June, entitled 'The perils and troubles that may pre- CHAP VIII sently ensue, and in time to come follow, upon the marriage of the Queen of Scots with the Lord Darnley.' 1565 June Agitation in 'The minds,' thus the paper runs, 'of all such as be affected to the Queen of Scots either for herself, or for England. the opinion of her pretences to this Crown, or for the desire to have a change in the form of religion in this realm, or for the discontentation they have of the Queen's Majesty or her successors, or of the succession of any other besides the Queen of Scots, shall be by this marriage erected, comforted, and induced to devise and labour how to bring their desires to pass; and to make some estimate what persons these are, to the intent the quantity of the peril may be weighed, the same may be composed in these sorts either within the realm or without. conse quence of the Darnley marriage. The first are such as are especially devoted to the Probabie Queen of Scots or the Lord Darnley, by bond of blood and alliance-as all the house of Lorraine and Guise for her part; and the Earl of Lennox and his wife with all such in Scotland as be of their blood there, and have received displeasure by the Duke of Chatelherault and the Hamiltons. 'The second are all manner of persons both in this realm and in other countries, that are devoted to the authority of Rome, and mislike of the religion here received; and in these two sorts are the substance of them comprehended that shall take comfort in this marriage. 'Next therefore is to be considered what perils and troubles these kind of men shall intend to this realm. "The general scope and mark of all their designs is and always shall be to bring the Queen of Scots to have the royal Crown of this realm; and therefore, though their devices may vary amongst themselves for the compassing hereof according to the accidents of the times, and according to the impediments which they shall find by 1565 June CHAP VIII means of the Queen's Majesty's actions and government, yet all their purposes shall wholly and only tend to make the Queen of Scots Queen of this realm, and to deprive our sovereign lady thereof. And in these their proceedings there are two manner of things to be considered, the one of which is far worse than the other. The one is intended by them that either for malicious blindness in religion or for natural affection to the Queen of Scots or the Lord Darnley do persuade themselves that the said Queen of Scots hath presently more right to the Crown than our sovereign the Queen, of which sort be all their kindred of both sides and all such as are devoted to the Papacy, either in England, Scotland, Ireland, or elsewhere. The other is meant of them which less maliciously are persuaded that the Queen of Scots hath only right to be the next heir to succeed the Queen's Majesty and her issue, of which sort few are without the realm, but here within; and yet of them not so many as are of the contrary. And from these two sorts shall the devices and practices proceed. 'From the first are to be looked for these perils. It is to be doubted that the devil will infect some of them to imagine the hindrance of our dearest sovereign lady by such means as the devil will suggest to them; although it is to be assuredly hoped that Almighty God will-as hitherto He hath-graciously protect and preserve her from such dangers. "There will be attempted by persuasions, by bruits and rumours and such like, to alienate the minds of good subjects from the Queen's Majesty, and to conciliate them to the Queen of Scots, and in this behalf the frontier and the north will be much solicited and laboured. There will be attempted tumults and rebellions, specially in the north towards Scotland, so as thereupon may follow some open extremity by violence. There will be by the 1565 June said Queen's Council and friends a new league made with CHAP VIII France or Spain that shall be offensive to this realm and a furtherance to their title; and it is also likely they will set on foot as many practices as they can both upon the frontier and in Ireland to occasion the Queen's Majesty to continue her charges, thereby to retain her from being wealthy or potent. From the second is not much to be feared; but they will content themselves to serve notedly the Queen's Majesty, and so to impeach her not to marry; but to hope that the Queen of Scots shall have issue, which they will think to be more plausible to all men, because thereby the houses of England and Scotland shall be united in one, and thereby the occasions of war shall cease; with which persuasions many people may be seduced and abused to incline. themselves to the Queen of Scots." The several points thus prepared by Cecil for the consideration of the Council were enlarged in the discussion which ensued on them. dangers an Darnley By some it was thought plainly that the peril was Especial greater by the marriage with the Lord Darnley than ticipated with the mightiest prince abroad;' a stranger would from the have few friends in England; the Lord Darnley being marriage. an English subject whatever power he could make by the faction of the Papists or other discontented persons would be so much deducted from the power of the realm.' 'A small faction of adversaries at home was more dangerous than thrice their number abroad;' and it was remembered that 'foreign powers had never prevailed in England but with the help of some at home.' It had been observed and manifestly seen before this 1 COTTON MSS., Calig, B. 10. ELIZ. II. M 1565 June of the English CHAP VIII attempt at marriage, that in every corner of the realm the factions that most favoured the Scottish title had grown stout and bold;' 'they had shown themselves in the very Court itself; and unless checked promptly they would grow so great and dangerous as redress would be almost desperate.' 'Scarcely a third of the population were assured to be trusted in the matter of religion, upon which only string the Queen of Scots' Effect of the title did hang;' and 'comfort had been given to the persecution adversaries of religion in the realm to hope for change,' 'by means that the bishops had dealt straightly with some persons of good religion because they had forborne to wear certain apparel and such like things-being more of form and accident than any substance.' 'The pride and arrogancy of the Catholics had been increased' by the persecution of the Protestants; while if the bishops attempted to enforce conformity on the other side, the judges and lawyers in the realm being not the best affected in religion did threaten them with premunire, and in many cases letted not to punish and defame them,' 'so that they dared not execute the ecclesiastical laws.' For much of all this the Queen was responsible. She it was who more than any other person had nursed the Scottish faction' at the Court. If the bishops had been too eager to persecute the Catholics, it was she who had compelled Parker to suspend the ablest of the Protestant ministers. But the sum of the perils was made so apparent as no one of the Council could deny them to be both many and very dangerous.' They were agreed, every one of them, that the Queen must for the present relinquish her zeal for uniformity, and that the prosecutions of the clergy must cease till the question could be reconsidered by Parliament; they determined to require June advise measures. the oaths of allegiance of the judges, 'so that they should CHAP VIII for conscience-sake maintain the Queen's authority;' to 1565 replace the nonjuring bishops in the Tower, to declare forfeited all benefices held by ecclesiastics who were re- The Council siding abroad, and to drive out a number of seditious vigorous monks and friars who had fled across the Border from Scotland and were serving as curates in the northern churches. Bedford meanwhile should go down to Berwick, taking additional troops with him; the 'powers of the Border' should be held in readiness to move at an hour's notice; and a reserve be raised in London to march north in case of war. Lennox and Darnley might then be required to return to England on their allegiance. If they refused they would be declared traitors, and their extradition demanded of the Queen of Scots under the treaties. So far the Council was unanimous. As to what should be done if the Queen of Scots refused to surrender them opinions were divided. The bolder party were for declaring immediate war and sending an army to Edinburgh; others preferred to wait till events had shaped themselves more distinctly; all however agreed on the necessity of vigour, speed, and resolution. No persons deserving of mistrust were to be suffered to have any rule of her Majesty's subjects or lands in the north.' They might retain their fees,' 'but more trusty persons should have the rule of their people.' The Earl of Murray and his friends should be comforted and supported; and considering the faction and title of the Queen of Scots had for a long time received great countenance by the Queen's Majesty's favour shown to the said Queen and her ministers,' the Council found themselves compelled to desire her Majesty 'by some exterior act to show some remission of her displeasure to the Lady Catherine and the Earl of Hertford.' |