UNIVERS ITY MLIBRARY# ~- >» Ty % tik = ¥ ie Les " oS oe ko DD. HOUSE of. TU DOR, THE Beet SE OR: SE O F eN Gob A Me Dd, UNDER THE HOUSE of TUDOR. Comprehending the Re1iGNs of K. HENRY VII. Q. MARY, K. HENRY VIII. and K. EDWARD VI. Q. ELIZABETH, By DAVID HUME, &Q; IN TWO VOLUMES. wed. Eh | Pees S Seo) teas f Se oe, &. Printed for A. MILLAR, in the Strand; M DCC LIX, on ee eae . | " i i ! a deere ee Cie ee ee NOT OS Of the First VoLuMeE. ee See ee oY VEL Ce See Ay Bens: de. - Aéteffion. of Henry VU——His title to the crown.——-King’s prejudice againft the Houfe of York.——~-His joyful reception in London.——~ His coronation. Sweat. ing fickne/s. A Parliament. Entail of the crown. King’s marriage. An infurregion. Difcontents of ihe people. Lambert Simnel. Revolt of Ireland. Intrigues of the Dutche/s of Burgundy, Lambert .Sinmnel invades England. Battle of Stoke, Page 1. CH Arie ih State of foreign affairs. State of Scotland of Spain—-——of the Low Countries ——of France of Britanny.——French invafion of Britanny. —— French em- baffy to England. Difimulation of the French Court. An infurreétion in the North——/fuppreffed. King fends forces into Britanny. Annexation of Bri- tanny to France. A Parliament. War with France. Invafion of France. Peace with France.——Perkin War bec. Wis impofture. He is avowed by the dutchefs of Burgundy——and by many of the Englfh nobility, Trial -and . execution of Stanley. 4A Parliament. 13 Sage et. Se ie fs 3 Infurrection in the Weft.——Baitle of Blackheath. Perkin taken prifoner.—-— Perkin executed. ——T he - Marriage ef prince Aribur with Catherine of Arra- Marriage of the prince/s Margaret with the King of Scotland. Oppreffions of thé people——A Parliament. Arrival of the King of Caftile, Intrigues of thé earl of Suffolk. Sickne/s of thé King ——— His . dcath———_and charaéter.—— His laws, 43 Perkin returns to Scotland. Truce wilh Scotland. earl of Warwic executed. gon. His death. A; H.ENR Y, SDN AEN SS. f WOR HY VIII. CPR ?. 4. Popularity of the new King. ——— His minifters. Punifoment of Empfon and Dud- ley.——— King’s marriage:—~-For eign a girs. Yulins tbe fecond. League of Cambray. War with France-——Expedition to Fontarabia. Deceit of Fer- dinand. Return of the Englifo.——~ Lio the tenth. A Parliament. War with Scotland. Wolfey minifier. His charaéier. Invafion of France. Battle of Guinegate.———Battle of louden. Peace with france. 69 OC! a APs IE Wolfey’s adminifiration. Scotch affairs. Progrefs of Francis the jili.— Fealoufy, of Henry. Tournay delivered to France. Wolfey appointed legate. ——His manner of exercifing that office. Death of the emperor Maximilian. ~——Charles, King of Spain, chofen emperor. —— Interview between Henry ana Francis at Calais. The emperor Charle: arrives in England. Mediation of Henry.———Trial and condemnation of the duke of Buckingham. g6 Ooo ew i Digreffion concerning the ecclefiaftical flate.——Origin of the reformation. Martin Luther. Henry receives the title of defender of ihe faith. Caufes of the pro- grefs of the reformation. War with France.——Invafion of France.-——War with Scotland.—A Parliament. Invafion of france. Italian wars. dhe King of France invades Italy. Baitle of Pavia and captivity. of Francis. ——Francis recovers bis liberty. Sack of Rome. League with France...116 CH AP... IV. Scruples concerning the King’s marriage. The King enters into thefe {cruples.—— Anne Boleyn. Henry applies to the pope for a divorce. The pope-favourable. The emperor threatens hitt.———=T he pope’s ambiguous condud., The caufe evoked to Rome. Wolfey’s fall. Commencement of the reformation ia England. —forcign affairs. Wolfey’s death. A Parliament. Progre/s a the reformation, A Parliament.——King’s final breach with Rome.——A Par- liament, 14g. CA AF; CO wat Te Wot s. Vil CH AxP.. 2¥. Religious principles of the people——oj the King progrefs of the reformation. Sir Thomas More. The maid of Kent. Trial and execution of Fifber bifhop oj Rochefter of Sir Thomas More. King excommunicated. Death of Queen Catherine,——Suppreffion of the leffer monafteries. A Parliament. A convocation. Tranflation of the Bible. Difgrace of Queen Anne. Her trial ——and execution.——A Parliament.—— A Convocation. -Difcontents among the people. Infurreétion ——Birth of prince Edward and death of Queen Fine.———Suppreffiion of the greater monafteries. Cardinal Pole. 183 of the minifters. Farther Cin AP. Vi Difputation with Lambert. A Parliament. Law of the fix articles. Proclamations made equal to laws. Settlement of the fucceffion. King’s pro- jects of marriage. He marries Ame of Cleves. He diflikes ber. A Par- liament.—— Fall of Cromwel. His execution— King’s divorce from Anne of Cleves. ——His marriage with Catherine Howard.——State of affairs in Scotland. —— Difcovery of ihe Queen's crime ———A Parliament.——Ecclefiaftical affairs. ae 226 Cif A PVE. War with Scotland ——Vitiory at Solway. Death of Fames the fifth.——Treaty with Scotland.—-—New rupture. Rupture with France.——— ° Ave ‘~ Tale “a7 Cc! act mine himfelf, amidft great difficulties, which he muft have frequently revolved fs sin : mn ivwés ; 1.rr in ve " in his mind, he chofe that party, which his ambition fuggefted to him, and to which he feemed to be conducéed by his prefent profperous fuccefs. Ture were many titlés, on which Henry could found his right to the but no one of them free from gréat objections, if confidered, either with refpect to juftice or to policy. | Durine fome years, Henry had been regarded as heir to the houfe of Lancai- ter, by tire party attached to that family’; “but the title of the houfe of Eancafier : elf to the crown was generally efteemed to be very ill founded. Henry the fourth, who had firft raifed that family to royal dignity, had never clearly deter- mined thé foundation of his claim; and while he plainly invaded the order of fucceffion, he had not acknowledged the election of the people. The Parliament had indeed often recognized the title -of the Lancaftrian princes; but thefe votes had little authority, being confidered as inftances of prudent complaifance towards a family in poffeffion of prefent power: And they had accordingly been often reverfed during the late prevalence of the boufe of York. Prudent men alfo, who had been willing, for the fake of peace, to fubmit to any eftablifhed authority, defired not to, fee-the claims of a family revived, which. muft_ produce many con- wulfions at prefent, abd which disjointed for the future the whole fyftem of here- ‘ditary right. Befides; allowing the title of the houfe of Lancafter to be legal, Henry himfelf was not the true heir of that family ; and nothing but the obfti- nacy of faction, which never, without the utmoft reluctance, will fubmit to their antagonifts, could have engaged the partizans of that houfe to adoptthe earl of Richmond as their head. His mother indeed, Margaret, countefs of Richmond, was fole daughter and heirefs of John duke of Somerfet, grandfon to John of Gaunt duke of Lancafter: But the birth of the firft of the Somerfet line was itfelf illegitimate and even adulterous. And tho’ the duke of Lancafter had obtained the legitimation of his natural children by a patent of Richard the fecond, con- firmed in Parliament; it might juftly be doubted, whether this Deed could be- ftow any title to the Crown; fince in the patent itfelfiall the privileges conferred by it are fully enumerated, and the fucceffion to the kingdom, by being omitted, is thereby tacitly excluded. In all the fettlements of the crown, made during the reigns of the Lancaftrian princes, the line of Somerfet had been entirely over- looked ; and it was not till the failure of the legitimate branch, that men had paid any attention to theirclaim. And to add to the general diffatisfaction againft ’ Henry’s H EN R Y- Vil 3 Henty’s title, his mother, from whom he derived all his right, was ftill alive: and evidently preceded him in the order of fucceffion. Tue title of the houfe of York, both from the plain reafon of the cafe, and “9 < eo Ro 5 from the lat © poj pular government of Edward the fourth; had’ obtained uni- verfally the preference in the fentiments of the people; and Henry might engraft > his claim on the right of that family, by his intended marriage with the princefs Elizabeth, the heirefs of it; amarriage, which he had nis DHromifed to ce- lebrate, and to th oo of which he had chiefly owed all his paft fuccefies. But ma ny reafons diflwaded Henry from adopting this expedient, Were he to receive the crown only 1 in right of his {poufe, his power, he knew, would be very So 5S V5 limited ; and he mutt expect rather to enjoy the Bie title of king by a ipeci 's Of courtefy, than poffefs the real authority which belone’s to it. Should the princefs die before him without iffue, he: muft defcend from the throne, and give place to the next in fucceffion: _And even, ‘if hiv bed fhould be bleft with offspring, it feemed dangerous to expect, that filial piety in his children would prevail over the ambition of obtaining prefent poffeffion of regal power. An a@ of Parhament, indeed, might be eafily procured to: fettle the crown on him during his ie but Henry knew how much fuperior the claim of fueceflion by blood was to the v of an afiembly *, which had always been overborne by violence in the thc {hoc rh ta contending dibeis and which had ever been more governed by the cc, eH eatiGbeires of the times, Salar by any confiderations derived Sein reafon or public intereft. THERE was yet a third foundation, on which Ffenry might reft his claim, the is rieht of conqu ae by his’ v pi over Richard, the prefent —potte ior But befides t! tichard-himielf was deemed no ais than an ufurper, the army, which foueht acaintt hi: . = a, 4 c : which uskis againit him, confi Gifted “chiefly of Englifhmen; and a rignt of con- gueft over England could never be eftablithed by Piz a victory. _ Nothinoe alf would give ereater umb ace to the nation. ¢ lan a claim of this nature; which micht be conftrued as an abolition of all their rights and privileges, and ¢l privileges, and the efta. blitht ment of defpotic aut \ority in the foy erelgn + WWilfiaen himielf, the’ Nor- man, tho’ at thehead of a powerful and veevious army of foreicners, had at firft declined the invidious title 6f conqueror: and jf wae note the fal ca € NVidi 1u1C OF CC Hguero) > ana it Was not tit th luii €1ta= blifhment of ' his authority that he had ventured to advance’ fo Violent and d ftructive a pretenfion. Bor Henry knew, that there was another foundation of autlic ty, fomewhar refembling the right of congueft, to wit, prefent pofféffion ; and ots: this tirle, guarded by: vigour and ability, would be tuff lent*to fecufe perpetual poffeftion of the throne.” He had before hint tlie exa miple of Henry the fourth; who, fup- ported by no better pretenfion, had fab id siahy infurreCtions, and had at Jatt Bb '2 been -, Bacon in Kennet's compleat Hiftory, P- $79. ft Bacon, p. 579 Chap. fT, 1485. 4 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Chap. I. been able to tranfmit the crown peaceably to his pofterity. Ele was fenfible, that 85. this title, which had been perpetuated thro’ three fucceflions of the family of Lancafter, might ftill have fubfifted, notwithftanding the preferable claim of the houfe of York; had not the fcepter devolved into the hands of Henry the fixth, which were too feeble to fuftain it. Inftructed by thefe recent experiences, Hen- ry was determined to put himfelf in prefent poffeffion of regal authority ; and to fhow all oppofers, that nothing but force of arms and a fuccefsful war would be able to expel him. His claim as heir to the houfe of Lancafter he was refolved to advance; and never allow it to be difcuffed : And he hoped that this title, fa- voured by the partizans of that family, and feconded by prefent power, would fecure him a perpetual and an independant authority. 14 Turse views of Henry are not expofed to much blame; becaufe founded on good policy, and even on a fpecies of neceflity: But there entered into all t's meafures and councils another motive, which admits not of the fame apology. King’s preju- Lhe violent contentions, which, during fo long a period, had been maintained ae a between the rival families of York and Lancafter, and the many fanguinary re- Work. venges which they had:mutually exercifed on each other, had inflamed. the oppo- fite faétions into a high pitch of animofity. Henry himfelf, who had feen moft of his near friends and. relations perifh in the field or on the fcaffold, and who. had been expofed.in his own perfon to many hardfhips and dangers, had imbibed a violent antipathy to the York party, which no time nor experience were ever able to efface.. Inftead of embracing the prefent happy opportunity of abolifhing thefe fatal diftin@tiions, of uniting his title with that of his fpoufe, and of beftowing favour indifferently on the friends of both families ; he carried into the throne all the partialities which belong. to the head of a faction, and even the paflions, which are carefully guarded againft by every true politician in that fituation, To exalt the Lancaftrian party, to deprefs the retainers of the houfe of York, were ftill the favourite objets of his purfuit; and thro’ the whole courle of his reign, he never forgot thefe early prepoffeffions. Incapable from his natural temper of a more enlarged and more benevolent fyftem of policy, he expofed himfelf to many prefent inconveniencies, by too anxioufly guarding againft that future poffible event, which might disjoin his title from that of the princefs, whom he efpoufed. And while, he treated the Yorkifts as enemies, he foon ren- dered them fuch, and taught them to difcufs that right to the crown, which he fo carefully kept feparate ; and to perceive its weaknefs and invalidity. To thefe paffions of Henry, as well as to his fufpicious politics, we. are to afcribe the meafure, which he embraced two days after the battle of Bofworth, Edward Plantagenet, earl of Warwic, fon to the unfortunate duke of Clarence, was detained in a fpecies of confinement at Sherif-Hutton in Yorkfhire by- the jealouly H BAN B ¥o.cvir 5 jealoufy of his uncle, Richard; whofe title to the throne was inferior to that of the young prince. Warwic had now reafon to expect better treatment, as he was no obftacle to the fucceffion either of Henry or El.zabeth; and from a boy of fuch tender years no danger could reafonably be apprehended, But Sir Robert Willoughby was difpatched by Henry with orders to take him from Sherif-Hut- ton, to convey him to the Tower, and to retain him in clofe cuftody *. The fame meflenger carried dire€tions, that the princefs Eiizabeth, who had been confined to the fame place, fhould be conducted to London, in order to mect Henry, and there celebrate her efpou/als. Henry himfelf fet out for the capital, and advanced by flow journies... Not to roufe the jealoufy of the people, he took care to: avoid all appearance of mili- tary triumph; and fo to reftrain the infolence of victory, that every thing about him bore the appearance of an eftablifhed monarch, makirg a peaceable pro- erefs thro’ his dominions, rather than of a prince who had opened a way to the throne by forceof arms. The acclamations of the people were every where loud, and no lefs fincere and hearty... Befides the favour, naturally attending a young and, victorious prince on his acceflion, the nation promifed themlelves great felicity from the new fcene, which opened before them. During the courfe of near a whole century the kingdom had been laid wafte by domeftic wars and convulfions ; and if at any time the noife of arms had ceafed, the found of faction and difcontent {till threatened new diforders. Henry, by his marriage with Eli- zabeth, feemed to enfure an union of the contending titles of their families 5. and having prevailed over a hated tyrant, who had anew disjointed the fucceffion even of the houfe of York, and filled his own family with blood, an unfeigned favour was obferved every where to attend him. Numerous and fplendid troops of gentry and nobility accompanied his progrefs. Ihe mayor and companies of London received him as he approached the city.:: The crouds of people and citizens were zealous in. their expreffions of fatisfaction. But: Henry, amidft thefe general effufions of joy, difcovered ftill the ftatelinefs and referve of his temper, which made him fcorn to court popularity: He entered: London in a clofe chariot, and gratified not the people with the fight of their new monarch. He went firft to'St. Paul’s church, where he offered up the ftandards, taken in the field of battle; and fune orifons for the victory, which he had there obtained. He departed thence to the bifhop of London’s palace, where lodgings were pre- pared for bim. Bur Henry did not fo much neglect the favour of the people, as-to delay eiving them affurance of his marriage with the princefs Elizabeth, which he kneve * Bacon, p..579. Polydore Virgil, p. 565. Chap. I. 1485. T : . His joyful ré> ception in London, Fe pee | TER: eee —————o 6 } > 7 : ‘pt ae io oe Pie, fe 4 = P knew to be fo pafii ae defired by the whole nation, On “mf re reaaile dro hopes; that, if he fhould fucc« and obtain the crown pe Eneland he would efpoufe ile a waived s dutchy ; ‘ and the report of this € er age nent hi ad 4 eady re: ached | ri nela fi id, 7 — begot anxiety in the people, and even in the prince fs Elizabeth herfelf Ci fel ° ack care to diffipate thefe apprehen fions, by folemnly renewing, council and principal nobility, the promite, which he had already given, to cele- brate his marriage with Elizabeth... But tho” bound by honour, as well as intereft, to compleat this alliance, he was refolved to poftpone it, till the ceremony of his | own coronation fhould be finifhed,. and till his title fhould be recognized by the a Parliament. Anxious ftill to. fupport his ro and hereditary right to the throne, he dreaded left a peeing marriage with the princefs fhould imply a participation of fovereignty in her, and raife doubts of his own title by the houte of Lancafter. Tuere raged at that timein London, and other parts of the kingdom, a fpecies Sy, eating fick- OF Malady, unknown to any other “se or nation, the Sweating ficknefs, which nefs. occafioned a fudden death to great multitudes; tho’ 1% was not propagated by any contagious infeQion, but arofe from the general dif pofition of the air and of the hu- man body. In lefs than twenty-four hours the: patient com monly died or recovered 3 but when the peftilence h ad committed ravages for a few weeks, “it was obferved, either from alterations in the air, or fronva more properregimen, which was difs covered, to be confiderably abated *. . Preparations were then. made for the Ces remony of Henry’s coronation... In order to, heighten: the fplendor of that appearance, he beftowed the rank of knights banherted on twelve _perions; and he conferred peerages on three. Jafper earl of Pembroke, his uncle, he c of Bedford; ‘Thomas lord Stanley, his father-in-law, earl of Darby ; and Edward aoth.of Oc- Courteney, earl of Devon! hire. At theicoronation likewife there appeared a new tober. inftitution, which the king had eftablifhed for fecurity as well as. pomp, a band of fifty archers, who were denominated yeomen of the guard. But left the peo- ple fhould take umbrage at this unufual fymptom of jea varnen inthe prince, as-if it “Fea ited dul K@ implied a perfonal- diffidence of his fybjects, he declared the saitivenion to be perpeiual. The ceremony of coronation was performed by cardinal Bourchier, cardinal Bourchier; archbifhop of Canterbury. tn of No- Tur Parliament being affembled at Weftminiter, the aie meg immediately vember. appeared to be devoted partizans of Henry; all perfons of another —_* A Parliament: either declining to ftand: in thele dangerous times, or being obliged to diffemb) their principles and inclinations. The Lancafirian party = every where teks fuccefsful * Poly -dore Vire oil, ps 5 567. Bo Wi Ro PS SVT - uccefsful in the eleCtions ; and even many of them had been returned knights and Chap: I. “~ x 3 . = LAD burgefies, wha, during “vin prevalence of the houfe of York; had been €: | ie te the rigour of the law, and been condemned by iéntence of attainder or outla Wry. ‘Their right to take feats in the houfe being queftioned, the cafe was ref all the judges, who affernbled in the Exchequer Chamber, inorder to deliberate tained a juft temperament between law and ex on fo dehcate a fubje ct. - ‘The fentence pronounced was very pruderit, and con- fr ediency *, “They = tined, tha } ‘ é. i at ee ee ee eh es eee BIT i ok a KE ee i ag Pere the members attainted fhould forbear taking their feats till an act were pafied Lot Q ye See sO) o2 et 5 iy Oe ge Ne ES ees eee tf. - the reverfal of their attainder. There was no dificul ty of obtaining this a; and +: > a J > } Z ] Poe } rc pe fi mn + 2 3s i Ke : 7 re ryerete = |S in it were comprehended an hundred and feven percons ot the King’s party -! — J iy Do. , oe i ae) ff ey ee TP. 8 be ¥ -1l waaAre: 's: SNreane CF Pee: sere: te DUT a CiniClity was ltarted of a nature {till more iMyportant, £4 1C AING DIM- é i 3 - a mn ] ca na ~ 4 RE OT fe ~ try } . ~ - -~ + Z elf had ‘been attainted; and his rieht of fucceffion to the crown lont thence be — ~ ’ \{e } ( STN P 1 7573 yf The ‘in ley ao vtricated them ileree fran ince rojii;e CxXpoied CO 1LOTH€< doubt. LTC juUageS CXtFicatead LIICIICIVEeS irom this da Noe&crous / queftion, by a fingular Spear which they eftablithed ; “© That the crown t é¢ ie |- > 4 Ts |] i fj ste . Py} = h 9 f ¢ Fr 1 IZ MKS AWay al defects and fto PS In Biood ; and that from tb i time the King ‘¢ aflumed royal authority, the fountain was cleared, and all attainders and cor- “ ruptions of blood di‘charged t.” Befides the urgent neceflity of the cafe, which admitted of no- deliberation ; the judges probably tho ought, that no fen- tence of a court of judicature ought to bar the right of fucce flion ; that t a loufy of a King towards his heir nie bit readily occa fen firetches of law and juf- tice awainft bike : and sins a prince might even be engaged in vain yely meafures during his predece ‘fior’s reign, without meriti ng On that account to be excluded from the throne, which was his birth-right. WitH a Parliament fo obfequious as the prefent, the K ine could not fail to obtain whatever aét-of fettlement he was pleafed to require. Ele feems only to « have entertained fome doubts within himfelf on what title he fhould found hi. tenfions. In his firft addrefs to the Parliament he mentioned } his juft title by ditary right: But left that title thould not be ef teemed fufficient, he fub; ees d] claim by the judgment of God, who had o given him victory over his enemies int field of battle. And again, left this pretenfion fhould be interpreted as as aff ming a right of conqueft, he enfured his fubjects in the entire enjoyment of their f properties and pofieffions. Tue entail of the crown was drawn, accor ding to the fenfe of the Kin e, and Entail of the ‘probably in the words, diated oh himfelf. He made no mention in ‘it of the “°™! princefs Elizabeth, nor any branch of the fa unily of York; but in other re {pects the ad was compofed with fufficient referve ak noderation.. He did not infift. that it fhould contain a declaration or recognition of his preceding right; as on the Rap = 4 “ Bacon, p. 581, + Rot. Parl..1 Hen. VIL n. 2, 374.15, 17, 26—6¢ } Bacon, p. 581, : HISTORY or ENGLAND. the other hand, he avoided the appearance of a new law or ordinance. He chofe a middle courfe, which, as 1s commonly unavoidable in fuch cafes, was not en- irely free fom uncertainty and obfcurity. It was voted, ** That the inheri- << tance of the crown fhould reft, remain, and abide in the King *;’” but whe- ther as rightfu heir, or only as prefent poffeffor, was not determined. In like manner, the King was contented that the fuccefiion fhould be fecured to the heirs of his body; but he pretended not, in cafe of their failure, to exclude the houfe of York, or give the preference to that of Lancafter: He left that great point ambiguous for the prefent ; and trufted, that, if ever its determination fhould become requifite, future ‘ncidents would open the way for the decifion. Bur after all thefe precautions, the King was fo little fatished with his own title to the crown, that, in the following year, he applied to Rome for a con- Grmation of it; and as that court eladly laid hold of all opportunities, which imiprudence, weaknefs, or neceffities of princes afford it to extend its autho- rity, Innocent the eighth, the reigning pope; readily granted a bull, in whatever terms the King was pleafed to defire. All Henry’s titles, by fucceffion, marriage, parliamentary choice, even conqueft, are there enumerated ; and to the whole c the fanétion of religion is added; excommunication 1s denounced againft every one who fhould either difturb him in the prefent pofleflion, or the heirs of his body in their future faccefion to the crown ; and from this penalty, no criminal, except in the article of death, can. be abfolved but by the pope himfelf, or his fpecial commiffioners. It is dificult to imagine, that the fecurity derived from this bull, could be a compenfation for the defe&t which it betrayed in Henry’s tide, and ro the danger of thus inviting the pope to interpofe in thefe concerns. Ir was natural, and.even laudable in Henry to reverfe the attainders, which had pafied aoainft the partizans of the houfe of Lancafter: But the revenges,. which he exercifed againtt the retainers of the York family, to which he was fo foon to be allied, cannot be confidered in the fame light. Yet the Paihament, at his inftigation, pafied an act of attainder againft the late King himfelf, againft the duke of Norfolk, the earl of Surrey, vifcount Lovel, the lords Fouche and Ferrars of Chartley, Sir Walter and Sir James Harrington, 5S: qQ a Oil 7 and about twenty other centlemen, who had fought on Richard’s fide in the battle of B fworth. How William Berkeley, Sir Humphrey Stafford, Cateiby, men could be guilty of treafon, by fupporting the King in potieffion acain{t the earl of Richmond, who affumed not the title of King, it was not eafy to deter- mine, and nothing but a fervile complaifance in the Parliament could have en- gaged them to truake this ftretch of juftice. Nor was it a {mall mortification to the * Bacon, p. 581. Be: Bau BY VII. 9 the people in general, to find, that the King, prompted either by avarice or re- Pap. I. fentment, could, in the very beginning of his reign, fo far violate the cordial] ‘#°5" union, which had been previoufly concerted between the parties, and to the ex- pectation of which he had plainly owed his acceffion to the throne. Tne King, having gained fo many points of confequence from his Parliament, thought it not expedient to demand any fupply from them, which the profound peace enjoyed by the nation, and the late forfeitures of Richard’s adherents, feemed to render fomewhat fuperfluous. The Parliament, however, conferred on him ‘othiof Das during life the duty of tonnage and poundage, which had been enjoyed in thecember. fame manner by fome of his immediate predeceffors; and they added, before they broke up, other lucrative bills of no great moment. The King, on his part, made fome returns of grace and favour to his people. He publifhed his royal proclamation, offering pardon to all fuch as had taken arms, or formed any attempts again{ft him; provided they fubmitted themfelves to mercy by a certain day, and took the ufual oath of fealty and allegiance. Upon this proclamation many came out of their fanctuaries, and the minds ef men were every where much quieted. Henry chofe to take wholly to himfelf the merit of an a& of grace, fo agreeable to the nation; rather than communicate it with the Parliament, (as was his firft intention) by paffing a bill to that purpofe. The earl of Surrey, how- ever, tho’ he had fubmitted, and delivered himfelf into the King’s hands, was fent prifoner to the tower. \ JuRING this parliament, the King alfo beftowed favours and honours on fome particular perfons, who were attached to him. _ Edward Stafford, eldeft fon to the duke of Buckingham, forfeited in the late reign, was reftored to all the hono of his family, as well as to all its fortune, which was very ample. This genero- fity, fo unufual in Henry, was the effe@& of his gratitude to the memory of Buckingham, who had firft concerted the plan of his fucceffion to the crown, and who by his own ruin had made way for that great event. Chandos of Bri- tanny was created earl of Bath, Sir Giles Daubeny Jord Daubeny, and Sir Robert Willoughby lord Broke. Thefe were all the titles of nobility, conferred by the King *. urs But the minifters, whom the King moft trufted and favoured, were not chofen from among the nobility, or even from among the laity. John Morton, and Richard Fox, two clergymen, perfons of induftry, vigilance, and Capacity, were the men to whom he moft confided his affairs and fecret council is. They had fhared with him all his former dangers and diftrefles; and he now forgot not to make them participate in his good fortune. They were both called to the privy C council ; * Polydore Virgil, p. 566. K ing’s mar- riace. Le An infarrec- tion. To HISTORY of ENGLAND. councils and Morton was created bilhop of Ely, Fox of Exeter. ‘The former foon after, upon the death of Pourchier, was raifed to the fee: of Canterbury. The latter was made lord privy feal; and fucceflively, bifhop of Bath and Wells, Durham, and Winchefter. For Henry, as lord Bacon obferves, loved to employ and advance prelates, becaufe, having rich bifhoprics to beftow, it was eafy for him to reward their fervices : And it was his maxim to raife them by flow fteps; and make them firft pafs thro’ the inferior bifhoprics *. He probably expected, that as they were naturally more dependant on him than the nobility, who, dur- ing that age, enjoyed poffeffions and jurifdictions dangerous to royal authority s fo the profpect of fome farther elevation would render them ftill more active in his fervice, and more obfequious to his commands. Iw prefenting the bill of tonnage and poundage, the Parliament, anxious to preferve the true and undifputed fucceflion to the crown; had petitioned Henry, with demonftrations of the greateft earneftnefs, to efpoufe the princefs Elizabeth ; but they covered their real reafon under the dutiful pretence of their defire to have heirs of his body.. He now thought in earneft of fatisfying the minds of his peo- ple in that particular. His marriage was celebrated at London ; and that with greater appearance of univerfal joy, than either his firft entry or his coronation. Henry remarked with much difpleafure this general favour which was borne the houfe of York. The fufpicions, which arofe from it, not only difturbed his tranquillity during his whole reign ; but bred difguft towards his fpoule herfelf, and poyfoned all his domeftic enjoyments. Tho’ virtuous, amiable, and obic- quious to the laft degree, fhe never met with a proper return of affection, or even of complaifance from her bufband ; and the malignant ideas of faction ftill, in his fullen mind, prevailed over all the fentiments of conjugal tendernefs. Tue King had been carried along with fuch a tide of fuccefs ever fince hts ar- rival in England, that: he thought nothing could withftand the fortune, and au- thority which attended him. He now refolved to make a progrefs into the North, where the friends of the houfe of York, and even the partizans of Richard were moft numerous; in hopes of curing, by his prefence and converfation, the prejudices of the malecontents. “When he arrived at Nottingham, he heard that vifcount Lovel, with Sir Humphry Stafford and Thomas, his brother, had withdrawn themfelves fecretly from their fanctuary at Colchefter: But this news appeared not to him of fuch importance as to ftop his journey ; and he proceeded forward to York. He there heard, that the Staffords had levied an army in the county * Bacon, p. 582. Bacon adds, that the King’s reafon for thefe gradual promotions, was in order to enjoy the more firil fruits; not reflecting that thefe belonged not to the crown, till after the reformation. Hoichaa BR. ¥ VI. 1} county of Worcefter, and were approaching to befiege that city: And that Lovel, at the head of anarmy. of three or four, thoufand men, was marching to attack vim in York, Henry was not-difmayed. with this intelligence... His active cou- rage, full of refources, immediately .prompted him to find the proper remedy. Tho’ he knew himfelf to be furrounded with enemies in thefe difaffected counties, he affembled a fmall body of troops, in whom he could confide; and he put then under the command of the duke of Bedford. He joined to them ail his own at- tendants; but he found that this hafty armament was more formidable by their {pirit and their zealous attachment to him, than by the arms or military ftores of which they were provided. -He therefore gave Bcdford orders not to approach the enemy; but previoufly to try every proper expedient to diffipatethem. Bedford publifhed a general promife of pardon to the rebels, which had a greater effect on their leader than on his followers. Lovel, who. had undertaken an enterprize, that exceeded his courage and capacity, was fo terrified: with the fears of defertion among his troops, that he fuddenly withdrew himfelf, and, after lurking fome time in Lancafhire, he made his efcape into Flanders, where he was protected by the dutchefs of Burgundy. His army fubmitted to the King’s clemency ; and the other infurgents, hearing of this fuccefs, raifed the fiege of Worcefter, and dif- perfedthemielves. The Staffords took fanctuary in the church of Colnham, a vil- lage near Abingdon ; but as it was found, that that church had not the privilege of giving protection to rebels, they were taken thence: The eldeft Stafford was executed at Tyburn ; the younger, pleading that he was mifled by his brother, obtained his pardon *. Henry’s joy for this fuccefs was followed, fome time.after, with the birth of , VY fe a prince, to whom he gave the name of .Arthur, in memory of the famous Britifh King of that name, from whom, it was pretended, the family. of Tudor derived their Gefcent. Tuo’ Henry had been able to diffipate that hafty rebellion, which was raifed by the relicts of Richard’s par:izans, his government was become in general very unpopular: “The fource of the public difcontent arofe chiefly from his prejul- dice againft the houfe of York, which was -univerfally beloved by the nation, and which, for that very reafon, became every day more the object of his hatred and jealoufy. Not only a preference on all occafions, -it was obferved, was given to the Lancaftrians; but many of the oppofite party had been expofed to creat feverity, and had been bereaved of their fortunes by acts of attainder.. A oeneral refumption likewife had pafled of all grants made by the princes of the houfe of York; and tho’ this rigour had been covered under the pretence, that the revenue (is: 9 was * Polydore Virgil, p. 569. o 14.80. is ER SS ee i I Ve, i t 12 HISTORY or ENGLAND. was become infufficient to fupport the crown, and tho’ the hiberalities, during the latter years of Henry the fixth, were refumed by the fame law, yet the Y ork- patty, as they were the principal fufferers by the refumption, thought it chiefly levelled againft them. ©The feverity, exercifed againft the earl of Warwic, begot compaffion towards youth and innocence, expofed to fuch oppreffion ; and his confinement in the tower, the very place where Edward’s children had been mur- dered by their uncle, made the public expect a like cataftrophe for him, and led them to make a comparifon between Henry and that detefted tyrant. And when “t was remarked, that the queen herfelf met with harfh treatment, and-even after the birth ofa fon, was not admitted to the honour of a public coronation, Henry's prepofieffions were then concluded to be abfolutely incurable, and men became equally obftinate in their difguft againft his government. Nor was the manner and addrefs of the King calculated to cure thee prejudices contracted again{t his 4dminiftration ; but had, in every thing, a tendency to promote fear, or at beft reverence, rather than good will and affection *. And while the high idea, en- tertained of his policy and vigour, retained the nobility and men of character in obedience ; the effects of his unpopular government foon appeared in the public, by incidents of a very extraordinary nature. Ture lived in Oxford, one Richard Simon, a prieft, who pofleffed fome fubtle:y, and ftill more boldnefs and temerity. This man had entertained the defign of difturbing Henry’s government, by raifing up a pretender to his crowns. Lambert Sim. atid for that purpofe, he caft his eyes on Lambert Simnel, a youih of filteen nel, years of age, who. was fon of a baker, and who, being endowed with under- ftanding above his years, and addrefs above his condition, feemed well fitted to perfonate a prince of royal extraction. A report had been fpread among the peo- ple, and received with great avidity, that Richard, duke of York, fecond fon to Edward the fourth, had, by a fecret efcape, faved himfelf from his uncle’s cruelty, and lay fomewhere concealed in. England. Simon, taking advantage of this rumour, had at firft inftruéted his pupil to affume that name, which he found to be fo fondly cherifhed by the public: But hearing afterwards a new report, that Warwic had made his e/cape from the tower, and obferving that this news was attended with no lefs general fatisfaction, he changed the plan of his impofture,, and made Simnel perfonate that unfortuna:e prince +. . Tho’ the youth was qua- lified by nature for the part which he was inftructed to act; yet was it remarked, shat he was better informed in circumftances relating to the royal family, and par- ticularly in the adventures of the earl of Warwic, than he could be fuppofed te have learned from one of Simon’s condition: And it was.thence conjectured, that — Se = perfons a z » © : tT « Bacon, p. 523. t Polydore Virgil, p. 569, 570. H'E ON RY? vIn - perfons of higher rank, partizans of the houfe of York, had laid the plan of this Chap. 1. confpiracy, and had conveyed proper inftructions to the actors. The queen dow- _— ager herfelf was expofed to great fufpicion; and it was indeed the general opinion, however unlikely it might teem, that fhe had fecretly given her confent to this impofture. This ;woman-was of a very reftlefs difpofition. That character of ambition and intrigue, which fhe had betrayed during the reign of her hufband, had not abandoned her during the ufurpation of Richard; and in her clofet was firft laid the plan of that great confederacy, which overturned the throne of the ty- rant, and raifed the earl of Richmond to royal dignity. Finding, that, inftead of receiving the reward of thefe fervices, fhe herfelf was fallen to abfolute infig- nificance, her d:ughter treated with feverity, and a!l her friends brought under fub- jection, fhe had conceived the moft violent animofity againft Henry, and had re- folved to make him feel the effects of her refentment. The impoftor, fhe knew, however fuccef-ful, it would be eafy at laft to fet afide; and if a way could be found at his rifque to fubvert the King’s government, fhe hoped that a fcene would be opened, which, tho’ difficult at prefent exactly to forefee, would gratify her revenge, and be on the whole lefs irkfome to her than that flavery and contempt, to which fhe was reduced *, But whatever care Simon might take to convey inftruction to his pupil, Simnel,._ he knew, that the impofture would not bear a el. fe infpection ; and he was there- fore determined to open the firft public fcene of it in Ireland. That ifland, which was zealoufly attached to the houfe of York, and bore an affectionate regard to the memory of Clarence, Warwic’s father, who had been their lieutenant, was improvidently allowed by Henry to remain in the fame condition, in which he found it ; and all the councellors and officers, who. had been appointed by his. pre. deceflor, fill retained their authority. No fooner did Simrel prefent himfelf to Thomas Fitzgerald, earl of Kildare, the deputy, and claim his protection, as the unfortunate Warwic, than that credulous nobleman, not fufpecting fo bold a fiction, lent attention to him, and began to confult fome ferfons of rask. with regard to this extraordinary incident. Thefe he found even more fanguine in their zeal and belief than himfelf: And in proportion as the ftory diffufed itfelf among thofe of lower condition, it became the object of ftill higher paffion and credulity ; tilltthe people in Dublin with one confent tendered their allegiance to Simnel as to the true Plantagenet, Fond of a novelty, which flattered their natural propen- hon, they overlooked the daughters of Edward the fourth, who ftood before Warwic in the order of Succeffion; they payed.the pretended prince attendance as their jana. fovereien, lodged himin the caftle of Dublin, crowned him with a diadem taken from a fatue of the virgin, and publicly proclaimed him King, under. the ap- 7 pellation: * Polydore Virgil,” p..570., TA | ORY or ENGLAND. pellation of Edward the fixth. The whole ifland followed the capital; and not a fword was any where drawn in Henry’s quar Wouen this intelligence was conveyed to Henry, it reduced him to fome = plexity. Determin } dlwavs to face his enemies in perfon, he yet fcrupled at pre- T Cx. 4 fent to leave England, where he fafpeéted the conlpiracy was Grft framed, and t c where, he knew, many perions 01 condition, and the people in general were much difpofed to Jend it countenance. In order to difcover the fecret fource of the con- trivance, and take meafures againit this open revolt, he held frequent confulta- tions with his Minifters and counfellors, and laid plans for a vigorous defence of his authority, and the fuppreffion of his enemies. Tue firtt event, which followed thefe deliberations, gave great furprize to the public: Tt was the feizure of the queen dowager, the forfeiture of all her lands and revenue, and the clofe confinement of her perfon to the nunnery of Bermon- defey. So arbitrary and violent an a of authority was covered with a very thin pretence. It wasalle loed, that, notwithftanding the fecret agreement to marry her daughter to Henry, fhe had yet yielded to the follicitations and menaces of Richard, and delivered that princefs and her fitters into the hands of the tyrant. This crime, which was now become obiolete, and might admit of many allevia- tions, was therefore fufpected nog to be the real caufe of the feverity, with which the was treated; and men believed, that the King, unwilling to accufe fo near a relation of a confpiracy againft him, had cloaked his vengeance or precaution under the pretext of an offence, known to the whole world *. They were after- wards the more confirmed in this fufpicion, when they found, that the unfortunate queen, tho’ fhe furvived this difgrace feveral years, was never treated with any more lenity, but was allowed to end her life in poverty, folitade, and confinement. This woman had been raifed to the throne from a very private ftation; pofleffed ereat authority during her hufband’s life-time; fell afterwards into the deepeit diftrefs; faw the murder of all her male children; had again the fatisfaction of contributing to the exaltation of her daughter; an event which immediately in- volved her in vexation, and foon after in mifery : And on the whole, fhe furnifhes ample materials for reflections on the inftability of fortune; reflections, which hiftory, ast relates the adventures of the great, does more frequently fuggeft than even the incidents of common life. Tur next meafure of the King was of a lefs exceptionable nature. He ordered shat Warwic fhould be taken from the Tower, be led in proceffion through the Greets of London, be conducted to St. Paul’s, and there expofed to the eyes of the Bacon, p. 583. Polydore Virgil, p. 571. Hi YN Roe Yili val. 1s the whole people, He even gave directions, that fome perfons of condition, who were attached to the. houfe of York, and were beft acquainted with the perfon of this prince, fhould approach him and converie with him: And _ he trufted, that thefe, being convinced of the abfurd impofture of Simnel, would put a {top to the credulity of the people. The expedient had its effet in England: But in Jreland the people {till perfifted in their revolt, and zealoufly retorted on the King the reproach of propagating an impofture, and of having fhown a counterfeit Warwic to the people. Henry had foon reafon to apprehend, that the defign againft him was not y laid on fuch flight foundations as the abfurdity of the contrivance feemed to pro- mife. John earl of Lincoln, fon of John de la Pole, duke of Suffolk, and of Elizabeth, eldeft fitter to Edward the fourth, was engaged to take part in the con{piracy. This nobleman, who poflett capacity and courage, had entertained very afpiring views ; and his ambition was encourzged by the known intentions of his uncle, Richard, who had formed a defign, in cafe himfelf fhould die without iffue, of declaring Lincoln fucceflor to the crown. The King’s jealoufy againft all eminent perfons of the York-party, and his igour towards Warwic, had far- ther ftruck Lincoln with apprehenfions, and made him refolve to feek for fafety in the moft dangerous councils. Having fixed a fecret correfpondence with fir Thomas Broughton, a man of great intereft in Lancafhire, he fet our for Flan- ders, where Lovel had arrived a little before him: and he joined the court of his aunt, the dutchefs of Burgundy, by whom he hid been invited over. MARGARET, widow of Charles the bold, duke of Burgundy, having born no children to her hufband, attached herfelf with an entire fricndfhip to her daughter- in-law, married to Maximilian, archduke of Auftria; and after the death of that princefs, fhe perfevered in her affe@ion to Philip and Margaret, her children, and occupied herfelf in their education and in the care of their perfons, By her virtuous conduct and demeanour, fhe had acquired great authority among the Flemings; and lived with much dignity, as well as ceconomy, upon that ample dowry, which fhe inherited from her hufband. The refentments of this princefs were no le{s warm than her friendfhips’ and that fpirit of fa@tion, which it is fo difficult for a focii! and fancuine temper to guard againft, had taken ftrong pof- feffion of her heart, and entrenched fomewhat on the probity, which fhone forth in other parts of her charaéter. Hearing of the malignant jealoufy, entertained by Henry againft her family, and his opprefiion of all its partizans; fhe was moved with the higheft indignation, and determined to make him repent of that enmity, which he feemed {0 wantonly to court. After confulting with Lincoln > and Intrigues of the dutchefs of RQiseannAad oP pure Una > ae} ° 16 HISTORY oF ENGLAN D. : AARC 1% vt} 4 and Liovel, fhe’hired a body of two thoufand veteran Germans, under the coni > 5 ( # ae ier 2 ~ ~2 ” mand of Martin Swart, a brave and experienced officer * and fent them over, o ~ ° tooether with theie two noblemen, to join Simnel in Ireland. The countenance, given by perfons of fuch high condition, and the accefiion of this military forces raifed extremely the courege of the Irith, and made them entertain the refo'ution f invading England, where they believed the fpirit of difafeGtion to prevail as much as it had appeared to do in Ireland. The poverty alfo, under which they aides made it impoffible fot them to maintain any longer their new court and ‘gland. army, and in ‘ced them with a {trong defire ot enriching themfelves by p under ? 4 Aes yernwr “—beer™ Gib ws & araaks ‘ + A Nn ; 3 and preferment in England. Clunry-was not ignorant of Lefe intentions of his enemies; and he prepared himfelf for refittance. -dered troops to be muftered in different parts of the kingdom, and put them under the command of the duke of Bedford, and the earl of Oxford. He confined from jealoufy the marquis of Derfet, who was brother to the queen regent 5 and who, he fufpected, w ould revenge the injuries fuffercd by his fifler. . And to allure the people by an appcaran.¢ of devotion, he made a pilgrimage to.our lad; of Walfingham, famous for miracles ; and there offered up prayers for fuccefs and for deliverance from his enemies, | Beinc informed that Simnel and his forces were landed at Foudrey im Lanca- thire, he drew together his own troops, and advanced towards them as far as -Co- ventry. The rebels had entertained hopes, that the difaffeéted counties in the North would rife in their favour: Sut the people, averfe to join lrifh and German snvaders, convinced of Lambert's impefture, and kept in awe by the King’s re- putation for fuccefs and conduct, eitner remained in tranquillity, or gave all } , } afiftance to the royal army. The eatl of Lincoln, therefore, who commanded the rebels, finding no hopes but in fpeedy victory, was determined to bring the matter to a decifion; and the King, fupported by the. native courege of his tem- per, and emboldened by a great acceffion of volunteers, which had joined him, 6th of Junes Under the earl of Shrewfbury and lord Strange, declined not the combat. The Battle of —_oppolite armies met at Stoke in the county of Nottingham, and fought a battle, ‘Stoke. , La: | | which was more bloody and more obftinately difputed than could have been ex- pected from the inequality of their force. All the leaders of the rebels were re- folved to conquer or to die, and they infpired their troops with a like refolution. The Germans alfo, being veteran and experienced foldiers, kept the victory long doubtful; and even the Irifh, tho’ ill-armed and almoft defencelefs, fhowed themfelves not defective in fpirit and bravery. The King’s victory was purchafed with * Polydore Virgil, p. 57% 573: H EN R Y- Vit. 1 with lofs, but was entirely decifive. Lincoln, Broughton and Swart perithed in the field of battle, with four thoufand of their troops. L.ovel, never having been heard of more, was believed to have undergone the fame fate. Simnel with his tutor, Simon, was taken prifoner. Simon, being a prieft, was not tried at law, and was only committed to clofe cuftody: Simnel was too contemptible either to ex- cite apprehenfion or refentment in Henry. He was pardoned, and made a {cullion in the King’s kitchens; whence he was afterwards advanced to the rank of a falconer *. Fiewry had now leifure to revenge himfelf of his enemies. He took a pro- grefs into the northern parts, where he made the people fully fenfible of the rigours of his juftice. A ftri€t inquiry was made after thofe who had affifted or favoured the rebels. The punifhments were not all fanguinary:’ The King made his revenge fubfervient to his avarice. Heavy fines were levied from the. dclin- quents. In giving fentence, the proceedings of the courts, and even the courts themfelves, were entirely arbitrary. Either the criminals were tried by commif- fioners appointed for that purpofe, or they fuffered punifhment by fentence of a court martial. And as a rumour had prevailed before the battle of Stoke, that the rebels had gained the victory, that the King’s army was Cut in pieces, and that the King himfelf had efcaped by flight, Henry was refolved to interpret the belief or propagation of this repert as a mark of difaffeétion; and he punifhed many for that pretended crime. But fuch, in this age, was the fituation of the Englifh government, that the royal prerogative, which was but little reftrained during the moft peaceable periods, was fure, in tumultuous, or even fufpicious times, which frequently occurred, to break all bounds of law and order. Arrer the King had fatisfied his rigour by the punifhment of his enemies, he refolved to give contentment to the people, in a point, which, tho’ a mere cere- mony, was very paffionately defired by them. The Queen had been married “near two years, but had not yet been crowned; and this affectation of delay had given great difcontent to the public, and had been one principal fource of the difaffection which prevailed. The King, inftruéted by experience, now finifhed ‘ , ‘ : t] the ceremony of her coronation ; and to fhew a ftill more gracious difpofition, he ¢ 5* Cinvucr. gave liberty to her uncle, the marquifs of Dorfet, who had been able to clear himfelf of all the crimes of which he was accufed, * Bacon, p. 586. Pol. Virg. p. 57a. D | CH AP. Chap. I. 1487. 1 ~ oe Sr hee ee a ~ a ee ~—He-EeEEESsee =< —_——-. 6 T= " a ; SP Sar ee ¢ ae oo. an, 5 thie | HISTORY or ENGLAND. GH ACR, oT State of foreign affairs.——sState of Scotland——of Spain——of the Low Countrie-—of France——of Britanny. ——French invafion of Brei- tanny.——French embaffy to England. Diffimulation of the French Court-——An infurrettion in the North -fuppreffed. King fends forces into Britanny. Annexation of Britanny to France A Parliament.——War with France. Invajion of France: Peace with France. Perkin Warbec. His impofiure. —— He is avowed by the dutchefi of Burgundy and by many of the Englifh nobility. Trial and execution of Stanley ———2A Par= liament. 1488. HE King acquired great reputation throughout all Europe by the profpe- State of fo- rous aid vigorous conduct of his domeftic affairs ; and as fome incidents, scignaffairs: tout this time, a vited him to look abroad, and exert himfelf in behalf of his allies, it will be neceffary, in order to give a juft account of his foreign meafures, to explain the condition of the neighbouring kingdoms ; beginning with Scotland, which lies moft contiguous. State of Scot- Tue kingdom of Scotland had not as yet attained that ftate, which ciftin- dani. ouifhes a so auaed monarchy, and which enables the government, by the force of its laws and inftitutions alone, without any extraordinary capacity in the fove- reign, to maintain itfelf in order and tranquillity. James the third, w ho now filled the throne, wasa man of little induftry and of a narrow genius; and tho’ it behoved him to yield the reins of government to his minifters, ae had. never been able to make any choice, which could give contentment both to himfelf and to his people. “When he beftowed his confidence-on any of the principal nobility, he found, that they exalted their own family to fucha height, as was dangerous to the prince, and gave umbrage to the ftate: When he conferred favour on any perfon of meaner birth, on whofe fubmiffion he could more depend, the barons of his kingdom, enraged at the power of an upftart minion, proceeded to the utmoft 8 extremities He EON: R Yo Vu. 19 extremities againft their fovereign. Had Henry entertained the ambition of con- Chap. I. quefts, a tempting opportunity now offered of reducing that kingdom to fubjec- ts tion ; -but as he was probably fenfible, that a warlike people, tho’ they might be over-run by reafon of their domeftic divifions, could not be retained in obedience without a regular military force, which was then unknown in England, he rather propofed the renewal of the peace with Scotland, and fent an embafly to James for that purpofe. But the Scotch, who never defired a long peace with England, and who thought that their fecurity confifted in preferving themfelves conftantly ina warlike pofture, would not agree to more than a feven years truce, which was accordingly concluded *. Tse European ftates on the continent were then haftenine faft to that fitua- tion, in which they have remained, without any material alterations, for near three centuries; and began to unite themfelves into one extenfive fyftem of policy, which comprehended the chief powers of Chriftendom. Spain, which. had hi- therto been almoft entirely occupied within herfelf, now became formidable by the union of Arragon and Catftile, in the perfons of Ferdinand and Ifabella, who, being princes of great capacity, employed their force in enterprizes the moft ad- vantageous to their combined monarchy.. The conqueft of Granada over the Moors was then undertaken, and brought near to a happy conclufion. And in that expedition the military genius of Spain was revived; honour and fecurity were attained; and her princes, no longer held in fear by a domeitic enemy fo dangerous, began to enter into all the tranfactions of Europe, and make a oreat figure in every war and negotiation. State of Spain. Maxrminian, King of the Romans, fon to the emperor Frederic, had, by of the Low his marriage with the heirefs of the houfe of Burgundy, acquired an intereft in Countries, the low country provinces; and tho’ the death of his fpoufe had weakened his connexion with that territory, he ftill pretended to the government as tutor to his fon Philip, and his authority had been acknowledged by Brabant, Holland, and feveral of the provinces. But as Flanders and Hainault {till refufed to fubmit to his regency, and even appointed other tutors to Philip, he had been engaged in long wars againft thofe obftinate people, and never was able thoroughly to fubdue their {pirit, That he might free himfelf from the oppofition of France, he had concluded a peace with Lewis the eleventh; and had eiven ‘his daughter, Marga- ret, then-an infant, in marriage to the Dauphin ; together with Artois, Franche- comté, and Charolois as her dowry. But this alliance had not produced the defired effect. The dauphin fucceeded to the crown of France under the appel- D 2 lation * D.A}.-7 ta mene Polya, Virg. p. $75. Chap. II. 1488. State of France. Of Britanny. 20 HISTORY or ENGLAND. lation of “Charles the eighth; but Maximilian ftill found the mutinies of the lemings fomented by the intrigues of the Court of France. France, during the two preceding reigns, had made a mighty encreafe in power and greatnefs ; and had not other ftates of Europe at the fame time received an acceffion of fo-ce, it had been impoffible to have retained her within her an- tient boundaries. Moft of the great fiefs, Normandy, Champagne, Anjou, Dauphiny, Guienne, Provence, and Burgundy had been united to the crown ; the Enelith had been expelled from all their conquefts; the authority of the prince had been raifed to fuch a condition as enabled him to maintain law and or- der ; a confiderable military force was kept on foot, and the finances were able to fupportthem. Lewis the eleventh indeed, from whom many of thefe advantages were derived, was dead, and had left his fon, in very early youth and ill educated, to fuftain the weight of the monarchy: But having entrufted the government to his daughter, Anne Lady of Beaujeu, a woman of {pirit and capacity, the French power fuffered no check or decline. On'the contrary, this princefs formed the great project, which at laft the happily effected, of uniting to the crown Britanny, the laft and moft independent fief of the monarchy. Francis the fecond, duke of Britanny, was a cood, but a weak prince, who, confcious of his own unfitnefs for government, had refigned himfelf entirely to the dire€tion of Peter Landais, a man of very mean birth, more remarkable for his ability than for his virtue or integrity. The nobles of Britanny, difpleafed with the great advancement of this favourite, had even proceeded to difaffection againft their fovereign ; and after many tumults and confpiracies, they at laft united among themfelves, and in a violent manner, feized, tried, and put to death the obnoxious minifter. Fearing the refentment of the prince for this invafion of his authority, many of them retired to France; and others, for their protection and fafety, maintained a correfpondence with that court. Lhe French miniftry, obferving the great diflentions among the Bretons, thought the opportunity fa- yourable for invading that dutchy ; and fo much the more, that they could cover their ambition under the fpecious pretence of providing for domeitic fecurity. Lewis, duke of Orleans, firft prince of the blood, and prefumptive heir of the monarchy, had difputed the adminiftration with the lady of Beaujeu; and tho’ his pretenfions had been rejected by the ftates, he ftill maintained cabals with many of the grandees, and laid fchemes for fubverting the authority of that princefs. Finding his fchemes detected, he took arms, and fortified himfelf in Beaugencl 5 but as his revolt was precipitate, before his confederates were ready to rife with him, he had been obliged to fubmit, and to receive whatever conditions the French miniftry were pleafed to impofe upon him. Actuated however by his ambition, and even by his fears, he foon retired out of France, and took fhelter with the 3 duke BljimCN:: Re ¥ = AVE. 21 duke of Britanny, who was defirous of ftrengthening himfelf againft the defigns Chap. I. of the lady of Beaujeu by the friendfhip and credit of the dukeof Orleans. This "49°: prince alfo, obferving the afcendant which he foon acquired over the duke of Bri- tanny,; had engaged many of his partizans to join him at that court, and had formed the defign of aggrandizing himfelf by a marriage with Anne, the heirefs of that opu'ent dutchy. Tue barons of Britanny, who faw all favour engroffed by the duke of Orleans and his train, renewed a {tricter correfpondence with France, and even invited the rench King to make an invafion on their country. Defirous however to pre- ferve its independancy, they had regulated the number of fuccours, which France was to fend, and had ftipulated that no fortified place in Britanny fhould remain in the poficffion of that monarchy. A vain precaution, where revolted fubjeéts ar a ae, x = 2 Sys SO EN ee = See er aes Pee LU treat with a power fo much fuperior! The French invaded Britanny with forces French inva iinvda-= fe Ae Woks three times more numerous than thofe which they had promifed to the barons; “eof 8 and advancing into the heart of the country, laid fiege to Ploermel.. To oppofe = them, the duke raifed a numeious, but ill-difciplined army, which he put under the command, of the duke of Orleans, the count of Dunois, and others of the French nobility. The army, difcontented with this choice, and jealous of their cei oe ey = confederates, foon difbanded, and left their prince with too fmall a force to keep the field againft his invaders. He retired to Vannes ; but being hotly purfued by the French, who had made themfelves mafters of Ploermel, he efcaped to Nantz ; and the enemy, having taken and garrifoned Vannes, Dinant, and other places, laid clofe fiege to that city. o ree : | | The barons of Britanny, finding their country me- naced with total fubjection, began gradually to withdraw from the French army, and make peace with their fovereign. Tuts defertion, however, of the Bretons difcouraged not the court of France from purfuing their favourite projeét of reducing Britanny to fubjection. The fituation of Europe appeared very favourable to the execution of this defign. Maximilian was engaged in clofe alliance with the duke of Britanny, and was even in treaty for marrying his daughter ;. but he was on all occafions fo neceffitous of money, and at that time fo difquieted by the mutinies of the Flemings, that little effectual affiftance could be expected from him. rae Ferdinand was entirely occupied in the conqueft of Granada; and it wasalfo known, that if France refigned to him Roufillon and Cerdagne, to which he had pretenfions, fhe would at any time engage him to abandon the interefts of Britanny. England alone was both enabled by her power, and engaged by her interefts, to fupport the independency of that dutchy ; and the moft dangerous oppofition was therefore, by the French, expected from that quarter. In order tocover their real defigns, no fooner were they informed of Chap. IT: 148S8- 22 HISTORY or ENGLAND. of Henry’s fuccefs againft Simnel and his partizans, than they difpatched ambafia- dors to the court of London, and made profeflions of the atmoft truft and con- ‘ Gdence in that monarch, French em- bafly to Eng- land. Tur ambafladors, after congratulating Henry on the late victory, and com- municatiog to him in the moft cordial manner, as to an intimate friend, fome fuccefies of their mafler againft Maximilian, came in the progrefs of their dif- courfe to mention the late tranfactions in Britanny.. They told him that the duke of Britanny having. given protection to French fugitives and rebels, the King had been neceffitated, contrary to his intention and inclination, to carry war into that dutchy : That the honour of the crown was interefted not to fuffer : a vafial fo far to forget his duty to his liege lord; nor was the fecurity of the covernment of France lefs concerned to prevent the confequences of this dange- rous temerity : That the fugitives were no mean nor obfcure perfons; but, among others, the duke of Orleans, firft prince of the blood, who, finding himfelf obnoxious to juftice for treafonable practices in France, had fled into Britanny ; where he ftill perfevered in laying fchemes of rebellion againft his fovereign: That the war being thus, on the part of the French monarch, entirely defenfive, it would 1mmedi- ately ceafe, when the duke of Britanny, by returning to his duty, fhould remove the caufes of it: That their mafter was fenfible of the obligations which that duke, in-very critical times, had conferred on Henry; but it was known alfo, that, in times {till more critical, he or his mercenary counfellors had deferted him, and put his life in the utmoft hazard: That his fole refuge in fuch defperate extremities had been the court of France, which not only protected his perfon, but fupplied him with men and money, with which, aided by his own valour and conduét, he had been enabled to mount the throne of England: That France, in this tranfa@tion, had, from friendfhip to Henry, acted contrary to what, in a narrow view, might be efteemed her own intereft; fince, inftead of an odious tyrant, fhe had contributed to eftablifh on a rival throne a prince endowed with fuch virtue and ability: And that as both the juflice of the caufe and the obli- gations conferred on Henry thus preponderated on the fide of France, their matter expected, that, if the fituation of Henry’s affairs allowed him not to give affitt- ance to that kingdom, he ‘would at leaft preferve a neutrality between the con- tending parties *. Tus difcourfe of the French ambaffadors was plaufible ; and to give it greater weight, they communicated to Henry, as in confidence, their mafter’s intent.on, after he fhould have compofed the differences with Britanny, to lead an army into Italy, and make good his pretenfions to the kingdom of Naples: A project, which, * Bacon, ps 589, H JE NR oY. © Vit. 23 which, they knew, would give no umbrage to the court of England. But a all thefe artifices were in vain employed againft the penetration of the King. wer He clearly faw, that France had entertained the view of fubduing Britanny ; but he alfo perceived, that fhe would meet with great, and, as he thought, infupe- rable difficulties in the execution of her project. The native force of that dutchy, he knew, had always been confiderable, and had often, without any foreign afliftance, refifted the power of France; the natural temper of the French nation, he imagined, would make them eafily abandon every enterprize, which required per- feverance ; and as the heir of the crown wasconfederated with the duke of Britanny, the courtiers would be ftill more remifs in profecuting a fcheme which muft draw on them his refentment and difpleafure. Should even thefe internal ob@ruGions be removed, Maximilian,’ whofe enmity to France was well known, and who now paid his addrefics to the heirefS of Britanny, would be able to make a di- verfion on the fide of Flanders; nor could it be expected, that France, if the profecuted fuch ambitious projects, would be allowed to remain in tranquillity by Ferdinand and Ifabella. Above all, he thought, the French court could never expect, that England, fo deeply interefted to preferve the independancy of Britanny, fo able by her power and fituation to give effeCtual and prompt affitt- ance, would permit fuch an acceffion of force to be made to her rival. He imagined, therefore, that the minifters of France, convinced of the impractica- bility of their fchemes, would at lafl embrace pacific views, and would abandon an enterprize, fo obnoxious to all the potentates of Europe. Tuts reafoning of Henry was. folid, and might very juftly engace him in dilatory and cautious meafures: But there entered into his condu@ another motive, which was apt to draw him beyond the juft bounds, becaufe founded on a ruling paffion. His frugality, which ‘by degrees degenerated into avarice, made him averfe to all warlike enterprizes and diftant expeditions; and him previoufly to try the expedient of negotiation. He difpatched Urfwic, his almoner, a man of addrefs and ability, to make offer of his mediation to the contending parties: An offer; which, he thought, if accepted by France, would foon lead to a compofure of all differences; if refufed or eluded, would at leaft difcover the perfeverance of that court in their ambitious projects. Urfwic found the lady of Beaujeu, now dutehefs of Bourbon, engaged in the fiece of Nantz, and had the fatisfaction to find that his mafter’s mediation was very readily embraced, and with many expreffions of confidence and moderation. That able princefs concluded, that the duke of Orleans, who governed the court of Bri- Dif matacion tanny, forfeeing that every accommodation muft be made at his expence, would of the French ufe all his intereft to have Henry’s propofal reje€ted ; and would by that means “o> engaced ma ke R472 HISTORY or ENGLAND. make an effectual apology for the French meafures, and draw on the Bretons the reproach of objlinacy and injuftice.. The event juftified her prudence. When the Englith ambafiador made the fame applications to- the duke of Britanny, he received for anfwer, in name of that Prince, that having fo long aéted the part of protector and guardian to Henry, during his youth and adverfity, he had ex- pected, from a monarch of fuch virtue, more effectual affiftance, in his prefent diftrefies, than a barren offer of mediation, which fufpended not the progreis of the French arms: That if Henry’s gratitude was not fufficient to engage him in fuch a meafure, his prudence, as King of England, fhould difcover to him the pernicious confequences attending the conqueft of Britanny, and its annexation to the crown of France :, That that kingdom, already become too powerful, would be enabled, by fo great an acceffion of force, to difplay, to the ruin of England, that hoftile difpofition, which had always fubfifted between thofe rival nations: That Britanny, fo ufeful an ally, which, by its fituation, gave the Englifh an entrance into the heart of France; being annexed to that kingdom, would be equally enabled from its Fruation to difturb, either by pyracies or naval arma- ments, the commerce and peace of Englanc : And that if the duke refufed Henry’s mediation, it proceeded neither from an inclination to a. war, which he experienced to be fo ruinous to him, nor from a confidence in his own force, which he knew to be fo much inferior to that of the encmy 3 but merely froma fenfe of his prefent neceffity, which muft engage the King to act the part of his confederate, not of a mediator. Wren this anfwer was reported to the King, he abandoned not the fyftem of conduct which he had formed: He only concluded, that fome more time was requifite to quell the obftinacy of the Br.tons and make them fubmit to reafon. And when he learned, that the people of Britanny, anxious for their duke’s fafety, had formed a tumultuary army of 60,000 men, and had cbliged the French to raife the fiege of Nantz, he fortified himfelf the more in his opinion, that the court of France would at laft be reduced, by multiplied obftacles and difficulties, to abandon the project of reducing Britanny to fubje€tion. He con- tinued therefore the fcheme of negotiation, and thereby expofed himfclf to be deceived by the artifices of the French minifiry ; who, ftill pretending pacific intentions, fent lord Bernard Daubigni, a Scotch man of quality, to London, and prefied Henry not to be difcouraged in offering his mediation to the court of Britanny. The King on his part difpatched another embafly compofed o: Ur{wic, the abbot of Abingdon and Sir Richard Tonftal, who carried new propofals for an amicable accommodation. No effectual fuccours, mean while, were provided for the diftrefed Bretons. The lord Woodville, brother to the queen dowager, 4 man oe WN: Rey Vil, 25 man of courage and enterprize, having afked leave to raife underhand a body of Chap_ IT. volunteers and tranfport them into Britanny, met with a tefufal from the King, 14.88. who was defirous of preferving the appearance of a ftrict neutfality. That noble- man, however, ftill perfifted in his intentions. He went Over to the Ifle of Wight, of which he was governor ; levied’ a body of 400 men; and having at laft obtained, as is fuppofed, the fecret permiffion of Henry, failed with them to Britanny. ‘This enterprize proved fatal to the leader, and brought fmall relief to the unhappy Duke. The Bretons rafhly engaged ‘in a general ation with the French at St. Aubin, and were totally difcomfited. Woodville and all the Ene. lifh were put to the {word; together with a body of Bretons, who had been accouttered in the garb of Englithmen, in order to itrike a greater terror into the French, to whom the martial prowefs of that nation was always formidable *. The duke of Orleans, the prince of Orange, and many other perfons of rank were taken prifoners. And the military force of Britanny was totally diffipated: The death of the duke, which followed foon after, threw affairs into {till Sreater oth Septem- confufion, and feemed to threaten the ftate with a final fubjection. ber, Tuo’ the King prepared not againft thefe events, fo hurtful to the intereft of England, with fufficient vigour and precaution, he had not altogether over- looked them. Determined to obferve a pacific conduct, as far as the fituation of affairs would permit, he yet knew the warlike difpofition of his fubjects, and obferved, that their antient and inveterate animofity to France was now revived by the profpect of this great acceffion to its power and grandeur. He refolved therefore to make advantage of thofe humours, and to draw fome fupplies of money from the people, under pretext of giving affiftance to the Duke of Bri- tanny. He had fummoned a Parliament to meet at Weftminfter +3 and he foon perfwaded them to grant him a confiderable fubfidy {. But this fupply, tho’ voted by Parliament, involved the King in unexpected difficulties, The counties of Durham and York, always difcontented with Flenry’s government, and far- ther provoked by the late oppreffions, under which they had laboured, after the fuppreffion of Simnel’s rebellion, refitted the commiffioners who were AD- An infarrec: pointed to levy the new tax. The commiffioners, terrified with this appear- tion in the ance of fedition, made application to the Earl of Northumberland, and defireg *° of him advice and affiftance in the execution of their office. ‘That nobleman thought the matter of importance enough to confult the King; who, unwilling to yield to the humours of a difcontented populace, and forefeeing the per- E nicious 28th of July. * Argentré Hift, de Bretagne, Liv. 12. + oth November, 1487. { Polydore Virgil, p. 579, fays that this impofition was acapitation tax; the other hiftorians fay it was a tax of two fhillings on the pound. Suppreffed. 26 HISTOR Y¥-or ENGLAND. nicious confequences of fuch a precedent, renewed his orders for a ftrict levy of the impofition. Northumberland fummoned together the juftices and chief free- holders, and delivered the King’s commands in the moft imperious terms, W hich, he thought, would inforce obedience, but which tended only to provoke the people, and make them believe him the advifer of thofe orders which he de- livered to them+. They flew to arms, and attacked Northumberland’s houle, whom they put to death. Having incurred fuch deep guilt, cheir mutinous humour prompted them to declare againft the King himfelf; and being inftigated by one John Achamber, a {editious fellow of mean birth, they chofe Sir John Egre- mond their leader, and prepared themfelves for a vigorous refiftance.- Henry was not difmayed with an iniurrection fo precipitant and ill fupported. He immediately levied a force which he put under the command of the earl of Sur- rey, whom he had delivered from confinement, and reftored to his favour, His ‘ntention was to fend down thefe troops, in order to check the progrefs of the rebels ; while he himfelf fhould follow with a greater body, which would abfo- lutely infure fuccefs. But Surrey thought himfelf ftrong enough to encounter a raw and unarmed multitude; and he fucceeded in the attempt. The rebels were difipated ; John Achamber taken prifoner, and afterwards executed with fome of his accomplices ; Sir John Egremond fled to the dutchefs of Burgundy, who gave him protection ; the greater number of the rebels received their pardon. Henry had probably expected, when he obtained this grant from the Par- liament, that he would be able to terminate the affair of Britanny by negotiation, and that he might thereby fill his coffers with the money levied by the impofition. But as the diftrefles of the Bretons ftill multiplied, and became every day more ur- gent; he found himfelf under the neceffity of taking fome meafures, in order to fup- port them. On the death of the duke, the French had revived fome antiquated claims to the dominion of the dutchy; and as the duke of Orleans was now captive in France, their former pretext for hoftilities could no Jonger ferve as a cover to their ambition. The King refolved therefore to engage as auxiliary to Britanny 5 and to confult the intereft, as well as defires of his people, by op- pofing himfelf to the progrefs of the French power. Jeague with Maximilian, and an ther with Ferdinand, which were~ ditt fources, he levied a body of troops, to the number of 6000 men, with an in- tention of tranfporting them into Britanny. Befides entering -into a ant: re- | Still anxious, however, for the pay- ment of his expences, he concluded a treaty with the young dutchefs, by which fhe was engaced to deliver into his hands two fea-port towns, there to remain till fhe fhould entirely refund the charges of the armament*. Tho’ he engaged for the * Du Tillet, Recueil des Traitez. Hi ON RA YY A VIE 27 the fervice of thefe troops durifg the: fpace of eight months only, yet was the Chap. JI. a s . ~ . c . » > ; I R . cutcnels ODMNPE 1c ei r affairs, to fubmit to fucth rigid conditions ai latchefs obliged, by the neceffity of her aff 9 ; i : : ste - King fends impofed by an ally, {» much concerned in intere{t to protect | cits ane arrived under the command of lord Will6ughby of Broke; and made. the Britanny. Bretons, during fome time, mafters of the field. The French retired into their garri‘ons 3 and propofed by dilatory meafures to wafte the firé of the Englith, and difouft them with their enterprize. The fcheme was well laid, and met with fuccefs. Lerd Broke found fuch difcord and confufion in the councils of Bri- tanny, that no meafures could be concerted for any undertaking ; no fupply ob- tained; no proviffons, carriages, artillery, or military ftores procured. The whole court was rent into factions : No one minifter had acquired the afcendant : And whatever project was formed by one, was fure to be traverfed by another. | The Englifh, difconcerted in every enterprize, by thefe animofities and uncertain councils, returned home as foon as the time of their fervice was elapfed; leaving only a {mall garrifon in thofe towns which had been put into their hands. During their ftay in Britanny, they had done nothing but contributed ftill far- ther to wafte the country ; and by their departure, they left it entirely at the mercy of the enemy. So feeble was the fuccour, which Henry in this impor- tant conjuncture afforded his ally, whom the invafion of a foreign enemy, concur- ring with domeftic diffenfions, had reduced to the utmoft diftrefs, Tre great object of diffenfion among the Bretons was the difpofal of the young dutchefs in marriage. The marefchal Rieux feconded the fuit of the lord Albert; who led fome forces to her affiftance. The chancellor Montauban, obferving the averfion cf the dutchefs to this fuitor, infifted, that a petty prince, fuch as Al- bert, was unable to fupport Anne 1n her prefent extremities; and he recommended fome more powerful alliance, particularly that of Maximilian, Kine of the Ro- mans. This party at laft prevailed; the marriage with Maximilian wai celebrated by proxy; and:the dutchefs thenceforth affumed the title of queen of the Ro- mans. But this magnificent appellation was all fhe gained by -her marriage. Maximilian, deftitute of troops and money, and embarrafied with the continual revolts of the Fiemings, could give no affiftance to his diftrefled confort: While 1er. ihe forces Albert, enraged at the preference given his rival, deferted her caufe, and received the French into Nantz, the moft important place in the dutchy, both for ftrength and riches. en Tse French court began now to’change their fcheme with regard to the fub- jectcon of Britanny. Charles had formerly been affianced to Margaret daughter of Maximilian; who, tho’ too young to confummate her marriage, had been HISTORY or ENGLAND. fent to Paris to be educated, and bore at this time the title of queen of France, Befides the rich dowry, which fhe brought the King,. fhe was, after her brothers Philip, then in early youth, heirefs to the whole dominions of the houfe of Bur- cundy ; and feemed in many refpects the moft proper match, which could be chofen for the young monarch, Thefe circumftances had. fo blinded the councils both of Maximilian and Henry, that they never fufpected any other intentions in the French court ; nor were able to difcover, that engagements, fo advantageous and fo folemnly entered into, could be infringed and fet afide. But Charles be- gan to perceive; that the conqueft of Britanny, in oppofition to the natives, and to all the great powers in Chriftendom,. vould prove a very dificult enterprize; and that even, if he fhould over-run the country and make. himfelf mafter of the fortrefies, it would be impoffible for him long to retain poffeffion of them, The marriage alone of the dutchefs could fully re-annex-that fief to the crown; and the prefent and certain enjoyment of fo confiderable a territory feemed preferable to the profpect of inheriting the dominions of the houfe of Burgundy ;: a pro- fpect which became every day more diftant and precarious. Above all, the marriage of Maximilian and Anne appeared deftructive to the grandeur and. even fecurity of the French monarchy.; while that prince fhould poffefs Flanders on the one hand, and Britanny on the other,. and might thus from both quarters. make inroads into the heart of the country. The only. remedy. for: thefe evils. was therefore concluded to be the diffolution of the two marriages, which had: been celebrated, but not confummated; and the efpoufals of the dutchefs of: ° Britanny, and the King of France. si 5 — eS 5 Sere eer os = = Es ~ — — ee Tus expedient, which had not been forefeen by any court-of Europe, and which they were, all of them, fo much engaged in point of intereft to oppofe, it was- requifite to keep a profound fecret, and only to difcover to the world by the full: execution of it. The meafures of the French miniftry were in the conduét of. this delicate enterprize very wife and political. While they preffed Britanny with: all the rigours of war, they fecretly gained the count of Dunois,. who poffefied great. authority with the Bretons ; and having alfo engaged in their interefts the prince of Orange, coufin-german. to the dutchefs, they gave him his liberty, and fent him. into Britanny. Thefe perfons,.fupported by other emiflaries of France, prepared the minds of, men for the great revolution projected, and difplayed, tho’ ftill with many precautions, all the advantages of anunion with the French monarchy. They reprefented to the Britifh barons, that their country, harrafled during fo many years with perpetual war, had need of fome repofe, and of a folid and lafting peace with the only power that was formidable tothem:: That their alliance with Maximilian was not able to afford them even prefent protection; and by uniting Wt fn a! n-B WN KY VIT. 29 uniting them clofely with a power, which was rival to the greatnefs of France, Chap. II. fixed them in perpetual enmity with that powerful monarchy: That their near '49% neighbourhood expofed them firft to the inroads of the enemy ; and the happieft event, which in fuch a fituation could befal them, would be to attain peace, tho’ by a final fubjection to France, and by-..the lofs of that liberty, tranfmitted them from their anceftors: And that any. other expedient, compatible with the honour of the flate, and their duty to their fovereign, was preferable to a fcene of fuch diforder and devaftation. Turse fuggeftions had influence on the Bretons :- But. the chief difficulty lay in furmounting the prejudices of the young dutchefs herfelf. That princefs had imbibed in her education a flrong prejudice againft the French nation, and par- ticularly again{ft Charles; who had been the author of all the calamities, which, from her earlieft infancy, had befallen her family.. She.had alfo fixed her affec- tions on Maximilian ;.and as. fhe now deemed him her hufband, fhe could. not, . fhe thought, without incurring the greateft guilt, and violating the moft folemn engagements, contract a: marriage with another perfon. In order to overcome her obftinacy, Charles: gave the duke of Orleans his liberty, who, tho’ formerly a fuitor of the dutchefs, was: now contented to ingratiate himfelf with the King, by employing in his favour all the intereft which he ftil poffeffed in Britanny. The marefchal Rieux and chancellor Montauban were reconciled by his negoti-- ations and thefe rival minifters now concurred with the prince of Orange, and. the count of Dunois, in ‘preffing the conclufion of a marriage with Charles, From their fuggeftion, Charles advanced with a powerful army and invefted Rennes, at that time the. refidence of the. dutchefs ; who, affailed on all hands, . and finding none to fupport her:in her inflexibility, .at lat. opened the gates of the city, and agreed to efpoufe the King of France. She was married at Langey Annexation in Touraine ; conducted to St. Denis, where:fhe was. crowned ; and thence made °f Britanny her entry into Paris, .amidft the joyful acclamations of the people, who regarded eo this marriage as the moft profperous event that could have befallen their monarchy. Tue triumph and fuecefs of Charles was:the moft fenfible mortification to the King of the Romans. He had loft a confiderable territory, which he thought. he had acquired, and an accomplifhed princefs whom he had efpoufed; he was. affronted in the perfon of his daughter Margaret, who was fent back to him, after being treated during fome years as queen of France; he had reafon to re- proach himfelf with his own fupine fecurity, in neglecting the confummation of: his marriage; which was eafily practicable-for him, and which would have ren-. dered: 1491. 4 Me: . 4 a a a. ee ie oro 2 20 HISTORY or ENGLAND. 27th O&tober. A Parliament. [S20 77 dered the tye indiffoluble: Thefe confiderations threw him into the moft violent rage, which he vented in very indecent expreffions; and he threatened France with an invafion from the united arms of Auftria, Spain, and England. Tue Ki-g of England had alfo juft reafon to reproach himfelf with mifcon- duct in this important tranfaction; and tho’ the affair had terminated in-a manner which he could not precifely forefee, his negligence, in leaving fo long his moft ufeful ally expofed to the invalion of fuperior power, could not but appear on reflection the refult of timid caution and narrow politics. As he valued himfelf very much on his-extenfive forefight and profound judgment, the afcendant ac- quired over him, by a raw youth, fuch as Charles, could not but give him the higheft difpleafure, and prompt him to feek vengeance, after all remedy for his mifcarriage was become abfclutely impracticable. But he was farther actuated. by avarice, a motive ftill more predominant with him than either pride or re- venge ; and he fought even from his prefent difappointments, the gratification of Y this ruling paffion, Under pretext of a French war, he iffaed a commiffion for levying a Benevolence on his people* 5 an arbitrary taxation, which had been abolifhed by a recent law of Richard the third, and which was the more provok- ing, that, tho’ really raifed by menaces and extortion, it was neverthelefs pre- tended to be given by the voluntary confent of the people. This violence fell chiefly on the commercial part of the nation, who were poflefied of the ready money. London alone contributed to the amount of near 10,000 pounds. Arch- bifhop Morton, the chancellor, inftructed the commiffioners to employ adilemma, in which every one might be comprehended: .If the perfons applied to lived frugal- ly, they were told, that their parfimony muft neceffarily have enriched them: If their method of living was fplendid and hofpitable, they were concluded opulent on account of their expences. This device was by fome called chancellor Mor- ton’s fork, and by others his crutch, So little apprehenfive was the. King of a Parliament, on account of his levy- ing this arbitrary impofition, that he foon after fummoned that affembly to meet at Weltminfter; and heeven expected to enrich himfelf farther by working on their paffions and prejudices. . He knew the refentment, which the Englifh had:con- ceived again{ft France, by reafon of the conqueft of Britanny ; and he took care to infift on that topic, in the fpeech, which he himfelf pronounced to the Parliament. He told them, that France, elevated with her late fuccefles, had even proceeded to a cont mpt of England, and had refufed to pay that tribute, which Lewis the eleventh had ftipulated to Edward the fourth: That it became fo warlike a nation * Rymer, Vol. XII. p. 446. Bacon fays that the benevolence was levied with confent of Parlia- ment, which is a miftake. 8 Hy BON Re vie we, 31 mation as the Englifh to be rouzed with this indignity, and not to limit their pretenfions merely to repreffing the prefent injury: That for his part, he wa determined to Jay claim to the crown of France itfelf, and to maintain by force of arms fo juft a title tranfmirted to him by his gallant anceftors: That Crefly, Poictiers, and Agincourt were fufficient to inftruét them in their fuperiority over the ensmy; nor did he defpair of adding new names to the glorious catalogue : That a King of France had been prifoner at London, and a King of England had been crowned at Paris; events which fhould animate them to an emulation of like glory with that enjoyed by their forefathers : That the domeftic diffenfions of England had been the fcle caufe of her lofing thefe foreign dominions; and her prefent union and harmony would be the effectual means of recovering them: That where fuch lafting honour was in view, and fuch an important acquifition, it became not brave men to repine at the advance of a little treafure : And tha for his part, he was determined to make the war maintain itfelf, and hoped, by the invafion of fo opulent a kingdom as France, to encreafe, rather than diminish, the riches of the nation.™ NoTWITHSTANDING. thefe magnificent vaunts of the King, all men of pene- tration concluded, from the perfonal character of the man, and ftill more, from the fituation of his affairs, that he had no ferious intention of pufhing the war to fuch extremity as he pretended. France was not now inthe fame condition as when fuch fuccefsful inroads had been made into her by the former Kings of England. ‘The great fiefs were united to the crown; the princes of the blood were defirous of peace and tranquility; the kingdom abounded with able cap- tains and veteran foldiers; and the general afpect of its affairs feemed more to threaten its neighbours, than to fubje& it to any infults from them. The levity and vain-glory of Maximilian were fupported by his pompous titles ; but were ill feconded by military power, and ftill lefs, by any revenue, proportioned to them. The politic Ferdinand, while he made a fhow of war, was actually nego- tiating for peace; and rather than expofe himfelf to any hazard, would accept of very moderate conceffions from France. Even England was not free from do- meftic difcontents ; and in Scotland, the death of Henry’s friend and ally, James the third, who had been murdered by his rebellious fubjeéts, had made way for the fucceffion of his fon, James the fourth, who was devoted to the French intereft, and would furely be alarmed with any progrefs of the Englifh arms. Bur all thefe obvious confiderations had no influence with the Parliament. Inflamed by the ideas of fubduing France, and of inriching themfelves with the {fpoils of thie kingdom, * Bacon, p. Gor i Chap. II. 1491. 1492; Chap. LL. 1492. War with France. Invafion of France. expectations, would expofe him to great reproach. 32 HISTORY or ENGLAND. ere adi : an! pies of ‘kingdom, they gave into the fnare prepared for them,.and voted the fupply “which the King demanded. ‘Two fifteenths were granted him; and the better to enable his vaffals and nobility to attend him, an act was paffed, empowering them to fel! their eftates, without paying any fines for alienation. Tue nobility were univerfally feized with a defire of military glory ; and hav- ing creduloufly {wallowed all the -boafts of the King, they dreamed of no lefs than carrying their triumphant arms to:the gates of Paris, and putting the crown of France on Henry’s head. Many of them borrowed large fums or fold off manors, that they might appear in the field with greater fplendour, and lead out their followers in more compleat order. The king croffed the feas, and arrived at Calais on the fixth. of October, with an army of twenty-five thoufand foot and fixteen hundred horfe, which he put under the command of the duke of Bedford and the earl of Oxford: But as fome inferred, from his opening the campaign ‘in fo late a feafon, that peace would foon be concluded between the crowns, he was defirous of fuggefting a contrary inference. ‘* He had come over,”’ he faid, <¢ to make an entire conqueft of France, which was not the work of one fummer. «¢ T¢ was therefore of no confequence at what feafon he began the invafion; efpe- ‘¢ cially as he had Calais ready for winter quarters.” Asif he had ferioufly in- tended this enterprize, he inftantly marched with his army into the enemy’s coun- try, and laid fiege to Bulloigne: But notwithftanding this appearance of a hoftile difpofition, there had been fecret advances made towards a peace above three months before; and commiffioners had been appointed to treat of the terms. The better to reconcile the minds of men to this unexpeéted meafure, the king’s -ambaffadors arrived in the camp from the Low Countries, and informed him, that Maximilian was in no readinefs to join him ; nor was any afliftance to be hoped for from that quarter. Soon after, meffengers came from Spain, and brought news -of a peace concluded between that kingdom and France, in which Chatles had made a ceflion of the counties of Rouffillon and Cerdagne to Ferdinand. Tho’ thefe articles of intelligence were carefully difperfed thro’ the army, the King was ftill apprehenfive, left a fudden peace, after fuch magnificent promifes and high That he might more effectually cover the intended meafures, he fecretly engaged the marquifs of Dor- fet, together with twenty three perfons of condition, to prefent him a petition for his agreeing to a treaty with France. The pretence was founded on the late fea- fon of the year, the difficulty of fupplying the army at Calais during winter, the obftacles which arofe in the fiege of Bulloigne, the defertion of thofe allies whofe affiftance had been moft relied on: Events which might, all of them, have been .forefeen before the embarkation of the forces. In Bein BR ¥ VII. 33 In confequence of thefe preparatory fteps, the bifhop of Exeter and the lord mA Daubeney were fent to confer at Eftaples with the marefchal of Cordes, and to put 49% the laft hand to the treaty. A few days fufficed for this purpofe: The demands of Henry were wholly pecuniary; and the King of France, who efteemed the peaceable. poffeffion of Britanny an equivalent for any money, and who was all fae on fire for his projected expedition into Italy, readily agreed to the propofals 7) 4° made him. He engaged to pay Henry feven hundred and forty-five thoufand Peace with crowns, about one hundred and eighty-fix thoufand two hundred and fifty pounds prance. fterling ; partly asa reimburfement of the fums advanced for Britanny, partly as arrears of the penfion due to Edward the fourth. And he ftipulated a yearly penfion to Henry and his heirs of twenty-five thoufand crowns. Thus the King, as remarked by his hiftorian, made profit upon his fubje&ts for the war; and upon his enemies for the peace *. And the people agreed, that he had fulfilled his promife, when he faid to the parliament, that he would make the war maintain itfelf. Maximilian was comprehended in Henry’s treaty, if he pleafed to accept of it; but he difdained to be in any refpeét beholden to an ally, of whom, he thought, he had reafon to complain: He made a feparate peace with France, and obtained reftitution of Artois, Franchecomte and Charolois, which had been given as the dowry of his daughter, when fhe was affianced to the King of France. Tne peace, concluded between England and France, was the more likely to continue, that Charles, full of ambition and youthful hopes, bent all his atten- tion to the fide of Italy, and foon after undertook the conqueft of Naples; an enterprize, which Henry regarded with the greater indifference, that Naples lay remote from him, and France had never, in any age, been fuccefsful on that quarter. The King’s authority was fully eftablifhed at home; and every rebellion, which had been attempted againft him, had hitherto tended only to confound his enemies, and confolidate his power and influence. _ His reputation for policy and conduct was every day augmenting ; his treafures had encreafed even from the moft unprofperous events ; the hopes of all pretenders to his throne were cut of, as well by his marriage, as by the iffue which it had brought him. In this pro- ‘mifing fituation, the King had reafon to flatter himfelf with the profpect of a durable peace and tranquillity: But his inveterate and indefatigable enemies, whom he had wantonly provoked, raifed up to him an adverfary, who kept him long in inguietude, and fometimes even brought him into danger. Tue dutchefs of Burgundy, full of refentment for the depreffion of her family and its partizans, rather irritated than difcouraged with the bad fuccefs of her patt I enterprizes, * Bacon, p. $05. Pol. Virg.. p. 586. Chap. II. 1402. satesany VA ane Perkin VV cT= bec. & His impofture. 34 HISTORY or - ENGLAND. enterprizes, was determined at leaft to difturb that sovernment, which fhe found 4 tL 4 - Fuse’ 4 Fare 1 ae it fo dificult to fubvert. By means ot her emiffaries, fhe propagated tne report, Fad ~* ~ 4 2 1 ge eh - 3 as L that her nephew, Richard Plantagenet, duke ol York, had eicaped from the 1 tli Tower when his elder brother was nurdered, and that-he Jay ft | fomewhere concealed: And finding this rumour, however improbable, to be oreedily re- ceived by the people, fhe had been looking out for fome young man, proper to: perfonate that unjortunate prince. Turre was one Ofbec or Warbec, a renegado Jew of Lournay, who had’ been carried by fome bufinefs to London in the reign of Edward the fourth, and had there a fon born to him. Having had opportunities of being known to the King, and obtaining his favour, he prevailed with that prince, whofe manners were very affable, to ftand godfather to his fon, to whom he gave the name of Peter, cor- rupted after the Flemifh manner into Peter-kin, of Perkin. It was by fome be- lieved, that Edward, among, his other amorous adventures, had hada fecret correfpondence with Waibec’s wife; and from this incident people accounted for that refemblance, which was afterwards remarked between young Perkin and that monarch *. Some years after the birth of this child, Warbec returned: to Tour- nay; where Perkin his fon remained not long, but by different accidents was car- ried from place to place, and his birth and fortunes became thereby unknown, and difficult to be traced by. the moft careful enquiry. ‘The variety of his adven- tures had happily favoured the natural verfatility and fagacity: of his genius; and he feemed to be a youth perfedtly fitted to act any part, or affume any character.. In this light he had been reprefented to the dutcheis of Burgundy, who, ftruck. with the concurrence of fo many circomftances fuited to her purpofe, defired to: be made acquainted with the perfon, on whom fhe began already to ground her hopes of fuccefs. She found him to exceed her moft fanguine expectations; fo beautiful did he appear in his perfon, fo graceful in his air, fo courtly in his ad- - drefs, fo full of docility and good fenfe in his behaviour and converfation. The: leffons, which were neceflary to-be taught him, in order to his perfonating the duke of York, were foon learned by a youth of fuch quick comprehenfion ;. but as the feafon feemed not then favourable for his enterprize, Margaret, in order: the better to conceal him, fent him, under the care of Lady Brampton, into Por- tugal, where he remained a year, unknown to all the world. Tue war, which was then ready to break out between France and England,. feemed to afford a proper opportunity for the difcovery, of this new pheenomenons. and Ireland, which fill retained its attachments to the houfe of York, was pitched on asthe proper place for his firft appearance +, He landed atCorke ; and im- mediately * Bacon, p. Go, 4- Polyd. Virg. p. 589, ‘ m GEN BR. ¥ Vit. 5 tad mediately affuming the name of Richard Plantagenet, drew to hu among that ignorant and credulous people. He wrote letters to the carls of Def- mond and Kildare, inviting them to join his party: He difperfed every where the: ftrange intelligence of his efcape from his uncle Richard’s cruelty ; and men, fond of every thing new°and wonderful, began to make him the general fubject of their difcourfe, anih evenathe object of their favour. Tue news foon reached France ; and Charles, prompted by the private follici- tations of the dutchefs of Burgundy, and the intrigues of one Frion, a fecretary of Henry, who had deferted his fervice, fent Perkin an invitation to repair to him at Paris. He received him with all the marks of regard due to the duke of York; fettled on him a handfome penfion, affigned hich magnificent lodgings, and in order to provide at once for his dignity and fecurity, gave him a guard for his perfon, of which lord Congrefall accepted the office of captain. The French courtiers readily embraced a fiction, which their fovereign thought it his interetft to adopt: Perkin, both by his depertment and perfon, fupporied the prepot- feffion, which was fpread abroad of his royal pedigree: And the whole kingdom was full of the accomplifhments, as well as fingular adventures and misfortunes, of the young Plantagenet. Wonders of this nature are commonly augmented at adiftance. From France, the admiration and credulity diffufed themfelves into Eng. land: Sir George Neville, Sir John Taylor, and a hundred gentlemen more came to Paris, in order to offer their fervice to the fuppofed duke of York, and to fhare his fortunes: And the impoftor had. now the appearance of a court at- tending him, and began to entertain hopes of final fuccefs in his undertakings. WHEN peace was concluded between France and England at Bape Henry applied to have Perkin put into his hands; but Charles, refolute not to | spas a young man, of whatever birth, whom he had invited into his kingdom, would ) agree only to difmifs him. The pretended Plantagenet retired to the dutchet: of Burgundy in Flanders. and craving her proteétion and afliftance,. offered to lay before her all the proofs of that. birth, to:which he laid claim, The princefs He is ; vowed affected ignorance of his pretenfions ; even put on the appearance of diftruft; and by the dutch- having, as fhe faid, been already deceived: by Simnel’s.claim, fhe was determined ey, = never again to be feduced by any impoftor. She defired. before, all the world to be inftruéted in his reafons for affuming the name which he bore ;. feemed to exa- mine every circumftance with the moft. fcrupulous nicety.; put many Ra aaas queftions to him; affected aftonifhment at _his an{wers; and at. laft, after long and fevere {crutiny, burft out into joy and admiration at his wonderful dslimaie embraced him as her nephew, the true. image of Edward, the fole heir of the Plantagenets,, and the legitimate fucceflor of the Englifh throne. She imme- Fr 2 diately nN partizans Chap. H. 7 36 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Chap. IL diately affioned him an equipage, fuited to his pretended birth ; appointed him 3 1493+ guard of thirty halberdiers ; engaged every one to pay court fo him ; and on alk occafions honoured him with the appellation of the White Rofe of England. The Flemings, moved by the authority, which Margaret, both from her rank and perfonal character, enjoyed among them, readily adopted the fiction of Perkin’s royal defcent : No furmize of his true birth was as yet heard of: Little contra-. di@ion was made to the prevailing opinion : And the Englith, from their great communication with the natives of the Low Countries, were every day more and. more prepoffeffed in favour of the impoftor. Ir was not the populace alone of England, that gave credit to Perkin’s preten- Gons. Men of the higheft birth and quality, difgufted with Henry’s government, by which they found the nobility deprefled, began to turn their eyes towards this new claimant, and fome of them even entered into a correfpondence with him. and by many Lord Fitzwater, Sir Simon Mountfort, Sir Thomas Thwaites betrayed their in- of the Englifh clination towards him: Sir William Stanley himéfelf, lord chamberlain, who had ~— been fo aétive in raifing Henry to the throne, moved either: by blind credulity or a reftlefs ambition, entertained the project of a revolt in favour of his enemy *. Sir Robert Clifford and William Barley were fi] more open in their meafures =: They went over to F landers, offered their fervice to Perkin, and were introduced: by the dutchefs of Burgundy to his acquaintance. Clifford wrote back to Eng- jand, that he knew perfectly the perfon of Richard duke of York, that this young man was undoubtedly that prince himfelf, and that no. circumftance of his ftory: was expofed to the leatt difficulty. Such pofitive intelligence, conveyed by a per~ fon of fuck high rank and character, was fufficient with many to put the matter beyond all queftion, and excited the wonder and attention even of the moft indif-. ferent. .’The whole nation were held in fufpenfe ; a regular confpiracy was formed: againft the King’s authority 5 and a correfpondence fettled between the malecon-. rents in Flanders and thofe in England. | Tue King was well informed of all thefe particulars; but agreeable to his cha= racter, which was both cautious and refolute, he proceeded very deliberately, but fteadily, in counter-working the projects of his enemies. His firft object was to afcertain the death of the real duke of York, and to confirm the opinion, which had always prevailed with regard to that event. Four perfons had’ been em- ployed by Richard in the murder of his nephews; Sir James Tirrel, to whom he had committed the government of the Tower for that purpofe, and who had feen the dead princes ; Miles Forreft and John Dighton, who perpetrated the action ; and the prieft who buried the bodies. Tirrel and Dighton alone were alive, and they agreed in the fame ftory ; but as the prieft was dead, and as the bodies had been * Bacon, p. 608%. Bigeye oh, .F VII. "7 been removed by Richard’s orders from the place where they were firft interted, and could not now be found, it was not in Henry’s power to. put the fact, fo much as he wifhed, beyond:a!! doubt and controverfy. Cs He met at firft with more difficulty, but was in the end more fuccefsful, in detecting who this wonderful perfon was that thus boldly advanced pretenfions to his crown. He difperfed his fpies all over Flanders and England ; he engaged many to pretend that they had embraced Perkin’s party; he direéted them to in- finuate themfelves into the confidence of his friends; in proportion as they con- veyed intelligence of any confpirator, he bribed his retainers, his domeftic fervants, nay fometimes his confeflur, and by thefe means traced up fome other confederate; Clifford himfelf he engaged by hopes of reward and pardon, to betray the fecrets committed to him; the more truft he gave any of his fpies, the higher refentment did he feign againft them ; fome of them he even caufed to be excommunicated and publicly anathematized, in order the better to procure them the confidence of his enemies: And in the iffue, the whole plan of the confpiracy was laid clearly before him; and the whole pedigree, adventures, life and converfation of the pretended duke of York. This latter ftory was im- mediately publifhed for the fatisfaction of the nation; The confpirators he referved for a flawer and more fecure vengeance, MeEanwnitet, he remonftrated with the archduke Philip, on account of the countenance and protection, which was afforded in his dominions to fo infamous an impofture; contrary to treaties fubfifting between the fovereigns, and to the mutual amity, which had fo long been maintained by the fubjects of both ftates. Margaret had intereft enough to get his applications rejected ; under pretence that Philip had no authority over the demefnes of the dutchefs dowager. And the King, in refentment of this injury, cut off all commerce with the Low Countries, banifhed the Flemings from England, and recalled his own fubjects from thefe provinces. Philip retaliated by like edicts; but Henry knew, that fo mutinous a people as the Flemings would not long bear, in compliance with the humours of their prince, to be deprived of fo beneficial a branch of commerce as that which they carried on with England. | He had it in his power to inflict more effectual punifhment on his domeftic enemies ; and when his projects were fufficiently matured, he failed not to make them feel the effects of his refentment. Almoft in the fame inftanr, he arrefted Fitzwater, Mountfort, and Thwaites, together with Willtam Daubeney, Robert Ratcliff, Thomas Creffenor, and Thomas Aftwood. All thefe were arraigned, convicted, and condemned for high treafon, in adhering and promifing aid to Per- kin. Chap. TT. 1493: 1494 WK, , s Ms : ‘ ; » ; . - . ; ; wt orem trerennye eee RS ars iene = pA tans at A 8 - > ee . : ate : = < - 38 HISTORY oF ENGLAND. Chap. I. kin. “Mounefort, Ratcliff, and Daubeney were immediately executed: Fitzwater 1494+ was fent over to Calais, and retained in cutlody ; but having practifed on his keeper for an efcape, he foon after underwent the fame fate. The reft were par- doned, together with William Worfeley, dean of St. Paul’s, and fome others, who had been accufed and examined, but not brought to public trial *. Greater and more folemn preparations were efteemed requifite for the trial of Stanley, lord chamberlain, whofe authority in the nation, whofe domef- tic connexions with the King, as well as his former great fervices, feemed to fecure him againft any accufation or punifhment. Clifford was directed to come over privately to England, and to throw himfelf at the King’s feet, while placed at the council table; craving pardon for his paft offences, and offering to attone for them by any fervices, which fhould be required of him. Henry told him, that the belt proof he could give of penitence, and the only fervice he could now render him; was the full confeffion of his guilt, and the difcovery of all his ac- complices, however diftinguifhed by rank or character. Encouraged by this exhortation, Clifford accufed Stanley then prefent, as his chief abettor; and offered to lay. before the council the whole proofs of his guilt. Stanley himfelf could not difcover more furprize than was affected by Henry on this occafion. He received the intelligence as abfolutely falfe and incredible ; that a man, to whom he was, in a great meafure, beholden for his crown, and even for his life; a man, to whom, by every honour and favour, he had endeavoured to exprefs his gratitude ; whofe brother, the earl of Derby, was the King’s father-in-law ; to whom he had even committed the truft of his perfon, by creating him lord cham- berlain: That this man, enjoying his full confidence and affection, not actuated by any motive of difcontent or apprehenfion, fhould engage in a con{piracy: againft him. Clifford was therefore exhorted to weigh well the confequences of this accufation; but as he perfifted in the fame pofitive affeverations, Stanley: was committed to cuftody, and foon after examined before the council +. He denied not the guilt imputed to him by Clifford; he did not even endeavour much te extenuate it; whether he thought that a frank and open confeffion would ferve for an atonement; or trufted to his prefent connexions, and his former fervices, ~ ‘Trial and -ex- for pardon ana fecurity. But princes are often apt to regard ereat fervices a$:2 - er ground of jealoufy, efpecially if accompanied with a craving and.reftlefs: difpofition, in the perfon who has performed them. The general difcontent allo, and mutinous humour of the people, feemed to require fome great example of feverity. And as Stanley was one of the moft opulent dubjects in the kingdom, being pofiefied of . = ae So ks Sh * Polydore Virgil, p. 592. eA / 4A — Rie oR. ¥ 6 wy 59 of above three thoufand pounds a year in land, and forty thoufand merks in plate and money, befides other property of great value, the profpect of fo rich a forfeiture was deemed. no {mail motive in Henry. for proceeding to extremity 15 againft him. After fix weeks delay, which was interpofed in order to fhew that 4 the King was reftrained by doubts and fcruples; he was brought to his trial, condemned, and prefently after. beheaded. Hiftorians are not well agreed with regard to the crime which was proved acain{t him. The general report ts, that he fhould have faid in confidence to Clifford, that, if he was fure the young man, who appeared in Flanders, was really fon to King Edward, he never would bear arms againft him. This fentiment might difguft Henry as implying a preference of the houfe of York to that of Lancafter, but could fcarcely be the ground, even in thofe arbitrary times, of a fentence of high treafon again{t Stanley. It is more probable, therefore, what is afferted by fome hiftorians, that he had exprefsly engaged to affitt Perkin, and had actually fent him fome fupply of money. Tue fate of Stanley made great impreffion on the whole kingdom, and ftruck: all Perkin’s retainers with the deepeft difmay. From Cliford’s defertion, they found that all their fecrets were difcovered; and as it appeared, that Stanley, even while he feemed to live in the greateft confidence with the King, had been continually furrounded by fpies, who reported and regiftered every action which he committed, nay, every word which fell from him, a general diftruft tool place, and all mutual confidence was deftroyed, even among the moft intimate friends and acquaintance. ‘Fhe jealous and fevere temper of the King, together with his great reputation for fagacity and penetration, kept men in awe, and and queiled not only the movements of fedition,. but the very murmurs of faction, Libels, however, crept out againft Henry’s perfon and adminiftration; and being greedily propagated, by every fecret art, fhowed that there {till remained among the people a confiderable root of difeontent, which wanted Only a proper opportunity to difcover itfelf. But Henry continued more intent on increafing the terrors of ‘his people ts ° ~ > = F i W a ¥. dé. del, alderman of 4° i415 TORY oF ENGLAND. Chap. If. way for many others. The management, indeed, of thefe opprefiive arts was the great fecret of the King’s adminiftration. While he depreffed the nobility, 1495+ he exalted, and honoured and carefied the lawyers; and by that means both heftowed authority on the laws, and was enabled, whenever he pleafed, to per- vert them to his own advantage. His. governmert was oppreflive 5 but it was fo much the lels burthenfome, that, by extending his own authority, and curbing the nobles, he became in reality the fole oppreffor in his kingdom. As Perkin found, that the King’s authority gained ground daily among the people, and that his own pretenfions were becoming obfolete, he refolved to attempt fomething, which might revive the hopes and expectations of his partizans. Hlav- ing gathered together a band of outlaws, pirates, robbers, and neceflitous perfons of all nations, to the number of 600 men, he put to fea with a refolution of mak- ing a defcent in England; and of exciting the common people to arms, fince all his correfpondence with the nobility was cut off. by Henry’s vigilance and fe- verity. Information being brought him, that the King had made a progrefs to the north, he caft anchor on the coaft of Kent, anc fent fome ‘of his retainers afhore, who invited the country to join him. The gentlemen of Kent gathered together fome troops to oppofe him; but they propofed to do more effential fervice than by repelling the ‘nvafion: They carried the femblance of friendfhip to Perkin, and invited him to come himfelf afhore, inorder to take the command over them. But the wary youth, obferving that they had more order and regu- larity in their movements than could be fuppofed in new levied forces, who had taken arms againft eftablifhed authority, refafed to commit himfelf into their hands; and the Kentifh troops defpairing of fuccefi in their ftratagem, fet upon fach of his retainers, as were already landed; and befides fome who were flain and fome who efcaped, they took an hundred and fifty prifoners. Thefe were tried and condemned 3 and all of them executed, by order from the King, who was refolved to ufe no mixture of lenity towards men of fuch defperate fortunes *. Tuis year a Parliament was fammoned in Englind, and another in Ireland ; A Parliament. and fome remarkable laws were paffed in both countries. The Englifh Parlia- ment enaéted, that no perfon who fhould affift in erms or otherwife the King for the time being fhould ever afterwards, either by courfe of law or act of Parlia- ment, be attainted for fuch an ‘aftance of obedience. This ftatute might be ex- pofed to fome blame, as favourable to ufurpers ; were there any precife rules, which always, even during the mott factious times, could determine the true fuc- ceffor, and render every one ‘nexcufable, who did not fubmit to him. But as the titles of princes are then the great fubject of difpute, and each party pleads topics * Polydore Virgil, p- 595+ Fike iN oY Vil. Aol topics in their own favour, it feems but equitable to fecure thofe who ac in fup- port of eftablifhed tranquillity, an object at all times of undoubted benefit and importance. Henry, confcous of his difputed title, promoted this law in order to fecure his partizans againft all events; but as he had himfelf obferved a dif- ferent practice with regard to Richard’s adherents, he had reafon to apprehend, that, during the violence which ufually enfues on public convulfions, his example, rather than his Jaw, would, in cafe of a new revolution, be followed by his enemies. And the attempt to bind the legiflature itfelf, by prefcribing rules to future Parliaments, was planly contradictory to the fundamental principles of political government. Turs Parliament alfo paied an act, impowering the King to levy by courfe of law, all the fums which any perfon had agreed to pay by way of benevolence : A ftatute, by which that arbitrary method of taxation was directly authorized and juftified. Tue King’s authority appeared equally prevalent and uncontrolable in Ireland. Sir Edward Poynings had been fent over with fome troops into that country, with an intention of quelling the partizans of the houfe of York, and of reducing the natives to fubjeCtion. He was not fupported with forces fufficient for that important enterprize: Thelrifh, by flying into their woods, and moraffes, and mountains, in fome meafure, eluded his efforts: But Poynings fummoned a par- liament at Dublin, where he was more fuccefsful.. He paffed that memorable {tatute, which ftill bears his name, and which eftablifhes the authority of the Englifh government in Irland. By this ftatute, the Parliament of England were empowered to make liws for Ireland; and no bill can be introduced into the Irifh parliament, unlefs it previoufly receive the fanétion of the council of England. Wuite Henry’s authori:y was thus eftablifhed throughout his dominions, and genera] tranquillity prevailed, the whole continent was thrown into combuftion by the French invafion of Italy, and by the rapid fuccefs which attended Charles in that rafh and ill-concerted enterprize. The Italians, who had entirely loft the ufe of arms, and who, in the midft of continual wars, had become every day more unwarlike, were aftonifhed to meet with an enemy, that made the field of battle, not a pompous tournament, but a fcene of blood, and fought at the hazard of their own lives the death of their enemy. Their effeminate troops were diffipated every wher: on the approach of the French army: Their beft fortified cities opened their gates: Kingdoms and {tates were in an inftant over- turned: And thro’ the whcle length of Italy, which the French penetrated with- G out Chap. IT. 1495«. 42 HISTORY of ENGLAND. out refiftance, they feemed rather to be taking quarters in their own country, © than making conqueits over an enemy. The maxims, which the Italians, during that age, followed in negotiations, were as il calculated to fupport their ftates, as the habits to which they were addiéted in war. A treacherous, deceitful, and inconftant fyftem of politics prevailed ; and even chofe fmall remains of fidelity and honour, which were preferved ‘4 the councils of the other European princes, were ridiculed in Italy, as proofs of ignorance and rufticity. Ludovico, duke i of Milan, who invited the French to invade Naples, had never defired nor ex- pected their fuccefs ; and was the firft alarmed at the profperous iflue of thofe He projects, which he himfelf had concerted. By his intrigues a league was formed among feveral potentates to oppofe the progrefs of Charles’s conquefts and fecure their own independency. ‘This league was compofed of Ludovico himfelf, the pope, Maximilian king of the Romans, Ferdinand of Spain, and the republic. of Venice. Henry too entered into the confederacy ; but was not put to any ¢xX- pence or trouble in confequence of his engagements. The King of France, terrified by fo powerful a combination, etired from Naples with the greateft part of his army, and returned to France. The forces, which he left in his new. conquefts, partly by the revolt of the inhabitants, partly: by the invafion of the Spaniards, were fon after fubdued; and the whole kingdom of Naples. , fuddenly returned to its allegiance under Ferdinand, fon to Alphonfo, who had been fuddenly expelled by the irruption of the French. Ferdinand died foon after; and left his uncle, Frederic, in peaceable pofieffion of the throne. aah : | i hil BRET | Hit! a l i ii! i il} Wh i} : | | | | : i} i } Hi H EN RY vil. 43 GH A ues Il. Perkin returns to Scotland.——Infurrettion tn the Weft.i———Battle of Black- heath, Truce with Scotland. Perkin taken prifoner. Perkin executed. The earl of Warwic executed Marriage of prince Arthur with Catherine of Arragon. His death. princefs Margaret with the King of Scotland. Oppreffions of the People. 4A Parhament. Arrival of the King of Cafile.—— Intrigues of the Earl of Suffolt.———Sickne/s of the King——his death m—and character. fits laws. Marria ge of the FTER Perkin was repulfed from the coaft of Kent, he retired into Flan- ders ; but as he found it. impoffible to fubfift himfelf and his followers, 1495. while he remained in tranquillity, he foon after made an attempt upon Ireland, which had always appeared forward to. join every invader of Henry’s authority. But Poinings had now “put the affairs of that ifland in fo good a pofture, that Perkin met with little fuccefs; and being tired of the favage life, which he was obliged to lead, while fkulking among the wild Irifh, he bent his courfe towards Scotland, and prefented himfelf to James the.fourth, who then governed that kingdom. He had been previoufly recommended to that prince by the King of France, who was difgufted that Henry ‘had entered into the leacue againft him; and this recommendation was even feconded by Maximilian, who, tho’ one of the confederates, ftood on ill terms with the King, on account of his prohibition of commerce with the Low Countries. The countenance given Perkin by thefe ptinces procured him a favourable reception with the King of Scotland, who Perkin retires affured him, that, whatever he were, he never fhould repent the putting him- to Scotland, felf into his hands *: The infinuating addrefs and plaufible behaviour of the youth himfelf feem even to have gained him credit and authority. James, whom years had not yet taught diftruft and caution, was feduced to believe the {tory of Perkin’s birth and adventures; and he carried his confidence fo far as to cive < © him -in marriage the lady Catherine Gordon, daughter of the Earl of Fiuntley, and a near kinfwoman of his own; a young woman too, eminent fcr virtue as well as beauty. G 2 THERE = Bacon, p. Gis. Pol, Virg. p- 596, eO7; AA HISTORY or ENGLAND. Tere fubfifted at that time a great jealoufy between the courts of England and Scotland; and James was: probably the more forward on that account. to adopt any fiction, which, he thought, might reduce his enemy to diftrefs or difficulty. He fuddenly refolved to make an inroad into England, attended with fome of the borderers ; and he carried Perkin along with him, in hopes, that the appearance of the pretended prince might raife an ‘nfurreétion in the northern counties. Perkin himfelf difperft a manifefto, where he fet forth his own ftory, and craved the affiftance of all his fubjects in expelling the ufurper, whofe tyranny and mal-adminiftration, whofe depreffion of the nobility by the elevation of mean perfons, whofe oppreffion of the people by multiplied impofitions and vexations, had juftly, he faid, rendered him odious to all men. But Perkin’s pretenfions, attended by repeated difappointments, were now become ftale in the eyes even of the populace; and the hoftile difpofitions, which fubfifted between the king- doms, rendered a prince, fupported by the Scotch, but an unwelcome prefent to the Englifh nation. The ravages alfo, committed by the borderers, accuftomed to licence and diforder, ftruck a terror ‘sto all men; and made the people pre- pare rather for repelling the invaders than for joining them. Perkin, that he might fupport his pretenfions to royal birth, feigned great compaffion for the mifery of his plundered fubjects ; and publickly remonttrated with his ally againft the de- predations exercifed by the Scotch army * : But James told him, that he doubted: his concern was employed only in behalf of his enemy, and that he was anxious: to preferve what never would belong to him. That prince now began to per- ceive, that his attempt would be fruitlefs; and hearing of an army, which was on. its march to attack him, he thought proper to retreat into his own country. Tue King difcovered little anxiety to procure either reparation or vengeance for this infult committed on him by the Scotch nation : His chief concern was to draw advantage from it, by the pretence which it would afford him to levy impofitions on his own fubjects. He fammoned a Parliament, to whom he made bitter complaints againft the irruption of the Scotch, the abfurd impofture which was countenanced by that nation, the cruel devaftation which they had fpread over the northern counties, and the complicated affront which had thus been offered both to the King and kingdom of England. The Parliament made the expected return to this difcourfe of the King, by granting him a fubfidy to the amount of 120,000 pounds, together with two fifteenths. After making this crant, they were difmiffed. | i THE * Polydore Virgil, p. 598: H EN RY.” Vil. 45 Tue vote of parliament for impofing the tax was eafily procured by the au- thority.of Henry; but he found it not fo eafy to levy the money upon his fub- jects. -: The people, who were acquainted with the immenfe treafures amafled by the King, could ill brook the new impofitions raifed on every flight occafion; and it is probable, that the flaw, which was univerfally known to lie in his title, made his reign the more fubject to infurreCtions and rebellions. When the fub- fidy began to be levied in Cornwal, the inhabitants, numerous and poor, robuft and courageous, murmured again{ft a tax, occafioned by a fudden inroad of the Scotch, from which they efteemed themfelves entirely fecure, and which had commonly been repelled by the force of the northern counties... Their ill humour was farther incited by one Michael Jofeph, a farrier of Bodmin, a notable, talking fellow, who, by thrufting himfelf forward on every occafion, and being loudett in every complaint againft the government, had acquired an authority among thefe rude people, Thomas Flammoc too, a lawyer, who had become the ora- cle of the neighbourhood, encouraged the fedition, by informing them, that the tax, tho’ impofed by Parliament, was entirely illegal; that the northern nobility, by their tenures, were obliged to defend the nation againft the Scotch; and that if thefe new impofitions were tamely fubmitted toy the avarice of Henry and of his courtiers would foon render the burthen intolerable upon the nation. A petition, he faid, muft be delivered to the King, feconded by fuch force as would give it authority ; and in order to procure the concurrence of the reft of the kingdom, care muft be taken, by their orderly deportment, to fhew that they had nothing in view but the public good, and the redrefs of all thofe grievances, under which the people had fo long laboured. Ewcouracep by thefe fpeeches, the multitude flocked together, and armed themfelves with axes, bills, bows, and fuch weapons as country people are ufually poffefied of. Flammoc and Jofeph were chofen their leaders. They foon conduéted the Cornifh through the county of Devon, and reached that of Somerfet. At Taunton the infurgents killed in their fury an officious and eager commiffioner for the fubfidy, whom they called the provoft of Perin. When they reached Wells, they were joined by lord Audley, a nobleman of an antient family, popular in his deportment, but vain, ambitious, and refllefs in his temper. He had from the beginning entertained a fecret correfpondence with the firft movers of the infurreétion ;, and was now joyfully re- ceived by them as their leader. Proud of the countenance given them by fo con- fiderable a nobleman, they pufhed on their march; breathing deftruction to the King’s minifters and favourites, particularly Morton, now a cardinal, and Sir Reginald Bray, who were deemed his moft active inftruments in all his oppreffions, Amidft their rage againft the adminiftration, they carefully followed the di- A rections Chap. IIT. 1497 Infurreétion in the Weft. Chap. IIl. 1497- Rattle of Biackheath. 46 HISTORY or ENGLAND. rections given them by their leaders; and as they met with no refiftance, they committed, during their march, no violence or diforder. Tue infurgents had been told by Flammoc, that the inhabitants of Kent, as they had ever, during all ages, remained unfubdued, and had even maintained their independancy during, the Norman’ conqueft, would’ furely embrace their party, and declare themfelves for a caufe, which was:‘no other than that of public eood and general liberty. But the Kentith people had: very lately diftinguifhed themfelves by repelling Perkin’s ‘nvafion; and having received from the King many gracious acknowledgments for this fervice, their affections were,:'by that means, much conciliated to his government, It was eafy therefore, for the'earl of Kent, lord Abergavenny, and lord Cobham, who pofi-ffed great authority in thofe parts, to retain the people in obedience ; and the Cornifh rebels, though they pitched their camp near Eltham, at the very gates of London, and invited all the people to join them, got reinforcement from novquarter. » ‘There wanted not difcontent every where, but no one would take part info rafhand ill-concerted an enterprize; and the fituation in which the King’s affairs then ftood, difcou- raged even the boldeft and moft daring. Henry, in order to oppofe the Scotch, frad already levied an army, which he put under the command of Jord Daubeney, the chamberlain 5 and fo foon as he heard of the Cornifh infurrection, he ordered itto march fouthwards, and fup- prefs the rebels. Not to leave the northern frontier defencelefs, he difpatched thither the earl of Surry, who fummoned out the forces on the borders, and made head apainft the enemy. Henry found here the concurrence of the three moft fatal incidents, which can befal a monarcay; a foreign enemy, a domefiic rebellion, and a pretender to his throne; but he enjoyed great refources in his army and treafure, and ftill more, in the intrepidity and courage of his own temper. He gave not, however, immediately full fcope to his military {pirit. On other occafions, he had always haftened to a decifion, and it was an ufual faying with him, that be defired but to fee his rebels: But as the Cornifhinfurgents behaved in an inoffenfive manner, and committed no fpoil on the country, as they received no acceffion of force on their march or in their encampment, and as fuch hafty and popular tumults might be expected to diminifh every moment by delay, he took poft in London, and carefully prepared the means of enfuring the victory. Arrer all his forces were collected, he divided them into three bodies, and marched out to affail the enemy. The firft body, commanded by the earl of Oxford, and under him by the earls of Effex and Suffolk, were appointed to place themfelves behind the hill on which the rebels were encamped: The fecond 7 i and BEN ReYir cv, 47 and moft confiderable Henry put under the command of Jord Daubeney, and or- dered him to attack the enemy in front, and bring on the action. . The third, he kept as a body of referve about his own perfon, and took poft in St. George’s field ;, where he fecured the city, and could eafily, as occafion ferved, either reftore the fight or finith the victory. To put the enemy off their guard, he had Chap. III. 1497: 22d of June. {pread a report that he was not to attack them till fome days after; and the better to. confirm them in this opinion, be began not the action till near the evening. Dau- beney beat a detachment of the rebels from Deptford-bridge; and before the main body could be in order to receive him, he had gained the afcent of the hill, and placed himfelf in array before them. They were very formidable for their numbers, being fixteen thoufand ftrong, and were not defeétive in valour; but being tumultuary troops, ill armed, and unprovided of cavalry or artillery, they were but an une- qual match for the King’s forces, Daubeney began the attack with courage, and even with a contempt of the enemy, which had almoft proved fatal to him. He rufhed into the midft of them, and was taken prifoner ; but foon after was re- lieved by his own troops. After fome refiftance, the rebels were broke, and put to flight *. Lord Audley, Flanmoc, and Joleph, their leaders,- were taken, and all three executed. . The latter feemed even to exult in-his end, and boafted, with a prepofterous ambition, that he would make a figure in-hiftory.. The rebels, being furrounded on every fide by the King’s troops, were almoft all made prifoners ; and immediately difmiffed without farther punifhment. Whe- ther, that Henry was fatisfied with the victims who had fallen in the field, and who amounted to near two.thoufand, or that he pitied the ignorance and fimplicity of the multitude, or favoured them on account of their inoffenfive behaviour, or was pleafed that they had never, duriag their infurrection, difputed his title, and had fhewn no attachment to the houfe of York, the moft capital crime of which in his eyes they could have been guilty, | Tue Scottith King was not idle during thefe commotions in England. He levied a confiderable army, and fat down before the caftle of Norham in North- umberland ; but found that place, by the precaution of Fox, bifhop of Durham, fo well provided both in men and ammunition, that he made little or no progrefs in the fiege. Hearing that Surrey had collected fome forces and was advancing upon him, he retreated backwards into his own country, and left the frontiers expofed to the inroads of the Englifh general, who befieged and took Aiton, -a {mall caftle that lies a few miles beyond Berwic. .Thefe unfuccefsful or frivolous attempts on both fides prognofticated a fpeedy end to the war; and Henry, not- withftanding his fuperior force, was no lefs defirous than James of terminating the differences * Polydore Virgil, p. 6o1. t i , i BH | | be yh) : i} ’ a ; Pall ii an I nt? { HH ae see 1} Truce with Scotland. 