aOTI^i:ii:::||^HEil^ ■X^jl mm €EGILIA.C::OUNfESS- OF DENBIGH r,Vj; ■■■■■"i^K '*-^s^» liVJfieifyafAiiVM^ P3fl OfarttcU lmuw0itg ffithrarg atltaca, New ^atk BOUGHT WITH THE INCOME OF THE SAGE ENDOWMENT FUND THE GIFT OF HENRY W. SAGE 1891 The date shows when this volume was taken. To renew this book copy the c^Sgfp. and give to the librarian. ^^ HOME USE RULES 0C1 4 1919 All Books subject to recall All borrowers nmst regis- ter in the library to borrow books for home use. ' All books must be, re- turned at end of college year for inspection and repairs. Limited books must be returned within the four week limit and not renewed. Students must return all books before leaving town. Officers should arrange for the return of books wanted during thar absence from town. Volumes of periodicals and of pamphlets are held in the . library as much as possible.. For special pur- poses they are given out for a limited time. Borrowers should not use their library privileges for the benefit of other persons. Books of special value and gift books, when the giver wishes it, are not allowed to circulate. Readers are asked to re- port all cases of books marked or mutilated. Do not dtfface books by marks and writine. V rjimk^- r Cornell University Library DA 396.D39D391 Royalist father and Roundhead son: 3 1924 028 056 855 Cornell University Library The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/cletails/cu31924028056855 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON BASIL, VISCOUNT FEILDING AND HIS WIFE ANN WESTON IN CARNIVAL DRESS AT VENICE ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON BEING THE MEMOIRS OF THE FIRST AND SECOND EARLS OF DENBIGH 1600—1675 BY CECILIA COUNTESS OF DENBIGH WITH TWELVE ILLUSTRATIONS METHUEN & CO. LTD. 36 ESSEX STREET W.G. LONDON < First Published in igis 7 TO MY HUSBAND AND ALSO TO THE SPLENDID TRAINING, FIGHTING, WOUNDED, DYING OFFICERS AND MEN OF THE HONOURABLE ARTILLERY COMPANY WHICH it has been his pride to command for twenty-two years and of which the "roundhead son" was a member Newnham Paddox October 1915. CONTENTS CHAPTER I. Under the Stuarts II. The King's Favourite III. Knights Errant IV. The Expedition to Rochelle V. The Adventures of Basil Feilding VI. The Tribulations of Doctor Harvey VII. Foreign Affairs VIII. English Affairs IX. A Roundhead's Wife X. Commander-in-Chief of the Midlands XI. The Captive King . XII. The Commonwealth XIII. The Restoration . Index .... PAGE I SI 82 III 122 163 196 206 237 271 290 311 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS BASIL VISCOUNT FEILDING AND HIS WIFE ANN WESTON IN CARNIVAL DRESS AT VENICE . . . Frontispiece From the ficture at Newnham Paddox FACING PACK MARY BEAUMONT COUNTESS OF BUCKINGHAM . . lO From the picture by Mytens at Newnham Paddox THE INFANTA MARIA ANA . . . . .28 From the picture at Newnham Paddox GEORGE VILLIERS DUKE OF BUCKINGHAM . . • 5^ Prom tlie picture hy Jansen at Newnham Paddox WILLIAM FEILDING 1ST EARL OF DENBIGH . . -78 From the picture after Vandyke at Newnham Paddox FACSIMILE OF A HOLOGRAPH LETTER OF CHARLES I TO BASIL VISCOUNT FEILDING AT VENICE . . . .126 From the original at Neuinham Paddox MARY FEILDING MARCHIONESS OF HAMILTON . . . I40 Prom the picture by Vantfyke at Newnfiam Paddox SUSAN VILLIERS COUNTESS OF DENBIGH . . . 168 From Hie picture by Mytens at Newnham Paddox WILLIAM FEILDING 1ST EARL OF DENBIGH . . . I90 From the picture by Balthazar Gerbier at Newnham Paddox BASIL FEILDING 2ND EARL OF DENBIGH . . . 206 From a rare engraving JAMES 1ST DUKE OF HAMILTON . . . .272 From the picture by Vandyke at Newnham Paddox SUSAN VILLIERS COUNTESS OF DENBIGH . . .288 From Hie picture by Balthazar Gerbier at Newnham Paddox LIST OF AUTHORITIES Newnham Paddox Manuscripts. Clarendon's History of the Rebellion. Masson's Life of Milton. State Records. Civil War Tracts. Green's History of England. Sir Henry Wotton's Memoirs. Gardiner's History. Journals of Houses of Parlument. Dalton's Life of Sir Edward Cecil. Rushworth's Historical Collection. Court and Times of James I and Charles 1. Lingard's History of England. Sir T. Herbert's Memoirs. Ludlow's Memoirs. Nichols' Warwickshire. Salvetti's Letters. Whitlock's Memoirs. Memoirs of Madame de Motteville. Life and Letters of Endymion Porter. r ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON CHAPTER I UNDER THE STUARTS THERE is, perhaps, no time in our history so full of contrast, change, and conflict as those days which, witnessing the rise of the favourite George Villiers, saw follow, in rapid succession, the struggle between King and Parliament, the Civil War, the supremacy of the Commonwealth, and the subsequent restoration of the ill-fated Stuarts. We all know the history of that period and often picture it to ourselves, wondering how it influenced individual lives, and what it meant to see this England of ours rent by civil war, with neighbour fighting against neighbour, and the whole land seething with enmity, hate, and bloodshed. There are few families, perhaps, where the whole story is laid so clearly or so graphically before us as in the portraits and letters of the Feildings of Newnham. There we turn from the walls on which hang the pictures of the actors in this drama to the muniment room where lie the records they have left of their 2 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON personal feelings, their emotions, and the motives which guided their lives. We live over again with them days of political power and excitement, followed by others of struggle and anguish. We almost seem to share their anxieties and their triumphs. We see the rise from humble circumstances of the mother of the favourite, observe her educate and then launch upon the little world of the Court her meteor-pathed son. We follow the career of the daughter who raised her husband to un- expected honours. We watch the war cloud gather till it separates a father and a son, sweeps them into the strife and bitterness of those times, and brings them, for a day, face to face on the field of battle. We hear the distraught and tortured mother vainly implore her son not to war against his father, and, in one of the most beautiful letters known, get a glimpse of her lamenting to that son the death, by wounds and savage butchery, of her husband. She prays him to leave the murderers of his father and be reconciled to his King in words of such piteous entreaty that they must have deeply moved, even if they failed to alter the decision of, the Parliaimentary general. The motives which forced him to turn a deaf ear to such pleadings we can perhaps trace in his career as Ambassador to the Italian Courts, where he had had opportunity to com- pare the autocratic governments of Turin and Savoy with the Republican Government of Venice, to the detriment of the former. His study and experiences of European politics had taught him sooner than it had taught others that monarchy, as then existent in England, could not long endure. Hoping to stem the evil he saw threatening, he threw himself into the UNDER THE STUARTS 3 party of reform. Swept along by the tide of events he, in company with Cromwell, Ireton, Pym, and Fair- fax, vainly strove to regulate its course, only to find himself, by reason of his brave and noble refusal to be amongst the judges of his sovereign, a marked and suspected man, even though appointed for awhile to important posts under the Commonwealth. The restora- tion of the exiled King brought with it his own restora- tion, vindication, and justification, which, such is the irony of events, came too late to comfort his mother, who had ended her days in exile by reason of her devoted attachment to the royal mistress whose mis- fortunes she had so nobly shared. It is impossible to study the career of Basil, the second Earl of Denbigh, without • being strangely attracted by the very qualities which rnade his friends, and those who served under him, so attached to him. His generous and impulsive nature, his large-hearted tenderness, his recklessness of danger and his untiring energy, coupled with his overwhelming sense of duty and his unswerving obedience to the dictates of conscience, enable us to forgive the defects of such a character. They help us also to understand how, when he thought his allegiance due to the government chosen for the country by the voice of the people, he obeyed that voice without staying to consider that possibly his con- duct laid him open to accusations from his enemies of ingratitude and time-service. Lest this view of his character should seem to be too partial ' it may be well to add to it an appreciation by one who, having studied these same papers and records, judged them from an absolutely impartial and historic standpoint. In a manuscript note by Warburton, the biographer of Prince 4 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Rupert, written at the end of the family papers at Newnham, we read : — " Basil Lord Denbigh appears to have been one of the few high-principled and disinterested men that the Troubles made conspicuous. From the testimony, beyond suspicion, that the whole tone of this valuable correspondence bears to his character, he appears en- titled to hold rank among the true-hearted and sincere patriots who sanctioned the tause of the Parliament by their adhesion to it, notwithstanding its many wrongs and errors. " Many and sore must have been the trials to which a proud man of Lord Denbigh's character and position must have been subjected in the discharge of what he conceived to be his duty. The ' Committees ' were in themselves the worst ' manned ' organization of the Commonwealth, and to these we find that Lord Denbigh paid the most watchful and ceremonious consideration. This alone enabled him to use his influence with effect. The regularity (for that time surprising) with which Lord Denbigh kept the foregoing papers throws light on the tenor of his conduct and the features of his character. Therein we find many appeals to his mercy and liberality and, above all, to his sense of honour. To all these, the few, but pithy, memoranda endorsed on the applications prove that he lent a ready and courteous attention. The letter from his lordship's ci-devant secretary is the only one in which is to be found the slightest attempt to purchase favour, and that price consists of two boxes of Shrewsbury cakes, with which his secretary. Crown's, sister is touchingly remembered to Lord Denbigh's care. The many appli- cations and memorials from the officers of his own UNDER THE STUARTS 5' regiment prove the regard as well as respect in which they held their general. The numerous petitions, care- fully preserved, prove his character for conscientious-^ ness, and the frequent requests for his advocacy prove the high consideration in which he was held." CHAPTER II THE KING'S FAVOURITE THROUGH the heart of Warwickshire the Romans cut their two great roads, the arteries of their military existence. Close by the spot where the Watling Street and the Fosse cross, stands Newnham Paddox, the home of the Fetldings since the fourteenth century. In the thirteenth century, in the reign of Henry III, Sir Geoffrey Feilding of Lutterworth served in the King's army and was renowned for his valour and bravery. In reward for his services the King settled on him and his heirs certain lands in Northamptonshire and Leicestershire. His grandson William, in 1339, fought under Edward III against the French, and married the heiress of Newnham. Succeeding generations were con- spicuous for the part they took in the various wars ; and five holders of the property were knighted for services rendered to their country. One, William, thus rewarded in the sixteenth century for raising forces among his tenantry for the Scottish war, was held in great esteem at Court, especially by Jane Seymour, who sent to him, on the birth of Prince Edward, a special message informing him of the event and demanding his prayers and congratulations. The THE KING'S FAVOURITE 7 earliest document amongst the collection of letters at Newnham, dated November 6, i 5 56, is from Sir William Feilding to Sir Anthony Fitzherbert relating to the claim to certain lands of one Cope, a persona grata with Thomas Cromwell. These lands had evidently been a cause of contention in still earlier times, for FeUding says that Cope claims them " as did the priors afore him." Judging by the tone of the letter, Sir William meant to retain them. It was this Sir William's great-grandson, born in 1582, who, all unconsciously, founded the fortunes of the family by his marriage in 1607 with Susan Villiers, the daughter of Sir George Villiers, of Brokesby Hall. In the latter days of Queen Elizabeth's reign therei dwelt amongst the household at Brokesby Mary Beaumont, a gentlewoman by birth, but reduced by poverty to such great straits as to be forced to seek, or accept, employment in the service of the worthy knight. Some say she was even a poor relation taken in out of charity, and given the menial office of a scullion. But, be this as it may, so fair was she and of such stately presence, that " not even her ragged habit," says a biographer, " could hide the beautiful and excellent frame of her person," which, attracting her master's attention, caused him to insist on " my lady's removing her from the kitchen into her own chamber." My lady, it appears, was somewhat loath to procure the advancement of the comely kitchen- wench, but Sir George, " with much importunity," at length prevailed, and Mary was duly promoted. It was not very long after this that Lady Villiers betook herself to a better world, and then was Sir George observed to " look very sweet on my lady's 8 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON woman " ; and small wonder was it, doubtless, when he one day presented her with £20 to buy & new and becoming dress, and declared his intention of making her his wife. A faithful wife, " whom for her beauty and goodness he married," she proved herself for full twelve years, but when he died, in 1605, she found herself, stUl in the bloom of her matronhood, a widow with three sons but scantily provided for, a portionless daughter, and an income of £200 a year. Of these children Susan, as we have seen, married, in 1607, .William Feilding of Newnham Paddox. Doubtless this was looked upon as a very good match for the dower- less Susan, the principals little guessing that the future would show the bridegroom to be the recipient of much advancement by reason of his choice. Great charm of person and mind had Susan ; but it was George, the second son, who inherited the most of his mother's beauty, and, perhaps for that reason, possessed himself of the larger share of her affections. Now, Lady Villiers was a woman of parts, with an ambitious, enterprisinjg nature. Not satisfied with having been placed by good fortune a step or two higher on the social ladder than the one where we originally found her, she was determined to mount higher still by her own exertions. Perceiving the bud- ding talents of her son, she was by no means disposed to allow them to waste their fragrance on the desert air of Godby Manor, in Warwickshire. Quick-witted she was too, for, seeing the boy was by nature little studious, she proposed to make use of such abilities as he had, rather than seek to endow him with others. He was therefore instructed in " musick and other slight literature," towards which he showed special apti- THE KING'S FAVOURITE 9 tude, so as to fit him for, what she hoped might eventu- ally prove his destination, the Court. It is not known exactly at what period Lady Villiers contracted her second marriage, but the union was a short-lived one, for her husband, Sir Thomas Marquin, of whom we know little beyond his name, died within a few months of their marriage. Her hand was again sought, by a brother of the Earl of Northumberland!— Sir Thomas Compton. This marriage was another step in advance, since Sir Thomas was of good family and his kinsfolk were like to be of some use in pushing the fortunes of the young Villiers. The first use made by his " beautiful and provi- dent mother," as Sir H. Wotton styles her, of her increased income was to send George to France, there to perfect himself in all the accomplishments of the age, and on his return, at the end of three years^ she sought the earliest opportunity of bringing him under the King's notice, " who of all wise men living," says Clarendon, " was the most delighted and taken with handsome persons and fine clothes." Such an opportunity occurred during one of the royal progresses through the Midland shires, when the King, observing the youth in the course of a tournament held at Apthorpe, in Northamptonshire, and being struck by the exceeding beauty of his countenance, caused him to be brought before him. Notwithstanding his un- courtly attire, for George would seem to have been able at this time to afford no better garment than an " old black suit, broken out in many places," he gained so much of the King's favour, through his graceful person and exquisite manners, and received such undoubted marks of the royal goodwill, that his success at Court was, from that moment, assured. 10 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON indeed, from that time forth the rise of Villiers was " rather a flight than a growth." " Such a darling of fortune was he " — I quote from Clarendon — " that he was at the top before he was well seen at the bottom." His manners were affable and courteous, and in these early days showed but little of the arrogance and selfishness which made him so many enemies before his death. His friends were numerous, for experience had taught the courtiers of King James that the shortest road to royal favour lay through the good graces of the favourite. The nobles vied with each other in adorning him and tricking him out in their own jewels and fine linen. The Queen, Anne of Denmark, bestowed her favour upon him, and always called him " my kind dogge," while the King addressed him in most endear- ing terms, nicknaming him " Steenie," in allusion to the Acts of the Apostles, where St. Stephen is spoken of as having " the face of an angel." Appointed Cupbearer to the King one year, he was made Master of the Horse the next. In 1616 he was given the garter, and shortly afterwards created, in quick succession, Viscount, Earl, and Marquis of Buckingham. He was admitted into the royal house- hold on terms almost of equality and treated by the King and the Prince of Wales with the greatest familiarity. Buckingham was not one to rise alone, nor indeed was his advancement the only object of Lady Villiers 's ambition. She herself soon mounted high in the estima- tion of James, by her shrewdness and knowledge of the world. At a feast at Hatfield House, at which the King was present, we find her seated at a table apart, with the Countess of Suffolk, then also in high favour, MARY BEAUMONT, COUNTESS OF BUCKINGHAM FROM THE PAINTING BY MYTENS THE KING'S FAVOURITE 11 and special honours being paid to her as the favourite's mother. Not long after this she was made Countess of Buckingham in her own right, though her husband remained a " mere knight." Her patent was antedated so as to give her precedence over the wives of the four other earls created at the same time. She soon obtained such an ascendancy over the weak old King, and such control over the affairs of State, that she and her son became the sole dispensers of royal bounties, and no places could be disposed of without her consent. Her other sons were speedily ennobled, Jack, the eldest, being made Viscount Purbeck, and Christopher, the third. Earl of Anglesey. Her son-in-law, William Feilding, was made Comptroller in 1621, and Master of the Wardrobe in 1622, having been Deputy Master since 1619. In 1620 he had been created Baron of Newnham Paddox, and, shortly after. Viscount. The Court was soon filled with the country relations of this ambitious lady, whom she herself taught to " put on fitting dress and airs," and for whose benefit she intro- duced the country dances instead of the French ones in vogue, which they could not learn fast enough. As early as 1620 we read in a letter of John Chamberlain's : " The speech is he [Sir John Lee] should marry in the kindred of the Countess of Buckingham, and that young Sir Thomas Lake should have one of her nieces. In truth, she is to be com- mended for having such care to prefer her poor kindred and friends ; and a special work of charity it is to provide for young maids, whereof there be six or seven more, they say, come to town for the same purpose." Lady Buckingham was also greatly concerned in her 12 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON son's marriage. The lady on whom George's volatile affections at length rested seriously was Lady Catherine Manners, the heiress of Belvoir. Great opposition was at first raised to this match by the bride's father, largely on the score of religion — the Manners being of a fervent Catholic stock, the Villiers professing the reformed faith. In this dilemtna, as in many others, George had recourse to his mother ; nor did she fail him, for, contriving to carry off the young lady from her father's house, she kept her in her own apartments until such time as the marriage could be arranged. The cere- mony was performed some months later in an old mansion near Tower Hill. Shortly before this occurrence Lady Buckingham had herself been reconciled to the Catholic communion under the auspices of the Jesuit Fisher ; and one reason, doubtless, for the interest she evinced in her son's matrimonial prospects was the hope she enter- tained of his ultimate conversion. That Buckingham did, at one time, entertain thoughts of such a nature is sufficiently proved. Archbishop Laud, when on his trial, put forward, as a plea for his own justifica- tion, that he had helped to confirm Buckingham's wavering faith in his own Church, which "was almost gone between the lady his mother and his sister " ; and in the Life of the same personage is quoted a letter from Pope Gregory XV urging the Duke of Buckingham to take the final step, and speaking, at the same time, in the highest terms of his mother's piety. There was much opposition from the King to these religious goings-on. Special services were held for the waver ers. It was probably in connexion with THE KING'S FAVOURITE 13 one of these that in 1621 "this day sennight the Lord Marquis Buckingham, his lady, the Countess his mother and lady sister came to my Lord Bishop of London's Palace : were fetched in by the choir of St. Paul's into the Chapel, and after, they dined with his Lordship." The following April we find that Villiers's wife is beginning to supplant his mother in the King's favour: that " the Marchioness of Buckingham was churched on Thursday, in the King's chlamber ; where likewise she and the Duchess of Lennox dined, though the King were in bed," and that " the King sent lately a fair chain of diamonds, with his picture at it, valued by jewellers at £3,600, by the Prince and lord marquis to the Duchess of Lennox, for her great care in making broths and caudles, and such like, for the lady marchioness in her sickness ; so that the duchess grows in great respect and is said to be much courted anid respected by the Prince." Religious difficulties seem to have been at the root of much of the King's growing coldness, for in May Mead reports : " The Countess of Buckingham' has become a flat Papisit, but now, on Saturday last is said to be reclaimed." A little later he writes again, apparently of the same necklace episode, but with a somewhat different version : "I doubt not but that you have heard that the Countess of Buckingham was banished the Court, and that for professed Popery, but it was not directly so, nor for that cause ; at least, not only. For she is not banished, but still stays there, till the progress, and then to take occasion to go into the country, and return no more. The chief reason is said to be this. 14 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON When the Em|peror's Ambassador was departing, the King, meaning to bestow some jewel upon him, caused one to be fetched. A chain of Queen Anne's of £3,000 value was brought in : refusing to bestow it, being a woman's chain, and of that value, upon him, saying, Wherein had he deserved so much at his hands? another of lesser worth was brought and pleased him. Then, some question being made what shall be done with the chain, the Prince told His Majesty, that neither of them both had yet bestowed anything upon the Duchess of Lennox since she was married. If his Majesty would dispose of it in that way, himself would be the carrier, to present it in His Majesty's name; and so should they both have thanks. The King assented ; the Prince carried it and put it about her neck, which was taken by all for an extraordinary and unusual honour done unto her, which so grieved the Countess that such an honour should be done unto any but herself, and that a thing of that value and quality should miss her hands, that the next day she took upon her, in the King's name to send for the chain again, pretending some use thereof : and that it should be requited with as good a thing. The messenger who went in the King's name, and not in hers, being sounded by the amazed duchess, at last confessed he was sent by the Countess, who had it from His Majesty ; whereupon the duchess bade him tell the countess that she would not so much dishonour the Prince, who brought it, to suffer it to be carried back by any hand but his, or her own; for if His Majesty would have it she would carry it herself : which the next day she performed, desiring to know wherein she had offended His Majesty. The King, understanding THE KING'S FAVOURITE 15 the business, swore he was abused ; and the Prince told him that he took it for so great an affront on her part that he would leave the Court if she stayed in it ; with no small expression of indignation." Mary Buckingham's stay in the country, under a cloud, does not seem to have lasted long, for on June 2 2, 1 62 1, Chamberlain reports: — " The Countess of Buckingham received, on Sunday, in the King's Chapel, with both her daughters (tho' they had received before) and some others : and for reward of her devotion and conformity, some say, she had a present of £2,000." Mary Buckingham's conformity was not of long duration, and again her banishment ensued, but whether for religious or domestic reasons it is difficult to deter- mine. In September 1622 John Chamberlain writes : " The Countess of Buckingham is relapsed into Popery and makes open profession. Whereupon she is sent from the Court, and, as is said, confined to her house at Dalby. Some hold not that the only cause of her absence, but rather some pique or hard usage towards her daughter-in-law the marchioness " (of Buckingham). Perhaps these banishments were more Court gossip than fact ; or, perhaps, these two stories are but two versions of one episode. Anyhow the clouds did not last long, for we continue to find Mary Buckinghajm in high favour at Court. To this time seem to belong two undated letters from George Villiers to his mother. As we read them it is easy to understand how the writer of such letters, being, moreover, of young and attractive parts, would endeair himself to all with whom he came in direct or intimate contact. They show the tender affection he bore to 16 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON his mother, and throw a new light at the same time on that curious character, a mixture of so much that was good with evil. The first was evidently written after some difference between the mother and son : — "Dere Mother,— I humblie kiss those hands that guided your pen when you writt last, and with reverence thanke that holie speritt of tmion which put so har- monious a resolution into your hart not to part till the saints and angels in heven should re Joyce at our mutual affection, the