whole, the princess his daughter-in-law would indifpenfibly 1509. enjoy her fettlement of the third part of the revenues of the principality of Wales, and the county of Cornwall. However, as it was not decent to urge fuch a motive to the pope, to obtain a difpenfation for so strange a marriage, which could not but be deemed fcandalous, it was pretended to be neceffary to preferve the peace between Henry VII. and the king and queen of Spain. That was the motive alledged to the pope, which he readily confidered as fufficient, though there was but too much reafon to question whether it was the true one. In confequence of the pope's difpenfation, Henry and Hall. Catherine were folemnly affianced. Nevertheless, whether Herbert. Henry VII. intended only to deceive Ferdinand, and get the remaining hundred thousand crowns, or was moved by the remonftrances of Warham archbishop of Canterbury, con Burnet's cerning the marriage, he fo ordered it, that the prince, his Ref. T. 1. fon, on the very day he was fourteen P. 33. years of age, made, in the prefence of certain witneffes, a proteftation in form against the confent he had given. But the proteftation was kept fo fecret, that it came not to the knowledge of the publick till it was neceffary, many years after, to divulge it. Upon the news of Henry VIIth's death, Ferdi- A&. Pub. nand fent to the earl of Fuenfalida, his ambassador in Eng-XIII. p. land, a very ample power to renew the treaty of alliance May 11. made with the deceafed king, ordering him withal, to demand the confirmation and execution of that which was concluded for Catherine's fecond marriage with prince Henry, now become king of England. 249. Burnet. it. The Spanish ambaffador having prefented a memorial Difficulties upon this occafion, it was deliberated in council whether about the the king fhould confummate the marriage with Catherine. marriage. The affair was debated with great attention. Against the Reasons for marriage it was alledged, that for a man to marry his bro- and against ther's widow was a thing unheard of among chriftians: that fuch a marriage was contrary to the law of God, and therefore it was a queftion, whether the pope had power to difpenfe with it. This was the archbishop of Canterbury's opinion, who could not forbear confidering the marriage as really incestuous. But Richard Fox, bifhop of Winchester, was of another mind. He ftrenuously infifted upon the pope's difpenfation, and the unlimited power of Chrift's vicar. He affirmed, "That the pope's granting a difpenfation, was a "certain proof that he had the power, and was fufficient "to fatisfy the king's confcience: that no perfon upon earth "could 1509. Pol. Virg. Henry refolves to marry "could. limit, or fo much as inquire into the papal autho"rity; and though fuch a power fhould be afcribed to a general council, at least the council of England could "not pretend to it." To thefe arguments concerning confcience, the bishop added others drawn from reafons of state, and the king's particular intereft. He faid, "That "probably, the king would have, during the course of his "reign, many difputes with France, England's old enemy, "and whether he would attack or only defend, the al"liance with Spain was abfolutely neceffary: that in fending back the princess Catherine after having affianced "her, he would affront king Ferdinand, which he would "certainly revenge by leaguing with France, and fuch a "league could not but endanger England, or at least be "extremely expenfive to the nation that moreover, if the "king refufed to confummate his marriage with Catherine, "he muft refolve either to restore her dower, or fuffer "her to enjoy her fettlement: but by marrying her he "would fave the hundred thousand crowns received by "the king his father, gain another hundred thoufand, which "the king of Arragon was to pay, and avoid the great "charge of marrying another princefs, and conducting "her into England. In fine, he enlarged upon the sweet "and virtuous temper of the princefs of Wales, capable "of making a husband perfectly happy." Adding, "there was no room to doubt, that the princess was still a virgin, "fince the herself affirmed it, offering even to be tried by matrons, to fhow that she spoke the truth.' All these arguments, except the first, concerning the difpenfation, were very ftrong, As to that, it was fo Catherine. dangerous for a churchman to dispute the pope's authority, efpecially fuch a pope as Julius II. who was ftill in his vigour, that the archbishop of Canterbury durft not perfift openly in his opinion. So, the king clofing with the bishop of Winchester's and almoft the whole council's fentiments, it was refolved he fhould confummate his marriAct. Pub. age. But first he required of the princess that she should XIII.p.251. renounce by a folemn act her dower of two hundred thouJune 7. fand crowns, and confent that the fum fhould belong to the king her fpoufe, to be claimed again neither by herfelf nor heirs, nor by king Ferdinand her father, nor queen Joan her fifter, nor any perfon living, on any pre1b. p. 253, tence whatfoever. Two days after, the earl of Fuenfalida made the like renunciation in the name of king Ferdinand and queen Joan. Catherine's letters patents, where 254. in 3 in the ftyles herself only princess of Wales, bearing date 1509. June the 7th, it is evident, the king married her not on the n third of that month, as hiftorians affirm, nor fooner than Hall, &c. Death of the the day these letters were figned. Their coronation was countess of folemnized on the 24th of the fame month, and five days Richmond. after died Margaret countefs of Richmond and Derby, the Stow. king's grandmother'. Herbert. In the beginning of his reign, Henry willingly left to his Henry gives council and minifters the care and management of his himself up to affairs. As he was in peace with all his neighbours, what Hollingh hispleafures. paffed in the kingdom could not keep him much employed. Stow. He thought only of fuch pleasures and diverfions, as were more fuitable to his years, than application to bufinefs. Surrey's Herbert. he was naturally liberal, his entertainments at court were