48 HISTORY of ENGLAND. differences between the nations. Not to depart, however, from his dignity, by making the firlt advances towards peace, he employed in this friendly office Peter Hialas, a man of addrefs and learning; who had come to him as ambafiador from Ferdinand and Ifabella, and who was charged with a commifion of nego- tiating the marriage of the infanta Catherine, their daughter, with Arthur prince of Waies *. Ipanas took a journey northwards, and offered his mediation between James and Elenry, as minifter of a prince, who was in alliance with both potentates. Commiftioners were foon appointed to meet, and confer of the terms of accom- modation, ‘The firft demand of the Englith was, that Perkin fhould be put into their hands; but James replied, that he himfelf was no judge of Perkin’s pre- tenfions, but having received him as a fupplicant, and promifed him protection, he was determined not to betray a man, whatever he was, who had trufted to his good faith and his eenerofity. The next demand of the Englifh met with no bet- ter reception: They required reparation for the ravages committed by the late ‘nroads into England: The Scotch commiffioners replied, that the fpoils were like water fpilt upon the ground, which never could be recovered, and that Henry’s fubjects were better able to bear the lofs than their mafter’s to repair it. Henry’s commiffioners next propofed, that the two Kings fhould have an inter- view at Newcaftle, in order to adjuft all differences; but James faid, that he meant to treat of a peace, not to go a begging for it. Left the conferences fhould break off altogether without effect, a truce was concluded for fome months; and James perceiving, that while Perkin remained in Scotland, he never would enjoy a folid peace with Henry, privately defired him to depart the Kingdom. Access was now barred Perkin into the low countries; his ufual retreat in all his difappointments. The Flemith merchants, who felt feverely the lofs refult- ing from their want of commerce with England, had made fuch intereft in the arch-duke’s council, that commuiffioners were fent to London, in order to treat. of ah accommodation. The Flemifh court agreed that all Englifh rebels fhould be excluded the low countries ; and in this prohibition the demefnes of the dutchefs dowager were exprefsly comprehended. When this principal article was agreed to, all the other terms were eafily adjufted. A treaty of con” merce was finifhed, which was favourable to the Flemings, and to which. they sere aes OF ee eek ap, eee o a t Antwerp, they were pub- licly received, as in proceflion, with great joy and feftivity. PERKIN * Polydore Virgil, p. 603. LRN Re ¥ © vi. 49 PERKIN Was a Fleming by defcent, tho’ born in England; and it might there- fore be doubted, whether he was comprehended in the treaty between the two nations: But as he muft difmifs all his Englifh retainers if he took fhelter.in the jow countries, and as he was fure of a cold reception, if not bad ufage, among a people who were determined to keep on terms of frie ndfhip with the court of England ; he thought fit rather to hide himfelf, during fome time, in the wilds and faftnefles of Ireland. Impatient however of a retreat, which was both difapreeable . and dangerous, he held confultations with his followers, Herne, Skelton; and Aftley, three broken tradefmen; and by their advice, refolved to try the affec- tions of the Cornith, whofe mutinous difpofition, notwithftanding the King’s lenity, ftill fubfifted, after the fuppreffion of their rebellion. No fooner did he appear at Bodmin in Cornwal, than the populace, to the number of three thou- fand men, flocked to his ftandard; and Perkin, elated with this appearance of fuccefs, took on him, for the firft time, the appellation of Richard the fourth, King of England. Not to fuffer the expectations of his followers to languifh, he prefented himfelf before Exeter ; and by many fair promifes, invited that city to join his caufe. Finding that the inhabitants fhut their gates againft him, he laid fiege to the place; but being unprovided of artillery, ammunition, and of every thing requifite for that attempt, he made no progrefs in his undertaking. Mef- fengers were fent to the King, informing him of this infurreétion ; and the citizens meanwhile were determined to hold out to the laft extremity, in expectation of rectiving fuccour from the known vigilance of that monarch. Wuen Henry was informed, that Perkin was landed in England, he exprefied great joy, and prepared himfelf with alacrity to attack him, in hopes of being able, at Jaft, to put a-period to a pretenfion, which had fo long given him vex- ation and inquietude. All the courtiers, fenfible that their activity on this occa- fion would be the moft acceptable fervice which they could render -the King, prepared themfelves for the enterprize, and forwarded his preparations. The lords Daubeney, and Broke, with Sir Rice ap Thomas, haftened forward with a {mall body of troops to the relief of Exeter. The earl of Devonfhire, and the moft confiderable gentlemen in the county of that name, took arms of them. felves, and marched to join the King’s generals. The duke of Buckingham put himfelf at the head of a troop of young nobility and gentry, who ferved as vo- luntiers, and who longed for an opportunity of difplaying their courage ‘and their loyalty. The King himfelf prepared to follow with a confiderable army ; and thus all England feemed united again{ta pretender, who had at firtt engaged their attention; and divided their affections, H PERKIN, Chap. III. 1497. = ee — Ee a ; ie r - it | , int ti, 1p i hit ty 4 . - Perkin taken prifoner. 50 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Perkin, informed of thefe great preparations, im mediately broke up' the fiege of Fxeter, and retired to Taunton. ‘“Eho’ his Esllawers now. amoutited to the number of near feven thoufand mena, and feermed: fti'l' refolute to defend his: eaule; he himfelf defpaired of fuecefs, and fecretly withdrew to the fanctuary of Beuley in the new foreft. The Cornifh rebels fabmitted themfelves to the King’s merey,. and found that it was not yet exhautted in their behalf. Except a few’ pe fons of defperate fortunes; Who were executed, and. fome others. who were feverely fined,. all the reft were difmift with impunity. The Lady Catherire Gordon, wile to: Perkin, fell into the conqueror’s hands,’ and was treated. with a generofity, which does him honour. He foothed. her mind with many tokens of regard, placed: her ina reputable ftation. about the queen, and aligned hef 4 pénfion,. which: fhe enjoyed even under his fucceffor. Henry next deliberated what courfe-to take with Perkin himfelf, » Some coun- felled him to make the privileges of the church yield to reafons:of ftate,. to take» him by violence from the fanétuary, to inflict on him the punifhment due to his. temerity, and thus at once to put an end to an impofture which had long difturbed: the government, and which the credulity of the people and the artifices. of male-. contents were ftill capable of reviving. But the King deemed not the matter of fuch importance as,to merit f> violent. a remedy. - He employed fome perfons to deal with Perkin, and perfwace him, under promile of pardon, to: deliver: himfelf into the King’s hands *.. The King conduéted him in a fpecies of mock. triumph to London. , As Perkin paffed. along, the road, and through the ftreets. of that city,. men of all ranks flocked about him, and the populace treated with: the higheft derifion his fallen fortunes. They feemed, defirous of -revenging them-=- felves by their ‘nfalts.for the fhame.-which their former. belief of his: impoftures had: thrown upon them. Tho’ the eyes of the. nation. were generally opened with re- gard. to Perkin’s real parentage and ftation, Henry thought proper to require of him aconfeffion of his. life and adventures ;.and. he ordered the account of the: whole to be publifhed foon after for the: fatisfaction of the public. But as his re- gard to decency made him fupprefs entirely the fhare which: the dutchefs-of Burs. sundy had had in.contriving and conducting: the impofiure, the people, who- knew that fhe had been the chief ‘nftrument in the whole affair, were inclined, on. account of the filence on that head, to pay lefs credit to the authenticity of the narrative. But Perkin, tho’ his life was granted him, was ftill retained in cuftody ; and keepers were appointed to guard him. Impatient of confinement, he broke loofe from his keepers, and flying to the fanétuary of Shyne, put himfelf into the hands of * Polydore Virgil, p. 606. H EN R Y VIf. La SS PM EP ys - vette wee - <8, of the prior of that monaftery.. The prior had obtained great credit by his cha- Chap. IIl. racter of fanctity; and he prevailed with the King again to granta pardon toPet- "49 kin. But in order to reduce him to ftillgreater contempt, he was fet in the ftocks Weftminfter and at Cheapfide, and obliged in both places to réad aloud to the people the confeflion which had been formerly publifhed in his name. He was thrown into the Tower, where his habits of reftlefs intrigue and enterprize ftil! followed him, . He infinuated himfelf into the intimacy of four fervants of Sic John Digby, lieutenant of the Tower ; and by their means, opened a correfpon- dence with the earl of Warwic, who was confined to the fame prifon. That un- fortunate prince, who had from his earlieft infancy been fhut up from the com- merce of men, and who was ignorant even of the moft common affairs of life, had fallen into a fimplicity which made him fufceptible of any imprefficns. The continued dread alfo of the more violent effects of Henry’s tyranny, joined to the natural love of liberty, engaged him to embrace a project for his efcape, by the murder of the lieutenant; and Perkin offered to conduct the whole enterprize. The confpiracy efcaped not the King’s vigilance: Ic was even very generally be- lieved,. that the fcheme was laid by himfelf,.in order to draw Perkin and Warwic into the {nare: But the fubfequent execution.of two of Digby’s fervants for the contrivance feems to clear the King of that imputation, which was indeed founded more on. the general idea entertained of his character, than on any pofitive evidence. i i if i Perkin, by this new attempt, after fo many enarmities, had rendered himfelf totally unworthy of mercy ; and he was. accordingly arraigned, condemned, and Pivkca ae foon after hanged at. Tyburn, perfifting ftill in the confeflion of. his impoiture *. cuted. His 2 It * Stow, Baker, Speed, Biondi, Holinefhed, Bacon. Some late writers have been fo whimfical asto doubt, whether Perkin was an impoftor, aiid éven to-affert him to be the real Richard Plantagenet, duke’ of York. But to refute this fancy, we need but reflect on the few following particulars, 1. Had not the queen mother, and the other heads. of the York party, been fully affured of the death of both the young princes, would they have agrced.to call over the earl of Richmond, the head of the Lancaftrian party, and marry him to the princefs Flizabeth ? ~ 2. The ftory tald conftantly by Perkin of his efcape is ut- terly incredible, that-thofe who were fent to murder-his brother took pity on him, and granted him his liberty. 3. What became of him during the courfe of fevea years, from his fuppofed death til! his appearance in Ireland in 1491? Why was not the queen mother, the dutchefs of Burgundy, and the other friends of the ‘amily applied to, during that time, for his fupport and education ? 4. Tho’ the dutcheis of Burgundy at laft acknowledged him for her nephew, fhe had Joft all pretence to authority ~ by her former acknowledement and fupport of Lambert Simnel, an avowed im poitor. IJt.is remarkable, that Mr. Carte, in order to preferve the weieht of the dutchefs’s teftimony, in favour of Perkin, fup- preifes entirely this material fact. A remarkable effeét’ of party prejudices, and the author’s defire of black ening Henry the feventh, whofe hereditary title to the crown was defeétive. 5- Perkin himfelf con- Yeiled his impofture more than once, and read his confeilion before the whole people. It is pretended that Chap. III. 1499: The earl of Warwic exe- cuted. 2iftof No- vember. 52 HISTORY oF ENGLAND. It happened about that very time; that one Wilford, a cordwainer’s fon, encou- raged by the furprizing credit which had been given to other impoftures, had undertaken to perfonate the earl of Warwic; and a prieft had even ventured from the pulpit to recommend his caufe to the people, who feemed ftill to retaima propenfity to adopt it. This incident ferved Henry as‘an. apology for his feverity towards that unfortunate prince. He was brought to trial, and accufed, not of contriving his efcape, (for as he was committed for no crime, the defire of liberty muft have been regarded as natural and innocent) but of forming defigns to difturb the government, and raife an infurrection among the people. Warwic confefied the indiétment, was condemned, and the fentence was executed upon him. Tuts violent tyranny, the great ftain of Henry’s reign, by which he deftroyed the laft remaining niale of the line of Plantagenet, begot great difcontent among the people, who faw an unhappy prince, that had long been deprived of all the privileges of his high birth, even cut off from the common benefits of nature, now at laft deprived of life itfelf, merely for refifting that oppreffion under which he laboured. In vain did Henry endeavour to alleviate the odium of this guilt, by fharing it with his ally, Ferdinand of Arragon, who, he faid, had fcrupled to give his daughter Catherine in marriage to Arthur, while any prince of the houfe of York remained alive. Men, on the contrary, felt higher indignation at feeing a young prince facrificed, not to law and juttice, but to the jealous politics of two fubtle and crafty tyrants. Bur tho’ thefe difcontents feftered in the minds of men, they were fo checked By Henry’s watchful policy and fteady feverity, that they appeared not to weaken his government; and foreign princes, deeming his throne now entirely fecure, payed him rather the greater courtfhip and attention. The arch-duke Philip, in particular, defired an interview with the King; and this monarch, who had pafled over to Calais, agreed to meet him at St. Peter’s church near that city. The arch-duke, on his approaching the King, made hafte to alight, and offered to hold Henry’s ftirrup; a mark of condefcenfion, which that prince would not admit of. He called the King father, patron, protector, and by his whole be- haviour exprefied a {trong defire of conciliating the friendfhip of England. The duke that this confeffion was drawn from him by torture; but no antient hiftorian gives any ground for this farmife. 6. He renewed his confeffion at the foot of the gibbet on which he was executed. 7. After Henry the eighth’s acceffion, the titles of the houfe of York and Lancafter were fully confounded, and there was no longer any neceflity for defending Henry the feventh and his title; yet all the hiftorians of that time, when the events were recent, fome of thefe hiftorians too, fuch as Sir Thomas More, of the higheft authority, agree in treating Perkin as an impoitor. me aN RY Y VII. 52 duke of Orleans had fucceeded to the kingdom of France under the appellation of Chap. TI. Lewis the twelfth ; and having carried his arms into Italy, and fubdued the dutchy ‘499: of Milan, his proerefs begot jealoufy in Maximilian, Philip’s father, as well as in Ferdinand, his father-in-law. By the council, therefore, of thefe monarchs, the young prince endeavoured by every art to acquire the amity of He they regarded as the chief counterpoize to the greatnefs of France. lar ‘plan however of alliance feems to have been concerted between thefe two prin- ces in their interview: All paffed in general profeffions of affeXion and reoard ; at leaf{t, in remote projects of a clofer union, by the future intermarriages of their children, who were then in-a ftate of infancy, ary, whom No particu- Oo © Tur pope too, Alexander the fixth, neglected not the friendthip of a monarch, whofe, reputation was fpread all over Europe. He fent a nuntio to Enoland bea. who exhorted the King to take part in the great alliance projected for the recovery of the Floly Land, and to lead in perfon his forces againft the Turk. The gene- ral frenzy for croifadoes was now entirely exhaufted in Europe; but it was {till thought a neceflary piece of decency to pretend zeal for thofe pious enterprizes. Henry regreted the diftance of his fituation, which rendered it inconvenient for him to expofe his perfon in defence of the chriftian caufe. He promifed, how- ever, his utmoft affiftance by aids and contributions ; and rather than the pope fhould go alone to the holy wars, unaccompanied by any monarch, he even pro- aifed to overlook all other confiderations, and to attend him in perfon. He only required as a neceflary condition, that all differences thor uld be previoufly compofed among chriftian princes, and that fome fea-port towns in Italy fhould be put into his hands for his retreat and fecurity.. It was eafy to conclude from this anfwer, that Henry had determined with himf{elf not tointermeddle in any wars againft the Turk: But as a great name, without any real affiftance, is fometimes of fervice, the knights of Rhodes, who were. at that time efteemed the bulwark of Chriftendom, choft the King protector of their order. Bur the prince, whofe alliance Henry valued the moft, was that of Ferdinand of Arragon, whofe vigorous and {teddy policy, always attended with fuccefs, had rendered him, in many refpeéts, the mott confiderable monarch in Europe. There was alfo a remarkable fimilarity of character between thefe two princes : Both were full of craft, intrigue, and defign; and tho’ a refemblance of this na- ture be a flender foundation of confidence and friendfl nip, where the interefts of the parties in the leaft interfere ; yet fuch was the fituation of Flenry and Ferdji- _ 15°!. . nand, that no jealoufy ever on any occafion arofe between them, The King had corres, oa now the fatisfaction of compleating a marriage, which had been projected and withCatherine negotiated during the courfe of feven years, between Arthur prince of Wales and = ae soak tne vember, Bs 54. HISTORY or ENGLAND. 7 Chap. Ul. the infanta Catherine, fourth daughter of Ferdinand and Lfabella; he near fixteen as years of age, fhe eighteen. But this marriage proved in the iffue unprofperous, 3 Byte The young prince, a few months alter, fickened and died, very much regreted ae by the whole t ation. Henry, delirous fo continue his alliance with Spain, and alfo unwiliing to reftore Catherine’s dowry, which was two hundred thoufand ducats, obliged his fcond fon, Henry, whom he created prince of Wales, to be 1502 contracted to the princes. The prince made all the oppofition which a youth of twelve years of age was capable of; but as the King perfifted in his refolution, the efpoufals were at laft, by means of the pope’s difpenfation, concluded between the parties: An event, which was afterwards attended with the moft important confequences. Marriace of | LHE fame year, another marriage was concluded, which was alfo, in the next er princels age, productive of great events: The marriage of Margaret, the King’s eldeft Margaret with the King daughter, with James King of Scotland. This alliance had been negotiated of Scotland. qdyring three years, tho’ interrupted by feveral broils ; and Henry hoped, from the completion of it, to remove all fource of difcord with that neighbouring king- dom, by whofe animofity England had been fo often infefted. When this marriage was deliberated on in the Englifh council, fome objected, that England might, by means of that alliance, fall under the dominion of Scotland. ** No ; replied Henry, ° Scotland, in that event, would only become an acceflion to England.” 1503 ~ Amidt thefe profperous events, the King met with a domeftic calamity, which ithofFe- made not fuch impreffion on him as it merited. His queen died in child-bed ; bruary- and the infant lived not long after. ‘This princefs was defervedly a great favourite of the nation; and the general affection for her encreafed, on account of the harfh treatment, which, it was thought, fhe met with from her conjort. Tue fituation of the King’s affairs, both at home and abroad, was now, in every refpect, very defirable. All the efforts of the European princes, both in war and negotiation, were turned to the fide of Italy; and the various events, which there arofe, made Henry's alliance be courted by every party, and yet interefted him fo little as never to touch him with coneern or anxiety. His clofe connexions with Spain and Scotland enfured his tranquillity ; and his continued fuccefies over domeftic enemies, owing to the prudence and vigour of his conduét, had reduced the people to entire fubmiffion and obedience. Henry therefore, uncontrouled by apprehenfion or oppofition of any kind, gave. full {cope to his oictioi natural propentity ; and avarice, which had ever been his predominant pafhon, of the people. BEeINg encreafed by age, and encouraged by abfolute authority, brake all reftraints of fhame or juftice. He had found two minifters, Empfon and Dudley, perfeétly qualified to fecond his rapacious and tyrannical inclinations, and prey 4 upon HOEON SRS Y ¥ /Vit gs the firft of mean birth, of brutal manners, of an unrelenting temper; the {e. cond better born, better educated, and better bred, but equally unjuft, fevere, and inflexible. By their knowledge in the law, thefe men were qualified to per- vert the forms of juftice to: the oppreflion of the innocent; and the formidable authority of the King fupported theny in all their iniquities. upon his defencelefs people. ‘Thefe inftruments of oppreffion were both lawycrs, Ir was their ufual practice to obferve fo far the appearance of law as to give indictments to thofe whom they intended to opprefs: Upon which the perfons were committed to prifon, but never brought to trial; and were at laft obliged. to recover their liberty, by paying heavy fines and ranfoms,. which were called mitigations and compofitions.. By degrees, the very appearance of law was ne- glected: They fent forth their precepts to attach men, and fummon them before themfelves and fome others, at their private houfes, in a court of commiffion ; where, in a fummary manner, without trial or jury, arbitrary decrees were iffued,. both in pleas of. the’ crown and controverfies between private parties. Juries themfelves, when fummoned, proved but fmall fecurity to the fubje& ; being brow-beat: by thefe oppreflors; nay, fined, imprifoned, and punifhed, if they gave fentence againft the incination of the minifters. The whole fy{tem of the feudal laws which then prevailed, was turned into a fcheme of oppreffion. Even the King’s wards, after they came to full age, were not fuffered to enter in. poffeffion of their lands without paying exorbitant fines: Men were alfo haraffed with informations of intrufion upon fearce colourable titles.. When an outlawry in a perfonal action was iffued againit any.man, he was not allowed to purchafe his charter of pardon, except on the payment of a great fum; and if he refufed the compofition required of him, the ftrict law, which, in fuch cafes, allows for- feiture of goods, was rigorcufly infifted on. Nay, without any colour of law, the half of men’s lands and rents were feized during two years; as a penalty in cafe of outlawry. But the chief inftrument of oppreffion, employed by thefe minifters, were the penal Stitutes, which, without confideration of rank, quality, or fervices, were ftrictly put in execution againft all men: Spies, informers, and inquifitors were rewarded and encouraged in every corner of the kingdom : And no difference was made whether'the ftatute was beneficial or hurtful, recent or obfolete, poffible or impoffible to be executed. The fole end of the King and his minifters was.to amafs money, and bring every one under. the lath of their authority *, By. * Bacon, 629, 30.. Hollingfhed, p, yo4«. Polyd. Virg. p. 613, 615, Chap. ILL 1503. 1504. 25th January. A Parliament. O5s 56 HISTORY or ENGLAND. By the prevalence of fuch an arbitrary and iniquitous adminiftration, the Eng- lith, it may fafely be affirmed, were confiderable lofers by the ancient privilege, which fecured them from all taxations and impofitions, except {uch as were levied by their own confent. Had the King been empowered to lay on general taxes at his pleafure, he would naturally have abftained from thefe opprefiive expedients, which deftroyed all feeurity in private property, and begot an univerfal diffi- dence thro’ the nation. In vain did the people look for protection from the Parliament, which was pretty frequently fummoned during this reign. That afiembly was fo overawed, that, at this very time, during the greateft rage of Henry’s oppreffion, the commons chofe Dudley their fpeaker, the very man who was the chief inftrument of his oppreffions, And tho’ the King was known to be immenfely opulent, and had no pretence of wars or expenfive enterprizes of any kind, they granted him the fubfidy, which he demanded. but fo infatiable was his avarice, that the next year he levied a new benevolence, and renewed that arbitrary and oppreffive method of taxation. By all thefe arts of accumu- lation, joined to a rigid frugality in his expence, he fo filled his coffers, that he is faid to have poffeffed in ready money the fum of 1,800,000 pounds: An la- credible treafure, if we confider the fcarcity of money in thofe days *. Bur while Henry was enriching himfelf with the fpoils of his opprefied people, there happened an event abroad, which engaged his attention, and was even the object of his anxiety and concern. Ifabelia, queen of Caftile, ded about this time; and it was forefeen, that by this incident the fortunes of Ferdi- dand, her hufband, would be much affected. ‘The King was not only attentive to the fate of his ally, and watchful left the general fyftem of Europe fhould be affected by fo important an event: He alfo confidered the fimilarity of his own fituation with that of Ferdinand, and regarded the iflue of thefe tranfactions as a precedent for himfelf. Joan, the daughter of Ferdinand by [fabella, was matried to the archduke Philip, and being, in right of her mother, heirefs of Caftile, feemed entitled to difpute with Ferdinand the prefent adminiftration of that kingdom. Henry knew, that, notwithftanding his own pretenfions by the houfe of Lancafter, the greateft’ part of the nation were convinced of the fupe> riority of his wife’s title; and he dreaded left the prince, who was daily advanc- ing towards manhood, might be tempted by ambition to lay immediate claim to the % 7 7 > . e eqa? 3 we | Silver was during this reign at 37 fhillings and fix pence a pound, which makes Henry’s treafure al a . above 2,750,c00 pounds fterling. 5 sefides, many commodities gold and filver in Europe. : became twice as dear by the encreafe of And what is a circumftance of ftill greater weight, all ot) very poor, in comparifon of what they are at prefent: Thefe circumftances appe ser fates were then make Henry’s treafure ee et de eal ms: Pe . ; ar very great; and may lead us te conceive the oppreflions of his government. em een: RF VI. $7 the throne. By his perpetual attention to deprefS the partizans of the York family, he had more clofely united them into one party, and encreafed their defire of fhaking off that yoke, under which they had fo long laboured, and of taking every advantage, which his oppreffive government would give his enemies againft him. And as he poffefled no independent force like Ferdinand, and go- verned a kingdom more turbulent and unruly, which he himfelf, by his. narrow politics, had confirmed in factious prejudices ; he apprehended that his fituation would prove in the iffue {till more precarious. Notuine could turn out more contrary to the King’s: inclination than the tranfactions in Spain. Ferdinand had become very unpopular in Cattile, chiefly by reafon of his former exactions and impofitions; and the ftates of the kingdom dif- covered an evident refolution of preferring the title of Philip and Joan. In order to take advantage of thefe favourable difpofitions, the archduke, now King of o Caftile, attended with his confort; embarked for Spain during the winter feafon ; and meeting with a violent tempeft in the channel, was obliged to take thelr in the harbour of Weymouth. Sir John Trenchard, a gentleman of authority , » is oo we val OF the in the county of Dorfet, hearing of a ficet upon the coatt, had aflembled fome King of Ca forces ; and being joined by Sir John Gary; who was alfo at the head of ant armed body, he came to that town. Finding, that Philip, in order to relieve his ficknefs and faticue, was already come afhore, he invitéd him to his houfe ;° and immediately dilpatched:an exprefs to inform the court of this important incident. The King fent in all hafte the earl of Arundel to congratulate the archduke on his arrival in England, and to inform him, that he intended to pay him a vifit in perfon, and give him a fuitable reception in his kingdom. Phitip knew, that he could not now depart without the King’s confent; and therefore, for the fake of difpatch, he refolved to anticipate his vifit, and to have an interview with him at Windfor. Henry received him with all the magnificence poffible, and with all the fecmine cordiality; but he refolved, notwithitanding, to extract fome advantage from this involuntary vifit, payed him by his royal gueft. Epmonp dela Pole, earl of Suffolk, nephew to Edward the fourth, and bro- ther to the earl of Lincoln, flain at the battle of Stoke, had fome years before Intricues of the Earl of Fw killed a man in a fudden fit of paffion, and had been obliged to apply to the Suffolk. King for a remiflion of his crime. The King had granted his requeft ; but being little-indulgent to all perfons conne@ted with the houfe of York, he obliged him.to appear openly in court and plead his pardon. Suffolk more refenting the affront, than grateful for the favour, had fled into Flanders, and taken thelter with his aunt, the dutchefs of Burgundy: But being promifed forgivenefs by the King, he returned into England, and obtained a new pardon, Actuated, however, by the | natura! r i* § x - Chap. TIL. - i dale >) \w Js 58 HISTORY or ENGLAND. . . ’ 1 ° A © ; natutal inquietude of his temper, and uneafy from debts which he had contracted by his expences at prince Arthur's marriage, he again mace an clopement into Flanders. The King, well acquainted with the ceneral difcontent which pre- YY . 4 . 4 ~ . , URE: . ml ba PF a, 3 — 1 ~ os . “ A . aa ‘ } -yailed againi{t his adminiftration, neglectea not this incident, which might be- e ~ > | ieee $. = me | pre pe ; ‘ } a come of importance ; and he employed his ufuai artiuces to elude the efforts of ¥ = his enemies. He directed Sir Robert Curfon, governor of the caftle of Hammes, to fly from his charge, and to infinuate himfelt into the confidence of Suffolk, by making him a tender of his fervices. Upon ‘nformation fecretly conveyed by Curfon, the King feized William Courtney, earl of Devonthire, his brother ‘1 law, married to~ the lady Catherine, daughter of Edward the fourth; Wil- liam dela Pole, brother to the earl of Suffolk ; Sir James Tirrel, and Sir James Windham, with fome perfons of inferior quality + and he committed them all to cuftody. The lord Abergavenny and Sir Thomas Green were alfo appre- hended; but were foon after freed from their confinement. William de la Pole } was retained in prifon during a long time : And the carl ofs-Devonfhire recovered not his freedom during the King’s life. But Henry’s chief feverity fell upon Sir James Windham, and Sir James Tirrel, who were both brought to their trial; condemned, and executed: The fate ‘of the latter gave univerfal fatif- faétion, on account of his participation ‘n the murther. of the young princes, fons to Edward the fourth, Notwithftanding thefe difcoveries and executions, Curfon was ftill able to maintain his credit with the earl of Suffolk ; and Henry, in order to remove all fufpicions, had ordered him to be excommunicated, to- gether with Suffolk himfelf, for his pretended. rebellion. But after that traitor had performed all the fervices expected from him, he fuddenly deferted the earl, and came over to England, where the King received him with unufual marks of favour and confidence. Suffolk, aftonifhed at this inftance of perfidy, finding even that the dutchefs of Burgundy, tired with fo many fruitlefs attempts, had become indifferent to his caufe, fied fecretly into France, thence into Germany, and returned at laft into the Low Countries ; where he was protected, tho’. not countenanced, by the archduke Philip, then in clofe alliance with the king. Henry neglected not the prefent opportunity of complaining to Philip of the reception, which Suffolk had met within his dominions, L really thought,” replied the King of Caftile, ‘* that your greatnefs and felicity had fet you far “< above apprehenfions from any perfon of fo little confequence: But to give “< you fatisfaction, | fhall banith him my ftate.”? ‘* I expect, ‘that you will carry «¢ your complaifance farther,” faid the King: ‘I defire to have Suffolk put ‘¢ into my hands, where alone I can depend upon his fubmifiion and obedience.’” “ That meafure,” faid Phillip, ‘¢ will reflect difhonour upon you as well as myself, «¢ myfelf. You will be thought td have ufed me as a prifoner.’? ** Then the Cha 7 } PS eer a # j \ <* matter is at an end,” replied the King, ‘‘ for I will take that difhonour u bs . - ‘ c af fila £ asa, | Prey SET i <¢ me; and fo your honour is faved *.” The king of Caftile found himfel! undef a neceflity of complying ; but he firft exaGled Henry’s promile that he “~TtT ; ) Vv ' would fparé Suffolk’s life. That nobleman was invited over to E,ngland by Philip; as. if the King would grant him a pardon, by the interceffion of his iri and ally. Upon his. appearance, he was committed. to the Tower? and the King of Caftile, having fully fatisfied Henry, as well by this conceflion, as by figning a treaty of commerce between England and Caftile, which was advantageous to the former kingdom +, was at laft allowed to. depart, after a ftay of three months. He landed in Spain, was joyfully received by the Calti- = 107. lians, and put in pofieffion of the throne. He died foon after; and Joan, his widow, falling into deep melancholy, Ferdinand was again enabled to re-inftate himfelf in his authority, and to govern, till the day of his death, the whole Spanifh monarchy. Tue King furvived thefe tranfactions two years ; but little memorable occurrs in the remaining part of his reign, except his affiancing his fecond daughter Mary with the young archduke Charles, fon of Philip of Caftile. He entertained allo, ..9 fome intention of marriage for himfelf; firft with the queen dowager of Naples, reli@t of Ferdinand ; afterwards with the dutchefs dowager of Savoy, daughter of Maximilian, and fifter of Philip. But the decline of his health put anend toall .. 4. fuch thoughts ; and he began to caft his eye towards that future exiftence, which the King. the iniquities and feverities of his reign rendered a very difmal profpect to him. To allay the terrors, under which he laboured, he endeavoured, by diftributing of-alms and founding of religious houfes; to make attonement for his crimes, and to purchafe, with the facrifice of part of his ill-gotten treafures, a recon- cilement to his offended Maker. ~ Remorfe even feized him by intervals for the abufes of his authority by Empfon and Dudley s but not fufficient to make him ftop the rapacious hand of thofe oppre ffors: Sit William Capel. was again fined two thoufand pounds under fome frivolous pretences, and was committed tothe Tower for daring';to murmur againft: that iniquity. Harris, an alderman of London, was indicted, and died of vexation before his trial came to an iffue, Sir Lawrence Ailmer, who had been mayor, and his two fheriffs, were condemned in heavy fines, and fent to prifon, till they made payment. The King gave coun- tenance to all thefe oppreffions 5 ‘till death, #by its nearer approaches, imprefied new terror upon him, and he then ordered, by a general claufe in his will, that 1 2 . reftitution - Bacon, p. 633. + Rymer, VOl, } 3° p. I 4 Ze bo HISTORY or ENGLAND. Chap. I. reftitution fhould be made to all thofe whom he had injured. He died of a i a confumption at his favourite palace of Richmond, after a reign of twenty-three aur April years and eight months, and in the fifty-fecond year of his age Ws Tue reign of Henry the feventh was, in the main, fortunate for his people at home, and honourable abroad. He put anend to the civil wars with which And charaéter the nation had been long harrafied, he maintained peace and order in the ftate, he depreffed the former exorbitant power of the nobility, and, together with the friendthip of fome foreign princes, he acquired the confideration and regard of all. He loved peace without fearing war ; tho’ agitated with continual fufpicions of his fervants and minifters, he difcovered no timidity either in the conduct of his affairs, or in the day of battle ; and tho’ often fevere in his punifhments, he was commonly Icfs a€tuated by revenge than by the maxims of policy. The fervices, which he rendered the people, were derived from his views of private intereft, rather than the motives of public fpirit ; and where he deviated from felfith regards, it was unknown to himfelf, and ever from the malignant pre- judices of faétion or the mean projects of avarice ; not from the fallies of paf- fion, or allurements of pleafures ftill lefs, from the benign motives of friendfhip and generofity. His capacity was excellent, but fomewhat contracted, by the narrownefs of his heart; he poffefled inGnuation and addrefs, but never em- ployed thefe talents, except where (ome great point of intereft was to be gained ; and while he neglected to conciliate the affections of his people, he often felt the danger of refting his authority on their fear and reverence alone. He was always extremely attentive to his affairs, but poflefed not the faculty of feeing far into futurity ; and was more expert at providing a remedy for his miftakes than judi- cious in avoiding them. Avarice was on the whole his ruling paffion® ; and he remains an inflance, almoft fingular, of a man, placed in a high ftation, and poffeffed of talents for great affairs, in whom that paffion predominated above ambition. Even among. private perfons, avarice is commonly nothing but a fpecies of ambition, and is chiefly incited by the profpect of that regard, dif- tinction and confideration which are derived from riches. Tur power of the Kings of England had always been fomewhat irrecular or difcretionary ; but was fcarce ever fo abfolute during any reign as during that of Henry. { Dued. baronage Il. p. 237- * Asa proof of Henry’s attention to the fmalleft profits, Bacon tells us, that he had feen a book of Accompts kept by Empfon, and fabfcribed in almott every leaf by the King’s own hand. Among other articles was the following. ‘‘ Jrem, Received of fuch a one five marks for a pardon, which, if «< it do not pafs, the money to be repayed, or the party otherwife fatisfied.” Oppofite to this memo- randum, the King had wrote with his own hand, ** otherwife fatisfied,” Bacon, p. 630, iy oe ss ae ee VE. G1 Henry. Befides the perfonal character of the man, full of vigour, induftry, and feverity, Geliberate in all projects, fteady in every purpofe, and attended with caution, as well as good fortune, in eachenterprize; hecame to the throne after long and bloody civil wars, which had deftroyed all the great nobility, who alone could refift the encroachments of his authority: The nation was tired with difcord and inteftine convulfions, and willing to fubmit to ufurpations, and even injuries, rather than plunge themfelves anew into like miferies: The fruitlefs efforts made againft him jerved always, as is ufual, to confirm his authority: As he ruled by a faétion, and the leffer faction, all thofe on whom he conferred offices, fenfible that they owed every thing to his protection, were content to fupport his power, tho’ at the expence of juftice and national privileges : Thefe feem the chief caufes which at this time befiowed on the crown fo confiderable an addition of prerogative, and rendered the prefent reign a kind of epoch in the Enelith conftitution. Tuts prince, tho’ he exalted his own prerogative above law, is celebrated by his hiftorian for many good laws, which he caufed to be enacted for the govern- ment of his fubjects.. Several confiderable regulations, indeed, are found among the ftatutes of this reign, both with regard to the police of the kingdom, and its commerce : But the former are commonly contrived with much better judge- Chap IH. 1509, ment than the latter.» The more fimple ideas of order and equity are fufficient His laws, to guide a legiflator in every thing that regards the internal adminiftration of juftice :- But the principles of commerce are much more complicated, and require Jong. experience and deep reflection to be well underftood in any ftate. The real confequence of a law or practice is there often contrary to firft appearances. No wonder, that during the reign of Henry the feventh, thefe matters were often mifunderftood ; and it may fafely be affirmed, that even in the age of lord Bacon, very imperfect and erroneous ideas were formed on that fubject. Farty in Henry’s reign, the authority of the Star Chamber, which was be- fore founded on common law and very ancient practice, was in fome cafes con- firmed by act of Parliament *: Lord Bacon extols the ufe of this court; but men began, during the age of that hiftorian, to feel that fo arbitrary a jurif- diction was totally incompatible with Jiberty ; and in proportion as the fpirit of independance rofe ftill higher in the nation, the averfion againft it increafed, till it was entirely abolifhed by at of Parliament in the reign of Charles the firft, a little before the commencement of the civil wars. Laws were pafied in this reign, ordering the King’s fuit for murder to be car- ried on within a year and day +. Formerly, it did not ufually commence till 3 after * Rot. Parl. 3.H. 7.0.17; + 3. H, 7. cap. 1 Chap. III. 1509. 62 HISTORY or ENGLi N D. after that term 3 and as the friends of the perfon murdered, in the interval, often compounded matters with the criminal, that crime was apt to pals unpunifhed. Suits were given to the poor #7 forma pauperis, as it is called: That 1s, without paying dues for the writs, or any fees to the council +: A good law at all times, efpecially in that age, when the people laboured under the oppreffion of the oreat; but a law very difficult to be reduced to execution. A law was made againft carrying off any woman by force {. The benefit of clergy was abridged §, and the criminal, on the Gift offence, was ordered to be burned in the hand with a letter marking his crime ; after which, he was punifhed capitally for every new offence. ‘This law was much too indulgent, yet was in thofe days regarded as a violation of the rights of the church, Sheriffs were no Jonger allowed to fine any perfon, without previoully fammoning him before their court |. It is firange, that fuch a practice fhould ever have prevailed. Attaint of juries was granted in cafes which exceeded forty pounds value **. A law which has an ap- pearance of equity, but which was afterwards found inconvenient, © Actions po- pular were not allowed to be eluded by fraud or covin, If any fervant of the King confpired againft the life. of the fteward, treafurer, or comptroller of the King’s houfe, this defign, tho’ not followed by any execution, was made liable to the punifhment of felony ++, This ftatute was procured by the jealoufy of archbifhop Morton, who found himfelf expofed to the enmity of great numbers. Trere fcarce pafled any feflion during this reign without fome ftatute againtt engaging retainers, and giving them badges or liveries ti ; a practice, by . ’ which they were, in a manner, inlifted under fome great lord, and were kept in readinefs to afift him in. all wars, ‘nfurrections, riots, violences, and even: im bearing: evidence for him in courts of juftice §§. This. diforder, which had rt : ; erarriile} ine Inet La YVUIT ~") 4 ore litela eAtecttan + arifen during turbulent times, when tne law could give: little protection to the fubje&t, was then deeply rooted in Englands and it required all the vigilance and ws , cain{t that YY inftance of his avarice-and rapacity.. The-earl of Oxford, his favourite general, to whom he always gave great and deferved truft, having fplendidly entertained him at rigour of [Henry to extirpate it. There isa {tory of his feverity a abufe ; wht ich feems to merit praife, tho’ it is commonly cited as an | Ce his caftie of Heningham, was defirous of making a fhow of his magnificence at the departure of his, royal cueft ; and ordered all his retainers, with their liveries } | qn Lo livp ka creauy im In ft line ha e - . Re nr and DAG RCS, to oe Craw up in two lines, at theis appcal ance micht be more a‘lar ff Wh yA. ~ oon VR / ty ~ + ? Pee > ge > 4 b ae } 2 ealant and fplendid. _ *‘ My lord,’ faid the King, ‘* I have heard much.of your 3 ’ . Lainirale 7 «© ™~1 a > yest o 2 ,wr art y >) od 5 ~~ a ie ge - ‘< hofpitality ; but the truth far exceeas the report, © 4 Acie handfome gentlemen ‘6 and Bike N KR YS VIE 63 “« and yeomen, whom I fee on both fides of me, are furely your menial fervants.” The earl {miled, and confeffed that his fortune was too narrow for fuch nisenifi- cence. ‘*® They are moft of them,” fubjoined he, ‘* my retainers, who are come to do me fervice at {uch a time, when they knew I was honoured wich vour ** majefty’s prefence.” The King ftarted a little, and faid, By my. faith, my ‘* lord, I thank you for my good sheer, but [ mutt not allow my laws to be broken *< in my, fight, My attorney muft [peak with you.” Oxford is faid to have payed no lefs than fifteen thoufand marks, asa compofition for his offence. Tue encreafe of the arts, more effectually than all the feverities of laws, put an end to this pernicious pitt tices. The nobility, inftead of vying with each other,: in the number and boldnefs of their retainers, acquired a more civilized {pecies of emulation, and endeavou rtd to excell in the fplendour and elegance of their equi- page, houfes, and tables. The common people, no longer maintained in a vi- cious idlenefs by their fuperiors, were ebli; ged to learn eat calling or induftry, and became ufeful both to themfelves and. others. And it muftbe acknowledged, in fpite of thofe who.declaim fo violently againft the refinement of the art:, or what they are pleafed to call luxury, that, as much as an induftrious tradefman is botha better man and a better citizen that one of thofe idle retainers, who fo:m rly de- pendedon the great families; as much is the life of a modern nobleman more lau- dable than that of an antient baron. Bur the moft important law in its confequences, which was enaéted during the reign of Henry, was that by which the nobility and gentry ee a power of J4& *7 oeok: ing the antient entails, and of alienating their eftates + By means of this Jaw, joined to the beginning luxury and refinements of the age, the great fortunes of the barons were grad ually diffipated, and the property of the commons en- creafed in England. It is probable, that Flenry forefaw and intended this confe- quénce ; becaufe the conftant fcheme of his policy confifted in depreffing the great, and exalting churchmen, lawyers, and men. of new families, who were iore dependant on him. | Tis King’s love of money naturally led him to encourage Commerce, which encreafed his cuftoms; but, if we may judge by moft of the laws enacted during isreign, trade and aac were rather hurt than promoted by the care and attention which were given tothem. Severe laws were made againit taking in- tereft for money, which was then denominated ufury {. Even the profits of ex: change were prohibited, as favouring of ufury §, which the fuperftition of that age zealoufly profcribed. All evafive contracts, by which profits could be made from the loan of mone y, were a'fo carefully guarded againft |. It is ~ needlefs to obferve how unreafonable and iniquitou s thefe laws, how impoffible to be exe- L cuted, and how hurtful to trade, if they could take place. We may obferve, however, + 4H. 7. cap. 24, t 3H. 7. cap. 5. § 3H. 7. cap. 6. | “J bs Hey i ‘ 2 4 CO Chap. II]. ] 599. h*) a toe f+ 3 RY = Ma ' j : 1 4 - i my - ur i! “ : neni) ft 5 ; Z at A 4 {i x * ee it) ‘ S i t ull it , y t ( f ‘ ; : iW \ i 1 4 ory ° 7 ‘ int eG 1} lila % qh): a ELT | re ae tcl} on = Be! atin A) « : | Ps , nal ‘ ial > Bat i) ihe ; a : ' , ‘y . he - Peay . bt t zi y ait ¥ i H = i ata x bie eV) ‘ tiie ee . me birt - 7 at} 4 y ; } ' : ‘ iy rf Ps 7 c 6 Ay cal, iS ca a | ae : ow y ew t —: 4 2a iu aoa t) < i : : Pit : Leth ; ' i is . ig 4 f ; - : a} Z, uy ie i} ea oT a « aa Hy > : | . : : Laat acy o a Ht 4 et ihe 5 i] - ‘ i % ; be + P ar} Pee - : EER 5 at Yy ; 4 EU) ; mS - Th n iia shill bad Hiah : * ‘ Mas -- Fie } ; ¢ i i . i +) | ; + i ; t| a? ; Hh : va Hl H ; ie : + ' ‘ ¢ } : t : Chap. rf = 5 Ii. 9: Sy St . sromote com- however, to the praife of this King, that fometimes, in ms : ‘ Gey ee 1 5 y . + ° A Kt} > a i? tereit , When ts ? ‘ serchants fums of money, without in a merce; he lent to merch: . ; sounder their tock wasnot fufficient for thofe enterprizes, which they propofed d isd By ° 7 | ation of money, plate, oF bullion + : Laws were made againft the exportation | be exported AW: make more aaates | 2 no other purpofe than to A precaution, which ferves ) we an oC far was the anxiety on this head carried, that sey a ae jet re rae ee blioed to inveit, in ng! x | moc e kingdom, were odie, orted commodities into the Kingcom, | be heir convey- Se all: the money acquired by their fales, in order,to prevent t ' a “5 ct ing away the money in.a clandeftine manner t:. sb me ee ° “A 0 Elorses were forbid to be exported ; as if that- exportation Cl a et Pir je - ‘chery, no DOW the breed, and render them more plentiful §. A pen ee 4 Beene were to be fold: at a higher price that fix fhillings and se ape " a Pe ‘ -&t of this regulation mt A, 1; of our time. The only effe g money to the denomination cares all<:-.-Peeee be either that the people would be fupplied with bad ibe seen 2 é a Ka R gs ++: And lapourers was S. oe voolle ath **, to caps and hats +7 : were alfo affixed to woollen cloa : “pe ee | eas vere regulated by law ff. . It is evident, that thete circumitances pe y ‘ — a -(e ) s and com- to be left freey and muft be trufted to the common courle a me perm: merce. ‘Lo fome it may appear furprizing, that the price agi. : <7 . , "aa 1 ill hat of a yara or colouU cloth fhould be limited to fix and twenty fhillings, 2 , srefent: And ; . p “10 = a e1ec : 9 eighteen ; higher prices than thefe commodities bear at pr ‘a rg v tits ‘> : . Ao _ 7} = s wy . U e that the wages of a tradefman, fuch as a mafon, brickiayer, tyier, &C, M0 ja c ope 7 é / - ee a oe reoulated at near ten pence a day 5 which is not much inferior tothe prefent wages giver in forme places of England, There isa wulgar error in imagining, that the price = . . . Att oe at ‘ 4; Ter of Jabour and commodities has in general rifen extremely fince the difcov ery “2 Welt-Indies. ‘The greater induftry of the prefent times has encreafed the number ors, ic ss. nearer a par than could be ex- - of tradefmen.and labourers, fo as to keep wages. nearer a pa pected from the great encreafe of gold and filver. And the scene ee $8 ployed in the finer manufactures, has even made fome of thefe pean below their former value. Not to mention, that merchants and dealers, emg contented with lefs profit than formerly, afford the goods cheaper to their cuftom- ers. It appears by a ftatute of this reign §§. that goods bought for fixteen pence would fometimes be fold by the merchants for three fhiljings. The commoditiess whofe price has chiefly rifen, are butcher-meat, fowl, and fith, (efpecially the sae which cannot be much augmented in quantity by the encreafe of art and induftry. The profeffion which then abounded moft, and was embraced by pee of the loweft rank, was the church :~ By a claufe of a ftatute, all clerks or ftudents ih: univerfity were forbid to beg, without a permiffion from the vice-chancellor [If 7 . . 7. Cap. o. y Il H. - + Ly . Cap. 8. ++ 4H. 7. Cap. 9. tt 11 H. 7. ap. 2 * Poly. Virg. + 47: 7. Cal 2 ia 7 y? ap, i = / cap. 9. I) 1114..7..¢ Te HI} } | eet | } at it t tii j \ Hh et 4 Ab} } t eH etal atthe “i Wal " { " | ih wT SH ‘ Ny lt ' uP} i a) ‘mt ¥ i it vet Wi WB a te on Hi At | ' ; Hiei S| RHE Date w it} ai Bt \ Pith Nei au Gibbens | : ' ' 7 } 7 | Aly ps : 1: WT ae i anit } : ar iit ui iH 41) i Hy 1 Hit + Ml Hi i 1 my > | t | best +) i } SE [ \ i UY 7 7 t + ’ h ti} TB | 18 t ‘J Ty | : i ‘ H E NR ys /iviry ~ e . a ’ ; es “ae — 2 = well as the other courtiers, of the lavifh difpofition of his mafter; and he en- gaged him in fuch a courfe of play and:idlene(s as rendered him neglicent of af- “ x Kata ¢£ it : La ance fairs, and willing to entruft the government of the flate-entirely: into the hands of his minifters. The immenfe. treafures, amafied by the late King, were gra- dually diffipated.in the giddy expences of Henry. One party of pleafure fuc- ceeded another: ‘Tilts, tournaments and caroufels were exhibited with all the itted the court. jto-indulge itfelf in. every amufement, ferious. bufinefs was but little , ; . % > tthe nf - Als OTN magnificence of thatage: And as the prefent tranquillity of the public perm —) re . . a = 9 a OOD Vg. Sr 5 ee i a a 72 attended to. Or if the King intermitted the courfe of his feilivity, he employed ‘ : fy 3 oy + +) a a+ at nlc: : ~e7 ~ £5 on ann lite “7 oe ext sel trcra L. to {. y t} : > himfelf- chiefly in an application:to mufic and literature, which were his favourite purfuits, and which were well adapted.to-his.genius, He had made fuch pro- ficiency in the former art, as even to compofe fome pieces of church mufic which were {ung in his chapel +. ‘He was initiated in the elegant learning of the antients, And tho’ he was fo uafortunate.as to be feduced into a ftudy of the barren controverfies of the {chools, which were then fafhionable, and had chofen Thomas Aquinas for his favourite author, he ftill difcovered a capacity fitted for more ufeful and entertaining knowledge. Tue frank and carelefs humour of the King, as it led him to diffipate the treafures, amaffed by his father, rendered him negligent jn protecting the inftru- ments, whom that prince had employed in his extortions. A proclamation be- ing iffued to encourage complaints, the rage of the people was Jet loofe on all the delators and informers, who had fo long exercifed an unbounded tyranny over the nation *; They were thrown into prifon, condemned to the pillory, and moft of them loft their lives from the violence of the populace. Empfon and Dudley, who were moft expofed to public hatred, were immediately cited. before the council, ‘in order to anfwer for their conduét, which had rendered them fo ob noxious. Iimpfon made a fhrewd apology for himfelf, as well as for his afiociate. He told the council, that fo far from his being jultly expofed to ceniure for his paft condu&, his enemies themfelves grounded their clamour_on actions, which feemed rather to merit reward and approbation: Thata ftric execution of Jaw was the crime, of which he and Dudley were accufed ; tho’ that law had been eftablithed by the voluntary confent of the people, and tho? they had aéted in obedience to the King, to whom the adminiftration of juftica was entruftecl by the conftitution: That it belonged not.to. them, who were in- {truments in. the hands of -the fupreme power, to determine what laws were-re. cent or obfolete, expedient or hurtful ; fince they -were all alike v; lid, fo lene T +r} : \e . yr ¢e 7 73 .2 —T* : tT Lord Herbert, * Herbert, Stow, p. 486. Fiollingfhed, p Pol. Virg. lib. 27 OO fap a 2. , Ng « 2 ; : aes oe r >* f js Ei 5 ay * runinmenet of Em pfo n “at eet eee and LJ UCIGY » 7 King’s mar- riage. - TIISTORY or ENGLAND. as they remained unrepealed by the legiflature : That it was natural for. a licentious populace to murmur againft the reflraints of authority ; but all wife 7 ftates had ever mace their glory to confift in the jut. diftribution of reward and punifhment, and had annexed the former to the obfervance and enforcement of the jaws, the latter to their violation and infraction : And that a fudden over- throw of all government might be expected ; where the judges were committed to the mercy of the criminals, the rulers to that of the fubjects T- NotwIiTHSTANDING this defence, Empfon and Dudley were fent to the ‘Tower ; and foon after brought to their trial; «The ftrict execution of laws, however obfolete, could never be imputed to them as a crime in a court of ju- dicature ; and it is likely, that even where they -had exercifed arbitrary power, the King, as they had acted by the fecret commands of his father, was not willing to have their conduét expofed to too fevere a ferutiny. In order, there- fore, to gratify the people with the punifhment of thefe obnoxious minifters, crimes very improbable, or ‘ndeed abfolutely impoffible, were charged upon them, that they had enteredinto a confpiracy againtt the King, and had intended, on the death of the late King, to have feized by force the adminiftration of the eavernment. The jury were fo far moved by popular prejudices, joined ro court influence, as to give fentenee again{t them; which was afterwards con- firmed by a bill of attainder in Parliament * and, at the earneft defire of the people, was executed by wa rant from the King. ‘Thus, in thofe arbitrary times, juftice was equally violated, whether the King fought power and riches, of courted popularity, — Tue King, while he punifhed the inftruments of patt tyranny, had yet fuch deference to former engagements as C0 deliberate, immediately after his acceffion, concerning the confummation of his marriage with the infanta Catherine, to whom he was affianced during his father’s lifetime. Her former marriage with hs brother, and the inequality of their years, were the chief objections, which were urged again{t the efpoufing her: But on the other hand, the advantages of her known virtue, modetty, and {weetnefs of difpofition were infifted on; the affection which fhe bore the King; the large dowry to which the was entitled as princes of Wales; the intereft of cementing a clofe alliance with Spain ; the | neceflity + Herbert, Hollingfhed, p. 804. * This Parliament met on the 21ft January, 1510. A law was there enacted, in order to prevent fome abufes which had prevailed during the late reign. ‘The forfeiture upon the penal ftatutes was reduced to the term of three years. Cofts and damages were given againft informers upon acquital of the accufed: More fevere punifhments were enacted againft perjury: the falfe inquifitions procured by Empfon and Dudley were declared null and invalid, Traverfes were allowed ; and the time af vendering them enlarged, 1. H. 8. c. 8,10, 11, 12. H EN oR. Y VilL. "3 neceflity of finding fome confederate to counterballance the power of France; Chap: I. the expediency of fulfilling the engagements of the late King. When thefe 1599 confiderations were weighed, they determined the. council, tho’ contrary to the opinion of the primate, to give Henry their advice for compleating the marriage ; June 3. which was done accordingly. The countefs of Richmond, who had concurred in the fame fentiments, died foon after the marriage of her grandfon, Tue popularity of Henry’s government, his indifputed title to the throne, re10 his extenfive authority, his large treafures, the tranquillity of his fubjeéts, were circumftances which rendered his domeftic adminiftration eafy and profperous : The fituation of foreign affairs was no lefs happy and defirable. Italy continued Bea ae. {till, as during the late reign, to be the center of all the wars and negotiations an of the European princes; and Henry’s alliance was courted by both fides ; at the fame time, that he was not engaged by any immediate intereit or neceflity to take part with either. Lewis the twelfth of France, after the conqueit of Milan, was the only great prince who poffeffed any territory in Italy; and could he have remained in tranquillity, he was enabled by his fituation to prefcribe laws to all the Italian princes and republics, and to hold the ballance among them. But the defire of making a conqueft of Naples, to which he had the fame title or pre- tenfion with his predeceffor, ftill engaged him in new enterprizes; and as he ferefaw oppofition from Ferdinand, who was conneé&ed both by treaties and ainity with Frederic of Naples, he endeavoured, by the offers of intereft, to which the ears of that monarch were ever open, to engage him in an oppofite confederacy. He fettled with him a plan for the partition of the Kingdom of Naples and the expulfion of Frederic: A plan, which the politicians of that age regarded as the moft egregious imprudence in the French monarch, and the bafeft treachery in the Spanifh. _ Frederic, fupported only by fubjeéts, who were either difcontented with his government, or indifferent about his fortunes, was unable to refift fo powerful a confederacy, and was deprived of his dotninions: But he had the fatisfaction to fee Naples immediately prove the fource of con- tention among his enemies, Ferdinand gave fecret orders to his general, Gonfalvo, whom the Spaniards honour with the appellation of the great captain, to attack the armies of Frince, and make himfelf mafter of all the dominions of Naples. Gonfalvo prevailed in every enterprize, defeated the French in two pitched battles, and enfured to his prince the entiie pofleffion’ of that fine kingdom. Lewis, unable to procure redrefs by force of arms, was obliged: to enter into a fruitlefs negotiation with Ferdinand for the recovery of his fhare of the partition ;- $3 and vow ~ ye x - La 8 - oe ane ees ta == = = = iat 5 J nh HISTORY or ENGLAND. Chap. 1. andoall Italy, 1510. fal rhonarchs. Tere fearce ‘has been any period, when the ballance ‘of power was better fecured in Europe, and f-emed more able to maintain itfelf, without any anxious the princes. Severd] great monarchies were eftablifhed 5. 4d phe oreft as to give any foundation, or even pretents, united in domeftic peace, and by its fituation happily fecured from the invafion of foreigners. The coalition of the feveral kingdoms of Spain, had formed one powerful thonarchy, which Ferdinand adminiftered with arts, fraudulent ‘ndeed and deceitful, but full of vigour and ability. Lewis the twelfth of France, 4 gallant and generous prince, by efpoufing Anne of Britanny, widow to his predecefior, had preferved the union with that princi~ ch the fafety of his kingdom fo much depended. Maximilian, befides the hereditary dominions of the Auftrian family, main- and notwithftanding his levity of difpofition, was able to unite the German princes in any great plan of intereft, at leaft, of de- fence. Charles, prince of Caftile, grandfon to Maximilian and Ferdinand, had already fucceeded to the rich dominions of the houfe of Burgundy 3 and being: as yet in early youth, the government was entrufted to Margaret of Savoy, his aunt, a princefs endowed with fignal prudence and virtue. The.internal force of thefe feveral p owerful ftates, which ballanced cach other, might long have maintained general tranquillity, had not the active and enterprizing genius of an ambitious pontiff firft excited the flames of war and difcord among them. Arexanver the fixth w as dead ; a man of a fingular character, and, except- ing his fon Ceefar Borgia, almoft during forme time, was held in fufpence between thefe two power- concern or attention of and no one fo far furp fie for jealoufy. England was pality, on whi the emperor, tained authority in the empire, Julius the 2d. 7 the only man who ever joined great capacity with the blackeft vices and the moft-abandoned profligacy of manners. . After @ hort interval, Julius the fecond had fucceeded to the papal throne, who, tho’ endowed with many virtues, gave almott as:much fcandal.to the world.as his de- te{ted predecefior : Eis virtues were deemed unfuitable to his {tation of fovereign the {piritual judge and common father of all chriftians. Animated with pontil, inflexible in his fchemes, undaunted in an unextinguifhable thirft of glory, his enterprizes, indefatigable in his purfuits necring $ his vatt foul broke thro” all the fetters, which old age and a prieftly charaéter impofed upon it, and, during his pontificate, kept the world in perpe- tual agitation. By his intrigues, a leacue had been formed at Cambray. *, be- tee tween himfelf, Maximilian the emperor, Lewis the twelfth of France, and Fer- dinand magnanimous, imperious, domi- * In 1508. H JE) NR. ¥ 9 Vuk - dinand of Arragon; and the.object..of this great confederacy was to. overwhelm by their united arms, the commonwealth of Venice. Tuis illuftrious commonwealth, the great bulwark of Europe againft the Bar- barians, and the admired model of civil polity, had rifen to a confiderable power, and began to make a:figure, which-during that age bore fome proportion to that of the great monarchies. Her riches: furpafled thofe of any. European city, her finances were great, ‘her commerce extenfive, her naval power formidable, her armies numerous and well fupplied. Trufting only to her own power, fhe had neglected to maintain a cordial friendfhip with any other ftate; and by the endlefs political fufpicions, which fhe entertained even of her allies, fhe had taught them to regard her progrefs with like jealoufy. No ftate could reafonably complain of any injuftice.and ufurpations in her meafures : But as great monarchs never fee with- out difpleafure a republic nearly on a level with themfelves, it was eafy for Julius, by his negotiations among the European princes, to compleat hisfcheme of a confederacy againft her. Ferdinand defired to wreft from the Venetians fome towns on the coaft of Naples, which his predeceffor had voluntarily, for money, configned into their hand: Lewis propofed to recover a part of the territory of Milan, which he himfelf had delivered to them by treaty: Maximilian laid claim to great part of their dominions, which they had acquired from petty princes or tyrants, that had formerly, as he pretended, in fome diftant period, nee them from the empire: The pope, from like pretences, challenged ano- er part of their dominions, as the pee? of the church. In order to cover or fcheme of this confederacy, the cardinal d’Amboife, ‘prime minifter of France, had met at Cambray with Margaret of ‘Savoy, under colour of accommodating a difference between her and the duke of Gueldersy and it was there, that the alliance againft Venice was ‘fecretly figned by: the contraQiine’ powers; ard all the meafures of operation concerted * Tue Venetians were apprifed of their danger, and prepared themfelves for re- fiftance.. They provided every means of eee aan the moft effential, brave and warlike forces, which it is impoffible to raifeé, where the ideas of military glory are. extinguifhed, and men have, from long habit, acquired hss VERT By FS sa : - Bs other objects. of ambition. They fent into the field an army of 40,006 men under experienced | eS the count of Pitigltano and Bartholomew Alviano ; and hoped, that oR great a force would fecure then from’the invafion of Lewis, who had a an army into 5 Tialy. and firft took the field againft them. ~ But’ the marti.l nobility 6f France, headed by their gallant fovereien, utterly difeom- fited thefe enervated forces; and in the adtion of Ghierradadda the power ‘and L,.2 glory Se ee ee Rae Ls Se ee ne * Guicciardini, lib. 8, Bembo Chap. I, TS1O- i i ie a it 1, A ft Un aes Char. I. 1510. “6 | HISTORY oF ENGLAND. glory of Venice, the refult of confummate wifdom, and the work of ages, fuffered-in one day a cheque, which it has never yet been able thoroughly to recover*. Difmayed with this lofs, the Venetians took a hafty refolution of abandoning all their dominions on the-continent of Italy ; and they accordingly withdrew their garrifons from every place, and freed their fubjects from their oaths of allegiance. Lewis immediately put himfelf in poficfhon of Cremona, Bergamo, Brefcia, Creme, and all the places which had been difmembered from the Milanefe.. Even Verona, ‘Padua, Vicenza, and other towns, which, by the treaty of Cambray, fell under the partition of Maximilian, offered to open their cates to the French monarch. Had Maximilian, inftead of wafting his time at Trent, led his forces early into Italy, an end had been put for ever to the power and dominion. of Venice. But Lewis, well acquainted with the ficklenefs and inconftancy of that prince, was determined to sive him no pretext for deferting his alliance ; and therefore ordered the magiftrates of thofe towns to make their fubmiffions to the emperor, whom, he told them, they were now to regard as their lawful fovereign +. The Venetian fenate, obferving thofe delays, and re-. marking the extreme regret, which their fubjects difcovered on lofing their mild’ and equitable government {, began again to aflume courage, and reinftated: themfelves in the dominion of thofe cities, which they had: abandoned, From: this time, their prudence and found policy gave a cheque to the malignity of their fortune and the fuperiority of their enemies. They voluntarily made a facrifice to Ferdinand of thofe towns, which he laid claim to, and thereby detached him. from the alliance §. They gratified the ambition of the Pope by a like facrifices. and farther flattered his vanity by the loweft obeifance and the moft dutiful fub- miffions ||. After trying like arts with Maximilian, and finding his pretenfions to be utterly exorbitant, they rouzed their patriot fpirit, and prepared themfelves for refiftance, with a courage, which, tho’ ill feconded by the unwarhke genius of their people, might have done honour to the Roman fenate during the moft flourifhing period of the republic. Tue great force and fecure fituation of the confiderable monarchies, prevented any one of them from afpiring to any conqueft of moment; and tho’ this con- fideration could not maintain general peace, or remedy the natural inquietude of men, it rendered the princes of this age more eafy in deferting engagements and changing their alliances, in which they were retained more by humour and caprice than by any natural or durable intereft. Julius had no fooner humbled the Venetian republic, than he was infpired with a nobler ambition, that of expelling * Seiffel. hift. Louis XII. St. Gelais, Guicciard. lib. 8. + Buonacorfi, Petrus de Anglerias epift. 418, t Guicciard. lib. 8. § Petrus de Angleria. | Bembo. Bits PN: Re ¥ VIE. 77 expelling all foreigners from Italy, or, to fpeak in the ftile afiected by the: Tta- jians of that age, the freeing that country entirely from the dominion of the Barbarians *. He was determined:to make the tempeft fall firft upon Lewis; and in order to pave the way. for this great enterprize, he at once fought for a ground of quarrel. with that monarch, and courted the alliance of other princes. Fie declared war againft the Duke of Ferrara,-the clofeft confederate of Lewis. He follicited the favour ef England, by fending Henry a facred rofe, perfumed with mufk and anointed with chrifm+. He engaged in his intereft Bambrice, archbifhop of York, and Henry’s ambaffador at Rome, whom he foon aiter created cardinal. He drew over Ferdinand to his fide, tho’ th: at monarch, at firft, made no-declaration of his intentions. And what he chiefly valued, he framed a. treaty with the Swifs cantons; who, enraged by fome neglects put upon them by Lewis, accompanied with contumelious expreflions, had deferted the alliance of France, and waited an Opportunity of rey that nation. Lewis was determined not to abandon the duke of Ferr merely for his attachment to the crown of France. the Mailanefe; received or by his own dauntlefs fpirir, fet his enemy at defiance. furrounded the pope and all his court in Bologna; and had he not allowed him- felf. to be amufed by a treaty, which. his profound’ refpe& for the holy father made him the more willing to hearken to, He had been able, fhed, to have reduced hinr to: captivity. Finding h cenfure for not pufhing his advantages, lie was agitated with fuch violent regret that he fell into a languifhing illnefs, of which he foon after died ; tho’ oppofite remorfes took place on:his death-bed, and’he very humbly craved of his holi a remiffion of his grievous fin, in having at all born arms againft him ft. ara, who fuffered Chaumont, his lieutenant in lers to defend’ him againft Julius, who, fupported and confiding in the facrednefs of his character, had without any blood- imfelf expofed to fevere Waite the French monarch repelled the attacks of his enemies, he thought it alfo requifite to make an. attack cn the pope himfelf, and to defpoil him; as much as pofflible, of that facred character, which chiefly rendered him formidable. engaged fome cardinals, difgufted with. the violence of Julius, to d and by their authority, he was determined, who ftill adhered to his alliance, to call the church, and check.the exorbitancies Fle elert hind ; in conjunction with Maximilian, a general council, which might: reform of. the Roman pontiff. A council was fummoned * Guictciard. lib, 3: T Spelman, Concil..yol, 2. p. 725, { L’abbé du Bos, Hittoire ds la Ligue de Cambray, enging themfelves on. By a happy and unexpected movement, Chaumont. ee Nes: TSTT, RY of ENGLAND. fymmoned at Pifa, which trom the begianing bore a very inaufpicious afpect, and 2 i kK, -_o i PEER Ae x «rs et n hinaArtasta 1 iS od, | } promifed sittie iu cefs to its adherents.» Except:a few Fre ach bifhops, who un- sbeved their King’s orders in attending the couse, all cie neil pre- , diftance from an aflembly, which they regarc las the offspring of 1 Even Pifa, the place of their refidence, ns 0! remy saoed them to tramsier their feffion to : town URGES the dominion. of the French mona: sh, INotwithfanding r did not experience much more wee ful. treatment fren the habitants of Mulan ; ay found itneceflary to make another remove to Lyons *. amfelf fortified thefe violent prgudices in favour of the papal autherity, he fymptoms, which @ difcovered, of regard, cme and fubmitiion to valius, whom he. always {pared, even when fortune had thrown into his hands the moft inviting opportunities of humbling him. And as it was ike ps7 « that his confort, who had great authority with him, was extremely difquieted im mind, on account of his diffentions with the houy father, ali men prognoit os to Julius Gal fuccefsin this unequal conteft. Tuat enterprizing pope knew his advantages, and availed himfelf of them with the utmoft temerity and infolence. So much had he negleéted his pontifical character, that he affifted in PF fon at the fiece of Mirandola, vifited the trenches, faw fome of his attendants killed by. his fide, and, like a young fol- dier, chearfully bore all the mgours z winter and a fevere feafon, in purfuit of military glory +: Yet was he fill ableto.hrows ae on his moft. moderate oppo- nents, the charge of impiety and propia inenefs. Pe furamoned a council at the Lateran: He put Pifa under an interdict, and < af the ile which gave fhelter to the fchifmatical council: He excommunicated the cardinals and prelates who at- tended it: Heeven a lirected his fpiritual thunders peat the princes. who adhered to it: He freed their fubjects from a] oaths of allegiance, and gave their co- minions to every one, who could take pofleffion of them. Frerpinanp of Arragon, carded the caufe of the pope nd of re ico only as a cover to: his scien and felfifh politics: Henry, Mica fircere and fanguine in his temper, and the more fo on account of his youth and inexperience, was moved with a hearty de- fire of proteCting the pope from that oppreffion, to which he believed him expofed from the ambitious enterprizes of Lewis. Hopes had been given him by Julius, chat the title of the moft Chrijtien King, which had hitherto been annexed to the crown of France, and which was regirded as its moft precious ornament, would, in —~ ‘ . 7 7 4°43 re YeccmaPNin pe t Guicciardint, Li. HiE N RY | VI. 79 in reward of his fervices, be transferred to,that of England *. Impatient alfo of acquiring that diftinction in Kurope, to which his power.and opulence entitled him, he could not long remam neuter, amidft the noife of arms; and the natural enmity of the Englifh.againft France,’ as well-as their antient claims upon that kingdom, led Iienry to join that alliance which the pope, Spain, and Venice had formed againft the French monarch. A herald was fent to Paris, to exhort Lewis not to wage impious war againft the pope; and when he returned without fuccefs, another was fent to make a demand of the antient patrimonial provinces, Anjou, Maine, Guienne, and-Normandy. This meflage was underftood as a declaration of war; and a Parliament, being fummoned, readily granted fuppiies for a‘purpofe fo much favoured by the Englifh nation +. Buonaviso, an agent of the pope at London, had been corrupted by the court of France, and had previoufly revealed to Lewis all the meafures which Henry was concerting againft him. But this infidelity did the King inconfide- rable prejudice, in comparifon of what he experienced from the felfith purposes of the ally, to whom he chiefly trufted for affiftance. Ferdinand, his father-in-law, had fo long perfevered in a courfe of crooked politics, that he began even to value himfelf on his dexterity in fraud and artifice ; and he made a boaft of thofe fhame- ful {ucceffes. Being told one day, that Lewis the twelfth, a prince of a very different character, had complained that he had once cheated. him: ‘* He lies, “© the drunkard!” faid he, ‘© I have cheated him above twenty times.”? This prince confidered his clofe connexion with Henry, only as the means which ena- bled him the better to take advantage of his want of experience, . He ad- vifed him not to invade France by the way of Calais, where he himfelf would not have it inthis power to affift ‘him: He exhorted him rather to fend forces to Fon- v.... : tarabia, whence he could ‘eafily make a conqueft of Guienne, a province, in which, Fontar it was imagined, the Englith had ftil] fome adherents. ‘He promifed to affift this conqueft by the junction of a Spanith army. And fo forward did he feem to promeotethe intereft of his fon-in-law, that he even fent veffels into Eneland, to tran{port over the forces which Henry had levied for that purpofe: The marquels of Dorfet commanded thefe troops, which confifted of ten-theufand men, moftly infantry ; the lord Howard, fon to the earl of Surrey, the lord Broke, lord Ber. Fars, and'many others of the young gentry and nobility, accompanied him in this fervice, All.were on fire to diftinguifh themfelves by military atchieveme nts, and to make a conqueft of importance for their mafter. The fecret purpofeof Ferdi-~ nand in this unexampled generofity was fufpected by no body. . Guicciard, lib. tT, P. Daniel, vol. I. p. 1893, Herbert, Hollingthed,. p, 831. + Herbert. Hollingthed, p. 8x1. : We Chap. I. i542. 7 eee ar With france. } ATH : of Febru- “)7 7 al Ve . Chap. I, 15 IZ. Deceit of Fer- prize. dinand. 80 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Tur {mall kingdom of Navarre lies on the frontiers between France and Spain; and as John d’ Albert, the prefent King, was conneéted in friendfhip and alliance with Lewis, the-opportunity feemed favourable to Ferdinand, while the Englifh forces were conjoined with his own, and while all adherents to the council of Pifa lay under the fentence of excommunication, to put himfelf in poffeffion of thefe domiaions. No fooner, therefore, was Dorfet landed in Guipifcoa, than the Spanifh monarch declared his readinefs to join him with his forces, to make jointly an invafion of France, and to form'the fiege of Bayonne, which opened the way into Guienne *: But heremarked, how dangerous it might prove to leave behind them the kingdom of Navarre, which, being in clofe alliance with France, could eafily give admittance to the enemy, and cut off all communication between Spain and the combined armies. To provide againft fo dangerous an event, he required, that John fhould ftipulate a neutrality in the prefent war; and when that prince expreffed his willingnels to enter into any engagement for that purpofe, he alfo required thar he fhould give fecurity for his ftrict obfervance of it. John having likewife agreed to this condition, Ferdinand demanded, that he fhould deliver into his hands fix of the molt confiderable places of his dominions, together with his eldeft fon as a hoftage. Thefe were not conditions to be propofed to a fovereign; and as the Spanifh monarch expected a refufal, he eave immediate orders to the duke of Alva, his general, to make an invafion of Navarre, and to reduce the whole kingdom to fubjection. Alva foon made Thimfelf mafter of all the fmaller towns; and- being ready to form the fiege of Pampeluna, the capital, he fummoned the marquis of Dorfet. to join him with the Englifh army, and to concert togethér all their operations. Dorset began to fufpeé, that his mafter’s interefts were very little regarded in all thefe tranfactions ; and having no orders to invade the kingdom of Navarre, or make war any where but in France, he refufed to take any part in that-entet- He remained therefore in his quarters at Fontarabia; but fo politic was trivance of Ferdinand, that even while the Englifh army Jay in that fitu- ation, it was almoft equally ferviceable to his purpofes, as if it had acted in con- junction with-his own. It kept the French army in awe, and prevented it from advancing to fuccour the kingdom of Navarre; fo that Alva, having full leifure to conduct the fiege, made himfelf mafter of Pampeluna, and obliged John to feek for fhelterin France. The Spanith general apphed again to Dorfet, and pro- pofed to conduct with united councils the operations of the holy league, fo it was called, again{t Lewis: But as he {till deciimed forming the fiege of Bayonne, and rather inGfted on the invafion of the priscipality of Bearne, a part of the King of the con * Herbert. Hollingfhed, p 813. yaw N RR, ¥ Vind. SI ef Navarre’s dominions, which lies on the French fide of the Pyrenees, Dorfet paltly fufpicious of his finifler intentions,..reprefented, thaty. without new orders from his mafter, be could not concur in fuch an undertaking. » In order to pro- cure fuch orders, Ferdinand difpatched. Martin de Aimpios, as hisenvoy, to Lon- don; and perfwaded Henry, that, by the refraétory and. ferupulous. humour of the Englith general, the moft favourable opportunities were loft, and seats it was neceflary he fhould,, in all things, act in concert with the Spanith commander =p wno was beft acquainted with the fituation of the country, and the reafons of every operation. But before orders to this purpofe reached Spain, Dorfet had become extremely impatient; and obferving that his farther ftay ferved not to promote the main undertaking, and that his army was daily perifhing by want and ficknefs, he demanded fhipping from Ferdinand to tran{port them back into England. Ferdinand, who was bound by treaty to furnifh him with this fupp!, ¥ ; whenever demanded, was at laft, after many delays, obliged to yield to his im- portunity ; and Dorfe: embarked his troops, and prepared himfelf for the voyage. Ret Mean while, a mefienger arrived with orders from Henry, that the troops §°s' fhould remain in Spain; but the foldiers were fo difcontented with the treatment which they had met with, that they mutinied, and obliged their commanders to fet fail for England. Henry was much difpleafed with the ill fuccefs of this en- terprize ; Sad: it was with difficulty, that Dorfet, by explaining the fraudulent intentions of Ferdinand, was at laft able to appeafe him. Tuere happened this fummer an action at fea, which brought not any more decifive advantage to the Englith. Sir Thomas Knevét, mafter of Horfe, was fent to the coaft of Britanny with a fleet of forty-five fail; and he carried with him Sir Charles Brandon, Sir John Carew, and many other young courtiers, who longed for an opportunity of difplaying their valour. Wiice committing fome depre ashe a French fleet of thirty-nine fail iffued from Breft, under the command of Primauget *, and began an engagement with the Englifh. Primauget’s fhip was fet on fire, who finding: his deftruction inevitable, bore down_upon the veffel of the Englifh admiral, and grappling with her, refolved to make her fhare the fame fate. The fhips of both fleets ftood fome t'me in fuf- pence, as {pectators of this dreadful engagement ; and all men faw with horror the flames which confumed both vefitls, and heard the cries of fury and d {pair which came from the miferable combatants. At laft, the French veffe! blew UD; and at the fame time deftroyed the Englifh +, The reft of the French fleer made their efcape into different harbours. M THE “ Or rather Porfmanget, according to P. Daniel’s conjefture, vol. II. p. 1901. Hence the Enelifh feamen called him Sir Pierce Morgan. > Tos eee Se ; >f cl ic 7 7 | Polydore Virg. lib. 27. Stow, p 490. ~ Lanquet’s epitome of chronicles, fol. 273. es FS “ae it HISTORY oF ENGLAND. Chap. I. Tue war, which England waged againft France, though it brought little 9 the former kingdom, was of infinite prejudice to the latter ; and by forces for the defence of his own dominions, loft him that fuperiority, which his arms, in the beginning of the campaign, had at- tained in Italy. Gafton de Foix, his nephew, a young hero, had been entrufted with the command of the French forces; and in a few months performed fuch feats of military art and prowefs, as were fufficient to render illuftrious the whole life of the oldeft captain *. His carreer Gnifhed with the great battle of Ravenna, which, after the moft obftinate conflict, he gained over the Spanifh and papal armies. He perifhed the very moment his victory was compleat ; and with him Ni perifhed the fortune of the French arms in Italy. The Swifs, who had rendered i themfelves extremely formidable by their bands of difciplined infantry, invaded i the Milanefe with a numerous army, and raifed up that inconftant people toa revolt againft the dominion of France. Genoa followed the example of that dutchy ; and thus Lewis, in a few weeks, entitely loft his Italian conquefts, ex- 1513. cept fome garrifons ; and Maximilian Sforza, the fon of Ludovic, was again re-inftated in poffeffion of Milan. Jutus difcovered extreme joy on the difcomfiture of the French; and the more fo, that he had been beholden for itto the Swifs, a people, whofe councils, " j - ssf of Fe- he hoped, he fhould always be able to govern and direét. The pontiff furvived and in his place was chofen John de Medici, who bruary. this fuccefs a very little time; Leo thetenth. took the appellation of Leo the tenth, and proved one of the motft illuftrious princes that ever fat on that throne. Humane, beneficent, gencrous, affable ; the patron of every art, and friend of every virtue +; he had a foul no lefs capa- a ble of forming great defigns than his predeceffor, but was more gentle, pliant, Pal and artful in employing means for the execution of them. By his in- trigues, the emperor Maximilian was detached from the French intereft ; and Henry, notwithftanding his difappointments in the former campaign, was ftill encouraged to profecute his warlike meafures again{t Lewis. Henry had fummoned a new feffion of Parliament f, and obtained a fupply for his enterprize. It was a poll-tax, and impofed different fums, according to the ftation and riches of the perfon. A duke payed ten marks, an earl five pounds, a lord four pounds, a knight four marks; every man valued at eight hundred pounds in goods, four marks. An impofition was alfo granted of two Gfteenths and four tenths §. With thefe fupplies, joined to the treafure which was left by his father, and which was not yet entirely diffipated, he was enabled to levy a great army, and render himfelf very formidable to his enemy. The Englifh * Guicciard, lib, 10, + Father Paul, libe 1. t ath of November, 1512+ § Stowe. TS 12. advantage t obliging Lewis to withdraw his A Parliament. H EN RY’ ~ VII. 83 Englith are faid to have been much encouraged in this enterprize, by the arrival of a veffel in the Thames under the papal banner. It carried prefents of wine and hams to the King, ‘and all the moft eminent courtiers; and fuch fond devo- tion was at that time entertained towards the court of Rome, that thefe trivial prefents were every where received with the greateft triumph and exultation. In order to prevent all difturbance from Scotland, while the King’s arms fhould be employed on the continent, Dr. Weft, Dean of Windfor, was difpatched in an embafly to James, the King’s brother-in-law ; and inftructions were given him to accommodate all differences between the kingdoms, as well as difcover the intentions of the court of Scotland *. Some complaints had already pafied on beth fides. One Barton, a Scotchman, having fuffered fome injuries from the Portugueze, for which he could obtain no redrefs, had procured letters of marque againft that nation; but not content with this liberty, he committed de- predations upon the Englifh, and much infefted the narrow feas +. Lord How- ard and Sir Edward Howard, admirals, and fons to the earl of Surrey, {ailing out againft him, fought him in a defperate rencounter, where the pyrate was killed; and they brought his fhips into the Thames. As Henry refufed all fatisfaction for this act of juftice, fome of the borderers, who wanted but a pretence for depredations, entered England under the command of lord Hume, warden of the marches, and committed great ravages on that kingdom. Not- withftanding thefe mutual grounds of diffatisfaction, matters might eafily have been accommodated, had it not been for Henry’s intended invafion of France, which rouzed up the jealoufy of the Scotch nation {. ‘The antient league, which fubfifted betwixt France and Scotland, was conceived to be the {trongeit band of Chap. I. 1513. connexion , and the Scotch univerfally believed, that, were it not for the coun- yy... «1, tenance which they received from this foreign alliance, they had never been able fo Scotland. long to maintain their independance again{t a people fo much fuperior in force and riches. James was farther incited to take part in the quarrel by the invitations of Anne, queen of France, whofe knight he had ever in all tournaments profeft him- felf, and who fummoned him, according to the ideas of romantic gallantry, pre- valent in that age, to take the field in her defence, and prove himfelf her true and valorous champion. The remonftrances of his confort and of his wifeft counfellors, were in vain oppofed to the martial ardour of that prince. He firft fent a fquadron of fhips to the affiftance of France; the only fleet which Scotland feems ever to have poffeffed. And though he made profeffion ftill to maintain a neutrality, the Englifh amibaffador eafily forefaw, that a war would 3 Megs: prove * Polydore Virgil, lib. 27. + Stowe, p. 489. . Hollingfhed, p. 811. t Buchannan, lib. 13. Drummond in the life of James IV. Wolfey mi- niiter. 8 4. HISTORY or ENGLAND. prove ‘4 the end inevitable, and he gave his mafter warning of the danger, who fent the earl of Surrey to put the borders in a pofture of defence, and to refi the invafion of the enemy. Henry; all on fire for military fame, was little difcouraged by this'appearance of a diverfion from the North ; and fo much the lefs, that he flattered himfelf with the afliftance of all the confiderable potentates of Europe in his invafion of The pope fill continued to thunder out his excommunications againft France. Lewis, and all the adherents to the {chifmatical council: The Swifs cantons made profeffions of the moft violent animofity againft France: The ambafladors of Ferdinand and Maximilian had figned with thofe of Henry a treaty of alliance againft that power, and had ftipulated the time and place of their intended inva- fion ; And though Ferdinand difavowed his ambaffador, and even figned a truce for a twelvemonth with the common enemy ; Henry was not yet fully con- vinced of his felffh and finifter intentions, and full hoped for his concurrence after the expiration of that term. He had now got a minifter who complied with all his inclinations, and flattered him in every f{cheme to which his fanguine and impetuous temper was inclined. Tuomas Wotsey, dean of Lincoln, and almoner to the King, furpafied in favour all his minifters and courtiers, and was faft advancing towards that un- rivalled grandeur, which he afterwards attained. This man was the fon of a butcher at Ipfwich; but having got a learned education, and being endowed with an excellent capacity, he was admitted into the marquis of Dorfet’s family as tutor to that nobleman’s children, and foon gained the friendfhip and countenance of his patron *. He was recommended as chaplain to Henry the feventh, and being employed by that monarch in a fecret negotiation, which regarded his intended marriage with Margaret of Savoy, Maximilian’s daughter, he acquitted himfelf to the King’s fatisfaction, and obtained the praife both of diligence and dexterity in his conduét +. That prince having given him a commiffion to the emperor, who at that time refided in Bruffels, was furprized, in lefs than three days after, to fee Wolfey prefent himfelf before him; and fuppofing that he had protracted: his departure, he began to reprove him for the dilatory execution of his orders. Wolfey informed him, that he was jut returned from Bruffels, and had fuccefi- fully fulfilled all his majefty’s commands. ‘* But on fecond. thoughts,” faid the King, ‘* I found that fomewhat was omitted in your-orders; and have fent ‘sq meffenger after you with fuller inftructions.” ‘* I met the meffenger,” replied Wolfey, ** on my return: But as 1 had reflected on that omiffion, | ven- tured * Stowe, p. 997. + Cavendifh, Fiddes’s life of Wolfey. ‘Stowes. . H'E- N RY) VIE: 8 “< tured of myfelf to execute what, I knew, muft be your majefty’s intentions.” The death of Henry, foon after this incident, was the reafon why Wolfey reaped no advantage from the good opinion, which that monarch had entertained of him: But from that moment he was looked on at court asa rifing man; and the bifhop of Winchefter caft his eye upon him as one, who might be ferviceable to him in his prefent fituation *. | This prelate, obferving that the earl of Surrey had total- ly eclipfed him in favour, refolved to introduce Wolfey into the young prince’s familiarity, and hoped, that he might rival Surrey in his infinuating arts, and yet be contented to act inthe cabinet a part fubordinate to Fox himfelf, who had promoted him. In a very little time, Wolfey gained fo much on Henry’s good graces, that he fupplanted both Surrey in his favour, and Fox in his tru and confidence. Being admitted to the King’s parties of pleafure, he took the lead in every jovial coriverfation, and promoted all that frolic and entertainment, which he found fuitable to the age and inclination of the young monarch, Nei ther his own years, which were near forty, nor his charaéter of a clergyman, were any reftraint upon him, or engaged him to check, by any ufelefs feverity, the gaiety, in which Henry, who had fmall propenfion to debauchery, paffed his carelefs hours, During the intervals of :amufement he introduced bufinefs and {tate affairs, and infinuated thofe maxims of conduct, which he was defirous his mafter fhould adopt. He obferved to him, that, while he entrufted his affairs into the hands of his father’s counfellors, he had the advantage of employing men of wifdom and experience, but men who owed not their promotion to his fa» vour, and who fcarce thought themfelves accountable to him for the exercife of their authority: That by the faétions, and cabals, and jealoufies, which pre- vailed. among them, they more obftruéted the advancement of his affairs, than they promoted it by the knowledge which age and practice had conferred upon them: That while he thought proper to pafs his time in thofe pleafures, to which his age and royal fortune invited him, and in thofe ftudies, which would in time enable him to fway the fcepter with abfolute authority, his beft fyftem of govern- ment would: be to intruft his authority into the hands of fome one perfon, who was the creature of his will, and who could entertain no view but of promoting his fervice: And that if this minifter had alfo the fame relith for pleafure with him- felf, and the fame tafte for {cience ; he could the more eafily account to him for his whole conduct, and introduce his matter gradually into the knowledge of pub- lic bufinefs,. and thus, without tedious conftraint or application,. initiate him in the {cience of government +. * : 1. ae ae - Antiq. Brit. Eclef p- 309. Polydore Virgil, Jib, 27. + Cavendifh, p. 12, Stowe, . tei aii nt th Hay His character. the afcendant in every intercourfe with others, 2cth April. HISTORY or ENGLAND. ews of Wolfey; and finding no one fo capable an of adminiftration as the perfon who propofed it, he foon being the companion of his carelefs hours, to be a member of his council; and from being a member of his council, to be his fole and abfolute minifter. By this rapid advancement and uncontrouled autho- rity, the character and genius of Wolfey had full opportunity to difplay itfelt. Iniatiable in his acquifitions, but fil] more magnificent in his expence : Of ex- Ambitious of power, but tenfive capacity, but ftill more unbounded enterprize : fuafive ; and, by turns, aL i) ill more defirous of glory : Infinuating, engaging, per Haughty to his equals, but affable to his depen- but liberal to his friends ; more generous than lofty, elevated, commanding: dants ; oppreffive to the people, grateful; lefs moved by injuries than by contempt 5 he feemed framed to take but exerted this fuperiority of nature with fuch oftentation as expofed him tovenvy, and made every one willing to recal the original inferiority or rather meannefs of his fortune. Tue branch of adminiftration, 1n which Henry moft exerted himfelf, while he gave his entire confidence to Wolfcy, was the military, which, as it fuited the natural gallantry and bravery of his temper, as well as the ardour of his youth, was the principal object of his attention, Finding, that Lewis had made great preparations both by fea and land to refift him, he was no lefs careful to raife a formidable army and equip a confiderable fleet for the invafion of France. The command of the fleet was entrufted to Sir Edward Howard ; who, after fcouring the channel fome time, prefented himfelf before Breft, where the French navy then lay ; and he challenged them to a combat. The French admiral, who exe pected from the Mediterranean a reinforcement of fome Gallies under the com- mand of Prejeant de Bidoux, kept within the harbour, and faw with patience the Englifh burn and deftroy the country in the neighbourhood. At laft Prejeant arrived with fix gallies, and put into Conquet, a place within a few leagues of Breft, where he fecured himfelf behind fome batteries, which he had planted on rocks, that lay on each fide of him. Howard was notwithftanding determined an attack; and as he had but two gallies, he took himfelf the command "of one, and gave the other to Devereux lord Ferrars. He was followed by fome row-barges and fome crayers under the command of Sir Thomas Cheyney, Sir William Sidney, and other officers of diftin@tion. He immediately faftened on Prejeant’s fhip,. and leaped on board of her, attended with one Carroz, a Spa- nith cavalier, and feventeen Englifh more. The cable, meanwhile, which fattened his fhip to that of the enemy, being cut, the admiral was thus left in the hands of the French; and as he ftill continued the fight with great gallantry, he was pufhed ZL / # i) Hunry entered into all the vi of executing this pl advanced his favourite, from G@isewwv to make TPO N Re Yes VUE 87 pufhed overboard by their pikes *, Lord Ferrars, feeing the admiral’s galley fall off, followed with the other veffels; and the whole feet was fo difcouraged by the lofs of their admiral, that they retired from before Breft +. ‘The French navy came out of harbour; and even ventured to invade the coat of Suflex. They were repulfed, and Prejeant, their admiral, loft an eye by the fhot of an arrow. Lord Howard, brother to the deceafed admiral, received the command of the Einglifh fleet ; and little memorable paffed at fea during this fummer. GREAT preparations had been making at land, during the whole winter, for an invafion of France by the way of Calais; but the fummer was well advanced before every thing was in fufficient readinefs for the intended enterprize. The long peace, which the kingdom had enjoyed, had fomewhat unfitted the Englith for military expeditions ; and the great change, which had lately been introduced in the art of war, had rendered it ftill more difficult to inure them to the ufe of the weapons now employed in action. The Swifs, and after them the Spaniards, had fhown the advantage of a ftable infantry, who fought with pike and fword, and were able to repulfe even the heavy-armed cavalry, in which the great force of the armies formerly confifted. The practice of fire-arms was become very common; tho’ the caliver, which was the weapon now ufed, was fo inconvenient, and attended with fo many difadvantages, that it had not entirely difcredited the ufe of bows, a weapon in which the Englifh excelled all European nations. ‘The Englith archers ftill maintained their reputation ; and even during the prefent reign, the king’s allies had follicited him for fupplies of this kind. The fecond year after his acceffion, he fent a thoufand archers, under the command of !ord Dacres, to the affiftance of Ferdinand, his father-in-law, in his projected expe- dition again{t the Moors of Barbary; but as that prince turned his arms again{t the French in Italy, Darcy was fent back without being employed in any fervice. The King had alfo fent fifteen hundred archers under the command of Sir Edward Poinings to the affiftance of Margaret, dutchefs of Savoy, who made ufe of them with great advantage againft the duke of Guelders, the great difturber of the Netherlands. A confiderable part of the forces, which Henry now levied for the invafion of France, confifted alfo of archers ; and fo foon as affairs were in readinefs, the vanguard of the army, amounting to 8000 men, under the com- mand of the earl of Shrewfbury, failed over to Calais. Shrewfbury was accom- panied * It was a maxim of Howard’s, that no admiral was good for any thing, that was not brave even to a degree of madnefs. As the fea-fervice requires much lefs plan and centrivance and capacity than the land, this maxim has great plaufibility and appearance of truth: Tho” the fate of Howard himfelf may ferve as a proof that even there courage ought to be tempered with difcretion. T Stowe, p. 491. Herbert, Hollingthed, p. 816, a \. hap : I, 1513. be ss t. t ¥ =~ ‘ r Nf oom : e i + ge aey ' + ' +. ; a 4 ? eet i i ~ > — & = ‘ Miah AE OR Se eae i yn ba — Le: : “ _v a i Les gn cfu tows ; mer “s — eee ere : oe; a aoe (eesat arm. Look. - , Ser “ Chap. de 1513. 30th of June. Tnvafion of France. tO de la been attainted mit this aét of violence by the dying commands, who told him, that he never wou! bulent a difpofition as Suffolk was alive. Pole, had accepted of a commat foolifhly to revive t probably drew more fuddenly t! &8 HI panied with the earl of D Rice ap Phomas, capt after followed under with the earls of No ether with Carew, ar NY 5 all That he might fecure her adn Pole, earl of Suffolk, to be be and imprifoned during the late reign. At laft, Henry, the nobility, arrived in Calais, and entered upon hi he fondly expected afiftance he fo muc Being put in motion by a fum of mone victories obtained in Italy, ing to enter that kingdom with an army of twenty-five t equal force could be oppofed to their incurfion. 20,000 crowns from Henry, and had enga; That he might make atone- advance of 1 with Sooo men, but failed in his engagements. ment to the King, Enelifh army with an example of difci of the Engl himfelf in his fervice, wore the as one of his fubjeéts and captains. crowns day, traordinary fpectacle, of an empe land, he was treated with the higl a'| the operations of the combined army. Berore the atrival of Henry and Maximi ad lord Herbert had formed the fiese of Terotiane, a town fituate on bury a 8 * Polydore Virgil, lib. 27. HE King himfelf and he appointed the queen regent © siniftration from all difturbance, he ordered Edmond headed in the Tower, the nobleman who had The King was led to com- as is imagined, of his father, ‘—h monarch to be. more bent on glory t STIORY: oF EN:GLAN D. se +humberland and Kent, the lor Curfon, and other gentlemcn. prepared to follow Lar atrende{ with the du fo much fuccefs and glory *. Haftings, Cobham, and Sir erby, the lords Pitzwater, 2a cain of the light horfe.. Another Body of 60co men feon the command of lord Herbert, the chamberlain, attended ds Audley and Delawar, with the main body and ‘rear of ‘the € the kingdom during his abfence. d be free from danger, whi'e a man of fo tur-- And as his brother, Richard de la sd in the French fervice, and attempted very he York faction, and to animate them againft Henry, he 1c King’s vengeance on the unha ke of Buckingham and many others of s French expedition, whence OF all thofe allies, on whofe ppy Suffolk. h relied, the Swifs alone fully performed their engagements. ~ y fent them by Henry, and incited by their and by their animofity againft France, they were prepat- houfand men; and no Maximilian had received an ced to reinforce the Swils he himfelf appeared in the Low Countries, and joined the fome German and Flemih fo'diers, who were ufeful in giving pline to Henry’s new-levied forces. Obferving the difpofition Belearius, lib. 14. han on intereft, he inlifted crofs of St. George, and received pay, @ hundred But while he exhibited this ex- ror of Germany ferving under a King of Eng- ieft refpeé&t by Henry, and really directed lian in the camp, the earl of Shrew!- the H°E’N R Y VIM. 89 the frofitiers of Picardy; and they began to attack the place with vigour, Chap. I. Teligini and Crequi commanded in the town, and had a garrifon, which exceeded —s not a thoufand men yet made they fuch ftout refiftance as protracted the fiege a month; and they found themfelves at laft more in danger from want of pro- vifions and ammunition than from the aflaults of the befiegers. Having con- veyed intelligence of their fituation to Lewis, who had advanced to Amiens with his army, that prince gave orders to throw relief into the place. Fontrailles ,¢., Aupu®t. appeared at the head of 800 horfemen, each of whom carried a fack of gun- powder behind him, and two quarters of bacon. With this {mall force he made a fudden and unexpected irruption into the Englifh camp, and furmounting all refiftance, advanced to the foffee of the town, where each horfeman threw down his burthen. They immediately returned at the gallop, and were fo fortunate as again to break thro’ the Englifh, and to receive little or no lofs, in this dan- gerous attempt *, But the Englifh had, foon after, full revenge for that infult. Henry had res pate of Gui- ceived intelligence of the approach of the French Horfe, who had advanced to negate. protect this incurfion of Fontrailles; and he ordered fome troops to pafs the Lis, in order to oppofe them. The cavalry of France, tho’ they confifted chiefly of gentlemen, who had behaved with great valour in many defperate actions in Italy, were, on fight of the enemy, feized with fo unaccountable a panic, that they immediately took to flight, and were purfued by the Englifh. The duke of Longueville, who commanded the French, Buffi d’Amboife, Clermont, Im- bercourt, the chevalier Bayard, and many other officers of diftinftion were taken prifoners{. ‘This action, or rather rout, is fometimes called the battle of Guinegate, from the place where it was fought; but more commonly the batile of Spurs, becaule the French, that day, made more ufe of their fpurs than of their {words or military weapons. Arter fo confiderable an advantage, the King, who was at the head of a compleat army of above 50,000 men, might have made incurfions to the gates of Paris, and fpread confufion and defolation every where. It gave Lewis great joy, when he heard, that the Englifh, inftead of pufhing their victory, and at- tacking the difmayed troops of France, returned to the fiege of an inconfiderable place like Tcrotiane. The governors were obliged foon after to furrender the town; and Henry found his acquifition of fo little confequence, tho’ gained at the expence of fome blood, and what, in his prefent circumftances, was more important, of much valuable time, that he immediately demolifhed the fortifi- N cations, * Hitt. de Chev. Bayard, ch. 57. Memoires de Bellai. + Memoires de Bellai, liv. 1. Polydore Virgil, lib. 27. Hollingfhed, p. 822. Herbert, ee ce HISTORY OF ENGLAN D. go rattes of the French were agai red with regard to th Chap. I. cations: “The anxicties of the French were again renewed with reg 1€ 1513- motions of the Englifh. The Swifs at the fame time had entered Burgundy with a very formidable army, and laid fiege to Dijon, which was in no condition co refift them. Ferdinand himfelf, tho’ he had made a truce with Lewis, feemed difpofed to lay hold of every advantage which fortune fhould prefent to him. Scarce ever was the French monarchy in greater danger, or lefs in a condition to defend itfelf againft thofe powerful armies, which on every fide affailed or threatened it. Even many of the inhabitants of Paris, who believed themfelves expofed to the rapacity and violence of the enemy, began to diflodge, without knowing what place could afford them greater fafety and protection. Bur Lewis was extricated from his prefent difficulties by the manifeft blunders of his enemies. The Swifs allowed themfelves to be feduced into a negotiation by Tremotille, governor of Burgundy; and without making enquiry, whether he had any powers to treat, they accepted of the conditions which he offered them, Tremoiiille, who knew, that he would be difavowed by his matter, ftipu'ated whatever they were pleafed to demand; and thought himfelf happys at the expence of fome payments, and very large promifes, to get rid of fo for- midable an enemy ff. Tr meafures of Henry fhowed equal ignorance in the art of war with thofe of the Swifs in negotiation. Tournay was a great and rich city, which, tho’ it lay within the frontiers of Flanders, belonged entirely to France, and afforded the troops of that kingdom a pafiage into the middle of the Netherlands. Maximi- lian, who was defirous to free his grandfon from fo troublefome a neighbourhood, advifed Henry to lay fiege to this place; and the Englifh monarch, not con- fidering that fuch an acquifition no way advanced his conquefts in France, was fo imprudent as to follow this interefted council, The city of Tournay, by its an- tient charters, being exempted from the burthen of a garrifon, the burghers, even againft the remonftrance of their favereign, ftrenuoufly infifted on maintain- ing this dangerous privilege ; and they engaged, by themfelves, to make a vigo- rous defence againft the enemy*. ‘Their courage failed them when matters came to extremity ; and after a few days fiege, the place was furrendered to the Eng- lifh. Henry fo little regarded its privileges, that he immediately quartered a earrifon in it, under the command of Sir Edward Poinings. The bifhop of Tournay was lately dead; and as a new bifhop was already elected by the chapter, but not inftalled in his office, the King beftowed the adminiftration of the fee on his favourite, Wolfey, and put him in immediate pofieffion of the 8 revenues, 24th Septem- ber. + Memoires du marefchal de Fleuranges Beliarius, lib. 14. * Memoires de Fleuranges- BON Ro Ye: Vee. 91 revenues, which were confiderable +, Hearing of the retreat of the Swifs, and obferving the feafon to be far advanced, he thought proper to retire into nee land; and he carried the greateft part of his army with him. Succels had a tended him in every enterprize; and his youthful mind was much elated with this feeming profperity ; but all men of judgment, comparing the advantages of | fituation with his progrefs, his expences with his acquifitions, were Eedaied, that this campaign, fo much vaunted, was, in reality, both ruinous and in- elorious {. Tue fuccefs, which, during this fummer, had attended Henry’s arms in the north, was much more decifive. The King of Scotland had fummoned out the whole force of his kingdom ; and having paffed the Tweed with a brave, tho’ a tumultuary army of above 50,000 men, he ravaged thofe parts of Northum- berland which lay neareft that river, and employed himfelf in taking the caftles of Norham, Etal, Werke, Ford, and other places of little importance. The lady Ford, a woman of great beauty, being taken prifoner in her caftle, was prefented to James, and 6 gained on the affections of that monarch, that he wafted in idle pleafure that critical time, which, during the abfence of his enemy, he fhould have employed in pufhing his china His troops, lying in a barren country, where they foon confumed all the provifions, began to be pinched with neceffity ; and as the authority of the prince was feeble, ahd mili- tary difcipline, during that age, extremely relaxed, many of them had ftolen from the camp, and eed to are houfes. Mean while, the earl of Surrey, having collected a force of 26,000 men, of which 5000 had been fent over from the King’s army in France, marched to the defence of the country, and approached the Scotch, who lay on fome high ground near the hil!s of Cheviot. Th e river Till ran between the armies, and sprewbiited an engagement: Surrey therefore fent a herald to the Scotch camp, challenging them to defcend into the plain of Milfield; which lay towards the fouithrs and there, appointing a day fot the combat, try their valour on equal ground. As he received no fatisfactory an- fwer, he made a feint of marching towards Berwic ; as if he intended: to enter Scotland, to Jay wafte the borders, and cut off the provifions of the enemy. The Scotch army, in order to prevent his purpofe, put themfelves in motion ; and having fet fire to the huts in which they had dp dearagos they. defcended from the hills. Surrey, taking advantage of the fmoke, which was blown towards him, and which boieced:| lis movements, pafled the Till with his artillery and vanguard at the bridge of Twifel, and fent the reft of his army to find a ford farther up the river.’ N 2 AN ¢ Strype’s Memorials, vo’: 1. p. 5, 6. + Guicciardini, Battle ofFlou den, Sy HISTORY oF ENGLAND. Aw engagement was now become inevitable between the armies, and both fides prepared for it with great tranquillity and order *. The Englifh divided their army into two lines : Juord Howard led the main body of the firft line, Sir Edmond Howard the right wing, Sir Marmaduke Conftable the left. The eark of Surrey himfelf. commanded: the main body of the fecond line, lord Dacres. the right wing, Sir Edward Stanley the left. Fhe Scotch front prefented three divifions to the enemy: The middle was led by the King himfelf: The right by; she earl of Huntley,” affifted by lord Fume: The left by the earls of Lenoxiand A fourth divifion under the earl of Bothwel made a body of re- ferve. Huntley began the battles and after a fharp conflict, put to flight the teft wing of the Englifh, and chaced them off the field: But on returning from, the purfuit, he found the whole Scotch army in great diforder. The divifiom under Lenox and Argyle, elated with the faccefs of the other wing, had broke: their ranks, and notwithftanding the remonftrances and entreaties of La Motte,, che French ambaflador, had rufhed headlong upon the enemy: Not only Sim Edmond Howard, at the head of his divifion, received them with great valour s; but Dacres, who commanded in the fecond line, wheeling about during the. aétion, fell upon their rear, and put them to the {word without refiftance. The; divifion under the King himfelf and that under Bothwel, animated by the valour of theit leaders, ftill made head, againft. the Englifh, and throwing themfelves: into a circle, protracted. the aétion till night feparated the. combatants.. The: victory feemed yet. uncertain, and the numbers. which fell on each. fide were nearly equal, amounting to above 5000 men. But. the morning difcovered evi-. dently where the advantage. lay. The Englifh had. loft only perfons of fmalk note; but the flower. of the Scotch nobility. had fallen. in battle, and’ the King, himfelf,. after the moft diligent enquiry,. could no where be found. In fearching: the field, the Englifh met with.a dead body, which refembled him, and was arrayed: tn a fimilar habit ; and they. put it in a-lead coffin and fent it to London. Dur-- ing fome time it was kept unburied ;. becaufe James died under fentence of exe- communication, on account of his confederacy with France, and his oppofition. to the holy fee + : But upon Henry’s application, who pretended that that prince, “1 the inftant before his death, had difcovered figns of repentance, abfolution was given him, and his body. was interred. The Scotch,, however, ftill afferted,. that it was not James’s body,, which was found in the field of battle, but that. of one Elphinfton, who had been arrayed in. arms refembling the King’s, in or- der to divide the attention of the Enelifh, and fhare the danger with his. mafters. It Argyle. * Buchannan, lib. 13. Drummond: Herbert. Polydore Virgil, lib. 27. Stowe, p. 493. Paullus Jovius. + Buchannan, lib. 13, . Herbert. Wages Wik oY Vill. 93 fe was believed that James had been’ feen croffing the Tweed at Kelfo; and fome imagined that he had been killed by the: clients of lord Hume, whom that noble- man had inftigated to commit fo enormous a crime. But the populace enter- tained. the opinion, that he was ftill alive, and having gone fecretly in pilgrimage to the holy land, would foon return, and take poffeffion of the throne. ‘This fond conceit was long entertained in Scotland. ‘Tue King of Scots and moft of the chief nobility being killed in the field: of Flouden, fo this battle was called, a very inviting opportunity was offered to Henry of gaining advantages over that kingdom, perhaps of reducing it to fabjeCtion. But he difcovered on this occafion a mind truly great and generous. When .the queen of Scotland, Margaret, who was created regent during the infancy of her. fon, applied. for peace, he readily. granted it; and took compaffion of the helplefs condition of his fifter and nephew... The earl..of Surrey, who had gained him fo great a victory; he reftored to. the title of Duke of Norfolk, which had been forfeited by his father, for engaging on the fide of Richard the third. His fon, lord Howard, was honoured with the title of earl of Surrey. Sir Charles Brandon, his favourite, whom he had before created vifcount Lifle, was now raifed. to the dignity of duke of Suffolk. Wolfey, who. was both his favourite and his minifter, was created bifhop of Lincoln.. Lord Herbert ob- tained the title of earl of Weorcefter. Sir Edward Stanley,, that of lord Mont- eagle. To’ peace with Scotland gave Henry fecurity towards the north, and enabled him to profecute in tranquillity his enterprize againft France, fome other inci- dents had happened, which more than counterballanced this fortunate event, and ferved to open his eyes with regard to the rafhnefs of an undertaking, into which his youth and high fortune had betrayed him.. Lewis, fully fenfible of the dangerous fituation to which his kingdom had been reduced during the former camipaign, was refolved, by every expedient, to. prevent the return of like perils, and to break the confederacy of his enemies. The pope was no way difpofed to pufh the French to extremity ; and provided they returned not to take poffeffion of Milan, his intereft rather led him to pre- ferve the ballance among the contending parties. He accepted therefore of LLewis’s offer to renounce the council of Lyons; and he took off the excommu- nication which his predecefior and himfelf had denounced againft that King and: his kingdom. Ferdinand was now faft declining in years, and as he entertained no fatther ambition than that of keeping poffeffion of Navarre, which he had fubdued by his arms’and policy, he readily hearkened to the propofals of Lewis. for prolonging the truce another year; and he even fhowed an inclination of 4. forming: Chap. I. 133. 15 Tf 94. ‘hap. It, HISTORY of ENGLAND. forming a more ‘ntimate connexion with that:monarch. Lewis had dropt hints of hig intention to marry his fecond daughter, Renée, ‘either to Charles, prince of Spain, or his brother, Ferdinand, both of them grandchildren to the Spanifh monarch; and he declared his refolution of beftowing on her, as her portion, his claim to the dutchy of Milan. Ferdinand not only embraced thefe fchemes with avidity; but alfo engaged the emperor, Maximilian, in the fame views} and procured his confent to a treaty, which opened fo inviting a profpect of aggran- dizing their common grandchildren, | Wuen Henry was informed of Ferdinand’s renewal of the truce with Lewis, he fell into the moft violent rage, and loudly complained, that his father-in-law had firft, by the hicheft promifes and profeffions;s engaged him in enmity with France, and afterwards, without giving him the leaft warning, had now again facrificed his intereft to his own felfifh purpofes, and had left him expofed alone to all the dangers and expences of the war. In proportion to-his eafy credulity and unfufpecting reliance on Ferdinand, was the vehemence with which he ex- claimed againft the treatment, which he met with; and he threatened revenge for this egregious treachery and breach of Faith *. But he loft all patience when snformed of the other negotiation, where Maximilian was alfo feduced from his alliance, and where propofals had been hearkened to, for the marriage of the prince of Spain with the daughter of France. Charles, during the life-time of the late King, had been affianced to Mary, Henry’s fecond fifter; arid as the prince now approached the age of puberty, the King had expected the ;mmediate completion of the marriage, and the honourable fettlement of a filler, for whom he had entertained a very tender affection. «Such a complication, there- fore, of injuries gave him the higheft difpleafure, and infpired him with a defire of expreffing his difdain towards thofe who had taken advantage of his youth and inexperience, and had abufed his too great facility. Tur duke of Longueville, who had been made prifoner at the battle of Guine- eate, and who was fill detained in England, was ready to take advantage of all thefe difpofitions of Henry, in order to procure a peace and even an alliance, which he knew to be fo paffionately defired by his mafter. He reprefented to the Kings that Anne, queen of France, being lately dead, a door was thereby opened for an affinity, which might tend to the advantage, of both kingdoms, and which would ferve to terminate honourably all the differences between them: That fhe had left Lewis no male children; and as he had ever entertained a ftrong defire of having heirs to the crown, no marriage feemed more fuitable to him than that with the princels * Petrus de Angleria, Fpif. 545, 54. Hi EVN Re Y)VIIT. 95 princefs of England, whofe youth and beauty afforded the moft flattering hopes in that-particular : That-tho’ the marriage of a princefs of fixteen, with a King of fiftyithree, might feem unfuitable 5: yet the other advantages, attending the alliance, were more than.a fufficient compenfation for this inequality: And that Henry, in Joofening his connexions with Spain, whence he had never experienced any advantage, would contrié a clofe affinity with Lewis, :a prince, who, thro’ his whole life, had invariably maintained the character of probity and honour. As Henry feemed to hearken to this difcourfe with very willing ears, Longue- ville informed his mafter of the probability, which. he difcovered, of bringing this) matter to a happy conclufion; and he received full powers for negotiating the treaty. The, articles..were eafily adjufted .between the .monarchs. » Lewis agreed that Tournay fhould remain in the hands of the Enelith ; that Richard de Ja Pole fhould be banifhed. to. Metz, there.to live on.a pentfion .affigned him by Lewis; that Henry fhould receive payment of a million of crowns, being the atrears due by treaty to his father and himfelf; and that the princefs Mary fhould bring four hundred thoufand crowns as her portion, and enjoy as large a jointure as any queen of France, even the former, who was heirefs of Britanny. The two princes alfo ftipulated the fuccours, with which they fhould mutually fupply each. other, in cafe either of them was attacked by any enemy *. In confequence of this treaty, Mary was fent over to France with a {plendid retinue, and Lewis met her at Abbeville, where the efpoufals were celebrated. Fle was enchanted with the beauty, grace, and numerous-accomplifhments of the young princefs ;_ and being naturally of an amorous difpofition, which his. advanced age had not entirely cooled, he was feduced into fuch a courle of gaiety and plea- ~~ fure, as proved very unfuitable to his declining ftate of health +. Fle died in lef than three months after his Marriage, to the infinite regret of his fubjeéts,. who, i of ar’ fenfible of his tender concern for their welfare, gave him with one voice the ho- ° nourable appellation of father of bis people. Francis, duke of Angouleme, a youth of one and twenty, who had married Lewis’s eldeft daughter, fucceedéd him on the throne; and by his activity, valour, generofity, and other virtues, gave prognoftics of a happy and glorious reign. This young monarch. had been extremely ftruck with: the charms of the Englith princels; and even during his predeceffor’s life-time, had payed her fuch ciofe attendance, as made fome of his friends apprehend that he had entertained views of gallantry towards her. But being warned, that, by indulging himfelf 1n this paffion, he might readily exclude his own title to the throne, he fo;bore all farther * Du Tiller ‘|. Brantome Eloge de Louis XII, Chap.. I. CTA oid Peace with 5 France. ? 3 ? 7th of Auouft; . oth of O&o- ber. Igis- ee WB u/\) an A 4 rie if , 4 ened {ih elit Wi t malt Machi A wat} anti “fh it ' i, Dt bol be We dh } | i ; 4 | Ai ae } rh ) ‘ het. A hi : } : } at \ Ma 4a hn it at . a ee y SS = ae “ eens ere nego emma 1 _——— abe d a i | - nh i ‘} haat ‘ Hi Wh ; 1515. Wolfey’s ad- charaéter, and his haughty deportment tion. him fafter in Henry’s confidence 5 HISTORY oF ENGLAND. with a very careful eye ndon, duke of Suffolk, perfonage of his time, 96 farther addrefies ; and even watched the young dowager during the Grft months of her widowhood. Charles Bra was at that time In the court of France, the moft comely | the exercifes, which were then thought to befit a and the mott accomplifhed in al Henry’s chief favourite 5 and that monarch had courtier and a foldier. He was houghts of marrying him to his fitter, and had given indul- which took place between them. The queen afked without farther reflection, to efpoufe id more eafily forgive him for not even once entertained t gence to that mutual paffion, Suffolk,. whether he had now the courage, her; and-fhe told him, that her brother wou afking his confent, than for acting contrary to his orders. Suffolk declined not fo inviting an offer; and the marriage was fecretly compleated at Paris. Francis, who was pleafed with this marriage, as it prevented Henry from forming any powerful alliance by means of his fifter * interpofed his cood offices in appeafing him: And even Wolfey, having entertained no jealoufy of Suffolk, who was content to participate in the King’s pleafures, and had no ambition to interpofe in ftate affairs, was active in reconciling the King to his fifter and brother-in-law ; and he obtained them permiffion to return to England. cH A P. Il. Wolfey's adminiftration.——Scotch affairs. Progrefi of Francis the firft. ‘fealoufy of Henry. Tournay delivered to France.—— Wolfley appointed legate. His manner of exercifing that office——— Death of the emperor Moaximiliane——Charles, King of Spatn, chofen emperor. ——Inter view between Henry and Francis at Calais: —The emperor Charles arrives in England. Mediation of Henry. —— Trial and condemnation of the duke of Buckingham. whom Wolfey’s fudden elevation, his afpiring had raifed, ferved only to rivet who placed a pride in fupporting the choice, which he had made, and who was incapable of yielding either to the murmurs of the people or the difcontents of the great. That artful prelate likewife, well acquainted HE numerous enemies, * Petrus de Angleria, Epift. 544- Hy, FoN RW 4 -Vil, 97 acquainted with the King’s imperious temper, concealed from him the abfolute afcendant, which he acquired ; and while he fecretly directed all public councils, he ever pretended a blind fubmiffion to the will and authority of his mafter. By entering into the King’s pleafures, he ftill preferved his affections ; by conducting his bufinefs, he. gratified his indolence; and by his unlimited complaifance in both capacities, he prevented all that jealoufy, to which his exorbitant acquifi- tions, and his fplendid, oftentatious train of life fhould naturally have given birth. The archbifhoprick of York falling vacant by the death of Bambrige, Wolfey was.promoted to that fee, and refigned the bifhoprick of Lincoln. Befides en- joying the adminiftration of Tournay, he got pofleffion, at very low leafes, of the revenues of Bath, Worcefter, and Hereford, bifhopricks filled by Italians, who were allowed to refide abroad, and who were glad to compound for this in- dulgence, by parting with a confiderable fhare of their profits. _ He held in com- mendam the abbey of St. Albans, and many other church preferments. He was even allowed to unite with the fee of York, firft that of Durham, next that of Winchefter; and there feemed to be no end of his acquifitions. His advance- ment in ecclefiaftical dignity ferved him as a pretence for engroffing {till more revenues: ‘The pope, obferving his great influence over the King, was defirous of engaging him in his intereft, and had created him a cardinal. Never church- man, under colour of exacting regard to religion, carried to a more exorbitant height, the ftate and dignity of that character. His train confifted of eight hun-’ dred fervants, of whom many were ‘knights and gentlemen: Some even of the nobility put their children into his family as a place of education; and in order to ingratiate them with their patron, allowed them to bear offices as his fervants. Whoever was diftinguifbed by any art or {cience payed court to the cardinal; and none payed courtinvain. Literature, which was then in its infancy, found in him a generous patron; and both by his public inflitutions and private bounty, he gave encouragement to every branch of erudition *. Not content with this munificence, which gained him the approbation of the wife, he {trove to dazzle the eyes of the populace, by the fplendour of his equipage and furniture, the coftly embroidery of his liveries, the luftre of his apparel. He was the firft cler- gyman in England who wore filk and gold, not only on his habit, but alfo on his faddies and the trappings of his horfes +. He caufed his cardinal’s hat to he borne aloft by a perfon of rank ; and when he came to the King’s chapel, would permit it to be laid on no place but thealtar. A prieft, the talleft and moft comely O he * Erafm. Epift lib. 2. Epift, 1. lib. 16. Epift. 