necessarye Reformation of many Things; and so draw home also therby, with lesse Difficultye, such as had separated themselves, and were swerved from the Catholike Faith of Christ. Which my great Desyre having brought, by God's Goodnes, to a very good Pointe; the French Kinge suddenely, without all Reasone, or any good Foundation, alluring to his Ayde the Allmaynes, and making a League with them, agaynst theire Othes and Fydelityes, brake with me, and openned the Warre agaynst me, bothe by Sea and the Land. And not satisfyed herewith, he procured the coming of the Turcques Armye, to the Notable Domage of Christendome; and namely of our Estates, and Seigneueryes; wherby I was forced, and dryven to bring an Armye to my no little Trouble, aswell by my great Payns taken in myne own Persone in the Felde, as by my Traveil otherwise; which thereuppon I was constrayned to endure, in the treating and maynayng of sundry urgent and great Matters daylie and contynually falling out upon the same; which were the greate, and in Effect, the onlye Occasions of the greate and paunefull Infirmity and Indisposition of my Body; which I have since had these Yeres passed, and yet have, wherby I find myself so encumbred, and so destitute of Healthe, that not onely have I been, or ame ably by myne own Persone to discharge such a Traveil, and to use such a Diligence in Resolutions, as was requisyte; but have also, which I do confesse, been a Lett, and an Hindrance to sundry Things wherof I have had, and now have a greate Conscynce. And I wold to God I had sooner taken therin such an Order as I now am determyned to take: Which nevertheles for many Considerations, I could not well doe, in the Absence of the High and Mighty Prince, the King of England and Naples, and my Right Dear and Right Well-beloved Sonne: For that it was necessary many Things to be First communicated unto him, and to be treated with him. And for this Purpose, after the Marriage put in dew Execution with the High and excellent Princesse, the Queen of England, I lastly took Order for his coming hither: And within a short Tyme after I took Order to resigne, and to renounce unto him, lyke as I have done, all those my Es tates, Kingdomes, and Seigneueryes, of the Crown of Castella and Leon with all their Membres and Appertennes, in such sorte as more fully and more amplye is conteyned in such Instruments as I have signed and agreed unto of the Date of these Presents; trusting that with his greate Wysedome and Experience, whereof I have hitherto had a right greate Proofe in all such Things as have been passed and handled by him for me, and in my Name, he will now for himself, and in his own Name, Govern, Order, Defend, and Mainteyne the same with Peas and Justice. And not doubting but that according unto your Olde and Comendable Loyaltye, Fayth, Love, and Obedyence, which you have borne, and do beare, both to him and to me; wherof for my Parte, I have had always large Experyence by your Deeds, you will serve him and obey him as apperteyneth to my Trust and your Duties; for the Good-Will borne to you so many Yeres. Commanding you nevertheles, and straightly charging you that displaying and setting upp Banners, and doing all other Ceremonies, and Solemnities requisyte, and which have been accustomed to have been done in like Cases, for the dew Execution of the Purpose above sayed, in the same Manner and Sorte as yf God had taken me unto his Mercy, you doe Obey, Serve, and Honour, from henceforth the saide King, accomplishing his Will and Pleasure in all such Things as he shall by Word and Writing Command you, as you ought to doe to your true and natural Lord and King: Even as you have, and ought to have, during my Reigne passed to you from me : Wherin besydes that you shall doe your Duetyes, and doe that as you are bound to doe, you shall doe unto me acceptable Pleasure. Given at Brussells the 17th of Januarie, 1556. Copye of the Lettre sent by the Emperor to sundry Estates in Spaine, upon the resigning of the same unto the King's Majestie; turned out of Spanish into English. XL. A Remembrance of those Things that your Highnes's Pleasure was I shold put in Writing, as most Convenient in my Pore Judgment, to be commoned and spoken of by your Majestie, with your Counsell, called to your Presence thys Afternoone. (Titus, B. 2. P. 177.) Written in the Hand of Cardinal Pole. FURST of al, that your Majestie shold put them yn Remembrance of the Charge the Kyng's Highnes gave them at his Departure; which beyng reduced to certen Articles, and put in Writing, it seemeth wel if some of the Lords for ther sudden Departure after ther Charge had not the same VOL. III, PART II. 2 C in Writing, that it were rehersed and given unto them with Exhortation to employ al their Diligence for the Due Execution therof. And whereas amongst other Charges, thys was one, that those that be named in the first parte Counsellours, were al to be present in the Courte, thys first your Highnes may require them that they do observe: Specially beside, for the Weight of the Matters that be now in hand; the Tyme besyde being so shorte, after the Parliament to examyn them. And that the King's Plesure ys, as the Matters be proposed in the Counsell, afore the further Execution of them, to be ynformed therof, to knoe his Pleasure theryn. And amongst other, hys Majestie beyng in Expectation to know the uttre Resolution of the Councell, twichyng those Matters that be to be intreatyd in thys Parliament. Thys ys that your Majestie looketh of them thys Day, to send with all spede to the Kyng's