Introduct. some of the Spaniards, "That the King should never have a quiet government in England, if her head were not stricken off King Philip from her shoulders1." With which the King being made

interferes in

her favour.

1555.

acquainted, he resolved to use his best endeavour, not only to
preserve her life, but obtain her liberty; for he considered with
himself, that, if the Princess should be taken away, the right of
the succession would remain in the Queen of Scots, who, being
married to the Daulphin of France, would be a means of join-
ing this kingdom unto that, and thereby gain unto the French
the sovereignty or supreme command above all other Kings in
Europe2. He considered also with himself that the Queen
was not very healthy, supposed at that time to be with child,
but thought by others of more judgment not to be like to
bring him any children to succeed in the Crown,-and hoped
by such a signal favour to oblige the Princess to accept him
for her husband, on the Queen's decease; by means whereof 9
he might still continue master of the treasures and strength 2
of England in all his wars against the French, or any other
nation which maligned the greatness of the Austrian family.
Upon which grounds he dealt so effectually with the Queen,
that order was given about a fortnight after Easter to the Lord
Williams and Sir Henry Bedingfield to bring their prisoner
to the Court; which command was not more cheerfully exe-
cuted by the one, than stomached and repined at by the other.
Being brought to Hampton Court, where the Queen then
lay, she was conducted by a back way to the Prince's lodg-
ings, where she continued a fortnight and more without being
seen or sent to by any body, Bedingfield and his guards being
still about her; so that she seemed to have changed the
place, but not the prison, and to be so much nearer danger,
by how much she was nearer unto those who had power to
work it. At last a visit was bestowed upon her, but not
without her earnest suit in that behalf, by the Bishop of
Winchester, Lord Chancellor, the Earls of Arundel and Shrews-
bury, and Sir William Petre; whom she right joyfully received,
desiring them to be a means unto the Queen that she might be
freed from that restraint under which she had been kept so
long together.

1 1 Fox, viii. 618.

2 Camd. Eliz. 368.

25. Which being said, the Bishop of Winchester, kneeling Introduct. down, besought her to submit herself unto the Queen, that being, as he said, the only probable expedient to effect her liberty. To whom she answered as before, that, rather than she would betray her innocence by such submission, she would be content to lie in prison all the days of her life. "For by so doing," (said she), "I must confess myself to be an offender, which I never was against her Majesty, in thought, word, or deed; and where no just offence is given, there needs no submission." Some other overtures being made to the same effect, but all unto as little purpose, she is at last brought before the Queen, (whom she had not seen in more than one year before), about ten of the clock at night; before whom falling on her knees, she desired God to preserve her Majesty,—not doubting, as she said, but that she should prove herself to be as good a subject to her Majesty as any other whosoever. Being first dealt with by the Queen to confess some offence against herself, and afterwards to acknowledge her imprisonment not to be unjust, she absolutely refused the one, and very handsomely declined the other. So that no good being to be gotten on her on either hand, she was dismissed with some uncomfortable words from the present interview, and about a week after was discharged of Bedingfield and his guard of soldiers. It was reported that King Philip stood behind the hangings, and hearkened unto every word which passed between them, to the end that, if the Queen should grow into any extremity, he might come in to pacify her displeasures and calm her passions. He knew full well how passionately this Princess was beloved by the English nation, and that he could not at the present more endear himself to the whole body of the people than by effecting her enlargement; which shortly after being obtained, she was permitted to retire to her own houses in the country, remaining sometimes in one, and sometimes in another, but never without fear of being remanded unto prison, till the death of Gardiner, which happened on the 12th of November then next following. Some speech there was, and it was earnestly endeavoured by the Popish party, of marrying her to Emanuel Philebert Duke of Savoy1, as being a Prince that lived far off and where she could give no encouragement to any malcontented party in the