3. t+ Polydore Virgil, lib. 27. Stowe, Pp. 501. Hollig thed, p. 847. Chap. IT. I5ts- HISTORY oF ENGLAND. he could find, carried before him a. pillar of filver; on whofe top was placed'a os crofs:. But hot content with this parade, to which he thought himfelf intitled ardinal, he provided another prieft of equal ftature and beauty, who marched York, even in the diocefe of Canterbury; contrary as C . bearing the crols of to the antient rule and agreement between the prelates of thefe rival fees. *..» Dhe with the eardinal’s oftentation;, and faid they were ‘now ‘fen- one was not fufficient for the expiation of his fins and oe pa — ey people made merry fible, that one crols. al offences. Waruam, ‘chancellor and archbifhop of Canterbury, a man of a very modes rate temper, averfe to: all difpute, chofe rather to retire from public employment, chan maintain an unequal co steft with the hauehty- cardinal. He refigned his office of chancellor; and the feals were immediately intrufted to Wolley. if this newoaccumulation of dignity encreaféd his enemies, it alfo ferved to exalt his per- fonal charaéter, and prove the extent of his capacity. A (tri adminiftration of juftice took place during his ‘enjoyment of this high office ; and no chancellor ever difcovered greater impartiality in his decifions, deeper penetration of judg- ment, or more’enlarged knowledge of law and equity T. Tir duke of Norfolk,’ finding the King’s moncy almoft all exhaufted by projects and pleafures, while’ his inclination for expence full continued, was glad to refion his office of treafurer,. and retire from court. His rival, Fox, bifhop of Winchefter, profited not by his abfence ; but partly overcome by years and infir- mities, partly difgufted at the afcendant acquired by Wolfey, withdrew himfelf entirely to the care of his diocefe. The duke of Suffolk had alfo taken offence, - that the King, by the cardinal’s perfwafion, had refufed to pay a debt, which he had contracted during his abode in France; and he thenceforth affected to live in privacy. Thele incidents left Wolfey to enjoy without a rival the whole power and favour of the King; and put into his hands every fpecies of authority. In vain; did Fox, before his retirement, ‘warn the King ‘ not to fuffer the fervant s¢ to be’ greater than his ‘mafter:”? Henry replied, “ that he knew well how to c¢ retain all his fabjeéts in obedience ;” but he continued ftill an unlimited defe- fence in every thing to the directions and countels of the cardinal. ) Tue public tranquillity was fo well eftablifhed in England,, the obedience of the people fo entire, the general adminiftration of juftice, by the cardinal’s means $, fo exact, that no domeftic occurrence happened fo remarkable as to difturb the repofe of the King and his minifter : They might even have difpenfed with : * Polydore Virgil, lib. 27. + Sir Thomas More. Stowe, p. 504. t Erafm, lib. 2. epift. 1. Cavendith, Hall. \y H B/N R Y. VIll. 96 with themfelves from giving any ftrict attention to foreign affairs, were it poffible for mento enjoy any fituation in abfolute tranquillity, or abftain from projects and enterprizes, however fruitlefs and unneceflary. Chap. II I Tue will of the late King of Scotland, who left his widow regent of the Scotc Kingdom, and the vote of the convention of Eftates, which confirmed that defti- nation, had exprefsly limited her authority to the condition of her remaining un- married *: But notwithftanding this limitation, a few months after her hafhanid’s death, fhe efpoufed the earl oF Angus, of the name of Douglas, a nobleman of creat family and very promifing hopes. Some of the nobility now propofed. the election of Angus as regent, and recommended this inane as the moft likely means of preferving peace with England : But the jealoufy of the great families, and the fear of exalting the Douglafies, begot oppofition to this sadesialles Lord Hume in particular, the moft powerful chieftain in the kingdom, -infifted on re- calling the duke of :Albany, fon to a brother of James the third, who had been banifhed into France, and who, having there. married, had. lefe-pofterity, that were the next heirs to the crown, and the neareft relations to their + young fovereign. Albany, though fit prince-of the blood, had never been in Scotland, was totally unacquainted with the manners of the people, ignorant oftheir fituation, unprac- ticed in their language ;..yet: fuch was the favour:attending the French alliance, and fo great the authority of Hume, that this prince was invited to accept the reins of government. Francis, careful not to give offence to the King of England, detained Albany fomé time in France ;.but at laft, fenfible howd im- portant it was to keep Scotland in his interefts,- he permitted him to go over, and take pofleflion of the regency: He even renewed the antient league with that kingdom, tho’ it implied fuch a clofe connexion, as might be thought fomewhat to infringe his alliance with England. WHEN the regent arrived in Scotland, he made enquiries concerning the {tate of the country, acid character of the people ; and difcovered a fcene; with which he was hitherto but little-acquainted. That. turbulent kingdom, he found, was rather to be confidered as a confederacy, and that not aiclofe one, of petty princes, than a regular fyftem of ‘civil pohty; and even the King, much more the regent, pofieft an authority very uncertain: and precarious. Arms, more than laws, prevailed ; and courage, preferably to equity or juftice, was the virtue moft valued and refpected. The nabil lity, in whom ithe whole power refided, were fo connected ‘by hereditary alliances, or fo divided by inveterate enmities, that it was impoffible, without employing force, either to punith the moit flagrant guilt, or give fecurity to the moft entire innocence. R apine and violence, when O 2 exercifed * Buchanan, lib. 14. Drummond, :-Herbert. ) ; | a aT | i casas >) ao a D) kis ~ * ; “AlrS. mT i)... & % | ! yey Fi Ly aN | Chap. Il. ists: ,, ney iH Hy WINE a HWisTORY oF ENGLAND. Role - ftead of making a perfon odious among his own exercifed on a hoftile tribe, and by rendering him clan; rather recommended | ufeful to tae chieftain, entit sim to efteem and approbation, led him to a preference above his fellows.| And the’ the necefiity of mutual fupport ferved asa clofe cement of friendfhip among, thofe of the fame kindred, the {pirit of revenge again{t enemies, and the defire of profe- cating the deadly feuds, (fo they were cal'ed) {till appeared to be paffions the mott o that uncultivated people. predominant among Tue perfons, to whom Albany firft applied for information with regard to the ftate of the country, happened to be inveterate enemies of Hume *; and they reprefented that powerful nobleman as the chief fource of public diforders, and the great obftacle to the execution of the laws, and adminiftration of juftices Before the authority of the magiftrate could be eftablifhed, it was neceflary, they faid, to make an example of this great offender; and by the terror of his punifh- ment, teach all leffer criminals to pay tefpect to the power of their fovereiga. Albany, moved by thete reafons, was induced to forget Hume’s patt fervices, to which he had been, in a great meafure, beholden for the regency ; and he no longer bore towards him that favourable countenance, with which he was wont to receive him. Hume perceived the change, and was incited, both by views of his own fecurity and his revenge, 0 take meafures in oppofition to the regent. He applied himfelf to Angus and the queen dowager, and reprefented to them the danger to which the infant prince was expofed, fromthe ambition. of Albany, the nex: heir to the crown, to whom the ftates had imprudently entrufted the whole cuthority of government. By his perfwafion, fhe formed the defign of carrying off the young King, and putting him under the protection of her bro- ther; and when that confpiracy was difcovered, fhe herfelf, accompanied with Hume and Angus, withdrew into England, where fhe was foon after delivered of a daugater. Flenry, in order to check the authority of Albany and the French party, gave encouragement to thefe malecontents, and affured them of his protection. Matters being afterwards in appearance accommodated between Hume and the hat nobleman returned into his own country ; but mutual fufpicions and jealoufies full prevailed. Fie was committed to cuftody, under the care of the earl of Arran, his brother-in-law; and was, for fome time, detained prifoner in his caftle. But having perfwaded Arran to enter into the confpiracy with him,-he was allowed to make his efcapes and he openly made war upon the regent. A no more fincere than the foregoing; and Hume ther with his brother, into the hands of the regent, t new accommodation eniued, was fo imprudent as to put himfelf, toge ® Buchanan, lib. 14. Drummond. 2 H EN R Y Vill, 10! the regent. They were immediately feized, committed to cuftody, srought to their trial) condemned, and executed. No legal crime was proved againft thefe brothers: It was only alleged, that, at the battle of Flouden, they had no done their duty in fupporting the’ King 5-and as this backwardnefs could not, from the whole courfe of cele paft life, be afcribed to cowardice, it was com- monly imputed toa more criminal motive. The evidences, however, of guilt produced againft them, were far from being valid or convincing 3 andthe people, who hated them while alive, were very much diflatisfied with their execution. SucH violent remedies often produce, for fome time, a deceitful tranquillity ; but as they deftroy mutual confidence, and beget the moft inveterate inimofities, their confequences are commonly very fatal both to the public, and to thofe who make trial of them. The regent, however, took advantage of the prefent calm which prevailed ; and being invited by the French king, who was, a: that time, willing to gratify Henry, he went over into France; and was detiined there during five years. A great part of his authority he entrufted into tie hands of Darcy, a Frenchman, whom he created warden of the marches, and who was extremely vigilant in the diftribution of juftice, and the punifhment of crimes and oppreffion. “But Sir David Hume, a kinfman of the nobleman lately executed, defirous of revenging his friend’s death on the friend of the regent, way-laid Darcy near Dunfe; and after reproaching him with that executior, made an attack upon him. “Darcy finding himfelf too weak to refift, and trufting to the fwiftnefs of his horfe, fled towards Dunbar; but being ignorant of the roads, he ran into a bog, was overtaken by the purfuers, and put to death; As he wore long flowing hair, Hume, exulting in this affaffination as a gallant exploit, cut out thefe locks, and pleating Hen: into a wreath, wore chet ever after at the pummel of his faddle *. During the abfence of the regent, fuch confufions pre- vailed in Scotland, and fuch mutual enmity, rapine, and violence, among the creat families, that that kingdom was, for a long time, utterly difabled both from ee its enemies, and affifting its friends. We have carried on the Scotch hiftory fome years b:yond the btefent period; that as that country had little con- nexion with the general fyftem of Europe, we mi it be the lefs interrupted in the narration of thofe memorable events, which were ht here tranfacted. Ir was forefeen, that a young, active prince, like Francis, and of fo martial a difpofition, would not fuffer to lie ufelefs the great ees ations, which his prede- ceffor, before his death, had made for the conqueft of Milan. Hz: had been obferved even to weep at the recital of the military exploits of Gaften de Foix PUAL oO Is t 5 nd * Buchanan, lib. 14. Pitfcottie. ) ee ee : ore fem z z > - ee = . Soe —— , iy ay : Mf) Od ae hh JRE ay ‘ ' ae i in 4 j ; | \ aid hi iT i aL ca anh Pat me hy ] at ht - a i haa on he + o - a4 : H i , ‘ oiuly ' ¥ be } . } Hf ne ; Wien 4 iu i Ni ‘ - ———« =; ~ — == = , 25 in ee , 7 Ms : J 4 A ~ pi Stes cree ten wrt eres Spel eh ad atl = —% —es~ “ . ao Se wn eo : eS BS = ==} == a See ~~ Tr ¢ / YX : a II. } 3 ’ ’ > rag ] rocreis § i, re tne hiflt. To ath ofD- 13th S€p tember. 10! HISTORY oF ENGLAND. ) i and thefe tears of emulation were held to be fure prognoftics of his future valour. Fe renewed the treaty which Lewis had made with Henry ; and having left every thine, as he thought, fecure behind him, he marched his armies towards the nce; pretending, that his fole purpofe was to fecure his kingdom againit the incurfions of the Swifs. That formidable people fill retained their animofity againit France; and having taken Maximilian, duke of Milan, under and indeed reduced him to abfolute dependance, they were de- ur and intereft, to defend him acainft his in- — ‘ch numerous forces in all thofe vallies of the Alps, thro’ which, they thought, the French muft neceflarily pafs; and when Francis, with great fecrecy, induftry, and perfeverance, made his entrance into Piemont by another paflage, they were not difmayed,; but defcended into the plain, tho’ unprovided of cavalry, and oppofed themfelves to the progrefs of the At Marignan near Milan, they fought with Francis one of the moft i es, which is to be met with in the hiftery of thefe latter 3 5? fouth of Fra their protection, ip GIES termined, from views both of hono vader t. They fortified themfelves w French arms. furious and beft contefted batt! ages; and it required all the heroic valour of that prince to infpire his troops with courage fufficient to refift the defperate aflault of thofe mountaniers.. After a bloody action in the evening, night and darknels parted the combatants 5 but rning, the Swifs renewed the attack with equal alacrity ; and it was mot till they had loft all their braveft troops that they could be prevailed with to retire. The field was ftrowed with twenty thoufand flain of both fides; and the marefchal Trivulzio,. who had been prefent at eighteen pitched battles, declared that every engagement, which he had yet feen, was only the play of children, but that the aétion of Marignan was a combat of heroes *. next mo Arter this great victory, the conqueft of the Milaneze was eafy and open. ‘rancis, fenfible how important the alliance of the cantons was, even in their loweft fortune, gave them ail the conditions, which they could have demanded, had they been ever > fuccefsful ; and he courted their friendfhip by every pof- The Venetians were in alliance with France ; and as they fible condefcenfion. ly to the fuccefles of that crown for the final recovery of their do- minions on the continent, they feconded Francis in every enterprize. Pope Leo, whofe fole fault was too great finefle a 1d artifice, a fault, which, both asa prieft and an Italian, it was difficult for him to avoid, had hitherto temporized be- tween the parties; and Francis’s victory at Marignan. determined him abfolutely ME 2 } a ig truitcea eniire to embrace the friendfhip of that monarch +. But what both facilitated molt, and -4- t fT n ~~ 4 mo > Dp mY, See >, . 2 eee n Bd 2 7°1 7 * Loe P . - a 7 . + Memoires du Bellai, 1b. 1. Guicciaraini, 40, 12. * Hliftoire de la Ligue de Camoray- + Guicciardini, Lb. 12. Paullus Jovius. iT et oa RW ¥ VIIl. 103 and fecured the.conqueft of the Milaneze, was the refolution of Maximilian Sforza himfelf, who, tired of the viciffitudes of his fortune, difg tyranny of the Swifs, and defirous of privacy and repofe, put himfelf into Francis’s hands; and having ftipulated a yearly penfion of thirty thoufand ducats, refigned all pretenfions to that dutchy, and retired into France. ty te | ex7 te} } Uitead Witn the Tue fuccefs and glory of.the French manarch began to excite jealoufy in , Henry ; and his rapid progrefs, on in fo diftant a country, was not regarded without apprehenfions by the Englifh miniftry. Italy was da that age the feat of religion, of literature, sad. of commerce; and as bait pofie! id slams that luftre, which has fince been fhared among other nations, ixed sa attention of all Europe, and ever ya acquifition hich was made aes appeared more impor- tant than its weight in ne e ballance of power fhould, {trictly fpeaking, have de- manded, Henry alfo thought, that he had reafon to comp a #y F rancis for fending the duke of Albany into Scotland, and undermining the power and credit of his fifter, the queer scenes t.° .The repairing the fortificat ons " Te- rotienne was alfo regarded as a breach of treaty. But above all, what tended to alienate the court of England, was the difguft which Wolfey had taken againft the French monarch. Henry, on the conqueft of Tournay, had refufed to admit Lewis Gaillart, the bifhop elect, to the poffeffion of the temporalities, becaufe that prelate de- clined taking the oath of allegiance to his new fovereign; and Woltey was appointed, in his room, Sdriiatitescce of the bifl POPHCR: As the cardinal wifhed to obtain free and undifturbed poffeffion, he applied to 1 to beftow on Gaillart fome fee of equal yah in aes ce, and to obtain refignation of Tournay. Francis, who ftill hoped to recover poffeffion of that city, and who feared that the full fettlement of Wolfley in the bifhopric would prove an obftacle to his purpofe, oa hitherto neglected to gratify the haughty prelate ; and the bifhop of Tournay, by applying to the court of Rome, had obtained'a bull for his fettlement in that fee, Wolfey, who expected to be com- plied with in every requeft, and who exacted refpect.even from the greateft monarchs, refented the flight put upon him by Francis; and -he pufhed his mafter to feek an occafion for wreaking his were ince- againft that. monarch *, Maximinian the emperor was ready to embrace every — fal of anew en. terprize, efpecially if attended with an offer a money, of which he was ex- tremely greedy, extremely prodigal, and extremely neceffitous. ~ Richard Pace, formerly fecretary to cardinal Bambrige, now fecretary of ftate, was difpatched c0 } Pere Daniel, vol, 3. p. 31. * Polydore. Virgil, lib. 27% : tat MI: i q | It \ ' had ay aaa ea tI ti i i" 4 iM} i i | i ; ‘ WH } unt weit " i iat Hil ) \ " | 1) |} Pee ‘ : + 1) } | A Chan. I. 7510. 1516. 104 HISTORY or ENGLAND. to the court of Vienna, and had a commiffion to propofe fome confiderable payments to Maximilian +: He thence made a journey into Switzerland ; and by like motives engaged fome of the cantons to furnifh troops to the emperor. That prince invaded Italy with a confiderable army; but being repulfed from before Milan, he retreated with his army into Germany, made peace with France and Venice, delivered Verona to that republic for a fum of money, and thus excluded himfelf, in fome meafure, from all future accefs into Italy. And Henry found, that, after expending five or fx hundred thoufand ducats, in order to oratify the ca -dinal’s refentment, he had only loofened his alliance with Francis, without diminifhing the power of that prince. THERE were many reafons, which engaged the King not to proceed farther at prefent in his enmity againft France. He could hope for affiftance from no Ferdinand, his father in law, who had often ceceived him, power in Europe. ‘afirmities; and a fpeedy end was looked was now declining faft from age anc and profperous reign of that great monarch. Charles, prince of for to the long Spain, fovereign of the Low Countries, defired nothing but peace with Francis, : uct his peaceable acceffion who had it fo much in his power, if provoked, to obftru to that rich inheritance, which was waiting him. The pope was overawed by the power of France, and Venice was engaged in a clofe alltance with that mo- Henry therefore remained in tranquillity curing tome time; and if no concern with regard to the affairs of the continent. narchy {. feemed to give himfe In vain did Maximilian endeavour to allure him into fome expence, by offering to make a refignation of the imperial crown in-his favour. ‘That artifice was too erofs to fucceed even with a prince fo little -political as Henry; and Pace, his envoy, who was perfectly well acquainted with the emperors motives and cha- racter, gave him warning, that the fole view cf that ‘prince in making him fo liberal an offer, was to draw money from him. Wurtz an univerfal peace prevailed in Europe, that event happened, which had fo long been looked for, and from which fuch important confequences were ioth January. ; . : expected, the death of Ferdinand, the catholic, and the fucceffion of his grand- fon, Charles, to his extenfive dominions, No commotion, however, or alte ration followed immediately upon that great incident. This young prince, who had not yet reached his fixteenth year, was already a great ftatefman, from the excellent education which he had received, and from the mature and folid judgment, with which nature had endowed him. He was fenfible how im” portant it was to preferve peace with foreigners, till he fhould have eftablifhed his + Petrus de Angleria, epill. 568. + Guicciardini, lib. 12. Bike Vi Rs ¥ VII. Ios his authority in his new dominions; and finding Francis defirous to take ad- vantage of his prefent fituation, he made him an offer-of fuch terms as gained the friendfhip and alliance of that monarch. He engaged to marry Francis’s daughter, tho’ only an infant of a year old; to receive as her dowry all her father’s pretenfions on the kingdom of Naples; to pay him a hundred thoufand crowns a year, till the confummation of the marriage; and to give the King of Navarre fatisfaction with regard to his dominions*. | Charles, having finifhed this treaty at Noyon by his minifters, and having thus left every thing in fecurity in the Low Countries, departed for Spain, and was willingly received to the government of thefe united kingdoms, The right of fucceffion lay in his mother, Joan, who was ftill alive; but as the was ufually dif- ordered in her judgment, Ferdinand had left the adminiftration to his grandfon, Charles; and the ftates, both of Caftile and Arragon, eave their confent to this deftination. Tue more Charles advanced in power and authority, the more was Francis fenfible of the neceflity he lay under of gaining the confidence and friendthip of Henry ; and he took at laft the only method by which he could obtain fuccefs, the paying court, by prefents and flattery, to the haughty cardinal. Bonnivet, admiral of France, was difpatched to London, and he was di- rected to employ all his infiruation and addrefs, qualities for which he was re- markable, to procure himfelf a place in Wolfey’s good graces. After the am- baffador had fucceeded in his purpofe, he took an opportunity of expreffing his mafter’s regret, that, by miftakes and mifapprehenfions, he had been fo un- fortunate as to lofe a friendfhip, which he fo much valued as that of his eminence. Wolfey was not deaf to thefe honourable advances from fo great a monarch; and he was thenceforth obferved to exprefs himfelf, on all occafions, in favour of the French alliance. ‘The more to engage him in his interefts, Francis entered into fuch confidence with him, that he afked his advice even in his moft fecret affairs, and on all difficult emergencies had recourfe to him as to an oracle of wifdom and profound policy. The cardinal made no fecret to the King of this private correfpondence ; and Henry was fo prepoffefied in favour of the great capacity of his minifter, that, he faid, he verily believed he would govern Francis as well as himfelf fT. Waewn matters feemed fufficiently prepared, Bonnivet opened to the cardinal his mafter’s defire of recovering Tournay ; and Wolley immediately, without hefitation, engaged to effectuate his purpofe. He took an opportunity of re- P prefenting * Recueil. de Traités par Leonard, tom. 2. { Polydore Virgil, lib; 27. Chap. I, 1516, ee}! di : ’ I i 44 a a { "| i - (BOW j ae he I ; : Pr H 4 He q ' ’ ‘ i) { ' i Nd i nw 1 nb Lik ht) y ef J ' : Ht : ' att j : ; ) OE ee, - my) | it ty, 4] By} hy ‘ , f ty \ i i : ‘ a it ™ ahs a q 4 P| i 1) | ae a0 ] i Bite mh hil 4 \} Ha | mi ie: By ' Mt iat Oa aR wa } 1 106 HISTORY OF ENGLAND. and council, thae Tournay lay ‘afeof a war, to keep - . : t e * Gas - Aad Kan. U. prefeating to “the King {fo remote from Calais, ‘cult, if not impoffible, im « t 1518) seaeigwouldibe very dithcuit, he hofe two places: That as it was fituate on the comfiunication open between thole tm it: was expofed to the attacks of ‘ 1 ; ne ree am = J Ph Te - det . A frontiers both of #rance and the Netherianas, “Both thefe powers, ahd mutt neceflarily, either That-even in-time of peace, it could not be preferved d mutinous inhabitants, ever by force or famine; fall into the i , } ] | ma ce 6 {1 atldnii ant ® LL @isaiiaiivcs hands of the ir laree carrifon, to reftrain the numerous an difcontented with the Enghir government - And that the poffeffion of Tournay, as it was thus precarious arid expenfive, fo was it entirely ufelefs, and gave little on océafion, “the dominions either of Charles “or -of a. > Pe, - MOE a - x7 4 W or ro accels to annoy, Oi Francis. Tarsereafons were of themfelves-very convincing, and were fure of meeting with no oppolition, wren they came fromthe mouth of the cardinal. A ‘treaty there- fore was entered into for the delivering up of Tournay ; and in order to give to Tournay de- ghat meafure a more graceful appearance, it was agreed, that the Dauphin and ie as the princefs Mary, both of them infants, Mould-be betrothed, and that this city Should be confidered as the dowry of the princefs. Such kinds of agreement were then common among fovereigns, tho’ it was very tare, that the interetts and views of the parties continued fo fteady as to effetual. But as Henry had been at confiderable expence in building a citadel at Tournay, Francis agreed to pay him 600,000°crowns at twelve yearly pay- meats, and to put into his hands eight hoftages, all of them men of quality, for the performance of the article *. And left the cardinal fhould think himfelf neglected in thefe ftipulations, he promifed him a yearly penfion of twelve thou- rad livres, as an equivalent for his adminiftration of the bifhopric of ‘Tournay. He alfo engaged to recall Albany from Scotland. Francis having facceeded fo well in this negotiation, began to enlarge his views, and to hope for more confiderable advantages, by practifing on the vanity and felf conceit of this haughty f,vourite. He redoubled his flattertes to the cardinal, coniu each letter, father, tutor, governor, and profefied the moft unbounded deference to his advice and opinion. All thofe carefles were preparatives toa negotiation for the delivery of Calais, in confideration of a fum of money to be paid for it; and if we may credit Polydore Virgil, who bears a particular fpite to Wolfey, on. ac- count of his being difpoffefied of his employment and thrown into prifon by that minifter, fo extravagant a propofal met with a very favourable reception from be cardinal. He ventured not, however, to lay the matter before the council : He ne a - render the intended marriages o 4 ° 8 z 1 . . - 4 1s if b ted him more frequently in every caoubt or difficulty, called him in tne * Memoires du Bellay, liv. 1. 7 =} V4 LITT H E oN ia’ 4 Vili, Loy He was contented to,found, privately the opinions of men, by dropping hints in, Chap. i “ > gS e “ “> : ’ =] & eo a Ee; «| = ite ara Jj oe = Ey . n + converfation, .as-if he thought Calais.a ufelefs burthen to the.kingdom+: But “3°” when he found, that all mem were ftrongly riveted in a contrary perfwaficn, he thought it dangerous to proceed any farther in his purpofe; and falling, foon after, into new attachments with the King of Spain, the great friendfhip between Francis and him began gradually to decline. Tue enormous pride of ve? was now farther encreafed by a great acceffion of dignity and power which he had received. Cardinal Campeggio had been Wolfev an. fent as legate into England, in order to procure a tythe from the clergy, for pointed le- enabling the pope to oppofe the progrefs of the Turks; a danger which 8 was real, and was formidable to all chriftendom, but which had been fo often made ule of ‘to ferve the interefted purpofes. of the .court of Rome; that it had loft all influence on the minds of. the people: The Clergy r:fufed to comply with Leo’s demand: Campeggio was recalled; and the King cefired of the pope, that. Wolfey, who had. been joined in this commiffion, might alone be invefied with the legantine power, together with the right of vifi- ing all: theoclergy and monafteries, and even with fufpending the whole law: of the church during a twelve month, Wolfey, having obtained: this new dig- nity;. made a new difplay .of, that flate and» parade; to which he was. fo much addicted. On folemn feaft-days, he was not contented without faying ma% after the’ manner of ‘the pope himfelf: Not only he had bifhops and abbots to ferve him; he even engaged the firft: nobility to give him water and. the towel, @ ' oe i 5% affected a rank Juperior to what had ever beencl sete d by. any~ chi feribed himfelf, your loving brother, Wolley pinion of his prefumption, in thus challenging an. equality with him. When Warham was told what offence he had given, he made light of the matter. ‘“* Know ye not,” «* this manis drunk with too much profperity.’’ ae Te 4 Soo he jaid, ** that - But Wolfey carried the matter much farther than vain. pomp and oftentation. t oft Fie erected an office, which he called the legantine court; and as he was now, tysmanner of by means of the pope’s commiffion and the King’s favour, invefted with a]] exerciling that power, both ecclefiaftical and civil, no man knew what bounds were to be fet to — the‘authority of this new tribunal. THe conferred on it.a fpecies of inquifitorial and cenforial powers even over the laiety, and ‘directed it to examine int matters of confcience; into all conduét which had given fcandal ; into alla 4 5 4U\7 eid tions, which, though they efcaped the law, might appear contrary to good morals. Offence was juftly taken.at this-commiflion, which was reall iy unbounded ; and r 2 ; the + Polydore Virgil, lib. 27. = -_ — _ =~: —— eee 2 - ——— ed ee Oe ee ee ee = > — - — = as a SS > == _- —- == — —. — - -- ———e 2 i ae, aan se E Ss = Ta: = SSS te ~ att: SS eS a ay : rh a mi La f Chap. I. 7518. HISTORY or ENGLAND. a man, who indulged himfelf he leaft appearance of immo- 108 the people were the more difgufted, when they faw ‘a the licences of pleafure, fo fevere in repreffing t rality in others. But to render his court more obnoxious, Wolfey made one John Allen the judge in it, a perfon of fcandalous life*, whom he himfelf, as chancellor, had condemned for perjury: And as this man either exacted fines k bribes to drop pro- from every one whom he was pleafed to find guilty, or too fecutions, men concluded, and with fome appearance of reafon, that he fhared with the cardinal thefe wages of iniquity. The clergy, and in particular the monks, were expofed to this tyranny + and as the libertinifm of their lives often gave a juft handle againft them, they were obliged to buy an indemnity, by paying Jarge fums of money to the legate or his judge. Not contented with this authority, Wolfey pretended, by virtue of his commiffion, to affume the power of all the bifhops courts; particularly that of judging of Wills and Teftaments ; and his decifions in thefe important points were efteemed not a little arbitrary. . As if he himfelf were pope, and as if the pope could difpofe abfolutely of every ecclefiattical eftablifhment, he prefented to whatever priories ‘or benefices he pleafed, without regard to the right of election in the monks, or of patronagée in the nobility and gentry T. No one durft carry to the King any complaint againft thefe ufurpations of Wolfey, till Warham ventured to saform him of the difcontents of his people. Henry profeffed his ignorance of the whole matter. ‘* A man,” faid he, “ is «© not fo blind any where as in his own houfe: But do you, father,” added he to the primate, “* go to Wollfey, and tell him, if any thing be amifs, that he «© amend it.? A reproof of this kind was not likely to be effeétual: It only ferved to augment Wolfey’s enmity to Warham : But one London having pro- fecuted Allen, the legate’s judge, in a court of law, and conviéted him of mal- verfation and iniquity, the clamour at laft reached the King’s ears, and he ex- preffed fuch difpleafure to the cardinal as made him ever after more cautious in exerting his authority f. - WHILE * Strype’s Memorials, vol. 1. p. 125. + Polydore Virgil, lib. 27. This whole narration has been copied by all the hiftorians from the author here cited: There are many circumftances, however, very fufpicious, both becaufe of the ob- - vious partiality of the hiftorian, and becaufe the parliament, when they afterwards examined Wolfey’s condué, could find no proof for any material crime he had committed. + This year and the foregoing the fweating ficknefs raged anew in England. Tt was called Sudor Anglicus, becaufe few, except the Englifh nation, were attacked by it. Its malignity was fuch, that it commonly killed within three hours of its commencement, Some towns loft by it an half, others two thirds of their inhabitants. H EN RY VUE 109 Wut Henry, indulging himflf in pleafure and amufement, entrufted the government of his kingdom to this imperious minifter, an incident happened abroad, which excited his attention. Maximilian the emperor died, a man, who, of himfelf, was indeed of little confequence ; but as his death left vacant the 5” Chap. II. 1s 1Q, 12th of Janu- Death of the firft {tation among chriftian princes, it put all men’s fpirits into agitation, and sat Nghe rs proved a kind ns gra in the general fyftem of Europe. The Kings of France and Spain immediately declared themfelves candidates for the imperial throne; and employed every expedient of money or intrigue, which promifed them fuccefs in fo great a point cf ambition. Henry alfo was encouraged to put in his preten- fions; but his minifter, Pace, who was difpatched to the electors, found that he began to follicit too late, and tha: the votes of all thefe princes were already pre engaged either on the one fide or the other. Francis and Charles made profeffion from the beginning of carrying on this rivalfhip with emulation, but without enmity; and Francis in particular de- clared, that his brother Charles and he were, fairly and openly, fuitors to the fame miftrefs: The more fortunate, added he, will carry her; and the other muft reft contented *. But all men appretended, that this extreme moderation, however reafonable, would not be of long duration; and that incidents would certainly occur to fharpen the minds of the candidates againft each other. It was Charles who at laft prevailed, to the great difappointment of the French monarch, who ftill continued in the belief, that the majority of the electoral college was engaged in his favour. And as he was fome years fuperior in age to his rival, and, after his victory at Marignan, and conqueft of the Milanefe, much fuperior in renown, he could not fupprefs his indignation, at being thus, in the face of all mankind, after long and anxious expectation, poft-poned in fo important a pre- tenfion. From this concurrence, as much as from oppofition of intereft, arofe that emulation between thofe two great monarchs, which, while it kept their whole age in agitation, fets them in fo remarkable a contraft to each other: Both of them princes endowed with talents and abilities; brave, afpiring, active, induftrious; beloved by their fervants and fubyects, dreaded by their enemies, and refpected by all the world: Francis, open, frank, liberal, munificent, car- rying thefe virtues to an excefs which prejudiced his affairs: Charles, political, clofe, artificial, frugal; better calculated to obtain fuccefs in wars and in nego- tiations, efpecially the latter. The one, the more amiable man; the other, the greater monarch. The King, from his overfignts and indifcretions, naturally expofed to misfortunes ; but qualified, by his fpirit and magnanimity, to extri- cate himfelf from them with honour: The emperor, by his defigning, interefted. character, * Belcario, lib, 16. Guicciardin, lib. 13. ) imilian. Charles, King of Spain, chofen empe- ror. .- ¥ e s* 4 ° * ren Mmenrv atean mr mein 2 ia in +* mucnty MONalCils, who.iecemecd CO rive. toi i / ol character of this King. was heedlefs, inconfiderate, capricious, impolitic ; guided by his paffion. or his. favourite; vain, imperious, haughty; fometimes actuated by. friendfhip for foreign powers, ol feldom by: his true in- teser ‘by refentment, -ie:d b : 4 . , 3 ; 73 Be ae 18 - ott: a 7 r =. Ri . 1 ie ° . coreft. . And. thus, tho’ he triumphed in that fuperiority which his fituation 1n : s } haror sya Ve | : ,e ‘~ a” 3 “~ lAt?#e j : 2 | 2 FUE > pe Kral : vai ge L ope Europe gave him, he never employed it to the cuentias ane durable advantage of } an a + 7 j > " an . ey his. kingdom or his own. 4) Ts. © 17900 +e 1] a Wena > tan “> ees rs § “ 9 L wee ee Franeis was well acquainted with henry s character, and endeavoured to ac- He follicired an interview near Calais 3 im expe¢- familiar converfation, to gain upon his friendthip and confidence. . Wolfey. earneftly feconded this propofal; and hoped, in the prefence of both-courts, to make parade of his riches, hisfpicndour, and his influence over both monarchs *.. Andas Henry himfelf loved pomp and magnificence, and had entertained a curiofity of being perfonally acquainted with the French King, he very chearfully adjufted all the preliminaries of this interview. The nobility of both nations ftrove to furpafs each other in pomp and‘expence Many of them involved gs Be ee Sie | * Polydore Virol é > ? HT WN Re Y VITl. Lil involved thtmfelves:in large debts;.and. were not able; by the -penury of their Chap.U, whole Jives, to repair the vain {plendour of a few days. ‘The duke of Bucking- "94 ham, who, tho’ immenfely rich, was fomewhat addicted to frugality, finding the preparations for this feftival amount to immenfe fums, threw,.out fome ex- preftions of difpleafure againft the. cardinal, whom he believed: the author of that meafure +. An imprudence which proved afterwards to Buckingham the fource of great misfortunes, Wuitet Henry was preparing to depart for Calais, he was furprized!to hear The« that the emperor was arrived at ivies| and he immediately haftened thither with tat se the queen, in order to give a fuitable reception to his royal-gueft, That great land. — prince, politic tho’ young; having heard of theintended alas Seal betwee rade and Henry, was app prehenfive of the confequences; and waserefolved to take the " opportunity, : in his paffage from Spain to the duew Countriesy:to make the Kine {till a higher cenelitee nies by paying. hinna vifitanshis own=dominions. Befides the marks of regard and attachment whichche gave to Henry, :he ftrove, by every teftimony of friendfhip, by flatteries, proteftations, p:omifes: and «prefents, ‘to gaiti-on thesvanity, the-avarice, and the ambition: of-the:cardinal. .-He here in- ftilled into-this afpiring prelate the hope of attaining théspapacy ; :and as that was the fole point of elevation, beyond his prefent evtshinls, it was -fureto attract his wifhes with the fame ahi as. if fortune had never, as yet, favoured nan with ny-of her prelents. In hopes of reaching this dien uty by the eniperor’s afiiftance, ] ee oa ot re 1 : | Pio sea forc c “Ae } aa ~ a cr + . ? 2 he fecretly devoted h in lf to. that mon&arch’s int reits ; and Charles was'perhaps | @ Ff liberal tN 85 hi ~ rom 1{4ee pee bs ] PO TI700.4 Tet TPAwine “Aan: Jos .] ee SS Lhe mo Ore AWC al Ol IS | O liCS, that © 2s Wao \ Vi ¥ YU in} mii’ ¥¥ » ; J J > a) 3 Pe. ive iv ar Aa he lilcel r that for man fears oe W iid La D lla LIVIN bh PPA enre Adi CLV 5 ui fs ee | y y a J»95 Li VOLIG Wwe waiiwti Upon to folG hts en Og SeSiag #55. Lie ANT afi] V | thi c CTH! fh ; Awe 1 ¢s L + ows 64 erased .. ae | racnry ¢ ny obfer cc lS COUrtihn Up pé avea tO bis fi minite rs; Dut initead Of takings | ' ° ~, ~ umbrage at it, he only made it a fubje& of vanity and Somers that,~as Vi t t ner es ee en oe aS et = 9 fC} oO > ° he ey, fans ce la ; ! er ~ - . - ey fey S 1GicC A up} p< rt W as | 11S fay Our, tne Wot hail % Ot ica bes lee of yt ty monarchs tO bis a c Waa a Sa a ane ne tam a vars ee ene eS a fervant, was in reality a more con{fpicuous homage to his own gtandcur, 3 } \ : f C} c | a - ROMS VeIyer + sroqi1ic — L 7 THe day.o 1arles’s de epi urture, Henry went over, to: Calais withvthe® queen .o4) of Mav AUS Lied} and his whole court ;. and: from thence proceeded toGuifnes, a fmall towh near : . ‘. -. ° ee i ; a Sed ee the frontiers. Francis, attended in like manner, came ‘to Andres; a few miles diftant; and the two monarchs met, f . fituate RESIS thefe two towns, but ftill within the Englifh pale: For Francis Se ea Z : — “7 2 . Li +* <7 ‘ nn go i c b Seer - ee “~~. c Pa | & ya an 3 = ‘z- agreed [QO pay that compliment to i LCnIYs In cOMmiuiceration-oFr that prices paling ie et» ] ] eek amas ual : | Se e — >. hae tAJ A) = , -r- eS . ' the i€ay that he mignt DC 2 ejent at tne imierview. VV oey 5 *V WM MOT} both Kings had entrufted the regulation of the ceremonial, contrived this circumftance, in order to do honour to his matter. THE + Polydore Virgil, lib. 27, Herbert. Hollingfhed, p. 8cc. cf iv Abs rt 55 _ Francis put himfelf into the hands of the Englith at Guifnes. HISTORY or ENGLAND. 112 cordial manner, held a fecret con- Tur two monarchs, after faluting each other in the moft retired into a tent which had been erected on purpofe, and they ference together. Henry here propofed to make fome amendments on the arti- cles of their former alliance; and he began to read the treaty, J Henry King: Thefe were the firft words ; and he ftopt a moment. He fubjoined only the words, of England, without adding, Jrance, the ufual ftyle of the Englifh mo- narchs *. Francis remarked this delicacy, and expreffed by a {mile his approba- tion of it. He took an opportunity foon after of paying a compliment to Henry of a more effential nature. That generous prince, full of honour himfelf, and inca- pable of diftrufting others, was fhocked at all the precautions which were ob- ferved, whenever he had an interview with the Englifh monarch: The number of their guards and attendants was carefully counted on both fides: Every ftep was ferupuloufly meafured and adjufted: And if the two Kings propofed to pay a vifit to the queens, they departed from their feveral quarters at the fame inftant, which was marked by the firing of a culverin ; they paffed each other in the mid- dle point between the places ; and at the fame inftant that Henry entered Ardres, In order to break which contained fo many difhonourable implications, ith him two gentlemen and a page, and rode directly ‘nto Guifnes. ‘The guards were furprized at the prefence of the monarch, who called aloud to them, You are all uy prifoners: Carry me to your mafter, Henry was equally aftonifhed at the appearance of Francis; and taking him in his arms, “¢ My brother,” faid he, ** you have here played me the moft agreeable trick in << the world, and have fhowed me the full confidence I may place in you: I fur- “© render myfelf your prifoner from this moment.” He took from his neck a collar of pearls, worth 15000 angels +; and putting it about Francis’s, begged him to wear it, for the fake of his prifoner. Francis agreed, but on condition that Henry fhould wear a bracelet, of which he made him a prefent, and which was double in value to the collar t. The King went next day to Ardres, with- out guards or attendants; and confidence being now fully eftablifhed between the monarchs, they employed the reft of the time entirely in tournaments and feftivals. A Derrance had been fent by the two Kings to each others court, and thro’ all the chief cities of Europe, importing, that Henry and Francis, with fourteen aids, would be ready, in the plains of Picardy, to anfwer all comers, that wefe 4 centlemens + An angel was then eftimated at feven fhillings, or near twelve off this tedious ceremony, Francis, one day, took w * Memoires de Fleuranges. ef our prefent moncy. t Memoires de Ficuranges. He EN R Yo Vit 113 gentlemen, at tilt, tourney, and barriers. The monarchs, in order to fulfil this challenge, advanced into the field on horfeback, Francis furrounded with Henry’s guards, and Henry with thofe of Francis. They were gorgioufly apparelled; and were both of them the moft comely perfonages of the age, as well as the moft expert in every military exercife, They carried away the prize at all trials in thofe rough and dangerous paftimes; and feveral horfes and riders were over- thrown by their vigour and dexterity. The ladies were the judges in thefe feats of chivalry, and put an end to the rencounter whenever they judged it expedient. Henry erected a fpacious houfe of wood and canvas, which had been framed in London ; and he here feafted the French monarch. - He had placed a motto on this fabric, under the figure of an Enolith archer embroidered on it, Cui adbcreo precft. He prevails whom I favour *: Expreffing his own fituation, as holding in his hands the ballance of power among the. potentates of Europe. In thefe entertainments, more than in any ferious bufinefs, did the two Kings pafs the time, till their departure, a Henry, after his return to Calais, paid a vifit to the emperor and Margaret of Savoy at Gravelines, and engaged them to go along with him to Calais, and pafs fome daysin that fortrefs. The artful and politic Charles here compleated the impreflion, which he had begun to make on Henry and _ his favourite, and effaced all the friendfhip, to which the frank and liberal nature of Francis had given birth. As the houfe of Auftria began fenfibly to take the afcendant over the French monarchy, the interefts of England required that fome fupport fhould be given to the latter, and above all, that any important wars fhould be prevented, which might beftow on either of them a decifive fuperiority over the other. But the jealouly of the Englith againft France has ever prevented a cordial. union between thefe nations: And Charles, fenfible of this hereditary animofity, and defirous farther to. flatter Henry’s vanity, had made him an offer, (an offer in which Francis was afterwards obliged to concur) that he fhould be entire arbiter in any difpute or difference that. fhould arife between the monarchs. But the great mafterpiece of Charles’s politics was the fecuring Wolfey in his interefts, by very important fervices, and {till higher promifes. He renewed affurances of affifting him in obtaining the papacy; and he put him in prefent poffeffion of the revenues, belonging to the fees of Badajox and Palencia in Caftile. The acqui- fitions of Wolfey were now become fo exorbitant, that, joined to the penfions from foreign powers, which Henry allowed him to poffefs, his revenues were computed nearly to equal thofe which belonged to the crown itfelf; and he fpent 35 them Chap. I. = 1520. aA At | } 2 24 Uhh of J une 114 HISTORY of ENGLAND. Chap. Il. them with 4 magnificence, oF rather an oftentation,. which gave general offence to 1520+ the people; and much leffened his matter in the eyes of all. foreign nations *. lent perfonal emulation and political’ jealoufy which had taken: | 1 the French King, foon broke into action. War between rancis re under the command of De Foix, in order. Charles and ¢9 replace the family of. Albert. in the pofieffion of that kingdom; and this en- Francis. ; : $f Sie terprize could not have been complained of as -a breach of treaty,.if De Foix: had confined himfelf to that equitable defign. But after he had fubdued Na- varre, finding Spain in great diforder from the infurreGtions of the people, he thought the opportunity favourable, and he ventured, with Francis’s approba- tion, to lay fiege to Logrogno in Caftile. This invafion, contrary to what was expected, put an end to the domeftic- diffentions of the Caftilians ;. who attacked the French, obliged them to raife the fiege, purfued the advantage, and entirely expelled them Navarre, which has. ever fince remained united with the Spa- nifh monarchy +. Robert de la Marck, duke of Bouillon and prince of Sedan, having received fome difguft from the governefs-of the Low Countries, had taken arms and invaded thofe provinces ;. and had even fent a challenge or defiance to the emperor himfelf [: A boldnefs,. which feemed entirely unaccountable,.except on the fuppofition that this petty prince had received fecret encouragement from Francis. On the other hand, Charles, in order to chaftife the infolence of Ro- bert, had levied a powerful army, and advanced to the frontiers of France, which he threatened with an invafion.. Hoftilities were foon carried farther; his gene- rals befieged Moufon, which they took ; they invefted Mezieres, where they met with a repulfe.. In Italy likewife the two monarchs were not inactive. Francis negotiated with the Pope, in order to engage him to concur in expelling the im- perialifts from Naples : But Charles had the addrefs to finifh his league with the fame power for expelling the French from Milan; and the united arms of the allies had invaded that dutchy, and had almoft entirely finifhed their enterprize. Wrutte thefe ambitious and warlike princes were committing hoftilities on each other inevery part of Europe, they (till made profeffions of the ftrongeft defire of peace ; and both of them carried inceflantly their complaints to Henry, as to the arbiter or umpire between them. The King, who appeared neutral, engaged them to fend their ambafiadors to Calais, there to negotiate a peace under the mediation of Wolfey and the pope’s nuntio. ‘The emperor was well acquainted with the par- tiality of thefe mediators 5 and his demands in the conference were fo unreafonable, as plainly proved him confcious of this advantage. He required the reftitution of Io2te THE Vv10 place between the emperor anc i fent ah army 1nto Navar Mediation of Henry. * Polydore Virgil, Hall. + Vera, hift, de Charl. V. t Memoires de Bellay, lib. 1. H EN R Y° vu Ins of Burgundy, a province, which had been -ceded many years before by creamy, and which would have given him accefs into the midft of France: And he de- manded to be freed from the homage, which his anceftors had ever paid for Flanders and Artois, and which he himfelf had, by the treaty of .Noyon, pro- mifed to renew. On Francis’s rejecting thefe terms, the congrefs.at-Calais broke up» and Wolfey, foon after, took a journey to Br ruges, where he met’ —: the emperor. He was received with the fame ftate,; magnificence, and refpect, he had been the King of England himfelf; and he concluded in his ae name an offenfive alliance with the pope and the emperor againft France. He engaged that England fhould next fummer invade that kingdom with forty thou- fand men; and he betrothed to Charles the princefs Mary, the King’s only child, who had now fome profpect of inheriting the crown. This extravagant alliance, which was prejudicial to the interefts, and might have proved fatal to the liberty and independance of the kingdom, was the refult of the humours and prejudices of the King, and the private views and expectations of the cardinal. Tue people faw every day new inftances of the uncontrouled authority of this minifter, The duke of Buckingham, conftable of England, the firft nobleman both for family and fortune in the kingdom, had been fo unfortunate as to give rdifguft to the cardinal, and it wassnot long before he found reafon to repent his indifcretion. He feems to have been a man full of levity and rafh projects ; oe being infatuated with judicial aftrology, he entertained commerce with one Flop- 4 kins, a carthufian monk, who encouraged him with the notion of mounting one day the throne of England. He was defcended by a female. from the duke of Glocefter, youngett ne of Edward the third; and tho’ his claim to the crown was thereby very remote, he had been fo imprudent as to let fall fome expreffions, as if he thought himfelf beft intitled, in cafe the King fhould die without iffue, to poffefs the royal dignity. He had not even biting from threats againft the King’s life, and had provided himfelf of arms, which he intended to employ, in cafe a favourable opportunity fhould offer. He was brought toa trial; and the duke of Norfolk, whofe fon, the earl of Surrey, -had married Buckingham’s daughter, was created lord fteward, in order to prefide at this folemn procedure. The jury confifted of a duke, a marquis, feven earls, and twelve barons; and they gave fentence again{ft Buckingham, which was foon after put in execution. There is no reafon to think the fentence unjuft *; but .asBuckingham’s crime feemed to proceed more from indifcretion than del beasee malice, the people, who Joved that nobleman, expected that the King would grant: him a pardon, and afcribed their difappointment to the malice and revenge of the cardinal. “Phe Q 2 King’s * Herbert. Hall. Stow, 513. Hoilingfhed, p. $62. c Trial and con- demnation of the dake of ‘ Buckingham, SANT t7th of May, ri6 HISTORY of ENGLAND. Chap. III. King’s own jealoufy, however, againft all pretenders to the crown, was, hot 1521. withftanding his undoubted title, very remarkable during the whole-courfe of his reign; and was alone fufficient to render him implacable again{t Buckingham, The office of conftable, which Buckingham inherited from the Bohuns,’ earls: of Hereford, was forfeited, and was never after revived by Henry. 6° aA °F Stk Digreffion concerning the ecclefiaflical frate-——Origin of the reformas CaN a tiono_—Martin Luther. Henry receives the title of defender of iil a the faith. Caufes of the progrefs of the reformation. War with Ta France.——Invafion of France. War with Scotland, A Par- liament. Invafion of France. Itahan wars. The King of France invades Italy. Battle of Pavia and captivity of Francts. ——Francis recovers his liberty. Sack of Rome. League aoith France. URING fome years, many parts of Europe had been agitated with thofe religious controverfies, which produced the reformation, one of the greateft events in hiftory : But as it was not till this time, that the King of England pub- lickly took part in the quarrel, we had no occafion to give any account of ifs rife and progrefs. It will now be neceffary to explain thefe theological difputes 5 or what is more material, to trace from their origin thofe abufes, which fo ge- nerally diffufed the opinion, that a reformation of the church or ecclefiaftical order was become highly expedient, if not abfolutely neceflary. We fhall be better enabled to comprehend the fubject, if we take the matter a little higher, and reflect 2 moment on the reafons, why: there muft be an ecclefiaftical order, and a public eftablifhment of religion in every civilized community, The im- portance of the prefent occafion will, I hope, excufe this fhort digreffion. Mos? of the arts and profeffions in a ftate are of fuch a nature, that, while Digteffion they promote the ‘nterefts of the fociety, they are alfo ufeful or agreeable to fome a dea individuals ; and in that cafe, the conftant rule of the magiftrate, except, pef- at aati haps, on the firft introduction of any art, is, to leave the profeffion to itfelf, and truft its encouragement to the individuals, who reap the benefit of it. The arti- zans, finding their profits to rife by the favour of their cuftomers, encreafe, as 2 much 1621. af H EON RY. VIN. 117 much as poffible, their fkill and.induftry ; and as matters are not difturbed. by any injudicious tampering, the commodity is always fure to be at all times ex- actly proportioned to the demand. Bur there are alfo fome callings, which, tho’ ufeful and even neceflary in a ftate, bring no advantage nor pleafure to any individuals ; and the fupreme power is obliged to alter its conduét with regard to the retainers of thofe profeffions. It muft give them public encouragement in order to their fubfiftance ; and it muft provide againft that negligence, to which they will naturally be fubject, either by annexing particular honour to the profeffion, by eftablifhing a long fubordination of ranks and a ftri€t dependance, or by fome other expedient. The perfons employed in the finances, armies, fleets, and magiftracy are in- {tances of this order.of men» : , Ir may naturally be thought, at firft view, that the ecclefiaftics belong to the firft clafs, and that their encouragement, as well as that of lawyers and phyfi- cians, may fafely be trufted to the liberality of individuals, who are attached to their dogtrines, and who find benefit or confolation from their fpiritual miniftry and afiftance. Their induftry and vigilance will, no doubt, be whetted by fuch an additional motive ; and their fkill in the profeffion, as well as their addrefs in governing the minds of the people, muft receive daily encreafe, from their encreafing practice, ftudy, and attention. Bur if we confider the matter more clofely, we fhall find, that this interefted diligence of the clergy is what every wife legiflator will ftudy to avoid ; becaufe in every religion, except the true, it is highly pernicious, and has even a natural tendency to pervert the true, by infufing into it a ftrong mixture of fuperftition, folly, and delufion. Each ghoftly practitioner, in order to render himfelf more precious and facred in the eyes of his retainers, muft infpire them with the moft violent abhorrence againfl all other fects, and continually endeavour, by fome novelty, to excite the languid devotion of his audience. No regard will be paid to truth, morals, or decency in the doétrines inculcated.. Every tenet will be adopt d, that beft fuits the diforderly affeGtions of the human frame. Cuftomers will be drawn to each conventicle by new induftry and addrefs in practifing on the paffions and credulity of the populace. And in the end, the civil magiftrate will find, that he has paid dearly for his pretended frugality, in faving a fettled foundation for the priefts; and that in reality the moft decent and advantageous compofition, which he can make with the fpiritual guides, is to bribe their in- dolence, by affixing ftated fallaries to their profeffion, and rendering it fuper- fluous for them to be farther active, than merely to preferve their flock from ftraying in queft of new paftures. And in this manner ecclefiaftical eftablith- ments, Chap. III, 1523. st a oe —~——— a o pe ee ee ee ee + ~ > ees = ended with circumftances more he wT 718 HISTORY of ENGLAND. ments, the’-commonly they arofe at fir from teligious views, prove in the-end sto the political interefts of fociety. that few -ecclefiaftical eftablifhments have been fixed hat of the«church -of Rome, or have been at- tful to the peace and happinefs of mankind; advantageou Bur we may obferve, wpon a worle foundation than t Tuer large revenues, privileges, immunities, and powers of the clergy ren- dered’ them formidable ‘to the civil magifirate, and armed with too extenfive authority an order6f men, who always adhere clofely together, and who. never want a plaufible pretence for their-encroachments and ufurpations. The higher dignities of the church ferved, indeed, to the fupport of gentry and nobility; but by the eftablifhment-of monafteries, many of the loweft vulgar were taken from the ufeful arts, and maintained in thofe receptacles of floth and ignorance. The fupreme head of the church was a foreign potentate, who was guided by interefts, always different, fometimes contrary to thofe of the community. And as the hierarchy was neceflarily folicitous to preferve an unity of faith, rites and ceremonies, all liberty of thought ran a manifeft rifque of being extinguifhed ; and violent perfecutions, or what was. worfe, a ftupid and abject credulity,. took . place-every where. To encreafe thefe evils, the church, tho” fhe poffefied large revenues, was not contented with her acquifitions, but retained a power of practifing farther on the ignorance of mankind. She even beftowed on each individual prieft a power of enriching himfelf by the voluntary oblations of the faithful, and left him ftill a powerful motive for diligence and induftry in his calling. And thus, that church, tho’ an expenfive and burthenfome eftablifhment, was liable to many of the inconveniencies, which belong to an order of priefts, trufted entirely to their own art-and invention for attaining a fubfiftance. Tue advantages, attending the Romith hierarchy, were but a {mall compen- fation for its ‘inconveniencies. The ecclefiaftical privileges, during barbarous times, had ferved as a cheque to the defpotifm of Kings. The union of all the weftern churches under the fupreme. pontiff facilitated the intercourfe of nations, and tended to bind Europe into an immenfe republic. And the pomp and fplendour of worfhip, which belonged to fo opulent an eftablifhment, contri- buted, in fome refpects, to the encouragement of the fine arts, and began to diffufe a general elegance of tafe, by uniting it with religion, Ir will-eafily be conceived, that, tho’ the ballance of evil prevailed in the Romith church, this was not the chief reafon, which produced. the reformation, A concurrence of incidents muft have contributed to forward that great work. 4. Pork HE Ne Rey? & VIE 119 Port Leo the tenth, by his generous and enterprizing temper, had bey much ex- haufted the treafury, and was obligedto make ufeof every invention, which might yield money, in order to fupport his projects; pleafures, and: liberalities. The {cheme of felling indulgences was faggeited to him, .as an expedient which had often ferved in former times to draw. money from the chriftian world, and make devout.people willing contributors to the grandeur and riches of the court of Rome. The church, it. was fuppoled, was “polteffed of a great ftock.of mer as being intitled to all the good works. of the fuints, beyond what were net in their-own juftification ;- and even to the merits of Chrift himfelf, which were infinite and unbounded :. And from this unexhaufted treafury, the pope might retail particular portions, and by that trafic acquire money, to be employed in ‘pious: purpofes, the refifting the Turk, or fubduing fchifmatics. When the money came into his treafury, the greateft, part of it was ufually diverted to other purpofes *, Ir is commonly believed, that Leo, from the penetration of his genius, -and. his familiarity with literature, was fully acquainted with the ridicule and fallacy Chap. Til, Lg 12, Origin of the re fO smal ign of the doctrines, which, as:fupreme pontiff, he was obliged. by his intereft to- promote: And it is the lefs wonder, therefore, that he employed for his profit thofe pious frauds; which his. predeceffors, the moft-ignorant and credulous, had always, under plaufible pretexts, made ufe of for their felfith purpofes. He publifhed the fale of a general indulgence +; and as his expences had not only exhaufted his ufual revenue, but even anticipated the income of this extraordinary expedient, the feveral branches of it were openly given avay to particular fons, who were entitled to levy the impofition.. The produce particularl Saxony and the countries bordering on the Baltic was afligned to his fitter, Ma dalene, married to Cibo, natural fon of Innocent the eighth; and fhe, in or to enhance her profit, had farmed out the revenue to one Arcemboldi, a Genc ae now a bifhop, formerly.a merchant, who ftill retained all the lucrative arts of his former profeffiont. The. Auftin friars had ufually been employed in Saxony to preach the indulgences, and from this truft had derived both profit and confi- deration : But Arcemboldi, fearing, left practice might have taught them means ~ to fecret the money §,. and expecting no extraordinary fuccefs from the ordinary methods of collection, .gave this occupation to the dominicans. Thefe monks,- in order to prove themfelves worthy of the diftinétion conferred on them, exag- gerated the benefit of indulgences by the moft unbounded panegyrics; and ad- vanced doétrines on that Head which; tho’ not more ridiculous than thofeval- - a ready received, .were-fuch as. the ears of the people were not yet fully aceuftomed to.- * Father Paul and Sleidan. + In 1517. t Father Paul, Sleidan, § Father Paul, lib, 1. Chap. II. 1012, Martin Lu- ther. HISTORY oF ENGLAND. 120 to. To add to the fcandal, the collectors of this revenue are faid to have lived very licentious lives, and to have fpent in taverns, oaming houfes, and places ftill more infamous, the money, which devout perfons had faved from their urchafe a remiffion of their fins *. ufual expences, in order to p Aut thefe circumftances might have given offence, but would have been at- tended with no event of any importance, had there not arifen a’ man, qualified to take advantage of the ‘incident, Martin Luther, an Auftin friar, profeffor ‘a the univerfity of Wirtemberg, refenting the affront put upon his order, began f& thefe abufes in the fale of indulgences ; and being naturally of and being provoked by oppofition, he proceeded even to decry. and was thence carried, by the heat of difpute, to queftion the authority of the pope, from which his adverfaries derived their chief arguments againft him + Still as he enlarged his reading, in order to fupport thefe tenets, he difcovered fome new abufe or error in the church of Rome; and finding his opinions greedily hearkened to, he promulgated them by writing, difcourfes, fermons, conferences ; and daily encreafed the number of his difciples. All Saxony, all Germany, ail Europe were in a very little time filled with the voice of this daring innovator ; and men, rouzed from that lethargy, in which they had fo long flept, began to call in queftion the moft antient and moft re- ceived opinions. The elector of Saxony, favourable to Luther’s doctrine, pro- teGted him from the violence of the papal jurifdiction : The republic of Zuric even reformed their church according to the new model: Many fovereigns of the empire, and the imperial diet itfelf, fhoweéd a favourable difpofition towards it: And Luther, a man naturally inflexible, vehement, opinionative, was be- come incapable, either from promifes of advancement, or terrors of feverity, to relinquifh a fect, of which he was himfelf the founder, and which brought him a glory, fuperior to all others, the glory of dictating the religious faith and prin- ciples of multitudes. Tue rumour of thefe innovations foon reached England ; and as there ftill fubfifted in that kingdom great remains of the Lollards, whofe principles refembled thofe of Luther, the new doétrines gained fecretly many partizans among the Jaiety of all ranks and denominations. Henry had been educated in a ftrict at- tachment to the church of Rome, and he bore a particular prejudice acaintt Luther, who, in his writings, fpoke with contempt of Thomas Aquinas, the King’s favourite author : He oppofed himfelf therefore to the progrefs of the Lutheran tenets, by all the influence which his extenfive and almoft abfolute au- thority to preach again a fiery temper, indulgences themfelves ; * Father Paul, lib. 1. + Father Paul, Sleidan. BOE EN «Rk. ¥ VITl. 1a thority conferred upon him: He even undertook to combat them with weapons not ufually employed by monarchs, efpecially thofe in the flower of their age, and force of their paffions. He wrote a book in Latin againft the principles of Luther ; a performance, which, if allowance be made for the fubject and the age, does no difcredit to his capacity. He fent a copy of it to Leo, who re- ceived fo magnificent a prefent with great teftimony of regard; and conferred on him, the title of defender of the faith; an appellation ftill-retained by the Kings of England. Luther, who was in the heat of controverfy, foon wrote an anfwer to Henry; and without regard to the dignity of his antagonift, treated him with allthe acrimony of ftyle, to which, in the courfe of his polemics, he had fo long been accuftomed. The King, by this ill ufage, was ftill more preju- diced againft the new doctrines; but the public, who naturally favour the weaker party, were inclined to attribute to Luther the vitory in the difpute f. And as the controverfy became more illuftrious, by Henry’s entering the lifts, it drew more the attention of mankind; and the Lutheran doctiine acquired daily new converts in every part of Europe. Tue quick and furprizing progrefs of this bold fect may juftly in part be afcribed to the late invention of printing, and revival of learning: Not that reafon bore any confiderable part, in opening men’s eyes with regard to the im- poftures of the Romifh church: For of all branches of literature, philofophy had, as yet, and till long afterwards, made the moft inconfiderable progrefs ; neither is there any inftance where argument has been able to free the people from that enormous load of abfurdity, with which fuperftition has every where over- whelmed them: Not to mention, that the rapid advance of the Lutheran doc- trine, and the violence, with which it was embraced, prove fufficiently, that it owed not its fuccefs to reafon and reflection. The art of printing and the revival of learning forwarded its progrefs in another manner. By means of that art, the books of Luther and his fectaries, full of vehemence, declamation and a rude eloquence, were propagated more quickly, and in greater numbers. The minds of men, fomewhat awakened from a profound fleep of fo many centuries, were prepared for every novelty, and {fcrupled lefs to tread in any unufual path, which was opened to them. And as copies of the fcriptures and other antient monu- ments of the chriftian faith became more common, men perceived the innova- tions, which were introduced after the firft centuries; and though argument and reafoning could not give conviction, an hiftorical fact, well fupported, was able to make impreffion on their underftandings.- Many of the powers, indeed, affumed by the church of Rome, were very antient, and were prior to almoft every R political t Father Paul, lib. 1. Chap. It. 421. Henry re- ceives the title of defender of the faith. Cau fe 5 of th ec progrefs of the reformation, Chap. TIl. E521. 122 HISTORY of ENGLAND. ‘(hed in Europe: But as the ecclefiaftics would not fubmit to poffefs their privileges as matters of civil right, which time could ren- der valid, but appealed fill to a divine origin, men were tempted to look into their primitive charter ; and they could, without much difficulty, perceive its defe& in truth and authenticity. a In order to beftow on this topic, the greater influence, Luther and his followers, not fatisfied with oppofing the pretended divinity of the Romifh church, and difplaying the temporal inconveniencies of that eftablifhment, carried matters much farther, and treated the religion of their anceftors, as abominable, deteft- able, damnable; foretold by facred writ itfelf as the fource-of all wickednefs and pollution. They denominated the pope antichriff, called his communion the fcarlet whore, and gave to Rome the appellation of Babylon; expreffions, which, however applied, were to be found in feripture, and which were better calculated to operate on the multitude than the moft folid arguments. Excited by conteft and perfecution on the one hand, by fuccefs and applaufe on the other, many of the reformers carried their oppofition to the ereateft extremity againfe the church of Rome; and in contradi@tion to the multiplied fuperftitions, with which that communion was loaded, they adopted an enthufiaftic firain of devo- tion, which admitted of no obfervances, tites or ceremonies, but placed all merit in a myfterious {pecies of faith, in inward vifion, rapture, and extacy. The new fectaries, feized with this fpirit, were indefatigable in the propagation of their doétrine, and fet at defiance all the anathemas and punifhments, wita which the Roman pontiff endeavoured to overwhelm them. Tuat the civil power, however, might afford them protection againft the ecclefiaftical jurifdiétion, the Lutherans advanced dottrines favourable, in fome refpects, to the temporal authority of fovereigns. They inveighed againft the abufes of the court of Rome, with which men were at that time generally dif- contented; and exhorted princes. to reinftate themfelves in thofe powers, of which the incroaching fpirit of the ecclefiaftics, and efpecially of the fovereign pontiff, had fo long bereaved them. They condemned celibacy and monaftic vows, and thereby opened the doors of the convents to thofe who ‘were either rired of the obedience and chaftity, or difgutted with the licence, in. which they ad hitherto lived. They blamed the exceflive riches, the idlenefs, the libertin- ifm of the clergy; and pointed out their treafures and revenues as lawful {poil to the firftinvader.- And as the ecclefiaftics had hitherto conduéted a willing and a ftupid audience, and were totally unacquainted with controverfy, and even every {pecies of literature ; they were unable to defend themfelves againft men, armed with authorities, citations, and popular topics, and qualified to triumph in every altercation political government eftabl Hein BY VM. 12 altercation or debate. Such were the advantages, with which the reformers be- ean ‘heir attack of the Roman hierarchy ; and fuch were the caufes of their rapid and aftonifhing fuccefs. Lio the tenth, whofe overfights and too fupine truft in the profound ignorance of the people, had given rife to this fect, but whofe found judgment, moder tion and temper, were well qualified to retard its progrefs, died in the flower of his age, a little after he received the King’s book againft Luther; and he was facceeded in the papal chair, by Adrian, a Fleming, tutor to the emperor Charles. This man was qualified to gain on the reformers by the integrity, can- dour, and fimplicity of manners, by which he was diftinguifhed ; but, fo vio- jent were their prejudices againft the church, ‘he rather hurt the caufe by his impru- dent exercife of thofe virtues. He frankly confeffed, that many abominable and detefiable practices prevailed in the court of Rome; and by this fincere avowal, he gzve occafion of much triumph to the Lutherans. This pontiff alfo, whofe penetration was not equal to his good intentions, was feduced to concur in that league, which Charles and Henry had formed againft France * 5 and he thereby augmented the feandal, occafioned by the practice of fo many preceding popes; who ftill made their f{piritual arms fubfervient to political purpofes. Tar emperor, Charles, who knew, that Wolfey had received a difappoint- ment in his ambitious hopes by the election of Adrian, and who dreaded the re- fentment of that haughty minifter, was folicitous to repair the breach made in their friendfhip by this incident. He paid a new vifit to England; and befides flattering the vanity of the King and the cardinal, he repeated to Wolfey all the promifes, which he had made him, of feconding his pretenfions to the papal throre. Wolfey, fenfible that Adrian’s great age and infirmities promifed a fudden vacancy, difflembled his refentment, and was willing to hope for a more profperous iffue of the next elelion, , The emperor renewed the treaty made at Bruges, to which fome articles were added ; and he agreed to indemnify both the King and Wolfey for the revenues which they fhould lofe by a breach with France. The more to ingratiate himfelf with Henry and the Englifh nation; he eaveto Surrey, admiral of England, a commiffion for being admiral of his do- Minions ; and he himfelf was inftalled knight of the garter at London. After a ftay of fix weeks in England, he embarked at Southampton, and in tea days i arrived in Spain, where he foon pacified the tumults which had arifen in his abfence +}. R2 THE * Guicciardini, lib, 14, + Petrus de Ang'eria, epift. 765. bong bmewnd —, Chap. 1p2i. ft Tt} arn iber - Lit LJOCCIN VCT« 1522. 26th May. 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Tue King declared war againft France s and this meafure was founded on fo little reafon, that he could allege nothing as a ground of quarrel, but Francis’s refufal to fubmit to his arbitration, and his fending Albany into Scotland. This laft ftep had not been taken by the French King, till he was quite affured of Henry’s refolution to attack him. Surrey landed fome troops at Cherbourg in Normandy ; and after laying wafte the country, he failed to Morlaix, a rich town in Britanny, which he took and plundered. The Englifh merchants had. great property in that place, which was no more fpared by the foldiers, than the goods of the F rench. Surrey then left the charge of the fleet to the vice-admi- 1. and failed to Calais, where he took the command of the Englifh army,. rails deftined for the invafion of France. This army, when joined by forces from the Low Countries.under the command of the count of Buren, confifted in the: whole of 18,000 men. ¢ Tur French had made it a maxim in all their wars with the Englifh, fince the reign of Charles the fifth, never, without great neceffity, to hazard a general engagement ; and the duke of Vendome, who commanded the French army;,-. now embraced this wife policy. He fupplied the towns moft expofed, efpecially Boulogne, Montreuil, Terotienne, Hedin, with ftrong garrifons and: plenty of provifions :. He himfelf took poft at Abbeville, with fome Swifs and French in=- fantry, and a body of cavalry : The count of Guife encamped under Montreuil with Gx thoufand men. ‘Thefe two bodies were in a fituation to join upon oc- cafion ; to throw fuccour into any town, that was threatened’; and°to harrafs the Englifh in every movement. Surrey, who was not fupplied with magazines, . Grit divided his army for the convenience of fubfifting them; but finding that- his quarters were every moment beaten up by the activity of the French gene~ | rals, he drew together the forces, and laid fiege to Hedin. But neither did he- facceed in this enterprize. ‘The garrifon made vigorous fallies upon his army:: The French forces affaulted them from without: Great rains fell: Fatigue and: bad weather. threw. the foldiers. into dyfenteries: And Surrey was obliged to raife the fiege, and put his troops into. winter quarters about the end of October. . His rear guard was attacked at Pas in Artois; and five or fix hundred men were: cut off; nor could all his efforts. make him mafter of one place within the F rench’: frontier. Tue allies. were-more fuccefsful in Italy. Lautrec, who commanded the French,. loft a bloody. battle at Bicocca near Milan; and was obliged to retire with the remains of his army. This misfortune, which proceeded from Francis’s negligence in not fupplying Lautrec with money *, was followed by. the lofs. of : Genoa, * Guicciardini, lib. 14, H EN R Y © VIL 125 Genoa. The caftle of Cremona was the fole fortrefs in Italy, which remained in Chap. IE. the hands of the French. Bs 2 Evrope was now in fuch a fituation,. and fo connected by alliances and intereft, that it was almoft impoffible for war to be kindled in one part, and not diffufe itfelf thro’ the whole: But of all the leagues among kingdoms, the clofeft was that which had fo long fubfifted between France and Scotland; and the Engtifh, while at war with the former nation, could not expect to remain long unmolefted ‘itch on the-northern frontier. No fooner had Albany arrived in Scotland, than he scotland. took meafures for kindling a war with England; and he fummoned the whole. force of the kingdom to meet in the fields of Rofline +. He thence conducted. the army fouthwards into Annandale ;; and prepared to pafs the borders at Solway- Firth. But many of the nobility were difgufted with the regent’s adminiftration ; and obferving, that his connexions with his native country. were very: feeble in comparifon of thofe with France, they murmured, that for the. fake of foreign in- terefts, their peace fhould be fo often difturbed,.and war, during their King’s minority, be wantonly entered into with a. neighbouring nation, fo much fuperiog, in force and riches. The Gordons, in particular, refufed to advance any farther ; and Albany, obferving a general difcontent to prevail, was obliged to conclude a. truce with lord.Dacres, warden of the Englifh weft marches. Soon after, he departed for France; and left the oppofite fa€tion fhould gather force in his abfence, he fent thither before him the earl of Angus, hufband to the queen dowager. Next year, Henry, that he might take advantage of the regent’s abfence, marched an army into Scotland under the command of Surrey, who ravaged the Merfe and Teviotdale without oppofition, and burned the town of Jedburgh. The Scotch had neither King nor Regent to condué them: The two Humes had been put to death :. Angus was in a manner banifhed: No nobleman of vigour or authority remained, who was qualificd to affume the government: And the Eng- lifh monarch, who knew the diftreft fituation of the country, was determined to pufh them to extremity, in hopes of engaging them, by the fenfe of their prefent miferies, to make a folemn renounciation of the French alliance, and embrace that of England *. He even gave them hopes of contraéting a marriage between the lady Mary, heirefs of England, and their young monarch; an expedient, . which would for ever unite the two kingdoms {: And the queen dowager, with her. 4. whole f Buchannan, lib. 14. Drummond, Piticottie. . * Buchannan, lib. 14. Herbert. . t Le Grand, vol. II, p. 39, 126 HISTORY or ENGLAND. whole party, recommended every where the advantages of this alliance, and of a confederacy with England. They faid, that the interefts of Scotland had too long been facrificed to thofe of the French nation, who, whenever they found themfelves reduced to difficulties, called for the affittance of their allies, but were ready to abandon them, fo foon as they found their advantage in making peace with England: That where a fmall ftate entered into {fo clofe a confederacy with a greater, it mutt always expect this treatment, as a confequence of the unequal alliance; but that there were peculiar circumftances in the fituation of the king- doms, which, in the prefent cafe, rendered it inevitable: That France was fo diftant and fo divided from them by feas, that fhe fcarce could by any means, and never could in time, fend fuccours to the Scotch, fufficient to protect them againft ravages from the neighbouring kingdom > That nature had, 1n a manner, famed an alliance between the two Britifh nations; having enclofed them in the fame ifland ; given them the fame manners, language, laws, and form of govern- ment; and prepared every thing for an intimate union between them: And that, if national antipathies were abolifhed, which would foon be the effeét of peace, thefe two kingdoms, fecured by the ocean and by their domeftic force, could fet “at defiance all foreign enemies, and remain for ever fecure and unmolefted. THE partizans of the French alliance faid, on the other hand, that the very reafons, which were urged in favour of a league with England, the clofe neigh= bourhood of the kingdom and its fuperior force, were the real caufes, why a Gncere and durable confederacy could never be framed with that hoftile nation: That among neighbouring ftates, occafions of quarrel were frequent ; and the more powerful people would be fure to feize every frivolous pretence for opprefling the weaker, and reducing them to fubjection : That as the near neighbourhood of France and England had kindled a war almoft perpetual between them, it was the ‘ntereft of the Scotch, if they wifhed to maintain their independancy, to preferve their league with the former kingdom, which balanced the force of the latter : That if they deferted that old and falutary alliance, on which their importance in Europe chiefly depended, their antient enemies, flimulated both by intereft and by paffion, would foon invade them with fuperior force, and reduce them to fub- jeCtion: Or if they delayed the attack, the infidious peace, by making the Scotch “lofe the ufe of arms, would only prepare the way for a flavery-more certain and more irretrieveable *. | Tre arguments employed by the French party, being feconded by the natural prejudices of the people, feemed rather to prevail: And when the regent himfelf, who had been long detained beyond his appointed time by the terror of the Enghith | fleet, * Buchannan, lib. 14. H EON R:Y° °VIIL 297 fleet, at laft appeared among them, he was able to throw the balance entirely on Chap, TIL. that fide. By the authority of the convention of ftates, he affembled an army, with = "* a view of avenging the ravages committed by the Enelifh in the beginning of the campaign; and he led them fouthwards towards the bo:ders. But when they were pafling the Tweed at the bridge of Melrofs, the-Englith party were again able to raife fuch oppofition, that Albany thought proper to makea retreat. He marched downwards, along the banks of the Tweed, keeping that river on his right; and fixed his camp oppofite to Werk-Caftle, which Surrey had lately repaired. Fie fent over fome troops to befiege that fortrefs, who made a breach in it, and ftormed fome of the outworks: But the regent, hearing of the ap- proach of an Englith army, and difcouraged by the advanced feafon, thought proper to difband his forces and retire to Edinburgh. Soom after he went over to France, and never again returned to Scotland. The Scotch nation, agitated by their domeftic factions, .were not, curing feveral years, in a condition to give any more difturbance to England; and Henry had full leifure to profecute his defigns on the continent. Tue reafon, why the war againft France proceeded. fo flowly on the part of England was the want of money. All Henry the feventh’s treafures were long fince diffipated ; the King’s habits of expence ftill remained; and his revenues were unequal even to the ordinary fupport of his government, much more to his military enterprizes. He had laft year caufed a general furvey to be made of the kingdom; the numbers of men, their years, profeffion, ftock, revenue * . -and exprefied great fatisfaction on finding the nation fo opulent. He then iffued out privy feals to the moft wealthy, demanding loans of particular fums; and this act of power, tho’ fomewhat irregular and tyrannical, had been formerly practifec by the Kings of England; and the people were now familiarized to it. But Henry carried his authority much farther on this occafion. He iffued an. edié for a general tax upon his fubjeéts, which he ftill called a loan; and he levied five fhillings in the pound from the clergy, ‘two fhillings from the laity. This pre- tended loan, as being more regular, was really more dangerous to the liberties of the people ; and was a precedent for the King’s impofing taxes without confent of Parliament. pacha Fiznry fummoned a Parliament this year, together with a convocation: and 1 eth of April. found neither of them ina difpofition to complain of the infringement of their A Parliament. privileges, It was only doubted, how far they would carry their liberality to the King. Wolfey, who had undertaken the management of this affair, began with the “ Herbert. Stowe, 514, o WISTORY oF EN GLAND. 128 the Parliament 'to Gaftical revenues to hat time, and tho’ the convocation ; in hopes, that their example would influence grant a large fupply. He demanded a moiety ‘of their eccle be levied in five years, or two fhillingsin the pound during t he met with oppofition, he reprimanded fo feverely the refractory members, equeft was at laft complied with. The cardinal afterwards, attended by came to the houfe of commons; and in a long and elaborate fpeech laid before them the public neceffities, the dangers of an invafion from Scotland, the affronts received from France, the league in which the King was engaged with the pope and the emperor; and he demand- ed a grant of 800,000 pounds, divided into four yearly payments ; a fum, com- yuted from the late furvey or valuation, to be equivalent to four fhillings in the ound of one year’s revenue, or one fhilling in the pound yearly, according to the divifion propofed. So large a grant was unufual from the commons ; and tho’ the carcinal’s demand was feconded by Sir Thomas More the fpeaker, and feveral other members attached to the court, the houfe could not be prevailed with to comply +, they only voted two fhillings in the pound on all poffefied of twenty pounds a year and upwards, one fhilling on all between twenty pounds and forty fhillings a year; and on all the reft of the fubjects above fixteen years of age a eroata-head. ‘This lat fum was divided into two yearly payments ; the former into four yearly payments, and was not therefore at the outmoft above fix- pence in the pound. The grant of the commons was but the moiety of the fum demanded ; and the cardinal, therefore, much mortified with the difappointment, came again to-the houfe, and defired to reafon with fuch as refufed to comply with the King’s requeft, Fle was told, that it was a rule of the houfe never to reafon but among themfelves ; and his defire was rejected. The commons, however, enlarged a little their former grant, and voted an impofition of three fhillings in the pound en all poffeffed of fifty pounds a year, and upwards *. ‘The proceedings of this houfe that his f feveral of the nobility and prelates, + Herbert. Stowe, 518. Pailiamentary Hiftory. Strype, vel. I. p. 49, 50 * Tt js faid, that when Henry heard that the commons made a great difficulty of granting the re- he was fo provoked, that he fent for Edward Montague, one of the members, who had nd he being introduced to his majefty, had the mortification to hear him fpeak in thefe words: Ho! maa! avill they not Juffer my bill ta pafs? And laying his hand on Montague’s ‘head, who was then on his Knees before ‘him: Get my bill paffed by or elfe to-morrow this head of yours feall be off: This cavalier manner of Henry fuc- ceeded: For next day the bill was pafied. Collin's Britifh peercge. Grove's life ff Wolfey. We are told by Hall, fol. 38- That cardinal Wolfey endeavoured to terrify the citizens of Londan into and -told them plainly, that it were better, that fome feould Juffer and therefore beware ana refifi not, nor ruffie not in Such was the ftyle, employed by this King quired fupply, a confiderable influence on the houfe; a 10 MCtTOW, the general loan, exaéted in 1525 Indrente than that the King at this time /bou ‘d lack 5 this cafe, fur it may fortune to caft fome people their heads. ? and his miniiters. HekhiyN ROY VII. 12 XY , houfe of commons difcover evidently the humour of the times: They were’ ex- tremely tenacious of their money, and refufed a demand of the crown, which was far from unreafonable ; but they allowed an encroachment on national privileges to pafs uncenfured, tho’ its direct tendency was to fubvert entirely the liberties of the people.. The King was fo diflatisfied with this faving difpofition of the com- mons, that, as he had not called a Parliament during feven years before, he al- lowed feven more to elapfe, before he fummoned another. And under pretence of neceffity, he levied, in one year, from all who were worth forty pounds, what the parliament had granted him payable in four years +; anew invafionof national priviteges. Thefe irregularities were commonly afcribed to the cardinal’s coun- fels, who, trufting to the protection, afforded him by his ecclefiaftical character, was lefs f{crupulous in his encroachments on the civil rights of the nation. Tuat ambitious prelate received this year a new difappointment in his a{piring views. The pope, Adrian the fixth, died; and Clement the feventh, o* the family _ of Medici, was eleéted in his place, by the concurrence of the imperial party, Wolfey began now to perceive the infincerity of the emperor, and concluded that that prince would never fecond his pretenfions to the papal chair. This injury was highly refented by the cardinal, and he began thenceforth to eftrange him- {elf from the imperial court, and to pave the way for an union between his maf{- ter and the French King. Meanwhile, he diffembled his refentment: and after coneratulating the new pope on his promotion, applied for a continuation of the legantine powers, which the two former popes had conferred upon him. Clement, knowing the importance of gaining his friendthip, granted him a commifon for life ; and by this unufual conceffion, he ina manner transferred to him the whole papal authority in England. In fome particulars, Wolfey made a good ule of this extenfive power. He erected two colleges, one at Oxford, another at Ipfwich, the place of his nativity: He fought, all over Europe, for learned men to fupply the chairs of thefe colleges: And in order to beftow endowments on them, he {upprefled fome {maller monafteries, and diftributed the monks into other con- vents. The execution of this project became the lefs difficult for him, that the Romifh church began to perceive, that fhe over-abounded in monks, and that the wanted fome fupply of learning, in order to oppofe the inquifitive, or rather difputative, humour of the new reformers. Tue confederacy againft France feemed more formidable than ever, on the open- ing this campaign *. Adrian, before his death, had renewed the leacue with Charles and Henry. The Venetians had been induced to defert the French alli- ance, and to form engagements for the fecuring Sforza in poffeffion of the Mila: S nefe + Speed. Hall, Herbert, * Guicciardin, lib 1a, Chap. IIT. 1523. 130 HISTORY or ENGLAN D. nefe.. The Florentines, the dukes of Ferrara and Mantua, and all the powers of Italy combined in the fame meafure. The emperor.in perfon menaced France ‘nvafion on the fide of Guienne: The forces of England and with a powerful the Netherlands feemed ready to break into Picardy: A numerous body of Ger- mans were preparing to ravage Burgundy: But all thefe perils from foreign ene- mies were lefs threatening than a domeftic confpiracy, which had been forming, and which was now come to full maturity againft the French monarch. Cartes duke of Bourbon, conftable of France, was a prince of the moft fhining merit; and, befide diftinguifhing himfelf in many military enterprizes, he was adorned with every accomplifhment, which became a perfon of his high (ration. His virtues, embellifhed with the graces of youth, had made fuch im- preffion on Louife of Savoy, Francis’s mother, that, without regard to the in- equality of their years, fhe made him propofals of marriage ; and meeting with a refufal, the formed fchemes of unrelenting vengeance againft him. She was a woman, falfe, deceitful, vindictive, malicious ; but, unhappily for France, had by her capacity, which was confiderable, acquired an abfolute afcendant over her fon. By her inftigation, Francis put many affronts on the conftable, which it was difficult for a gallant fpirit to endure; and at laft he permitted Louife to profecute a lawfuit againft him, by which, under the moft frivolous pretences he was ceprived of his ample pofleffions ; and inevitable ruin was brought upon him. Bourson, provoked at all thefe indignities, and thinking, that, if any in- juries could juflify a man in rebelling againft his prince and country, he mutt fland acquitted, had entered into a fecret correfpondence with the emperor and the King of England *. Francis, pertinacious in his defign of recovering the the Milanefe, had propofed to lead his army in perfon into Italy ; and Bourbon, who feigned ficknefs, in order to have a pretence for ftaying behind, intended fo foon as the King had paffed the Alps, to raife an infurrection among his nu- merous vaffals, by whom he was extremely beloved, and to introduce foreign enemies into the heart of the kingdom. Francis got intimation of his defign 5. but not being prompt enough in fecuring fo dangerous a foe, the conftable made his efcape + ; and putting himfelf in the emperor’s fervice, did all the injuries to his native country, which his enterprizing fpirit and his great talents for war enabled him to perform. Charles profeffed fuch regard for him, that he promifed him his fifter in marriage, Eleonora, widow to Emanuel, King of Portugal; and when the conftable came to Madrid, fome time after, the emperor received him with all the demonftrations of friendfhip. He faid to a Spanifh grandee, that he mult defire * Memoires du Bellay, liv. 2. + Belcarius, lib, 17. Me -Re R Ty VITt. 121 ) defire him, while Bourbon refided in that city, to allow him to take up his re- Chap. II. fidence in his houfe, as moft fuitable to his rank and quality. The nobleman 57% replied, with a Caftilian dignity, that his majefly’s defire was to him a fufficient reafon; but he muft tell him beforehand, that fo foon as Bourbon depirted he would raze to the ground the houfe which had been polluted by the prefence of fuch a traitor *. = = = Ts * ts == ——-- S = —— a — ee og Ot ee ee Se ee >< : aap

= = 2 Sage : ee ee aaa re ~ aie = . | : < = = ———— ———- —— Lea bt Wiehe Lu Piet hi i Se —-- = SS SSE 30 Auguft. Chap. III. Ki e) perceived a diminution in the carefles and. profeffions, with which the emperor’s letters to him were ufually loaded; and this laft imprudence, proceeding from the intoxication of fuccefs, was probably more dangerous to Charles’s interefts than the other. Henry, tho’ determined to embrace new meafures, was careful to fave appear-- ances in the change; and he caufed rejoicings to be every where made on account of the victory of Pavia, and the captivity of Francis. He publicly difmiffed a French envoy, whom he had formerly allowed, notwithftanding the war, to re- fide at Londont: But upon the regent's fubmiffive applications to him, he again opened a correfpondence with her; and befides affuring her of his friend- fhip and protection, he exacted a promife, that fhe never would confent. to the difmembering any province of the monarchy for her fon’s ranfom. With the emperor, however, he put on the appearance of vigour and. enterprize ; and im order to have a pretence for breaking with him, he difpatched Tonftal, bifhop of London, to Madrid, with propofals for.a powerful invafion of France. He required, that Charles fhould immediately enter Guienne at the head of a great army, In order to put him in poffeffion of that province ; and he demanded the payment of large fums of money, which that prince had borrowed from him in his laft vifitat London. He knew, that the emperor was in no condition of exe- cuting either of thefe conditions; and that he had as little inclination to make him mafter of fuch confiderable territories upon the frontiers of Spain. Tonstat likewife informed him, that Charles, on his part, wanted not com- plaints againtt England; and in particular was difpleafed with Henry, becaufe laft year he had neither continued his monthly payments to Bourbon, nor invaded Picardy, according to his ftipulations; that, inftead of exprefling his intentions to efpoufe Mary, when fhe fhould be marriageable, he had hearkened to propofals, for marrying his niece Ifabella, princefs of Portugal; and that he had entered into a feparate treaty with Francis, and feemed determined to reap alone all the advantages of the fuccefs, with which fortune had crowned his arms. Tue King, influenced by all thefe motives, concluded at Moore his alliance with the regent, and engaged to procure Francis his liberty on reafonable condi- tions*: The regent alfo, in another treaty, acknowledged the kingdom to be Henry’s debtor for one million eight hundred thoufand crowns, to be difcharged in half yearly payments of fifty thoufand crowns: After which, Henry was to re- ceive + Du Bellay, Liv. 3. Stow, p. 221. Baker, p. 273. * Du Tillet, Recueil ti Traites de Leonard, tom, 2. Herbert. “HOD No RY (vir 54g 2 ceive during his own life, a yearly penfion of a hundred thoufand crowns. WNot- withftanding his generofity, he could not forbear taking advantage of the cala- mitous fituation of France, in order to exact this lucrative condition from her. A large prefent of a hundred thoufand crowns was alfo made Wollfey, for his good offices, but covered under the pretence of arrears due on the penfion grant- ed him for relinquifhing the adminiftration of Tournay. Meanwhile, as Henry forefaw, that this treaty with France might involve him in a war with the emperor, he was alfo determined to fill his treafury by im- pofitions upon his own fubjects; and as the parliament had difcovered fome re- luétance in complying with his demands, he followed the advice of Wolfey, and refolved to make ufe of his prerogative alone for that purpofe. He iffued out commiffions to all the counties of England, for levying four fhillings in the pound from the clergy, three fhillings and four pence from the laity ; and fo un- controulable did he deem his authority, that he took no care to cover, as former- ly, this arbitrary exaction, even under the flender pretence of aloan. But he foon found, that he had prefumed too far on the paffive fubmiffion of his fubjects. The people, difpleafed with an exaétion beyond what was ufually levied in thofe days, but ftill more difgufted with the illegal method of impofing it, broke out in murmurs, complaints, oppofition to the commiffioners ; and their refractory dif- pofition even threatened a general infurrection. Henry had the prudence to ftop fhort, in that dangerous path, into which he had entered. He fent letters to all the counties; declaring, that he meant no force by this laft impofition, and that he would take nothing of his fubje¢ts but by way of Jemevolence. He flatter- ed himfelf, that his condefcenfion in employing that difguife would fatisfy the people, and that no one would dare to render himfelf obnoxious to royal autho- rity, by refufing any payment required of him in this manner. But the fpirit of oppofition was once roufed, and could not fo eafily be quieted at pleafure. A lawyer in the city obje€ting the ftatute of Richard the third, by which benevo- Jences were for ever abolifhed, it was replied by the court, that Richard being an ufurper, and his Parliaments factious affemblies, his ftatutes could not bind a law- ful and ab/olute monarch, who held his crown by hereditary right, and needed not to court the favour of a licentious populace t+. The judges even went fo far as to affirm pofiively, that the King might exact by commiffion any fum which he pleafed; and the privy council gave a ready affent to this deeree, which anni- hilated the moft valuable privilege of the people, and rendered all their other privileges precarious. Armed with fuch formidable authority, of royal preroga- tive and a pretext of law, Wolfey fentfor the mayor of London, and defired to 2 ee know + Herbert, Hall. Chap. JI, 15.25. Difcontents of the Englifh. 140 HISTORY of ENGLAND. Chap. II. know what he was willing to give for the fupply of his majefty’s neceffities. 1525° The mayor feemed defirous, before he fhould declare himfelf, to confult. the. common council; but the cardinal required, that he and all the aldermen fhould, feparately confer with himfelf about the benevolence; and he eluded by that means the danger of a formed oppofition. Matter, however, went not fo {mooth- ly in the country. An infurreétion was begun in fome places; but as the people. were not headed by any confiderable perfon, it was eafy for the duke of Suffolk, and the earl of Surrey, now duke of Norfolk, by employing perfuafion and au- thority, to induce the ringleaders to lay down their arms, and furrender them- felves prifoners. The king, finding it dangerous to punifh criminals, engaged in fo popular a caufe, was determined, notwithftanding his violent, imperious. temper, to grant them a general pardon; and he very prudently imputed their guilt, not to their want of loyalty or affection, but to their poverty. The offen-_ ders were brought before the ftar-chamber ; where, after a fevéere charge laid | againft them by the King’s council, the cardinal faid, “* That, notwithftanding “ their grievous offences, the King, in confideration of ther neceffities, had. ‘© oranted them his gracious pardon, upon condition, that they would give in <¢ fureties for their future good behaviour.” But they replying, that they had no fureties, the cardinal firft, and after him the duke of Norfolk, faid, that they would ftand bound for them. Upon which they were difcharged {. Tuese arbitrary impofitions, being genera!ly imputed to the cardinal’s coun- {els, increafed the general odium, under which he laboured; and the clemency. of the pardon, being afcribed to the King, was confidered as an atonement on his part for the illegality of the meafure. But Wolfey, fupported both by royal and papal authority, proceeded, without fcruple, to violate all ecclefiaftical privileges, which, during that age, were much more facred than civil; and having once pre- vailed in that unufual attempt of fuppreffing fome monafteries, he kept all the reft in awe, and exercifed over them the moft arbitrary jurifdiction. By his commif- fion as legate, he was impowered to vifit them, and reform them, and chaftife their irregularities ; and he employed his ufual agent, Allen, in the exercife of this authority. The religious houfes were obliged to compound for their guilt, real or pretended, by giving large fums to the cardinal or his deputy; and this. oppreffion was carried fo far, that it reached at laft the King’s ears, which were not commonly open to complaints againft his favourite. He reproved Wolley in fevere terms, which rendered him, if not more innocent, at leaft more cauti- ous for the future, That haughty minifter had built a fplendid palace at Hamp- ton-court, which he probably intended, as well as that of York-place in Weft- mintter,, + Herbert, Hall, Stow, 525. Hollinthed, p. 891, ~ HB’ Nery’ oO voir 14 minfter, for his own ufe; but fearing the increafe of envy on account of this Ch: vagnificence, and dé“ all claims upon the crown of France; claims, which might now indeed be efteemed chimerical, but which often ferved as a pretence for exciting the un- wary Englifh to wage war upon the French monarchy. As a return for this conceflion, Francis bound himfelf and his fucceffors to pay for ever fifty thoufand League with crowns a year to Henry and his fucceffors ; and that a greater folemnity might France. be given to this treaty, it was agreed, that the Parliaments and great nobility of both kingdoms fhould give their confent to it. The marefchal Montmorency, accompanied with many perfons of diftinétion, and attended by a pompous equi- page, was fent over to ratify the treaty ; and was received at London with all the parade, which fuited the folemnity of the occafion. The terror of the emperor’s greatnels had entirely extinguifhed the antient animofity between the nations; and Spain, during more than a century, became, tho’ a. more diftant power, the chief object of jealoufy to the Englith. Tis appearance of a cordial union between France and England, tho’ it added influence to the joint embafiy which they fent to the emperor, was not U 2 able ~ Burnet, book 3. coll. 12, 13. 148 HISTORY or ENGLAND. able to bend that ambitious monarch to fubmit entirely to the conditions infifted on by the allies. He departed indeed from his demand of Burgundy as the ranfom of the French princes; but he required, previoufly to their recovery of liberty, that Francis fhould evacuate Genoa, and all the fortreffes held by him in Italy: And he declared his intention of bringing Sforza to a trial, and confifcating the dutchy of Milan, on account of his pretended treafon. The Englifh and French he- ralds, therefore, according to agreemert, declared war againft him, and fet him at defiance. Charles anfwered the Englith herald with moderation ; but to the French, he reproached his mafter with breach of faith, remembered him of the private converfation which had pafled between them at Madrid before their fe- paration, and offered to prove by fingle combat, that that monarch had atted difhonourably. Francis retaliated this challenge by giving Charles the lie; and, after demanding fecurity of the field, he offered to maintain his caufe by fingle combat. Many meffages paffed to end fro between them ; but tho’ both the princes were undoubtedly brave, the intended duel never took place. The French and Spaniards, during that age, difputed zealoufly which of the monarchs ‘acurred the blame of this failure ; but all men of moderation every where la- mented the power of fortune, that the prince the more candid, generous, and fincere, fhould, by unhappy ‘ncidents. have been reduced to that cruel fituation, that nothing but the breach of his word could preferve his people, and that he mutt ever after, without being able to make a proper reply, bear to be reproached with this infidelity by a rival, inferior to him both in honour and in virtue. Bur tho’ this famous challenge between Charles and Francis had no imme- diate confequences with regard to thefe monarchs themfelves, it produced a con- fiderable alteration on the manners of the age. The practice of challenges and duels, which had been part of the antient barbarous jurifprudence, which was ftill preferved on very folemn occafions, and which was even countenanced by the civil magiftrate, began thenceforth tc prevail on the moft trivial occafions; and men, onany affrontor injury, thought tiemfelves entitled, or even requiredin honour, to take private revenges on their enemies, by vindicating their right in fingle combat. Thefe abfurd, tho’ generous niaxims, fhed much of the beft blood in chriftendom during more than two centuries ; and notwithftanding the feverity of law, fuch is the prevailing force of cuftom, they are far from being as yet ¢n= tirely exploded. C He kas Mibpi esos Ses ex HW EN R Y VIL 149 SS Chr CASE, IV. SE TS Scruples concerning the King’s marriage.———The King enters into thefe ycruples, Anne Boleyn. Henry applies to the pope for a divorce. = SS, Bi) pet Hi if ty a it | t | \ AE crehernincien Te pope favourable. ———T he emperor threatens him. The pope’s ambiguous conduct. The caufe evoked to Rome. Wolfey’s fall. Commencement of the reformation in England.———Foreign affairs. Wolfey’s death. A Parliament. Progre/s of the reformation.———A Parliament. King’s final breach with Rome. A Parhament. Otwithftanding the fubmiffive deference, paid to the papal authority be- Chap. IV. fore the reformation, the marriage of Henry the eighth with Catherine *577- of Arragon, his brother’s widow, had not paffed, without much fcruple and Scruples con- difficulty. The prejudices of the people were in general bent againft a conjugal cermng the \ ; : ; ing’s mat= union between fuch-near relations; and. the late King, tho’ he had folemnized jjage. the efpoufals, when his fon was but twelve years of age, gave evident proofs of his intention to take afterwards a proper opportunity of annulling them*. He ordered the young prince, fo foon as he came of age, to enter a proteftation againft the marriage + ; and on his death-bed he charged him, as his laft injunc- tion, not to finifh an alliance, fo unufual and expofed to fuch infuperable ob- jections. . After the King’s ‘acceffion, fome members of the Privy Council, par- ticularly Warham, the primate, openly declared againft the refolution taken, of compleating the marriage ; and tho” Henry’s youth and diffipation kept him, during fome time, from entertaining any fcruples with regard to the meafure which he had embraced, there happened incidents, fufficient to rouze his at- tention, and to inform him of the fentiments, generally entertained on that fub- ject. The ftates of Caftile had oppofed the emperor, Charles’s, efpoufals with Mary, Henry’s daughter ; and among cther objections, had much infifted on the illegitimate birth of the young princefs ft. And when the negotiations were afterwards opened with France, and mention was made of betrothing her to Francis or the duke of Orleans, the bifhop of ‘Tarbe, the French ambaffador, revived * Morifon’s Apomaxis, p.13. + Morifon, p. 13. Heylin’s Queen Mary, p.2, } Lord Herbert, Fiddes’s life of Wolfey, Ai) brite " {SG a ri 150 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Chap. IV. revived the fame objection *. But tho’ thefe events naturally raifed fome doubts 1527* in Henry’s mind, there concurred other caufes, which tended much to fortify his remorfe, and render his confcience more {crupulous. Tir queen was older than the King by no lefs than fix years; and the decay The King en- of her beauty, together with particular ‘infirmities and difeafes, had contributed, able thefe otwithftanding her blamelefs character and deportment, to render her perfon unacceptable to him. Tho’ fhe had borne him feveral children, they all died in early infancy, except one daughter; and he was the more ftruck with this mif- fortune, that the curfe of being childlefs is the very threatening, contained in che Mofaical law againft thofe who efpoufe their brother’s widow. The King was a€tuated by a ftrong defire of having male. iffue: With aview to that end, it is believed, more than from defire towards other gratification, he had, a few years before this period, made addrefies to.a young lady, Catherine, daughter of Sir John Blount ; and when fhe bore him a fon, he exprefied the higheft fatisfaction, and immediately created him duke of Richmond. The fuc- ceffion of the crown too was a confideration, that occurred to every one, when- ever the lawfulnefs of Henry’s marriage was queftioned ; and it was apprehended, that, if doubts of Mary’s legitimacy concurred with the weaknefs of her fex, the King of Scots, the next heir, would certainly advance his own pretenfions, and throw the kingdom into confufion. “The evils, as yet recent, of civil wars and convulfions, arifing from a difputed title, made great impreffion on the minds of men, and rendered the people univerfally defirous of any event, which might obvi- ate fo irreparable a calamity. And the King was thus impelled, both by his private paffions, and by motives of public intereft, to feek the diffolution of his inaufpicious, and, as it was efteemed, unlawful marriage with Catherine. Henry afterwards affirmed, that his fcruples of confcience arofe entirely from private reflection ; and that on confulting his confeffor, the bifhop of Lincoln, he found that prelate poffeffed with the fame doubts and difficulties. The King himfelf, being fo great a cafuift and a divine, proceeded then to examine the queftion more carefully by his own learning and ftudy ; and having had recourfe to Thomas of Aquine, he obferved that this celebrated doctor, whofe authority was great in the church and abfolute with him, had treated of that very cafe, and had exprefsly declared againft the lawfulnefs of fuch marriages. The pro- hibitions, faid Thomas, contained in Leviticus, and among the reft, that of marrying a brother’s widow, are moral, eternal, and founded ona divine fanction; and tho’ the pope may difpenfe with the rules of the church, the laws of God cannot be fet afide by any authority lefs than that which enacted them. The archbifhop * Rymer, xiv. 192, 203. Heylin, p, 3. + Burnet, Fiddes. H EN RY VII. 161 archbifhop of Canterbury was next applied to; and he was required to confult Chap. IV. his brethren: All the prelates of England, except Fifher, bifhop of Rochefter, 'S?” declared unanimoufly, under their hand and feal, that they deemed the King’s marriage unlawful *, Wolfey alfo fortified the King’s fcruples+, partly with a view of promoting a total breach with the emperor, Catherine’s nephew, partly defirous of connecting the King more clofely with Francis, by marrying him to the dutchefs of Alengon, fifter to that monarch; and perhaps too fomewhat difgufted with the queen herfelf, who had reproved him for certain freedoms, unbefitting his character and ftation {. But Henry was carried forward, tho’ per- haps not at firft excited, by a motive more forcible than even the fuggeftions of that powerful favourite, | AwNE Boleyn, who lately appeared at court, had been created maid of honour Anne Boleyn to the queen; and having had frequent opportunities of being feen by the King, and of converfing with him, fhe had acquired an entire afcendant over his affections. This young lady, whofe grandeur and misfortunes have rendered her fo celebrated, was daughter to Sir Thomas Boleyn, who had been employed by the King in feveral embaffies, and who was allied to-all the principal nobility of the kingdom. ‘His wife, mother to Anne, was daughter of the duke of Norfolk; his own mother was daughter of the earl of Ormond ; his grandfather Sir Geoffrey Boleyn, who had been mayor of London, had efpoufed oné of the daughters and co-heirs of the lord Haftings §. Anne herfelf, tho” then in very early youth, had been carried over to Paris by the King’s ‘fifter, when fhe efpoufed Lewis the twelfth of France; and upon the deceafe of that monarch, and the return of his dowager into England, Anne, whofe accomplifhments even in her tender years were always much admired, was retained in the fervice of Claude, queen of France, fpoufe to Francis; and after her death, ‘the pafled into the family of the dutchefs of Alancon, a princefs of fingular merit. The exact time, when fhe returned to England, is not certainly known ; but it was after the King had entertained doubts with regard to the lawfulnefs of his mar- riage with Catherine; if the account is to be credited, which he himfelf after- wards gave of that tranfaction. Hlenry’s fcruples had made him ‘break off all conjugal commerce with the queen; but as he ftill fupported an intercourfe of civility and friendfhip with her, he had occafion, in the vifits, which he paid her, to obferve the beauty, the youth, the charms of Anne Boleyn. ‘Find- ing the accomplifhments of her mind no way inferior to her exterior graces, he : " " — - ee —— —. as — a a aRees = = ~~ =- et a ——t : - - — —— — + —— — = o— ~ = x —— - c > = = = A at NE ES Bo TaN EEE eee gee == toa 2 = = eo - << ———— : oe - ~ ——- = = J Se ee ee gen ge oe a FE St es ——s tr a a ——- a - i ee ee ene Se parent Se a — ss SMES SS susan = =~ = ae: - SS r kc —— = . SS iw = es — hc ms “ : “ - “ - > we - = ——s—— — = ] 7 HL, fe ‘pe " te ua. va by ie ; ] : even * Burnet, vol. 7. pm 38. Stowe, p. 548. + Le Grand, vol. 3. p. 46, 166, 168. Saunders, Heylin, p. 4. { Burnet, vol. 1. p. 38, Strype, vol, 1. p. 88. . § Camden’s preface to the life of Elizabeth. Burnet, vol, 1. p. 44. 152 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Chap. IV. even entertained the deficn of raifing her to the throne; and was the more con- 1527* Gemed in this refolution, when he found that her virtue and modefty prevented all hopes of gratifying his paffion after any other.manner. And as every motive of inclination and policy, feemed thus to concur in making the King delfirous of a divorce from Catherine, and as his profpect of fuccefs was inviting, he refolved to make applications to Clement, and he fent Knight, his fecretary, 0 Rome for that purpole. ‘ Henry applies nat he might not fhock the haughty claims of the pontiff, it was refolved al cat not to found the application on any general doubts of the papal power to per- mit marriage in the nearer degrecs of confanguinity ; but only to infift on parti: cular grounds of invalidity ‘n the bull, which Julius had granted for the mar- riage of Henry and Catherine. It. was a maxim in the court.of Rome, that, if the pope be furprized into any conceffion, or grant any indulgence upon falfe fuggetlions, the bull may afterwards be annulled; and this pretence had ufually been employed, wherever one pope had recalled any deed, executed by any of his predecefiors. But Julius’s bull, when examined, afforded plentiful matter of this kind ; and any tribunal, favourable to. Henry, needed not want a {fpecious colour for gratifying him in his applications for a divorce. It was {aid in the preamble, that the bull had been granted upon his follicitation ; tho’ it was known, that, at that time, he was below twelve years of age: It was alfo afirmed, as another motive for the bull, that the marriage was requifite, in order to preferve peace between the two crowns; tho’ it is certain, that there was not then any ground or appearance of quarrel between them. Thefe falfe premifes in Julius’s bull, feemed to afford Clement a fufficient reafon or pretence for annulling it, and eranting Henry a difpenfation for a fecond marriage f. The pope Bur tho’ the pretext for this indulgence had been lefs plaufible, the pope favourable. ein fuch a fituation, that he had:the ftrongeft motive to embrace evry oppor: tunity of gratifying the Englifh monarch. He was then:a prifoner in the hands of the emperor, and had no hopes of recovering his liberty on any reafonable terms, unlefs by the efforts of the league, which Henry had formed with Fran- cis and the Italian powers, in order to oppofe the exorbitant ambition of Charles. When the Englifh Secretary, therefore, made private applications: to him, he received a very favourable anfwer’; and a difpenfation was forthwith promifed to be expeded to his mafter*. Soon after, the match of a French army into Ita- ly, under the command of Lautrec, obliged the imperialifts to give Clement his jiberty ; and he retired to Orvictto, where the Secretary, with Sir Gregory Cul- -fali, the King’s refident at Rome, renewed their applications to him. They | | found t Collier, Ecclef. Hift. vol. I. p. 25. from the Cott, Lib. Vitell. B.9. * Burnet, vol. 1. p- 47: mene nN R Y¥ VIL. 253 Id found him ftill full of high profeffions of friendfhip, gratitude, and attachment Chap. IV. to the King; but not fo expeditious in granting his requeft as they expected. *9*”* The emperor, who had got intelligence of Henry’s application to Rome, had exacted a promife of the pope, to take no fteps in that affair before he com- municated them to the imperial minifters; and Clement, confined by this pro- mife, and ftill more overawed by the emperor’s forces in Italy, feemed willing to poftpone thofe conceffions defired of him by Henry. Importuned, however, by the Englifh minifters, he at laft put into their hands a commiffion to Wolfey, as legate, in‘conjunction with the archbifhop of Canterbury, or any other Eng- lifh prelate, to examine the validity of the King’s marriage, and of Julius’s dif- penfation |: He alfo granted them a provifional d/penfation for the King’s mar- riage with any other perfon ; and promifed foon to expede a decretal bull, an- nulling the marriage with Catherine. But he reprefented to them the dangerous confequences, which muft enfue to him, if thefe conceffions fhould come to the emperor’s knowlege ; and he conjured them not to publifh thofe papers, or make any further ufe of them, till his affairs were in fuch a fituation as to fecure his liberty and independance. And his fecret advice was, whenever they fhould find the proper time of opening the fcene, that they fhould prevent all oppofi- tion, by proceeding immediately to a conclufion, by declaring the marriage with Catherine invalid, and by Henry’s inftantly efpoufing fome other perfon. Nor would it be fo difficult, he faid, for himfelf to confirm thefe proceedings, after they were pafled, as previoufly to render them valid, by his confent-and au- thority f. WueEN Henry received the commiffion and difpenfation from his ambaffadors, 1528. and was informed of the pope’s advice, he laid the whole matter before his mi- nifters, and afked their opinion in fo delicate a fituation. The Englith counfel- lors confidered the danger of proceeding in the manner pointed out to them. Should the pope refufe to confirm a deed, which he might juftly call precipitate and irregular, and fhould he difavow the advice which he gave in fo clandeftine a manner, the King would find his fecond marriage totally invalidated; any chil- ° dren, which it might bring him, declared illegitimate ; and his marriage with Catherine more firmly rivetted than ever *. And Henry’s apprehenfions of the pof- fibility, or even probability, of fuch an event, were much confirmed, when he reflected on the character and fituation of the fovereign pontiff. a ee we — - ' ‘ % J ' | f ' " | : U f ) Mp htt yi . . / ah Bee Sh 4 i 4 Wb ed \ - i bly 4 j f i , het va Pipe 7 { i ty f e j Me tail ent? 7 Th | mie iT a! Vie | y 4 hi ae a ut yl i.) 1A; ae , rtd - ' i Pe PE 7 4 r : i J a. | A i ry bh 7 . ee ‘4 - °° ‘ if TY had ’ uy. Tt 3 eh d (Ane ey! : i Hy ‘ a) et Whey ie 0) Seed oe H ope em 5 4 ’ : Abe Ale aDy ‘+ ipihe ae 1m 2) 1 yh) 4) i 7 : ; : ' 2 Rube . : ' iar ee , % Me | a bs e1 “Be ey iy a - My t 7 et 7 He 404 Ai | Wigs mag ie) » | ; it? ne a a | ee a Pe ie : iL , ’ - ; Crement the feventh was a prince of excellent judgment, whenever his timi- dity, to which he was extremely fubject, allowed him to make full ufe of thofe x talents, 4: Rewind tie > 4498 a ee f Rymer, ATV. 237, t Collier, from Cott. Lib. Vitell. B. 1o. * Burnet, vol. I. p. 51. 154 The emperor threatens him. WISTORY or ENGLAND. talents, and that penetration, with which he was endowed*. The captivity, and other misfortunes, which he had undergone, by entering into a league againft Charles, had fo affected his imagination, that he never afterwards exerted himfelf with vigour in any public meafures, efpecially. if the interefts or inclinations of that potentate ftood in oppofition to him. The imperial forces were, at prefent, and might return to the attack of Rome, which was ftill de- fencelefs, and expofed to the fame calamities with which it had already been over- whelmed. And befides thefe dangers, Clement found or fancied himfelf expofed which threatned, ftill more immediately, his perfon and dignity. zed of the timid difpofition of the holy father, threw out of fummoning a general council; which, he reprefent- o reform the church, and correct thofe exorbitant abufes, ad avarice of the court of Rome had introduced into every branch of ecclefiaftical adminiftration. The power of Clement himfelf, he faid, the fovereign pontiff, required limitation ; his conduét called aloud for amend- o the throne, which he filled, might juftly be brought in queftion, That pope had always paffed for the natural fon of Julian of Me- dici, who was of the fovereign family of Florence; and tho’ Leo the tenth, his coufin, had declared him legitimate, upon a pretended promife of marriage be- tween his father and mother, few perfons believed that declaration to be founded on any juft reafon or authority +. The canon law, indeed, had been entirely filent with regard to the promotion of baftards to the papal throne; but, what was ftill dangerous, the people had entertained a violent prepofleffion, that that frain in the birth of any perfon was fufficient to incapacitate him for fo holy an office. And in another point, the canon law was exprefs and pofitive, that no man, guilty of fimony, could attain that dignity. A fevere bull of Julius the fecond had added new fanétions to this law, by declaring, that a fimoniacal elec- tion fhould not be rendered valid, even by a poiterior confent of the cardinals. But unfortunately Clement had given to cardinal Colonna a billet, containing promifes of advancing that cardinal, in cafe he himfelf fhould attain the papal dignity by his concurrence: And this billet, Colonna, who was in entire de- pendance on the emperor, threatned every moment to expofe to public view tf. Waite Charles terrified the pope with thefe menaces, he alfo allured him by lefs prevalent over his affections. At the time that the em- ome, and reduced Clement to captivity, the Florentines, t liberty, had taken advantage of his diftreffes, and re- volting powerful in Italy, to perils, CHARLES, appri perpetual menaces ed, as neceflary t which the ambition a ment; and even his title t hopes, which were no peror’s forces facked R paffionate for their ancien * Father Paul, ib, 1, Guicciardini. 4- Father Paul, lib. 1. t Thid. HEYN Ro Yoowvnr 155 volting againft the family of Medici, had. entirely abolithed their authority. in Florence, and re-eltablithed the former democracy... The better to protect: them- felves in their freedom, they had entered into the alliance with France, England, and Venice, again{ft the emperor; and Clement found, that, by this intereft,. the hands of his confederates were tied from affifting him in the reftoration of ‘his fa- mily ; the event, which, of all others, he moft paffionately defired. The empe- ror alone, he knew, was able to effectuate this purpofe ; and therefore, what- ever profeffions he made of fidelity to his allies, he was always, on the -leaft glimpfe of hope, ready to embrace every propofal of a cordial reconcilement with that monarch f. Tues views and interefts of the pope were well known in England; and as the oppofition of the emperor was forefeen to Henry’s divorce, both on account of the honour and interefts of Catherine, his aunt, and the obvious motive of diftrefling an enemy, it was efteemed dangerous to take any meafure of confe- quence, in expectation of the fubfequent concurrence of a man of Clement’s character, whofe behaviour contained always fo much duplicity, and who was at prefent fo little at his own difpofal. The fafeft meafure feemed to confift in pre- vioufly engaging him fo far, that he could not afterwards recede, and in making ufe of his prefent ambiguity and uncertainty, to extort the moft important con- ceflions from him. For this purpofe, Stephen Gardiner, the cardinal’s fecretary;, and Edward Fox, the King’s almoner, were difpatched to Rome, and were or- dered to follicit a commiffion from the pope, of fuch a nature as would oblige him to confirm the fentence of the commiffioners, whatever it was, and: difabl him, on any account, to recall the commiffion, or evoke the caufe to Rome *. But the fame reafon which made the King fo defirous of obtaining this concef- fion, confirmed the pope in the refolution to refufe it: He was ftill determined to keep the door Open to an agreement with the emperor, and made no {cruple of {a- crificing all other confiderations to a point which he efteemed, of all others, the moft important to his own fecurity, and tothat of hisfamily. He granted, there- fore, anew commiffion, in which cardinal Campeggio was joined to Wolfey, for the trial of the King’s marriage; but he could not be prevailed on to infert the claufes defired of him. And though he put into Gardiner’s hands a letter, promifing not to recall the prefent commiffion; this promife was found, on examination, to be couched in fuch ambiguous terms, as left him ftill the power, whenever he pleafed, of departing from it+. ‘ xX 2 CAm- { Father Paul. * Lord Herbert. Burnet, vol. 1. p. 2g. 1n the collect... Le Grand, vol. HT. p. 23. Strype, vol. I. p.93. with App. No, 23, 24,. &c. t+ Lord Herbert; p. 221. Burnes, Chap. IV. 1528. 10 February. F sc ; The pope § ambiguous conduct. a es _- SS ar’ a am oS —~ = 5s St rh ae > ee > =_—=2 = “i a ~~ —_“, Tie 4 ies \,* by TAY vy ‘i i ¢ es 156 HISTORY oF ENGLAND. Camprcocro owed fome obligations to the King ; but his dependance: onthe pope was fo much greater, chat he conformed himfelf entirely to the views of his holinefs; and tho’ he received his commiffion in April, he protracted his de- parture by fo many artificial delays, that it was October before he arrived in England. The firft ftep which he took, was to exhort the King to deft from the profecution of his divorce; and finding that this counfel gave great offence, he faid, that his intention was alfo to exhort the queen to enter into a convent, and that he thought it his duty, previoufly to attempt an amicable compofure of all differencest. The more to pacify the King, he fhewed to him, as alfo to the cardinal, the decretal bull, annulling the former marriage with Catherine; but no entreaties could prevail with him to make any other of the King’s council privy to the fecret |]. In order to-atone, in fome degree, for this obftinacy, he exprefied to the King and the cardinal, the pope’s great defire of fatistying them in every reafonable demand ; and in particular, he fhowed, that their requeft for fuppreffing fome more monaftries, and converting them into cathedrals and bi- fhops fees, had obtained the confent of his holinefs *. Tuese ambiguous circumftances in the behaviour of the pope and the legate, kept the court of ‘England in fufpence, and determined the King to wait with pa- tience the iffue of fuch uncertain councils. Fortune meanwhile feemed to promife him a more fure and expeditious way of extricating himfelf from. his prefent difficulties. Clement was feized with a dangerous illnefs; and the in- trigues for electing his fucceflor, began already to take place among the cardinals. Wolfey, in particular, fupported by the interefts of England and France, enter- tained hopes of mounting the throne of St. Peter+; and it appears, that if a vacancy had then happened, there was a probability of his reaching that fummit of his ambition. Butthe pope recovered his health, tho’ after feveral relapfes ; and he returned to the fame train of falfe and deceitful politics, by which he had hi- therto amufed the Einglifh court. He ftill flattered Henry with profeflions of the moft cordial attachment, and promifed him a fudden and favourable iffue of his procels : He ftill continued his fecret negoctations with Charles, and perfevered in the refolution of facrificing all his promifes, and all the interefts of the Romifh religion, to the elevation of his family. Campeggio, who was perfectly acquainted with his views and intentions, protracted the decifion by the moft artificial de- lays; and gave Clement full leifure to adjuft all the terms of his treaty with the emperor. THE t Herbert, p. 225. i) Burnet, p- 58. * Rymer, vol. XIV. p.270, Strype; vol, I. p. 110, 111. Appen. No, 28. + Burnet, vol. I. p. 63. H| EN RY» VU. 187 Tue emperor, acquainted with the King’s extreme earneftnefs in this affair, Chap.IV. was determined, that he fhould obtain fuccefs by no other means but by an ap- 15%?" plication to him, and by deferting his alliance with Francis, which had hitherto fupported, againft the fuperior force of Spain, the tottering ftate of the French monarchy. He willingly hearkened, therefore, to the applications of Cathe- rine, his aunt; and promifing her his utmoft proteCtion, exhorted her never to yield to the malice and perfecutions of her enemies. The queen herfelf was na- turally of a firm and refolute.temper ; and was engaged by every motive to per- fevere in protefting again{ft the injuftice to which fhe thought herfelf expofed. The imputation ‘of inceft, which was thrown upon her marriage with Henry, {truck her with the higheft indignation: The illegitimacy of her daughter, which feemed a neceflary confequence, gave her the moft juft concern: The reluctance of yielding to a rival, who, fhe believed, had fupplanted her in the’ King’s affections, was a very natural motive. Actuated by all thefe confidera- tions, fhe never ceafed folliciting her nephew’s affiftance, and earneftly entreating an avocation of the caufe to Rome, where alone, the thought, fhe could expec juftice. And the emperor, in all his negociations with the*pope, made the re- call-of the commiflion, which Campeggio and Wolfey exercifed in England, a fundamental article {. THE two legates, meanwhile, opened their court at London, and cited the 3: May. King and Queen to appear before it... ‘They both prefented themfelves ; and the...) o¢ ine King anfwered to his name, when called: But the Queen, inftead of anfwering, King’s mar- rofe from her feat, and throwing herfelf at the King’s feet, madea very pathe- "8° tic harangyie, which her virtue, her dignity, and her misfortunes, rendered the more affecting. She told him, that fhe was a ftranger in his dominions, without protection, without council, without affiftance; expofed to all the injuftice, which her enemies were pleafed to impofe upon her: That fhe had quitted her native country without other refource, than her connexions with him and his fa. mily, and had expected, that, inftead of fuffering thence any violence or iniqui- ty, fhe was affured in them of a fafeguard againft every misfortune: That fhe had been his wife during twenty years, and would here appeal to himfelf, whe- ther her affectionate fubmiffion to his will had not merited other treatment, than to be thus, after fo long atime, thrown from him with fo much indignity: That fhe was confcious—he himfelf was affured—that her virgin honour was yet un- ftained, when he received her into his bed, and that her connections with his brother had been carried no further than the ceremony of marriage: That their parents, the Kings of England and Spain, were efteemed the wifef princes of } Herbert, p.225. Burnet, vol, I, p. 69, 2 ll & = =z —- Yr ~<—c?Tr —- San = apes 7 ~ SF TFS Sa = a aes Mie = SSS ees ee == =o ——— eS —— === SSS ==> ~_ - ——oe = == 2 Chap. IV. 1529: 158 HISTORY of ENGLAND. of their time, and had undoubtedly acted by the beft council, when they form- ed the agreement for that marriage, which was now reprefented as fo criminal and unnatural: And that the acquiefced in their judgment, and would; not fub- mit her caufe to be tried by a court, whofe .dependance on her enemies was too vifible, ever to allow her any hopes of obtaining from them an equitable or im- partial decifion *. Having fpoke thefe words, fhe rofe, and making the King a low reverence, fhe departed from the court, and never would again appear in it. Arter her departure, the King did her the juftice to acknowledge, that fhe had ever been a dutiful and affectionate wife, and that the whole tenor of her behaviour had been conformable to the ftricteft rules of probity and honour. He only infifted on his own fcruples, with regard to the lawfulnefs of their mar- riage ; and he explained the origio, the progrefs, and the foundation of thofe doubts, by which he had been fo long and fo violently agitated. He acquitted cardinal Wolfey of having any hand in encouraging his fcruples; and he begged a fen- tence of the court, conformable to the juftice of his caufe. 