posture of Simnel, would put a stop to the credulity of the populace. The expedient had its effect in England: but in Ireland the people still persisted in their revolt, and zealously retorted on the king the reproach of propagating an imposture, and of having shown a counterfeit Warwic to the public. Henry had soon reason to apprehend that the design against him was not laid on such slight foundations as the absurdity of the contrivance seemed to indicate. John earl of Lincoln, son of John de la Pole, duke of Suffolk, and of Elizabeth, eldest sister to Edward IV., was engaged to take part in the conspiracy. This nobleman, who possessed capacity and courage, had entertained very aspiring views; and his ambition was encouraged by the known intentions of his uncle Richard, who had formed a design, in case he himself should die without issue, of declaring Lincoln successor to the crown. The king's jealousy against all eminent persons of the York party, and his rigour towards Warwic, had farther struck Lincoln with apprehensions, and made him resolve to seek for safety in the most dangerous counsels. Having fixed a secret correspondence with sir Thomas Broughton, a man of great interest in Lancashire, he retired to Flanders, where Lovel had arrived a little before him; and he lived during some time in the court of his aunt the duchess of Burgundy, by whom he had been invited over. 1 INTRIGUES OF THE DUCHESS OF BURGUNDY. MARGARET, widow of Charles the Bold, duke of Burgundy, not having any children of her own, attached herself, with an entire friendship, to her daughter-in-law, married to Maximilian archduke of Austria; and after the death of that princess, she persevered in her affection to Philip and Margaret her children, and occupied herself in the care of their education and of their persons. By her virtuous conduct and demeanour she had acquired great authority among the Flemings; and lived with much dignity, as well as economy, upon that ample dowry which she inherited from her husband. The resentments of this princess were no less warm than her friendships; and that spirit of faction, which it is so difficult for a social and sanguine temper to guard against, had taken strong possession of her heart, and intrenched somewhat on the probity which shone forth in the other parts of her character. Hearing of the malignant jealousy entertained by Henry against her family, and his oppression of all its partisans, she was moved with the highest indignation, and she determined to make him repent of that enmity to which so many of her friends, without any reason or necessity, had fallen victims.....1487. After consulting with Lincoln and Lovel, she hired a body of two thousand veteran Germans, under the command of Martin Swart, a brave and experienced officer; 17 and sent them over, together with these two noblemen, to join Simnel in Ireland. The countenance given by persons of such high rank, and the accession of this military force, much raised the courage of the Irish, and made them entertain the resolution of invading England, where they believed the spirit of disaffection as prevalent as it appeared to be in Ireland. The poverty also under which they laboured made it impossible for them to support any longer their new court and army, and inspired them with a strong desire of enriching them. selves by plunder and preferment in England. Henry was not ignorant of these intentions of his ene mies; and he prepared himself for defence. He ordered troops to be levied in different parts of the kingdom, and put them under the command of the duke of Bedford and earl of Oxford. He confined the marquis of Dorset, who he suspected would resent the injuries suffered by his mother the queen-dowager: and, to gratify the people by an appearance of devotion, he made a pilgrimage to our lady of Walsingham, famous for miracles; and there offered up prayers for success, and for deliverance from his enemies. Being informed that Simnel was landed at Foudrey in Lancashire, he drew together his forces, and advanced towards the enemy as far as Coventry. The rebels had entertained hopes that the disaffected counties in the North would rise in their favour: but the people in general, averse to join Irish and German invaders, convinced of Lambert's imposture, and kept in awe by the king's repu tation for success and conduct, either remained in tranquil. lity, or gave assistance to the royal army. The earl of Lincoln, therefore, who commanded the rebels, finding no hopes but in victory, was determined to bring the matter to a speedy decision; and the king, supported by the native courage of his temper, and emboldened by a great accession of volunteers, who had joined him under the earl of Shrewsbury and lord Strange, declined not the combat. BATTLE OF STOKE. June 6. THE hostile armies met at Stoke in the county of Nottingham, and fought a battle, which was bloody, and more obstinately disputed than could have been expected from the inequality of their force. All the leaders of the rebels were resolved to conquer or to perish; and they inspired their troops with like resolution. The Germans also, being veteran and experienced soldiers, kept the event long doubtful; and even the Irish, though ill armed and almost defenceless, showed themselves not defective in spirit and bravery. The king's victory was purchased with loss, but was entirely decisive. Lincoln, Broughton, and Swart, perished in the field of battle, with four thousand of their followers. As Lovel was never more heard of, he was believed to have undergone the same fate. Simnel, with his tutor Simon, was taken prisoner. Simon, being a priest, was not tried at law, and was only committed to close custody: Simnel was too contemptible to be an object either of apprehension or resentment to Henry. He was pardoned, and made a scullion in the king's kitchen; whence he was afterwards advanced to the rank of a falconer. 18 Henry had now leisure to revenge himself on his enemies. He made a progress into the northern parts, where he gave many proofs of his rigorous disposition. A strict inquiry was made after those who had assisted or favoured the rebels. The punishments were not all sanguinary: the king made his revenge subservient to his avarice. Heavy fines were levied upon the delinquents. The proceedings of the courts, and even the courts themselves, were arbitrary. Either the criminals were tried by commissioners appointed for the purpose, or they suffered punishment by a sentence of a court-martial. And, as a rumour had prevailed before the battle of Stoke, that the rebels had gained the victory, that the royal army was cut in pieces, and that the king himself had escaped by flight, Henry was resolved to interpret the belief or propagation of this report as a mark of disaffection; and he punished many for that pretended crime. But such in this age was the situation of the English government, that the royal prerogative, which was but imperfectly restrained during the most peaceable periods, was sure, in tumultuous or even suspicious times, which frequently recurred, to break all bounds of law, and to violate public liberty. After the king had gratified his rigour by the punishment of his enemies, he determined to give contentment to the people in a point which, though a mere ceremony, was passionately desired by them. The queen had been married near two years, but had not yet been crowned; and this affectation of delay had given great discontent to the public, and had been one principal source of the disaffection which prevailed. The king, instructed by experience, now finished the ceremony of her coronation on the 25th of November; and, to show a disposition still more gracious, he restored to liberty the marquis of Dorset, who had been able to clear himself of all the suspicions entertained against him. NOTES. 1 Rymer, tom. vi. p 849. Coke's Inst. 4 Inst. part I. p. 37. 2 Bacon in Kennet's complete History, p. 579. 3 Bacon, p. 579. Bacon, p. 579. p. 565. 9 Bacon, p. 581. 10 Polydore Virgil, p. 566 12 Polydore Virgil, p. 569. Polydore Virgil, 14 Polydore Virgil, p. 569, 570, 5 Polydore Virgil, p. 567. 6 Bacon, p. 581. 15 Polydore Virgil, p. 570. 16 Bacon, p. 583. Polydore Virgil, p. 571. 7 Rot. Parl. 1 Heu. VII. n. 2, 3, 4-15. 17 Polydore Virgil, p. 572, 573. 17.26-65. 8 Bacon, p. 581 18 Bacon, p. 586. Polydore Virgil, P. 574. |