WAR.

1556-1558.

Want of money had hampered the Queen from the beginning of her reign, and was not the least among the causes which led to the unpopularity of her government. Her poverty was apparent, had observed the French ambassador, even in the number of dishes placed on her table, and worse still, it had necessarily influenced the distribution of rewards to those who had risked all for their rightful sovereign. One not unfriendly ambassador so far misunderstood the state of her finances, as to accuse her of parsimony, although it was well known that she had inherited debts from her father and brother, amounting to an enormous sum.[626]

The Act of Parliament which restored Papal supremacy also decreed that the holders of Church lands might lawfully retain them, the Kings of England having had jurisdiction over all ecclesiastical property from time immemorial. Mary’s own conscience refused to be quieted by an Act of Parliament, and in November 1555, the tenths and first-fruits which Henry had seized, and Edward had kept were restored to the Church, together with the value of each ecclesiastical benefice and the first year’s income of each, worth about a million a year of present day money.[627] This strain on her already impoverished exchequer was immense, but in vain her ministers objected that the money was sorely needed to support the dignity of the Crown, the Queen replied characteristically, “I would rather lose ten such crowns, than place my soul in peril”.[628] Gardiner pledged himself to secure the consent of Parliament to this renunciation, but his death prevented him, and Mary herself sent for a deputation from each House, explained her desire, and the reasons which moved her to restore the Church property vested in the Crown. A bill was accordingly drawn up. It passed through the Upper House with only two dissentient voices, and was carried in the Commons by a majority of 193, against 126 votes. The money thus restored to its original purpose was placed at the disposal of Cardinal Pole, to be expended on the augmentation of small livings, on the support of preachers, and on the foundation of scholarships at the universities.[629]

It has been frequently made to appear, as if the Queen wished to oblige all holders of ecclesiastical goods to follow her example, but the contrary is amply demonstrated by Pole’s correspondence on the subject, contained in St. Mark’s Library at Venice, and by Mary’s own request to Paul IV. that he would make no difficulties about restitution.[630]

But having impoverished herself for conscience’ sake, and being burdened with inherited debts, the Queen was ever after, in the humiliating position of a suppliant to her people, whenever a fresh need for funds arose. Philip moreover, who had at first contributed in a princely fashion, to the revenues of the country, was engaged in a costly war, while the subsidies which he had received from Spain were pawned in perpetuity, those of Milan alienated for five years, those of Naples for seven, and the means of finding money elsewhere scanty.[631] The English had persistently refused to crown him, and Mary had apparently been unable to force them to do so; she must prove her wifely devotion by raising money for his wars, in which case he would gratify her by going to visit her.

The new loan subscribed by Parliament, in consequence of Gardiner’s representations, was being raised with great difficulty, thanks to de Noailles’ manipulation of the opposing members, although Mary had demanded less than the original sum voted. A fresh device must therefore be invented if Philip’s wants were to be met. The plan adopted is described by Michiel as unusual, even unprecedented.

“The Queen,” he wrote on the 25th August 1556, “sent freely to the lords and gentlemen, the wealthiest and best provided, letters in which is specified the precise sum demanded of each of them, according to what the individual might be supposed able to bear, and I am told that the least is £40 sterling, her Majesty urging all of them to exceed their means, availing themselves of their property and credit to raise the sum required by her, as she is in great need, and compelled to supply herself with funds to enable her to quell the insurrections to which she is daily subjected. This mode of request has seemed the more strange and vexatious to everybody as it is unusual and unprecedented, the device being attributed to the Spanish lords, in order as said by them publicly, that the King may make use of the money; so it seems that all (although it be untrue) apologise, under pretence of being overwhelmed with debts. But opposition will be of little avail, nor in the end will any one dare obstinately to resist her Majesty’s desire.”[632]

The general irritation at this measure was increased by the circumstance, that payment was to be made through the Queen’s Comptroller, instead of through the Lord High Treasurer, through a private instead of a public official. But none were taxed over £100, the lowest sum demanded being £20. Mary told Philip of the great difficulty she experienced in getting the tax paid, and of the loud complaints and foul language current on this account, it being understood that she was either giving him the money, or making use of it to further the design attributed to the Emperor of going to England, of crowning his son by force, and of putting pressure on Parliament to wage war on France, “which,” adds Badoer, “it does not seem inclined to do”. In the same despatch, Badoer says that Piamontese had told him, that the Queen had again written very earnestly to the Pope, “not only to pray and exhort him to abstain from disturbing his Majesty’s affairs, but to let him know that the people of England from this cause are greatly encouraged to resume Lutheran opinions”.

Philip, seeing that his affairs in England showed little sign of progressing in his absence, made a virtue of necessity, and rejoiced the Queen, by declaring that he would set out as soon as possible, after the pending departure of the Emperor for Spain. Mary received the news in a transport of delight, but Pole, who had learned to distrust Philip’s repeated assurances of his speedy arrival, persuaded her to await further intelligence, before despatching Pembroke, Arundel and Paget to the sea coast. He could not dispel the renewed hope which sent her back to London at Michaelmas, in better health and spirits than for months before. She took her barge at Lambeth, but before crossing to St. James’s Palace expressed a desire to visit the Cardinal’s official residence, and “not only chose to enter it, but ascending the stairs, had herself conducted by his most illustrious Lordship into his own chamber, and through the gardens everywhere, staying for luncheon, with infinite familiarity and kindness, asking two or three times for Monsignor Priuli[633] who failed to present himself”.