7 Tue legates, after citing the queen anew to appear before them, declared her contumacious, notwithftanding her appeal to Rome; and then proceeded to the examination of the caufe. The firft point which came before them, was, the proof of prince Arthur's confummation of his marriage with Catherine; and it mutt be confefied, that no ftronger arguments could reafonably be expected of fuch’ a fat after fo long aninterval. The age of the prince, who had pafled his fif- ; teenth year, the good ftate of his health, the long time that he had cohabited with his fpoufe, many of his expreflions to that very purpole ; all thefe circumftances form a violent prefumption, in favour of the King’s affertion+. Henry himfelf, after his brother’s death, was not allowed for fome time to bear the title of prince of Wales, in expectation of -her pregnancy: The Spanifh ambaflador, .in order the better to enfure pofleffion of her jointure, had fent over to Spain, proofs of che confummation of her marriaget: Julius’s bull itfelf was founded on the {fuppofition, that Arthur had perhaps had knowledge of the princefs:. In the very. treaty, fixing Henry's marriage, the confummation of the former marriage with prince Arthur, is acknowledged on both files. Thefe particulars-were all laid before the court ; accompanied with many reafonings concerning the extent of the pope’s auth rity, and his power of granting a difpenfation to marry within the prohibited degrees. Campeggio heard thefe doétrines with great impatience ; and notwithftanding his refolution to protract the caufe, he was often tempted to * Barnet, vol. I. p. 73. Hall. Stow, p. 543: + Herbert. t Burnet, vol. IL. p- 35+ j) Rymer, XIU p. 81, | 8 H SYN oR Y* VIE. 159 to interrupt and filence the King’s council, when they infifted on fuch difagreeable ChapIV. topics. The trial was fpun out till the 23d of July; and Campeggio chiefly °°? took on him the part of conduéting it. Wolfey, tho” the elder cardinal, per- mitted him to a& as prefident of the court ; becaufe it was thought, that a trial, managed by an Italian cardinal, would carry the appearance of greater candour and impartiality, than if the King’s own minifter and favourite had pre- fided in it. The bufinefs now feemed to be drawing near a period ; and the King was every day in expectation of a fentence in his favour ; when, to his great fur- prize, Campeggio, on a fudden, without any warning, and upon very frivolous pretences {, prorogued the ‘court, till the firf’ of October. — The aVOCatIONs The canfe which came a few days after from Rome, put an end to all the hopes of fuc- evoked to cefs, which the King had fo long and fo anxioufly cherifhed $. 2am Durinc the time, that the trial was carried on before the legates at London, the emperor had by his minifters earneftly follicited Clement to evoke the caule to Rome; and had employed every topic of hope or terror, which could operate either on the paflion or timidity of the pontiff. The Englifh ambaffladors, on the other hand, in conjunétion with the French, had been no lefs earneft in their applications, that the legates fhould be allowed to finifh the trial; but, the’ they employed the fame engines of promifes and menaces, the objects, which they could fet before the pope, were not fo inftant nor immediate as thofe which were held up to him by the emperor *. The dread of lofing England, and of forti- fying the Lutherans by fo confiderable an acceffion, made {mall impreffion on Clement’s mind, in comparifon of the anxiety for his own perfonal fafety, and the fond defire of reftoring the Medici to their dominion in Florence. So foon, therefore, as he had adjufted all terms with the emperor, he laid hold of the pretence of juftice, which required him, he faid, to pay regard to the queen's appeal; and fufpending the commiffion of the legates; he evoked the caufe to Rome. The legate, Campeggio, had beforehand received private orders, de- livered by Campana, to burn the decretal bull, with which he was entrutted. Wousey had long forefeen this meafure as the fure fore-runner of his own ruin. Tho? he had at firft defired, that the King fhould rather marry a French princefs than Anne Boleyn, he had employed himfelf with the utmoft affiduity and earneft- nefs to bring the affair to an happy iffue +: He was not therefore to be blamed for the unprofperous event, which the pope’s partiality had produced. But he had fufficient experience of the extreme ardour and impatience of Henry’s tem- per, who could bear no contradiction, and who was wont, without examination or t Burnet, Vol. 1. p. 76, 77. § Herbert, p. 254. * Burnet, vol. 1. p. 75; + Collier, vol. 2. p. 45. Burnet, vol. r. p. 53. ——— 4 | WF i | \ | ~) 160 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Chap. IV. or diftinétion, to make his minifters anfwerable for the iffue of thofe tranfactions, ay '? ti } i] 4 aa. iii Busy HP it muel wh th Wet a 1h ahi Pee aE if , } | : i] with which they were entrufted. Anne Boleyn alfo, who was prepofiefied againft him, had imputed to him the failure of her hopes; and as fhe was newly re- turned to court, whence fhe had been removed, from a regard to decency, during the trial before the legates, fhe had naturally acquired an additional in- Aence on Henry’s mind, and fhe ferved much to fortify his prejudices againft the cardinal t. Even the queen and her partizans, judging of Wolfey by the part which he had openly aéted, had exprefled the higheft animofity againft him ; and the moft oppofite factions feemed now to combine in the ruin of this haughty minifter. The high opinion itfelf, which Henry had entertained of the cardinal’s capacity, tended to haften his downfal; while he imputed the bad fuccefs of that minifter’s undertakings, not to fortune or miftake, but to the ma- lignity or infidelity of his ‘ntentions. The blow, however, fell not inftantly on his head. The King, who probably could not juftify by any good reafon his alienation from his antient favourite, feems to have remained fome time in fufpence; and he received him, if not with all his former kindnefs, at leaft with the appearance of truft and regard. Bur it is found almoft impoffible for a high confidence and affection to receive the leaft diminution, without finking into abfolute indifference or even running Wolfey’s fall. into the oppofite extreme of hatred and averfion. The King was now determined to bring on the ruin of the cardinal with a motion almoft as precipitate as he had 8th OGober. formerly employed in his elevation. The dukes of Norfolk and Suffolk were fent to require the great feal from him ; and on his fcrupling to deliver it *, without a more exprefs warrant, Henry wrote him a letter, upon which it was furren- dered, and was delivered by the King to Sir Thomas More, a man, who, be- _ fides the ornaments of an elegant literature, pofleffed the higheft virtue, inte- rity and capacity. Wo sry was ordered to depart from York- Place, “a palace which he had built ‘+n London, and which, tho’ it really belonged to the fee of York, was feized by Henry, and became afterwards the refidence of the Kings of England, under the title of Whitehall. All his furniture and plate were converted to the King’s ule, Their riches and fplendour befitted rather a royal than a private fortune. The walls of his palace were covered with cloth of gold or cloth of filver: He had a cupboard of plate of mafly gold: There were found a thoufand pieces of fine holland belonging to him. All the reft of ‘his riches and furniture was in pro- portion; and his opulence was probably no fmall inducement to this violent perfecution again{t him. THE { Cavendifh, p, 40. * Cavendifh, p. 41. Pekan fe ¥ VIL. 161 Tue cardinal was ordered to retire to Afher, a country feat which he poffefied Chap. IV. near Hampton-Court. The world, who had paid him fuch abject court during = '5*# his profperity, now entirely deferted him, on this fatal reverfe of all his fortunes. He himfelf was much dejected with the change; and from the fame turn of mind, which had made him be fo vainly elated with his grandeur, he felt the blow of adverfity with double rigour +. The fmalleft appearance of his return to favour threw him into tranfports of joy, unbecoming a man, The King had feemed willing, during fome time, to intermit the blows, which over- ~whelmed him. He granted him his protection, and left himin poffeffion of the fees of York and Winchefter. He even fent him a gracious meffage, accompa- nied with a ring, as ateftimony of his affeGtion. Wolfey, who was on horfe- back when the meflenger met him, immediately alighted ; and throwing himfelf on his knees in the dirt, received in that humble pofture thefe marks of his majefty’s gracious difpofition towards him ft. But his enemies, who dreaded his return to court, never ceafed plying the King with accounts of his feveral offences; and Anne Boleyn in particular, who bore him no kindnefs, contributed her endeavours, in conjunction with her uncle the duke of Norfolk, to exclude him from all hopes of ever being reinftated in his former authority. He difmiffed therefore his numerous retinue; and as he was a kind and beneficent matter, the feparation paffed not without a plentiful effufion of tears on both fides§. The King’s heart, notwithftanding fome gleams of kindnefs, feemed now totally hardened againft his old favourite. He ordered him to be indicted in the Star-Chamber, where a fentence was pafled upon him. And not contented with this feverity, he abandoned him to all the rigour of the Parliament, which now, after a long interval, was again aflembled.. The houfe of lords voted a long charge againft Wolfey, confifting of forty-four articles ;-and accompanied it with an application to the King for his punifhment, and his removal from all authority. Little oppofition was made to this charge in the upper houfe: No evidence of any part of it was fo much as called for; and as it confifts chiefly of general accufations, it was fcarce fufceptible of any *. Y - The 3dNovember. + Strype, vol. 1, p. 114, 115. App. N? 31,.&c. t Stowe, p. 547. § Cavendifh, Stowe, 549. * The firft article of the charge againft the cardinal is his procuring the legantine power, which, however, as it was certainly done with the King’s confent and permiffion, could be no wife criminal. Many of the other articles alfo regard the mere exercife of that power. Some articles impute to him as crimes, particular actions, which were natural or unavoidable to any man, that was prime minifter with io unlimited an authority; fuch as receiving firft all lette s from the King’s minifters abroad, receiving firft all yifits from foreign minifters, defiring that all applications fhould be made thro’ him. He — 162 HISTORY or ENGLAN D. The articles were fent down, to. the houfe of commons; where [Thomas Cromwel, formerly a fervant of the cardinal, and who had been raifed by him from a very row ftation, defended. his unfortunate patron with fuch f{pirit,. generofity, and courage, as acquired him great honour, and laid the foundation of that favour, which he afterwards enjoyed with the King. Wosgy’s enemies, finding that either his innocence or his caution prevented them from having any juft ground of accufing him, had recourfe to a very. ex- traordinary expedient... An indiétment was lodged againft him 5 that, contrary ro a ftatute of Richard the fecond, commonly called the ftatute of provifors, he had procured bulls from Rome, particularly that invefting him with the legan- tine power, which, he haa exercifed with very extenfive authority. He con- feffed the indictment, pleaded ignorance of the ftatute, and threw himfelf on the King’s mercy. He was perhaps within reach of the law; but befides. that this ftatute was fallen altogether into difufe, nothing could be more rigorous and fevere than to impute to him as a crime, what he had openlys. during a courfe of fo many years, practifed with the confent and approbaticn. of the King, and the acquiefcence of the Parliament and kingdom. Not to mention, what he always afferted *, and what we can fcarce doubt of, that he had obtained the royal licence in the moft formal manner, which, had he not been apprehenfive of the dangers attending any oppofition to Henry's lawlefs. will, he might have pleaded in his own defence before the judges. _ Sentence, however, was pronounced againft him, ‘* That he was out of the King’s pro- ‘© teétion ; his lands and goods forfeited, and that his perfon might be commit- ‘© ted to cuftody.” But this profecution of Wolfey, tho’ it was not difagreeable to Henry, was carried no farther. He even granted him his pardon for all of- fences ; reftored him part of his plate and furniture ; and fill continued, from time to time, to drop expreffions of favour and compaffion towards him. __ 4. THE. He was alfo accufed of naming himfelf with the King, as if he had been his fellow, the King and I+ It is report:d that fometimes he even put his own name before the King’s,. ego et rex meus. But this mode of expreffion is juftified by the Latin idiom, It is remarkable, that his whifpering in the King’s car, knowing himfelf to be affected with venereal diftempers, is an article againft him. Many of the charges are general and incapable of proof. Lord Herbert goes fo far as to affirm, that no man. ever fell from fo high a ftation, who had fo few real crimes objefted to him. ‘This opinion is per- haps too favourable to the cardinal. Yet the refutation of the articles by Cromwel, and their being rejected by a houfe of commons even in this arbitrary reign, is almoft a demonitration: of Wolfey’s innocence. Henry was, no-doubt, entirely bent on his deftru€tion, when, on his failure by a par- liamentary impeachment, he attacked him upon the ftatute of provifors, which afforded him fo little i Juft hold on that minifter. For that this indiétment. was. fubfequent to the attack in parliament, ap- pears by Cavendith’s life of Wolfey, Stowe, p. 551, and more certainly by the very articles of im- peachment them(elves. Parliamentary Hiftory, vol. 3. p. 42, articlez. Coke's Init. pt. 4. fol. 89. * Cavendifh, page 72. Be SR TY VU. 163 Tre complaints againft the ufurpations of the ecclefiaftics had been very Chap. IV. antient in England, as well as in moft other European kingdoms; and as this 157 topic was now become popular every where, it had paved the way for the Lu- Commence theran tenets, and reconciled the people, ‘in fome meafure, to the frightful idea ™™ Of P° of herefy and innovation. The commons, finding the occafion favourable, Rapland: 35 pafied feveral bills, reftraining the impofitions of the clergy; one for regulating of mortuaries; another againft the exactions for the probates of wills *;.a thiid againft non-refidence and pluralities, and againft churchmen’s being farmers of land. But what appeared chiefly dangerous to the ecclefiaftical order, were the fevere invectives, thrown out, almoft without oppofition, in the houfe, againtt the diffolutenefs of the priefts, their ambition, their avarice, and their endlefs encroachments on the laity. Lord Herbert + has even preferved the fpeech of a gentleman of Grey’s-Inn, which is of a very fingular nature, and contains fuch topics as we fhould little expect to meet with during that period. The member infifts upon the vaft variety of theological opinions, which prevailed in different nations and ages ; the endlefs inextricable controverfies maintained by the feveral fects; the impoffibility, that any man, much lefs the people, could ever know, much lefs examine, the tenets and principles of each fect ; the neceflity of igno- rance and a fufpence of judgment with regard to all thefe objects of difpute : And upon the whole, he infers, that the only religion obligatory on mankind is the belief of one fupreme Being, the author of nature; and the neceflity of good morals, in order to obtain his favour and protection. Such fentiments would be efteemed Jatitudinarian, even in our time; and would not be advanced, without fome precaution, in a public aflembly. But tho’ the firft broaching of religious controverfy might encourage the {ceptical turn in a few perfons of a ftudious difpofition ; the zeal, with which men foon after attached themfelves to their feveral parties, ferved effectually to banifh for a long time all. fuch obnoxious liberties. : hh { ’ f { f , Ag: On ie i? tees Bie ee 1 tine a4 * A tuts J iF (4 de de ‘ek i Ty ll ie ee! 4 4 ee a) q ‘ oe ie t rit i: th ‘ Tue bills for regulating the clergy met with fome oppofition in the houfe of lords. Bifhop Fifher in particular imputed thefe meafures of the commons to their want of faith ; and to a formed defign, derived from heretical and Lutheran principles, of robbing the church of her patrimony, and overturning the national religion. The duke of Norfolk reproved the prelate, in very fevere, and even fomewhat indecent terms. He told him, that the oreatell clerks are not always the wifeft:men. But Fither replied, that he did not remember any fools in- his a eee | time, * Thefe exattions were quite arbitrary, and had rifen to a great height. A member faid in the howe, that a thoufand merks had been exaéted from him oa that account. Hall, fol. 188. Strype. vol. 1. p. 73. TF 268 Chap. IV. 15 29 Foreign affairs. oy, 4 HISTORY of ENGLAND. time, that had proved greatclerks. The exceptions taken at the bifhop of Rochefter’s Speech ftopped not there. The commons, by the mouth of Sir Thomas Audley, their fpeaker, made complaints to the King of the reflections thrown upon them; and the bifhop was obliged to put a more favourable conftruétion on his words *. Henry was not difpleafed, that the court of Rome and the clergy fhoald be fenfible, that they were entirely dependant on him, and that his Parliament, :f he were willing to fecond their inclinations, were fufficiently difpofed to reduce the power and privileges of the ecclefiaftics. The commons gratified the King in another particular of moment: They granted him a difcharge of all thofe debts, which he had contraéted fince the beginning of his reign: And they crounded this bill, which occafioned many complaints, on a pretence of the King’s great care of the nation, and of his employing regularly all the money, which he had borrowed, in the public fervice. Mott of the King’s creditors confitted of friends to the cardinal, who had seen engaged by their patron to contribute to the fupply of Henry’s demands ; and the prefent courtiers were well pleafed to take the opportunity of muldting them +-. Several alfo approved of © an expedient, which, they hoped, would ever after difcredit a method of fupply, fo irregular and fo unparliamentary. Tre domeftic tranfactions of England were at prefent fo interefting to the King, that they chiefly engaged his attention ; and he regarded foreign affairs only in fubordination to them, He had declared war againft the emperor ; but the mutual advantages reaped by the commerce between England and the Ne- therlands had engaged him to ftipulate a neutrality with thofe provinces; and except by money contributed to the Italian wars, he had in effect exercifed no “hollilities againft any of the imperial dominions. A general peace was this fum- ener eftablifhed in Europe. Margaret of Auftria and Louife of Savoy met at Cambray, and fettled the terms of pacification between the French King and the emperor. Charles accepted of two millions of crowns in lieu of Burgundy; and he delivered up the two princes of France, whom he had retained as hoftages. Henry was fo generous to his friend and ally Francis, that he fent him an ac- quital of near 600,000 crowns, which that prince owed him. Francis’s Tralian confederates were not fo well fatishied as the King with the peace of Cambray : They were there almoft wholly abandoned to tie will of the emperor ; and feemed +o have no o:her means of fecurity left, but ais equity and moderation. Flo- rence, after a brave refiftance, was fubdued by the imperial arms, and finally deli- vered over to thedominion of the family of Medici. ‘The Venetians were better treated : * Parliamentary Hiftory, vol. 3. p. 59. Barnet, vol. 2, p. 82: + Burnet, vol. 1. p. 83- H EN: R:Y / vit 165 treated: They were only obliged to relinquith fome aequifitions, which they had made on the coaft of Naples... Even Francis Sforza obtained the invetticure of Milan, and was pardoned all his paft offences. The emperor in’ perfon pafled over into Italy with a magnificent train, and received the imperial crown from the hands of the pope at Bologna. He was but twenty nine years of age; and having already, by his vigour and capacity, fucceeded in every enterprize, and reduced to captivity the two greateft potentates in Europe, the one fpiritual, the other temporal, he attracted the eyes of all men ; and many prognoftications were formed of his growing’ empire. Bur tho’ Charles feemed to be profperous on every fide, and the conqueft of Mexico and Peru now began to prevent that fearcity of money, under which he had hitherto laboured, he found himfelf threatened with difficulties in Germany ; and his defire of remedying them was the chief caufe of his granting fuch mode- rate conditions to the powers in Italy. Sultan Solyman, the greateft and motft accomplifhed prince, that ever fat on the Ottoman throne, had almoft entirely fubdued Hungary, had befieged Vienna, and, tho’ repulfed, ftill menaced the hereditary dominions of the houfe of Auftria with conqueft and fubjection. The Lutheran princes in the empire, finding, that liberty of confcience was denied them, had combined in a league for their own defence at Smalcalde; and be- caufe they protefted againft the votes of the imperial diet, they thenceforth. re- ceived the appellation of proteffants. Charles had undertaken to reduce them to obedience ; and under pretence of fecuring the purity of religion, he had laid a {cheme of aggrandizing his own family, by extending its dominions over all Germany. Tz friendfhip of Henry was one material circumftance yet wanting to Charles, in order to render his ambitious projects feafible ; and the King was fufficiently acquainted, that the concurrence of that prince would at once remove all the difficulties, which lay in the way of his divorce; that point, which had long been the object of his moft earneft wifhes. But befides that the interefts of his kingdom feemed to require a confederacy with France, his haughty fpirit could not brook a friendfhip impofed on him by conftraint; and as he had ever been accuftomed to. receive courthhip, fubmiffion, and follicitation from the ereateft potentates, he could ill bear that dependance, to which this unhappy affair feemed to have reduced him. Amidft the anxieties with which he was agitated, he was often tempted to break off all connexion with the court of Rome; and tho’ he had been educated in a fuperftitious reverence to the papal authority, it is likely, that his perfonal experience of the duplicity and felfith politics of Cle- ment, had ferved much to open his eyes in that particular, He feund his royal 2 prerogative: Chap. IV, 1529. ern -_ a ~ nS \y it} Wk | { { Se Se > - en Siaxe eee — a * _ = . LS To < SESS 2a a ae ee 72 - ve 7 SS ee SSS a ee —— —— - —oal See SS i = 7 —— < - ~ ————- =; = - — — ———..- — 2 =~ wo ee = = = = rT = st = = TS. = 7 2 = = ——— =: —S —— —~ = === == —— Ss = > = * = —-s . pe ear “ 4 Be a a) Fal 4 J i | ' os ee 166 HISTORY oF ENGLAND. Chap. IV. prerogative firmly eftablifhed at home: He ‘obferved that his people w«re in 1579: general much difgufted with clerical ufurpations, and difpofed to reduce the powers and privileges of the ecclefiaftical order: He knew, that they had cordially taken part with him in his profecution of a divorce, and highly refented chat un- worthy treatment, which, after fo many fervices and fuch devoted attachment, he had received from the court of Rome, Anne Boleyn alfo could not fail, by her infinuations, to engage him into extremities with the pope, both as it’ was the readieft way to her attaining royal dignity, and as her education in the court of the dutchefs of Alangon, a princefs inclined to the reformers, had already difpofed her to a belief of the new doctrines. But notwithftanding all thefe in- ducements, Henry had ftrong motives ftill to defire a good agreement with the fovereign pontiff. He apprehended the danger of fuch great innovations: He dreaded the reproach of herefy : He abhorred all connexions with the Luthe- rans, the chief opponents of papal power: And haying once exerted himfelf with fuch applaufe, as he imagined, in defence of the Romifli communion, he was afhamed to retract his former opinions, and betray from paffion fuch a palpable inconfittency. While he was agitated by thefe contrary motives, an expedient was propofed, which, as it promifed a folution of all difficulties, was embraced by him with the ereateft joy and fatisfaction. . Dr. Thomas Cranmer, a fellow of Jefus-College in Cambridge, was a man Steg tie eemarkable in that univerfity for his learning, and ftill more, for the candour “bout the and difintereftednefs of his temper. He fell one evening by accident into com- King's mar pany with Gardiner, now fecretary of ftate, and Fox the King’s almoner ; and Pe as the bufinefs of the divorce became the fubject of converfation, he obferved, that the readicft way either to quiet Henry’s confcience or extort the pope's con- fent, would be to confult all the univerfities of Europe with regard to this con- troverted point: If they acreed to approve the King’s marriage with Cathe- rine, his remorfes would na urally ceale ; if they condemned it, the pope wou.d Gnd it difficult to refilt the follicitations of fo great a monarch, f.conded by the opinion of all che learned men in Chriftendom *. When the King was informed of this propofal, he was delighted with it; and fwore, with more alacrity than delicacy, that Cranmer had gor the right fow by the ear: He fent for that di- vine: Entered into converfation with him: Conceived a high opinion of his virtue and underftanding: Engaged him to write in defence of the divorce: And ;mmediatelyy in profecution of the fcheme propofed, employed his agents to collect the 7 dgment of all the univerfities in Hurops.. Hap * Fox, p. 1360. 2d edit. Burnet, vol. 1. p. 79. Speed, p. 769. Teylin, p 5. Bo WoR. Y # VUE 167 Ffap the queftion of Henry’s marriage with Catherine been examined by the principles of found philofophy, exempt from fuperftition, it feemed not liable to much difficulty. The natural reafon, why marriage in certain degrees is prohi- bited by the civil laws, and condemned by the moral fentiments of all nations, is derived from men’s care to preferve purity of manners 5 while they reflect, that if a commerce of love were authorized between the neareft relations, the frequent ©pportunities of intimate converfation, efpecially during early youth, would in- troduce an univerfal diffolutenefs and corruption. But as the cuftoms of coun- tries vary confiderably, and open an intercourfe, more or lefs reftrained, between different families, or between the feveral members of the fame family, fo we find, that the moral precept, varying with its caufe, is fufceptible, without any incon- venience, of very different latitude in the feveral ages and nations of the world, The extreme delicacy of the Greeks, permitted no converfe between perfons of the two fexes, except where they lived under the fame roof; and even the apartments of a {tep-mother, and her daughters, were almoft as much fhut up again{t vifits from the huiband’s fons, as againft thofe. from any ftrangers or more remote relations: Hence in that nation it was lawful for a man to marry, not only his niece, but his half.fifter by the father: A liberty unknown to the Romans, and other nations, where a more open intercourfe was authorifed be- tween the fexes. Reafoning from this principle, it would appear, that the ordi- nary commerce of life among great princes, is fo obftruéted by ceremony, and numerous attendants, that no ill confequence would refult among them, from the marriage of a brother’s widow ;. efpecially if the difpenfation of the fove- reign prieft is previoufly required, in order to juflify what may in common cafes be condemned, and to hinder the precedent from becoming too common and familiar. And as ftrong motives of public intereft and tranquillity may frequently require fuch alliances between the fovereign families, there is lef reaion for extending towards them the full rigour of that rule which has place among individuals *. Burt * Even judging of this queftion by the {cripture, to which the appeal was every moment made, the arguments for the King’s caufe appear but lame and imperfect. Marriage in the degree of afk- nity which had place between Henry and Catherine, is, indeed, prohibited in Leviticus; but itis na- tural to interpret that prohibition as a part of the Jewith ceremonial or municipal law: And tho’ it is there faid; in the conclufion, that the gentile nations, by violating thefe degrees of confangu'nity, had incurred. the divine difpleafure, the extenfion of this snaxim to every precife cafe before {pecified, is fuppofing the feriptures to be compoied witha minute accuracy and precifion, to which, we know with certainty, the facred penmen did not think proper to confine themfelves. The defcent of mankind from one common father, obliged them in the firft generation to marry in the neareft degrees of con- fanguinity: :. Chap. IV. 1529. ‘ i] ; 3 + i ; o/) ys Bei | j 7 HI a ~ a Ars re ™* 8 ee ey Pas pe - — . - NI ee a ‘al ‘y) +f _ a Chap. IV. 1529- 1530. eS 168 HISTORY or ENGLAND. But in oppofition to thefe “eafons, and many more which might be collected. Henry had cuftom and practice on his fide, the principle by which men are al- moft wholly governed in their ations and opinions. Marriages with a brother's widow were fo unufual, that no other inftance of it could be found in any hiftory or record of any Chriftian nation; and tho’ the popes were accuftomed to dif- penfe with more effential precepts of morality, and even permitted marriages within other prohibited degrees, fuch as thofe of uncle and niece, the imagina- tions of men. were not as yet reconciled to this particular exercife of his authority. Several univerfities of Europe, therefore, without hefitation, as well as without ‘ntereft or reward +, gave verdict in the King’s favour; not only thofe of France, Paris, Orleans, Bourges, Tholoufe, Angiers, which might be fuppofed to lie under the influence of their prince, ally to Henry ; but alfo thofe of Italy, Ve- nice, Ferrara, Padua; even Bologna ifelf, tho’ under the immediate jurifdiction of Clement. Oxford alone { and Cambridge | made fome difficulty; be- caufe thefe univerfities, alarmed with the progrefs of Lutheranifm, and fearing a defection from the holy fee, fcrupled to give their fanction to meafures, whole confequences, they feared, would prove fo fatal to the ancient religion: Their opinion however, conformable to that of the other univerfities of Europe, was at laft procured ; and the King, in order to give weight to all thefe authorities, engaged his nobility to write a letter to the pope, recommending his caufe to the holy father, and threatning him with the moft dangerous confequences in cale of a denial of juftice §. The convocations too both of Canterbury and York, pro- nounced the King’s marriage invalid, irregular, and contrary to the law of God, with which no human power had authority to difpenfe*. But Clement lying (ill under the influence of the emperor, continued to f{ummon the King to ap- pear, either by himfelf or proxy, before his tribunal at Rome; and the King, who knew that he cou'd expect no fair trial there, refuled to fubmit to fuch 4 condition, and would not even admit of any citation, which he regarded as 4 high infult, and a violation of his royal prerogative. The Father of Anne Bo- leyn, created earl of Wilthhire, carried to the pope the King’s reafons for not appearing fanguinity: Inftances of a like nature occur among the patriarchs: And the marriage of a brother's widow was, in certain cafes, not only permitted, but even enjoined as a pofitive precept by the Mo- faical law. It is in vain to fay, that this precept was an exception to the rule; and an exception con- fined merely to the Jewifh nation. The inference is fill juft, that fuch a marriage can contain no na tural or moral turpitude; otherwife God, who is the author of all purity, would never, in any cafe, have enjoined it. + Herbert. Burnet. t Wood. hift. and ant. Ox, lib, I. p. 225. | Burnet, vol, i. p- 6. § Rymer XIV. 405. Burnet, vol. 1. p. 95. * Rymer XIV. 454, 472- HE N-R°y’)' Vib 169 appearing by proxy; and as the firft inftance of difrefpec& from England, re- fufed to kifs his holinefs’s foot, which he very gracioufly held out to him for that purpofe *. Tue extremities to which Henry was pufhed, both againft the pope and the ecclefiaftical order, were naturally very difagreeable to cardinal -Wolfey ; and as Henry forefaw his oppofition, it is the moft probable reafun which can be affigned for his continuing to perfecute with fo much rigout his ancient favourite. After Wolfey had remained fome time /at Afher, ‘he was allowed to remove to Rich- mond, a palace which he had received as a prefent from Henry, in return for Hampton-Court: But the courtiers, dreading ftill his near neighbourhood to the King, procured an order for him to remove to his fee of York. The car- dinal knew it was vain to refift: He took up his refidence at Cawood in York- fhire, where he rendered himfelf extremely popular to the neighbourhood, by his affability and hofpitality +: but he was not allowed to remain long un- molefted in this retreat. The earl of Northumberland received orders, without regard to Wollfey’s ecclefiaftical character, to arreft him for high treafon, and to conduct him to London, in order to his trial. The cardinal, partly from the fatigues of the journey, partly from the agitation of his anxious mind, was feized with a diforder which turned into a dyfentery ; and he was able, with fome difficulty, to reach Leicefter-abbey. When the abbot and monks advanced to receive him with much refpect and ceremony, he told them, that he was come to lay his bones among them; and he immediately took his bed, whence he ne- ver rofe more. A little before he expired, he addreffed himfelf in the follow- ing words to Sir William Kingfton, conftable of the Tower, who had him in cuftody. ‘ I pray you, have me heartily recommended unto his royal majefty, “¢ and befeech him on my behalf to call to his remembrance all matters that << have pafled between us from the beginning, efpecially with regard to his bufi- ** nefs with the queen; and then will he know in his confcience whether I have ‘© offended him. ‘*¢ He is a prince of a moft royal carriage, and hath a princely heart ; and ra- ** ther than he will mifs or want any part of his will, he will endanger the one “¢ half of his kingdom. | ** I do affure you, that I have often kneeled before him, fometimes three “hours together, to perfuade him from his will and appetites; but could not ** prevail: Had I but ferved God as diligently as I have ferved the King, he “* would not have given me over in my grey hairs. But this is the juft reward “* that I muft receive for my indulgent pains and ftudy, not regarding my fer- «© vice * Burnet, vol, I. p. 94. + Cavendith. Stowe, p. 554. Chap. IV, 1539. 23 Novemb, < * 3 , ‘ See or eS SS ———— —— : SSS = ————— — SCE + ry a x i = bs ——— re ——— Se eg ee er es = oo eat ee = ee eo = ee sees a ——eeeee ih 17O FI, HISTORY oF ENGLAND. ¢ vice to God, but.only to:my-prince.. Therefore, let me advife you, if you ‘¢ be one of the privy-council, as by your wifdom you are fir, take care what: ‘you put into the King’s head: For you can never put it out again t.” ‘uous died this famous cardinal, whofe charaéter feems to have contained as: fingular a variety as the fortune to which he was expofed. The obftinacy and: violence of the King’s temper may alleviate much of the blame which fome of his favovrite’s meafures have undergone; and when we confider, that the fubie- quent part of Henry’s reign was much: more unfortunate and criminal than that which was directed by Wolfey’s councils, we fhall be inclined to fufpect of par- tiality thofe hiftorians,. who have endeavoured to load his memory with fuch vio- . lent reproaches, If in foreign politics, he fometimes employed his influence over the King for his private purpofes, rather than his mafier’s intereft, which, he boafted, he had folely at heart ; we muft rememyber, that he had in view the papal throne; a dignity, which, had he attained it, would have enabled him to make Henry a fuitable return for all his favours. ‘The cardinal d’Amboife, whofe memory is precious in France, always made this apology for his own condutt, which was, in fome refpeéts, fimilar to Wollfey’s; and we have reafon to think, that Henry was well acquainted with the motives. by which his minifter was in ‘fluenced. He regreted very much his death, when informed of it; and always 1631. 16 January. A Parliament fpoke favourably of his memory: A proof, that humour more than reafon, or any difcovery of treachery, had occafioned his laft perfecutions againft him, “” A new feffion of Parliament was held, together with a convocation ; and the King gave ftrong proofs of his extenfive authority, as well as of his intention to employ it to the deprefiion of the Clergy. Asan ancient ftatute, now almot ‘become obfolete, ‘had been made ule of to ruin Wolfey, and render his exercile of the legantine power criminal, notwithftanding the King’s permiffion ;. the fame law was now turned againft the ecclefiaftics. It was pretended, that every one who had fubmitted to the legantine authority, that-is, the whole church, had violated the ftatute of provifors; and the attorney-general brought accords ingly an indictment againft them *. The convocation knew that it would be vain to oppofe reafon or equity to the King’s arbitrary will, or plead that their ruin would have been the certain confequence of not fubmitting to Wolfey’s commuffion, which was procured by Henry’s confent, and fupported by his authority. ‘They chofe therefore to throw themfelves on the mercy of their fovereign; and they agreed to pay 118,840 |. for their pardon+. A confeffion was likewife extorted from them, that the King was the protector and the fupreme head of tbe church and clergy of England ; tho’ fome of them had the dexteiity to get a claute inferted, which invalidated the whole fubmiffion, and which ran in thefe terms, i” fo far as is permitted by the law of Chrift. THE + Cavendifh, * Antiq. Brit. Ecclef, p. 325. Burnet, vol. I. p. 106, + Hollingthed, p. 923+ HE ON RY * Vin. 171 THE commons, finding that a pardon was granted the clergy, began to be ap- Chap. IV. :prehenfive for themfelves, teft either they fhould afterwards be brought into *53"* trouble, on account of their fubmiffion to the legantine court, or a fupply be ex- ‘torted from them, in return for their pardon. They therefore petitioned the King, to grant a remiffion to his lay fubjects ; but met with a repulfe. He told them, that, if he ever pleafed to forgive their offence, it would be from his own goodnefs, not from their application, left he fhould feem to be compelled to it. Some.time after, when they defpaired of obtaining this conceffion, he was pleafed to iffue a pardon to the laity; and the commons exprefied great gratitude for this act of clemency f. | By the ftrict execution of the ftatute of provifors, a great part of the profit, 1532 and ftill more of the power, of the court of Rome was cut off; and the connec- = tions between the pope and the Englifh clergy were, in fome meafure, diffolved. The next feffion found both King and Parliament in the fame difpofitions. An , 5 January. act was pafled againft levying the annates or firft fruits |; being a year’s rent of all the bifhoprics that fell vacant: A tax which was impofed by the court of Rome for granting bulls to the new prelates, and which was found to amount to Progrefs of corifiderable fums. Since the fecond of Henry the feventh, no lefs than one hundred gaa and fixty thoufand pounds had been tranfmitted to Rome, on account of this claim; which the Parliament, therefore, reduced to five per cent. of all the epifcopal benefices. The better to keep the pope in awe, the King was entrufted with a power of regulating thefe payments, and of coniirming or infringing this act at his pleafure : And it was voted, that any cenfures which fhould be paffed by the court of Rome, on account of that law, fhould be entirely difregarded, and that mafs fhould be faid, and the facraments adminiftered, as if no fuch cenfures had- been iffued. Tuts feffion the commons preferred to the King, a long complaint. againft the abufes and oppreffions of the ecclefiaftical courts ; and they were proceeding .to enact laws for remedying them, when a difference-arofe, which put an end to the feflion, before the Parliament had finifhed all their bufinefs. It was be- come a cuftom for men to make fuch fettlements,. or truft deeds, of their land by will, that they defrauded, not only the King, but all other lords, of their wards, marriages, and reliefs; and by the fame artifice the King was de- prived of his primier feifin, and the profits of the livery, which were no in- confiderable branches of the revenue. Henry made a bill be drawn to mode- rate, not remedy altogether, this abufe: He was contented, that every man £2 fhould f \ by ? 3 ' wi)’ Yar : bi: bale E Danis ia 4a Va uly ih | che i Ff Bil i 4 ee { ip eae j be - 5 need b Vu 4) } ine - i hh : 4 - ' Bi : 4 , : : t Hall’s Chronicle. Hollingfhed, p.923. Baker, p. 208. |} Burnet, vol. I. Collect. N°. 41. Strype, vol. t. p..144. Chap. IV. 1632. 10 April. we 172 HISTORY of ENGLAND. fhould have the liberty of difpofing in this manner of the half of his land; and he told the Parliament in plain terms, “* If they would not take a reafonable «¢ thing, when it was offered, he would fearch out the extremity of the law; ‘© and then would not offer them fo much again.” The lords came willingly into his terms; but the commons rejeéted the bill: A fingular inftance, where Henry might fee, that his power and authority, tho’ extenfive, had yet fome boundaries. The commons, however, found reafon to repent of their victory, The King made good his threats: He called together the judges and ableft law- yers, who argued the queftion in chancery; and it was decided,: that a man could not by law bequeath any part of his lands, in prejudice of his heir *, Tue Parliament being again affembled after a fhort prorogation, the King caufed the two oaths to be read to them, that which the bifhops took to the pope, and that to the King, on their inftallation ; and as a contradiction might be fuf- pected between them, while the prelates feemed to fwear allegiance to two fo- vereigns+, the Parliament. fhowed their intention of abolifhing the oath to the pope, when their proceedings were fuddenly ftopped by the breaking out of the. plague at Weftminfter, which occafioned a prorogation. It is remarkable, that one Temfe ventured this feffion to move, that the Houfe fhould addrefs the King, to take back the queen, and ftop the profecution of his divorce. This motion occafioned the King to fend for Audley, the Speaker; and to explain to him the fcruples with which his confcience had fo long been agitated; fcruples, he faid, which had proceeded from no wanton appetite, which had arilen after the fervours of youth were over, and which were confirmed by the concurring fenti- ments of all the learned focieties in Europe. Except in Spain and Portugal, he added, it was never heard of, that any man had efpoufed two fifters; but he himfelf had the misfortune, he believed, to be the firft chriftian man who had ever married his brother’s widow f. | Arter the prorogation, Sir Thomas More, the chancellor, forefeeing that all the meafures of the King and Parliament tended to a breach with the church of Rome, and to an alteration of religion, which his principles would not permit him to concur with, defired leave to refign the feals; and he defcended from this high ftation with more joy and alacrity than he had mounted up to it. The aufterity of this man’s virtue, and the fanctity of his manners, had no way en- croached on the gentlenefs of his temper, nor even diminifhed that frolic and gaity to which he was naturally inclined. He fported with all the varieties of fortune into which he was thrown; and neither the pride naturally attending 4 “high _* Burnet, vol. I. p. 116 Hall, Parliamentary Hiftory. + Burnet, vol. I. p. 123, 124+ + Herbert. Hall, fol. 205. H)B Ny R, Yr » VIM. 173 high ftation, nor the melancholy incident to poverty and retreat, could ever lay Chap. IV. hold of his ferene and equal fpirit,. While his. family difcovered fymptoms of *>4* forrow on laying down the grandeur and magnificence to which they had been accuftomed, he drew a fubje&t of mirth from their diftrefles; and made them afhamed of lofing even a moment’s chearfulnefs, on account of fuch trivial mif- fortunes. The King, who had entertained a high opinion of his virtue; admit- ted his refignation with fome difficulty ; and he beftowed the feals foon after on Sir Thomas Audley. Dvurine thefe tranfactions in England, and thefe invafions of the papal and ecclefiaflical authority, thecourt of Rome were not without folicitude; and they entertained very juft apprehenfions of lofing entirely their authority in Eng- land; the kingdom, which, of all others, had long been moft devoted to the holy fee, and which had yielded it the moft ample revenue. While the im- perial cardinals pufhed Clement to proceed to extremities againft the King, his more moderate and impartial counfellors reprefented to him the indignity of his proceedings; that a great monarch, who had fignalized himfelf, both by his pen and his f{word, in the pope’s caufe, fhould be refufed a favor, which he de- manded on fuch juft grounds, and which had fcarce ever before been denied to any perfon of his rank and itation. Notwithftanding thefe remonftrances, the Queen’s appeal was received at Rome; the King was cited to appear; and feveral con- fiftories were held, to examine the validity of their marriage. Henry was de- termined not to fend any proxy to plead his caufe before this court: He only difpatched Sir Edward Karne and Dr. Bonner, in quality. of excufators, fo they were called, to carry h’s apology, for not paying that deference to the papal au- thority. The prerogative of, his crown, he faid, muft be facrificed, if he allow- ed cf appeals from his own kingdom; and as the queftion regarded confcience, not power or intereft, no proxy could fupply his place, or convey that fatisfaction which the dictates of his own mind could alone confer. In order to fupport ;, Oftober, himfelf in this meafure, and add greater fecurity to his defecétion from Rome, he procured an interview with Francis at Boulogne and Calais, where he renewed his perfonal friendfhip, as well as public alliance, witlk that monarch, and con- certed all meafures for their mutual defence. Heeven employed arguments, by which, -he believed, he had perfuaded Francis to imitate his example in withdraw- ing his obedience from the bifhop of Rome, and adminiftering ecclefiaftical af- fairs without having farther recourfe to that fee. And being now fully determined in his own mind, as well as refolute to ftand all confequences, he privately cele- 14 November. brated his marriage with Anne Boleyn, whom he had created marchionefs of Pembroke. Rovuland Lee, foon after raifed to the bifhopric of Coventry, offi- ciated 3 Chap. IV. 1532s 1222 533. 4. February. A Parliament. 42 April. 10 May. i 174. HISTORY on ENGLAND. ciated at the marriage, The duke of Norfolk, uncle to the new Queen, her fas ther, mother, and brother, together with Dr. Cranmer, were prefent at the ceremo- ny *, Anne became pregnant foon after her marriage; and this event, both gave eteat joy to the King, and was regarded by the people as a ftrong proof of ‘the Queen’s former modefty and virtue. | Tur Parliament was again afflembled; and Henry, in conjunction with the great council of the nation, proceeded ftill in thofe gradual and fecure fteps, by which they loofened their connections with the fee of Rome, and reprefied the ufurpations of the Roman pontiff, An act was made againft all appeals to Rome in caufes of matrimony, divorces, wills, and other fuits cognizable in ecclefia- {lical courts; appeals efteemed difhonourable to the kingdom, by fubjedting it to a foreign jurifdiction ; and found to be infinitely vexatious, by the expence and the delay of juftice, which neceflarily attended them +. . The more to fhew his difregard to the pope, Henry, finding the new Queen’s pregnancy to advance, publicly owned his marriage; and in order to remove all doubts with regard to its lawfulnefs, he prepared meafures for declaring, by a formal fentence, the in- validity of his former marriage with Catherine: A fentence which ought natu- rally to have preceded his efpoufals of Anne <: Tre King, notwithftanding his fcruples and remorfes on account of his firft marriage, had always treated Catherine with refpect and diftinction,; and he en- deavoured, by every foft and perfuafive art, to engage her to depart from her ap- peal to Rome, and her oppofition to his divorce. F inding her obftinate in main- taining the,juftice of her caufe, he had totally forborne all vifits and intercourfe with her; and had defired her to make choice of any one of his palaces in which fhe fhould pleafe to refide. She had fixed her court for fome time at Amphill near Dunftable; and it was in this latter town that Cranmer, now created arch- -bifhop of Canterbury, on the death of Warham |}, was appointed to open his co urt “ Herbert, 340, 341- +.24Hen. VII ¢, 12. t Collier, vol. IL. p. 31. and Ree cords, N®.-8. . \| Bifhop Burnet has given us an account of the numiber of bulls requifite for Cranmer’s inftallation. By one bull, direéted to the King, he is, upon the royal nomination, made archbifhop of Canterbury. By a fecond, direfted to himfelf, he is made archbifhop: Bya third, heis abfolved from all cenfures. A fourth, is tothe fuffragans, requiring them to receive and acknowledge him as archbifhop. A fifth to the dean and chapter, to the fame purpofe. A fixth to the clergy of Canterbury. A feventh to all the laity.in his fee. An cighth to all that held lands of it. By a ninth he was ordained to be confe- crated, taking: the oath that was in the pontifical. By a tenth bull the pall was fent him. By an ele- venth, the arehbifhop of York, and the bifhop of London, were required to put-it on him. Thefe. were fo many artifices to draw fees to offices, which the popes had erected, and difpofed of. for money. it may be worth obferving, that Cranmer, before he took the oath to the pope, made a proteftation, j that | mi dt Hh H jE Ni Ro ¥ % vit. rs Scpeneit. as aa eet oe _ court for examining the validity of her marriage. The near neighbourhood of Chap. IV. the place was chofen in order to deprive her of all plea of ignorance; andasfhe 533 made no an{wer.to the citation, neither by herfIf nor proxy, fhe was declared contumacious ; and the primate proceeded to the examination of the caufe. The evidences of Arthur’s confummation of the marriage were procuced ; the opi- nions of the univerfities were read; together with the judgment pronounced two years before by the convocations both of Cant roury and York; and after thefe preparatory fteps, Cranmer proceeded to a fentence, and annulled the King’s marriage with Catherine as unlawful and invalid. By a fubfequent fentence ‘he ratified | the marriage with Anne Boleyn, who foon after was publicly cr oad Queen, with all the pomp and dignity fuited to that ceremony*. To compleat the King’s fatisfaction, on the conclufion of this intricate and vexations affair, 7 September. fhe was fafely delivered of a daughter, who received the name of Elizabeth and who afterwards fwayed the fcepter with fuch renown and felicity. blents was fo much delighted with the birth of this child, that foon after he al on her the title of princefs of Wales+; a ftep fomewhat irreeular, as the aie only prefumptive, not apparent heir of the crown. But he had, during his former marriage, thought proper to honour his daughter Mary with that title 5 -and he was determined to beftow on the ofispring of his prefent marriage, the fame marks of diftinction, as well as exclude Mary from all hopes of the Scat fion. His regard for the new Queen feemed rather to increafe than diminith by his marriage ; and all men expected to fee the entire afcendant of one who had mount- ed athrone, from which her birth had fet her at fo great a diftance, apd who by a proper mixture of feverity and indulgence, had lorig managed fo intractable a {pirit as that of Henry. In order to efface, as much as poffible, all marks of his firft marriage, Lord Mountjoy was fent to the unfortunate and divorced Queen, to inform her, that fhe was henceforth to be treated only as princefs dowager of Wales; and all means were employed to make her acquie{ce in that determination. But fhe continued obftinate in maintaining the validity of her marriage ; and fhe would admit of no fervice from any perfon, who did not ap- proach her with the accuftomed ceremonial. Henry, forgetting his wonted ce- nerofity towards her, employed menaces againft fuch of her fervants as come — = foe a ke 2 SESS SS SSS — ll Ite ‘ ) 7) 7 i 7 * we. t ( } ; fh } } 4 thy eee hi , eee ti Hi Wirt Hi al ye a hha t - , ‘ ‘ at Aes a | ie ye g ' Le t 7 } : ” a at ih on a3 $4 a 4 aah th 4 } il ; He! fe % ey ‘Y, ih Mt an i a i iy i ¢ ‘L it > | i ; ay “ Tor : 4 plied that he did not intend thereby to reftrain himfelf. from any thing that he was bound to, either by: his duty to God, the King, or the country; and that he renounced every thing in it that was contrary to any of thefe. This device was the invention of fome cafuilt, and not very compatible with that fri& fincerity, and that fcrupulous confcience, of which Cranmer made profeffion. Collier, vol. I]. in Col! N°. 22, B LI eee z urnet, vol.t. p. 128, 129. * Heylin, p. 6. + Burnet, vol. TI, p. 134, Chap. IV. 1533: 176 HISTORY or ENGLAND. plied with her commands in this particular; but was never able to make her relinguifh her title and pretenfions T. Wuen intelligence was conveyed to Rome of thefe tranfactions, fo injurious to the authority and reputation of the holy fee, the conclave were in a rage, and all the cardinals of the imperial faction urged the pope to proceed to a definitive fentence, and to emit his fpiritual thunders againft Henry. But Clement pro- ceeded no farther than to declare the nullity of Cranmer’s fentence, as well as that of Henry’s fecond marriage; threatening him with excommunication, if, before the firft of November enfuing, he did not replace every thing in the con- dition, in which they formerly ftoody. An event had happened, from which the pontiff expected a more amicable conclufion of the difference, and which hindered him from carrying matters to extremity againft the King. Tue pope had claims upon the dutchy of Ferrara for the fovereignty of Reg- sio and Modena*; and having fubmitted his pretenfions to the arbitration of the emperor, he was furprized to find a fentence pronounced againft him. En- raged at this difappointment, he hearkened to propofals of amity from Francis ; and when that monarch made overtures of marrying the duke of Orleans, his fecond fon, with Catherine of Medici, miece to the pope, Clement gladly em: braced an alliance, by which his family was fo much honoured. An: interview was even appointed of the pope and French King at Marfeilles; and Francis, as a common friend, employed his good offices in mediating an agreement between his new ally and the King of England. | Hap this connexion of France with the fee of Rome taken place a few years fooner, there had been little difficulty in compofing the quarrel with Henry. | The King’s requeft was an ordinary one ; and the fame jplcnary power of the pope, which had granted a difpenfation for his efpoufing Catherine, could eafily have annulled the marriage. But in the progrefs of the quarrel, the ftate of affairs was much changed on both fides. Henry had fhaken off much of that reverence with which he had been early imbued for the apoftolical fee; and finding, that his fubjects of all ranks had taken part with him, and willingly complied with his movements for breaking foreign dependance, he had taken a relifh for his fpiritual authority, and would fcarce, it was apprehended, be induced to renew his fubmiffions to the Roman pontiff. The pope, on the other hand, ran now 4 manifeft rifque of infringing his authority by a compliance with the King ; and as _.. + Herbert, p. 326. Burnet, vol. 1. p. 132 t LeGrand, vol. 3 p. 566, _ * Burnet, vol. 2. p.133- Guicciardini, BOE NR TY ° WHI. 177 as a fentence of divorce could no longer be refted on nullities in Julius’s bull, but would be conftrued as an acknowledgement of papal ufurpations, it was fore- feen, that the Lutherans would thence take occafion of triumph, and would perfevere more obftinately in their prefent principles. But notwithftanding thefe obftacles, Francis did not defpair of mediating an agreement. He full obferved that the King had fome remains of prejudice in favour of the apoftolic fee, and was apprehenfive of the confequences, which might enfue from too violent inno- vations. He faw plainly the intereft, that Clement had in preferving the obedience of England, which was one of the richeft jewels in the papal crown- And he hoped, that thefe motives on both fides would facilitate a mutual agreement, and would forward the effects of his good offices. Francis firft prevailed on the pope to promife, that, if the King would fend a proxy to Rome, and thereby fubmit his caufe to the holy fee, he would appoint commiffioners to meet at Cambray, and form the procefs; and he would imme- diately afterwards pronounce the fentence of divorce, required of him. Bellay, bithop of Paris, was next difpatched to London, and obtained a promife of the King, that he would fubmit his caufe to the Roman confiftory, provided the cardinals of the imperial faétion were excluded from it. The prelate carried this verbal promife to Rome ; and the pope agreed, that, if.the King would fign a | Chap. IV. 1533. 1534+ written agreement to the fame purpofe, his demands fhoul:i be fully complied ith. King’s final A day was appointed for the return of the meffengers; and all the world re- ~~ with garded this affair, which had threatened a violent rupture between E:ngland and the Romifh church, as drawing towards an amicable conclufion*, But the ereateft affairs often depend on the moft frivolous incidents. The courier, who carried the King’s written promife, was detained beyond the day appointed : News are brought to Rome that a libel had been publifhed in England againft the court of Rome, and a farce aéted before the King in derifion of the pope and cardinals+. The pope and cardinals enter into the confiftory enflamed with anger ; si by a precipitate fentence, the marriage of Henry and Catherine was Meconnieeel valid, and Henry declared to be excommunicated if he refufed to adhere to it. Iwo days after, the courier arrived; and Clement, who had been hurried from his ufual prudence, found, that, tho’ he repented heartily of this hafty meafure, it would be difficult for him to retract it, or replace affairs on the fame footing as before. Ir is not probable, that the pope, had he conducted himfelf with ever fo great moderation and temper, could hope, during the life-time of Henry, to have regained much authority or influence in England, That monarch was both im- Aa petuous * Father Paul, lib. 1. + Father Paul, lib. 1, 23d March, ¥ | | Ube (if Wi ! iW iti Thee . mM AT \ wi ish | 4 | ' i r ian 173 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Chap. IV. petuous and obftinate in his character ; and having proceeded fo far in throwing 1534- off the papal yoke, he never could again have been induced tamely to bend. his neck to it. Even at the time, when he was negotiating a reconcilement with Rome, he either entertained fo little hopes of fuccefs, or was fo: indifferent about the event, that he had affembled a Parliament; and continued to enact laws AParliament. totally deftructive of the papal authority. The people had been prepared by degrees for this great ‘nnovation. Each preceding feffion had retrenched fome- thing from the power and profit of the pontiff. Care had been taken,. during fome years, to teach. the nation, that a general council was much {uperior to the pope. But now a bifhop preached every Sunday at Paul’s Crofs, in order to inculcate the do¢trine, that the pope was intitled to no authority at all be- yond the bounds of his own diocefef. The proceedings of the Parliament fhowed that they had entirely adopted this opinion ; and there is reafon to believe, that the King, after having procured a favourable fentence from Rome, which would have removed all the doubts with regard to his fecond marriage and the facceffion, might indeed have lived on terms of civility with the apoftolic fee, but never would have farrendered to it any confiderable fhare of his affumed prero- gative. The nature and importance of the laws, paffed this'feffion, even before news — arrived of the violent refolutions taken at Rome, is fufficient to juftify this opinion. 15 January. Aut payments made to the apoftolic chamber ; all provifions, bulls, difpenfa- tions, were abolifhed : Monatteries were fubjected to the vifitation and govern- ment of the King alone: The law for punifhing heretics was moderated; the ordinary was prohibited to imprifon or try any perfon upon fufpicion alone, without prefentment by two lawful witnefles ; and it was declared, that to fpeak againit the pope’s authority was no herefy : Bifhops were to be appointed, by a congé d’elire from the crown, OF in cafe of the dean and chapter’s refufal, by letters patent ; and no recourfe was to be had to Rome for palls, bulls, or pro- vifions : Campeggio and-Ghinucci, two Italians, were deprived of the bifhoprics of Salifbury and Worcefter, which they had hitherto enjoyed * : The law. which had been formerly made againft paying annates or firft fruits, but which had been left in the King’s power to fufpend or inforce, was finally eftablifhed : And a fubmiffion, which was exacted two years before from the clergy, and which had been obtained with great difficulty, received this feffion the fanétion of Par- liament+. In this fubmiffion, the clergy acknowledge, that convocations ought only to be aflembled by the King’s authority ; they promife to enact no new canons without his.confent; and they agree, that he fhould appoint thirty-two commiffioners, in order to examine the old canons, and abrogate fuch as fhould ‘be + Burnet, vol. 1, p. 144. * Le Neve’s Fafti ecclef. Ang: + 25. H,8. ¢. 19- - mar N “RR: ¥ VITl. 179 be found prejudicial to his royal prerogative =. An appeal was alfo allowed from the bifhop’s court to the King in Chancery. Bur the moft important law paffed this feffion, was that which reculated the fucceffion to the crown: The marriage of the King with Catherine was declared unlawful, void, and of no effect: The primate’s fentence, annulling: it, was ra- tified: And the marriage with Queen Anne was eftablifhed and confirmed. The crown was appointed to defcend to the iffue of that marriage, and failing them to the King’s heirs for ever. An oath likewife wasordered to be taken in favour of this fucceffion, under penalty of imprifonment during the King’s pleafure, and forfeiture of goods and chattels. And all flander againft the King, Queen, or their iffue, was fubyected to the penalty of mifprifion of treafon. After thefe compliances, the Parliament was prorogued; and thofe acts, fo contemptuous towards the pope, and fo deftructive of his authority, were. pafled at the very time that Clement pronounced his hafty fentence againft the King. Henry’s refentment againft Queen Catherine, on account of her obftinacy, was the reafon why. he excluded her daughter from aj] hopes of fucceeding to the crown; con- trary to his firft intention, when he began the fuit of divorce, and of difpenfa- tion for a fecond marriage. Tue King found his ecclefiaftical fubje&ts as compliant as the laity. The con- vocation ordered, that the act againft appeals to Rome, together with the King’s appeal from the pope to a general council, fhould be affixed to the doors of all the churches in the kingdom: And they voted, that the bifhop of Rome had, by the law of God, no more jurifdiction in England. than any other foreign bifhop; and that the authority, which he and his predeceffors had exercifed there, was only by ufurpation and the fufferance of Englifh princes. Four perfons only oppofed this vote in the lower houfe, and one doubted. It paffed unanimoufly in the upper. The bifhops went fo far in their complaifance, that they took out new commiffions from the crown, where all their fpiritual and epifcopal authority was exprefsly affirmed to be derived ultimately from the civil magiftrate, and to be entirely dependent on his good pleafure +. THE oath regarding the fucceffion’ was generally {worn throughout the king- dom. ~ Fither, bifhop of Rochefter, and Sir Thomas More, were the only per- fons of note, who entertained fcruples with regard ‘to its legality. Fifher was obnoxious on account of fome practices, into which his credulity, rather than any bad intentions, feems to have betrayed him. But More was the perfon of greateft-resutation inthe kingdom for virtue and integrity ; and as it was’ be- “Aa 8 | lieved, + Collier, vol, 2. p. 69, 70. + Collier’s Eccl. Hift. vol. 2. 3oth March. — ae =, > -- = ark : f i : } te ‘at : i "| a . q } : i ) / ‘ vid i ’ 4 i} b itt i | Wt ‘ ite Pe : { ‘ } i ‘ i 1 i; : p ( | | TAA . v ’ | aH ee alae sat | W ihe , ' ve it \ a ED Pe ee ha " wit z elu emt ; AR | } vb \ ah ire apf Fi ‘ 4 patie we } } ‘ " 7 ea tee i “a aa Ys ‘ , ig '\; =" f rt - we +4 i ‘ ; : ma yeti i ‘ 3 i ed ce the a) | 4) i yt | Se > 4 o d wy oe : ei) et : : i as sie, eon Leer : tay a 3 if! f whale ‘. / . mn 1) (aes ee ee F iin Ste | ‘ ee 8 eed Oe ee ate eek Chap. IV. 1 534: 3d Novem- ber. 180 HISTORY or ENGLAND. lieved, that his authority would have influence on the fentiments of others, great pains were taken to convince him of the lawfulnefs of the oath. He declared; that he had no {cruple with regard to the fucceffion, and thought that the Par- liament had full power to fettle ‘t: He offered to draw an oath himfelf, which would aflure his allegiance to the heir appointed ; but he refufed the oath pre- {cribed by law; becaufe the preamble of that oath afferted the legality of the King’s marriage with Anne, and thereby implied, that his former marriage with Catherine was unlawful and invalid. Cranmer, the primate, and Cromwel, now fecretary of ftate, who highly loved and efteemed More, earneftly follicited him to lay afide his fcruples ; and their friendly entreaties feemed to weigh more with him, than all the penalties attending his refufal *. He perfifted however, in a mild, tho’ firm manner, to maintain his refolution; and the King, irritated againft him as well as Fifher, ordered them both to be indi¢ted upon the flatute, and committed prifoners to the Tower. Tue Parliament, ‘being again affembled, conferred on the King the title of the only fupreme 4ead on earth of the church of England; as they had already ‘avefted him with all the real power belonging to it. Inthis memorable act, the Parliament granted him power, or rather acknowledged. his inherent power, ‘* to ce yifit, and reprefs, redrefs, reform, order, correct, reftrain, or amend all errors, «¢ herefies, abufes, offences, contempts and enormities, which fell under any ‘ fpiritual authority or jurifdiction +.” They alfo declared it treafon to attempt, imagine, or {peak evil againft the King, Queen, or his heirs, or to endeavour the depriving them of their dignities or titles. They gave him a right to all the annates and tythes of benefices, which had formerly been paid to the court of. Rome. They eranted him a fubfidy and a fifteenth. They attainted More and Fither for mifprifion of treafon, And they united England and Wales togethers by giving to that principality all the benefit of the Englifh laws. Tuus the authority of the popes, like all exorbitant power, was ruined by the excefs of its acquifitions, and by ftretching its pretenfions beyond what it was pof- fible for any human principles or prepofleffions to fuftain. The right of granting indulgences had in former ages contributed extremely to enrich the holy fee; but being openly abufed, ferved to excite the firft commotions and oppofitions in Germany. The prerogative of granting difpenfations had alfo contributed much to attach all the fovereign princes and great families in Europe to the papal. authority ; but meeting with an unlucky concurrence of circumftances, was now the caufe, why England feparated herfelf from the Romifh communion. The acknowledgment of the King’s fupremacy introduced there a greater fimplicity into | the * Burnet, vol, 1. p. 156, ¢ 26H.8. ¢.4. LB UN: KS YY ove, 181 ae ee ae res = _ ~~ the government, by uniting the fpiritual with the civil power, and preventing dif. Chap. IV. putes about limits, which never could be exactly determined between the con- 1534" tending parties. A way was alfo prepared for checking the exorbitancy of fu- perftition, and breaking thofe fhakles, by which all human reafon, policy, and induftry had fo long been incumbered. The prince, it may be fuppofed, being head of the religion, as well as of the temporal jurifdiction of the kingdom, tho’ he might fometimes employ the former as an engine of government, had no intereft, like the Roman pontiff, in nourifhing its exceffive growth ; and, ex- cept when blinded by ignorance or bigotry, would be fure to retain it within tolerable limits, and prevent its abufes,. And on the whole, there followed from thefe revolutions very beneficial confequences ; tho’ perhaps neither forefeen nor intended by the perfons who had the chief hand in conducting them. Wuitet Henry proceeded with fo much order and tranquillity in changing the antient religion, and while his authority feemed entirely fecure in Eng- land, he was held in fome inquietude by the ftate of affairs in Ireland and in Scotland, | Tue earl of Kildare was deputy of Ireland, under the duke of Richmond, the King’s natural fen, who bore the title of lieutenant; and as Kildare was accufed of fome violences againft the family of Offory, his hereditary enemy, he was called over to anfwer for his condu@. He left his authority. in the hands of his fon, who hearing that his father was thrown into prifon, and was in danger of his life, immediately took up arms, and joining himfelf to Oneale, Ocarrol, and other Irith nobility, committed many ravages, murdered Allen, archbifhop of Dublin, and laid fiege to that city. Old Kildare mean-while died in prifon, and his fon, perfevering in his revolt, made applications to the em- peror, who promifed him affiftance. The King was obliged to fend over fome forces to Ireland, which fo harraffed the rebels, that Kildare, finding the emperor _ backward in fulfilling his promifés, was reduced to the neceflity of furrendering himfelf prifoner to lord Leonard Gray, the new deputy, brother to the marquis of Dorfet. He was fent over to England, together with his five uncles; and after trial and conviétion, they were all brought to public juftice ; tho’ two of the uncles, in order to fave the family, had pretended to join the King’s party. Tue earl of Angus had acquired the entire afcendant in Scotland, and hay- ing got poffeffion of the King’s perfon, then in early youth, he was able, by means of that advantage, and by employing the power of his own family, to retain the reins of government. The queen dowager, however, his fpoufe, bred him great difturbance: For having feparated herfelf from him, on account of fome jealoufies and difgufts, and haying procured a divorce, fhe had married another — ~= = = 5 Soe: —- — + a: ee) Se eee _- ——— =< — S32 = = — —— = i ty sn ft Wa \ ) A | 182 HISTOR Yor ENGLAN D. Chap. IV. another man of quality of the name of Stuart, and fhe joined all the -difcon- 1534 tented nobility, .who oppofed Angus’s authority. James himfelf was diffatisfied — with the flavery, to which he was reduced; and by fecret correfpondence, he excited firft Walter Scot, then the earl of Lenox, to attempt, by. force of arms, to free him from the hands of Angus. Both enterprizes failed of fuccels ; but James, impatient of reftraint, found means at laft of flying to Stirling, where his mother then refided ; and having fummoned all the nobility to attend him, he overturned the authority of the Douglafies, and obliged Angus and his brother to fy into England, where they were protected by Henry. The King of Scotland, being now arrived at years of majofity, took the government into his own hands; and employed himfelf with great fpirit and valour, in reprefling. thofe feuds, ravages, and diforders, which, tho’ they difturbed the courfe of public juftice, ferved to fupport the martial fpirit of the Scotch, and contributed, by that means, to maintain national independancy. He was defirous of renew- ing the antient league with the French nation; but finding Francis in clofe union with England, and on that account fomewhat cold in hearkening to .his pro- pofals, he received the more favourably the advances of the emperor, who hoped, by means of fuch an ally, to breed difturbance to England. He offered the Scotch King the choice of three princeffles, his near relations, and all of the name of Mary; his fifter the dowager of Hungary, his niece a daughter of Portugal, or his coufin, the daughter of Henry; whom he pretended to, dif- pofe of unknown to her father. James was more inclined to the latter propofal, had it not, upon reflection, been found impracticable ; and his natural propenfity to France at laft prevailed over all other confiderations. The alliance with. Francis neceflarily engaged James to agree to terms of peace with England. But tho’ invited by his uncle, Henry, to confer with him at Newcaftle, and con- cert common meafures for reprefiing the ecclefiaftics in both kingdoms, and. fhaking off the yoke of Rome, he-cou'd not be prevailed with to put himfelf aic i . — a 5 tl SE a ee ate Se - —— = ee eee <2 eee a = a = 8 = = = = - ae beams == ah i} Wi i}! { fi i in the King’s power. In order to have a pretext for refufing the conference, he. applied to the pope, and obtained a brief, forbidding him to engage in any pere: fonal negotiations with an enemy. of the holy fee, -By_thefe meafures, Henry: eafily concluded, that he could very little depend on the friendfhip of his nephew.. But thofe events took not place till fome time after our prefent period. CHAP. Pewetcn .R v¥ VII, 183 Sr ae ear Religious principles of the people of the King Farther progres of the reformation. Str Thomas More. The maid of Kent. Trial and execution of Fifber bifhop of — Rochefier——of Sir Thomas More. King excommunicated. Death of Queen Catherine. Supprefion of the leffer monafteries. “A Parliament. AA convocation. Tranflation of the Bible. ——Di/zrace of Queen Anne. fer trial and execution.—— AA Parhament. 44 Convocation. Difcontents among the people. Infurreétion. Birth ‘of prince Edward and death of Queen “Fane, Suppreffion of the greater monafteries. Cardinal Pole, of the minifters. cS here antient and almoft uninterrupted oppofition: of intereft between the Chap. V. laity and clergy in England, and between the Englifh Clergy and the 1534. court of Rome, had fufficiently prepared the nation for a breach with the Roman Balsa pontiff; and men had penetration enough to difcover abules, which were plainly principles of calculated for the temporal advantages, of the hierarchy, and which they found t¢ People. deftructive of their own. Thefe fubjeéts feemed proportioned to human under- ftanding ; and even the people, who felt the power of intereft in their own breafts, could perceive the purpofe of thofe numerous inventions, which the in- terefted fpirit of the fovereign pontiff had introduced into religion, But when the reformers proceeded thence to difpute concerning the nature of the facra- nents, the operations of grace, the terms of acceptance with the deity, men were thrown into amazement, and were, during fome time, at a lof how to chufe their party. The profound ignorance, in which both the clergy and laity formerly lived, and their freedom from theolog'cal altercations, had. produced a fincere, but indolent acquiefcence in received Opinions ;. and the multitude were neither attached to them by topics of reafon ng, nor by thofe prejudices and antipathies againft opponents, which have ever_a more natural and powerful influence over them. As foon as a new opinion therefore was advanced, fup- ported by fuch an authority as to call up their attention, they felt their capacity totally unfitted for fuch difquifitions ; and they perpetually fluétuated between the contending parties. Hence the fudden and violent movements by which the 8 people 184 HISTORY or ENGLAND. people were agitated, even in the moft oppofite direétions : Hence their feeming proftitution in facrificing to prefent power the moft facred principles : And hence the rapid progrefs during fome time, and the fudden as well as entire check given afterwards to the new doétrines. W hen men were once fettled in their particular feéts, and had fortified themfelves in a habitual deteftation againft thofe efteemed heretics, they adhered with more obftinacy to the principles of their education 5 and the limits of the two religions remained thenceforth fixed and unchangeable. Noruine forwarded more the firft progrefs of the reformers, than the offer, which they made, of fabmitting all religious doctrines to private judgment, and the fummons given every one to examine the principles formerly impofed upon him. Tho’ the multitude were totally unqualified for this undertaking, they yet were highly pleafed with ic. They fancied that they were exercifing their judg- ment; while they oppofed to the prejudices of ancient authority more powerful prejudices of another kind. The novelty ittelf of the do¢trines ; the pleafure of an imaginary triumph in difpute,; the fervent zeal of the reformed preachers ; their patience, and even alacrity, in fuffering perfecution, death, and torments ; a difguft againft the reftraints of the old religion ; an indignation againft the tyranny and interefted fpirit of the ecclefiaftics; thefe motives were prevalent with the people, and by fuch confiderations were men fo generally induced during that age, to throw off the religion of their anceftors. Bur in proportion as the practice of fubmitting religion to private judgment was acceptable to the people, it appeared, in fome refpects, dangerous to the rights of fovereigns, and feemed to deftroy that implicit obedience on which the authority of the civil magiftrate 1s chiefly founded. The very precedent of fhak- ing fuch an ancient and deep founded eftablifhment as that of the Roman hierar- chy might, it was apprehended, prepare the way for new innovations. ‘The re- publican fpirit, which naturally took place among the reformers, increafed this jealoufy. The furious infurrections of the populace, excited by Muncer and other anabaptifts in Germany * furnifhed a new pretence for decrying the re- formation. Nor fhould we conclude, becaufe proteftants in our time prove 4s dutiful fubjeéts as thofe of any other religion, that therefore fuch apprehenfions were altogether without any appearance OF plaufibility. Tho’ the liberty of pri- vate judgment be tendered to the difciples of the reformation, it is not in reality accepted of; and men are generally contented to acquiefce in thofe eftablifhments, however new, into which their early education has thrown them. No prince in Europe was pofiefied of fuch abfolute authority as Henry, not even the pope himfelf, in his own capital, where he united both the civil and ecclefiaftical * Sleidan, lib. 4. & 5. H E.N R ¥. Vill. 185 ecclefiattical powers +; and there was fmall likelihood, that any doctrine, which Chap. V: lay under the imputation of encouraging fedition, could ever pretend to his fa- "534 vour and countenance. But befides this political yealoufy, there was another Of thé King. reafon which in{pired this imperious monarch with an averfion to the reformers. He had early declared his fentiments againft Luther; and having entered the lifts in thofe fcholaftic quarrels, he had received, from his courtiers and theologians, infinite applaufe for his performance. lated by this imaginary fuccefs, and blinded by a natural arrogance and obftinacy of temper, he had entertained the moft lofty opinion of hisown erudition, and he received with impatience, mixed with contempt, any contradiétion to his fentiments. Luther alfo had been fo imprudent, as to treat in a very indecent manner his royal antagonift; and tho’ he afterwards made the humbleft fubmiMfons to Henry, and apolog zed for the vehemence of his former expreflions, he never could efface the hatred which the King had conceived againft him and his doctrines, The idea of herefy ftilt appear- ed deteftable as well as formidable to that prince ; and whilft his refentment againft the fee of Rome had removed one confiderable part of his early prejudices, he had made it a point of honour never to reMnquifh the reft. Separate as he ftood from the catholic church, and from the Roman pontiff, the head of it, he ftill valued himfelf on maintaining the catholic doctrine, and on guarding, by fire and {word, the imagined purity of his fpeculative principles. ~ =< ‘ - oe r ce sr . === ES = => =——— 4 [= Se SS Henry’s minifters and courtiers were of as motley a character as his conduct ; Of the mini- and feemed to waver, during this whole reign, between the ancient and the new — religion. The Queen, engaged by intereft as well as inclination, favoured the caufe of the reformers: Cromwel, who was created fecretary of ftate, and who was every day advancing in the King’s confidence, had embraced the fame views ; and as he was a man of prudence and ability, he was able, very effectually, tho’ in a covert manner, to promote the late innovations: Cranmer, archbifhop of Canterbury, had fecretly adopted the proteftant tenets; and he had gained Henry’s friendfhip by his candour and fincerity ; virtues which he pofieffed in as eminent a degree as thofe times, equally diftracted with faction and oppreffed with tyran- ny, could eafily permit. On the other hand, the duke of Norfolk adhered to 3 Bb the : ; ait | : oon ) ital rit Omri hat my ( at ‘ } Bibi!) | | Oo UMERD aii ||| | ah Th Wd | - OR ariih : i byt | AP yy - \ va ir i} : ‘ he TARE | } : Win ui i fi = << —_—.- Go eS = ss : ot a re ee ee — —— er oe + Here are the terms in which the King’s minifter expreffed himfelf to the pope. An non, inquam, fanctitas veftra plerofque habet quibufcum arcanum aliquid crediderit, putet id non minus celatum effe quam fi uno tantum pectore contineretur; quod multo magis fereniflimo Anglia Regi evenire debet, cui finguli in fuo regno funt fubje&ti, neque etiam velint, poffunt Regi non effe fidclifimi. Ve nam- que illis, fi vel parvo momento ab illius voluntate recederent. Le Grand, tom. III. p.113. The King once faid publicly before the council, that if any one fpoke of him or his a€tions, in terms which became them not, he would letthem know, that he was mafter. Et qu’il n’y auroit fi belle tete qu'il ne fit voler. Id. p. 218, > —- = = —— °.= dem = - ~ = =e — re oo —— > ; EES De erie: - 3 — ——-: = : -- _- = qo ee : . = ers Farther pro- grefs of the reformation. 186 HISTORY, oF ENGLAND. the ancient faith; and by the greatnels of his rank, as well as by his talents, both for peace and war, he had great weight in the King’s council: Gardiner, lately created bifhop of Winchefter, had inlifted himfelf in the fame party; and the fupplenefs of his character, as well as the dexterity of his conduct, had ren- dered him extremely ufeful to it. Aut thefe minifters, while they ftood in the moft irreconcilable oppofition of principles, were obliged to difguife their particular opinions, and to pretend an entire agreement with the fentiments of their mafter. Cromwel and Cranmer fill carried the appearance of a conformity to the ancient fpeculative tenets; but they artfully made ufe of Henry’s refentment to widen the breach with the’ fee of Rome. Norfolk and Gardiner feigned an affent to the King’s fupremacy, and to his renounciation of the fovereign pontiff ; but they encouraged his paffion for the catholic faith, and inftigated him to punifh thofe daring heretics, who had prefumed to reject his theological principles. Both fides hoped, by their unll- mited compliance, to bring him over to their party : The King mean while, who held the ballance between the factions, was enabled, by the courtfhip payed him both by proteftants and catholics, to aflume an immcafurable authority : Andtho’in . all thefe meafures he was really driven by his ungoverned humour, he cafually held a courfe, which led more certainly to arbitrary power, than any which the moft profound politics could have traced out to him. Artifice, refinement, and hypocrify, in his fituation, would have put both parties on their ouard againft him, and would have taught them referve in complying with a monarch, whom they could never hope thoroughly to have gained: But while the franknefs, fancerity; and opennefs of Henry’s temper were generally known, as well as the dominion of his furious paffions; each fide dreaded to lofe him by the fmalleft oppofition, and flattered themfelves that a blind compliance with his will, would throw him, cordially and fully, into their interefts. 5 Tue ambiguity of the King’s conduét, tho’ it kept the courtiers in awe, ferv” | ed to encourage the proteftant do@rine among his fubjects, and promoted that fpirit of ‘anovation with which the age was generally feized, and which nothing but an entire uniformity, as well as a fteddy feverity in the adminiftration, could be able to reprefs. There were fome Englifhmen, Tindal, Joye, Conftantines and others, who, dreading the exertion of the King’s authority, had fled to Ant- werp {; where the great privileges pofiefied by the Low Country provinces, ferved, during fome time, to give them protection. Thefe men employed them- felves in writing books, in Englith, againft the corruptions of the church of Rome; againft images, relicts, pilgrimages; and they excited the curiofity of men t Burnet, vol.I, p. 159. ® HAB ON, Ri Ye) Vibe. 187 men with regard to that queftion, the moft important in theology, the terms of acceptance with the Supreme Being. In conformity to the Lutherans and other proteftants, they aflerted, that falvation was obtained by faith alone; and that the moft infallible road to perdition * was a reliance on good works ;- by which terms they underftood, as well the moral duties, as the ceremonial and monattic obfervances. The defenders of the ancient religion, on the other hand, main- tained the efficacy of good works; but tho’ they did not exclude from this appel- lation the focial virtues, it was ftill the fuperftitions, gainful to the church, which they chiefly extolled and recommended. The books, compofed by thefe fugi- tives, being {tole over to England, began to make converts every where; but it was a tranflation of the fcriptures by Tindal, that was efteemed moft dangerous to the eftablifhed faith. The firft edition of this work, compofed with little ac- curacy, was found liable to confiderable objections ; and Tindal, who was poor, and could not afford to lofe a great part of the impreffion, was longing for an op- portunity of correcting his errors, of which he had been made fenfible. Ton- ftal, then bifhop of London, foon after of Durham, aman of great modera- tion, being defirous to difcourage, in the gentleft manner, thefe innovations, cave private orders for buying up all the copies, which could be found at Antwerp ; and he burnt them publicly in Cheapfide. By this contrivance, he fupplied Tin- dal with money, enabled him to-print a new and correct edition of his work, and gave occafion to great fcandal and reproach, in thus committing to the fames the word of God +. Tue difciples of the reformation met with little feverity during the miniftry of Wolfey, who, tho’ himfelf a clergyman, bore too fmall regard to the ecclefi- aftical order, to ferve as an inftrument of their tyranny: It was even an article of impeachment againft him, that by his connivance he had encouraged the growth of herefy, and that he had protected and acquitted fome notorious offend- ers. Sir Thomas More, who fucceeded Wolfey as chancellor, is at once an ob- ject deferving our compaffion, and an inftance of the ufual progrefs of men’s fen- timents during that age. This man, whofe elegant genius and familiar acquaint- ance with the noble {pirit of antiquity, had given him very enlarged fentiments, and who had in his early years advanced principles, which even at prefent would Bb 2 be * Sacrilegium eft & impietas velle placere Deo per opera & non per folam fidem. Luther adverfus regem. -\ta vides quam dives fit homo chriftianus five baptizatus, qui etiam volens non potett perdere falutem fuam quantifcunque peceatis. Nulla enim peccata pofunt eum damnare nifi incredulitas: Id. de cat tivitate Babylonica. + Hall, fol. 186. Fox, vol. I. p. 138. Burnet, vol. I. p. 1g, { Articles of impeach- ment in Herbert. Burnet, Sir Thomas More, a ge ee - wheats = = S "| ha f So hy MW o ; | Nag M, { fi 5 | a | - . f i 4 + + : ———. J, 188 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Chap. V. be efteemed fomewhat libertine, had, in the courfe of events, been fo irritated by 1534. polemics, and thrown into fuch a fuperftitious attachment to the ancient faith, that few inquifitors have been cuilty of greater violence in their profecutions of herefy. Tho” adorned with the gentleft manners, and the pureft integrity, he carried to the utmoft height his averfion to heterodoxy ; and one James Bain- ham, in particular, a gentleman of the temple, experienced from him the high. eft feverity. Bainham, accufed of favouring the new opinions, was carried to More’s houfe, and having refufed to difcover his accomplices, the chancellor or- dered him to be whipt in his prefence, and afterwards fent him to the Tower, where he himfelf faw him put to the torture. The unhappy gentleman, over- come by all thefe feverities, abjured his opinions; but feeling afterwards the deepeft compunction for this apoftacy, he openly returned to his former tenets, -gnd even courted the crown of martyrdom. He was condemned as an obftinate | and relapfed heretic, and was burned in Smithfield *. Many were brought into the bifhops courts for offences, which appear very trivial, but which were regarded as fymbols of the party: Some for teaching their children the Lord’s prayer in Englifh; others for reading the new tefta- ment in that language, or for fpeaking againft pilgrimages. To harbour the perfecuted preachers, to negleét the fafts of the church, to declaim againft the vices of the clergy, were capital offences. One Thomas Bilney, a prieft, who had embraced the new doétrine, had been terrified into an abjuration,; but was fo haunted by remorfe, that his friends dreaded fome fatal effects of his defpair- At laft, his mind feemed to be more compoled; but this appearing calm pro- ceeded only from the refolution which he had taken, of expiating his paft offence, by an openconfeffion of the truth, and by dying a martyr to it. He went thro’ Norfolk, teaching every where the people to beware of idolatry, and of trufting either to pilgrimages, or to the cowle of St.Francis, to the prayers of the faints, or to images. He was foon feized, tried in the bifhop’s court, and condemn- ed as arelapfe; and the writ was fent down to burn him. When brought to the ftake, he difcovered fuch patience, fortitude, and devotion, that the fpecta- tors were much affected with the horrors of his punifhment;, and fome mendi- cant friars, who were prefent, fearing that his death would be imputed to them,. and make them lofe thofe alms, which they received from the charity of the peo- ple, defired him publicly to acquit them + of having any hand in his death. He very willingly complied ; and by this meeknefs gained the more on the fympa- thy of the people. Another perfon, {till more heroic, being brought to the ftake for denying the real prefence, feemed almoft in a tranfport of joy ; and he tenderly * Fox. Burnet,, vol. J. p. 165. + Thid, p. 164.. Hy SyuN R. } « VE. 18) tenderly embraced the faggots, which were to be the inftruments of his punifh- Chap. V. ment, as the means of procuring him eternal reft. In fhort, the tide turning a towards the new doétrine, thofe fevere executions, which, in another difpofition of men’s minds, would have fufficed to fupprefs it, now ferved only the more to diffufe it among the people, and to infpire them with horror againft the unre- Jenting perfecutors. Bur tho’ Henry neglected not to punifh the proteftant doctrine, which he efteemed herefy, his moft formidable enemies, he knew, were the zealvus ad- herents to the ancient relizion, chiefly the monks, who, having their immediate dependance on the Roman pontiff, apprehended their own ruin to be the cer- tain confequence of abolifhing his authority in England. Peyto, a friar, preach- ing before the King, had the affurance to tell him, ‘¢ That many lying prophets ss had deceived him, but he, as a true Micajah, warned him, that the dogs “¢ would lick his blood, as they had done Ahab’s}.” The King took no notic: of this infult; but allowed the preacher to depart in peace. Next Sunday, he employed Dr. Corren to preach before him; who juftified the King’s proceed- ings, and gave Peyto the appellations of a rebel, a flanderer, a dog, and a tray- tor. Elfton, another friar of the fame houfe, interrupted the preacher ; and told him, that he was one of the lying prophets, who fought by adultery to eftablifa the fucceffion to the crown; but that he himfelf would juftify all that Peyto had faid. Henry filenced this petulant friar; but fhowed no other mark of refent- ment than ordering Peyto and him to be fummoned before the council, and to be rebuked for their offence +. He even bore patiently fome new inftances of ther obftinacy and arrogance. For when the earl of Effex, a privy-counfellor, told them, that they deferved for their offence to be thrown into the Thames ; Eiftoa ¢ replied, that the road to heaven lay as near by water as by land |}. Bur feveral monks were detected in a confpiracy, which, as it might have proved more dangerous to the King, was attended with more fata] confequence to themfelves. Elizabeth Barton, of Aldington in Kent, commonly called the boly Maid of Kent, had been fubject to hyfterical fits, which threw her body into unufual convulfions; and having produced an equal diforder in her mind, mac her utter ftrange fayings, which, as fhe was fcarce confcious of them during the time, had foon after entirely efcaped her memory. The filly people in the ~ neighbourhood were ftruck with thefe appearances, which they imagined to be fupernatural; and Richard Mafters, vicar of the parith, a defigning fel’ow, founded The Maid of Kent. t Strype, vol. I, p. 167; + Collier, vol. II, p. £6. Burnet, vol. I. p. 151. | Stov, 62 pP* 5 a 3 I 190 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Chap. V. founded on them project, by which he hoped to draw both profit and confidera- 534* tion to-himfelf. He went to Warham, Archbifhop of Canterbury, who was at that time alive; and having given him an account of Elizabeth’s revelations, he fo far wrought onthat prudent, but fuperftitious prelate, as to receive orders from him to watch her in her trances, and to note down carefully all her future fpeeches. The regard paid her by a perfon of fo high a rank, foon rendered her {till more the object of attention to the neighbourhood; and it was eafy for Mafters to perfuade them, as well as the maid herfelf, that her ravings were infpirations of the Holy Ghoft. Knavery, as is ufual, foon after fucceeding to illufion, fhe learned to counterfeit trances ; and fhe then uttered, in an unufual tone of voice, fuch fpeeches as were dictated to her by her fpiritual director. Matters affociated with him Dr. Bocking, a canon of Canterbury ; and their defign was to raile the credit of an image of the virgin, which flood in a chapel belonging to Ma- fters, and to draw fuch pilgrimages to it as ufually frequented the more famous images and reliéts. In profecution of this defign, Elizabeth pretended revela- tions, which direéted her to have recourfe to that image for a cure; and being brought before it, io the prefence of a great multitude, - fhe fell anew into convul- fions ; and after diftorting her limbs and countenance during a competent time, fhe affected to have obtained a perfeét recovery by the interceffion of the virgin*. This miracle was foon bruited abroad; and the two priefts, finding the impof- ture to fucceed beyond their own expeétations, began to extend their views, and to lay the foundation of more important enterprizes. They taught their peni- tent to declaim againft the new doétrines, which fhe denominated herefy ; againft é innovations in ecclefiaftical government ; and againft the King’s divorce from Catherine. She went fo far as to affert, that, if he profecuted that defign, and married another, he would not be a King a month longer, and would not an hour longer poffefs the favour of the Almighty, but fhould die the death of a villain. Many monks throughout England, either from folly, or roguery, of from faction, which is often a complication of both, entered into this delufion ; and one Deering, a friar, wrote a book of the revelations and prophecies of Eli- zabeth+. Miracles were daily added, to encreafe the wonder; and the pulpit every where refounded with accounts of the fanctity and infpirations of this new prophetefs, Meflages were carried from her to Queen Catherine, by which that princefs was exhorted to perfift in her oppofition to the divorce; the pope’s am- baffadors gave encouragement to the popular credulity ; and even Fifher, b:fhop of Rochefter, tho’ a man of fenfe and learning, was carried away with an opinion {o ee — —_ - CS RR PT wey veo x, ia! Ue ia j is MD DA ‘ H } 4] ww ih yitt 1 z " is i ‘ me Eb ’ ‘ NG t uil | 7 u \ af { ; if Hi) f { 4 Wha ; NS | i i} > i / ihe | WAT : it } i inti i RT | i i] , i a) : Phe | > { sh RS HILIM | Hin PP MT epi b, it hit Ht rid AWA : } I ait Ob { ve Wali 2 : vat i iy A eB Vaid Hat | Ewe 7 / , a)! tt ( i Heit HE ti, a | hae i ais Hhtiats te 1 HEY ‘ iy : Sit ’ ie { } } ’ 1 Wai WH P i} h uit i : . : HSN ih nyt | ; ; ; Hh} nih} it iki iW hi th 1H] Hind 7 un ? f } ea | his : ‘ ea ie } - Beinn Lie re DIATOM Da iia { ' 1] ) im! i ° il i L 4 } , i or, | : f | } | 4 Hit he ser f { os f ini ¥ Tbh } : li | g } lia _ ui t th bi | | { 4 : r Hh if i ht “a , JA hy Ril it | A Pa. Lu | 1 wala P | ea ~ hal ae 1 n } + \ q ) | : > \ Wh ih f ‘ mit by ri} | - ) a Ls il bth ih Ball Py RAEI Utah La |} y in| titan | | ie j i ! i ‘ ih ih ¥ shih ? Wel ie t ty 4 q 1 t i n ARTEL AK ! 4 ih bau Ai { { ipl H : at h { ‘ : wae att . AYE ' : vill | the : wy i thy ( hi is i‘ 3 ’ wy > { t | 4 Hi ii , aged le } ih ii an ay } at ie He Within i ‘ : i ae | VW " aly i biti hi hy hi 4, ey * yl : e 5a leh. Aare me - ome i 2 ore so z= 570. Blanquet’s Epitome of chronicles. + Strype, vol I. p, 181. De vty, ctowe, p. ESS HeEUN RK ¥ VITl. IQ! fo favourable to the party, which he had embraced}. The King at laft began to think the matter worthy of his attention; and having ordered Elizabeth and her accomplices to be arrefted, he brought them before the ftar-chamber, where they freely, without being put to the torture, made confeffion of their guilt. The Parliament, in the feffion held the beginning of this year, pafled an aét of at- tainder again{t fome who were engaged in this treafonable impofture*; and Elizabeth herfelf, Matters, Bocking, Deering, Rich, Rifby, Gold, fuffered for their crime. The bifhop of Rochelter, Abel, Addifon, Laurence, and fome others, were condemned for mifprifion of treafon; becaufe they had not difcovered fome cri- minal fpeeches which they heard from Elizabeth +: And they were thrown into prifon. The better to undeceive the multitude, the forgery of many of the pro- phetefs’s miracles was detected ; and even the fcandalous proftitution of her man- ners was laid open to the public. Thofe paffions, which fo naturally infinuate themfelves amid{t the warm intimacies maintained by the devotees of different fexes, had taken place between Elizabeth and her confederates; and it was found, that a door to her dormitory, which was faid to have been miraculoufly opened, in Order to give her accefs to the chapel, for the fake of frequent converfe with heaven, had been contrived by Bocking and Mafters for lefs refined purpofes. Tue detection of an impofture, attended with fo many odious circumftances, hurt much the credit of the ecclefiaftics, particularly of the monks, and inftigated the King to take vengeance on them. He fuppreffed three monatteries of the Obfervantine friars; and finding that little clamor was excited by this act of power, he was the more encouraged to lay his rapacious hands onthe reft. Mean- while, he exercifed punifhment on individuals, who were obnoxious to him. The Parliament had made it treafon to endeavour the depriving the King of his dignity or titles:. They had lately added to his other titles, that of fupreme head of the church: It was inferred, that to deny his fupremacy was treafon; and many priors and ecclefiaftics loft their lives for this new fpecies of crime. It was certainly a high inftance of tyranny to make the mere delivery of a political Opi- nion, efpecially one that no way affeéted the King’s temporal right, to be a capi- tal offence, tho’ attended with no overt at; and the Parliament, in pafiing this law, had ‘overlooked all the principles by which a civilized, much more a free people, fhould be governed: But the violence of changing fo fuddenly the whole fyftem of government, and the making it treafon to deny what, ‘during many ages, it had been herefy to affert, is an event which may appear fomewhat extra- ordinary. Even the ftern, unrelenting ‘mind of Henry was, at firft, thocked with t Collier, vol. IT. p. 87, * 25 Hen. VII. c. 12. Burnet, vol. L p.iag. Hall, fol, 220. t+ Godwin’s Annals, p. 53. C hap, VY, 1534. a ee a sa er 192 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Chap V. with thefe fanguinary meafures ; and he went fo far as to change his garb and '535- — drefs, pretending forrow for the neceffity, by which he was pufhed to fuch extremi- ties. Still impelled, however, by his violent temper, and defirous of ftrikine a terror into the whole nation, he proceeded, by making examples of Fifher and More, to confummate his lawlefs tyranny. Trial and exe . JOHN Fifher, bifhop of Rochefter, was a prelate, eminent for his learning and ecution of — morals, no lefs than for his ecclefiaftical dignities, and for the high favour which aad Fo. he had long pofieffed with the King. When he was thrown into prifon, on chefter. account of his refufing the oath of fucceffion, and his concealment of Elizabeth Barton’s treafonable fpeeches, he had not only been deprived of all his revenues, but ftripped of his very cloaths, and, without confideration of his extreme age, was allowed nothing but rags, which fcarce fufficed to cover his nakednefs *. In this condition, he lay in prifon above a twelvemonth ; when the pope, wil- ling to recompenfe the fufferings of fo faithful an adherent, created him a cardi- nal; tho’ Fifher was fo carelefs of that dignity, that even if the purple were lying on the ground, he declared that he would not ftoop to take it. This pro- motion of a man, merely for his oppofition to royal authority, rouzed the in- dignation of the King ; and he refolved to make the innocent perion feel the effeéts of his refentment. Fifher was ‘ndiéted for denying the King’s fupremacy,. 22d of June. was tried, condemned, and beheaded. OF Sir Tho- Tue execution of this prelate was ‘ntended as a warning to More, whofe com- mas More. piiance, on account of his great authority. both abroad and at home, and his high reputation for learning and virtue, was anxioufly defired by the King, That prince alfo bore as great perfonal affection and regard to More, as his im- perious mind, the fport of paffions, was fufceptible of towards a man, who in any particular, oppofed his violent ‘,clinations. But More could never be pre- yailed on, contrary to his principles, to acknowledge the King’s fupremacy 3 and tho’ Henry exacted that compliance from the whole nation, there was, as yet no law obliging any one to take an oath to that purpofe. Rich, the follicitor general, was fent to confer with More, then a ‘prifoner, who kept a cautious filence with regard to the fupremacy.: He was only inveigled to fay, that any queftion with regard to the Jaw, which eftablifhed that prerogative, was like a two-edged fword: Ifa perfon anfwer one way, it will confound his foul; if ano- ther, it will deftroy his body. No more was wanted to found an indictment of hich treafon againft the prifoner. Eis Glence was called malicious, and made 4 part of his crime; and thefe words, which had cafually dropped from him, | were * Fuller's Church Hift. book 5. p. 203. HEN R Y © Vill. 193 were interpreted as a denial of the fupremacy*. Trials were mere formalities Chap. V. during this reign : “The jury gave fentence againft More, who had long expe&ted *53" this fate, and who needed no preparation to fortify him againft the terrors of death. Not only his conftancy, but even his cheerfulnefs, nay, his ufual face- tioufnefs, never forfook him; and he made a facrifice of his life to his integrity with the fame indifference that he maintained in any ordinary occurrence. When he was mounting the feaffold, he faid to one, ‘* Friend, help me up, and when ** I go down again let me fhift for myfelf.”. The executioner afking him for- givenefs, he granted the requeft, but told him, ‘* You will never get credit by ‘* beheading me, my neck is fo fhort.” Then laying his head on the block, he bid the executioner {tay till he put afide his beard: ‘* For,’ faid he, ‘* it never com- “¢ mitted treafon.” Nothing was wanting to the glory of this end, except a better caufe, more free from weaknefs and fuperftition, But as the man followed his principles and fenfe of duty, however mifguided, his conftancy and integrity are equally objects of our admiration. He was beheaded in the fifty-third year of his age. 6th July. Wuew.the execution of Fifher and More was reported at Rome, efpecially that of the former, who was invefted with the dignity of cardinal, every one dif- covered the moft violent rage againft the King; and numerous libels were pub- lifhed, by the wits and orators of Italy, comparing him to Caligula, Nero, Do- mitian, and all the moft unrelenting tyrants of antiquity. Clement the feventh had died about fix months after he pronounced fentence againft the King; and Paul the third, of the name of Farnefe, had fucceeded to the papal throne. This pontiff, who had always favoured Henry’s caufe while a cardinal, had hoped, that, perfonal animofities being buried with his predeceffors, it might not be impoffible to form an agreement with England: And Henry himfelf was fo - defirous of accommodating matters, that in a negotiaticn, which he entered into with Francis a little before this time, he required, that that monarch fhould con- ciliate a friendfhip between him and the court of Rome. But Henry was ac- cuftomed to prefcribe, not to receive terms; and even while he was negotiating peace, his ufual violence often carried him to commit offences, which rendered the quarrel totally incurable. ‘The execution of Fifher was regarded by Paul, as fo capital an injury, that he immediately pafled cenfures againft the King, citing him and all his adherents to appear in Rome within ninety days, in order to anfwer for their crimes: If they failed, he excommunicated them; deprived the King of his realm; fubjected the kingdom to an interdict; declared his ®i"g ¢xcom- iffue by Anne Boleyni legitimate; diffolved all leagues withhim; gave his king- —— dom to any invader ; commanded the nobility to take arms again{t him; freed St his * More’s Life of Sir Thomas More. Herbert, p. 393. —— ee = * —— “I = i | } ‘ } - \ if ob | vaad Hobe / ' } ) rh ’ ' Hi } | t 1 ey i | t : \ { ‘ ; i \ ) \ + 1 ; : si | ! | i ' | a | Wi : - bes j i i ty He } i ‘ ‘ Bee OP i " i if! eae eel ad } * ] fy Vy) WEG pha 3 \ ate Heeb y f Mide fi i} rie 4 Oe! Hin 4 ae { \ Ry) he 4 aye it! web 7 " cal WH 4 ; 17 te ¥ ial q ; \ | die Hen + 1} if BD ELITE Y i i Mi i Hh Ke - ie uf i | Malate ya eaitih © ] we Phong wy } i] he atk » eT i —— ee 30th Auguft. Chap. V.’ 1535: CS 194 HISTORY or ENGLAND. his fubjecéts from all oaths of allegiance ; cut off their commerce with foreign {tates ; and declared it lawful for any one to feize them, to make flaves of their perfons, and to convert their effects to their own ufe *. But tho’ thefe cen- fures were pafled, they were not at that tine openly denounced: T’he pope delayed the publication, till he fhould find an agreement with England entirely defperate ; and till the emperor, who was at prefent preffed by the Turks and the prote- ftant princes in Germany, fhould be in a condition to execute the cenfures. Tue King knew, that he might expect any injury, which it fhould be in Charles’s power to infli€t, and he therefore made it the chief object of his policy to incapacitate that monarch from wreaking his refentment upon him. He renewed his friendfhip wits Francis, and opened negotiations for marrying his infant-daughter, Elizabeth, with the duke of Angouleme, third fon of Francis. Thefe two princes alfo mide advances to the ‘proteftant league in Germany, who were ever jealous of :he emperor’s ambition: And Henry, befides remit- ing them fome money, fat Fox, bilhop of Hereford, as Francis did Bellay, lord of Langey, to treat with thofe princes. But during the firft fervours of the reformation, an agreement in theological tenets was held, as well as an union of intereft, to be effential t) a good correfpondence among -ftates ; and tho’ both Francis and Henry fiatterec the German princes with hopes of their embracing the confefGion of Aufbourg, it was looked upon as a bad fymptom of their fincerity, that they exercifed fuch extreme rigour againft all preachers of the reformation im their refpective dominions ¢. Henry carried the feint fo far, that, while he thought himfelf the firft theologian in the world, he yet invited over Melancthon, Bucer, Sturmius, Draco, «nd other German divines, in order to confer with him, and to inftruét him in the foundation of their tenets. Thefe theologi- ans were now of great importance in the world; and no poet or philofopher, ‘even in antient Greece, wiere they were treated with moft refpect, had ever reached equal applaufe and admiration with thefe wretched compofers of meta- phyfical polemics. ‘The German princes told the King, that they could not fpare their divines; and as Henry had no hopes of agreement with fuch zealous difputants, and knew thatin Germany the followers of Luther would not aflo- ciate with the difciples of Zuinglius, becaufe, tho’ they agreed in every thing elfe, they differed in fome particulars with regard to the eucharift, he was the more indifferent on account of this refufal. Hecould alfo forefee, that even while the league of Smalcalde did not act in concert with him, they would always be carried by their intereft to oppofe the emperor: And the hatred between Francis and _ * Sanders, p. 148. ‘+ Herbert, p. 350, 351: + Sleidan, lib. 10, MH BO MOR WY VII, 195 and that monarch was fo inveterate, that he efteemed himfelf fure of a fincere Chap. V. ally in one or other of thefe potentates. Durine thefe negotiations an incident happened in England, which promifed a more amicable conclufion of thefe difputes, and feemed even to open a way for a reconcilement between Henry and Charles. Queen Catherine was feized with a lingering illnefs, which at laft brought her to her grave: She died Kimbolton in the county of Huntingdon, in the fiftieth year of her age. little before fhe expired, fhe wrote a very tender letter to the King; where fhe Death of gave him the appellation of her mof dear Lord, King, and Hufband. She told ee athe him, that as the hour of her death was now approaching, the laid hold of this laft opportunity to inculcate on him the importance of his religious duty, and the comparative emptinefs of all human grandeur and enjoyment : That tho’ his fondnefs towards thefe perifhing advantages had thrown her into many calamities, as well as created to himfelf much trouble, the yet forgave him all paft in- juries, and hoped that this pardon would be ratified in heaven: And that fhe had no other requeft to make, but to recommend to him his daughter, the fole pledge of their loves, and to crave his proteétion for her maids and fervants. She con- cluded with thefe words, J make this vow, that mine eyes defire you above all things *. ‘The King was touched, even to the fhedding of tears, by this laft tender proof of Catherine’s affection ; but Queen Anne is faid to have ex- prefied her joy for the death of a rival beyond what decency or humanity could permit +. Tue emperor thought, that as the deceafe of his aunt had removed all foun- dation for perfonal animofity between him and Henry, it might not now be impoffible to detach him from the alliance of France, and renew that confederacy with England from which he had formerly reaped fo much advantage, He fent Flenry propofals for a return to antient amity, upon thefe conditions ¢; that he fhould be reconciled to the pope, that he fhould affift him in his war with the Turk, and that he fhould take party with him againft Francis, who now threatened the dutchy of Milan. The King replied, that he was willing to be on good terms with the emperor, provided he would acknowledge, that the for- mer breach of friendfhip came entirely from himfelf: As to the conditions pro- pofed ; the proceedings againft the bifhop of Rome were fo juft, and fo fully ratified by the Parliament of England, that they could not now be revoked; when chriftian princes fhould have fettled peace among themfelves, he would ¢ é=2 not 1536, at 6th January. A = ere > ii} ‘44 » "} 7 * 1 “ if a iy ; 6, To < * Herbert, p. 403. + Burnet, vol. 1. p. 192, ~t Du Bellay, liv. 5. Herbert. Burnet, vol. 3. in Coll. N2 co, Mess He See : oe = ° Sr A, ae athad ad ‘ nndny asCing Se BL awe en = ee PR sett : ryt Mm | ; “ ) { : : ih ] —- i ht ra th| They ae ra i i] if o} Hil! ; { hilt I AM ee i ) bore ! : ‘ hh et oe wei HT i it : i 4 { 1 eh ate Pan) oe Minh) | is win A i} MH Wb be H Pie er ia n) ee? "im } f i fi ity via Fi 1} ha vt ly ai : >| ! "] hai We hey att eT ' \ tie 4 ae OS pee Wik Wi - 4 é : } ei ah an 2, : ee fi ; m ry it Hi] U ‘ Vj oa ATE Ube tai: be i ' he nhl © : Ht? ji diple Mil4 - ah) ‘) nd ht (] st “1 : | Wi Abin ‘i wie a4 : ; 17 a tain tet ! ‘ ahh 1M { iy my tay i - : \ a N18 ang it | ie 4) bid) eth) a 7 me 4h mi hod, + uo r an Gg Peak 7. ey, Meaheite og wey 1 ri Cee ‘ HY 7 i " 4 _§, fiwg H lb OT a mi ae p Ney Vd ar {i ty me | \ ¢ belt) ; t ve ; ie aa 2 \ t Maa 0) ig > , ih #55! allt ct , { a i) ' vi i iF ohn fb 3 : i" Hy i Oa ; bir) Pael at Weal - % } : > HTTOT | '\ ri 4 ,S' NE Bei ; ets iP | te byt ‘whe J i i | ./ iMERUTS { i) Be 1) MAT) AY Pe ARES Rea es $ : svi v yeaah ey i | | ' } H aT hw \ ‘hop | a hel Ae ah mili d (i I af et p § bit ty bei " ! si ier i i) MY aa Biba Gin 7’ AM j : th Hi i Te Yh } ie WARD a ‘ , , ’ M. t Ht ead ne t Biase" Sibey yah 7 t iit “e H » AC ie ite | 4 } q us 4] 5 Hy! nt ea + i; i} =~ -~ 298 HISTORY opm ENGLAND. other difadvantage, attending that communion, feems to have an infeparable con- nection with thefe religious inftitutions. Papal ufurpations, the tyranny of the in- quifition, the multiplication of holidays; all thefe fetters on liberty and induftry, were ultimately derived from the authority and infinuation of monks, who being feattered every where, proved fo many colonies of fuperftition and of folly. This order of men were extremely enraged againft Henry; and regarded the abolition of the papal authority in England, as the removal of the fole protec- tion which they enjoyed againit the rapacity of the crown and of the courtiers. They were now fubjected to the King’s vifitation; the fuppofed facrednefs of their bulls from Rome was rejected; the progrefs of the reformation abroad, which had every where been attended with the abolition of the monattic ftate, gave them reafon to expect like confequences in England; and tho’ the King il] maintained the ancient doctrine of purgatory, to which moft of the convents owed their origin and fupport, it was forefeen, that, in the progrefs of the con- teft, he would every day be led to depart wider from antient inftitutions, and be drawn nearer the tenets of the reformers, with whom his political interefts natu- rally induced him to ally himéelf. Moved by thefe confiderations, the friars made ufe of all their influence to enflame the people again{t the King’s government; and Henry, finding their fafety irreconcilable with his own, was determined to feize the prefent opportunity, and utterly deftroy his declared enemies. Cromwet, fecretary of ftate, had been appointed vicar-general, or vicege- rent, a new office, by which the King’s fupremacy, or the abfolute, uncontroul- able power affumed over the church, was delegated to him. He employed Lay- ton, London, Price, Gage, Petre, Bellafis, and others, as commiffioners, who carried on, every where, a rigorous enquiry with regard to the conduct and de- portment of all the friars. During times of faction, efpecially of the religious kind, no equity is to be expected from adverfaries; and as it was known, that the King’s intention in this vifitation, was to find a pretence for abolifhing mo- natteries, we may naturally conclude, that the reports of the commiffioners are very little to be relied on. Friars were encouraged to bring in informations againft their brethren; the flighteft evidence was credited; and even the calum- nies fpread abroad by the friends to the reformation, were regarded as grounds of proof. Monttrous diforders are therefore faid to have been found in many: of the religious houfes : Whole convents of women abandoned to lewdnefs: Signs of abortions procured, of infants murdered, of unnatural lufts between perfons of the fame fex. It is indeed probable, that the blind fubmiffion of the people, during thofe ages, would render the friars and nuns more unguarded, and more diffolute, than they are in any roman catholic country at prefent: But ftill, the 2 ; reproaches, H EN RY VIL 199 reproaches, which it is fafeft to credit, are fuch as point at vices, naturally con- Chap. Vs “ nected with the very inftitution of convents, and with the monattic life. The cruel 1539 and inveterate factions and quarrels therefore which the commiffioners mentioned, are very credible, among men, who, being confined together within the fame walls, never can forget their mutual animofities, and who, being cut off from all the moft endearing connections of nature, are commonly curfed with hearts more felfifh, and tempers more unrelenting, than fall to the thare of other men. The pious frauds, practifed to increafe the devotion and liberality of the people, may be regarded as certain, in an order founded on illufions, ltes, and fuperftition. The fupine idlenefs, alfo, and its attendant, profound ignorance, with which the convents were reproached, admit of no queftion ; and tho’ monks were the true prefervers, as well as inventors, of the dreaming and captious philofophy of the {chools, no manly or elegant knowledge could be expected among men, whofe life, condemned to a tedious uniformity, and deprived of all emulation, afforded nothing to raife the mind, or cultivate the genius. 3 Some few monatfteries, terrified with this rigorous inquifition carried on by Cromwel and his commiffioners, furrendered their revenues into the King’s hands ; and the monks received fmall penfions as the reward of their obfequioufnefs. Orders were given to difmifs fuch nuns and friars as were below four and twenty, and whofe vows were, on that account, fuppofed not to be binding. The doors of the convents were opened, even to fuch as were above that age; and all thofe recovered their liberty who defired it. But as all thefe expedients did not fully an{wer the King’s purpofe, he had recourfe to his ufual inftrument of power, the Parliament; and in order to prepare men for the innovations projected, the report of the vifitors was publithed, and a general horror was endeavoured to be excited in the nation againft inftitutions which, to their anceftors, had been the objects of the moft profound veneration. Tue King, tho’ determined to abolith utterly the monattic order, refolyed to 4 February. proceed gradually in this great work; and he gave directions to the Par- ‘a Paul; liament to go no further at prefent, than to fupprefs the leffer monatteries, a who-pofiefled revenues below two hundred pounds a year value*. Thefe were found to be the moft corrupted, as lying lefs under the reftraint of fhame, and being expofed to lefs fcrutiny +; and it was efteemed fafeft to begin with them, and thereby prepare the way for the greater innovations projected. By this a@ Supprefion of three hundred and feventy fix monafteries were fupprefied, and their revenues, the lefler mo- amounting to thirty two thoufand pounds a year, were granted to the King ;_ be- — fides their goods, chattels, and plate, computed at a hundred thoufand pounds * | | more, { | 7) ] \ Fy j | 4 i it. it ’ * 27 Hen. VIL. c. 28; + Burnet, vol, I. p. 193s = = a 5S a ee eee eee co tN a pt Chap. V. 15 30. x4 April. A convoca- tion. Phe ‘ of 3 A 200 ‘ FWISTORY or ENGLAND. more t. It appears not that any oppofition was made to this importantlaw: So abfolute was Henry’s authority! A court, called the court of augmentation of the King’s revenue, was appointed for the management of thefe funds. The people naturally concluded, from the ereétion of this court, that Henry 1in- tended to proceed in fpoiling the church of her patrimony |j. Tue act formerly pafled, empowering the King to name thirty-two commifii- oners for framing a body of canon law, was renewed ; but the project was never carried into execution. Henry thought, that the prefent confufion of that law encreafed his authority, and kept the clergy in ftill greater dependance. FarTHER progrefs was made in compleating the union of Wales with England : The feparate jurifdiétions of feveral great lords or marchers, as they were called, which obftruéted the courfe of juftice in Wales, and encouraged robbery and pil- laging, were abolifhed ; and the authority of the King’s courts was extended every where. Some jurifdictions of a like nature in England were alfo abolifhed § this feffion. THE commons, fenfible that they had gained nothing by oppofing the King’s will, when he formerly endeavoured to fecure the profits of wardfhips and li- yeries, were now-contented to frame a law *, fuch as he dictated to them. It was enacted, that the poffeffion of land fhall be adjudged to be in thofe who have the ufeof it, not in thofe to whom it is transferred in truft. Arrer all thefe laws were paffed, the King diffolved the Parliament; a Par- liament memorable, not only for the great and important innovations which it introduced, but alfo for the long time it had fat, and the frequent profoga- sions which it had undergone. Henry had found it fo obfequious to his will, that he did not chufe, during thefe religious ferments, to hazard a new election; and he continued the fame Parliament above fix years: A practice, at that time, quite unprecedented in England. Cr: Tuer convocation, which fat during this feffion, were engaged ina very im- portant work, the deliberating on the new tranflation which was projected of the fcriptures. Tindal had formerly given a tranflation, and it had been greedily read by the people ; but as the clergy complained of it, as very inaccurate and unfaithful, it was now propofed that they fhould themfelves publith a tranflation, which would not be liable to thofe objeétions. . The friends of the reformation afferted, that nothing could be more abfurd than to conceal, in an unknown | tongues t It ispretended, fee Hollingfhed, p. 939, that ten thoufand monks were turned out on the diffolu- tion of the leffer monafteries. If fo, moft of them muft have been Mendicants: For the revenue could not have fupported near that number. The Mendicants, no doubt, ftill continued their former profeffion. j) 27 Hen. VIII. c. 27. § 27 Hen. VIII. c. 4. * 27 Hen. VIII. ¢, 10. Fie NR. ¥ VII. 201 tongue, the word itfelf of God, and thus to counteract the will of heaven, which, for the purpofe of univerfal falvation, had publifhed that falutary doétrine to all nations: That if this practice was not very abfurd, the artifice at leaft was very barefaced, and proved a confcioufnefs, that the gloffes and traditions of the cler- gy ftood in direct oppofition to the original text, dictated by Supreme Intelli- gence: That it was now neceffary for the people, fo long abufed by interefted pretenfions, to fee with their own eyes, and to examine whether thé claims of the ecclefiaftics were founded on that charter, which was on all hands acknow- ledged to be derived from heaven: And that as a fpirit of refearch and curiofity was happily revived, and men were now obliged to make a choice among the pretenfions of different fects, the proper materials for decifion, and above all, the holy fcriptures, fhould be fet before them, and the*revealed will of God, which the change of language had fomewhat obfcured, be again, by their means, re- vealed to mankind. Tue favourers of the ancient religion maintained, on the other hand, that the pretence of making the people fee with their own eyes, was a mere cheat, and was itfelf a very barefaced artifice, by which the new preachers hoped to obtain the guidance of them, and feduce them from thofe paftors, whom the laws, whom ancient eftablifhments, whom heaven itfelf had appointed for their {piri- tual direction :. That the people were, by their ignorance, their ftupidity, their neceffary avocations, totally unqualified to choofe their own principles, and it was a mocquery to fet materials before them, of which they could not poffibly make any proper ufe: That even in the affairs of common life, and in their temporal concerns, which lay more within the compafs of human reafon, the laws had, ina great meafure, deprived them of the right of private judgment, and had, happily, for their own and the public intereft, regulated their conduct and behaviour: That theological queftions were placed much beyond the {phere of vulgar comprehenfion ; and ecclefiaftics themfelves, tho’ affifted by all the advantages of educatiofi, erudition, and an affiduous ftudy of the fcience, could not be fully affured of a juft decifion; except by the promife made them in fcrip- ture, that God would be ever prefent with his church, and that the gates of hell fhould not prevail againft her: That the grofs‘errors adopted by the wifett heathens, proved how unfit men were to grope their own way, thro’ this pro- found darknefs ; nor would the fcriptures, if trufted to every man’s judgment, be able to remedy; on the contrary, they would much augment, thefe fatal illu- fions: That facred writ itfelf was involved in fo much obfcurity, was expofed to {fo many difficulties, contained fo many appearing contradictions, that it was the moft dangerous weapon which could be intrufted into the hands of the ignorant Dd and Chap. ¥. ee 1§ 30 Diferace of Q. Anne. 202 HISTORY or ENGLAND. and giddy multitude: That the poetical fpirit, in which a great part of it was compofed, at the fame time that it occafioned uncertainty in the fenfe, by its mulkti- plied tropes and figures, was fufficient to kindle the zeal of fanaticifm, and there- by throw civil fociety into the moft furious combuftion: That a thoufand fects muft arife, which would pretend, each of them, to derive its tenets from the {cripture ; and would be able, by fpecious arguments, or even without fpecious arguments, to feduce filly women, and ignorant mechanics, into a belief of the moft monftrous principles: And that if ever this diforder, dangerous to the magiftrate himfelf, received a remedy, it muft be from the tacit acquiefcence of the people in fome new authority ; and it was evidently better, without farther conteft or enquiry, to adhere peaceably to ancient, and therefore the more fecure eftablifhments. Turse latter arguments being more agreeable to ecclefiaftical government, would probably have prevailed in the convocation, had it not been for the autho- rity of Cranmer, Latimer, and fome other bifhops, who were fuppofed_ to fpeak the King’s fenfe of the matter. A vote was pafied for publifhing a new tranfla- tion of the fcriptures; and in three years time this great work was finifhed, and printed at Paris. This was deemed a great point gained by the reformers; and a confiderable advancement of their caufe. Farther progrefs was foon expected, after fuch important fucceffes. Burt while the retainers to the new religion were triumphing in their profpe- rity, they met with a mortification, which feemed to blaft all their hopes: Their patronefs, Anne Boleyn, loft the King’s favour, and foon after her life, from the rage of that furious monarch. Henry had perfevered conftantly in his love to this lady, during fix years that his profecution of the divorce lafted ; and the miore obftacles he met with to the gratification of his paffion, the more deter- mined zeal did he exert in purfuing his purpofe. But the affection which had fubfifted fo long under difficulties, had no fooner attained fecure pofleffion of its object, than it languifhed from fatiety ; and the King’s heart was apparently ali- enated from his confort, Anne’s enemies foon perceived this fatal change; and they were very forward to widen the breach, when they found that they incurred no danger by interpofing in thofe delicate concerns. She had brought forth a dead fon; and Henry’s extreme fondnefs for male iffue being thus, for the pre- fent, difappointed, his temper, equally violent and fuperftitious, was dif- pofed to make the innocent mother anfwerable for this misfortune *. But the chief means which Anne’s enemies employed to enflame the King againft her, was his jealouly. 