changes that had been effected against the Romanists, as did Whitgift against the Puritans; and Shakspeare, Spenser, Sidney, and Buckhurst, not to mention minor names, displayed the poetic riches of their native tongue. In other matters most important progress was made. The credit of the nation was re-established by the withdrawal of the base coinage of former sovereigns; new branches of industry were introduced by foreign refugees; the spirit of the people was kept alive by the favour with which bold and costly enterprises for the furtherance of trade and commerce were regarded; Hawkins, Drake, Frobisher, Cavendish, and other hardy navigators, displayed "Her cross, triumphant on the main, The guard of commerce, and the dread of Spain;" and Elizabeth's reign witnessed the beginnings of two of the most wonderful empires of the world, the English East India Company and the United States of North America. But the era so full of benefits for posterity was very far from a quiet or a happy one for the people of its own siastical Polity. His humble and lowly spirit induced him to confine himself to his living of Bishopsbourne, in Kent, though his services to the Church would have commanded its highest dignities, and there he died, Nov. 2, 1600. His life, penned by Izaak Walton, is one of the most delightful pieces of biography in the English language. The exploits that chiefly recommended these men in their own day would now be regarded as piratical, and Hawkins is believed to have been the first Englishman who engaged in the American slave trade. In a letter to the queen, dated from Plymouth, Sept. 16, 1567 (now in the Public Record Office), he states that he is about to sail "to lade negroes in Genoya [Guinea], and sell them in the West Indies, in truck of gold, pearls and emeralds." He and Drake were Devonshire men, Frobisher came from Yorkshire, and Cavendish from Suffolk. There is a curious statement, in some papers lately brought to light, (the despatches of the Venetian ambassador in Spain in 1587,) that Drake was in his youth a page in the English court of King Philip, and was afterwards employed by him in India, but failing to obtain a large arrear of pay, he returned to England, saying he would revenge himself with his own hand. "Having obtained leave from the queen, he proceeded immediately to India with five armed ships, and in Magellan's Strait, among other prizes, he captured a vessel freighted with gold. Not content with this, he returned a second time last year in yet greater force, and then and there, and now in Spain, has done such great damage as is notorious; and yet worse may be expected, which may God avert.' "We, of our prerogative royal, which we will not have argued nor brought in question," is the phrase employed by Elizabeth in a patent, dated May 19, 1591, which grants protection from all suits for debt for both person and property to an time. The government was a pure despotism ", both in Church and State, the Courts of High Commission and of Star Chamber being the great instruments of government, and their proceedings not controlled, when any reason of state interfered, by any rules of law or equity. A large proportion of the people, either as Romish or as Protestant nonconformists, lived exposed to penalties and restrictions that would at the present day be justly regarded as unbearable; the law of treason was strained so as to include very trifling offences, and its barbarous penalties were inflicted to the very letter, while torture was commonly employed to extort confessions. The state of the Church was not more satisfactory. The queen's council was mainly composed of the new-made nobility and gentry, who had already gained so much of its property, but who were desirous to obtain still more. As a means to this end they encouraged the Puritans to bring forward their platform," or "godly discipline," the success of which would have placed all the bishops' lands at their disposal; but Irish noble (Patrick lord Dunsany) and a London gentleman, John Mathewe). If any suit should be commenced, the judges of the different courts are directed to stay it, "without other warrant than the sight of these our letters patent or the inrolment thereof." These penalties, which the mane Henry VI. pronounced "too grievous to done unto any Christian creature," were, as apars from the record of each conviction, as follow The prisoners were to be drawn on hurdles to the place of execution (that is, in many cases, from the Tower or Newgate to Tyburn) and hanged, then ist down to the ground by cutting the rope, and their bowels drawn out of their bellies and burnt, they living; then their heads cut off and their bodies divided into four quarters, and their heads and quarters to be disposed of at the queen's pleasure. The heads were usually placed on spikes in some conspicuous situation, as the tower on London bridge; the quarters were generally buried, but sometimes they were steeped in pitch and exposed. One sufferer (Dr. Story) is related to have struggled with and struck the executioner who disembowelled him; many others are mentioned as "groaning heavily" under his hands. Torture was allowed to be contrary to law, but it was sanctioned by prerogative. The courts, however, thought themselves authorized to pass sentences of almost incredible barbarity; as one instance, we find (March 2, 1571) one Timothy Penredd, who had forged the seal of the king's bench, adjudged to stand on the pillory in Cheapside on two successive market days, "and on the first of such days he is to have one ear nailed to the