BOOK VI

THE COURTSHIP OF HENRY VIII.

1537-1539

I.

The Widow of Milan's fate still hung in the balance. While Mary of Hungary had not yet lost all hope of marrying her to the Duke of Cleves, and Queen Eleanor was no less anxious to see her the wife of a French Prince, fresh proposals reached Brussels from an unexpected quarter. This new suitor was none other than the Emperor's _bel oncle_, King Henry of England. This monarch, who had openly defied the laws of the Church, and after divorcing Charles's aunt, had pronounced Queen Katherine's daughter to be illegitimate, could hardly expect to find favour in the eyes of the Regent. Mary's own opinion of Henry's character is frankly given in a very interesting letter which she wrote to her brother Ferdinand in May, 1536, when the King of England had sent Anne Boleyn to the block and made Jane Seymour his third wife.

[Sidenote: MAY, 1536] HENRY VIII. AND HIS WIVES]

"I hope," she wrote, "that the English will not do us much harm now we are rid of the King's mistress, who was a good Frenchwoman, and whom, as you have no doubt heard, he has beheaded; and since no one skilful enough to do the deed could be found among his own subjects, he sent for the executioner of S. Omer, in order that a Frenchman should be the minister of his vengeance. I hear that he has married another lady, who is said to be a good Imperialist, although I do not know if she will remain so much longer. He is said to have taken a fancy to her before the last one's death, which, coupled with the fact that neither the poor woman nor any of those who were beheaded with her, saving one miserable musician, could be brought to acknowledge her guilt, naturally makes people suspect that he invented this pretext in order to get rid of her.... It is to be hoped--if one can hope anything from such a man--that when he is tired of this wife he will find some better way of getting rid of her. Women, I think, would hardly be pleased if such customs became general, and with good reason; and although I have no wish to expose myself to similar risks, yet, as I belong to the feminine sex, I, too, will pray that God may preserve us from such perils."[164]

But whatever Mary's private opinions were, political reasons compelled her to preserve a friendly demeanour towards King Henry. The English alliance was of the utmost importance to the trade of the Netherlands, and the enmity of France made it essential to secure Henry's neutrality, if not his active help. The death of Queen Katherine, as Cromwell wrote, had removed "the onelie matter of unkindness" between the two monarchs, and was soon followed by more friendly communications. When the news of Prince Edward's birth reached Spain, the Emperor held a long conversation with Sir Thomas Wyatt, the poet and scholar, who had been sent to the Imperial Court early in 1537. He expressed great pleasure at the news, laughing and talking pleasantly, inquiring after the size and goodliness of the child, and ended by saying frankly that he approved of the King's recent marriage as much as he had always disliked his union with Anne Boleyn.[165] These last remarks must have fallen strangely on the ears of Wyatt, whose old intimacy with the hapless Queen had nearly cost him his life, and whose death he lamented in some of his sweetest verse. But he was too good a courtier not to repeat them in his letters to Cromwell and the King. The news of the Prince's birth was shortly followed by that of the Queen's death, which took place at Hampton Court on the 24th of October.

"Divine Providence," said the royal widower, "has mingled my joy for the son which it has pleased God to give me with the bitterness of the death of her who brought me this happiness."

[Sidenote: DEC., 1537] MARIE DE GUISE]

Cromwell wrote to inform Lord William Howard, the special Envoy who had taken the news of the Prince's birth to France, of Her Grace's death, and in the same letter desired him to bring back particulars of two French ladies who had been recommended as suitable successors to the late Queen, since His Majesty, "moved by tender zeal for his subjects," had already resolved to marry again. One of these was King Francis's plain but accomplished daughter Margaret, who eventually married the Duke of Savoy, although Cromwell, knowing his master's tastes, remarked that, from what he heard, he "did not think she would be the meetest."[166] The other was Mary, Duchess of Longueville, the eldest daughter of Claude de Guise, brother of the Duke of Lorraine. The charms of this young widow were renowned at the French Court, and the English Ambassador's reports of her modesty and beauty inspired Henry with an ardent wish to make her his wife. Even before Jane Seymour was in her grave, he attacked the French Ambassador, Castillon, on the subject, and suggested that both these Princesses, and any other ladies whom the King of France could recommend, might be sent to meet him at Calais.[167]

Francis, who was more gallant in his relations with women than his brother of England, laughed long and loudly when this message reached him, and sent Castillon word that royal Princesses could not be trotted out like hackney horses for hire! He quite declined to allow his daughter to enter the lists; and as for Madame de Longueville, whom the King was pleased to honour with his suit, she was already promised to his son-in-law, the King of Scots. This fickle monarch, who had courted Dorothea and Christina by turn, and finally married Madeleine de Valois, had lost his young wife at the end of six months, and was already in search of another. At the same time Francis sent his royal brother word that he should count it a great honour if he could find a bride in his realm, and that any other lady in France was at his command.[168] But Henry was not accustomed to have his wishes thwarted, and in December, 1537, he sent a gentleman of his chamber, Sir Peter Mewtas, on a secret mission to Joinville, the Duke of Guise's castle on the borders of Lorraine, to wait on Madame de Longueville, and find out if her word was already pledged. Both Madame de Longueville and her clever mother, Antoinette de Bourbon, returned evasive answers, saying that the Duke of Guise had agreed to the marriage with King James, but that his daughter's consent had never been given. This reply encouraged Henry to persevere with his suit, while Mewtas's description of the Duchess's beauty, in Castillon's words, "set the tow on fire." He complained that his brother had behaved shamefully in preferring the beggarly King of Scots to him, and was forcing the lady to marry James against her will. In vain Castillon told him that Madame de Longueville had been promised to the King of Scots before Queen Jane's death, and that Francis could not break his word without mortally offending his old ally and son-in-law. Nothing daunted, Henry sent Mewtas again to Joinville in February, 1538, to obtain Madame de Longueville's portrait, and ask if she were still free. This time his errand proved fruitless. The marriage with the King of Scots was already concluded, and the contract signed. Nevertheless, Henry still harped on the same string. "Il revient toujours à ses moutons," wrote Castillon, "et ne peut pas oublier sa bergère." "Truly he is a marvellous man!"[169]

Meanwhile Cromwell, who had no personal inclination for the French alliance, was making inquiries in other directions. Early in December, while Mewtas was on his way to Joinville, the Lord Privy Seal wrote privately to Hutton, desiring him to send him a list of ladies in Flanders who would be suitable consorts for the King. In a letter written on the 4th of December, the Ambassador replied that he had little knowledge of ladies, and feared he knew no one at the Regent's Court "meet to be Queen of England."

[Sidenote: DEC., 1537] A GOODLY PERSON]

"The widow of Count Egmont," he wrote, "was a fair woman of good report, and the Duke of Cleves had a marriageable daughter, but he heard no great praise of her person or beauty. There is," he added, "the Duchess of Milan, whom I have not seen, but who is reported to be a goodly personage of excellent beauty."[170]

Five days later Hutton wrote again, to announce the arrival of the Duchess, who entered Brussels on the 8th, and was received by a great company of honourable gentlemen.

"She is, I am informed, of the age of sixteen years, very high in stature for that age--higher, in fact, than the Regent--and a goodly personage of competent beauty, of favour excellent, soft of speech, and very gentle in countenance. She weareth mourning apparel, after the manner of Italy. The common saying here is that she is both widow and maid. She resembleth much one Mistress Skelton,[171] that sometime waited in Court upon Queen Anne. She useth most to speak French, albeit it is reported that she can speak both Italian and High German."

The same evening Hutton added these further details in a postscript addressed to Cromwell's secretary, Thomas Wriothesley:

"If it were God's pleasure and the King's, I would there were some good alliance made betwixt His Highness and the Emperor, and there is none in these parts of personage, beauty, and birth, like unto the Duchess of Milan. She is not so pure white as was the late Queen, whose soul God pardon, but she hath a singular good countenance, and when she chanceth to smile, there appeareth two pits in her cheeks and one in her chin, the which becometh her right excellently well."[172]

The honest Englishman's first impressions of Christina were evidently very favourable. During the next week he watched her carefully, and was much struck by "the great majesty of her bearing and charm of her manners." At the same time he expressed his earnest conviction that, now peace was concluded between the Emperor and the French King, a close alliance between his own master and the Emperor was the more necessary, and suggested that a marriage between Henry and the Duchess, and another between the Princess Mary and the Duke of Cleves, would be very advantageous to both monarchs, who would then have all Germany at their command.

Cromwell lost no time in placing these letters in his master's hands. Hutton's account of the Duchess's beauty and virtues made a profound impression on the King, and, since Madame de Longueville was beyond his reach, he determined to pay his addresses to the Emperor's niece. With characteristic impetuosity, he wrote to Wyatt on the 22nd of January, saying that, as the Duchess of Milan's match with the Duke of Cleves was broken off, he thought of honouring her with an offer of marriage. This he desired Wyatt to suggest as of himself, in conversation with the Emperor and his Ministers, Granvelle and Covos, giving them a friendly hint to make overtures on behalf of the said Duchess.[173]

[Sidenote: JAN., 1538] KING HENRY'S SUIT]

Strangely enough, two years before Charles had himself proposed this alliance between his niece and the King of England. In May, 1536, when he was hurrying northwards to defend Savoy against the French, the news of Anne Boleyn's fall reached him at Vercelli. Without a moment's delay he wrote to Chapuys, his Ambassador in London, saying that, since Henry, being of so amorous a complexion, was sure to take another wife, and it was most important that he should not marry in France, Chapuys might propose his union with one of the Emperor's nieces, either Queen Eleanor's daughter, the Infanta Maria of Portugal, or the widowed Duchess of Milan, "a beautiful young lady, very well brought up, and with a rich dower." And then, as if a qualm had seized him at the thought of sacrificing Christina to a man of Henry's character, he added a postscript desiring the Ambassador not to mention the Duchess unless His Majesty should appear averse to the other.[174]

By the time, however, that these letters reached London, it was plain that the fickle monarch's affections were already fixed on Jane Seymour, and nothing more came of the Emperor's proposal until, in January, 1538, Henry himself wrote to Wyatt. Sir Thomas, who knew his royal master intimately, hastened to approach the Emperor, and on the 2nd of February Charles wrote from Barcelona to Chapuys, saying that, although royal ladies ought by right to be _sought_, not _offered_, in marriage, the King's language was so frank and sincere that he was willing to waive ceremony, and lend a favourable ear to his brother's proposal. Before these letters reached the Imperial Ambassador, he received a message from Henry, saying that he wished to treat of his own marriage with the Duchess of Milan, being convinced that a Princess born and bred in Northern climes would suit him far better than the Portuguese Infanta. The next day Cromwell paid a visit to Chapuys, and confirmed every word of the royal message.[175]

On the eve of Valentine's Day Henry saw Castillon, and told him in bitter tones that, if his master did not choose to give him Madame de Longueville, he could find plenty of better matches, and meant to marry the Duchess of Milan and conclude a close alliance with the Emperor.[176]

On the same day the German reformer Melanchthon, writing from Jena to a Lutheran friend, summed up the situation neatly in the following words:

"The Widow of Milan, daughter of Christian, the captive King of Denmark, was brought to Germany to wed the young Duke of Juliers. This is now changed, for Juliers becomes heir to Guelders, against the Emperor's will, and the girl is offered to the Englishman, whom the Spaniards, aiming at universal empire, would join to themselves against the Frenchmen and us. There is grave matter for your consideration."[177]

II.