1 He visited England in 1554-5, arriving on Dec. 27. Stow, 626.

264 THE HISTORY OF QUEEN ELIZABETH.

Introduct. realm of England. Against which, none so much opposed as the King, who had a design on her for himself, as before is said; and rather for himself than for Charles his son, (though it be so affirmed by Cambden')-the Princess being then in the twenty-second year of her age, whereas the young Prince was 1 not above seven or eight. So that, a resolution being finally 27. fixed of keeping her within the kingdom, she lived afterwards for the most part with less vexations, but not without many watchful eyes upon all her actions, till it pleased God to call her to the Crown of England. She had much profited by the pedagogy of Ascham2 and the rest of her schoolmasters, but never improved herself so much as in the school of affliction, by which she learned the miseries incident to subjects when they groan under the displeasure of offended Princes; that the displeasures of some Princes are both made and cherished by the art of their ministers, to the undoing of too many innocent persons who do less deserve it; that it is therefore necessary that the ears of Princes should be open unto all complaints, and their hands ready to receive petitions from all sorts of people, to the end that, knowing their grievances and distresses, they may commiserate them in the one, and afford them remedy in the other; that a good Prince must have somewhat in him of the priest, who, if he be not sensible of the infirmities of his brethren, cannot be thought to intercede so powerfully in their behalf as when he hath been touched with the true sense and feeling of their extremities; and finally, that the school is never better governed than by one who hath past through all the forms and degrees thereof, and, having been perfectly trained up in the ways of obedience, must know the better how to use both the rod and ferula, when he comes to be the master of the rest.

1 Ann. Eliz. 368.

2 Ascham to Sturmius, Works, ed. Bennet, p. 351.

1.

Elizabeth.

LIZABETH, the only child then living of King Henry Accession of the Eighth, succeeded her sister in the throne on the 17th of November, anno 1558; Ferdinand of Austria being then Emperor, Henry the Second King of the French, Philip the Second King of Spain, and Paul the Fourth commanding in the Church of Rome. Queen Mary not long before her death had called a Parliament, which was then sitting when the news thereof was brought unto the Lords in the house of Peers. The news by reason of the Queen's long sickness not so strange unto them as to take them either unresolved or unprovided for the declaring of their duty to the next successor; though some of them, perhaps, had some secret wishes that the Crown might have fallen rather upon any other than upon her to whom it did of right belong; so that, upon a short debate amongst themselves, a message is sent to the Speaker of the House of Commons, desiring him and all the members of that house to come presently to them, upon a business of no small importance to the good of the kingdom. Who being come, the Lord Chancellor Heath, with a composed and settled countenance, not without sorrow enough for the death of the one, or any discontent for the succession of the other, declared unto them, in the name of the rest of the Lords, that God had taken to his mercy the late Queen Mary, and that the succession to the Crown did belong of right to the Princess Elizabeth, whose title they conceived to be free from all legal questions; that in such cases nothing was more necessary than expedition, for the preventing of all such plots and practices of any discon

AN. REG. 1, tented or ambitious persons as might be set on foot to the
1558. disturbance of the common quiet: and therefore that their con-

currence was desired in proclaiming the new Queen with all
speed that might be, they being then so opportunely convened
together as the representees1 of the whole body of the Commons
of the Realm of England. Which being said, the Knights
and Burgesses gave a ready consent to that which they had no
reason to deny; and they which gave themselves some thoughts
of inclining otherwise, conceived their opposition to the general
vote neither safe nor seasonable3. So that immediately the
Princess Elizabeth was proclaimed by the King at Arms, 102
first before Westminster Hall door in the Palace Yard, in 27
the presence of the Lords and Commons, and not long after
at the Cross in Cheapside and other places in the City, in
the presence of the Lord Mayor, Aldermen, and principal
citizens, to the great joy of all peaceable and well affected
people 4.

2. It was not long before the Princess had advertisement
of the death of her sister, together with the general acknow-
ledgement of her just and lawful title to the Crown Imperial.
The news whereof being brought unto her by some of the
Lords, she prepared for her removal from Hatfield on the
Saturday after, (being the 19th of that month) and with a
great and royal train set forwards to London. At Highgate,
four miles from the city, she was met by all the Bishops then
living, who presented themselves before her upon their knees,
in testimony of their loyalty and affection to her. In which
address as she seemed to express no small contentment, so she
gave to each of them particularly her hand to kiss, except only
unto Bonner of London, whose bloody butcheries had rendered
him uncapable in her opinion of so great a favour5. At her
first coming to the city she took her lodging in the Charterhouse,
where she staid some days, till all things in the Tower might
be fitted and prepared for her reception. Attended by the

1 Qu. "representers ?"

2 Stow, 635. Holinshed, iv. 155.

Hayward's First Four Years of Elizabeth, edited by John Bruce, Esq., for the Camden Society, 1840, pp. 2-3. (The less complete edition of this work, published in 1636 with the same author's Life of Edward VI., was one of Heylyn's chief authorities for the time which it embraces.)

4

Holinsh. iv. 156. Hayw. 3.

5

* Stow, 635.