 
 in mail from neck to heel, and carry halberds. He has also 
 a number of horse, some of whom know how to break a lance, 
 They all ride admirably without saddle or stirrup. 
 
 After the report of Gonzalvo Eernandez, Desmond himself 
 continues in Latin. 
 
 Hereunto be added informations addressed to the invincible 
 and most sacred Caesar, ever august, by the Earl of Desmond, 
 Lord of Ogonyll and the liberties of Kilcrygge. 
 
 I, James Earl of Desmond, am of royal blood, and of the 
 race of the Conqueror who did lawfully subdue Britain, great 
 and small, and did reduce Scotland and Ireland under his yoke. 
 
 The first cause of the enmity between myself and the King 
 of England is an ancient prophecy or prediction, believed by 
 the English nation, and written in their books and chronicles, 
 
174 NOTE I. 
 
 that all England will be conquered by an Earl of Desmond, 
 which enterprise I have not yet undertaken. 
 
 The second cause is that, through fear of this prophecy, the 
 King of England has committed his powers to my predecessors 
 who have borne rule in Ireland ; and when Thomas Earl of 
 Desmond, my grandfather, in peaceable manner attended 
 Parliament in Ireland, no cause being alleged against him, 
 but merely in dread of the prophecy, they struck off his head. 
 
 The third cause is that, when Eichard, son of the King of 
 England [sic'], heard that there were ancient feuds between 
 the English and my predecessors, he came to Ireland with an 
 army and a great fleet in the time of my father ; and then did 
 my father make all Ireland to be subdued unto himself, some 
 few towns only excepted. 
 
 The fourth cause is that, by reason of the aforesaid feuds, 
 the King of England did cause Gerald Earl of Kildare, my 
 father's kinsman, to be destroyed in prison [destrui hi car- 
 ceribus] until that my father, by might and power, did liberate 
 the said Earl of Kildare, and did obtain his own purposes, and 
 did make his kinsman viceroy of Ireland. 
 
 The fifth cause is that, when peace was hardly begun be- 
 tween my aforesaid father and the King of England, a certain 
 sickness fell upon my father, I myself being then eight years old. 
 
 The King, when he heard this, made a league of Irish and 
 English to kill my father ; he being then, as they thought, 
 unable to take the field. They, being banded together, made 
 war against my father for twenty-four years, wherein, by God's 
 grace, they had small success. 
 
 The sixth cause is that, when peace was made at last between 
 the King that now is and myself, I, in faith of the said peace, 
 sent certain of my servants to the parts beyond the seas to 
 Flanders and Erance, and the attorneys of the King of Eng- 
 land did despoil my servants of the sum of 9000Z., and threw 
 them into prison, where they now remain. 
 
 Hereon follows my supplication : — 
 
 These things premised, I, the aforesaid earl, do implore and 
 entreat the invincible and most sacred Majesty of Caesar 
 Augustus that he will deign to provide me with remedy, and 
 I, with all my horses and people, do devote myself to your 
 Majesty's service, seeing that your Majesty is appointed for 
 the welfare of the oppressed, and to be lord paramount of all 
 the earth. 
 
 To revenge the injuries done to myself and my family by 
 the King of England, I have the following powers ; that is to 
 
NOTE I. 175 
 
 say, 16,500 foot and 15 00 torse. Also I have friends, con- 
 federate with me, whose names be these — 
 
 I. 
 
 The Prince Brien, who can ms 
 
 tke 600 h< 
 
 Drse ar 
 
 id 1000 
 
 2. 
 
 Trobal de Burgh „ 
 
 100 
 
 f> 
 
 600 
 
 3- 
 
 Sir Richard Poer „ 
 
 40 
 
 >> 
 
 200 
 
 4- 
 
 Lord Thomas Butler „ 
 
 60 
 
 )t 
 
 240 
 
 5- 
 
 Sir John Galty ,> 
 
 80 
 
 >> 
 
 400 
 
 6. 
 
 Sir Gerald Fitzgerald „ 
 
 40 
 
 >> 
 
 200 
 
 7- 
 
 The White Knight 
 
 400 
 
 )> 
 
 800 
 
 8. 
 
 O'Donnell, Prince of Ulster „ 
 
 800 
 
 >> 
 
 4000 
 
 9- 
 
 The Knight of the Valley „ 
 
 40 
 
 ,, 
 
 240 
 
 10. 
 
