dressed himself to Norfolk; and, after some apology
for his past conduct, he insinuated that the duke's
scheme of marrying the queen, his sister, was no less
acceptable to him than beneficial to both kingdoms,
and that he would concur with the utmost ardour in
promoting so desirable an event g . Norfolk heard him
with the credulity natural to those who are passionately
bent upon any design. He wrote to the two earls to
desist from any hostile attempt against Murray, and to
that he owed his passage through the northern coun-
ties without disturbance.
Gains the Encouraged by his success in gaining the regent, he
theEngUsh next attempted to draw the English nobles to approve
nobles. his design. The nation began to despair of Elizabeth's
marrying. Her jealousy kept the question with regard
to the right of succession undecided. The memory of
the civil wars which had desolated England for more
than a century, on account of the disputed titles of
the houses of York and Lancaster, was still recent.
Almost all the ancient nobility had perished, and
the nation itself had been brought to the brink of
destruction in that unhappy contest. The Scottish
queen, though her right of succession was generally
held to be undoubted, might meet with formidable
competitors. She might marry a foreign and a popish
prince, and bring both liberty and religion into dan-
ger. But, by marrying her to an Englishman, a zea-
" Anders, iii. 34.
BOOK v. OF SCOTLAND. 407
lous protestant, the most powerful and most universally 1669.
beloved of all the nobility, an effectual remedy seemed ~
to be provided against all these evils. The greater
part of the peers, either directly or tacitly, approved
of it, as a salutary project. The earls of Arundel,
Pembroke, Leicester, and lord Lumley, subscribed a
letter to the Scottish queen, written with Leicester's
hand, in which they warmly recommended the match,
but insisted, by way of preliminary, on Mary's pro-
mise, that she should attempt nothing, in consequence
of her pretensions to the English crown, prejudicial
to Elizabeth, or to her posterity; that she should
consent to a league, offensive and defensive, between
the two kingdoms; that she should confirm the pre-
sent establishment of religion in Scotland, and receive
into favour such of her subjects as had appeared in
arms against her. Upon her agreeing to the mar-
riage and ratifying these articles, they engaged that
the English nobles would not only concur in restoring
her immediately to her own throne, but in securing
to her that of England in reversion. Mary readily
consented to all these proposals, except the second,
with regard to which she demanded some time for
consulting her ancient ally, the French king u .
The whole of this negotiation was industriously con-
cealed from Elizabeth. Her jealousy of the Scottish
queen was well known, nor could it be expected that
she would willingly come into a measure, which tended
so visibly to save the reputation, and to increase the
power of her rival. But, in a matter of so much con-
sequence to the nation, the taking a few steps without
her knowledge could hardly be reckoned criminal;
and while every person concerned, even Mary and
Norfolk themselves, declared, that nothing should be
concluded without obtaining her consent, the duty and
allegiance of subjects seemed to be fully preserved.
h Anders, vol. iii. 51. Camd. 420.
408 THE HISTORY BOOK v.
1569. The greater part of the nobles regarded the matter in
"this light. Those who conducted the intrigue, had
farther and more dangerous views. They saw the
advantages which Mary would obtain by this treaty,
to be present and certain ; and the execution of the
promises which she came under, to be distant and
uncertain. They had early communicated their scheme
to the kings of France and Spain, and obtained their
approbation 1 . A treaty concerning which they con-
sulted foreign princes, while they concealed it from
their own sovereign, could not be deemed innocent.
They hoped, however, that the union of such a num-
ber of the chief persons in the kingdom would render
it necessary for Elizabeth to comply; they flattered
themselves that a combination so strong would be al-
together irresistible; and such was their confidence
of success, that when a plan was concerted in the
North of England for rescuing Mary out of the hands
of her keepers, Norfolk, who was afraid that if she
recovered her liberty, her sentiments in his favour
might change, used all his interest to dissuade the
conspirators from attempting it k .