But again Philip’s coming was delayed, and the courier Piamontese performed wonderful feats of rapid travelling between Brussels and London, carrying despatches of the utmost weight and significance. “On Wednesday last,” says Michiel, writing on the 23rd November, “at one and the same time, Francesco Piamontese returned from Brussels, and from France the secretary of the Queen’s ambassador there, both one and the other having travelled with such speed, that the one came from Paris to London in 25 hours, and the other out and home from Brussels (although detained there during a day and a half) in five days. Since their arrival until now, the ministers, and Cardinal Pole may be said to have been in very close consultation, assembling every day at 6 A.M. well-nigh before day break, until the dinner hour, and after noon until 6 P.M. or about the second hour of the night according to the Italian fashion. This proceeding is unusual, and Lord Paget having been confined to the house by indisposition, for upwards of a month, they even urged him, on no account to absent himself from the Council board, and although he apologised, as not being in a state to be able to go abroad, I understand that what he could not do by word of mouth, in their presence, was done by him in writing, and that he gave his opinion about what had been asked him at full length. The speed of the couriers, and these long and extraordinary consultations, indicate the gravity and importance of the matter which is being treated so secretly, that as yet, no one has been able to elicit anything certain about it, although from conjecture and conversation rather than from knowledge, many things have been, and still continue to be said, some persons declaring, that some fresh conspiracy, in virtue of an understanding with the French, has been discovered, or some design of the French themselves, on certain places either here or across the Channel. Others, on the contrary, believe the business to be some request from the King to the Queen, to the effect that should the truce be broken, as is feared, war be also waged by England against France, and if this cannot or will not be done, that at least a subsidy of money or troops be given, by reason of the great preparations of the French for Italy, and all the borders; but be it as it may, the deliberation proceeds so silently, that to know anything more about it is difficult. It has been determined for the Earl of Pembroke to cross the Channel, and in two days he will go to Calais, nor is it known whether he is betaking himself to the King. He has ordered his whole household to follow, and it is said that from suspicion, all the guards will be changed.”[634]

On the 1st December, Michiel informed his government that he had discovered Lord Pembroke’s going to Calais to be caused by the French having reinforced their cavalry on the borders of Calais and Guisnes, with a view to a fortress held by the English, named Hammes, the governor of which was Lord Dudley, brother of the traitor Henry Dudley, then still in France, and in great favour with the King.[635] Continuing the same despatch, he says:—

“Three days ago, Miladi Elizabeth arrived from the country, fifteen miles off (from Hatfield) with a handsome retinue, having with her, including lords and gentlemen, upwards of 200 horsemen, clad in her own livery, and dismounted at her own house (Somerset Place) where she has remained ever since, to the infinite pleasure of this entire population, though she was not met by any of the lords or gentlemen of the Court, but many visited her subsequently. Three days afterwards, she went to the Queen, and according to report was received very graciously and familiarly. Yesterday, she returned thither to take leave, having at length had an interview with the Cardinal, whom she visited even in his own chamber, he never having seen her until then, although last year, they both resided at the Court for a whole month, with their apartments very near each other. It cannot yet be ascertained whether she came for any other purpose than that of visiting the Queen, she having with great earnestness solicited to come, and not having been called. With this opportunity, I (according to the custom of my predecessors) now that she seems to be in good favour with her Majesty will not fail to visit her before her departure, not having done so hitherto. Yesterday, the festival of St. Andrew, in Westminster Abbey, which has been restored to the monks, the most illustrious Legate and the royal Council (with all the lords now here, and the nobility of the Court, I also being present, with a great concourse of people) celebrated the anniversary of the kingdom’s release from the schism, which took place on that day, and the twenty-six monks and their abbot made a fine show and procession. The Queen likewise would have been present, had she not been slightly indisposed during the last three or four days, on which account she has not appeared in public, or even in her own chapel at the palace.”[636]

A week later, he wrote again: “The Queen still remains without going abroad, distressing herself about her husband’s troubles”.

Elizabeth, unfortunately, left London before Michiel had time to pay his proposed visit to her, and we are consequently deprived of a description of the Princess at this period, which his realistic pen would no doubt have rendered extremely interesting. He was, moreover, recalled by his Government before the end of the year, and Michiel Surian, who arrived in England as his successor in March 1557, continued the official reports of passing events, without, however, the life-like touches, and vivid colouring of Giovanni Michiel.

At last, it was announced that the King was indeed coming without further delay. He had set out by the end of the first week in March, and was met at each important place through which he passed, by two gentlemen, sent by the Queen, one of whom returned immediately to Greenwich, where she awaited her husband’s arrival, to bring her news of him, and enable her to follow his journey stage by stage. “Thursday, the 18 day of March,” says Machyn, “the King landed at Dover, about x of the clock in the night.” His courtesy and attention to national and local customs were as apparent as on his first setting foot in England, and having inadvertently entered Canterbury Cathedral with his spurs on, he gracefully paid the fine he had thereby incurred, by emptying his purse full of gold pieces, into the cap of a young student who claimed it.[637] After two days spent in retirement at Greenwich, Philip rode through London to Whitehall, by the side of the Queen, who was carried in a litter. He had no cause to complain of his reception by the citizens, and he in his turn did his best to please them, by pardoning and releasing certain prisoners in the Tower, “nevertheless, from what I hear,” reported Surian, “the Spaniards are so greatly hated, that neither his Majesty nor the Queen are well looked on by the multitude”. On the other hand, all the members of the Privy Council were his firm friends, “owing,” said the new Venetian ambassador, “to the great rewards they have had from him, for when last here, he spent and gave a considerable quantity of money, and distributed vast revenues in Spain and Flanders, to propitiate the leading people here, and he found by experience that what my father used to say of this kingdom was perfectly true, that all, from first to last are venal, and do anything for money”.[638]