The ball was now set rolling, but, as Chapuys foretold, there were many difficulties in the way. For the moment, however, all went well. Henry sent Hutton orders to watch the Duchess closely, and report on all her words, deeds, and looks. In obedience to these commands, the Ambassador hung about the palace from early morning till late at night, was present at supper and card parties, attended the Queen out riding and hunting, and lost no opportunity of entering into conversation with Christina herself.

[Sidenote: FEB., 1538] HUTTON'S ADVANCES]

One evening towards the end of February a page brought him some letters from the Duchess's servant, Gian Battista Ferrari, who had friends among the Italian merchants in London, with a request that the Ambassador would forward them by his courier. The next morning, after Mass, when the Queen passed into the Council-chamber, Hutton took advantage of this opportunity to thank the Duchess most humbly for allowing him to do her this small service. Christina replied, with a gracious smile, that she would not have ventured to give him this trouble, had she not been as ready herself to do him any pleasure that lay in her power.

It was stormy weather. For three days and nights it had rained without ceasing, and courtiers and ladies alike found the time hang heavy on their hands. "This weather liketh not the Queen," remarked Christina, who was standing by an open window looking out on the park. "She is thereby penned up, and cannot ride abroad to hunt." As she spoke, the wind drove the rain with such violence into her face that she was obliged to draw back farther into the room, and Hutton, growing bolder, asked if it were true that the Duchess herself loved hunting. "Nothing better," replied Christina, laughing; and she seemed as if she would gladly have prolonged the conversation. But then two ancient gentlemen drew near--"Master Bernadotte Court, her Grand Master, who, next to Monsieur de Courrières, is chief about her and another"--and, with a parting bow, the Duchess retired to her own rooms.

"She speaketh French," adds Hutton in reporting this interview to Cromwell, "and seemeth to be of few words. And in her speaking she lispeth, which doth nothing misbecome her. I cannot in anything perceive but she should be of much soberness, very wise, and no less gentle."[178]

Among the ladies who came to Court for the Carnival fêtes, Hutton found a friend in the Duke of Aerschot's sister, Madame de Berghen, a lively lady whom he had known in the town of Berghen-op-Zoom, where he had spent much time as Governor of the Merchant Adventurers. The Dutch merchants in this city had presented him with a house, an honour which the Ambassador appreciated highly, although he complained that it led him into great extravagance, and that the furniture, tapestries, and pictures, necessary for its adornment, "plucked the lining out of his purse, and left him as rich as a newly-shorn sheep."[179]

[Sidenote: MARCH, 1538] "MR. HAUNCE"]

One day Madame de Berghen saw Hutton in the act of delivering a packet of letters which Wyatt had forwarded from Barcelona to the Queen, and her curiosity was excited by the warmth of Mary's thanks. That evening she invited the English Ambassador to dinner to meet her kinsman the Bishop of Liége, "a goodly personage," remarks Hutton, "but a man of little learning and less discretion, and, like most Bishops in these parts, very unfit for his office." When this secular ecclesiastic retired, the Lady Marchioness, "whose tongue always wagged freely," asked Hutton if the letters which he had delivered to the Queen came from England, and confessed that she hoped they contained good news regarding the Duchess of Milan, whose beauty, wisdom, and great gentleness, she could not praise too highly. She told him that he would have been amazed had he seen Christina gorgeously apparelled as she was the day before, and confided to him that the Duchess was having her portrait taken by the Court painter, Bernard van Orley, and had promised to give it to her. Hutton begged to be allowed to borrow the picture in order to show it to his wife, and told Cromwell that as soon as he could secure the portrait he would send it to England. Accordingly, on the 9th of March the Ambassador received the picture, which Madame de Berghen begged him to accept as her gift, and sent a servant to bear it without delay to the Lord Privy Seal's house in St. James's. Late on the following evening, much to the Ambassador's surprise, a young Shropshire gentleman, named Mr. Philip Hoby, who had lately entered Cromwell's service, appeared at his lodgings, accompanied by the King's painter, Master Hans Holbein. At this time the German master was at the height of his reputation. Since 1536, when he entered Henry's service as Court painter, he had executed some of his finest portraits, including the famous picture of the King in Whitehall Palace, the superb portrait of Queen Jane, and that of Cromwell himself, which is so marvellous a revelation of character. Now the Lord Privy Seal sent him across the Channel to take a sketch of the Duchess of Milan, and bring it back with all possible despatch.

Hutton's first idea was to send a messenger to stop the bearer of the Flemish portrait, fearing it might give a wrong impression of the lady, "since it was not so perfect as the cause required, and as the said Mr. Haunce could make it." But his servant had already sailed, and the Ambassador could only beg Cromwell to await Master Hans's return before he formed any opinion of the Duchess. The next morning he waited on the Queen, and informed her how the Lord Privy Seal, having received secret overtures from the Imperial Ambassador for a marriage between the King's Majesty and Her Grace of Milan, thought the best way to approach the King was to show him a portrait of the Duchess.

"And forasmuch as his lordship heard great commendation of the form, beauty, wisdom, and other virtuous qualities, with which God had endowed the Duchess, he could perceive no means more meet for the advancement of the same than to procure her perfect picture, for which he had sent a man very excellent in the making of physiognomies."

After long and elaborate explanation, Hutton asked humbly if his lordship's servant might salute the Duchess, and beg her to appoint a time and place for the painter to accomplish his task.

[Sidenote: MARCH, 1538] HOLBEIN'S PORTRAIT]

Mary was evidently greatly surprised to hear of the Ambassador's errand. She started from her chair in amazement, but, quickly recovering composure, she sat down again, and listened attentively till Hutton had done speaking. Then she thanked him and Lord Cromwell for their good-will to the Emperor, and said that she had no objection to grant his request, and that he should see the Duchess herself. With these few words she rose and passed into the Council-chamber. Presently Christina entered the room, attended by two ladies. She listened graciously to Hutton's message, expressed her gratitude to Lord Cromwell for his kind intentions, and sent Benedetto da Corte back with him to meet the English gentleman. Fortunately, Philip Hoby was a pleasant and cultivated young man who could speak Italian fluently. He conversed for some time with Messer Benedetto, much to Hutton's envy and admiration, and at two o'clock that afternoon was conducted by him into the presence of the Duchess.

Cromwell had given Hoby minute instructions as to his behaviour on this occasion, and had composed a long and elaborate speech which he was to deliver to Christina herself.

"The said Philip shall, as of himself, express a wish that it might please the King, now a widower, to advance Her Grace to the honour of Queen of England, considering her virtuous qualities were a great deal more than ever was notified, and for a great confirmation of amity and love to continue between the Emperor's Majesty and the King's Highness."

Hoby was charged to take careful note of the Duchess's answers, gestures, and expression, and was especially to note if she seemed favourably inclined to these proposals, in order that he might be able to satisfy Henry's anxiety on the subject.[180]

Philip Hoby was too accomplished a courtier not to discharge his errand with tact and courtesy. The Duchess was graciously pleased to accede to his request, and at one o'clock the next day Holbein was ushered by Messer Benedetto into his mistress's presence. The time allowed for the sitting was short, but Master Hans was an adept at his art, and had already taken drawings in this swift and masterly fashion of all the chief personages at the English Court.

"Having but three hours' space," wrote Hutton, "he showed himself to be master of that science. For his picture is very perfect; the other is but slobbered in comparison to it, as by the sight of both your lordship shall well perceive."[181]

An hour afterwards Hoby and the painter both took leave of the Duchess and started for England. In order to avoid suspicion and observe the strict secrecy enjoined by Cromwell, Hoby did not even seek a farewell audience from the Regent, who contented herself with sending friendly greetings to the Lord Privy Seal, saying that he should hear from her more at large through the Imperial Ambassadors.

[Sidenote: MARCH, 1538 AT HAMPTON COURT]

The precious sketch, from which Holbein afterwards made "the great table"[182] which hung in the Palace of Westminster until Henry's death, was safely delivered into Cromwell's hands, and shown by him to the King on the 18th of March. Henry was singularly pleased with the portrait, and, as his courtiers noticed, seemed to be in better humour than for months past. For the first time since Queen Jane's death he sent for his musicians, and made them play to him all the afternoon and evening. Two days afterwards he went to Hampton Court, and "gave orders for new and sumptuous buildings" at this riverside palace. After that he returned to Whitehall by water, accompanied by his whole troop of musicians, paid a visit to his brother-in-law's wife, Katherine, Duchess of Suffolk, and resumed his old habit of going about with a few of his favourites in masks--"a sure sign," remarked Chapuys, "that he is going to marry again."

The Imperial Ambassadors, Chapuys and his colleague Don Diego Mendoza, were now treated with extraordinary civility. They were invited to Hampton Court, where Henry entertained them at a splendid banquet, and showed them his "fine new lodgings" and the priceless tapestries and works of art with which Cardinal Wolsey had adorned this magnificent house. The next day they were taken to the royal manor of Nonsuch to see the little Prince, "one of the prettiest children you ever saw, and his sister, Madam Elizabeth, who is also a sweet little girl." Then they went on to Richmond to visit Princess Mary, who played to them with rare skill on both spinet and lute, and spoke of her cousin the Emperor in terms of the deepest gratitude. The French Ambassadors, Castillon and the Bishop of Tarbes, who arrived at Hampton Court just as the Imperial Envoys were leaving, were received with marked coolness, a treatment, as Chapuys shrewdly remarks, "no doubt artfully designed to excite their jealousy."[183]

[Sidenote: MARCH, 1538] CHRISTINA'S CHARM]

The sight of Holbein's portrait revived Henry's wish to see Christina, and he pressed Chapuys earnestly to induce his good sister the Queen of Hungary to bring her niece to meet him at Calais. But on this point Mary was obdurate. She told the Ambassador that this was out of the question, and although she wrote civilly to the Lord Privy Seal, thanking him for his good offices, she complained bitterly to Chapuys of Cromwell's extraordinary proceeding in sending the painter to Brussels, and laid great stress on her condescension in allowing him to take her niece's portrait. So far Charles himself had never written fully to his sister on the subject, and Mary asked Chapuys repeatedly if these proposals really came from the Emperor, and if the King and Cromwell were sincere. As for her part, she believed these flattering words were merely intended to deceive her. Chapuys could only assure her that both Henry and his Minister were very much in earnest. When the courier arrived from Spain, the King was bitterly disappointed because there was no letter from Charles, and sent Cromwell twice to implore the Ambassadors, for God's sake, to tell him if they had any good news to impart. On Lady Day the Minister came to Chapuys's lodgings, and, after two hours' earnest conversation, went away "somewhat consoled." The next day Henry sent for the Ambassadors, and discussed the subject in the frankest, most familiar manner, ending by saying with a merry laugh: "You think it a good joke, I trow, to see me in love at my age!"

In his impatience, Henry complained that Hutton was remiss in his duties, and did not say enough about the Duchess in his despatches. Yet the excellent Ambassador was unremitting in his attendance on Her Grace, and spent many hours daily at Court, watching her closely when she danced or played at cards, and telling the King that he "felt satisfied that her great modesty and gentleness proceeded from no want of wit, but that she was rather to be esteemed wisest among the wise."[184]

From the day of Hoby's visit Christina treated Hutton with marked friendliness, and threw aside much of her reserve in talking with him. On the bright spring days, when the Queen and her niece hunted daily in the forest, the Englishman seldom failed to accompany them. He admired the Duchess's bold horsemanship, and was much struck by the evident delight which she and her aunt took in this favourite sport. By way of ingratiating himself with Mary, he presented her with four couple of English hounds, "the fairest that he had ever seen," and a fine gelding, which made Christina remark that he had done the Queen a great pleasure, and that she had never seen her aunt so well mounted. Hutton hastened to reply that, since Her Grace was good enough to admire the horse, he would do his utmost to secure another as good for her own use, which offer she accepted graciously.[185] All these incidents naturally provoked attention, and, in spite of the secrecy with which the negotiations were carried on, the King's marriage with the Duchess of Milan was freely discussed both in Flanders and in England.