In this situation did the affair remain, when lord
Boyd arrived from England ; and, besides the letters
which he produced publicly, brought others in ciphers
from Norfolk and Throkmorton, to the regent, and
to Maitland. These were full of the most sanguine
hopes. All the nobles of England concurred, said
they, in favouring the design. Every preliminary was
adjusted; nor was it possible that a scheme so deep-
laid, conducted with so much art, and supported both
by power and by numbers, could miscarry, or be de-
feated in the execution. Nothing now was wanting
but the concluding ceremony. It depended on the
regent to hasten that, by procuring a sentence of di-
vorce, which would remove the only obstacle that stood
' Anders, vol. iii. 63. k Carnd. 420.
BOOK v. OF SCOTLAND. 409
in the way. This was expected of him, in consequence 1569.
of his promise to Norfolk ; and if he regarded either ~~
his interest or his fame, or even his safety, he would
not fail to fulfil these engagements'.
But the regent was now in very different circumr
stances from those which had formerly induced him
to affect an approbation of Norfolk's schemes. He
saw that the downfal of his own power must be the
first consequence of the duke's success; and if the
queen, who considered him as the chief author of all
her misfortunes, should recover her ancient authority,
he could never expect favour, nor scarce hope for
impunity. No wonder he declined a step so fatal to
himself, and which would have established the gran-
deur of another on the ruins of his own. This re-
fusal occasioned a delay. But, as every other cir-
cumstance was settled, the bishop of Ross, in the
name of his mistress, and the duke, in person, de-
clared, in presence of the French ambassador, their
mutual consent to the marriage, and a contract to this
purpose was signed, and intrusted to the keeping of
the ambassador 1 ".
The intrigue was now in so many hands, that it August 13.
could not long remain a secret. It began to be
pered at court ; and Elizabeth calling the duke into the dukeV
, , ' T i ' design, and
her presence, expressed the utmost indignation at his defeats it.
conduct, and charged him to lay aside all thoughts
of prosecuting such a dangerous design. Soon after
Leicester, who perhaps had countenanced the project
with no other intention, revealed all the circumstances
of it to the queen. Pembroke, Arundel, Lumley, and
Throkmorton, were confined and examined. Mary
was watched more narrowly than ever ; and Hastings,
earl of Huntingdon, who pretended to dispute with
the Scottish queen her right to the succession, being
1 Haynes, 520. Spotsw. 230. See Appendix, No. XXXII.
Carte, vol. iji. 486.
410 THE HISTORY BOOK v.
1569. joined in commission with Shrewsbury, rendered her
~* imprisonment more intolerable, by the excess of his
vigilance and rigour". The Scottish regent, threaten-
ed with Elizabeth's displeasure, meanly betrayed the
duke; put his letters into her hands, and furnished
all the intelligence in his power . The duke himself
retired first to Howard house, and then, in contempt
of the summons to appear before the privy council,
fled to his seat in Norfolk. Intimidated by the im-
prisonment of his associates; coldly received by his
friends in that county; unprepared for a rebellion;
and unwilling perhaps to rebel ; he hesitated for some
days, and at last obeyed a second call, and repaired
Oct. 3. to Windsor. He was first kept as a prisoner in a
private house, and then sent to the tower. After
being confined there upwards of nine months, he was
released upon his humble submission to Elizabeth, giv-
ing her a promise, on his allegiance, to hold no farther
correspondence with the queen of Scots p . During the
progress of Norfolk's negotiations, the queen's partisans
in Scotland, who made no doubt of their issuing in her
restoration to the throne, with an increase of authority,
were wonderfully elevated. Maitland was the soul of
that party, and the person whose activity and ability
Maitland the regent chiefly dreaded. He had laid the plan of
b^thTrT-* 1 that intrigue which had kindled such combustion in
gent. England. He continued to foment the spirit of dis-
affection in Scotland, and had seduced from the regent
lord Home, Kirkaldy, and several of his former as-
sociates. While he enjoyed liberty, the regent could
not reckon his own power secure. For this reason,
having by an artifice allured Maitland to Stirling, he
employed captain Crawford, one of his creatures, to
accuse him of being accessory to the murder of the
king ; and, under that pretence, he was arrested and
Haynes, 525, 526. 530. 532. See Appendix, No. XXXIII.