4. ANNE, * Burnet, vol. I. p. 19%. ive WN RY VITI. 202 2 Anne, tho’ fhe appears to have been entirely innocent, and even virtuous, in her conduct, had a certain gaiety, if not levity, of character, which threw her off her guard, and made her lefs circumfpeét than her fituation required. Her education in France rendered her the more prone tothefe freedoms ; and it was with difficulty fhe conformed herfelf to that ftriét ceremonial which was_ practifed in the court of England. More vain than haughty, fhe was pleafed to fee the in- fluence of her beauty on all around her, and fhe indulged herfelf in an eafy fa- miliarity with perfons, who were formerly her equals, and who might then have pretended to her friendfhip and good graces. Henry’s dignity was offended with thefe popular manners ; and tho’ the lover had been entirely blind, the hufband poffeffed but too quick difcernment and penetration. Wicked inftruments interpo- fed, and put a malignant interpretation on the harmlefs liberties of the Queen : The vifcountefs of Rocheford, in particular, who was married to the Queen’s brother, but who lived on bad terms with her fifter-in-law, infinuated the moft cruel fuf- picions into the King’s mind; and as fhe was a woman of a very profligate cha- racter, fhe paid no regard either to truth or humanity in thofe calumnies which fhe fuggefted. She pretended, that her own hufband was engaged in a criminal correfpondence with his filter; and not contented with this imputation, fhe poi- foned every action of the Queen, and reprefented each inftance of favour which fhe conferred on any one, as atoken of affection. Henry Norris, groom of the ftole, Wefton, and Brereton, gentlemen of the King’s chamber, together with Mark Smeton, groom of the chamber, were obferved to poffefs much of the Queen’s friendfhip; and they ferved her with a zeal and attachment which, tho’ chiefly derived from gratitude, might not improbably be feafoned with fome mixture of tendernefs for fo amiable a princefs. The King’s jealoufy laid hold of the flight- eft circumftance; and finding no particular objet on which it could faflen, it vented itfelf equally on every one who came within the verge of its fury. Hap Henry’s jealoufy been derived from love, tho’ it might on a fudden have proceeded to the moft violent extremities, it would have been fubje& to many re- morfes and contrarieties ; and might at laft have ferved only to augment that af- fe&tion, on which it was founded. But it was a more ftern jealoufy, foftered en- tirely by pride: His love was wholly transferred to another objeét. Jane Sey- mour, daughter of Sir John Seymour, and maid of honour to the Queen, a young lady of fingular beauty and merit, had obtained an entire afcendant over him; and he was determined to facrifice every thing to the gratification of this new appetite. Unlike to moft monarchs, who judge lightly of the crime of gal- lantry, and who deem the young damfels of their court rather honoured than dif- graced by their paffion, ie never thought of any other attachment than that of mar- Dd 2 rage ; rft May. 7 nn 204. HISTORYorENGLAND. riage ; and in order to attain this end, he underwent more difficulties and com- mitted greater crimes than tholfe which he fought to avoid by forming that legal connexion. And having thus entertained the defign of raifing his new miftrefs to his bed and throne, he more willingly hearkened to every fuggeftion, which threw any imputation of guilt on the unfortunate Anne Boleyn. Tur King’s jealoufy firft appeared openly ina tilting at Greenwich, where the Queen happened_to drop her handkerchief; an incident probably ca- {ual, but interpreted by him as an inftance of gallantry to fome of her para- mours *. He immediately retired from the place; fent orders to confine her to her chamber; arrefted Norris, Brereton, Wefton, and Smeton, together with her brother, Rocheford; and threw them into prifon. The Queen, aftonifhed at thefe inftances’of his fury, thought that he meant only to try her; but finding him in earneft, fhe refleted on his obftinate unrelenting fpirit, and fhe prepared herfelf for that melancholy doom, which was awaiting her. Next day, the was fent to the Tower; and on her way thither, fhe was informed of her fuppofed offences, of which the had been hitherto ignorant: She made earneft proteftations of her innocence; and when fhe entered the prifon, fhe fell on her knees, and prayed God fo to help her, as fhe was not guilty of the crime imputed to her. Her furprize and confufion threw her into hifterical diforders; and in that fituation, fhe. thought that the beft proof of innocence was to make an entire confeffion, and:the difcovered fome indifcretions and levities, which her fimplicity had equally be- trayed her to commit and to avow. She owned, that fhe had once rallied Norris on his delaying his marriage, and had told him, that he probably expected her, when fhe fhould be a widow: She had reproved Welton, fhe faid, for his af- . fe&ion to.a kinfwoman of hers, and his indifference towards his wife : But he told her, that fhe had miftaken the object of his affection, for it was herfelf : Upon which, fhe defied him+. She affirmed, that Smeton had never been in her chamber but twice when he played on the harpficord: But fhe acknowledged, that he had once had the boldnefs to tell her, that a look fufficed him. | The King, inftead of being fatisfied with the candour and fincerity of her confeffion, regarded thefe indifcretions only as preludes to greater and more criminal intimacies. Or all thofe multitudes, whom the beneficence of the Queen’s temper had obliged, during her profperous fortune, no one durft interpofe between her and the King’s fury ; and the perfon, whofe advancement every breath had favoured, and, every countenance had fimiled upon, was now left neglected and abandoned. Even her uncle the duke of Norfolk, preferring the connexions of party to the ties of blood, was become her moft dangerous enemy ; and all the retainers tothe Ff catholic * Burnet, vol.1 p. 198. + Strype, vol. 1. p. 281. 2 H BoN. oR, Yoo Vik 205 catholic religion hoped, that her death would terminate the King’s quarrel with Rome, and leave him again to his natural and early bent, which had inclined him to fupport the moft intimate connexions with the apoftolic fee. Cranmer alone, of all the Queen’s adherents, ftill retained his friendfhip for her; and, as far as the King’s impetuofity permitted him, he endeavoured to moderate the violent prejudices, entertained againft her. Tue Queen herfelf wrote Henry a letter from the Tower, full of the moft tender expoftulations, and of the warmeft proteftations of innocence. It contains fo much nature and even elegance, as to deferve to be tranfmitted to pofterity, without any alteration of the expreffion. It is as follows. < “<< Str, your grace’s difpleafure, and my imprifonment are things fo ftrange ‘¢ unto me, as what to write, or what to excufe, I am altogether ignorant, «© Whereas you fend unto me (willing me to confefs a truth, and fo obtain your ‘* favour) by fuch an one, whom you know to be mine antient profefled enemy, << T no fooner received this meflage by him, than I rightiy conceived your mean- ‘* ing; and, if, as you fay, confeffing a truth indeed may procure my fafety, I ‘* fhall with all willingnefs and duty perform) your command, “« Bur let not your grace ever imagine, that your poor wife will ever be ‘* brought to acknowledge a fault, where not fo much as a thought thereof pre- ‘< ceded. And to fpeak a truth, never prince had wife more loyal in all duty, «and in all true affection, than you have ever found in Anne Boleyn: With « which name and place I could willingly have contented myfelf, if God and ““ your grace’s pleafure had been fo pleafed. Neither did I at any time fo far “« forget myfelf in my exaltation or received queenfhip, but that I always looked ‘“¢ for fuch an alteration as I now find; for the ground of my preferment being ‘* on no furer foundation than your grace’s fancy, the leaft alteration I knew was “¢ fit and fufficient to draw that fancy to fome other object. You have chofen ‘* me from a low eftate to be your Queen and companion, far beyond my defert ‘* or defire. If then you found me worthy of fuch honour, good your grace ‘¢ let not any light fancy, or bad counfel of mine enemies, withdraw your ‘Soprincely favour from me; neither let that ftain, that unworthy ftain, of a *¢ difloyal heart towards your good grace, ever caft fo foul a blot on your moft dutiful wife, and the infant-princefs your daughter. Try me, good King, and judges; yea let me receive an open trial, for my truth fhall fear no open fhame; then fhall you fee either mine innocence cleared, your fufpicion: and 2 ** confcience but let me have a lawful trial, and let not my {worn enemies fit as. my accufers Her trial. 206 WIS TORY bre CH ADD. ‘¢ confcience fatishied, the ignominy and flander of the world ftopped, or my *¢ ouilt openly declared. So that whatfoever God or you may determine of me, your grace may be freed from an open cenfure, and mine offence being fo law- «¢ fully proved, your grace is at liberty, both before God and man, not only. to ‘6 execute worthy punifhment on me as an unlawful wife, but to follow your af- « feétion, already fettled on that party, for whofe fake Iam now as lam, whofe << name I could fome good while fince have pointed unto, your grace not being ‘¢ jonorant of my fufpicion therein. «© Bur if you have already determined of me, and that not only my << death, but an infamous flander muft bring you the enjoying of your defired ‘‘ happinefs; then I defire of God, that he will pardon your great fin there- ‘< in, and likewife mine enemies, the inftruments thereof, and. that he «¢ will not call you to a ftrict account for your unprincely and cruel ufage of <¢ me, at his general judgment-feat, where both you and myfelf mutt fhortly ap. ‘© pear, and. in whofe judgment. I doubt not (whatfoever the world may think ‘¢ of me) mine innocence fhall be openly known, and fufficiently cleared. <¢ My laft and only requeft fhall be, that myfelf may only bear the burden << of your grace’s difpleafure, and that it may not touch the innocent fouls of ¢* thofe poor gentlemen, who (as I underftand) are likewife in ftrait imprifon= << ment for my fake. If ever I have found favour in your fight, if ever) the << name of Anne Boleyn hath been pleafing in your ears, then .let me obtain this ‘¢ requeft, and I will fo leave to trouble your grace any further, with mine earn- K| 4 Wit } b md iat q Hs Be ninih ; ; ; ¢ i PD; alae . SME ? ah wg ‘ yy ihal ai eine } ij ist | . Il) wie | iL { 1 = ae et i! iy BE 4 anit ‘ T arg " qj “ | i ‘ He a * i Hi | 7 Hay! } ig ; i ‘ i a ‘ mG te Rai 4 que f | /w08 4 i} iW 7 ili - Wy, i f alia LE i] ' } Nea) Wy , i ! a ait {i els 3 it ; ah) H Mi hy t) | } } 4) 4 | R i ‘| , } 1 | i _ ah ai ‘ 4 wi ; MEL P at j ‘ i Mane - He) Wi if ae : EA A 3 - 7 M \ ' ; ea ee NM | | . : \ , ih, i ‘ ) - a _ ‘ \ i ‘) 4 4 hd au : f q i itt , i « ae rit f aR | ay 4) ' | I \ » WY ~ he Wil r } i ; ah) ' iy ] \ , Hills : - q Hit | MWe CM eg tT Ta 4 | ‘| f aa ; hed 6 avH ; TR Ba alle ° ea ya \ ae ‘i ee ER TUE | eat iy o yy) HN Hii . Wihety Ut San aia Lill ety 5) { Bt HLa Wid =" 2 iki t ++ + ; - } 4 { 1 } Tee Vi 4 it} i” 0 i wil : ae ti ( Wit un : j ) we AYE - ti Wh Bt ‘ I < rad f - ahh oe i . " z att oan || } ‘ Sey x. f | . » a | E ‘ aie ae” Py ) te € ¥ i v ‘ rT } IS 15% FRO ET i ' + Wi i) af J a on eee Vena) Wel ae roe aR bea - ; Fi i EE a no trtaeeutitlcns detente we nie : ——-- : - = = ~ - ee = ve = Be . ¥ . x 210 HISTORY or ENGLAND. leyn was ratified; that Queen, and all her accomplices, were attainted ; the iffue of both the two former marriages were declared illegitimate, and it was even made treafon to affert the legitimacy of either of them; to throw any flander upon the prefent King, Queen, or their iffue, was fubjected to the fame penalty the crown was fettled on the King’s iflue by Jane Seymour, .or any fubfequent wife; and in cafe he fhould die without children, he was impowered by his will, or letters pa« tent, to difpofe of the crown: An enormous conceffion 7, efpecially when en- trufted to a prince fo violent and capricious in his humour. Whoever being re- quired, refufed to anfwer upon oath to any article of this act of fettlement, was. declared to be guilty of treafon; and by this claufe a fpecies of political inquili- tion was eftablifhed in the kingdom, as well as the accufations of treafon multi- plied to an unreafonable degree. The King was alfo empowered to confer on any one, by his will, or letters patent, any caftles, honours, liberties, or franchifes 5 words which might have been extended to the difmembring the kingdom, by the erection of principalities and independant jurifdictions, It was alfo, by another aét, made treafon to marry, without the King’s confent, any princefs related in the firft degree to the crown. This act was occafioned by the difcovery of a de- fign, formed by Thomas Howard, brother to the duke of Norfolk, to efpoufe the lady Margaret Douglas, niece to the King by his fifter the Queen of Scots and the earl of Angus. Howard, as well as the young lady, was committed to the Tower. She recovered her liberty foon after; but he died in that confine- ment. An aét of attainder paffed againft him this feffion of parliament. A wew acceffion was likewife gained to the authority of the crown: The King or any of his fucceflors was empowered to repeal or annul, by letters patent, whatever aéts of parliament had been paffed before he was four and twenty years of age. Whoever maintained the authority of the bifhopof Rome, by word or writ, or endeavoured in any manner to reftore itin England, was fubjected to the penalty of a premunire; that is, his goods were forfeited, and he was put out of the protection of the laws. And any perfon who poffeffed any office, eccle- fiattical or civil, or received any grant or charter from the crown; and yet re- fufed to renounce the pope by oath, was declared to be guilty of treafon, The re- nounciation prefcribed runs in the ftyle of Se help me God, all faints, and the boly vangelifist. The pope, hearing of Anne Boleyn’s difgrace and death, hoped that the door was opened to a reconciliation, and had been making fome ad- vances + The King 1s thought to have had a defion of leaving the crown, in cafe of the failure of his law- ful male iffue, to his favourite fon, the duke of Richmond. But the death of that promifing noble- man, which happened foon after, difappointed all projects in his favour, Heylin, p. 6. + 28 Hen. NV iihs-¢. 1. Bie N*R ¥ VIII. 217 vances to Henry: But this was the reception he met with, Henry was now Chap: V, become abfolutely indifferent with regard to papal cenfures; and finding a ‘99 great increafe of authority, as. well as revenue, to accrue from his quarrel with Rome, he was determined to perfevere in his prefent meafures. This Parliament alfo, even more than any foregoing, convinced him how much he commanded the refpect of his fubjects, and what confidence he might repofe in them, Tho’ the elections had been made of a fudden, without any preparation or in- trigue, the members difcovered an unlimited attachment to his perfon and go- vernment f. | Tue extreme complaifance of the convocation, which fat at the fame time A cohvoca- with the Parliament, encouraged him in his refolution of breaking entirely with the court of Rome. There was.adivifion of fentiments in the minds of this aflembly ; and as the zeal of the reformers had been augmented by f me late fuccefies, the refentment of the catholics was no lefs excited by their fears and lofles: But the authority of the King kept every thing fubmiffive and filent; and the new affumed prerogative, the fupremacy, whofe limits no one was fully acquainted with, reftrained even the moft furious movements of theological ran- cour: Cromiwel fat as vicar-general ; and tho’ the catholic party expected, that, on the fall of Queen Anne, his authority would receive a great check, they were furprized to find him ftill maintain equal credit as before. Withthe vicar-general concurred Cranmer the primate, Latimer bifhop of Worcefter, Shaxton of Sa- lifbury, Hilfey of Rochefter, Fox of Hereford, Barlow of St. David’s. The : Oppofite party were led by Lee archbifhop of York, Stokefley bifhop of Lon- don, Tonftal of Durham, Gardiner of Winchefter, Longland of Lincoln, Sher- borne of Chichefter, Nix of Norwich, and Kite of Carlifle. The former party, by their oppofition to the pope, feconded the King’s ambition and love of power: The latter party, by maintaining the ancient theological tenets, were more con- formable to his fpeculative principles: And both of them had alternately the ad- vantage of gaining on his humour, by which he was more governed than by ei- ther of thefe motives. Tue church in general was averfe to the reformation; and the lower houfe framed a lift of opinions, in the whole fixty feven, which they pronounced er- roneous, and which was a collection of principles, fome held by the ancient Lol- lards, others by the modern proteftants, or Gofpellers, as they were fometimes called. This catalogue they fent to the upper houfe to be cenfured ; but in the preamble of their reprefentation, they difcovered the fervile fpirit by which they were governedy ‘They faid, ** that they intended not to do or fpeak any thing me *¢ which } Burnet, vol. I. p. 212. Soe a Chap. V. 1530. 212 HISTORY or ENGLAND, « which might be unpleafant to the King, whom they acknowledge their fu- “ preme head, and whofe commands they were refolved to obey ; renouncing. “‘ the pope’s ufurped authority, with all his laws and inventions, now eXtin- “< ouifhed and abolifhed ; and addicting themfelves to Almighty God and his laws, se 699 “ and unto the King and the laws made within this kingdom *. Tue convocation came at laft, after fome debate, to decide articles of reli- sion; and their tenets were of as compounded a nature as the affembly itfelf, or rather as the King’s fyftem: of theology, by which they were refolved entirely to fquare their principles. They determined the ftandard of faith to confift in the fcriptures and the three creeds, the Apoftolic, the Nicene, and the Athanafian ; and this article was a fignal victory to the reformers : Auricular confeffion and pennance were admitted, a doctrine agreeable to the catholics: No mention was made of marriage, extreme un@tion, confirmation, or holy orders, as facraments ; and +n this omiffion the influence of the proteftants appeared, The real prefence was afierted, conformable to the ancient doétrine: The terms of acceptance were efta- blithed to be the merits of Chrift, and the mercy and good pleafure of God, fuitable to the new principles. So far the two feats feem to have made a fair partition, by fharing alternately the feveral claufes. In framing the fubfequent articles, each of them feems to have thrown in their ingredient. The catholics prevailed in afferting, that the ufe of images was warranted by fcripture; the proteftants, in warning the peo- ple againft idolatry, and the abufe of thefe fenfible reprefentations. The ancient faith was adopted in maintaining the expediency of praying to faints ; the late in- novations in rejecting the peculiar patronage of faints to any trade, profeffion, or courfe of action. The former rites of worfhip, the ufe-of holy water, the ceremonies practifed on Afh-wednefday, Palm-funday, and Good-friday, &c. were ftill maintained; but the new refinements were alfo adopted, which made light of thefe inftitutions, by the convocation’s denying that they had any imme- diate power of remitting fin, and by its afferting that their fole merit confifted in promoting pious and devout difpofitions in the mind. Bur the article with regard to purgatory, Contains the moft curious jargon, ambiguity, and hefitation, arifing from the mixture of oppofite tenets. It was to this purpofe: ‘* Since according to due order of charity, and the book of “© Maceabées, and divers ancient authors, it is a very good and charitable deed ‘ to pray for fouls departed ; and fince fuch a praétice has- been maintained. in « the church from the beginning ; all bifhops and teachers fhould inftruét the “© people not to be grieved for the continuance of the fame. But-fince the place <¢ where w~ * Collier, vol. If. p. 119. HE NR ¥ ° VHL 213 «¢ where departed fouls are retained, before they reach Paradife, as well as the na- « ture of their pains, is left uncertain by feripture; all fuch queftions are to be ‘«¢ fybmitted to God, to whofe mercy it is meet and convenient to commend the « deceafed, trufting that he accepteth our prayers for them.” * Tues articles, when framed by the convocation, and corrected by the King, were fubfcribed by every member of that aflembly ; while, perhaps, neither there nor throughout the whole kingdom, could one man be found, except the King himfelf, who had adopted precifely thefe very doétrines and opinions. For tho’ there be not any contradiction in the tenets here advanced, it had happened in England, as in all other ftates where factious divifions have place; a certain afs creed was embraced by each party; few neutrals were to be found; and thefeé confifted only of fpeculative or whimfical people, of whom two perfons could fcarce be brought to an agreement in the fame dogmas. The proteftants, all of them, carried their oppofition to Rome farther than thefe articles : None of the catholics went fo far: And the King, by being able to retain the nation in fuch a delicate medium, difplayed the utmoft power of an imperious defpotifm, of which any hiftory furnifhes:an example. To change the religion of a country, even when feconded by a party, is one of the moft perilous enterprizes, which any fovereign can attempt, and ofien proves the moft deftructive to royal authority. But Henry was able to fet that furious machine in movement, and yet regulate and even ftop its career: He could fay to it, thus far fhalt thou go and no farther: And he made every vote of his parliament and convocation fubfervient, not only to his interefts and paffions, but even to his fmalleft caprices; nay, to his moft refined and moft fcholaftic fubtilties. Tuer concurrence of thefe two national affémblies ferved, no doubt, to increafe the King’s power among the people, and raifed him to an authority more ablo- lute, than any prince, in a fimple monarchy, even by means of military force, is ever able to attain. But there are certain bounds, beyond which the moft flavith fabmiffion cannot be extended. All the late innovations, particularly the diflo- lution of the fmaller monatteries,. and the imminent danger, to which alh the: reft fs e 3 > Seoryt a a 1; 7 2 fo a La - were expofed+, had bred difcontent in the people, and difpoted them to a A * Collier, vol. ii. p.122,.& feq. Fuller. Burnet, vol. i. p. 215. eS aoe ref + Avpropofal had formerly been, made in the convocation for the abolition of the leffer monallemes > and had been much oppofed by bifhop Fifer, who was then alive. He told his brethren, that this yas fairly fhowing the King the way, how he might come at the greater monafterics. “ An ax, which ‘< wanted a handle, came upon a time into the wood, making his moan to the great trees, that he «* wanted a handle to work withal, and for that caufe he was conftrained to fit idle ; therefore he made ‘* it his requeft to them, that they would be pleafed to grant him one of their fmall faplings a the : , - ‘ aul a 7 if .? i ¥ ¢ ‘ - ip n ' We nha) } i ‘ \ + hae ij nf a ; } ' 3 Sa a an iMG uk iM WEP | ‘ f ie gbu | 5 H Pe Ay D ‘ "a 4 ‘ ' en i jie i ? id yey i a9 , 2.37 a) tae mile tis - i eau ; My a ae Bek: Hilal eae u lag . PRia tu L} ' | i iva - 4 { Wy i | Pil P ' ; if yt Pe | if})) elit Urey ibe if el eae ee )] ; ty Aye H . ; ‘s \ VW H ‘ Vy ' on 5 .; ‘ ” a if 4 s, | ue ita 1 haa i, ty ) Leaa gh che 77 i 1 F 1h | “ Sa ote ——_ a = = aes.» . ‘ et : t ard, HIStTORY or ENGLAND. Chap. V. The expelled monks, wandering about the country, excited both men’s piety and ss compafiion ; and as the antient religion held the populace by powerful motives, fuited to their capacity, it was able, now. that it was brought in apparent hazard, Difcontents tg excite the ftrongeft zeal in its favour +. Difcontents had even reached fome See. "of the nobility and gentry, whofe anceftors had founded tie monafteries, and : who placed a vanity in thofe inftitutions, as well as reaped fome benefit from them, by the provifions, which they afforded them for ther younger children, The more fuperftitious were interefted in the fate of their forefathers fouls, which,. they believed, muft now lye, during many ages, in the torments of purgatory, for want of maffes to relieve them. It feemed unjuft to abolith pious inftitutions for the faults, real or pretended, of individuals. Even the mof: moderate and rea- fonable thought it fomewhat iniquitous, that men, who hac been invited into a courfe of life by all the laws, human and divine, which prevailed. in their coun- try, fhould be turned out of their poffeffions, and fo little care be taken of their future fubfiftance. And when it was obferved, that the rapacity and bribery of the commiffioners and others employed in vifiting the morafteries, intercepted much of the profits refulting from. thefe confifcations, it tend:d much to, encreafe the general difcontent f. —— e i * B. ie —- " 2 = ——S—_-_= - SS a Leer —=— Sra — SST -_— = —— --- 2 — = = —= = == ———— ’ S55 Bur the people did not break out into open fedition, till the complaints of the fecular clergy concured with thofe of the regular. As Cromwel’s perfon was very little acceptable to. the ecclefiaftics; the authority, whica he exercifed, be ing fo new, fo abfolute, fo unlimited, infpired them with great difguft and terror. He publifhed, in the King’s name, without. the canfent either of par- liament or-convocation, an ordonance, by which he retrencied a great many of the antient holydays; prohibited feveral fuperftitions, gainful to the clergy, fuch as pilorimages, images, relicéts; and even ordered, the incumbents in the pa- rifhes to fet apart a confiderable portion of their revenues for repairs and for the fupport of exhibitioners and the poor of their parith. The fecular priefts, find- ing themfelves thus reduced to a grievous flavery, inftilled, nto, the people thofe difcontents, which they had long harboured in their own bdfoms. ear THE ) i ll hi ‘ < 2 | & ii ™~ hil ~~ - } ™~ + Bh “ ‘ >)? 1 = A ‘ Vi x oe ttt “ "J it he ah = i} ; Se ee Es _/ : at. a = bw ‘a = a 1 ia See thin i ¥ Hi | tal! . teal “ i Ba? apt ce Sail Sam \ 44 ; oe iit!) ‘# ; i nf t C HG ek ss ia : vv . ‘ +d j u \ (j i | Bt ! { ‘ 1 gin AN , t ral nage erane << thewwood to make him a handle; who, miftrufting no guile, granted himone of their {maller trees < to make himahandle. But now becoming a compleat ax, he fell fo to woxk, within the fame wood, “ that, in procefs of time, there was neither great nor fmall trees to be fourd in the place, where the’ «« wood ftood. And fo, my lords, if you grant the King thefe {maller momifteries, you do but make «¢ him a handle, whereby, at his own pleafure, he may cut down all the cedars within your Lebanons.” Dr. Bailies’ Life of Bifhop Fifher, p. 108. ¢ Strype, vol. 1. p. 249. t Burnet, vol. 1. p. 223. 4 vs ——-— HMcRUN RY < vite 218 ye Tae firft rifing was in Lincolnfhire. It was headed by Dr. Mackrel, prior Chap. ¥. of Barlings, who was difguifed like a mean mechanic, and who bore the name : of captain Cobler. This tumultuous army amounted to above 20,000 men || ; but notwithftanding their number, they fhowed little difpofition of proceeding to extremities againft the King, and feemed ftill over-awed by his authority. They acknowleged him to be fupreme head of the church of England; but they complained of his fupprefling the monafteries, of evil counfellors, of men cf mean birth entrufted by him, of the danger to which the jewels and plate of their parochial churches were expofed: And they prayed him ta confult the nobility of the realm concerning the redrefs of thefe grievances§. The King was little difpofed to entertain apprehenfions of danger, efpecially from a low multitude, whom he defpifed. He fent forces againit the infurgents under the éth of O@o- command of the Duke of Suffolk ; and he returned them a very fharp anfwer to ber: their petition. There were fome gentry, whom the populace had forced to take party with them, and who kept a fecret correfpondence with Suffolk. They in- formed him, that refentment againft the Kine’s reply was the chief caufe, which retained the malecontents in arms, and that a milder anfwer would probably dif- fipate the rebellion: Henry had levied a great force at London, with which he Was preparing to march againft the rebels; and being fo well fortified with power, he thought, that, without lofing his dignity, he might now fhow them fome greater, condefcenfion. He fent a new proclamation, requiring them to re- turn to their obedience, with fecret affurances of pardon. This expedient had its effect : The populace were diffipated : Mackrel and fome of their leaders fell into the King’s hands, and were executed: The greater part of the multitude retired peaceably to their ufual occupations : A few of the more obftinate fled into the North, where they joined the infurreétion, that was raifed in thofe parts. Tre. “oO Tu fiirrestsc ANLUTTections Tue northern infurgents, as they were more numerous, were alfo more formidable than thofe of Lincolnthire, becaufe the people were more accuf- tomed to arms, and becaufe of the near neighbourhood to Scotland, which might make advantage of thefe diforders. One Afke, a gentleman, had taken the command of them, and he poffeffed the art of governing the populace. Their enterprize they called the Pilgrimage of Grace: Some priefts- marched before in the habits of their order, carrying croffes in their hands: In their banners was inWove a crucifix, with the reprefentation of a chalice, and of the five wounds of Chrift*: They wore on their fleeve an emblem of the five wounds, with the name of }efus Wrought in the midft: They all took an oath, that they had? |} Burnet, vol. i. p.227. Herbert, § Herbert, p. 410, *: Fox,:vol, u. p. 992. Nay ee ee eee fi!) { if vie Ee AT t Wve MW aes th i 4 \ ’ - Hf “at + nin } ‘? 4 <3 nih we . } AL batt — ai) ie aif ~ alt ~ Ste 4 4 + »! ’ | Or ei itited a a me Sry a ot < ‘ah ty ah 5 i : f Hi ~. ‘ae 2 5 oe . a ore te » « a iy 6 Pe ¥ v6 HISTORY or ENGLAND. had entered into the pilgrimage of grace from no other motive, than theit love to God, 'their.care of the King’s perfon and iffue, their defire of purifying the nobility, of driving bafe-born perfons from about the King, of refloring the church, and of fupprefiing herefy. Allured by thefe fair pretences, about 40,000 men from the counties of York, Durham, Lancafter, and thofe northern pro- vinces, flocked to their ftandard ; and their zeal, no lefgs than their numbers, in- fpired the court with apprehenfions. Tue Earl of Shrewfbury, moved by his zeal for the. King’s fervice, raifed forces, tho’ at firft without any commiffion, in order to oppofe the rebels, The Earl of Cumberland repulfed them from his caftle of Skipton: Sir Ralph Evers defended Scarborow-caftle againft them +: Courtney, marquefs of Exeter, the King’s coufin-german, obeyed orders from court, and levied troops, The earls of Huntingdon, Derby, and Rutland, imitated his example. The rebels, how- ever, prevailed in taking both Hull and York: They laid fiege to Pomfret caftle, ‘nto which the archbifhop of York and lord Darcy had thrown themfelves. It was foon furrendered to them ; and the prelate and nobleman, who fecretly fa- vouted the caufe, feemed to yield to the force imypofed on them, and joined the rebels. . Tue duke of Norfolk was named general in chief of the King’s forces againft - the northern infurgents ; and as he headed the party, which fupported the antient religion, he was alfo fufpected of bearing fome favour to the caufe, which he was fent to oppofe. His prudent condué, however, feems to acquit him of this im- putation. He encamped at Doncafter, together with the earl of Shrewfbury ; and as his army was fmall, fcarce exceeding five thoufand men, he mace choice of a pott, where he had the river in front, the ford of which he propofed to defend againft the rebels. ‘They had intended to attack him in the morning; but dut- ing the night, there fell fach violent rains as rendered the river u:terly impalli- ble; and Norfolk very wifely laid hold of the opportunity to enter into treaty with them. In order to open the door for negotiation, he fent them a herald; whom Afke, their leader, received with great ceremony ; he him/elf fitting in 4 chair of ftate, with the archbifhop of York on one hand, and lord Darcy on the other. It was agreed that two gentlemen fhould be difpatched to the King with propofals from the infurgents ; and Henry protracted giving an anf{wer, and allured them with hopes of entire fatisfaction, in expectation that neceflity would foon oblige them to difperfe themfelves. Being informed, that his artifice had in 4 creat meafure fucceeded, he required them inftantly to lay down their arms and fubmit to mercy; promifing a pardon to all except Gx whom te named, and four 4+ Stowe, p. 574«. Baker,p. 253. H EON RY © VII. 217 four whom he referved to himfelf the power of naming. But tho’ the preateft Crap. V, part of the rebels had gone home for want of fubfiftance, they had entered into 153° the moft flemn engagements to return to their ftandards, in cafe the King’s an- fwer fhould not prove fatisfactory. Norfolk, therefore, foon found himfelf in the fame difficulty as before; and he opened again a negotiation with the leaders of the multitude. He engaged them. to fend three hundred perfons to Doncafter, with propofais for an-accommodation; and he hoped to be able, by intrigue and feparate interefts, to throw diffenfion among fo great a number. Afke himflf had propoled to be one of the deputies, and he required a hoftage for bis fecu- rity: Butthe King, when confulted, replied, that he knew no centleman or other, whom he efteemed fo little as to put him in pledge for fuch a villain. The demands of the infurgents were fo exorbitant, that Norfolk rejected them ; and they prepared again to decide the conteft by force of arms. They were as formidable as ever both by their numbers and {fpirit ; and notwithftanding a {mall river, which lay between them and the royal army, Norfolk had great rea- fon to dread the effects of their fury. But while they were preparing to pafs the ford, rain fell a fecond time in fuch abundance, as made it impracticable for them to execute their defign ; and the populace, partly reduced to neceflity by the want of provifions, partly {truck with fuperftition at being thus again difappointed by the fame accident, fuddenly difperfed themfelves. Theduke of Norfolk, who had received powers for that end, forwarded the difperfion, by the promife of a general amaefty ; and the King ratified this a&t of clemency. He publifhed, how- 9th of De- ever, a manifefto againft the rebels; and an- anfwer to their complaints; where %™>¢- he employed a very lofty ftyle, fuited to fo haughty a monarch. He told them, that they oaght no more to pretend giving a judgment with regard to govern- ment, than a blind man with regard to colours: ** And we,” headded, ‘* with ** our whoe council think it right ftrange, that ye, who be but brutes and jn- ** expert folk, do take upon you to appoint us, who be meet or not for our “* council.” As this pacification was not likely to be of long continuance, Norfolk was or- dered to kezp his army together, and to go into the northern parts, in ordet to ex- act a general fubmiffion. Lord Darcy as well as Afke were fent for to court : and the fo-mer, upon his refufal or delay to appear, was thrown into prifon. Every place was full of jealoufy and complaints. A new infurreétion broke out, headed by Muferave and Tilby ; and the rebels befieged Carlifle with 8000 men. Being repulfed by that town, they were encountered in their retreat by Norfolk, who put tkem to flight ; ard having made prifoners of all their officers, except F f Muf{erave, 1537. 219 HISTORY oF ENGLAND. , oc Muferave, who efcaped, he inftantly put them to death by martial law, to the number of feverity perfons. An attempt made by Sir Francis Bigot and Halam x ? v to furprize Hull, fuppreffed by the vigilance of Norfolk. The King, enraged. by thefe multiplied revolts, was determined not to adhere to the general pardon, which he had granted; ' and from a movement of his ufual violence, he made the innocent fuffer for the guilty. Norfolk, by command from his matter, fpread the royal banner, and, wherever he thought proper, executed martial law in the punifhment of offenders. Befides Afke, leader of the Grft infurrection, Sir Robert Conftable, Sir John Bulmer, Sir Thomas Piercy, Sir Stephen Hamilton, Nicholas Tempett, William Lumley, and many others, were thrown into prifon ; and moft of them were condemned and executed. Lord Hufity was found guilty as an accomplice in the infurrection of Lincolnfhire, and was executed at Lincoln. Lord Darcy, tho” he pleaded compultion, and appealed to a long life, pafied in the fervice of the crown, was beheaded on Tower-hill. Before his execution, he accufed Nor- folk of having, fecretly encouraged the rebels; but Henry, either fenfible of that nobleman’s great fervices and convinced of his fidelity, or afraid to offend one of fuch extenfive power and great capacity, rejected the information. Being now fatiated with punifhing the rebels, he publifhed anew a general pardon, to which he faithfully adhered *; and he ereéted by patent a court of juftice at York, for deciding lawfuits to the northern counties: A demand which had been made by . the infurgents. 12 Oéober. — SOON after this profperous fuccefs againft the rebels, an event happened, which: -ataned inc’ crowned Henry’s joy, the birth of a fon, who was baptifed under the name of Ed- death of Q. ward. Yet wasnot this happinefs compleat : The Queen died twelve days after T. eng But a fon had fo long been ardently longed for by Henry, and was now become fo neceflary, in order to prevent difputes with regard to the fucceffion, after the facceffive illegitimation of the two Princefes, that the King’s affliction was drown- ed in his joy, and he exprefled great fatisfaction on this occafion. The Prince, not fix days old, was created Prince of Wales, Duke of Cornwal, and Earl of Chefter. Sir Edward Seymour, the Queen’s brother, formerly made Lord Beau- champ, was raifed to the dignity of Farl of Hertford. Sir William Fitz Williams, high admiral, was created Earl of Southampton ; Sir William Paulet, Lord St. John ; Sir John Ruffel, Lord Ruffel. Tue fuppreffion of the rebels and the birth of a fon, as they confirmed Henry’s authority at home, encreafed his confideration among foreign princes, and made his 9 hs 4 * Herbert, p. 428: + Strype, vol. ii. p- 5+ met with no better fuccefs ; and feveral other rifings were Hi B oN: R. Vit VEEL 219 his alliance be courted by all parties. He maintained, however, a neutrality in Chap. V. the wars, which were carried on, with various fuccefs, and without any decifive 15 9% event, between Charles and Francis; and tho’ inclined more to favour the fatter, he was determined not to incur, without necefflity, either hazard or expence in his behalf. .A truce, concluded about this time, between thefe potentates, and which was afterwards prolonged for ten years, freed him from all anxiety on ac- count of his ally, and re-eftablifhed the tranquillity of Europe. Henry was very defirous of cementing an union with the German proteftants 5. and for that purpofe, he fent Chriftopher Mount to a congrefs which they held at Brunfwick ; but that minifter made no great progrefs in his negotiations. ‘The princes defired to know, what were the articles in their confeflion which Henry difliked; and they fent new ambafladors to him, who had orders both te negotiate and to difpute, They endeavoured to convince the King, that he was guilty of a miftake, in adminiftering the eucharift in one kind only, in al- lowing of private maffes, and in requiring the celibacy of the clergy*. Henry would by no means.acknowlege any error in thefe particulars; and was offended that they fhould pretend.to prefcribe rules to fo great a monarch and theologian, He found arguments and fyllogifms enough to defend his caufe; and he difmiffed the ambaffadors without coming to any conclufion. Jealous alfo left his own fubjects fhould become fuch theologians as to queftion his tenets, he ufed great precautions in publifhing that tranflation of the feripture, which was finifhed | this year. He would only allow a copy of it to be depofited in each parifh church, where it was fixed by a chain: And he took care to inform the people by proclamation, ‘* That this indulgence was not the effect of his duty, but of << his goodnefs and his liberality to them. who therefore fhould ufe it mode- “¢ rately, for the encreafe of virtue, not of ftrife: And he ordered that .no man «© fhould read the Bible aloud, fo as to difturb the prieft, while he fang. mafs, “¢ nor prefume to expound doubtful places, without advice from the learned.” In this meafure, as in the reft, he ftill halted half way between the catholics and the proteftants. | THERE was Only one particular, in which Henry was quite decifive, becaufe he was there impelled by his avarice, or more properly fpeaking, his rapacity, occafioned by profufenefs : This meafure was the entire deftruction of the mona- fteries. ‘The prefent opportunity feemed favourable for that great enterprize; Suppreiicn of while the fuppreffion of the late rebellion fortified and encreafed the royal authority; the greater and as fome of the abbots were fufpected of having encouraged the infurrection, M™#*eres- and of correfponding with the rebels, the King’s refentment was farther incited F f 2 by * Collier, vol. ii. p. 145. from the Cott. Lib. Cleopatra, E. 5. fol. 173. WI 220 HISTORY oF ENGLAND. by that tnotive. A new vifitation was appointed of all the monafteries in’ Eng- land; and’a pretence only being wanted for their fupprefiion, it was ealy for a prince, poffefied of fuch exorbitant power, and feconding the prefent humour of a great part of the nation, to find or feign one. The abbots and monks knew the danger, to which they were expofed; and having learned, by the example of the leffer monafteries, that nothing could withftand the King’s will, they were moft of them induced, in expectation of better treatment, to make a voluntary refignation of their houfes. Where promifes failed of effect, menaces and even extreme violence were employed ; and as feveral of the abbots, fince the breach with Rome, had been named by the court, with a view to this event, the King’s intentions were the more eafily effectuated. Some allio; having fe- cretly embraced the doctrine of the reformation, were glad to be freed from their vows; and on the whole, the defign was conduéted with fuch fuccefs, that, in lefs than two years, the King had got poffeffion of all the monaftic revenues. In feveral places, particularly in the county of Oxford, great intereft was made to preferve fome convents of women, who, as they lived in the moft irreproach- able manner, juftly merited, it was thought, that their houfes fhould be faved from the general deftruction*. There appeared alfo great difference between the cafe of nuns and friars; and the one inftitution might be very laudable, while the other was expofed to much blame. The males of all ranks, if endowed with induftry, might be of fervice to the public; and none of them could want em- ployment, fuited to his ftation and capacity. But a woman of family, who failed of a fettlement in the married ftate, an accident to which fuch perfons were more liable than women of lower ftation, had really no rank which fhe properly filled$. and a convent was a retreat both honourable and agreeable, from the inutility and often want, which attended her fituation. But the King was determined to abo-- lifh monafteries of every denomination; and probably thought, that thefe antient: eftablifhments would be the fooner forgot, that no remains of them, of any kind, were allowed to fubfift in the kingdom. Tue better to reconcile the people to this great innovation, ftories were pub-. tifhed of the deteftable lives of the friars in many of the convents; and great care was taken to defame thofe whom the court was determined to ruin. The relicts alfo, and fuperftitions, which-had fo long been the object of the people’s venera- tion, were expofed to their ridicule ; and the religious fpirit, now lefs bent’on ex- terior obfervances and fenfible objects, was encouraged in this new direction. It. is needlefs to be particular in fuch an enumeration: Proteftant hiftorians mention on this occafion with great triumph the facred repofitories of convents ; the par- ings * Burnet, vol. i, p. 328. FeIsBiiN Ry Yor VE. 221 mgs of St: Edmond’s toes; fome of the coals that roafted St, Laurence: the girdle of the Virgin fhown in eleven feveral. places; two or three heads of St. ‘Urtula; the felt of St. Thomas of Lancafter, an infallible cure for the headach ; part of St. Thomas of Canterbury’s fhirt;. much reverenced by big-bellied wo- men 5 fome relicts, an excellent. preventive. againft ‘rain } others, a. remedy to weeds in corn, But fuch fooleries; as they'are to be found in- all ages and na- tions of the world, and even took place during the moft refined periods of an- tiquity, form no peculiar nor violent reproach on the catholic religion, THERE were allo difcovered in the monafteries fome impoftures of a more aré tificial nature. At Hales, in the county of Gloucefter, had been fhown, during feveral ages, the blood of Chrift brought from Jerufalem ; and it is eafy to ima- gine the veneration, with which-fuch a relict was regarded. “A miraculous. cire cumttance alfo attended this miraculous reli ; the facred blood was not vifible to any one in mortal fin, even when fet before him and till: he had performed good works fufhcient for his abfolution, it would not deign. to difcover itfelf to him. At the diffolution of the monaftery, the whole contrivance was difcovered, Two of the monks, who were let into the fecret, had taken'the blood of a-duck, which they renewed every week : Fhey. put it into a phial, one fide of which confifted of thin and tranfparent: chryftal,. the other of thick and obfcure.. When any rich pilgrim arrived, they were fure to fhow him the dark fide of the phial, till mafles and offerings had expiated his. offences; and then finding his money, or patience, or faith, near exhaufted, they made him happy by turning the phial*. A mrRAcuLous crucifix had: been kept at Boxley in Kent, and bore the appella- tion of the Rood. of Grace. The lips, and eyes, and head of the image moved on the approach of its votaries. Hilfey, bifhop of Rochetter, broke the crucifix at St. Paul’s crofs, and fhewed the whole people the fprings and wheels by which it had been fecretly moved. A great wooden idol. of Wales, called Darvel Ga- therin, was alfo. brought to London, and cut in pieces: And by a cruel refine- ment of vengeance, it. was employed as. fuel to. burn fryar Foreft +, who was punithed for denying the fupremacy, and for fome pretended herefies. A. finger of St. Andrew’s, covered with:a thin plate of filver, had been pawned: by a con- vent for a debt of forty pounds; but as the King’s commiffioners refufed:to re- leafe the pawn, people made themfelves very merry with the poor creditor, on account of his fecurity. But of all the inftruments of antient fuperftition, no-one was fo zealoufly deftroyed as the fhrine of Thomas a Becket, commonly called St. Thomas of Canterbury, * Herbert, p. 431, 432. Stowe, p. 575; + Goodwin’s Annals, Stowe, p. 575. Herbert, Baker, p. 286. 222 HISTORY oF ENGLAND. Chap. V. Canterbury. ‘This faint owed his canonization to the zealous defence, which he 1538- gad made for the apoftolic fee, and on that account alfo, the monks had ex- tremely encouraged the devotion of pilgrimages towards his tomb, and number- lefs were the miracles, which, they pretended, his relicts wrought on his devout wotaries. They raifed his body once a year; and the day, on which this cere- ‘mony was performed, which was called the day of his tranflation, was a general holyday : Every fiftieth year there was celebrated a jubilee to his honour, which lafted fifteen days: Plenary indulgences were then granted to all that vifited his comb; and a hundred thoufand pilgrims have been regiftered at a time in Can- terbury. The devotion towards him had quite effaced in that town the adora- tion of the Deity; nay, even that of the Virgin. At God’s altar, for inftance, there was offered in one year three pounds two fhillings and fix-pence 5 at the Virgin’s, fixty three pounds five fhillings and fix-pence ; at St. Thomas’s, eight hundred and thirty two pounds twelve fhillings and three-pence.. But next year, the difproportion was ftill greater : There was not a penny offered at God’s altars the Virgin’s gained only four pounds one fhilling and eight-pence;. but St. Tho- mas had got for his fhare nine hundred and fifty four pounds fix fhillings and three- pence*. Lewis the feventh of France had madea pilgrimage to this miraculous tomb, and had beftowed on the fhrine a jewel, which was efteemed the richeft in Chriftendom. It is obvious, how obnoxious to Henry a faint of this character muft appear, and how much contrary to all his projects for degrading the autho- rity of the courtof Rome. He not only pillaged the rich fhrine, dedicated to St. Thomas: He made the faint himfelf be cited to appear in court, and be tried and condemned as a traitor : He ordered his name to be ftruck out of the ca- lendar; the office for his feftival to be expunged from all breviaries; and his bones to be burned, and the afhes to be diffipated. On thewhole, the King, at different times, fuppreffed fix hundred and forty five monafteries: Of which twenty eight had abbots, who enjoyed a feat in par- liament. ‘Ninety colleges were demolifhed in feveral counties; two ‘thoufand three hundred and feventy four chantries and free chappels: A hundred and ‘ten hofpitals. The whole revenue of thefe eftablithments amounted to one hun- dted and fixty one thoufand one hundred pounds‘. It is worthy of obfervation, that the whole lands and poffeffions of England had, a little before this period, been rated at three millions a year; fo that the revenues of the monafteries did not ‘really much exceed the twentieth part of the national income: A fum vaitly siferior to what'is commonly - apprehended. The lands belonging ‘to the con vents, — a - . 2 = } — Sati ~s : Lit ; SS eee —~ . : = = eK SS = . — . ‘ s = 2 ee eee ee —-< =e - — — — = SR te ——--———--- - ea a — es 0 ee SS — str Se oJ ~ = == y a _—+— = eres Pak = > = 5 eee ——- ee —— SS = = — — an — =» = a ~- -« - J < gs = ——— * : : 4 = = = ae S 2 — J = — ; - ~ + - —- —~ = . = : as : — : - — + ———— ae = ne = ~ ~ a . - - noite = - —— — i = 2 = — > eS = eee ka = es TITS = — - aS z = — = = ee ee = ee es — ee - = are het a ae SS > a I = Sa S SS ee — ———— 7 —= Te SSS eS SS SS : —— % a aernrmaey 22 Z Sei ee = Se Se = SS = s == - : a Se 5 ‘ i ean = + eee . SS ee em ole eit all : 7 Or > ; = 7 | ore, to ‘ = i. - - gee —— aes’. — So ae -— -_ - ae: =—_TJ a n : = - = — a wean oraea. wh nye Gog ane . ——_ 3 ’ ~e ~~... ———ipa- = © friend] y * ‘Collier, in his ecclefiaftical hiftory, vol. II. p. 152, has preferved an account’ which Cromwel] gave of this:conference, ina letter to Sir Thomas Wyat, the King’s embaflador in Germany. ‘* The *« King’s majelty,” fays Cromwel, ‘* for the reverence of the holy, facrament of the altar, did fit “* openly in his hall, and there prefided at the difputation, procefs and judgment of a miferable here- ** tic facramentary, who was burned the 20th of November. It was a wonder to fee how princely, “with how excellent gravity, ‘and ineftimable majefty his highnefs exercifed there the very Office of §* {upreme head of the church of England, How beniguly his grace eflayed to convert the miferable ** man: How ftrong and manifeft reafons his highnefs alledged againft him. I with the princes and «* potentates of Chriftendom to have had.a meet place to. have {een it. Undoubtedly they fhould have ‘¢ much marvelléd at his majefty’s moft high wifdom and judgment, and reputed him no other wile ‘< after thefame, than in a manner the mirror and light of all other Kings and princes in Chriftendom.” It was by fach flatteries,' that Flenry was engaged to make: his fentiments the ftandard to ‘all’ thankind ; and was determined to. enforce, by the fevereft penalties, his Prong and manifef reatons for tranfub- ftantiation, | 2 Chap. VI. 1538. feed ws Sa _ = A Parliament. 28th April. ‘Taw of the fix articles. 230 HISTORY or ENGLAND. friendly office, he cried aloud: feveral times, None but Chrift, none but Corift; and thefe words were in his mouth when he expired 7. Some few days before this execution, four Dutch anabaptifts, three men and a woman, had faggots tied to their backs: at Paul’s crofs ; and were burned in that manner. And aman and a woman of ‘the fame feé&t and country, were burned in Smithfield f. ' = laboured under any grievance, they had not the fatisfation of expecting redrefs f-om Parliament: On the contrary, they had.reafon to dread each meeting of that affembly, and were then fure of having tyranny converted into law, and ag- gravated, perhaps, with fome circumftance, which:the arbitrary prince and his minifters had not hitherto devifed, or did not think proper, of themfelves, to carry into execution. This abject fervility never more eminently appeared than, “1 a new Parliament, which the King now affembled, and which, if he had fo pleafed, might have been the laft that ever fat in England. But he found them too ufeful inftruments of dominion ever, to entertain thoughts of giving thema total exclufion. Tin chancellor opened the Parliament by informing the houfe of Lords, that it was his majefly’s earneft defire, to extirpate from his kingdom all diverfity of opinions with regard to religion ; and as this enterprize was difficult and impor- tant, he defired them to chufe a committee among themfelves, who might frame certain atticles, and communicate them afterwards tothe Parliament. The lords named the vicar-general, Cromwel, now created a peer, the archbifhops of Can- terbury and York, the bifhops of Durham, Carlifle, Worcefter, Bath and Wells, Bangor, and Ely. The houfe might have feen what a hopeful tafk they were undertaking: This fmall committee itfelf was avitated with fuch diverfity of opi- nions, that it could come to no conclufion. ‘The duke of Norfolk then moved in the houfe, that, fince there were no hopes of having a report from the com- mittee, thearticles of faith, propofed to be eftablifhed, fhould be reduced to fix; and new committees be appointed to frame an act with regard to them. As this peer was underftood to fpeak the King’s mind, his motion was immediately af- fented to; and, after a fhort prorogation, the bill of the fix articles, or the bloody bill, as the proteftants juftly termed it, was introduced, and having pafied the two houfes, had the King’s affent affixed to it. In this law, the real prefence was eftablifhed, the communion in one kind, the perpetual obligation of vows of chaftity, the utility of private maiies, the A celibacy “ + Fox’s aéts and monuments, p. 427. Burnet. { Stowe, p. 556. Ir was the unhappy fituation of the Englith, during that age, that when they HIE ON. R YY. VU. 231 celibacy of the clergy, the neceflity of auricular confeffion. The denial of the firft article, with regard to the real prefence, fubjeéted the perfon to death. by fire, and to the fame forfeiture as in cafes of treafon; and admitted not the pri- vilege of abjuring: An unheard of feverity, and unknown to the inguifition it- felf. The denial of any of the other five articles, even tho’ recanted, was pu- nifhable by the forfeiture of ‘goods and chattels; and imprifonment during the King’s pleafure : An’ obftinate adherence to’error, or a relapfe, ' was adjudged to be felony, and punifhable with death. The marriage of priefts was’ fubjeéted to the fame punifhment: Their commerce with women, for the firft offence, was forfeiture and imprifonment; for the fecond, death. Abftaining from confef- fion, and from receiving the eucharift at the accuftomed times, fubjected the perfon to fine and imprifonment, during the: King’s pleafure ;\ and if the crimi- nal perfevered after conviction, he was punifhable by death and forfeiture, as in cafes of felony *. Commiffioners were to be appointed by ‘the King, for en- quiring into thefe herefies and irregular practices, and the criminals were to be tried by a jury. Tue King, in framing this law, laid his oppreffive hand on both parties ; and even the catholics had reafon to complain, that the friars and nuns, tho’ dif. mified their convent, fhould be capricioufly reftrained to the practice of celibacy + : But as the proteftants were chiefly expofed to the feverity of the aét, the mifery of adverfaries, according to the ufual maxims of party, was regarded by the adherents to the ancient religion, as their own profperity and triumph. Cran- mer had the courage to oppofe this bill in the houfe; and tho’ the King defired him to abfent himfelf, he could not be prevailed on to give this proof of com- pliance {. Henry was accuftomed to Cranmer’s freedom and fincerity ; and being convinced of the general rectitude of his intentions, gave him an unufual indulgence Chap. VEL 1539 in that particular, and never allowed even a whifper againft him. That prelate, however, was now obliged, in obedience to the ftatute, to difmifs his wife, the niece of Ofiander, a famous divine of Nuremburg||; and Henry, fatisfed with this proof of fubmiffion, fhowed him his former countenance and favour. 1L.a- timer and Shaxton threw up their bifhoprics, on account of this law, and were committed to prifon. Tue * 3 Hen. VII. ¢. 14.° Herbert in Kennet, p. 219. + There is a ftory, that the duke of Norfolk, mecting, foon after this a&t was paffed, one of hia: chaplains, who was fufpected of favour ng the reformation, faid to him, “ Now, Sir, what think you: ‘* of thelaw to hinder priefts from having wives?” .* Yes, my lord,” replies the chaplain, < you: «« have done that; but I will anfwer for it, you cannot hinder men’s wives from having priefts.” { Burnet, vol. I. p.249, 270, Fox, vol, I. Pp: 1037. } Herbertin Kennet, p. 219, 7a: 1B! 4 ; f i) : Hla) % a i re t 4 ie th eo ae a % END Hay aie 43 aie u if ¥ -- Pah ARPT wr A 232, HISTORY or ENGLAND. Chap. Vit Tie Parliament having thus refiened all their ecclefiaftical libertiés, proceeded ee toan entire furrender of their ‘civil ; and without fcruple or deliberation: they made equal to made by one act a total fubverfion:of the Eneglifh conftitution. They gave to laws. the King’s proclamations the fame force as to'a ftatute enacted by Parliament ; and to render the matter worfe, if pofible, they framed this law as if it werfe only declarative, anc were intended to. explain the natural extent of the regal authority; -The preamble contains, thatthe King had formerly fet forth: feveral proclamations, which froward perfons had wilfully contemned, not confidering what a King by his royal power may do ; that this licence might encourage offen- ders not only to difobey the Jaws of Almighty.God, but alfo to difhonour the King’s, moft, royal, majelty, who. may full ill-bear it; that fudden emergencies often occur; which. equire, fpeedy rernedies, and cannot await the flow affem- bling and deliberations of Parliament; and-that,' tho” the King was empowered, by his authority, derived from God, to confult the public good ‘on thefe occafi- ons, yet the oppofition of refractory fubjects, might pufh him to extremity’ and violence: For thefe reafons, the Parliament, that they might remove, all occa: fon of doubt, afceitained by a ftatute this prerogative of the crown; :and en- abled his majelty, with the advice of his.council, to.fet forth proclamations, en- joining obedience under whatever pains and penalties he fhall think proper + And thefe proclamations were to have the force of perpetual laws *. Waar fhows eitier a ftupid or wilful blindnefs of the Parliament; they pre- tended, even after this ftatute, *to maintain fome: limitations in the’ government ; and they enacted, that no proclamation fhould deprive any perfon of his lawful poffeffions, liberties, inheritances, privileges, franchifes; mor yet infringe any ‘common law or laudable cuftom of the realm. ‘They confidered not, that no pains could be inflited on the difobedience of proclamations, without invading fome liberty or property of the fabject ;» and that ‘the ‘power. of enacting new laws, joined to the difpenfing power, then exercifed by the crown, ‘amounted to a full legiflative authority. . Itis true, the Kings of England had been always ac- cuftomed, from their own authority, to iffue proclamations, and to exact obedi- ence tothem; and this prerogative was, no doubt, '\'a ftrong fymptom of ‘abfo- lute government : But ftill there was a difference between a power, which was exercifed on a particular emergence, and which muft be juftified by the prefent expediency or neceflity; and an authority conferred by a pofitive ftatute, which could no longer admit of controul or limitation, Settlement of . Coutp any act be more oppofite to the fpirit of liberty than this law, it would the fucceffion. have been another of the fame parliament. They pafled attaincers, not only againtt , * 31Hen. VIIL ec. &. H EN RY. VII. 233 Pe) againft the Marquefs of Exeter, the Lords Montacute, Darcy, Huffey, and others, Chap. VI. who had been legally tried and condemned; but alfo againft fome perfons, of *53% the highett quality, who had never been accufed, or examined, or convicted. The violent hatred, which Henry bore to cardinal Pole, had extended itfelf to all his friends and relations ; and his mother in particular, the countefs of Salif- bury, had, on that account, become extremely obnoxious to him. She was alfo accufed of having employed her authority with her tenants, to hinder them from perufing the new tranflation of the Bible; of having procured bulls from Rome, which, ’tis faid, were found at Coudray, her country feat ; of having kept a cor- refpondence with her fon, the cardinal: But Henry found, either that thefe of- fences could not be proved, or that they would not by law be fubjeé to fuch fe- vere punifhment as he defired to inflict upon her. He refolved, therefore, to pro- ceed againft her in a more fummary and more tyrannical manner; and for that purpofe, he fent Cromwel, who was but too obfequious to his will, to demand of the judges, whether the Parliament could attaint a perfon, who was forth- coming, without giving him any trial, or citing him to appear before them *. The judges replied, that it was a dangerous queftion, and that the high coure of Parliament ought to give examples to inferior courts of proceeding according to juftice: No inferior court could act in that arbitrary manner, and they thought that the parliament never would. Being preffed to give a more explicite anfwer, they replied, that, if a perfon were attainted in that manner, the attainder could never after be brought in queftion, but muft remain good in Jaw. Henry learned by this decifion, that fuch a method of proceeding, tho’ direétly contrary to all the principles of equity, was yet practicable; and this being all he was anxious to know, he refolved to employ it againft the countefs of Salifbury. Cromwel fhowed to the houfe of peers a banner, on which was embroidered the five wounds of Chrift, the fymbol, chofen by the northern rebels; and this banner, he af- firmed, was found in the Countefs’s houfe +. No other proof feems to have been produced, in order to afcertain her guilt: The Parliament, without farther en- quiry, paffed a bill of attainder again{ft her; and they involved in the fame aa, without any better proof, as far as appears, Gertrude Marchionefs of Exeter, Sir ‘Adrian Fortefcue, and Sir Thomas Dingley. Thefe two gentlemen were executed: The marchionefs was pardoned, and furvived the King; the countefs received a reprieve, Tue only beneficial act, paffed this feffion, was that by which the parliament confirmed the furrender of the monafteries; and yet even this act contains much falfhood, much tyranny, and were it not that all private rights muft fubmit to Hh public * Coke's 4th Inft. p. 37, 38: + Rymer xiv. 652. et a 6 CL ee, hs ee = a a i —— = = r 4 ete ~— 234 HISTORY om ENGLAND. Chap. VI. public intereft, much injuftice and iniquity. “The fcheme of engaging the abbots 153% +o make a furrender of their monafteries had been conducted, as may eafily be imagined, with many invidious circumftances: Arts of all kinds had been em- ployed upon them; every motive, that could work on the frailty of human nature,, had been fet before them ; and it was with great difficulty that thefe dignified con ventuals were brought to a conceflion, which moft of them regardedias deftruétive of their interefts, as well as: facrilegious and criminal in itfelf *. Three abbots: had fhown more conftancy than the reft, the abbot of Colchefter, of Reading, and of Glaffenbury ; and in order to punifh them for their oppofition, and make: them an example to others, means had been found to convict them of treafon ; they had perifhed by the hands of the executioner, and the revenues of the con- vents had been forfeited -+. Befides, tho’ none of thefe violences had had place;. the King knew, that a furrender made by men, who were only tenants for lifes. would not bear examination ; and he was therefore refolved to make all fure by his ufual expedient, an act of parliament. In the preamble to this act, the par- liament afferts, that all the furrenders, made by the abbots, had been,. ** without: “ conftraint, of their own accord, and according to the due courfe of common: ‘© Jaw? And in confequence, the parliament confirms the furrenders, and afcer- tains the property of the abbey lands to the King and his fuccefiors for ever f, It is remarkable, that all the mitred abbots ftill fat in the houfe of peers; and: that none ef them.made any proteftation againft this ftatute. In this {effion; the rank of all the great officers of ftate was fixed: Cromwel,, as vicegerent, had the precedency affigned him above all of them. It was thought fingular, that a black-finith’s fon, for he was no other, fhould have precedence next: the royal family ; and that a man poffefied of no manner of literature,. fhould be- placed at the head of the church. SS eee a = : = SSS Se: — = = ;. : me ' 4 i b f ‘ fi wie Hl } ag i 4 4 ane : } As foon as the a&t of the fix articles had paffed, the catholics were extremely vigilant to inform againft offenders ; and no lefs than five hundred perfons were in a little time thrown into prifon. But Cromwel,.who had not had intereft enough to prevent that act, was able, for the prefent, to elude its execution. Seconded by the Duke of Suffolk, and lord chancellor Audley, as well as Cranmer, he remonflrated againft the cruelty of punifhing fo many delinquents; and he 2 obtained permiffion to fet them at liberty. The uncertainty of the King’s humour gave each party an opportunity of triumphing in itsturn. No fooner had Henry paffed this law; which feemed to give fo deep a wound to the reformers, than he granted a general permiffion, for every one to have the new tranflation of the Bible * Collier, vol. u, p. 158. & feq. + 31H. VII. . to. t 31 H. VU. c. 13. -- HEN R Y~ Vilt. a36 Bible'in his family : A conceffion regarded by that: party, as a moft important victory. Bur as Henry was obferved to be much governed by his wives, while he retained | \ JI his fondnefs for them, the final prevalence of either party, feemed to depend ‘much ; on the choice of the future Queen. Immediately after the death of Jane Seymour, the moft beloved of all his wives, he began to think of a new marriage. - He firft caft his eye on the dutchefs dowager of Milan, niece to the F; yperor ; and he made propofals for obtaining that alliance. But meeting with difficulties in this defign, he was carried, by his friendfhip for Francis, rather to think of a French princefs. He demanded the dutchefs dowager of Longueville, daughter of the Duke of Guife, a prince of the houfe of Lorraine; but Francis’ told him, that that lady was already betrothed to the King of Scotland. ‘he King, however; would not take a repulfe: He had fet his heart extremely on the match: The information, which he had received, of the dutchefs’s accomplifhments and beauty, had prepofiefled him in her favour; and having ‘privately fent over Meautys to examine her perfon, and get certain intelligence of her conduét, the accounts, which that agent brought him, ferved farther to inflame his defires. He learned, that fhe was big made; and he thought her, on that account, the more proper match for him, who was now become fomewhat corpulent. The pleafure too of mortifying-his nephew, whom he did not ‘love, was a farther incitement to his profecution of this match ; and he infifted, that Francis fhould giverhim the pre- ference to the King of Scots. But Francis, tho’ fenfible that the alliance of Eng- land. was of much greater importance to his intereft, would not affront his friend and ally; and to prevent farther follicitation, he immediately fent the Princefs to Scotland. Not to fhock, however, Henry’s humour, Francis made him an offer of Mary of Bourbon, daughter of the Duke of Vendome ; but as the King was in- formed, that James had formerly rejected this Princefs, he would not hear any farther of fuch a propofal. The French monarch then -offered him the chojcc of the two younger fifters of the new Queen of Scots; and he afured him, that they were no way injerior either in merit or Gze to their elder Gfter, and that one of them was even fuperior in beauty. The King was as ferupulous with regard to the perfon of his wives, as if his heart had been really fufceptible of a deli- Cate pafiion ; and he was unwilling to truft any relations, or even pictures, with regard to this important particular. He propofed to Francis, that they fhould have a conference at Calais on pretence of bufinefs;.and that.that monarch thould bring along with h‘m the two Princeffes of Guife, together with the fineft ladies of quality in France, that he might make a choice among them. - But the gal- F io . eine * te 4 ; ae) “ .. PF ee Se : =~ y Po epee ——— f i . ys e ipirit Of Francis was fhecked with this propofal ; and he was imprefied with lHi-h 2 too Chap. VI. 1539+ He marries Anne of Cleves, Diflikes her. A 236 HISTORY or ENGLAND. too much regard for the fair fex, to carry ladies of the firft quality, like geldings, to a market, there to be chofen or rejected by the humour of the merchant *- Henry would hearken to none of thefe niceties, but ftill infifted on his propofal ; which, however, notwithftanding Francis’s earneft defire of continuing a good correfpondence with him, was at laft finally rejected. Tue King began then to turn his thoughts towards a German alliance; and as the princes of the Smalcaldic league were extremely difgufted againft the Emperor on account of the perfecution of their religion, he hoped, by matching himfelf into one of their families, to renew an amity, which he regarded as fo ufeful to him. Cromwel joyfully feconded this intention; and propo’ed to him Anne of Cleves, whofe father, the duke of that name, had great intereft among the Lutheran prin- ces, and whofe fifter, Sibylla, was married to the elector of Saxony, the head of the proteftant alliance. A flattering picture, drawn for the Princefs by Hans Holben, determined Henry to apply to her father; and after fome negotiations, the marriage, notwithftanding the oppofition of the elector of Saxony, was at laft concluded ; and the Princefs was fent over into England. The King, impatient to be fatisfied with regard to the perfon of his bride, came privately to Rochefter, and got a fight of her. He found her big, indeed, and tall, as he could with; but utterly devoid both of beauty and grace; very unlike the pictures and re- prefentations, which he had received : He fwore fhe was a great Flanders-mare ; and declared, that he never could poffibly bear her any affection. The matter was worfe, when he found, that fhe could fpeak no Janguage but Dutch, of which he was entirely ignorant; and that the charms of her converfation were not likely to compenfate for the homelinefs of her perfon. He returned to Greenwich very melancholy ; and much lamented his hard fate to Cromwel, as well as to Lord Ruffel, Sir Anthony Brown, and Sir Anthony Denny. This laft gentie- man, in order to give him comfort, told him, that his misfortune was common to Kings, who could not, like private perfons, choofe for themfelves; but muft receive their wives from the yudgment and fancy of others. Ir was the fubject of debate among the King’s counfellors, whether the mar- riage could not yet be broke ; and the Princefs be fent back to her own country. Henry’s fituation feemed at that time very critical. After the ten years truce, concluded between the Emperor and the king of France, a good underftanding feemed to have taken place between thefe rival monarchs ; and fuch marks of union appeared, as gave great jealoufy to the court of England. The Emperor, who knew the generous nature of Francis, even put a confidence in him, which is rare, to that degree, among great princes. An infurrection had been raifed in the Low Countries * Le Grand, ‘vol. i. p. 638. H.R ON, 2, ¥v o Vie 237 Countries by the inhabitants of Ghent, and feemed to threaten the moft danger-. Chap. VIL ous confequences. Charles, who refided at that time in Spain, refolved to goin. *53” perfon to Flanders, in order to appeafe thefe diforders; but he found great difficulties in contriving the manner of his paflage thither. The road by Italy and Germany was tedious: The voyage thro’ the Channel dangerous, by reafon of the Englith naval power: He afked Francis’s permiffion to pafs thro’ hjs dominions; and he entrufted himfelf into the hands of a rival, whom he had fo mortally offended. The French monarch received him at Paris, with great magnificence and cour- tefy ; and tho’ prompted both by revenge and intereft, as well as by the advice of his miftrefs and favourites, to make advantage of the prefent opportunity, he concucted the Emperor fafely out of his dominions ; and would not fo much as fpeak to him of bufinefs during his abode in France, left his demands fhould bear the air of violence upon his royal gueft. Henry, who was informed of all thefe particulars, believed that an entire and cordial union had taken place between thefe two great monarchs; and that their religious zeal might prompt them to fall with combined arms upon Eng- Jand*. An alliance with the German princes feemed now, more than ever, re- quifite for his intereft and fafety ; and he knew, that, if he fent back the Prin- cefs of Cleves, fuch an affront would be highly refented by her friends and fa- mily: He was therefore refolved, notwithftanding his averfion to her, to com- 1640: plete the marriage ; and he told Cromwel, that, fince matters had gone fo far, © January: he muft put his neck into the yoke. Cromwell, who knew how much his own intereft was concerned in this affair, was very anxious to learn from the King next morning after the marriage, whether he now liked his fpoufe any better, The King told him, that he hated her worfe than ever; and that her perfon was more lothfome on a near approach: He was refolved never to meddle with her; and even fufpected her not to bea true maid: A point, about which he had entertained an extreme delicacy. He continued however to be civil to Anne; he even feemed to repofe his ufual confidence in Cromwel; but tho’ he exerted this command over his temper, a difcontent lay lurking in his breaft, and was ready to burft out on the firft opportunity. A feffion of Parliament was held ; and none of the abbots were now allowed 12 April. a place in the houfe,of peers. The King, by the mouth of the chancellor, com- A Parliament. plained to the Parliament of the great diverfity of religions, which ftil] pre- vailed among his fubjects: A grievance,, he faid, which ought the lefs to be en- dured; becaufe the fcriptures were now publifhed in Englifh, and ought uni- verfally to be the ftandard of belief to all mankind, But he had appointed, he ; faid, * Stowe, p. 579. yi ql nf J N wat re 1 - i ee + ie 7 Te - My » Ne pi lip 1 “All ts : eS aa a7 $ HISTORY OMENGLAND. Chap. VI. faidy fome ‘bifhops and divines to draw up a lift of tenets, to which his people J 5 40- were to affent; and he was determined, that Chrift, the doctrine of Chrift, and the truth fhould have the victory. The King feems to have expecled more effec in afcertaining truth, from this new book of his doctors, than had enfued from the publication of the fcriptures. Cromwel, -as vicar general, made alfo in the King’s name a fpeech to the upper houfe; and the peers, in return, beftowed fuch flattery on him, that they faid he was worthy, by his defert, to be vicar ge- neral of the univerfe, That minifter feemed to be no lefs in his mafter’s good graces: He received, foon after the fitting of the Parliament, the title of Earl of Effex, and was inftalled knight of the garter: Tuere remained only one religious order in England; the koights of St. John of Jerufalem, or the knights of Malta, as they are commonly called. This or der, partly ecclefiaftical, partly military, had, by their valour, done great fer- vice to Chriftendom; and‘had very much retarded, at Jerufalem, Rhodes, and Malta, the rapid progrefs of the barbarians, During the general furrender of the religious houfes in England, they had exerted their fpirit, and had obft- nately refufed to yield up their revenues to the King; and Henry, who would endure tio fociety that profeffed obedience to the pope, was obliged to have re- courfe to the Parliament for the diffolution of this order. Their revenues were large ; and formed an addition no way contemptible to the many acquifitions, which the King had already made. © But he had very all hufbanded the great revenue obtained: by the plunder of the church: His profufe generofity diffi- pated fafter than this rapacity could fupply ; and the Parliament were furprized his fefion to find a new demand made upon them of four-tenths and a fubfidy of one fhiling in the pound during two years: So ill were the people’s expec- tations anfwer.d, that the crown was never more to require any fupply from the people. The commons, tho’ Javith of their liberty, and of the blood of their fellow. fubjects, ‘were extremely frugal of their money; and it was not without difficulty that that grant could be obtained by this abfolute and dreaded monarch. The convocation gave the King. four fhillings in the pound to be levied in two years. ‘The pretext for thefe grants was the great expence, which Henry had been put-to for the defence of the nation, in building forts along the fea coaft, and inequipping a navy. As he had at prefent no ally on the Continent, in whom he repofed much confidence, he relied on'y on his domeftic ftrength, and was on that account obliged to be more expenfive in his preparations againit the dangers of an livafion. Tue King’s favour to Cromwel, and his acquiefcence in the marriage of Anne of Cleves, were b th of them deceitful appearance’: His averfion to the Queen fecretly encreafed every day; and having at laft broke all reftraint, it prompted A him 11S YN BS CY. V IT, 2.39 . 1 . . oe r " ae me - 4 - | ? iim at once to feek the diffolution-of a Marriage fo odious to him, and to in= 5 ; volve his minifter in ruin, who-had been the author of ir. The fail of Cromsvel ,., was haftened by other-caufes.- All the nobility hated a man, who, beiae of fech well. bafe extraction, had not only mounted above them by fis {tation of vicar ges neral, but had engrofied many of the other confiderable offices of the kingdom ; Befides that commifiion,. which gave him a high, and almoft abfolute authority ever the clergy,.and even over the laity, he was Lord privy feal, Lord cham- berlain, and Matter of the wards: He had alfo obtained the order of the @arter) 4 dignity. which had ever been conferred Only on the moft illuftrious families, and which feemed to be profaned by its being. communicated to fo mean a per fon, The people were averfe to him, as the fuppefed author of the violences on the monatteries ; eftablifhments, which were {till revered and beloved by the commonalty. he catholics regarded him as the concealed enemy of their reli- gion: The protcitants, obferving his exterior concurrence with all the perfecu- tions exercifed again{t them, were inclined to bear him as little favour ; and re- proached him with: the timidity, if not treachery, of his conduct. And the King, who found,. that great clamours had on all hands arifen againit the adminiftra- ion, was not difpleafed to throw on Cromwel the load_of public hatred, and he hoped, by. fo eafy. a facrifice, to regain the affections of his fubjecis. Bur there was another. caufe, which fuddenly fet all thefe motives ja action, and brought about an unexpected revolution in: the miniftry.. The King had fixed his affection on Catherine Howard, niece to the Duke of Norfolk ; and be- ing determined to gratify this new paffion, he cou'd‘find no other expedient but by procuring a divorce from his prefent confort, to raife Catherine to his bed and throne. The Duke, who had long been engaced in enmity with Cromwel,. made the fame ufe of her infinuations, to ruin. that minifter, that he had formerly done of Anne Boleyn’s againft Wolfey : And when all engines were prepared, he obtained a commiffion from the King, to arreft Cromwel at-the council-board on the accufation. of high treafon, and to commit him to the ‘Tower. Immediately after, a bill of attainder was framed apain{t him ; and the houfe of peers thought proper, without trial, examination, or evidence, to condemn to death a man, whom, a few days before, they had declared worthy. to be vicar’ general of the uniyerfe. The houfe of commons paffed the bill, tho’ not without fome oppo- fition, _Cromwel was. accufed of herefy and treafon ; but the inftances of his treafonable practices are. utterly improbable, or even abfolutely ridiculous *, The only cifeumftance of his condu&, by which he feems- to have merited this fate, was * Burnet, vol. i. p. 278. 240 HISTORY of ENGLAND. Chap. VI. was his being the inftrument of the King’s tyranny, in conducting like iniquitous 1540- Hills. in the former feffion, againft the countels of Salifbury and others. Cromwet endeavoured to foften the King by the moft humble fupplications ; but all to no purpofe: It was not the practice of that Prince to ruin his minitters and favourites by halves ; and tho’ the unhappy prifoner wrote once in fo moving a {train as even to draw tears from his eyes, he hardened himfelf againft all move- ments of pity, and refufed his pardon. The conclufion of Cromwel’s letter ran ‘a thefe words. ‘* Ia moft woful prifoner, am ready to fubmit to death when ‘it fhall pleafe God and your majefty ; and yet the frail flefh incites me to call “to your grace for mercy and pardon of mine offences. Written at the Tower ‘© with the heavy heart and trembling hand of your highnefs’s moft miferable <¢ prifoner and poor flave, Thomas Cromwel.”? And a little below, ‘* Moft 28th July. _*€ gracious Prince, I cry for mercy, mercy, mercy.” * When brought to exe- lis executions - tion, he avoided all earneft proteftations of his innocence; and all complaints againft the fentence pronounced upon him. He knew that Henry would refent on his fon thefe fymptoms of oppofition to his will, and that his death alone would not terminate that monarch’s vengeance. He was a man of prudence, induftry, and ability ; worthy of a better mafter and of a better fate. Tho raifed to the fummit of power from a very low origin, he betrayed no infolence or contempt of his inferiors ; and was careful to remember all the obligations, which, during his lower fortune, he had owed to any one. He had ferved as 4 private fentinel in the Italian wars, where he received fome good office from 4 Lucquefe merchant, who had entirely forgot his perfon, as wellas the fervice, which he had rendered him. Cromwel, in his grandeur, happened, at London, to caft his eye on his benefactor, now reduced to poverty, by misfortunes. He immediately fent for him, put him in mind of their antient friendthip, and by his grateful af- fiftance, re-inftated him in his former profperous circumftances 7. i . te i} it chit iy nes wrt err Fe King’s di- Tue meafures for divorcing the King from Anne of Cleves, were carried on re ee at the fame time with the bill of attainder againft Cromwel. The houfe of nne Oo . : ‘i Chives. peers, in conjunction with the commons, applied to him by petition, defiring that he would allow his marriage to be examined ; and orders were immediately given to lay the matter before the convocation. Anne had been formerly con- traéted by her father to the Duke of Lorrain ; but fhe, as well as the Duke, were at that’ time under age, and the contract had been afterwards annulled by the confent of both parties. The King, however, pleaded this contract as a oround of divorce; and he added two reafons more, which may feem a little extraor- dinary ; that, when he efpoufed Anne, he had not inwardly given:his confent, 2 , and = * Burnet, vol. i. p. 281, 282. + Burnet, yol.i. p. 172. H EN RY vit B41 and that-he had not confummated the marriage. The convocaticn were fatisfied with thefe reafons, and folemnly annulled the marriage between the King and Queen: The Parliament ratified the decifiom of the clergy {; and the fentence was foon after notified to that princefs. Anne was bleft with a happy infenfibility of temper, even in the points which the moft nearly affect her fex; and the King’s averfion towards her, as well as his profecution of the divorce, had never given her the leaft uneafinefs. She willingly hearkened to terms of compofition with him; and when he offered to adopt her as his fifter, to give her place next the Queen, and his own daughter, and to make a fettlement of three thoufand pounds a year upon her; fhe accept- ed the conditions, and gave her confent to the divorce *. She even wrote to her brother, (for her father was dead) that fhe had been very well ufed in England, and defired him to live on good terms with the King. The Only inftance of pride which fhe betrayed was, that fhe refufed to return into her own country after the affront which fhe had received ; and fhe lived and died in England. Notwitustanpine Anne’s moderation, this incident produced a great cold- nels between the King and the German princes; but as the fituation of Europe was now much altered, Henry was the more indifferent to their refentment. The clofe intimacy which had taken place between Francis and Charles, had fubfitted during a very fhorttime: The diffimilarity of their characters foon renewed, with greater violence than ever, their former jealoufy and hatred. While Charles re- mained at Paris, Francis had been imprudently engaged, by his open temper, and by that fatisfaction which a noble mind naturally feels in performing generous actions, to make fome very dangerous confidences to that interefted monarch; and having now loft all fufpicion of his rival, he hoped, that the emperor and he, fupporting each other, might neglect every other alliance. He not only communicated to his gueft the ftate of his negociations with Sultan Solyman and the Venetians: He alfo laid open the follicitations which he had received from li the + To fhow how much Henry fported with law and common fenfe ; how fervilely the Parliament followed all his caprices ; and how much both of them were loft to all fentiment of fhame ; an a@ was pafled this feffion, declaring, that a precontraét fhould be no ground of annulling a marriage; as if that pretext had not been made ufe of both in the cafe of Anne Boleyn and Anne of Cleves, But the King’s intention in this law is faid to be a defign of reftoring the princefs Elizabeth to her tight of le- gitimacy; and it was his character never to look farther than the prefent object, without regarding the inconfiftency of his conduét. The Parliament made it high treafon to deny the diffolution of Henry’s marriage with Anne of Cleves. Herbert. * Herbert, p. 458, 459. Chap. VI. 1540. = = 7 = —- - : = — - ae ioe 1 a Pe ns 37 = SS: = <> ea Ss - ae ae es . ne a Se a - ee : = ; ~ SS te = 5 ws eee inn Seae — = ee > a Seem ; ee = = oe Nee = —— ee es siteS tan : . = — 2 ES est SSS ee er a a tee ane -o--— ~~ — oie —— een <= che = < ——— > vn = Fe poste Tatil TT eee —— = = - = — : : - = t =e Sa a ‘Fz = = > Chap. Vi, “y ts a /¢ Sth Aucuft. His marriage with Cathe- rine Howard. —e) 242 HISTORY or ENGLAND. the coutt of England, to enter into a confederacy againft him*. Charles had: no fsoner reached his own dominions, than he fhewed himfelf unworthy of the friendly reception which he had met with. He flatly refufed to execute his pro- mife, and put the duke of Orleans in poffeffion of the Milanefe: He informed So- lyman, and the fenate of Venice, of the treatment which they had received from their ally: And he took care that Henry fhould not be ignorant how willingly Francis had abandoned his ancient friend, to whom he owed fuch important ob- lizations, and had facrificed him to a new confederate: He even poifoned and mifreprefented many things, which the unfufpecting heart of the French mo- narch had difclofed to him. Had Henry poffeffed true judgment and generofity,. this incident alone had been fufficient to guide him in the choice of his allies. But his domineering pride carried him immediately to renounce the friendfhip of Francis, who had fo unexpectedly given the empéror the preference: And: as Charles invited him to a renewal of ancient amity, he willingly accepted the offer 3. and thinking himfelf fecure in this alliance, he negleéted the friendthip both of France and of the German princes. : Tue new turn which Henry had taken with regard to foreign affairs, was ex- tremely agreeable to his catholic fubjeéts; and as ic had perhaps contributed, among other reafons, to the ruin of Cromwel, it made them entertain hopes of a final prevalence over their antagonifts. The marriage of the King with Catherine Howard, which followed foon after his divorce from Anne of Cleves, was alfo regarded ‘as a very favourable incident to their caufe; and the fubfe- - quent events correfponded perfectly to their expectations, The King’s councils being now directed by Norfolk and Gardiner, a furious perfecution commenced againft the proteftants ; and the law of the fix articles was executed with rigour. Dr. Barnes, who had been the caufe of Lambert’s execution, felt, in his turn, the feverity of the perfecuting fpirit ; and, by a bill which paffed in parliament, without trial, he was condemned to the flames, together with Jerome and Ger- rard. He difcuffed theological queftions even at the flake; and as the debate be- tween him and the fheriff, turned upon the invocation of faints, he faid, that he doubted whether the faints could pray for us; but if they could, he hoped in half an hour, to be praying for the fheriff and all the fpectators. He next en- treated the fheriff to carry to the King his dying requefts, which he fondly ima- gined would have authority with that monarch, who had fent. him to the flake. The purport of his requefts was, that Henry, befides repreffing fuperftitious ce- remonies, fhould be extremely vigilant in preventing. fornication and common {wearing |. : “Was * Pere Daniel, Du Tillet. + Burnet, vol, I, p. 298. Fox. HoEON- a Yoowm. 248 Wure Henry was exerting this violence againft the proteftants, he fpared Chap. VI. not the catholics who denied his fupremacy; and a foreigner, who was at that a time in England, had reafon to fay, that thofe who were againft the pope were burned, and thofe who were for him were hangedy. The King even difplayed, in an oftentatious manner, this tyrannical equity and impartiality, which reduced both parties to fubjeftion, and infufed terror into every breaft. Barnes, Gerrard, and Jerome had been carried to the place of execution on three hurdles; and along with them there was placed on each hurdle a catholic, who was alfo exe- cuted for his religion. Thefe catholics were Abel, Fetherftone, and Powel, who declared, that the moft grievous part of their punishment was the being coupled to fuch heretical mifcreants as fuffered with therm |\- Tuo’ the fpirit of the Englifh feemed to be totally fun under the defpotic power of Henry, there appeared fome fymptoms of difcontent:\An incon- fiderable infurrection broke out in Yorkfhire, headed by Sir John Nevil; but it was foon fuppreffled, and Nevil, with the other ringleaders, was executed. The rebels were fuppofed to have been inftigated by the intrigues of cardinal Pole; and the King was. inftantly determined to vemalee the countefs of Salifbury fuffer for her fon’s offences. He ordered her to be carried to the place of execution, 27 May. and this venerable matron maintained ftiJl, in thefe diftrefsful circumftances, the fpirit of that long race.of monarchs from whom fhe was defcended*, She re- fufed to lay her head on the block, or fubmit to a fentence where the had eceived no trial. She told the executioner, that, if he would have her head, he muit win it the beft way he could: And thus fhaking her venerable grey locks, fhe ran about the fcaffold ; and the executioner followed her with his ax, aiming many fruitlefs blows at her neck, before he was able to give her the fatal ftroke. Thus perifhed the laft of the line of Plantagenet, which, with great glory, but ftill greater crimes and misfortunes, had governed England for the {pace of three hundred years, The lord Leonard Grey, .a man who had formerly rendered great fervice to the crown, was alfo beheaded for treafon, foon after the countefs of Salifbury. Weknow little of the grounds of his profecution. Tue infurrection in the North engaged Henry to make:a procrefs thither, in order to quiet the minds of his people, to reconcHe them to:his government, and to abolifh the ancient fuperflitions, to which thofe parts were much addicted, Hehad alfo another motive for this journey: He propofed to hold aconference — <42. at York with his nephew the King of Scotland, and, if poffible, to cement. a clofe and indiffoluble union with that kingdom. li 2 Tur t Fox, vol, IL. p. 529. | Saunders de {chifn. Anpl, * Herbert, p 468. 244 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Chap. Vie Te fame fpirit of religious innovation, which had feized the other parts of State Sf afairs BUPOPE, had made its way into Scotland, and had begun, long before this in Scotland. period, to excite the fame jealoufies, fears, and perfecutions. About the year 1527, Patrick Hamilton, a young man of a noble family, having been created abbot of Ferne, was fent abroad for his education ; but had fallen into company with fome reformers, and he returned into his own country very ill difpofed to- wards that church, of which his birth and his merit entitled him to attain the higheft honours. The fervour of youth, and his zeal for novelty, made it impofible for him to conceal his fentiments; and Campbel, prior of the Domi- nicans, who, under colour of friendfhip, and a fympathy in opinion, had. infi- nuated himfelf into his confidence, delated him to Beaton, archbifhop of St, An- drews. Hamilton was invited to St. Andrews, in order to maintain, with fome of theclergy, a difpute concerning the controverted points; and after much rea- foning with regagd to juftification, freewill, original fin, and other topics of that nature, the conference ended with their condemning Hamilton to be burnt for his - errors. The young man, who had been deaf to the infinuations of ambition, was lefs likely to be fhaken with the fears of death, while he propofed to himfelf both the glory of bearing teftimony to the truth, and the immediate reward at- tending his martyrdom. ‘The people, who compaffionated his youth, his virtue, and his noble birth, were much moved with the conftancy of his end; and the event {t:ll more confirmed them in their favourable fentiments towards him. He cited Campbel, who {till infulted him at the ftake, to anfwer before the judg- ment-feat of Chrift; and as that perfecutor, either aftonifhed with thefe events, or overcome with remorfe, or, perhaps, feized with a diftemper, foon after loft his fenfes, and fell into a fever, of which he died; the people regarded Hamil- ton as a prophet, as well as a martyr +. Amonc the difciples converted by Hamilton, was one friar Forreft, who became -a zealous preacher ; and who, tho’ he did not openly difcover his fentiments, was fufpected to lean towards the new opinions. His diocefan, the bifhop of Dunkel, , enjoined him, when he met with a good epiftle or good gofpel, which favoured the liberties of holy church, to preach on it, and let the reft alone. Forreft an- fwered, that he had read both old and new teftament, and had not found an ill epiftle, or ill gofpel in any part of them. The extreme attachment to the fcrip- tures was regarded in thofe days as a fure characteriftic of herefy ; and Forreft was. foon after brought to his trial, and condemned to the flames. While the priefts were deliberating on the place of his execution, a byftander advifed them to burn him: it Spotfwood’s Hift. church of Scotland, p. 62. HE N RY © Vir. 246 him in fome cellar: For that the fmoke of Mr, Patrick Hamilton had infeé&t- Chap. VI. ed all thofe on whom it blew ft, be Tue clergy were at that time reduced to great difficulties, not only in Scot- land, but all over Europe, As the reformers aimed at a total fubverfion of anci- enteftablifhments, which they reprefented as idolatrous, impious, deteftable, the priefts, who found both their honours and properties at ftake, thought that they had aright to refift, by every extremity, thefe dangerous invaders, and that the fame fimple principles of equity, which juftified a man in killing a pyrate or a robber, would acquit them for the execution of fuch heretics. A toleration, tho? it is never acceptable to ecclefiaftics, might, they faid, be admitted in other cafes; but feemed an abfurdity where fundamentals were fhaken, and where the pofieffions, and even the fubfiftence of the eftablithed clergy were brought in danger. But tho’ the church was thus carried by policy, as well as inclination, to kindle the fires of perfecution, they found the fuccefs of this remedy very precarious, and obferved, that the enthufiaftic zeal of the reformers, inflamed by punifh- ment, was .apt to prove very contagious on the compaffionate minds of the {pectators. The new doctrine, amidft all the dangers to which it was expofed, ipread itfelf fecretly every where; and the minds of men were gradually dif- pofed to a revolution in religion. Bur the moft dangerous fymptom for the clergy in Scotland was, that the no- bility, moved by the example of England, had caft a wiftful eye on the church revenues, and hoped, if a reformation took place, to enrich themfelves by the plunder of the ecclefiaftics. James himfelf, who was very poor, and was fomewhat inclined to magnificence, particularly in building, had been fwayed by like motives; and began to threaten the clergy with the fame fate which at- tended them in the neighbouring country. Henry alfo, never ceafed exhorting his nephew to imitate his example ; and being moved both by the pride of mak- ing profelytes, and the profpect of fecurity, if Scotland fhould embrace a clofe union with him, he follicited the King of Scots to meet him at York; and ‘he obtained a promife to that purpofe. “Tue ecclefiattics were extremely alarmed with this refolution of James; and they employed every expedient, in order to prevent it. They reprefented the dangers of inhovation ; the pernicious confequences of aggrandizing the nobility, already too powerful; the hazard of putting himfelf into the hands of the Englifh, his hereditary enemies; the dependance which muft enfue upon lofing the friend- fhip of France, and all foreign potentates. To thefe confiderations, they added she profpect of prefent intereft, by which they found the King to be much go- | 7 verned : t.Spotfivood, p. 65. 246 HISTORY 6r ENGLAND. Chap. VI. verned: They offered him a prefent gratuity of fifty thoufand pounds Scots: 54% They promifed him, that the church fhould always be ready to contribute to/his fupply : And they pointed out to him, the confifcations of heretics, as the means of filling his exchequer, and of adding a hundred thoufand pounds a year to the crown revenues *. The infinuations of his new Queen, to whom youth, beauty, and addrefs had given a powerful influence over him, feconded all thefe reafons; and James was at laft engaged, firft to delay his journey, then to fend excufes to the King of England, who had already come to York, in order to be prefent. at the conference. Henry, vexed with the difappointment, and enraged at the affront, vowed vengeance againft his nephew ; and he beean;’ by permitting pyracies at fea, and ‘acurfions at land, to put his threats in execution. But he received foon after, in his own family, an affront to which he was much more fenfible, and which touch- ed him in a point where he had always fhewn an extreme delicacy. He had thought himfelf very happy in his new marriage: The youth, beauty, and agreeable dilpofition of Catherine, had entirely captivated his affections; and he made no fecret of his devoted attachment to her. He had even put up a prayerin his chappel, returning thanks to heaven for the felicity which the conjugal ftate afforded him ; and he defired the bifhop of Lincoln to compofe a form of thankf- civing for that purpofe. But.the Queen very little merited this tendernefs which he bore her: She had abandoned herfelf tolewdnefs, One Lafcelles brought in- bier hela telligence of her diffolute life to Cranmer, and told him, that his fitter, formerly erimes. a fervant in the old dutchefs of Norfolk’s family, with whom Catherine was edu- cated, had given him a particular account of all her. diforders. Derham and Mannoc, both of them fervants of the dutchefs, had been admitted to her bed ; and fhe had even taken little care to conceal her fhame from, the other fervants of the family. The primate, {truck with this intelligence, which it, was equally dangerous te conceal or to difcever, communicated the matter to the ear! of Hert- ford and to the chancellor. They. agreed, that the matter fhould by no means be buried in filence ; and the archbifhop himfelf feemed the moft proper perfon to difclofe it to.the King, Cranmer; unwilling to fpeak.on, fo delicate.a fubjett, wrote a narrative of the whole, and conveyed: it to Henry, who was infinitely aftonithed at the intelligence... So confident was he of the. fidelity of his confort, that he gave at firft no credit to the information; and he faid to the lord privyr feal, to lord Ruffel, high admiral, Sir. Anthony. Brown,. and Wriothefley, that he regarded the whole asa forgery. Cranmer was. now ip avery perilous fitua- tion; and had not full preofs been found, certain and. inevitable deftruction hung over ~~ — t ee. = ~—— ae =e 5 = —="- = ~ sz <= - - = e525 s ; x = —— = == SS - = -=: = r 4 — Ee ee = . - : er ae =e —. - — ye 2 = = — - TOI ade 72S = = - re 43 ee, = “ a ~ ~ ae a —~. — a —— ~ = - oy 2 - ; »y J = ——-o & —~ - = . = —— ar aeet J — Fn ed ~ 5 = —_— = E = " ~ Esa te Ss ee ae - r “ = ae ta Sid Re ee ted - —-- ——— —— es eee a) _ _ — -~=-~ me mg Se noe a ee ed a Ree: 7 tw aa 3 a = LS eS =e o = — >. > —<— a Ant - = = = 1. ty _ ‘ Saye : ' vA oo. vie i 1 : =f wh ’ ~ . ¥ 5 oer 1 ry ‘ . = t — q a Ee OT = ‘—s. r re , ae = "i 5 oo Man a =a Z 5 ee — = to Aten ean me - a oe ee ee <> a === = == —_ — SSS = ———— = ==> <= — a ae a ise = eee en ee a ee eS te a : = - ae Se SS ——— wae ae Osis na as uate : ou att eh Ue hate 1 A ee a: | ’ tia re , ‘ » ey * * Buchanan, lib. XIV. Drummond in Ja. g, Pitfcotie, ibid. Knox. H;E-N, ROY «vin. 247 e Re 5 , . . over him. The King’s impatience, however, and jealoufy prompted him to Chap. ¥I bad we ~ fearch the matter to the bottom: The privy-feal was ordered to examine Laf celles, who perfifted in the information he had given; and ftill a ~e , his fifter’s teftimony,.That nobleman made next a pretence of ect nay - to Sufiex, where the woman at that time refided: He found her Sten: in her former intelligence, and particular as to the faéts; and the whole bare Bue too much the face of probability. Mannoc and Derham, who were arrefted | the fame time, and examined by the chancellor, made the Queen’s guilt ¢ «i " certain by their confeffion; and difcovered other particulars which red Hi Py v Ay } “a i yy" ! ie i a le by i Pe aa atts. } 4 by Al t Uf ai}. I : et ae , if ay BY i te : " f Oem iv ae PF Leu } ae ; Hae i “ ‘ is \ a Sa ee f 4 ¢ rd i) } x j 1 ey J Ww h Sai « ie i 2 Tp . iy £ 4) ee | f 7 tay . . f : 1, oF Mf n > 1 Pie ab ae ey | " ai Ha) a oh A | 7 bs 4 } { ‘Pp ay i Pe A ge : abi bee D et’ : ef ite ine +> pa. file Ba + has ° a), Flees +5, : Mia TS Wiest f ' ‘ / iF " - ih | ; “4 | 4 ' He 4 : ” Sin bie Wd i - ‘ zit la a a t ne i. ) f 1 “4 1 CME Hei H Bs {i & ‘ 1i)] beat + : sORt Mt eRe eate fl Wail Pt ¥ ~ Ba ! ath AW Oy We } r 4 | y } ee ay | he ea | { 4 f ? i ; em iaae mn rawanl ae he Hie | i 3 iH i Lite 1 aN bia ha ‘ i i) aD a A a * WU Witc a | ql i f + i I . ' ; ‘ a He A ! } ih ' U] , } Seu | } i) 7 Had } ih i i i) | r. ty | i q : — Chap. VII. 1542. 24. November. Victory at Solway. 14th of De- cember. Death of James the fifth. ag) 254. HISTORY or ENGLAND. army were extremely difpleafed with this alteration, and were ready to difband ; when a {mall body of Englifh appeared, not exceeding 500 men, under the com- mand of Dacres and Mufgrave. A panic feized the Scotch, who immediately took to flight, and were purfued by the enemy. Few were killed in this rout; for it was no action; buta great many were taken prifoners, and fome of the prin- cipal nobility. Among thefe were the earls of Caffilis and Glencairn; the lords Maxwel, Fleming, Sommerville, Oliphant, Grey, who were all fent to London, and given in cuftody to different noblemen. Tue King of Scots, hearing of this difafter, was confounded to the laf de- gree; and being naturally of a melancholy difpofition, as well as endowed with a high fpirit, he loft all command of his temper on this difmal occafion. Rage againft his nobility, who, he believed, had betrayed him; fhame for a defeat by fuch unequal numbers; regret of the paft, fear of the future; all thefe paf- fions fo wrought upon him, that he would admit of no confolation, but aban- doned himfelf wholly to defpair. His body was wafted by fympathy with his anxious mind; and even his life began to be thought in danger. He had no child living; and hearing that his Queen was fafely delivered, he afked whether fhe had brought him a male or female? Being told, the latter ; he turned about in his bed: ‘* The crown came with a woman,” faid he, ** and it will go with ** one: Many miferies await this poor kingdom: Henry will make it his own “* either by force of arms or by marriage.’? A few days after, he expired, in the flower of his age; a prince of confiderable virtues and talents, well fitted, by his vigilance and perfonal courage, for reprefling thofe diforders, to which his king- dom, during that age, was fo much expofed. He executed juftice with the greateft impartiality and rigour; but as he fupported the commonalty and the church againft the rapine of the nobility, he efcaped not the hatred of that order. The proteftants alfo, whom he repreffed, have endeavoured to throw many ftains om his memory ; but have not been able to fix any confiderable imputation on him *. | Henry * The perfecutions, exercifed during James’s reign, are not to be alcribed to his bigotry, a vice of which he feems to have been as free as Francis the firft or the emperor Charles, both of whom, as well as James, fhewed, in different periods of their lives, even an inclination to the new doétrines. The extremities to which all thefe princes were carried, proceeded entirely from the fituation of affairs, during that age, which rendered it impoffible for them to act with greater temper or moderation, after they had embraced the refolution of fupporting the antient eftablifhments. So violent was the propenfity of the times towards innovation, that a toleration of the new preachers was equivalent to a formed defign of changing the national religion. And even the greateft friends to liberty of confcience have admitted, that tho’ a fect, which has already diffufed itfelf, has a juft claim to indulgence, yet may it often be confiftent with equity as well as found policy, to reprefs by feverity the firft beginnings of {chifm and new fyftems of theology. H ENR Y~ Vit. 255 Henry was no fooner informed of his victory and of the death of his ne- phew, than he projected, as James had forefeen, the fcheme of uniting Scotland to his own dominions, by marrying his fon, Edward, to the heirefs of that kine- dom*, He called together the Scotch nobles, who were his prifoners ; and af. ter reproaching them, in fevere terms, for their breach of treaty, as he pretended, he began to foften his tone, and propofed to. them this expedient, by which, he hoped, thofe diforders, fo prejudicial to both ftates, would for the future be pre- vented. He offered to beftow on them their liberty without ranfom; and only required of them engagements to favour the marriage of the Prince of Wales with their young miftrefs. They were eafily prevailed on to give their affent to a propofal, which feemed fo natural, and fo advantageous to both kingdoms ; and being conducted to Newcattle, they delivered to the duke of Norfolk, hofta- ges for their return, in cafe the intended nuptials were not compleated : And they thence proceeded to Scotland, where they found affairs in fome confufion. Tue pope, finding his authority in Scotland expofed to danger from the fpread- ing of the new opinions, had beftowed on Beaton, the primate, the dignity of cardinal; and that prelate had been long regarded as prime minifter to James, and as the head of that party, which defended the antient privileges and proper- ties of the ecclefiaftics. Upon the death of his matter, this man, apprehenfive of the confequences both to his party and himfelf, endeavoured to keep poffeftion of the power ; and for that purpofe, he is accufed of executing a deed which re- quired a high degree of temerity, He forged, it is faid, a will for the King, appointing himfelf, and three noblemen, regents of the kingdom during the minority of the infant Princefst+: At leaft, for hiftorians- are not well agreed in the circumftances of the fact, he had read to James a paper of that im- port, to which that monarch, during the delirium which preceded his death, had given an imperfect affent and approbation}. By virtue of this will, Beaton had put himfelf in poffeffion of the government; and having joined his. interefts with thofe of the Queen dowager, he obtained the confent of the convention of {tates, and excluded the pretenfions of the earl of Arran. James earl of Arran, of the name of Hamilton, was next heir to the crown by his grandmother, daughter to James the third; and on that account feemed beft entitled to poflefs that high office, into which the cardinal had intruded him- felf.. The profpect alfo of his fucceffion after a Princefs, who was in fuch tender infancy, procured him many partizans; and tho’ his charaéter contained little ipirit, a€tivity, or ambition, a propenfity, which he had difcovered for the new opinions, * Stowe, p. 584. Herbert, Burnet, Buchanan. Tt Sadler’s Letters, p. 161. Spotfiwood, p. 71. Buchanan, lib, rs, + John Knox, Hiftory of the reformation, Chap. VII, 1543. Bo he i eet) inf sees |) ii Bt Bi! Wi {hh J i . il sat ti eA . , \ h iii he eae eae =z: See = == - a =) In blrede due o es z Sr Perens AY - “Es Sos = : - —— » — -<«> wae > aire = utd - =x -8 + = 2 = => o~% ~ 5 > -—— = Ss : Fee ut Es Bo ST Let ee SSS SES ~ax. a Treaty with Scotland. 250 HISTORY of ENGLAND. opinions, had attached to him all the zealous promoters of thefe, innovations. By means of all thefe adherents, joined to the vaflals of his family, he had been able to make oppofition to the cardinal’s adminiftration ; and the fufpicion. of Beaton’s forgery, with the acceflion of the noblemen, who had been prifoners in England, aflifted too by fome money, fent from London, was able to turn the ballance in his favour. The. earl of Angus, and his’ brother, having taken the prefent opportunity of returning into their own country, oppofed the cardinal with all the force of that powerful family; and the majority of the conven- tion had now embraced oppofite interefts to thofe which formerly prevailed. Arran -was declared governor the cardinal was committed to cuftody under the care of lord Seton ; and. a negotiation was-commenced with Sir Ralph Sadler, the Eng- lita ambaflador, for the marriage of the infant Queen with the Prince of Wales. The following conditions were quickly agreed on ;. that the Queen fhould remain in Scotland till fhe was ten years of age; that fhe fhould then be fent to England to be educated ; that three Scotch nobles fhould immediately be delivered as hof- tages to Henry ; and that the kingdom, notwithftanding its union with Eng- land, fhould {till preferve its laws and privileges*. By means of thefe equitable conditions, the war between the nations, which had threatened Scotland with fuch difmal calamities, feemed to be fully compofed, and to be changed-into perpetual concord and unanimity. Bur the cardinal-primate, having prevailed on Seton to reftore him to his liberty, was able, by his intrigues, to confound all thefe meafures, which ap- peared tobe fo well concerted. He afflembled the moft confiderable ecclefiattics ; and haying reprefented to them the imminent danger, to which their revenues and privileges.were expofed, he perfwaded them to collect privately from the clergy a large fum of money, by which, if entrufted to his management, he promifed to overturn the fchemes of their enemies}. Befides the partizans, whom he acquired by pecuniary motives, he rouzed up the zeal of thole, who were attached to the catholic worfhip; and he reprefented the union with Eng- land as the fure forerunner of ruin to the church and the antient religion... The national antipathy of the Scotch againft the Eng'ifh nation, was alfo an infallible engine, by which the cardinal wrought upon the people; and tho” the terror of Henry’s arms, and their inability to make refiftance, had procured a temporary affent to the alliance and marriage propofed, the fettled habits of the nation pro- duced an extreme averfion to thofe meafures. ‘The Englifh ambafiadorand his train reccived many infults from perfons whom the cardinal had incited to commit thofe indignities, in hopes of bringing on arupture. But Sadler very prudently dif- fembled * Sir Ralph Sadler’s Letters. f+ Buchanan, lib. 15. SSeS H EN RY vit. 26% fembled the matter; and’ waited patiently till the day appointed for the delivery Chap. VIL. of the hoftages. Hethen demanded of the regent the performance of thatim- 1543 portant article; but received -for anfwer, that his authority was very precari- ous, that the nation had now taken a different impreffion, and that it was not in his power to compel any of the nobility to deliver themfelves as hoftages to the Englifh. Sadler, forefeeing the confequence of this refufal, fent a fummons to all thofe who had been prifoners in England, and required them to fulfil the pro- mife which they had given of returning into cuftody. None of them fthowed fo much fentiment of honour, as to perform their engagements, except Gilbert Kennedy, earl of Caffilis, Henry was fo well pleafed with the behaviour of this nobleman, that he not only received him gracioufly, but honoured him with prefents, gave him his liberty, and fent him back to Scotland, with his _ two brothers, whom he had left as hoftages *. Ts behaviour of the Scotch nobles, tho’ it reflected difhonour on the na- tion, was not unacceptable to the cardinal, who forefaw, that all thefe perfons would now be deeply interefted to maintain their enmity and oppofition to the Englifh. And as a war was foon expected with that kingdom, he found it neceffary immediately to apply to France, and to crave the affiftarice of that ancient ally, during the prefent diftrefles of the Scotch nation. Tho? Francis was fully fen- fible of his intereft in fupporting Scotland, a demand of aid could not have been made on him at a more’ unfeafonable juncture. His pretenfions on the Milanefe, and his refentment againft Charles, had engaged him in a war with that potentate ; and having made very great, tho’ fruit'efs efforts during the preceding campaign, he was the more difabled at prefent from defending his own dominions, much more from granting any fuccour to the Scotch. Mathew Stuart, earl of Lenox, a young nobleman of a great family, was at that time in the French court; and Francis, being informed, that he was engaged in ancient and hereditary enmity with the Hamiltons, who had murdered his father, fent him over to his native country, as a fupport to the cardinal and the Queen mother : And he promifed, that a fupply of money, and, if neceflary, even military fuccours, fhould foon be difpatched after him. Arran, the governor, feeing all thefe Dreparations againft him, affembled his friends, and made an attempt to get the perfon of the infant Queen into his cuftody ; but being repulfed, he was obliced to come fo an accommodation with his enemies, and to entrug that precious charge to four neutral perfons, the heads of potent families, the Grahams, Arefkines. Lindfeys, and Leviftons. . The arrival of Lenox, in the midit of thefe tranf- es actions, * Buchanan, lib. XY, New rupture, 258 — HISTORY or; ENGLAND. Chap. VII. actions, ferved to.render the victory of the French party over the Enelith till 4543. more undifputable f. Tue oppofition which Henry met with in Scotland from the French intrigues, excited his refentment, and farther confirmed the refolution which he had before taken, of breaking with France, and of uniting his arms with thofe of the emperor. Penman with Ae had other grounds of complaint againft the French King ; which, tho’ they France. were not of great importance, yet being recent, were able to overballance thofe great injuries which he had formerly:received from Charles. He pretended, that Francis had engaged to imitate his example in feparating himfelf entirely from the fee of Rome, and that he had broke his promife in that particular. He was dif- fatisfied, that James, his nephew, had been allowed to marry, firft Magdalene of France, then a princefs of the houfe of Guife; and he confidered thefe alliances as pledges which Francis gave of his intentions to fupport the Scotch againft the power of England*. He had been informed of fome railleries, which the French King had thrown out againft his conduct with regard to his wives. He was dif- gufted, that Francis, after fo many obligations which he owed him, had facri- ficed him to the emperor; and, in the confidence of friendfhip, had rafhly re- vealed his fecrets to that fubtle and interefted monarch. And he complained, that regular payments were never made of the fums due to him by France, and of the penfion which had .been promifed. Impelled by all thefe motives, he alienated himfelf from his ancient friend and confederate, and formed a league with the emperor, who very earneftly courted his alliance. This league, befides ftipulations for mutual defence, contained a plan for invading France; and the two monarchs agreed to enter Francis’s dominions with an army, each of twenty- five thoufand men; and to require that prince to pay Henry all the fums which he owed him, and toconfign Boulogne, Montreuil, Terouenne, and Ardres, as a fecurity for the regular payment of his penfion for the future: In cafe thefe conditions were rejected, the confederate princes agreed, to challenge, for Henry, the crown of France, and the dutchies of Normandy, Aquitaine, and Guienne; for Charles, the dutchy of Burgundy, and fome other territories. hat they might have a pretence for enforcing thefe claims, they fent a meflage to Francis, requiring him to renounce his alliance with Sultan Solyman,; and. to make repa- ration for all the prejudice which Chriftendom had fuffered from that unnatural confederacy. Upon the French King’s refufal, war was declared againit him by the confederates. It may be proper to obferve, that the partizans of France object- ed to Charles his alliance with the heretical King of England, as no lefs odious than { Buchanan, lib. XV: Drummond. * Pere Daniel. + Rymer, XIV. p. 768. XY. 2. Hi UNG RY VI. 2°59 than that which Francis had contraéted with Solyman: And they obferved, Chip. VIE that this league was a breach of that folemn promife which he had given to Cle. 1543: ment the feventh, never to make peace or alliance with England. Wuite the treaty with the emperor was negociating, the King fummoned a 22 January. new feffion of Parliament, in order to obtain fupplies for his projected war with France. The Parliament granted him a fubfidy to be paid in three years: It was levied in a peculiar manner; but exceeded not three fhillings in the pound upon any individual. The convocation gave the King fix fhillings in the pound, to be levied in three years. Greater fums were always, even during the efta- blifhment of the catholic religion, exatted from the clergy than the laity : Which made the emperor Charles fay, when Henry diffolved the monatteries, and fold their revenues, or beftowed them on his nobility and courtiers, that he had killed the hen which brought him the golden eggs *, Tue Parliament alfo facilitated the execution of the former law, by which the King’s proclamations were made equal to ftatutes: They appointed, that any nine counfellors fhould form a legal court for punifhing all difobedience to pro- clamations. _ The total abolition of juries in criminal caufes, as well as of alf Parliaments, feemed, if the King had fo pleafed, the necefiary coniequence of this enormous law. He might iffue proclamations, for the execution of any penal ftatutes, and afterwards try the criminals, not for breach of the law, but for difobedience to his proclamation. It is remarkabie, that the lord Mountjoy en- tered a proteft againft this ftatute; and it is equally remarkable, that that pro- teft is the only one which was entered again{t any public bill during this whole reign}. We have taken notice, in the end of the former chapter, of fome laws re- garding religion, which the Parliament paffed this feffion, in order to gratify the King’s humour. It was farther enacted ||, that every’ fpiritual perfon; who preached or taught contrary to the doétrine contained in the King’s book, the Erudition of a chriftian man, or contrary to any doétrine which he fhall hence- forth promulgate, was to be admitted on the firft conviction to renounce his errors; on the fecond, he was required to carry a faggot ; which if he refufed to do, or fell into a third offence, he was to be burnt. But the'laity, for the third of- fence, were only to forfeit their goods and chattels, and to be liable to perpetual * > EAS imprifonment. {. They who were worth in goods twenty fhillings and upwards to five pounds, paid four pence of every pound ; from five pounds to ten pounds, eight pence ; from ten pounds to twenty pounds, fix- ‘teen pence ; from twenty and upwards, two fhillings. Lands, fees, and annuities, paid eight pence in the pound from twenty fhillings tovfivepounds; from five pounds to ten pounds, fixteen pence ; from ten pounds to twenty pounds, two fhillings; from twenty pounds and upwards, three fhillings. * Collier, vol. II. p. 176. + Burnet, p. 322. | 34 & 35 Hen, VIII. c, 1, A Parliament, Chap. VI. 1543: cs) 260 HISTORY or ENGLAND. imprifonment. Indictments muft be laid within a year after the offence, and the prifoner was allowed to bring witnefles for his: purgation. Thefe penalties were lighter than thofe formerly impofed on a denial of tranfubftantiation: It was; however, fubjoined in this ftatute, that the act of the fix articles was ftill in force. But in order to make the King more entirely mafter of his people, it was en- acted, that he might hereafter, at his pleafure, change this act, or any provifion in it. By this claufe, both parties were retained in fubjection ; fo far as regarded religion, the King was invefted, in the fulleft manner, with the fole legiflitive autho- rity in his kingdom; and all his fubje¢ts were, under the fevereft penalties, ex- prefsly bound to receive implicitly, whatever doctrine he fhould pleafe to recom. mend to them, Tue reformers began to entertain hopes, that this exorbitant power would be employed in their favour. The King married Catherine Par, widow to Nevil lord Latimer; a woman of virtue, and fomewhat inclined to the new doétrine, By this marriage, Henry made good what had formerly been foretold in jeft, that he would be obliged to efpoufe a widow. The King’s league with the emperor, feemed to be a circumftance no lefs favourable to the catholic party ; and thus matters remained ftill nearly ballanced between the factions. Tue advantages gained by this powerful confederacy between Henry and Charles, were very inconfiderable, during the prefent year. The campaign wag opened with a victory, gained by the duke of Cleves, Francis’s ally, over the forces of the emperor ||: Francis, in perfon, took the field early; and made himfelf mafter, without refiftance, of the whole dutchy of Luxembourg: He afterwards took Landrecy, and added fome fortifications to it. Charles, having at Jaft aflembled a powerful army, appeared in the Low Countries; and after taking almoft every fortrefs in the dutchy of Cleves, he reduced the duke to fub- mit to the terms which he was pleafed to prefcribe to him. Being then joined by a body of fix thoufand Englifh, ‘he fat down before Landrecy, and covered the fiege with an army of above forty thoufand men. Francis advanced at the head of an army not much inferior; as if he intended to give the emperor battle, or oblige him to abandon the fiege: But while thefe two rival monarchs were facing each other, and all the world) ftood in expectation of fome great event ; the French found means to throw fuccours into Landrecy, and having thus ef- feéted their purpofe, they fkilfully made a retreat. Charles, finding the feafon far advanced, defpaired of fuccefs in his enterprize, and found it neceffary to raife the fiege. ? | THE | Memoires du Bellay, lib. X: ANE) aN Re ¥ VIII. ob1 Tue vanity of Henry was flattered, by the figure which he made in the great Chap. VH, tranfactions on the continent: But the interefts of his kingdom were much more ‘AGuine OF deeply concerned in the event of affairs in Scotland. Arran, the governor, was Scotland. of fo indolent and unambitious a character, that had he not been {timulated by his friends and dependants, he never had afpired to any fhare in the adminiftration ; and when he found himfelf overpowered by the party of the Queen dowager, the cardinal, and the earl of Lenox, he was glad to accept of any terms of accom- -modation, however difhonourable. He even gave them a fure pledge of his fin- cerity, by renouncing the principles of the reformers, and reconciling himfelf to the Romifh communion in the Francifcan church at Stirling. By this weaknefs and levity he loft his credit with the whole nation, and rendered the proteftants, who were hitherto the chief fupport of his power, his moft mortal enemies. The cardinal acquired the entire afcendant in the kingdom: Ihe Queen dowager put implicit confidence in him: The governor was obliged to yield to him in every pretenfion: Lenox alone was become an obftacle to his meafures, and re- duced him to fome difficulty. Tue inveterate enmity which had taken place between the families of Lenox and Arran, made the interefts of thefe two noblemen entirely incompatible; and as the cardinal and the French party, in order to engage Lenox the more in their caufe, had flattered him with the hopes of fucceeding to the crown after their infant fovereign, this rivalfhip had tended ftill farther to rouze the animofity of the Hamiltons. Lenox too had been encouraged to afpire to the marriage of the Queen dowager, which would have given him fome pretenfions to the regency ; and as he was become affuming, on account of the fervices which he had render- ed the party, the cardinal found, that, fince he muft choofe between the friend- fhip of Lenox and Arran, the latter nobleman, who was more eafily governed, ~ and who was invefted with prefent authority, was in every refpeét preferable. In order to remove the former, after the eafieft and leaft obnoxious manner, he wrote to Francis, with whom he had entire credit, by means of the duke of Guife, father to the Queen dowager ; and after praifing Lenox for his paft fer- vices, he reprefented the prefent difficulties and obftructions, which he occafioned in the adminiftration, and defired that he might be recalled to France, where he enjoyed great credit and large poffeffions. But the impatience of Lenox to at. tain his purpofes, allowed not this political artifice leifure to operate. Finding that he was not likely to fucceed in his pretenfions to the Queen dowager, and that Arran prevailed in every conteft, he retired to Dunbarton, the governor of which was entirely in his interefts; he entered into a fecret negociation = on seo eae | ngliflh { ; : \\\ | ‘ Huis ‘ { | \j ‘ { Ww ; / ’ ' I \ 4 i" ed nk nh Att) i +1) 08 4\4 One ae ie ’ b, 1 uy | .)] H hai ‘ ri ‘ a ’ i ON : i 41 4 ’ ‘a 4 on 7 i 1; M } | 4 iy 4 yeh 1} . 4] : \4 1 "i ree tt \) H Like tH) IT i + ah itme HAMON De Vn 4% 5 ees | ‘ ih 4 : in) 4 +h MGR 1B | nyt it EY A] ie! td Wa er: ra aaah 3 i 4 ie if — =e = Ae a Chap. VII. 1543+ 1544: ; 14 January. A Parliament Cy 262 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Englifh court ; and he fummoned his clients and partizans to attend him. All thofe who were inclined to the proteftant religion, or were on any account dif- contented with the cardinal’s adminiftration, now regarded Lenox as the head of their party, and they readily made him a tender of their fervices. In a little time, he had collected an army of ten thoufand men, and he threatned. his ene- mies with immediate deftruction. The cardinal had no equal force to oppofe to him; but as he was a prudent man, he forefaw that Lenox could not long fubfitt fo great an army, and he endeavoured to protract time, by opening a negocia- tion with him, He feduced his followers, by various artifices; he engaged the Douglafies in his interefts; he reprefented to the whole nation the danger of civil wars and commotions. And Lenox, finding himfelf engaged in an unequal conteft, was at laft obliged to lay down his arms, and to accept of terms of accom- modation with the governor and the cardinal. Prefent peace was reftored; but no confidence took place between the parties. Lenox, fortifying his caftles, and putting himfelf in a pofture of defence, waited the fuccours of the Enelifh, from whofe affiftance alone he expected to obtain the fuperiority over his ene- mies. Wace the winter feafon reftrained Henry from military operations, he fum- moned a new Parliament; where a law was pafled, fuch as he was pleafed ta dictate, with regard to the fucceffion of the crown. ~After declaring, that the prince of Wales, or any of the King’s male iffue, were firft and immediate heirs to the kingdom, the Parliament reftored the two princefles, Mary and Elizabeth, to their right of fucceffion. This feemed a reafonable piece of juftice, and corrected what the King’s former violence had thrown into confufion ; but it was impoffible for Henry to do any thing, however laudable, without betraying, in fome circum- flances, his ufual caprice and extravagance: Tho’ he opened the way for thefe two princefles to mount the throne, he would not allow the act to be reverfed which had declared them both ulegitimate ; he made the Parliament confer on him a power of flill excluding them, if they refufed to fubmit to any conditions which he fhould be pleafed to impofe ; and he required them to enaét, that, in default of his own iffue, he might difpofe of the crown, as he pleafed, by will or letters patent. He did not probably forefee, that in proportion as he degraded the Parliament, by rendering them the paffive inftrument of his variable and violent inclinations, he taught the people to regard all their acts as invalid, and thereby defeated even the purpofes which he was fo bent to attain. An act was pafied, that the King’s ufual ftile fhould be “ King of England, «© France, and Ireland, defender of the faith, and on earth the fupreme head “© of Bie MR, YP & vie 263 « of the church of England and Ireland.” It feemed a palpable inconfiftency, to retain the title of defender of the faith, which the fee of Rome had conferred on him for maintaining its caufe againft Luther; and yet fubjoin his ecclefiattical fupremacy, in oppofition to the claims of that fee; Aw act. was alfo paffed, for the remiffion of a loan of money, which the King had lately raifed. It will eafily be believed, that, after the former a& of this kind, the loan was not entirely voluntary *. But there was a peculiar circym- ftance attending the prefent ftatute, which none but Henry would have thought of : That thofe who had already got payment, either in whole or in part, fhould re- fund the fums to the exchequer. Tue oaths which Henry eftablifhed for the fecurity of his ecclefiaftical model, were not more reafonable than his other meafures. All his fubje&ts of any dif- tinction had already been obliged to renounce the pope’s fupremacy; but as the claufes which they {wore to, had not been efteemed entirely fatisfatory,. another oath was impofed, and it was added, that all thofe who had taken the former oaths, fhould be underitood to have taken the new one+. A {trange fuppofi- tion! to reprefent men as bound.by an oath which they had never confented to take, Tue moft commendable act to which the Parliament gave their fanction, was that by which they mitigated the law of the fix articles, and ordained, that no perfon fhould be put to his trial upon any accufation concerning any of the of. fences comprized in that fanguinary ftatute, except on the oath of twelve per- fons before commifiioners authorized for that purpofe ; and that no perfon fhould be arrefted or committed to ward for any fuch offence before he was indicted. Any preacher, accufed of {peaking in his fermon contrary to thefe articles, muft- be indicted within forty days. Tue King always experienced the limits of his exorbitant authority whenever he demanded fubfidies, however moderate, from the Parliament ; and, therefore, not to hazard a refufa], he made no mention this feffion of a fupply: But as his wars both with France and Scotland, as well as his ufual prodigality, had involy- ed him in great expence, he had recourfe to other methods of filling his treafury: Nétwithftanding the former abolition of his debts, he yet required new loans from his fubjeéts: And he enhanced gold from forty-five fhillings to forty-eight an ounce; and filver from three fhillings and nine pence to four fhillings. His pretence for this innovation, was to preyent the money from being exported; as if that expedient could any way ferve the purpofe. He even coined fome bafe | money, * 45. Heh, VIII. ¢. 12. + 35 Hen. VIII, c. 1, ~ Chap. VI", 1544. 7 Chap. V1. 1544. 