He went on to say that the Count de Feria had assured him, that the King had so much influence with the Council that he could do with them what he pleased, and that it was in his Majesty’s power to make the country wage war against France, when and in what manner he chose. Surian thought however that Philip would only demand pecuniary help, in which surmise his shrewdness was at fault. “Thus,” he continued, ”do the affairs of the government proceed at present, and those of the religion are regulated with less severity, both to avoid further exasperation of the public mind, as also because, although few are perhaps really Catholic at heart, everybody nevertheless, in appearance, makes a show of living religiously, so there is no cause for proceeding against them.”[639]

Philip’s return, hailed by the Queen and Council, was an occasion of some embarrassment to Cardinal Pole. On the one hand, he rejoiced to be free from the burden of secular affairs, that had weighed so heavily on him, and to be at last able to attend to his archdiocese; but on the other, his position as Papal Legate, and as a member of the Sacred College made it impossible for him to meet on terms of amity, one who was at war with the Pope. In his official capacity he could not meet Philip at all, and he sent to excuse himself for not going to visit him; but before leaving for Canterbury, he went secretly, unattended, and in his private character, to the King’s apartments, at which proceeding the French King affected to be somewhat scandalised, declaring it to be “an unbecoming act”. What passed at the interview did not tend to smooth difficulties with the Pope, or to cause him to listen more patiently to the Queen’s ceaseless appeals on behalf of her husband, as the following transcript from a letter of the Venetian ambassador at the Vatican very well shows. Bernardo Navagero in describing an audience with Paul IV. on the 8th May 1557, quotes the Pope’s own words: “The Queen’s ambassador (Sir Edward Carne) who for a native of those regions is modest and very intelligent, has been to us in the name of the Queen and of the kingdom, to pray me not to abandon them, but to remember that it has lately come to our obedience. We answered him that we love the Queen for her own sake, as she is good, and has done good works; for the sake of her mother, who honoured us extremely, when we were sent to that kingdom by Leo,[640] and for the sake of her grandfather, the late Catholic King, to whom we are much obliged for the love he bore us, and he was assuredly a worthy King, nor could we ever have believed that his descendants would have degenerated so much as Charles and Philip; but we told the Ambassador, that we would willingly separate the Queen’s cause from that of her—we know not whether to call him husband, cousin or nephew—and have her as daughter, bidding her attend to the government of her kingdom, and not let herself be induced to do anything to our detriment nor to that of our confederates, as for instance the King of France, for we would spare neither relations nor friends, but include in our maledictions and anathemas all those who shall desert the cause of God. Even yesterday, we had a letter from the Cardinal of England, telling us that on the arrival of Philip in London, he departed for his bishopric, and he did well, for he could not in honour remain there. He says that he visited King Philip in his own name, as he could not do so in ours, seeing that he has no commission to that effect, as we on the contrary have revoked the legations, and recalled nuncios, and all the ministers of the Apostolic See, in the realms of that individual, to deprive him of the means for doing injury to God and to us. Cardinal Pole also writes that the said individual told him, he would gladly be reconciled to us, and that he has provided for his realms so as to prevent their molestation. This reconciliation fails through him, as induratum est cor ejus, and we believe that he will not reform until his head has been soundly beaten. God knows that for nothing do we pray Him more earnestly, than for our quiet, and that of all Christendom, which were He to grant us, we should close these eyes most contentedly.”[641]

But Mary’s most pressing cause for anxiety was Philip’s determination to invade France, and to prevail on the English, not only to succour his army with troops and money, but to consent to an aggressive alliance, and a formal declaration of war against Henry II. Under other conditions there would have been nothing repugnant to Mary in an open rupture with the most Christian King, who from the moment of her accession had been her secret, powerful and most insidious enemy. He it was, who by his persistent intrigues was mainly responsible for the disturbed relations between herself and her people, and nothing short of honest, open-handed warfare would get rid of the poison with which he had inoculated the blood of the nation. Greatly as she loved peace, and ardently as she had desired it, and striven to secure it, she knew well that it could be bought at too high a price. But war with France, in the interest of Spain, would, it was clear, be extremely unpopular, while it would constitute an infringement of one of the articles of her marriage treaty by which Philip undertook not to involve the country in his personal quarrel with any Continental power. Nevertheless, he was closeted early and late with the Privy Council,[642] with the result that Surian informed the Doge and Venetian Senate on the 21st April, that the hope of peace with the Pope had come to nothing, and that there was more talk of war than ever. He went on to say, that no army would be mustered until the next harvest was gathered in, for never in memory of man, had there been such scarcity of everything in England, and that although for a long while, great supplies of grain had been coming from Denmark and Sweden, and from the Hanse towns, these had been stopped by the ice, and as there was no means of providing for the ordinary consumption of the people, either in Flanders or England, still less could provision be made for so great an army as was then being mustered.