P Haynes, 525. 597.
BOOKV. OF SCOTLAND. 411
carried as a prisoner to Edinburgh. He would soon 1569.
have been brought to trial, but was saved by the~
friendship of Kirkaldy, governor of the castle, who,
by pretending a warrant for that purpose from the
regent, got him out of the hands of the person to
whose care he was committed, and conducted him into
the castle, which, from that time, was entirely under
Maitland's command q . The loss of a place of so much
importance, and the defection of a man so eminent for
military skill as Kirkaldy, brought the regent into some
disreputation, for which, however, the success of his ally
Elizabeth, about this time, abundantly compensated.
The intrigue carried on for restoring the Scottish A rebellion
queen to liberty having been discovered, and disap-
pointed, an attempt was made to the same purpose, by Mary's
by force of arms; but the issue of it was not more
fortunate. The earls of Northumberland and West-
morland, though little distinguished by their personal
abilities, were two of the most ancient and powerful
of the English peers. Their estates in the northern
counties were great, and they possessed that influence
over the inhabitants, which was hereditary in the po-
pular and martial families of Percy and of Nevil.
They were both attached to the popish religion, and
discontented with the court, where new men and a
new system prevailed. Ever since Mary's arrival in
England, they had warmly espoused her interest ; and
zeal for popery, opposition to the court, and commi-
seration of her sufferings, had engaged them in dif-
ferent plots for her relief. Notwithstanding the vigi-
lance of her keeper, they held a close correspondence
with her, and communicated to her all their designs'".
They were privy to Norfolk's schemes; but the cau-
tion with which he proceeded did not suit then- ardour
and impetuosity. The liberty of the Scottish queen
was not their sole object. They aimed at bringing
q Spotsw. 232. ' Haynes, 505. Murdin, 44. 62, etc.
412 THE HISTORY BOOK V.
1569. about a change in the religion, and a revolution in
~~ the government of the kingdom. For this reason, they
solicited the aid of the king of Spain, the avowed and
zealous patron of popery in that age. Nothing could
be more delightful to the restless spirit of Philip, or
more necessary towards facilitating his schemes in the
Netherlands, than the involving England in the con-
fusion and miseries of a civil war. The duke of Alva,
by his direction, encouraged the two earls, and pro-
mised, as soon as they either took the field with their
forces, or surprised any place of strength, or rescued
the queen of Scots, that he would supply them both
with money and a strong body of troops. La Mothe,
the governor of Dunkirk, in the disguise of a sailor,
sounded the ports where it would be most proper to
land. And Chiapini Vitelli, one of Alva's ablest of-
ficers, was despatched into England, on pretence of
settling some commercial differences between the two
nations ; but in reality that the rebels might be sure
of a leader of experience, as soon as they ventured
to take arms 8 .
Defeated. The conduct of this negotiation occasioned many
meetings and messages between the two earls. Eliza-
beth was informed of these ; and, though she suspected
nothing of their real design, she concluded that they
were among the number of Norfolk's confidents. They
were summoned, for this reason, to repair to court.
Conscious of guilt, and afraid of discovery, they de-
Nov. 9. layed giving obedience. A second and more peremp-
tory order was issued. This they could not decline,
without shaking off their allegiance ; and, as no time
was left for deliberation, they instantly erected their
standard against their sovereign. The reestablishing
the catholic religion; the settling the order of suc-
cession to the crown ; the defence of the ancient no-
bility ; were the motives which they alleged to justify
8 Carte, vol. iii. 489, 490. Caind. 421.
BOOK v. OF SCOTLAND. 413
their rebellion 4 . Many of the lower people flocked to 1569.