contrarie whereof would sone a made me werie of this world. But now that I see there can be no change of that mbre than ordinarie natural! love of a mother which you have ever borne me even from that infancie when I did nothinge els but un- reasonablie and frowardlie rangle— now, I say, I dare take the bouldness againe to tell you with my ould free and frolicke stile that the samfe naughtie boy, George Villiers, who mett you at St-Albons on Tuesday, by the grace of God will caste him selfe at your feete with that same hart, without adition or diminution that when he mett you with ; onelie [only] there will be this alteration, that his joy will be greater, for that absence then was but personall, but this I did fere had bine loss and absence of affection which, if I should justlie deserve, I should be asshamted to aske what now I crave, your blessing, and in dispare of pardon from Him tvho hath the onelie absolute power to pajrdon the offences of your one [own] collricke but humble and obedient sonne, G. Buckingham" The second, written in the samte strain, is as graceful as the first : — , , THE KING'S FAVOURITE 17 " Dere Mother, — Give me but as many blessings and pardons as I shall make faults, and then you make happie your most obedient sonne, G. Buckingham" Neither is dated, nor do they bear any super- scription save the words " To my mother." In 1622 George Villiers was created Duke of Buckingham, and his brother-in-law, Feilding, was given the title of Earl of Denbigh, the King, in the latter case, reviving an earldom which had become extinct on the death of Queen Elizabeth's favourite Dudley, Earl of Leicester, whose young son, the last to bear it, predeceased him. Denbigh's patent as an earl records a curious proof of Buckingham's pride, for one of the principal reasons of its being conferred is stated to be that Denbigh had married the favourite's sister. Denbigh was also appointed Master of the Royal Wardrobe. £10,000 was the amount due annually, and when any part of his salary was overdue 8 per cent was given as interest. The amount was charged on French and Rhenish wines and other imports, and frequently amounted to £20,000 per annum. Out of this, however, he had to pay £6,000 to his predecessor, the Lord Treasurer. He was, it is stated, entitled to any surplus he could save after paying the heavy expenses obligatory on the holder of the office. The assistance of Buckingham's relatives was eagerly sought by many anxious to rehabilitate themselves in favour at Court, or to otherwise advance their interests. There are several such letters at Newnham, and amongst them one from Lady Mary Wroth to Lord Denbigh relating to the curious quarrel between her 18 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON and Lord Denny. This quarrel is so frequently alluded to in contemporary letters and papers that it may be interesting to mention it here. Lady Mary Wroth, widow of Sir Robert Wroth, and daughter of Robert Sydney, Earl of Leicester, was the author of " Urania," a pastoral romance which was supposed to have a satirical meaning. She, having therein calumniated Lord Denny, his daughter. Lady Mary Hay, wrote some bitter verses against the poetess. Lady Mary Wroth, apparently forgetting that ghe had just erred in the same fashion, thereupon appealed to Lord Denbigh, pleading : " Emboldened by your favours I presume to send these things to you, unfit for you to read and unseemly for me to publish if innocency guarded me not ; but the falsenesis of his [Lord Denny's] accusation makes me willingly cast myself upon the same jury he talks of and humbly beseech right. My loyalty and truth shall speak justly for me, and your favoiur may make all well with His Majesty. I humbly desire your favour and for my Lord Denny I hope he sees his error." She encloses Edward Lord Denny's letter to her in which he says he received from her an invective letter with rhymes. He cannot conceive their relation to him or to her, but the whole world believes him to be meant in one of the weakest and unworthiest passages of her book; although she denies it privately, it "is but a small recompense to be the only chosen fool for a Maye game before all the world." Insomuch as she taxes him with the odious vice of drunkenness, which he utterly abhors, he prays for one more favour, that she would be present at his execution, and with her white, innocent hand throw the first stone. Yet THE KING'S FAVOURITE 19 whatever she may do, he will, he declares, ever wish her well, and pray that she may redeem " the many ill-spent years of so vaine a book . . . with writing so large a volume of heavenly lays and holy love as you have of lascivious tales and amorous toys, that at last you may follow the rare and pious example of your virtuous and learned aunt, who translated so many Godly books and especially the holy psalms of David, that no doubt now she sings in the choir of heaven those meditations which so sweetly she tuned here below." This aunt was that gracious and witty woman, Mary Countess of Pembroke, " Sidney's sister, Pembroke's mother." This quarrel seems eventually to have been patched up and all parties appeased. CHAPTER III KNIGHTS EKRANT AT this time King James was much exercised over the fortunes of his daughter EHzabeth and her husband the Elector Palatine. The Elector had made a bold and successful clutch at the Bohemian crown in 1619, and so been swept into the vortex of the war which was devastating Germany. He had, however, been driven from his kingdom the following year. On this, Prince Charles, who dearly loved his sister, had taken up her cause very warmly. An idea which seemed a brilliant solution of all his difficulties occurred to James : Why not marry the Prince of Wales to the Infanta Maria Ana, sister of the Spanish King, and thus vmite the two great Western nations of Europe, give peace to the world, and replace Frederick in his electorate? Spanish money would, moreover, flow into English coffers, for James, like the rest of the world, believed Spain to be the rich nation she appeared rather than the decadent one she reaUy was. Charles was none too pleased at the part allotted to him. Shy and reserved, he detested the idea of a manage de convenance, and " wished it were no sin to have two wives, one for purposes of State, and one to please himself ", ; but he was deeply attached to 20 KNIGHTS ERRANT 21 Elizabeth, and, to serve her, was willing to marry as expediency dictated. James accordingly approached Spain, but neither he nor Charles was a match for the wily diplomacy of Gondomar, the Spanish Ambassador in London. To most of the Spaniard's demands the King reluctantly yielded inch by inch, and then, as frequently, with- drew. Spain continued to ask for more and more, and negotiations dragged slowly along. Charles and Buckingham at length grew impatient. Suspicious of Lord Bristol, the British Ambassador at Madrid, Buckingham was convinced that no one but himself could carry the marriage through. He even wrote to his Spanish agents that he himself intended to take his " friend " — meaning Prince Charles — with him to Spain in order to bring home the " beautiful angel." The natural obstinacy of Charles meantime began to chafe under Bristol's opposition, and a desire for the marriage followed. Nor was it hard for Bucking- ham at this juncture to mould the young Prince to his schemes, for, the negotiations continuing their slow and irritating course, the impatient and romantic Charles was easily persuaded by the favourite, who had now obtained complete ascendancy over him, to make a secret expedition to Spain and carry off the lady. In vain did wiser counsellors strive to dissuade them, or the old King, falling into a great passion, tell them with tears that he was undone if they broke his heart by their insistence. iWhtle the Prince continued to beg the King's per- mission, Buckingham, so Clarendon tells us, " knowing what kind of arguments were of prevalence with him," 22 EOTALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON treated James more rudely. At last the Prince's " humble and importunate entreaty and my lord Buckingham's rougher dialect prevailed," and the King consented to an immediate departure. Calling Sir Francis Cottington into the room, the King said, " Here is baby Charles and Steenie who have a great mind to go by post into Spain to fetch home the Infanta and will have two more in their company, and have chosen you for one — what think you of the journey? " Cottington was naturally aghast at such a proposal, and as soon as he could recover his breath pointed out to the King the peril of allowing the heir of England to go on such a quest. James, on hearing this, threw himself upon his bed, moaning that he would lose baby Charles. But the two friends, having set their minds upon the venture, besought and obtained the King's consent, given despite Cottington's warning. The Prince and Buckingham, without further delay, started off from Theobalds, wearing false beards and calling themselves Tom and John Smith, servants to Sir Francis Cottington. Four gentlemen had been sent on to await them at Dover. Buckingham's brother-in-law, Denbigh, is said to have been one of them, but there are no letters or records at Newnham relating to his personal adven- tures on the journey. There is mention, however, of a pass being given to him and to Lord Arran, " to go to the Prince." This is dated March 14th, and shows that Denbigh followed some little while after that date. " Steenie and Baby Charles " left England on Feb- ruary 17, 1623. They made but a short stay in Paris, where so thin was their disguise that they were recog- KNIGHTS ERRANT 23 nized and received with royal hospitality. One cannot but wonder whether, at sight of the youthful charms of the French King's sister, Charles felt half tempted to stay and woo the beautiful maiden, or whether, as he wrote to James when describing the rehearsal of a mask to which he was admitted, " the young Queen [Anne of Austria] is the handsomest, which has wrought in me a great desire to see her sister," the Infanta. Anyway, " the sweet boys and dear venturous knights worthy to be put in a romance," as James described them, left Paris for Madrid, travelling 750 miles in thirteen days, an average of nearly sbcty mUes a day. Charles certainly was no laggard in love, and as they neared Madrid he left Cottington and the others half a day's journey behind and galloped on, accompanied only by Buckingham and a guide. They arrived at Lord Bristol's house at eight, on the night of March 7th, and asked to speak with him, saying they had brought a letter from Cottington. " The Marquis came in first," says HoweU, " with a port- manteau under his arm, shortly after followed by the Prince, who had stayed awhile on t'other side of the street in the dark." One can easily imagine the dismay and consternation of the unfortunate Ambassador when his two visitors, throwing off their cloaks, displayed the handsome coun- tenances of the Prince and his favourite, sparkling with childish delight at the success of the trick they had played upon him. Thus into the midst of most delicate negotiations sprang the precious heir of England and his amusement-loving, irresponsible friend. Great indeed was the excitement in Madrid when the news of their arrival became known. The King him- 24 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON self came hurrying to welcome themi, exclaiming, " Tho' it were Lent it was not now Lent to him." Of their state entry into Madrid, ViUiers wrote thence to the Earl of Middlesex, on March i8th, that the Prince " passed on horseback thro' all the town having the King on his left and a canopy carried over them both," and goes on to mention their lack of money, adding a request that Middlesex will speak to the King at once about building a chapel at St. James's for the Infanta and her family. The message was duly given to the King, who reluctantly agreed to the request, remarking, " We are building a chapel to the devil." If Charles believed in the match, James did not, and apparently mentioned his misgivings pretty freely to those around him. J. Chamberlain relates : " The order is renewed for preparing ten ships of the King's to fetch the Infanta, as the voice goes. Yet with this caution, that the matter be so husbanded, that if the Kuig should change his mind, there might be as little loss as were possible." The cautious Scot was not going to risk more than necessary. The writer goes on : "In the meantime, some mutter that we presume much upon the Spaniard, that we trust him with our only Prince, the principal and richest jewel of the crown, and the best part of our Navy, all at once ; besides so many other men of worth. But it is answered again, that, for their own interests, it stands them upon to keep touch with us, being as it were, without all other friends. We look daily to see the solemnization of the marriage. The Lord Rochford is to bring the news of the time appointed ; the Lord Denbigh of the consumniation ; and the Lord Andover w^hen they set out toward the seaside " ; and again on KNIGHTS ERRANT 25 July 26th: " 1 6th arrived the Lord Andover out of Spain with news that all was in good forwardness there ; that the match was to be published. . . . Now, the next that was expected is the Lord Denbigh who is to bring word when the contract is passed ; but I hear that late yesterday came Clark with one hand, that the contract is deferred to the six or seven and twentieth of the next month, that they may be certified, and have assurance of the King's promise and oath," adding: "He went a-hunting this morning with the Countess of Buckingham and her daughter Denbigh, on horseback." This must have been the occasion on which James wrote to Bucking- ham : " And now my sweet Steenie and Gossip 1 must give thee a short account of many things. First Kate and thy sister supped with me on Saturday night last, and yesterday both dyned and supped with me and so shall do still with God's grace as long as 1 am here, and my little grandchild with her four teeth is God be thanked well weaned and they are all very merry." The King considered the favourite as his own son, and frequently called him his " bastard brat," and " little Mall " Villiers his " grandchild," having settled the title of Buckingham on her, in the event of her sur- viving her father's heirs male. Charles and Villiers foimd that, as time passed, the Spanish Court grew less and less anxious for the mar- riage, and the Princess herself became very averse to the idea of union with a Protestant prince. To extract every possible amelioration for the Catholics in England, the Spaniards traded on the desire of Charles, and insisted on endless concessions. James agreed to allow the right of public worship and to use his influence to 26 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD s6N modify the law. Charles went still further. He promised the alteration of the penal laws in three years, gave the education of, the children to the mother tiU they should be twelve years of age, and even signed the marriage contract on July 25, 1623. The wily Spaniards did not trust Charles's word, and craftily replied that, when the laws were amended, his wife should follow him to England. Buckingham, realizing at last that he had been duped, grew angry, arrogant, and quarrelsome, thereby giving great offence to the Spaniards. He persuaded Charles to cut negotiations short. Even had he not done so, the terms demanded by each of the parties to the match could never have been granted by the other. Furious, and resolved on war with Spain, Charles and Buckingham left Madrid, joined the fleet at Santander, and, after sixteen days at sea, landed, on October 5, 1623, in England. Great was the delight thereat of the people, who could not tolerate the idea of a match between their future King and a princess of their hereditary enemy. On October i ith, " a very foul rainy day, the King came by Ware ; the people were so mad with excess of joy that if they met with any cart laden with wood, they would take out the horses and set cart and all on fire. But above all, the certain condemned prisoners had the best hap, and most cause to rejoice, who, being on their way to Tyburn, were reprieved by the prince coming in the very nick. ... At Royston, the King going down to receive them, they met on the stairs ; where, the prince and the duke being on their knees, the King feU on their necks and they all wept." In London, bonfires, bells, and the Tower ordnance announced the joyful news that the Prince of Wales KNIGHTS ERRANT 27 had returned without the Infanta, the streets being so " stuffed with fires " that three hundred were counted between Whitehall and Temple Bar. That night a post was dispatched for the Duchess and Countess of Buckingham and the Lady of Denbigh to come next day to Royston. A fortnight later newsletters tell us that the " courtiers and others, that Vere in Spain, begin now to open their mouths, and speak liberally of the coarse usage and entertainment, where they found nothing but penury and proud beggary, besides all other discourtesy. . . . And this journey hath wrought one unexpected effect, that whereas it was thought the Spaniards and we should piece and grow together it seems we are generally more disjointed and further asunder than ever." The portrait of the Infanta, which Charles brought back with him from Spain on this occasion, is at Newnham. The Spanish princess is there represented as a fair-haired, dark-eyed maiden, with a pursed-up, cupid-bowed mouth. Her little head, adorned with three pink rosettes and a sheaf of feathers, looks out with prim demureness from an enormous and very stiff ruff. This picture, as well as two other oil-paintings of William and Susan Denbigh, is attributed to Gerbier, an artist who, like Rubens, combined the duties of portrait-painting with diplomacy. Gerbier, though really a miniature-painter, confessed to his patron, Buckingham, before joining him in Spain, that he had just finished a portrait of the favourite " in oils which Madame keeps, as her sweet saint, within sight of her bed." The picture of the Infanta was duly presented to James. So indignant was he at the many slights put 28 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON upon his son by the Spaniards that he refused to accept it. Tradition holds that, when Buckingham asked what should therefore be done with the portrait, the King irritably replied, "Take the painted doll away." Buckingham gave it to his sister, and it hangs now at Newnham beside Vandyke's portraits of Charles and Henrietta Maria. There we see the handsome face of the rash and romantic suitor, wearing, as was his custom, a pendant pearl earring in the left ear ; and, placed on either side of him, the pictures of the two women who so greatly influenced his career, and so largely tended to his subsequent downfall. Charles and Buckingham were still resolute in their project of war against Spain. In 1624 Parliaiment\ was summoned, supplies were voted, preparations were made. Negotiations at this period were commenced with France to bring about a marriage between Charles and Henrietta Maria, the sister of the French King Louis XIII. Lord Kensington and Lord Carlisle were dispatched to Paris on this mission, and in their suite went BasU Feilding, Denbigh's eldest son, in the care of John Reynolds, his tutor. Lord Kensington, shortly to become Earl of Holland, one of the handsomest men of his day, and considered irresistible to women, wrote to Charles, of Henrietta, as the " sweetest creature in France." While from Compifegne Reynolds wrote to Lord Denbigh : "... The princess gives content to all English, for her beauty and modesty seek to crown each other in her, and majesty both. She is much grown of late, and if the King's and her affection may be measured or conceived by their royal reception and entertainment of the LL of Carlisle and Kensington, they intend the match with as much zeal as we desire THE INFANTA MARIA ANA KNIGHTS ERRANT 29 it. . . . This Bearer being suddenly to depart post I would not fail to signify you, of my Lord your son's health, and of our safe arrival here at Court. His observance to my Lord of Carlisle does answer your commands and mine to him shall second your order punctually, and my duty really. My Lord of Carlisle has been royally received in all towns as he passed, was met two leagues hence by the Prince of Tourville, has had twice audience of the King, visited both the Queens, Madame and Monsieur, and confers with them daily, sometimes at Court or every evening in the field when they take the air. He is wonderfully honoured and beloved of all sides, and so is my Lord of Kensing- ton, and their virtues and carriage make them sooner admired than imitated. This Sunday morning I have left my lord your son at sermon with my Lord of Carlisle and he knows not of the departure of this bearer, wherefore I hope your Lordship will excuse his enforced and innocent silence and the like I hope will your honourable lady, unto whom 1 equally present and prostrate my best duty and service. My Lord, your son was not sick at sea or never since ; rode post two days, agrees well with the French diet ; only, for his proficiency in the French tongue, 1 wish that we were more retired and not so public ; very shortly my Lord, your son and myself will perform our duties to your lordship and others, according to your expecta- tions and our duties. My Lord of Carlisle and Lord of Kensington request and honour him much and 1 begin to fashion his comportment to his birth and your desires. He daily prays for my Lord Duke's health and will shortly write to him. Colonel Ornano and his brother are committed six days since to the Bastile. The Queen- 30 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Mother is their enemy and revives her old malice and grudge to them, and, if the voice of the Court be true, she intends and resolves no less to some others of a higher rank. This bearer stays for my letter with patiency wherefore I beseech your honour to excuse my haste ; which makes me so abrupt. God of His mercy bless your lordship and all yours, and for my own part I hereby beseech you to rest confident that I will live very carefully of my lord your son, and resolve to die, your lordship's humble servant, John Reynolds " And again, in June, the tutor wrote : " The last which my Lord your son and myself wrote to your Lordship was of the 29th of the last month since which time the Lords of Carlisle and Kensington have had three several public audiences of the King and they do very often visit the two Queens and Madame. The Commissioners which the French King has appointed to treat with them on the match are four, Cardinal of Richelieu, Monsieur de Aligre Lord Keeper of the Seals, the Marquis of Vieuville Lord Treasuner and Monsieur de Villariclair one of the Secretarys of State. They sit every Monday to treat and as soon as I can procure the French King's articles and proposi- tions I will send them to your Lordship> only I am credibly informed that the difficult article to pass will be toleration for Papists in England as they enjoyed before the Parliament, whereunto I both hope and believe that our King will never consent. But this is some secret tie of weight and importance betwixt the French Commissioners and our Ambassadors which now occasions my Lord of Carlisle to send home his secretary Mr. .Woodford, by whom my Lord your son and myself have sent and convey our letters. KNIGHTS ERRANT 31 " Count Mansfield is not yet\ permitted the honour to kiss the King's hand, although he despairs not thereof. Your son is rather discontented than pleased and delighted with his stay here in Compiegne and continual attendance on my Lord of Carlisle, notwith- standing that his lordship and my lord of Kensington use him respectably and nobly, but he sees that he loses his time thereby, in hoping to obtain the French tongue according to his desire, as also that he fears that late dinners and suppers and small rest may in the end offer an assault to his health, which to prevent, 1 have now taken order that he goes to supper in his chamber at 6 of the clock and to bed before 9, whereas heretofore it was 1 1 and 1 2 ere he had supper, which cannot agree with his young years and the weak con- stitution of his body." Of his mother's letters to him at this time Basil pre- served but one, in which she writes : "I am very glad to hear you employ your time so well, which 1 hope wiU make you so fit that I hope we may have your good company here the sooner. I have sent you a small token, but though 'tis little yet it will be some help to a traveller. ... I take leave with my blessing. Your loving mother, Su Denbigh" In the midst of the preparations for peace with France and war with Spain the King's health began to fail. George VUliers ^nd his mother, on their part, were full of solicitude for their aged master, and tended him' assiduously. Indeed, so convinced was Lady Buckingham of the superior efficacy of her nostrums over the prescriptions of the royal physicians that on one occasion, when they had retired from the King's chamber, she suggested the apphcation of a plaster, 32 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON of which " the ingredients were hanxtless and ordinary. But it did no goodj and on their return wias removed by the doctors, who were much offended that anyone dare assume this boldness without their consent. But, by examination they were assured of the composition and a piece thereof eatai down by the Countess that made it." When one reads in another account that the " pjlaister was made of the oil of toads," one feels that the poor Countess suffered sufficiently at the time for her indiscreet zeal, yet we shall see later how, years after, this episode was brought up as evidence, not only against Buckingham' and his mother, but against the Prince of Wales. Buckingham's own version of the episode is, that the King one day asking him how he himself had but lately so well recovered of an ague, the favourite replied that he attributed it to a plaster and a posset drink given him by his physicians. The King, much taken with the idea, demanded that the same should be given to himself. Yilliers, not wishing to assume; such a responsibility and hoping the King might forget the conversation, did nothing. James, observing that the remedies did not arrive, ordered Buckingham's servant to procure them. Hearing this the favourite besought his royal master not to make use of them without the consent of the royal physicians, and certainly not " until it should be tried of James Palmer, of his bedchamber, who was then sick of an ague, and upon two children of the town." Thinking that his remonstrances had prevailed, he left the King, and went to London about his own affairs, only tb find, on his return, that the King had made use of both remedies with the aid of Mary Buckingham. KNIGHTS ERRANT 33 Nor did the Court physician Craig escape. He was summarily dismissed from his post for " complain- ing of the Countess's poultice." So dangerous was it to utter a word of blame, or of remonstrance, against " the Duke " or any of his relatives. On March 27, 1625, James died, and Charles and Buckingham were left to govern as best they could. The negotiations then under discussion with France were continued. Louis XIII had recently called upon England for help, urging that he could not fight Spain so long as the Huguenots, who were in rebellion at Rochelle, might rise in his rear. He had therefore begged Charles, as Prince of Wales and his prospective brother-in-law, to lend him ships with which to blockade Rochelle. The Prince and Buckingham had gained James's consent to this just before James died. But Charles, now become King of Protestant England, shrank from attacking the Huguenots, and endeavoured by delaying matters to escape taking any active