As late as the beginning of May, Philip, in spite of his influence with the Council, had only obtained assurances of such support as the nation was bound to give him, by ancient treaties then still existing, as an ally of the House of Burgundy. He was to have 5,000 infantry, and 1,000 horse for four months, these to be commanded by the Earl of Pembroke, Lord Grey, Sir Thomas Cheyne, Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, Lord Montague, and some others, “all of whom were considered good soldiers, except Montagu, who was appointed because he was rich, and spent willingly on his troops, who were to serve the King in Flanders”.[643]

Besides the above subsidy, 3,000 additional infantry were to be raised, in order to garrison the English fortresses on the other side of the Channel, and in case of need, a fleet was to be fitted out, carrying 6,000 soldiery, half to be paid by Philip, the other half by England. It was announced that the English Government had no intention of breaking the peace with France, the troops being sent to Flanders by virtue of the old treaty between England and those provinces, and solely to defend the King’s States, and not to invade France. It was also pointed out, that the additional 3,000 soldiers were merely for the defence of Calais and its frontiers, and that the fleet was to secure the passage of the Channel, and not to attempt any act of aggression.[644]

Possibly no more than this may have been intended, in spite of Philip’s demands, but the French believing or affecting to believe that a rupture was imminent, reinforced all their places on the English frontier, with ammunition, victuals and soldiers. They also sent a force to Scotland, sufficient not only for the defence of the Scottish border, but capable of attacking England on that side.[645] Even then the actual breaking out of war with England was due to a renewal of Henry’s connivance with English traitors and rebels. Dudley and his friends, among whom was Thomas Stafford, grandson of the last Duke of Buckingham, had been quietly waiting in France, till it should be convenient for the King to employ them, and the moment having now arrived, he entered into negotiations with them, and with certain families of the reformed faith, settled in and about Calais, for delivering the English fortresses, Hammes and Guisnes, into the hands of the French.[646] The design failed, but a few days later, another, not less daring, was attempted by Stafford. Having obtained two French ships, he sailed for England, with a handful of English, Scotch and French desperadoes, about 100 in all, and landing on the coast of Yorkshire, seized Scarborough Castle. He issued a proclamation, assuming the titles of protector and governor of the realm, and declared that he was come to deliver his countrymen from the tyranny of strangers and “to defeat the most devilish devices of Mary, unrightful and unworthy queen”. She had, he pretended, forfeited her claim to the sceptre by her marriage with a Spaniard, who lavished the national treasures on his countrymen, and was resolved to deliver into their hands twelve of the strongest fortresses of the kingdom. As for himself, he was determined to die bravely in the field, rather than see his country enslaved; and he called on all loyal Englishmen to rally round the standard of independence which he had set up, and to fight for the preservation of their lives, lands, wives, children and treasures.[647]

To his mortification, not a man answered the summons—the north was more loyal than the traitors suspected, and Wotton, Mary’s ambassador in France, disclosed the plot before Henry had time to send aid to his confederates. The Earl of Westmorland marched to Scarborough with a considerable force, and Stafford, whose language had been so bold, at once surrendered at discretion, and met with the punishment he richly deserved, together with about twenty-five other persons implicated in the affair.[648]

The only result of the enterprise was, that instead of engaging in the war with France, as an ally of Philip, England was now a principal in the quarrel, the Council having resolved that the time had come for demanding satisfaction for the injuries offered to Mary by the King of France.[649] Nevertheless, when on the 7th June 1557, the English herald announced the declaration of war to Henry, he replied: “I foresaw this war; it is the pledge of the Queen of England’s submission to the will of her husband.”[650] He immediately recalled his ambassador, FranÇois de Noailles, Bishop of Acqs, who had replaced his brother Antoine; but Mary had already dismissed him herself.[651] The Bishop took the opportunity at Calais, to examine the state of the fortifications, and the likelihood of its withstanding a bombardment. The result of his investigation was a report to the French King, to the effect that a considerable portion of the rampart lay in ruins, and that the boasted strength of the place consisted only in its reputation. In its present condition it offered, said the ambassador, seconded by the Governor of Boulogne, an easy conquest to a sudden and unexpected assailant.[652] “Here, in the meanwhile,” wrote Surian on the 1st June, “they are expecting the succours from Spain which do not make their appearance, and unless they be speedy and considerable, they will show by experience what a gross blunder it is to circulate reports of making great preparations, and not verifying them by facts, as it merely rouses the enemy, rendering them more and more ready for attack and defence.” But before concluding his despatch, he adds, “whilst writing this I hear that the Admiral of England has put to sea with his fleet, in order to meet the one expected from Spain. He has a total of twenty-three large ships well supplied with artillery and soldiers; so the French fleet being greatly inferior in the number and quality of its vessels, and in the activity of its sailors, and in strength, will be unable to show itself, and do any damage in these seas.”[653]

Philip, who had not been five months in England, re-embarked for Flanders, on the 3rd July. Mary accompanied him as far as Dover, and there took leave of him in a heartrending farewell. They never met again.

Surian had been appointed ambassador to Philip, and therefore left England with him; and in spite of Mary’s representations to the Signory, there was afterwards no resident Venetian envoy in England, Surian doing duty to both King and Queen.