"Few Englishmen," wrote the Duke of Norfolk to Cromwell on the 6th of April, "will regret the King of Scots' marriage to Madame de Longueville, hoping that one of Burgundian blood may have the place she might have had."[186]

And the report that after Easter the King was going to meet his future bride at Calais became so persistent that even Castillon believed it, and complained to his royal master of the strange alteration in Henry's behaviour, and of the marvellous haughtiness and coldness with which he was now treated.[187]

III.

[Sidenote: MARCH, 1538] MARRIAGE NEGOTIATIONS]

On the 27th of March the Imperial Ambassadors dined at the Lord Privy Seal's house, to meet Archbishop Cranmer, Chancellor Audley, Thomas Brandon, Duke of Suffolk, the Lord High Admiral Southampton, and two other Bishops, who were the Commissioners appointed to treat of two royal marriages. One of these was the long-planned union of Princess Mary with the Infant Don Louis of Portugal, brother of the reigning King, which was the ostensible object of Don Diego's mission to England. The other was the King's own marriage with the Duchess, which Henry sent word must be arranged at once, since until this was concluded he absolutely refused to treat of his daughter's alliance with the Infant. As they sat down at table, by way of _Benedicite_, remarks Chapuys, the King's deputies began by rejoicing to think they had not to deal with Frenchmen, and pouring scorn on their mendacious habits. But before the end of the meeting many difficulties had arisen. First of all the English Commissioners demanded that the Count Palatine should renounce all his wife's rights to the crown of Denmark without compensation. Then the question of the Papal dispensation, which was necessary owing to Christina's relationship to Katherine of Aragon, was mooted, and, as Chapuys soon realized, was likely to prove an insuperable difficulty, since nothing would induce Henry to recognize the Pope's authority.[188]

During the next few weeks several meetings between the Commissioners took place, and the Ambassadors were repeatedly admitted to confer with the King and his Privy Council; but little progress was made, and Chapuys informed the Regent that there was even less hope of agreement than there had been at first. Henry on his part complained loudly of the coldness of the Imperial Envoys, and of their evident desire to push forward the Portuguese marriage and drop his own, which was the one thing for which he really cared.[189] An attempt to effect some mode of reconciliation between him and the Pope only incensed Henry, who sent two Doctors of Law, Bonner and Haynes, to Madrid, to protest against the meeting of a General Council, and to point out how the Bishops of Rome wrested Scripture to the maintenance of their lusts and worldly advantage. And he told Don Diego angrily that the meeting of a Council would do him the worst injury in the world, since if he refused to attend it he would be cut off from the rest of Christendom.[190] To add to the King's ill-temper, he was suffering from a return of the ulcers in the leg from which he had formerly suffered, and for some days his condition excited serious alarm.

[Sidenote: MAY, 1538] LOUISE DE GUISE]

On his recovery, Castillon, who had been looking on with some amusement while the Emperor's folk were "busy brewing marriages," approached His Majesty with flattering words, and tried to instil suspicions of Cromwell into his mind. Henry swallowed the bait greedily, and the French Ambassador's remarks on his favourite's "great Spanish passion" rankled in his mind to so great an extent that he sent for Cromwell and rated him soundly, telling him that he was quite unfit to meddle in the affairs of Kings. The wily Frenchman, satisfied that the only way of managing this wayward monarch was to make him fall in love, took advantage of his present mood to speak to him of the Queen of Scotland's sister, Louise de Guise, whom he described as being quite as beautiful as herself, with the additional advantage of being a maid, and not a widow. Henry, who was on his way to Mass when Castillon made this suggestion, slapped him familiarly on the back, and laughed, saying he must hear more of this young lady. The next day the Comptroller of the King's Household was sent to ask the Ambassador for particulars about Mademoiselle de Guise, and was told that she was so like Madame de Longueville that you would hardly know the sisters apart, and that a Scotchman who had seen both, wondered how King James could prefer Mary to so lovely a creature as Louise. The French Ambassador now found himself overwhelmed with attentions. The King sent him presents of venison and artichokes from his gardens, invited him to spend Sunday at Greenwich, and, when the plague broke out in London, lent him the beautiful old house in Chelsea which had belonged to Sir Thomas More, as a country residence.[191]

The wedding of King James was finally celebrated at Châteaudun on the 9th of May, and, hearing that the Duke of Guise and his fair daughter Louise had accompanied the new Queen to Havre, Henry sent Philip Hoby across the Channel to see Mademoiselle de Guise and have her picture painted. These orders were duly executed, and Louise's portrait, probably painted by Holbein, was placed in the King's hands. But, although Henry "did not find the portrait ugly," he was now anxious to see Louise's younger sister, Renée, who was said to be still more beautiful, and would not be put off when Castillon told him that she was about to take the veil in a convent at Reims.

"No doubt," remarked Montmorency, the Constable of France, "as King Henry has made himself Pope in his own country, he would prefer a nun to any other Princess."[192]

Nothing would now satisfy Henry but that the French King or Queen should meet him at Calais with the Duke of Guise's daughters, Mademoiselle de Lorraine, and Mademoiselle de Vendôme, who had all been recommended to his notice. When the English Envoy, Brian, proposed this to Queen Eleanor, she replied indignantly that she was not a keeper of harlots, and the Constable told Castillon once more that French Princesses were not to be trotted out like hackneys at a fair. At last the Ambassador, tired of repeating that this plan was impossible, asked Henry if the Knights of King Arthur's Round Table had ever treated ladies in such a fashion. This brought the King to his senses. He reddened and hesitated, and, after rubbing his nose for some moments, said that his proposal might have sounded a little uncivil, but he had been so often deceived in these matters that he could trust no one but himself.[193]

Still Henry would not give up all hope of winning the fair Louise, and towards the end of August he sent Philip Hoby on a fresh errand to Joinville. As before, he was to take Holbein with him, and, after viewing well the younger sister, ask the Duchess of Guise for leave to take the portraits of both her daughters, Louise and Renée, "in one faire table." Hoby was to explain that he had business in these parts, and that, since he had already made acquaintance with Mademoiselle de Guise at Havre, he could not pass Joinville without saluting her. On leaving Joinville he was to proceed to the Duke of Lorraine's Court, and inform him that the Lord Privy Seal, having heard that His Excellency had a daughter of excellent quality, begged that the King's painter might be allowed to take her portrait. On the 30th of August the travellers reached Joinville, as we learn from the following letter addressed by the Duchess of Guise to her eldest daughter in Scotland:

[Sidenote: AUG., 1538] HOLBEIN AT JOINVILLE]

"It is but two days since the King of England's gentleman who was at Havre, and the painter, were here. The gentleman came to see me, pretending that he was on his way to find the Emperor, and, having heard that Louise was ill, would not pass by without inquiring after her, that he might take back news of her health to the King his master. He begged to be allowed to see her, which he did, although it was a day when the fever was on her, and repeated the same words which he had already said to me. He then told me that, as he was so near Lorraine, he meant to go on to Nancy to see the country. I have no doubt that he was going there to draw Mademoiselle's portrait, in the same way that he has drawn the others, and so I sent down to the gentleman's lodgings, and found that the said painter was there. Since then they have been at Nancy, where they spent a day and were well feasted and entertained, and at every meal the _maître d'hôtel_ ate with them, and many presents were made them. That is all I know yet, but you see that, at the worst, if you do not have your sister for a neighbour, you may yet have your cousin."[194]

This time Hoby's journey was evidently unsuccessful. Louise was ill of intermittent fever, and Renée had already been sent to the convent at Reims, where she was afterwards professed; and it is clear from Antoinette's letters that she had no wish to marry either of her daughters to Henry. A month before, on the 3rd of August, she wrote to the Queen of Scotland: "I have heard nothing more of the proposals which you know of"; and again on the 18th: "I have begged your father to speak of these affairs to the King, that we may be rid of them if possible, for no one could ever be happy with such a man."[195]

As for Anne de Lorraine, in spite of many excellent qualities, she lacked the beauty and charm of her cousins, and, as her aunt Antoinette said, "elle est bien honnête, mais pas si belle que je voudrais."[196]

[Sidenote: AUG., 1538] HENRY'S SCRUPLES]

The result of these disappointments was to revive Henry's wish to marry Christina. Several times in the course of the summer Castillon remarked that this monarch was still hankering after the Duchess of Milan, and had repeatedly tried to induce the Regent to bring her niece to meet him at Brussels. "The King my master," said Cromwell to Chapuys, "will never marry one, who is to be his companion for life, without he has first seen and known her."[197] In a long and careful paper of instructions which Henry drew up for the Ambassador Wyatt, he lays great stress on this point.

"His Grace, prudently considering how that marriage is a bargain of such nature as may endure for the whole life of man, and a thing whereof the pleasure and quiet, or the displeasure and torment, doth much depend, thinketh it to be most necessary, both for himself and the party with whom it shall please God to join him in marriage, that the one might see the other before the time that they should be so affianced, which point His Highness hath largely set forth heretofore to the Emperor's Ambassador."[198]

But on her side Mary was equally inflexible. Nothing would induce her to take a step forward in this direction, and even Hutton began to realize how coldly the marriage overtures were received at Brussels. The Queen never failed to ask after the King's health or to express her anxiety for the strengthening of the ancient friendship between the realm of England and the House of Burgundy; but when the Ambassador ventured to allude to the subject of her niece's preferment, she invariably gave an evasive reply. Since both the Queen and the Duchess spent much of the summer hunting in the Forest of Soignies, or in more distant parts, Hutton seldom had an opportunity of seeing Christina. Her servants were still very friendly, especially the Lord Benedick Court, as Hutton calls the Italian master of her household. One evening in June, when Hutton had been at Court, Benedetto came back to supper with him, whether of his own accord or at his mistress's command the Englishman could not tell. As they walked along the street, Benedetto asked the Ambassador if he had brought the Queen any good news about the Duchess. Hutton replied that the first good news must come from the Emperor, and, to his mind, was a long time upon the road. The old man looked up to heaven, and said devoutly: "I pray God that I may live to see her given to your master, even if I die the next day. But," he added significantly, "there is one doubt in the matter." Hutton asked eagerly what this might be, upon which Benedetto explained that, as the King's first wife, the Lady Katherine, was near of kin to the Duchess, the marriage could not be solemnized without the Pope's dispensation, and this he feared His Majesty would never accept. The Ambassador replied warmly that he did not know what might be against the Bishop of Rome's laws, but that he was quite sure his master would do nothing against God's laws. Then they sat down to supper with other guests, and nothing further was said on the subject. But the old Italian knew what he was talking about, and the Papal dispensation proved to be the one insuperable obstacle which stood in the way of a settlement.[199]

[Sidenote: SEPT., 1538] DEATH OF HUTTON]

Another of Christina's servants, Gian Battista Ferrari, paid a visit to England this summer, and brought back glowing accounts of the beauties of London and the splendours of King Henry's Court. He had an Italian friend named Panizone, who was one of the royal equerries, and had been sent over to England with some Barbary horses from the Gonzaga stables. Panizone introduced him to Cromwell, who entertained him hospitably, and sent him back to tell his mistress all that he had seen and done at the Court of Whitehall. Christina was exceedingly curious to hear Battista's account of his visit, and was surprised when he told her that England was as beautiful as Italy. When she proceeded to inquire if he had seen the King, Battista replied that he had been fortunate enough to be received by His Majesty, and broke into ecstatic praises of Henry's comeliness, gracious manners, and liberality. The Duchess said that she had often heard praises of His Grace, and was glad to know from Battista's lips that they were true. After supper she sent for him again, and he informed her that Chapuys had told him the marriage would shortly be concluded. "At this it seemeth she did much rejoice." So at least Battista assured Hutton.[200] Ferrari himself was evidently very anxious to see his mistress Queen of England, and in a letter which he addressed on the 7th of September to his friend, "Guglielmo Panizone scudier del Invictissimo Rè d' Inghilterrà a Londra, alla Corte di sua Maestà," he wrote, "Madama the Duchess, my mistress, loves the King truly," and proceeded to send commendations to the Lord Privy Seal, Signor Filippo (Hoby), Portinari, and others. This letter contained one sad piece of news. "The Ambassador here is said to be dying; I am grieved because of the friendship between us and his excellent qualities. The next one we have will, I hope, be yourself."[201] Battista's news was true. Honest John Hutton, the popular Governor of the Merchant Adventurers, fell ill at Antwerp, and died there on the 5th of September. His genial nature had made him a general favourite, and he was lamented by everyone at Court. "It is a great loss," wrote Don Diego to Cromwell, "because he was so good a servant and so merry and honest a soul." To his own master, the Emperor, he remarked that the English Ambassador who had just died was a jovial, good-natured man, but more fit for courtly functions and social intercourse than grave political business, for which he had neither taste nor capacity.[202]

IV.

