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HENRY VIII.-1509.

4. Amongst other things, he ordered that two thousand prayers should be said for him, for which no more than sixpence apiece was to be paid. One or two of his bequests, however, show something like a conscience. He ordered that restitution should be made to those persons from whom Empson and Dudley had extorted more than the law would warrant.

5. He also ordered the debts to be paid of all persons who were imprisoned in London for sums under forty shillings. He died on the 21st of April, 1509, in the twenty-fourth year of his reign, and the fifty-fourth of his age.

6. Though the reign of Henry VII. was on the whole favorable to liberty, there was one institution of his which proved, as we shall see in the course of our history, an instrument of the greatest oppression. This was the Star Chamber, an arbitrary court of law, in which the king used to attend in person as judge. It was called the Star Chamber, from the decorations of the room in which the sessions were held.

FAMILY OF HENRY VII.

Elizabeth, daughter of Edward IV.

WIFE.

SONS.

Arthur, who was espoused to Catharine of Anjou, and died before his father. Henry, who succeeded his father on the throne.

DAUGHTERS.

Margaret, married to James IV., of Scotland, and afterwards to Douglas, Earl of Angus.

Mary, married first to Louis XII., of France; afterwards to the Duke of Suffolk.

Children

Margaret.

James V., of Scotland, father of Mary, Queen of Scots,
Margaret Douglas, mother of Henry Darnley, and of Charles of
Stuart, father of Lady Arabella Stuart,
Margaret Brandon, daughter of Mary, and the mother of Lady Jane Grey.

CHAPTER CXXIII.

Henry VIII.—Happy Circumstances under which he came to the Throne.-Rise of Wolsey.

1. THERE was great joy in England at the accession of Henry VIII.; for his father had incurred the hatred of the people by his jealousy, his severity, and his avarice. The new king was only eighteen

of the marriage of his sons? 2. What o`his own marriage? 5. When did he die? What was the length of his reign? What his age?

CARDINAL WOLSEY.-1509.

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years old, but he gave the most promising hopes of making a good sovereign, by the progress he had made in his literary studies; for he had received what was then thought a good education, and had more learning than most princes of his time.

2. He was distinguished for the strength and beauty of his person, and for his skill in all athletic exercises. His complexion was fresh and ruddy, and the animation of his manner appeared to great advantage, after the gloom and reserve of the late king.

3. The contending titles of York and Lancaster were united in his person; his father had left him an enormous treasure, and the country was free from foreign and from domestic wars. In short, no king of England ever began to reign under more prosperous circumstances. But though free from all external foes, he had one implacable enemy that pursued him from the earliest to the latest hour of his life, and that enemy was his own violent temper.

4. The naturally lavish disposition of the young king made him yield readily to the influence of the Earl of Surrey, who sought to engage him in such a course of amusements as might make him negligent of public business, and willing to trust the affairs of state entirely to his ministers.

5. The hoarded wealth of Henry VII. was rapidly squandered in tournaments and other expensive entertainments, to the great grief of his son's careful counsellor, Fox, Bishop of Winchester, who, finding remonstrances unavailing, introduced at court Thomas Wolsey, who had already shown himself to be a very shrewd and dexterous man, by whose assistance he hoped to counteract the

CXXIII.--1, 2. What is said of Henry VIII.'s character? 3. Under what circumstances did he ascend the throne? 4, 5. What is said of his early conduct? How did Fox try to

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CARDINAL WOLSEY.-1509-1512.

influence of Surrey and to restrain the follies of the youthful king.

6. Wolsey, who for a time acted a more important part in the affairs of the world than even his master, was the son of a butcher at Ipswich. The great abilities and the fondness for study which he showed in his childhood, led to his being sent to the University of Oxford, where he took his first degree at so early an age as to be called the boy bachelor.

7. Having filled various stations with great reputation, he came at last to be made one of the king's chaplains. His merit was not long overlooked by Henry VIII., who, having occasion to send to the Emperor of Germany upon a matter that required despatch, as well as adroitness, selected Wolsey for the office.

8. The latter, having received his instructions, set off on his journey, and made such haste, that he was back again on the third day, and presented himself at court. The king, who was not used to such despatch in his courtiers, blamed him for not being yet gone, since the matter required haste; to which Wolsey replied by presenting him with the emperor's answer.

9. The king wondered much at his speed, but then asked him if he had met a messenger, who had been sent after him to inform him of a special matter which had been forgotten in his instructions. 10. To which Wolsey answered, "May it please your grace, I met him yesterday by the way, but that matter I had attended to before, taking the boldness to do it without authority, as know ing it to be of special consequence; for which boldness I humbly entreat your grace's pardon." The king not only pardoned him, but bestowed upon him a lucrative office.

11. Wolsey soon acquired an unbounded influence over Henry VIII.; but he made a very different use of it from what Bishop Fox had intended; for he employed only it to encourage the king's follies and to promote his own advancement. He was soon made Archbishop of York, and chancellor.

