Selected quad for the lemma: woman_n
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A55345
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The life of the right honourable and religious Lady Christian[a], late Countess Dowager of Devonshire
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Pomfret, Thomas, d. 1705.
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1685
(1685)
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Wing P2799; ESTC R3342
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19,382
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111
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discovery dies with him The Mother of the Maccabees brings up her Children to Martyrdom and dies her self bravely after them Others are as famous in the Monuments of Antiquity for Piety Clotilda converts France to Christianity Indegondis her Grandchild recovers her Husband and part of Spain from the Arrian Heresie Helena plants Christianity in the Roman Empire Cesaria in Persia Theolinda in Italy Margaret in England Gisellis in Hungary Dambruca in Poland Olga in Russia Ethelbirga in Germany And for private Vertues Abigail Susanna S. Agnes S. Cicely S. Monica S. Felicitas Zenobia Pulcheria Theodora Marcella Paula Eustochium and ten Thousand more are the noblest Images They were Women that in the Infant Church led on the Men to Martyrdom and thronged themselves in little Armies to Martyrs Fires that brought up their Infants to the most glorious sufferings who smiled the Tyrants into Rage and posed the subtlest inventions of Pains and Tortures And indeed the numbers and sorts of vertuous Women have so increased in later Histories that to refuse them their honour would be the same thing as to deny the Splendors of the Sun and either we must have no eyes to see into the present nor any faith to credit past Records or we must allow and admire their merit But I might have superseded all these Authorities and relyed wholly upon the following Life to have demonstrated this verity Necessary it will be before we come to relate what she did to know from whence she was it being not the least Glory of her Character that as God had equall'd her by Birth to the greatest of her time so she her self equalled her Vertues to her Extraction Daughter she was to Edward Lord Bruce of Kinloss Privy Councellor to King James both in England and Scotland and Master of the Rolls He Edward Lord Bruce discending from Robert Bruce the Norman to whom William the first gave the Castle and Lordship of Shelton which was a Barony by Tenure From him descended all the Noble Bruces both of England and Scotland and particularly Robert and David both Kings of the Scots whose Sister marrying into the Family of the Stewarts They in her Right inherited the Crown of that Nation It cannot therefore but be worthy our first thoughts to contemplate how the divine Providence designing her for the most illustrious Life besides that it furnished her Soul with extraordinary Graces took care that it should be united to a Body descending from a Family flourishing in Riches and Honours intending to Remarque to her what she soon understood and as truly practised that as God had raised her by her Birth to the heights of Glory so she should conduct her self to excel others as much in the Eminencies of Goodness as she did in Blood Such a Beauty therefore we have here to delineate not as we could wish were or a strong Imagination can Fancy but such an one as is true and solid and far better expressing her self in her own life than is possible by this Copy she not being to be parallell'd by any thing but her self Who as she was prepared by the Divine goodness for Scenes of Difficulty and Honour so was she better taught to act her own Part by observing how her noble Father performed his He the Lord Bruce amongst other great Services done for his Royal Master King James was also a Principal and happy Instrument of facilitating his obtaining the Crown of England to which though he had an undoubted Right yet he met with very potent Obstructions which in a great measure were removed by the Interest this noble Lord had before made in Secretary Cecil afterwards Earl of Salisbury and divers others of the English Nobility A friendship he had contracted both intimate and fortunate with some of the greatest Interest and Power during his Embassy here in England to Queen Elizabeth joined in it to the Earl of Marre proving afterwards an opportunity of a nobler conjunction that of the two Crowns which the King had no sooner well setled to his Head but he took this good Servant nearer to his Heart and Person Animadverting that he could not wear them with that security and pleasure he desired unless he might be Assisted by so useful and loyal a Servant brought him therefore into England with him that he might continue him in his Favours and have him near to conduct his Affairs and Councils Several Sons he had and but this only Daughter she born to him on Christmas day and for that reason had the name of Christian answering up to the highest measures the glorious Omen both of the Day and of her Name appearing so soon to be Christian as if indeed she had been born one expressing in her younger years such vigorous Demonstrations of Goodness that the World might easily see she had a Soul and Body made at first to all possible Perfections Such Impressions did this Purity of her Youth the Pregnancy of her Wit her freedom from Passions that neglect of Vanity and hatred of Excess together with that Modesty and Sweetness which were naturally hers made upon the mind of her Indulgent and Discerning Father that he expressed his value of her and her own merit by the first publick notice he could make which was to marry her to an Heir of one of the greatest Families and Estates in England and by giving also such a Portion as in those Days did exceed and would also now be a very great one viz. 10000 l. Her Husband was Sir William Cavendish Son to the Lord Cavendish made afterwards Earl of Devonshire descending from the ancient stock of the Jernon and Norman blood Made thus a Wife she soon put in practice all those Vertues which such a Relation required from her Such a Respect she paid as Saint Paul commended to Christian Women that should also increase to Reverence and Obedience Considering wisely with her self that when the Wife once falters from the Command of her Husband storms and tempests invade the Family and that her own her Husbands her Childrens and her Friends happiness and quiet are not indangered only but scattered into disorders worse than Hell This Obedience she looked upon as no hard Task because love assisted to bear the pleasing burden Her own and Husbands Soul met in equal Poize and the thoughts and desires of the one were the thoughts and desires of the other God made them two into one and they were one in Judgment and in Will and in Affection and in Care And as Love made them so Loyalty another of her Conjugal Vertues so kept them The Husband inclosed her to himself when he espoused her with his Ring his was the Right and hers the Virtue to be only his Assistance also one of those ends for which God made her Woman and marriage a Wife she gave to that eminent Degree that it is not easy to resolve whether it was more for the Interest or Honour of the Cavendish Family that she was united to