The meeting of the Emperor and King of France at Aigues-Mortes in July, 1538, produced a marked change in the political situation. This interview, which the Pope had failed to bring about at Nice, was finally effected by Queen Eleanor, and the two monarchs, who had not met since Francis was a prisoner at Madrid, embraced each other, dined together, and ended by swearing an inviolable friendship. The truce was converted into a lasting peace, and several marriages between the two families were discussed in a friendly and informal manner.

"Never," wrote the Constable to Castillon, "were there two faster friends than the King and Emperor, and I do not for a moment imagine that His Imperial Majesty will ever allow the Widow of Milan to marry King Henry! So do not believe a single word that you hear in England!"[203]

[Sidenote: AUG., 1538] CROMWELL AND CHAPUYS]

This unexpected reconciliation was a bitter pill to Henry and Cromwell. The French and Imperial Ambassadors at Whitehall exchanged the warmest congratulations, and did not fail to indulge in a hearty laugh at King Henry's expense. On the 21st of August Chapuys and Don Diego followed the Court to Ampthill, where the King was hunting, and were entertained by Cromwell at one of his own manors. As they sat down to dinner, the Lord Privy Seal asked brusquely if it were true that the King and Emperor had made peace, to which the Ambassadors replied in the affirmative. He then proceeded to start a variety of disagreeable topics. First he remarked that he heard the Turk was already in Belgrade; next he said that the young Duke of Cleves had taken possession of Guelderland, upon which Chapuys retaliated by expatiating on the perfect friendship and understanding between Charles and Francis. After dinner they were admitted into the King's presence, and informed him that the Queen of Hungary had received the powers necessary for the conclusion of the Duchess's marriage, and wished to recall Don Diego in order that he might draw up the contract. Henry expressed great sorrow at parting from the Spaniard, and, drawing him apart, begged him to induce the Queen to treat directly with him, repeating two or three times that he was growing old, and could not put off taking a wife any longer. Meanwhile Cromwell was telling Chapuys, in another corner of the hall, how much annoyed the King had been to hear that the Emperor was treating of his niece's marriage with the Duke of Cleves, which would make people say either that she had refused the King or else had only accepted Henry after refusing Cleves. Chapuys stoutly denied the truth of this report, and Cromwell confessed that the King was very eager for the marriage, and, if there were any difficulty about the Duchess's dowry, he would gladly give her 20,000 crowns out of his own purse.[204]

As the Ambassadors were putting on their riding-boots, Cromwell ran after Don Diego with a present from his master of £400, after which they returned to London and dined in Chelsea with Castillon, to meet Madame de Montreuil, the lady-in-waiting of the late Queen Madeleine of Scotland, who was returning to France. They all spent a merry evening, laughing over King Henry's matrimonial plans, and Castillon declared that the King and Lord Privy Seal were so much perturbed at his master's alliance with the Emperor that they hardly knew if they were in heaven or on earth.[205]

[Sidenote: SEPT., 1538] STEPHEN VAUGHAN]

Don Diego arrived in Flanders to find general rejoicings--"gun-shots and melody and jousting were the order of the day"--and an English merchant declared that the proud Spaniards were ready to challenge all the world. Queen Mary marked the occasion by honouring her favourite, Count Henry of Nassau, with a visit at his Castle of Breda in Holland. The beautiful gardens and vast orchards planted in squares, after the fashion of Italy, which excited the Cardinal of Aragon's admiration, were in their summer beauty, and a series of magnificent fêtes were given in honour of the Queen and her companion, the Duchess of Milan. The Count was assisted in doing the honours by his third wife, the Marchioness of Zeneta, a rich Spanish heiress, whom the Emperor had given him in marriage, and his son René, Prince of Orange. The presence of Christina at Breda on this occasion, and the attentions that were paid her by her hosts, naturally gave rise to a report that she was about to wed the Prince, and Cromwell told Don Diego before he left Dover that this rumour had caused the King great annoyance.[206] But the festivities at Breda met with a tragic close. On the day after the royal ladies left the castle, Henry of Nassau died very suddenly, and Don Diego heard the sad news when he reached the castle gates, on his way to salute his kinswoman, the Marchioness.

The Ambassador now hastened to Court, and craved an audience of the Queen to deliver King Henry's letters; but he found her little inclined to attend to business, and engaged in preparations to pay a visit to King Francis, who had gallantly invited her to a hunting-party at Compiègne. At first there had been some doubt if the Duchess should be of the party, but Queen Eleanor was eager to see her niece, and Christina was nothing loth to take part in these brilliant festivities. Meanwhile Henry's renewed impatience to conclude his marriage was shown by the promptitude with which another Ambassador was sent to take Hutton's place.

On the 27th of September the new Envoy, Stephen Vaughan, was admitted into the Queen's presence, and begged for an answer to the letters delivered by Don Diego. Mary told him that he might inform His Majesty that there was no truth in the reports of her niece's marriage, and that, if any coolness had arisen between them, it was the King's own fault for seeking a wife in other places. Hoby's mission to Joinville and Nancy was, it is plain, well known at Brussels. But the Queen kept her counsel, and told Vaughan that, if his master was still in the same mind, she would urge the Emperor to hasten the conclusion of the treaty. Only she must beg the Ambassador to have a little patience, as her time was fully occupied at this moment. But the next day he was again put off, and told the Queen would see him when she reached Mons. Accordingly, Vaughan and his colleague, Thomas Wriothesley, Cromwell's confidential secretary, arrived at this town on the 8th, only to be told by Don Diego that they must await the Queen's pleasure at Valenciennes. The Spanish Ambassador did his best to atone for their disappointment by giving them an excellent dinner, and lending them two of his own horses with velvet saddles and rich trappings for the journey.[207]

[Sidenote: OCT., 1538] AT COMPIÈGNE]

At length, at eight on Sunday morning, the 6th of October, they were conducted into the Queen's presence by the Grand Falconer, Molembais, and Vaughan, who spoke French fluently, explained Henry's reasons for arranging the marriage treaty without delay. Mary replied briefly that she had already written to accede to the King's request, and that no further steps could be taken until after her meeting with the French King. Dinner was being served while she spoke these words, and, as the meat was actually coming in, the Ambassadors were compelled to retire. Before they left the room, however, they saluted the Duchess, who was standing near her aunt, and ventured to tell her how much my Lord Privy Seal remained her humble servant, although, as she no doubt knew, his overtures had been so coldly received. Christina smiled and thanked them for their good-will with a gentle grace, which went far to mollify their ruffled feelings, and made Wriothesley write home that all Hutton had said of the Duchess's charms was true. "She is as goodly personage, of stature higher than either of us, and hath a very good woman's face, competently fair and well favoured, but a little brown."[208]

As if to make amends for these delays, the great lords in attendance overwhelmed the Ambassadors with civilities. Aerschot invited them to dinner; Count Büren embraced them warmly and asked affectionately after the King; De Praet, Molembais, and Iselstein, escorted them to the door, and Don Diego made them a present of wine. When Wriothesley fell ill of fever at Cambray, the Queen sent her own physician to attend him, and begged him either to remain there or return to Brussels. This he refused to do, and travelled on by slow stages to Compiègne, hoping to obtain another audience there. But the roads were bad, and two leagues from Cambray one of the carts broke down, leaving the English without household stuff or plate when Don Diego came to supper.[209]

On Tuesday news reached Cambray that King Francis was on his way to salute the Queen, and Mary rode out to meet him, leaving the Duchess of Milan at home with others, who like herself, remarks Wriothesley, had no great liking for Frenchmen.[210] But the King's greeting was most cordial, and when, on the following day, Queen Eleanor arrived with a great train of lords and ladies, there was much feasting and merriment, until on the 10th the whole party started for Compiègne.

It was a brilliant company that met in the ancient castle of the French Kings, in the forest on the banks of the Oise, near the bridge where, a hundred years before, Jeanne d'Arc had made her last heroic stand. King Francis had summoned all the Princes and Princesses of the blood to do honour to the Queen of Hungary, and the neighbouring villages were filled to overflowing with Court officials and servants. There was the King himself, a fine figure in cloth of gold and nodding plumes, gallant as ever in spite of ill-health and advancing years, with a glance and smile to spare for every fair lady; and there was his consort, Queen Eleanor, too often neglected by her fickle lord, but now radiant with happiness, and in her beautiful robes and priceless pearls, as winning and almost as fair as when she fascinated the young Palatine twenty years ago. The sense of family affection was as strong in Eleanor as in all the Habsburgs, and she was overjoyed to meet her sister and embrace the daughter of the beloved and lamented Isabella. With her came the King's daughter Margaret, the homely-featured but pleasing and accomplished Princess for whom a royal husband was still to be found, and who, the courtiers whispered, might now wed the Prince of Spain.