12. The ignorant of all ranks attributed this influence to witchcraft, but more discerning men perceived that flattery was the art which Wolsey used. He affected to look up to Henry as the wisest of mortals. He promoted his amusements, and joined in them with the gayety of youth; thus, making himself agreeable as well as useful, he ruled for ten years, with absolute sway, one of the most capricious and passionate of men.

counteract the influence of Surrey? 6. Who was Wolsey? What of his early life? 8, 9, 10. What anecdote is related of his skill in business? 11, 12. What of his influence with Henry VIII.?

MORE ABOUT CARDINAL WOLSEY.

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CHAPTER CXXIV.

More about Cardinal Wolsey.—Untoward Accident which befell a Dig nitary of the Church.— Wolsey and the young Nobleman.

1. THE pope, observing the great influence which Wolsey had with the king, was desirous of engaging him in his interest, and made him a cardinal. Never did a churchman equal him in state and dignity. His train consisted of eight hundred servants, of whom many were knights and gentlemen, and the young nobles served as his pages.

2. He was the first clergyman in England that wore silk and gold, not only on his dress, but also on the saddles and the trappings of his horses. The tallest and handsomest priests were selected to carry before him the badges of his different offices. All this ostentation, instead of awing the people, only excited their merriment, and this was increased by an accident which happened to a brother cardinal. 3. Pope Leo X. sent a cardinal to solicit Henry to engage in a war against the Turks. Wolsey, hearing of his arrival at Calais with a retinue in a pretty ragged condition, sent over a quantity of red cloth, to enable them to make an appearance more becoming, as he conceived, the dignity of their lord.

4. Wolsey gave directions for the reception of the ambassador at Dover with great distinction, but was much mortified at finding that eight mules could bear all his baggage. Thinking these not enough for his honor, he sent him twelve more.

66

5. But now," as the old chronicler says, "see the shame of pride; for as they passed through Cheapside, in London, the mules by some mischance overthrew their coffers on the ground, whose lids flying open, showed the world what treasure it was that they carried, -old breeches, boots, and broken shoes, bones and crusts of bread; exposing him to the laughter of all the people; yet the cardinal went jogging on before, with his crosses, his gilt axe and mace, borne before him."

6. Wolsey was very courteous to his dependants, and those who flattered and assisted him, but oppressive to the people, and haughty and arrogant in his treatment of the nobility. This conduct sometimes met with a mortifying rebuff.

7. An extravagant young nobleman, having lately sold an estate containing a hundred houses, came ruffling into court in a new suit of clothes, saying, "Am not I a mighty man, that bear a hundred houses on my back?" which Wolsey hearing, said, “You might better have employed it in paying your debts." Indeed, my lord," says the noe, “you say well; for, my lord, my father owed to your father three half-pence for a calf's-head; hold, here is two-pence for it."

8. Nothing short of the popedom would satisfy the ambition of

CXXIV.-1. What of Wolsey's style of living? 3, 4, 5. Relate the accident which befell the pope's ambassador. 6, 7. Relate the anecdote of Wolsey and the young noble

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HENRY VIII. INVADES FRANCE.-1513.

Wolsey. To procure the favor of the foreign princes by whose patronage he hoped to obtain it, he sacrificed the interests of his own country, and made the king his perpetual dupe.

9. Wolsey was a liberal patron of letters. Erasmus, a very learned man, who went from Holland to teach Greek at Oxford, tells us that "this extraordinary man had a genius and a taste for learning, in which he had made great proficiency in his youth, and for which he retained a regard in the highest elevation."

Ha

10. He invited the most learned men by his noble salaries. Ht furnished the libraries with the best books of that day. He recalled the learned languages, without which all learning is lame. began the erection of a college at Oxford, intending to call it Car dinal College; but he did not retain his power long enough to finish it. Henry VIII. seized upon its remains, and, completing the building, took to himself the credit of establishing it.

CHAPTER CXXV.

Henry invades France.—Battle of the Spurs.—Battle of Flodden Field. -The Emperor Charles V. visits England.—The Field of the Cloth of Gold.

1. HENRY aspired to the fame of being a great warrior. After making immense preparations, in 1513 he landed at Calais. From thence he proceeded to lay siege to Terouanne. A body of French troops was sent to the succor of the town. Henry, hearing of their approach, sent some troops to oppose them.

2. Notwithstanding the French troops consisted of men whose courage had been tried in many desperate battles, they fled so precipitately at the approach of the English, that the engagement has been called the Battle of the Spurs.

3. Scarcely ever was the French monarchy in greater danger than after this defeat; for it was in no condition to defend itself against the powerful army of Henry. But that monarch's passion for military glory was already satisfied, and, after taking Tournay, he returned to England.

4. Upon the same day that Tournay was taken, a battle was fought at Flodden, between James IV. of Scotland, and an English army under Lord Surrey, afterwards Duke of Norfolk. This is the battle of Flodden Field, so celebrated in the old ballads; and so finely described by Scott in the poem of Marmion. The Scots were defeated, and James was killed.

nan. 8. What was now the object of Wolsey's ambition? 9, 10. What of his patronage of learning?

CXXV.-1. When did Henry invade France? 2. What name is given to a battle with the French? Why? 4. What battle was fought in Scotland? With what result?