part against his co-religionists. He did not, however, delay long enough, since it was the appearance of English ships amongst the French fleet which finally decided the men of Rochelle to submit. Anxious to push matters against Spain to an issue, Buckingham was sent over to Paris to urge upon the French Court the advisability of converting its friendship into an active co-operation. This bond he was to cement by bringing back the French princess as the bride of Charles ; the English thinking it beneath his dignity for their King to go himself. James had promised, before his death, and Charles had then endorsed the promise, that this marriage should be in no case con- ditional on any relaxation of the penal laws against 34 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Catholics. Nevertheless, as King, he gave the French private assurances to the contrary, Both nations were thus delighted at what each consiidered a concession to their religious convictions. Of Buckingham's wardrobe on this occasion it is related that " it was common with him at an ordinary dancing, to have his clothes trimmed with great diamond buttons, and to have diamond hatbands, cockades, and earrings ; to be yoked with great a;nd manifold ropes and knots of pearls, in short to be manacled, fettered and imfprisoned in jewels ; insomuch that going over to Paris in 1625, he had 27 suits of clothes, one of which was of white uncut velvet, set all over, both suit and cloak, with diamonds, valued at £80,000, besides a great feather stuck all over with diamonds." All this was in keeping with the Duke's usual extravagance. Other accounts show that he lost money at horse-racing and tilting at the glove. The imperious nature and careless munificence of the man peep out in letters of the day. The King's coachmian had to wait for him ; the French Ambassador's pages lighted him home ; Lord Northumberland's bowling-green not being smooth enough, the Duke sent a man to roll it. Were he tired while walking he did not hesitate to stop a pass- ing coach and drive in it, whether it belonged to Lord Suffolk or to the French Ambassador. For everything, however, he paid handsomeily. Richelieu, alone, did not share the delight of his countrymen, and was averse to Buckingham's coming, describing him as " equally dangerous to nations, kings, and husbands." How- ever, Charles insisted, and, as the alliance was too important to be abandoned on account of prejudice. KNIGHTS ERRANT 35 Buckingham, laden with presents, was eventually received by Louis, the two Queens, and Henrietta Maria. Anne of Austria's attention was attracted and capti- vated by the handsome envoy. The story of her indiscretions in permitting his attentions is well known and does not belong to these pages ; sufiSce it to say that the young Queen insisted on accompanying her sister-in-law as far as possible on the journey to England. At Amiens, where the company rested, her actions exposed her reputation to much blame, yet she persisted in journeying as far as Calais, and even gave a ball there, at which Villiers's conduct still further compromised her. " La manni^re de cet Stranger me d^plait beaucoup," writes the Comte de Brieme in his Memoirs. At last, all pretexts of delay failing, Buckingham proceeded to England with Princess Henrietta Maria. So much, however, had he outstayed his welcome that when in the following year Henrietta was anxious to return to see her mother, and persuaded Charles to let her travel to France under the care of Buckingham, she failed to obtain the desired consent of her brother. Both Louis and his mother had by this time been converted to Richelieu's opinion, and absolutely refused to receive the favourite. Buckingham never again visited the French Court, and bitterly resented the slight thus put upon him. It was during this unfortunate visit of his to Paris that Su Denbigh wrote the following letters to her brother : — "Most dear Brother, — I must acquaint you with the gracious favours it does please His Majesty to bestow upon us all with the remembrance of you now in your absence . . . pray, if you can, let His Majesty 36 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON know that he rtiay not think us ungrateful, being all the means we have to show ourselves thankful. I pray you let them see you in your same country apparel for I know those that you wear, will not become you half so well. My mother, I thank our Lord, is very well. Sweet brother I have ever found you more ready to bestow your favours upon me, than I ever have or shall be able to deserve. It does content me to see that I have a brother that does so much love me ^nd mine, howsoever this may be accomplished. ... I am much troubled with melancholy this spring but I hope our Lord will bless me as he has done. "My dear brother I have received your letter by Mr. Gresly, and at the first it did make me look a little sad, you did call me madam so formally and, at the end, my humble servant, till at the last I did perceive it was to my lady duchess, for you ha'd directed mine to her and hers to me. For my Lord Hamilton I have not told him your opinion concerning his son. I think he would be glad to have him come home with you and so doth mean he shall, if you do not gainsay it . . . for, a,ll that one doth travel for, is to gain experience and see sights worth the mark- ing, and in one's life it is a venture whether one shall see the like both of the journey and of the receivin,g of our Prince and Princess into England. ... I do think he [Lord Hamilton] will take it most kindly to have him come with you, and at Michaelmas my son Bas and he shall go into France, and so I take my leave, your loving sister, Su Denbigh " As soon as the departure of the Princess from Paris was made known in England, six ladies of rank went KNIGHTS ERRANT 37 across the sea to meet her at Boulogne ; the most dis- tinguished of these were : • the Countess of Buckingham, the Countess of Denbigh, and the Marchioness of Hamilton, all relatives of the Duke of Buckingham. When Henrietta landed at Dover, after a crossing of twenty-four hours, all the Court ladies who were sent to meet her had their coaches furnished with six horses, a custom the coming of which into fashion was looked upon as "a vanity of excessive charge and of little use." Charles received his bride at Canterbury, and escorted her to London. The King and Queen went in September to Hamp- shire for hunting in the New Forest. The air there was very healthy, and the place was a safe distance from London. The number of courtiers was reduced, so as to make it easier to move from place to place in the endeavour to avoid the plague, which was then ravaging England. Already there had arisen much friction between the large French Catholic retinue of the Queen and her English attendants. Salvetti relates of one of these quarrels : "It is said that the reason for sending away forty Frenchmen attached to the Queen's House- hold was on account of their conduct to one of those preaching ministers, who happened, whilst the King was at Plymouth, to preach in a lower hall of the Palace where the Queen was Uving. Suddenly Her Majesty issued from her apartments with a number of French attendants, and with her little hunting dogs, all of them entering the hall with the loud cries usual in chasing hares. Thus they interrupted the minister and forced him to stop his sermon. He took an oppor- 38 EOYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON tunity of complaining to the King, and this, coming' to the ears of the French they abused him and threatened to pistol him. Everybody talks of this subject, but how far it is true, whether altogether or only partly so, I must wait to learn — but, if such things are done it is : easy to infer what must be the position taken by the French in this country." Su Denbigh was in attendance on the Queen during this time, and it was owing to her representations that the King desired Dean Cozens to draw up a prayer- book in order that the lack of religious observance amongst the Court ladies should no longer serve as a jest to the Queen's Catholic attendants. The book was entitled : "A collection of private devotions, or, the Hours of Prayer." "It was composed," we read, "by Cozens, one of the Prebends of Durham, at the request and for the satisfaction, as it was generally believed, of the Countess of Denbigh, the only sister of the Duke, and then supposed to be unsettled in the religion here established, if not warping from it. A book which had in it much matter, but not well pleasing in the form, said in the title page to be framed agreeable to a book of private prayers authorized by Queen Elisa anno i 560. . . . Notwithstanding it startled many at first though otherwise very moderate and sober men who looked upon it as a preparatory to usher in the superstitions of the Church of Rome. . . . But for all this violent opposition and the great clamours made against it, the book grew up into esteem and justified itself without any advocate, in so much that many who, first startled at it, in regard to the title, found in the body of it so much piety, such necessary consolation and exigencies, that they reserved it by them as a jewel of great price KNIGHTS ERRANT 39 and value." There is a contemporary copy of this book preserved at Newnham. In February the King was crowned, the Queen refus- ing to be present at or take part in a Protestant ceremony — a refusal which was afterwards brought up against her. Among those honoured on this occasion, Basil Feilding, Denbigh's eldest son, was created Vis- count Feilding. Denbigh still held the post as Master of the Great Wardrobe, and as such had to pay for the Queen's dresses. Between Michaelmas 1626 and Michaelmas 1627 these came to £1,026 12s. 3d. Even Jefferie the Dwarf and the great porter are mentioned, in a warrant allowing Denbigh these expenditures, as having dresses supplied to them. Meanwhile France was deeply offended at the treat- ment of the Queen's Household ; at the persecution of the Catholics, despite a promise to the contrary made by the King on his wedding-day ; and still more so at the seizure, in March, of French ships by the English on the pretext that they were carrying goods to Spain. In the case o,f a French ship captured with a very rich cargo on board, the English courts pronounced her to be un- doubtedly French property and released her. She had not proceeded far on her voyage when she was again taken possession of by order of the Duke of Bucking- ham. On hearing this the French retaliated by captur- ing English goods and vessels. Parliament disapproving of these proceedings, and of the confusion thus caused to trade, endeavoured to devise means for suppressing them, but evidently with no success, for Buckingham, ignoring all authority, still sought to replenish the King's exchequer by prize-money and piracy. Evidence is somewhat conflicting as to whether Den- 40 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON high was with Pennington, who, in May 1625, sailed for France with his seven so-called warships, which were in reality only merchantmen pressed by the King. At Dieppe, realizing that they were to be employed in conjunction with the French in an expedition against Huguenot Rochelle, the men refused to fight and the ships returned to the Downs. They were twice sent back. This crime, the using of English ships to fight French Protestants, was one of the charges brought against Buckingham in 1626, and indeed one cannot but wonder at the religious and patriotic guises under which ambition chose to hide itself in those days. When Buckingham wished to curry favour with France and wound Spanish pride he was only too ready to fight with the French against the co-religionists of England, though the time was not far distant in which personal pique would entirely reverse his policy. Even more difficult to comprehend are the reasons which dictated the choice of naval and military com- manders. It was but courting disaster to put upon the staff which had the direction of operations during im- portant expeditions, such men as Denbigh and others who had had no special training for their tasks. Birth and interest were considered sufficient qualifications for the manoeuvring of troops or the handling of ships at sea. Thus it was that in August 1625 Denbigh went to sea with four ships, but wrote to Buckingham that he wanted " sails, cordage, surgeons, and cheese," while, for the rest of the fleet, their wants were such that they could not go to sea. Ill the following month Charles, accompanied by a suite comprising Buckingham, Holland, and Denbigh, KNIGHTS ERRANT 41 who was back again, set out to pay a visit to Plymouth to review his army and inspect his fleet. There was such a want of money in the Royal Household on this occa- sion that its officers had not " enough to pay for His Majesty's provisions on the journey." So improvident were the preparations made for the movements or com- missariat of King, Navy, or Army. Lord Willoughby was appointed Admiral of the ex- pedition then being equipped, with Denbigh second in command, and Pennington Rear-Admiral. Willoughby, on taking command, was very much annoyed to find that not only was the fleet weakly provisioned, but that " the Earl of Denbigh had gone to sea and taken with him all the best men and the choicest victuals." Den- bigh, however, soon returned, giving as his reason that though he had taken all the care he could and used his utmost endeavours, he could not reach Land's End. He complained to the Council that his beer was not fit for any Christian to drink, but that he was making good the deficiencies so far as his " abilities in judgment, purse, or credit, would go." As to the condition of his ships, he asked to have his new sails soon, as those he had were so worn he could not keep the sea. He reported that ten of his ships were leaking badly and that some were altogether unserviceable. Though his instructions were to keep within easy distance of the coast, as 800 casks of meat were unfit for food and plague had broken out in two of the ships, Denbigh in October " captured three French ships, on their voyage from Spain, laden with merchandise." After his previous difficulties this small success must have been very comforting. We find that he " had to advise him the best old sea captains," but cannot help 42 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON feeling it must have been trying for them to see such an inefficient naval commander put at their^^head ; though they probably sympathized with his difficulties as regarded his supplies both of men and food. The Commons had, the previous summer, begun to suspect that the King had broken his promise of making no religious concessions to France, though France accused him of the opposite. Indignant at the influence of the favourite in this and other affairs, they sent up, a petition reflecting upon Buckingham and demanding royal counsellors whom they could trust. Charles, resenting their interference, called the Commons into his presence and told them : " Remember that Parlia- ments are altogether in my power for their calling, sitting, and dissolution, therefore as I find the fruits of them good or evil they are to continue or not to be." Things now began to look very critical, and Bucking- ham, hoping to distract the attention of the country from its grievances at home by a military trium,ph abroad, hastened the expedition preparing against Spain. Ninety vessels and 10,000 soldiers were placed under the command of Colonel Sir Edward Cecil, Marshal and Admiral, though he had already been pronounced by the public voice unequal to so great a task. With Buckingham's brother-in-law, Denbigh, second in com- mand as Vice-Admiral, this fleet, divided into three squadrons, sailed on October 8th from Plymouth with a fair wind, the people boasting that the days of Queen Elizabeth were revived. The first rendezvous, appointed in case of a separa- tion, was " off the Southern Cape on the coast of Spain," and the second in the Bay of Cadiz. Barely was he out of English waters than Sir Edward KNIGHTS ERRANT 43 Cecil, being aware that many ships in the fleet were scantily victualled, issued a warrant to the effect that from thenceforth both seamen and soldiers were to sit five in a mess, having amongst them the allowance for- merly allotted to four men. This at the very beginning of a campaign looked sinister enough. On October 12th a heavy gale from the north-west set in, the storm lasted for two days, dispersing the fleet, and causing much damage and loss. There was not a ship in the whole fleet which did not suffer much by leakages, losses in masts and boats, and the spoiling of provisions. A calm having set in on the i8th, Cecil assembled a Council of War on board the Anne Royal, which had itself nearly capsized during the storm. He was then informed of the loss of the Robert with all on board, and confronted with a long string of com- plaints from most of the captains. So endless were these complaints that it was very wisely determined at this Council to abstain from inquiring any further into these matters lest the sailors and soldiers should be discouraged. One of the matters reported was the discovery that many of the muskets on board the fleet were defective, some of them so grossly so as to have no touch-holes. The bullets too did not fit the firearms to which they were assigned, and the bullet moulds, having got mislaid among the multitudinous stores, could not be found. A complaint was brought forward by Lord Valencia, Vice- Admiral of Denbigh's squadron, that the Master of the Reformation had been guilty of great insolence and contempt, not only in refusing to obey his lord- ship's commands, but by saying that as the ship was in the Master's charge, and not in his lordship's, he would 44 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON not hoist sail at his lordship's command. In conse- quence of this, Cecil directed that thenceforth a noble- man in a post of command on board any ship in this expedition was, ex officio, the chief commander in the ship, but he was, at the same time, enjoined to be sparing in his commands. These commands he was only to deliver to the captain, who would himself give the order to the Master and other officers on board. It is easy to gather from this the opinion the seamen had of their land commanders. A curious picture of the methods of promotion and appointment then in force in the English Navy is given in another order issued to the Fleet : " That [the posts of] under- officers in a fleet or army are not always to be con- ferred by succession or upon the man of next precedence, but by the election of the General. That it was no wrong to my Lord of Denbigh in the first distribution of commanders in the fleet, though Sir Francis Steward, being but a knight, was allotted to go Rear- Admiral before his lordship, being an earl." Sir Francis Steward, it may be mentioned, had origin- ally held this post with the fleet, but off the Cornish coast his ship, the Lion, proved so unworthy that he was ordered to take her home and his command had devolved upon Denbigh. This episode, judging by the above order, served Cecil as a useful case with which to point a moral. Further, Cecil, in Council, authorized the Vice-Admiral and Rear-Admiral to chase, assault, and capture any ships of the enemy they might fall in with, when the Admiral was not on the spot to direct them. That the crews " pressed unwillingly into the service had no stomach for the fight " is hardly sur- prising. KNIGHTS ERRANT 45 On October 22nd the fleet entered the Bay of Cadiz, and Cecil summoned a Council. While the Council was assembling, the master of an English barque brought intelligence that, not only was the arrival of the English fleet quite unexpected, but that the town of Cadiz was ill-garrisoned and badly prepared for an attack. The man had risked his life to bring this intelligence, for when the enemy saw him take boat and row towards the English they fired at him, and a cannon-shot passed between his legs, tearing his breeches but not touch- ing his skin, though he was slightly hurt in the face and one of his hands by splinters. This report was quite true. The Governor, not anticipating the arrival of a hostile fleet, mistook the English ships for the Spanish West India fleet, which was hourly expected. Realizing his error, he took immediate steps to strengthen the defences of the town. Had the English only attacked at once the town of Cadiz would have been theirs ; but the opportunity was lost. "-Cecil landed his troops, taking with him Essex, who was Colonel-General of the Land Forces as well as an Admiral of the Fleet. Denbigh was, in the meantime, left in command of the fleet, with instruc- tions to make provision for the victualling of the land forces, and the safety of his ships. He was also charged to consider and resolve how best the enemy's ships might be attacked. All contemporary accounts agree in stating that he was unremitting in his labours to carry out fully the orders given him by his superior. Unfortunately, his efforts were not crowned with the success they deserved, and one cannot help wondering if he realized what a hopeless task he had been set. Cecil, having thus washed his hands of all the 46 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON responsibilities of his naval command, landed, as we have seen, and departed inland, towards Zuazo, with his army, expecting that the provisions he had instructed Denbigh to supply would soon overtake him. Finding his men faint and weary after an unwonted march under a hot Spanish sun, he ordered a butt of wine to be served out to each regiment. The result was disastrous. The half -famished soldiers, failing to obtain food, demanded still more wine, and, throwing off all discipline, broke into the cellars and broached the casks in some deserted houses, whose owners had fled, leaving behind them a store of new wine destined for transport to the West Indies. It was not long before the whole army, with the exception of the officers, was in a state of drunken madness, the soldiers not only shooting each other but even threatening their superiors. These were forced to spend most of the night guarding themselves against the attacks of their own men, and in endeavouring to restore discipline. Fortunately no enemy appeared, and next day, the troops being still thoroughly disorganized, Cecil decided to return. He accordingly marched towards Cadiz. Many of the soldiers were still unable to carry arms, and some were so drunk that they lay forgotten in the ditches into which they had fallen. Denbigh, meantime, had been so busy concentrating all his energies on his endeavours to provision the troops that he relaxed his scrutiny of the seas, and several galleys slipped through into Cadiz with supplies for the besieged. Cecil, returning weary and disheartened with his wreck of an army, found that the enemy had grown stronger in his absence. Sick at heart, and despairing KNIGHTS ERRANT 47 of accomplishing his end, he gave orders to his men to return to their ships. iWhen the garrison of Cadiz saw that the English troops were being embarked, a body of infantry i,6oo strong sallied out of the town and fell upon the rear of their enemy. On October 29th, the wind being fair, Cecil issued an order to leave the bay and set sail for Cape St. Vincent. There he remained till the middle of November, hoping to seize stray Spanish treasure- ships and, if possible, intercept and capture the " annual Spanish-Indian fleet " laden with the riches of America, which, as we have seen, was daily expected at Cadiz. It was during this time of inaction that he wrote to Sir John Coke : "I have given sack to the Colonels for beverage, my Lord Essex Vice-Admiral had a barrel of tobacco, and my Lord of Denbigh another." Sick- ness having broken out in the fleet, such material consolations may have been as necessary as they were helpful. Fresh disasters followed, for from November 23rd to December 8th a succession of gales and bad weather set in. Cecil, driven to yet deeper despair, brought the fleet home, without once having encountered the enemy. Thus ended this most disastrous undertaking, of which it is written : " All was left to the direction of men who in reality were no fit judges of such matters. Want of experience and want of unanimity proved the ruin of the expedition." Popular opinion naturally voiced itself in no uncertain terms of dissatisfaction. Indeed, so loud became the murmurs and abuse that the King ordered an inquiry. The Admiral and liis officers were examined. Their 48 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON evidence was, however, so contradictory that it was deemed better to hush the whole thing up, and nothing further was heard of the inquiry. Buckingham, full of a new scheme to place England at the head of a great Protestant Alliance, hastened to The Hague to raise fresh funds by pawning the crown jewels. He took with him his two nephews. Lord Feilding and Lord Hamilton. His idea of economy while travelling was hardly in keeping with the depleted condition of the royal exchequer, if the whole journey was conducted on the same scale as his expenses during the four days he passed at Ipswich. There, his reckoning coming to £370, he paid £400, " aU in Spanish pistoles." Of his stay in Holland we know but little, save that he met with scant success, since the crown jewels fetched but a small sum. He consequently returned to England unable to meet the enormous debt still owing for the equipment of the ill-fated expedition to Cadiz. All other means having failed, nothing remained but to advise the King to summon Parliament and ask for a grant. None knew better than he the danger this meant to himself, and to minimize it as much as pos- sible he endeavoured to paralyse his opponents. Some of them were sent to the Tower, and some he had made sheriffs of their counties, thus preventing their sitting in Parliament. But he could not remove them! all. Sir John Eliot, who not long since had risen to the post of Vice- Admiral of Devonshire, under the patronage of Buckingham, came to the front when the new Parliament met, and with threatening words demanded the impeachment of the Duke : " The pleasure of His Majesty, his known directions, his public KNIGHTS ERRANT 49 acts, his acts of council, the decrees of court — all must be made inferior to this man's will. No right, no interest may withstand him." Charles, terrified at the thought of losing his favourite, dissolved Parliament, having first declared that the deeds of which Buckingham was accused were his. While the King's public affairs were in this tem- pestuous state, his domestic ones were hardly more peaceful. The Queen's large retinue of French courtiers and attendants, aggressively Catholic and devoid of tact or tolerance, had been doing everything in their power to flaunt their hated religion and special privileges in the faces of English Protestants. So many and so incessant were these intrigues, jealousies, and counter-intrigues that Charles, reaUzing he could never hope for domestic peace so long as the Queen's attendants remained, determined to send these foreigners back to France. After much diflSculty, the majority were eventually expelled in July from White- hall and sent across the Channel, their posts near the Queen being filled by Englishwomen. The Duchess of Buckingham, Su Denbigh and her daughter the Marchioness of Hamilton, and the Countess of Carlisle were sworn of the bedchamber, " whom at their first being appointed the French would not let them come in thither and give their attendance, but shut the doors on them presaging what would befall them/' A great hubbub was made in France about aU this. Salvetti, less prejudiced, relates : " The Queen is treated with the most tender solicitude. She is surroimded with ladies of the highest rank as if to show the French ambassador that she is both better served, and with 50 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON more deference, than she was by her French attendants. . . . Two of her ladies are Catholics and are permitted to go to mass with her in her little oratory." It was probably at this time, and on her appointment, that the following undated letter from Su Denbigh to the King was written : " You have done me too; much honour in commanding me that which, for my own sake, I shall most willingly effect, being too much honour for me to have so sweet a companion. I would I might be so happy to receive some comtnand from your Majesty wherein I might express an humble and a thankful heart ; none should be more ready then." Su also wrote to her brother Buckingham, begging him to persuade the King to allow the Queen to have her own nurse, who was under orders to leave with the rest : " Brother if you did but see and hear her it would grieve your heart to the soul. ,We have spoken to the King but he will not hear us." Her request was granted, Madame de Vautelet and the nurse being the only attendants who remained with the Queen. CHAPTER IV THE EXPEDITION TO EOCHELLE KING CHARLES and Buckingham had raised such a hornet's nest of indignation against themselves by their arbitrary methods of obtaining money through oppressive taxation, that Buckingham was forced once more to cast about him to find how best he might distract public attention. His thoughts as usual turned to the triumph which a military success would bring him, and, regardless of the increased expenditure it would entail, he equipped a force of seven thousand men for the fulfilment of the wildest of all his schemes. England at this period looked to union with France as its safeguard against the Catholicism of Austria and Spain. Yet Buckingham, either by reason of private pique against Richelieu for having wounded his vanity in disallowing his return to France, or to redeem his own unpopularity, continued to annoy and harry foreign ships, especially those of France, and to hasten preparations for a great naval and military expedition. Complaints from foreign Powers of the damage done to commerce by the English ships were incessant. The Kings of France and Spain, in desperation, at length suspended all commercial intercourse with England. 