[Sidenote: OCT., 1538] A BRILLIANT COMPANY]

Her brothers were there too--the dull and morose Henry, who had succeeded his elder brother as Dauphin two years before, but had never recovered from the effects of his long captivity in Spain; and the more lively but weak and vicious Charles of Angoulême, now Duke of Orleans, whom Eleanor was so anxious to see married to the Duchess of Milan. With them was the Dauphin's Italian wife, Catherine de' Medici, whose wit and grace atoned in her father-in-law's eyes for her lack of beauty, although her husband's heart was given to Diane de Poitiers, and a childless marriage made her unpopular in the eyes of the nation. But a galaxy of fair ladies surrounded the King and Queen. Chief among them was Madame d'Étampes, whose dazzling charms had captivated the fickle King, and who now reigned supreme both in Court and Council. Of the youthful ladies whose charms had aroused King Henry's interest, only Mademoiselle de Vendôme was here. The fair Louise had not yet recovered from her illness, and the Duchess of Guise was nursing her at Joinville. But both her father, Claude of Guise, the Governor of Burgundy, and his brother, the Cardinal of Lorraine, were present, and held a high place in the King's favour. Claude's elder brother, the Duke of Lorraine, had lately been to meet the Emperor at Aigues-Mortes and plead his claims to Guelders, but on his return he fell ill with a severe attack of gout, and was unable to obey the King's summons. In his stead he sent Duchess Renée his wife, another Bourbon Princess, a daughter of Gilbert de Montpensier and sister of the famous Constable. Her daughter Anne remained at home to nurse the Duke, but her eldest son, Francis, came with his mother to Compiègne. This cultured and polished Prince, who bore the King's name, had been brought up at the French Court, and could ride and joust as well as any of his peers; but he was quite thrown into the shade by his cousin, Antoine de Bourbon, Duke of Vendôme, the darling of the people and the idol of all the ladies. A head and shoulders taller than the Dauphin and his brother, Antoine was the cynosure of all eyes at Court festivals. The elegance of his attire, the inimitable grace with which he raised his hat, his wit and gaiety, fascinated every woman, while the gilded youth of the day copied the fashion of his clothes and the precise angle at which he wore the feather in his cap. Frivolous, volatile, and recklessly extravagant, Vendôme wore his heart on his sleeve, and was ready to enter the lists for the sake of any fair lady. He fell desperately in love with the Duchess of Milan at first sight, and devoted himself to her service. As premier Prince of the blood, he rode at Christina's side, and led her out to dance in the eyes of the Court. Together they joined in the hunting-parties that were organized on a vast scale in the Forest of Compiègne, and while all the French were lost in admiration at the fine horsemanship of the royal ladies, Antoine de Bourbon threw himself at the Duchess's feet, and declared himself her slave for life. But whether this gay cavalier was too wild and thoughtless for her taste, or whether her heart was already given to another, Christina paid little heed to this new suitor, and remained cold to his impassioned appeals. "The Duke of Vendôme," wrote Wriothesley to Cromwell, "is a great wooer to the Duchess, but we cannot hear that he receiveth much comfort."[211]

[Sidenote: OCT., 1538] A VISIT TO CHANTILLY]

On the 17th of October the Constable de Montmorency prevailed on the royal party to accompany him to his sumptuous home at Chantilly, nine leagues farther on the road to Paris. This brave soldier and able Minister had grown up in the closest intimacy with the Royal Family, and was habitually addressed as "bon père" by the King's children, but had, unfortunately, excited the hatred of the reigning favourite, the Duchess of Étampes, who called him openly "un grand coquin," and declared that he tried to make himself a second monarch. On the other hand, his constant loyalty to Queen Eleanor gratified Mary of Hungary, who now gladly accepted his invitation to Chantilly.

Anne de Montmorency was as great a patron of art as his royal master, and during the last fifteen years he had transformed his ancestral home into a superb Renaissance palace. The halls were decorated with frescoes by Primaticcio; the gardens were adorned with precious marbles and bronzes, with busts of the Cæsars and statues of Mars and Hercules, with fountains of the finest Urbino and Palissy ware. Portraits by Clouet, priceless manuscripts illuminated by French and Burgundian masters, and enamels by Léonard Limousin, were to be seen in the galleries. But what interested Mary and Christina most of all were the tapestries woven at Brussels from Raphael of Urbino's cartoons, which the Constable had rescued after the sack of Rome, and which he restored some years later to Pope Julius III.[212]

After entertaining his guests magnificently during two days, the Constable accompanied them on a hunting-party in the forest, and finally brought them back to Compiègne on the 19th of October. Here the Queen of Hungary's return was impatiently awaited by the English Ambassadors, who found themselves in a miserable plight. The town was so crowded that they had to be content with the meanest lodgings; the hire of post-horses cost forty pounds, and provisions were so scarce that a partridge or woodcock sold for tenpence, and an orange for more than a groat. The King's Ambassadors at the French Court--Sir Anthony Browne, and Bonner, the Bishop-elect of Hereford--who joined them at Compiègne on the 14th, were in still worse case; for they could get no horses for love or money, and spent six days without receiving a visit from the Court officials. These outraged personages stood at the window, and saw the French Councillors, and even the Constable, go by, without giving them the smallest sign of recognition. At least, Vaughan and Wriothesley were treated with the utmost civility by the Flemish nobles, and their audience was only deferred on account of the Queen's visit to Chantilly. Don Diego was courtesy itself, and, before he started for Spain, wrote a letter to Cromwell, assuring him that Queen Mary was the truest friend and sister his master could have, but that it had been impossible for her to attend to business when her days were spent in festivities and family meetings.[213] At length, on Sunday, the 20th, the Ambassadors were received by the Queen, and introduced Browne and Bonner, as well as Dr. Edward Carne, a learned lawyer whom Henry had sent to assist in drawing up the marriage treaty. Mary informed them that Francis was bent on taking her to the Duke of Vendôme's house at La Fère on the way home, but begged Wriothesley, who was still unwell, to go straight to Brussels. The next day Browne started for England, saying that it was impossible to follow a King who "goes out of all highways," and on the 22nd Wriothesley and his companions set out on their return to Brussels.[214]

[Sidenote: OCT., 1538] MARRIAGE-MAKING]

V.

By the end of October the English Envoys were back at Brussels, rejoicing to be once more in comfortable quarters. Here they found great fear and distrust of France prevailing, and much alarm was expressed lest the Queen should have been induced to give the Duchess of Milan in marriage to a French Prince. This, however, was not the case, and the English Ambassadors were satisfied that beyond feasting and merrymaking nothing had been done. A friendly gentleman, Monsieur de Brederode, told them that there had been some attempt at marriage-making among the women. Queen Eleanor still pressed her sister earnestly to further the marriage of Christina with the Duke of Orleans, as the best way of insuring a lasting peace, and had revived her old dream of marrying her daughter, Maria of Portugal, to the Prince of Spain. But Mary turned a deaf ear to all these proposals, saying that she could not consider them without Charles's approval. At La Fère, in the valley of the Oise, Francis entertained his guests at a splendid banquet, after which he presented Mary with a very fine diamond, and Christina with a beautiful jewel, besides lavishing rings, bracelets, brooches, caps, and pretty trinkets from Paris and Milan, Lisbon and Nuremberg, on the ladies of their suite. Here he took leave of his guests, but the Duke of Vendôme insisted on escorting the Queen and her niece as far as Valenciennes.[215]

[Sidenote: NOV., 1538] KING HENRY'S ANGER]

On Monday, the 4th of November, Mary and Christina reached Brussels, and were received with warm demonstrations of affection. Now, "after all these gay and glorious words," the English Ambassadors confidently hoped to see some end to their toil. But they soon realized that their hopes were doomed to disappointment. First the Queen was too tired to receive them; then nothing could be done until the return of the Duke of Aerschot, who was her chief adviser. At length, on the 16th, the first conference took place at the Duke's house. The Captain of the Archers, Christina's old friend De Courrières, conducted the Ambassadors to the room where the Commissioners were awaiting them--Aerschot, Hoogstraaten, Lalaing, and the Chancellor of Brabant, Dr. Schoren, "a very wise father." After a lengthy preamble, setting forth the powers committed to the Regent, the terms of the contract were discussed. The chief points on which Wriothesley insisted were that Henry should be allowed to see his bride, that the payment of her dowry should be assigned to Flanders instead of Milan, and that Christina's title to Denmark should be recognized, although, remarked the Ambassador, "for my little wit I care not if this last condition were scraped out of the book."[216] The Duchess's claim to the throne of Denmark, as Wriothesley realized, was so remote that it seemed hardly worth discussing. The dowry and the question of the Papal dispensation were the two real stumbling-blocks, and he advised Cromwell, if the King was really anxious to secure this desirable wife, not to press the former point, money being so scarce in Spain and the Netherlands that the Emperor would rather leave his niece unwed, than part with so large a sum. At the close of the sitting the Duke of Aerschot begged Wriothesley to stay to dinner, and gave him the chief place at table and pre-eminence in all things. The fare was abundant; four courses of ten dishes were served in silver, with "covers of a marvellous clean and honourable sort," and carvers and waiters stood around, and attended as diligently to the Ambassador's wants as if he were a Prince. Later in the evening the Duke's brother-in-law, the Marquis of Berghen, who was always well disposed to the English, came to supper, and chatted pleasantly for some time, but shocked Wriothesley by asking him if it were true that all religion was extinct in England, that Mass was abolished, and that the bones of saints were publicly burned. Cromwell's Commissioner, who had himself plundered the shrines of St. Swithun at Winchester and of St. Thomas at Canterbury, could hardly deny this latter charge, although he declared stoutly that only such money-making devices and tricks of the friars as the Rood of Boxley and the tomb of Becket had been unmasked. But, in spite of the outward civility with which the Ambassador was treated, he realized that all good Catholics in Flanders looked on him with horror and disgust.

[Sidenote: JAN., 1539] MARY'S APPEAL]

All through the summer abbeys and shrines had been going down fast. "Dagon is everywhere falling," wrote a Kentish fanatic, and, as Castillon said, by the end of the year hardly a single abbey was left standing. The recent trend of political events had served to excite the King's worst passions, and when the French Ambassador went to see him early in November, he found him in a towering rage. The French had treated his Ambassadors abominably; the Emperor and King were plotting together to take the Duchess of Milan away from him and give her to Monsieur de Vendôme, which, "if it be done, would finish the picture."[217] Late on this same evening, Lord Exeter, a grandson of Edward IV. and head of the noble house of Courtenay, and his cousin, Lord Montague, the son of Lady Salisbury and brother of Cardinal Pole, were thrown into the Tower on the charge of high-treason. All that the most prolonged cross-examination of their servants and friends could bring out to prove their guilt, was that in my Lord of Exeter's garden at Horsley Place, in Surrey, Sir Edward Nevill had been heard singing merry songs against the knaves that ruled about the King, and, clenching his fist, had cried: "I trust to give them a buffet and see honest men reign in England one day." But the King had long ago told the French Ambassador that he was determined to exterminate the White Rose, and, as Castillon remarked, no pretext was too flimsy to bring men to the block. On the 9th of December, Exeter, Montague, and Nevill, all died on the scaffold, and Castillon wrote to King Francis: "No one knows who will be the next to go." Terror reigned throughout the land, and no one of noble birth was safe.[218] Mary of Hungary might well shudder at the thought of giving her niece to such a man. But every day her position became more difficult. Soon after her return from Compiègne she wrote to Charles, urgently begging for instructions as to how she was to proceed with the English Ambassadors. If the King persists in treating of the Duchess's marriage, is she to consent or to refuse altogether? And if so, on what pretext? Is she to discuss the question of the Papal dispensation, which Henry will never consent to receive from the Pope, but without which the Emperor cannot possibly allow the union.[219] In reply to this letter, Charles wrote from Toledo, on the 5th of December, telling her to temporize with the English, and to consult her Council on the best method of procedure.[220]

A carefully-worded paper, in Mary's own handwriting, setting forth the results of the deliberation with the Council in clear and concise language, was forwarded to the Emperor early in January:

"If the King of England would seriously mend his ways and proceed to conclude the marriage in earnest, not merely to sow dissension between His Majesty and the King of France, this would no doubt be the most honourable alliance for the Duchess and the most advantageous for the Low Countries; but there is no evidence of this--rather the reverse, as your Ambassador in France tells us, from what he hears of the conversations held by King Henry with the French Envoy in London. The Queen considers this point to be entirely settled, and it remains only to know Your Majesty's wishes. Are we to dissemble with the English as we have done till now, which, however, is very difficult, or are we to break off negotiations altogether? This can best be done by putting forward quite reasonable terms, but which are not agreeable to the King. The Queen begs His Majesty to tell her exactly what she is to do, remembering that the King of England, when he cannot ally himself with the Emperor or in France, may seek an alliance with Cleves, and will be further alienated from religion, and may do much harm by putting himself at the head of the German Princes--all of which she prays Your Majesty to consider."[221]

But no reply to this appeal came for many weeks. In vain Mary implored Charles to put an end to this interminable procrastination, and relieve her from the necessity of dissembling with the English Ambassadors, who never left her in peace.