pillory, and on the second day his other ear nailed to the pillory, and in such a manner that he, the said Timothy, shall, by his own proper motion, be compelled to tear away his two ears from the pillory." the firmness of Parker and Whitgift | queen by the lords of the council, Nov. defeated the scheme, although they 17. She enters London, amid great recould not prevent the sees on each joicings, Nov. 24, and releases all pervacancy from being plundered to a sons confined on account of religion. greater or less extent to gratify the hungry courtiers. Though Elizabeth was quite as learned, and quite as imperious as her father, she yet was guided by a few clever ministers, who, for their own ends, strove successfully against the natural fickleness of her temper, and kept her the head of the Protestant party, but also led her to consent to many acts that bear heavily on her memory. She usually receives the credit of the able, though frequently dishonest policy of her statesmen, and therefore she ranks high as a sovereign, but her personal character had many grievous defects. Early in her reign she professed an intention to live and die a virgin queen, but she gave to worthless favourites encouragement hardly consistent with the declaration, and she indulged in boundless expense for splendid dress, though in more important matters her parsimony was often carried to an unwise extreme. The language which her favourites, and even her parliaments, used towards her shew that no flattery could be too gross for her; and on many occasions she descended to the meanest dissimulation. Her bursts of passion were extravagant, and accompanied by oaths and blows; and an innate cruelty of disposition unmistakably appears in her treatment of her near kinswomen, the Ladies Katherine and Mary Grey and Mary of Scotland. The queen retains her sister's councillors for a short time, but adds to their number Sir William Cecil, Sir Nicholas Bacon, and other Protestants. The Service-book of King Edward is set up in some places without authority. Many of the Protestant refugees return from abroad, and angry controversial sermons are preached; priests are insulted and hindered in their ministration. The queen, by proclamation (Dec. 27), forbids all unlicensed preaching, as also the elevation of the Host. She allows the Lord's Prayer, Creed, Ten Commandments, and Litany, to be used in English. The parliament meets, Jan. 25, and sits till May 8. The "ancient jurisdiction of the crown over the estate ecclesiastical and spiritual" restored, and "all foreign repugnant to the same" abolished, [1 Eliz. c. 1]. By this act the general repeal of statutes affecting religion by the act of Philip and Mary [1 & 2 Phil. & Mar. c. 8] was abrogated; all spiritual jurisdiction was united to the crown, in virtue of which the Court of High Commission was established in 1583'; and all ministers and officers, spiritual and temporal, were bound to take an oath, acknowledging the queen as the only suThe Princess Elizabeth is proclaimed preme governor of the realm... as у A.D. 1558. Her treatment of Queen Mary is but too well known; the unhappy fate of the others is not so frequently alluded to. Katherine was a younger sister of Lady Jane Grey, and having been married in May, 1553, to Lord Herbert, was divorced by him a short time after, on the fall of her family, and apparently for no other reason. She lived unmolested during the reign of Mary, but about 1561, venturing to marry Edward Seymour, earl of Hertford (son of the Protector), without asking the royal licence, she and her husband were committed to the Tower. Hertford was heavily fined, on the charge of "corrupting a princess of the blood," the marriage was annulled in the ecclesiastical court by virtue of the queen's prerogative, and Katherine died after a seven years' imprisonment, Jan. 27; 1568. On her death, Hertford was liberated, and lived tifi 1621; the legality of his marriage had previously been established by the ordinary courts, 66 and he was succeeded by his grandson, who suffered very similarly to himself for an attempt to marry the unhappy Lady Arabella Stuart. Mary in 1565 married Thomas Keyes, the sergeant porter of Dover Castle, a man of substance and of military character. He was at once committed to the Fleet, where he remained for three years, and his wife was placed in the custody first of one gentleman, then of another, Sir Thomas Gresham being one of the number. On his release he applied for her liberation also, but without effect, and he died in 1571. She survived until 1578, when she died after a confinement of thirteen years. A commission to carry the act into execution was issued July 19, 1559, addressed to Parker, Grindal and others. Several other commissions were appointed from time to time, each usually with greater powers than before, and at last the court was formally established in 1583. well in spiritual or ecclesiastical things | the queen, drew up a document asor causes as temporal," and renouncing "all foreign jurisdictions, powers, superiorities, or authorities," under pain of forfeiture of present office and disability to hold any other. Persons maintaining, "by express words, deed, or act," the authority of any foreign prince or prelate, were to forfeit their goods, or, if they were under £20 value, to suffer a year's imprisonment for the first offence; to incur the penalties of præmunire for the second, and to be executed as traitors for the third. The oath above mentioned was to be tendered to every person within thirty days after the close of the session. The