51 52 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Louis complained bitterly of the powerful armament collected in the English ports, hinting that it was obvious the contemplated expedition was aimed, either against Spain to wipe out the disgrace of Cadiz, or to urge a religious war against France. France and Spain in this frame of mind entered into a treaty of alliance, but got little farther, so distasteful were they to each other. At this juncture much friction was caused by the withdrawal of the concessions promised to English Catholics in the treaty with France, made at the time of the Queen's marriage. This, coupled with English Protestant indignation at the oppression of the Hugue- nots in France, supplied Buckingham with the occasion he sought of courting popularity at home, while revenging himself abroad upon Richelieu. Having instigated the inhabitants of the city of Rochelle to rebel, the favourite broke with France and announced his intention of rescuing the Huguenots. On June 27, 1627, he sailed from Portsmouth at the head of a numerous fleet, a considerable land force, and a goodly body of French Protestants. Lord Lindsay was appointed second and Lord Denbigh third in command — the latter " for his entertainment in that service received the sum of thirty shillings a day." Buckingham had slipped away from home without any leave-takings or farewells. His wife, poor patient Kate, was much troubled by reason of his failure to see her once again before he sailed, since, as she justly complained, he had not only promised solemnly to do so, but had, moreover, gone so far as to assure her that he would not go with the expedition. His mother wrote begging him to send an affectionate word or two to Kate. She tells him also THE EXPEDITION TO ROCHELLE 53 that his sister, Su Denbigh, shed many a tear when she missed him from chapel with the King, adding that the King had " knit himself up close to his business," and was in all things said to be the samfe to the Duke in his absence as in his presence. Mary Buckingham's pride and affection were always tempered by her ambition, and she never forgot to urge her son to press onwards. In answer to such a letter from her he wrote her this adieu : — "Dere Mother, — It is no small contentment to me not only to be sent so hearty a blessing from you, but so couragious a farewell, which certainly is so good an augury that victory will accompany me in all' my actions and undertakings, since my intentions are not guided by spleen or malicfe, but by an ambition to serve faithfully with my King and country. Where- fore I doubt not but that God's bleissing will also accompany yours, without which the labour of human creatures are but in vain. God make me as happy as you wish me, and you as contented as is wished by your la' most obedient and affectionate son, G Buckingham " Louis XIII meantime arrived at the Isle of Rhd with an army, the equipment of which had cost Richelieu almost superhuman efforts, and laid siege to Rochelle. The French monarch is reported to have remarked to the Savoyard minister : " Alack if I had known my brother of England had longed so much for the Isle of Rh6 I would have sold it to him for lialf the money it hath cost him." ' A few days later the English appeared before Rochelle. The Rochellois, fighting for their independ- 54 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON ence, were so taken by surprise at Buckingham's impetuosity, that, fearing he also meant to capture them, and that they ran the danger of only exchanging one tyrant for another, they hastened to assure him that they could take no steps till they had collected the harvest. Therefore, on July 12th, Buckingham' retired from Rochelle and m^de a sudden descent upon the French. In a sharp encounter with them he proved the courage of his men. But here again his generalship failed. He waited five days, and the French thus managed to provision their garrison in the dastle of St. Martin on the Isle of Rh6 ; upon which Buckingham' threw a boom across the harbour. Though he had been strongly advised to land his men at the Isle d'OrMans, where the garrison was weak and the island ill-provided, his first attempt was the siege of the fort of St. Martin, which was strongly fortified and well supplied with necessaries. The ground was hard, and the siege operations were soon converted into a blockade, but on the 27th of September the defenders of the fort announced their readiness to surrender next morning to the English. In the night, however, a fresh gale brought over a flotilla of French boats, which dashed through the English blockading squadron, and the enemy's fort was provisioned for two months more. Buckingham, who never knew when he was beaten, resolved to struggle on, and sent Denbigh home for reinforcements. Charles would gladly have answered his call for help, but England had long since ceased to care for the war. There was neither money in the exchequer nor enthusiasm' in the naition to supply the want. If Buckingham failed to own, or to see, whither his THE EXPEDITION TO ROCHBLLE 55 pride and obstinacy were carrying him, there was one, who knew and loved him, who did her best to warn him, one who spoke the truth fearlessly to him. That he kept the letters his mother wrote him at this time proves that, deep down in his heart, he knew her to be right, even if he strove not to hearken to her when she wrote : "At your departure from me you told me you went to make peace, but it was not from your heart. This is not the way for peace, to embroil thte whole christian world in wars and then to declare it for religion and make God a party to these woeful affairs as far from God as light and darkness ; and the highway to make all christian princes to bend their forces against us, that otherwise, in policy, would have taken our part. You know the worthy King your master never liked that way, and as far as I can per- ceive there is none that cries not out on it. You that acknowledge the infinite mercy and providence of Almighty God in preserving your life amongst so many that fall down dead on every side of you, and spares you for more honour to Himself, if you would not be wilfully blind and overthrow yourself body and soul, — for He hath not I hope made you so great and given you so many excellent parts as to suffer you to die in a ditch — let me that is your mother, entreat you to spend some of your hours in prayers and meditating what is fitting and pleasing in His sight that has done so much for you ; and, that honour you so much strive for, bend it for His honour and glory and you wUl soon find a change, so great, that you would not for all the kingdoms in this world forego it if you might have them at your disposal. And do not think it out of fear and timorousness of a woman I persuade you to do 56 KOYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON this. No, no, it is that I scorn. I would have yop. leave this bloody way in which you are crept into, I am sure contrary to your nature and disposition. God has blessed you with a virtuous wife and sweet daughter, with another son 1 hope, if you do not destroy it by this way you take. . . . But now let me come to myself. If I had a world you should command it, and whatsoever I have, or shall have, it is all yours by right, but alas, I have laid out aU that money, I had, and more by a thousand pounds, by your consent in buying Gouldsmiths Grange, which I am very sorry for now. I never dreamed you should have needed any of my help, for, if I had, they should have wanted, all and myself, before you." Her allusions here to the preservation of his life and her inability to send him money were called for by an earlier letter of his to her, from: the seat of war, in which he wrote : — "Dere Mother, — I am so full of business as hardly have 1 time to say my prayers, but hardly passes an hour that I perceive not His protecting hand over me, which makes me have recourse to your prayers to assist me in so great a duty. For my coming home, till I have means from England wherewithal to settle this army here, I cannot with my honour leave them. If it be possible for you to lend me some money do it, for in a case which nearly concerns me, you can never [a word erased here] . In haste I crave your blessing as your most humble and obedient son, G. Buckingham" And these two letters from Su Denbigh he also kept : — GEORGE VILLIERS, DUKE OF BUCKINGHAM FROM THE PAINTING BY JANSEN THE EXPEDITION TO ROCHELLE 57 " My dear Brother, — I hope these new supplies will give such advantage to you that your business Tvill be ended to your honour and contentment. I pray you be not too hasty to engage yourself in any other affairs till you see how you shall be supplied. I would you could but see our affairs here, we are sometimes for war, sometimes a show of peace ; poor I must be patient. I pray God to bless you, forget not to read of the book I gave you and if you will take physic this fall of the leaf you shall do very well. ... I hope you will be sure of supplies before you undertake to go to Rochelle for either there has been some great mistake or neglect ; that you [should have been] in any distress it does grieve my very heart and soul. I hear you have been in great wants, but I hope before this you are relieved. I pray be not too venturous, and I hope you will not forget the book I gave you to look over it often, at the least morning and evening." These days must have been anxious ones for Su, with brother, husband, and son all at the war. Denbigh took home with him eight French gentle- men, prisoners, who were treated with great considera- tion in England, and entertained, " to the admiration of all the world," at a banquet given by Susan, at which they were presented by her to both their Majesties. > Before the reinforcements, for which her husband had been despatched, could arrive the French had thrown a superior force upon the island of Rh^, and Bucking- ham was driven to retreat on the 29th of October along a narrow causeway Avith terrible loss by wounds and drowning. Of the 7,000 troops with which he set 58 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON out only 2,goo returned to England. Moreover, this was the first time the English had ever been badly repulsed with shame from France. In justice to George Villiers it must be recorded that the enemy agree that his personal courage was the only military qualification with the absence of which he could not be reproached, and that he was the last to leave the beach. Thus ended the second of the ill-fated expeditions to relieve Rochelle. Any other commander would have been covered with remorse and shame. Not so Buckingham. His spirits were as buoyant as ever. Ill luck or the misconduct of others was evidently, in his eyes, the cause of the failure of the expedition. He was received in England with every honour, as though he were a triumphant victor. Charles greeted him affectionately, and, taking all the blame, announced that the fault was his for not having given Buckingham sufficient supplies. Yet beneath the acclamations a dull murmur of dis- satisfaction ran. On his way to London the Duke was warned of a plot against his life, and was advised to avoid the ordinary road to the capital. He rejected this advice, but on his way he was met by an old woman, who told him that in the next town he had to pass she bad heard some , desperate men vow his death. " Hereupon," says Wotton, " his nephew Basil Viscount Feilding, being then in his company, out of a noble spirit besought him that he would at least honour him with his coat and blue ribbon, through the town, pleading that his uncle's life, wherein lay the property of his whole family, was of all things under Heaven the most precious to him, and, under- taking so to gesture and muffle up himself in his hood, THE EXPEDITION TO ROCHELLE 59 as the Duke's niarmer was to ride in cold weather, that none should discern him from him, and so he should be at Uberty for his own defence. At which sweet proposition the Duke caught him in his arms and kissed him, yet would not, as he said, accept of such an offer in that case from a nephew whose life he tendered as much as himself." This autumn a squadron was maintained under the command of Denbigh, who took the place of Lord Holland. The ships which had suffered at Rochelle were put under repair and got ready for sea. Richelieu now found himself free to annihilate the political privileges of the Huguenots. Since Rochelle was a thorn in the side of France it must be removed, else the French King would not be master in his own house. Therefore in November 1627 the siege was opened by the French on the landward side, while the royal fleet, under the Duke of Guise, assisted in a maritime blockade. The Spanish fleet did indeed show themselves, on this occasion, to give some colour to their loyal adherence to treaties, but Richelieu wisely decided not to use them. All through the winter the blockading lines were closely guarded and the dykes pushed steadily forward. The King returned to Paris in February, the Cardinal deciding to conduct the siege in person. In AprU, when the King returned, the dykes were well advanced, the passage between them was blocked by simken ships, and guarded by palisades and moored vessels, and the dykes protected with guns. Undaunted by his recent failure, Villiers on his side was full of new plans for carrying on the war. But the Parliament which met in January 1628 was of an 58 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON out only 2,900 returned to England. Moreover, this was the first time the English had ever been badly repulsed with shame from France. In justice to George Villiers it must be recorded that the enemy agree that his personal courage was the only military qualification with the absence of which he could not be reproached, and that he was the last to leave the beach. Thus ended the second of the ill-fated expeditions to relieve Rochelle. Any other commander would have been covered with remorse and shame. Not so Buckingham. His spirits were as buoyant as ever. Ill luck or the misconduct of others was evidently, in his eyes, the cause of the failure of the expedition. He was received in England with every honour, as though he were a triumphant victor. Charles greeted him affectionately, and, taking all the blame, announced that the fault was his for not having given Buckingham sufficient supplies. Yet beneath the acclamations a dull murmur of dis- satisfaction ran. On his way to London the Duke was warned of a plot against his life, and was advised to avoid the ordinary road to the capital. He rejected this advice, but on his way he was met by an old woman, who told him that in the next town he had to pass she had heard some , desperate men vow his death. " Hereupon," says Wotton, " his nephew Basil Viscount Feilding, being then in his company, out of a noble spirit besought him that he would at least honour him with his coat and blue ribbon, through the town, pleading that his uncle's life, wherein lay the property of his whole family, was of all things under Heaven the most precious to him, and, under- taking so to gesture and muffle up himself in his hood, THE EXPEDITION TO ROCHELLE 59 as the Duke's manner was to ride in cold weather, that none should discern him from him, and so he should be at Uberty for his own defence. At which sweet proposition the Duke caught him m his arms and kissed him, yet would not, as he said, accept of such an offer in that case from a nephew whose life he tendered as mUch as himself." This autumn a squadron was maintained under the command of Denbigh, who took the place of Lord Holland. The ships which had suffered at Rochelle were put under repair and got ready for sea. Richelieu now found himself free to annihilate the political privileges of the Huguenots. Since Rochelle was a thorn in the side of France it must be removed, else the French King would not be master in his own house. Therefore in November 1627 the siege was opened by the French on the landward side, while the royal fleet, under the Duke of Guise, assisted in a maritime blockade. The Spanish fleet did indeed show themselves, on this occasion, to give some colour to their loyal adherence to treaties, but Richelieu wisely decided not to use them. All through the winter the blockading lines were closely guarded and the dykes pushed steadily forward. The King returned to Paris in February, the Cardinal deciding to conduct the siege in person. In April, when the King returned, the dykes were well advanced, the passage between them was blocked by stinken ships, and guarded by palisades and moored vessels, and the dykes protected with guns. Undaunted by his recent failure, Villiers on his side was full of new plans for carrying on the war. But the Parliament which met in January 1628 was of an 60 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON equally determined, if opposite, mind. Coke, in desperation, named the Duke as at the root of all the misfortunes which had lately befallen the country. " The Duke of Bucks is the cause of all our miseries . . . that man is our grievance of grievances." The Commons next asked that the Duke should no longer continue in office. Charles, as once before when the Commons had sought to impeach Buckingham, refused, and prorogued Parliament in anger. While these struggles were going on in Parliament, Denbigh, at Plymouth, was endeavouring to fit out a seaworthy fleet, properly equipped with men and pro- visions, for the relief of the besieged in Rochelle. The State records are full of letters and papers on the subject of his task. A few examples only are given here as serving to explain the difficulties with which he had to contend. In March 1628 a ship, which the Admiralty Commissioners had thought to be defective, was declared by Denbigh to be " as serviceable as any in the Navy " — a remark which savours of faint praise when we remember the fleet with which he sailed for Cadiz. To Buckingham he had reported from Plymouth that there were so many defects and wants that, notwithstanding all care and diligence, the fleet would not be ready to sail so early as desired. He instances details of the work being done ; they had placed the foremast of the Rainbow for a mainmast in the Nonsuch, and she and the 5^. George were to be brought on their sides for careening. Men were the main want ; they came in but slowly, yet would run away fast enough if money were not sent down to them. Later he acknowledges the receipt of a letter telling him that £1,000 is coming, and he adds that a thousand THE EXPEDITION TO ROCHELLB 61 more would give reasonable content to them all, and would pay the men for the next six months. When he received orders from the Duke and the Lords that he was to lessen the fleet, he answered that he was reducing it from twenty-four to such a number as his sailors should be able to man. He hoped this would be more than twelve. The great difficulty was to get the men ; he often asked for pressed men, and blamed the magistrates for their slow proceedings, and accused the constables of giving intelligence underhand when measures for " pressing " were planned. He complains to Buckingham that the sixth man, of all such as have been pressed, appears not, though they have received both press and conduct money. This reluctance, per- haps, is hardly surprising if we consider the composi- tion of Denbigh's command, which was recruited by the captains of the fleet, who were ordered to stop such English merchant ships as they should meet with in the Channel. If these contained any men likely to be useful to strengthen the King's fleet they were to be seized and used for His Majesty's purpose, and, in many cases, the vessels suffered a like fate. Denbigh complained that the corn ships were by no means ready and at best were likely to fall far short of the expectations both of the Duke and of the poor distressed Rochellois. Added to this, the sailors refused to go aboard, though he had " changed most of the masters." For want of marines he had to ship " land soldiers," seven companies of whom were sent to him, and disposed into their respective ships, not without much murmuring and grudging, which was only appeased by their officers telling them, " with fair and ill language together," that they should and must pro- 62 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON ceed cheerfully upon a war which so nearly concerned the honour of their King and country. The captains and officers, themselves, were none too well ofif, for Denbigh mentions how since they had pawned their best things he had been obliged to " impress " them £ioo out of the money sent for the fleet. As for powder, he complained he could obtain none at Plymouth, and knew not what to do. He managed, however, to leave that port in April, but only got as far as Portsmouth, where no great welcome met him. Before long the Mayor of Southampton com- plained bitterly of the trouble and expense the soldiers and sailors put the people to, adding that the rudeness of the Irish soldiers was a double affliction. Basil was, at this time, one of the official victuallers at Portsmouth, so father and son would again have met. Early in May the King wrote to Denbigh instructing him what course he ^as to adopt should he discover that the passage into Rochelle was a service of more difficulty than he expected. In that case he was to remain off the town as long as his victuals lasted, and to send home an account of his difficulties, stating his opinion as to whether the attainment of his object called for greater strength of shipping than he already had. These instructions had been prepared by the King in the hope that they might reach the Admiral before he quitted Rochelle. They are dated May 17th, but would have arrived too late, for the previous day the fleet quitted the French harbour without having achieved anything. That Denbigh, directly he neared his destination, saw the hopelessness of his task is proved by a letter from him to Buckingham, dated May 9th, in which he THE EXPEDITION TO ROCHELLE 63 remarks that though men who have returned unsuccess- ful from public employments have ever been censured by the world, yet he hopes that he shall satisfy the King in such a manner as will not only clear him in His Majesty's eyes but justify his conduct to Parliament. He considers " misinformation " the cause of his mis- fortune, and further relates how he found Rochelle " so blocked up " that in eight days no news had come out from thence. The palisade had been so strengthened within and without by two floats of ships, moored and fastened together from their ports to half-mast high, that, lying in shoal water, as he was, it was impossible to force the obstruction. For some time he kept the road, expecting intelligence from the town, but none came. Some of the French Huguenot captains who were serving in the English fleet concluded that the passage was not feasible, whUe others " propounded ways rather of loss and dishonour to the English than of good to themselves." A Council of War was therefore summoned, whereat it was decided to send the victual- ling ships home under a strong escort, and to divide the men-of-war into two squadrons, which were to ply between Ushant and Scilly, and the Isle of Wight and Guernsey, harassing the enemy's shipping as much as possible. When the news of the failure of the expedition reached England, the King was terribly upset. He had never before been seen to be so moved. He repeated many times the opinion that if the ships had been lost it would have been small matter compared to this disgrace, since he had timber enough to build more had that been all. The report meantime seems to have gained ground that Denbigh was not to blame, 64 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON having been " overruled by Ned Clarke " — a landsman and a Government official — " who would not hazard the fleet." Another account, however, says that though common fame laid all the blame upon his lordship, yet the French Huguenots attached to his fleet main- tained that he, at least, " had always been forward to go on " ; while Sir James Bagg wrote to Bucking- ham that he wished land soldiers, being good musketeers, had been sent to the Earl, for marines are not to be depended upon, " every day calling them more cowards than the other." The King's next act was to command Sir Henry Hingate to fnake all haste to find Denbigh, and to deliver to him certain royal instructions by word of mouth. These were that, on reaching England, no one was to land from the fleet save its Admiral and a few commanders, who were to come on shore to receive letters from the King. We hear of Hingate's arrival at Portsmouth and subsequent embarkation for the fleet from Lord Feilding, who notifies the same to Buckingham, assuring his uncle that he is doing all he can to provide victua.ls " against your lordship's coming," and adding that the men, having land hearts but not sea heads, are difficult to get aboard the fleet. Secretary Coke hastens to assure Buckingham that if only the men can be persuaded to sail again, Denbigh shall at once put to sea, and that Lord Feilding shall be sent with his fleet of ten ships to find and carry back the corn ships to his father at Rochelle, which seems to have been accomplished. Passing Plymouth on May 25th, Denbigh made for Portsmouth, writing on the 27th, off the Isle of Wight, on board the St. Andrew, to Buckingham that he has THE EXPEDITION TO ROCHELLB 65 received the original of the King's letter, and hopes to