18th May, 264. HISTORY or ENGLAND. money, and ordered it to be current by his proclamation. He named commif- fioners for levying a benevolence, and he extorted about feventy thoufand pounds by that expedient. Read, alderman of London}, a man fomewhat advanced in years, having refufed to contribute his fhare, or not coming up to the ex- pectations of the commiffioners, was inrolled as a foot foldier in the Scottith wars, and was there taken prifoner. Roach, who had been equally refractory, was thrown into prifon, and obtained not his liberty but by paying a large compofi- tion*. Thefe powers of the prerogative, (which at that time paffed for unquef- tioned) of the King’s compelling any man to ferve in any office, and of impri- foning any man during pleafure, not to mention the practice of extorting loans, rendered the fovereign, in a manner, abfolute mafter of the perfon and property of every individual, Ear y this year the King fent a fleet and army to invade Scotland. The fleet confifted of near. two hundred veffels, and carried on board ten thoufand men. Dudley lord Lifle commanded the fea forces; the earl of Hertford the land. The troops were difembarked near Leith; and after diffipating a fmall body which oppofed them, they took that town without refiftance, and then marched to Edinburgh. The gates were foon beat down (for little or no refiftance was made); and the Englifh firft pillaged, and then fet fire to thecity. The regent and cardinal were not prepared to oppofe fo great a force, and they fled to Stirling. Hertford marched eaftward; and being joined by anew bocy under Evers, warden of the eaft marches, he laid wafte the whole country, burned and deftroyed Hadington and Dunbar, and then retired into England; having loft only forty men in’ the whole expedition, The earl’ of Arran collected fome forces; but finding that the Englifh were already departed, he turned them againft Lenox, who was juftly fufpeéted of acorrefpondence with the enemy. That nobleman, after making fome refiftance, was obliged to fly into England; where Henry fettled a penfion on him, and even gave him his niece, the lady Margaret Douglas, in marriage. In return, Lenox ftipulated conditions, by which, had he been able to execute them, he myuft have reduced his country to a total fer- vitude +. ; Henry’s policy was blamed in this fudden and violent incurfion ; by which he inflamed the paffion of the Scotch, without fubduing their fpirit ; and it was commonly faid, that he did too much, if he intended to follicit an alliance, and too little, if he meant a conqueftt. But the reafon of his withdrawing the. troops | Herbert. Stowe, p. 588. Baker, p. 292. * Goodwin’s Annals, Stowe, p. 583. + Rymer, XV. 23, 29. t Herbert. Burnet. Af Ro ¥ VII. 6 re troops fo foon, was his eagernefs tovcarry on his projected enterprize againt France, where he intended to employ the whole force of his kingdom. 1 le had concerted a plan with the emperor, which threatned the total ruin of th narchy, and muft, as a neceflary confequence, have. involved the fubjection England. .. Thefe: two princes had agreed to. invade France with forces amount- ing to above-a hundred. thoufand men: Henry engaged to fet out from Calais ; Charles from the. Low Countries: ‘They were to enter on no fiege, but leaving ) - all the frontier towns behind them, to march directly ta Paris, where they. were to join their forces;, and thence to proceed to the entire conquefl of the kingdom. Francis could not! oppofe to thefe formidable preparations, much above forty thoufand men. “Hewry, havifig appointed the Queen regent during. his abfence, pafied 14tl over to Calais with: thirty thoufand men, accompanied with the dukes of Nor: folk and. Suffolk, Fitzalan earl of Arundel, Vere earl of Oxford, the earl of Surrey, Paulet lord St. John, lord Ferrers of Chartley, lord Mountjoy, lord Grey of Wilton, Sir Anthony Brown, Sir Francis Bryan, and the moft Hourifh- ing nobility and gentry of hiskingdom. The Englifh army was foon joined by the count de Buren, admiral of Flanders, with ten thoufand foot, and four thoufand horfe;\ and the whole compofed an army, which nothing on that frontier was able to refift. The chief force of the. French army was drawn to the fide of Champagne, in order to oppofe the imperialifts, Tur emperor, with an army of near fixty thoufand men, had taken the field much earlier than Henry; and not to lofe:time, while he waited for the march of his confederate, he fat down before Luxembourg, which he took : He thence proceeded to Commercy on the Meule, which was furrendered to-him: -Ligny met' with the fame fate: He next laid. fiege to St. Difier on the Marne, which, tho’ a weak place, made a brave refiftance, under the count of Sancerre the go: vernor; and the fiege was protracted beyond expectation. Tat emperor was employed before this town at the time the Englith forces were affembled in Picardy. Henry, either tempted by the defencelefs condition of the French frontiers, or thinking that the emperor ‘had: firft broke éngage- ments by forming fieges, or, pe: haps, forefeeing the dangerous confequences of deftroying entirely the French power, inftead of marching forward to Paris, fat. down before Montreuil and Boulogne. The duke of Norfolk commanded the army before Montreuil : The King himfelf that before Boulogne. Vervin was — . Di thsts ArAWA f . } ‘ne ; governor of Boulogne, and under him’ Philip Corfe, ‘a brave oldfoldier, who <{- 4 :¥ ~ {> ] :* >% - - : ‘ 1 encouraged the garrifon to_ defend themfelves to the laf extremity. againft the 5, oojton, Pos -~ By Englith,.* He was killed during the courfe of the. fiege, and the town was imt- ber. M m / mediately 4 hela wsasy ve a ¥Y s¢ ee SS eee = — = S——— ee x == i { 4 he ay by | ie rin hit Nine 1b i] " : " if i} at { 4 f nT Li Mil ¢ it} 1 tk i) 4 Vie, hi vy HOM i 1 1 iB fal) | lat! i wil! ; hes he a Chap. VII. 1544+ 1%th Septem- ber. goth Septem- ber. 266 HISTORY op ENGLAND. mediately furrendered to Henry by the cowardice of Vervin; who was after- wards beheaded for this difhonourabie capitulation. Duarine the courfe of this fiege, Charles had taken St. Difier; and finding the feafon much advanced, he began to hearken toa treaty of peace with France, fince all his fchemes for fubduing that kingdom were likely to prove abortive. In order to have a pretence for deferting his ally, he fent a mefienger to the Eng- lifh camp; requiring Henry immediately to fulfil his engagements, and to meet him with his army before Paris. Henry replied, that he was too far engaged in the fiege of Boulogne to raife it with honour, and that the emperor himfelf had firft broke the concert by forming fieges, This anfwer ferved Charles as a fufficient realon ior concluding a peace with Francis at Crepy, where no mention was made of theEnglifh. He ftipulated to give Flanders as a dowry to his daugh- ter, whom he agreed to marry to the duke of Orleans, Francis’s fecond fon 3 and Francis, in return, withdrew his troops from Piemont and Savoy, and re- nounced all claim to Milan, Naples, and other territories in Italy, . This peace, fo advantageous to Fiancis, was procured partly by the decifive victory obtained in the beginning of the campaign by the count of Anguyen over the imperialitts at Cerifolles in Piemont,, partly by the emperor’s great defire to turn his arms. again{t the proteftant princes in Germany. Charles ordered his troops to fepa- rate from the Englifh in Picardy; and Henry, finding himfelf obliged to raife the fiege of Montreuil, returned into England. This campaign ferved, to the populace, as matter of great triumph; but all men of fenfe concluded, that the King had, as in all his former military enterprizes, made, at an infinite charge, an acquifition which was of no manner of confequence. TuHeE war with Scotland, meanwhile, was conducted feebly, and with various fuecefs. Sir Ralph Evers, now lord Evers, and Sir Bryan Latoun, made an in- road into that kingdom; and having laid wafte the counties of Tiviotdale and the Merfe, thcy procteded to the abbey of Coldingham, which they took pof- {effion of, and fortified. The regent affembled an army of eight thoufand men, in order to diflodge them from this poft; but he had no fooner opened his bat- teries before the place, than a fudden panic feized him,.and he fed toDunbar. He complained of the mutinies of his army, and pretended to be afraid left they fhould deliver him into the hands of the Englifh: But his own unwarlike fpirit was generally believed to have been the motive of this difhonourable re- treat. “Phe Scotch army, upon the departure of their general, immediately fel into confufion; and had not Angus, with a few of his retainers, brought off the cannon, and protected their rear, the Englifh might have gained great ad- vantages over them. Evers, elated with this fuccefs, boafted to Henry, that he 6 had ‘ nae Wm ROY VI. 2607 liad conquered all Scotland to the Forth; and he claimed a reward for this im- portant fervice. The duke of Norfolk, who knew with what difficulty fuch acquifitions would be maintained againft a warlike people, advifed the King to grant him, as his reward, the conquefts of which he fo highly boafted. The next inroad made by the Englith, fhewed the vanity of Evers’s hopes. This gene- ral led about five thoufand men into Tiviotdale, and was employed in ravaging that country; when intelligence was brought him, that fome Scotch forces ap- peared near the abbey of Melrofs. Angus had excited the regent to more atti- vity; and a proclamation being iffued for affembling the troops of the neighbouring counties, a confiderable body had repaired to his ftandard. Norman Lefly, fon to the Earl of Rothes, had alfo joined the army with fome volunteers from Fife ; and he infpired courage into the whole, as ‘well by this acceffion of force, as by his perfonal bravery and intrepidity. In order to bring their troops to the neceffity of a fteddy defence, the Scotch leaders ordered all their cavalry to difmount; and they refolved to wait, on fome high grounds at Ancram, the af- fault of the Englifh. The Englifh, whofe paft fuccefles had taught them too much to defpife the enemy, thought, when they faw the Scotch horfes led of the field, that the whole army was retiring; and they haftened to attack them. The Scotch received them in good order; and being favoured by the advantage of the ground, as well as by the furprize of the Englifh, who expected no re- fiftance, they foon put them to flight, and purfued them with a confiderable flaughter. Evers and Latoun were both killed, and above a thoufand men were made prifoners. dn order to fupport the Scotch in this war, Francis, fome time after, fent over a body of auxiliaries, to the number of three thoufand five hun- dred men, under the command of Montgomery, lord of Lorges*. Reinforced by thefe fuccours, the regent afflembled an army of fifteen thoufand men at Had- ington, and marched thence to ravage the eaft borders of England. They laid all wafte wherever they came; and having met with no confiderable refiftance, they retired into their own country, and difperfed themfelves. The earl of Hertford, in revenge, committed ravages on the middle and weft marches; and the war on both fides was fignalized rather by the ills inflicted on the enemy, than by any confiderable advantage gained by either party. Tue war likewife between France and England was not diftinguifhed this year by any memorableevents. Francis had equipped a fleet of above two hundred fail, be- fides gallies; and having embarked fome land forces on board, he fent them to make a defcent in England+. They failed to the Ifle of Wight, where they found the Mm 2 Englifh * Buchanan, lib, XV. Drummond. + Beleair, Memoires du Bellay. i7th of Fe. bruary. 4 268 HISTOR Yor ENGLAND. Englith fleet lying at,anchor in St. Helens. It confifted:novof above an hundied" fails and the admiral) thought.it. moft adviléable: tdo tem in hopes of drawing the French. into the narrow paffages: and) rocks, which were unknown tothem. © The ‘two fleets cannonaded one vanother' for two days’; and except the. finking of the Mary Rofe,. one of the largeft thips of the Eng-: lith fleet, the damage on,both fides: was incon fiderable. The French’ landéd troops in the [fle of Wight, and committed: ravages; but being repulfed: by the militia of the country,. they.retired to their’ thips,, whith! foon after: fer fail for Hrance. . They were again driven) by the wind ‘on. the!coatt of Englaod,, where: they met with the Enelifh fleet; anda new cannonading enfued, which, proved no more decifive than:the foregoing... It was indeed ‘{carce poffibles that'a fleet at that time could, without boarding, gain-any confliderable advantage over the enemy. Ihe cannon were commonly {0 ill- ferved, that a French writer of me- moirs obferves, as a circumftance fomewhat fingular, that each of thefe nume- rous fleets in a two hours engagement, fired full three hundred fhot. One large fhip in our time could, without-difficulty, do as much. Franets’s chief intention, in equipping fo great a flect, was to prevent the Englifh from throwing fuccours into Boulogne, which he intended to befiege’; and for that purpofe, he ordered a fort tobe built, by which he propofed to block. upthe harbour. After a confiderable lofs of money and time, the fort was found fo Til conftruGted, that he was obliged to abandon it; and tho’. he had brought together, }on that!frontier; an army of near forty thoufand men;-hé was not able to effect any confiderable enterprize. He broke: into the territory. of Oye, an-extent of country which lies ‘near Calais, and which ferved commonly to fupply the garrifon with provifions; and he ‘laid. it entirely wafte by fire and {word. . Several fkirmifhes enfued between the French and Englith, in one of which the duke of Aumale received a remarkable-wound. . A lance was run into his head between his eye, and nofe; and. notwithftanding that the lance broke and. the head of it remained in the wound, he was not difmounted by fo violent a fhock, and the head of the lance being extracted by a fkilful furgeon, he afterwards recovered, and rendered himfelf extremely famous by the name of the duke of Guife. Henry, in order to defend his dominions in-France, had levied fourteen thoufand Germans ; who, having marched-to Fleurines in the bifhopric of Liege, found they could advance no farther. The Emperor would not allow them a paflage through his dominions : They received intelligence of a fuperior army on the fide of France ready to intercept them: Idlenefs and want of pay foon bred a mutiny among them: And having feized the Englith 8 | com- + De Langey. : ain ni that» roads) Howes WR, -Y V IEE. ab commiffaries: as a fecurity. for arrears, they. retreated into. their’ own country There feems.to. have becn fome want of forefight and contrivance in this expen- five armament. ~ THE great expence of thefe two. war s, maintained by Henry, obliged him to fum- 22 mona new. Parliament... The commons granted him a fubfidy, payable.in two years,..of ‘two: fhillings,a pound on. Jandy}: The fpirituality voted him fix lings,a pound...,.But.the Parliament, apprehenfive left more demands thould lib bemade upon|them,. thought to fave themfelves by a very extraordinary rality of other people’s property; and by one vote ea beftowed on the King the whole.revenues.of .the univerfities,. as well-as of the chauntries, free cha ippels §, and hofpitals. . Henry was pleafed with this conceflion, as 1t encre afed his power ; but .he. had_.no - intention of defpoiling learning of all her endowments ; and he foon took care to Mi form. the univerfities, that he meant not. to sankch their re- venues. Thus thefe antient and celebrated eftablifhments owed their fubfiftance to the generofity “ the King, not to the protection of this fervile and ‘Se Parliament. Tue proftitute fpirit of the Parliament appeared farther in si preamble of a ftatute || ;. where they recognize the King to have always been by the word of God fupreme head of the church of England, and acknowlege, that archbifhops, bifhops, and other ecclefiaftical perfons, have no manner of jurifdiction but by his royal mandate: To him alone, and fuch perfons as he fhall appoint, full au- thority and power is given from above to hear and determine all manner of caufes ecclefiaftical, and to correct all manner of herefies, errors, vices and fins whatf{o- ever. . No mention is here made of the concurrence of a convocation, nor even of a Parliament... His proclamations are acknowleged.to have not only the MIPERE of a law, but the authority of a revelation ; and by his = power he may regul the actions of men, and even direct their inward fentiments and opinions. Tue King made in perfon a fpeech.to. the Parliament .on, proroguing them; where, after thanking them for their loving attachment to him, which, he faid, equalled what was ever paid by their anceftors to any King of England, he com- plained of their diffenfions, difputes and animofities in religion. He told them, that t Thofe who poffeffed goods or money, above five pound and. below ten, were to pay eight: pence a pound: Thofe above ten pound, a fhilling. § A chauntry was a little church, chappe J, or particular altar in fome cathedral church, &c. endowed with lands or other revenues for maintainance of one or more priefts, daily to fay mafs or-perform di- vinefervice, for the ufe of the founders, or fuch others as they appointed: l'ree chappels were inc pendant on any church, and endowed for much the fame purpofe as the former. Jacob's La | 37 Hen. VITR c..17. ~ 24 Decem! ry = w ALDI Ss 270 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Chap. VII. thatthe feveral pulpits were become a kind of batteries againft each others and that 1545: 15 46. 7th of June. Peace with France and Scotland. one preacher called another heretic and anabaptift, which was retaliated by the op- probious terms of papift and hypocrite: That he had permitted his people the ufe of the fcriptures, not in order to furnifh them materials for difpute and railing, but: that he might enable them to inform their con{ciences and inftruct their children and families: That it grieved his heart to find how that precious jewel was pro- ftituted, by being introduced into the converfation of every alehoufe and tavern, and employed as a pretence for decrying the fpiritual and legal paftors: And that he was forry to obferve, that the word of God, while it was the object of fo much anxious fpeculation, had very little influence on their practice ; and that tho’ an imaginary knowlege fo much abounded, charity was daily going to decay *. The King gave good advice; but his own example, by encouraging fpeculation and difpute, was ill qualified to promote that peaceable fubmiffion of opinion, which he recommended. FHenay employed in military preparations the money granted by Parliament; and he fent over the earl of Hertford, and lord Lifle the admiral, to Calais with a body of nine thoufand men, two thirds of which confifted of foreigners. Some fkirmifhes enfued of fmall confequence; and no hopes of any confiderable pro- erefs could be entertained by either fide. Henry, whofe animofity againft Francis was not violent, had given fufficient vent to his humour by this fhort war; and finding, that from his great encreafe in corpulence and decay in ftrength, he could not hope for much longer life, he was defirous of ending a quarrel, which might prove dangerous to his kingdom during a minority. Francis likewife, on his part, was not averfe to peace with England ; becaufe, having lately loft his fon, the duke of Orleans, he revived his antient claim upon Milan, and forefaw, that hoftilities mult foon, on that account, break out between him and the Em- peror: Commiffioners therefore having met at Campe, a place between Ardres and Guifnes, the articles were foon agreed, and the peace figned by them. The chief conditions were, that Henry fhould retain Boulogne during eight years, or till the former debt due by Francis fhould be paid. This debt was fettled at two millions of livres, befides a claim of 5e0,000 livres, which was afterwards to be adjufted. Francis took care to comprehend Scotland in the treaty. Thus all that Henry obtained by a war, which coft him above one million three hun- dred and forty thoufand pounds fterling +, was a bad fecurity for a debt, which was not athird of the value. | THe * Hall, fol. 261. Herbert, p. 534. + Herbert, Stowe. MMS NERS LY VIII, 271 Tue King, being now freed from all foreign wars, had leifure to give his at- Chap. \ tention to domeftic affairs; and particularly to the eftablifhment of uniformity oe of opinion, on which he was fointent. Tho’ he allowed an Englifh tranflation of the Bible, he had hitherto been very careful to keep the mafsin Latin ; but he was at Jaft prevailed with to permit, that the Litany, a confiderable part of the public wor- fhip, fhould be celebrated in the vulgar tongue ; and by this innovation, he excited anew the hopes of the reformers, who had been fomewhat difcouraged by the fe- verity of the ftatute of the fix articles. One petition of the new Litany was a prayer to fave us from ibe tyranny of the bifhop of Rome, and from all bis deteftable en- ormities, Cranmer was employing his authority to engage Henry to farther inno- vations, and he took advantage of Gardiner’s abfence, who was employed in an embafly to the emperor ; but Gardiner, having wrote to the King, that, if he _ €atried his oppofition againft the catholic religion to greater extremities, Charles threatened to break offallcommerce with him, the fuccefs of Cranmer’s projects wasforthe timeretarded, Cranmer loft this year the moft fincere and moft powerful friend, whom hepoffefied at court; Charles Brandon, duke of Suffolk : The Queen dowager of France, fpoufe toSuffolk, had died fome years before. This nobleman is one inftance, that Henry was not altogether incapable of a cordial and fteady friendfhip ; and Suffolk feems to have been entirely worthy of that favour, which, from his earlieft youth, he had enjoyed with him. The King was fitting in council when informed of Suffolk’s death ; and he took that occafion both to exprefs his own forrow for the lofs, and to celebrate the merits of the deceafed. He de- clared, that, during the whole courfe of their correfpondence, he had not made any attempt to injure an adverfary, and had never whifpered a word to the dif advantage of any one. ‘Is there any of you, my lords, who can fay as much ?” ade When the King fubjoined thefe words, he looked round in all their faces, and faw that confufion, which the confcioufnefs of fecret guilt threw upon them *. Cranmer himlelf, when bereaved of this fupport, was the more expofed to thofe cabals of the courtiers, which the oppofition of party and religion, joined to the ufual motives of intereft, rendered fo eager among Henry’s minifters and counfellors. The catholics took advantage of the King’s paffion for orthodoxy ; and they reprefented to him, that, if his laudable zeal for inforcing the truth met with no greater fuccefs, it was owing altogether to the primate, whofe example and encouragement were, in reality, the fecret fupports of herefy. Henry, fee- ing the point to which they tended, feigned a compliance, and defired the coun- cil to make enquiry into Cranmer’s conduét; promifing that, if he was found guilty, he fhould fend him to the Tower, and bring him to condign punifhment. Aik * Coke’s Inf, cap. 99. Perfecu ticns. 272 HIsSmoOR YW oF ENG LIAN D. All thé world now gave the primate for loft; and his old friends, from merce- nary views, as we'l as the oppofite ee from wien i: began to fhow him marks of neglect and difregard. . He was obliged :to ftandfeveral hours among the pees at the door of the council-chamber, before he could be!admitted ; and when. he was at la{t called in; he was told, t that heen had determined to fend him i the Lower. Cranmer faid, that he: appealed to the’ Kin oe himfelf ;‘and finding his appeal) difregarded, he produced a. ring; which Heniy had given him as a pledge, of favour and protection. «: The council were confounded’; and when they came before the King, he reproved them in the fevereft terms, and told them, that he was well aequaitited with Cranmer’s merit, as well as with their malignity and envy: But he was determined to crufh all their cabals, and to teach them, by the fevereft difcipline, fince gentle methods were vain, a more dutiful concurrence in promoting his fervice. Norfolk, who was Cranmer’s capi- tal enemy, apologized for their conduét, by fay ying, that their only intention was to fet the primate’s innocence in a full light t by bringing him’ to an opefi trial’: enry obliged them all to embrace him, as a fign of their cotdial reconcile- ment.; Ihe mild temper of Cranmer rendered this reconcilement more fincére on his part, than is ufual in fuch forced compliances +. A A. £3 na id Bur tho’ Henry’s partiality to Cranmer rendered fruitlefs all accufations againft him, his pride and peevifhnefs, irritated by his declining ftate of health, eartiéd him to punifh with freth feverity all others who prefumed to entertain a different opinion from himfelf, particularly in-the: capital point of .the real prefence. Anne Afcue, a young woman of merit as well-as beauty {, who had great connexions with the chief ladies at court, and with the Queen herfelf, was accufed of dogma- tizing on that delicate article; and:Henry, inftead of having indulgence to the weaknefs of her fex and age, was but the more Penrereete that a woman fhould date to oppofe his theological fentiments... She was prevailed on by Bonner’s me- naces to make a feeming recantation; but fhe qualified it with fome -referves, which did not fatisfy that zealous prelate. She was A into prifon, and there PS ae alee, in compofing prayers and difcourfes, by whichi the forti- fied her refolution to endure the ut tmoft extremity rather a relinguifh her reli- gious principles. She even wrote to the King, and told him, that as to the Lord’s Supper, fhe believed as much as Chrift: himfelf had faid of it, and as much: of-his divine doétrine as the catholic church had required: But while fhe could not be brought to acknowlege an affent to the e King’ $ eXp tications, this r J mn rr : et aS ~ “ —o an ‘ > A n Pre , ~ declaration availed het nothing, ab d WaS rat] eF FE Qa araead as 2 freth tnfuilc. J} ne aaoelinr 7 RM meen les ae: - Lh Cnancciiol vy) riothelely Who had fuccee ded Audley a nd who Was nuucnh = ttich- 3 Bh , at 6 PR Sata - ig. o o. + Burnet, vol.i. p. 347, 344, An Brit, m vita Cranm t- Bale, Speed, » H ENR Y ~ VU on ed to the catholic party, was fent to examine her with regard to her patrons at court, and the great ladies who were in correfpondence with her: But fhe main- tained a very laudible fidelity to her friends, and would confefs nothing. She was put to the torture in themoftcruel manner, and continued till refolute in pre- ferving fecrecy. Some authors + add a very extraordinary circumflance: That the chancellor, who ftood by, ordered the lieutenant of the Tower to ftretch the rack farther; but the lieutenant refufed compliance with that cruelty: Ihe chan- cellor menaced him ; but met with a new refufal: Upon which that magiftrate, who was otherwife a perfon of merit, but intoxicated with religious zeal, put his own hand to the rack, and drew it fo violently that he almoft tore her body afunder. Her conftancy ftill furpaffed the barbarity of her perfecutors, and they found all their efforts to be baffled. She was then condemned to be burned alive; and being fo diflocated by the rack, that fhe could not ftand, the was carried to the ftake in acchair. Together with her, were brought Nicholas Belenian, a prieft, John Laffels of the King’s family, and John Adams a taylor, who had been condemned for the fame crime to the fame punifhment. They were all tied to the ftake; and in that dreadful fituation, the chancellor fent to - ipform them, that their pardon was ready drawn and figned, and fhould inftantly be given them, if they would merit it by a recantation. They only regarded this offer as-a new ornament to their crown of martyrdom; and they faw with tranquillity the executioner kindle the flames which confumed them. Wriothefely did not confider, that this public and noted ftuation interefted their honour the more to maintain a fteady perfeverance. Bur tho’ the fecrecy and fidelity of Anne Afcue faved the Queen from this peril, the foon after fell into a new danger, from which fhe very narrowly efcaped. There was an ulcer broke out in the King’s leg, which, joined to his extreme corpulency and his bad habit of body, began both to threaten his life, and to render him, even more than ufual, peevifh and paffionate. The Queen, during this time, attended him with the moft tender and dutiful care, and endeavoured, by every foothing art and compliance, to allay thofe eufts of humour, to which he was become fo fubject. Fis favourite topic of converfation was theology; and Catherine, whofe good fenfe made her capable of difcourfing on any fubjeét, was frequently engaged into the areu- ment; and being fecretly inclined to the principles of the reformers, fhe un- warfily difcovered too much of her mind on thefe occafions. Henry, highly pro- Nn voked + Fox, vol. ii. p. 578. Speed, p. 780. Baker, p.299. But Burnet queftions the. truth of this cir- cumflance> Fox, however, tranfcribes her own paper, where fhe relates it. I muft add, in juftice to the King, that he difapproved of Wriothefely’s conduct, and commended the licutenant. ~- > Chap. VI. » th 1540. y Lid iss bt mii i 3 { i a " Hh tl i 9 Hi 12 *) 1} t i) Hi J ' Chap. VII. 1546, 2774, HISTORY or ENGLAND, voked that fhe fhould prefume to differ from him, made complaints of her ob- {tinacy to Gardiner, who gladly laid hold of the opportunity tounflame the quar- rel. -He praifed the King’s anxious care of preferving the orthodoxy of his fub- jets ; and reprefented, that the more elevated the perfon was who was chattifed, and the more near to his perfon, the greater terror would the example {trike into every one, and the more glorious would the facrifice appear to all pofteriry. The chancellor, being confulted, was engaged by religious zeal to fecond thefe to- pics; and Henry, hurried by his own impetuous temper, and encouraged by his counfellors, went fo far as to order articles of impeachment to be drawn up againit his confort. Wriothefely executed his commands; and foon after brought the paper to him to be figned: For’as it was high treafon to throw flander upon the Queen, he might otherwife have been queftioned for his temerity. In going home, he chanced to drop this important paper from his pocket ; «and as fome perfon of the Queen’s party found it, it was immediately carried to her, She was fenfible of the extreme danger to which fhe was expofeds but did not de- {pair of being able, by her prudence and addrefs, ftill to elude the efforts of her enemies. She paid her ufual vifit tothe King, and found him in a more ferene difpofition than fhe had reafon to expect. He entered on the fubject which was fo familiar to him, and he feemed to challenge her to an argument in divinity. She gently declined the converfation, and obferved, that fuch profound fpecula- tions were ill fuited to the natural imbecillity of her fex. Women, fhe faid, by their firft creation, were made fubject to men: ‘The male was created after the image of God; the female after the image of the male: It belonged to the huf- band to choofe principles for his wife; the wife’s duty was, in all cafes, to adopt implicitely the fentiments of her hufbaad: And as to herfelf, it was doubly her duty, being bleft with a hufband, who was qualified, by his judgment and learn- ing, -not only to choofe principles for his own family, but for the moft wife and knowing of every nation, ‘* Not fo! by St. Mary,” replied the King, ** you << are now become a doctor, Kate; and better fitted to give than receive in- “ ftructions.” She meekly replied, that fhe was fenfible how little fhe was in- titled to thefe praifes ; that tho’ fhe ufually declined not any converfation, how- ever fublime, when propofed by his majefty, fhe well knew, that her concep- tions could ferve to no other purpofe than to give him a little momentary amufe- ment; that fhe found the converfation apt to languifh when not revived by fome oppofition, and had ventured fometimes to feign a contraricty of fentiments, in order to give him the pleafure of refuting her; and that fhe alfo propofed, by this innocent artifice, to engage him into topics, whence, fhe had obferved, by her frequent experience, that fhe reaped profit and infiruction, ‘* And is it fo, ‘¢ {weet- — 3 Ir EoN RK. ¥ VITE. 270 FD <¢ {weet-heart?”. replied the King, ‘‘ then are we perfect friends again.”? Efe embraced her with great affection, and fent her away with affurances of his pro- tection and kindnefs. Her enemies, who knew nothing of this turn, pre- pared next day to convey her to the Tower, purfuant to the King’s warrant. Henry and Catherine were converfing amicably in the garden, when the chancel- lor appeared with forty of the purfuivants. The King fpoke to him at fome dif- tance from her; and feemed to expoftulate with him in the fevereft manner: She even overheard the terms of kuave, fool, and deaft, which he very liberally beftowed upon that magiftrate; and then ordered him to depart his prefence. She afterwards interpofed to mitigate his anger: He faid to her, ‘* Poor foul! * you know not how little intitled this man is to your good offices.”” From thenceforth, the Queen, having narrowly efcaped fo great a danger, was careful not to offend Henry’s humour by any contradi¢tion; and Gardiner, whofe ma- lice had endeavoured to widen the breach, could never afterwards recover his fa- your and good opinion *. But Henry’s tyrannical difpofition, foured by ill health, burft out foon after to the deftruction of a man, who poflefled a much fuperior rank to Gardi- ner, The duke of Norfolk and his father, during this whole reign, and even a great part of the foregoing, had been regarded as the greate{t fubjects in the king- dom, and had ‘rendered very confiderable fervices tothe crown. The duke himfelf had in his youth diftinguifhed himfelf by naval enterprizes : He had much contri- buted to the victory over the Scotch at Flouden: He had fuppreffed a dangerous rebellion in the North: And he had always done his part with honour in all the expeditions againft France. Fortune feemed to confpire with his own induftry, in raifing him to the higheft elevation. By the favours heaped on him from the crown, he had acquired an immenfe eftate : The King had fucceffively been mar- ried to two of his nieces ; and the King’s fon, the duke of Richmond, had mar- ried his daughter : Befides his defcent from the antient family of the Moubrays, by which he was allied to the throne, he had efpoufed a daughter of the duke of Buckingham, who was defcended by a female from Edward the third: And as he was believed ftill to adhere fecretly to the antient religion, he was regarded, abroad and at home, as the head of the catholic party. But all thefe circum- ftances, in proportion as they exalted the duke, provoked the jealoufy of Henry ; and he forefaw danger, during his fon’s minority, both to the public tranguil- lity, and to the new ecclefiaftical fyftem, from the attempts of fo potent a fub- ject. But nothing tended more to expofe Norfolk to the King’s vengeance, Nn 2 than * Burnet, vol. i, p. 344. Herbert, p. 560. Speed, p. 780. Fox's Acts and Monuments, vol. ii. p. 58; an | Lh : 4 by th) tM i ity | 4 ‘ i { Wh SKI ' t j Hay ‘ _ : | : H } } { i) | Lihat Ue a hii a at a is La laihih ta : i mi a ¥ ] } F 1 tt a : it it t in Vit { in) ii 1 PP Ua) aie 4 af thy } hit wae ia Wiedital | CG) om Wes Muth! Je oT Te SHIN Ue Hy Pua d PT tert allot WH et eae iy Hi { as { aM ae 1) 2 Romi aian I Hide Vb i Hn a i ih SUE LARRY ees) Nii : i a. iv: Li inh ct : hey 7 lait if ii en as | Te we euehy! 4 | J 2 OE Han ty 4 - an en) a DIRE bite Dee Sst ae { aia, aa ; tT : Wit! Ee th 4 | t a : ' ti) Wh) . CR! op iT ie gal : - f : rit ; * ei tf Mio ral sae Se ee Soe * cember. we 276 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Chap. VI. than the prejudices, which Henry had entertained again the earl of Surrey, 154 fon to that nobleman. Surrey was a young man of the moft promifing hopes, and had diftinguifh- ed himfelf by every accomplifhment, which became a fcholar, a courtier, and a foldier. He excelled in all the military exercifes, which were then in requeft : He encouraged the fine arts by his patronage and example: He had made fome fuccefsful attempts in poetry; and being fmit with the romantic gallantry of that age, he celebrated his miftrefs’s praife by his pen and his lance, in every mafque and tournament. His fpirit and ambition were equal to his talents and his quality ; and he did not always regulate his conduct by that caution and referve, which his fituation required. He had been left governor of Boulogne, when that town was taken by Henry; but tho” his perfonal bravery was unqueftioned, he had been unfortunate in fome rencounters with the French. The King, fome- what difpleafed with his conduét, had fent over Hertford to command in his place; and Surrey was fo imprudent as to drop fome menacing expreflions again{t the miniffers, on account of this affront, which was put upon him. And as he had'refufed to marry Hertford’s daughter, and even waved every pro- pofal of marriage, which were made him; Henry imagined, that he had enter- tained views of efpoufing the lady Mary; and he was inftantly determined to re- prefs, by the moft fevere expedients, fo dangerous an ambition. Acruatep by all. thefé motives, and perhaps too influenced by that old difeutt, with which the ill conduc of Catherine Howard had infpired hint againft all her family, he gave private orders to arreft Norfolk and Surrey; and they rzth of De- were on the fame day confined to the Tower. Surrey being a commoner, Ins trial was the more expeditious ; and as to proofs, neither parliaments nor juries 1547* {em ever to have given the leaft attention to them in any caufe of the crown, Execution of during this whole reign. E¥e was accufed, that he had entertained’ im his family res on of 6 ne Italians who were /u/pecfed to be fpies; a fervant of his had paid-a vifit to cardinal Pole in Italy, whence he was /u/pecfed of entertaining a correfpondence with that obnoxious prelate; he had quartered the arms of Edward the Confeflor on his fcutcheon, which made him be /u/pected of afpiring to the crown, tho” both he and his anceftors had openly, during the courfe of many years, maintained that praétice; and the heralds had’ even juftified it by their authority. ‘Thefe were the crimes, for which a jury, notwith{tanding his eloquent and fpirited de- fence, condemned this nobleman for high treafon ; and their fentence was foon after executed upon hint. | pine : Tux innocence of the duke of Norfolk was ftill, if poffible, more apparent Nei °F than that of his fon; as his fervices to the crown had been much greater. His dutchefs, Hm EON R Y¥ ~.VuE 277 dutchefs, with whom he lived on bad terms, had been fo bafe as to carry intel- ligence to his enemies of all fhe knew againft him: Elizabeth Holland, a mif- trefs of his, had been equally fubfervient to the defigns of the court: Yet with all thefe advantages his accufers difecovered no greater crime, than that he had once faid, that the King was fickly, and could not hold out long, and the king- dom was. likely to fall into diforders, thro’ the diverfity of religious opinions. He wrote a meft pathetic letter to the King, pleading his paft fervices, and pro- tefting his innocence: Soon after he embraced a more proper expedient for ap- peafing Henry, by making a fubmiffion and confeffion, fuch as his enemies re- quired: But nothing could mollify the pnrelenting temper of the King. He afiembled the Parliament, as the fureft and moft expeditions inftrument of his tyranny ; and the houfe of peers, without examining the prifoner, without trial or evidence, pafled a bill of attainder againit him, and fent it down to the com- mons. Cranmer, tho’ engaged for many years in an oppofite party to Noriolk, and tho’ he had received many and great injuries from him, would have no hand in fo unjuft a profecution, and retired to his feat at Croydon *. The King was now approaching faft towards his end; and fearing left Norfolk fhould efcape him, he fent a meflage to the commons, by which he defired them to haften the bill, under pretence, that Norfolk enjoyed the dignity of earl marfhal, and it was neceflary to appoint another, who might officiate at the enfuing ceremony of inftalling his fon, prince of Wales. The obfequious commons obeyed his di- rections, tho’ founded on fo frivolous a pretence ; and the King, having affixed the royal affent to the bill by commiffioners, ifiued orders for the execution of Norfolk on the morning of the twenty ninth of January. But news being car- ried to the Tower, that the King himfelf had expired that night, the lieutenant deferred the execution of the warrant, and it was not thought advifable by the council, to begin a new reign by the death of the greateft nobleman in the king- dom, who had been condemned by a fentence fo unjuft and tyrannical. Tue King’s health had been long in a very declining condition; but for feveral days all thofe near him plainly faw his death approaching. He was become fo froward, that no one durft inform him of his condition 5 and as fome perfons, during this reign, had been punifhed as traitors for foretclling the King’s death +, every one was afraid, left, in the tranfports of his fury, he might, on this pre- tence, infli@ punifhment on the author of fuch friendly intelligence. At laft, Sir Anthony Denny ventured to difclofe to him the fatal fecret, and exhorted him to prepare for the fate which was awaiting him. He exprefied his refigna- ‘tion ; * Burnet, vol.i, p. 348. Fox, > 4 Lanquet’s Epitome of chronicles in the year 1541. Chap, VIf. 1547. 14th January. Chap. VII. 1547° Death of the King. His character. 278 HISTORY or ENGLAND. \ tion; and defired that Cranmer might be fent for: But before that prelate ar- rived, he was fpeechlefs, tho’ he ftill feemed to retain his fenfes. Cranmer de- fired him to give fome fign of his dying in the faith of Chrift: He fqueezed his hand, and immediately expired, after a reign of thirty-feven years and nine months; and in the fifty-fixth year of his age. Tue King had made his will near-a month before his deceafe; where he con- firmed the deftination of Parliament, in leaving the crown firft to prince Edward, then to the lady Mary, next to the lady Elizabeth: The two princeffes he ob- lived, under the penalty of forfeiting their title to the crown, not to marry with- out the confent of the council, which he appointed for the government of his minor fon. After his own children, he fettled the fucceffion on Frances Bran- don, marchionefs of Dorfet, eldeft daughter to his fifter, the French Queen ; then on Eleonor, countefs of Cumberland, the fecond daughter. In paffing over the pofterity of the Queen of Scots, his eldeft fifter, he made ufe of the power obtained from Parliament; but as he fubjoined, that after the failure of the French Queen’s pofterity, the crown fhould defcend to the next lawful heir, it afterwards became a queftion, whether thefe words could be applied to the Scottifh line. It was thought, that thefe princes were not the next heirs after the houfe of Suffolk, but before that houfe, and that Henry, by exprefling him- felf in this manner, meant entirely to exclude them. ‘The late injuries which he had received from the Scotch, had. irritated him extremely againft that nation , and he maintained to the laft the character of violence and caprice, by which his life had been fo much diftinguifhed. Another circumftance of his will may fuggett the fame reflection with regard to the ftrange contrarieties of his temper and conduct: He left money for maffes to be faid for delivering his foul from pur- eatory ; and tho’ he deftroyed all thofe inftitutions, eftablifhed by his anceftors, and others, forthe benefit of ¢beir fouls, and had even left the doctrine of pur- eatory doubtful in all the articles of faith which he publifhed during his latter years, he was yet determined, when matters came to the laft, to take care, at leaft, of his own future repofe, and to adhere to the fafer fide of the queftion +. Ir is difficult to give a juft fummary of this prince’s qualities: He was fo different from himfelf in different parts of his reign, that, as is well remarked by lord Herbert, his hiftory is his beft character and defcription. The abfolute, uncontrouled authority which he maintained at home, and the regard which he acquired among foreign nations, are circumftances which entitle him to the ap- pellation of a great prince; while his tyranny, and cruelty, feem toexclude him fxom + See his willin Fuller, Heylin, andRymer, p. 110. ‘There i no reafonable ground to fufpect its authenticity. Bt eeN. R VIIl. 2°79 from the character of a good one, He pofleffed, indeed, great vigour of mind, which qualified him for exercifing dominion over men; courage, intrepidity, vigilance, inflexibility: Amd tho’ thefe qualities lay not always under the guid- ance of a regular and folid judgment, they were accompanied with gocd parts, and an extenfive capacity ; and every one dreaded a conteft with a man who was known never to yield, or to forgive, and who, in every controverfy, was deter- mined, either to ruin himfelf or his antagonift. A catalogue of his vices would comprehend many of the worft qualities incident to human nature: Violence, cruelty, profufion, rapacity, injuftice, obftinacy, arrogance, bigotry, prefump- tion, caprice: But neither was he fubject to all thefe vices in the moft extreme degree, nor was he, at intervals, altogether devoid of virtues : He was fincere, open, gallant, liberal, and capable at leaft of a temporary friendfhip and attach- ment. In this refpect he was unfortunate, that the incidents of his times ferved to difplay his faults in their full light: The treatment which he met with from the court of Rome, provoked him to violence; the danger of: a revolt from his fuperftitious fubjects, feemed to require the moft extreme feverity. But it muff, at the fame time, be acknowledged, that his fituation tended to throw an additi- onal luftre on what was great and magnanimous in his character: The emulation between the emperor and the French King, rendered his alliance, notwithftand-— ing his impolitic condut, of great importance in Europe: The extenfive powers of his prerogative, and the fubmiffive, not to fay flavifh, difpofition of his Par- jiament, made it the more eafy for him to affume and maintain that entire domi- nion by which his reign is fo much diftinguifhed in the Englifh hiftory, Ir may feem a little extraordinary, that notwithftanding his cruelty, his ex- tortion, his violence, his arbitrary adminiftration, this prince not only acquired the regard of his fubjects ; but never was the object of their hatred: He feems even in fome degree to have poflefled, to the laft, their love and affectiony. His exterior qualities were advantageous, and fit to captivate the multitude: His magnificence and perfonal bravery rendered him illuftrious in vulgar eyes: And it may be faid, with truth, that the Englifh in that age, were fo thoroughly fub- dued, that, like eaftern flaves, they were inclined to admire even thofe acts of violence and tyranny, which were exercifed over themfelves, and at their own expence. Wirs regard to foreign ftates, Henry appears long to have fupported an in- tercourfe of friendfhip with Francis, more fincere and difinterefted than ufually takes place between neighbouring princes. Their common Jealoufy of the em- peror Charles, and fome refemblance in their charaCters, (tho’ the comparifon is extremely t Strype, vol. I. p. 389. Chap. VII. 1547: Chap. VI, 1547+ His laws. 2% HISTORY or ENGLAND. extremely to the advantage of the French monarch) ferved as the cement of their mutual amity. Francis is faid to have been affected with the King’s death, and to have expreffed much regret for the lofs. His own health began to decline’: He foretold, that he would not long furvive his friend*: And he died in about two months after him. | TuHeEre were ten Parliaments fummoned by Henry the eighth, and twenty- three feffions held. The whole time in which thefe Parliaments fat during this long reign, exceeded not three years and a half. It amounted not to a year dur- ing the firft gwenty years. The innovations in religion obliged him afterwards to call thefe affemblies more frequently: But tho’ thefe were the moft important tranfactions that ever fell under the cognizance of Parliament, their devoted at- tachment to Henry’s will, joined to their earneft defire of returning foon to their country feats, produced a very quick difpatch of the bills, and made the feffions of fhort duration. All the King’s caprices were, indeed, blindly complied with, and no regard was payed to the fafety or liberty of the fubject. Befides the vio- lent profecution of whatever he was pleafed to call herefy, the laws of treafon were multiplied beyond all former precedent. Even words to the difparagement of the King, Queen, or royal iffue, were fubjected to that penalty; and fo little care was taken in framing thefe rigorous ftatutes, that they contain obvious con- traditions ; infomuch, that, had they been iftrictly executed, every man, with- out exception, muft have fallen under the penalty of treafon. By one ftatute+, for inftance, it was declared treafon to affert the validity of the King’s marriage, either with Catherine of Arragon, or Anne Boleyn: By another}, it was trea- fon to fay any thing to the difparagement or flander of the princefles, Mary and Elizabeth; and to call them fpurious would, no doubt, be conftrued to their flander. Nor would even a profound filence with regard to thefe delicate points, be able to fave a perfon from fuch penalties. For by the former ftatute, whoever refufed to anfwer upon oath to any point contained in that act, was fubjected to the pains of treafon. The King, therefore, needed only to propofe to any one a queftion with regard to the legality of either of his firft marriages: If the per- fon was filent, he was a traytor by law: If he anfwered, either in the negative or in the affirmative, he was no lefs atraytor. So monftrous were the inconfiftencies, which arofe from the furious paffions of the King, and the flavifh obedience of his Par- liaments. It is hard to fay, whether thefe contradictions were owing to Henry’s precipitancy, or to a formed defign of tyranny. Ir may not be improper to recapitulate whatever is memorable in the ftatutes of this reign, whether with regard to police or commerce: Nothing can better 7 fhow * Le Thou. + 28 Hen. VIII. c. 7. i 34, 35 Hen. VL, 4.25 BEN Re ¥ - Vi. 281 fhow the genius of the age than fuch a review of the laws. The abolition of Chap. Vif the ancient religion contributed much to the regular execution of juftice. While rS47" the catholic fuperftition fubfifted, there was no poffibility of punifhing any crimes if the clergy: The church would not allow the magiftrate to try the offences of her members, and fhe could not herfelf infli€ any civil penalties upon them. But Henry reftrained thefe pernicious exemptions: The privilege of clergy was abolifhed for the crimes of petty treafon, murder, and felony, to all under the degree of a fubdeacont. But the former fuperftition not only protected crimes in the clergy : It exempted alfo the laity from punifhment, by affording them thelter in the churches and fan@tuaries. The Parliament reftrained thefe abufes. It was firft declared, that no fanétuaries were allowed in cafes of high treafon {{ 5 next, inthofe of murder, felony, rapes, burglary, and petty treafon§: And it limited them in other particulars "*. The only expedient employed to fupport the military fpiric during this age, was the reviving and extending fome old laws, enaétéd for the encouragement of archery, on which the defence of the kingdom was fuppofed very much to depend. Every man was ordered to have a bow++: Buts were ordered to be ereéted inevery parifhf{{: And every bowyer was or- dered, for each bow of yew which he made, to make two of elm or wich, for the fervice of the common people jj. The ufe of crofs-bows and hand-guns was alfo prohibited §§.. What rendered the Englith bowmen more formidable was, that they carried halberts with them, by which they were enabled, upon occafion, to engage in clofe fight with the enemy q. Frequent mufters or ar- rays were alfo made of the people, even during time of peace; and all men of fabftance were obliged to have a compleat.fuit of armour ot harnefs, as it was called *. The martial fpiric of the Englifh, during that age, rendered this: precaution, it was thought, fufficient for the defence of the nation; and as the King had then an abfolute power of commanding the fervice of all his fubjects, he could prefently, in cafe of danger, appoint new officers, and levy regiments, and colleét an army as numerous as he pleafed. Where no faction or divifion prevailed among the people, there was no foreign power that ever dared to think of invading England. ‘There is a faying of Francis the firft, which fhows the efti- mation in which the nation was held in Europe. That magnanimous prince boafted, that, notwithftanding the combination of Charles and Henry againft ‘him, in the year 1524, he would be able to defend himfelf, Spain, fays he, has no money ; the Low Countries have no foldiers: And as to England, my fron- Oo tier t+ 23 Hen. VIII. ¢. 1. | 26 Hen. VIII. c. 13. 32 Hen. Vill. c. 12. = 22 Fen. VII. ¢- 24. ++ 3 Hen. VIII. c. 3. tt Ibid ti Ibid. §§ 3 Hen. VII. c. 13. @ Herbert. * Hall, fol. 234. Stowe, p- 515. Hollingthed, p..947- 2 - Chap. VII. 15476 wa 282 HISTORY: or ENGLAND. tier.is {trong on that fide}. The city of London alone could mufter -fiftcen thoufand men {.. Difcipline, however, was an advantage wanting to thefe troops; tho’ the garrifon of Calais was a nurfery of officers; and Tournay firft}, Bou- lougne afterwards, ferved to increafe the number. Every one, who ferved abroad, was allowed to alienate his lands without pep any fees}. A general permiffion was granted to difpole of land by will * The Parliament were fo little jealous of their privileges, (which indeed were fcarce worth preferving) that there is an inftance of one Strode, who, becaufe he introduced into the lower houfe fome bill regarding tin, was very feverely treated by the Stannery courts of Cornwal: Heavy fines were impofed on him; and upon his refufal to pay, he was thrown into a dungeon, loaded with irons, and ufed in fuch a manner as brought his life in danger: Yet all the notice which the Parliament took of this enormity, even in fuch an inferior court, was to enact, that no man could be queftioned afterwards for his conduc in Parliament t+. This prohibition, how- ever, muft only be extended to the inferior courts: For as to the King and privy council, and ftar-chamber, they were fcarce bound by any law. There is a bill of tonnage and poundage, which fhows what uncertain ideas the Parliament had formed both of their own privileges and of the rights of the fovereign tt. This duty had been voted to every King fince Edward the fourth, during the term of his own life: Yet Henry had already been allowed to levy it fix years without any law; and tho’ there had been four Parliaments aflembled, no at- tention had been given either to grant it to him regularly, or reftrain him from levying it. At laft, they refolved to give him that fupply; but even in this conceffion, they fhow themfelves plainly at a lofs to determine whether they prant it, or whether he hasa right of himfelf to levy it. They fay, that the im- polition was made to endure during the natural life of the late King, and no longer: They yet blame the merchants who had not paid to the echo King that duty: They obferve, that the law for tonnage and poundage was expired « : yet make no fcruple to call that impofition the King’s due: They affirm, that he had fuftained great and manifold lofles by thofe who had defraud- ed him of this duty: And to provide a remedy, they vote him that fupply dur- ing his life; and no longer. It is remarkable, that notwithftanding this laft deat, all his fucceffors, Te more than a century, continued in the like irregular practice: If a practice may deferve that epithet, which all the world acdbie(ced in, and which gave no offence. But when Charles the firft attempted to con- tinue + P. Daniel. t Hall, fol. 235+ Hollingthed, p. 547. Stowe, p. 577. | Hall, fol. 68. + 14 and 15 Hen. VIII. c. 45. ** 3,4 and 35 Hen. VIII, ¢. 5. tt 4 Hen. VHI c. 8, tt 6 Hen. VIII, c. 14: P , Pw aN YY Vill. So oR» £05 tinte in the fame courfe, which had now received the fanction of many eénera- tions, fo much were the opinions of men altered, that a furious tempeft was ex: cited by it, and hiftorians, partial or ignorant, ftill reprefent that meafure as a moft violent and unprecedented enormity in that unhappy prince. Tue foreign commerce of England, during this age, was moftly confined to the Netherlands. The inhabitants of the Low Countries bought the Englifh comm-dities, and diftributed them into the other parts of Europe. Hence the mutual dependance of thefe countries on each other ; and the great lofs fuftained by both, in cafe of a rupture. During all the variations of politics, the fove- reigns always avoided the coming to this extremity ; and tho’ the King bore a much greater friendfhip to Francis, the propenfity of the nation always lay to- wards the emperor. In 1528, hoftilities commenced between England and the Low Countries 5 but were foon ftopt by mutual agreement. While the Flemifh were not allowed to purchafe cloth in England, the Englifh merchants could not buy it of the cloathiers, and the cloathiers were obliged to difmifs their workmen, who began to be tumultuous for want of bread. The cardinal, to appeafe them, fent for the merchants, and ordered them to buy cloth as ufual: They told him, that they could not difpofe of it as ufual; and notwithftanding all his menaces, he could get no other anfwer from them *. An agreement was at laft made to con- tinue the commerce between the ftates, even during war. Tue foreign artificers much furpafied the Englifh in dexterity, induftry, and frugality ; and hence the violent animofity, which the latter, on many occafions, exprefled againft any of the former who were fettled in England. They had the affurance to complain, that all their cuftomers went to foreign tradefmen; and in the yeat 1517, being moved by the feditious fermons of one Dr. Bele, and the intrigues of Lincoin, a broker, they raifed an infurrection. The appren- tices, and others of the poorer fort, in London, began by breaking up the pri- fons, where fome perfons were confined for infulting foreigners. “They next pro- ceeded to the houfe of Meutas, a Frenchman, much hated by them; where they committed creat diforders:; killed fome of his fervants, and plundered his goods; The mayor could not appeafe them ;_ nor Sir Thomas Moore, Jate under fheriff, tho’ extremely refpected in the city. They alfo threatned cardinal Wolfey with fome infult; and he thought it neceflary to fortify his houfe, and put himfelf on his guard. ‘Tired at laft with thele diforders, they difperfed themfelves ; and the earls of Shrewfbury and Surrey feized fome of them. A proclamation was Oo 2 iffued, * Hall, folio 174. 2 Chap. VIL 15476 Chap. VIL 3547» oa 284. H1S TIORY yor] EN GIL AND. iffued,: that women fhould not meet together to babble and talk, and that all men fhould keep their wives in their howfes.. Next day the duke of Norfolk came into the city, at the head of thirteen hundred armed men, and made enquiry into the tumult.. Bele and Lincoln, and feveral others, were fent to the Tower, and condemned for treafon. Lincoln, and thirteen more were executed. The other perfons,.to the number of four hundred, were brought before the Kine with ropes about their necks, fell on their knees, and cried for mercy, blsaty knew at that time to pardon; he difmifled them all without further punith- ment *, So great was the number of foreign artizans in the city, that at leaft fifteen thoufand Flemifh alone were at one time obliged to leave it, by an order from the council, when Henry became jealous of their favour for Queen Catherine +. Henry himfelf confefies, in an edict of the ftar-chamber, printed among the ftatutes, that the foreigners ftarved the natives; and obliged them from “idles nefs to have recourfe to theft, murder, and other enormities st. He alfo afferts, that the vaft multitudes of the foreigners raifed the price of grain and bread ||. And to prevent the increafe of the evil, all foreign artificers were prohibited to have above two foreigners in their houfe, either journeymen or apprentices. A, like jealoufy arofe againft the foreigh merchants; and to comply with it, a law was enacted obliging all denizons to pay the duties impofed upon aliens §. The Parliament had done better to have encouraged foreign merchants and artizans to come over to England; which might have excited the emulation of the natives, and improved their fkill. The prifoners in the kingdom, for debts and crimes, are afierted, inan act of parliament, to be fixty thoufand perfons and above **, Ture is a remarkable claufe in a ftatute paffed near the beginning of this reign t+, by which we might be induced to believe, that England was -ex- tremely decayed from the flourifhing condition which it had attained in former times, It had been enacted in the reign of Edward the fecond, that no magi- {trate in town or borough, who by his office ought to keep affize, fhould, dur- ing the continuance of his magiftracy, fell either in wholefale or retail, any wine or victuals... This law feemed very equitable, in order to prevent fraud or bye- ends in fixing the affize: Yet the law is repealed in this reign, . The reafon af- figned is, that ‘* fince the making of that ftatute and ordinance, many and the ‘¢ moft part of all the cities, boroughs, and towns corporate, within the realm ** of England, are fallen in ruin and decay, and are not inhabited by merchants, €6 and * Stowe, 505. Hollingthed, 840. + Le Grand, vol. III. p. 232, { 21 Hen. VILE. § Ibid. § 22 Hen. VIII. c. 8. e839 Hen. Vill. ¢. 2%. tt 3 Hen, VIL. «. 8. FAIRIBON Ric Y* 2'VEMm 28e x6 a“ - day, the dwellers and inhabitants of the fame cities and boroughs are commonly ‘© bakers, vintners, fifhmongers, and other victualers, and there remain few ‘© others to bear the offices.”” Men have fuch a propenfity to exalt pait times beyond the prefent, that it feems dangerous to credit this reafoning of the Parlia- ment, without further evidence to fapport it. So different are the views in which the fame object appears, that fome may be inclined to draw an oppofite inference from this fact. A more regular police was eftablifhed in the reign of Henry the eighth, and a ftricter adminiftration of juftice; an advantage which induced the men of property to leave the provincial towns, and to retire into the country. Cardinal Wolfey, in a fpeech tothe Parliament, reprefented it as a proof of the increafe of riches, that the cuftoms had incrcafed beyond what they were. for- merly *. | Bur if there was really adecay of commerce and induftry, and population in England, the ftatutes of this reign, except by abolifhing monafteries, and re- trenching holidays, a circumftance of confiderable moment, were notin other refpeéts well calculated to revive them. The fixing the wages of artificers was attempted +: Luxury in apparel was prohibited, by repeated ftatutest; and probably without fuccefs. The chancellor and other minifters were empowered to fix the price of poultry, cheefe, and butter |}. A ftatute was even pafled to fix the price of beef, pork, mutton, and veal. Beef and pork were ordered to be fold at a halfpenny a pound: Mutton and veal at a halfpenny half a far- thing. The preamble of the ftatute fays, that thefe four fpecies of butcher’s meat were the food of the poorer fort. This act was afterwards repealed **. Tue practice of depopulating the country, by abandoning tillage, and throw- ing the lands into pafturage, {till continued ++; as appears by the new laws which were enaéted againft that praétice. The King was entitled to half the rents of the land, where any farm houfes were allowed to go to decay ff. The unfkilful hufbandry was probably the caufe why the proprietors found no profit in tillage. The number of fheep allowed to be kept in one flock, was reftrained to two thoufand ||. Sometimes, fays the ftatute, one proprietor or farmer would keep a flock of twenty-four thoufand. It is remarkable, that the Parliament afcribes the increafing price of fheep and mutton, to this increafe of fheep: Be- caufe, fay they, the commodity being got into few hands, the price of it is raifed at * Hall, folio 110. + 6Hen. VIII. c. 3. t 1Hen. VII, ¢.14. 6 Hen. VIL. c. 1, 7 Hen. VIII. ¢: 7. || 25 Hen. VIII. ¢. 2. § 24 Hen. VIL. «c. 3. ** 35 Hen. VIL. e. Tt. ++ Strype, vol. I. p. 392, tp 6Hen. VIL 5. 7 Hen, VAIL, ¢ 15 — W.2s Hen. VI. c¢. 13. and men of fuch fubftance as at the time of making that ftatute: For at this Chap. VIE 1547 oe Ze =Se5 a : | i } ait ' ’ iy : i ; ry ui i i} hil kia - - , rf ih i i r bi ¥ i ie * ; NHI "i } | ur 44 \\ aD Bt Abit AL; tp a Ht ie a! ie Dea! Se q 5 HN ! yi ’ fh Meth a | LI We tit Si ii i Ss Te 1 i ei \ i aH i ! Hit i 1a fa itt nl Sait | ~ \. ‘) Sahl it f +! Hi. Te ay ali Hl Pah Hath iM A sa. Ss sare oe Se: Cree =) Se ia ~ ae 72 ea tr et 3 Chap. VII. 1547. we 25¢ HISTORY oF ENGLAND. x < e at pleaftire §§. Tt is probable, that the effect proceeded from tle daily increafe of money: For it is impoffible, that fuch a commodity could be monopolized. Intereft was fixed during this reign at ten per cent *. Some laws were made with regard ‘to beggars and vagabonds+ ; one of the circumftances in government, which humanity would moft powerfully recom- mend to a benevolent legiflator; which feems, at firft fight, the moft eafily ad- jufted ; and which is yet the moft difficult to fettle in fuch a manner, as to at- tain the end without deftroying induftry. The convents formerly were a fupport to the poor; but at the fame time tended to encourage idlenefs and beggary, Henry, as he poff-fled himfelf fome talents for letters, was an encourager of them in others. He founded Trinity college in Cambridge, ard gave it very ample endowments. Wolfey founded Chrift Church in Oxford, and intended to call it Cardinal college: But upon his fall, which happened before he had en- tirely finifhed his fcheme, the King feized all the revenues; and this violence, - above ali the other misfortunes of that great minifter, is faid to 1ave given him the greateft anxiety and concernt. But Henry afterwards reftored the revenues of the college, and only changed the name. The cardinal founded in Oxford the firft chair for teaching Greek; and this novelty rent that univerfity into the moft violent fa€tions, which frequently came to blows.: The whole ftudents di- vided themfelves into parties, which bore the names of Greeks and Trojans, and fometimes fought with as great animofity as was formerly exercifed by thofe Hoftile nations. The fife of the Greek language in Oxford, excited the emulation of Cambridge |. Wolfley intended to have enriched the library of his college at Oxford, with copiesof all the manufcripts that were in the Vatican 5. The counte- nance given to letters by this King and his minilters, contributed to. render learning fathionable in England; and Erafmus fpeaks with great fatisfaGlion of the gene- ral regard paid by the nobility and gentry of that kingdony to men of know- ledge**, It is needlefs to be particular in mentioning the writers of this reigns or of the preceding. ‘There is no man in that age, who had the leaft pretenfion to be ranked among our claffics. - Sir Thomas More, tho’ he wrote in Latin, feems to come the neareft to that character. §§ 25 Hen. VIII. c. 13. * 47 Hen. VIII. ¢ 9. + 22 Ben, VIll..c.12z. 22 oe VII. ge { Strype, vol. L. p. 117. || Wood’s hift. & ant. Oxon. Inb. Tp. 245. § Ibid, 249. ** Epift, ad Banifium. Alfo epitt. p. 308. — he § | y THE we tly 3 ma 4 SHE WS Ghee tants Pee © Lae ag 3s ae 5 MRE SRS oes erga tain Sai nN UNDER THE th. 2c. aoe Orn EO R OSE OF OL ORO GEOL LOLOL LL O40 LOLOL OL OTOL LOLOL OLOL OT OTOL OTOL OT OTOP OECD : EDWARD VIL CHAP. I. State of the regency. Innovations in the regency. tector.——Reformation compleated, Gardiner’ s oppofition. Foreign affairs. Progrefs of the reformation in Scotland.—— Ajfafination of cardinal Beaton. Conduct of the war with Scotland. Battle of Pinkey. 4A Parliament. Farther progrefi of the reformation. Affairs of Scotland.—Young Queen of Scots fent into France. Cabals of lord Seymour. Dudly earl of Warwick. S. ourer fet pro- ——_— 4 Parlament. Attainder of lord Seymour. His exe- cution.——Ecclefiafiical affairs. HE late King, by.the regulations, which he impofed on the govern- 15473 ment of his infant fon, as well as by the limitations of the fucceffion, State of the had projected to. reign even after his deceafe; and he imagined, that his minifters, who had always been fo obfequious to him during his life-time, would never afterwards depart from the plan, which he had traced out tothem. He fixed the majority .of the Prince at the completion of his eigh- teenth year; and as Edward was at’ prefent only a few months paft nine, he ap- pointed fixteen executors; to whom, during the minority, he entrufted the go- vernment regency. 1 ix ¢ i? { a "5 if y =. > aN _ ie , y - - 288 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Chap.I. yernment of the King and kingdom. ‘Their names were, Cranmer, archbifhop 1347" of Canterbury ; lord Wriothefley, chancellor ; lord St. John, great mafter ; lord Ruffel, privy feal,; the earl of Hertford, chamberlain ; vifcount Lifle, admiral; -Tonftal, bithop of Durham ; Sir Anthony Brown, matter of horfe ; Sir William Paget, fecretary of ftate,; Sir Edward North, chancellor of the court of aug- mentations ; Sir Edward Montague, chief juftice of the common pleas; judge Bromley, Sir Anthony Denny, and Sir William Herbert, chief gentlemen of the privy chamber ; Sir Edward Wotton, treafurer of Calais ; Dr. Wotton, dean of Canterbury. To thefe fixteen executors, with whom was entrufted the whole regal authority, were added twelve counfellors, who poffefied no immediate power, and could only affift with their advice, when any affair was laid before them. The council was compofed of the earls of Arundel and Effex; Sir Thomas Cheyney, treafurer of the houfehold; Sir John Gage, comptroller; Sir Anthony Wingfield, vice chamberlain; Sir William Petre, fecretary of ftate; Sir Richard Rich, Sir John Baker, Sir Ralph Sadler, Sir Thomas Seymour, Sir Richard Southwel, and Sir Edmund Peckham *. The ufualcaprice of Henry appears fornewhat in this nomination; while he appointed feveral perfons of inferior fta- tion among his executors, and gave only the place of counfellor to a perfon of fuch high rank as the earl of Arunde!, and to Sir Thomas Seymour, the King’s uncle, Innovationsin’ Bur the firft a of the executors and counfellors was to depart from the the regency: Geftination of the late King in a material article. No fooner were they met, than it was fuggefted, that the government would lofe its dignity, for want of fome head, who might reprefent the royal majefty, who might receive addrefles from foreign ambafladors, to whom difpatches from Englith minifters abroad might be carried, and whofe name might be employed in all orders and proclamations: And as the King’s will feemed to contain a defect in this particular, it was concluded ne- ceflary to fupply it, by choofing a protector ; who, tho’ he fhould poffefs all the exterior fymbo!'s of royal dignity, fhould yet be bound, in every exercife of power, to follow the opinion of the executors T. This propofal was very difagreeable to chancellor Wriothefely. That magiftrate, a man of an active fpirit and high ambition, found himfelf, by his office, entitled to the firft rank in the regency after the primate; and as he knew, that that prelate had no talent nor inclination for ftate affairs, he hoped, that the direction of public bufinefs would of courfe devolve in a great meafure upon himfelf. He oppofed, therefore, this propofal of choofing a protector; and reprefented that innovation as an infringe- ment of the King’s will, which, being corroborated by act of parliament, ought | in ® Strype’s Memor. vol. ii. p. 457. + Burnet, vol. ii, p. 5. .4mm every, thing to be a.law to.them,,.and, could not be altered but by the fame | Chap. Ee. Dy y Wir) A... Ror B Vi, 9 8¢ . . . ‘ “ - 47 A 1 ty . authority, which had eftablifhed it... The executors and counfellors were moftly .:°* courtiers, who. had. been: raifed: by Henry’s favour, not men of high birth or -- great dependances;, and as they had been fufficiently accuftomed to fubmiffion during the reign.of the late monarch, and had no. pretenfions to govern the na- tion by. their.ewn, authority, they acquiefced the; more willingly in a propolal, which feemed calculated for preferving public peace and tranquillity. It being therefore agreed to name a protector, the choice fell of courfe on the earl of Hartford. who, as he was the Kino’s: maternal uncle, was {trongly interefted in 2°" | 3 ’ Do oe | . 2h re L LOi his. fafety; and. having: no pretenfions to inherit the crown, could never have ; any feparate intereft, which might engage him to endanger Edward’s perfon or his authority *... The public were informed by proclamation of this change in the adminiftration ; and difpatches were. fent to all foreign courts to give them intimation of it. . All thofe poffeffed of any office refigned their former commif- fions, and took out new ones in the name of the young King. The bifhops themfelves were conftrained to make a-like fubmiffion. _ Care was taken to infert in-their new. commiffions, that they held their office during pleafure+ : And it is there exprefsly affrmed,.that all manner of authority and jurifdiction, as well ecclefiaftical as civil, is originally derived: from the crown {. Tue executors fhowed, in their next meafure, a more fubmiffive deference to Henry’s will ; becaufe many of them.found their own account in it... Che late King had intended, before his-death; to make a new creation of nobility, ‘in or- der to fupply the place of thofe who had fallen by former attainders, or the fai- lure of iffue; and that he might enable the perfons to fupport their new dic- nity, he had refolved either to beftow eftates on them, or advance them to higher offices. He had even gone fo far as.to inform them of this refolution; and in his will, he charged his executors to. make good all his promites §. That they might afcertain his intentions in the moft authentic manner, Sir William Paget, Sir Anthony Denny, and Sir William Herbert, with whom Henry had always converfed in a familiar manner, were called before the board of regency 5 and having given evidence of what they knew concerning the King’s promites, their teftimony was relied on, and the executors proceeded _to the fulfilling thefe en- eagements. Hartford was created duke of Somerfet, marfchal and lord trea- furet , Wriothefely, earl of Southampton; the earl of Effex, marquefs of Nor-bruary. thampton ; vifcount Lifle, ear! of Warwick; Sir, Thomas Seymour, lord Sey- mour of Sudley, and admiral : Sic Richard Rich, Sir William. Willoughby, Sir Pp Edward |. ii. p. 6. Strype’s Mem. © + : ~ - * 3 7° as oe 1 +7 a Q Ry ‘net : * Heylin, Hitt. Ref. Edw..VL + Collier, vol. il, p. 210. Pe + i : = ~ ¢ a Centres Ss. As . & 4 er Jevlin, and K rmer, of Cranm. p. 141. | | sttypes Memor, of Cranm. p. 141 § Fuller, Heytin, y aN Tf he 17th of Fee tu Chap. I, 1547: es 290 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Edward Sheffield, accepted the title of baron*: Several, to whom the fame dignity was ofered, refufed it; becaufe the other part of the King’s promife, the beftowing eftates on thefe new noblemen, was deferred till a more convenient op- portunity. Some of them, however, particularly Somerfet the protector, were, ‘n the mean time, endowed with fpiritual preferments, deaneries and preben- daries. For among many other invafions of ecclefiaftical privileges and properties, this irregular praétice, of beftowing fpiritual benefices on laymen, began now to prevail. Tux earl of Southampton had always been engaged in an oppofite party to Somerfet ; and it was not likely that fa€tions, which had fecretly prevailed, even during the arbitrary reign of Henry, fhould be fuppreffed in the weak adminiftra- tion, which ufually attends a minority. The former nobleman, that he might have the greater Icifure for attending to ftate-affairs, had, of himfelf and from his own authority, put the great feal in commiffion, and had empowered four lawyers, Southwel, Tregonel, Oliver, and Bellafis, to execute in his abfence the office of chancellor. This meafure feems very excéptionable ; and the more fo, that two of the commiffioners being canonifts, the lawyers fufpected, that, by this nomination, thechancellor had intended to difcredit the common law. Com- plaints were made to the council; who, influenced by the protector, gladly laid hold of this opportunity to deprefs Southampton. They confulted the judges with regard to fo unufual a cafe, and received for anfwer, that the commiffion was illegal, and that the chancellor, by his prefumption in granting it, had juftly forfeited the feals, and was even liable to punifhment. The council fummoned him. to appear before them ; and tho? he maintained, that he held his office by the late King’s will, founded on an act of parliament, and could not lofe it with- out a trial before the Parliament ; that if the commiffion, which he had granted, was found illegal, it might be declared null and void, and all the ill confequences of it be eafily remedied ; and that the depriving him of the feals for an error of this nature, was a precedent by which any other innovation might be authorized ; the council, notwithftanding all thefe topics of defence, declared that he had forfeited his office ; that a fine fhould be impofed upon him ; and-that he fhould be confined to his own houfe during pleafure T. Tuo’ the removal of Southampton encreafed the proge¢tor’s authority, and _ tended to fupprefs factions in the regency ; yet was not Somerfet contented with this advantage: His ambition carried him to feek ftill farther acquifitions. Un- der pretence, that the vote of the executors, choofing him protector, was not a fufh- cient * Stow’s Annals, p. 594. + Hollingfhed, p. 979. Bb Daw A. Red. VL 291 cient foundation for his authority, he procured a patent from the young King, Chap. i. by which he entirely overturned the will of Harry the eighth, produced a,, oF fits total revolution in the government, and may feem even to have fubverted all the © ! laws of the kingdom. He named _himfelf protector with full regal power, and appointed a council, confilting of all the former counfellors, and all the execu- tors except Southampton: He referved a power of naming any other counfellors at pleafure: And he was bound to confult with fuch only as he thought proper. The protector and his council were likewife empowered to act at difcretion, and to execute whatever they thought ferviceable to the government, without incur- ring any penalty or forfeiture from any law, ftatute, proclamation, or ordinance whatfoever *.. Even had this patent been lefs exorbitant in its conceffions, and had it been drawn by directions from the executors appointed by Henry, its le- gality might juftly be queftioned ; fince it feems effential to a truft of this na- ture to be exercifed by the perfons entrufted, nor can it be delegated to others : But as the patent, by its very tenor, where the executors are not fo much as mentioned, appears to have been furreptitioufly obtained from a minor King, the protectorfhip of Somerfet was a plain ufurpation, which it is impoffible by any ar- euments to juftify. The connivance, however, of the executors, and their pre- fent acquiefcence in the new eftablifhment, made it be univerfally fubmitted to; and as the young King difcovered an extreme attachment to his uncle, who was alfo in the main a man of moderation and probity, no objections were made to his power and title. All men of fenfe, likewife, as they faw the nation divided by the religious zeal of the oppofite fects, thought it the more neceffary to entruft the government to one perfon, who might check the exorbitancies of party, and enfure the public tranquillity. And tho’ fome claufes of the patent feemed to imply. a formal fubverfion of all liberty or limited government, fo litt'e jealoufy was then ufually entertained on that head, that no exception was ever taken at bare claims or pretenfions of this nature, advanced by any perfon, pof- feffed of fovereign power. The actual exercife alone of arbitrary adminiftration, and that in many and great and flagrant and unpopular inftances, was able fome- times to give fome umbrage to the nation. Tur extenfive authority and imperious character of Henry, had retained the par- Reformation tizans of both religions in fubjeCtion, but upon his deceafe, the hopes of the protef- compleated. rants and the feat's of the catholics began to revive, and the zeal of thefe parties pro- duced every where difputes and animofities, the ufual preludes of more fatal divifions. The protector had long been regarded as the fecret partizan cf the reformers ; and being now freed from teftraint, he fcrupled not to exprefs his intention of r 2 correcting * Burnet, vol. ii, Records, No. 6. Cee 292 HISTORY of ENGLAND. correcting all the abufes of the antient religion, and of adopting ftill more of the proteftant innovations. He took care, that all the perfons, to whom he entrufted the King’s education, fhould be attached to the fame principles; and as the young Prince difcovered a zeal for every kind of literature, efpecially the theological, far beyond his tender years, all men forefaw, in the courfe of his‘reign, the total abo- lition of the catholic faith; and they early began to declare themfelves in favour of thofe tenets, which were likely to become in the end entirely prevalent. Af- ter Southampton’s fall, few members of the council -feemed to retain any attach- ment to the Romifh communion; and moft of the counfellors appeared even fancuine in forwarding the progrefs of the reformation. The riches which moft of them had acquired from the fpoils of the clergy, induced them to widen the breach between England and Rome; and by eftablifhing a contra- riety of fpeculative tenets, as well as of difcipline and worfhip, to render a coali- tion with the mother church altogether impracticable*. Their rapacity alfo, the chief fource of their reforming fpirit, was excited by the profpect of pillaging the fecular, as they had already done the regular clergy ,; and they knew, that, while any fhare of the old principles remained, or any regard to the ecclefiaftics, they never could hope to fucceed in their pretenfions. : Tue numerous and burthenfome fuperftitions, with which the Romifh church was loaded, had thrown many of the reformers, by the fpirit of oppofition, into an enthufiaftic ftrain of devotion ; and all rites, ceremoni¢s, pomp, order, and exterior obfervances were zealoufly abolifhed by them, as hindrances of their fpi- ritual contemplation, and obftructions to their immediate converfe with heaven. Many circumftances concurred to enflame this daring fpirit ; the novelty itflf of their doétrines, the triumph of making profelytes, the furious perfecutions to which they were expofed, their animofity againft the antient tenets and practices, and the neceffity of procuring the concurrence of the laity, by depreffing the hier- archy, and by tendering to them-the plunder of the ecclefiaftics. Wherever the re- formation prevailed over the oppofition of civil authority, this genius of religion appeared in its full extent, and was attended with confequences, which, tho’ lefs durable, were, for fome time, no lefs dangerous than thofe which were con- nected with the antient fuperflition. But as the magiftrate took the lead in Eng- land, the tranfition was more gradual ; much of the antient religion was {till pre- ferved ; and a reafonable degrée of fubordination was retained in difcrpline, as well as fome pomp, order, and ceremony in public worfhip. Tue protector, in his. {fchemes for advancing, the reformation, had always recourfe to the councils of Cranmer, who, being a man of moderation and pru- dence, * Goodwin’s Annals, Heylins ‘ BE DAW GA Rot VI. 2 | 93 dence, was averfe to all violent changes, and was determined to bring over the Chap. E. people, by in’enfible innovations, to that fyftem of doétrine and difcipline, which 547° he efteemed the moft pure. and perfe@. He probably alfo forefaw, that a fy{tem, which carefully avoided the extremes of reformation, was likely to be molt laft- ing’; and that a devotion, merely fpiritual, was fitted only for the firft fervours of anew fect, and upon the relaxation of thefe naturally gave place to the inroads of fuperftition. He feems therefore to have intended the eftablifhment of ahierarchy, which, being fuited to a great and fettled governmen’, might ftand as a perpetual] barrier againft Rome, and might retain the reverence of the people, even after their enthufiaftic zeal was diminifhed or entirely evaporated. Tue perfon, who oppofed, with greateft authority, any farther advances towards reformation, was Gardiner, bifhop of Winchefter ; who, tho’ he had not ob- tained a place in the counfel of regency, on account of fome late difgufts, which he had given to Henry, was entitled, by his age, experience, and capacity, ‘to the higheft truft and confidence of his party. This prelate continued {till to Gardiner’s magnify the great wifdom and learning of the late King, which were generally OPPoton. and fincerely admired by the nation; and he infifted on the prudence of perfe- vering, at leaft till the young King’s majority, in the ecclefiaftical model, efta- blifhed by that great monarch. He defended the ufe of images, which were now very openly attacked by the proteftants ; and he reprefented them as ferviceable in maintaining a fenfe of religion among the illiterate multitude*. He even deigned to write an apology for holy water, which bifhop Ridley had decried in a fermon; and he maintained, that, by the power of the Almighty, it might be rendered an inftrument of doing good; as much as the fhadow of St. Peter, the hem of our Saviour’s garment, or the fpittle and clay laid upon the eyes of the blind+. Above all, he infifted, that the laws ought to be obferved, that the conftitution ought to be preferved inviolate, and that it was dangerous to follow the will of the fovereign, in oppofition to an act of parliamcnt $3 Bur tho’ there remained at that time in England an idea of laws and a confii- tution, fufficient at leaft to furnifh a topic of argument to fuch as were difcon- tented with the prefent exercife of authority s this plea could fcarcely, in the prefent cafe, be maintained with any plaufibility by Gardiner. An act of par- lament had invefted the crown with a legiflative power; and royal proclama- tions; even during a minority, were armed with the force and authority of Jaws. The protector, finding himfelf fupported by this ftatute, was determined to em- ploy. his influence in favour of the reformers; and having fufpended, during the interval, the authority of the bifhops, he appointed a general vifitation to be made es . a ‘* > 7 y 1 en * Fox, vol. il. p, 712. + Fox, vol. ii. p. 724. t Collier, vol. il. p, 228. Fox, vol, ii. “aN Chap. I, 1547+ — 204. HISTORY or ENGLAND. - made in all the diocefes of -England*. The vificors confifted of a mixture of clergy and laity, and had fix circuits affigned them. The chief purpofe of their inftruétions was, befides correcting immoralities and irregularities in the clergy, to abolifh the antient fuperftitions, and to bring the difcipline and worfhip fome- what nearer the practice of the reformed churches. The moderation of Somerfet and Cranmer is apparent in the conduct of this delicate affair. The vifitors were enjoined to retain for the prefent all images which had not been abufed to idolatry ; and to inftruct the people not to dfpife fuch ceremonies as were not yet abrogated, but only to beware of fome particular fuperftitions, fuch as the fprinkling their beds with holy water, the ringing of bells, or ufing of bleffed candles, in order to drive away the devil}. But nothing required more the correcting hand of authority, than the abufe of preaching, which was now generally employed, throughout England, in de- fending the antient practices and fuperititions, ‘I'he court of augmentations, in order to eafe the King of the annuities paid to monks, had commonly placed them in the vacant churches; and thefe men were led by intereft, as well as in- clination, to fupport thofe principles, which had been invented for the profit of the clergy. Orders therefore were given to reftrain the topics of their fermons : Twelve homilies were publifhed, which they were enjoined to read to the people : And all of them were prohibited, without exprefs permiffion, to preach any where but in their parifh churches. The defign of this injunction was to throw a reftraint on the catholic divines; while the proteftant, by the grant of particu- lar licences, fhould be allowed unbounded liberty. Bonner made fome oppofition to thefe meafures; but foon after retracted and acquicfced. Gardiner was more high-fpirited and more fteddy. He repre- fented the peril of perpetual innovations, and the neceffity of adhering to fome fyem. ‘* ’Tis a dangerous thing,” faid he, ‘* to ufe too much freedom, in ‘© refearches of this kind. If you cut the old canal, the water is apt to run fur- «« ther than you have a mind to. If you indulge the humour of novelty, you “‘ cannot put a ftop to people’s demands, nor govern their indifcretions at plea- “« fure. For my’part,” faid he, on another occafion, ‘* my fole concern is to “* manage the third and laft act of my life with decency, and to make a hand- << fome exit off the ftage. Provided this point is fecured, I am not fol icitous “ about the reft. I am already by nature condemned to death: No man can *¢ give me a pardon from this fentence; nor fo much as procure me a reprieve. «¢ To fpeak my mind, and to act as my confctence directs, are two branches of ‘© liberty, which I can never part with. Sincerity in fpeech, and integrity in 4 *¢ action, * Mem. Cranm. p. 146, 147, &¢. + Burnet, vol. ii. p. 28. i RA BO OE 295 «¢ ation, are entertaining qualities: They will ftick by a man, when every thing << elfe takes its leave; and I muft not refign them upon any confideration. The “ beft on itis, if Ido not throw them away myfelf, no man can force them “ from me: But if I give them up, then am I ruined by myfelf, and deferve to « Jofe all my preferments *. This oppofition of Gardiner drew on him the in- dignation of the council ; and he was fent to the Fleet, where he was ufed with ~ fome harfhnefs and feverity. One of the chief objections, urged by Gardiner againft the new homilies, was that they defined with the moft metaphyfical precifion the doctrine of grace, and of juftification by faith ; points, he thought, which it was fuperfluous for any man to know exaétly, and which certainly exceeded much the comprehenfion of the vulgar. A famous martyrologift calls Gardiner, on account of this opinion, « an infenfible afs, and one that had no feeling of God’s fpirit in the matter of ¢¢ juftification +.” The meanett proteftant imagined at that time, that he had a full comprehenfion of all thofe myfterious doétrines, and he heartily defpifed the moft learned and knowing perfon of the antient religion. It is indeed certain, that the reformers were very fortunate in their doctrine of juftification, and might venture to promife on its fuccefs, in oppofiticn to all the ceremonies, fhows, and fuperftitions of popery. By exalting Chrift and his fufferings, and renounc- ing all claim to independent merit in ourfelves, it was calculated to become po- pular, and coincided with thofe principles of panegyric and of felf-abafement, which generally have place in religion. Tonsta., bifhop of Durham, having, as well as Gardiner, made fome op- pofition to the new regulations, was difmiffed the council-board ; but no farther feverity was, for the prefent, exercifed againft him. He was a man of perfect moderation, and of the moft unexceptionable character in the kingdom. Chap. E, 1547: Tue fame religious zeal which engaged Somerfet to promote the reformation , og . 2 . _ . > n x at home, Jed him to carry his attention to foreign countries ; where the interefts of irs, the proteftants were now expofed to the moft imminent danger. The Roman pontiff, with much reluctance and after long delays, -had at laft fummoned a ge- neral council, which was affembled at Trent, and was employed in correcting the abufes of the church, and in afcertaining her doétrines, The emperor, who de- fired to reprefs the power of the court of Rome, as well as gain over the prote-. ftants, promoted the former object of the council; the pope, who found his own creatnefs fo deeply interefted, defired rather to employ them in the latter. He gave * Collier, vol. Il. p.228. ex MS. Col. C, C, Cantab. Bibliothica Brittanica, article Gardiner. + Fox, vol. Il. 2 eee a : : : : / 1) ; ‘4 d Hid | Hi ly 4} a rh uv arth ' ih] By heh rh ; - : 4 1)? j : we in : : Mi j : La} 4b } roe vat hal if ir hie ae | . : = fs a ree oe = a - ee FS = SS a —— 8 St, SLI : Seat A) iS at ane SERS Chap. I. 1547: eas 296 HISTORY#or ENGLAND. gave inftructions to his. legates, who prefided in the council, to protract:the de bates, and to engage the theologians in altercations, and arguments, and difputes concerning the nice points of faith, canvafled before them: A policy, which was fo-eafy to be executed, that the legates found it rather neceflary to interpofe, in order to appeafe the animofity of the divines, and bring them at laft to fome de- cifiont. ‘The more difficult tafk for the legates was to moderate or divert the zeal of the council for reformation, and to reprefs the ambition of the prelates, who defired to exalt the epifcopal authority on the ruins of the fovercign pontiff. Finding this humour become intractable, the legates, under pretence that. the plague had broke out at Trent, transferred of a fudden the council to Bologna, where, they hoped, it wou!d be more under the direction of his holinefs. Tue emperor, no lefs than the pope, had learned to make religion fubfervient to his ambition and policy. He was refolved to employ the imputation of herefy as a pretence for fubduing the proteftant princes, and oppreffing the liberties of Germany ; but found it requifite to cover his intentions under a deep artifice, and to prevent the combination of his adverfaries. He feparated the Palatine and the elector of Brandenburgh from the proteftant confederacy: He: took arms againft the elector of Saxony, and the landgrave of Hefle: By the fortune of war he made the former prifoner: He employed treachery and_ prevarication againft the latter, and detained him captive, by breaking a fafe-conduct which he had granted him. He feemed to have reached the fummit of his ambition ; and the German princes, who were aftonifhed with his fuccefs, were farther dif- couraged by the intelligence, which they had received, of the death firft of Henry the eighth, then of Francis the firft, their ufual refources in every ca- Jamity *, | Henry the fecond, who fucceeded to the crown of France, was a prince of vigour and ability ; but lefs prompt in his refolutions than Francis, and lefs en- Jamed with rivalfhip and animofity againft the emperor, @harles. Tho’ he fent ambaffadors to the princes of the Smalcaldic League, and. promifed them his protection, he was unwilling, in the commencement of his reign, to hurry into a war againft fo great a power as that of the emperor, and he thought that the alliance of thefe princes was a fure.refource, which he could at any time lay hold of +. He was much governed by the duke of Guife and the cardinal of Lorraine, brothers to the Queen dowager of Scotland, and he hearkened to their counfel, in chufing rather to give immediate affiftance to that antient aily, which, 7 even before the death of Henry the eighth, had loudly claimed the proteétion of the French monarchy. THE + Father Paul, lib. 2. * Sieidan. + Pere Daniel. BE DoW TA ORTD © TVI. 297 Tue hatred between the two factions, the partizans of the antient and thofe of the new religion, became every day more violent in Scotland ; and the refo- o Chap. I. 1547. jution, which the cardinal primate had taken to employ the moft rigorous punith- Progrefs of ments againft the reformers, brought matters to a quick decifion. There was one Withart, agentleman by birth, who employed himfelf with great zeal in preach- land, ing againft the antient fuperftitions, and began to give alarm to the clergy, who were juftly terrified with the danger of fome fatal revolution in religion. This man was much celebrated for the purity of his morals, and for his extenfive learning : But thefe praifes cannot be much depended on ; becaufe, we know, that, among the reformers, feverity of manners ftood in place of many virtues ; and the age was in general fo ignorant, that moft of the priefts in Scotland imagined the New Teftament to be a compofition of Luther’s, and afferted that the Old alone was the word of God*. But however the cafe may have been with regard to thofe eftimable qualities afcribed to Wifhart, he was ftrongly poffefied with a defire of innovation; and he enjoyed thofe talents, which’qualified him for be- coming a popular preacher, and for feizing the attention and affections of the multitude. The magiftrates of Dundee, where he exercifed his miflion, were alarmed with his progrefs; and being unable or unwilling to treat him with rigour, they contented themfelves with denying him the liberty of preaching, and with difmiffing him the bounds of their jurifdiction. Wilhart, moved with indig- nation, that they had dared to reject the word of God, menaced them, in imita- tion of the antient prophets, with fome imminent calamity ; and he withdrew to the weft country, where he daily increafed the number of his profelytes. Mean- while, a plague broke out in Dundee; and all men exclaimed, that the town had drawn down the vengeance of Heaven by banifhing the pious preacher, and that the peftilence would never ceafe till they had made him attonement for their Qq offence * Spotfwood, p. 75. The fame author, p. 92; tells us a tory, which confirms this character of the popith clergy in Scotland. It became a great difpute in the univerfity of St. Andrews, whether the pater fhould be faid to God or the faints. The friars, who new in general that the reformers neglected the faints, were determined to maintain their honour with great obftinacy, but they knew not ‘ae what topics to found their do@rine. Some held that the pater was faid to God formaliter, and to faints mate- rialiter ; others, to God principaliter, and to faints minus principaliter ; others would have it ultimate and non ultimate: But the majority feemed to hold, that the pater was faid to God capiendo firife, and to faints capiendo large. A fimple fellow, who ferved the fub-prior, thinking there was fome great matter in hand, that made: the doctors hold fo many conferences together, afked him one day what the matter was; the fub-prior anfwering, Tom, that was the onan name; ue camnat agree a ets the pater-nofier foould be faid. He fuddenly replied, To aukom, Sir, foould it be Said, but unto Ged? ‘Sate {aid the fub-prior, what frall we do with the faints ? He anfwered, Give them Aues and reeds onow in the devil's name ; for that may Suffice ther. The apieet going abroad, many faid, that he had given a wifer decifion than all the dodtors had done.with ail their diftinétions. eS ‘ ui ] “f yy he Keforma- ‘ Qi + ; . Na y 5 MS Se On in ocoe | iit te Ai) 4 7 i” Sia 1 li) i@ ai “" a) aa \ ‘ | \ \ Hil la Wy Hin " i jin! ahs 3a : - y i Vr bal u be CW a ; i Te } : iS | bef i ‘ i" , li 7 4 ii AU Bh | ab he A hit HM] nt To Hid - Ln | he = eek a Cait Ye vey ie Tpit aati A PT a had 1 hy ? ay 4 vy iN 4 Wiis Ve ' 140 aes 2 Afifination of cardinal Beaton. oo a 298 H'YST OR Yior ENGL AN D. offence againft him. No fooner did Wifhart hear: of this change in their. dif- pofition, than he returned to them, and made them a new tender of his doctrine : But left he fhould fpread the contagion by bringing multitudes together, he erected his pulpit on the top of a gate: The infected ftood within ; the others without. And the preacher failed not,. in fuch,a fituation,. to take advantage of the immediate terrors of the people, and. to enforce his evangelical miffion +. Tue affiduity and fuccefs of Wifhart became an’ object of attention to cardinal Beaton; and he refolved, by the punifhment of fo celebrated a preacher, to {trike a terror into all other innovators. He engaged the earl of Bothwel to arreft hinvin his retirement ; and to‘deliver him into his hands, contrary to a promife given by Bothwel to that unhappy man: And being poffefied of his prey, he conduéted him to St. Andrew’s, wiiere,. after a trial, he condemned him to the flames for herefy. Arran, the regent, was very irrefolute in his temper 5. and ‘the cardinal, tho’ he had gained him to his party, found, that he would not concur in the condemnation and execution of Wifhart. He was therefore determined, without the affiftance of the fecular arm, to bring that heretic to: punifhment; and he himfelf beheld from his windows the difmal fpeétacle.. Nifhart fuffered with the ufual patience; but could not forbear remarking the triumph of his infulting enemy. He foretold, that ina few days he would in. the very fame place lie as low, as now he was exalted aloft, in oppofition to: true piety and religion f. Tuts prophefy was probably the immediate caufe of the event which it foretold. The difciples of this martyr, enraged at the cruel execution, formed a confpiracy againft the cardinal; and having aflociated to them Norman Lefly, who was difgufted on account of fome private quarrel, they conducted their enterprize with great fecrecy and fuecefs. Early in the morning they entered the cardinal’s palace, which he had ftrongly fortified; and though they were not above fixteen. perfons, they thruft out. an hundred tradefmen and fifty fervants, whom they feized fevarately, before any fufpicion arofe of their intentions; and having fhut the gates, they proceeded very deliberately. to execute their purpofe on the car- dinal, That prelate had been alarmed with the noife which he heard in the caftle ; and had barricadoe’d the door of his chamber: But finding that they had brought fire in order to force their way, and having obtained, as is believed, a promife of life, he opened the door ;, and reminding them, that he was.a prieft, he conjured. them to fpare him. . Iwo of the afiaffins rufhed upon him with drawn {words; but a third, James Melvil, more calm and more-confiderate in villany, +° Knox’s Hift. of Ref. p. 44. Spotfwood. t Spotfiyood, Buchanan. HB aD Wo Ae OoRE-D VI. 2° C9 willany, ftopped their carreer, and reminded them, that this facrifice was the work and judgment of God, and ought to be executed with the utmoft refleCtion and gravity. Then turning the point of his fword towards Beaton, he called to him, ‘** Repent thee, thou wicked cardinal, of all thy fins and iniquities, but ** efpecially of the murder of Wifhart, that inftrument of God for the con- verfion of thefe lands; It is his death, which now cries vengeance upon thee : “¢ We are fent by God to inflict the deferved punifhment. ‘For here, before the «© Almighty, I proteft, that-it is neither hatred of thy perfen, nor love of thy <¢ riches, nor fear of thy power, which moves me to feek thy death: But only ‘© becaufe thou haft been, and ftill remaineft, an obftinate enemy to Chrift Jefus, <¢-and his holy gofpel,’? Having fpoke thefe words, without giving him leifure to finifh that repentance, to which he exhorted him, he thruft him thro’ the body ; and the cardinal fell dead at his feet *. ‘This murther was executed on the 28th of May 1546. The affaffins being reinforced by their friends to the num- ber of an hundred and forty perfons, prepared themfelves for the defence of the caltle, and fent a meflenger to London, craving affiftance from Henry. ‘Thac prince, tho’ Scotland was comprehended in his peace with France, would not re- ject this opportunity of difturbing the government of that kingdom; and he agreed to take them under his protection. 66 Ir was the peculiar misfortune of Scotland, that five fhort reigns had been fucceffively followed by as many long minorities; and the execution of juftice, which the prince’was beginning to introduce, had been continually interrupted by the cabals, factions, and animofities of the great. But belides thefe invete- rate and antient evils, a new fource of diforder had arifen, the difputes and con- tentions of theology, which were fufficient to difturb the moft fettled govern- ment; andthe death of the cardinal, who was poffefled of ability and vigour, feemed much to weaken the hands of the adminiftration.. But-the Queen dow- ager was a woman of uncommon talents and virtues ; and fhe did.as much to {upport the government, and fupply the weaknefs of Arran, the governor, as could be expected in her fituation. . A ftipulation was made with the garrifon of St. Andrews, that they fhould furrender the caftle upon receiving a pardon, to- eether with an abfolution from the pope ; and that they fhould never afterwards Qq2 be * "The famous Scotch reformer, John Knox,, calls James Melvil, p.65, aman moft gentle and moft modéft. It is'vety, horrid, but at the fame time fomewhat amazing, to confider the joy and alacrity and pleafute, which that*hiftorian difcovers in his narration of this affaffination: And it is réemark- able that im the firit edition of his work, thefe words were printed on the margin of the page, 742 etrenched them. Knox himfelf had no hand in the murder of Beaton; but he afterwards joined the aiff. out the caftle. See Keith’s Hilt. of the Ref. of Scotland, p. 43 godly Fad and Words of Fames Melvil. But the following editors 3 afiins, and affifted. them im holding rw* a Chap.1. 1547: Condu& of the war with Scotland. 300 mio. ORY of. F NVELAN D. be called in queftion for Beaton’s affaffination. Meanwhile, till the pope’s abfo- lution fhould arrive, fhe applied to France for fuccours ; and Henry fent her fome gallies, with a train of artillery, commanded by Strozzi, prior of Capua. | Be- fore the fiege of St. Andrews was opened, the abfolution was fent to the earrifon, and they were required to furrender; but becaufe the pope, among other exagge- rations of the cardinal’s murder, had faid, that he pard&ned an unpardonable crime, the garrifon,. fearing that this expreflion was employed in order to enfnare them, refufed to open their gates +. They were, however, foon obliged to depart from their obftinacy : A great breach was made in the walls: The plague broke out among them: And feeing no hopes of fuccour from England, they furren- dered to the French upon conditions, which were not very {crupuloufly obferved to them. | Tue protector of England, fo foon as the government was brought to fome compofure, made preparations for the.attack of Scotland ; and he was determined to execute, if poffible, that project, of uniting the two kingdoms by marriage, on which the late King had been fo intent, and which he had recommended with his dying breath to his executors. He raifed an army of 18000 men, and equipped a fleet of fixty fail, one half of which were fhips of war, the other loaded with provifions and ammunition. He gave the command of the fleet to lord Clinton : He himfelf marched at the head of the army, attended by the ear] of Warwic. Thefe hoftile meafures were covered with a pretence of revenging fome depredations committed by the borderers; but befides, that the protector revived the antient claim of ‘the fuperiority of the Englith crown over that of Scotland, he refufed to enter into negotiation on any other conditions than the marriage of the young Queen with Edward. Tue protector publifhed a manifefto, in which he inforced all the arguments for that meafure. He faid, that nature feemed originally to have intended this ifland for one empire ; and having cut it off from all communication with foreign ftates, - and guarded it by the ocean, fhe had pointed out to the inhabitants the road to happinefs and fecurity : That the education and cuftoms of the people concurred with nature; and by giving them the fame language, and laws; and manners, had invited them to a thorough union and coalition: That fortune had at laft removed all obftacles, and had prepared an expedient, by which they might be- come one people, without leaving any place for that jealoufy either of honour or of intereft, to which rival nations are naturally fo much expofed: That the crown of Scotland had devolved to a female; that of England to a male; and happily che two fovereigns, as of a rank, fo were they alfo of an age, the moft fuitable to. + Knox, p. 75. Spotfwyood, Buchanan, Bt TRE WeoCAT CR: D VI. 261 — to each other: That the’ hoftile difpofition, which prevailed between the nations, and which arofe from paft injuries, would foon be extinguifhed, after a long and fecure peace had eftablifhed confidence between them: That the me- mory of former miferies, which at prefent enflamed their mutual animofity, would then ferve only to make them cherifh, with. more paffion, a {tate of hap- pinefs and tranquillity, fo long unknown to their anceftors: That when hoftilities had ceafed between the iin bales, the Scotch nobility, who were at prefent obliged to remain perpetually in a warlike pofture, would learn to cultivate the arts of peace, and would foften their minds to a love of domeftic order and obe- dience: That as this fituation was defirable to both kingdoms, fo particularly to Scotland, which had been expcfed to the greateft miferies from inteftine and fo- reign wars, and faw herfelf every moment in danger of lofing her independency, by the efforts of a richer and more powerful people: That tho’ England had claims of fuperiority, fhe was willing to refign every pretenfion for the fake of future peace, and defired an union, which would be the more fecure, as it would be concluded on terms entirely equal: And that befides all thefe motives, pofitive engagements had been taken for the compleating this alliance, and the honour and good faith of the nation were pledged to fulfil what her intereft and fafety fo loudly demanded *. SomERSET foon found, that thefe remonftrances would have no influence; and that the Queen dowager’s attachments to France and to the catholic religion would render ineffectual all negotiations for the intended marriage.. He found himfelf therefore obliged to try the force of arms, and to conftrain the Scotch by neceffity to fubmit to a meafure, for which they feemed to have entertained the moft incurable averfion. He pafied the borders at Berwic, and advanced to- wards Edinburgh, without meeting any refiftance for fome days, except from fome fmall caftles, which were conftrained to furrender at difcretion. ‘The pro- teétor intended to have punifhed the governor and garrifon of one of thofe caftles for their temerity in refifting fuch unequal force: But they eluded his anger by afking only a few hours refpite till they fhould prepare themfelves for death ; after which they found his ears more open to their applications for mercy fT. Tue governor of Scotland had fummoned together the whole force of the kingdom ; and his army, double the number of the Englifh, had taken poft on very advantageous ground, guarded by the banks of the Efke, about four miles from Edinburgh. The Englifh came within fight of them at Fafide; and after a fkirmifh between the horfe, where the Scotch were worfted, and lord Hume dangeroufly wounded, Somerfet prepared himfelf for a more decifive action, But having * Sir John Hayward in Kenneth, p. 279. Hievlin, Dp. 42, + Hayward, Patten. a cht ip. ~) ° ve 4 mi i) ’ ; ; ' ‘ »! y : ! j { tbs : Li i ia ii , } ‘ i ee li | ‘ wi ‘ eu “oy { 4 MB i ib i i” Sh si a) F ihe A! Te) THe iD whi ¢ in 4 lin i » MW it si 902 HISTOR YorENGLAND. Chap. I. having taken a view of the Scotch camp with the earl of Warwic, he found it 47" difficult to make any attempt upon it with a probability of fuccefs. He wrote therefore another letter to Arran; and offered to retire out of the kingdom, as well as to repair all damages which he had committed, provided that the Scotch would ftipulate not to contract the Queen to any foreign prince, but. to keep her at home, till fhe reached the age of choofing a hufband for herfelf. Such mo- derate terms were rejected by the Scotch merely on account of their moderation : and begot an opinion, that the protector muft either be reduced to great diftrefs or be influenced by fear, that he was now contented to abate fo much of his former pretenfions, Actuated alfo by their priefts, who had come to the camp in great numbers, they believed, that the Englith were deteftable heretics; abhorred of God, and expofed to divine vengeance; and that no fuccefs could ever crown their arms. ‘They were confirmed in this fond conceit, when they faw the pro- tector change his ground, and move towards the fea; nor did they any longer doubt that he intended to embark his army, and make his efcape on board the fhips, which at that very time moved into the bay, oppofite to him*. Deter- mined therefore to cut off his retreat, they quitted their camp; and paffing the roth Septem-lVver Fifke, advanced into the plain. They were divided into three bodies - ber. Angus commanded the vanguard; Arran the main body ; Huntley the rear: Their cavalry confifted only of light horfe, which were placed on their left flank, ftrengthened by fome Irith archers, whom Argyle had brought over for this fervice. SomMERsET was pleafed when he faw this movement of the Scotch army; and as the Englifh had ufually been fuperior in pitched battles, he conceived great hopes of fuccefs. He arranged his van on his left, fartheft from the fea; and ordered them to remain on the high grounds on which he placed them, till the enemy fhould approach: He placed his main battle and his rear towards The battle of Pinkey. the right ; and beyond the van he pofted lord Gray at the head of the men at arms, and ordered him to take the Scotch van in flank, but not till they fhould be engaged in clofe fight with the van of the Englith. Waite the Scotch were advancing on the plain, they were galled with the artillery from the Englifh fhips: The mafter of Graham was killed: The Irith archers were thrown into diforder: and even the other troops began to ftagger : When'the lord Gray, perceiving, their fituation, neglected his orders, left his eround, and at the head of his heavy-armed horfe made an attack on the Scotch infantry, in hopes of gaining all the honour of the victory. On advancing, he A found * Hollingthed, p. 98s. , De We Ai ReaD VI. 203 found a flough and ditch in his way ; and behind were ranged the Scotch infantry armed .with fpears, and the field, on which they ftood, was fallow ground, broken with ridges, which lay crofs their front, and difordered the movements of the Englifh cavalry. From all, thefe accidents, the fhock of this body of horfe was feeble and irregular; and as they were received on the points of the Scottifh fpears, which were longer than the lances of the Englifh horfemen, they were in a moment pierced, overthrown, and difcomfited. Gray himfelf was dangeroufly wounded: Lord Edward Seymour, fon to the protector, loft his horfe: The ftandard was near being taken: And had the Scotch poffefied any good body of cavalry, who “might have purfued the advantage, the whole Englifh army, had been expofed to great danger *. THe protector mean-while, affifted by Sir Ralph Sadler and Sir Ralph Vane, employed himfelf with diligence and fuccefs, in rallying the cavalry. War- wic fhowed great prefence of mind in maintaining the ranks of the foot, on which the horfe had recoiled: He made Sir Peter Meutas advance, captain of the foot hackbutters, and Sir Peter Gamboa, captain of fome Italian and Spanifh hackbutters, on horfeback ; and ordered them to ply the Scotch infantry with their fhot. They marched to the flough, and difcharged their pieces full in the fac® of the enemy: The fhips galled them from the flank : The artillery, planted on a height, infefted them from the front: The Englifh archers poured in a fhower of arrows upon them: And the vanguard, defcending from the hill, ad- vanced, leifurely and orderly, towards them. — Difmayed with all thefe circum- ftances, the Scotch van began to retreat : “The retreat foon changed into a flight ; which was begun by the Irifh archers. ‘The panic of the van communicated: itfelf to the main body, and paffing thence to the rear, rendered the whole field a fcene of confufion, terror, flight and confternations ‘The Englifh army per- ceived from the heights the condition of the Scotch, and began the purfuit with: loud fhouts and acclamations, which added ftill more to the difmay of the van- quifhed.. The horfe in particular, eager to revenge the affront, which they had: received in the beginning of the day, committed the moft bloody execution on the flying enemy; and from the field of battle to Edinburgh, for the fpace of five miles, the whole ground was ftrowed with dead bodies. ‘The -priefts above all, and the monks received no quarter; and the Englifh made fport of flaugh- tering men, who, from their extreme zeal and animofity, had engaged in an enterprize fo ill fuited to their profeffion. Few victories have been mcre de- cifive, or gained with fmaller lofs to the conquerors. There fell not two hun- dred of the Englifh; and according to the moft moderate computation, there : perifhed: * Patten, Hollingfhed, p. 986s. | a tir’ i} i) int \ tt 4 # it Die i ; ‘ 4 a iy i ear Fie <<. = = ete se ~ Ase Se te SAE 7 ie Chap. I. 1547-° 4 Novemb. A Parliamen 304. HISTORY or ENGLAND. perifhed above ten thoufand of the Scotch. About fifteen hundred. were. taken prifoners. « This action was called the Battle of Pinkey, from.a nobleman’s feat of that name in the neighbourhood. . HE Queen dowager and Arran fled to Stirling, and were {carce able: to: col- lect fuch a body of forces as could check the incurfions of fmall. parties of the Enelifh. About the fame time, the earl of Lenox and*lord Wharton entered the Weft Marches, at the head of five thoufand men, and aftertaking and plun- dering Annan, they fpread devaftation over. all» the neighbouring counties *. Fad Somerfet profecuted his advantage, he might have impofed what terms he pleafed on the Scotch nation: But he was impatient to return to England, where he heard, fome counfellors, and even his own brother, the admiral, were carry- ing on cabals againft his authority. Having taken the caftles of Hume, Dun- elafs, Eymouth, Faftcaftle, Roxborough, and fome other {mall places ;- and hav- ing received the fubmiflion of fome counties on the borders, he retired. out of Scotland. The fleet, befides deftroying all the fhips along the Coaft, took Broughty in the Firth of Tay, and having fortified it, they left there a garrifon. Arran defired leave to fend commiffioners in order to treat of a peace; and So- merfet, having appointed Berwic for the place of meeting, left Warwic with full powers to negociate: But no commiflioners from Scotland ever appeared. The overture of the Scotch was an artifice, to gain time, till fuccours fhould arrive from France. Tue protector, on his arrival in England, fummoned a Parliament: And be- ing fomewhat elated with his fuccefs againft the Scotch, he procured a patent, appointing him to fit on the throne, upon a ftool or bench at the right hand of the King, and to enjoy the fame honours and privileges which had ufually been pofiefied by any princes of the blood, or uncles of the Kings of England. In this patent, the King difpenfed with the ftatute of precedency, enacted during the former reign +. ., But if Somerfet gave offence by affuming too much ftate, he deferves the higheft praife on account of the laws pafled this feffion, by which the rigour of former ftatutes was much mitigated, and fome fecurity given to the freedom of the con- ftitution. All Jaws were repealed which extended the crime of treafon beyond the ftatute of the twenty eighth of Edward the third; all laws enacted during the late reign, extending the crime of felony; all the former laws againft Lol- lardies or herefy, together with the ftatute of the fix articles. None were to‘be accufed of words but within a month after they were fpoken. By thefe repeals feveral of the moft rigorous laws that ever were pafled in’ England, were an- nulled, and fome dawnings, both of civil and religious liberty, began to! gppéar | to * Hollingthed, p. 992. + Rymer, vol. XV. p. 164. } 1 Edw. V1. ¢, 12. 3 - - — a ha oN 4 be ee = “pve ie PO AR Rae S to the people. Herefly, however, was ftill a capital crime by the common law, and was fubjected to the penalty of burning. There only remained no precife ftandard by which that crime could be defined or determined: A circumftance which might either be advantageous or hurtful to public fecurity, according to the difpofition of the judges. | : A repeat alfo paffied of that law, the deftruétion of all laws, by which the King’s proclamation was made of equal force with a ftatute ||. That other law was likewife mitigated, by which the King was empowered to annul all laws paffed before the four.and twentieth year of his age: He could prevent their future execution ; but could not recall any paft effects, which had enfued from them §. Some ftatutes too were paffed which were of the utmoft importance, becaufe they promoted the principles and praétices of the. reformers, tho’ they may not, all of them, appear to be attended with any material confequences to civil fociety. The cup was reftored to the laity; private maffes were abolifhed; the King was empowered to create bifhops by letters patent, without any fham elec- tion of the chapter; the bifhops were ordered to iffue their writs, and hold their courts in the King’s name*; vagabonds were adjudged to be flaves for two years, and to be marked with a red-hot iron{; an act commonly fuppofed to be levelled againft the ftrolling priefts and friars. Tue chantries and free chappels had been given by act of parliament to the late King; and he had appointed commiffioners to take poffeffion of the reve- nues; but as they had not proceeded far in the execution of their office, it was found neceffary to make a renewal of the grant. The preamble to the flatute promifes, that thefe funds fhould be employed to good and godly ufes, in ereét- ing grammar {chools, in farther augmenting the univerfities, and in making better provifion for the poor and needy +. But the rapacious courtiers had already de- voured the prey in their imaginations ; and it was not long before it was fhared out among them. | Ir was alfo enaéted, that all who denied the King’s fupremacy, or afferted the pope’s, fhould, for the firft offence, forfeit their goods and chattels, and fuffer imprifonment during pleafure; for the fecond offence, fhould incur. the pain of premunire; and for the third offence be attainted of treafon, But if any, after the firft of March next, endeavoured, by writing, printing, or any overt act or deed, to deprive the King of his eftate or titles, particularly of his fupremacyy er te confer them on any other, he was to be adjudged guilty of treafon. If any of the heirs of the crown fhould ufurp upon another, or endeavour to break the Rr order | 1 Edw. VI. c. 2. § Ibid. * Ibid. t 1 Edw. VI. c¢. 3. + 1 Edw. VI. c. 44,8 aN Chap. J. 1547- SIS er a> = rt > = » — eS ~ ~ ston rt _- 7 ~ —— -* - —— _ ———— = So = - = qa - + ee = - > ——- =: - as = Ss te — ase Pe = SSS % — a ~ eS A -- = SS = = _ . =< eat ss Sara = : 7 == = a = ; aid a SESE =e Sr . <= --s = i-SP = = “ — ~4- s+ z = — ne. oe 5-2 = = " ~ se ee = — - : =" Se a SE a a = += t= be,’ ==s =: = = is = = - = = = on aia = . . =o Z en erected . - ee ee =e - = a = SSeS 58 oe eee = a 2 eS FT a = - a 306 HISTORYior ENGLAND. Chap: I. order of fucceflion, it was declared treafon in them, their aiders and abetters: ‘s47* — "Thefe were the moft confiderable aéts pafied during this feffion. The members. difcovered “a very paflive difpofition with regard to religion : Some few appeared zealous for the reformation: Others harboured fecretly a ftrong inclination fo. the catholic faith: But the greateft part appeared willing to take any impreffion which they fhould receive frdm intereft, authority, or the reigning fafhion f. THe convocation met at the fame time with the Parliament ; and as it appear- ed, that their debates were at firft cramped by the rigour of the ftatute of the fix articles, the King granted them a difpenfation from that law, before it was re- pealed by Parliament ||. “The lower houfe of convocation applied to have liberty of fitting with the commons in Parlament; or if this privilege was refufed them, which they claimed as their ancient right, they defired that no law regard- ing religion, might pafs in Parliament without their confent and approbation: But the principles which now prevailed, were more advantageous to the civil than the ecclefiaftical power; and tho’ there is reafon to think, that the lower clergy fent, during fome time, reprefentatives to the houfe of commons * ; yet that practice had been abolifhed for above two centuries; and the prefent juncture was very little favourable for attempting to revive it. Tue protector had permitted the repeal of that law, which gave 'to the King’s proclamations the authority of ftatutes; but he did not intend to renounce that arbitrary or difcretionary exercife of power, which had ever been affumed by the crown, and which it is difficult to diftinguifh exaétly from the power of making. laws. He even continued to exert this authority in fome particulars, which were Farther pro- regarded as the moft momentuous. Orders were iffued by council, that candles. Pelee es fhould no longer be carried about on Candlemas-day, afhes on Afh-wednefday, | palmes on Palm-funday +. Thefe were ancient religious practices, now deno: minated fuperftitions ; tho” it is very fortunate for mankind, when fuperftition hap- pens to take adire¢tion fo innocent and inoffenfive. The fevere difpofition which naturally attends all reformers, prompted likewife the council to abolifh fome gay and fhowy ceremonies, which belonged to the ancient religion f. An order was alfo iffued by the council for the removal of all images from the churches: An innovation which was much defired by all the reformers, and which aloney with regard to the populace, amounted almoft to a total change of the - eftablithed religion |]. An attempt had been made to feparate the ufe of images bey a} ow oo from t Heylin, p 48. | Antiq. Britan. p. 339: r See Atterbury’s Rights, &e. of an English convocation, p. 73. + Burnet, vol. JI. p. 59. Collier, vol. II. p.241. Heylin, Pp $5. t Burnet, vol, If, | Burnet, vol. I. p. 60. Collier, vol. I. p. 241. kacylin, p. $6. 4 Bee AVS AO RYowpD VI. 207 from their abufe, the reverence from the worfhip of them; but the execu- tion of this defion was found, upon trial, very difficult, if not wholly imprac- ticable. , - As private mafles were abolifhed by law, it became neceffary to frame a new communion-office; and the council went fo far, in the preface which they had prefixed to this work, as to leave the practice of auricular confeffion wholly in- different §. This was a prelude to the entire abolition of that invention, one of the moft powerful engines that ever was contrived for degrading the laity, and giving their fpiritual guides an entire afcendant over them. And it may juftly be faid, that tho’ the prieft’s abfolution, which attends confeffion, ferves fomewhat to eafe weak minds from the immediate agonies of fuperititious terror, it operates only by flrongly enforcing fuperftition itfelf, and thereby preparing the mind fora more violent relapfe into the fame diforders. Tue people were at that time extremely diftracted, by the oppofite opinions of their preachers; and as they were totally incapable to judge of the reafons ad- vanced on either fide, and naturally regarded every thing which they heard at church, as of equal authority, a great confufion and fluctuation refulted from this uncertainty. The council firft endeavoured to remedy that inconvenience, by lay- ing fome reftraints on preaching; but finding this expedient ineffectual, they im- pofed a total filence on the preachers, and thus put an end at once to all the po- lemics of the pulpit *. By the nature of things, this reftraint could only be temporary. Far in proportion as the ceremonies of public worfhip, its fhows and exterior obfervances, were retrenched by the reformers, the people were in- clined to contra¢t a ftronger attachment to fermons, whence alone they received any occupation or amufement. The ancient religion, by giving, its votaries fome-~ thing to do, freed them from the trouble of knowing: Sermons were only deli- vered in the principal churches, and at fome particular fafts and feftivals: And the practice of haranguing the populace, which, if abufed, is fo powerful an. incitement to faétion and fedition, had much lefs fcope and influence during thofe ages.. ~ Tue greater progrefs was made towards a reformation in England, the further did the protector find himfelf from all profpect of compleating the union with Aftirs of Scotland; and the Queen-dowager, as well as the clergy, became the more Scotland. averfe to all alliance with a nation which had departed fo far from all ancient principles. Somerfet, having taken the town of Haddington, had ordered it to be ftrongly garrifoned and fortified, by lord Gray: He alfo erected fome fortifica- Rr 2 tions ¢ Burnet, vol. IL. * Fuller, Heylin, Burnet? >“ =~ ~ * AN Chap. I, 1548. ws 303 HISTORY or ENGLAND. tions at Lauder: And he hoped, that thefe two places, together with Broughty and fome imaller forcrefies, which were in the hands of the Englith, would ferve- as a curb to Scotland; and would give him accefs into the heart. of. the: country. Arran, being difappointed in fome attempts on Broughty, relied chiefly on the fuccours expected from France, for the recovery of thefe places; and they -ar- rived at laft in the Firth, to the number of fix thoufand men; one half of whom: were Germans. They were commanded by Deffé, and under him by: Andelor,, Strozzi, Meilleraye, count Rhingrave.-_ The Scotch were at. that time fo funk. by their misfortunes, that five hundred Englith horfe: were able to ravage the: whole country without refiftance; and make inroads. to the gates of the ca- pital f: But on the appearance of the French fuccours, they. colleed more. courage; and having joined Deffé with a confiderable reinforcement, they laid fiege to Haddington}. This was an undertaking for which they were themfelves: totally unfit; being only practifed in a kind of defultory war, where they ferved without pay, and with a few weeks provifions, which they brought along with: them. Even with the affiftance of the French, they placed their chief hopes of: fuccefs in ftarving the garrifon ; and after fome vain attempts to take the place by a. regular fiege, the blockade of Haddington was formed. The garrifon were re- pulfed with lofs in feveral fallies which they made upon the befiegers.. Tue hoftile attempts which the late King and the protector had made: againtt Scotland, ‘not being fteddy, regular, nor pufted to the laft extremity, had ferved. only to irritate the nation, and to infpire them with the ftrongeft averfion to that- confederacy which was courted in fo violent a manner. Even thofe who were. inclined to the Englith alliance, were difpleafed to have it impofed on them by force of arms; and the ear] of Huntley in particular, faid pleafantly, that he | difliked not the match, but he hated the manner of wooing |. The Queen-. dowager, finding thefe fentiments to prevail, called a Parliament, in an abbey near Haddington ; and it was there propofed, that the young Queen, for her greater fecurity, fhould be fent to France, and be committed to the proteétion of that ancient ally. Some objected, that this meafure was defperate, allowed no refource in cafe of mifcarriage, expofed the Scotch to be fubjected by foreigners, involved them in perpetual war with England, and Teft them no expedient by which they could conciliate the friendfhip of that powerful nation. It was an- {wered, on the other hand, that the Queen’s prefence was the very caufe of war with England; that that nation would defift when they found that their views of t Beageey bik of She Lampapnes, Iga kes 15495 PiiG. } Hollingthed, p. 993. | Hleylin, p.46. Patsen. ed <> GE ee of forcing a marriage had become altogether impracticable; and that Henry, Chap. % being engaged by fo high a mark of confidence, would take their fovereign un: der his guardianfhip, and ufe his utmoft efforts to defend the kingdom. Thefe arguments were aided by French gold, which was plentifully diftributed among the nobles. The governor had a penfion conferred on him of twelve thoufand livres a year, received the title of duke of Cliatelrault, and obtained for his fon * the command of an hundred men at arms *. And as all the clergy dreaded the: confequences' of the Englifhalliance, they feconded this meafure with all the zeal and induftry which either principles or intereft could infpire. It was accordingly Young Queen determined to fend the Queen to France; and what was underftood to be the ne- Of Scot ‘ent into Frances ceflary confequence, to marry her to the dauphin. Vallegaignon, commander of: four French gallies lying in the Firth of Forth, fet fail as if he intended to return home; but when he reached the open fea,. he turned northwards, paffed by the Orkneys, and came in.on the weft coaft at Dunbarton: A very extraordinary voyage for fhips of that.fabric--. The young Queen was there committed to him ;- and being attended with the Jords Arefkine and Livingftone, fhe put to fea, and after meeting with fome.tempeftuous weather, arrived fafely at Breft, whence fhe was conducted to Paris, and foon.after fhe was betrothed to the dauphin. | SomMERSET, prefied by many difficulties at home, and defpairing of fuccefs in his enterprize againft Scotland, was defirous of compofing the differences witH that kingdom, and he offered the Scotch a ten years truce; but as they infifted on his reftoring all the places-which he had taken, the propofal came to nothing. .. » The Scotch took the fortreffes. of Hume and: Faft-caftle, by furprize, and p > i} the garrifon to the fword: They repulfed, wieh lofs, the Englifh, who, under the command of Jord Seymour,. made a defcent, firft in Fife; and then at Mon-. . trofe: In the former aétion, James Stuart, natural brother to the Queen, ac- quired, great honour; in the fecond action; Arefkine of Dun. An attempt was made by Sir Robert Bowes and Sir Thomas Palmer, at the head of a. confiderable body,. to throw relief into Haddington; but thefe troops falling . into an ambufcade, were almoft wholly cut in pieces{=. And tho’ a fmall body. of two hundred men efcaped all the vigilance of the French, and arrived fafely in. Haddington, with fome ammunition and provifions, the garrifon was reduced. to fuch difficulties, that the protector found st neceffary to ~provide more. effectu- ally for their relief... He raifed-an.army:of eighteen thoufand men, and adding three thoufand Germans, who, onthe diffolution of the proteftant alliance, had offered theirr * Burnet, voloIl. p.$3; Buehan. lib. XV. Keith} poss. ‘Thuanus, lib. V. ¢.-15. + Thuanus, lia V. ¢. 15. $ Stowe, p. 595. Hollingthed,. p. 994.