them with such arms as they could procure; and, had~
the capacity of their leaders been, in any degree, equal
to the enterprise, it must have soon grown to be ex-
tremely formidable. Elizabeth acted with prudence
and vigour, and was served by her subjects with fidelity
and ardour. On the first rumour of an insurrection,
Mary was removed to Coventry, a place of strength,
which could not be taken without a regular siege; a
detachment of the rebels, which was sent to rescue her,
returned without success. Troops were assembled in
different parts of the kingdom ; as they advanced, the
malecontents retired. In their retreat their numbers
dwindled away, and their spirits sunk. Despair and
uncertainty whither to direct their flight, kept together
for some time a small body of them among the moun-
tains of Northumberland; but they were at length
obliged to disperse, and the chiefs took refuge among
the Scottish borderers. The two earls, together with Dec. 21.
the countess of Northumberland, wandering for some
days in the wastes of Lidclisdale, were plundered by
the banditti, exposed to the rigour of the season, and
left destitute of the necessaries of life. Westmorland
was concealed by Scott of Buccleugh and Ker of Fer-
niherst, and afterwards conveyed into the Netherlands.
Northumberland was seized by the regent, who had
marched with some troops towards the borders, to pre-
vent any impression the rebels might make on those
mutinous provinces u .
Amidst so many surprising events, the affairs of the Church
church, for two years, have almost escaped our notice. affairs>
Its general assemblies were held regularly ; but no bu-
siness of much importance employed their attention.
As the number of the protestant clergy daily increased,
the deficiency of the funds set apart for their sub-
sistence became greater, and was more sensibly felt.
' Strype, vol. i. 547. u Cabbala, 171. Camd. 422.
414 THE HISTORY BOOK v.
1569. Many efforts were made towards recovering the ancient
patrimony of the church, or, at least, as much of it as
was possessed by the popish incumbents, a race of men
who were now not only useless, but burthensome to the
nation. But though the manner in which the regent
received the addresses and complaints of the general
assemblies, was very different from that to which they
had been accustomed, no effectual remedy was pro-
vided ; and, while they suffered intolerable oppression,
and groaned under extreme poverty, fair words and
1 70 liberal promises, were all they were able to obtain x .
Elizabeth Elizabeth now began to be weary of keeping such a
riwup St P r i soner as tne queen of Scots. During the former
Mary to the year, the tranquillity of her government had been dis-
turbed, first by a secret combination of some of her
nobles, then by the rebellion of others ; and she often
declared, not without reason, that Mary was the ' hid-
den cause' of both. Many of her own subjects favoured
or pitied the captive queen ; the Roman catholic princes
on the continent were warmly interested in her cause.
The detaining her any longer in England, she foresaw,
would be made the pretext or occasion of perpetual
cabals and insurrections among the former ; and might
expose her to the hostile attempts of the latter. She
resolved, therefore, to give up Mary into the hands of
the regent, after stipulating with him, not only that her
days should not be cut short, either by a judicial sen-
tence or by secret violence, but that she should be
treated in a manner suited to her rank ; and, in order
to secure his observance of this, she required that six
of the chief noblemen in the kingdom should be sent
into England as hostages y . With respect to the safe
custody of the queen, she relied on Murray's vigilance,
whose security, no less than her own, depended on
preventing Mary from reascending the throne. The
negotiation for this purpose was carried some length,
* Cald. vol. ii. 80, etc. Haynes, 524.
BOOK v. OF SCOTLAND. 4-15
when it was discovered by the vigilance of the bishop 1570.
of Ross, who, together with the French and Spanish ~
ambassadors, remonstrated against the infamy of such
an action, and represented the surrendering the queen
to her rebellious subjects, to be the same thing as if
Elizabeth should, by her own authority, condemn her
to instant death. This procured a delay; and the
murder of the regent prevented the revival of that
design z .
