網頁圖片
PDF
ePub 版

GIFT,

Cowper's misbe

haviour.

WHIT solemnity. The ministers being informed of this preparation, Abp. Cant. prevailed with one Cowper, a young man, unordained, to seize the pulpit, and keep it against the bishop. The king coming to the cathedral at the hour appointed, and seeing Cowper in the pulpit, told him that place was designed for another; however, in case he would obey the order, and pray for the queen mother, he might go on. To this Cowper, with an unusual confidence, replied, he would do as the Spirit of God should direct him. Upon this he was commanded down; but managing as if he intended to keep his place, the captain of the guards stepped forward to pull him out; upon which he threw out this expression, "this day shall be a witness against the king in the great day of the Lord." And then denouncing judgment to the burghers of Edinburgh, he came down, and Idem. and the bishop of St. Andrew's preached, and performed the office. In the afternoon Cowper was ordered to appear before the council; Walter Balcanquel and William Watson, ministers, came along with him, where, for some unbecoming language, they were forbidden preaching at Edinburgh, during the king's pleasure; as for Cowper, he was sent prisoner to Blackness'.

Ch. Hist.

A conspiracy against

beth.

In June, this year, a league, offensive and defensive, was concluded between England and Scotland, at Berwick. The same month this alliance was finished, a desperate plot against queen Elizabeth was discovered. I shall mention some little queen Eliza- of it from Cambden, who formed his narrative from the confession of the criminals. Some Englishmen in the seminary at Rheims were so bigotted to the court of Rome, so overset with the Italian doctrine of the papal supremacy, that they believed Pius V.'s excommunicating bull little less than the inspiration of the Holy Ghost. The next advance in their belief made the dispatching excommunicated princes a meritorious action; and that it was martyrdom to miscarry in the enterprize. This opinion was strongly pressed by Dr. Gifford, Gilbert Gifford, and Hodgkinson, priests; and one John Savage, a man of a military genius, was so thoroughly proselyted to this doctrine, that he readily undertook to kill the queen. At the same time they published a sort of pastoral letter to the English Roman Catholics, not to disturb the

I Thus we see how the piety and good sense of the Scotch have been sometimes converted into the wildest bigotry and folly-optima corrupta pessima.

BETH,

Cambden,

Eliz.

government, or attempt anything against the monarch; that ELIZAthey should have recourse to no other expedient but prayers and tears; that these were the only justifiable preparations for Christian subjects; and that fasting and devotion are the proper defences against persecution. These men got a report spread that George Gifford, a gentleman in the queen's guards, had sworn to assassinate her majesty, and received a great sum of money from the duke of Guise for this purpose. Somewhat before this time, one Ballard, a seminary priest, was sent into France to concert an expedition against England. The invasion was to be furnished by the pope, the king of Spain, the Guises, and the prince of Parma. This Ballard being dispatched into England, to make an interest for the enterprise, was discovered by Maud, one of Walsingham's spies, who travelled along with Ballard, and had been trusted to an intimacy by him. Ballard coming to London, and going under the name of captain Foscue, opened the business to Babbington, a young gentleman of Derbyshire. He was a person of a good family and fortune, and of a promising genius. The enlargement of the queen of Scots was part of their undertaking. This princess being weary of her confinement, is said to have exchanged some letters with Babbington; but that this correspondence reached to any attempt against queen Elizabeth's life, was always denied by her. However, the worst being believed, or at least suspected, queen Elizabeth awarded a commission for her trial. The instrument is di- A commission for rected to the archbishop of Canterbury, now one of the privy trying the council; to sir Thomas Bromley, lord chancellor; to the lord queen of treasurer Burleigh, to the marquess of Winchester, to the earls of Oxford, Shrewsbury, Kent, Derby, Worcester, Rut- Idem. land, Pembroke, Warwick, Leicester, and Lincoln, with several barons, and other members of the privy council, with five of the judges. The queen of Scots was tried at Fotheringay The queen of castle, in Northamptonshire, where she was then imprisoned. upon 27 Eliz. When notice was given her, she refused at first to appear in cap. 1. court, and insisted on the independency of her condition, and declared she had rather die a thousand times over, than do any thing which might injure her royal character, and imply that she owned herself a subject. However, she condescended so far as to say, she was ready to make her defence in a free and full parliament. At last she was prevailed with to drop this Oct. 14, resolution, and come into court. But here she was not wholly

Scots.

Scots tried

1586.

GIFT,

WHIT- unprovided with an expedient. For to guard her sovereignty, Abp. Cant. she entered a protestation in writing against the authority of her judges. She behaved herself with an air of majesty becoming her station, and replied to the articles objected with great strength and presence of mind. She was pressed hardest with the evidence of her secretaries, Nave and Curle: but neither of them were brought into the court, which she desired. In short, her defence not giving satisfaction, she was found guilty.

Idem.

The archbishop of

Canterbury at the head

of the commission.

600.

October 29.

D'Ewes' Journal, p. 391.

Sir Simon
D'Ewes

transcribed

ering's hand.

By the way, it may not be improper to observe, that the archbishop of Canterbury's being put in the commission for trying the queen of Scots, is a clear evidence that the privy council and the judges, who may well be supposed to have perused this instrument, were of opinion, that a bishop's judging in capital causes was not inconsistent either with his character, or the English constitution. It is true the archbishop did not act, neither was there any necessity for his doing so; for by the tenor of the commission, a majority of those nominated were empowered to try the prisoner, and give sentence.