- ‘. ~ Chap. J. 1548. Ce ip to) HISTOR YorENGLAND. their fervice to England, he gave the command of the whole to the earl of Shrewibury |. D’ Effé railed the fiege on the approach of the Englifh; and with great difficulty made good his retreat to Edinburgh, where he pofted himfelf advantageoufly. Shrewfbury, who had loft the opportunity of attack-» ing him on his march, durft not give him battle in his prefent fituation; and contenting himfelf with the advantage already gained of fupplying Haddington, he retired into England. Durine the abode of the French troops many complaints had arifen between them and the Scotch; and a fmall accident* having excited a tumult in Edin- burgh, the provoft and his fon were unfortunately killed by the French foldiers. This event increafed the animofity between the twonations: But D’ Effe, in order to make atonement for that act of violence, led his troops haftily to Haddington, and in the night-time attempted to furprize the town, He found the garrifon un- prepared to refift him; and had already entered the outer court: But a French deferter firing acannon, which pointed towards the gates, the fhot fell among the thickeft of the enemy, and made fuch havoc as threw the whole into confufion, and enabled the Englifh to repulfe them. It is pretended, that no lefs than a hundred perfons fell by this fingle fhot. Tue French general was a man of ability and experience; but as he had not the good fortune to be acceptable to the Scotch nation, it was thought proper to recall him, and to fend over De Thermes in his place. D’ Effe, before his de- parture, fortified Leith, which, from a fmall village, foon became a confiderable town, by the concourfe of inhabitants, who found there a fecurity, which they could no where elfe enjoy in Scotland, He alfo attacked an Englifh garrifon in. Inch-keith, an ifland oppofite to that harbour, and made them prifoners, After thefe exploits, he refigned his command to De Thermes, who brought over with him Monluc, bifhop of Valence, a man celebrated for wifdom and capacity. This prelate was named chancellor of the kingdom; and it was probably intend- ed, by his means, to infpire the nation with fome greater attachment to the prin- ciples of law and equity: But the Scotch, impatient of reftraint, and jealous of a foreigner, exprefied fuch difcontent, that it was thought more prudent foon _ after to recall him +. Tuo’ the protection of France was of great confequence to the Scotch, in fup- porting them againft the invafions of England, they reaped {till more benefit from the diftraétions and divifions which had crept into the councils of that latter kingdom. | Hayward, ps 291. * Beagué, p. 8. Knox, p. 81. + Burnet, vol. Il. 9. 85. Thuanus, lib. V. G15. EA DW HAG RD) Vi. ait kingdom. Even the two brothers, the protector and admiral, not contented with the high ftations which they feverally enjoyed, and the great eminence to which they had rifen, had entertained the moft violent jealoufy of each other’s authority ; and they divided the whole court and kingdom, by their oppofite cabals and pre- tenfions. Lord Seymour was aman of infatiable ambition, arrogant, affuming, implacable; and tho’ efteemed of fuperior capacity to the protector, he pofleficd not to the fame degree the confidence and regard of the people. By his flattery and addrefs, he had fo infinuated himfelf into the good graces of the Queen- dowager, that, forgetting her ufual prudence and decency, fhe married him. im- mediately upon the deceafe of the late King: Infomuch, that, had fhe foon: proved pregnant, it might have been doubtful to which hufband the child be- longed. The credit and riches of this alliance fupported the ambition of the admiral ;. but gave umbrage to the dutchefs of Somerfet, who, uneafy that the younger brother’s wife fhould have the precedency, employed all her intereft with her hufband, which was too great, firft to create, and then to widen a breach. between the two brothers f. Tue firft fymptoms of this mifunderftanding appeared when the protector commanded the army in Scotland. The fecretary, Paget, a man entirely devoted to Somerfet, remarked, that Seymour was forming feparate intrigues among the counfellors; was corrupting, by prefents, the King’s fervants ; and even endeavouring, by improper indulgencies and liberalities, to captivate the affections of the young monarch. Paget reprefented to him the danger of this conduct; defired him to refleét on the numerous enemies whom the fadden elevation of their family had created; and warned him that any dif- fenfion between him and the protetor, would be greedily laid hold of, to draw onthe ruin of both. Finding his remonftrances ineffectual, he convey- ed intelligence of the danger to Somerfet,, and engaged him to leave the enter- prize againft Scotland unfinifhed, in order to guard againft the attempts of his domettic enemies. In the enfuing Parliament, the admiral’s projects appeared fill more hazardous to public tranquillity ; and as he had acquired many partizans and retainers, he made a direét attack upon his. brother’s autho= rity. He reprefented to his friends, that formerly, during a minority, the office of protector of the kingdom had been kept feparate from that of governor of the King’s perfon; and that the prefent union of. thefe two important trufts, conferred on Somerfet an authority which could not fafely be lodged in any fubs ject ||. He even prevailed on the young, King, to write a letter to the Parlia- ment, + Hayward, p: 301. Heyln, ps 72. Camden. Thuanus, lib. VI. g 5. Haynes, p.-69, ||, Haynes, p. 825 go. Chap. Tf. 1548. Cabals of lord Seymour. Chap. I. 1548. ps 312 HISTORY or ENGLAND. ment, defiring that Seymour might be appointed his governor; and -he:had formed a party in the two houfes, by which he hoped to have effected his pur- pole. The defign was difcovered before its execution; and fome common friends were fent to remonttrate with him, but had fo little influence, that he threw out many menacing expreffions, and rafhly threatened, that, if he was thwarted in his.attempt, he would make this.Parliament .the blackeft that ever was in Eng- land*. The council fent for him, to anfwer for his condu&; but he refufed to attend: They then began to threaten in their turn, and informed him, that the King’s letter, inftead of availing him any thing to the execution of his pur- pofe, would be imputed to him as a criminal enterprize, and be conftrued a de- fign to difturb the government, by forming a feparate intereft with a child and minor. They even Jet fall fome menaces of fending him to the Tower for his temerity. and the admiral finding himfelf prevented in his defign, was ob- liged to fubmit, and to defire a reconcilement with his brother. Tue.mild and.moderate. temper of Somerfet made him willing to forget thefe enterprizes of the admiral; but the ambition of that turbulent fpirit could not be fo ealily appeafed. His fpoufe, the Queen-dowager, died in child-bed; but fo far from regarding this event as a check to his afpiring views, he founded on it.the fcheme of a more extraordinary elevation. He made his addreffes to the lady Elizabeth, then in the fixteenth year of her age; and that princefs, whom even the hurry of bufinefs, and the purfuits of ambition, could not, in her more advanced. years, difengage ‘entirely from the tender paffions, feems to have liftened to-the infinuations of a man who poffeffed every talent proper to captivate the affections of the fair+. But as Henry the eighth had excluded his daughters from all hopes of fucceffion, if they married without the confent of his executors, which Seymour could never hope to obtain; it was concluded, that he propofed to effectuate his purpofe by expedients ftill more rafh and more criminal. All.che other meafures of the admiral tended to confirm this fufpicion, He continued to attack, by prefents, the fidelity of all thofe who had more imme- diate accefs to the King’s perfon.: He endeavoured to feduce that young prince into his interefts: He found means of holding a private correfpondence with him : He publicly decried his-brother’s adminiftration ; and afferted, that by enlifting Germans, and other fercigners, he intended to form a mercenary army, which endangered the King’s authority, and_the liberty of the people: By promifes and perfuafion he brought over to his party many of the principal nobility; and had diftributed his intereft all over England: He neglected not even the moft popular * Haynes, p. 7%. + Thid. 95, 96, 102, 108. # op? Wi AORY BO VE 413 “popular perfons of inferior rank; and had computed, that he could, onoccafion, Chapt. command the fervice of ten thoufand men, among his fervants, tenants, and re- tainerst: He had already provided arms for their ufe; and having engaged in his interefts Sir John Sharington, a very corrupt man, matter of the mint at Brittol, he flattered himfelf that money would not be wanting. Somerfet was well informed of all thefe alarming circumftances, and endeavoured by the molt friendly expedients, by intreaty, reafon, and even by heaping new favours upon him, to make him depart from his precipitant councils: But finding all his en- deavours ineffectual, he began to think of more fevere remedies. The earl of Warwic was an ill inftrument between the brothers ; and had formed the defign, by inflaming the quarrel, to raife his own fortune on both their ruins. Dupzey, earl of Warwic, was the fon of that Dudley, minifter to Henry the pudtey, earl veventh, who having, by rapine, extortion, and perverfion of law, incurred of Warwic. the hatred of the public, had been facrificed to popular animofity, in the be- cinning of the fubfequent reign. The late King, fenfible of the iniquity, at leaft illegality of the fentence, had afterwards reftored young Dudley’s blood by act of parliament ; and finding him endowed with ability, induftry, and enter- prize, he had entrufted him with many important commands, and had ever found him fuccefsful in all his undertakings. He raifed him to the dignity of vifcount Lifle, conferred on him the office of admiral, and gave him by his will a place among his executors. . Dudley made ftill farther progrefs during the mi- nority ; and having obtained the title of earl of Warwic, and undermined the credit of Southampton, he bore the firft rank among the protector’s counfellors. The victory, gained at Pinkey, was much afcribed to his courage and conduct ; and ; he was univerfally regarded as aman equally endowed with the talents of peace and wat, But all thefe virtues were obfcured by {till greater vices; an exorbitant ambition, an infatiable avarice, a neglect of decency, a contempt of juftice : And as he found, that lord Seymour, whofe ability and enterprize he chiefly dreaded, was involving himfelf in ruin, by his rafh councils, he was determined to pufh him to the precipice ; and thereby remove the chief obftacle.to his own projected greatnefs. Wuen Somerfet found that the public peace was expofed by his brother’s fedi- tious, if net tebellious, {chemes, he was the more eafily perfuaded, by Warwic, to employ the extent of royal authority again{t him 5 and after depriving him of tHe office of admiral; he Gigned a warrant for committing him to the Tower, Some of his accomplices were alfo taken into cuftody ; and three privy counfellors, being fent to examine them, made a report, that they had met with very full Ss and + Haynes, p. 105, 100, \ Parliament. 4 Novem- ber. Attainder of lord Seymour. = 414 HISTORY or ENGLAND. and important difcoveries. Yet ftill the protector fufpended the blow, and fhowed a reluctance to ruin his brother. He offered to depart from the profecu- tion, if Seymour would promife him a cordial reconcilement ; and relinquifhing all ambitious hopes, be contented with a private life, and retire into the country. But as Seymour made no other anfwer to thefe friendly offers than menaces and defiances, he ordered a charge to be drawn up againft him, confifting of thirty- three articles ||; and the whole to be laid before the privy-council. It is pre- tended, that every particular was fo inconteftibly proved, both by witneffes and his own hand-writing, that there was no room for doubt; yet did the council think proper to go in a body to the Tower, in order more fully to examine the prifoner. He was not daunted by the appearance; but boldly demanded a fair trial; required to be confronted with the witnefles ; defired that the charge might be left with him, inorder to be confidered; ‘and refufed to anfwer any interroga- tories, by which he might en{nare himfelf. Ir is apparent, that notwithftanding what is pretended, there muft have been fome deficiency in the evidence againft Seymour, when fuch: demands, founded on the plaineft principles of law and equity, were abfolutely rejected. We thall indeed conclude, if we carefully examine the charge, that many of the articles wete general, and fearce capable of any proof; many of them, if true, fuf- ‘ceptible of a more favourable interpretation ; and that, tho’ on the whole, Sey- mour appears to have been a'very dangerous fubject, yet he had not advanced far in thofe treafonable projects imputed to him. ‘The chief part of his guilt feems to have confifted in fome unwarrantable practices in the admiralty, by which pyrates were protected, and illegal impofitions laid upon the merchants. _ But the adminiftration had, at that time, an eafy inftrument of vengeance, to wit, the Parliament; and needed not give themfelves any concern with regard either to the guilt of the perfons whom they profecuted, or the evidence which could be produced again{t them. A feflion of Parliament being held, it-was propofed to proceed againit Seymour by bill of -attainder; and much perfuafion being employed to engage the young King to confent to it, a confiderable weight was put on his approbation. The matter was firft laid before the upper houfe ; and feveral peers, rifing up in their places, gave an account of what they knew concerning lord Seymour’s conduct, ~and his criminal words or actions. Thefe narratives were received for undoubted evidence; and tho’ the prifoner had for- merly engaged many friends and partizans among the nobility, no onehad either the courage or equity to move, that he might be heard in hisown defence, that the teftimony againft him fhould be:delivered in a legal manner, and that he fhould | Burnet, vol. If, Coll. 31. ©2&3 Edw. VI. c. 18, » ED WAR D VI. a] « / fhould be confronted with the witnefies. A little more {cruple was made in the Chap.t Loufe of commons: There were even fome members who objected againft the whole 15 49- - method of proceeding by bills of attainder, paffed in abfence; and required, zoth March. shat a formal trial thould be given to every man before his condemnatien. But y; upon receiving a meflage from the King, requiring them to proceed, and ‘on. offering that the fame narratives (hould be laid before them which had fatisfied the peers, they were eafily prevailed on to acquiefce*. The bill paffed in a very. full houfe. Near four hundred voted for it ; and not above nine or ten apainft it 7. The fentence was foon after executed, and the prifoner was beheaded on Tower- hill. The warrant was*figned by Somerfet, who was expofed to. much blame, on account of the violence of thefe proceedings. The attempts of the admiral] feemed chiefly to be levelled againft his brother’s ufurped authority; and tho’ his ambitious, enterprizing character, encouraged by a marriage with the lady Eli- gabeth, might have proved dangerous to public tranquillity, the pru lence of forefeeing dangers at fuch a diftance, was efteemed. too great, and the remedy was plainly illegal, It could only be faid, that this bill of attainder was fome- what more tolerable than the preceding ones, to which the nation had been ac- cuftomed. For here, at Jeaft, fome fhadow of evidence was produced. Aux the other confiderable bufinefs tranfacted this fefion, befides the attainder Feclefiattical of lord Seymour, regarded ecclefiaftical matters; which were now the chief 2iairs. concern of the nation. A committee of bifhops and divines had been appointed by the council, to frame a liturgy for the fervice of the church; and they had executed the work committed to them. They proceeded: with great moderation sn this delicate undertaking: They retained as much of the ancient mafs as the principles of the reformers would permit: They indulged nothing to the fpirit - of contradiction, which fo naturally takes place in, all great innovations : And they flattered themfelves, that they had framed a fervice, in which every denomination of Chriflians might, without feruple, concur. The mafs had been always celebrat- ed in Latin; a practice which might have been efteemed abfurd, had it not been found ufeful to the clergy, by imprefling the people with an idea of fome myfte- rious unknown virtue in: thofe rites, and by checking all their pretenfions to be familiarly acquainted with their religion. But as the reformers pretended in fome few particulars to encourage private judgment in the laity, the tranflation of the liturgy, as well as of the {criptures, into the vulgar tongue, feemed more con- formable to che genius.of their fect; .and this ‘nnovation, with the retrenchment of prayers to faints, and. of fome fuperftitious ceremonies, was the chief differ- 55.2 ence * 2 & 3 Edw. Vi..c. 13. + Burnet, vol. NW, p.9 216 HISTORY or ENGLAND. ence between the old mafs and the new liturgy. The Parliament eftablithed this form of worfhip in all the churches, and ordered an uniformity to be ob- ferved in all the rites and ceremonies +. _ Txere was another very material act, which paffed this feffion. The former canons had eftablifhed the celibacy of the clergy; and though this practice be ufually afcribed to the policy of the court of Rome, who thought, that the eccle- fiaftics would be more devoted to their fpiritual head, and lefs dependant on the civil magiftrate, when freed from the powerful tyes of wives and children ; yet was this inftitution much forwarded by the principles of fuperftition inherent in human nature. Thefe principles had rendered the panegyrics of an inviolate chaftity- fo frequent among the antient fathers, long before the eftablifhment of celibacy. And even the Englith parliament, though they framed a law, permitting the marriages of priefts, yet confefs, in the preamble, ‘* that it were better for priefts «< and the minifters of the church to live chafte and without marriage, and it «¢ were much to be wifhed they would of themfelves abftain.”? The inconveni- ences, which had arifen from compelling chaftity and prohibiting marriage, are the reafon affigned for indulging a liberty in this particulary. The ideas of pen- nance alfo were fo much retained in other particulars, that an act of parliament pafied, prohibiting the ufe of flefh, during Lent and the other times of abtti- nence *. THE + 2 & 3 Edw. VI. cap. 3. t 2 & 3 Edw. VI. cap..zt. * 2 & 3 Edw. VI. cap. 19. Another act, paffed this feflion, takes notice in the preamble, that the city of York, formerly well inhabited, was now much decayed: Infomuch that many of the cures could not afford a competent maintenance to the incumbents. To remedy this inconvenience, the magiftrates were empowered to unite as many parifhes as they thought proper. An ecclefiaftical hiftorian, Collier, vol. ii. p. 230, thinks, that this decay of York is chiefly to be afcribed to the diffolution of monafteries, by which the revenues fell into the hands of perfons wha lived at a diftance. A very grievous tax was impofed this feffion upon the whole ftock and monied intereft of the king- dom, and even upon its induftry. It was a fhilling in the pound yearly, during three years, on every perfon worth ten pounds or upwards: The double on aliens and denizons. ‘Thefe lait, if above twelve years of age, and if worth lefs than twenty fhillings, were to pay eight pence yearly. Every wether was to pay two pence yearly; every ewe three pence. The woolen manufacturers were to pay eight pence a pound on the value of all the cloth they made. - Thefe exorbitant taxes on money are a proof, that few people lived on the money lent out at intereft: For this tax amounts to the half of the yearly income of all money-holders, during three years, eftimating their meerelt at the rate allowed by law; and was too grievous to be born, if many perfons had been affected by it. It is remarkable, that no tax at all was laid upon land this feflion. The profits of merchandife were commonly fo high, that it was fuppofed it could bear this impofition. The moft abfurd part of the law feems to be the tax upon the woolen manufacture. See 2 & 3 Edw. VI. cap. 36. The fubfequent ee repeale BROW Avo RO KE 547 Tue principal tenets and prattices of the catholic religion were now abolifhed, and the reformation, fuch as we enjoy it at prefent, was almoft entirely compleated in England. But the doctrine of the real prefence, though tacitly condemned by the new communion-fervice and by the prohibition of many antient rites, ftill retained fome hold of the minds of men; and it was the laft doctrine of popery, which was wholly abandoned by the people +. The extreme attachment of the late King to that tenet might be fome ground for this obftinacy ; but the chief caufe was really the extreme abfurdity of the principle itfelf, and the profound vene- ration, which of courfe it impreffed on the underftanding. The priefts likewife were much inclined to favour an opinion, which attributed to them fo miracu- lous a power; and the people, who believed that they participated of the very body and blood of their Saviour, were loth to renounce fo extraordinary, and as they imagined, fo falutary a privilege. The general attachment to this dogma was fo violent, that the Lutherans, notwithftanding their feparation from Rome, had thought proper, under another name, {till to retain it: And the catholic preachers, in England, when reftrained in every other particular, could not forbear, on every occafion, from inculcating that tenet. Bonner, for this offence among others, had been tried by the council, had been deprived of his fee, and ‘had been committed to cuftody. Gardiner alfo, who had recovered his liberty, appeared anew refractory to the authority, which eftablifhed the late innovations ; and he feemed willing to countenance that opinion, much favoured by all the Englifh catholics, that the King was indeed fupreme head of the church, but not the council, during a minority. Having declined giving full fatif- faction on this head, he was fent to the Tower, and threatened with farther effects of the council’s difpleafure. Tuese feverities, being exercifed againft men, poflefled of office and autho- rity, feemed a neceflary policy, in order to inforce an uniformity in public worfhip and difcipline: But there were other inftances of perfecution, which were derived from no other origin than the bigotry of theologians; amalady, which feems almoft incurable. Tho’ the proteftant divines had ventured to renounce opinions, deemed certain during fo many centuries, they regarded, in their turn, the new fyftem as fo certain, that they could bear no contradiction with repealed the tax on fheep and woolen cloth. 3&4 Edw. VI. cap. 23. But they continued the other taxayearlonger. Ibid. The clergy taxed themfelves at fix fhillings in the pound to be paid in three years, This taxation was ratified in Parliament, which had been the common praétice fince the reformation, as if the clergy had no legiflative power, even over themfelves. See 2 & 3 Edw. VI. cap. 35. + Burnet, vol. II. cap. 104. Chap. I, 1549: ws 318 HISTORY or ENGLAND with regard toit; and they were ready to burn in the fame flames, from which they themfelves had fo narrowly efcaped, every one who had the affurance to oppole them, A commiffion by act of council wa: granted to the primate and fome others, to examine and fearch after all squbiaitites heretics, or contemners of the book of common prayer*. They were enjoined to reclaim them, if poffible ; to impofe pennance on them; and to give them abfolution: Or if they were obftinate, to excofmmunicate and imprifon them, and to deliver them over to the fecular arm: And in theexecution of this charge, the commiffioners were net bound to obferve the ordinary methods of trial ;*the forms of law were difpenfed with, and if any ftatutes happened to interfere with the powers in the commiffion, they were over-ruled and abrogated by the council. Some tradefmen in London were brought before thefe commiflioners, and were accufed of maintaining, among other opinions, that a man regenerate could not fin, and that though the outward man might offend, the inward was incapable of all guilt. They were prevailed on to abjure and were difmiffed. But there was a woman accufed of heretical pravity, called Joan Bocher, orJoan of Kent, who was fo extremely obftinate, that the commiffioners could gain nothing upon her. Her doctrine was, ‘* that Chrift ‘¢ was not truly incatnate of the virgin, whole flefh, being the outward man, was finfully begotten and born in fin; and confequently, he could take none of ‘© it: But the word, by the confent of the inward man of the virgin, was made “ flefh +.” This opinion, it would feem, is not orthodox ; and there was a neceflity for delivering tlhe woman to the flames for maintaining it. But the young King, tho’ in fuch tender years, had more fenfe than all his counfellors and preceptors; and he long*refufed to fign the warrant for her execution. Cranmer was employed to perfwade him to compliance; and he faid, that there was a great difference between errors in other points of ‘divinity, and thofe which were dire€tly contradictory to the Apoftles creed: Thefe latter were impieties avainft God, which the prince, being Gods deputy, ought to repreis ; in like manner, as the King’s deputies were bound to punifh offences again{fl the King’ perfon. Edward, overcome by importunity more than spoils at laft fabmit- ted, tho’ with tears in his eyes ; ; and he told Cranmer, that, if any wrong was done, the guilt fhould lie entirely on his head. The primate, afer making a new effort to reclaim the woman from her errors, and finding her obftinate again{t all his arguments, at aft committed her to the flames. Some time after, a Dutchman,’called Van Piris, accufed of the herefy which has received the name of Arianifm, was condemned to the fame punifhment. He | fuffered * Burnet, vol. Il. p. HH. - Rymer, tom. AV. p. 18. + Burnet, vol. II. coll. 35. Strype’s EDWARD _ VL B19 fuffered with fo much fatisfaction, that he hugged and careffed the faggot rots, which were confuming him; a fpecies of frenzy of which there 1s more than one inftance among the martyrs of this age*. Tuese rigorous methods of proceeding foon brought the whole nation to a conformity with the new doctrine and. the new liturgy. The Jacy Mary alone continued to adhere to the mafs, and refufed to admit the eftablifhed modes of worfhip. When preffed and menaced on this head, fhe applied to the emperor ; who, ufing his intereft with Sir Philip Hobbey, the Englifh ambaffador, pro- cured her a temporary connivance from the council 7, EVP Fa ee. Difcontents of the people. Tnfurrections. Conduct of the war with Scotland with France.——Faétions in the council. Confpi- racy againft Somer fet.———Somer [et refigns the protector [hip. A Parliament. Peace with France and Scotland.——Boulogne fur- rendered. ——Perfecution of Gardiner-——Warwite created duke of Northumberland. His ambition——Trial of .Somerfet——His execution. A Parliament. A new Parlament. Succe/iow changed. The King’s ficknefi-————and. death. HERE is no abufe fo great, in civil fociety, as not to be attended with a TT great variety of beneficial coniequences ; and in the beginnings of re- formation, the lofs of thefe advantages is always felt very fenfibly, while the benefit, refulting from the change, is the flow effect of time, and is feldom per- ceived by the bulk of a-nation. Scarce any inftitution can be imagined lefs fa~ vourable, in the main, tothe interefts of mankind than that of monks an friars 5 yet was it followed by many good effects, which, having ceafed by the fuppref- fon of monafteries, were-very-much regreted by the people of England. The monks, refiding always in their convents, in the heart of their eftates, (pons their money in the provinces and among their tenants, afforded a ready market for commodities, were a fure refource to the poor and- indigent ; ana though their hofpitality and charity gave but too much encouragement to idlenels, and pre vented the encreafe of public riches, yet did it provide to-many.a remedy + Peuli | * Burnet, vol. Il. p.112. Strype’s Mem. Cranm..-p. 151. + Heylin, =p. 102. id a Chap. i. 1549. 1549: Difeontents of the people. i 4 | 7 4 ( 5 : " ; K : y ie! le , MW ei at Lil met ‘if } i Hi] ‘ HI } rian y BES G ‘ ] » it i] yi 1 { i | : il a J [| Ja {} na itt? Pit we) it he bie Se ii Than a ‘a H Suid 1 i ee) ee sti) : ’ mia F nih nai a a Fr NS 320 HISTORY or ENGLAND. the extreme preffures of want and neceffity. It is alfo obfervable, that, as the friars were limited by the rules of their inftitution, to a certain train of life, they had not equal motives for avarice with other men; and they were acknow- ledged to have been in England, as they ftill are in Roman catholic countries, the beft and moft indulgent landlords. The abbots and priors were allowed to “give Jeafes at an under-value, and to receive, in return, a large prefent from the tenant; in the fame manner as is ftill practifed by the bifhops and colleges, But when the abbey-lands were diftributed among the great nobility and courtiers, they fell under a different management: The rents of farms were raifed, while the tenants found not the fame facility in difpofing of the produce; the money was {pent in the capital; and the farmers, living at a diftance, were expofed to all the oppreffions of their new mafters, or to the {till greater rapacity of the ftewards. , Turse complaints of the common people were at that time heightened by other caufes. The arts of manufacture were much more advanced in other Eu- ropean countries than in England; and even in England thefe arts had made sreater progrefs than the knowledge of agriculture; a profeffion, which of all mechanical employments, requires the moft reflection and experience. A great demand arofe for wool both abroad and at home: Pafturage was found more profitable than unfkilful tillage: Whole eftates were laid wafte by inclofures . The tenants, regarded as a ufelefs burthen, were expelled their habitations : Even the cottagers, deprived of the commons, on which they fed their cattle, were reduced to mifery: And a great decay of people, as well as diminution of the former plenty, was remarked in the kingdom *. This grievance was now of an old date; and Sir Thomas More, alluding to it, obferves in his Utopia, that a fheep had become in England a more rapacious animal than a lion or wolf, and devoured whole villages, cities, and provinces. Tue general encreafe alfo of gold and filver in Europe, after the difcovery of the Weft Indies, had a tendency to inflame thefe complaints.. The growing de- mand, in the more commercial countries, had heightened every where the price of commodities, which could eafily be tranfported thither ; but in England, the labour of men, who could not fo eafily change their habitation, fti!l remained nearly at the antient rates ; and the poor people complained that they could no longer gain a fubfiftence-by their induftry. It was by an addition of toil and application they were enabled to provide a maintenance ; and tho’ this en- oreafe of induftry was at lait the effect of the prefent fituation, and an effect 2 very * Strype, vol. II. Repofitory Q. Ey otek oe. Bid VI. 225 very beneficial to fociety, yet was it difficult for the people to fhake off their former habits of indolence ; and nothing but neceflity could compel them to that exertion of their faculties. Ir mutt alfo be remarked, that the profufion of Henry the eighth, had re- duced him, notwithftanding his rapacity, to fuch difficulties, that he had been obliged to remedy a prefent neceffity, by the pernicious expedient of debafing the coin; and the wars, in which the protector had been involved, had induced him to carry ftill farther the fame abufe. The ufual confequences enfued: The good coin was hoarded or exported ; bafe metal was coined at home or imported from abroad in great abundance ; the common people, who received their wages in it, could not. purchafe commodities at the ufual rates ; an univerfal difiidence and ftagnation of commerce took place and loud complaints were heard in every part of England. Tue protector, who loved popularity, and compaffionated the condition of the people, encouraged thefe complaints by his endeavours to remedy them. He appointed a commiffion for making enquiry concerning inclofures ; and iffued a proclamation, ordering all late inclofures to be laid open by a day affigned. The populace, meeting with fuch countenance from the government, began to rile in feveral places, and to commit diforders ; but were quieted by remonftrances and In order to give them greater fatisfaction, Somerfet appointed new commiffioners, whom he fent every where, with an unlimited power to hear and determine all caufes about inclofures, high-ways, and cottages *. As the object of this commiflion was very difagreeable to the gentry and nobility, they called the commifiion arbitrary and illegal; and the common people, fearing it would be eluded, and being impatient for ‘mmediate redrefs, could no Jonger contain their fury, but fought for a remedy by force of arms. The rifing began at once in feveral parts of England, as if an univerfal confpiracy had been formed by the commonalty. The infurgents in Wiltthire were difperfed by Sir William Her- bert: Thofe in the neighbouring counties, Oxford and Glocefter, by lord Gray of Wilton. Many of the rioters were killed in the field: Others were executed by martial law. The commotions in Hampfhire, Suffex, Kent, and other coun- ties, were quieted by gentler methods; but the diforders in Devonfhire and Nor- folk threatened the moft fatal confequences. Tus commonalty in Devonfhire began with the ufual pretence of inclofures and of oppreffions from the gentry 3 but the parifh prieft of Sampford-Courtenay, had the addrefs to give their difcontents a direction towards religion ; and the delicacy of this fubject, in the prefent emergence, made the infurrection imme- +s: diately perfuafion. * Burnet, vol. II. p.115. Strype, vol. Il. p. 171. Chap. Ef. 1549 Infurrections. ; 4 + PJ = Ni if i | : ‘ ! { bi} : 7 i a Pid Bora Wa Fi eri TER aD rit pe Abas) ine : ; ie ta } a eee NE ne eae Lae & : haul) 1 Mii? 4 : te ee ie | ' } tel ily it } 1e; it bi eit i " Alaa # a): . an) } ; eA th Piva Sa) ae r ath Rein) pe Vile Tah eel i) ' ' e; ity fa H ; { 7 i Nf iv : : { t) i} Hie ‘ aime | Ra ul po § Mig . ‘ | Mayen 4 ; DTT 1 Oty ale MAL 1a a. : ’ i AHA SSS = oS eed Ss SSE Chap. IL. 1549. es 322 HISTORY or ENGLAND. diately appear dangerous. In other counties, the gentry had kept. clofely united withthe government ; but here many of them took part with the populace; among others, Humphrey Arundel, governor of St. Michael’s Mount. ‘The rieters were brought to the form of a regular army, and amounted to the number of 10,000 men. Lord Ruffel had been fent againft, them at the head of a fmali force; but finding him{clf too weak to encounter them in. the field, he kept at a dif. tance, and began to treat. and negotiate with them; in hopes of eluding. their fury by delay, and.of difperfing them by the difficulty of their fubfifting, to- gether. . Their demands were, that the mafs fhould be reftored, half. of the abbey-lands réfumed, the law of the fix articles executed, holy water and holy bread refpected, and. all, other particular grievances redrefled *. The council, to whom Ruffel tranfmitted thefe demands, fent a haughty anfwer ; exhorted the rebels to difperfe; and promifed them pardon upon their immediate fubmiffion. Enraged at this difappointment, they marched to Eixeter 5. carrying before them crofles, banners, holy water, candlefticks, and other implements of the antient fuperftition ; together with the hofte, which they covered with a canopy +. The inhabitants of Exeter fhut their gates ; and the infurgents, as they had no can- non, endeavoured to take the place, firft by f{calade, then by mining, but were repulfed in all their attempts. Ruffel meanwhile lay at Honiton, till reinforced by Sir William Herbert, and lord Gray, with fome German horfe, and. fome Italian arquebufiers under Battifta Spinola. He. then refolyed to attempt the relief of Exeter, which was now reduced to extremities. He attacked the re- bels, drove them from all their pofts, committed great laughter upon them both in the aétion and purfuit [, and. took many prifoners.. Arundel and the.other leaders were fent to London, tried and executed, Many of the inferior fort were put to death by martial law§: The vicar of St. Thomas, one of the principal] incendiaries, was hanged on the top of his own tower, arrayed in his popith weeds, with his beads at his girdle}. Tue infurreCtion in Norfolk rofe ftill to a greater height, and was attended with greater violences. The populace were at firft excited, as in other places, by the complaints againft inclofures; but finding their numbers amount to twenty thou- fand men, they grew infolent on their force, and proceeded to more exorbitant pretenfions. They required the fuppreffion of the gentry, the placing new coun- fellors about the King, and the re-eftablifhment of the antient. rites,, One Ker, a tanner, had afflumed the government of them.; and he exercifed his authority. with * Hayward, p. 292. Hollingfhed, p. 1003. Fox, vol. II. p.666. Mem. Cranm. p. 186. + Heylin, p. 76. t Stow’s Annals, p. 597. Hayward, p. 295. § Hayward, p. 295, 296, | Heylin, p. 76, Hollingfhed, p, 1026, Be OW: "Ae RED VI. 32 with the vuitton infolence and ovittase.° “Havin taken poffeftion of Moufhold: Chap. Il Fill near Norwich, he éreetéed his tribtinal under “an old oak, thence called the a 6ak of reformation; and fummonig the gentry to appear before him, he gave fach deérees as might Be “expected fP6ih his character and fituation. “The mar- guisof ‘Northampton was ‘firlt ordered againft him, btit met with a repulfe, in an “acti, where lofd Sheffield was killed *.. The protector affected’ popu- jatity, and cared’ hot to appear if perfon againft the infurgents: He theretore fént'Hext the earl of Warwic at the head Of 6000 men, levied for the wars againft Scotland; and ‘he thereby afforded his mortal enemy an opportunity of augment- in@ his reputation and character. Warwic, having tried fome fkirmifhes’ with the rebels, at laft made ‘a general attack upon thetis and “put them to flight Two thoufand of them fell in the fight and purfuit: Ket was hanged: at Nor- wich caftle; nine of ~his fellowers on the boughs of the oak of reformation ; and the infurrection was entirely flipprefled. -Some rebels in Yorkthite, hearing of the fate of their companions, accepted the offers of pardon, and threw down their arms. A general indemnity was foon after publifhed by the protector. Bur tho? the infurreGtions were thus quickly fupprefled in England, and no evaces of ther feemed to remain, they were attended with very bad confequences Condu& of with regard to the foreign interefts of the nation, “The forces of the earl ets ee Warwic, which might-have made a great impreffion on Scotland, were diverted from that enterprize; and De Pheriucs had leizure to reduce that country to fome*fettlement and compofure. He took the fortrefs of Broughty, and put the garrifon'to the fword. He ftraitened the Englifh. at Haddington ; and though lord Dacres found means to throw relief into the place, and to reinforce the gar- rifén; it was-found very expenfive, and even impracticable to keep poflefiion of that fortrefs. Fhe whole country in the neighbourhood was laid waite by the inroads both of the Scotch and Englifh, and could afford no fupply to the gar- rifon : The place lay above thirty miles from the borders ; fo thata regular army was neceflary to efcort thither any provifions : And as the placue had broke out among the troops, t they perifhed daily, and weére reduced to ‘a. ftate> of ‘sreat weaknefs. For thefe reafons, orders were given to difmantle Haddington, and to convoy. the artillery and garrifon to Berwic 5 and the earl of Rutland, now created warden of the eaft marches, executed the orders. Tue King of France alfo took advantage of the diftractions of the Enplifh, in order to'recover Boulogne, and that territory, which Henry the eighth had con- Ra agachaeaete quered from France. Under other pretences, he aflembled an army ; and falling € 3G ee fuddenly SS SS SSS 6S Saag | : ii Wik i } 4 | a) 4! : } : 4 {i ei q ith f WB) { Hit ' ] ‘ ; : | . 1 ‘ ae | { ' | \ A A Hite 4 iit ) aay i : n ; i 1 RD bi) 1 i 1 i ! 4 { } : iy sibs : 1) ‘ \¢ ' ' ' ‘ i! 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II. 15 49: Ss 324 HISTORY or ENGLAND. fuddénly upon the Boullonois, took the caftles of Sellacque, Blacknefs, and Ambleteufe, tho’ well fupplied with garrifons, ammunition, and provifions *, He attempted to furprize Boulenberg, and was repulfed; but the garrifon, not thinking the place tenable after the lofs of the other fortreffes, deftroyed the works, and retired to Boulogne. ‘The rains, which fell in great abundance during the autumn, and a peftilential diftemper, which broke out in the French camp, depriv- ed Henry of all hopes of fuccefs againft Boulogne itfelf ; and he retired to Paris +. He left the command of the army to Gafpar de Coligny, lord of Chatillon, fo famous afterwards under the name of admiral Coligny ; and he gave him orders to form the fiege early in the fpring. The active difpofition of this general engaged him to make during the winter feveral attempts againft the place ; but they proved all unfuccefsful. Srrozzi, who commanded the French fleet and galleys, endeavoured to make a defcent on Jerfey; but meeting there with an Englifh fleet, an action enfued, which feems not to have esihi decifive, fince the shiloaas of the two nations differ fo widely in their accounts of the event Tf. As foon as the French war broke out, the protector endeavoured to fortify himfelf with the alliance of the emperor; and he fent over fecretary Paget to Bruffels, where Charles then refided, in order to affift Sir Philip Hobby, the or- dinary ambaffador, in this negotiation. But that prince had formed a defign of extending his dominions by acting the part of champion to the catholic religion ; and tho’ extremely defirous of fortifying himfelf by the Englith alliance againft France, his capital enemy, he thought it unfuitable to his other pretenfions to enter into ftridt confederacy with a nation, which had broke off all connexions with the church of Rome. He therefore declined all advances of friendfhip from England ; and eluded the applications of the ambaffadors. An exact ac- count is preferved of this negotiation in a letter of Hobby; and it is remark- able, thatthe emperor, ina converfation with the Englifh minifters, afferted, that the prerogatives of a King of England were more extenfive than thofe of a Kaw cf France §. Burnet, who oecherves this letter, fubjoins, as a parallel yetience, that one objection which the Scotch made to marrying their Queen with Edward, was that all their privileges would be {wallowed up by the great prerogative of the Kings of England |. Somerset, finding no affiftance from the emperor, was inclined to conclude a peace with France and Scotland ; and befides that he was not in a condition to maintain fuch ruinous wars, he thought, that there no longer remained any ob- ject *'Thuanus, lib. vi c.6. + Hayward, p.300. ~} Le Thou, King Edward’s Journal, Stow, p. 597. $ Burnet, vol. II. p. 132; 175. {| Id. p. 133. 3 Bo Dols Rowe iW, ies yet of hoftilities. The Scotch had fent away their Queen ; and could not, if Chap. fl. ever fo much inclined, compleat the marriage contracted with Edward: Andas 547 Henry the eighth had ftipulated to reftore Boulogne in 1554, it feemed a matter of fmall confequence to anticipate a few years, the term of the treaty. But when he propofed thefe reafons to the council, he met with ftrong oppofition from his enemies, who, feeing him unable to fupport the war, were determined, for that very reafon, to oppofe all propofals for a pacification. The factions ran very high in the court of England; and matters were drawing to an iffue, fatal to the authority of the protector. | Arter Somerfet obtained the patent, invefting him with regal authority, he no longer paid any attention to the opinion of the other counfellors; and being FaStions in elated with his high dignity, as well as with his victory at Pinkey, he thought, the council. that every one ought, in every thing, to yield to his fentiments._ Al thofe who were not entirely devoted to. him, were fure to be neglected; whoever oppofed his will received marks of anger or contempt ™ 5 and while he fhowed a refolution to govern every thing, his capacity appeared not, in any refpect, proportioned to his ambition. Warwic, more fubtle and artificial, covered more exorbitant views under fairer appearances ; and having aftociated himfelf with Southampton, who had been readmitted into the council, he formed a ftrong party, who were de- termined to free themfelves from the flavery, impofed on them by the protector. Tue malecontent counfellors found the difpofition of the nation very favourable to their defigns. “Ihe nobility and gentry were in general difpleafed with the preference, which Somertet feemed to have given the people; and as they afcribed all the infults to which they had been lately expofed, to his procraftination, and to the encouragement given the multitude, fo they apprehended a renewal of the fame diforders from his prefent-affectation of popularity. He had erected a court of requefts in his own houfe for the relief of the people +, and he inter- pofed with the judges ‘n their behalf; a meafure which might be denominated illegal, if any exertion of prerogative, at that time, could with certainty deferve that appellation. And this attempt, which was a ftretch of power, feemed the more unpolitic, that it difgufted the nobility, the fureft fupport of monarchical authority. Bur tho’ Somerfet courted the people, the iotereft, which he had formed with them;..was in no degree anfwerable to his expectations. ‘The catholic party, who retained.influence with the multitude, were his declared enemies ; and took ad- vantage of every opportunity to decry his conduct. The attainder and execution of his brother bore an odious afpect : The introduction of foreign troops into the kingdom, * Strype, vol, IL. p. 181. + Ib. p. 153. Chap. H. 1549. 6th O®tober. Confpiracy againtt So- merfet. = 326 HISTORY or\ENGLAND. kingdom, was ‘réprefented in very invidious colouts: The. sreat‘eftate which he had ‘fuddenty acquired, at the éxpefice ‘Of the church and of ‘the crown, rendéred him Gbnhoxious: And the palace which he ‘was building in the Strand, ferved, by its magnificence, and fill more by Other circumftanees which attended it, to expofe him to the cenfures of the public. , Phe parith churchof St. Mary; with three bifhops houfes, were palled down, ito firaith erotnd and materials for this flruéture’: ‘(Not contented with that fatrilege, an attempt ‘was made to demolifhi St. Margaret’s, Weltminiter, atid to employ thextones to the fante purpofe; but the parifhioners rofe in a tumult, and chaced away the proteétor’s tradefinen: Fe then laid. his chands on ia chapel in St.-Paul’s Church-yard, with a cloifter, and .charnel-houfe belonging to it ; and» thefe edifices, together witha church of St. John of jerufalem,: were made ufe: of to. raife his palace. To-rendeér the matter more-odious to the people, the tombs, and «other monuments of ‘the dead were defaced ; and the bones carried away, and buried in -unconfecrated ground +. Aux thefe imprudences were remarked by Somerfet’s'enemies, who refolvéed to take advantage of ‘them. The lord St. John, prefident of the council, the’ tatls of Warwic, Southampton, and “Arundel, with five counfellors nyore, met at Ely-houfe ; and affuming ‘to themfelves the whole power of the council, beean to act independent of the protector, whom they reprefented ‘as the author of every public grievance and misfortune. They wrote letters to the chief nobility and gentry in England, informing them of the prefent méafures, and requiring their affiftance: ‘They fent for the mayor and aldermen of London, and enjoin- ed them to obey their orders, without regard to any contrary orders which they fhould receive from the duke of Somerfet. They laid the fame injunctions on the lieutenant of the-tower, who expreffed his refolution to comply with them. Next day, Rich, Jord chancellor, the marquis df Northampton, the earl of Shrewfbury, Sir Thomas Cheney, Sir John Gage, Sir Ralph Sadler, and thé lord chief juftice Montague, joined the malecontent counfellors ; and every thihg bore a bad afpect for the protector’s authority. Secretary Petre; whom he had fent to treat with the council, chofe rather to remain. with them ; and the com- mon council of the city, being applied to, declared with one voice their appro- bation of the new meafures; and their refolution of fupporting them |). THE proteétor had no fooner heatd of the defection of the counfellots, than. he removed the King from’ Hampton-court, where he then refided, to the caftle | 8 of + Heylin, p.72, 73. Stowe’s Survey of London. ayward, p. 303. 693. Hollinfhed, 1057. a ee) OWL, P- S97» E 8. W A RK? D VI ‘ of Windfor; and, arming his friends and fervants, feemed refolute to defend Chap. M, himfelf againft all his-enemies. — But finding, that no man of rank, exceptCrans- *549 mer and Paget, adhered to: him, thatthe people did not rife at his fummons, that the City and Tower had declared: againft him, that even his beft friends and confidents had deferted:*him, he loft all hopes of fuccefs, and began to appy to his:enemies fer pardon. and forgivenefs. No fooner was this defpondency known; than lord Ruffel; Sir John Baker, fpeaker of the houfe of commons, and three counfellors more, who had hitherto femained neuters, joined Warwie’s party, whom every body-now. regarded as mafters: » The council. informed the public,, by proclamation, of their actions.and intentions; they wrote to the princciles Mary and. Elizabeth, to. the fame purpofe; they made addrefies to the King; in. which, after the humbleft proteftations of duty and obedience, they informed him, that they were the council appointed by. his fathers for) the government of the kingdom during his minority; that they had:chofen the duke of Somerict protector, with the exprefs.condition. that he fhould guide himfelf by their advice and directions that -he:had>ufurped the whole authority to himfelf, and had ne- elected, and.even.in every thing oppofed, their advice; that he had proceeded to that height of prefumption, as. to: levy forces againft them, and place thefe forces about his majefty’s perfoa:: They therefore begged,. that they might.be admitted _to his royal prefence,. that he.would be pleafed to_reftore them to his confidence, and that Somerfet’s fervants might be difmiffed, Their requeft, was complied with : Somerfet capitulated only for gentle treatment, which WAS PlO- Somerfet re cide mifed him. He was, however, fent-to the Toweér*, with fome of his friends figns the pro» i ’ ¢ : y :- ~ : Sorthi > and partizans, among whom was Cecil, .who was afterwards fo much diftinguifh- esteem Se ed. Articles of charge were,exhibiced again{thim +; of which the chief, at leaft the beft founded, is his ufurpation, of the; government, and his.taking into:his own hands the whole adminiftration of affairs... The.claufe of, his.patent,: which inyelted him with abfolute power, unlimited by any Jaw; was never, objected. to. him +: plainly, becaufe, according to the fentiments.of thofe times, that:power was, in. fome degree,. involved in the very, idea of regal authority. tlt Tue catholics were extremely: elevated: with this revolution 3 and'as they had AGE aferibed: all the late innovations to Somerfet’s councils, they hoped, that his fall HA would prepare the way for the return of the aricient religion. But Warwic, who: now bore chief fway inthe: council, was entirely indifferent with regard to all thefe points of controverfy; and finding; that the principles of the’ reformation” had. * Stowe, p. 600. + Burnet, vol: If. booki. coll..46- Hayward, p. 308. _ Stowe, p. Got. Hollingfhed, p. 1059. A wae ‘ <2 s+ — 32> — 5 aes eS £ ‘ ‘aa a Sc eee Sterner 3 = > ww ————— = SS Chap. I, $49. ee 328 HISTORY or ENGLAND. had funk deeper into the young prince’s mind than to be eafily eradicated, he was determined to comply with his inclinations, and not to hazard his new acquired power by any hazardous councils. He took care very early to exprefs his inten- tions of fupporting the reformation; and he threw fuch difcouragements on Southampton, who ftood at the head of the Romanifts, and whom he confidered as a dangerous rival, that the high-fpirited nobleman retired from the council, and foon after died of vexation and difappointment. The other counfellors, who had concurred in bringing about the revolution, received their reward, by pro- motions and new honours. Ruflel was created earl of Bedford: The marquis of Northampton obtained the office of great chamberlain; and lord Wentworth, befides the office of chamberlain of the houfhold, got two large manors, Step- 5 5 ; p 4 November. A Parliament. 23 December. ney and Hackney, which were torne from the fee of London}. A council of regency was formed, not that which Henry’s will had appointed: for the govern- ment of the kingdom, and which, being founded on an act of parliament, was the only lawful one ; but compofed chiefly of members who had formerly been ap- pointed by Somerfet, and who derived their feats from an authority which wag now declared ufurped and illegal, But fuch niceties were, during that age, little underftood, and till lefs regarded, in England. A session of Parliament was held; and as it was the ufual maxim of that affembly to acquiefce in every adminiftration which was eftablifhed, the council dreaded no oppofition from that quarter, and had reafon rather to look for a corroboration of their authority. Somerfet had been prevailed with to confefs, on his knees, before the council, all the articles of charge againft him; and he imputed thefe mifdemeanors to his own rafhnefs, folly, and indifcretion, not to any malignity of his intention |. He even fubfcribed this confeffion; and the paper was given into the Parliament, who, after fending a committee to exa- mine him, and hear him acknowlege it to be authentic, pafied a vote, by which they deprived him’ of all his offices, and fined him in two thoufand pounds a year of land.. Lord St. John was created treafurer in his place, and Warwic earl marfhal. The profecution againft him was carried no farther. His fine was remitted by the King: He recovered his liberty: And Warwic, thinking that he was now fufficiently humbled, and that his authority was much leflened by his late tame and abje&t behaviour, re-admitted him into the council, and even agreed to an alliance between their families, by the marriage of his fon, lord Dudley, with the lady Jane Seymour, daughter to Somerfet *. Durine t Heylin, p. 85.. Rymer, tom. XV. p. 226. | Heylin, p. 84. Heyward, p. 309. Stowe, p. 603. * Heyward, p. 309. Bi Des We A.Ry D << peony 2 , PARES this f{effion a fevere act was pafied againft riots}; that if any, to the numberof twelve perfons, fhould meet egetlies for any matter of ftate, and. bes ng required | by any lawful magittra hana not difperfe themfelves, it fhould be treafon; and if any. broke hed eth or violently pulled up pales about inclo- fures, , without. lawful. AULA OUR it fhould be felony : Any attempt to. kill a privy counfellor, was {ubjected to the fame penalty. The bithops had made an application, a ingtaia isch, that they. were deprived of all their power, by the en- croachments of the civil courts, and the prefent fufpenfi on of the canon law ; that they could fummon no. offenders before them, Soni no vice, nor exert the difcipline of the church: From which diminution of their authority, they oer i immorality had every where received great encouragement and increale- 1€ primitive church: But others thought, that fuch an authority committed to the bifhops, would prove more oppreffive than conieflion, penance, and ail the Clerical inventions of the ancient fuperttition. The Pathan nent, for the prefent, contented themfelves with empowering the King to appoint thirty-two commiffioners to frame a body a at ~S aR SS PT tes Cc The défign of fome was, to revive the penitentiary rules of tl of canon laws, which were to be valid tho’ never ratified by Parliament. Such implicit truft did they repofe in the crown, tho’ all their liberties and pro- perties might be affected by thefe canons t. The King died be Sore the Canons received the royal fanétion. Sir John Sharington, whofe crimes and malverfations had appeared fo egregious at the condemnation of lord Seymour, obtained a reverfal of his a chintiees ). This man fought favour with the moft zealous of the reformers; and bifho» Latimer afierted, that tho’ formerly he was a moft notorious knave, he was now fo penitent, that he had become a very honeft man. Wuern Warwic and the council of regency began to exercife their power, they found themfelves involved in the fame difficulties which had embarraffed’ the 1550. protector. The wars with France and Scotland could not be fupported by an p..co with xhaufted exchequer, feemed dangerous to a divided nation, and were now ac® France = : : 1 . > Scotlanc : knowleged not to have any object, which even the greateft and moft uninterrupted fuccefs could attain... The project of peace which Somerfet entertained, had ferved theni as-aipretence of clamour againft his adminiftration; yet after fbridinie Sir Tho- niaéCheney to'the emperor, and making again a fruitleis effort to encage him in theprotection of Boulogne, they found: themfelves obliged to liften to the ad- vances ec Henry made them, by means: of Guidotti, a Florentine merchant: Uu The + 9&4Edw. VEL ©, 5. t Ibid. cap. 2. I; Ibid, co 13. Boulogne furrendered. 24 March. Cd e770 HISTORY or ENGLAND. The earl of Bedford; Sir John Mafon, Paget, and Petre, were fent over to Bow- logae, with full powers to negociate. he French King abfolutely refufed to pay the two'millions of crowns which his predeceffor had acknowleged to be due tothe crown of England, as arrears of penfions ; and faid, that he never would con- fent to fender himfelf tributary to any prince:. But he offered a fum for the im- mediate reftitution of Boulogne; and four hundred thoufand crowns were at laft agreed on, one half to be paid immediately, the other in Augutt following. Six hoftages were given for the performance of this article. Scotlind was com- orehended in the treaty: The Englifh ftipulated to reftore Lauder and Dunglas, and to demolith the fortreffes of Roxburgh and Eymouth*. No fooner was peace concluded with France, than a project was entertained of a clofe union with that kingdom; and Henry very willingly embraced a propofal fo fuitable both to his intereft and inclinition. An agreement, fometime after, was formed for a marriage between Edward and Elizabeth, a daughter of France; and all the articles were, after a little negociation, fully fettled +: But this project ne- ver took effect, Tue intention of marrying the King to a daughter of Henry, who was a vio- Jent perfecutor of the proteftants, was no wife acceptable to that party in Eng- Jand: But, in all other refpects, the council was very fteady in promoting the reformation, and in enforcing the laws againft the Romanifts. Many of the prelates were {till addicted to that communion; and tho’ they made fome com- pliances, in order to fave their bifhoprics, they retarded, as much as they fafely | could, the execution of the new laws, and gave countenance to fuch as were ne- eligent or refractory. A refolution was therefore taken to feck pretences for depriving them; and the execution of this intention was the more eafy, that they had all of them been obliged to take commiffions, in which it was declared, that they held their fees only during the King’s pleafure. It was thought proper to Profecution Of hesin with Gardiner, in order to ftrike a terror into the reft. The method. of Gardiner, proceeding againft him. was extremely violent, and had fcarce any colour of law or juftice. It had been prefcribed him, to inculcate ina fermon, the duty of obedience to a King even during his minority; and becaufe he had neglected this topic, he had been thrown into prifon, and had been there detained during two years, without being accufed of any crime, except difobedience to this arbitrary command. The duke of Somerfet, fecretary Petre, and fome others of the council, were now fent, in order to try his temper, and endeavour to find fome eround * Burnet, vol. I. p. 148. Heyward, 310, 311, 112. Rymer, vol, XV. p. 211. + Hey- ward, p. 318. Heylin, p. 104, Rymer, tom. XY. p. 293. | & ER DY Wt Ao RyDo'vE 231 around for depriving him: He profeffed to them:his intention of conforming to the government, of fupporting the King’s laws, and of officiating by the ne * liturgy. This was not the difpofition which they expected or defired |): A new deputation was therefore fent, who carried him feveral articles to fub{cribe. He was to acknowlege his former milbchaviour, and confefs the juftice of hi confinement: He was likewife to own, that the King was fupreme head of the church; that the power of making and> difpentiing with holidays, was part of the prerogative; that the common-prayer book was a godly and commendable form; that the King was a compleat fovereign in his minority ; that the the fix articles was. juftly repealed ; and that the King had full authority to cor- reé& and reform what was amifs in ecclefiaftical difcipline, government, or doc- ~> trine. ‘The bifhop was willing to put his hand to all.the articles except the firft : Hie maintained his conduét to have been inoflenfive ; and declared, that he would not own himfelf guilty of faults which he had never committed *. Tue council, finding that he had gone fuch lengths, were determined to pre- vent his full compliance, by multiplying the difficulties upon him, and fending him new articles to fudfcribe. A lift was felected of fuch points as they thought would be moft hard of digeftion, and not content with thefe, they infifted 41) on his fabmiffion, and an acknowlegement of paft errors, To make this fubfcription more mortifying, they required a promife, that he would recom- mend-and publith all thefe articles from the pulpit: But Gardiner, who faw, that they intended either to ruin or cifhonour him, or perhaps both, was deter- mined not to gratify his enemies by any farther compliances: He ftill infifted on his innocence; defired a fair trial; and refufed to fubferibe more articles, till he fhould recover his liberty. For this pretended offence his bifhopric was put under fequetration for three months; and as he then appeared no more com- pliant than at firft, a commiffion was appointed to.try, or, more, properly fpeak- ing, to condemn him. The commifioners were, the primate, the bifhops of Juondon, Ely, ‘and Lincoln, fecretary Petre, Sir James Hales, and fome other lawyers. Gardiner objected to the legality of the commiffion, which was nat founded on any ftatute or precedent 5 and he appealed from the commiffioners to the King. His appeal was not regarded :, Sentence was pronounced againft him : He was deprived of his bifhopric : And committed to clofe cuftedy: His books and papers were feized : “All company was denied him; and it was not allowed him cither-toefend or receive any letters or meflages |. Uu 2 GARDINER, | Heylin, p. 99. * Collier, vol. II. p. 305. from the council books, dHeylin,. p. 99. + Fox, vol. Hl. p. 734 & feq. Burnet, Heylin, Collier. wT Wy ‘ i ———— eee CA 2 AIS TORY or ENGLAND. GARDINER, as well as the other prelates, had agreed to hold his office during the King’s pleafure:. But the council, unwilling to make ufe of a conceffion which had been fo illegally and arbitrarily exacted, chole rather to employ fome forms of juftice; a refolution, which led them to commit ftill greater iniquities and feverities.. But the violence of the reformers did not {top there. - Day, bi- fhop of Chichefter, Heathe of Worcefter, and Voifey of Exeter, were deprived of their bifhoprics, under pretence of difobedience. Even Kitchen of Landaf, Capon of Salifbury, and Sampfon of Coventry, tho’ they had complied in every thing, yet not being fuppofed cordial or hearty in their obedience, were obliged to feck protection, by facrificing the moft confiderable revenues of their fee, to the rapacious courtiers *, Tsese plunderers of the church negleéted not. even fmaller profits. An or- der was iffued by council, for purging the library of Weftminfter of all mifials, legends, and other fuperftitious volumes, and delivering their garniture to Sir Anthony Aucher. Many of thefe books were plaited with cold and filver, and curioufly embofied; and this finery was probably the fuperftition that deftroyed them. Great havoc was likewife made on the libraries of Oxford. Books and manufcripts were deftroyed without diftinétion: The volumes of di- vinity fuffered for their rich binding: Thofe of literature were condemned as uleleis: Thole of geometry and aftronomy were fuppofed to contain nothing but necromancy |}. The univerfity had not power to oppofe thefe barbarous vio- lences: They were in danger of lofing their own revenues; and expected every moment to be fwallowed up by the earl of Warwic and his aflociates. Tuo’ every thing yielded to the authority of the council, the lady Mary could never be brought to compliance. and fhe ftill continued to adhere to the mafs; and to reject the new liturgy. Her behaviour was, during fome time, connived at; but, at laft, her two chaplains, Mallet and Berkeley, were thrown into pri- fon § ; and the princefs was remonftrated with for her difobedience. The coun- cil wrote her a letter, where they endeavoured to make her change her fenti- ments, and to perfuade her, that her religious faith was very ill grounded. They afked her, what warrant there was in {cripture for prayers in an unknown tongue, the ufe of images, or offering up the facrament for the dead; and they defired her to perufe St. Auftin, and the other ancient do¢tors, who would convince her of the errors of the Romith fuperftition, and prove that it was founded merely on falfe miracles and lying ftoriest. The lady Mary remained obftinate againftt all * Goodwin de preful. Angl. Heylin, p. 100. T Collier, vol. II. p. 307. from the coun- cil books, | Wood, Hift. & Antiq Oxon. lib, 1. p. 271, 272. § Strype, vol, II, Pp. 240. t Fox, vol. IL, Collier, Burnet. OW ATR DD” dUVE all this advice, and protefted herfelf willing to endure death rather than reli: quifh her religion : She = feared, fhe faid, that fhe was not worthy to fuffer in fo holy a cattle : And as for proteftant books, fhe thanked God, that, as fhe never had, fo fhe hoped never to read any of them. aie Fat hit violence, fhe endeavoured to make her efcape to her kinfman Charles; but her defign was difcovered and prevented *. The emperor remonttrated in her behalf, and even threatned hoftilities, if liberty of confcience was refufed her: But tho’ the coun- cil; fenfible that the kingdom was in no condition to fupport, with honour, fuch a war, was defirous to comply; they found great difficulty to overcome the fcru- ples of the young King. He had been educated in fuch a violent abhorrence of the mafs, and other popifh rites, which he regarded ‘as impious and idolatrous, that he fhould participate, he thought, in the fin, if he allowed its commiffion : And when at laft the importunity. of Cranmer, Ridley; and Pigiee. prevailed fomewhat over his oppofition, he burft into tears, lamenting his fifter’s obftinacy, and bewailing his own fate, that he mutt fuffer her to continue in fuch an abomi- nable mode of. worfhip. Tue great object, at this time, of antipathy among the proteftant feéts, was popery, or, more properly fpeaking, the papifts. Thefe they regarded as the common enemy, who threatened every moment to overwhelm elie evangetical faith, and dettroy its eu by fire and fword: They had not as yet had lei- fure to attend to the other minute divifions among themfelves, which afterwards became the object of fuch furious quarrels and animofities, and threw the whole kingdom into confufion. Several Lutheran divines, who had reputation in thofe days, Bucer, Peter Martyr, and others, were engaged to take fhelter in Ene- land, from the perfecutions which the emperor exercifed in Germany; and they received protection and encouragement. John A-lafco, a nobleman, uncle to the King of Poland, being expelled his country by the rigours of the catholics, fettled, during fome time, at Embden in Eaft-Friezland, where he became preacher to a congregation of the reformed. Forefeeing the perfecutions which enfued, he removed to England, and brought his congregation along with him. The council, who regarded them as induftrious, ufeful: people, and defired to invite over others of the fame character, not only gave them Auguftine friars church for the exercife of their religion, but granted them a charter, by which they were erected into a corporation, confifting of a fuper-intendant and four afifting minifters. This ecclefiaftical eftablifhment was quite independant of the church of England, and differed from it in fome rites and ceremonies |. THESE * Heyward, p. ‘+ Fox, vol. Ill. p. 40. Cranm, p. 234. ee 324 HISTORY jneet IGLAND. Chap. 1 Tnese differences among the proteftants were ma tter of triumph to the catho- isst. lics; who infifted, that the moment men departed from the authority of ‘the church, they loft all criterion of truth and falfehood in matters of ' religion, and mutt be carried away by every wind of dodtrine.. The continual variations of every fect of proteftants,, afforded them the fame topic of reafoning. Fhe book of common prayer fufered in England a new revifal, and fome rites and ceremo- nies, which had given offence, were omitted *. The fpeculative dactsines, or the metaphyfics of the religion, were alfo fixed in Pas two articles. “Ehefe articles were ‘eels ed to obviate further divifions and variations; and the framing them had been poltponed till the eftablifament of the liturgy, which was. rega rded as a more Sigericl object to the people. The eternity of bell cocci’ is af- ferted in the articles ; and care is alfo taken to inculcate, not only that no hea- then, however virtuous, can bib an endlefs flate of the molt exquifite mifery, but alfo that every one who prefumes to maintain, that any pagan can poflibly be faved, is himfelf expoled to the penalty of eternal perdition t, Tue theological zeal of the council, tho’ feemingly fervent, went not fo far as to make them neg’eci their own temporal concerns, which feem to have been ever uppermoft in their thoughts: They even found leifure to attend to the pub- licintereft, nay, to the commerce of the nation, which was, at that time, very little the object of general ftudy or attention, The trade of England had anci- ently been cagried on altogether by foreigners, chiefly the inhabitants of the Hanfe-towns, or Batterings. as they were halla and in order to. encourage thefe merchants to fettle in England, they. had) been ereéted into a corporatin by Henry the third, had desi eda ee were. endowed with privileges, and were exempted from, feveral heavy, duties. paid by aliens. So ignorant, were the Englith of commerce, that this company, common ily deniieinasey the merchants of the Steel-yard, engroftd. almoft the who'e foreign trade of the kingdom; and as,they naturally ‘employed the thipping of their own country, the naviga- tion of England was alfo in avery languifhing conditioa. It was, th euabotie thought proper by the council to find pretences for annulling the privileges of this corporation, privileges which put them. nearly onan equal footing with Eng- lifhmen in the duties which they paid; and-as fuch parents were, during that age, granted by the abfolute power of the King, men were. the lels furprized to find them. recalled by the fame authority. Several: remonftrances were made againtt this innovation, by Lubec, Hamburgh, and other Hanfe towns; but the coun- cil perfevered in their-refolution, and. the good eliects of it became foon vifib‘e to the nation. The Englifh, by their very fituition as natives, had advantages , above * Mem. Cranm. p. 289. + Article xviii. = a . —_—— — _ <— . = S853 re a a asics —— ~ ———. — rt AE a as sp we a ie Taal eo a = as ox 7 = = Meee ot a - 2 TS aes . om ipa. ; SC IESE a et E . — a ee eee — = So DW HAT oR DD VF. 335 above foreigners in the purchafe of cloth, wool, and other commodities; tho? Chap. If. thefe advantages had not been fufficient to rouze their induftry, or engace them 1551. to become rivals to this opulent company: But when aliens duty was alfo im- pofed upon all foreianers indifcriminately, the Ei ig tifh were tempted to enter into commerce, and a fpirit of induftry began to appear in the kingdom * Axzout the fame time a treaty was made with Guftavus Ericfon, King of Sweden, by which it was ftipulated, that if he fent bullion into England, he might carry away E-nglith commodities wi douse a aying cultom, that he fhould carry bullion to no other prince, that if ba fent ozimus, fteel, copper, &c. he fhould pay-cuftom for Englifh commodities as an Englifhman, and that if he fent other merchandize, he fhould have free intercourfe, paying cuftom as a ftranger +. The bullion fent over by Sweden fet the mint to work : Good fpecie was coined : And much of the bafe metal, formerly iffued, was recalled: A circumftance which tended extremely to the encouragement ef commerce, Bur all thefe fchemes for the improvement of induftry were like to prove abor-. wrarwic cre- tive, by the fear of domeftic convulfions, arifing from the exorbitant ambition ated duke of of Warwic. That nobleman, not contented with the ftation which he had at- eae tained, carried farther his pretenfions, and had gained to himfelf partizans who were difpofed to fecond him in every enterprize. The laft earl of Northumber- land died without iffue; and as Sir Thomas Piercy, his brother, had been at- tainted on account of the fhare which he had in the Yorkhhire infurre€tion during the late reign, the title was at prefent extinct, and the eftate was vefted in the crown. Warwic now procured to himfelf a grant of thofe ample poffeffions, which lay chiefly in the North, the moft warlike part of the kingdom; and he was dignified with the title of duke of Northumberland. His friend, Pauler, lord St. John, the treafurer, was created firft earl of Wiltthire, then marquefs of Winchefier: Sir William Herbert was made earl of Pembroke. But the ambition of Northumberland made him regard all increafe of -pof- His ambition. feffions and titles, either to himfelf or partizans, as fteps only to further acqui- fitions. Finding that Somerfet, tho’ degraded from his dignity, and even lef- fened im the public opinion by his fpiritlefs conduct, {till enjoyed a confiderable fhare of populatity, he was determined to ruin a man whom he regarded as the chief obftacle to the attainment of his hopes. The alliance which had been formed between the families had produced no cordial union, and only enabled Northumberland to compafs with more certainty the deftruction of his rival, He fecretly gained many of the friends and fervants of that unhappy nobleman : He * Heyward, p. 326. Heylin, p. 108. Strype’s Memorials, vol. JI. p. 295. + Heylin, p. 109, Trial of So- meriet, git Decem we 346 HISTORY or ENGLAND. He fometimes terrified him by the appearance of danger: Sometimes provoked him. by ill uface. ae unguarded Somerfet often broke out into menacing ex- prefions againit Northumberland: At other times, he formed rafh projects, which he immediately abandoned : His treacherous confidents carried to his enemy every paffionate word which dropped from him:. They revealed the fchemes, Which they themfelves had firft fi iggefted *: And Northumberland, thinking that the prop:r feafon was now come, ee an to act in an Open manner againft him. In one night, the duke of Somerfet, the lord Grey, David and John Seymour, Hammond and Neudigate, two of the duke’s fervants, Sir Ralph Vane and Sir Thomas Palmer were arrefted and committed tocuftody. Next day, the dutchefs of Somerfet, with her favourites, Crane and his wife, Sir Miles Partridge, Sir Michael Stanhope, iy oui ha others were thrown into. prifon. . Sir Thomas E Palmer, who had all along acted the part of a fpy upon Somerfet, accufed him of having formed a defign to raife an infurrection’in the north, to attack the gens d’armes on a mufter-day, to fecure the Tower, and to excite a rebellion in London: But what was the only probable accufation, he afferted, that Somerfet 1ad once lai oject for mu os Nor aberlan ‘thampton, and Pem- had once laid a project for murdering Northumberland, Northampton, and P sroke at a banquet, which was to be given them by lord Paget. ne and his broke at a banquet, which was to be ¢g them by lord Paget. Crane and h wife confirmed Palmer’s teftimony with regard to this laft defign ; and it appears that fome rafh fcheme of that nature had been mentioned ; tho’ no regular confpiracy had been formed, nor means prepared for its execution. Hammond confefied, that the duke had armed men to guard him one night in his houfe at Greenwich. SoMERSET was brought to his trial before the marquis of -Winchefter, who acted as high fteward. T'wenty-feven peers fat as the jury, among whom. were Northumb mevianc Pembroke, and Northampton, whom decency fhould have hindered from acting as judges in the trial of a man, who appeared to be their pl jected infurrections, and of felony in forming a defign to murder privy coun- capital enemy. Somerfet was accuied of high treafon on account of the pro- fellors. We have a very imperfect account of all ftate trials during that age, which is a-fenfible defe&t in our sai ds But it appears, that fome more regularity was obferved in the management of this profecution than had been ufually em- ployed in like cafes. The witnefies were at leaft examined by the privy coun- cil; -and tho’ they were neither produced in court, nor Onis with the — +r ber, prifoner (circumftances required by the ftrict principles of equity) their depo- fitions were given in to the jury. The proof feems to have been very lame with . regard * Heylin, p. 112. + ror B Dy WA sRy D VI. 337 regard to the treafonable part of the charge; and Somerfet’s defence was fo fatif- factory, that the peers gave verdict in his favour ; The intention alone of affaulting the privy counfellors was fupported by any tolerable evidence ; and the jury brought him in guilty of felony. The prifoner himfelf confeffed, that he had mentioned the defign of murdering Northumberland and the other lords; but had not formed any refolution on that head: And when he received fentence, he afked pardon of thofe peers for the defigns which he had hearkened to againit them. The people, by whom Somerfet was beloved, hearing the firft part of his fen- tence, by which he was abfolved from treafon, expreffed their joy by loud accla- mations: But their fatisfaGtion was fuddenly damped, on finding that he was condemned to death for felony *. Care had been taken by Northumberland’s emiffaries, to prepoffefs the young King acainft his uncle ; and left he fhould relent, no accefs was given to any of Somerfet’s friends, and the prince was kept from refleCtion by a continued feries of occupations and amufements. At laft the prifoner was brought to the fcaffold on Tower-hil!, amidft great crouds of fpeétators, who bore him fuch fincere kindnefs, that they entertained, to the laft moment, the fond hopes of his par- don+. Many of them rufhed in to dip their handkerchiefs in his blood, which they long preferved as a precious relict 5 and fome of them foon after, when Nor- thumberland met with a like doom, upbraided him with this cruelty, and dif- played to him thefe fymbols of his crime. Somerfet indeed, tho’ many actions of his life were very exceptionable, feems, in general, to have merited a better fate ; and the faults, which he committed, were owing to weaknefs, not to any. bad ‘ntentions. His virtues were better calculated for private than for public life 5 and by his want of penetration and firmnefs, he was ill-fitted to extricate him- felf from thofe cabals and violences to which that age was fo much addi&ed. Sir Thomas Arundel, Sir Michael Stanhope, Sir Miles Partridge, and Sir Ralph Chap. IT. 1551s 1552. His execu- tion. 22d January. Vane, all of them Somerfet’s friends, were brought to their trial, condemned. and executed: Great injuftice feems to have been ufed in their profecution. “Lord Paget, chancellor of the dutchy, was, on fome pretence, tried in the oe es ber. and condemned in a fine of 6000 pounds, with the lofs of his ofice. To ? : : ‘ mortify him the more, he was degraded from the order of the garter; as un worthy, on account of his mean birth, to fhare that honour {. Lord Rich, chancellor, was alfo compelled to refign his office, on the difcovery of fome friendfhip, which he had fhewn to — — “a * Hayward, p. 320, 321, 322 Stowe, p. 606. Hollingfhed, p. 1067. + Haywatd, DP. 324, 325> t Stowe, p. 608. ao, ' ‘ | : Hii) ; : { iit ; j i i ’ ; 1. ip ee iit ; : 5 He : " } il ai} \| li} { el ih) Hall tj ' H a) | ald Baul ie} 444 i) 1 The glist or OF) ihe Hath ait (ini Wt jie i} Nel. ig, if Can) ie) ain! i al! i i +H Orne Y Ahi! 4 Pe tt Gail Be ita kha bt t bot iad Pye ¢h Heh it TP |! 1/44 : a ' i}! ; tala ¥ i} ite Hak: be baaiP) Be Mel iene) at) Le Tra} uaa tad ith | wie) ae Ay. Mt a) hit ' i { Chap. Ik; 1552. 23d January. A Parliament. er 338 HISTORY or ENGLAND, ‘Tue day after the execution of Somerfet, a feffion of Parliament was held, where farther advances were made for the eftablifhment of the reformation. The new liturgy was duthorifed ; and penalties were enaGted againft all fuch as abfentéd themfelves from public worfhip*. To ufé the fiafs had already been prohibited under very fevere penalties; fo that the reformers, it appears, whatever fcope they had given to their own private judgment, in difputing the tenets of the antient religion, were refolved not to allow the fame privilege to others ; and the practices nay the very doctrine of toleration, was, at that time, equally unknown to alt fects and parties. To diffent from the réligion of the magiftrate was univerfally conceived to be as criminal as to queftion his title, or rebel again{t his authority. A LAw was enacted againft ufury ; that is, againft taking any intereft for money t. This act was the effect of antient fuperftitions ; but being found ex- tremely iniquitous in itlelf, as well as prejudicial to commerce, it was after- wards repealed in the twelfth of Elizabeth. The common rate of intereft, not- withftanding the law, was at that time 14 per cent f. A BILL was introduced by the miniftry into the houfe of lords, renewing thofe rigorous flatutes of treafons, which had been abrogated in the beginning of this reign; and tho’ the peers, by their high ftation, ftood moft expofed to thefe tempeits of ttate, yet had they fo little regard to public authority, or even to their own true interefts, that they pafled the bill with only one diflenting voice §. But the commons rejected it, and prepared a new bill, that pafled into a law, by which it was enacted, that whoever fhould call the King or any of his heirs, named in the ftatute of the 35th of the laft reign, heretic, {chifmatic, tyrant, infidel, or ufurper of the crown, fhould forfeit, for the firft offence, their goods and chattels, and be imprifoned during pleafure ; for the fecond, thould be in a premunire; for the third; fhould be attainted of treafon. But if any fhould un- adviledly advance fuch a flander in writing, printing, painting, carving or erav- ing, he was, for the firft offence, to be held a traitor]. It may be worthy of notice, that the King and his next heir, the lady Mary, were profeffedly of dif- ferent religions; and religions, which threw on each other the imputation of herefy, {chifm, idolatry, pfophanenefs, blafphemy, wickednelfs, and all the Op- probrious epithets, that religious zeal has invented. It. was almoft impoffible, therefore, for the people, if they fpoke on thefe fubjeéts at all, not to fall into the crime, fo feverely punifhed by this ftatute ; and the jealoufy of the commons for ie lincachpamiid alpen ¥ Ib. c. 20. f Hayward, p. 318. § Paliamentary Hitt, | vol, III. p. 258. Burnet, vol. I. p. tgo, | 5 & 6 Edw, VI. cap. 2. BE De WAR’ sD VI. 339 for liberty, tho’ it led.them to diffent:from the lords, appears not to have been Chap. ID. very active, vigilant or clear-fighted. 1552. Tue commons annexed to this bill a claufe which was of much more impor- tance than the bill itfelf, that no one fhould be convicted of any kind of treafon, unlefs the crime was proved by the oaths of two witnefles, who were confronted with the prifoner.: The lords fcrupled to pafs this claufe; tho’ required by the moft obvious principles of equity, and tho’ their own intereft was fully as much concerned as that of the commons. ‘But the members of that houfe trufted for proteétion to their prefent perfonal intereft and power, and neglected the nobleft and moft permanent fecurity, that of the laws. A 3iLt was introduced into the houfe of peers for making a provifion for the poor; but*the commons, not chufing that a money-bill fhould begin in the upper- houfe, framed a new bill to the fame purpofe. By this bill, the church-wardens were empowered to collect charitable contributions for the poor, and if any re- fufed to contribute, or diffwaded others from that charity, the bifhop of the dio- cefe was empowered to proceed againft them. Such a large difcretionary power, entrufted to: the prelates, feems as proper an object of jealoufy as the authority affumed ‘by the peeis*. THERE was another occafion in which the Parliament repofed an unufual confidence in the’ bifhops. They empowered them to proceed againft fuch as negleéted the Sundays and holydays+. But thefe were unguarded conceflions granted to the church: The general humour of the times led men to bereave the ecclefiaftics of all their power, and even to pillage them of all their property : Many clergymen were obliged for a fubfiftance to turn carpenters or taylors, and fome kept alehoufes {. ‘The bifhops themfelves were generally reduced to po- verty, and held both their revenues and fpiritual office by a very precarious and -_ uncertain tenure. Tonstat, bifhop of Durham, was one of the moft eminent prelates of that age, ftill lefs for the dignity of his fee, than for his own perfonal merit, his learning, moderation, humanity, and beneficence. He had oppofed, by his vote and authority, all the innovations in religion ; but fo foon as they were enacted, he had always fubmitted, and had paid conformity to each fyftem of religion, which was eftablifhed. The known probity of his mind had made this compli. ance be afcribed, not to an interefted or time ferving fpirit, but to a fenfe. of .. duty, which led him to think that all private opinions ought to be facrificed to the great concerns of public peace and tranquillity. That general regard which | XX 2 was * ¢ & 6 Edw. VI. cap. 2. + Ib. cap. 3. { Burnet, vol. II. p. 202. 4] 1 : We at i + i Bib ati i" ; “4 4 is , { ii vy | , : | - i Hi |? i ia i ia ; Hit ‘ ' ' i] , 4 * 1 H i} ta ’ : hs | ; r J ; atti ' Mh it ‘ 4 ait Wis ul tht Mle ae Mian) Metis) i Bi bw at ¢ wen HS tele det | i) at ‘ tid f ‘ey nee J pe i mie) oe ye i s iis i | I ij iy! 1h bel 18 yt i } } i : ny rt { hi ; i at : id } ae ith { aut 5 pt i GPa hs ils < “+ ¢ Hs ta : Pa ab | ea RAE ul ate a } tte au TTAE Gis ae Aiba Tia ‘a iblall 1, Tt ie ti it Pet) aL \4 ; +) 41 | Da nit : } . : { aye i ir 4) wile © ‘ 7 Ht We hate? ati t RRM Ty " Wa ty Pal vee Ha 7 Hisist haem tt tid if ieee + ithe nie Vata 4 wi whi a the HT ad ini j Lah) ot Hunt; op : 14 wl ; ‘ | i \ | } : be SB i” ij 1 aI i nh) is - | } ‘ A 4) Habit Sit eel} AYN eal Ht) tg DRE 5 BY) ise Mite ia ay if y bi i it ht | A Tpit 5 itt 1 4 chal HEP RUYE K 4} i ; te heat ant by | naa hes bl é | ) . iF th = oe aN Chap. IT. 1552. actn April. A new Parlia- ment. eS 340 HISTORY or ENGLAND. was paid his character, had preferved him from any fevere treatment during the protectorfhip of Somerfet; but when Northumberland gained the afcendant, he was thrown into prifon ; and as that rapacious nobleman had formed a defign of appropriating the revenues of the fee of Durham, and of forming to himfelf @ principality in the northern counties, he was refolved, in order to effectuate his purpofe, to deprive Tonftal of his bifhopric. A bill of attainder, therefore, under pretence of mifprifion of treafon, was introduced into the houfe of peers againft that prelate; and it pafled with the oppofition only of lord Stourton, a zealous catholic, and of Cranmer, who always bore a cordial and fincere friend-. fhip to the bifhop of Durham. But when the bill was fent down to the commons, ’ they required that witneffes fhould be examined, that Tonftal fhould be allowed to defend himfelf, and that he fhould be confronted with his accufers: And when thefe demands were refufed, they rejected the bill, Tuts equity, fo unufual in the Parliament during that age, was afcribed by Northumberland and his partizans, not to any regard for liberty and juftice, but to the prevalence of Somerfet’s faciion in a houfe of commons, which, being chofen during the adminiftration of that nobleman, had been almoft entirely filled with his creatures. “They were confirmed in this opinion, when they found, that a bill confirming the attainder of Somerfet and his complices was alfo rejected by the commons, tho’ it had paffed the upper houfe. A refolution was therefore taken to diffolve the Parliament, which had fat during this whole reign 3 and foon after to fummon a new one. Nor THUMBERLAND, in order to enfure to himfelf a houfe of commons entirely obfequious to his will, ventured on an expedient which could not have been practifed, or even thought of, in an age, when there: was any idea or compre- henfion of liberty. He engaged the King to write circular letters to all the fheriffs, in which he enjoined them to inform the freeholders and voters, that they were required to choofe men of knowledge and experience for their repre- fentatives. After this general exhortation, the King continued in thefe words. «« And yet, neverthelefs, our pleafure is, that where our privy council, or any of them fhall, in our behalf, recommend, within their jurifdi€tion, men of learn- ing and wifdom ; tn fuch cafes, their.directions fhall be regarded and followed, as tending to the fame end which we defire, that is, to, have this aflembly compofed of the perfons in our realm the beft fitted to give advice and good ** council *.”” Several letters were fent from the King, recommending members. to particular counties, Sir Richard Cotton for Hampfhire; Sir William Fitz- williams and Sir Henry Neville for Berkfhire; Sir William Drury and Sir Henry Benning field * Strype’s Ecclef, Memorials, vol. IL. p. 394. SAD CW ATTRIB “VE — Benninefield for Suffolk, &c. But tho’ fome counties only received this fpecies Chap. II. of congé delire from the King; the recommendations from the privy council and Sa the councellors, we may fairly prefume, would extend to the greateit part, if not to the whole, of the kingdom. It is remarkable, that this attempt was made during the reign of a minor King, when the royal authority is ufually weakeft; that it was patiently fub- mitted to; and that it gave fo little umbrage as fcarce to be taken notice of by any hiftorian. The painful and laborious collector above cited, who never omits the moft trivial matters, is the only perfon, that has thought this memo- rable letter worthy of being tranfmitted to pofterity. Tus Parliament anfwered Northumberland’s expectations. As Tonftalhadin ,,.,, the interval been deprived of his bifhopric after a very arbitrary manner, by the , an. fentence of lay commifficners, appointed to try him, the fee of Durham was by act of Parliament divided into two bifhoprics, which had certain portions of the revenue affigned them. The regalities of the fee, which included the jurifdiction of a count palatine, were given by the King to Northumberland ; and it was not to be doubted but that nobleman had alfo propofed to make rich plunder, of the revenue, as was then the ufual practice of the courtiers, whenever a bifhopric fel] vacant. Tue commons gave the miniftry another mark of attachment, which was at that time the moft fincere, the moft cordial, and the moft difficult to be obtained . They granted a fupply of two fubfidies and two fifteenths. To render this pre- fent the more acceptable, they voted a preamble, containing a long accufation of Somerfet, ‘‘ for invo'ving the King in wars, wafting his treafure, ingaging «© him in much debt, embafing the coin, and giving occafion for a moft terrible “© yebellion *.” Tue debts of the crown were at this time very confiderable. The King had received from France 400,000 Crowns on delivering Boulogne; he had reaped profits fom the fale of fome chantry lands; the churches had been defpoiled of all their plate and rich ornaments, which, by a decree of council, without any pretence of law or equity, had been converted to the King’s ufe-+: Yet fuch had. been the rapacity of the courtiers, that the crown was indebted about 300,000 pounds { ; and great depredations were, at the fame time, made of the royal demefnes. ‘The young prince fhowed, among other virtues, a difpofition to frugality, which, had he lived, would foon have retrieved thefe loffes : But as his health was declining very faft, the prefent emptinefs of the exchequer was a | fenfible * > Edw. VI. cap. 12. + Heylin, p. 959 1325 t Strype’s Ecclef Mem. vol. Il. p. 344- * sN Chap. IT, eet Succeffion changed, = 342 HISTORY oF ENGLAND. fenfible obftacle to the execution of thofe projeéts, which the ambition of North« umberland had founded on the profpect of Edward’s approaching end. Tuart nobleman reprefented to the prince, whom youth and an infirm ftate of health made. fufceptible of every impreffion, that his two hfters, Mary and Eli- zabeth, had both been declared illegitimate by aét of Parliament, and tho’ Henry by his will had reftored them toa place in the fucceffion, the nation would never bear to fee the throne of England filled by a baftard: That they were only the King’s fifters by the half-blood; and even if they were legitimate, could not enjoy the crown as his heirs and fucceflors: That the Queen of Scots ftood excluded by the king’s will; and being an alien, loft all right of inheriting by the law; not to mention, that, as fhe was betrothed to the dauphin, fhe would, by her fucceffion, render England, as the had already done Scotland, a province to France: That the certain confequence of his fifter Mary’s fucceffion, or that 6f the Queen of Scots, was the abolition of the proteftant religion, the repeal of thofe laws enacted in favour of the reformation, and the re-eftablifhment of the ufurpations and idolatry of the church of Rome: That fortunately for England, the fame order of fucceffion, which juftice required, was alfo the moft conform- able to public intereft, and there was not-on any fide any juft ground for doubt or deliberation: That when thefe three princeffes were excluded by fuch folid reafons, the fucceffion devolved to the marchionefs of Dorfet, eldeft daughter to the French Queen and the duke of Suffolk : That the next heir of the marchio- nefs was the lady Jane Gray, a lady. of the moft amiable virtue, accomplithed by the beft education, both for literature and for religion ; and every way worthy of athrone: And that even, if her title by blood fhould be doubtful, which there was no juft reafon to pretend, the King was poflefled of the fame power, which his father enjoyed; and might leave her the crown by letters patent. Thefe reafonings made impreffion on the young prince; and above all, his zea- lous affection for the proteftant religion made him apprehend the confequences, if fo bigotted a catholic as his fifter Mary fhould fucceed to the ‘throne, And tho’ he bore a tender affection ‘to the lady Elizabeth, who was liable to no fuch objection, means were found to perfwade him, that he could not exclude the one fitter, on account of illegitimacy, without alfo giving an exclufion to the other. NorRTHUMBERLAND, finding that his arguments were likely to Operate on the King, began to prepare the othet parts of that political fabric, which he in- tended to raife. “Two fons of the duke of Suffolk by a fecond vencer having died, this ‘feafon, of the fweating ficknefs, that title was extiné&t ; and Northum- berland engaged the King to beftow it on the marquis of Dorfet. By means of this Dow *a RV” HE tas De Nags F this favour and of others, which he conferred upon him, he perfuaded the new duke of Suffolk and the dutchefs, to give their daugliter, the lady Jane, in marriage fo his fourth fon, the lord Guilford Dudley. In order to fortify himfelf by farther alliances, he negotiated .a marriage between the lady Catherine Gray, fecond daughter to Suffolk, and lord Herbert, eldeft fon to the earl of Pembroke. He alfo married his own daughter to lord Haftings, eldeft fon to the earl of Huntingdon *, Thefe marriages were folemnized with great pomp and feftivity ; and the people, who hated Northumberland, could not forbear expreffing their indignation at feeing thefe public demonftrations of joy, during the languifhing {tate of the young prince’s health. Epwarb had been feized in the foregoing year, firft with the meafles, then with the fmall pox; but having perfectly recovered both thefe diftempers, the nation entertained hopes, that they would only ferve to confirm his health; and he had _ afterwards made a progrefs thro’ fome parts of the kingdom. It was fufpected, that he had there over-heated himfelf in exercifes: He was feized with a cough, which proved obftinate, and gave way neither to regimen nor medicines: Seve. ral fatal fymptoms of a confumption appeared ; and tho’ it was hoped, that, as the feafon of the year advanced, his youth and temperance might get the better of the malady, men faw with great concern his bloom and vigour infenfibly de- cay. The general attachment to the young prince, joined to the hatred borne the Dudleys, made it be remarked, that Edward had every moment declined in health, from the time that lord Robert Dudley had been put about him, in the quality of gentleman of the bedchamber. Tue languifhing ftate of Edward’s health made Northumberland the more in. tent on the execution of his project. He removed all, except his own emiffaries, from about the King: He himfelf attended him with the greateft affiduity : He _ pretended the moft anxious concern for his health and welfare: And by all thefe artifices, he prevailed on him to give his final confent to the fettlement projected, Sir Edward Montague, chief juftice of the Common Pleas, Sir John Baker and Sir Thomas Bromley, two judges, with the attorney and follicitor general were fent for to the council; where, after the minutes of the intended deed were read to them, the King required them to draw them up in the form of letters patent. ‘They hefitated in obeying this order 5 and defired time to confider of ir, The more they reflected, the greater danger they found in compliance. The fettlement of the crown by Henry the eighth had been made in confequence of an act of Parliament ; and by another act, paffed in the beginning of this reign, it was declared treafon in any of the heirs, their aiders or abettors, to attempt on the right * Heylin, p. 109. Stowe, 609, Chap, IT, 1553. he King S ficknefs. fi i Hy va: aS ———== = = LG ea SS * Chap. II. 1553- 21ft June. 344 HISTORY ofr ENGLAND. right of another, or change the order of fucceffion. The judges pleaded thefe reafons before the council. They urged, that fuch a patent as was intended would be entirely invalid ; that it would fubject, not only the judges who drew it, but every counfellor who figned it, to the pains of treafon; and that the only proper expedient, both to give force to the new fettlement, and free its partizans from danger, was to fummon a Parliament, and obtain the confent and fanétion of that affembly. The King faid, that he intended afterwards to follow that method, and would call a Parliament, in which he propofed to have his fettlement ratified ; but in the mean time, he required the judges, on their. allegiance, to draw the patent in the form required. The council told the judges, that their refufal would fabject them all to the pains of treafon, Northumberland gave to Mon- tague the appellation of traitor; and faid that he would fight in his fhirt with any man in fo jutt a quarrel as that of the lady Jane’s fucceffion. The judges were reduced to great difficulties between the dangers of the law, and thofe arif- ing from the violence of prefent power and authority *. THE arguments were canvafled in feveral different meetings between the council and the judges; and no folution could be found of the prefent difficulties. At laft, Montague propofed an expedient, which fatisfied both his brethren and the counfellors. He defired, that a fpecial commiffion fhould be paffed by the King and council, requiring the judges to draw a patent for the new fettlement of the crown ; and that a pardon fhould immediately after be granted them for any offence which they might have committed by their compliance. When the pa- tent was drawn and brought to the bifhop of Ely, chancellor, in order to pafs the great feal, that prelate required, that all the judges fhould fign it. Gofnald at firft refufed ; and it was with much difficulty, that he was prevailed on, by the violent menaces of Northumberland, to comply; but the conflancy of Sir James Hales, who, tho’ a zealous proteftant, preferred juftice on this occafion to the prejudices of his party, could not be fhaken by any expedient. The chan- cellor next required, for his greater fecurity, that all the privy councellors fhould fet their hands tothe patent: The intrigues of Northumberland or the fears of his vio- lence were fo prevalent, that the counfellors complied with thisdemand. Cranmer alone hefitated during fome time, but yielded at laft to the earneft and pathetic entreaties of the King 7. Cecil, at that time fecretary of ftate, pretended after- wards that he only figned as a witnefs to the King’s fubfcription. And thus, by the King’s letters patent, the two princefles, Mary and Elizabeth, were fet afide; and the crown was fettled on the heirs of the dutchefs of Suffolk : For the dutchefs herfelf, was content to be poftponed to her daughters. AFTER * Fuller, book VIII. p. 2. + Cranm. Mem. p. 295. BED W Ae ® .~D VI. 245 Arrer this fettlement was made, with fo many inaufpicious circumftances, Edward declined vifibly every day in his health; and fmall hopes were entertained of his recovery.. To make the matter worfe, his phyficians were di{miffed by Northumberland’s advice and by an order of council; and he was put into the hands of an ignorant woman, who undertook, in a little time, to reftore him to his former ftate of health. After the ufe of her medicines, all the bad fymp- toms encreafed to the moft violent degree: He felt a difficulty of fpeech and breathing ; his pulfe failed, his legs fwelled, his colour became livid ; and many other fymptoms appeared of his approaching end. He expired at Greenwich in the fixteenth year of his age, and the feventh of his reign. Aut the Englith hiftorians dwell with pleafure on the excellencies of this young prince ; whom the flattering promifes of hope, joined to many real virtues, had made an object of the moft tender affections of the public. He poffeffed mild- nefs of difpofition, application to ftudy and bufinefs, a capacity to learn and judge, and an attachment to equity and juftice. He feems only to have con- traéted from his education and from the age in which he lived, too much of a narrow prepofieffion in matters of religion, which made him incline fomewhat to bigotry and perfecution: But as the bigotry of proteftants, lefs governed by priefts, lies under more reftraints than that of catholics, the effects of this ma- lignant quality were the lefs to be apprehended, if a longer life had been granted to young Edward. Y y Chap. Ik. 1553° And death, 6th July. RecN Ga Ae, UNDER THE HOUSE. of TUDO R. Ber rere tient rt re tt tet eter teeter Moen As Ro ¥, © dows a od, Lady ‘fane Gray proclaimed Queen. Deferted by the people. Queen proclaimed and acknowledged. Northumberland executed. Cathohe religion reftored.—A Parliament. Deliberations with regard to the Queen's marriage. Queen's marriage with Philip. Wyat's infurreétion, Suppreffed. Execution of lady Fane AA Parliament.——Pbhilip’s arrival in England. The Gray. HE title of the princefs Mary to the crown, after the deceafe of her brother, was not liable to any confiderable difficulty ; and the objections ftarted by the lady Jane’s partizans, were new and unheard-of by the nation. Tho’ all the proteftants, and even many of the catholics, believed the marriage of Henry the eighth with Catherine of Arragon to be un- lawful and invalid ; yet as it had been contracted by the parties without any criminal intention, had been avowed by their parents, recognized by the nation, and feemed founded on thofe principles of law and religion, which then prevailed, very few imagined, that their iffue ought on that account to be regarded as ille- gitimate. A declaration to that purpofe had indeed been extorted from the Par- liament by the ufual violence and caprice of Henry; but as that monarch had afterwards been induced to reftore his daughter to the right of fucceffion, her Yy 2 | title (ay 1953? uit mw Bh i!) ji ish ri 1 Wil i {iii th) q ; ht . eal wii! Ai ae ie agi 1 ‘Ni ii} if Hobie th tilt it itil i} at he h i} Fr Hi 1 cl (ae | 4h arnt — a a ee SS SSS i ; Set ee? : = ea 348 HISTORY or ENGLAND. title was now become as legal and parliamentary as it was ever efteemed juft and natural. The public had been long familiarized to ‘thefe fentithents : During all the reign of Edward, the princefs was confidered as his lawful fucceflor: And tho’ the proteftants dreaded the effects of her prejudices, the extreme hatred, univerfally entertained againft the Dudleys*, who, -men forefaw, would, under the name of Jane, be the real fovercigns, was more than fufficient to counterbal- tance, even with that party, the attachment to religion. This laft attempt, to riolate the order of fucceffidh,thad difplayed-Northumberland’s ambition and injuftice in a full light ; and when the people reflected on the long train of fraud, iniquity and cruelty, by which that project had been conducted; that the lives of the two Seymours, as well as the title of the princefles, had been facrificed to it; they were moved by indignation to exert themfelves in oppofition to fuch - criminal enterprizes. . The general veneration alfo, paid to the'memory of Henty™ the eighth, prompted the nation to defend the rights of his pofteriry ; and the miferies of the antient civil wars were not fo entirely forgotten, that men were willing, by a departure from the lawful heir, to incur the danger of the like blood- fhed and confufion. NorTHUMBERLAND, fenfible of the oppofition he muft expect, had carefully concealed the deftination made by the King; and in order to bring the two princefles into his power, he had hadthe precaution to engage the council, before Edward’s death, to write to them in that prince’s name, defiring their attendance, under,-ptetext, \that.his-infirm, ftate of -health, required. the .affiftance of their eounfel and. the. confolation of their company.{. , Edward expired before their atrival:;. but. Northumberland, ‘im order to make.the princefles fall mto the fnare, kept the King’s, death. ftill fecret; and the lady Mary had_already reached Hoddefden, within half a day’s journey of the court. Happily, the earl of Arundel fent her. private intelligence, both of her brother’s death and of the confpiracy formed againft her {.;. She immediately made. hafte to retire ; and ar- rived iby quick journeys, -firft. at, Kenning-hall in Norfolk, then at. Framlingham in Suffolk ;.where fhe ,propofed to embark and retire to Flanders, in cafe fhe fhould find it impofiible to defend her right. of fucceffion. She wrote letters to the nobility and moft confiderable gentry in every county of England; com- mandiog them to.affift her in the defence of her crown and perfon. And fhe dif- patched.a mefiage tothe council by which fhe notified to them, that her brother’s death was no longer a-fecret to her, promifed them pardon for paft offences, and required them immediately to give orders for proclaiming her title in London §. Nor THuUM- * Sleidan, lib. 25. Heylin, p.154. . } Burnet, vol. II, p. 233. — § Fox, vol, IJ. p. 14. a Mic R.'Y. 240 Norriumpertanp found ‘that: farther diffimulation was vain: He went to Chap. I, Sion-houfe*, accompanied with: the duke of Suffolk, the: earl of Pembroke, a and others of the nobility; and he approached the lady Jane, who refided there, with all the refpect ufually paid to the fovereign.. Jane was, ina great meafure, Lady Jane éd ignorant of all thefé tranfactions; and it was with equal grief and {urprize, that .1.:. Ciainie fhe ‘received intelligence of them-}.. She was a lady of the moft amiable perfon, Queen. the moft engaging difpofition, the moft accomplifhed parts ; and: being of an equal age with the late King, fhe had received all her education with him, and feemed even to poflefs a greater facility in acquiring every part of manly and po- lite literature. She had attained a knowlege of the Roman and Greek languages, befide modern tongues ; had paffed moft of her time in an application to learning ; and exprefied a great indifference for other occupations and amufements ufual with her fex and ftation. Roger Afcham, tutor to thelady Elizabeth, having at one time paid her a vifit, found her employed in the reading of. Plato, while the re(t of the family were engaged.in a party of hunting in the park; and upon his admiring the fingularity of -her.choice, fhe told him, that fhe received more pleafure from that author than the others could reap from all their fport and paity. Her heart, full of this paffion for literature and the elegant arts, and of tendernef towards her hufband,’ who’ was deferving of. her affection, .had_ never opened itlelf to the flattering allurements of ambition; and the information. of her advancement to the throne was by no means agreeable to her. . She even re+ fufed’ to.accept the prefent; _ pleaded the preferable right of the two princefies ; exprefied her dread of the confequences attending an’ enterprize fo dangerous, not to fay fo criminal; and defired to remain in that private {tation in-which fhe was born. Overcome at laft with the entreaties, rather than reafons, .of. her fa- ther and father-in-law, and above all of her hufband, fhe fubmitted to their will, and was prevailed on to relinquifh her own judgment. It was then ufual for the Kings of England, after their acceflion, to pafs the firft days in the Tower ; and Northumberland immediately conveyed thither the new fovereign}: AH the counfellors were obliged to attend her to that fortrefs; and by this means be- came, in fome meafure, prifoners in the hands of Northumberland, whofe will they were neceffitated to obey. Orders were given by the council, to proclaim Jane throughout the king ‘om; but thefe orders were executed only in London, aad the neighbouthood. No applaufe enfued: The people heard the proclama- tion with filence and concern: Some even exprefied their fcorn and contempt: And one Pot, a Vintner’s prentice, was feverely punifhed for this offence |. | The * Thuanus, lib. xii. ¢. 2- + Godwin in Kennet, p. 329. Heylin, p..149. Burnet, vol. Il. p. 234. t Heylin, p. 159. | Ibid. p. 160. Chap, f. E553 pF 350 HISTORY or ENGLAND. The proteftant teachers themfelves, who were employed to convince the people of Jane’s title, found their eloquence fruitlefs *;, and Ridley, bifhop of London, who preached a fermon to that purpofe, wrought no effeét upon his audience ¥. Te people of Suffolk, meanwhile, paid their attendance on Mary. © As they were much attached to the reformed communion, they could not forbear, amidft their tenders of duty, to exprefs their apprehenfion for the proteftant religion; but when fhe affured them, that fhe never meant to change the laws of Edward f, they enlifted themfelves in her caufe with zeal and affection, The nobility and gentry flocked to her daily, and brought her reinforcement. ‘The earls of Bath and Suffex, the eldeft fons of lord Wharton and lord Mordaunt, Sir William Drury, Sir Henry Benningfield, Henry Jerningham, perfons whofe interefts lay in the neighbourhood, appeared at the head of their tenants and retainers}. Sir Ed- ward Haftings, brother of the earl/of Huntingdon, having received a commif- fion from the council to make levies for the lady Jane in Buckinghamfhire, car- ried over his troops, which amounted to four thoufand men, and joined Queen Mary. Even a fleet,-which had been fent by Northumberland to lie off the coaft of Suffolk, being forced into Yarmouth by a ftorm, were engaged to de- clare for that princefs. NoRTHUMBERLAND, who had hitherto been blinded by ambition, faw at laft the danger gather round him, and knew not to what hand to turn himfelf. He had levied forces, which were affembled at London; but dreading the cabals of the courtiers and counfellors, whofe compliance, he knew, had been entirely the refult of fear or artifice, he was refolved to keep near the perfon of the lady Jane, and fend Suffolk to command the army. But the counfellors, who wifhed to remove him $, working on the filial tendernefs of Jane, magnified to her the danger to which her father would be expofed, and reprefented, that Northum- berland, who had gained reputation by fuppreffing formerly a rebellion in thofe parts, was much more proper to command in that enterprize. The Duke him- felf, who knew the flender capacity of Suffolk, began to think, that none but himfelf was able to encounter the prefent danger; and he agreed to take on him the command of the troops. The counfellors attended on him at his departure with the higheft proteftations of attachment, and none more than Arundel, his mortal enemy **. Ashe went along, he remarked the difaffection of the people, “which foreboded a fatal iffue to his ambitious hopes. ‘* Many,” faid he tolord Grey, who * Godwin, p. 3370. “Heylin, p. 162. Burnet, vol. IT. p. 236, 238. + Stowe, p. 611; Hollingfied, p. 1087. Strype’s Mem. vol. III. p. 3: t Fox, vol. II. p. 15. Baker, ‘p. 314. Speed, p. 816. || Heylin, p. 160. Burnet, vol. II. p. 237, § Godwin, ‘p. 330. Heylin, p.159. Burnet, vol. Il. p. 239. © Fox, vol. Ill. p. 15. ** Heylin, p. 26a, ‘Baker; p- 315. Hbollingthed, p. 1086. Mo AOR YY. apy who-attended him, ** come out to look at'us, but I find not‘one who cries, God ‘© fpeed yout.” Tue duke had no-fooner reached St. Edmond’s-bury, than-he found his army, which never exceeded fix thoufand ‘men, ‘too‘weak to encounter the ‘Queen’s |, which amounted to double’ the number. He wrote tothe council, defiring them to fend him a ‘reinforcement ; and the counfellors mediately laid hold: of ‘this pretence to free'themfelves from their-confinement. They left the Tower, as if pady Jane de- ferted by the people. they ‘meant ‘to execute Northumberland’s commands; ‘but ‘being affembled in Baynard’s-caftle, a houfe'belonging ‘to Pembroke, they deliberated concerning the method of fhaking off his ufurped'tyranny. Arundel began the conference, by ‘reprefenting the injuftice and cruelty of ‘Northumberland, the exorbitancy of his‘ambition, the criminal enterprize ‘which he had projected, and the guilt in which he had involved the whole: council; andhe afferted, that‘the only method of making atonement for their paft offence, was by a.prompt-return to the duty which they owed their lawful fovereign§. This motion was feconded by ‘Pem- broke, who, clapping’ his hand-to his ‘{word, ‘fwore he was ready to fight any man who exprefied himfelf of a contrary fentiment. The mayor and aldermen of London ‘were immediately fent for, who difcovered great alacrity in obeying the orders they received to proclaim Mary. ‘The people’exprefied their approbation by fhouts of applaufe. Even Suffolk; who commanded in the Tower, finding refiftance vain, opened the gates, and declared for the Queen. The lady Jane, after wearing the vain pageantry of a crown during ten days, ‘returned to a private life with much more fatisfa€tion than fhe*felt when the royalty was tendered tovher *: And:the meffengers who were fent-to Northumberland, with orders to lay down his arms, found that he had defpaired of fuccefs, was deferted by ail his followers, and had already proclaimed the Queen, with exterior marks of joy and ‘fatisfaction*}. .p),. Quees The people every where, on the -Queen’s approach to London, .gave 4enfible-ex+ proclaimed preffions of their loyalty and attachment. “And the lady Elizabeth met her atthe oi head of a thoufand horfe, which that-princefs had levied, in order to fapport their joine title againft the ufurper **, i Tur Queen gave orders for taking into cuftody the duke of Northumberland, who fellion his knees to the earl of Arundel-that arrefted him, and abjectly beg- gedihis life-f->.. At the fame time were committed, the earl of Warwic, his-eldeft fon, Ambrofe and Henry Dudley, two of his younger fons, Sir Andrew Dudley his t Speed, p. 816. |} Godwin, p. 331. § Ibid. -p. 331, 332. "Thuanus, lib. xiii. * Godwin, p. 332. Thuan. lib. xiii, c. 2. + Stowe, p. 612. ** Burnet, vol. 1, p. 240. Heylin, p.19, Stowe, p. 613. ++ Burnet, vol. I. p. 239. Stowey py O12. Baker, p. 315. Hollingthed, p. 1088. Chap. I, 1553+ ed. acknowe * 6 SS eee = = - * = ss = 23 <2 ve--j5- = == = = + = == ere ~—— Ste = von SA | SSS - _ | Chap. I. 1553. 22 Augutt. Northumber- land exe- cuted. Vis 352 HISTORY or ENGLAND. his brother, the marquefs of Northampton, the earl of Huntingdon, Sir Tho- mas Palmer, and Sir John Gates. The Queen afterwards confined the duke of © Suffolk, the lady Jane Gray, and lord Guilford Dudley. - But, Mary was defir- ous, in the beginning of her reign, to acquire popularity by the appearance of clemency; and becaufe the.counfellors pleaded conftraint, as an excufe. for their treafon, fhe extended her pardon to moft of them. Suffolk himfelf recovered his. liberty; and-he owed this indulgence, in a great meafure, to the, contempt entertained of his capacity. Butthe guilt of Northumberland was too great, as well as his, ambition and courage too dangerous, to permit him to entertain any reafonable hopes of life. When brought to his trial, he only defired permiffion to afk two queftions of the peers who were appointed to fit on his jury ; whether a man.could be guilty -of treafon.who obeyed orders ‘given him by the council under the great feal ?. and whether thofe who were involved in the fame) guilt with himfelf, could act.as his.judges? Being told, that the great feal of an ufurper | was no authority, and that perfons who lay not underany fentence of attainder, were {till innocent in the eye, of the law, and might be admitted:on any jury§ 3 he acquiefced, and pleaded guilty... At his execution, he made profeffion of the catholic religion, and told the people, that they never would enjoy tranquillity till they returned to the faith of their anceftors: Whether that fuch were his real fentiments, which. he had formerly concealed, from intereft and ambition, or that he hoped, by this declaration, to render the Queen more favourable to his fa- mily *. Sir Thomas Palmer, and Sir John Gates, fuffered with him; and this was all the blood {fpilt on account of fo dangerous and criminal an enterprize againft the rights’ of the fovereign. Sentence was pronounced againft the lady Jane and lord Guilford; but without any prefent intention of putting it in exe- cution. The youth and innocence of the perfons, neither of whom had reached their feventeenth year, pleaded fufficiently in their favour, Wuen Mary firft arrived in the Tower, the duke of Norfolk, who had been detained prifoner during all the laft reign; Courtney, fon to the marquefs of Exeter, who, without being charged with any crime, had been fubje¢ted to the fame punifhment ever fince his father’s attainder; Gardiner, Tonftal, and Bonner, who had been confined for their adherence to the catholic caufe, appeared before her, and implored her clemency and protection +. They were all of them re- ftored to their liberty, and immediately admitted to her confidence and favour, Norfolk’s § Burnet, vol. If. p..243. Heylin, p. 18. Baker, p. 316. Hollingthed, p. ro8q. * Hey- lin, p. 19. Burnet, vol. Il. p.243. Stowe, p. 614. + Heylin,*p. zo, Stowe, p. 613, Holingthed, p. 1088. ) ME AUR. Y. 353 Norfolk’s attainder, notwithftanding’that it had pafied in Parliament, was repre- Chap. 1 fented as null and invalid; becaufe, among other informalities, no fpecial matter °°?" had been alleged againft him, except wearing a coat of arms, which he and his anceftors, without giving any offence, had always made ufe of in the face of the court and of the whole nation. Courtney received the title of earl of Devon- fhire; and tho’ educatéd in fuch clofe confinement, that he was altogether unac- quainted with the world, he foon acquired all the accomplifhments of a courtier and a gentleman, and made a confiderable figure during the few years which he lived after he recovered his liberty. Befides performing all thofe popular acts, which, tho’ they only regarded individuals, were very acceptable to the nation, the Queen endeavoured to ingratiate herfelf with the public, by granting a gete- ral pardon, tho’ with fome exceptions, and by remitting the fubfidy voted to her brother in the laft Parliament |j. : Tue joy arifing from the fucceffion of the lawful heir, and from. the gracious demeanour of the fovereign, hindered not the people from being agitated. with great anxiety concerning the ftate of religion; and as the bulk- of the nation in- clined to the proteftant communion, apprehenfions were generally entertained of the principles and prejudices of the new Queen, The legitimacy of Mary’s birth had appeared to be fomewhat connected with the papal authority; and as that princefs was educated with her mother, fhe had imbibed the ftrongeft attachment to the catholic communion, and the higheft averfion to thofe new tenets, whence, the believed, all the misfortunes. of her family had originally fprung. The dif- couragements which fhe lay under from her father, tho’ at laft they brought her to comply with his will, tended ftill more to increafe her difguft-to the reformers 5 and the vexations which the protector and the council gave her, during Edward’s reign, had no other effect than to confirm her farther in her prejudices, Natu- rally of a four and obftinate temper, and irritated by contradictions and misfor- tunes, fhe poffeffed all the qualities fitted to compofe a bigot ; and her extreme ignorance rendered her utterly incapable of doubt in her own belief, or of in- dulgence to the opinions of others, The nation, therefore, had oreat reafon to. dread, not only the abolition, but the perfecution of the eftablithed religion from the zeal of Mary ; and it was not long before fhe difcovered her inten- ae ee ; = — -— ss ————-* —— ret ee —— . eS ee = FF, i Th ue ' , AT i { nan mit i : i" v4 { “ iY i 4 iid ; tt ’ i ; 4 ih | } i} | f sti i> Hii | tae | : ut ie it 5 Ww He 4) jt Tie ; i} : } alr ‘7 } Hit is { y LATE Hae ‘, : = 4 i ti +] Pa ima: is ea Tul ae hea } ‘ sa “if att iy ni it Lil Tani set ' HIPS gure te : ThA ee - vie ati d 1 Hine Wout ry 4 ie ; is 4 i ip iit it Tee ret RON! Te a " APNE BH \ ‘ \ : 1h 4 { Lie Ta ee ' Y iP a) ’ ‘ : at t pape |) ny i et HEY il) : to] a i Ae i) Patt HOLM Heth : iis Here cay hi iit . He ae it 4 : ‘ is all iti fi : al MED TARR ToL beets 1 wiry a Sty siege Bits I —— tions. 7 } s . os af . 7 Garpiner, Bonner, Tonftal, Day, Heath, Veley, were rein{tated in their 6 sholic reli fees, either by a direct act of power, oF; what is nearly the fame, by the fen- gion reftored. ? ” . a . tence of commiffioners, who were appointed to review their procefs and condem- ZZ nation. 49. = SSeS SS | Stowe, p. 616. aa 354 HISTORY or ENGLAND. nation. ‘Tho’ the bifhopric of Durham had been diffolved by authority of ‘Par- liament, the Queen erected it anew by letters-patent, and replaced Tonftal in his regalities as well as in his revenue. Under pretence of difcouraging controverty, fhe filenced, by her prerogative, all the preachers throughout England, except fuch as fhould obtain a particular licence *; and it was eafy to forfee that none but the catholics would be favoured with this privilege. Holgate, archbifhop of York, Coverdale, bifhop of Exeter, Audley of London, and Hooper of Glo- cefter, were thrown into prifon, whither old Latimer alfo was fent foon after +, The zealous bifhops and priefts were encouraged in their forwardnefs to revive the mafs, tho’ contrary to the prefent laws. Judge Hales, who had difcovered fuch conftancy in defending the Queen’s title, loft all his merit by an oppofition to thole illegal practices ; and being committed to cuftody, was treated with fuch © feverity, that he fell into frenzy, and killed himfelf{. The men of Suffolk were brow-beaten, when they prefumed to plead the promife which the Queen, when they inlifted themfelves in her fervice, had given them, of maintaining the reformed religion: One, in particular, was fet in the pillory, becaufe he had been too peremptory in recalling to her memory the engagements which fhe had taken on that occafion. And tho” the Queen {till promifed, in a public declara- tion before the council, to tolerate thofe who differed from her|j, men forefaw, that this engagement, like the former, would prove but a feeble fecurity, when fet in oppofition to religious prejudices. Tur merits of Cranmer towards the Queen, during the reign of Henry, had heen confiderable; and he had fuccefsfully employed his good offices in mitigat- ing the fevere prejudices which that monarch had entertained againft her **. But the active part which he bore in promoting her mother’s divorce, as well as in conducting the reformation, had made him the object of her hatred; and tho’ Gardiner had been equally forward in folliciting and defending the divorce, he had afterwards made fuficient atonement by his fufferings in defence of the catho- lic caufe. ‘The primate, therefore, had reafon to expect little favour during the prefent reign 5 but it was by his own indifcreet zeal, that he brought on himfelf rhe firft violence and perfecution. A report being fpread, that Cranmer, in or der to make his court to the Queen, had promifed to officiate-in the Latin fer- vice, the archbithop, to wipe off this afperfion, drew up a manifefto in his own defence. Among other expreffions, he there faid, that as the devil was a lyar from * Heylin, p. 23. Fox, vol, III. p.16. Strype’s Mem. vol. III. p. 26. + Godwin, fe 436. + Burnet, vol. IT. p. 247. Fox, vol. III. p.15, 19. Baker, p. 317- || Burnet, i IE p.-245: ** Ibid. p. 240, 241. Heylin, p. 25. Godwin, p. 336. M A Ro ¥5 355 from the beginning, and the father of lies, fo he had at this time ftirred. up his fervants to perfecute Chrift and his true religion: That that infernal fpirit now endeavoured to reftore the Latin fatisfactory maffes, a thing of his own inven- tion and device; and in order to effectuate his purpofe, had falfely made ufe of Cranmer’s name and authority: And that the mafs is not only without founda- tion, either in the {criptures or the practice of the primitive church, but likewife difcovers a plain contradiction to antiquity and the infpired writings, and is be- fides replete with many horrid blafphemies *. On the publication of this inflam- matory paper, Cranmer was thrown into prifon, and was tried for the part which he had aéted, in concurring with the lady Jane, and oppofing the Queen’s accef- fion. Sentence of high treafon was pronounced againft him ; and tho’ his guilt wag {hared with the whole privy council, and was even lefs than that of moft of the others, this fentence, however fevere, miuft be allowed entirely legal. The execution of it, however, did not follow ; and Cranmer was referved for a more cruel punifhment. Perer Martyr, feeing a perfecution gathering againft the reformers, defired leave to withdraw +; and while. fome zealous catholics moved for his commit- ment, Gardiner both pleaded, that he had come over by_an invitation from the covernment, and generoufly furnifhed him with fupplies for his journey: But as bigotted zeal till increafed, his wife’s body, which had been interred at Ox- ford, was afterwards dug up by public order, and buried ina dung-hillf=. The bones of Bucer and Fagius, two foreign reformers, were about the fame time committed to the flames at Cambridge |. John A-lafco -was firft filenced, and then ordered to depart the kingdom with his congregation. The greater part of the foreign proteftants followed him; and the nation thereby loft many ufeful hands for.arts and manufactures. Several English proteftants alfo took fhelter in foreign parts, and every thing bore a difmal afpect for the reformation. Durinea this revolution of the court, no protection was expected by the pro- teftants from the Parliament, which was fummoned to affemble. A zealous re- former | pretends, that great violence and iniquity were ufed in the elections, bat befides that the authority of this writer is inconfiderable, that practice, as the neceffities of government feldom required it, had not hitherto been often employed in England) There fill remained fuch numbers devoted, by opinion or affection, L2:4 | to * Fox, vol. III. p- 94- Heylin, p. 25- Godwin, p. 336. Burnet, vol. IT. Coll. N° 8. Cranm, Mem. _p. 305. Thuanus, lib, xiii. c. 2. + Heylin, p. 26. Godwin, p. 336. Cranm. Mem. p. 317: { Heylin, p. 26. | Saunders de Schifm. Anglic. 4. Beale. But Fox, wholived at the time, and is very minute in his narratives, fays nothing of the matter. See vol. Ill. p. 16. 5 O&tober. A Parliament Chap, I, $53- a 356 HISTORY or ENGLAND, to many prineiples of the ancient religion, that the authority of the crown’ was: able to give fuch candidates the prevalence in mot ele@tions ; and allthofe who- fcrupled compliance with the court religion, rather declined taking a feat in the houfe, which, while it rendered them obnoxious to the Queen, could afterwards afford them no protection againft the violence of prerogative. It foon appeared, therefore, that a majority of the commons would be obfequious to Mary’s de- figns ; and as the peers were moftly attached to the court, from intereft or ex: ' pectation, little oppofition was expected from that quarter. In opening the Parliament, the court fhowed a very fignal contempt of the laws, by celebrating, before the two/houfes, a mafs of the Holy Ghoft, in the Latin tongue, aerated with all the ancient rites and ceremonies, tho’ abolithed by act of parliament *. ‘Taylor, bifhop of Lincoln, having refufed to kneel at this fervice, was very feverely handled, and was violewey: thruit out of the houfe-+. The Queen, however, ftill retained the title of fupreme head of the church of England; and it was generally pretended, that the intention of the court was only to reftore religion to the fame condition in which it had been left by Henry; but that the ether abufes of popery, which were seme grievous to the nation, would never be revived. Tue firft bill pafled by the Parliament, was of a very popular nature, and abolifhed every fpecies of treafon which was not contained in the ftatute of Ed- ward the third, and every fpecies of felony which did not fubfift before the firft. of Henry the eightht. -The Parliament next declared the Queen to be legiti- mate, ratified the marriage of Henry with Catherine of Arragon, and annulled the divorce pronounced by Cranmer |], whom they greatly blamed on that account... No mention, however, is made of the pope’s authority, as any ground of the: marriage. ‘The ftatutes of King Edward with regard to religion, were repealed by one vote §;° and thereby the national religion was replaced onthe fame foot- ing on which it ftood at the death of Henry. The attainder of the duke.of Nor- folk was reverfed ; and this. act of juttice was much more reafonable than the declaring that attainder invalid, without farther authority. Moft.of the claufes of the riot act, paffed in the late reign, were revived: A ftep which eluded, in a great meafure, the popular {tatute enacted at the firft meeting of the Parliament. NorwitrusTanpinc the compliance of the two houfes with the Queen’s will, they had ftill a referve in certain articles; and her choice of a hufband was, in particular, 4 * Fox, vol. III. p. 19. + Burnet; vol. IL. p. 252. ¢ Marie, feff. 1. 'c. 1. By this repeal, tho’ it was in general popular, the claufe of § and 6 Edw. VI, c. 11. was loft, which re- quired the confronting two witneflés, in order to prove any treafon, Marie, fe 2. «1, § 1 Marie, fefl. 2. ¢. 12. Mm A BR ON. 357 particular, of fuch importance to national intereft, that they were determined not to fubmit tamely, in that refpect, to her will and inclination. There were three marriages *, concerning which it was fuppofed that Mary deliberated after her accefflion to the crown. The firft perfon propofed to her, was Courtney, earl of Devonfhire, who, being an Englifhman, nearly allied to the crown, could not fail to. be acceptable to the nation; and as he was of an engaging perfon and addrefs, he had gained vifibly on the Queen’s affections, and hints were dropt him of her favourable difpofitions towards him+. But that nobleman ne- elected thefe overtures; and feemed rather to attach himfelf to the lady Eliza- beth, whofe youth, and agreeable converfation, he preferred to all the power and erandeur of her fifter. This choice occafioned a great coldnefs of Mary towards Devonfhire; and made her break out in a declared animofity againft Elizabeth, The ancient quarrel. between their mothers had funk ceep into the malignant heart of the Queen; and after the declaration made by Parliament in favour of Catherine’s marriage, fhe wanted not a pretence for reprefenting the birth of he; fitter as illegitimate. The attachment of Elizabeth to the reformed religion of- fended Mary’s bigotry; and as the young princefs had made fome difficulty of difguifing her fentiments, very violent menaces had been employed to bring her to compliance. But when the Queen found that Elizabeth had obftruéted her views in a point, which, perhaps, touched her ftill more nearly, her refentment, excited by pride, Knew no longer any bounds; and the princefs was vifibly ex- pofed to the greateft danger j. CaRDINAL Pole, who had never taken any but deacon’s orders, was another party propofed to the Queen; and theré appeared many reafons to induce her to make choice of this prelate. The high character of Pole for virtue and gene- rofity ; the great regard paid him by the catholic church, of which he had near- ly reached the higheft dignity on the death of Paul the third 4;. the Queen’s. af- fection for the countefs of Salifbury, his mother, who had once been her gover- nefs; the violent animofity to which he had been expofed on account of his. attachment to the Romifh communion; all thefe confiderations had .a-pow= erful-influence on, Mary. : and having contracted habits of ftudy and retirement, he was ‘reprefented as un- "ee rs qualified for the buftle of a court, and the hurry. of bufinefs§. The Queen, therefore, dropt all views of that alliance: Dut as fhe entertained a great regar for Pole’s wifdom and virtue, fhe ftill propofed to reap the benefit of his advice in * Thuan. lib. if. c. 3: + Godwin, Pp. 339: ¢ Heylin, p. 31. Burnet, vol. I?: p. 255s |. Father Paul, book iii, § Heylin, p. 31. But the cardinal was now in the decline of life 3. Chap. I, 1553: = sz Stas. er he Tt a ga = = : un \ ; e) i | eae ; / 1 4 4 i tei Ae A MV } { Mie nitihit lit Rit) i wit | Ui ye ee a! ti : 4 : 1) ie +] | »! t " { : , - : 5 : | H i il y i i? i He : ‘ 4 “? ectil q way i} : ! ' aot F nin a Piatt " 1} ee ne iin 4e Nh ts ey ae Pit aN Wel Thr eathtnd ‘ Bie er al Hew | Git hi ; } ' MG te ye - Thy aM ah Hit Je Hy Nadia ee ! } vii ma te : f “ Ana t MW Hib ifs + it Hi ; yy Aas ii 4 * f 4 be iH ai op nh Mitt ‘ - = : tae eo a ee : > a po ae a eee eee a Chap: i. 1553. 