The first important feature in the new campaign was the victory of St. Quentin, which was taken by storm by the Spaniards, aided by Lord Pembroke, and between 7,000 and 8,000 English soldiers. When the news reached London “was Te Deum laudamus sung and ringing solemnly; at night bonfires and drinking in every street in London, thanking be to God Almighty that gives the victory”.[654] Cardinal Pole, in congratulating Philip, said, “The most serene Queen has also evinced great gladness at this, principally from the testimony offered by your Majesty on this occasion, of your piety, to the glory of God and to His true honour, especially because it took place with so little loss of life, which grace she always prays His divine Majesty to grant you in all your victories. Here, we are anxiously expecting news of some good agreement with his Holiness, which may our Lord God deign to grant, and ever have your Majesty in His keeping, and for His service favour your Majesty, whose hand I humbly kiss.”[655]

The victory of St. Quentin did actually lead, as Pole so ardently desired, to peace with the Pope, but also indirectly to the loss of Calais. A brief survey of Philip’s war with Paul IV. will make this clear. Philip had always repudiated any other intention, in carrying on hostilities against the Pope, than that of protecting the kingdom of Naples against molestation.[656] The campaign opened by the seizure, in September 1556, of Pontecorvo, and several other small towns in the Papal States, by the Duke of Alva, Philip’s celebrated general. A truce was concluded for forty days, under the walls of Ostia, and Alva entered Naples in triumph. In the meantime, the French army, under the Duke of Guise, had marched into Italy, and had joined hands with the Pope. The truce having expired, and the two armies being encamped within a few miles of each other, before Civitella, Guise judged that Alva’s force was too overwhelming for him to risk a battle, and retreated, leaving the kingdom of Naples to the Spaniards. The Pope, alarmed by the success of the Colonnas, who were fighting on the Spanish side, summoned the Duke of Guise to Rome, to defend the Holy City. But misunderstandings arose daily between the Pope and his French allies. He evinced a great desire for peace, and the Florentine ambassador sent an express to his Duke, urging him to exhort the King of Spain to adjust matters with his Holiness, by giving him some satisfaction before the world, “the old man desiring nothing else”.[657] At this juncture, Philip won the battle of St. Quentin, and took the town by storm, upon which the King of France, seeing that he would need all the strength he could muster, to oppose the Spaniards and English combined, recalled Guise from Italy, and the Pope was obliged to come to terms with Alva. Escorted by the Papal guard, Philip’s generalissimo entered Rome on the 27th September 1557, and on reaching the Vatican, fell on his knees before the Pope and craved his pardon for the offence of having borne arms against the Church, his master having already declared, and probably with truth, that he would never have commenced hostilities, could he have secured his kingdom of Naples by any other means.

The Duke of Guise was now free to oppose Philip’s inroads into France. By the month of October, Philip had three French fortresses in his possession, namely, St. Quentin, Hammes and Catelet; and Henry’s plan was to harass him in as many quarters as possible, in the hope that being obliged to divide his forces, he would be inferior to his enemy in each one of them. His further design was to hamper Mary, and prevent her from sending reinforcements across the Channel. With this object the French King despatched 10,000 infantry-men, and a company of horse to the Queen Regent of Scotland, who hereupon entered Berwick-on-Tweed, and occupied it, at the same time ravaging the Borders.

Flattering himself that Henry would disband, in face of the rigorous winter, Philip returned to Brussels, convoked the States, and required them to levy a subsidy in money, for carrying on the war in the spring. The utmost that could be obtained from them was 800,000 crowns, far too small a sum for maintaining his troops, and defending his conquered fortresses in the midst of an enemy’s country.

If the victory of St. Quentin was the principal feature of the first campaign, the loss of Calais marked the second with disaster. The first note of alarm came from England, in a letter from Cardinal Pole to the King, dated the 4th January 1558. It proved not only the prelude to worse news, but testified to the spirit in which Mary was prepared to meet the crowning calamity of her life.

“Although I wrote to your Majesty yesterday, in reply to what you were pleased to write to me on the 24th ultimo, yet nevertheless having heard to-day of the loss of Risbank near Calais (taken on the 3rd) I will not omit telling you how in an untoward circumstance, the most serene Queen has shown her usual firmness, which has comforted me the more, as I was at first anxious, lest such unexpected news might seriously agitate her Majesty, especially as we now hope she is pregnant; but having seen not only that she was not in the least disheartened by this news, but that immediately on hearing it, she commenced arranging and providing by such means as possible, both divine and human, for what the present need requires, as also by ordering supplications and prayers to be made in all the religious congregations for success, I was much comforted. I have deemed it my duty to give notice of this to your Majesty, as by your putting forth your vigorous arm and aid, which we are certain you will do, with such speed as the present need requires, I have no doubt but that the Almighty will thus convert everything to His greater glory, and at the same time to the consolation and honour of your Majesties and your realms; as I continually pray His divine Majesty’s goodness to do, and to preserve and prosper your Majesty for the common weal, and particularly for this kingdom, which is placed under your care and government.”[658]

On the same day, Lord Grey de Wilton, Governor of Guisnes, wrote to the Queen as follows:—

Lord Wentworth, Deputy Governor of Calais, in the absence of the Earl of Pembroke, who was collecting troops in England, had written on the 2nd, that the French were before Risbank, and that he feared no more of his despatches would get through, adding, “but I will do what I can tidily to signify unto your Majesty our state”.[660] Close upon this followed the news that Risbank had fallen, and Lord Pembroke crossed to Dunkirk, six leagues from Calais, with 5,000 infantry, hoping to raise the siege of that place.[661]

In Michiel’s report of England in 1557, the ambassador describes Calais as having a garrison of 500 of the best soldiers, besides a troop of fifty horsemen, and as being considered an impregnable fortress, on account of the inundation with which it could be surrounded, although certain engineers doubted that it would prove so, if put to the test. The recent inspection of the town by the French had led them to the conclusion that its boasted strength was a fable, and that it might easily be taken by storm; and their chief reason for recalling the Duke of Guise from Italy was probably, that he might restore this lost jewel to the French Crown.

