The Unfortunate Court-Favourites OF ENGLAND Exemplified In some Remarks upon the Lives Actions and Fatal Fall of divers Great Men who have been Favourites to several English Kings and Queens Namely I. Peirce Gaveston Earl of Cornwall II. Hugh Spencer Earl of Winchester â—II Hugh Spencer the Son E. of Glorester â—V Roger Mortimer Earl of March V. Henry Stafford Duke of Buckingham VI. Thomas Woolsey Cardinal of York VII Thomas Cromwell Earl of Essex VIII Robert Devereux Earl of Essex IX George Villiers Duke of Buckingham X. Thomas Wentworth Earl of Stafford By R. B. LONDON Printed for Nath. Crouch at the Bell in the Poultrey 〈◊〉 Cheapside 1695. The Kings and Queens of England to whom the following Unfortunate Great Men were Favourites I. PEirce Gaveston Earl of Cornwal Favourite to King Edward II. II III. Hugh Spencer the Father and Hugh Spencer the Son both Favourites to King Edward II. IV. Roger Mortimer Earl of March Favourite to Queen Isabel Widow to King Edward II. and Mother to King Edward III. V. Henry Stafford Duke of Buckingham Favourite to King Richard III. VI. Thomas Woolsey Cardinal of York Favourite to King Henry VIII VII Thomas Cromwel Earl of Essex Favourite to King Henry VIII VIII Robert Devereux Earl of Essex Favourite to Queen Elizabeth IX George Villiers Duke of Buckingham Favourite to King Charles I. and King James I X. Thomas Wentworth Earl of Stafford Favourite to King Charles I. To the Reader NOthing is more obvious than that Ambition Envy and Emulation are the usual Attendants on the Courts of Princes and that the effects of them have been often very fatal to many Great Men who had the fortune to have a larger share in their Masters affections than others It is likewise as notorious That there are certain Crises of Government wherein Princes have been obliged to Sacrifice their darling Ministers either to their own safety or to the importunity of their People Lastly it is as evident That some Court-Favourites have justly merited the unhappy Fate they met with for their many Rapines Insolencies and Enormities as that others have been ruined meerly from the Caprichio or inconstant Temper of the Prince whom they served Of all these in my opinion the ensuing Favourites are pregnant Instances But I shall leave the Reader to particularise them according to his own Judgment and will only add That they are not all to be condemned as Criminal meerly because they all happened to be unfortunate R. B. Remarks on the Life Actions and Fatal Fall of Peirce Gavestone Earl of Cornwall and Favourite to King Edward the Second THAT Unhappy Prince Edward the 2d was certainly the most Unfortunate in his Favourites of any King of England either before or fince his Reign The first and Fatal Favourite he had was in his Youth before he came to the Crown whose name was Peirce Gaveston born in Gascoigne a Province of France and for the good Service performed by his Father in the Wars in that Kingdom his Son was taken into such Favour at Court that by K. Edward the First 's own appointment he was Educated and made a Companion to the young Prince And indeed his outward Accomplishments seemed to render him worthy of such great Honour being a Person of a sharp Wir an excellent Shape and of a valiant Temper of which he gave notable proof in a Battel against the Scots and for which they afterward bore him a mortal Hatred But all these worthy Qualities were utterly defac'd and clouded by his vicious Incliâ—ations so that as to his Christian and Moral Vertues which are only really commendable in Men Authors are very silent in mentioning them though all give large accounts of his Faults and Immoraâ—ities And King Edward was so sensible that his Son the Prince had been debauched by the corrupt Conversation of Gavestone that some time before his Death he was banished the Kingdom And upon his Death-bed commanding the Prince his Son to repair to him with all speed to Carlisle in Cumberland where he was with a great Army ready to invade Scotland He gave him many worthy Admonitions and much good Advice particularly That he should be merciful just and kind faithful in word and deed an incourager of those that were good and ready to relieve those that were in distress That he should be loving to his two Brothers Thomas and Edmund but especially to honour and respect his Mother Queen Margaret That upon pain of his Malediction and Curse he should not presume without common consent to recall Peirce Gavestone from Exile who for abusing his tender Years with wicked practices by common Decree of the Nobility was banished He also added a strange Injunction for a dying man namely That after his Death the Prince should not presume to take the Crown of England till he had honourably revenged the Injuries his Father had received from the Scots and finisht the present Expedition against them and that he should carry his Father's Bones about with him in a Coffin till he had marched through all Scotland and subdued all his Enemies assuring him that while they were with him he should be always victorious Lastly Whereas by the continual Attempts of Bruce King of Scotland he was prevented from performing his Vow of going in Person for the recovery of Jerusalem and the Holy Land from the Infidels that he should send his Heart thither accompanied with 140 Knights and their Retinue for whose support he had provided Thirty two thousand pounds of Silver That after his Heart was conveyed thither he hoped in God all things would prosper with them Adjuring the Prince upon pain of Eternal Damnation that he should not expend the Money upon any other use After these Admonitions and having taken an Oath of this vain Young Prince to perform his Will he gave up the Ghost After his Father's Death the Son soon made it appear how little regard he had to perform his dying Requests and to shew what his future Behaviour was like to be he in the first place revenged himself upon Walter Langton Bishop of Chester Lord Treasurer of England and Principal Executor of his Father's Last Will whom he imprisoned in Wallingford Castle seizing upon all his Estate no man daring to intercede on his behalf because of the extream hatred which the King shewed against him the Bishop's Crime being only in using a modest freedom in K. Edward's days in gravely reproving 〈…〉 for his 〈◊〉 meanours and not suffering him to have what 〈…〉 he required to waste prodigally upon his 〈…〉 Gavestone against whom he likewise made such great and just Complaints as occasioned the imprisonment of the Prince the banishment of his leud Favourite Soon after the young King married Isabel Daughter to Philip the Fair of France the March being concluded before his Father's death and was now performed with extraordinary Magnificence at Bullen At which Solemnity there were five Kings namely Philip the French King the
from the People drag'd to a Gallows set up on purpose fifty foot high where being hanged he was afterward cut down and beheaded and quartered His head set upon London Bridge and his Quarters in four principal Towns of the Kingdom Simon Reading was hanged ten foot lower on the same Gallows and Robert Baldock was committed Prisoner to Newgate where with grief and hard usage he soon after died This happened in 1326. Thus Divine Vengeance pursued these two ambitious and profligate Wretches the Spencers Father and Son and brought those who set at defiance the Nobility Gentry and People of the Realm to such shameful and ignominious deaths as by their vile actions they had justly merited Since by their leud and prosligate Counsels they prevailed upon the King to commit all manner of Enormities by forsaking the Company and Bed of his lawful Wife and living in all manner of debauchery with common Strumpets By destroying and ruining his Nobility and Gentry by all manner of Rapines upon the Common People by suffering their Enemies to Plunder and Beggar them without any redress and by all other misdemeanors which rendred him odious to his Subjects and made him rule rather like a Tyrant than a King And thereby occasioned his Deposition and Death which soon after followed For the Queen having summoned a Parliament it was by General consent of the three Estates concluded That King Edward should reign no longer but his Son the Prince should be advanced to the Throne The Archbishop of Canterbury Preaching a Sermon and taking