very expenfive. The ancient bishop of Win-Quarrel bechefter, Henry VII.'s old minifter, could not help mur-tween the bishop of muring to fee the money lavifhed away without any ne- Winchefter ceffity, which his deceased master had amaffed with so much and the earl of Surrey. care, pains, and injustice, in which he had himself been employed. He threw all the blame upon the earl of Surrey, character. lord treasurer, who was his rival in favour under the late king, Pol. Virg. and continued to be fo ftill under the prefent, by gaining the affection of his new mafter by a blind compliance to his will. During Henry VII.'s life he was more clofe, and harder to part with money than the king himfelf. How exprefs foever the orders were for payments, he always found difficulties, and by that means made his court admirably to his mafter. Being continued in his poft in the prefent reign, he became quite another man. He not only paid, without examination, whatever was ordered, but alfo put the king upon spending extravagantly. This gained him the favour of the young prince, who was naturally addicted to prodigality. The bishop of Winchester openly blamed this conduct, as highly prejudicial to the king's intereft. But he was little regarded, in a court where every one was ftriving to make an advantage of the fovereign's liberal temper. Mean while, his difcourfes exafperated more and more the earl of Surrey and the young courtiers against him, who never ceased to do him ill offices with the king. Thus the bishop, who was in fo great credit in the late reign, gradually loft it in this. His Herbert. difgrace, which fat heavy upon his mind, threw him upon Heinrrodevifing means to "fupplant his rival, by introducing at court duces Wol 1 She was buried at Westminster. Stow, p. 487. fy at court. Thomas 12 1509. Confirma Thomas Wolfey, whofe qualifications he was no ftranger to. Wolfey was a clergyman, already eminent for his merit, tho he was but a butcher's fon of Ipswich. The bishop of Winchefter eafily forefaw, the king would foon be in want of perfons about him, fit and able to eafe him; and as he knew Wolfey's genius, did not queftion that when he was at court, he would render himself neceffary to the king. To that end, he procured him the place of almoner. We fhall fee prefently that the bishop was not mistaken in his judgment, or rather that his forefight was far fhort of Wolfey's fortune ". About the middle of the year, the treaties concluded betion of the tween Henry VII. and the king of Scotland, were confirmed or renewed by the bishop of Murray, who was fent into Act. Pub. England to congratulate Henry upon his acceffion to the treaties with Scotland. XIII.p.257, crown. 261, 267. and with the emperor. p. 260. Aug. 20. of York ambassador at Rome. P. 264. The emperor Maximilian fent also an embaffy to Henry to congratulate him, and confirm the treaties made with Henry VII. in the year 1502. Christopher Bambridge, archbishop of York, being at archbishop Rome, where he was gone to have his election confirmed, received a commiffion from the new king to act as his ambaffador. We fhall fee presently the reafon, why the pope wanted to have an English ambaffador refide at his court, and Sept. 24. why the king was defirous to be particularly informed of what paffed at Rome, and in all Italy. m Thomas Wolfey was born at Ipf- Rymer's fides the rectory of Lymington, the vi- These full under These were the most remarkable occurrences in Eng- 1509. land, during the first eight months of the reign of Henry VIII. They were for the most part domeftick affairs of little Neceffity of knowing the importance, except the king's marriage, which was attended affairs of with very great confequences. But there paffed abroad Italy, for the matters of great moment, which became as it were the standing the fource of the troubles wherewith almost all Chriftendom hiftory of was agitated for above fifty years, and wherein England was Henry VIII. but too much engaged. For fome time, the affairs of Europe had begun to have a new face, and what happened this year in Italy put them upon fuch a foot, as obliged almost every fovereign to be concerned therein. Henry VIII. unhappily entangled himself in the troubles of that country, which feem to have had no relation to him. This makes the knowledge of the affairs of Italy fo abfolutely neceffary, that without it neither the events of this reign can be understood, nor the king's character fully known. It will therefore be proper to enlarge upon this fubject, which concerns not only the hiftory of England, but alfo those of France, Spain, Germany, Switzerland; the principal events whereof, for a long space of time, flowed properly from the affairs of Italy. It is true, moft of the authors who have writ the hiftories of the states, fupposed their readers to be acquainted with what paffed in Italy at the fame time. They have thereby much fhortened their works, but withal rendered them very obfcure to those who were not fo fully inftructed as they have fuppofed. For my part I intend an other course. Since the affairs of Italy are the foundation of moft of the occurrences in Europe, and particularly in England, during almoft one half of the fixteenth century, I think they ought to be fpoken of fomething largely, which alone can clear the particular hiftories proceeding from thence. But to avoid tedious digreffions, it is neceffary to give first a diftinct idea of the ftate of Italy, as well as of the character and interefts of the feveral princes. land, and I have already related, in the foregoing reign, how Lewis State of XII. affifted by the Venetians, conquered the duchy of Milan Italy, Miupon Ludovico Sforza, pretending a right to it as grandfon Naples. to Valentini Visconti, daughter of John Galeazzo I. duke of Milan. I have likewife had occafion to speak of the conqueft of Naples by the united arms of Lewis XII. and Ferdinand, and of the means used by Ferdinand to remain sole mafter of that kingdom. It will fuffice therefore to add here,, that though Lewis XII. loft his portion of that conqueft, he defifted not from his pretenfions, but was waiting for a fa vourable |