anchor at St. Helens, whence, with all possible expedition, he purposes to proceed to Rochelle, hoping to come there by the height of the spring tide. Captain Anthony Rice reports Denbigh's arrival the same day, and says that the passage into Rochelle by sea, with provisions, was, in the mature opinions of all the captains, made impregnable by reason of the ordnance planted on both sides and the triple palisade erected within. It is related that Ned Clarke on landing, and finding how the public looked upon the disaster, was much concerned, and loudly protested that he was only with the expedition as interpreter. He was mightily dis- tressed, apprehending that the blame would fall upon him, since none of the followers of the Duke nor any of the bedchamber had called upon him. He feared the reason of this studied neglect was that some of the ladies of the Court and creatures of the Duke accused him of having said, before his going, that the expedi- tion was unjust. On May 29th Feilding's ships were ready to sail, and Denbigh prepared to hasten back to Rochelle as soon as he was supplied with fresh water, the Council having confirmed him in his comtnand and instructed him to use his best endeavours to relieve Rochelle. It is pleasant to find him assuring the Duke that the captains under his command had been much slandered, there being none to whom he could impute remissness; neither found he any unwillingness in them to attempt the undertaking so long as the experience of the masters admitted any possibility of their ships floating. , Dwell- ing upon the extreme inadequacy of his supplies, he 66 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON asked the Covincil whether he was to attempt the palisade even if the victuals for the fleet and the besieged had not arrived, for should there be no cer- tainty of supplies the stay of the expedition could be but short, since with less than a fortnight's victuals they could not make their return. Another difficulty he had to report was that the supply of water-casks and water was far below his needs. Those responsible on shore for providing water for the fleet made answer that the casks sent to him were not casks, only the staves of casks, all in pieces, and that the coopers available were too few to make these casks of any use. It must have been despairing work equipping a fleet under such circumstances. On June ist an Order in Council was passed that in view of the fact that many of the Earl of Denbigh's ships were defective, and that the relief of Rochelle had proved more difficult than was formerly conceived, thereby requiring greater strength of shipping, the Earl of Denbigh is to wait further orders before going out. This order must have been some comfort to the Admiral and his advisers. But that it was not the opinion of aU statesmen is shown by two letters of Secretary Coke's, written the same day, one to Bucking- ham, in which he sarcastically remarked that he did not know if the relieving fleet had discovered as many difficulties at Rochelle as they had raised in their preparations for return. One hundred and twenty sick, he adds, had been sent on shore, and those remaining hardly seemed desirous to haste away, since they had sent for their wives to come on board. The other letter is to Denbigh, asking him to " disavow and cry down the rumour that the talk of the King's sending back THE EXPEDITION TO ROOHBLLE 67 the fleet to an impossible task comes from the com- manders," adding that only so and by advancing into action can he redeem his honour. Denbigh and the other commanders wrote to Coke, describing the con- dition of things as they found them at RocheUe, arid pointing out that nothing could be done without the concurrence of a north-west wind and a spring tide, even if the victuals which they had were not, as they were, defective and unfit to be sent into the town. Thus matters dragged on till June 17, 1628, when Denbigh, still aboard the St. Andrew, again complained that he dared not venture to sea with his present most insufficient force, whose number grew less each day by reason of sickness and desertion, while recruits refused to come aboard tiU their money was paid. A month later he writes that the promise of money had kept them quiet awhile, but if it came not soon they would break into fresh mutinies. On his appearing off Rochelle, with the welcome and much longed-for relief, the Spanish fleet at once departed. Yet Denbigh found himself unable to land owing to the inadequate force at his disposal, and, after " showing himself only, returned, and left Rochelle unrelieved." Whitlock accuses him of finding there only some French ships which he would not assault, though they were fewer and weaker than his own force ; but there is no other evidence to corroborate this. Great was the indignation when the news of this failure reached England, and, the Council being informed, some " Parliament men " sent letters to Buckingham from the Council urging him to " order the Earl of Denbigh to go again and relieve RocheUe." But apparently no one dared press the matter further 68 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON against the brother-in-law of the favourite ; or, possibly, they realized that Denbigh was more sinned against than sinning, inasmuch as he was not responsible for the wretchedness and the inadequacy of the material of which his force was composed. Three weeks later we read that the talk is no more of " particulars of my Lord of Denbigh's disaster or dishonour," but that the King is sending out another fleet to the relief of Rochelle. In common fairness to Denbigh, it should be mentioned that the records are full of such applica- tions as are instanced in a subsequent petition to the Council, in which a certain Peter Delamare relates how he bought a quantity of damaged wheat, brought back from the expedition to Rochelle by Lord Denbigh. Having paid a good sum for the wheat for His Majesty's benefit he exported some to Zeeland, where it was sold at a loss. He prays permission to export the rest, in hopes of reimbursing some part of his loss. The Rochellois, in July, sent a pathetic appeal to Charles to send them food, not promises of fleets delayed, " good lord, sire, how long is this time for men who want a mouthful of bread." The King's answer was to endeavour to hasten the fleet, which had been so long preparing yet seemed never prepared. For this purpose he himself went to Ports- mouth, holding, ere he started, a Privy Council, at which we find Denbigh present. Popular feeling was now greatly excited against the favourite, and, with the clouds gathering round him, Buckingham went down to Portsmouth to take the command of one final expedi- tion for the relief of La Rochelle. For the first time even he was getting anxious, yet entered gaily into a scheme of pacification proposed by the Venetian THE EXPEDtfflON TO ROCHELLE 69 Ambassador. Before he could know whether there should be peace or war, the knife of an assassin put an end to his career. John Felton, who, having served at Rh^, had been disappointed both in promotion and pay, read the declaration of the Commons that Bucking- ham was a traitor, and caught eagerly at this as an excuse for revenge. Waiting, on the morning of August 23, 1628, behind the door of the room in which Buckingham was breakfasting, he stabbed the Duke to the heart as he came out. The air had bepn fuU of warnings and portents. All know the tale of the ghastly warning conveyed to him by an old retainer, the result of which was, " that when the news of the Duke's murder was brought to his mother she seemed not in any degree surprised but received it as if she had expected it." Added to his mother's anxiety and her belief in the " warning," his sister, Su Denbigh, on the very day of his death, received a letter from him. While she was writing her answer to it, and ending : "I will pray for your happy return, which 1 look at with a great cloud over my head, too heavy for my poor heart to bear without torment," she " bedewed the paper with her tears " and swooned away at the thought of his danger. The next day John Buckeridge, Bishop of Ely, came to break the dreadful news to her, he having been chosen by reason of his devotion to her. Hearing she was at rest, he waited awhile. She woke ere long, in much terror, having seemed to be with her brother passing in her coach through a field, " where hearing a sudden shout of the people and asking the reason i,t was answered to have been for joy that the Duke of Buckingham was sick." Scarce had she related this dream to her gentlewoman before the Bishop was with her to confirm her worst fears. 70 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Indeed it must have been hard for his mother and wife, two women so passionately devoted to him and their religion, to look with anything but anxiety and disfavour upon this expedition against Catholic France in a quarrel which had nothing patriotic to commend itself to them ; and even his sister leant towards Catholicity. The King's grief for Buckingham was deep. Not only did he pay his debts, which amounted to £61,000, and bury him in Westminster Abbey, but he took the dead favourite's widow and children under his protection. The eldest, " pretty sweet Moll," was then no more than five. It was she of whom her mother wrote to the absent father some years before : " Our sweet Moll groweth dearer day by day, she lieth upon the floor and kicketh her heels over her head. I pray God that, as she grow older, she grow more modest." In 1634, when but only twelve years of age, Mary Villiers was solemnly espoused to Lord Herbert, the son of the Earl of Pembroke. Shortly after, her boy bridegroom died of smallpox in Italy, and as her mother had recently married the Earl of Antrim against the wishes of the King, the baby widow was not allowed to return home, though she was " resolved to fall upon her knees to the King that she may live with her mother." She returned to Court, and was brought up with the royal children. There her position and widow's dress do not seem to have precluded many childish pranks. One of these is so pretty a story that its relation here may be excused. One day taking it into her head to obtain some fruit from the King's garden, she scrambled up into a tree. There her black dress and fluttering veil caught the King's attention. Thinking it was some THE EXPEDITION TO ROCHELLE 71 strange bird alighted in the garden, he directed young George Porter to take " his fusee " and secure the bird. Arrived at the tree a shower of fruit greeted him. Looking up, he beheld the face of the laughing girl. " Oh heavens," he cried, " did you but know the reason that brought me here I I have promised the King to kill you and bring him some of your feathers." Scrambling down the tree in haste, she assured him he must keep his word, and despatched a messenger for a hamper. Into it she got, and insisted on being carried to the King's apartments, where George Porter announced that he had taken a butterfly alive, and that it was so beautiful he would rather have died a thousand deaths than have killed it. Charles eagerly raised the lid, when the damsel sprang out, and, we are told, gave him a very " agreeable surprise " when she flung her arms round his neck. She was always afterwards called "the Butterfly." These days of happy childhood did not last long, for, in 1636, Lady Herbert was married to the Duke of Lermox, the King's nearest kinsman. His father, the third Duke of Lennox, had died in 1624, leaving him a boy of twelve years old with six brothers and four sisters. King James took the orphans under his special care and bequeathed them to Charles. " The nuptials of the Duke and the maiden-widow," writes a contemporary, " were solemnized at Lambeth, honoured with the presence of the King and Queen and the royal issue. The wedding dinner at York House : they say there were more cooks than guests — ^sixty cooks and but six lords ; nor the Archbishop who married them, nor the Lord Chamberlain Pembroke." Later on the King conferred upon Lennox many 72 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON favours, and, in 1641, revived in his person the title of Duke of Richmond. His devotion to the King was so remarkable in its disinterested gratitude and affection as to call for the remarks of his contemporaries. When the troubles arose he sacrificed everything for his royal master's cause. He died in 1655, his widow sur- viving him for thirty years. Their portraits by Vandyke hang in the gallery at Newnham ; Lennox with the dog, which by its timely warning saved him from an assassin, while she, tall and graceful, has her dwarf, Mrs. Gibson, standing beside her. But, in following the fortunes of the daughter, we have wandered from the affairs of the father. When the dead favourite's executors attempted to draw up a statement of his accounts, they found he had received no acknowledgment of £50,000 lent to the Crown. This debt Charles discharged in the payment of Buckingham's creditors. Charles never had another intimate friend after the death of Buckingham. Nor did any one ever reign supreme in his counsels or his heart. Only as one turns over the pages of the documents of the period does one realize the place which " The Duke " held in the minds of all Englishmen, from the King to the pauper. For ten years he had been virtually the paramount power in England, " the channel through which all the streams and rivulets of State and government must flow." Charles further comforted hintself by advancing all the late favourite's friends and followers, and warning Villiers's enemies that they would not benefit by receiv- ing any of his offices. As for the funeral, it was, by the King's orders, to be even more sumptuous than that THE EXPEDITION TO ROOHELLE 73 of James I, for which Denbigh advanced £16,000. Out of it " Lord Feilding, as master of the wardrobe, gained by the London measure and lists £5,000." Nor did the King allow his personal sorrow to dis- tract his attention from the danger of La Rochelle. The command of the expedition " set forward furiously by his Majesty's care and diligence," was given to Lord Denbigh, who excused himself at first " on very good reason," presumably the death of his brother-in- law. Eventually, however, he yielded. His appointment to this command, and to the Council of War, as well as the fact that no further endeavours were made to throw any blame upon him for the failure of the previous expeditions, is looked upon by Bishop Kennet as a proof that the public held Denbigh inno- cent. He sailed two months after his brother-in-law's assassination at the head of a fleet so " ill provided" that "their victuals stunk." Anthony Welldon relates that : "Denbigh is sent into France to aid Rochelle, who managed it better than his kinsman Buckingharn, who would afterwards go to do great exploits, for he brought his ships and men safe again, the other left his men in powdering tubs as if he had meant to have them kept sweet against his next coming thither." This allusion is to the misadventures of Buckingham at the Isle of Rh6, where, in endeavouring to re-embark, the rear of his army was cut off in a piece of ground broken by salt-pits. Of the same expedition we find P^re Daniel saying: " Une troisieme flotte d'Angleterra commandie par le General Dambi paroit a la vue de Rochelle." Denbigh, we further gather, did make an attempt to show that left to himself he could do some- thing, for we read of two days passed in " tentatives 74 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON inu tiles des Anglais pour forcer la Digue qui fermait le port de la Rochelle." After manoeuvring for five days the expedition returned to England. The Rochellois, despairing of help from the English, surrendered at discretion to the French King on October 29th. The city lost all its privileges ; its walls were destroyed ; and the Catholic religion was restored. The property of the citizens, however, was spared, and the free exercise of the Protestant religion was permitted in the city. Thus ended the last of the many ill-fated, because ill-conceived and ill-equipped, expeditions against Rochelle. The unfortunate garrison, who from year to year had so bravely held out in hopes of rescue from their English sympathizers, were " so much distressed that of 15,000 but 4,000 remained alive; the rest had perished with hunger." We can readily understand that such an issue covered Denbigh with neither glory nor popularity. He was probably glad to escape from censure and the public eye by accepting an appointment as ambassador to the Sophi of Persia. Thither he went equipped with credentials to the several Eastern potentates whom the King commanded him to visit. Some of these creden- tials are presertved at Newnham, and it is difficult to believe that they are close on three hundred years old, so brilliant is the gold and the colouring of their illuminated parchments, so black their lettering. These five skins of parchment are well written, and illuminated ; much gilt, painted with the arms of England, and bear the King's signature. They are all dated 1630, and endorsed in one of these styles : — (i) To the high and excellent Monarch the great THE EXPEDITION TO ROOHELLE 75 Lord Shangh Suffie Emperor of Persia, Medea, Parthea, Armenia, and of the famous kingdoms of Lar and Ortmus and of many other large and populous provinces. (2) To the excellent and prudent Lord Nabob Assuph Chan favoured of the Mighty Emperor Shangh Jehan Great Mogul, Director of the Wise and Faithful Councils of the Eastern Empire. Two of them begin : "To the noble and valiant Lord . . ." and have blanks, where the names should be, for the insertion of the names of any other potentates the delegate might happen upon. One will suffice as an example of all : — " Charles by the Grace of Almighty God . . . sendeth greeting to the excellent . . . Mogul, director of the wise and faithful counsels of the Eastern Empire. Remembering with pleasure the relations of our servant, the elect Sir Thomas Roe, Ambassador of the King our father of ever glorious memory, unto the most famous Tchangur Pdesha, and particularly the report which he made in our royal presence of your humanity, mag- nificence and wisdom not only in the managing of most high affairs within your own kingdoms but also of grace and protection which you have extended towards all strangers, especially to those our servants and subjects whom we have sent into your famous Court, and being confidently assured that you continue in the same affection to us and to our subjects, we have thought fit by these our royal and friendly letters to recommend unto you our trusty and well beloved cousin, servant and subject, William Earl of Denbigh, who, being a prince of our kingdom whom we have formerly employed as admiral of our victorious armadas at sea, being now transported with the fame and glory of your empire hath desired to 76 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON see that Prince and Court so renowned in the remotest part of the world. Wje shall therefore desire you to receive and entertain him according to his quality and our friendship, which, as it shall add unto the fame of your wisdom and courtesy so we shall lay it up in grateful memory and shall wish you increase of honour and authority in the presence of your glorious lord, prosperity in all your affairs, and mercy from the great God creator of heaven and earth. Given in our royal palace of Westminster in the 6th year of our reign and in that of the son of God only saviour of souls 1630. Charles R." Charles wrote from Beaulieu, on August 15, 1630, to the East India Company, that William Earl of Denbigh had an earnest desire to travel into Asia, into the Great Mogul's country, and also into Persia. Since his intended journey would be too tedious and dangerous overland, the Company was required to give orders that he and his followers be received, for his passage into the said countries, into such one of their ships as he should make choice of, and that the great cabin be allowed for himself and his train, consisting, at the most, of six persons. To his eldest son Denbigh wrote of his intention : " I have obtained leave from the King to make a voyage in the East India ship (as a volunteer) to the King of Persia and the Great Mogul ; in which voyage I hope to better my understanding and not impeach my estate. These doings, I have thought better to undertake than to live at home, get nothing, and spend all. And so I leave you to God's protection." In another letter he mentions that he meant to be absent for three years. THE EXPEDITION TO ROCHELLE 77 He started early in January 1631, but on February 9th he was met with in the English Channel, having had " a great scape," which presumably neces- sitated a return to shelter and repairs. On February 31st we find an entry that the East India fleet had departed that day, " with easterly winds carry- ing with them my Lord of Denbigh on his ambassage to the King of Persia." There is a portrait of him in oils at Hamilton Palace, by Vandyke, which represents him in the dress he wore in the East. He wears a red silk jacket and trousers, his hair is short and grey, and he carries a gun in his hand. He is standing beside a palm-tree attended by an Indian boy. He looks out from the canvas with an expression of alert interest and much force of character. The tradition that he lost his way one day in the East and was guided to safety by a native boy is thus chronicled in this picture. Before his departure, his second son George had been created Baron Feilding of Lecaghe and Viscount Callan. He was also given the reversion of the title of Desmond, on the death of the last earl of that name, as an inducement to Desmond's only daughter and heiress to look favourably upon his suit, the marriage being desired by those in authority for political reasons. But this lady possessed a will of her own, and, objecting to have her matrimonial affairs arranged for her, not long after refused to marry Lord Feilding and Callan. Perhaps some of the lady's reluctance may have arisen from pressure brought to bear upon her by the Countess of Holland, in whose custody she was. The episode of the duel in 1633 between Lord Holland and 78 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Lord Weston was probably not forgotten by the wife of the former, who was loath to see the large estates of the Desmond heiress pass into the hands of a connexion of Weston's. Some time before this George had been occupied in examining reports on prizes taken by the fleet. This in virtue of his office of Registrar of the Court of Admiralty, an office granted tb him in 1625 by his uncle, the Duke of Buckingham, for life. In 1631, when the family fortunes were no longer protected by the favourite, there were found many anxious to displace him from his appointment. But Katherine Buckingham and Su Denbigh fought his cause, and won it, for he was still holding the place in 1633. It was during Denbigh's absence in the East that his wife wrote to him : " My heart, the best news that I can send you is that I hold a good position in my mistress the Queen's favour. Since your departure the times have been something troublesome and your deputy has found much opposition in your office [the royal wardrobe], nor can as yet obtain any of the funeral money which has put him to great straits. I and all yours, God be thanked, are well, and your daughter Marques [Marchioness of Hamilton] is become the mother of two pretty daughters. The eldest, whose name is Henrieta, having the Queen and my mother her godmothers, and the Lord Treasurer godfather, was born the last of February, the month you began your voyage in ; and the other whose name is Anne, the King being godfather, and myself deputy for the old lady Marques, and the Countess of Devonshire the other God-mother, was borne in January. The Lord Marques was sent by the King in July last (1631) WILLIAM, 1st earl OF DENBIGH AFTER THE PAINTING BY VANDYKE THE EXPEDITION TO ROCHELLE 79 with 6 thousand of English and Scotsmen to aid the King of Sweden in the German wars, who has been beyond expectation prosperous in all his designs, and does use my Lord Marques with all noble respects, and added eight thousand men more to his command with which he has, lately, as his Ma''^ has intelligence, taken Magdenburgh, a town of great consequence. Your son Feilding is now at Paris, being forced out of Italy by the general infection of the plague in those parts ; and had he not had the good fortune to meet with Monsieur Toras, captain of the citadel in the Isle of Reese, he could hardly have got out of the country but by his honourable favours, and coming by Turin was very gratiously entertained by the Queen's sister. Your son Desmond has been in an academy in Paris this half year where he profits himself very mudh in his exercises. I have sent his wife to my mother to Whaden, who does take special care of her, and does give me assur- ance that she will not meddle with her religion, and I held the country a fitter place for her than the Court. Your daughters, both Betty and Harriet, are very well, and so is my Lady Duchess [Katherine, widow of the Duke of Buckingham], and the little Duke with the Lady Mary and the Lord Franses, with my mother and all our kindred and allies. I have sent you by Capt. Wedall a little token. Though not of great value, yet I think it very pretty, and that it wiU be the more welcome because it is a stone that is got in England, and in haste I rest your ever loving wife till death, Su Denbigh " Mrs. Cornwallis, writing January 27, 1632, to him, of his wife and her office at Court, corroborated Susan's own account : "My lady waits well, and, I ttenk 80 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON God, hath the love of her great master and mistress in a large proportion, which I hope will ever con- tinue to her. You have been a huge while away and, if it may be without disadvantage to you, I should be very glad your journey might be shortened." Sir Roger Feilding also wrote to his brother Lord Denbigh, telling him of " villainous plots " against Buckingham's memory which had been frustrated by the King, who would not believe tales accusing Villiers of furthering his own ends at the expense of his master. This letter ends with an account of how his sister-in-law "my lady Desmond had a desire to go live at Newnham and none but Dillon (who went unworthingly from my Lord Marquis) was thought a companion for her, which I laboured by all means to have prevented, knowing a discreeter woman had been fitter. They played such mad tricks in the country that a little before Xmas your wife and my lady Buckingharti brought them away to Whodden where they remain. Both your sons are now in France, and, God be thanked very well." This is almost the last mention we find of Mary Beaumont, Countess of Buckingham, Su Denbigh's mother, for she died on May 29, 1630, dividing her estate in land, between her grandson Basil Feilding and the children of her son, Lord Anglesey. "It is not so great as was believed. They say not above £1,000 a year," writes Thomas Lering from .Whitehall. She survived her beloved son scarce four years, and was laid near him in Westminster Abbey. Perhaps her best epitaph is contained in the letters of that son to her which have been quoted here, and in the words of one of her biographers, who speaks of George Villiers's mother as one " towards whom he had ever THE EXPEDITION TO ROCHELLE 81 a most profound reverence." Both had great faults and made grievous mistaikes, but in their mutual affec- tion we find that perfection of love which enables us to forgive much. While Susan's sorrow for her mother was still fresh, her husband returned to her — as we learn by an entry in Pennington's Journal under August i, 1632, telling how the Great James came to an anchor in the Downs, bringing Lord Denbigh from the East Indies, after what in those days of slow travelling was but a short absence. CHAPTER V THE ADVENTURES OF BASIL FEILDING WE have already had glimpses of Basil 51giMisg> Denbigh's eldest son, the beloved child of Susan Villiers, the youth who so gallantly and affectionately offered to draw upon him- self the danger threatening the life of his uncle, Su's idolized brother. This son stands out by his mother's side as the most interesting character of the family chronicles. The training given by such a mother, her influence upon his life, her devoted attachment, tempered by her wise counsels and brave heart, are shown in her letters to him. These letters are amongst the most treasured possessions at Newnham, and are written in a remarkably bold, clear handwriting very unusual at that period. Born in 1608, Basil was educated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge. He was, as we have seen, sent to Paris in 1624, in the suite of Lord Carlisle when that nobleman went thither to negotiate the marriage of Charles Prince of iWales with Henrietta Maria. It is mentioned in despatches from La Rochelle in 1627 that " the young Lord Feilding " was one of the noble- men who bore Sir iWilliam Heyden to his burial during the siege. THE ADVENTURES OF BASIL FEILDING 83 Later Basil was taken by his uncle to kiss King Charles's hands, and to thank him for his appointment as Master of the Robes, an appointment with which was coupled the promise that in due time would follow the post of Gentleman of the King's Bedchamber. After the Duke's death, however, these offices were given elsewhere, and Basil, on his return from Rochelle, was commanded by the King to try his fortunes in the wars in Holland. For ten long years Europe had been torn in two by, the sanguinary cdntest known in history as the Thirty Years War. At this juncture the Marquis of Spjindla, who had been upholding the claims of the Spanish King in Holland, was, for the moment, absent from the front. The Prince of Orange thought the moment a favourable one for attacking Bois-le-duc and ousting the Spaniards from the town, which for many years had been in their hands and was considered impregnable. The States therefore, in April 1629, collected a large army, which included four English and three Scotch regiments. Sir Edward Cecil, now Lord Wimbledon, was in command of one of the former. Being in England, and hearing of the coming siege, which promised to be a long and arduous one, with many opportunities of danger and glory, he hastened to resign his regiment and go abroad. He took with him thirty-nine gentlemen volunteers who attached themselves to his command. Amongst these volunteers were two Warwickshire neighbours. Lord Craven and Lord Feilding, of whom an officer, who served with them, wrote : — " My Lord of Craven, whose worth and bounty was known to us, watched with My Lord of Oxford, My Lord Doncaster and My Lord Fieilding, two noble sparkes. 