for his Text this Maxim Vox Populi Vox Dei The Voice of the People is the Voice of God Exhorting all his Auditors to Pray to the King of Kings to bless and prosper the King that they had Elected The Queen seemed very sorrowful and even distracted at her Husband's deposition and the P. lamented for his Mothers grief swearing that he would not accept of the Crown without his Father's consent To content them both Commissioners are sent to the King who persuaded him to make a formal Resignation of the Government and then his Son was Crowned King And not long after the Father being removed to Corf Castle was barbarously murdered by his Keepers who through a horn run a burning hot Spit into his Fundament of which he instantly died I shall add no more having already given a particular account of his Resignation and Death in a Book called Admirable Curiosities and Rarities in every County in England c. Remarks upon the Life Actions and fatal Fall of Roger Mortimer Earl of March Favourite to Queen Isabel Widow to King Edward II. and Mother to King Edward III. SUCH is the Malignity of Humane Nature that though there are daily examples of Divine Vengeance executed upon notorious Offendors yet men continue to perpetrate the same crimes that plunged their Predecessors into misery and ruin Of this Roger Mortimer is an obvious instance who though he were an Eye-witness of the fatal fall of the three unfortunate Favourites Gaveston and the two Spencers with divers of their Associates in the former Reign Yea though he himself was very instrumental in their destruction and very active in pretending to reform the Grievances of the Kingdom Yet no sooner was King Edward by his means deposed and a young Prince advanced to the Throne under the Government and Management of his Mother but he by managing the Queen occasioned many mischiefs not much inferior to those of the former abhorred Minions yea exceeding their wickedness in one point namely in being criminally concerned with the Queen Dowager that being one of the Articles the Parliament charged him with But as he wilfully disregarded these warnings and impudently committed the like faults so the Justice of Heaven visited him with the same deserved punishment He was descended from Roger called the Great Lord Mortimer of Wigmore in the Marches of Wales who was his Grandfather and revived and erected again the Round Table at Kennelworth after the Antient Order of King Arthur's Table with the Retinue of an hundred Knights and 100 Ladies in his house for the entertaining of such Adventurers as came thither from all parts of Christendom This young Roger inherited his Estate and Grandeur And Queen Isabel Wife to King Edward II. and Daughter to Philip the Fair King of France being in the glory of her youth forsaken by the King her Husband who delighted only in the company of Peirce Gaveston his Minion and Favourite she fell passionately in love with this Lord Wigmore though before she was accounted the most virtuous chast and excellent Lady of that Age. After the ignominious but deserved death of Gaveston the King instead of being reformed was presently infatuated with the love of two others the Spencers Father and Son who were as bad if not worse than he for all manner of leudness and debauchery Whereupon the Earls of Lancaster Hereford Warwick Lincoln and others rise in Arms against them they having taken an Oath to King Edward I. on his death bed to oppose and withstand his Son Edward if he ever recalled Gaveston from Exile and finding that his death had not much bettered the state of the Kingdom they thought themselves obliged by the same Oath to endeavour the ruin of them also and thereby the redressing the many oppressions and violencies under which the Nation groaned This Roger Lord Wigmore a man of an invincible Spirit and his Uncle Roger Mortimer the Elder resolved to join with the Lords in this attempt and being very busie in raising Forces were taken before they could muster them and by the King committed to the Tower of London But the Queen by means of Torlton Bishop of Hereford Beck Bishop of Durham and Patriarch of Jerusalem then both Mighty Men in the State prevailed so far with the King that upon the submission of the Mortimers the King was somewhat pacified But afterward when He had gained a great Victory against the Barons the young Lord Wigmore and his Uncle were condemned to be Drawn and Hang'd at Westminster and the day of Execution was appointed Whereupon the Younger Spencer some time before pretended to make a great Feast in honour of his Birthday inviting thereunto Sir Stephen Seagrave Constable of the Tower with the rest of the Officers belonging to the same and after he had made them very merry he gave to each a large Cup of a sleepy Drink prepared by Queen Isabel by which means he made his escape breaking through the Wall of his Chamber and coming into the Kitchen near the King's Lodgings and getting into the top thereof came into a Ward of the Tower and so with a strong Ladder of Ropes provided by a Friend he got over the Wall leaving the Ropes fastened thereunto which the next day the Spectators beheld with much astonishment considering the desperate danger which he ventured in the attempt He then swam over the Thames into Kent and avoiding the Highaways came at length
to the Seaside near Portsmouth where happily meeting with a Ship bound for France he passed over thither and lived in the French Court several years His Uncle Roger was detained in a loathsome Prison five years after and at length died and was Buried at Bristol King Edward was so inraged at his escape that he turned Sir Stephen Seagrave out of his place of Constable of the Tower and several Citizens were seized and accused of being accessary to his getting away and of corresponding with and maintaining him beyond Sea but there note being sufficient proof against them they were all acquitted Mortimer continued in France till Queen Isabel and the Prince arrived there to avoid the insults of the two insolent Spencers He after attended the Queen into Germany and came over with her and the rest of the English Lords accompanied with the Earl of Heynault and several German and English Forces And upon King Edward's Flight and afterward his Seizing and Imprisonment Mortimer presumed to manage all affairs according to his own pleasure and therefore the death of the Spencers Reading and some others not satisfying his revenge being high in the Queens favour who could not deny him the Heads of a few of his Enemies he procured that the Earl of Arundel and two Gentlemen more named John Daniel and Thomas Mochelden against whom he had a particular aversion should be Beheaded at Hereford After this the Queen her Son and the beloved Mortimer went to Wallingford Castle where they kept their Christmass with all manner of jollity From thence they proceeded to London where the Queen and Prince were received with much Joy and many rich Presents and a Parliament being called it was concluded that King Edward should be Deposed and his Son advanced to the Throne In the management whereof Mortimer discovered very much zeal activity and diligence as hoping thereby to become Chief Minister of State as well as principal Favourite of the Queen King Edward was Deposed accordingly and confined to Kennelworth Castle the Queen Roger Mortimer and Torlton Bishop of Hereford having concluded to allow him an hundred Marks a month for his necessary Expences And now it was hoped that the Kingdom having suffered so many Concussions and Miseries for several years would have been settled and restored to its former peace and tranquility But it soon appeared that though the Nation had changed its Master yet other evil Instruments succeeded to trouble and disquiet the already harassed People So that one Historian writes thus The beginning of the Reign of King Edward III. was very troublesome for he by reason of his tender Age being but fifteen years old when he came to the Crown was drawn aside by evil Counsel and committed many foul errors of State and Government The chief occasion of which were the Queen her Darling Roger Mortimer and some others For first they procured so great a part of the Revenue of the Nation to be settled for maintaining the Queen and her Family that the young King had scarce a third part of it for himself and his