it For Sir Williams Father having married a second Wife which too commonly brings disadvantages to the Children of the first Venture took not so much care as he ought of his Sons Concernments nor made Allowances such as might render him capable of living in that Dignity requisite for the Son of such a Father and the Husband of such a Wife King James therefore taking notice of it became himself an Advocate for the noble Pair and amongst other things told the old Lord Cavendish that his Son being matched into a Family for which he must be highly concerned he would expect accordingly that out of that plentiful Estate he himself had such a Proportion be setled that Sir William might bear up the Port of his Fathers Son and his Lady the Quality of the Kings Kinswoman This Mediation proved so effectual that the Lord Cavendish did what the King thought reasonable But this Addition though it answered the Kings yet it did not rise up to the Generosities of the Sons mind the greatness of which having in himself a noble disdain to be limited to the Expence of so many thousands only was the Occasion of contracting a very great debt which being entred into by an Excess of Gallantry he could not relieve himself from when he had much a greater Fortune than formely but even when Earl of Devonshire he rather increased it by the Magnificence of his living both in Town and Country his House appearing rather like a Princes Court than a Subjects for nothing but the greatest Actions could answer the Heights of his nobler thoughts And if any Blame can be derived from a Debt contracted by so generous an hand and made yet greater by a continuing and growing Generosity we shall see that not the least Censure can light upon our Excellent Lady For besides that she neglected all Delicacies and came not near the least Excess either of Games or Vanity the usual Consumers of Estates she had also the greatest Prudence both in the Management and to increase them when they fell under her own Oeconomy as we shall see in the sequel of this Narrative Her Lord dying about the year 27 though he left her a Dowry that for greatness being near 5000 l. a year might abundantly testifie his own extraordinary kindness and her more than usual Deservings yet the other Part of the Estate descending upon her Son was so complicated with Law-suits as must in the Redemption testifie her to be a Woman of matchless Discretion and of a Fortitude able to surmount all Opposition And to make publick those Vertues she had many great and troublesom Opportunities during her Widowhood The Suits in Law in which she was left involved were in number near thirty and in their nature the most intricate and what yet added more to her trouble by the Cunning and Power of her Adversaries they were rendred as perplext difficult and tedious as was possible But to that Right which was on her side she added Diligence and Resolution and by these not only Acquitted her self with the greatest Bravery but prevailed in them all to the highest satisfaction Such great Deeds rendred her justly Famous insomuch that the late King jestingly said to her Madam You have all my Judges at your Disposal as what Courts would not be influenced by such commanding Charms to do justice And yet she would not Arrogate much of all this to her self but would always next to God Attribute the Success of her Undertakings to the Care and Industry of her Brother the Earl of Elgin who besides the most generous Inclinations which he had to assist the Distressed the rather undertook this troublesome Province that he might declare both to her self and the whole World the extraordinary Kindness he had for his Sister the dear Respects he bare to his deceased Brother in Law and the tender Care he had for his young Nephew the Earl of Devonshire that now is being then but nine years of Age. But the Discharging the Estate from those numerous Law-suits was not the only thing that required her Care there was a great Debt also which must take up her thoughts and be another Specimen of her Trouble as well as Prudence Her Lord indeed had before his Death provided some Materials by obtaining an Act of Parliament for cutting off an Entail in order to the sale of Lands a thing not usual in those times and that then had not been effected but for the sakes of those for whom it was done as the late King was pleased to express it My Lord of Devonshire had been a great speaker and much beloved and admired in both Houses of Parliament she her self also a Lady of that Affability and sweet Address had besides so great a Wit and Judgment of what was fit to be urged and done that she captivated many both of the Lords and Commons who had in a manner Resolved never to have consented to the Passing of such a Bill But gained it was though when obtained it bore no Proportion towards the Payment of that vast Debt for which it was designed however with what mony the sale of Lands brought in together with her own Care and Management though with Difficulty enough she discharged the Debt Having thus cleared the Estate for the Heir her next Concern was by the most generous Education to prepare her Son that he might answer his great Fortune and greater Name by the noblest Actions For considering wisely with her self that the good or evil condition of Children did not depend upon any kind Aspects or malevolent Configuration of Planets at their Birth or that they were made Fatally evil by any Original Necessity of being wicked she concluded that next to Gods Grace the best Impresses of Vertue ought to be stamped upon Children when they are young if their Parents would have them Eminent in the Practice of it Upon these Reasonings our prudent Lady who both by her own Prince and Strangers was Reputed to live greater than any Subject whatsoever as to Hospitality Resort and Retinue spared no cost in Breeding the young Lord who in his Minority was maintained both at Home and in his Travels beyond any of his Quality and by her Care instructed also by such Tutors as could read to him the most Accomplished Lectures in all those Sciences that must Render him a perfect Gentleman Towards which that she might give him the most inviting Incouragements to the Indulgencies of a Mother she added the Prudence of the Housewife and at the same time she was so expensive in his Education yet then and at other times by her frugality made such Purchases which when she died added considerably to his Fortunes becoming at once a Pattern of the largest Generosity and strictest Houswifry and giving Demonstrations to all of their mutual Consistence For when Courts both Domestick and Forreign did admire the one the most Parsimonious did confess that she surpassed them in the other But these extraordinary