 Baron MacMys ,, 
 
 40 
 
 >> 
 
 500 
 
 11. 
 
 Captain Macguire „ 
 
 3o 
 
 >> 
 
 200 
 
 With divers others whose names be here omitted. 
 
 Moreover, I, the aforesaid James Earl of Desmond, do 
 make known to the Majesty of Caesar angust, that there is an 
 alliance between me and the King of Scotland, and, by frequent 
 embassies, we understand each other's purposes and intentions. 
 
 Finally, divine grace permitting, I intend to gather together 
 my own and my friends' powers, and lead them in person 
 against Piers Butler, deputy of the King of Eugland, and 
 against Limerick, Wexford, and Dublin, the cities which the 
 King holds in Ireland. 
 
 For the aid for which I look from your Majesty, I desire 
 especially cannon available for land service and lit for breach- 
 ing castles. May it please your Majesty, therefore, to send me 
 cannon, that I may be the better able to do your Majesty service. 
 
 And for myself, I promise on my faith to obey your Majesty 
 in all things. I will be friend of your friends ; enemy of your 
 enemies ; and your Majesty's especial and particular subject. 
 If ever I chance to displease you, I will submit myself to your 
 correction and chastisement. 
 
 Written in my town, this 28th day of April, 1529, in the 
 
 presence of Gonzalvo Fernandez, Denys Mac D c Doctor 
 
 of Arms and Medicine, Denys Tathe, Maurice Herly. 
 
 James of Desmond. 
 
 Five years later, at the outbreak of Lord Thomas Fitz- 
 gerald's rebellion, another application was made to the Emperor 
 for assistance. 
 
 Corn O'Brien, Prince of Ireland, to the Emperor Charles V. 
 July 21, 1534. [MS. Archives at Brussels.] 
 
 To the most sacred and most invincible Caesar, Charles 
 Emperor of the Romans, Most Catholic King of Spain, health 
 with all submission. — Most sacred Csesar, lord most clement, 
 
176 
 
 NOTE I. 
 
 we give your Majesty to know that our predecessors for a long- 
 time quietly and peacefully occupied Ireland, with con* 
 stancy, force, and courage, and without rebellion. They pos- 
 sessed and governed this country in manner royal, as by our 
 ancient chronicles doth plainly appear. Our said predecessors 
 and ancestry did come from your Majesty's realm of Spain 
 where they were of the blood of a Spanish prince, and many' 
 Kings of that lineage, in long succession, governed all Ireland 
 happily, until it was conquered by the English. The last 
 King of this land was of my blood and name ; and ever since 
 that time our ancestors, and we ourselves, have ceased not to 
 oppose the English intruders ; we have never been subject to 
 English rule, or yielded up our ancient rights and liber- 
 ties ; and there is at this present, and for ever will be, 
 perpetual discord between us, and we will harass them with 
 continual war. 
 
 For this cause, we, who till this present, have sworn fealty to 
 no man, submit ourselves, our lands, our families, our fol- 
 lowers, to the protection and defence of your Majesty, and of 
 free will and deliberate purpose we promise to obey your 
 Majesty's orders and commands in all honest behests. *We 
 will serve your Majesty with all our force ; that is to say, with 
 1660 horse and 2440 foot, equipped and armed. Further, we 
 will levy and direct for your Majesty's use 13,000 men, well 
 armed with harquebuss, bows, arrows, and swords. We will 
 submit to your Majesty's will and jurisdiction more than a hun- 
 dred castles, and they and all else shall be at your Majesty's 
 disposition to be employed as you shall direct. 
 
 We can undertake also for the assistance and support of 
 our good brother the Earl of Desmond, whose cousin, the 
 daughter of the late Earl James, your Majesty's friend, is our 
 wife. 
 
 Our further pleasure will be declared to you by our ser- 
 vants and friends, Eobert and Dominic de Paul, to whom 
 your Majesty will deign to give credence. May your Majesty 
 be ever prosperous. 
 
 Written at our Castle at Clare, witness, our daughter, 
 July 21, 1534, by your humble servant and unfailing friend, ' 
 Corny O'Bbien, Prince of Ireland. 
 
 THE END. 
 
 LBMy?9 
 
jaaAmA 
 
 c^-