8i ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON trayled pikes and went down to the approaches upon any service that was to be done, and exposed thieir bodies both to danger and sickness." The town of Bois-le-duc was of immense strength, and difficult of approach, being situated in the middle of a Brabant marsh. It was invested by the States' army on April 29th. The besiegers quickly erected tents and surrounded the town. Wimbledon's regiment, however, had the misfortune to lose nearly all their tents in a fire which broke out in their quarters. After an arduous siege of nearly five months Grobbendouck, the Governor of Bois-le-duc, surrendered the town on September 14th to Henry of Nassau, and on September 17th the garrison marched out with the honours of war. The Prince and Princess of Orange, the King and (^ueen of Bohemia, the Prince of Denmark, with forty dukes, counts, and barons, viewed the sad procession leaving one of the city gates. The victorious troops of the Prince of Orange meantime marched in at another. The outgoing procession was headed by the garrison, followed by their sick and wounded. They were fol- lowed by the Governor and his wife in a carriage, the latter holding her newly-born infant in her arms, and, lastly, by the clergy, nuns, and friars, who carried in their midst a miraculous statue of the Blessed Virgin. Cecil returned to England after the siege and resumed his seat at the Privy Council. Basil FeUding accom- panied him. The subsidies granted by Parliament in 1628 were all spent, yet large sums were still owing to many of the King's subjects. It was at this crisis in money affairs that Charles adopted an expedient which had been sug- gested to him by Buckingham. This was to revive an THE ADVENTURES OF BASIL FEILDING 85 obsolete, though unrepealed, law of Edward II, which empowered the King to summon persons possessed of £40 a year and upwards in land, to attend him at his coronation, or pay compensation for their neglect. This custom arose when the military service of knights and esquires had been commuted to a money equivalent. The usage of fining the delinquents in such cases, at first arbitrarily, and afterwards in a fixed amount, grew up all over Europe. Thus the war chests of rulers were filled, and the knights, though they still joined the army, did so on a different footing, and, together with their followers, received payment. The idea of the revival of this obsolete law did not originate with Buck- ingham but with Lord Wimbledon. The first demand for composition for knighthood was made in 1630, and raised great indignation among* the gentry in England. Indeed, many utterly refused to compound until com- missioners were appointed in every county, when money began to flow steadily into the royal treasury. Basil and his brother George would have been swept into this net, under one count or the other, for amongst the new Knights of the Bath, invested at the time of the King's coronation, George's name appears, and we also read, " the first was the Earl of Denbigh's son, a Vis- count, next the Lord Strange. And two of them were children . . . and my Lord of Waldon's eldest son of some two years, brought in his lady mother's arms." Matrimonial intrigues were already weaving their meshes round Basil, for it is related in a letter of the time that " Sir Harry Wotton now a clergyman is like to be Dean of Canterbury, if not Bishop of Exeter, if he can bring off my Lord Wotton to match his daughter and only child with Lord Denbigh's son, and resolve 86 EOYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON him, whether in conscience he may not break a rash vow, made to the contrary when the motion was first propounded." The young people do not seem to have encouraged him to. put his principles to the test, for nothing came of {he scheme. In October 1630, while his father was in the East, Basil was sent on a mission to France and Geneva, via Strasbourg. The object is not exactly stated, but at that date Pennington, in his Journal, mentions that he " anchored at Dover Road, having order there to take in my Lord Feilding and transport him over to France." His mother, hearing of the ravages of the plague in Italy, wrote him an anxious letter which, though un- dated, as are most of her letters, evidently belongs to this time : — "My DEAR Son, — The King does approve well of your going into France and for my part I think it will be the best of your travels by reason that the King does discourse most of that place. Pray do not torment me with your going into the danger of the plague any more." The next, endorsed by Basil June 20, 1631, in which year he became a Knight of the Garter, runs : — "My dear Son, — I am much troubled for fear of the sickness which I hear is so rife where you are, and I hope you will be careful of yourself and not stay in these towns where it is. I have not heard any news worthy your knowing on the same way . . . saving that my Lord [illegible, but evidently Hamilton is meant] is become a very kind husband to your sister, THE ADVENTURES OF BASIL FBILDING 87 and they have a very pretty daughter, and themselves in great esteem with the King and Queen, the King having given him £8,000 a year for 16 years. I heard tha^t your father was very well and I think he is at his way's end by this. I am much joyed to hear you bestow your time so well — God will bless you the better to home." " Dear Son, — I have received your letter. I am much afflicted that you are in so dangerous a place but I pray you remove for your own safety and health's sake and concerning my place [as lady-in-waiting], I am very sorry that you should believe it in earnest, for there is nothing can put me out of it but my want of health which thank God I now enjoy very well. You are very much bound to your good grandmother, to whom I would have you write upon all occasions, neither would 1 have you forget my Lord of London and other of your good friends here. Remember me to Mr. Mason and give him many thanks for his care he has of you and tell him I have now finished the tomb of my dead brother [Buckingham], and have sent a copy over with the inscription, which I hope he will like, being made of black and white marble. You are very much bound to my Lord of Holland who is ever ready to put the King in mind of you to your advantage. So with my blessing 1 take my leave, " Your loving mother, " Su Denbigh " On July 24, 1 63 1, Basil received a letter from his grandmother the Countess of Buckingham, which he very carefully endorsed with the date and with the note that " Father Lammerman, the Emperor Ferdinand Il's 88 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON confessor, did offer me at Ratisbonne, from that emperor, to be gentleman of his bedchamber, 2,000 pistolls by the year to ride in the wood with him when the Empress did not go with him, and a regiment of horse." In the letter his grandmother tells him that she is glad he has kissed the Emperor's hand, and has proved himself so agreeable, remarking she would have been glad if he had accepted the Emperor's " invitement," coupled with the offer to furnish Basil with money that he might accompany the Emperor to Vienna, where he would have better means for his study than at Stras- bourg, and " might have gained more good respect from the Emperor." She wonders that Mr. Mason, his tutor, whom she describes as otherwise so careful, did not en- courage him to that effect. His father, she mentions, has " gone a long but very honourable journey by sea with our King's letters of embassy to the great King of Mogul, which journey, if it please God to send him safe back again, will be also greatly for his profit." Thank- ing him for his letters, she mentions she is glad that he has escaped those dangers which he mentions, " and I hope that Almighty God will preserve you from all others to His greater honour and my cbrnfort and the good of your family, especially if yourself will, in the best manner it shall please God to inspire, concur thereunto, as I hope you will, with due devotion to God and circumspect diligence in observing all such things as may for the greater honour of God, help you to make the best profit of your travels and withall, to foresee and avoid all that may endanger your life and health. If Padua be so good a place and so advantageous as you write I shall be glad if you would spend your time here THE ADVENTURES OF BASIL PEILDING 89 till near winter rather than by removing to endangeir yourself. I have heard that the chief thing that Padua is commended for is the study of physics but if you find in some other thing you can profit yourself I shall be glad that you stay there this summer^ I suppose that you will, towards winter, if you can without danger of sickness, see some other more famous places in that country, to the chief of which I have procured letters to be sent beforehand by which you shall not only be protected from danger, but also be made very welcome you making it known how near you are in blood to me. ... I am at this time going to Newnham where if I live so long I shall be glad to see you hereafter. By this your travels 1 make no doubt but you wiU gain so much experience as will be a great comfort to me and the rest of your friends. I have been sick, but now I thank God much mended. Your mother is careful of your good and 1 intend not to be careless in hope we shall find so much good in you as may repay (?) all we shall endeavour to do for you. So praying sweet Jesus to bless you, I rest ever your loving sorrowful grand- mother, M. Buckingham." This letter is endorsed by her : " For my dear grandchild the Lord Viscount Feilding," and by him : " My grandmother B., Sept. 1 63 1, Geneva." In another letter she makes the sage comment: " You have a good nature and grateful mind, wherein many, that travel as you do, exceedingly fail." His mother's anxieties seem justified when we find that his friends wrote to Basil none too cheerful accounts of the ravages of the plague, though one can hardly believe in such fiendish means of spread- ing it as are related by M. Daemont in a letter to Lord Feilding., He mentions that in Lombardy death 90 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON had triumphed with great violente, acting her worst of ills by famine, war, and pestilence. As the infection had not quite ceased in Milan, and people had great difficulty to leave if once in the city, the writer went back into Germany, from whence he sent messengers who stayed in huts in the fields and only communicated with any at a distance. The letters they brought were used with suoh scant ceremony that " instead of per- fuming, they sacrificed them," for many were so burnt they could hardly be read. In the state of Milan there had died about 600,000, ^.nd those dead in the city and lazarets surpassed 140,000. In Cremona one- third, and in Pavia and other cities one-half of the population died. The towns and villages of Lombardy were almost " dispeopled," but nowhere so much as in the city and state of Parma, the Duke offering' house, cattle, and land gratis for a time to any who asked for them. The city of Venice was the most suspected, for there were yet dying there weekly about 300. A captain, lately come from thence, reported that for a month together during the violence there were daily above 1,000 dead in the city and lazarets, and many nobles, and that at his parting it seemed desolate by reason those that remained went not forth from their houses. There was also a great search for " those detestable, damnable spirits " which for certain had been the first authors of this infection with unctuous powders and waters. Divers had been executed with cruel torments, having confessed themselves agents in spreading infection. Amongst them a surgeon who, at the place of execution, confessed to having applied the said unction upon the garments of many hundreds. The operation of which unction " hold§ so great anti- THE ADVENTURES OF BASIL PEILDING 91 pathy with man's nature that none which are touched escape, except the actors which have the counterpoison. This seems a fable, your honour ought to believe it for certain, for I have spoke with divers of quality that have been present at the execution of many of them. . . . There remain yet many imprisoned for the said fact and some great ones whose names I will not trust the paper with." Amongst Basil's correspondents is Edward Nicholas, afterwards Secretary of State, one of "whose letters is interesting by reason of its reference to Wientworth Lord Strafford, who goes, he says, "as Lord Deputy into Ireland, yet keeps also his place as Lord President of the North, which he will execute by a vice-president." Nicholas describes him as a strong champion for the King in all affairs, who " by his profitable services in the country has got very good credit with his Majesty. Some conceive that his ambition is wrought on by his greatest friends to give him this engagement in Ireland, that he may be at a farther distance from Court, and because it will be easy, in the various and great affairs he shall have in that kingdom, in a short time to raise up some persons, and pick some specious occasion to asperse him, for never was there as yet such an ofi&cer that lost not ground at Court through his absende, and the envy of malignajit persons." Susan Denbigh, writing from Newmarket, where the Court was at this time, mentions Basil's return from France after a tour, in which he seems to have visited Turin and made the acquaintance of one Anthony Hales, with whom he afterwards kept up a correspondence. In one of these letters, dated September 1634, Hales sends him an account of Mazarin's visit to Turin, which 92 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON ends with a curiously prophetic remark : " The Vice Legate at Avignon and extraordinary Nuncio into France, Signer Massarini (Mazarin,), knowing that the Duke of Savoy would not be wanting to receive him in apparada, did shun it by taking post, as he drew near to this town, and meeting by the way (as it was agreed) the nuncio's coach, he did silently glide into his house by one gate, whilst our guards were sally- ing out to meet him at another. His audiences having been short and brief, as His Highness was pleased to tell me, there has been nothing handled of value. What shall succeed before his departure, I am promised to be made acquainted with all. Certainly this minister, if he will be able to manage his purple with that dexterity as he has done heretofore his spurs, we shall questionless see him a great man." In Hales's next letter he dwells on his anticipation of Feilding's visit to Turin on his way to Venice, and points out that there are " still brave ladies in this court, but those that were fairest in your lordship's time, as the fat Buxa, the dainty Chalais and the wanton princess of Masseran are married and gone away." Perhaps these allusions to the days of Basil's bachelorhood were hardly suitable, since he was now going to Italy as a bridegroom and a diplomat. But we anticipate. In 1633 Basil was mixed up in a quarrel which arose between the Earl of Holland and Lord Weston, the eldest son of the Duke of Portland. Weston, probably glad of an opportunity to give annoyance to Lord Holland and to the Queen, intercepted, on his way home through France, some letters directed to Lord Holland. Amongst them was a packet from the Queen addressed to a public minister in France. The contents. THE ADVENTURES OF BASIL FBILDING 93 as a matter of fact, were quite harmless, being merely an attempt at mediation on behalf of the Chevalier de Jarre. Instead of releasing the messenger, resealing and returning the packet, Weston brought the letter back and handed it over to the King. Lord Holland, indignant at such treatment, challenged Weston, who, in justification, pleaded the King's tharge. Holland retorted that such an argument applied only to such docimients as related to aflfairs of State, and that the private dishonour placed upon him must be revenged, adding significlajitly that he would be in Spring Garden at seven o'clock next morn- ing — Spring Garden being" then a common garden where the public walked. Portland at once reported the matter to the King, who forbade Weston to accept the challenge, avowing that since the act had been done for his service he therein, justified Weston against all persons whatsoever, saying that it is the duty of ambassadors to intercept and, at their discretion, open any packet sent from England to any foreign minister or person beyond the seas, when sudh packets have not allowance from the King or one of the Secretaries of State. The duel was planned to take place under the Lord Treasurer's windows, " where the father, the mother, the Lady Frances His Majesty's kinswoman, and the whole family might behold a son, a husband, and a brother either murdering or being murdered." George Goring, of the King's household, having made reflections on Weston's want of courage, Feilding challenged him to a duel. Here again the King inter- fered, and issued an Order in Council that, with refer- ence to a quarrel between Lords Holland and Weston 94 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON and Lord Feilding and George Goring, all the offenders were commanded to make their submission, he having resolved in future to prosecute all such delinquents. Holland forthwith apologized to Weston, aiid Basil, acknowledging his offence, appealed to the King's mercy and craved pardon. Goring, in his turn, apologized to Basil, saying he had no intention of laying any blame on Lord Weston for want of courage or for obedience to His Majesty's command. These facts becoming known, there was a great uproar at Court and in London. The public were in favour of Holland, and went in crowds to visit and condole with him. The King, indignant, confined him to his house, and forbade him to see any one till the excitement had died down. There is an amusing sequel to this quarrel in the anxious petition of one John Ashburnham that Lord Feilding should be pressed to pay a bill to the writer, who had just realized that, had Basil been killed, or, as he styles it, " miscarried in his duel with George Goring, there would have been no repayment, since no record of the debt existed." The following year Basil was not only appointed ambassador to Venice but married Lady Ann Weston, sister of Lord Weston and daughter of the first Duke of Portland, who, as Sir Richard Weston, had been sent some years before first as ambassador to Prague with Sir Edward Conway, and afterwards to Brussels. In 1624 he was appointed Treasurer of the Exchequer, and by his economies and abilities gained the confidence and approval of King, Parliament, and Buckingham. To the latter he owed the post of Lord High Treasurer, which was given him in 1628. Soon, however, the extravagance of the favourite brought THE ADVENTURES OF BASIL FEILDING 95 about a quarrel, and, but for Buckingham's death, Weston would have been displaced. The administration of the new Lord Treasurer, whom Charles then created Earl of Portland, contrasted advantageously with the waste and extravagance of the Government under Buckingham. But things, as the future proved, had gone too far under that reckless management for economy to save the situation. Basil Feilding and his wife left England in October 1634, and went first to Paris, where they were graciously received by the Queen, Marie de Medici, and were present at a Court ball. This ball his friend William Crofts, a court page, regrets having missed, since, writing on December ist, he says : " After having ridden post a day and a whole night to have the honour to kiss your lordship's hands before you left Paris, it was my ill-fortune to come one day too late. ... I found much speech of your lordship and my lady your wife, and as much good as could be, especially the gracious Queen to whom your lordship has an infilnite obligation and my lady too. . . . Some of the other cavaliers that danced at your ball did indeed not take so well, especially my Lord Hamilton whose dancing was not liked at all. There has since been another ball, at the three great weddings of Monsieur de la Vallette, Monsieur de Piloran (Laureno) and the Count de Guiche, who were all married in one day to three of the Cardinal's kinswomen ; where the Queen has con- tinued her favour to our nation in giving express order for the letting in of my Lord of Devonshire, my Lord Hamilton and my Lord Dobigny ; where my Lord Hamilton was taken to dance and everybody says hfe did acquit himself much better than before. They 96 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON were made to sup at the Cardinal's own table with him, and there treated with all the respect in the world." To his father-in-law Basil wrote that Lady Feilding " was safely and in perfect health arrived at Venice, after a tedious journey and such an extremity of weather as has never been known in these parts ; which incon- veniences she overcame with a courage above that of her sex. . . . Mr. Rowlandson has taken great pains in making provision for my house, making ready my gondolier and furnishing the rooms for receiving visits. As the furniture is hired of the Jews, who exact neaj: £ioo a month for it, I have made bold to take up monies to buy it outright and so avoid paying yearly a greater rent for the goods than their worth. I pray you do allow of this bill, as ' the merchants will never trust mie hereafter if once my bills 'be protested." Of Venice, Basil reported to Sir John Finet that : " Such was the barrenness or reservedness of the place, that it afforded nothing but what was impossible to be concealed, the preparations and noise of war. No man walked St. Mark's without naming France, Spain and their enmity, discovering thereby his own inclina- tions, in resolving which was the stronger." The young couple were barely settled in their new home when Lady Feilding was taken ill. The news of her illness reaching Turin, that Court, we are told, inquired continually after her, and condoled extremely with her indisposition, while the Duke was punctual in inquiring both after the manner of her sickness and what good physicians she found at Venice. But good physicians *or no, their skill was unable to save her. Some details of Lady Feilding's death are recorided in THE ADVENTURES OF BASIL FEILDING 97 the Venetian State Archives. Intimation of the event was brought to the door of the CoUegio, or Cabinet, and Giovanni Pauluzzi was sent by the Senate to the Ambassador's house to condole with him. Pauluzzi was received by the Ambassador in bed, in a little room on the top floor, which had all the windows tight shut. The room was in pitch darkness and only some of the suite present. Before being ushered into the Ambassador's presence, Pauluzzi reports that he had had some conversation with a member of the household who spoke Italian. This gentleman told him that on the previous evening, the 2 1st, the body of the Ambassadress had been con- veyed to the church of SS. Giovanni e Paolo, for Lady Feilding was a devout Catholic, like her mother. Lady Portland having brought up all her daughters as Catholics, while her sons, like their father, belonged to the English Church. The Ambassadress had fasted, we gather, most strictly, all through that Lent. The body was not embalmed, but remained intact, in obedience to the express wish of the deceased, though the Ambassador desired to have her heart to keep by him. The coffin was accompanied by priests with torches, as was usual, and followed by aU the English in Venice. The same chronicles relate that the Ambassador was in some doubt as to whether he could allow a public Catholic funeral for his wife. He therefore let it be known that if the Venetian Government would order such a funeral themselves, he would then be in a position to say that he had had nothing to do with it, never having been consulted ; while, at the same time, the King would probably be pleased at this mark of favour. 