necessary Attendants and Officers So that she and her Favourite Mortimer lived in the greatest State and Grandeur imaginable and the People began to exclaim against him and say publickly That the great zeal and hatred he had shewed against the Rapines of the Spencers was not because they had been oppressive to the Subject but that he was desirous no Body should abuse them but himself Secondly The Queen and he having intelligence that several Great Persons and the whole Order of Friers Preachers taking pity of the late King's Captivity seemed to Consult for his deliverance and knowing that his Restoration would be their confusion they wickedly plotted and contrived to add Murther to their former Impieties and therefore Roger Mortimer was sent with that ambiguous Order to his Keepers devised by Torlton Bishop of Hereford Edwardum occidere nolite tinere bonum est To shed King Edward's Blood Refuse to fear I count it good Where by leaving out the stops they sufficiently incouraged the Murtherers and yet afterward produced the Writing under Queen Isabels Seal for their own Justification when the horrid Fact was committed Though this was very far from clearing them from the guilt of it in the opinion of the Vulgar whose Tongues spare none and who had before heard that though the Queen in her outward deportment pretended much grief and sorrow for the Imprisonment of the King her Husband yet instead of visiting him in his distress which he often desired as still retaining a very great love for her She only sent him fine Clothes and kind Letters but contrary to the Laws of God and Man refrained from rendring him any Nuptial Duties which they plainly reported she bestowed freely enough upon her bloody Adulterer Mortimer Pretending in the mean time that Reasons of State would not allow her to converse with him And soon after this desolate Prince was by an express order from the Young King wholly procured by them removed from Kennelworth to Corf Castle and there miserably deprived of his life Thirdly In the second year of the young King's Reign Robert Bruce King of Scotland denounced War against him and his Kingdom which occasioned the raising of a strong Army consisting of above fifty thousand men with which the King accompanied by the Queen Mother Roger Mortimer the Lord of Heynault John Lord Beumont and many others of the Nobility and Gentry marched toward the Scots who had Invaded England And had so happily incompast them in the Wood of Wiridale and Stanhope Park that the English seemed fully assured of Victory Yet by the Treachery of Roger Mortimer they were not only suffered to make a total escape without any loss but Sir James Dowglass in the dead of the Night with 200 Light-Horse assaulted the King 's own Pavilion and had certainly killed him had not one of his Chaplains a Valiant Man sacrificed his own life in defence of his Soveraign's Dowglass after this bold attempt escaped back without damage but not without honour for his daring Courage this misfortune was afterward charged upon Mortlmer as designing by the death of the King to Usurp the Crown The Scots left their Camp entire behind them wherein the English found 500 Oxen and Cows ready killed a Thousand Spits full of Roast-Meat 500 Caldrons made of Cow-hides new with the Hair on full of Flesh Boyling over Fires And Ten thousand pair of Shoes made of raw Hides with the Hair outward All which became a welcome booty to the hungry English Souldiers Fourthly After this dishonourable retreat of the King who was extreamly grieved to return so ingloriously notwithstanding the expence of a vast Treasure and the imminent danger of his own Person and just before the death of King Robert who died of the Leprosie being accounted one of the most Valiant Warriors of that Age as having redeemed his Country from Slavery and by whose loss it appeared of
de gentil Mortimer Good Son Good Son take pity upon the gentle Mortimer For she suspected the King was there though she did not see him Then were the Keys sent for and all the Castle with the Amunition and Provisions were delivered up to the King so secretly that none without the Castle had any knowledge of it but only the King's Friends This was counted a very daring enterprize in regard that Mortimer had usually 180 Knights besides Esquires and Gentlemen as a constant Guard for the security of his Person The next Morning early Roger Mortimer and his Accomplices were carried with mighty shoutings and rejoycings of the Common People the poor Earl of Lancaster though blind making up the cry toward London and was committed to the Tower And soon after in open Parliament at Westminster was Condemned by his Peers without being brought to Tryal by a Law of Mortimer's own contriving whereby the Earls of Lancaster Winchester Glocester and Kent were formerly out to Death The following Articles of High Treason were laid to his charge 1. That he was consenting to the Murther of the King's Father 2. That he Treacherously occasioned much loss and dishonour to the King at Stanhope Park by procuring the escape of the Scots for which he had received a great Sum of Money 3. That he caused several Ancient Deeds and Charters to be burnt wherein the King of Scots was obliged to do homage to the King of England and had made a dishonourable Contract between the King's Sister and David Bruce King Robert's Son 4. That he had prodigally and lewdly wasted the King's Treasures as well as those of the two Spencers 5. That he had been an Evil Councellor to the King and had been too familiarly conversant with the Queen Mother All which Articles are sum'd up in the following ragged Rymes which might very well have been in Prose but for their Antiqutty and brevity I will here insert them Five heinous crimes against him soon were had 1. That he caused the King to yield the Scot To make a Peace Towns that were from him got And therewithal the Charter called Ragman 2. He by the Scots was brib'd for private gain 3. That by his means King Edward of Carnarvan In Berkley Castle Treacherously was slain 4. That with his Prince's Mother he had lain 5. And finally with polling at his pleasure Had rob'd the K. and Commons of their Treasure For these Treasons he was sentenced to be hanged and afterward ignominiously drawn in a Sledg to Tyburn the common place of Execution then called the Elms and there upon the common gallows was as ignominiously Executed hanging by the King's command two Days and two Nights a publick and pleasing spectacle to the wronged People There died with him Sir Simon Bedford and John Deverel Esq as well for the expiation of the late King Edward's detestable Murther as in complement as it were to so great a Man's fall who seldom or never perish without company they suffered in 1330. The King by the advice of Parliament deprived the Queen of her excessive Dowry allowing her only a Thousand Pound a Year and confining her to a Monastery during Life but giving her the honour of a visit once or twice a Year though otherwise judging her scarce worthy to live in regard of her Debaucheries with Mortimer and her many other heinous practices From the sudden ruin of this great Favourite Mortimer we may Remark what Inchantments Honour Riches and Power are to the minds of Men how suddenly how strangely do they blow them up with contempt of others and forgetfulness of themselves And surely the frailty and uncertainty of Worldly felicity is very visible in this Great Person who when he was drunk as it were with all humane happiness so that he seemed to fear neither God nor Man was suddenly overtaken by Divine Justice and brought to utter confusion when he least dreamt of it But it was very equitable that he who would not take example by the wretched Fate of his Favourite Predecessors should himself be made an Example by the like shameful and Ignominious Death Remarks on the Life of Henry Stafford Duke of Buckingham Favourite to King Richard the Third TWO Or three considerable Remarks do naturally result from the following History 1. That Tyrants being but single Persons could never perpetrate the many mischiefs which they are usually guilty of did they not meet with proper Instruments to imploy therein 2. That the pravity of Mankind is so deplorable that the temptations of Honour and Riches too often prevail upon Men and ingage them in the most vile and destructive