"Once more, Monseigneur," she wrote at the end of January, "I implore you tell me if I am to allow these conferences to drag on, for it is impossible to do this any longer without the most shameless dissimulation."[222]

Still no answer came from Spain, and the solemn farce was prolonged. During the next two months frequent meetings between the Commissioners were held at Brussels, and the Queen herself was often present. "Indeed," wrote Wriothesley, "she is one and principal in it, and how unmeet we be to match with her ourselves do well acknowledge."[223] But little progress was made, although Henry, in his anxiety for the marriage, offered to give the Duchess as large a dowry as any Queen of England had ever enjoyed. On St. Thomas's Day he informed the French Ambassador in the gallery at Whitehall that his marriage was almost concluded.

"All the same," wrote Castillon to the Constable, "I know that he would gladly marry Madame de Guise had he the chance. If you think the King and Emperor would enjoy the sport of seeing him thus _virolin-virolant_, I can easily get it up, provided you show his Ambassador a little civility, and make the Cardinal and Monsieur de Guise caress him a little."[224]

[Sidenote: JAN., 1539] FAIR WORDS]

But two days after this interview Henry addressed a pathetic appeal to the Regent on his behalf, saying that "old age was fast creeping on, and time was slipping and flying marvellously away." Already the whole year had been wasted in vain parleyings, and, since neither money nor prayers could redeem this precious time, he could wait the Emperor's pleasure no longer, but must seek another bride. If this appeal produced no effect, he told Wriothesley to take leave of the Duchess, and declare to her the great affection which the King bore her, and how earnestly he had desired to make her his wife, but, since this was plainly impossible, he must "beg her not to marvel if he joined with another."[225] When this letter reached Brussels, Mary and Christina were absent on a hunting expedition, but on New Year's Eve they returned. The Queen received Wriothesley the next morning, and, after listening patiently to the long discourse in which he delivered his master's message, said that she was still awaiting the Emperor's final instructions, remarking that perhaps the King hardly realized the distance between Spain and Flanders. There was nothing for it but to await the coming of the courier from Spain. But even Wriothesley began to realize that, "for all this gentle entertainment and fair words and feastings," the deputies meant to effect nothing.

Like Hutton, the Ambassador felt the spell of Christina's charms, and certain expressions which her servants Benedetto and Ferrari had dropped, led him to suppose that the Duchess was favourably inclined towards his master. But he was convinced that attempts had been made to poison her mind against the King, and to prefer the suit of William of Cleves or of Francis of Lorraine, who was also said to be seeking her hand.

"I know," he wrote to Cromwell, "that some of these folks labour to avert the Duchess's mind from the King's Majesty, and to rest herself either upon Lorraine or Cleves; but as far as I can learn she is wiser than they, and will in no wise hearken to them, offering rather to live a widow than to fall from the likelihood of being Queen, and to light so low as from a mistress to become an underling, as she must if she marry either of them, their fathers and mothers being yet both alive. What for the virtue that I think I see in her, the good nature that every man must note her to be of, as well as her good inclination to the King's Majesty, I have privily wished myself sometimes that the King might take her with nothing, as she hath somewhat, rather than His Highness should, by these cankered tongues, be tromped and deceived of his good purpose, and so want such a wife as I think she would be to His Grace. For I shall ever pray God to send His Majesty such a mate, humble, loving, and of such sort as may be for His Grace's quiet and content, with the increase of the offspring of his most noble person."[226]

VI.

At length the eagerly-expected courier reached Brussels, but, as usual, the Queen and Duchess were away hunting, and it was only on the 1st of February that the Ambassadors obtained their desired audience. Mary received them in her bedroom between seven and eight in the morning, and told them that the Emperor had decided to await the arrival of the Count Palatine, who with his wife, the Duchess's elder sister, was shortly expected at Toledo, in order that he might discuss the subject fully with them; but, since she knew Henry to be impatient for an answer, she had despatched a trusty messenger, Cornelius Scepperus, to Spain to beg her brother for an immediate decision.[227]

[Sidenote: FEB., 1539] AN AWKWARD QUESTION]

Wriothesley now ventured on a bold step. As the Queen rose to leave the room, he begged, in order to satisfy his own peace of mind, to be allowed to ask her one question, hoping that she would give him a frank answer. At these words Mary blushed deeply, conscious of the double part that she was playing, and bade him speak, assuring him that she would take whatever he said in good part. "Madame," returned Wriothesley, "I beseech Your Grace to tell me plainly how you find the Duchess herself affected towards this marriage with the King my master." If, as was commonly reported, the Duchess had really said that she minded not to fix her heart that way, all his efforts were but lost labour. And he made bold to ask this question because he knew that of late "divers malicious tongues, servants of the Bishop of Rome, had dared to speak lewdly in hugger-mugger of the King's Majesty." The question was an awkward one, but Mary proved equal to the occasion. She thanked the Ambassador for his frankness, and replied with some warmth that she was quite sure her niece had never spoken such words, and that, if evil men spoke lewdly of the King, she would know how to deal with them. "Touching my niece's affection," she added, "I dare say unto you, that if the Emperor and your master the King agree upon this marriage, she will be at the Emperor's command."

Wriothesley could only express his gratitude for this gracious answer, even if it were not so plain as he could have wished. Seeing that nothing else would satisfy him, the Queen referred him to the Duchess herself, and at two o'clock the same afternoon the Ambassador was conducted to Christina's lodgings. He found her standing under a canopy in a hall hung with black velvet and damask, with five or six ladies near her, and a dozen gentlemen and pages at the other end of the room. Christina received him with a graceful salute, bade him heartily welcome, and asked the purpose of his errand. Wriothesley proceeded to explain the object of his visit at great length, saying that he was quite sure that a lady of her gravity and discretion would never allow such unseemly words to pass her lips; yet, since untrue and wicked reports might have reached her ears and cooled her inclination towards the King, he felt it would be his bounden duty, were this true, to inform His Majesty, in order that he might withdraw his suit without further waste of time and dishonour.

Christina listened to this long harangue without moving a muscle. When the Ambassador had ended, she desired him to put on his cap, saying it was a cold day, and that she regretted not to have noticed that he was uncovered before. Wriothesley replied that this was his duty, and that he hoped often to have the honour of talking with her bareheaded in the future. Without paying any heed to this last remark, Christina replied in the following words:

"Monsieur l'Ambassadeur, I do heartily thank you for your good opinion of me, wherein I can assure you, you have not been deceived. I thank God He hath given me a better stay of myself, than to be of so light a sort as, by all likelihood, some men would note me. And I assure you that neither these words that you have spoken, nor any like to them, have passed at any time from my mouth, and so I pray you report for me."

[Sidenote: FEB., 1539] CHRISTINA'S ANSWER]

But grateful as Wriothesley expressed himself for this frank answer, he was not yet satisfied. "It is an evil wind, as we say in England, that bloweth no man good," and at least the Duchess would see by this, how little faith was to be placed in idle tales. "There are those," he said mysteriously, "who play on both hands; they tell Your Excellency many things, and us somewhat." But would she go farther, and tell him if he might assure the King his master of her own good inclination towards the marriage? At these words Christina blushed exceedingly, and said with some hesitation: "As for my inclination, what should I say? You know I am at the Emperor's commandment." And when the Ambassador pressed her to be a little plainer, she smiled and repeated: "You know I am the Emperor's poor servant, and must follow his pleasure!"

"Marry!" exclaimed Wriothesley; "why, then I may hope to be one of the first Englishmen to be acquainted with my new mistress. Oh, madame, how happy shall you be if you are matched with my master--the most gentle gentleman that liveth, his nature so benign and pleasant that I think no man hath heard many angry words pass his mouth. As God shall help me, if he were no King, instead of one of the most puissant Princes of Christendom, I think, if you saw him, you would say that for his virtues, gentleness, wisdom, experience, goodliness of person, and all other gifts and qualities, he were worthy to be made a King. I know Your Grace to be of goodly parentage, and to have many great Princesses in your family, but if God send this to a good conclusion, you shall be of all the rest the most happy!"

This fulsome panegyric was too much for Christina's gravity. She listened for some time, like one that was tickled, then smiled, and almost burst out laughing, but restrained her merriment with much difficulty, and, quickly recovering herself, said gravely that she knew His Majesty was a good and noble Prince. "Yes, madame," replied the Ambassador, with enthusiasm, "and you shall know this better hereafter. And for my part, I would be content, if only I may live to see the day of your coronation, to say with Simeon, "Nunc dimittis servum tuum, Domine." And he dwelt with fervour on the wish of the English to have her for their Queen, and on the admiration and love which the fame of her beauty and goodness had excited in the King. Christina bowed her thanks, saying that she was much bounden to His Majesty for his good opinion, and then, calling her Grand Master, bade him escort the Ambassador home.

"Your Majesty," wrote Wriothesley to the King that evening, "shall easily judge from this of what inclination the women be, and especially the Duchess, whose honest countenance, with the few words that she wisely spoke, make me to think there can be no doubt in her. A blind man should judge no colours, but surely, Sir, after my poor understanding and the little experience that I have, she is marvellous wise, very gentle, and as shamefaced as ever I saw so witty a woman. I think her wisdom is no less than the Queen's, which, in my poor opinion, is notable for a woman, and I am deceived if she prove not a good wife. And somewhat the better I like her for that I have been informed that, of all the whole stock of them, her mother was of the best opinion in religion, and showed it so far that both the Emperor and all the pack of them were sore grieved with her, and seemed in the end to hold her in contempt. I would hope no less of the daughter, if she might be so happy as to nestle in England. Very pure, fair of colour she is not, but a marvellous good brownish face she hath, with fair red lips and ruddy cheeks. And unless I be deceived in my judgment, she was never so well painted but her living visage doth much excel her picture."[228]

[Sidenote: FEB., 1539] WORTHY TO BE A QUEEN]

Two things, Wriothesley told Cromwell, in a letter which he wrote to him the next day, were plain: the Queen would be very loth to let them go with nothing settled, and the Duchess was well inclined, considering that nothing had as yet been said to her on the King's behalf. And he suggested that he might be allowed to show her a portrait of Henry, the sight of which, he felt sure, would make her die a maid rather than marry anyone else. "The woman is certainly worthy to be a Queen," he adds, "and in my judgment is worth more than all the friendship and alliances in the world."[229]

Unfortunately, these letters, which the writer hoped would give the King so much pleasure, found Henry in a furious temper. In January, 1539, Pope Paul III. issued the long-delayed Bull of excommunication, and called on the Emperor and the French King to declare war on the heretic monarch, and forbid all intercourse between their subjects and the misguided English. Cardinal Pole, whose kinsmen Henry had beheaded, and whose own life had been attempted by his emissaries, was sent to Spain to induce Charles to take up arms against "this abominable tyrant and cruel persecutor of the Church of God."[230] At the same moment a treaty was signed between Charles and Francis at Toledo, by which the two monarchs pledged themselves to conclude no agreements with Henry excepting by mutual consent.[231]

Henry now became seriously alarmed. He complained bitterly to Castillon of the way in which he was reviled in France, not only by the vulgar, but by the Cardinal of Paris and members of the Council. And he sent Cromwell to Chapuys with an imperative summons to come to Court without delay. The Imperial Ambassador obeyed, and came to Whitehall on the Feast of the Three Kings. Henry was on his way to Mass, but he stopped to greet Chapuys, and complained once more of the Queen of Hungary's interminable delays and of the scandalous treatment of his Ambassadors. Chapuys made the best excuses which came into his mind, and assured the King that Mary was only awaiting the Emperor's instructions as to the Papal dispensation, and that he would hear from Spain as soon as the Palatine had reached Toledo. To this Henry vouchsafed no answer, but walked straight on, to the door of the chapel.