98 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Meantime, he and his brother-in-law contemplated re- tiring to Padua for ten or twelve days till his house and mourning could be got ready. The same day the Senate formally resolved to give the Ambassadress a public funeral, such as was cus- tomary in the case of Ambassadors representing crowned heads. The order of the ceremony decreed that all the clergy of Venice, the six Great Fraternities, were to attend ; the hospitals and almshouses were to send representatives, forty gesuiali, and forty sailors from the arsenal were to be present ; a funeral oration was to be pronounced ; the bells of San Marco were to be tolled thrice, and those of the parish frequently. But, when the funeral took place, and whether it was accompanied by all the above ceremonial is doubtful, as, at this point, the Ambassador begged that all arrange- ments might be suspended till he received an answer from England ; and the subsequent decision is not recorded. From Lady Feilding's death certificate it would appear that the Ambassador lived in the parish of S. Moise, and probably in the Giustinian Palace, now the H6tel Europa, which had been the residence of other British envoys. Many were the messages of sympathy sent to her husband after her death. Of them the following will show the esteem in which both husband and wife were held. George Lord Goring, bearing no malice over their recent quarrel, writing from Whitehall, says : " Your heap of sorrows are now so pressing as time nor persuasions can yet possibly give you the least ease. Expect me not now therefore in words but believe me affectionately watching to. serve you. . . , Your THE ADVENTURES OF BASIL FEILDING 99 wisdom must lay that way whereby you may direct your passion and remember that this is no abiding place ; we must on and away, and happy is those who finish their course soonest, so they prepare for it and be not surprised in it. Your lordship sees I now take the liberty of a father, the next shall be the duty of a servant, in accounting to you how we are all here." Mr. Chateauroux from Paris also sends condolences : " My affection and grief is multiplied both in the general loss of your noble virtuous lady, for the general lamentation of this city proclaim it, and in your lord- ship's particular sufferings, which I too well apprehend to be infinite. Sad news arrived here the day before Mr. Rhemes, but with some uncertainty, which we flattered ourselves with, until this morning, when he put us all out of doubts into a confused perplexity and trouble. Madam, yesterday espying Signor Rinaldo in the streets, called him to her litter, and examined him whether I had anything of it which I had not, but by the Gallettos ; and the like did the Marchesa St. Germain, as likewise many others who knew her, and frequented me. The Duke as I hear has been as inquisitive as any other, and all mourn and lament as for their most particular interest, both they and I comfort ourselves concerning her virtuous soul as already in happiness, and no less concerning your lordship in your wisdom and discretion, which will best direct you in accidents of this nature, and I doubt not (as I wish and pray from a faithful compassionating heart) but that the God of mercies, whom you have always served, will proportion your comfort to your loss." Basil's sentiments, at this period of his loss, are best given in his own words : " It is some comfort in my 100 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON great affliction to meet with such general com'plaints for my wife's unexpected death, which has rendered me of all others most miserable, so could I willingly entertain myself in the contemplation of my present unhappy condition, but that his Majesty's service, and in the next place the desire I have to satisfy the Duke's expectation, did not recall me back to the consideration of my duty, and the discharge of my conscience and honour, which I know is much engaged in the happy conclusion, or the handsome retreat from the difficulties I shall encounter in that business, in which you may tell the Duke [of Savoy] I have been vigilant and have proceeded as far as I dare venture." After his wife's death Basil sent home her attendant, Elizabeth Poulter, with her lady's jewels, to put them in safe keeping till his return. The Portland relations of the dead lady seem to have resented the fact of these jewels being handed over to Basil's mother rather than to them, and Poulter wrote an account of all this to Basil. As the letter gives a good picture of domestic conditions and feelings at the time it is given in full. " Right Hon»^=, — I humbly crave your lordship's pardon for this presumption but I cannot be satisfied until I am assured your lordship has received any of my letters. Mr. Bashford told me, when he came, you wondered 1 did not write. I must confess you had just cause to think me negligent and very ungrateful and dishonest. If I had not in all this time to my power given account of the great charge you were pleased to trust me with, but I am afraid none of them was delivered, therefore! beseech you be pleased to know THE ADVENTURES OF BASIL FEILDING 101 I have delivered them to my lady Denbigh for my Lord Treasurer being dead, I was uncertain what to do, but I thought it very fit to ask my lady's advice, which I did, and she commanded me to leave them with her, until I heard your pleasure, which she knew would not be to deliver them, but if you held your just resolution, my lady told me I should have them to present. And besides that it would much more oblige them, because they might plainly see they were given out of no ends but merely for true affection. These persuasions of iny lady and my duty and obligations telling me I ought to prefer your good before anything, made me resolve to do what my lady commanded me, so she charged me to be silent, which I do protest 1 was, for 1 did not speak, nor durst not think of speaking, because I had so faithfully promised my lady ; but whosoever spoke of it 1 know not ; for within a week or two it was all over the town, and the young lady Weston, who hears all news, came home and told it so much to my dis- advantage that when I came next to Roehampton every- body looked upon me so coldly that I wished myself at home again, for I perceived that I had lost all their friendships, but if I have done you service in it I care not and 1 know 1 should have pleased my dear lady better. " My lady Portland told me she heard I had brought jewels for them and she desired to know what I had done with them. 1 told her ladyship indeed I had brought over jewels and delivered them as you commanded me, but she did not greatly believe me, for the young lady had told her that I was expressly charged by you not to speak of theto to my, lady Denbigh, and more- over she told her that there was a present for [here several unimportant persons are -mentioned] besides 102 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON she does imagine, though she has small reason for it, that there is one for herself, but I have put them out of those hopes, for I did assure them there was no such matter ; my lady Mary, whom it concerns most, views me kindly still and I dare swear loves you, and so does all ye house, but there is some wicked body which informs my lady Denbigh so falsely against the family, which makes her, as she had just cause if it were true to be, much incensed against them, but you will do them much wrong to believe it ; for I know they love and honour your lordship so that they would not think an injury, much less to speak' such wild scandalous words as is reported they do. I need not repeat them^ for I make no question but you hear of it, for such news flies faster than letters. I told my lady Mary of it and she wept extremely and did pro- test she never had any such thought, nor nobody in the house she durst swear. As for my Lady Portland, when I related my dear lady's death to her, and the great affliction you were in, and the care you had of your spiritual good, she was so well contented, and prayed so heartily for you that she should ever love you while she lived for it ; and I know she does. If I thought they did not, I should hate them, and myself worse, if I were not the first that should give you notice of it. For you have been so noble to me that I should be the ungratefullest creature in the world if I did not, to my power, faithfully serve you. But your nobleness has gained me so many enemies, which spite me and do what they can to hinder me of the yearly allowance you have bestowed upon me. I have not received a penny of it, nor I know shall not, unless you will be pleased to confirm it with a command to them to pay me, for THE ADVENTURES OF BASIL FEILDING 103 they do not consider the great charge I lie at, as not yet being provided of a service. I daily offer you my prayers to Almighty God for your health and prosperity as your most obedient and most dutiful beadswoman, Eliz. Poulter" A postscript follows to say the family have, since she wrote, so found fault with her for giving the jewels to Lady Denbigh that she begs Basil to write and say it was done by his wish, "otherwise 1 shall suffer extremely for they are now so angry with me that I dare not look them in the face." Basil, evidently none too pleased, made prompt answer to Poulter. The draft of this letter, in his own handwriting, he filed with his papers. It is another evidence of his just and temperate treatment of the quarrels of others, even when he himself was aspersed. It helps one to realize why, in the stormy times which followed, he was always trusted by both sides as a man whose strength and impartiality were only equalled by his firmness and tact. " Mrs. Poulter, — Since your return to England I have received two of your letters, in both which 1 find the great injury my cousin Washington hath done you, to my great wonder and discontent. This enclosed letter to my mother will free you from all such false suspicions. Mr. Lake is earnestly desired by me to furnish you constantly with that small allowance which I can for the present spare you out of my poor fortune. But, be confident, I will not only right you against any that will go about to injure you, but likewise provide for you so as you shall not stand in need of other 104 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON assistance than what I owe you in memory of my dear wife and the service you did her. Concerning the jewels you must concern yourself, as you have done hitherto, till my return into England, where I shall dispose o^ them as I shall see cause for. But thus far 1 will dis- cover myself to you that I am the same man you left me, my resolutions the same ; that it is not in the power of my wife's friends to alter my affection and the respect I owe unto them for her sake ; nor can I persuade myself that any of them can speak or think to my disadvantage. If they do, I hope God will for- give them, who hath made me happy enough in the continuance of my lady Portland's and my lady Mary's good opinion, which, if I do perfectly enjoy, they will not hate you for being true to me, which I am sure you will not be weary of as long as I continue your most affectionate friend." Lady Feilding's father, the Duke of Portland, did not long survive her. Towards the end of his life troubles and jealousies of many sorts came upon him. That which first exposed him to public jealousy, Clarendon tells us, was the suspicion of his religion. His wife and all his daughters were Catholics, and though he sometimes joined them in their worship he was never thought to have any zeal for it. This latter contention is further borne out by the fact that he was one of the most merciless in putting the penal laws into execution against Catholics. Yet there is a further contradiction in the fact that he was a friend of Richelieu, a friendship which drew upon him the jealous dislike of Holland and explains much of the latter's enmity to Basil. Latterly he grew both haughty THE ADVENTURES OF BASIL FEILDING 105 and irritable. He would provoke the Queen and then inquire diligently afterwards of her attendants what she, in her passion, had said of him. He is credited with reporting these and other remarks of hers to Richelieu, whose plans were too often thwarted by her for him to do other than dislike her. As Portland lay dying Charles visited him and remained by his bedside " till His Majesty could no longer endure him breathing with such pain and dififi- culty, and so loud." Basil's home affairs at this time began to give cause for anxiety, and a relative, George Feilding, who was apparently managing affairs for him in England, wrote to Venice that, though he knew the loss of Basil's good lady whom he so dearly loved and also of her falther must needs add sorrow to sorrow ; yet these things must be daily expected among friends, and more mundane affairs not neglected in consequence. After dwelling upon several topics he relates that Katherine Buckingham, the widow of George Villiers, is married, " God send her much happiness with her choice," to Lord Douluse — afterwards Earl of Antrim — "and your sister my lady Desmond, is now suing a divorce of your brother, accused of that I have heard feiw Feild- ings guilty of, insufficiency to please a reasonable woman. They are in the High Commission Court." A little later he had cause to write more anxiously that Basil's affairs were not so well as he could wish. There were many creditors that suffered much for want of money. And now at this point they were the more clamorous because they had expected money and would fall short thereof. Some of the creditors threatened to sue Basil's bonds, others " clamoured " for, and others again 106 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON only " entreated " payment. He asks for an expression from Basil of anxiety to pay his creditors so that the writer might show it to them as occasion served, and allay the pressure of their demands. There is mention also of jewels, etc., pawned, which it were better to sell to discharge debts and a pithy admonition to Basil that if he will " exceed abroad and run yourself uppn ground like a careless pilot you will hardly find that there will come a springtide here to fetch you off." Against these claims for payment, we find it recorded by Secretary Windebank, among the State papers, in April, that £3,230 is due to Lord Feilding upon his account, whereof £1,000 is to be paid in ready money presently and £2,000 more out of Sir Anthony Roper's fine, upon assignment. The last word " presently " helps one to understand why Basil's finances were often so straitened and relief so. long deferred. Philip Morton, the English Agent in Turin, kept Basil well posted in affairs there, Turin being under the care of the Venetian Ambassador. In February 1635 he teUs his chief that Her Highness in a full Court had made many inquiries concerning him'. He recounts the visit of Walter Montagu, the Royal Chaplain, who, repudiating Calvinistic doctrines, had become a Catholic and afterwards an Abb6, and whose doings seemed to have caused some anxiety in Italy, since he is reported to Feilding by Pelegrini as " known to be a busy and extreme interested spy, which, per- adventure, your lordship may make use of." Montagu's connexion with Queen Henrietta Maria and his leanings to Catholicity gave rise to fears that he was intriguing with France, and, in Turin, he " con- tinued strong practices with France and labours by THE ADVENTURES OP BASIL FEILDING 107 way of the Queen [of England] and Duchess of Savoy to mix himself so up in business as to render his services and employment in a kind necessary to His Majesty." Morton considers that his practices with Mazarin " are fit to be observed narrowly." In December, however, Montagu left Savoy, and Lord Feilding is informed from Rome of his arrival there and of his intention in April "to go into the field " with the Duke of Savoy's army, news which must have caused the Ambassador no little anxiety, since he evidently reported it home. Secretary Coke sent him a verbal command to give what account he could con- cerning Montagu. Basil, as we find by a draft among his papers, replied thus early in 1636: "At the Court of Savoy his entertainment was very noble and not unequal to an ambassador's, wh^ch has been since likewise afforded him at Rome, where he is defrayed and lodged in the Cardinal Barberino's palace ; who, though as protector of our nation there, he be very courteous to all the English, yet has he not shown that height of respect unto any as unto Mr. Montagu. The cause thereof I know not, but, if the report be true, that he has instructions from Cardinal Richelieu to treat for a peace between France and Spain, this would be ground enough. I must confess his change in religion the more excusable if done because he might by it be rendered a more fit instrument for such a reconciliation." The Court of Vienna also desired in- formation as to the doings of Montagu in Rome, and asked Basil whether he was there with commission from the King of England, for sometimes they received advices in that Court from Rome of something that caused jealousies by reason that Mr. Montagu was 108 EOYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON held to be addicted to France, and that therefore there could be nothing done by him that was good for the Entiperor or King of Spain. In May, Morton reports to Basil that Montagu had returned to Turin, had had an audience of the Duke and intended to do as he had said and " go into the field with the army, discoursing of himself as a fighting man, not a spectator, on this occasion." In November the same correspondent announces, from Turin, that Montagu " has gone post towards England, having received from the Duke a present of a diamond ring valued at £800 and from Madame a jewel of diamonds in the form of a rose." We do not again hear of him in these papers till 1637, when Morton writes : "Mr. Montagu has here made himself the subject of a general discourse concerning the change of his religion, by his going to mass as the rest do, and I hear that since his coming out of England he has given account of his conscience to his father, and the reasons of his change." So he vanishes out of Basil's correspondence, to appear years after, in Paris, with Su Denbigh and the Queen. Basil, during his stay in Venice, was employed by the King and others to help them in the formation of many art collections in England. His letters give ample proof of his energies. There is one in April 1635 from Secretary Windebank at Westminster, in which, after some general instructions, he adds : "I am likewise commanded by His Majesty to let you know that whereas Daniel Niz, a merchant, has a cabinet of curiosities of great value, at Venice, deposited with certain merchants of Holland whose names are Vlop and van Noodon, that you do your best with that state, THE ADVENTURES OF BASIL FEILDING 109 that the cabinet be not opened but reserved closed till the return of Daniel Niz, His Majesty intending to buy it off him for his own use. His Majesty is very well pleased with your care and diligence and he has commanded me to signify to you this is aU the trouble I am to give you for the present. Only I shall take the boldness to add that in memory of my Sovereign Prince and, for your own goodness, I shall be glad of the honour of your lordship's commands and of being accounted your lordship's humble and obedient servant. WiNDEBANK " In the following November Lord Arundel and Surrey writes to Feilding, from Arundel House : " Noble Lord, 1 am glad to find my Lord Hamilton and others of our country incline so much to make collec- tions of matters of art, to which it would give so propitious a help, and 1 shall be the more glad to see England increase in them, because I grow so lame that I may have more use of my eyes though I shall have less of my feet, so with my wishes of all health and happiness to your lordship." The following letter is interesting in view of Basil's later connexion with the trained bands of the City and Finsbury ; and especially with the Honourable Artillery Company, in whose old regimental vellumi book his name appea,rs in company with those of Milton, Prince Rupert, and many other historical men of the time : — " October. — His Majesty vouchsafed the other day to honour the City with his pains — coming purposely from Hampton Court — and with his presence, standing two or three hours at a window in Cheapside, to see 6,ooo citizens march by, before him, armed and clothed 110 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON as richly and bravely as any companies of soldiers ini Christendom. They were after trained in Finsbury fields, did assaU the counterfeit fort there, but incon- siderately suffering the people to press in upon them, and one to take tobacco in the place where they dis- tributed their powder, a spark fell amongst it, blew up and burnt to death half a dozen, hurt as many that died soon after, and maimed and marked besides above fifty." CHAPTER VI THE TRIBULATIONS OF DOCTOR HARVEY PERHAPS the most interesting of all Basil's correspondents is Dr. William Harvey, the great physician. His letters, by reason of their crabbed writing, lay unread for years at Newnham, and were only recently brought to light. The son of a well-to-do yeoman, Harvey studied at Padua, where he became doctor of medicine and returned to England at the age of twenty-five. Four years later he became a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, and in 1609 went to St. Bartholomew's Hospital. Nine years after he began to lecture on his views and discovery regarding the movements of the heart and the circula- tion of the blood. Francis Bacon, the Earl of Arundel, and other distinguished persons were his patients. He was appointed Physician Extraordinary to James I. He appeared before a Select Committee in 1626, to inquire into the charges brought against Buckingham of poisoning James 1. When his opinion with regard to the poultice was asked, he said he had none to give as the " ingredients " were " not known " to him. Many other physicians were examined at the same time, some of whom were in attendance on the late King and many of whom evidently were not. The Committee arrived at the conclusion that the Duke's interference in giving ui 112 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON the King medicine and ordering plasters without the advice of the royal physicians was to be added to the Duke's charge as a " transcendent presumption of dangerous consequence." He resigned the office of Treasurer to the College of Physicians in order to accompany, by command of Charles I, James Stuart the young Duke of Lennox on his travels in Italy. They returned to England in 1632. In 1636 Harvey accompanied the Earl of Arundel on his embassy to the Emperor of Germany. He was so eager to collect objects of natural history by the way as sometimes to cause Lord Arundel no small anxiety for his safety in a country infested, by reason of the Thirty Years War, with robbers and brigands. In a letter written on this journey Harvey remarks : " By the way we could scarce see a dog, crow, kite, raven or any bird or anything to anatomize, only some few miserable people the reliques of the war and the plague, whom famine has made anatomies before I came." There is a letter from Lord Arundel to Windebank, in May, in which the writer mentions that " little Doctor Harvey " remained at Leyden with Windebank's son, to "prescribe the best course for his health." The illness, however, was but of brief duration, and a few days after Harvey was at Nuremberg, whence he offered to demonstrate to Dr. Hoffman his theories of the cir- culation of the blood. He was much annoyed at his failure to convince the old man. Passing on, through that " ruined desolate country of Germany," he reached Lentz, whence he wrote, on June 9th, to Lord Feilding, that here the Ambassador had his first audiences and that he himself had met with much hospitality. THE TRIBULATIONS OF DOCTOR HARVEY 113 He went twice or thrice a-hunting with the Emperor, and on one occasion saw " the killing of two deer, encompassed by a toyle in a little wood and so put forth for the Emperor and Empress to shoot with carabines," which they performed with " great dexterity." Ferdi- nand he describes as "a pious good man, desirous of all love, quietness, peace and justice." Of the warfare then being carried on in Germany he formed no exalted opinion ; it was a means of obtaining supplies by a " licence to prey and of oppression " rather than a " just and laudable war to establish peace." With the Count of Milan, major-domo to the Emperor, he " drunk hard " and passed many expressions of good-will. iWhile waiting for an answer to England's proposals, Lord Arundel and Harvey went to Vienna, where they visited the Queen of Hungary and the Archduke " and two very fine babies her children." Thence he went to Baden, near Vienna, " to see those baths where is bad pen and ink." He tells Feilding he much wishes to visit Venice. Then comes a silence of three weeks. We next find him at Ratisbon, having parted from Lord Arundel. Eventually he reached Villach in Carinthia, and we may suppose that he travelled by Munich, Inns- bruck, the Brenner, and the Pentzerthal. He passed into Venetian territory at Pontebba and travelled by Sacele and Conegliano to Treviso. Here, full of the anticipation of the pleasure of so soon seeing his friend and Venice, a most tantalizing and humiliating obstacle barred his path. His adventures and sufferings are best given in his own words : — "August 3-13. Treviso.