designs 3. That those who are imployed by Tyrants must never boggle not strain at the greatest Villanies since if they be not as thoroughly wicked as their Master he will account them his implacable Enemies and they are subject to be justly ruined by his unjust and revengeful hand All these Maxims seem to be verified in the Life Actions and Fall of this Great Man Henry Stafford Duke of Buckinham He was Son to Humfry Stafford of Brecknock-shire in Wales who was created Duke of Buckingham and Lord High Constable of England by King Henry VI. Being descended from a Daughter of Thomas of Woodstock youngest Son to King Edward III. His Son succeeded him in his Titles and Honour and was a great Favourite to King Richard III. and very Instrumental in advising him to his Usurped Throne as by the following Relation appears When King Edward IV. died he left behind him two Sons Edward his Successor of thirteen and Richard Duke of York of eleven years of Age. The Young King and his Brother were by their Father's Will committed to the care of the Earl of Rivers the Queens Brother whom he made Protector of the King during his Minority The Court was at this time kept at Ludlow in Wales to retain the Welsh in obedience who began to be unruly and in the mean time the Earl of Rivers disposed of all Offices and Places of Preferment which very much dislatisfied the Duke of Glocester Brother to King Edward IV. and Uncle to the Present King who upon his Brother's Death possed from the North where he then was to London and finding the Queen and her Kindred had the whole Government of affairs about the King he was very much displeased as judging it a main obstacle to his Usurpation and and Advancement to the Throne which it seems he had long before designed for it was reported that the very night wherein King Edward IV. died one Misselbrook came early in the morning to one Potter living in Redcross street near Cripplegate and told him that the King was dead By my Troth man says Potter then will my Master the Duke of Glocester be King For surely if he had not been acquainted with his Master's Intentions he would not have thus spoke But the Duke knowing that a business of such consequence was not to be managed alone he
have I to believe that since my Kindred are as Innocent as my self and all the malice against us is because we are so near a kin to the King As for the Gentleman my Son I intend he shall be where I am till I see farther for I assure you the more earnest I see some men to have him away without any real ground the more I dread to part with him And truly Madam quoth the Archbishop the more loth you are to part with him the more afraid are other men that you should convey him away and therefore since he can have no privilege that does not ask it nor for any fault can want it they will think it no breach of privilege to take him from you by force Ah Sâ—r quoth the Queen hath the Protecter so much love and tenderness for him that he only fears he should escape him Alas whither should I send him if he be not safe in this Sanctuary the privilege whereof there was never any Tyrant so wicked or devilish to break But it seems my Son deserves no Sanctuary and therefore cannot have it What is this place of security for a Thief and not for an Infant But he is in no danger say they I would to God he were not I wish the Protector may prove a Protector to him but the matter is plain he hath one Son already in his Hands and could he get the other and destroy them both he would then Usurp the Crown I shall give no other account why I have such a fear but only what the Law gives which as Learned men tell me forbids any man to have the custody of one by whose Death he may inherit far less than a Kingdom I shall say no more but that whosoever breaketh this holy Sanctuary I pray God he may soon have need of one but not enjoy it The Queen then proceeded in severe reflections upon the Protector 's designs which the Archbishop did not then believe and was therefore loth to heaâ— but told her in short That if she would deliver her Son to him and the rest he durst pawn his Soul and Body for his safety but if not he much doubted she would be obliged to do it against her will and that he would never move her any more in that matter These words made the Queen stand silent and considering she had no time or place to secure him from them the Sanctuary being strongly guarded and that she did believe the Archbishop and some of the rest of the Lords were good men and would not see her Child wronged and finally that if the Protector was resolved to have him he would scruple at nothing to compass his ends she concluded to deliver him her self to their fidelity and taking the young Duke by the Hand she said My Lords I neither mistrust your prudence nor am jealous of your faithfulness of which I now give you a convincing proof and wherein if I should be mistaken it would be a very great affliction to me and would bring much mischief to the Realm and eternal reproach upon your selves For behold here is the Gentleman you require whom I doubt not but I could have kept safe in this place whatever is alledged to the contrary Though I do not question but I have some such deadly Enemies to my Family and Blood abroad that if they thought they had a drop of it in their own Bodies they would let it out For we have had many examples that the ambition of Soveraignty makes void all tyes of Kindred and Alliance for this cause Brothers have been the ruin of Brothers and may the Nephews find better usage from their Uncle While these Children are apart the life of one is a defence to the other and their safety consists in each others welfare Keep one safe and that will secure the other but nothing is more dangerous than that they should be in one place for no wise Merchant will venture all his Estate in one Ship But however here I deliver him and his Brother in him into your hands of whom I shall require them both in the sight of God and the World I know very well that you are both Just and Wise and that you want neither Will nor Power to preserve them if you think otherwise pray leave him with me But one thing I earnestly recommend to you to be very cautious lest while you count me too fearful you your selves be not too fearless and secure Then turning to the Child Come my own sweet Son said she let me Kiss you before you go for God knows whether ever we shall kiss one another again to whose holy protection I commit you Having Kissed and Blessed him she turned aside and wept and then went away leaving the Child weeping as fast as she The Lords having received the Duke brought him into the Star Chamber where the Protector and Council were sitting As soon as he was entred the room the Protector rises up and takes him in his Arms Kissing and Imbracing him saying Dear Nephew you are welcome with all my heart for next to my Soveraign Lord your Brother nothing gives me so much contentment as your presence And herein it was thought he did not dissemble having now got the prize which he so much desired Soon after upon pretence of removing the two Princes into a place of more security till the Peoples minds were settled the Protector caused them to be carried in great Pomp and State through London to the Tower there to continue till the King's Coronation from whence they never after came abroad The Protector now began more openly to prosecute his designs but the work being great he must make use of Great men in it and at that time none was more potent than that Duke of Buckingham Some have writ that the Duke was privy to all the contrivances of the Duke from the death of King Edward IV. Others thought the Protector never durst adventure to discover a matter of such great consequence to him and that he now imployed some cunning people to insinuate into the Duke that the young King had a secret hatred to him for being accessary to the Imprisonment of his Kindred and that if he were ever in a capacity he would revenge it upon him for if they should be again at liberty to be sure they would incite him to it and if they should be put to death this would the more inrage the King against him That there was no way for the Duke to retreat or make his Peace with the King since the King himself with his Brother and Kindred were now in such safe custody that the Protector with a word of his Mouth could destroy them all and him also if he found him fall off from his Interest Though the Duke might be troubled at what he had done yet being sensible of the Protector 's cruelty and his own danger he resolved to join with him in all his trayterous enterprizes and