Soon after the trial was over, the parliament met at Westminster. The queen's business not giving her leave to come to the house of Lords, the archbishop of Canterbury, the lord treasurer Burleigh, and the earl of Derby, lord Steward, or any two of them, had a commission under the great seal to open the parliament, and to hold, adjourn, or prorogue it, as long as they thought fit.

On the 12th of November some of the Lords and Commons waited upon the queen with an address from both houses for the execution of the queen of Scots. And here, to gain her these reasons majesty's consent, John Puckering, serjeant-at-law, and speaker from Puck to the house of Commons, made a long discourse to reinforce D'Ewes' the address. And since sir Simon D'Ewes commends him for Journal, using many solid and excellent reasons," the reader shall p. 400. Some of have some of them. One of his reasons is drawn from the serjeant Puckering's danger of the Protestant religion, if the queen of Scots were executing the suffered to live. But to suggest that difference of religion, or queen of

reasons for

Scots.

66

fears of persecution, are warrantable grounds to proceed against a sovereign princess, and send the heir apparent of the crown into the other world, by way of prevention; to suggest this, I say, looks like mysterious arguing. Whether reasoning in this manner is not consulting ease farther than conscience, and "choosing iniquity rather than affliction,"

BETH.

(Job xxxvi. 21.) the reader must judge. The speaker charges ELIZAthe queen of Scots with a sanguinary temper, and says she is acquainted with blood. But this is misrepresentation; for this princess allowed her subjects a toleration, disturbed nobody upon the score of conscience, and governed with remarkable clemency, as hath been already related. He puts the queen in mind, that the queen of Scots held up her claim to the crown of England, and believed herself rightful sovereign at present. But this is wide of matter-of-fact; for the queen of Scots had several times solemnly owned queen Elizabeth's right to govern, and pretended no title to this kingdom till after her death. And to weaken the queen's compassion upon the score of the near relation between her and the queen of Scots, the speaker tells her majesty they were only cousins in a remote degree. As remote as they were, the queen of Scots was next upon the royal line; and, besides that, her father, king James V., was cousin-german to queen Elizabeth. But serjeant Puckering endeavours to bring all the English to a much nearer degree of consanguinity; for he tells the queen, she is their natural mother. This figure is somewhat surprising; but he seems to have forgotten the distinction between civil and natural parents. He mentions God's vengeance against Saul for sparing Agag, and the reprimand Ahab received from the prophet for parting with Benhadad. The case of Saul has been spoken to already, and the other is foreign to See above. his point; for Benhadad attacked the king of Israel with a formidable army, and insisted upon intolerable conditions before the battle; neither had the king of Israel ever invited him to his country or protection. He argues, farther, that the magistrates who put those mischievous queens, Jezebel and Athaliah, to death, are commended. But these instances will neither of them bear for Jezebel was but queen-dowager; and, besides, her execution was expressly ordered by a prophet. 2 Kings ix. And as for Athaliah, she had no title to govern. She was Chron. not descended from the royal line of David, upon whose family xxiii. 3. the crown was expressly settled by God Almighty.

These arguments of serjeant Puckering running mostly upon topics of divinity, I thought fit to mention. The rest of his discourse shall be passed over.

7, 10.

2 Sam. vii.

12.

To say something of the convocation: there were two A convocaschedules of complaint brought up by the lower house to the tion.

GIFT,

WHIT- bishops. The first contains a remonstrance against several Abp. Cant. disorders in the diocese of Norwich. The complaint sets forth the canons were not observed; that unqualified persons were ordained and instituted; that penance was commuted; that excommunications were sent out for trifles; that regular and faithful preachers were discouraged; and that men were suffered to preach without licence. The other schedule laid before the upper house, and endorsed "Suffolk Archdeaconry," complains that the communion was wholly omitted, or imperfectly administered; that the surplice was refused; that holidays were not observed; that the communion was frequently received in a sitting posture; with some other parConvocation ticulars of lesser consideration.

Journal.

her cha

ructer.

What provision was made does not appear in the record. The convocation was prorogued by the archbishop to the 17th of February.

The queen of Soon after the Lords and Commons had delivered the adand part of dress above-mentioned, the lord Buckhurst, and Beale, clerk of the council, were dispatched to the queen of Scots to acquaint her the sentence of death was passed upon her; that it was approved by the parliament; that both Lords and Commons had moved strongly for the execution; and that justice and necessity had forced them upon this motion. They endeavoured to persuade her, therefore, to recollect herself for repentance, and acknowledge her offences against God and the queen; giving broad hints, at the same time, that her life and the religion established in England were things which could not stand together. She received this news with an air of unusual pleasure, returned God thanks, and congratulated her condition, that she was looked on as a person of some weight and significancy for recovering religion. She earnestly desired she might have a Catholic priest to direct her conscience, and administer the holy sacraments. They recommended the bishop and dean of Peterborough for that purpose: but these she absolutely refused, as being of a different communion.

By the mediation of the French ambassador, the publication of the sentence was respited; but in December, at the instance of some of the courtiers, it was proclaimed in London with great solemnity. When this news was brought to the queen of Scots, she was so far from being dejected, that she thanked God for her condition; and by her aspect and behaviour dis

« 上一頁繼續 »