last Service-book of King Edward (as established in 1552) confirmed with some alterations, by the Act of Uniformity, [1 Eliz. c. 2]. The queen's title to the crown recognised in general terms, [c. 3]. First-fruits and tenths again vested in the crown, [c. 4]. "The late queen," the statute says, had given up these funds "upon certain zealous and inconvenient respects," although they had been willingly paid by the clergy for many years; and they were now restored to lessen "the huge, immeasurable, and inestimable charges of the royal estate." Various new treasons created; among them, denying the queen's title, [c. 5]. The queen empowered to "reserve to herself" the bishops' lands, giving them impropriate tithes instead, [c. 19]. Queen Mary's foundations suppressed, and their possessions vested in the crown, [c. 24]. Peace is concluded with France, April 2. Calais remains in the hands of the French ". Whilst the parliament sat, the clergy were assembled in convocation, and, although warned by a message from a See A.D. 1393. b The revision was the work of a committee of divines, Parker, Grindal, and others, most of whom were shortly after advanced to the episcopate. The terms of this act offer a striking contrast to those of the statute [1 Mar. sess. 2, c. 1] by which the title of Mary had been asserted and the honour of her mother vindicated. See p. 327. d Hostages and bonds for 500,000 crowns were placed in Elizabeth's hands, and a promise was made to restore the town in eight years, if no act of hostility was committed in the mean time. The queen, however, sent aid to the Protestants, both in France and Scotland, and thus gave an excuse serting the corporal presence, the supremacy of the see of Rome, and the exclusive right of the Church to treat of doctrine, the sacraments, and the orders of public worship. In consequence a disputation was held in Westminster Abbey (March 31 and April 3) before the Houses of Parliament, and under the presidency of Sir Nicholas Bacon, lord keeper. The bishops of Carlisle, Chester, Lichfield, Lincoln, and Winchester, with Drs.. Chedsey, Cole, Harpsfield, and Langdale, appeared on one side; and Scory (late bishop of Chichester), Aylmer, Cox, Grindal, Guest, Horne, Jewel, Sandys, and Whitehead on the other. The Protestants put in papers condemning the use of an unknown tongue in the public service of the Church; asserting that each Church had a right to regulate rites and ceremonies; and denying that the mass was a propitiatory sacrifice for the living and the dead. Dr. Cole argued against these propositions, and was answered by Horne, whose reply was so greatly applauded, that the bishops desired to add something to Cole's speech, which it was agreed they should do at the next meeting. They then, however, had changed their minds, and refused to proceed with the disputation, on which the bishops of Lincoln and Winchester "were condignly committed to the Tower of London," and the rest of their party (except the abbot of Westminster) ordered to appear daily at the council table, to answer for their “disorders, stubbornness, and self-will "." Thomas, lord Wentworth, is tried before the marquis of Northampton and his peers for the treasonable surrender of Calais, and acquitted, April 22. The new Book of Common Prayer is first publicly used, June 24. for not fulfilling the promise, which probably was never intended to be kept. • Such is the account published by Sir Nicholas Bacon, and several other councillors. He was tried on an indictment found July 2, 1558, in the time of Queen Mary, while he was still a prisoner in France. Edward Grimston, comp troller of Calais, was tried on similar charges, and also acquitted, Dec. 1. Sir Ralph Chamberlain, lieutenant of the castle of Calais, and John Harleston, lieutenant of the Ruysbank, were tried for surrendering their posts, and found guilty, Dec. 22, but they were pardoned. A.D. 1560. Elizabeth sends money, arms, and a fleet to the assistance of the Scottish Reformers, and also succours the Protestants in France. Both France and Scotland were at this period oppressed by the overwhelming influence of the aspiring family of Guise', who were declared foes to the tenets of the Reformers. Francis duke of Guise, who had gained great popularity by his conquest of Calais", was directed by his brother Charles, a cardinal", and they were understood to aspire, the one to the throne, the other to the papacy. The king (Francis II.) and his queen (Mary of Scotland) were in their hands, and both too young and inexperienced to counteract their designs; their sister (Mary of Guise, widow of James V.) was regent of Scotland, and openly endeavoured to reduce that country to It was explained that it was not meant to attribute any holiness or special worthiness" to these garments; but the greater part of the clergy who had been in exile disliked them, and many refused to wear them, which at length gave occasion to coercive measures, and these were followed by formal separation. Ten sees were vacant; the holders of fifteen more either resigned or were deprived in the course of a short time after. Matthew Parker was consecrated as archbishop of Canterbury Dec. 17, 1559, and all the sees except Oxford were filled up before the end of 1562. The whole number, including the bishops, is variously stated at from 189 to 243, out of a body of nearly 10,000 individuals; but subsequent events proved that the compliance of the rest was in many cases insincere. He was, as appears from his official register, consecrated at Lambeth, Dec. 17, 1559, by the bishops