so it was agreed between them that the Duke should assist the Protector to advance him to the Crown In recompence of which service the Protector 's only Son and Heir should marry the Duke's Daughter and should likewise have the Earldom of Hereford settled upon him and his Successors which he had claimed as his Inheritance from Edward IV. but could never obtain it He also promised the Duke a large sum of the King's Money and a great quantity of his Houshold-stuff Having entred into this cursed combination to delude the People they pretend to make great preparations for Crowning the young King To which purpose all the Lords of the Council were summoned to appear in the Tower Where they met accordingly but the Protector being sensible that the Lord Hastings would be a great obstacle in his way because of his firmness and fidelity to his old Master King Edward's Sons he resolved to be rid of him which he effected in the manner following The Protector coming into Council complemented all the Lords very affably seeming more than ordinarily merry and after some other discourses My Lord says he to the Bishop of Ely I hear you have very good Strawberries in your Garden in Holbourn pray let us have a dish of them With all my heart replied the Bishop and instantly sent for some The Protector then rose hastily up desiring them to excuse his absence for a while And returning about an hour after he appeared so extreamly disturbed and changed in his countenance uttering so many grievous sighs and using such passionate gestures that the Lords were in much admiration of the cause thereof He knit his Brows and bit his Lips appearing extreâ—mly concerned After long silence the more to prepare their attentions he asks confusedly what punishment they deserved who had compassed imagined and contrived the destruction of him who was so near allied to the King and Protector of his Person and Kingdom At this question the Lords were all amazed and sate looking upon each other without speaking a word at ength the Lord Hastings by the instigation of the Duke of Buckingham presuming upon his intimacy with the Protector replied That whoever they were they deserved to be punished as Traytors to which the other Lords assented Whereat the Protector rising up Why it is says he that old Sorceress my Brother Edward's Widow and her Partner that common Whore Jane Shore that have by Witchcraft and Inchantment contrived to take away my life And though by God's Mercy they have not been able to finish their Villany yet see the mischief they have done me for behold and then he shewed his left Arm naked and withered how they have caused this dear Limb of mine to wither and grow useless and my whole body had been in the same miserable plight if they had executed their Wills upon me The Lords who knew the goodness and virtue of the Queen and that his Arm had been always withered from his birth found it a false pretence but were so astonish'd at his confidence that they durst not utter a word till the Lord Hastings thinking to lay all the fault upon the Queen and excuse Jane Shore whom he had taken for his Mistress and Bed-fellow ever since King Edward's death and from whom he had risen that Morning submissively answered If the Queen have conspired which he had no sooner said but the Protector looking fiercely upon him What says he in a great rage dost thou tell me of If 's and And 's I tell thee they and none but they have done it and thou art Confederate with them in their Villany Who I my Lord quoth he Yea thou Traytor says the Protector and therewith striking a sound blow with his hand upon the Table Treason was cried in the next room and immediately a great number of armed men came rushing in as if to guard the Protector one of whom with a furious blow of a Pole-axe wounded the Lord Stanley in the head and had certainly kill'd him but that with the stroke he sunk under the Table The rest of the Council were seized and secured in several Rooms The Lord Hastings the Protector charged with High Treason and wished him to make haste and Confess himself swearing by St. Paul his usual Dath that he would neither eat nor drink till his Head were off It signified nothing to ask a reason for he knew the Protector would give none so he was carried to the Green in the Tower before the Chappel where his Head was laid upon a long peice of Timber and there struck off and his Head and Body afterward buried in Windsor Chappel near King Edward IV. In the Tragical end of this Lord we may observe how inevitable the strokes of destiny are for the very Night before his Death the Lord Stanley sent a secret Message to him at Midnight in all hast to inform him of a Dream he had in which he thought that a Boar with his Tusks had so goared them by the Heads that the Blood ran about their Ears and because the Protector gave the Boar for his Arms or Cognizance this Dream had made so dreadful an impression upon his mind that he was fully resolved not to stay any longer and had his Horse ready requiring the Lord Hastings to go along with him and that they might Ride so fast as to be out of danger before Morning But the Lord Hastings returned this Answer by the Messenger Ah good Lord Doth thy Master insist so much upon Trifles and has he such faith in Dreams which either proceed from fancy or from the thoughts of the preceeding Day but if they foretel things to come why may they not presage that if we run away and should be taken then the Boar might have some reason to use us ill Therefore commend me to thy Master and bid him 〈◊〉 merry and fear nothing for I am as sure of the â—…an he woteth of as I am of my own Right hand The 〈◊〉 he meant was one Catesby a Lawyer who was at 〈◊〉 advanced by his favour and now grown so intimate 〈◊〉 the Protector that he did not doubt but he would discover any ill design against him But he was much mistaken for after he became so great with the Pretector Catesby was the first Man that advised the taking off the Lord Hastings Likewise the same Morning he was Beheaded his Horse stumbled twice or thrice almost to falling which though it often happen by chance yet has been sometimes reckoned a token of misfortune Moreover at the same time coming to Tower-Wharf he there met a Pursivant of his own Name which made him recal what had happened to him some time before in that place for he was accused by the Lord Rivers in King Edward IV. Reign of some Crimes which for a time cast him out of the King's favour and indangered his Life but was after restored again into Grace Now seeing this Man Ah Hastings quoth the Lord
Thou canst not forget that the last time I met thee here it was with a heavy Heart Yes my Lord said the Purfivant I remember it very well but thanks be to God your Enemies gained nothing nor had your Lordship any damage thereby and now the danger is over Thou wouldest say so indeed said the Lord if thou knewest as much as I do for the World is well changed now and my Enemies are in greater danger as thou mayst happen to hear in a few days the Enemies he meant were the Lord Rivers and others of the Queens Kindre◠who were that very day secretly ordered to be Beheaded at Pomfret-Castle of which he had knowledge and I was never merrier nor in more safety since I was Born By this we may learn that there is no greater sign of ill fortune than to be too secure and that Men are blind as to their own Fate and though the Ax hangs over their Heads yet are not sensible of it but are oft most in danger when they think themselves safe and most safe when they judg themselves in danger For this Lord notwithstanding his great confidence lost his Head two hours after he spoke these words The same Morning as the Lord Hastings was going to the Council in tht Tower a Knight who pretended kindness to him but was thought to be privy to the Protector 's designs and sent to meet and hasten him thither offered to accompany him The Lord Hastings staid by the way in Tower-street to discourse with a Priest whom he met the Knight jokingly interrupted their talk saying Pray my Lord make haste for you have no need of a Priest yet