Hamilton of Bothwellhaugh was the person who but he is
committed this barbarous action. He had been con- m '
demned to death soon after the battle of Langside, as
I have already related, and owed his life to the re-
gent's clemency. But part of his estate had been be-
stowed upon one of the regent's favourites, who seized
his house, and turned out his wife naked, in a cold
night, into the open fields, where, before next morn-
ing, she became furiously mad. This injury made a
deeper impression upon him than the benefit which
he had received, and from that moment he vowed to
be revenged upon the regent. Party-rage strengthened
and inflamed his private resentment. His kinsmen, the
Hamiltons, applauded the enterprise. The maxims of
that age justified the most desperate course which he
could take to obtain vengeance. He followed the re-
gent for some time, and watched for an opportunity to
strike the blow. He resolved at last to wait till his
enemy should arrive at Linlithgow, through which he
was to pass, in his way from Stirling to Edinburgh.
He took his stand in a wooden gallery, which had a
window towards the street; spread a featherbed on
the floor, to hinder the noise of his feet from being
heard; hung up a black cloth behind him, that his
shadow might not be observed from without; and,
after all this preparation, calmly expected the regent's
approach, who had lodged during the night in a part
1 Carte, vol. iii. 491. Anders, vol. iii. 84.
41G THE HISTORY BOOK v.
1570. of the town not far distant. Some indistinct informa-
~ tion of the danger which threatened him had been con-
veyed to the regent, and he paid so much regard to it,
that he resolved to return by the same gate through
which he had entered, and to fetch a compass round
the town. But as the crowd about the gate was great,
and he himself unacquainted with fear, he proceeded
directly along the street ; and, the throng of the people
obliging him to move very slowly, gave the assassin
time to take so true an aim, that he shot, him with a
single bullet, through the lower part of his belly, and
killed the horse of a gentleman who rode on his other
side. His followers instantly endeavoured to break
into the house whence the blow had come, but they
found the door strongly barricaded ; and before it
could be forced open, Hamilton had mounted a fleet
horse, which stood ready for him at a back-passage,
and was got far beyond their reach. The regent died
the same night of his wound a .
Hischarac- There is no person in that age about whom his-
torians have been more divided, or whose character
has been drawn in such opposite colours. Personal
intrepidity, military skill, sagacity, and vigour in the
administration of civil affairs, are virtues which even
his enemies allow him to have possessed in an eminent
degree. His moral qualities are more dubious, and
ought neither to be praised nor censured without great
reserve, and many distinctions. In a fierce age he was
capable of using victory with humanity, and of treating
the vanquished with moderation. A patron of learning,
which, among martial nobles, was either unknown or
despised. Zealous for religion, to a degree which
distinguished him, even at a time when professions of
that kind were not uncommon. His confidence in his
friends was extreme, and inferior only in his liberality
towards them, which knew no bounds. A disinterested
a Buchan. 385. Crawf. Mem. 124. Cabbala, 171.
BOOK v. OF SCOTLAND. 417
passion for the liberty of his country, prompted him 1570.
to oppose the pernicious system which the princes of
Lorrain had obliged the queen-mother to pursue. On
Mary's return into Scotland, he served her with a zeal
and affection, to which he sacrificed the friendship of
those who were most attached to his person. But, on
the other hand, his ambition was immoderate; and
events happened that opened . to him vast projects,
which allured his enterprising genius, and led him to
actions inconsistent with the duty of a subject. His
treatment of the queen, to whose bounty he was so
much indebted, was unbrotherly and ungrateful. The
dependence on Elizabeth, under which he brought
Scotland, was disgraceful to the nation. He deceived
and betrayed Norfolk with a baseness unworthy of a
man of honour. His elevation to such unexpected
dignity inspired him with new passions, with haughti-
ness and reserve ; and instead of his natural manner,
which was blunt and open, he affected the arts of
dissimulation and refinement^ Fond, towards the end
of his life, of flattery, and impatient of advice, his
creatures, by soothing his vanity, led him astray, while
his ancient friends stood at a distance, and predicted
his approaching fall. But amidst the turbulence and
confusion of that factious period, he dispensed justice
with so much impartiality, he repressed the licentious
borderers with so much courage, and established such
uncommon order and tranquillity in the country, that
his administration was extremely popular, and he was
long and affectionately remembered among the com-
mons, by the name of the GOOD REGENT.
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