Michiel, now Venetian ambassador in France, informed the Doge and Senate on the 4th January, that on presenting himself before Calais, M. de Guise made himself master of Risbank, which Michiel describes as “that part of the town fronting the sea, and which, forming a bank, receives as it were into an arm or small gulf, the vessels which arrive there, and which for greater security, withdraw thither under the walls of the town; and he simultaneously took possession both of the ships and their crews, and of the hostels which are built there outside, for the accommodation of the mariners and wayfarers, so that when they embark or disembark by night, on account of the tides, they may not have to enter the town”.[662]

Notwithstanding the ease with which Risbank had been captured, the first attempt to storm the castle of Calais proved ineffectual, according to the French account, by reason of the fluctuation of the tide. The assault being made from the ships, which at high-tide, were on a level with the town, but at the ebb below it, the cannon struck at low tide six or seven paces below the wall, and the besiegers were at the mercy of the besieged, who from the ramparts made a convenient target of them. They also threw up earthworks, and barricades, and fortified the road between the castle and the town, by placing artillery there. The duke, therefore, returned to a site above his first position, “Boulogne in his rear supplying him with provisions,” and a wood not more than half a league distant affording him plenty of fuel.

From this position, he, two days later, began bombarding the castle with sixty pieces of artillery, and Michiel observes that “although the besieged defend themselves stoutly, it is nevertheless not authentically understood that the garrison is more numerous than usual, the governor, as said lately by the King, not having chosen to admit any one; and notwithstanding a public report, that the Duke of Savoy in person is coming to succour the place, with a strong body of cavalry and infantry, the hope of its capture does not in the least diminish”.[663]

Lord Grey and Lord Wentworth afterwards refuted this charge, and declared that they sent five messengers to Philip before the appearance of the French army under Calais, and never received any reply whatever, which totally disheartened them, in contradiction of what was said, as to their not having chosen to accept the garrisons offered to them.[664] Philip, however, cannot reasonably be blamed for the straits to which the place was reduced. He had never ceased recommending that Calais should be carefully guarded,[665] and when he heard that the French were preparing an attack, he insisted that nothing should be neglected to defeat their projects. His answer to the appeals of the Governors of Calais and Guisnes was to commission the Duke of Savoy to levy troops, and to proceed at once to their aid, but the latter arrived on the scene too late to avert disaster. Within a week of the assault a wide breach was made in the castle wall, and seeing that all was lost, Wentworth ordered the garrison to be withdrawn and the towers to be blown up, at the approach of the enemy. That same evening, when the tide was low, a company of French soldiers waded across the haven, but contrary to expectation, no explosion occurred, the engineer to whom the order had been given excusing himself, on the pretext that the water dropping from the clothes of the Frenchmen, as they passed over the train, had wetted the powder, rendering it useless.[666]

The town itself still remained untaken, but on the 8th January, news was brought to the French court, that while the Duke of Guise was preparing to storm it, “one of the inhabitants appeared on the ramparts with a flag of truce, praying the besiegers not to fire, nor to proceed to further hostilities, as the townspeople were willing to surrender; so whilst it was being treated to have them at discretion, according to the Duke’s resolve, as he knew that those who remained were very few and very weak, he having shortly before at the passes occupied by him, routed four companies of Spaniards on their march to succour them, they demanding safety for their properties and persons, he sent Robertet to assure the King that either at discretion or in some other way, the town could not fail to be his”.[667]

Eventually, the place surrendered, on condition that the citizens and garrison should be allowed to depart, with the exception of Wentworth and fifty others, all the ammunition and merchandise passing as booty into the hands of the French. Meanwhile, ample reinforcements of troops and stores lay waiting at Dover, detained there by stress of weather, none divining that a place, hitherto deemed impregnable, could possibly succumb within a week. But the French had contemplated the enterprise for four years, and the fall of Boulogne, in the preceding reign, had paved the way for them to Calais.[668]

Bonfires were lighted in Paris, two days before the intelligence that was to plunge England into a stupor of despair reached London. “The x day of January, heavy news came to England and London, that the French had won Calais, the which was the heaviest tidings to London and to England that ever was heard of, for like a traitor it was sold and delivered unto them.”[669]

“On the 10th, and not previously,” wrote Surian, “the news of the loss of Calais was received in England, and it is strange that such important intelligence should scarcely have been conveyed in three days, whereas the passage is usually made in one. They (a Spanish and an English messenger) having left so immediately after the receipt of the news, are unable to know what took place in the kingdom either good or bad, merely saying that the Queen, when she heard it, determined to make every possible effort to recover the place, and that besides the ships now ready to put to sea to succour it, and the troops which were being mustered, it will be reinforced by the greatest amount the country can raise, and with the opportunity offered by the session of Parliament, her Majesty will obtain any sum of money that may be required to that effect.”[670]

Although the English laboured under a delusion in regard to the strength of Calais, they were probably right in ascribing its prompt fall to treachery. The whole region had been a nest of conspirators, of whom Stafford had left many behind him, when he went to surprise Scarborough Castle, and they were all in the employ of the King of France. John Highfield in his letter to Mary, concerning the siege and loss of Calais, said that the Duke of Savoy had asked him “after what sort the town was lost”; and he had answered that “the cause was not only by the weakness of the castle and lack of men,” but also he thought there was some treason, for as he heard “there were some escaped out of the town, and the Frenchmen told [him] that they had intelligence of all our estate within the town”.[671]

Moreover, Sir Edward Carne wrote from Rome, that tidings had come from Venice, and from Cardinal Trivulci, Papal Legate in Paris, “which last stated, that the place had been rendered without any battery being laid to it, or defence made, but by appointment of those within it. If so, it is the most abominable treason that ever man heard of, and most to be abhorred.”[672] In the same despatch, he tells the Queen that, “if she spares either heretics or traitors, she shall but nourish fire in her own house”.