seeming to be in jest but it was thought meant in earnest that he would in a short time have occasion for one The news of the Death of the Lord Hastings soon flew into the City and much surprized the People but the Protector to prevent any Commotion sent for several of the Principal Citizens to come to him with all speed At their appearance himself with the Duke of Buckingham received them in Old Rusty Armour to make a shew as if the present danger had obliged them to take what they could first come by and then the Protector declared to them That the Lord Hastings and other Conspirators had contrived to have slain him and the Duke of Buckingham in Council and then to have taken upon them to Govern the King and Kingdom at their pleasure Of which Treason they had made discovery but few hours before it should have been acted so that their sudden fear had caused them to put on such Armour as they first met with but that God had so far prevented their Traiterous purposes as some had already received their deserts This he required them to report to the People The Citizens seemed as if they had believed what he said though they all knew nothing was more false Presently after a Proclamation was published throughout the City reciting the aforenamed particulars and adding several reflections upon the Lord Hastings as that he was an Evil Councellour to King Edward IV. Advising him to do many things to his great Dishonour and the damage of the Kingdom by his ill Example and Conversation particularly in the lewdness of his Life which he still continued with Shore's Wife who was one of the principal Conspirators with whom he had converst the very last night and that it was no wonder if such a wicked course of Life had brought him to such an untimely Death which he was condemned to suffer by the special command of the King and his Honourable Privy Council before whom he was clearly Convicted to have contrived this horrid Treason and whose sudden Execution according to his demerits they hoped would prevent the other Conspirators from proceeding in their Traiterous purposes and secure the Peace of the Nation Now this Proclamation was published within two hours after the Lord Hastings was Beheaded and was so exactly perceived and fairly Written in Parchment and withal so long that all the World perceived it had been prepared long before which occasioned the School Master of St. Pauls at the Proclaiming it to say Here is a gay goodly cast foul cast away for haste To whom a Merchant Answered That it was written by Prophesie or Revelation After this the Protector like an Innocent continent Prince sent the Sheriffs of London to Jane Shore's House who lived from her Husband with an order to seize all her Goods which they did to the value of two or 3000 Marks and committed her to Prison He charging her with bewitching him and with conspiring with the Lord Hastings to destroy him but having no proof of any thing be then gravely accused her of what all the Kingdom knew before and she her self could not deny that she was Unchaste of her Body which made Men smile that it should be now told as new Hereupon he caused the Bishop of London to put her to open Pennance for Incontinency and the next Sunday she was brought out of Ludgate going before a Cross in Procession with a Wax Taper in her hand and though she was then in mean Apparel having only her Girdle on yet she appeared so fair and lovely the crowd of Spectators raising a comely blush in her Cheeks and withal so modest and sober that she was much commended by them who had more love for her Body than for her Soul yea those that hated her vitious life and were glad to see Sin punished yet pitied her misery and hard usage from him who inflicted it for wicked and politick ends and not out of love to Virtue or Chastity This Woman was a notable instance of the mutability of Fortune she was born in London of a good Family and very well Married to one Shore a sober worthy Citizen and Goldsmith but it was thought a little too Young so that she never shewed much affection to her Husband whom she was 〈◊〉 a capable of loving which might incline her the 〈…〉 imbrace King Edward's Kindness Which being attended with Honour Riches Fine Cloaths Ease Pleasure and all other humane delights was hardly to be resisted by such a tender heart as she had When the King had taken her for his Mistriss her Husband wholly abandoned her Bed After his Death the Lord Hastings who had an extream passion for her during the King's Life but either out of respect or faithfulness forbore Courting her now took her home to his House and maintained her in great splendor She was very fair and proper and nothing amiss in her whole Body but that some thought her not tall enough as some report who knew her in her Youth saith Sir Thomas More but now she is Old saith he who saw her she is lean withered and her Skin so extreamly shrivelled that it is scarce to be imagined so much beauty and comeliness ever resided in that wretched Carcass Yet she was not more admired for her handsomeness then for
his Apostles being now discovered to them they thought it very fit that they should be governed by the King their Supream Head and therefore resigned their Abbies to him So that in the whole one hundred fifty nine Resignations were made to the King before the Meeting of the next Parliament who made an Act for the Total Dissolution of all the Abbies in England the Rents of which were then valued at being one hundred thirty two thousand six hundred and seven pound six shillings four pence but they were worth above ten times as much in true value These Proceedings against the Pope and Holy Church caused the Rude Ignorant and wilful People in Lincolnshire to assemble in Arms to the number of twenty thousand The King levied a strong Army and went in Person to suppress them and approaching them they sent him an humble Petition that if he would reestablish the Monasteries and the Popes Authority they would freely lay down their Arms and return to their Duty hut the King disdaining these Rusticks should dictate Politicks to him rejected their Petition sending them Word that if they did not instantly deliver up a hundred of the principal Rebels into his hands he would immediately fall upon them with the utmost Fury and Sacrifice them all to his resentment This daring Resolution so daunted the Hearts of this undisciplined Multitude that their Leaders expecting each would deliver the other up to the King they secretly deserted them and returned home but Captain Cobler their Chief Commander otherwise Dr. Makarel and some other being taken were executed according to their merits and the Common People being left without Officers made haste home and were pardoned by the King This was succeeded by another Insurrection in the North where 40000 got together upon the same pretences calling themselves ' The Holy Pilgrims who intended nothing but the establishing of the true Religion and restoring the Rights of Holy Church The Dukes of Norfolk and Suffolk were ordered to suppress these brainsick Zealots who seemed very joyful they were to fight not doubting of success in this Religious War but the Night before the intended day of Battel a little Brook which ran between the Armies and might have been passed over dry foot grew so broad by the next Morning by a violent Rain which fell that they could not approach each other which being reckoned by both Parties a great Miracle the Rebels upon promise of free pardon quietly departed home In these commotions those men whose profession was only their Books and their Beeds mistaking the Command of Christ To sell their Coats and buy a Sword came armed into the Field and being taken several Abbots Monks and Priests were executed The Kingdom being again setled in peace Cromwell proceeded in the Work of Reformation and because the People seemed discontented that the abuse of these Monasteries should be turn'd to the utter ruin of them from whence they used to have relief and alms Therefore Cromwell thought fit to make them sensible of the Cheats and Tricks which the Priests had imposed upon them And many Impostures about Relicks and Wonderful Images or Roods were now discovered to which Pilgrimages had been formerly made As at Reading where they shewed the Wing of the Angel that brought over thither the point of the Spear which