During Mass Cromwell entered into conversation with Chapuys, and told him that the Pope had thrown off the hypocrite's mask, and was doing his best to kindle a flame in Italy. Before the Ambassador could reply he changed the subject, and said he saw clearly that the Emperor intended to marry his niece to Cleves or Lorraine. Chapuys laughed, and remarked that the Duchess could hardly be given to both Princes, but added in all seriousness that his master knew the difference between the King of England and these suitors. After dinner Henry seemed in a better temper, but told Chapuys in confidential tones that he was growing old, and that his subjects pressed him to hasten his marriage, and that these vexatious delays were all due to the French, who boasted that the Emperor could do nothing without their consent.

[Sidenote: FEB., 1539] A COLD FROST]

"He seemed in great trouble," reported Chapuys, "and it is plain, as everyone about him tells me, that he is very much in love with the Duchess of Milan. He told one of his most intimate friends the other day that he would gladly take her without a penny.... And just now the French Ambassador asked me if it were true that he had sent her a diamond worth 16,000 ducats."[232]

At the same time Chapuys heard that Henry was negotiating with the German Princes, and offering his daughter Mary to the young Duke of Cleves, in order to prevent him from marrying the Duchess. "He is so much in love," wrote Castillon, "that for one gracious word from her I believe he would go to war to recover Denmark."[233]

The same week Henry wrote to Wyatt, complaining bitterly of the treatment which he had received from his imperial brother, as being wholly unworthy of a Prince who professed to be his zealous friend. "After so hot a summer we saw never so cold a winter; after all these professions of love and friendship, in the end nothing but a cold frost." He ended by declaring he would no longer be kept "hanging in the balance," and must have an immediate answer, even if it were a flat denial.[234] At length even Charles could procrastinate no longer, and on the 15th of February he told Wyatt that it was impossible for the marriage to take place without the Pope's dispensation, as the King's dispensation would never satisfy the Duchess herself, or any of her relations, and might cause endless inconvenience if children were born of the union. "All the stay," wrote Cromwell to Wriothesley, "is upon the dispensation, to which they object now, but whereof they never spake before."[235]

Even before the courier from Spain arrived, Henry's face was so black that Castillon wrote home begging to be recalled, and declaring that this King was the most cruel and dangerous man in the world. He was in such a rage that he had neither reason nor understanding left, and once he found out that Francis could do nothing for him, Castillon was convinced that his own life would not be worth a straw. A few days later the Ambassador left London, and rejoiced to find himself safely back in France.[236]

VII.

[Sidenote: FEB., 1539] A GAY CARNIVAL]

While London was full of alarms, Wriothesley and his colleagues were spending a gay Shrovetide at Brussels, all unconscious of the clouds that were darkening the horizon. During the last few weeks nobles and courtiers had vied with each other in paying them attentions. Visitors of the highest rank honoured their humble lodgings. Madame de Berghen, Aerschot's lively sister--"a dame of stomach that hath a jolly tongue"--dined with them. The Queen herself was expected to pay them a visit, and great preparations in the way of plate and furniture were made for her reception. Count Büren, a very great man in Holland, was particularly friendly, and impressed Wriothesley so much by his honesty and loyalty that he gave him the best horse in his stables. Another day he entertained the Captain of Gravelines, who railed against the abominations of Rome to his heart's content, and told him it would be the Pope's fault if the King's marriage were not concluded. Carnival week brought a round of festivities. On Monday, the 17th of February, the Ambassadors were invited to meet the Queen at supper at the Duke of Aerschot's house, and were received at half-past five by the Duchess and her sister-in-law, Madame de Berghen. The Duchess sent for her young daughter and her two sons--boys of ten and twelve--and presently they were joined by Monsieur de Vély, the new French Ambassador. Wriothesley expressed great pleasure at meeting him, saying that, since their masters were good friends, they ought not to be strangers, and received a cordial reply. The rest of the company looked on with some surprise at these friendly fashions, a rumour being abroad that the French King was about to attack England and force Henry to submit to the Pope. Then a flourish of trumpets, sackbuts, and fifes, was heard at the gates, and the guests rose as the Queen and Duchess entered the hall. At supper the French Ambassador sat on the Queen's right, and Wriothesley on her left, while Christina was between him and Vaughan. Madame d'Egmont sat next to Dr. Carne, and the Prince of Orange was on the Duchess of Aerschot's right hand. Mary made herself very agreeable to both her neighbours, and when, after supper, her chapel choir sang roundelays and merry drinking-songs, she asked Wriothesley if he were fond of music, and invited him to sup with her on the morrow and hear her minstrels. The Ambassador confessed that he was very fond of music, and often had some at his poor home to cheer his dull spirits. "Well, it is an honest pastime," said the Queen, "and maketh good digestion, for it driveth thoughts away." Here Wriothesley ventured to remark that he would feel merrier if he had not wasted so much time here, and asked if there was still no news from Spain. "None," replied the Queen; and Wriothesley observed that reports reached him from Germany that the Emperor was merely trying to gain time, and meant to do the Bishop of Rome's bidding. "Jesus!" exclaimed the Queen, "I dare say the Emperor never meant such a thing;" upon which Wriothesley hastened to say that he felt sure the Emperor was too wise and honourable a Prince to deceive the King, but now that he had made friends with his old enemy, he hoped he would not make a new enemy of his old friend. After supper the Duke and several ladies came in, wearing masks and rich costumes, and threw dice with the Queen and her niece for some fine diamonds, which the Princesses won. Then the Prince of Orange led out Christina to dance, and the other youthful guests followed suit, while Wriothesley sat at the Queen's side on the daïs and watched the princely pair.

[Sidenote: FEB., 1539] AN UNPLEASANT SURPRISE]

The next evening (Shrove Tuesday) Wriothesley and his colleagues dined at the palace, and this time the English Ambassador sat in the post of honour, on the Queen's right, with the Duchess on his left. Mary was in high spirits, toasted her guests and drank with each of them in turn. After supper Wriothesley approached Christina, and ventured to tell her that she would be happy if her best friends did not put hindrances in her way, and begged her not to lend ear to malicious reports of his master. The Duchess shook her head, saying she would listen to no calumnies, and always hold the King to be a noble Prince. But he felt sure that she was afraid of the Queen, and told her he hoped to converse more freely with her another time. Never had he seen her look so beautiful as she did that night; never did he wish more ardently to see her his master's bride. "For indeed it were pity," he wrote home, "if she were bestowed on a husband she did not like, only to serve others."

There was one Prince at table for whom, it was easy to see, Christina had no dislike. This was René of Orange, who had an opportunity of distinguishing himself in his lady's eyes that evening. The Queen led the way into the great hall, where first Aerschot and three other nobles challenged all comers to fight, and then the Prince of Orange and Floris d'Egmont took their places at the barriers, and broke lances and received prizes for their valour, while the Queen's band of lutes, viols, and rebecks, played the finest music that Wriothesley had ever heard. When the jousting was ended, Mary led her guests to the royal gallery, where another banquet was served, and there was much lively discourse, and more talking than eating. So that gay Carnival came to a close, and with it the last hope of winning the fair Duchess's hand.[237]

An unpleasant surprise was in store for Wriothesley the next morning. Certain disquieting rumours having reached Brussels, Vaughan went to Antwerp on Ash Wednesday, and found great consternation among the English merchants. A proclamation had been issued forbidding any ships to leave the port, and several English vessels laden with merchandise had been detained. The wildest rumours were current on the Exchange. It was commonly said that the Emperor, with the Kings of France and Scotland, had declared war on King Henry, and that a large Dutch and Spanish fleet was about to sail for England. Already in Brussels gallants and pikemen were taking bets on the issue of the war, and Wriothesley wrote to Cromwell that he and his colleagues "might peradventure broil on a faggot." He was unable to obtain an audience until Friday, when the Queen told him that, by the Emperor's orders, she was recalling Chapuys to conduct the marriage negotiations. This unexpected intimation, coming as it did after the startling news from Antwerp, disconcerted him considerably. He sent an express to London, and received orders to take his departure at once. Castillon was already on his way to France, but Henry quite refused to let Chapuys go until Wriothesley and Vaughan had left Brussels. A long wrangle between the two Courts followed. The Ambassadors were detained on both sides. The Spanish and Dutch ships in English harbours were stopped, all ports were closed, and active preparations were made for war along the shores of the Channel.

"After fair weather," wrote Cromwell to Wriothesley, "there is succeeded a weather very cloudy. Good words, good countenance, be turned, we perceive, to a wonderful strangeness. But let that pass. They can do us no harm but to their own detriment."[238]

[Sidenote: MARCH, 1539] STRANGE ENTERTAINMENT]

The situation of the Ambassadors was by no means pleasant. A marked change was visible in the behaviour of the Court. They were "treated as very strangers" by those nobles who had been their best friends. No one called at their house or came to dine with them. The Duchess's servants, who used to go to and fro constantly, now dared not come except at dusk--"in the owl-flight"--and would not allow Wriothesley to send them home by torchlight. Wherever they went, the English heard their King slandered, and met with cold looks and scornful words. Worse than all, they were forced to pay excise duties--"eighteen pence on every barrel of beer above the price asked by the brewer"--an indignity to which no Ambassador before had ever been exposed. "I write in haste and live in misery," wrote Wriothesley to Cromwell on the 7th of March.[239]

The Emperor, however, was still friendly. His heart was set on a Crusade against the Turk, and he had no wish to embark on war with England. Pole met with a cold reception at Toledo, and, finding Charles averse to executing the Pope's sentence, retired to his friend Sadoleto's house at Carpentras. This was a relief to Henry, and he bade Wyatt thank his imperial brother, but could not forbear pointing out that these friendly words agreed ill with the doings of his officers in the Low Countries. A despatch addressed to Wyatt on the 10th of March contains a long recital of the extraordinary treatment which his Ambassadors at Brussels had met with:

"Since Lent began, as for a penance, their entertainment hath been marvellous strange--yea, and stranger than we will rehearse: strangeness in having audience with long delay, strangeness in answer and fashion. Also they have been constrained to pay Excise, which no Ambassador of England paid in any man's remembrance. They have complained to the Queen, but nevertheless must pay or lack drink.... These rumours and hints of war, the arrest of our ships, this strangeness shown to our Ministers, this navy and army in readiness, the recall of Chapuys, ran abroad this realm and everywhere. We do not write to you the rumours half so spiteful, and the entertainment half so strange, as it hath been. I think never such a thing was heard, and especially after a treaty of marriage such a banquet!"[240]

Henry concluded this letter by saying that, since the Emperor insisted on the need of Papal dispensation, there could be no further question of any marriage between him and the Duchess, and he would be now at liberty to seek another wife. On the same day he wrote to Carne, who had been secretly corresponding with the Duke of Cleves, telling him to open negotiations for a marriage with that Prince's sister, the Lady Anne.[241]

Twelve days after this despatch was sent to Spain Wriothesley left Brussels. At Calais he met Chapuys, who had just crossed the Channel, and Mary's almoner, the Dean of Cambray, who was being sent to take the Ambassador's place, and was awaiting a fair wind to embark for Dover. All three Ambassadors dined in a friendly manner with Lord Lisle, the Deputy Governor of Calais, and continued their respective journeys without hindrance. But the much-discussed marriage treaty was at an end. The long-drawn comedy had reached its last act. "All hope of the Duchess," wrote Wriothesley to Cromwell, "is utterly past."