Highnes. And wheras for the Dylation of the Kyng's comyng, your Majestie thought it well to put in Consulte, whether it were better therfor to make a Dilation and Prorogation of the Parliament to Candelmas, beyng thought bey ther Opinion, that for Necessite of Money that is to be demanded in the Parliament, and otherwyse can not be provided, the Prorogation of that should be much dispendiose. Your Majestie not disalowing their Deliberation ; but consydering wyth all the great Need of Money for to be had, for the Discharge of the present Necessite, which requyreth present Provision of Money, as is for the settyng forth of the Ships, as wel for the Emperor's Passage to Spain, as for the King's Return. And besyde thys, for the Payment of that is dew at Calise, as for your Credyte wyth the Merchants approchyng the Day of Payment; and for the Dett of Ireland also, of al these it may please your Majestie to know thys Day of your Counsell what is don. And bycause the most ordynarie and just way, touching the Provision of Money to pay your Highnes Detts, is to call in your own Detts; which Charge hath been specially committed afore, and is principally considered and renewed in the Writing the Kyng's Highnes left tuchyng such Affayres, that his Counsell shold presently attend into, wher be ther Names also that same: The Charges speciall therefore, your Majestie shall do wel this day to charge them with the same; that with all Diligence they attend to the Prossecution therof, givyng them all Autoryte that shal be necessary for them, to make the most spedy Expedition theryn. Wylling them withall, that they never let pass one Week, but in the end of the same, at the least, your Majestie may know specially of that is coming yn, and that Order is taken for the rest. Also yf it pleasyd your Majestie in generall, for all Matters whych be intreated in the Counsell, which requyre Commission and Execution, to give thys Order, that those that have had Commission to execute any Mattier, let never passe the Weke, but they ynforme the Counsell what Execution is made of ther Commyssions: And that the Counsell themselfs should never begyn Entretance of new Matters the Second Week; but that they have Information first, what is done in those which wer commytted to be executyd the Week afore; I think it should help much to the spedy Expedition of all Causes. Thys ys my poore Advyse, remitted al to the godly and prudent Judgment of your Majestie. XLI. Some Directions for the Queen's Council; left by King Philip. (Cotton Libr. Titus, B. 1.) IMPRIMIS, pro meliori et magis expedita Deliberatione, in iis quæ in Consilio nostro agenda sunt ex reliquis Consiliariis nostris ; eos, quorum Nomina sequuntur, seligendos putavimus; quibus specialem Curam omnium Causarum Status, Finantiarum, et aliarum Causarum Graviorum Regni, committendam duximus et committimus. Legatus Cardinalis POLUS, in Causis magnis, ubi D. Cancellarius. Episcopus Eliensis. Comes de Arundell. Mr. Petre Secretarius. Consiliarij prædicti omnes et singuli erunt præsentes in Aula, et intelligent, et considerabunt omnes Causas Status, omnes Causas Financiarum, Statum Possessionum, Debitorum, et quomodo Debita cum honore solvi possint; et generaliter, omnes alias Causas majoris momenti, tangentes Honorem, Dignitatem, et Statum Coronæ. Et quo melius Concilium Nobis dare possint, hortamur eos in Domino, quod omnem discordiam, si quæ inter eos sit, mutuo remittentes, concorditer, amicè, et in timore Dei, ea in Consiliis proponant et dicant, quæ Dei Gloriam, Nostrum et Regni nostri Honorem et Utilitatem, promovere possint. Volumus, quod quoties aliqua erit Occasio, Nos adeant, vel aliquos ex se mittant, per quos intelligere possimus Deliberationes suas, in omnibus Causis quæ coram eis proponentur, et ad minus ter qualibet Septimana, referant Nobis quæ fuerint per eos acta et deliberata. Dicti Consiliarij deliberabunt de Parliamento, quo tempore habendum fit, et quæ in eodem agi et proponi debeant: Et quæ agenda et proponenda videbuntur in Parliamento, in Scriptis redigi volumus, ante Parliamento initium. Quod singulis diebus Dominicis, communicent reliquis Consiliariis præsentibus, ea quæ videbuntur eis communi canda. Quod habeant specialem Curam pro Debitorum solutione, diminutione Sumptuum, et provida gubernatione et collectione Reddituum, Terrarum, Possessionum et Vectigalium, et pro Administratione Justitiæ. XLII. A Letter to the Ambassadors, concerning the Restitution of Calais. (Paper-Office.) AFTER our right harty Commendations to your good Lordships, by our last Letters of the 4th of this Mounth, we signifyed unto you our well Lyking of your Opinions, to have the Matter touching Calleys moved in the Parliament: And that we being also of the same Mynde our selfs, ment to propose the Case there with all the Expedition we might, and to make you Answer of that sholde be farther resolved therein, as shortly as we could. Sence which Tyme, uppon Consultation had amongst our selfs, how the Matter shold best be opened and used there: And being of Opinion, as we have byn from the Begyning, that it were not convenient to have the same broken to the hole House, but only to the Nobilitie, and some other of the best and gravest Sort; We thought it allso necessarie, before we proceeded any farther, both to declare our Opinions unto the Queen's Majestie, and to understand her Highnesses good Pleasure and Resolution therein. Whose Majestie, uppon the opening thereof unto her, thought mete for good Respects, we sholde fyrst write unto the King's Highnes to such effect, |