The first to break the news to Mary was Cardinal Pole, who feared the effect it might produce on her. But he was able to report to Philip that, “in this present case her Majesty really shows, that in generosity of nature and in pardoning she is very like herself,” adding politely, “and no less connected with your Majesties in this respect, than she is by ties of blood”.[673] Nevertheless, while she lived, she never ceased urging the King and her Council to devise some means for the recovery of Calais, and grievous as was its loss to the whole realm, it was remarked that the burden of sorrow lay most heavily on the Queen herself.[674] She declared that if her ministers should dare to conclude peace with France, without stipulating for the restoration of that place, they should pay for the concession with their heads; and on her death-bed she assured the bystanders, that if her breast were opened after death, the word “Calais” would be found engraven on her heart.[675]

Philip, less ponderous in action than usual, was not slow to respond to Mary’s appeals, and at once proposed to join a given number of Spaniards to an equal number of Englishmen, and to set about the recovery of the town and castle before the French had time to repair the damages to the castle walls. As Surian had foretold, money was speedily forthcoming, the nation being stirred to the quick. The clergy granted a subsidy of eight shillings in the pound, the laity one of four shillings on lands, and two and eightpence on goods, besides a fifteenth and tenth, the whole to be collected in nine months. Seven thousand men were levied and trained for service in the field, and a fleet of 140 ships sailed out of Portsmouth harbour, in the spring. But Philip’s offer was for various reasons declined, the Queen’s ministers preferring to fortify the coast of Devonshire against an expected descent by Dudley, and to send an expedition to attack the French harbour of Brest, an alternative which the King had himself proposed, and seconded with a strong contingent of Flemish troops. The expedition resulted in failure, but the English Admiral Malin, by supporting the Count of Egmont, in an engagement with the French, on the banks of the Aa, gained him a splendid victory. In this encounter the French lost 5,000 men, their gallant Marshal de Fermes and many distinguished officers being taken prisoners. Peace would then undoubtedly have resulted from the conferences which took place in the Abbey of Cercamp, between Philip and Henry, had not the King of Spain felt bound in honour to make the restoration of Calais an indispensable condition.

With the fall of Guisnes, three weeks after that of Calais, England lost for ever her last foothold of territory on the French side of the Channel. The place was so well defended “that had the like been done by Calais,” wrote Surian, “that fortress had never been lost,” and he goes on to say that “Lord Grey showed incredible valour, for although he had been badly wounded in the assault, he nevertheless, with very great courage, stood firm to the defence, until he found himself fainting; and even then, rather to avoid alarming the soldiers than from any personal consideration, had himself carried, all bleeding into a house near at hand; but scarcely had he got there when he was told that the enemy had taken the ravelin, and were attacking the bastions; then half dead as he was, he made his men take him on a chair, to the scene of action, where he so increased the courage and resolution of the soldiery, that the French were doubtful of victory; but the assault becoming more vigorous, Lord Grey seeing that all his men were worsted,[676] and that there was no remedy, demanded terms, and it having been granted him, that his soldiers might go out free with their arms, and what they could carry, he surrendered himself prisoner, the glory he thus obtained exceeding the infamy of those who through negligence or treachery lost Calais, which is close to Guisnes”.[677]

Lord Grey remained a prisoner in the hands of Prince Strozzi, by whom he was sold for 8,000 crowns to the Count de la Rochefoucauld, who had been captured at the battle of St. Quentin. La Rochefoucauld demanded 25,000 crowns as Lord Grey’s ransom, a sum which would go a long way to pay his own ransom of 30,000 crowns. But the money, when raised, so weakened Lord Grey’s estate, that the hero of Guisnes was obliged to sell his ancestral castle of Wilton-upon-Wye to his nephew, Charles Bridges, second son of John, first Lord Chandos.[678] The fortress of Hammes fell with Guisnes, and both places were razed to the ground by the French.

It would seem that Mary might reasonably have hoped, whatever her troubles from other sources, to have enjoyed the favour and confidence of the Roman Pontiff. All her life long, most of her trials had resulted from an unswerving devotion to the Holy See, and now the time had come, when she might expect to reap a rich reward for her faith and fidelity. Julius III. had sent her the Golden Rose, as an expression of his affection and esteem, and Paul IV., throughout his differences with Philip, and however severe his language with reference to the Catholic King, always disassociated Mary from the blame which he lavished freely on her consort. Even when he recalled his representatives, in the length and breadth of Philip’s dominions, and made no exception of Cardinal Pole, it was thought that Mary’s protests would procure a speedy revocation of the decree, so far as it affected her kinsman and principal adviser. But peace was ultimately made between Philip and the Holy See, and Pole’s recall as legate a latere from a country whose King was at war with the Head of the Church, was found to be but one aspect of a contest in which Mary, to her grief and vexation, found herself suddenly involved.