[Sidenote: AUG., 1539] A WELSHMAN'S OPINION]

The rupture was loudly lamented by the English merchants in Antwerp, and keen disappointment was felt throughout England, where the marriage had always been popular. Among many scattered notices of the feeling which prevailed on the subject, the following incident is of especial interest, because of the sidelight which it throws on Christina's personal reluctance to the marriage.

On a summer evening in August, 1539, five months after Wriothesley left Brussels, a married priest named George Constantyne, of Llan Hawaden in South Wales, rode from Chepstow to Abergavenny with John Barlow, Dean of Westbury. The priest had got into trouble in Wolsey's time, for buying copies of Tyndale's New Testament, and was forced to fly the country and practise as a physician for several years in the Netherlands. Now he had returned to England, and was on his way to his old home in Wales. He walked from Bristol to Westbury, where he supped with Dean Barlow, a brother of his friend the Bishop of St. Davids, who made him heartily welcome, and invited him to be his travelling companion the next day to Pembrokeshire. As the two ecclesiastics rode through the green valleys on the way to Abergavenny, the Dean asked Constantyne if he could tell him why the King's marriage had been so long delayed. The priest replied that he, for his part, was very sorry the King should still be without a wife, when he might by this time have been the father of fair children. As the Dean knew, both the Duchess of Milan and she of Cleves were spoken of, and now the little doctor, Nicholas Wotton, had been sent to Cleves with Mr. Beard, of the Privy Chamber, and the King's painter; so there was good hope of a marriage being concluded with the Duke of Cleves, who favoured God's word, and was a mighty Prince now, holding Guelderland against the Emperor's will. But why, asked the Dean, was the marriage with the Duchess of Milan broken off? Constantyne, who was familiar with all the gossip of the Regent's Court, replied that the Duchess quite refused to marry the King, unless he would accept the Bishop of Rome's dispensation, and give pledges that her life would be safe and her honour respected. "Why pledges?" asked the Dean innocently. "Marry!" returned Constantyne, "she sayeth that, since the King's Majesty was in so little space rid of three Queens, she dare not trust his Council, even if she dare trust His Majesty. For in Flanders the nobles suspect that her great-aunt, Queen Catherine, was poisoned, that Anne Boleyn was innocent of the crimes for which she was put to death, and that the third wife, Queen Jane, was lost for lack of attention in childbed." Such, at least, were the mutterings which he heard at Court before Whitsuntide. The Dean remarked that he was afraid the affair of Milan must be dashed, as Dr. Petre, who was to have gone to fetch the royal bride from Calais, was at the Court of St. James's last Sunday; upon which Constantyne gave it as his opinion that there could be no amity between the King and the Emperor, whose god was the Pope.

So the two men talked as they rode over the Welsh hills on the pleasant summer evening. But the poor priest had good reason to regret that he had ever taken this ride; for his false friend the Dean reported him as a Sacramentary to the Lord Privy Seal, and a few days after he reached Llan Hawaden he was arrested and thrown into the Tower, where he spent several months in prison as a penalty for his freedom of speech.[242]

FOOTNOTES:

[164] Papiers d'État, 1178, Archives du Royaume, Bruxelles.

[165] Calendar of State Papers, xii. 2, 367.

[166] State Papers, Henry VIII., Record Office, viii. 2.

[167] J. Kaulek, "Correspondance Politique de M. de Castillon," 4, 5; Calendar of State Papers, xii. 2, 394.

[168] Calendar of State Papers, xii. 2, 392; G. Pimodan, "La Mère des Guises," 72.

[169] Kaulek, 12, 15; Calendar of State Papers, xiii. 1, 54.

[170] State Papers, Record Office, viii. 5.

[171] Anne Boleyn's cousin Mary Skelton, who had been a great favourite with the King (see Calendar of State Papers, xiii. 1, 24).

[172] State Papers, Record Office, viii. 7.

[173] Calendar of State Papers, xiii. 1, 42.

[174] Calendar of Spanish State Papers, v. 2, 572.

[175] Calendar of Spanish State Papers, v. 2, 429.

[176] Kaulek, 24; Calendar of State Papers, xiii. 1, 82.

[177] Calendar of State Papers, xiii. 1, 93.

[178] State Papers, Record Office, viii. 16.

[179] _Ibid._, viii. 30.

[180] British Museum, Additional Manuscripts, 5,498, f. 2; Calendar of State Papers, xiii. 1, 130.

[181] State Papers, Record Office, viii. 17-19.

[182] Holbein's portrait is described in the Catalogues of the King's pictures at Westminster in 1542 and 1547 as "No. 12. A greate Table with the picture of the Duchess of Myllane, being her whole stature." After Henry's death it passed into the hands of Fitzalan, Earl of Arundel, the King's Lord Chamberlain and godson, who married Lady Katherine Grey, and acquired the Palace of Nonsuch, with most of its contents. When he died, in 1580, it became the property, first of his elder daughter Jane, wife of Lord Lumley, and then of her great-nephew, Thomas Howard, Earl of Arundel. This great collector took the Duchess of Milan's portrait with him abroad during the Civil Wars, and after his death, in 1645, it hung, with many other Holbeins, in the house of his widow at Amsterdam. Lady Arundel left the whole collection to her son, Henry Howard, who became the sixth Duke of Norfolk, and Holbein's portrait remained in the family until, in 1909, it was acquired by the National Gallery for the sum of £72,000. A second portrait of the Duchess of Milan, a half-length, is mentioned in Henry VIII.'s Catalogues ("No. 138. A Table with a picture of the Duchess of Myllane"), and was discovered by Sir George Scharf in a waiting-room near the private chapel at Windsor. This is probably the portrait by Van Orley which Hutton sent to England before Holbein's arrival at Brussels. The attitude of the sitter, her dress and features, are the same as in Holbein's picture, but the face is less finely modelled and lacks charm and expression. The hands are in a slightly different position, and instead of one big ruby ring she wears three rings--a cameo and a gold ring on the right hand, and a black ring, the badge of widowhood, on the third finger of the left hand. This curious and interesting portrait is plainly the work of an inferior artist, and, as the Ambassador justly remarked, bears no comparison with Holbein's Duchess--"surely," in the words of his biographer, "one of the most precious pictures in the world" (Wornum's "Life of Holbein," p. 322; L. Cust in the _Burlington Magazine_, August, 1911, p. 278; and Sir G. Scharf in "Archæologia," xl. 205).

[183] Calendar of Spanish State Papers, v. 2, 523.

[184] State Papers, Record Office, viii. 21.

[185] State Papers, Record Office, viii. 30.

[186] Calendar of State Papers, xiii. 1, 263.

[187] Kaulek, 29, 33, 35.

[188] Calendar of Spanish State Papers, v. 2, 524.

[189] Calendar of State Papers, xiii. 1, 258.

[190] Calendar of Spanish State Papers, v. 2, 526, 558.

[191] Kaulek, 48, 50, 53, 58, 70.

[192] _Ibid._, 58, 73; Pimodan, 73.

[193] Kaulek, 70, 79, 81; Spanish State Papers, vi. 1, 9.

[194] Balcarres Manuscripts, ii. 20.

[195] _Ibid._, ii. 10.

[196] There has been some confusion as to the date of Holbein's visit to Joinville, owing to a mistake in the Calendar of State Papers (xiii. 1, 130), where Cromwell's instructions to Hoby for his journeys to Brussels and France are entered under the date of February, 1538. But the Duchess of Guise's letter (see Appendix), as well as the payment of £10 made by Sir Brian Tuke, Treasurer of the Household, to Hans Holbein on the 30th of December, 1538, "for going to the parts of High Burgony about certain of the King's business," make it clear that this journey took place at the end of August (G. Scharf, "Archæologia," xxxix. 7). From Lorraine the painter went on to Bâle, where he spent some months, and returned to England at Christmas. The original documents in the British Museum (Additional Manuscripts, 5,498, f. 1) bear no date, and are on separate sheets, and the heading of the instructions regarding the journey to Brussels was added by a later hand, and is thus worded: "Instructions given by the L. Cromwell to Philip Hoby, sent over by him to the Duchess of Lorraine, then Duchess of Milan"--_i.e._, Christina, Duchess of Lorraine, at that time Duchess of Milan. But the editor of the Calendars inserted the words "to the" between "then" and "Duchess of Milan," thus making it appear that Hoby went first to Lorraine, and then to the Duchess of Milan, whereas the journey to Brussels took place in March, and that to Lorraine in August. Since this chapter was written, the subject has been fully dealt with by Mr. A. B. Chamberlain in the _Burlington Magazine_, April, 1912.

[197] Calendar of Spanish State Papers, v. 2, 531.

[198] Nott's "Life of Wyatt," ii. 488.

[199] State Papers, Record Office, viii. 33.

[200] State Papers, Record Office, viii. 40.

[201] Calendar of State Papers, xiii. 2, 119.

[202] Calendar of Spanish State Papers, vi. 1, 42.

[203] Kaulek, 77.

[204] Calendar of Spanish State Papers, vi. 15-31.

[205] Calendar of Spanish State Papers, vi. 41.

[206] Calendar of Spanish State Papers, vi. 46.

[207] State Papers, Record Office, viii. 53, 56; Calendar of State Papers, xiii. 2, 214.

[208] State Papers, Record Office, viii. 56-60.

[209] Calendar of State Papers, xiii. 2, 245, 247.

[210] State Papers, Record Office, viii. 67.

[211] State Papers, Record Office, viii. 78; Calendar of State Papers, xiii. 2, 255.

[212] F. Decrue, "Anne de Montmorency," 415, 418, 491.

[213] State Papers, xiii. 2, 238.

[214] _Ibid._, xiii. 2, 247, 248.

[215] Calendar of State Papers, xiii. 2, 261.

[216] Calendar of State Papers, xiii. 2, 255.

[217] Calendar of State Papers, xiii. 2, 289.

[218] _Ibid._, xiii. 2, 291, 296.

[219] Calendar of Spanish State Papers, vi. 1, 96.

[220] Lanz, ii. 686.

[221] Papiers d'État, 82, 20, Archives du Royaume, Bruxelles.

[222] Lanz, ii. 296.

[223] State Papers, Record Office, viii. 72.

[224] Calendar of State Papers, xiii. 2, 467, 468.

[225] State Papers, Record Office, viii. 110, 118, 123.

[226] Calendar of State Papers, xiv. 1, 37.

[227] State Papers, Record Office, viii. 139.

[228] State Papers, Record Office, viii. 140-148.

[229] Calendar of State Papers, xiv. 1, 93, 121.

[230] _Ibid._, xiv. 1, 14; Calendar of Spanish State Papers, vi. 1, 97.

[231] _Ibid._, xiv. 1, 26.

[232] Calendar of State Papers, xiv. 1, 16-19.

[233] _Ibid._, xiv. 1, 52; Lanz, ii. 297-306.

[234] Nott, ii. 306.

[235] Calendar of Spanish State Papers, vi. 1, 145.

[236] Kaulek, 84.

[237] Calendar of State Papers, xiv. 1, 125, 126

[238] State Papers, Record Office, viii. 155.

[239] State Papers, Record Office, viii. 166, 175.

[240] Nott, "Life of Wyatt," II. 511.

[241] Calendar of State Papers, xiv. 1, 189, 191.

[242] "Archæologia Cambrensis," xxiii. 139-141.