258 HISTORY or ENGLAND. in the adminiftration of her government. She fecretly entered into a negociation with Commendone, an agent of cardinal Dandino, legate at Bruffels; fhe fent affurances to the pope, then Julius the third, of her earneft defire to reconcile herfelf and her kingdoms to the holy fee; and the defired that Pole might be appointed legate for the performance of that pious office*. THESE two marriages being rejected, the Queen caft her eye towards the ent- peror’s family, from which her mother was defcended, and which, during her ereateft diftreffes, had always afforded her countenance and protection. Charles the fifth, who a few years before was almoft abfolute mafter of Germany, had exercifed his power in fuch an arbitrary manner, that he gave extreme difguft to the nation, who apprehended the total extinction of their liberties and privileges from the encroachments of that monarch +. Religion had ferved him as a pre- tence for his ufurpations; and from the fame principle he met with that oppofi- tion which overthrew his grandeur, and dafhed all his ambitious hopes. © Mau- rice, eleGtor of Saxony, enraged that the landgrave of Heffe, who, by his ad- vice, and on his afiurances, had put himfelf into the emperor’s hands, fhould be unjuftly detained prifoner, formed a fecret confpiracy among the proteftant princes ; and covering his intentions with the moft artificial difguifes, he fuddenly march- ed: his forces againit Charles, and narrowly miffed becoming matter of- his per- fon. The proteftants flew to arms in every quarter; and their infurrection, aid- ed by an invafion from France, reduced the emperor to fuch extremity, that he was obliged to fubmit to articles of peace, which enfured the independency’ of Germany. To retrieve his honour, he made an attack on France; and_ laying fiege to Metz, with an army of an hundred thoufand men, he conduéted the enterprize in perfon, and feemed determined, at all hazards, to fucceed in an undertaking which had attracted the attention of all Europe. But the duke of Guife, who defended Metz, with a garrifon compofed of the braveft nobility of France, exerted fuch vigilance, conduct, and valour, that the fiege was pro- tracted to the depth of winter; and the emperor found it dangerous to perfe- vere any longer. He retired with the remains of his army, into the Low Coun- tries, much dejected with that reverfe of fortune which, in his declining years, had fo fatally overtaken him. No fooner did Charles hear of the death of Edward, and the acceffion of his kinfwoman, Mary, to the crown of England, than he formed the fcheme of ac- quiring that kingdom to his family; and he hoped, by this incident, to com- penfate all the lofies which he had fuflered in Germany. His fon, Philip, who was * Burnet, vol. II. p. 258. + Thuanus, lib. iv. c. 17. Mo ARS Y. 359 was a widower, had but one fon by his former marriage; and tho’ he was only twenty-feven years of age, eleven years younger than the Queen, this objection, it was thought, might eafily be overlooked, and there was no reafon to defpair of her having f{tilla numerous iffue. The emperor, therefore, immediately fent over an agent to fignify his intentions to Mary, who, pleafed with the fupport of fo power- ful.an alliance, and glad to unite herfelf more clofely with her mother’s fami- ly, to which fhe was ever ftrongly attached, readily embraced the propofal. Norfolk, Arundel, and Paget, gave their advice for the match: And Gardiner, who was become prime minifter, and who had been promoted to the office of chancellor, finding how Mary’s inclinations lay, feconded the project of the Spa- nith alliance; and reprefented, both to her and the emperor, the neceflity of {topping all farther innovations in religion, till the completion of the marriage. He obferved, that the Parliament, amidft all their compliances, had difcovered evident fymptoms of jealoufy, and feemed at prefent determined, to grant no further conceffions in favour of the catholic religion: That tho’ they might make a facrifice to their fuvereign of fome fpeculative principles, which they did not well comprehend, or of fome rites, which feemed not of any immediate im- portance, they had imbibed fuch ftrong prejudices againit the pretended ufurpa- tions and exactions of the court of Rome, that they would with great difficulty be again brought to fubmit to its authority: That the danger of making a re- fumption of the abbey lands, would alarm the nobility and gentry, and induce them to encourage the prepoffeffions which were but too general among the peo- ple, againft the doctrine and worfhip of the catholic church: That much pains had been taken to prejudice the nation againft the Spanifh alliance; and if that point was urged, at the fame time with further changes in religion, it would ha- zard a general revolt and infurreétion: That the marriage, being once compleat- ed, would give authority to the Queen’s meafures, and enable her afterwards to forward that pious work, in which fhe was engaged: And that it was even ne- ceflary previoufly to reconcile the people to the marriage, by rendering the con- ditions extremely favourable to the Englifh, and fuch as would feem to enfure to them their independency, and the entire poffeffion of their ancient laws and pri- vileges *. Tue emperor, well acquainted with the prudence and experience of Gardiner, affeoted to all thefe reafons; and he endeavoured to temper the zeal of Mary, by reprefenting the neceflity of proceeding gradually in the great work of con- verting the nation. Hearing that cardinal Pole, more fincere in his religious epinions, and lefs guided by the maxims of civil policy, after having fent re , ite * Burnet, vol. JI. p. 201. Chap. I, J 553 : : \ We Lu ue OR 4 | * m iy jit i] - | al : | oi - | i 4 wa" . ill « ! } - it i] : a 1 ne vi ti iii i : : ae iy! 1s 1) Tal al BEuhs Mia af Vth Oat 8) Ti "3 a4) Vi 4 Hi eR iy Hah wii? +44 1" " } aire : : LU} : 4 it ie, ier) Tf ith “ : 4 ( st yy ott Wits i a j aan: : | Hi hy Ht Uh} 41 Wat ti I +1: eG : y Hi) ‘itt = . Irs titre ine = eee ee ee a aT ~ “ = = H+. - chee ane a a = + ~ Chap. I, $553 Gth of De- 4 ceinber. 360 HISTORY or ENGLAND. fite-advice tothe Queen, had {fet out on his journey to. England, where he was to exercife his legantine commiffion ; he thought proper to flop him at Dilling- hen, atown on the Danube; and he afterwards obtained Mary’s confent for this detention. ‘The negociation for the marriage mean-while proceeded apace; and Mary’s intentions to efpoufe Philip became generally known:to the nation, ‘The commons, who hoped that they had gained the Queen. by the conceffions- which they had already made, were alarmed to hear, that fhe was refolved to contraét.a foreign alliance; and they feat a committee to remonftrate againft that dangerous meafure. To prevent farther applications of the fame kind, fhe thought proper to diffolve them. | A convocation had been fummoned at the fame time with the Parliament ; and the majority here alfo appeared to be of the court religion. An offer was very frankly made by the Romanifts, to difpute concerning the points controvert- ed between the two communions; and as tranfubftantiation was the article which, of all others, they efteetned the cleareft, and founded on the moft irrefiftible ar- gument, they chofeto try their ftrength by defending it. The proteftants puth- ed the difpute as far as the clamour and noife of their antagonifts would permit: and they fondly imagined, that they had obtained fome advantage, when, in the courfe of the debate, they obliged the catholics to avow, that, according to their doétrine, Chrift had, in his laft fupper, held himfelf in his hand, and had fwal- lowed ahd eat himfelf*. This triumph, however, was confined only to their own party : The Romanifts mainta‘ned, that their champions had clearly the better of the day; that their adverfaries were blind and obftinate heretics ; that no- thing but the moft extreme depravity of heart could induce men to difpute fuch felf-evident principles; and that the fevereft punifhments were due to their per- verfe wickednefs. So pleafed were they with their fuperiority in this favorite point, that they foon after renewed the difpute at Oxford; and to fhow, that they feared no force of learning or capacity, where reafon was fo evidently on their fide, they fent thither Cranmer, Latimer, and Ridley, under a guard, to try whether thefe renowned controverfialifts could find any appearance of argu- ment to defend their baffled principles +. The iffue of the debate was very dif- ferent from what it appeared to be a few years before, in a famous conference held atthe fame place during the reign of Edward. Arter. the Parliament and convocation were broke up, the new. laws with re- gard to religion, the’ they had been anticipated, in moft places, by the zeal of the * Collier, ‘vol. II.-p. 396. Fox, vol, Ill. p. 22. + Mem. of Cranm. p. 334. Heylin, p. go. MO A RY. 36. the catholics, countenanced by the government, were fill more openly. put. in execution: The mafs was every where re-eftablifhed; and marriage was deciared to be incompatible with any fpiritual office. It has been afferted by fome writers, that three fourths of the c'ergy were, at this time, deprived of their livings; tho’ other hiftorians, more accurate +, have efteemed the number of fufferers far fhort of this proportion. Could any principles of law, juftice or reafon be at- tended to, where fuperftition predominates ; the priefts would never have been expelled for their paft marriages, which at that time were permitted by the laws of the kingdom. A vifitation was appointed, in order to reftore more perfectly the mafs and the antient rites. Among other articles the commiflioners were enjoined to forbid the oath of fupremacy to be taken by the clergy on their receiving any benefice {. It is to be obferved, that this oath had been eftablifhed by the laws of Henry the eighth, which were {lll in force. Turis violent and fudden’ change of religion infpired-the proteftants with great difcontent; and even affected indifferent fpectators with concern, by the hard- fhips, to which fo many individuals were on that account expofed. But the Spanifh match was a point of more general concern, and diffufed univerial: ap- prehenfions for the liberty and independance of the nation. To obviate all cla- mour, the articles of marriage were drawn as favourable as poffible for the intereft and fecurity, and even grandeur of England. It was agreed, that tho’ Philip fhould have the title of King, the adminiftration fhould be entirely in the Queen; that no foreigner fhould be capable of enjoying any office in the kingdom ; that no innovation fhould be made in the Englifh laws, cuftoms and privileges; that Philip fhould not carry the Queen: abroad without her confent, nor any of her children without the confent of the nobility ; that fixty thoufand. pounds.a year fhould be fettled on her as her, jointure; that the male iffue of this marriage fhould inherit, together. with England, both: Burgundy. and the Low Countries ; and that, if Don Carlos, Philip’s fon by his former marriage, fhould die and.his line be extin@&, the Queen’s iffue, whether male or female,..fhould inherit Spain, Sicily, Milan, and. all the other dominions of Philip *. Such was the: treaty. of marriage figned by count Egmont, and four other ambafiadors fent over te England by the emperor. Tuese articles; when publifhed, gave no fatisfaction to the nation :. It was wriverfally faid, that the emperor, in order to get poffeflion of England, would verbally agree to any terms ; and the greater advantage there appeared >in: the e PS conditions + Collier, vol. II. p. 364: Fox, vol. If. p.38. Heylin, p. : * Rymer, XV. p..377- ww : wt + Harmer, p. 133. Sjeidan, lib. 25. Chap. f. os as Queen's mar- riage with Philip. roth January. Sy es Wiat’s infur- section. Ve 362 HISTORY or ENGLAND, conditions which he granted, the more certainly might it be concluded, that he had. no ferious intention of obferving them: That the ufual fraud and ambition of that monarch might affure the nation of fuch a conduct; and his fon Philip, while he inherited thefe vices from his father, addecto them tyranny, -fullennefs, pride, and barbarity, more dangerous vices of his own: That England would become a province, and.a province to a kingdom which ufually exercifed the moft violent authority over all her dependant dominions: That the Netherlands, Milan, Sicily, Naples groaned under the burthen of Spanith tyranny ; and throughout all the new conquefts in America there had been difplayed fcenes of unrelenting cruelty, hitherto unknown in the hiftory of mankind: That the inqui- fition was a tribunal invented by that tyrannical nation; and would infallibly, with all their other laws and inftitutions, be introduced into England: And that the divided fentiments of the people with regard to religion would fubje& mul- titudes to this iniquitous tribunal, and would reduce the whole nation to. the moft abject fervitude *. Tuese complaints, being diffufed thro’ the whole people, prepared the nation for a rebellion; and had any foreign power given them encouragement, or any great man appeared to head them; the confequences might have proved fatal to the Queen’s authority. But the King of France, tho’ engaged in hoftilities with the emperor, refufed to concur in any propofal for an infurrection; left he thould afford Mary a pretence for declaring war againft him. And the more prudent part of the nobility thought, that, as the evils of the Spanifh alliance were only dreaded at a diftance, matters. were not yet fully prepared for a general revolt. Some perfons, however, more turbulent than the reft, believed, that it would be fafer to prevent than to redrefs grievances; and they framed a confpiracy to rife in arms, and declare againft the Queen’s marriage with Philip. Sir Thomas Wiat propofed to raife Kent, Sir Peter Carew, Devonfhire ; and they engaged the duke of Suffolk, by the hopes of recovering the crown for the lady Jane, to attempt raifing the midland counties Ty. Carew’s impatience or apprehenfions engaged him to break the concert, and to rife in arms before the day appointed : He was foon fupprefied by the earl of Bedford, and obliged to fly into France, On this intelligence, Suffolk, dreading an arreft, fuddenly left the town, with his ‘brothers, the lord Thomas, and lord Leonard Gray; and endeavoured to-raife the people in the counties of Warwic and Leicefter ; where his intereft Jay: But he was fo clofely followed by the earl of Huntingdon, at the head of 300 horfe, that he was obliged to difperfe his retainers, and being difcovered in his retreat, he was led @ Heylin, p.32- Burnet, vol. II. p. 268. Godwin, p. 339. + Heylin, p. 33. Godwin, p. 340. MOA RF. 463 led prifoner to London f. Wiat was at firft more fuccefsful in his attempt; Chap. f and having publifhed a declaration at Maidftone in Kent, againft the Queen’s ow evil counfellors and againft the Spanifh match, without any mention of religion, the people began to gather under his ftandard. The duke of Norfolk with Sir Henry Jertiegan was fent againft him, at the head of the guards and fome other troops, reinforced with 500 Londoners commanded by Bret: And he came within fight of the rebels at Rochefter, where they had fixed their head quartets. Sir George Harper here pretended to’ defert from them; but having fecretly gained Bret, thefe two perfons fo wrought on the Londoners, that that whole body deferted to Wiat, and declared that they would not contribute to enflave their native country. Norfolk, dreading the contagion of this example, imme= diately retreated with his troops and took fhelter in London *. Arter this proof of the difpofitions of the people, efpecially of the Lon- doners, who were moftly proteftants, Wiat was encouraged to proceed; and he led his forces to Southwark, where he required of the Queen, that the fhould put the Tower into his hands, fhould deliver four counfellors as hoftages, and in order to enfure the liberty of the nation, immediately marry an Englifhman. Finding that the bridge was fecured againft him, and that the city was over- awed, he marched up to Kingfton, where he pafled the river with 4000 men 3 and returning towards London, hoped to encotrage his partizans, who had en- gaged to declare for him. He had imprudently wafted fo much time at South- wark, and in his march from Kingfton, that the critical feafon, on which all popular commotions depend, was entirely loft; and tho’ he entered Weftminfter without refiftance, his followers, finding that no perfon of note joined him, in- fenfibly fell off, and he was at laft feized near Templée-Bar by Sir Maurice Berk- ley +. Above feventy perfons fuffered for this rebellion: Four hundred were 6th February. conduéted before the Queen with ropes about their necks; and falling on their knees, received a pardon, and were difmiffed. Wiat was condemned and exe- Infurrection cuted ; and as it had been reported, that, at his examination, he had accufed the — Jady Elizabeth and the earl of Devonfhire, he took care on the {caffold, before the whole people, fully to acquit them of having any fhare in the rebellion. THE lady Elizabeth had been, during fome time, treated with great harfhnefs by her fitter; and many ftudied inftances of difcouragement and difrefpect had been practifed againft her. She was ordered to\take place at court after the countefé of Lenox and the dutchefs of Suffolk, as if fhe were-not legitimate, of the g3A2 ) royal + Fox, vol. IIT. p. 30. * Heylin, p. $3. Godwin, p. 341. Stowe, p. 619. Baker, p..318. Flolingfhed, p. 1094. + Fox, vol, IE. p. 31. Heyliny p. 34. Burnet, vol. I. .p.270, Stowe, p. 621. i Chap. I. 15546 izth February 364, HISTORY or ENGLAND. royal blood : Her friends were difcountenanced on every. occafion: . And while her virtues, which were now become very. eminent, drew to her the attendance of all the young nobility, and rendered her the favourite of the nation, the malevolence of the Queen itll difcovered itfelf every day by. freth fymptoms; and obliged the princefs to-retire into the country. Mary feized the Opportunity of this rebellion; and hoping to.involve her fifter in fome appearance of guilt, fent for her under a ftrong guard, committed her to the Tower, and ordered her to be very ftri¢tly examined by the council, But the public declaration made by Wiac. rendered, it impracticable to. employ againft her any falfe evidence, which might have offered; and the princefs made fo eood a defence, that the Queen, found herfelf under a neceffity of difmifling her *,. In order to fend her. out of the kingdom, a marriage was propofed to her sh the duke of Savoy; and. when fhe declined giving her confent, fhe was committed to cuftody, under a very ftrong guard, at Wodeftoke. The earl of Devonfhire, tho’ equally inno- cent, was confined in Fotheringay cattle. Bur this rebellion proved {till more fatal to the lady Jane Gray, as well as. to her hufband: The duke of Suffolk’s guilt was. imputed to. her; and tho’ the infurgents and malecontents feemed chiefly to reft their hopes on the lady Eliza-~ beth and the earl of Devonfhire, the Queen, incapable of generofity or clemency, was determined to remove every perfon, from whom the leaft danger could be apprehended, ‘Warning was given the lady Jane to prepare for death ; ;.a dcom. which fhe had long expected, oa which the innocence of her life, as well as the misfortunes to which fhe had been expofed, rendered no unwelcome news to her, The Queen’s bigotted zeal, under colour of tender mercy to the prifoner’s foul,. induced her to fend divines, who. molefted her with perpetual difputation ; and even a reprieve of three days was granted her, in hopes that fhe would be per- fuaded, during that time, to pay, by a timely converfion, fome regard to her eternal welfare. The lady Jane had prefence of mind, in thofe melancholy cir- cumftances, not only to defend her religion by all the topics then in ufe, but alfo to write a letter to her fifter + in the Greek language ; in which, befides fending her a copy of the fcriptures in that tongue, fhe exhorted her to maintain, in every fortune, a like fteddy perfeverance. On the day of her execution, her hufband, the lord Guilford, defired permiffion to fee her; but fhe refufed her confent, and fent him word, that the tendernefs of their parting would overcome the fortitude of both, and would too much unbend their minds from that conftaney, which their approaching end required of them: Their feparation, fhe faid, would be only * Godwin, p. 343. Burnet, vol. IT. p.273. Fox; vol. III. p.99, 105. Strype’s Mem. vol, III, p. 85. + Fox, vol. III, p..35. -Heylin, p. 166. ‘ 4 MouAS Rea. 36.5 J only for a. moment. and they would foon rejoin each other in a fcene, where Chap. I. their affections would be for ever united, and where death, difappointment, and ths misfortunes could no longer have accefs to them, or difturb their eternal felicity {. Iv had been intended to execute the lady Jane and lord Guilford together on the fame feaffold at Tower-hill; but the council, dreading the compaffion of the people for their youth, beauty, innocence, and noble birth, changed their orders, and gave direCtions that fhe fhould be beheaded within the verge of the Tower, Execution of She faw her hufband led to execution ; and having given him from the window /ady Jane fome token of her remembrance, fhe waited with tranquillity till her own ap- bay. pointed hour fhould bring her to a like fate.. She even faw his headlefs body carried back in a cart; and found herfelf more confirmed by the reports, which the heard of the conftancy of his end, than fhaken by fo tender and. melancholy a fpectacle. Sir John Gage, con{table of the Tower, when he led her to exe- cution, defired her to: beftow on him fome fmall prefent, which he might keep as a perpetual memorial of her: She gave him her table-book, where fhe had jut wrote three fentences on fecing her hufband’s dead body; one in Greek,. another. in Latin, a third in Englifh*... The purport of them was, that human juftice was againft his body, but the divine mercy would be favourable to his foul ; and that if her fault deferved punifhment, her youth at leaft, and her imprudence were worthy of excufe; and that God -and pofterity, fhe trufted, would fhow her favour. On'the fcaffold, fhe made a fpeech to the bye-ftanders, where the mildnefs of her difpofition led her to take the blame entirely on herfelf, withouc uttering one complaint againft the feverity, with which fhe had been treated. She faid, that her offence was not the having laid her hand upon the crown, but the not rejecting it with fufficient conftancy: ‘That fhe had lefs erred thro’ am- bition than thro’ reverence to her parents, whom fhe had been taught to. refpect and obey: That fhe willingly received death, as the only fatisfaction which fhe could now make to the injured ftate; and tho? her infringement of the laws had. been conftrained, fhe would fhow, by her voluntary fubmifion to their fentence, that fhe was defirous to attone for that difobedience, into which too much filial piety had betrayed her: ‘That fhe had juftly deferved this punifhment for being made the ‘aftrument, tho’ the unwilling inftrument, of the ambition of others: And that the ftory of her life, fhe hoped, might at leaft be ufeful, by proving that inno- cence excufes not great mifdeeds, if they tend any way to the deftruction of the commonwealth. After uttering thefe words, fhe cauted herfelf to be difrobed' by her women ; and with a fteddy ferene countenance fubmitted herfelf to the exe= THE a —— { { Wag arty ‘i as { | : « 4 : We) ‘ } i - it | : 4 Mi Sih ie : : ‘ : | J La Wat iu i" 4} : r ; hal! ab a) 4 sailiin \\e Pht ie What i) wiih it Pai tthe ¢ Mi: ie Dalia \d aH Sia Wh tf 4) he i wi ; ; sh : HH ai tt sin a oie HoH Ve ' i iin Me { 3 : win) Ie ii} 1G ' ihe pith if ' r ii uA Min) ae win " vy that J i " Yaa : Pili i thd | ie ' VP |: =e SS oa SS hate teen = 3S = = > tare Soe h a nee a a 2 ee SE = eee a= =~ SSS ; oe Sra 8 8 a ee P28 Seo tS SSS ae 7: See = SS cutioner T. : t Heylin, p. 167. Baker, p. 319% ~* Heyhin, p. 167. + Heylin, p- 167% Fox, vol, Jl. p. 36, 37: Holingthed, p. 10999. Chap. I. 4554 = 366 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Tue duke of Suffolk was tried, condemned, and executed foon afters and would have met with more compaflion, had not his temerity been the caufe of his daughter’s untimely death. The lord Thomas Gray loft his life for the famé crime. Sir Nicholas Throcmorton was tried in Guildhall ; but there appearing no fatisfactory evidence againft him, he was able, by making an admirable de= fence, to obtain a verdict of the jury in his favour. The Queen was fo enraged at this difappointment, that, inftead of releafing him as the law required, fhe re committed hiny to the Tower, and kept him in clofe confinement during fome years, But her refentment ftopped not here: The jury,’ being fummoned bfore the council, were all of them fent to prifon, and afterwards fined, fome of them a thoufand pounds, others two thoufand a-piece *. This illegal violence proved fatal to feveral, among others to Sir John Throcmorton, brother to Sir Nicholas, who was condemned on no better evidence than had’ been formerly rejected: The Queen filled the Tower and all the prifons with nobility and gentry, whom theif intereft with the people, rather than any appearance of guilt, had made the ob- jects of her fufpicion, And finding, that fhe was become extremely odious to the nation, fhe was refolved to difable them from refiftance, by ordering: general mufters, and directing the commiffioners to feize their arms, and lay them up in forts and cattles. Tuo’ the government laboured under fo-general an odium, the Queen’s autho- rity had received fuch an increafe from: the fuppreffion of Wiat’s: rebellion, that the miniftry hoped to-find a very compliant difpofition’ in’ the new: Parliament; A Parliament. which was fummoned to affemble. The emperor alfo, in order to- facilitate the sth April. fame end, had borrowed no, lefs a fum than 40,000 pounds which he had fent over to England, to be diftributed in bribes and penfions among the members : A pernicious practice, of which there had not hitherto been any inftance in England. And not to give the public any alarm with regard'to the church lands, the Queen, notwithftanding her bigotry, refumed her legal ticle of fu- preme head.of the church, which fhe had dropped three months before, Gar- diner, the chancellor, opened the feffion by a fpeech; in which he afferted the Queen’s hereditary title to the crown; maintained her right to choofe a hufband for herfelf ; he obferved how proper an ufe fhe had made of that right, by pre- ferring an old ally, defcended from the houfe of Burgundy and remarked the failure of Henry the eighth’s pofterity, of whom there now remained none but the Queen and thelady Elizabeth. He added, that, in order to obviate the jn. conveniences, * Fox, vol. IL, p. 99%: Stowe, p.624. Baker, p.320. Hollingfhed, ps 1104, 1izu; Strype, vol, IJ. p. 120. conveniences, which might arife from different pretenders, it was neceffary to inveft the Queen, by law, with a power of difpofing of the crown, and of ap- pointing her fuccefior: A power, he faid, which was not to be regarded as a new thing in England, fince it had formerly been conferred on Henry the eighth +. - Tue Parliament were much difpofed to gratify the Queen in all her defires ; but when the liberty, independency, and very being of the nation were brought into fuch vifible danger, they could not by any means be brought to compli- ance. ‘They knew both the inveterate hatred which fhe bore the lady Elizabeth, and her devoted attachment to the houfe of Auftria: They were acquainted with her extreme bigotry, which would lead her to poftpone.all confiderations of juftice or national intereft to the eftablifhment of the catholic religion: They remarked, that Gardiner had carefully avoided, in his fpeech, the giving to Elizabeth the appellation of the Queen’s fitter ; and they thence concluded, that a defign was formed of excluding her as illegitimate: They expected, that Mary, if invefted with fuch a power as fhe required, would make a will in her hufband’s favour, and thereby render England for ever a province of the Spanifh monarchy : And they were the more alarmed with thefe projeéts, when they heard, that Philip’s defcent from the houfe of Lancafter was carefully infifted on, and that he was publickly reprefented as the true and only heir by right of inheritance. Tue Parliament, therefore, aware of their danger, were determined to keep at a diftance from the precipice, which lay before them. They could not avoid ratifying the articles of marriage *, which were drawn very favourable for Eng- land; but they declined paffing any fuch law as the chancellor pointed out to them: They would not: fo much as declare it treafon to imagine or attempt the death of the Queen’s hufband, while fhe was alive ; and a bill introduced for ' that purpofe was laid afide after the firft reading. The more effectually to cut off Philip’s hopes of exerting any authority in England, they pafied a law, where they declared, *¢ that her majefty as their only Queen, fhould folely and as a “© fole Queen, enjoy the crown and fovereignty of her realms, with all the pre- «< eminences, dignities, and rights thereto belonging, in as large and ample a «« manner after her marriage as before, without any title or claim accruing to the ‘< prince of Spain, either as tenant by courtefy of the realm, or by any other “© means {.”” A ‘taw paffed in this Parliament for re-erecting the bifhopric of Durham, which had been diffolved by the laft Parliament of Edward §. The Queen had already, + Carte, vol, III. p. 310, from Ambaff, de Noailles. * 1 Mar. Parl, 2. cap, 2. $ Ib. cap. b, § Ib. cap. 3. Chap. I. 1554° sf . « iB) Lai Hint a4 iil ; lik Js i a j tl 1 i { \ Ml ak } way 4 VU) 1h 1) Ve: Wi i Tat rh Lal ind SM A if th 2 Pd i , ta 4 4 ; ; 14 f ‘ 4 ih) My : if Chap. T. PS54- sth May. 368 HISTORY or ENGLAND. already, by an exertion of her abfolute power, put Tonftal in poffeffion of thae fee: But tho’ it was ufual at that time for the crown to-affume authority which might feem entirely legiflative, it was always efteemed more fafe and fatisfaCtory to precure the fanction cf Parliament. Bills were introduced for fuppreffing erro- -meous opinions contained in books, and for reviving the Jaw of the fix articles, together with thofe againft the Lollards, againft herefy and erroneous preaching * But none of thefe Jaws could pafs the two houfes. A proof, that the Parliament had referves even in their conceflions with regard to religion; about which they feem to have been lefs fcrupulous. The Queen, therefore, finding that they would not ferve ail her purpofes, finifhed the feffion by diffolving them. Mary’s thoughts were now entirely employed about receiving Don Philip, whofe arrival fhe hourly expected. ‘This princefs, who had lived fo many years jn a very referved and private manner, without any profpect or hopes of a huf- band, was fo fmit with affection for her young fpoufe, whom fhe had never feen, that fhe waited with the utmoit impatience for the completion of the marriage ; and every obftacle was to her a fource of anxiety and difcontent *. She com- plained of Philip’s dglays as affected; and fhe could not conceal her vexation, that, tho’ fhe brought him a kingdom for a dowry, he treated her with fuch ne- glect, that he had never yet favoured her with a fingle letter. Her fondnefs was but the more encreafed by this fupercilious treatment; and when fhe found that her fubjects had entertained the greateft averfion for the event, to which fhe directed her fondeft wifhes, fhe made the whole Englifh nation the objeé of her refentment. A fquadron, under the command of lord Effingham, had been fitted cout to convoy Philip from Spain, where he then refided; but the admiral informing her, that the difcontents ran very high among the {eamen, and that it was not fafe for Philip to entruft himfelf into their hands, fhe gave orders to difmifs them. She then dreaded, that the French fleet, being matters of the fea, might intercept her hufband; and every rumour of danger, every blaft of wind, threw her into panics and convulfions. Her health, and even her underftanding, were vifibly impaired by this extreme impatience; and fhe was ftruck with a new apprehenfion, left her jerfon, impaired by time, and blafted by ficknefs, fhould render her lefs acceptable to her future fpoufe. Her glafs difcovered to her how hagard fhe was become, and when fhe remarked the decay of her perfon, fhe knew not whether fhe ought more to defire or apprehend the arrival of Philip. Ap * Strype, vol, Ul. p, 125. Mi A Ko wYa 309 At laft came the moment fo impatiently expected; and news were brought Chap I. the Queen of Philip’s arrival at Southampton *. A few days after, they were °°?” married in Weftminfter; and having made a pompous entry into London, where aa? Philip difplayed his wealth with great oftentation, fhe carried him to Wind- Philip’s ar- for, the palace in which they afterwards, refided. . The prince’s behaviour)" ’ was ill calculated to cure the prejudices, which the Englifh nation had entertained againft him. He was diftant and referved in his addrefs ; took no notice of the falutes even of the moft confiderable noblemen; and fo entrenched himfelf in forms and ceremonics, that he was in a manner inacceffible +: But this circum- {tance rendered him the more acceptable to the Queen, who defired to have no company but her hufband’s, and who was impatient when fhe met with any in- terruption to. her fondnefs.. The fhorteit abience gave her vexation; and when he fhowed civilities to any other woman, fhe could not conceal her jealoufy and refentment. | 1 Tue Queen foon found, that Philip’s ruling paflion was ambition ; and that the only method of gratifying him and fecuring his affections was to render hiny mafter of England. The intereft and liberty of her people were confidera- tions of {mall moment, in comparifon of her obtaining this favourite poinr, She fummoned a new Parliament, in hopes of finding them entirely compliant ; and that fhe might acquire the greater authority over them, fhe imitated the ae precedent of the former reign, and wrote circular letters directing a proper choice < ) of members. The zeal of the catholics, the influence of Spanifh gold, the og ps mel powers of prerogative, the difcouragement of the gentry, particularly of the proteftants ; all thefe caufes, feconding the intrigues of Gardiner, had procured ber a houfe of commons which was, in a great meature, to her fatisfaction ; and it was thought, from the difpofition of the nation, that fhe might now fafely omit, in her fammons of the Parliament, the title of /apreme bead of the church, tho’ infeparably annexed by law to the crown of England §. Cardinal Pole was arrived in Flanders, invefted with legantine power from, the pope: In order to prepare the. way for his arrival in England, the Parliament, pafied.an act, reverling his attainder, and reftoring his blood; and the Queen difpenfing with the old ftatute of provifors, granted him permiffion to act as legate. The "es 2B | cardinal x ‘ +4 : Ses - T , ‘ Ti72 % * Fox, vol Ul. p.99. Heylin, p.39. Burnet, vol. IIT. p. 3¢ Godwin, p. 345. e are oye 7 cae a 5 4er. c ; rele ee | at L > ~991 {4 a teeth 4 oa ; a told by SirWilliam Monfon, p. 22, that the admiral of England fired at the Spanifh navy, when * 5 | ; ; lo ’ at « “ac * mY ay & + R C. ‘ar ra tr Ze Br ¢> {] Philip was on board ; becaufe they had notlowered their topfails, as a mark of aeference to the Enelith Lit - poe: ae : +90 a ; (ery TI ee h fo tier ex navy in the narrow feas. A very fpirited Behaviour, and very unlike thole times. 7 fle eC rann ,. TA Gtrene’s Recl. Mer | OS Re -A Tre 4 Baker, p. 320. Niem. Or tCranm. p. A44- Ory pe § CC. WIE R),. VOis dadde Pp. 1545 : > 5* + s Burnet, vol. Il. p. 291. Strype, vol. Ib. p. 155. no t ! 4 { / Hill : iy iil ‘ } ia in iy if « : uw iF 4 | Hii) ae Hit 4 nt : it EBs a OES ub if 1 2" + : et} +) } au) ie : | ‘] ; i : wie iM in) | } mid ‘uit 4 4 } yi } it Pgvhi N ia t " | - 7 " ry : ' if . a n} (it ) . ie hil b hdet | iain) 4 Tee hited tant } HF 2 ra a adi iv WW F t Mi Hae) ia rT at 1 ive 4 4 # i | 4 uy ‘ f : : Mt at) y { i ebb ; Piet ) ‘ aT thie Vail : 4 ? ) 4 Die te : By 7 ; Bi « GH } hal “! v aa ie ee ah ie 71) 4 Ta " inet RT ite ; va : Hit Wi hat "I vit weet ina} } ATE nt) Bue " 7 5 le et iv ) att ie ae fit ai te : HIRES - io ; # { a) , ee iy a i tit : iw} Heel) at a te ; hes iby Ss 4 ) : $ : 7 ‘ ay! nit , oat) { le ott wiht! Be iiee HE. Hi ihe ot i “4 Hie rH mit Hy : spun ; Si) let + ee ty { q ' t | aes Re ee ee ee a ee ait if Cs 370 HISTORY or ENGLAND. cardinal came over*to London; and after being introduced to t] ie King and Queen, he invited the Parliament to reconcile themfelves a nd the kingdom to the apoftolic fee, from which they had been fo long and fo unhappily fe- parated. ‘This meffage was taken in good part; and both houfes voted an ad- drefs to Philip and Mary, acknowleging that they had been guilty of a mott horrible defection from the true church; profefling a fincere repentance for their pat tranfgreflions; declaring their refolution to repeal all laws enacted in preju- dice of the church of Rome; and praying their majefties, that fince they were happily: uninfected. with that criminal fchifm, they would intercede with the holy father for their abfolution and forgivenefs. Their reque{t was eafily eranted. Lhe legate, in name of his holinefs, gave the Parliament and kingdom abfolu- tion, freed them from all cenfures, and received them again into the bofom of the church. ‘The pope, then Julius the third, being informed of thefe tranfac- tions, faid, that it was an unexampled inftance of his felicity, to receive thanks from the Englifh, for allowing them to do what he ought to give them thanks for performing §. NoTwiTHSTANDING the extreme zeal of thofe times, for and againft popery, the object always uppermoft with the nobility and gentry, was the care of their money and eftates; and they were not brought to make thefe conceflions in fa- vour of Rome, till they had received repeated affurances, from the pope as wel! as the Queen, that the plunder which they had made of the ecclefiaftics, fhould never be enquired into ; and that the abbey and church lands fhould remain with the prefent pofleffors *, But not trufting altogether to thefe promifes, the Parlia- ment took care, ufthe law itfelf+-, by which they repealed the former ftatutes en- acted againft the pope’s authority, to infert a claufe, in which, befides beftowing va- lidity on all marriages celebrated during the fchifm, and fixing the right of in- cumbents to their benefices, they gave fecurity to the poffeffors of church lands, and freed them from all danger of ecclefiaftical cenfures. The convocation alfo, in order to remove all apprehenfions on that head, were induced to prefent a peti- tion to the fame purpofe{; and the legate, in his mafter’s name, ratified all thefe tranfactions. It now appeared, that, notwithftanding the efforts of the Queen and King, the power of the papacy was effectually fuppreffed, and invincible barriers fixed againft its re-eftablifhment. For tho’ the jurifdiGtion of the eccle- fiaftics was, for the prefent, reftored, their property, on which their power much va) a depended, | Fox, vol. 1. p.au. Heylin, p. 42. Burnet, vol. Il. p. 293. Godwin, Pp. 247. ) Fa- ther Paul, lib. iv. * Heylin, p. 41. + 1 &2 Phil. & Mar. c. 8. { Heylin, x1 ‘7 p43. 1 & 2 Phil. & Mar. ¢.8. Strype, vol, III. p. 159. ; depended, was irrecoverably loft, and no hopes remained of recovering it } ' ri qyar Tee 5 RAS Atle 4 Y¥ ta thefe arbitrary, powerful, and bigotted princes, while the tranfactions were | recent, could not regain to the church her poffeffions fo lately loft; and no ex- pedients were left the clergy for enriching themfelves, but thofe which they ha at firft practifed, and which had required ages of ignorance, barbarifm, and fu- perftition to operate their effect on mankind |. Tue Parliament having fecured their own poffeffions, were more indificrent with regard to religion, or even the lives of their fellow citizens ; and they re- vived the old fanguinary laws againft heretics *, which had been rejected in the former Parliament. They alfo enacted feveral laws againft feditious words and rumours+; and they made it treafon to imagine or attempt the ceath of Philip, during his marriage with the Queen f. Each Parliament hitherto had been in- duced to go a ftep farther than their predeceffors ; but none of them had entirely loft all regard to national interefts. Their hatred againft the Spaniards, as well as their fufpicion of Philip’s pretenfions, ftill prevailed ; and tho’ the Queen attempted to get her hufband declared prefumptive heir of the crown, and to have the admi- niftration put into his hands; fhe failed in all her hopes, and could not fo much as procure the Parliament’s confent to his coronation §. All attempts likewife to procure fubfidies from the commons, in order to fupport the emperor in his war againft France, proved fruitlefs ; and the ufual animofity and jealoufy of the Englifh againft that kingdom, feemed to have given place, for the prefent, to like paffions again{t Spain. Philip, fenfible of the prepoffeflions entertained againft him, endeavoured to acquire popularity, by procuring the releafe of fe- veral prifoners of diftinétion ; the lord Henry Dudley, Sir George Harper, Sir Nicholas Throcmorton, Sir Edmond Warner, Sir William St. Lo, Sir Nicholas Arnold, Harrington, Tremaine, who had been confined from the fuflpicions or 3B 2 refentment \|. The pope at firft gave cardinal Pole powers to tranfattonly with regard to the paft fruits of the church lands; but being admonifhed of the danger attending any attempt towards a refumption of the lands, he enlarged the cardinal’s power, and granted him authority to enfure the future pofiefiion of the church lands to the prefent proprietors. ‘There was only one clau‘e im the cardinal’s powers that has given occafion for fome fpecuiation. An exception was made of fuch cafes as Pole fhould think important enough to merit the being communicated to the holy fee. But Pole imply ratified 7 - ~ 1 - es. a : > hic f } Wywwvexrs hat mr > the pofeflion of the whole church lands; and his commifiion had given him full powers to that purpofe. ee Harleyan Mifcellany, vol. ViI. p. 264, 266. It is true, fome councils have declared, that it exceeds even the power of the pope to alienate any church lands; andthe pope, accoraing to his con- . ° eS + - owls add oe venience, may either adhere toor recede from this declaration. * 1 & 2 Phil & Mar. ¢. 0. + Ibid, c. 3s 9 + y & 2 Phik & Mar. ¢. 40. Ji - ee a $ Godwin, p. 348, Baker, Pp. 322. Chap. I, 1554: est Jt wt F% 76 January. ‘Jaboured under infirmities, which rendered her incapab] we 372 HISTORY or ENGLAND, refentment. of the court |: But no hing was morte agreeable to the nation than his protection of the lady Elizabeth,. from the {foite and and the reftoring her to her liberty. This meafure was not the effect of nerofity in Philip, a fentiment of which he was wholly incapable; but of -4 re- fined policy, which made him forefee, that, if that princefs were put to death, the next lawful heir was the Queen of Scots, whofe facceffion would for e nex England to the crown of France. The earl of Devonth; nefit from the affected popularity of Philip, and recovered nobleman finding himfelf expofed to fufpicion, begged permifiion to travel # : and he foon after died in Padua, from poifon, as is pretended, given him by the imperialifts, He was the eleventh and laft earl of Devonthire of that noble fa- mily, allied to the royal family of France. Tue Queen’s extreme defire of having iffue, had made her fondly give credit to any appearance of her pregnancy ; and when the legate was introduced to her, fhe fancied, that fhe felt the embryo ftir in her womb. Her fatterers compared this motion of the infant to that of John the Baptift, who leaped in his mother’s belly at the falutation of the virgin}. Difpatches were immediately fent to in- form foreign courts of this event: Orders were iffued to give public thanks - Great rejoicings were made: The family of the young prince was already fet- tied; for the catholics held themfelves afured that the child was to be a male: And Bonner, bifhop of London, made public prayers be faid, that Heaven would pleafe to render him beautiful, vigorous, and witty. But the nation-re- mained ftill fomewhat incredulous; and men were perfuaded, that the Queen malice of the Queen.. - any Oe. any D~ ver afr e alfo reaped fome be- | 7+ nis liberty: But that - e of having children, Fier infant proved only the commencement of a dropfy, which the difor- dered fiate of her health had brought upon her. The belief, however, of her pregnancy was ftill maintained with all poffible care; and was one artifice, by which Ph'lip endeavoured to fupport his authority in the kingdom. The Par- hament pafied a law, which, in cafe of the Queen’s death, appointed him protector during the minority; and the King and Queen, finding they could obtain no further conceffions,- came unexpectedly to Weftminfter Hal] folved them. > and dif- Tuere happened a remarkable affair this feflion, which muft not be pafied over in filence. Several members of the lower houfe, diffatisfed with the m ea- lures of the Parliament, but finding themfelves unab! € to prevent them, made a feceffion, | Heylin, p. 39. Burnet, vol. II. p. 287. Stowe, p. 626. " Heylin, p. 40. Godwin, Pp. 349. + Burnet, vol. II, p. 292. Godwin, Pp. 318. + Heylin, p. 46. Vi A ee Y.. 37% i] - feceffiony in order to fhow their difapprobation, and refufed any longer to attend © 4p. 1. i * Ly a , . . a : ? . ae . ore a i 55° } the houfe |]. For this inftance of contumacy they were indicted in the King’s- ip th sench after the diffolution of the Parliament: Six of them fubmitted to the mer- i i i) cy of the court, and paid their fines: ‘The re{t traverfed; and the Queen died before the affair was brought to an iflue. Judging of the matter by the fubfe- it quent pretenfions of the houfe of commons, and, indeed, by the true principles tt of a free government, this attempt of the Queen’s minifters muft be regarded as a breach of privilege ; but it gave little umbrage at that time, and was never called in queftion by any future houfe of commons which fat during this reign. HES | ie, Are wees § 4 Reafons for and againft Toleration. Perfecutions ——~A Parliament. —The Queen's extortions. ——The emperor refigns bis crown.——Exe- cution of Cranmer.——W ar with France-——Battle of St. Quintin. Calais taken by the French——Affairs of Scotland. —— Mar- riage of the Dauphin and the Queen of Scots———A Parhament. Death of the Queen. T FIE fuccefs which Gardiner, from his cautious and prudent conduct, had ae! met with in governing the Parliament, and engaging them both to ap- prove of the Spanifh alliance, and the re-eftablifhment of the ancient religions two points, to which, it was believed, they bore an extreme averfion, had fo raifed his charaGter for wifdom and policy, that his opinion was received as an oracle in the Queen’s councils ; and his authority, as it was always great in i . ; i his own party, no longer fuffered any oppofition or controul. Cardinal Pole i himfelf, tho? more beloved on account of his virtue and candour, and tho’ fupe- i , : i rior in birth and ftation, had not equal weight in public deliberations; and while if his learning, piety, and humanity were extremely refpected, he was reprefented Leh more as a good man than a great minifter. A very important queftion was fre- quently debated, before the Queen and council, by thefe two ecclefiaftics ; whe- We ther the laws lately revived againft heretics fhould be put in execution, or fhould only bé employed to reftrain, by terror, the bold attempts of thefe zealots. Wee Pole was very fincere in his religious principles ; and tho’ his moderatiom had made a ? him Wee | Coke’s Inftitutes, partiv. pea7. Strype’s Memor. vol. HI. p. 165. | 1 = 2 Se Réafons for and againtt foleration. ~ e 374 HISTORY or ENGLAND. him be fufpected at Rome of a tendency towards Lutheranifm; he was feriouf] perfuaded of the catholic doctrines, and thought that no confideration of human policy ought ever to come in competition with fuch important interefts. Gar- diner, on the contrary, had always made his rclicion fubfervient to his fchemes t fafety or advancement; and by his unlimited complaifance to Henry, he had fhown, that had he not been pufhed to extremity under the late minority, he was fufficiently difpofed to make a facrifice of his principles to the eftablithed theo- logy. This was the well-known character of ‘thefe two great counfellors ; yet fuch is the prevalence of temper above fyitem, that the benevolent difpofition of Pole led him to advife a toleration of the heretical tenets which he highly blamed ; while the fevere manners of Gardiner inclined him to fupport, by perfecution, that religion which, atthe bottom, he regarded with great indifference *, This circumftance of public conduét was of the higheft importance ; and from being the object of deliberation in the council, it foon became the fubject of difcourfe throughout the nation. We fhall reprefent, in a few words, the topics by which each fide fupported, or might have fupported, their fcheme of policy ; and fhall difplay the oppofite reafons which have been employed, with regard to an ar= sument that ever has been, and ever will be fo much canvafied ba y Tuer practiceof perfecution, faid the defenders of Pole’s opinion, is the fcan- dal of all religion; and the theological animofity, fo fierce and violent, far from being an argument of men’s conviction in their oppofite tenets, is a certain proof, that they have never reached any ferious perfuafion with regard to thefe remote and fublime fubjeéts. Even thofe who are the moft impatient of contradi@tion in other controverfies, are mild and moderate in comparifon of polemical divines ; and wherever a man’s knowlege and experience give him a perfect aflurance of his Own opinion, he regards with contempt, rather than anger, the oppofition and miltakes of others. But while men zealoufly maintain what they neither clearly comprehend, nor entirely believe, they are fhaken in their imagined faith, by the oppofite perfuafion, or even doubts of other men; and vent on their an- tagoniits that impatience which is the natural refult of fo difagrceable a ftate of the underftanding, - They then embrace eafily any pretence for reprefenting op- ponents as impious and prophane; andif they can alfo find a colour for coinect- ing this violence with the interefts of civil government, they can no longer be reftrained from giving uncontrouled fcope. to vengeance and refentment, But furely never enterprize was more unfortunate than that of founding perfe- cution upon policy, or endeavouring, for the fake of peace, to fettle an entire ‘uniormity of opinion, in queftions which, of all others, are leaft fubjected to the * Teylin, p. 47- Mm: A URS %, the criterion of human reafon. The wniverfal and uncontradidted prevalence of Chap. IT. H ene opinion in religious fubjects, can only be owing at firlt to the {tupid isno- 1555: Hi rance and barbarifm of the people; who never indulge themfelves in any fpecula- i tion or enquiry ; aod there is no other expedient for maintaining that uniformity, fo iW fondly fought after, but by banifhing for ever all curiofity and all improvement ) in fcience and cultivation, It may,,not, indeed, appear difficult to check, by a {teddy feverity, the firft beginnings ef controverfy ; but befides that this policy expofes for ever the people to all the abject terrors of fuperftition, and the magi- {trate to the endlefs encroachments of ecc'efiaftics, it alfo renders men fo delicate, that they can never endure to hear of oppofition; and they will fometime pay dearly for that falfe tranquility in which they have been fo long indulged. As healthful bodies are ruined by too hice a regimen, and are thereby rendered inca- pable of bearing the unavoidable incidents of human life ; a people who never were allowed to imagine, that their principles could be contefted, fly out into the moft outrageous violence when any event (and fuch events are common) produces,a action among their clergy, and gives rife to any difference in tenet or opinion. But whatever may be faid in favour of fuppreffing, by perfecution, the. firft be- einnings of herefy, no folid argument can be alledged for extending feverity to- | wards multitudes, or endeavouring, by capital punifhments, to extirpate an opi- ie nion, which: has diffufed: itfelf thro? men of every rank and ftation. Befides the | extreme barbarity of fach an attempt, it proves commonly ineffectual to the pur- a pofe intended; and ferves only to make men more obftinate in their perfuafion, te and to encreafe the number of their profelytes. The melancholy with whichthe - ie } | fear of death, torture, and perfecution infpires the fectaries, is the proper difpo- at fition for foftering religious zeal: The profpeét of eternal rewards, when brought | near, overpowers the dread of temporal punifhment: The glory of martyrdom ftimulates all the more furious zealots, efpecially the leaders and preachers ; Where a violent animofity is excited by oppreffion, men pafs naturally from hat- aS ing the perfons of their tyrants, to a more violent abhorrence of their doctrine : ih And the fpeétators, moved-with pity towards the fuppofed martyrs, are naturally hi feduced to embrace thofe principles which can infpire mea with a conftancy that appears almoft fupernatural. Open the déor to toleration, the mutual hatred re- jaxes among the fectaries; their attachment to their particular religion decays ; the common occupations and pleafures of life fucceed to the acrimony of | i difputation; and the fame man, who, in other circumftances, would have ile == ee et Y=. _ -- —— Fatt + a braved flames and tortures, is engaged to change his religion from the fmalleft 1, f profpect of favour and advancement, or even from the frivolous hopes of becom- ‘ ing more fafhionable in his principles. If any exception can be admitted to this i : Hey , maxim i Ss 376 HISTORY or ENGLAND, maxim-of toleration, it will only be where a theology altogether new, no way connected with the ancient relizion of the ftate, is imported from foreign coun- tries, and may eafily, at one blow, be eradicated, without leaving the feeds of future innovations. But as this inftance would: involve fome apology for the an- cient pagan perfecutions, or for the extirpation of Chriftianity in China and Ja- pan; it ought furely, on account of this detefted confequence, to be rather bu- ried in eternal filence and oblivion. Tso’ thefe arguments wise entirely fatisfactory, yet fuch is the fubtilty of human wit, that Gardiner, and the other enemies to toleration, were not reduced to —— and they. {till read topics on which to fupport the controverfy: - The coctrine, faid they, of liberty of confcience is founded on the moft flagrant im- piety; and {uppofes fuch an indifference among ali religions, fuch an ob (ciate in theological seinen as to render the church and magiftrate incapable of diftin- sulfhing, with certainty, the dictates of Heaven from the mere fi@tions of hu- man imagination. Ii the Divinity reveals principles to mankind, he will furely vive a-criterion by which they may. be afcertained; and a prince, who knowingly gree) thefe principles to be perverted, or adulterated, is infinitely more criminal than if he gave permiffion for-the vending of poifon, under the fhape of bread, to all his fubjects. Perfecution may, indeed, feem better calculated to make hy- pocrites than converts; but experience teaches us, that the habits of hypocrify often turn into reality; and the children at leaft, ignorant of their parents diffi- mulation, may happily be educated in more Lisette tenets. It is aes in op- polition to confiderations of .fuch unfpeakable importance, to plead the temporal and frivolous tnterefts.of civil fociety; and if matters be thoroughly PORE even that topic will not appear fo certain and univerlalin favour of toleration as by fome itis réprefented. Where fects arife, whofe fundamental principle on all fides, is to execrate, and abhor, and damn, .and extirpate each other ; what choice has the magiftrate left but to take party, and by rendering one fect entirely prevalent, reftore, at leafl for.atime, the public tranquillity? The political body, being bere GEN muft not be treated as if rt wete in a fltate of found health; and an affected neutrality in the ral ice, Or even acool preference, may ferve only to en- courage the hopes of -all-the fects, and pe ih alive their animofity. The pro- teftants; far from tolerating the ‘religion of ‘their anceftors, ‘regard it as an umpi- ous and: deteftable idolatry; and during the aa minority, he n they were en- firely matters, enacted very fevere, tho* not capital, punifhments againit a!l ex- ercife of the catholic worfhip, and even againit fuch as barely abfta ed from their profane rites and facraments. Wor are inftances wanting’of their endeavours to gecure an imagined orthodoxy by the moft rigorous executions: Calvin has burned M AR Y. 397 burned Servetus at Geneva: Cranmer brought Arians and Anabaptifts to the Chap. Tl flake: And if perfecution of any kind is to.be admitted, the moft bloody and “95>” violent will furely be allowed the moft juftifiable, as the moft effectual. Impri- fonments, fines, confifcations, whippings, ferve only to irritate the fects, with- | out difabling them from refiftance: But the ftake, the wheel, or the gibbet, muft foon terminate in the extirpation or banifhment of all the heretics, who are in- clined to give difturbance, and in the entire filence and fubmiffion of the reft. Tue arguments of Gardiner being more agreeable to the cruel bigotry of Mary and Philip, were better received; and tho” Pole pleaded, as is affirmed*, the advice of the emperor, who recommended it to his daughter-in-law, not to practife violence againft the. proteftants, and defired her to confider his own ex- ample, who, after endeavouring thro’ his whole life to extirpate herefy, had, in the end, reaped nothing but confufion and difappointment, the fcheme of to- leration was entirely rejected. It was determined to let loofe the laws in their full rigour againft the reformed religion ; and England was foon filled with fcenes of horror, which have ever fince rendered the catholic religion the object of general deteftation, and which prove, that no human depravity can equal revenge and cruelty, covered with the mantle of ‘religion. Tue perfecutors began with Rogers, who was prebendary of St. Paul's, and y+ tent ott a man eminent in his party for virtue as well as for learning. Gardiner’s plan was fecution in firft to attack men of that character, whom, he hoped, terror wou'd bend to fub- Exgians. miffion, and whofe example, either of .punifhment or recantation, would natu- rally have influence on the multitude: But he found a perfeverance and courage in Rogers, which it may feem ftrange to find in human nature, and of which alf ages, andall fects, do notwithftanding furnifh many examples. Rogers, befide the care of his own prefervation, lay under other very powerful temptations to compliance: He had a wife; whom he tenderly loved, and ten children; yet fach was his ferenity after his condemnation, that the jailors, it is faid, waked him from a found fleep, when the hour of his execution approached. He had defired to fee his wife before he died ; but Gardiner ‘told him, that he was a prieft ; he could not poflibly have a wife: Thus Joining infule to cruelty. Rogers was burnt in Smithfield +. Hooper, bifhop of Glocefter, had been tried at the fame time with. Rogers ; but was fent to his own diocefe to be'executed. This circumftance was contrived to 3C | ftrike * Burnet, vol. If. Heylin, p. 47. It is not likely, however, that Charles gave any fuch advice : For he himfelf was at this very time proceeding with great violence in perfecuting the ve kmmml th Flanders. Bentivoglio, parti. lib. 1. + Fox, vol. TL. p. 1190" Burnet, vol. Il. p. 302. Lom Chap. II, p55: ‘ — 378 HISTORY or ENGLAND. {trike a greater terror into his flock ; but it was a fource of fatisfaction to Hooper, who rejoiced in giving teftimony, by his death, to that doétrine which he had formerly taught them. When he was tied to the ftake, a ftool was fet before him, and the Queen’s pardon laid upon it, which it was ftill in his power to ac- cept by his recantation: But he ordered it to be removed; and chearfully pre- pared himfelf for that dreadful punifhment to which he was condemned. He fuffered it in its full feverity: The wind, which was vehement, blew the flame of the reeds from his body: The faggots were green, and did noe kindle eafily: All his lower parts were confumed before his vitals were at- tacked: One of his hands dropt off: With the other he continued to beat his brea(t: Ele was heard to pray and exhort the people, till his tongue, fwoln with the violence of the agony, could no longer permit him utterance. He was three quarters of an hour in torture, which he bore with inflexible conftancy f. SANDERS was burned at Coventry: A pardon was alfo offered him; but he rejected it, and embraced the ftake, faying, ‘“* Welcome the crofs of Chritt ; “* welcome everlafting life.” Taylor, parfon of Hadley, was confumed by flames in that place, amidft his ancient friends and parifhioners. When tied to the ftake, he repeated a pfalm in Englifh: One of his guards ftruck him on the mouth, and bid him fpeak Latin: Another, in a rage, gave him a blow on the head with his halbert, which happily put an end to. his torments. TuERE was one Philpot, archdeacon of Winchefter, poffeffed of fuch zeal for orthodoxy, that having been engiged in a difpute with an Arian, he fpit in his adverfary’s face, to fhow the great deteftation which he had entertained againft that herefy, He afterwards wrote a treatife to juftify this unmannerly expreffion of zeal; and he faid, that he was led to it, in order to relieve the forrow con- ceived from fuch horrid blafphemy, and to fignify how unworthy fuch a mif- creant was of being admitted into the company of any chriftian|. Philpot was a proteftant; and falling now into the hands of people as zealous as himfelf, but more powerful, he was condemned to the flames, and fuffered at Smithfield, Tur article upon which almoft all the proteftants were condemned, was, their tefufal to acknowlege the real prefence. Gardiner, who had vainly expected, that a few examples would ftrike.a terror into the reformers, finding the work daily multiply upon him, devolved the invidious office on others, chiefly on Bon- ner, aman of profligate manners, and of a brutal charaéter, who feemed to re- joice in the torments of the unhappy fufferers*.. He fometimes whipped the pri- | i foners t Fox, vol. IE. p.145, &c. Burnet, vol. II. p. 302. Hieylin, p. 48, 49. Godwin, p. 349, }] Strype, vol. III, p. 261. and Coll, Ne <8. * Heylin, p. 47, 48, | 3 MARY. 349 foners with his own hands, till he was tired with the violence of the exercife: Chap. TE. Ele tore out the beard of a weaver, who refufed to refinquifh his religiow; and *55> that he might give him a fpecimen of burning, he held his hand to the candle, till the finews and veins fhrunk and burft 7. Ir is needlefs to be particular in enumerating all the horrid cruelties practifed in England during the courfe of three years that thefe perfecutions lafted: The favage barbarity on the one hand, and the patient conftancy on the other, are fo fimilar in all thefe martyrdoms, that the narration, very little agreeable in itielf, would never be relieved by any variety. Human nature appears not, on any oc cafion, fo deteftable, and at the fame time fo abfurd, as in thefe religious perfecu- tions, which fink men below infernal fpirits in wickednefs, and below the beafts in folly. A few inftances only may be worth prefetving, in order, if poffible, to warn zealous bigots, for ever to avoid fuch odious and fuch fruitlefs barbarity. Ferrar, bifhop of St. David’s, was burned int his own diocefe; and his ap- peal to cardinal Pole was not attended to +. Ridley, bifhop of London, and Latimer, formerly bifhop of Worcefter, two prelates celebrated for learning and virtue, perifhed together in the fame flames at Oxford, and fupported each other’s conftancy by their mutual exhortations. Latimer, when tied to the ftake, called to his companion, ‘‘ Be of good comfort, brother, we fhall this day. kindle fuch «¢ a torch in England, as, I truft in God, fhall never be extinguifhed.” The executioners had been fo merciful (for that clemency may more naturally be afcribed to them than to the religious zealots) as to tye bags of gunpowder about thefe prelates, in order to put a fpeedy period to their tortures: The explofion imme- diately killed Latimer, who was in an extreme old age: Ridley continued alive during fome time in the midift of the flames |}. Onr Hunter, a young man of nineteen, am apprentice, having been feduced by a prieft mto a difpute, hid unwarily denied the real prefence. Senfible of his danger, he immediately concealed himfelf; and Bonner laying hold of his fa- ther, threatened him with the greateft feverities, if hedid not produce the young man to ftand his tryal. Hunter, hearing the vexations to which his father was expofed, voluntarily delivered himfelf to Bonner, and was condemned to the flames by, that barbarous prelate. | i { F — arse ie = —— = = = Tuomas Hlaukes, when conducted to the ftake, agreed with his friends, that -¢ he found the-torrure tolerable, he would make them a fiona! to that purpofe in che midft of the flames. His zeal for the caufe in which he fuffered, fo fupport- edhim, that he ftretched out his arms, the fignal agreed on; and in that pofture 3C 2 | arene i Y vi 3 ih iy Ni We ( H) it / ; Hh Hie t! : 4 ut} | - j } 4 ik Hin Te i i Mh it ee i bail ie} iH HI Wh Hii) i ) (erlh 1 ft { itt real Hi if f \ = SSS + Fox, vol. III. p. 187. { Thidp. 216. t Burnet, vol. II. p. 318. Heylin, p. 524 . —_a 380 HISTORY or ENGLAND. he expired*. . This example, with many others of like conftancy, ‘encouraged multitudes, not only to fuffcr, but even to afpire to martyrdom. ; - Tue tender fex itfelf, as they have commonly a greater propenfity to religion, produced many inftances of the moft inflexible courage in fupporting the profef- fion of it, againft all the fury of the perfecutors. One execution in particular was attended with circumftances which, even at that time, excited aftonifhment, by reafon of their unufual barbarity. A woman in Guernfey, being near the time of her labour when brought to the ftake, was thrown into fuch agitation by the torture, that her belly burft, and fhe was delivered in the midf of the flames, One of the guards immediately fnatched the infant from the fire, and attempted to fave it: Buta magiftrate who ftood by, ordered it to be thrown back ; being determined, he faid, that nothing fhould furvive which fprung from fuch an ob- {tinate and heretical parent +. Tue perions condemned to thefe punifhments were not conviéed for teaching, or dogmatizing, contrary to the eftablithed religion: They were feized merely on fufpicion ; and articles being offered them to fubfcribe, they were immediately, upon their refufal, condemned to the flames t. Thofe inftances of barbarity, fo unufual in the nation, excited horror; the conftancy of the martyrs was the object of admiration; and as men have a principle of equity engraven in their minds, which even falfe religion is not able totally to obliterate, they were fhock- ed to fee perfons of probity, of honour, of pious difpofitions, expofed to pu- nifhments more fevere than were inflicted on the greateft ruffians, for crimes fub- verfive of civil fociety. To exterminate the whole proteftant party, was known to be impoffible ; and nothing could appear more iniquitous, than to fubject to torture, the moft confcientious and courageous among them; and allow the cowards and hypocrites to efcape. Each martyrdom, therefore, was equivalent toa hundred fermons againft popery ; and men either avoided fuch horrid {pec- tacles, or returned from them full of a violent, tho’ fecret, indignation againtt the perfecutors. Repeated orders were fent from the council, to quicken the dili- gence of the magiftrates in fearching after heretics; and, in fome places, the gentry were obliged to. countenance, by their ‘prefence, thefe barbarous executi- ons. he violences tended only to render the Spanifh government daily more odious; and Philip, fenfible of the hatred: which he incurred, endeavoured to remove the reproach from himfelf by a very. grofs artifice: He ordered his con- feffor to deliver in his prefence a fermon in favour of toleration: a doctrine fomewhat * Fox, vol. ILI, p. 265. t Ibid. ps 747. Heylin, p. 57, Burnet; vol, II; P: 337% { Ibid. p, 306. ay, MAR Y. 381 fomewhat extraordinary in a Spanifh friar ||. But the court, findine that Bonner, however fhamelefs and favage, would not bear alone the whole infamy, foon threw of the mafk ; and the unrelenting temper of the Queen, as well as of the King, appeared without controul, A bold ftep was even taken towards the intro- duétion of the inquifition into England. As the bifhops’ courts, tho’ extremely arbitrary, and not bound by any ordinary forms of law, appeared not to be invefted with fufficient power, a commiffion was appointed by authority of the Queen’s prerogative, more effectually to extirpate herefy. I wenty-one perfons were named; but any three were armed with the powers of the whole. The com- miffion runs in thefe terms; ** That fince many falfe-rumours were publithed ‘¢ among the fubjects, and many heretical opinions were alfo fpread among them» ‘¢ therefore they were to enquire into thofe, either by prefentments by witnefles, ‘¢ or any other political way they could devife, and to fearch after all herefies ; ‘+ the bringers in, the fellers, the readers of all heretical books: ‘They were to. examine and ‘punifh all mifbehaviours or negligences, in any church or chap- © Hels and to try all priefts that did not preach the facrament of the altar; all “< perfons that did not hear mafs, or come to their parifh church to fervice, that ‘© would not goin proceflions, or did not take holy bread or holy water: And. ‘ if they found any that did obftinately perfift in fuch herefies, they were to put «¢ them into the hands of their orcinaries, to be punifhed according to the fpiri- s tual laws: Giving the commiffioners full power to proceed, as their difcre. tions and confciences fhould direét them, and to ufe all fuch means as they ‘© would invent for the fearching of the premifes 5 empowering them alfo to call, « before them fuch witneffes as they pleafed, and to force them to make oath of s* fuch things as might difcover what they fought after*.” Some civil powers. were alfo given the commiffioners to punifh vagabonds and quarrelfome perfons. al a To bring the methods of proceeding in England nearer the practice of the inquifition, letters were written to the lord North, and others, enjoining them, «¢ To put to the torture fuch obftinate perfons as would not confefs, and there to. ‘© order them at their difcretion +. Seeret {pies alfo, and informers, were em- ployed, according to the practice of that iniquitous tribunal. Inftructions were given to the juftices of peace, ‘* That they fhould call fecretly before them one «s or two honeit perfons within their limits,.or more, at their difcretion, and « Gommand them by oath, or otherwife, that they fhall fecretly learn and fearch s¢ out fuch perfons as fhall evil-behave themfelves in church, or idly, or fhall «© defpife openly by words, the King’s or Queen’s proceedings, or go about = ** make | Heylin, p. 56. * Burnet, vol. IJ. Coll. 32. + Burnet, vol, IIL p.243, Chap. IT, 1355 Chap. II. ES: Spe wes 382 HISTORY or ENGLAND. “ make any commotion, or tell any feditious tales or news. And alfo, that the ** fame perfons fo to be eppointed, fhall declare to the fame juttices of peace, ** the ill behaviour of lewd difordered perfons, whether it hall be for ufing un- ‘* lawful games, and fuch other light behaviour of fuch fufpected perfons: And “* that the fame information fhall be given fecretly to the juftices; and the fame “**juflices fhall call fuch accufed perfons before them, and examine them, with- “* out declaring by whomthey were accufed. And that the fame jultices hall, “* upon their examination, punifh the offenders, according as their offences {hall ‘*-appear, upon the accuffment and examination, by their difcretion, cither by ** open punifhment or by good abearing t.” In fome refpeéts, this tyrannical edict even exceeded the oppreffion of the inquifition ; by introducing into every part of government, the fime iniquities which that tribunal practifes only for the extirpation of herefy, and which are, in fome meafure, neceflary, wherever that end isearneftly purfued. Bur the court had devifed a more expeditious and fummary method of fup- prefiing herefy than even the inquifition itfelf. They iffued a proclamation againtt books of herefy, treafon, and fedition; and declared, ** That whofoever had “* any of thefe books, and did not prefently burn them, without reading them, ** or fhewing them to any other perfon, fhould be efteemed rebels; and without “* any farther delay, be executed by martial law |].” From the ftate of the Eng- lifh government, during that period, it is not fo much the illegality of thefe pro- ceedings, as their violence and their pernicious tendency, which ought to be the object of our cenfure. We have thrown togetler almoft the whole tranfactions againft heretics, tho” carried on during a courfe of three years; that we may be obliged, as little as poffible, to return to fuch fhocking violences and barbarities. It is computed, that in that time two hundied and feventy-feven perfons fuffered by fire; befides thofe punifhed by imprifonment, fines, and confifcations. Among thofe who fuffered by fire; were five bifhops, twenty-one clergymen, eight lay gentlemen, eighty-four tradefmen, one hundred hufbandmen, fervants, and labourers, fifty- five women, and four chidren. This perfevering cruelty appears aftonifhing ; yet is it much inferior to what has been practifed in other countries. A great-au- thor * computes, that in the Low Countries alone, from the time that the edict of Charles the fifth was promulgated againft the reformers, there had»been fifty thoufand perfons hanged, beheaded, buried alive, or burnt, on account of reli- | gion; { Burnet, vol. ID p. 246, 247, | Burnet, vol. II. p. 363. He, lin, p. 70. * Father Paul, lib. s. MAR -¥; 3832 gion; and that in France the number had alfo been confiderable. Yet in both countries, asthe fame author fubjoins, the progrefs of the new opinions, inftead of being checked, was rather forwarded by thefe perfecutions. Tue burning of heretics was a very natural method of reconciling the kng- dom to the church of Rome, and little follicitation was requifite to engage the pope to receive the ftrayed flock, from which he reaped fuch profit: Yet was there a folemn embaffy fent to Rome, confifting of Sir Anthony Brown, created vifcount Montacute, the bifhop of Ely, and Sir Edward Carne; in order to carry the fubmiffion of England, and beg to be readmitted into the bofom of the catholic church *. Paul the fourth, after a fhort interval, now filled the papal chair ; the moft haughty pontiff, that during feveral ages had been elevated to that dignity. He was offended, that Mary ftill retained among her titles, that of Queen of Ireland; and he affirmed that it belonged to him alone, as he {aw proper, either to erect new kingdoms or abolifh the old: But to avoid all difpute with the new converts, he thought proper to erect Ireland into a king- dom, and then admitted the title, as if it had been his own conceffion. This was an ufual artifice of the popes to give allowance to what they could not pre- vent +, and then pretend, that perfons, while they exercifed their own power, were only acting by authority from the papacy, And tho’ Paul had at firft in- tended to oblige Mary formally to recede from this title, before he would be- ftow it upon her; he found it wifer to proceed in a more political, and lefs haughty manner f. Tue other point of difcuffion between the pope and the Englifh ambaffadors _ was not fo eafily terminated. Paul infifted, that the property and poffeffions of the church fhould be reftored even to the uttermoft farthing : That whatever he- longed to God, could never by any law be converted to profane ufes, and every perfon who detained fuch poffeffions was in a ftate of eternal damnation: That he would willingly, in confideration of the humble fubmiffions of England, make them a prefent of thefe ecclefiaftical revenues; but fuch a conceffion ex. ceeded his power, and the people might be certaim that fo great a profanation of holy:things would be a perpetual anathema upon them, and would blaft all their future felicity: That if they would truly fhow their filial piety, they muft re- ftore. all the -privileges and emoluments of the Roman church, and Peter’s pence among the reft; nor.could they expect, that that apoftle would open to them the gates of Paradife, while they detained from them his pofieflions on earth §. Thefe * Heylin, p. 454° = + Heylin, p. 45. Fathef Paul, lib. 5, t Father Paul, lib. ¢. § Father Paul, lib. 5. Heyling p. 45. Ww ee ee eee $a a teeter Chap. IL 955° 21{t O&ober. A Parliament. 354, HISTORY or ENGLAND: Thefe earneft* remonftrances being tranfmitted to England, tho’ they had ‘little influenceron the nation. operated powerfully on the Queen 3 and fhe was deter- mined, in order to eafe her confcience, to reftore all-the church lands which were dtilfin the pofieflion of the crown; and the more toexprefs her zeal; the ereéted anew fome convents and monaftcries, notwithftanding the low condition of the public revenues. When this meafure was debated in council, fome members objected, that if fuch 1 confiderable part of the revenue was difmembered, the dignity of the crown would fall to decay: But the Queen replied, that fhe pre- ferred the faivation of her foul to ten fuch kingdoms as England ¢. Thefe im- prudent meafures woud not probably have taken place -fo eafily, had it not been for the death of Gardiner, which happened about this time: The feals were given to Heathe, archtifhop of York ; that an ecclefiaftic might-ftill be poffeffed of that high office, anc be better enabled by his authority to forward the perfe- cutions againft the reformed. THeEsE perfecutions were now become extremely odious to the nation; and the effects of the public cifcontents appeared in the new Parliament, which was fummioned to meet at Weftminfler t. A bill was paffed * reftoring to the:church the tenths and firft fruits, and all ‘the impropriations which remained in the hands of the crown; but tho’ this matter dire€tly concerned none but the Queen herfelf, great oppofitio: was made to the bill in the houfe of commons.” An application being made for a fubfidy during two years, and for two fifteenths, the latter was refufed by the commons; and many members faid, that while the crown was thus defpoiling itfelf of its revenues, there wasno end of beftow- ing riches upon it; The Parliament rejected: a bill for obliging the exiles to ‘return under certain penalties, and another for incapacitating fuch as were remif{s oth Decem- ber. in the profecution of herefy from being juftices of :peace. “The Queen finding the intraétable humou: of the commons, thought proper to diffolve the Par- liament. Tue foirit of oppofition,’ which began to prevail in Parliament, was likely to be the more vexatious to Mary, as fhe was otherwife in very bad humour on ac- count of her hufband’sabfence, who, tired of her importunate love and jealoufy, and finding his authority extremely limited in England, had laid hold of the firft opportunity to leave hei, and had gone over laft fummer to the emperor in Flan- ders: The indifference and neglect of her hufband, added to the difappoint- ment in her imagined pregnancy, threw her into a deep melancholy; and fhe gaye ; + Heylin, p. 53,65. Hdlingthed, p.1127. Speed, p. 826. { Burnet, vol: Il. p. 322. * 2 and 3 Phil, and Mar, cap 4. M A. ROW, a8 5 gave vent to her f{pleen by enforcing daily the perfecutions againft the proteftants, Chap. I. and even by expreffions of rage againft all her fubjeéts, by whom fhe knew her, °°???” felf to be hated, and whofe oppofition, in refufing an entire compliance with Philip, was the caufe, fhe believed, why he had alienated his affections from her, and afforded her fo little of his company. The lefs return her love met withs the more it increafed ; and fhe pafied moft of her time in folitude, where. fhe gave vent to her paffion, either in tears, or in writing fond epiftles to Philip, who feldom returned -her any anfwer, and fcarce deigned to counterfeit any fentiment of love or even of gratitude towards her. The chief part of government, to The Queen's which fhe attended, was the extorting money from her people, in order to extortions. fatisfy his demands ; and as the Parliament had granted her but a fmall fupply, fhe had recourfe to expedients the moft violent and moft irregular, She levied a loan of 60,000 pounds upon a thoufand perfons, of whofe compliance, either on account of their riches or their affections to her, fhe held herfelf beft affured: But that fum not fufficing, fhe exacted a general loan of an hundred pounds a- | piece on every one who poffeffed twenty pounds a year. This grievous impo- fition lay very heavy on the gentry, who were obliged, many of them, to re- trench their expences, and difmifs their fervants, in order to enable them to comply with her commands : And as thefe fervants, accuftomed to idlenefs, and having no means of fubfiftance, betook themfelves very commonly to theft and robbery, the Queen publifhed a proclamation, by which fhe obliged their former matters to take them back to their fervice. She levied 60,000 marks from 7000 yeomen, who had not contributed to the former loan ; and fhe exacted 36,000 pounds more from the merchants. In order to engage fome Londoners to comply the more willingly with her multiplied extortions, fhe paffed an edict, prohibiting, for four months, the exporting any Englifh cloths or kerfeys for Flanders ; an expedient which procured a good market for fuch as had already fent any quan- tity of cloth thither. Her rapacioufnefs engaged her to give endlefs difturbance and interruption to commerce. The Englifh company fettled in Antwerp having refufed her a loan of 40,000 pounds, fhe difembled her refentment, till fhe found, that they had bought and fhipped. great quantities of cloth for Ant- werp fair, which was approaching : She then laid an embargo on the fhips, and obliged the merchants to grant her a loan of the 40,000 pounds at firft de- manded, to engage for the payment of 20,000 pounds more at a limited time, and to fubmit to an arbitrary impofition of twenty fhillings on each piece. Some time after, fhe was informed, that the Italian merchants had fhipped above 40,000 pieces of cloth for the Levant, for which they were to pay a crown a piece, the ufual impofition; She ftruck. a. bargain with the merchant. adventurers in, Jon- 3 D don; The emperor refigns his crown. 2eth O&ober. 156. ws 386 HISTORY or ENGLAND. don; prohibited entirely the foreigners to make any exportation; and received, from the Englifa merchants, in confideration of this iniquity, the fum of 20,000 pounds, and an impofition of four crowns on each piece of cloth which they fhould export. She attempted to borrow great fums abroad ; but her credit ran fo low, that, tho’ fhe offered 14 per cent. to the city of Antwerp for a loan of 30,000 pounds, fhe could not obtain it, till fhe conftrained the city of London to be furety for her*. All thefe violent expedients were employed while the herfelf was in profound peace with all the world, and had vifibly no other oc- cafion for money but to fupply the demands of a hufband, who attended only to his own convenience, and fhowed himfelf entirely indifferent about her interefts. Puitip was now become mafter of all the wealth of the Indies, and of the richeft and moft extenfrve dominions in Europe, by the voluntary refignation of the emperor, Charles the fifth, who, tho’ ftill in the vigour of his age, had taken a difeuft to the world, and was determined to feek, in the tranquillity of retreat, for that happinefs, which he had in vain purfued, amidft the tumults of war, and the reftlefs projects of ambition. He fummoned the ftates of the Low Countries; and feating himfelf on the throne for the laft time, explained to his fubjects the reafons of his refignation, abfolved them from all oaths of allegiance, and devolving his authority on Philip, told him, that his paternal tender- nefs made him weep, when he reflected on the burthen which he impofed upon him +. He inculcated to him the great and only duty of a prince, the ftudy of his people’s happinefs; . and reprefented how much preferable it was to govern, by affection rather than fear, the nations fubjeed to his dominion. The cool reflections of age now difcovered to him the emptinefs of his former purfuits; and he found, that the vain fchemes of extending his empire had been the fource of endlefs oppofiticn and difapp»intment, had kept himfelf, his neighbours, and his fubjects in perpetual inquietude, and had fruftrated the fole end of government, the felicity of the nations committed to his care; an obje& which meets with no oppofition, and which, if fteddily purfued, can alone con- vey a lafting and folid fatisfaction. A Frew months after, he refigned to Philip his other dominions ; and embark- ing on board a fleet, failed to Spain, and took his journey to St. Juft, a mo- naftery in Eftramedura, which, being fituated in a happy climate, and amidft the -greateft beauties of nature, he had chofen for the place of his retreat. When *.Godwin, p.359- Cowper’s Chronicle. Burnet, vol. II. p. 359. Carte, p. 330, 333, 337> 341 Strype’s Memor. vol. III. p. 428, 558. Annals, vol. I, p. 15. + Thuan, lib.XVI. ¢. zo. M., A; Rn, Y. 387 When he arrived at Burgos, he found, by the thinnefs of his court, and the ne- Chap. ih eligent attendance of the Spanifh grandees, that he was no longer emperor ; and By5Y tho’ this obfervation might convince him {till more of the vanity of the world, and make him more heartily defpife what he had renounced, he fiched to find that all the former adulation and obeifance had been paid to his fortune, not to his perfon. With better reafon,- was he ftruck with the ingratitude of his fon hilip, who allowed him to wait @ long tme for the payment of the fmall penfiin which he had referved and this difappointment in his domettic enjoy- ‘ments gave him a very fenfible concern. He purfued however his refolution with inflexib'e conftancy ; and fhutting himflf up in his retrear, he exerted fuch felf- command, that he reftrained even his curiofity from any enquiry concerning the tranfactions of the world, which he had entirely abandoned. The fencing again{t the pains and infirmities under which he laboured, occupied a great part of his time; and during the intervals, he employed his leifure either in examin- ing the controverfies of theology, with which his age had been fo much agitated, acd which he had hitherto confidered only in a political light, or in imitating the works of renowned aitift:, particularly in mechanics, of which he had always been a great admirer and encourager. He is faid to have here difcovered a propenfity to the new do@trines ; and to have frequently dropped hints of this unexpected alteration in his fentiments. Having amufed himfelf with the con- fruétion of clocks and watches, he thence remarked how impracticable the ab- jet was, in which he had fo much employed himfelf during his grandeur; and how impoffible that he, who never could frame two machines that would go exactly alike, could ever be able to make all mankind concur in the fame belief and opinion. He furvived his retreat two years. Tue emperor Charles had very early, in the beginning of his reign, found the difficulty of soverning (ach diftant dominions; and he had made his brother Ferdinand be elected King of the Romans ; with a view of his fucceeding to-the imperial dignity, as well as to his German dominions. But having afterwards enlarged his views, and formed plans of aggrandizing his family, he regreted, that he muft difmember fuch confiderable {tates ; and he endeavoured to engage Ferdinand, by the moft tempting offers, and moft earneft follicitations, to yield up his pretenfions in favour of Philip. Finding his attempts fruitlefs, he had refigned the imperial crown with his other dignities ; and Ferdinand, according to common form, applied to the pope for his coronation. The arrogant pontiff refufed the demand ; ‘and pretended, that, tho’, on the death of an emperor, he was obliged to crown the prince elected, yet in the cafe of a refignation, the right devolved to the holy fee, ‘and it belonged to the pope alone to appoint an 3 D2 emperor. me ib: hi us I! ie | ee Chap. IT, 1556. 398 HISTORY or ENGLAND, emperor. The conduct of Paul was in every thing conformable to thefe lofty pretenfions, He thundered always in the ears of all ambaffadors, that he ftood in no need of the affiftance of any prince, that he was above all potentates if the earth, that he would not accuftom monarchs to pretend to a familiarity or equality with him, that it belonged to him to alter and regulate kingdoms, that he was fucceflor of thofe who had depofed kings and emperors, and that, rather than fudmit to any thing below his dignity, he would fet fire to the four corners of the world. He went fo far, that at table, in the prefence of many perfons, and even openly, in a public confiftory, he faid, that he would hot admit any Kings tor his companions; they were all his fubjeéts, and he would hold them under thefe feet : So faying, he ftamped the ground with his old and infirm limbs: For he was now pait fourfcore years of age *. | dine world could not forbear making a comparifon between Charles the fifth, 4 prince, who, tho’ educated amidft wars and intrigues of fate, had prevented the decline of age, and had defcended from the throne, in order to fet apart an interval for thought and refle&tion, and a prieft, who in the extremity of old age exulted in his dominion, and from reftlefs ambition and revenge was throwing all nations into combuftion. Paul had entertained the moft inveterate animofity againit the houfe of Auftria; and tho’ a truce of five years had been concluded between France and Spain, he excited Henry by his follicitations to break it, and promifed to aflift him im recovering Naples and the dominions to which he laid claim in Italy; a project which had ever proved fatal to his prede- ceflors. He himfelf engaged in hoftilities with the duke of Alva, viceroy of Naples ; and the duke of Guife being fent with forces to fupport him, the re- newal of war between the two crowns feemed almoft inevitable. Philip, tho’ lefy warlike than his father, was no lefs ambitious ; and he trufted, that by the in- trisues of the cabinet, where, he believed, his caution and fecrecy and prudence gave him the fuperiority, he fhould be able to fubdue all his enemies, and extend his authority and dominion. For this reafon, as well as from the defire of fet- ting his new empire, he was defirous to maintain peace with France; but when he found, that, without facrificing his honour, it was impoffible for him to over- look the hoftile attempts of Henry, he prepared for war with great induftry. In order to give himfelf the more advantage, he was defirous to émbark England in the quarrel; and tho’ the Queen was of herfelf extremely averfe to that de- fign, he hoped, that the devoted fondnefs, which, notwithftanding repeated in- ftances of his indifference, fhe ftill bore him, would effectually fecond his applica- tions, Tad the:matter indeed depended folely on her, the was incapable of re- I fifting * Father Paul, lib, 5. MAR & 389 fitting her hufband’s commands; but fhe had’ little weight with her council, ftill lefs with her people ; and her government, which was every day becoming more odious, feemed unable to fupport itfelf even during the moft profound tranquillity, much more if a war was kindled with France, and what feemed an inevitable confequence, with Scotland, fupported by that powerful kingdom. | An aét of barbarity was this year exercifed in England, which, added to many other inftances of the fame kind, tended to render the government extremely Chap. Tf; roc, 55 unpopular. Cranmer had long been detained a prifoner; but the Queen was now, . : . . >. | * : {xecution oO determined to bring him to punifhment ; and in order the more fully to fatiate Cranmer. her vengeance, fhe refolved to punifh him for herefy, rather than for treafon. He was cited by the pope to ftand his trial at Rome ; and tho’ he was known to be kept in clofe cuftody at Oxford, he was, upon his not appearing, condemned as contumacious. Bonner, bifhop of London, and Thirleby of Ely, were fent down to Oxford to degrade him; and the former executed that melancholy ceremony with all the joy and exultation, which fuited his favage nature *. The revenge of the Queen, not fatisfied with the eternal damnation of Cranmer, which fhe believed inevitable, and with the execution of that dreadful fentence to which he was condemned, prompted her alfo to feek the ruin of his honour, and the infamy of his name. Perfons were employed to attack him, not in the way of difputation, againft which he was fufficiently armed; bue by flattery, ‘nfinuation and addrefs; by reprefenting the dignities to which his character full entitled him, if he would merit them by a recantation; by giving hopes of long enjoying thofe powerful friends, whom his beneficent difpofition had attached to him during the courfe of ‘his profperity +, Overcome by the fond love of life, terrified by the profpect of thofe tortures which awaited him ; he allowed, in an unguarded hour, the fentiments of nature to prevail over his refolution, and he agreed to fign a paper, in which he acknowledged the doétrines of the papal fapre- macy and of the real prefence. T he court, equally perfidious and cruel, were deter- mined, that this recantation fhould avail him. nothing; and they fent orders, that he {hould be required to acknowledge his errors in church before the whole people, and that he fhould thence be immediately led to execution. Cranmer, whether, that he had received a fecret ‘ntimation of their defign, or had repented 2ift March. of his weaknefs, furprized the audience by a contrary declaration. He faid, that he was well apprized of the obedience which he owed his fovereign and the laws, but this duty extended ‘no farther than to fubmit patiently to their commands, and to bear without refiftance whatever hardfhips they fhould impofe upon him : That a fUperior duty, the duty which he owed his Maker, obliged himto fpeak , truth o> 58 e f > * Mem. of Cranm. p- 375 4 Heylin, p- 55- ‘sem. p. 333, ee ee eA = -- Fon iw ~ . ~ : a ae - FEES Ss 390 HISTOR Y:sor ENGLAND. Chapt. truth on all.occafions, and not to relingquifh, by a bafe denial, the holy doctrine kOe which the fupreme being had revealed to mankind: That there was one.mifcar- riage in his life, of which, above all ‘others, he fcverely repented ; the infincere declaration of faich to which he had the weaknefs to confent,"and which the fear of de.th alone had extorted from him: That he took this opportunity~of attoning for his error, by a fincere and open recantation; and was willing to feal with his blood that doctrine which. he firmly believed to be communicated from heaven: And that as his hand had erred by betraying his heart, it thould firft be punifhed, by a fevere but juft doom, and fhould firft pay the forfeit ofits of- fences. He was thence led to the ftake amidft the infults of the catholics ; and hav- ing now fummoned up all the force of his mind, he bore their {corn as well as the torture of his punifhment with fingular fortitude. He ftretched out his hand, and without betraying, either by his countenance or mations, the leaft fion of weaknefs or even of feeling, he held itin the flames till it was entirely confumed. His thoughts feemed entirely occupied with reflections on his former fault ; and he called aloud feveraltim.s, Th7s band bas offended. Satisfied with that attonement, he then difco- vered a ferenity in his countenance ; and when the fire attacked his body, he feemed to be wholly infenfible of his outward fufferings, and by the force of hope and refo- lution to have collected his mind altogether within itfelf, and to repel the fury of the flames. It is pretended, that, after his body was confumed, his heart was found entire and untouched among the afhes; an event, which, as it was the emblem of his conftancy, was fondly believed by the zealous proteftants. He was undoubtedly, a man of merit; poffefled of learning and capacity ; and adorned with candour, fin- cerity and beneficence, and all thofe virtues, which were fitted to render him ufeful and amiable in fociety. His moral qualities procured him univerfal re- fpect ; and the courage of his martyrdom, tho’ he fell fhort of the rigid inflexi- bility obferved in many, made him the hero of the proteftant party *. Arrer Cranmer’s death, cardinal Pole, who had now taken prieft’s orders, was inftalled in the fee of Canterbury ; and was thus by this office, as well as his commiffion of legate, placed at the head of the church of England. . But tho? he was averfe.to all the fanguinary methods of converting heretics, and efteemed the reformation of the clergy the more effectual, as the more laudable expedient for that purpofe+ ; he found his authority too weak to oppofe the barbarous and bigot- ted difpofition of the Queen and of her counfellors. He himfelf, he knew, had been fufpected of Lutheranifm ; and as Paul, the reigning pope, was a furious per- fecutor and his perfonal enemy, he was prompted, by the modefty of his difpo- e fition, * Burnet, vol. UJ. p. 331, 332, &¢. -Godwiny p. 352. + Burnet, vol. 1I. 324, 326. M AR OY. 861 fition, to referve his credit for other occafions, in which he had a ereater proba- bility of fuccels *. Tre great object of the Queen was to engage the nation in the war, which was kindled between France and Spain; and cardinal Pole, with many. other counfellors, very openly and zealoufly oppofed this meafure. Befides infifting on the marriage articles, which provided againft fuch an attempt, they reprefented the violence of the domtitic factions 1n England, and the difordered ftate of the finances; and they foreboded, that the tendency of all thefe meafures was to re- duce the kingdom to a total cependance on Spanifh councils. Philip had come to London in order to fupport his partizans ; and he told the Queen, that, if he was not gratified in fo reafonable a requeft, he never more would fet foot in England. This declaration heightened extremely her zeal for promoting his interefts, and overcoming the inflexibility of her council. After employing other menaces of a more violent nature, fhe threatened to difmifs them all from the board, and to appoint counfellots more obfequious; yet could fhe not procure a vote for declaring war with France. At laft, one Stafford and fome other confpirators were de- teGted in a defign of furprizing Scarborow Tf; and a confeffion being extorted from them, that they had been encouraged by Henry in that attempt, the Queen's jmportunity prevailed; and it was determined to make this act of hoftility, with others of a like fecret and doubtful nature, the ground of the quarrel. War War with was accordingly declared againft France ; and preparations were every where France. made for attacking that kingdom. Tue revenue of Eng'and at that time little exceeded 300,oco pounds. Any confiderable fupplies could fcarce be expected from Parliament, confidering the prefent difpofition of the nation; and as the war would fenfibly diminith the branch of the cuftoms, the finances, it was forefeen, would fall fhort even of the ordinary charges of the government; much more, prove unequal to the vat expences of war. But tho’ the Queen owed great arrears to all her fervants, befides the loans extorted from her fubjeéts ; thefe confiderations had ‘no influ- ence on her, and fhe continued to levy money in the fame arbitrary and violent “manner, which fhe had formerly practifed. She obliged the city of London to fupply her with 60,000 pounds on her hufband’s entry ; fhe levied before the legal time the fecond year’s fubfidy voted by Parliament ; fhe iffued anew many privy feals, by which fhe procured loans from her people ; and having equiped a fleet, * Heylin, p. 68, 69. Burnet, vol. II. p. 327: + Heylin, p.72. Burnet, vol. Il. p. 351, Sir James Melvil’s Memoirs. + Roffo, Succefli d’Inghilterra. ee a ee eee } poet ae =a ee ne a eS a oT ae aks Chap. TI, roth Augutft. Battle of St. Ou 1557: intin, Se 392 HISTORY or ENGLAND, afleet, which’fhe could not viétual by reafon of the dearnefs of provifions, fhe feized all the corn fhe could find in Suffolk and Norfolk, without paying any price tothe owners. By all thefe expedients, affifted by the power of preffing, fhe levied an army of ten thoufand men, which fhe fent over to the Low Coun- tries, under the command of the earl of Pembroke. Meanwhile, in order to prevent any difturbance at home, many of the moft confiderable gentry were thrown into the Tower; and left they fhould be known, the Spanith pratice was followed: They were either carried thither in the night-time, or were hood- winked and muffled by the guards who conduéted them |. Tse King of Spain had affembled together an army, which, after the jundtion of the Englifh, amounted to above fixty thoufand ftrong, commanded by Philibert, duke of Savoy, one of the greateft captains of theage. The conftable, Montmo- rency, who commanded the French army, had not half the number to oppofe him. ‘The duke of Savoy, after menacing Mariembourg and Rocroy, fat down fuddenly before St."Quintin; and as the place was weak, and ill provided of a garrifon, he expected in a few days to become mafter of it. But the admiral Coligny, governor-of the province, thinking his honour interefted to fave fo im- portant a fortrefs, threw himfelf into St. Quintin, with fome troops of French and Scotch genfdarmes; and by his exhortation and example animated the fol- diers to a vigorous defence. He difpatched a meffenger to his uncle, the con- {table, defiring a fupply of men; and that general approached the place with his whole army, in order to facilitate the entry of thefe fuccours. But the duke of Savoy falling on the reinforcement, committed fuch flaughter upon them, that not above five hundred men got into the place. He next made an attack on the French army, and put them to a total rout, killing four thoufand men, and difperfing the reft. In this unfortunate action many of the chief nobility of France were either flain or taken prifoners: Among the latter was the old con- {table himfelf, who fighting valiantiy, and refolute to die rather than furvive his defeat, was, furrounded by the enemy, and thus fell alive into their hands, The whole kingdom of France was thrown into confternation: Paris was attempted to be fortified in a hurry: And had the Spaniards prefently marched thither, it could-not fail to have fallen into their hands. But Philip was very little enter- prizing in his character ; and he was determined firft to take St. Quintin, in or- der to fecure a communication with his own dominions. A very little time, it was expected, would finifh this enterprize; but the bravery of Coligny ftill- pre- longed ‘the fiege feventeen days, which proved the fafety of France. Some trcops jj Strype’s Ecclef, Memorials, vol. III. p. 377. SS Bit Acs Ry, 393 troops were levied and afiembied. Couriers were fent to call the duke of Guife Chap: HI. and his army from Italy: And the French having recovered from their firftt *557° alarm, put themfelves in a:pofture of defence. Philip, after taking Ham and Caftelet, found the feafon fo far advanced, that he could attempt no farther en- terprize, and he broke up his camp and retired to winter quarters. Bur the vigilant activity of Guife, not fatished with fecuring the frontiers, prompted him, in the depth of winter, to attempt an enterprize which France, during her greateft fuccefles, had always regarded as impoffible, and had never thought of undertaking. Calais was, in that age, efteemed an impregnable for- trefs ; and as it was known to be the favourite of the Englifh nation, by whom it could eafily be fuccoured, the recovery of that place by France, was confidered as totally defperate. But Coligny had remarked, that, as the town of Calais was furrounded with marfhes, which, during the winter, were impaflable, except gee asad over a dyke guarded by two caftles, St. Agatha and Newnam bridge, the Eng- Savina se lith were of late accuftomed, on account of the lownefs of their finances, to dif mifs.a great part of the garrifon:at the end of autumn, and to recall them in the fpting, at which time alone they judged their attendance neceflary. On this circum flance he had founded his:defign of making afudden attack on the place; ihe had caufed it to:be fecretly furveyed by fome engineers; and a plan of the whole enterprize being found among his papers, it ferved, tho” he himfelf was made pri- foner on the taking of St. Quintin, to fuggeft the projet of that undertaking, and to direét the conduct of the duke of Guife. Severat bodies of troops defiled towards the frontiers under various pre- 1558. tences; and the whole being fuddenly affembled, formed an army with which the duke of Guife made an. unexpected march towards Calais. At the fame timea great number of French ‘fhips, being ordered, into the channel, under colour of cruizing on the Englifh, compofed a fleet which made an attack by fea on the fortifications. The French affaulted St. Agatha with three thoufand harquebu- fiers; and tho’ the garrifon made a vigorous defence, they were'foon obliged to abandon the place, and retreat towards Newnam bridge. ‘The fiege of this latter place -was immediately undertaken, and at the fame tinve the ficet battered the rifbank, which. guarded the entry of the harbour; and both thefe cafiles feemed expofed to immiment danger. The governor, lord Wentworth, was a brave officer, but finding that the @reater part of his weak g@arrifon was enclofed in - Newnam or the rifbank; “he ordered them to capitulate, -and to join him in Calais, which, without their affiftance, he was utterly unable to defend. The garrifon of Newnam bridge were fo happy as to effectuate this purpofe; but that of the rif- gE bank ‘ Chap. II. “3558. Affairs of Scotland. 394 HISTORY or ENGLAND. bank could nop obtain fuch favourable conditions, and were obliged to furrender. themiclves prifoners. | THe duke of Guile, now holding the place blockaded by fea ‘and Jand, thoucht - himfet fecure of fucceeding in his enterprize; but in order to prevent al] acci- dents, he delayed not a moment the attack of the place. He pointed his batteries towards the caftle, where he made.a large:breach’;, and having ordered: Andelot, Coligny’s brother, to-drain the foffée, he commanded an affault, which fucceeded, and the French made» a-lodgment in the caftle. On the night following Went- worth attempted to recover this poft; but having loft two hundred men in a, fu- rious-attack which he made upon it *, he found his garrifon fo weak, that he was obliged to:capitulate. Ham, .and Guifnes fell foon after; and thus the duke of Guife, ineight days, duringthe depth of winter, recovered this important place, that had coft Edward the third a fiege of eleven months, at the head of anumerous army, which had that very campaign been victorious in the battle of Crefly.« .The Englifh had held it above two hundred years; and.as it gave them, whenever they pleafed, anventry into France, it was: regarded: as the moft important pok- feffion belonging to the crown. ‘The joy of the French was extreme, as well as the glory acquired by the duke of Guile, who, at the time that all Europe ima- gined France to be funk by the unfortunate battle of St. Quintin, had, in oppo- fition to the Englifh, and their allies the Spaniards, acquired poffeffion of a place which no former King of France, even during the diftractions. of. the civil wars between the houfes of York and Lancafter, had ever ventured to attempt. . The Englifh, on the other hand, bereaved of this valuable fortrefs, murmured loud- ly againft the imprudence of the Queen and her. council; who, after engaging in a fruitlefs war, for the fake of foreign interefts, had thus expofed the nation to fo fevere adifgrace. A treafury exhaufted by expences, and burthened with debts.; a people divided and dejected; a fovereign negligent of her people’s welfare; were circumftances which, notwithftanding the, fair offers made by Philip, gave them {mall hopes of recovering Calais. -And.as the Scotch, inftigated by French councils, began to moveon the borders, they, were now neceffitated rather ta look to their defence at home, thanto think of foreign conquetts. ArTeER the peace, which, in confequence of King Edward’s treaty with Heary, took place between Scotland and England, the Queen-dowager, under pretence of vifiting her daughter and her relations, made a journey to France, and fhe carried along with her the earls of Huntley, Sutherland, Marifchal, and. many of the principal nobility. Her fecret defign was to take meafures for engaging the earl of Arran to refign to her the government of the kingdom; and as her brothers, “ * Thuan, lib. xx. ¢. 2. w= brothers, the duke of Guife, the cardinal of Lorraine, and the duke d’ Aumale, had uncontrouled authority in the court of France, fhe eafily perfuaded Henry, and by his means the Scotch nobles, to enter into her meafures. Having alfo gained over Carnegy of Kinnaird, Panter, bifhop of Rofs, and Gavin Hamilton, com- mendator of Kilwinning, three.creatures of the governor's, fhe perfuaded him, by their means, to confent to this refignation T ; and when every thing was thus prepared for her purpofe, fhe took her journey to Scotland, and pafied thro’ England in her way thither. Edward received her with great refpect and civility ; tho? he could not forbear attempting a renewal of the old treaty for his marriage with her daughter: A marriage, he faid, fo happily calculated for the tranquillity, intereft, and fecurity of both kingdoms, and the only means cf enfuring a durable peace For his part, he added, he never could entertain a cordial amity id choofe; nor was it eafy for him to forgive a man, who, at the fame time that he difappointed fo natural an alliance, had bereaved him of a bride, to whom his affections, from his earlieft infancy, had been entirely engaged. The Queen eluded thefe applications, by telling him, that if any meafures had been taken difagreeable to him, they were entirely owing to the imprudence of the duke of Somerfet, who, inftead of employing courtefy, caining a young princefs, had carefies, and gentle offices, the proper means of g had recourfe to arms and violence, and had confirained the Scotch nobility to fend their fovercign into France, in order to intereft that kingdom in protecting their liberty and independance f. Wuen the Queen-dowager arrived in Scotland, fhe found the governor very unwilling to fulfil his engagements ; and it was not till after many delays that he could be perfuaded to refign his authority. But finding that the majority of the young princefs was approaching, and that the Queen-dowager had eained the affections of all the principal nobility, he thought it more prudent to fubmit ; and having ftipulated, that he fhould be declared next heir to the crown, and fhould be freed from giving any account of his paft adminiftration, he placed her in poffeffion of the power ; and fhe thenceforth aflumed the name of regent {f, Tt was an ufual laying of this princefs, that provided fhe could render her friends happy, and could enfure to herfelf a good reputation, fhe was entirely indificrene what befel her; and tho’ this fentiment is greatly cenfured by the zealous reformers *, as» being well calculated ‘for the celebrated for capacity, had between them. for any other hufband whom fhe fhou adminiftration of kingdoms. D’ Oilel, a Frenchman, attended her as ambaflador from Henry, but in +, Buchannan, lib, xiv. Keith, -p. 56. Spotfwood, p. 92. t Keith, p- 59- 4) 12 April'1554. * Knox, p. 85- founded wholly on fecular motives, it difcovers a mind 4ue 2 reality" Ss 396 HISTORY or BN'GLAND. Chap. If.” reality to affift her’ with his counfels in fo delicate an undertaking as the govern- ‘55% ment of Scotland ; and ths man had formed’a fcheme for laying’ a general tax on the kingdom, in order to fupport a ftanding military force, which might at once tepulfe the inroads o! foreign enemies, and check the turbulence of the Scotch nobility. But tho’ fome of the courtiers were gained over to this project, it gave great and general difcontent to the nation; and the Queen-regent; after ingenuoully confeffing, tha: it would prove pernicious to the kingdom, had the prudence to defift from it, and to truft entirely for “her fecurity to the good- will and affections of her fibjects +. Tus laudable purpofe feemed ‘to be the chief objet of her adminiftration ; yet: was fhe fometimes drawn from it by. her conneétions with France, and by the influence which. her brothers had acquired over her. When Mary declared war againft that kingdom, Henry required the Queen-regent to take part in the quarrel ;. and fhe fummoned a convention of ftates at Newbottle, and requefted them to concur in a declaiation of war againft England. The Scotch nobles, who were as jealous of Franch as the Englifh were of Spanifh influence, refufed their aflent; and the Queei was obliged to have recourfe to artifice, in. order to effectuate her purpofe. She ordered d’ Oifel to begin fome fortifications at Eymouth,.a place which kad been difmantled by the laft treaty with Edward; and when the garrifon of, Eerwic, as fhe forefaw, made an inroad to prevent the undertaking, fhe effectually employed this pretence to inflame the Scotch nation, and to engage them in hoftilities againft England{. The. enterprize, however, of the Scotch proceeded no farther than fome inroads on the borders; and when d’ Oifel, of himfelf, conducted artillery and troops to befiege the caftle of Werke, he was recalled, and very fharply rebuked by the council |. In order to conneét Scotand more clofely with France, and to increafe the eens influence of the latter kingdom, it was thought proper by Henry to compleat the and theQueen marriage between the young Queen and the dauphin; anda deputation was fent a by the Scotch Parliament, to affift at this. ceremony, and to fettle the terms of the contract. This deputétioa confifted of the archbifhop of Glafgow, the bi- fhops of Rofs and the Orkneys, the earls of Rothes, and Caffilis, the lords Eleming and Seton, James Stuart, prior of St. Andrews, natural’ brether to the Queen, and Erfkine of Dui. The principal conditions recommended to thefe commifiioners, was to obtan a folemn engagement from the Queen and dauphin, that they would preferve the laws and privileges of Scotland, and to procure a renewal of the French King’s promife, to fupport, in cafe of the Queen’s death, 4 2 the + Keith,-p. 70. Buchan. lib xvi, t Buchan. lib. xvi, ‘Thuan. lib. xix. c. a. } Knox, p. 93. 3 i } pina S 2 aie ss Ee seek eee. Sage _ a Soieeetieetnetineteneniatneieientlinnipeneemes iat tenella r= + a XZ | , | | Mik R ¥. oe | the fucceffion of the earl of Arran, now created duke of Chatelraut. Both thefe Chap.Ih } conditions were eafily obtained; but the court of France took a very perfidious 50s ftep, directly contrary to thefe ftipulations: They fecretly engaged the young Queen to fign three papers 5 by one of which fhe made over the kingdom of Scotland in siftto the King of France, in cafe of her deceafe without children ; by another fhe i mortgaged it to him for a million of crowns of gold, or fuch greater fum, as he fhould have expended for her maintenance and fupport ; and by athird fhe declared, chat whatever deed fhehad been obliged, or fhould hereafter be obliged to perform, relative to the fucceffion of the crown, it fhould be entirely invalid, and that her real fenfe and intention was contained in the firft paper. The marriage was fo- lemnized at Paris: The commiffioners, in the name of the ftates of Scotland, fwore allegiance to. the Queen, and, during the continuance of the marriage, to the King-dauphin, fo he was called: And every thing feemed to proceed with great’ unanimity and concord. But. the commiffioners being required to deli- ver up the crown, and other enfigns of royalty, made anfwer, that they had received: no authority for that purpofe; and they foon after fet out on their journey for Scotland. It is remarkable, that before they embarked, four of the commiflioners died, within a few days of each other; and a violent, tho’ abfurd fufpicion prevailed, that they had been poifoned: by. orders from the family of Guife, on account of this cefufal ®. It was not confidered, that that accident, however rare, might have happened by the courfe of nature ;. and that the prefent feafon, tho’ not attended with any pefti'ential diforder, was, toa fingular degree, unhealthy all over Europe. | Tur clofe alliance between France and Scotland threatned very nearly the re- | pole and feeurity of England; and it was forefeen, that, tho” the factions and difor- ders which might naturally be expected in the Scotch government during the abfence of their fovereign, made its power lefs formidable, that kingdom would at leaft af- ford tothe French a means of invading England. The Queen, therefore, found itzoth January- neceflary to fummon a Parliament, and to demand of them fome fupplics to her ex- 4 parliaments hauftedexchequer. As fuchanemergency ufually gives great advantageto the people,. and as the Parliaments, during this reign, had fhewn, chat, where the liberty. and | independency of the kingdom were menaced with imminent danger, they were f not entirely overawed by the court; we (hall naturally expect, that the late arbi- trary methods of extorting money fhould,. at leaft, be cenfured,. and, perhaps, f fome remedy be for the future provided again{t them. But fuch an exorbitant i prerogative was at this time acknowleged to belong to the crown, that, tho’ men: might complain of its prefent abufes, all attempts to retrench it would have been: : reoarded © Buchan. lib, xvii Keith, p.75- Spotfwood, p-95; Ss 393 HISTORY or ENGLAND. Chap. II. regarded as the moft criminal enterprize; and as that prerogative involved SiR) large difcretionary power, any parliamentary enquiry into its exercife, would have pafied’ for infolent and prefumptuous. The commons, therefore, ‘without making/any reflections on the paft, voted, befides a fifteenth, a fubfidy of four fhillings in the pound on land,-aed two fhillings and eight pence on goods... The clergy granted eight fhillings in the pound, payable in four years by equal portions. Tue Parliament alfo pafled an at, confirming all the fales and grants of crown lands, which were cither made already by the Queen, or fhould-be madeduring the feven enfuing years. It was eafy to forefee, that, in the Queen’s prefent dift pofition and fituation, this power would be followed by a great alienation of the crown lands; and nothing could be more contrary to the principles of good go: vernment, than a prince armed with very extenfive authority, and yet reduced to beggary. This act met with oppofition in the houfe of commons. One Copley exprefied his fears left the Queen, under colour of the power there granted, might alienate the crown fromthe lawful heir: But his words were thought érreverent to her majefty: He was committed to the cuftody of the ferjeant at arms ; and tho’ he exprefied forrow for his offence, he was not releafed till the Queen was applied te for his forgivenefs. Tut Englifh nation, during this whole reign, were in continual apprehenfions with regard not only to the fucceffion, but the life of the lady Elizabeth. Theviolent hatred which the Queen bore her, broke out on every occafion; and it required all the authority of Philip, as well as her own great prudence, to prevent the fatal effects of it. The princefs retired into the country ; and knowing that fhe was furrounded with fpies, fhe paft her time wholly in reading and ftudy, intermed- died in no bufinefs, and faw very little company. While the remained in this firua= tion, which was forthe prefent very melancholy, but which prepared her mind for thofe great actions by which her life was afterwards fo much diftinguithed ; pro- pofals of marriage were made her by the Swedifh ambaflador, in his mafter’s name. As her firft queftion was, whether the Queen had been informed of this propoful; the ambaffador told her, that his mafter thought, as he was a gentle.. man, it was his duty firfk to make his addreffes to herfelf; and having obtained her confent, he would next, as.a King, apply to her fitter. But the princefs would allow him to proceed:no further ; and the Queen, after thanking her for this iaftance of duty, defired to know how the flood affeéted to the Swedith pre- polal. Elizabeth, tho’ expofed to many prefent dangers and mortifications, had the magnaninuty toreferve herfelf to better fortune; and the covered her refufal with profeffions of a paffionate attachment to a‘fingle life, which, the faid, the infinitely 8 < ehes Peres ls Pa a <8 a > Se ee = = SATE ut ~—_— = a SS ; NM A R 4%Y. 399 infinitely preferred before any other*. The princefs fhowed like prudence in Chap. Ul. — concealing her fentiments of religion, in complying with the prefent modes of 1559. worfhip,. and in eluding all queftions with regard to that delicate fubject +. Tue money granted by Parliament, enabled the Queen to fit out a fleet of a hundred and forty fail, which, being joined by thirty Flemifh fhips, and carry- ing fix thoufand land forces on board, was fent to make an attempt on the coaft of Brittany. The fleet was commanded by lord Clinton; the land forces by the earls of Huntingdon and Rutland. But the equipment of the fleet and army was fo dilatory, that the French got intelligence of the defign, and were prepared to receive them. The Englifh found Breft tco well guarded to make an attempt on that place; but landing at Conquet, they plundered and burnt the town with fome adjoining villages, and were proceeding to commit greater diforders, when Kerfimon, a Breton gentleman, at the head of fome militia, fell upon them, put them to rout, and drove them to their fhips with confiderable lofs. But a fmall {quadron of ten Englifh fhips, had an opportunity of amply revenging this difgrace upon the French. The Marefchal de Thermes, governor of Calais, had made an irruption into Flanders, with an army of fourteen thoufand men ; and having forced a paffage over the river Aa, had taken Dunkirk, and Berg St. Winoc, and had advanced as far as Newport. But count Egmont coming fud- denly upon him, with fuperior forces, he was obliged to retire; and being over- taken by the Spaniards near Gravelines, he chofe very fkilfully his ground for the 1 engagement. He fortified his left wing with all the precautions poffible; and pofted ‘ his right along the river Aa, which, he reafonably thought, gave him a full fecurity from that quarter. But the Englifh fhips, which were accidentally on the coaft, being drawn by the noile of the firing, failed up the river, and flanking the French, | us did * Burnet, vol. If. Collect. N° 37. ’ + The common net at that time, fays Sir Richard Baker, for catching of proteftants; was the real refence; and this net was ufed to catch the lady Elizabeth : For being afked one time what fhe thought of the words of Chriftt, This is my body, whether fhe thought it the true body of Chrift that was in the: facrament; it is faid, that, after fome paufing, fhe thus anfwered : Chrift was the word that fpake it ; | He took the bread and brake it 5 And what the word did make it, That l-believe and take it. Which, tho’ it may feem but a flight expreffion, yet hath it more folidnefs. than at firft fight appears ; at leaft it ferved her turn at that time, to efcape the net, which by direét anfwer fhe could not have done. Baker’s Chronicle, p. 32 eit Add ee et anes ~- one HOO HISTORY or ENGLAND. Chap. I did fuch execution by their artillery that they put them to flight; and the 1558 Spaniards gained a compleat victory $ | Meranwuite the principal army of France, under the duke of Guife, and that-of Spain, under the duke of Savoy, approached very near each other on the frontiers of Picardy; and as.the two Kings had come into their refpective » camps, attended by the flower of their nobility, men expected that fome great and important event would follow, from the emulation of thefe warlike nations. But Philip, tho’ actuated by the ambition, pofleffed not the enterprize, of a con- queror ; and he was willing, notwithftanding the fuperiority of his numbers, and the two.great, victories which he had gained at St. Quintin and Gravelines, to put a period to the war by atreaty. Negociations were entered into for that purpofe; and as the terms offered by the two monarchs were fomewhat wide of each other, the armies were put. into winter quarters, till the princes could come to better agreement. -Among other conditions, Henry demanded the reftitution of Navarre to its lawful owner; Philip that of Calais and its territory to England : But in the midft of thefe negociations and debates, news arrived of the death of Queen Mary ; and Philip, no longer connected with England, began to relax in his inftances on that capital Sache, This was the only sl Sie tthe which could have made the death.of that princefs alofs to the kingdom. Mary had been Jong in a very declining ftate of health; and having mittaken her dropfy fora pregnancy, fhe had made ufe of an improper regimen, and her malady daily augmented. Every reflection now tormented her: . The confciouf- nefs of being hated by her fubjecéts, the profpeét of Elizabeth’s fucceffion, apprehenfions of the-danger to which the catholic religion flood expofed, dejection for the lofs of Calais||, concern for the ill ftate of her affairs, and, above all, anxiety for the abfence of her hufband, who, fhe knew, intended foon to depart for Spain, and to fettle there during the reft of his life: All thele melancholy circumitances preyed upon her mind, andthrew her into a lingering fever, of Peath of the which. fhe died, after a fhert.and unfortunate reign of five years, four months, Queea. “ 19 Nowembet. and eleven days. Ir is not neceflary toemploy many words in drawing the character of this prin- cefs. She poffeffed few qualities, either eftimable or amiable; and her perfon was as little engaging as her behaviour and addrefs. Obftinacy, bigotry, vio- lence, cruelty, malignity, revenge, ‘tyranny; every circumftance of her cha- racter took atin@ure from her bad temper and narrow underftanding. And amidft t+ Holingfhed, p. 1150. | || The lofs of Calais fo much affet@ed her, that fhe faid to her attendants, that when fhe was dead, they would find Calais at her heart. WS M AR Y. | dt ‘ » amidft that complication of vices, which entered into her compofition, we fhall fcarce find any virtue but fincerity; a quality, which fhe feems to have miain- tained throughout her whole life; except in the beginning of her reign, when the neceffity of her affairs obliged her to make fome promifes to the proteftants, which fhe certainly never intended to perform, But in thefe cafes a weak bi- gotted woman, under the government of prietts, eafily finds cafuiftry fufficient to juftify to herfelf the violation of an engagement. She appears alfo, as well as her father, to have been fufceptible of fome attachments of friendfhip ; and that without the caprice and inconftancy which were fo remarkable in the condué of that monarch. : To which we may add, that; in many circumftances of her life, fhe gave indications of refolution and vigour of mind; a quality, which feems to have been inherent in her family. Carprnar Pole had been long in a declining ftate of health from an intermit- ing fever; and he died the fame day with the Queen, about fixteen hours after her. The benign character of this prelate, the modefty and humanity of his deport- ment, made him be univerfally beloved ; infomuch that in anation, where the moft furious perfecution was carried on, and the moft violent religious factions pre- vailed, entire juftice, even by moft of the reformers, has been done to his merit. The haughty pontiff, Paul the fourth, had entertained fome prejudices againft him , and when England declared war againft Henry, the ally of that pope, he feized the opportunity of revenge, and revoking Pole’s legantine commiffion, appointed Gn his room cardinal Peyto, an obfervantine friar and confeffor to the Queen. But Mary would never permit the new legate to exercife his power; and Paul was afterwards obliged to reftore cardinal Pole to his authority. Tuere occur few general remarks, befides what have been taken notice of in the courfe of our narration, with regard to the general flate of the kingdom during this reign. The naval power of England was then fo inconfiderable, tnat fourteen thoufand pounds being ordered to be applied to the fleet by the treafurer and admiral, both for repairing and victualling it, they computed, that, when that money was expended, ten thoufand pounds a year would afterwards anfwer a'l neceflary charges *.. The arbitrary proceedings of the Queen, abovementioned, join- ed to many monopolies granted by this princefs, as well as by her father, checked very much the growth of trade; and fo much the more, that all other princes in Europe either were not permitted or did not find it neceflary to act in fo tyran- nical a manners . A@is of Parliament, both in the laft reign and in the beginning of the prefent, had laid the fame impofitions on the merchants of the ftill-yard as on other-aliens : Yet the Queen, immediately after her marriage, complied with the 3F follicitations * Burnet, vol. III. p. 259. Chap, FE i558. eee ee eee ees a eae Chap. I, eo 402 HISTORY or ENGLAND. “follicitations of the emperor, and, by her prerogative, fufpended thefe acts of Parliament +. No body in that age pretended to queftion this exercife of the Prerogative, ‘The hiftorians are entirely filent with regard to it; and it is only by the collection of public papers that it is handed down to us. An abfurd law had been made in the preceding reign, by which every one was prohibited from making cloth unlefs he had ferved an apprenticefhip for feven years. This law was repealed in the firft year of the Queen’s reign ; and this plain reafon given, that it had occafioned the decay of the woolen manufac- tory, and had ruined feveral towns{. It is ftrange that Edward’s law fhould have been revived during the reign of Elizabeth; and ftill more ftrange, that it fhould ftill fubfitt. A passacGE to Archangel, by the north of Nova Zembla, had been difcovered by the Englifh during the Jaft reign; and a beneficial trade with Muicovy had been eftablifhed. A folenin embafiy was fent by the Czar to Queen Mary. The ambafladors were fhipwrecked on the coaft of Scotland ; but being hofpitably-en- tertained there, they proceeded on their journey, and were received at London with great pomp and folemnity *. This feems to have been the firft intercourfe, which that empire had with any of the weftern potentates of Europe. “A LAW was paffed in this reign ll, by which the number of horfes, arms, and furniture, was eftablifhed, whic each perfon, according to the extent of his property, fhould be provided of for the defence of the kingdom. A man of a thoufand pounds a year, for inftance, was obliged to maintain at his own charges. fix horfes fit for demi-lances, of which three at leaft to be furnifhed with fuf- ficient harneffes, fteel faddles, and weapons proper for the demi-lances; and ten light horfes fit for light horfemen, with furniture and weapons requifite for them: He was alfo obliged to have forty corflets furnifhed ; fifty almain rivets, or inftead of them, forty coats of plate, corflets or brigandines furnithed ; forty pikes, thirty long bows, thirty fheafs of arrows, thirty fteel caps or fkulls, twenty black bills or halberts, twenty haquebuts, and twenty morions or fallets, ‘We may remark, that a man of a thoufand merks of {tock was rated equal to one of two hundred pounds a year: A proof that few or noneat that time lived on their ftock in money, and-that great profits were made by the merchants in the courfe of their trade. There is no clafs above a thoufand pounds a year. + Rymer, vol. XV. p. 364. 41 Mar. Parl.2, cap.7. * Hollingfhed, p.732. Heylin, Dp. 71¢. t 4 & 5 Phil, & Mar. cap. 2, , THE . / —> “SF ———— 1 ne Salted lege ee agen a ee an “ 7 Se “oe FMC ERE SE eh ee ae oa wig . | i a) needy oF fe 5 gs Fag Rape > See ee SS ~—- = | ‘