As Cardinal Caraffa, Paul IV. had at one time expressed doubt as to Pole’s orthodoxy, and although since his elevation to the Papacy, he had acknowledged that this suspicion had been unfounded, repeatedly expressing his high opinion of the English Cardinal, he once more allowed the doubt to gain possession of his mind. Possibly Pole’s enemies, and the Queen’s, may have contrived to revive the suspicion for their own ends—the conspiracy in England was hydra-headed—but the whole case is enveloped in obscurity, and the only certainty is, that when Cardinal Morone was arrested in Rome on a charge of Lutheranism, Pole was accused of sharing his friend’s heterodoxy. He defended himself in various letters to the Pope,[679] and represented that a legate was necessary in the actual state of affairs in England, although it was immaterial whether that office were filled by himself or by another. Mary expostulated directly by letters, and also through her ambassador in Rome, Sir Edward Carne. Paul replied by creating Friar Peto, a Cardinal, and giving him the English legation. Peto had formerly distinguished himself by a firm and bold adhesion to Queen Katharine’s cause, for which he had incurred Henry’s anger, and would no doubt have shared Friar Forest’s fate, had he not fled to the Low Countries. He was afterwards a chaplain in Cardinal Pole’s household, where he attracted the attention of the Pope, by the great austerity of his life. But he was now a very old man, and scarcely fit for active service, and the appointment caused much surprise in Rome. In an interview with the English ambassador, Paul expatiated on the goodness and learning of the new Cardinal, and said that he hoped what he had done would be agreeable to her most serene Majesty, and beneficial to the whole kingdom. Carne replied that, as for Friar Peto personally, he was willing to believe in his virtue and learning, but that he was old, and could not bear fatigue, and would merely remain in his cell praying; and that it would scarcely please the Queen to have the legation taken away from one so nearly related to her, and to whom she was so much attached, and to see it conferred on a decrepit friar, who although he had once confessed her Majesty,[680] it was only before she had attained her seventh year. As for benefiting the kingdom, the people, Carne declared, esteemed no one, who was not of very noble lineage, or very wealthy, or powerful through armed retainers and dependent on the Crown; the friar having none of these prerogatives, no respect would be paid to him.

But the Pope only replied to these objections, that he regretted not being able to do otherwise, as he wished to have Cardinal Pole in Rome, and to avail himself of his advice and assistance.[681]

No one felt his incompetence for the dignity and office conferred upon him more than Friar Peto himself, and he entreated the Pontiff to be allowed to decline them, as too great a burden for his old and feeble shoulders. In the meanwhile, Mary wrote that although his Holiness had not instantly granted her request, she believed that he would do so, like the Lord, who when entreated more than once, at length satisfies those who pray to Him heartily. In like manner, she again prayed and supplicated the Holy Father to restore the legation in the person of Cardinal Pole, and to pardon her, if she professed to know the men who were good for the government of her kingdom, better than the Pope, and also, if she wondered, that a legate, after being confirmed by him, and after the performance of so many good works, whereby it might be truly said, that through him alone England had resumed her obedience to the Church, should be recalled without cause. The Queen further protested that should any disturbance take place in England, it would be on this account, but that she would do her utmost to prevent it.[682]

This letter Carne delivered to the Pope, whose expression while reading it, showed extreme exasperation; he also presented another protest from Friar Peto, and then said that he besought his Holiness, seeing the Queen’s submission and reverence for him to be such, as would not have been shown to him by any other sovereign, that he would be pleased to grant her demand. After a long silence, the Pope declared that the matter was one of very great importance, that he would confer with the Cardinals, and give him a reply.

All that came of this conference was a summons to Pole to proceed to Rome forthwith, to answer the charges brought against him by the Inquisition, and a protest from Mary, that his trial should take place in England, while Peto, invested with all the powers hitherto exercised by Pole, was to take his place at once.

In order not to place herself in open opposition to the Pope, and yet not to yield in a matter which appeared to her to involve the most serious consequences, Mary had recourse to a diplomatic quibble, not unprecedented in history. She gave orders that every courier from the continent should be detained, and searched, on his arrival at any English port, and when the Papal messenger reached Calais, on his way to England, he was arrested and deprived of his despatches. In this way, although Mary knew, from private letters, of Peto’s appointment and of Pole’s recall, she never received the official notification of either. The Papal brief addressed to Pole disappeared at the same time, while Peto never received the bull which appointed him legate. But the Cardinal ceased to exercise his functions as legate a latere, although he retained those of legatus natus, which belonged to the Archbishopric of Canterbury. He sent his chancellor Ormanetto to Rome to represent him. Ormanetto arrived just as peace was being concluded between Philip and the Holy See, and was kindly received; but the case was referred by the Pope to his nephew Cardinal Caraffa, Papal Nuncio at Brussels. Caraffa required that both Pole and Peto should be allowed to go to Rome, the one to clear himself from the charge of heresy, the other, that he might aid the Pope with his counsel. But Mary refused to let Pole go, and the situation thus constituted only ceased to exist at the death, a few months later, of every one concerned in it.[683] The charge against Pole appears to have been of the flimsiest nature. It was never substantiated, but it served the purpose of the moment, to oppose an additional barrier to public peace and concord. It has in no way affected his reputation for orthodoxy, and he stands out in history as the model of a devout, loyal, upright Englishman.

[626] Michiel’s Report on England; Cotton MS., Nero B. vii., Brit. Mus.