pierced our Saviour's side And so many pieces of the Cross were found in several Abbies as joined together would have made a large Cross The Rood of Grace at Boxley in Kent which had drawn so many Pilgrims to it was brought to St. Paul's Cross which by many springs used to bow down and lift up it self to rowl the Eyes shake the Head Hands and Feet move the Lips seem pleased or angry by bending the Brows which the credulous multitude imputed to a Divine Power but was now made appear to be a Cheat and the Springs openly shewed that governed its several motions Likewise the Images of our Lady of Walsingham and Ipswich adorned with rich Jewels and divers others both in England and Wales were removed out of the Churches and being brought to London were openly burnt in the presence of the Lord Cromwell at Chelsey The blood of Christ was shewed in a Glass Vial at Hales in Glocestershire and the Priests said it was not visible to any that were in Mortal Sin So that after the People had well paid it became visible to them and the deluded Souls went away well satisfied that they were now free from any damnable transgression But this was proved to be the Blood of a Duck renewed every Week and put into a Glass thick on one side and thin on the other so that till the Pilgrim had offered what the Priest thought fit the dark side was turned to him and afterward the light side Several such Impostures were discovered which tended much to undeceive the People But the richest Shrine in England was that of St. Thomas of Becket that great Rebel to King Henry II. and for whose death he severely whipt himself a great way to the Cathedral of Canterbury where he was killed by four of King Henry's officious Servants and he thereupon Canonized a Saint to whose Altar greater Oblations were made than to that of our Saviour or the Virgin Mary Every fiftieth year there was a Jubilee and an Indulgence granted to all that came and visited his Tomb who were sometimes thought to be an hundred thousand on that occasion he prints of their kneeling and devotion remaining in the Stones to this day So that it was immensly Rich with Gold Jewels Plate and Money the Gold only being so heavy that it filled two Chests which required eight men a piece to carry them out of the Church The Timber work of this Shrine was covered with Plates of Gold Damasked and Imbossed with VVires of Gold garnished with Images Angels great Orient Pearls and Precious Stones the chief whereof was a rich Jewel offered by Lewes seventh of France who came over in Pilgrimage to visit this Tomb and to obtain that for the future no Passenger should be drowned betwixt Dover and Callice It was valued to be the richest Jewel in Europe St. Thomas's Skull which had been so much VVorshipped was proved an Imposture for the true Skull was with the rest of his Bones in the Coffin and were now so mixt with other Bones that it had been a Miracle indeed to have distinguisht them afterwards Then the Axes and Hammers went to work in pulling down the Nests of Superstition and Idolatry whose number as Camden reckons them were six hundred forty five Monasteries ninty Colleges an hundred and ten Hospitals and two thousand three hundred seventy four Chauntries and free Chappels and their Lands and Revenues being by Act of Parliament settled on the Crown the King by the advice of the Lord Cromwell politickly exchanged them for others with his Nobility and Gentry allowing them good Bargains for their Incouragement many of whose Estates do now consist
about him Before this he writ a Letter to the King which none durst undertake to deliver him but Mr. Sadler his old friend willing to do him a kindness first went to understand the King's pleasure whether he would permit him to do it which the King granting he presented the Letter to him who commanded him to read it to him thrice over seeming much affected with it And some write that after his death the King being in a great exigency and not knowing whom to trust or with whom to advise he much lamented his Death saying O that I had my Cromwell again But the Act of Parliament being passed he could not conveniently dispense with it and his Enemies being so many and mighty was obliged to take him off So that July 28. 1541. the worthy and noble Lord Cromwell was brought to the Scaffold on Tower-Hill where he spake thus to the multitude that surrounded him ' I am come hither to dye and not to clear my self as some peradventure may think that I will I am condemned by the Law to dye and thank my Lord God that hath appointed me this death for mine offences For since the time that I came to years of discretion I have lived a Sinner and have offended my Lord God for which I ask him heartily forgiveness It is not unknown to many of you that I have been a great Traveller in this World and being of mean degree was called to an high estate and since I came thereto I have offended my Prince for which I ask him heartily forgiveness and beseech you all to pray to God with me that he will forgive me And now I pray you all to bear me record that I die in the Catholick Faith not doubting in any Article of my Faith no nor doubting in any Sacrament of the Church Many have slandered me and reported that I have been an Hearer of such as have maintained evil opinions which is untrue But I confess that as God by his Holy Spirit doth instruct us in the Truth so the Devil is ready to seduce us and I have been seduced but bear me witness that I die in the Catholick Faith of the Holy Church and I heartily defire you to pray for the King's Grace that he may long live with you in health and prosperity and that after him his Son Prince Edward that goodly Branch may long reign over you And once again I desire you to pray for me that so long as life remaineth in this flesh I may never waver in my Faith Then kneeling down on the Scaffold he prayed thus ' O Lord Jesus who art the only health of all men living and the everlasting life of them which dye in thee I wretched sinner submit my self wholly unto thy most Blessed Will And being sure that the thing cannot perish which is committed to thy mercy I now willingly leave this frail and wicked Flesh in sure hope that thou wilt in better wise restore it to me again at the last Day in the Resurrection of the Just I beseech thee most merciful Lord Jesus Christ that thou wilt by thy Grace strengthen my Soul against all Temptations and defend me with the Buckler of thy Mercy against all the assaults of the Devil I see and acknowledge that there is in my self no hope of Salvation but all my confidence hope and trust is in thy most merciful goodness I have no merits nor good works that I may alledge before thee Of sins and evil works alas I see a great heap But yet through thy mercy I trust to be in the number of them to whom thou wilt not impute their Sins but will take and accept me for Righteous and Just and to be an Inheritor of Everlasting Life Thou merciful Lord wert born for my sake Thou didst suffer both hunger and thirst for my sake Thon didst teach pray and fast for my sake All thy holy acts and works thou wroughtest for my sake Finally Thou gavest thy most precious Body and Blood to suffer on the Cross for my sake Now most merciful Saviour let all these things profit me who hast given thy self for me Let thy Blood cleanse and wash away the spots and foulness of my Sins Let thy Righteousness hide and cover my Unrighteousness Let the merits of thy Passion and Blood make satisfaction for my Sins Give me O Lord thy Grace that the Faith of my Salvation in thy Blood waver not in me but may be ever firm and constant That the hope of thy mercy and everlasting life in me may never decay nor thy love wax cold in me Finally That the weakness of my flesh be not overcome with the fear of Death Grant O merciful Saviour that when Death hath shut up the Eyes of my Body yet the Eyes of my Soul may still behold and look upon thee and when Death hath taken away the use of my Tongue yet my Heart may cry and say unto thee Lord into thy hands I commend my Soul Lord Jesus receive my Spirit Amen After this he quietly laid down his Head on the Block which was cut off at three or four strokes by the hand of an unskilful and butcherly Executioner Thus fell this Magnanimous Worthy who rose meerly by the strength of his natural Parts for his education was suitable to his