Barlow, Coverdale, and Scory, and Hodgkins, suffragan of Bedford. Many years after a tale was brought forward by Romish writers of a so-called consecration of Parker at a tavern (the Nag's Head, in Cheapside), but it can only be regarded as a malignant invention. The new Prayer-book was declared agreeable to a mere province of France. She had succeeded in marrying her daughter to the heir of the French throne, and they soon assumed the style and arms of sovereigns of France, Scotland and England. This was naturally resented by Elizabeth; she regarded it as an attempt to carry into execution the threat of the pope (Paul IV.), who had denounced her as incapable of succession without his sanction, and she found a ready means of warding off the danger by fanning the flame of civil war in Scotland, where a determined attempt was being made by the Protestant party to free their country from French influence. The regent had brought over French troops, who strongly fortified Leith, and she took up her residence there. The Scots assailed the town in vain, were put to flight, and the lands of their leaders, who took the title of Lords of the Con Scripture, the queen's supremacy acknowledged, the power of the pope disclaimed, the mass rejected, and pilgrimages, extolling of images, relics, and feigned miracles, condemned as vain superstitions. Francis The founder of the family was Claude, a younger son of René II., duke of Lorraine, who served in the wars of Francis I., and received in marriage Antoinette of Bourbon, the king's kinswoman. Of his numerous family, Francis, Charles, and Mary were the most conspicuous. may be regarded as the instigator of the religious wars in France; he defeated the Protestants at Dreux, but was assassinated before Orleans soon after. His son Henry saw him fall, vowed hatred to the Reformers, and in concert with his brothers, Louis a cardinal, and Charles duke of Mayenne, was for many years the actual ruler of France. He instigated and took part in the butchery of St. Bartholomew's day, formed the League, or Holy Union, with intent to seize the crown, and gained military possession of Paris. At length, in 1588, he was assassinated with his brother the cardinal, and the duke of Mayenne soon after abandoning the struggle, the civil war was brought to a close. gregation, ravaged. They appealed to Elizabeth for aid, and she sent a land force under Lord Grey, and a fleet under William Winter, to assist them. The siege of Leith was again formed, the garrison made a desperate resistance, but were at length reduced to extremity by famine. The queen regent withdrew to Edinburgh, where she soon after died (June 10), and a treaty was concluded between Elizabeth and the Scots (July 6), which provided that all the French troops should leave Scotland, and that Mary and her husband should discontinue the use of the style and arms of sovereigns of England and Ireland°. For the present Elizabeth's exertions in favour of the French Protestants were confined to remonstrances against the persecution they experienced, and complaints of the arrogance and sinister designs of the Guises; but eventually she sent the earl of Warwick with a large force to Normandy, which had been overrun by the prince of Condé and other leaders of the Reformers. They had taken up arms professedly to save the young king (Charles IX.) from the tyranny of the Guises, but evidently from worse motives, as they obtained her assistance by the acknowledgment of her right to the crown of France, an acknowledgment glaringly contrary to the laws of their country, which leaves as indelible a stigma on their patriotism, as their subsequent conduct to their allies does on their honour and gratitude. P See A.D. 1328. This, generally termed the Geneva Bible, contained a preface and notes, in which both the doctrine and the discipline of Calvin were set forth; hence it was as popular with the Puritans as it was distasteful to the queen and the bishops. Archbishop Parker endeavoured to counteract it by procuring a new edition of Cranmer's Bible; eight prelates, as well as other learned men, were employed in the revision, and the work when pub, lished (in 1568) was commonly known as the Bishops' Bible; it is the foundation of the present authorized version. This was justly considered so important, that it The base money in circulation is called in, and money of just value issued instead'. A.D. 1561. Mary returns to Scotland, landing at Leith, Aug. 19o. A.D. 1562. The religious wars in France recommence. The duke of Guise attacks a Protestant congregation at Vassy, March 1. The Protestants take up arms, overrun Normandy, and apply to Elizabeth for assistance; she sends forces under the command of the earl of Warwick (Ambrose Dudley, the son of Northumberland). These forces took possession of Havre in September. They afforded important aid to the Protestants, but were unable to prevent the loss of Rouen, or that of the battle of Dreux (Dec. 19), in which the prince of Condé was made prisoner. The duke of Guise was soon after assassinated_at_the siege of Orleans, (he died Feb. 24, 1563,) and a temporary pacification followed, (concluded at Amboise, March 19,) when the Protestants, with almost unexampled baseness, joined the German mercenaries of the court in expelling the English garrison. Havre was fiercely attacked and desperately defended for more than two months (May 22 to July 28), when the garrison, worn out by pestilence', surrendered on honourable terms", but brought the plague with them to England, where it made fearful havoc, especially in London. |