mean extraction He carried his greatness with extraordinary moderation and his zeal for the Reformation created him many potent adversaries who continually sought for matter against him till in the end by lies falshood and flattery they had thrown him out of the King's favour He mixed none of the Superstitions of the Church of Rome in his Devotions at his Death and used the word Catholick Faith to express the antient Apostolick Doctrine of Christ in opposition to Popish Novelties With him fell the Office of Vicegerent and none since ever had that Character The miseries that befell the new Queen Katherine and the Duke of Norfolk and his Family were thought to be the Judgments of Heaven upon them for their cruel prosecuting this Unfortunate Favourite The Queen being in a few months beheaded for her former lewd Life together with the Lady Rochford her Bawd as the Act of Parliament called her who had been very instrumental in the ruin of Queen Ann Bullen and of her own Husband the Lord Rochford who being now discovered to be so vile a Woman it tended much to raise both their reputations again The Duke of Norfolk and his Son the Earl of Surrey were both condemned for High Treason a few years after and the Son was beheaded the Father happily escaping by the death of King Henry To conclude The Lord Cromwell had several eminent Virtues so conspicuous in him that they ought not to be concealed His gratitude eminently appeared toward one Frescobald an Italian Merchant who had relieved him in his necessities in that Country which he rewarded afterward with so excessive a generosity as several eminent Pens have strove who
should the most celebrate the same and of which I have given a particular relation in a Book called Vnparallell'd Varieties or the Transcendent effects of Gratitude c. of the like value with this His Charity was very apparent in that foreseeing himself declining in the King's favour he like a kind and loving Master provided beforehand for almost all his Servants and gave twelve Children of his Musick twenty pound apiece And likewise in delivering many out of danger for having broken Popish Laws and Constitutions His Humility was very eminent in several instances particularly that He and Archbishop Cranmer riding once in state through Cheapside Cromwell seeing a poor Woman to whom he had formerly owed Money called her to him and bid her go to his House where he not only discharged the Debt but setled a Pension of four pound a year upon her during Life At another time observing a poor man at the Court of Sherin imployed in Sweeping the Cloysters and Ringing the Chappel Bell He in the Company of several Lords called him by his name and said This poor mans Father was a great friend to me having given me many a meals meat in my necessity and therefore I am resolved to provide for him as long as I live which he did accordingly His Wisdom and Policy in state affairs was very obvious in the management of all Treaties Negotiations and Transactions both at home and abroad with the utmost prudence dextegity and success Lastly and Principally his fervent zeal for the true Religion was sufficiently discovered by the Injunctions Proclamations and Articles published by his advice for promoting and advancing the same In a word many Ages before and since have not been blest with two such excellent Persons as the Lord Cromwell and Archbishop Cranmer who both flourisht together at this time Remarks upon the Life Actions and Fatal Fall of Robert Devereux Earl of Essex Favourite to Queen Elizabeth BY the fall of this Great Man we may observe that the Love of a People may be of no less dangerous consequence to a Subject to trust to than their hatred proves satal to such Princes as are so unwary to procuse it Nor is the affection of a Prince to a Favourite to be much relied on since their love is oftentimes inconstant and their anger deadly Of both which we can scarce find a more pregnant instance than in the Life and Death of this Eminent Favourite Robert Devereux was born in 1566. and was not above ten years of Age when his Father Walter Earl of Essex and Earl Marshal of Ireland deceased at Dublin Premonishing his Son never to forget the thirty sixth year of his Age as the utmost term of Life which neither himself nor his Father before him survived and which his Son never attained to After his Father's death he was under the Tuition of the Pious and Learned Dr. Whitgift and at sixteen years performed his publick Acts as Master of Arts. His first advancement at Court was procured by the Earl of Leicester his Father in Law and was thought to be designed not so much out of love to him as envy against Sr. Walter Rawleigh His Descent was very honourable his Title being derived from Evereux a City in Normandy His Title of Lord came by Marriage with Cicily the Daughter of William Bourchier whose Grandmother was Sister to Edward IV. King of England whose great Grandmother was Daughter to Thomas of Woodstock Son of King Edward III. born of one of the Daughters of Humfry Bohun Earl of Hartford and Essex whereupon the Title of Viscount Hartford was bestowed upon his great Grandfather Walter by King Edward VI. and that of Earl of Essex upon his Father by Q Elizabeth So that this high Birth might fill him with some ambitious thoughts He was with much ado at first made Master of the Horse the Queen being displeased with his Mother but afterward when by his observance and duty he had procured her full favour she forgave a great debt that his Father owed her made him a Knight of the Garter and a Privy Counsellor when he was scarce twenty three years old His first appearance in action was at Tilbury Camp in 1588. being made by the Queen General of the Horse to whom in the fight of the Souldiery and People she discovered a more than ordinary kindness And now Queen Elizabeth to follow the blow that she had given the Spanish Armada the next year sends Sir Francis Drake and Sir John Norris with a Fleet and some Forces to the aid of Don Antonio who pretended a Right to the Crown of Portugal but Philip II. of Spain being both ambitious and powerful sent the Duke of Alva with an Army thither who drove this new King out of his Country and after many skirmishes wholly possessed himself of that Kingdom for his Master The English Forces landed near the Groin in Gallicia and took the lower Town During this Voyage the Earl of Essex unwilling to be idle when honour was to be gotten went privately to Sea without the Queen's knowledge or consent and joined the Fleet At which she was much disturbed saying This young Fellow is so ventrous that he will certainly be knockt on the Head one time or other The English likewise took Peniche another Town in Portugal and approached Lisbon took the Castle of Cascays burnt the Town of Vigo and finding that the Portuguese did not declare for Don Antonio as he expected sickness likewise increasing among the Souldiers the Fleet returned home After this the Popish Princes of France entring into a League that they would have no Protestant reign over them raised an Army against the King of Navar their rightful Soveraign who thereupon craved aid of the Q. who readily assisted him with money and then with men under the Earl of Essex who gave sufficient proof of his Valour upon all occasions his Brother Walter being slain before the Walls of Roan Upon which the Earl challenged Villars the Governor of the City to a single Combat which he durst not accept of The Earl a while after returned to England being informed by his friends that many envious Courtiers were contriving to throw him out of the Queen's favour In 1595. Arch-Duke Albert Governor of the Spanish Netherlands for the King of Spain suddenly Besieged Callice and took it the news whereof so surprized the Queen because of the near Neighbourhood of this Potent Enemy that to divert the Tempest from England She and the States of Holland instantly set out a Navy of 140 Ships whereon were imbarqued about seven thousand Souldiers and as many Seamen commanded in chief by the Earl of Essex and Charles Howard joint Admirals with several other Inferior Commanders of great Courage and Conduct who Sailing to Cadiz in a short time took both the Town and Castle no man of Note being lost in this Expedition but Captain Wingfield and after having Ransackt the Town and Island whereon it is built