— My sweet lord, I came this morning to the gates of Treviso with great joy, 114 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON and hopes this night to have had the happiness to have been with you at Venice, but I have received here a very unjust affront, being stayed and commanded by this podesta to have gone into the lazaretto, without any cause or suspicion alleged. I took my first sede under the seal of Ratisbone, a place free, and now destined, as your Excellency knows, for the meeting of the Emperor and all the rest of the princes, which if it had not been so, they would not have come thither, it being infected or suspected. Since, in every place as I came, I caused my sede to be underwritten, so that there is no ground for them to lay any suspicion upon me. And at this sentence upon me by the podesta (that I should go to the Lazarett) I absolutely refused and said and ofifered to show that I had the pass of His Majesty the King of Great Britain and of the Emperor's Majesty and of my lord Ambassador his Excellency, and that I had to go to princes and men of quality, and that my business required expedition, and desired they would not hinder me, but, as my passes required, further me and that I might not bring that suspicion and infamy on me, besides my own security, to go into such a place as lazaretto, where they used to put infected persons, and that I had shown them sufficient sede. Notwithstanding all this, here I am to lie for ought I see in the open base \_sic] fields, God knows how long. The podesta refuses to see or read my passes, and I cannot come at him to speak and use my reasons. I am afraid this lying in the field will do me hurt in the health. I beseech your Excellency to lament hereof. It is unjust to proceed with any man thus without cause and otherwise than Venetians are used in England or so merit to be used THE TRIBULATIONS OF DOCTOR HARVEY 115 here, and otherwise than is fitting for the respects there should be used for the passes forenamed. " I pray pardon this scribbling on the grass in the field, and procure with all expedition my freedom from this barbarous usage. Your distressed friend and humble servant of your Excellency." The next letter leaves him somewhat calmer : — " 1636, August 6-16. Saturday. — I perceive here by their behaviour to me how much your Excellency is pleased there to stir and labour for me, for yesterday after I had sent my letters to your Excellency, they sent some in a coach to me, as from the podesta, that 1 should go to the other place, where 1 was before (if 1 would) or that I should have here a bed, or that he would do for me what he could, to which 1 answered, that since it had pleased him with so much rigour and cruelty to inflict upon me the greatest misery he could and had brought so much infamy upon me as to put me into this lazaretto without any just cause, without any respect of the recommendations I had from my lord Ambassador his Excellency or from the Emperor's Majesty or from His 'Majesty my master, not so much as to read them or give notice of them in his first despatch to Venice, nor to make any difference of a servant of His Majesty the King of Great Britain, but by force and threatening of muskets to compel me into the very nasty room where the vitturin and his two servants and saddles lay, and not at my request grant- ing me a bed or any common scarce straw ; his offers were now unseasonable and like physic when a man was dead and that I had now hardened myself and resolved, since it had pleased God hy his hands to humble mfe so low, I would undergo it as a penance 116 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON and that I had written to your Excellency and hoped by your intercession within some few days to have release, and therefore determined to receive and acknowledge all my comfort from you and to trouble the podesta with no other request but that he would with all ex- pedition free me and show a respect to my master and my business ; and debating the business and urging them for a reason of a^l this and that it was unjust to detain any man and not show him the cause, or to receive a man into their territories and then imprison him, they should have denied me entrance at the first and then I had gone some other way, for they should have put those towns they suspect into their banns and then I had shunned them or make known at his entrance to every man what he was to do, otherwise this was to surprise and catch men ; and they know- ing not well what to answer sometime alleged that Villach was suspected, sometime I had not got my sede subscribed at Conian or Sacile, sometime that the vitturin had brought a boy with him, his son to get a master, whose name was not in the vitturin's sede, so sometime I was stayed for him, sometime (they said) he and his horses stayed for me. " Touching their suspicion, I answered, Villach took as great care and examined my sede as strictly as they could and had given me sede of their safety which they ought in civility to trust, and that the Duke of Alkalay (Alcala) viceroy of Naples with loo persons chose to stay here. And that upon bare suspicions of their own without any just ground, ought not to be thought cause enough, to use me in all respects as if I had the plague for certainty on me, and that if I had had it would they not have granted me in charity a house, bed THE TRIBULATIONS OF DOCTOR HARVEY 117 and succour for my money though all had been burned after, and I have paid for it. It was against all man- hood and charity. And for not having my sede sub- scribed in their own towns as we passed, they knew well I could come no other way from Pontevi and that they were all without suspicion and that I was told, and it was and is in every man's mouth there was no need, and that it was upon accident for our vitturin who should have directed us being strangers got his own sede subscribed at Connian, and for the horses we rode on, and did not tell us until it was too late, think- ing his was sufficient. But for all these cavils, I said the word of an honest man or his oath in this case ought to suffice. I write the larger to your Excellency of those passages because I know not what they may make of my conference in their letters that you may know the truth, and indeed my lord I am a little jealous of them, and to take any beds now of their sending, for since their manners and cruelty have been so shameful to me, and they have so little reason for what they have done, it would be like the rest of their proceedings if they sent me an infected bed to make their conjectures and suspicions prove true ; therefore I chose to lie still to be redeemed by your Excellency out of this innocent straw. Yesterday likewise the patron that owned the house whereat 1 first took my straw bed (a little poor garden house full of lumber, dirt, and knats, without window or door, open to the highway at midnight) was to offer me that ag'ain, because I had chosen that to shun the infamy of this lazaret and the suspicion I had that some infected person had lately been here, and from which they forced me with terror of muskets, I write this to show 118 EOYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON your Excellency that all they do here upon your stirring is but formal to salve their own errors. I tell them I desire nothing of them, or expect or will accept, but only beseech the podesta that I may be at liberty with all expedition, and that at last he will have respect to princes' recommendations and to my business : and now' as I am writing 1 humbly thank your Excellency, your servant is arrived and has been with me and is gone to the podesta according to your order. He will tell you of a trick to burn my pass and the injury they have offered me therein. '\When your lordship shall mark how tedious I am in writing I pray give it this interpretation, I have no other thing to do and infinite greedy to be gone, and that 1 scrible thus, in haste and the want of good pens and ink, etc. " If your Excellency goes to the College you may justly lament the little respect this podesta has given the recommendations I have from my lord Ambassador and His Majesty, or the business I am sent on, who would not so much as receive it and read it, being offered, nor send information thereof to Venice, nor make difference thereupon between me and the vittu- *ines servants, would give me no relief or assistance, not so much as a barn or stool free to myself but force that infamy, danger, suspicion and base usage of their lazarett upon me, not to suffer me to write to your Excellency until five or six hours past, that in the meantime he might procure an order from; Venice to countenance his act and injure mie upon tmequal relation ; and your Excellency may justly resent that the despatched to you and the business of yours should be thus used and not upon your letters released and that you may THE TRIBULATIONS OF DOCTOR HARVEY 119 have that respect therein which is due, and that I may have reparation and testimony for the burning my pass and for the clearing me of the suspicion and infamy of having been in the lazarett, and my unjust stay, and that I may have again my sede to make appear to the world wheresoever I go that I am clear, or else that I may have a full sede from this state. If they make difficulty of my coming to Venice, 1 pray that I may have sufficient sede from hence and I will go by Padua to Florence and see your Excellency as 1 return. I pray pardon me from propounding this to your Excel- lency who knows better herein what is to be done which I doubt not but you will perform, that I may be free and we rejoice together hereafter ; and in good sober truth I fear lest this ill usage and base place and the unquiet of my mind may not bring some sickness on me this extreme hot weather therefore I beseech, etc. Your Excellency's humble servant." His later letters are full of the discomfort of the situation and his fear that the anxiety and uncertainty of his position and the lack of good food bring upon him other evils, such as sickness due to the " extreme hot weather," or even the dreaded plague. .We find his fears realized and an- attack of sciatica come upon him which makes him lame and deeply discourages him, so much so that he is convinced the authorities have a hidden reason for keeping him. On the eleventh day of his detention he inveighs loudly against " the injury, deceit and juggling " which say " that to-morrow, and at night, and to-morrow, and shortly " he shall be released, and yet do nothing. Barely had he recovered from his sickness when he received " a heavy message " from the Senate at Venice that he must wait for further 120 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON orders. When he asked how long, he was answered seven or ten or twenty days ; at which he grows very angry, remarking that if they had onjy told him this earlier he would have gone back to Villach and thence to Gorilla, where he would have taken ship and been long before at Rome or Florence, and even to Venice, have seen his friend the Ambassador and transacted his business ; whereas now they threaten so to delay hirh as to make it necessary for him to return at once to England. In this strain the unhappy doctor poiurs forth his woes, quoting argument upon argument to show the validity of his pass and the obstructiveness of the officials. He ends by asserting that he never longed for anything in all his life so much as " any way and on any condition to be gone from this base place and barbarous people," fearing lest he should become sick and they " cry " him " into the plague," keep him, cheat him, and tyrannize over him, heaven only knows how long. This is the last letter from Treviso, and we may conclude that he was shortly after released, for the next letter is written three weeks later from Florence "and shows him in a happier mood. He had evidently just visited the Ambassador, for he thanks Feilding for all the favours received at his " being at Venice," and tells him that since he came to Florence he had enjoyed much contentment with health and mirth. The Grand Duke had received him with great courtesy, favour, and respect ; talked often long and familiarly with him, presented him with fruit, fowl, wine, etc., gave order for one of his coaches to attend the doctor wheresoever and whencesoever he went abroad, showed him himself many of his rarities, would have given order for a galley to have carried him from Leghorn to Naples, and when he THE TRIBULATIONS OF DOCTOR HARVEY 121 thanked his Highness for his affection and love to His Majesty and his affairs, said there was nothing in his Court or power that was not at the King of England's service, seemed to love and honour him very much, was very inquisitive about him, his health and welfare, customs and virtues. Harvey sent one short letter to announce his safe arrival in London, and to thank Lord Feilding in grateful terms for all that had been done for him, and here the correspondence ceases and we hear no more of the choleric little doctor in direct communication with his friend the Ambassador. The march of events separated them as it did so many in those days. CHAPTER VII FOEEIGN AFFAIRS ARUNDEL had not returned from his mission to Vienna when Hamilton, writing on the affairs of the Palatinate to Basil, remarked it was probable that at my Lord Marshal's return there would be new resolutions taken in the affairs of the Palatinate, since he had departed from the Emperor's Court with- out receiving any satisfaction, adding : "As to home business, that of the shipping was most in the thoughts of all which is like to go more smoothly on than many did expect, to the no small content of His Majesty and all those that wish the prosperity of his affairs." He urged Basil to give up his employment as ambassador, saying that he had already in it made known his ability to the King, and had so " enabled " himself that he had not much more to learn in his service as ambassador. " What cause have you to despair of employment at home? Your own industry is great, your friends hearty and real, your master well inclined towards you ; and this I have often observed : that when any placfe becomes vacant they have seldom been conferred upon absent persons. And lastly you will do well to take in consideration your own condition. You are the only hope of your house, for in your posterity consists its happiness, your brother being almost past 132 FOREIGN AFFAIRS 123 possibility of having any, and though you be not yet old, yet certainly it is not unseasonable for you to be think- ing of a fitting match, and not to let precious time glide away, which is not to be recovered." Basil's correspondence during his embassy is full of information on all kinds of subjects, and goes far to show how thoroughly he kept himself in touch with all that was going on around him and how often he was consulted as an authority on men and matters. At the risk of wearying the reader by so many quotations, some extracts are selected from the mass of family papers belonging to the Ambassador's term of office in Italy. In the spring of 1637 a fresh minister, Giustiniano, was sent from Venice to Holland, and Sir William Boswell, then English Ambassador at The Hague, wrote' to Feilding to obtain some information concerning the new man " that he might fit himself unto him as occa- sion might require." All know how Giustiniano came later as Ambassador to England. It would be gratify- ing to know what Basil's opinion was of him in those earlier days. Having seen Buckingham's difficulties at home Ln obtaining supplies for the English fleet and army, and Denbigh's embarrassments therefrom, it is interesting to read the contemporary comments made by John Finet, on later developments, to Basil in February 1638:- " The annually continued levy of ship money — the best employed that I think ever has been seen for our country's honour and safety — has so distracted many of these patriots (as they would be held and called) both great and other, not of the meanest quality, as divers of 124 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON them, to take up (which is their word) and go less, not only in their diet but retinue, have discarded some ten, twenty (and some great ones forty and fifty) of their least useful servants, which, forced to live of their own nothing, that could hardly do it of other's some- thing, seek it out in highways, woods and plains, twenty, thirty, and forty of a fraternity (whereto they make themselves bound by oaths and articles). But the hand of justice having lately hold on eighteen or twenty of them, they begin to lessen, and the highways to be more secure for honest passengers. In the meantime those great ones and other that are judged to be the cause of these men flying out by their taking up (as I said their word is), will be taken down when they shall know that now, within these two days, all the twelve judges of the land assembled have subscribed to one joint opinion, that, for the safety of the kingdom, the King may lawfully cause contribution towards setting forth of ships without giving farther reasons for it, or to that purpose." One of the Secretaries of State at this period was Wjndebank, appointed by King Charles in 1632 in succession to Lord Dorchester. His senior colleague was Sirjolm Coke. These two frequently took very divergent views. Coke was an ardent Protestant, while Windebank's appointment was mainly due to his Spanish and Catholic sympathies. Windebank, Lord_ Portland, and Lord _Cqttington formed an inner group in the Council, and with their aid the King carried on various secret negotiations, especially with Spain. In 1634 Windebank was selected to discuss with the Papal agent the possibility of union between the Anglicans and the Catholics. FOREIGN AFFAIRS 125 Early in 1637 an episode occurred which made some stir at the time, for it is mentioned in several places besides the Newnham papers, from which alone it is necessary to quote. We find Windebank writing to express the King's indignation at the affront put upon Lord Feilding in the arrest, by Venetian officers, of persons to whom he had given sanctuary in one of his out -lodgings. Basil's official account of the episode is as follows : " The Doge at my last being at audience did not forbear to say that he did believe His Majesty was so affectionate to the Republic, that in such emergent cases which did imply reason of state he would not be dis- pleased though their ofificers should enter the house of his ambassadors to lay hold upon such offenders. I answered that they had received great testimonies of His Majesty's affection which did now only serve to render this injury more heinous and intolerable. And that it was His Majesty's pleasure that his ministers should comply with them, as it did become the respect and observancte which they did owe to so great a king, to ask his leave, or the consent of his ministers, before they could resolve to act so great an injustice, though in cases of the highest consequence, which the present business now in question could never be raised into, adding withall that the honour of the King my master could never rest secure in the person of his ambassador where such dangerous maxims were held contrary to the law of nations and the practice generally received amongst the most noble and greatest nations." Windebank approved of Lord Feilding's resentment of the affront, and upheld his demand for reparation, saying : " It is true that in some cases of treason, as 126 EOYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON direct practising against the person of any prince, or conspiracy for the subversion of a state, no ambassador's house, no not his bedchamber, ought to be a sanctuary. But on the other side, either to make crimes treasonable which in themselves are not so, or to deny privilege in lighter offences, as that of bella conversatione, otherwise blasphemy, or to restrain the privilege to the mansion house, or the personal residence of the ambassador, and subject his out-lodgings to slavery, is in my opinion against the law of nature's reason and common humanity, and is, in plain terms, to deny any privilege at all to them. Howsoever, because princes and states cannot take notice of offences given to them in the persons of their ministers, without public resentments, which train with them consequences very dangerous. Ambassadors have reason to be very cautious in taking offence and most of all in making protests, unless the injury be of a high nature and done with high malide and a purpose to give affront. These circumstances your lordship, being upon the place, can better judge whether they concurred in this particular, than any here at this distance. But your moderation and prudent in- offensive carriage, in all your other actions, make us all who are well affected to you here, confident that unless you had found a high malignity in the business you would not have been carried to such extremities." The above letter is dated April 1637. But amongst Basil's papers is the following private one from the King, giving him much fuller powers than Coke, through Windebank, had sent him. The letter runs : — " Feilding, you will receive directions from Secretary Coke how to carry yourself in this business of your ami^ cy,^ru /7^iv~e^' A' ta^Ki o/ficc OiMAf (rj^a^'di HOLOGRAPH LETTER FROM CHARLES THE FIRST TO BASIL FEILDING, AT VENICE FOREIGN AFFAIES 127 privilege as ambassador, to which I will add that if It were possible to accommodate this business without diminution of my honour in your person, it were very fit at this time, considering the conjuncture of affairs, wherefore 1 recommend this business to your serious and dexterous care ; and by this give you power to take or accept any way of accommodation that you shall judge honourable, though it be not mentioned in Secretary Coke's despatch and so 1 rest, " Your friend, " Charles R. "St. James' " 27th March 1637." Charles must have been a difficult master for his Secretaries of State to serve if he often went behind their backs and gave such plenary powers to their . subordinates. Though the matter continued to rankle, an evasive apology of some .sort was evidently sent, and doubt- less a luckless scapegoat provided on whom the blame could be laid. The affair seems to have been managed and settled by Basil without damaging his cause either with King or Secretary, for in June William Midleton, an examiner of the School of Charterhouse, writes : " I have pre- sented myself to others, of whom I was received the better for your lordship's sake. Secretary Windebank and my Lord Cottington are very really your friends, and none, that I can hear, your enemies. The way of France, as now, is more prevalent. My Lord's grace and my Lord Keeper [Coventry] are observed usually to concur, especially at Star Chamber. We are together 128 EOYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON by the ears about altars, and the greater opposer of them is my Lord Bishop of Lincohi, whose cause has now been heard twice in the Star Chamber, and it is thought after his censure, we shall have no more of him." The battle of rubrics evidently waged as fiercely then as now. In his despatches Basil relates how, on one occasion, a criminal flying from justice took refuge at the Embassy, upon which a great crowd gathered there and demanded the man. The Ambassador, considering the refugee's conduct both " heinous and execrable," thought him unworthy of his protection, so sent liim away in the ambassadorial gondola " to some street where he might shift for himself." The Republic chose to consider this an affront, holding that the Ambassador should have given the man over to the authorities and not have " sent him away as it were in triumph, in my gondola." The Doge, however, told the French Ambassador that he considered the intentions of his British confrere had been very good, and sympathized in his misfortime in having such an infamous person offer himself for protection. With this the Frenchman agreed, and the Doge offered Feilding satisfaction should any further trouble arise. The accounts of the bribery and corruptions in an " affair of justice " given in these despatches are not edifying, and the mediation of the Jews seems to have been frequently sought to bribe the judges. In the autumn Feilding sent home a horse as a present to the King. John Reeve wrote to him, from London, an account of its reception : "I caused the horse to be brought into the park where my Lord Chamberlain and your mother came first to see him FOREIGN AFFAIRS 129 and after he had viewed him with a great deal of admiration he swore a loo times that he was the best horse that ever was in England, saying that he was a coursier of Naples and worth 20 gennets and that if a merchant had brought him over and offered to sell him, he would willingly have given £300 for him. Immediately after the King came and after he had touched him in every part and saw him walk and trot, he did extremely admire him, and swore above 20 times that, by God, he was the finest and the bravest horse that ever he saw in his life, saying likewise that he was no gennett, but a coursier and better than any gennett and going up the park stairs he said (that everybody might hear him) by God there had not come so brave a horse into England in his memory, and Mr. Church telling him that he was bigger than any of those the King of Morocco had sent him, the King answered that they were not to be compared with this ; and my Lord Chamberlain rapping out half a dozen oaths, said that he was worth them all. I accompanied him to the mews, and Mr. Fontene ordered a groom and place for him and, instead of Gonzaga, calls him Bay Feilding." Though Basil was so far away from England his interests were well looked after at home. The Marquis of Hamilton, his brother-in-law, wrote to him fre- quently. Indeed, there are sixty of his letters at Newnham, mostly written while Basil was ambassador in Italy. Many of them are about the pictures Basil was commissioned to buy in that country. Hamilton, writing from Windsor, July 17, 1636, to Basil, remarks that he has given his brother-in-law's letter to the Secretary of State, who spoke very warmly 130 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON of Basil, saying he would always remember him grate- fully : a sentiment the genuineness of which Hamilton apparently doubted, for he added, " Which if he do, it is well; and if he do otherwise it imports not much." Not only pictures but other objets d'art were desired, for mention is made of an amethyst cup, of which Basil had told the King, " but the price is so great we dare not think of it." Interwoven with these matters are reports as to Basil's own affairs, Hamilton in one letter telling him that the Secretaries will write to him how he is to behave on a certain occasion. But that he may know how the King is inclined towards him Basil will see by a few private lines which His Majesty had given to Hamilton to enclose secretly. To this his correspondent adds : " You have not lost one whit of your Master's favour hitherto ; " and again : " You are happy in our Master's good opinion lately expressed both in public and private." In 1637 Hamilton repeats that, despite all the ill turns which the Secretary of State seeks to do his brother-in-law, the King holds him in no less favour. He goes on to state that if certain large pictures by Paul Veronese are not extraordinarily great and of his best manner, they are exctessively dear, he being a master " not very much esteemed here by the King and so consequently by few else." All the same, Hamilton wishes to have the pictures, if they please him, at any price, though he be " not very rich." In the mean- time Basil is to buy and haste home the hundred and fourteen already agreed for. " As for the Swede King's crown," which Gustavus Adolphus wore when killed at the battle of Leitzen, and which a certain Lieutraiant- Colonel " braggs to have taken," Hamilton does not FOREIGN AFFAIRS 131 believe in it, since, had it been his, the Emperor would have bid most for it, as he gave a considerable sum for the bufif coat that the King was killed in. And again, on another occasion, he relates how, when he had given two of Feilding's letters to the King, His Majesty had so dwelt upon his approval of his ambassador that Hamilton could have " written a large discourse on what he said, but it is not necessary, since it is all contained in this one word that you are an able young man and one that serves him with integrity." When Hamilton received a further despatch and showed it to the King, also reading him the copy of a letter Feilding had written to the Secretaries, " none of them being there," the King was so pleased therewith that he told Hamilton to notify Feilding to that effect at once, as the official approbation would probably be longer in arriving. There are many more letters in this strain, and still more about art treasures. From thsse we glean that Hamilton grew very puzzled as to which pictures recommended by Feilding were originals and which copies ; also that there were few in England who esteemed or appreciated statuary. Hamilton himself was willing to spend £1,500 on the pictures and statues, but found the King, having seen the note of De la Nave's collection, was so extremely taken with it that he had charged Hamilton to buy it all, and even advanced some of the money for it, on the understanding that when it came he was to have first choice. Therefore, Hamilton explains, the pur- chase-money should not be limited to £1,500, but might run to £2,000 sterling, since have them he would. He emphasizes his and the King's desire thus: "Let them 132 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON not go by you, for I am resolved to have them. The sooner that you conclude the bargain the better it will be ; for my Lord Marshall has heard likewise of them and that they are to be sold, and is resolved to proffer money for them, which will spoil our bargain, if not prevented by your industry." In a later letter he relates why he is so anxious, and recbunts the Lord Marshal's desires and methods in pursuit of the same quarry : " There is no doubt to be made that the prices are to be enhanced by the procurement of my Lord of Arundel who has a great mind, as I am certainly informed, to have both La Nave's collection and likewise the piece of Raphael, which I have heard him say is one of the rarest in the world. The way that he takes to procure them is by his agent Pettie, who does weekly give him advertisement of all pictures that are to be sold, the prices of them, the owners' names and those that would buy them. So, if he like any, he gives directions to Pettie to make great and large offers on purpose to raise their prices, by which means the buyers are forced to leave them and the pictures remain with their owners, he well knowing that no Englishman stayeth long in Italy, nor you long to reside where you are. So, con- sequently, the pictures must fall into his hands and at his own price. Pettie being (always) upon the place and provided with money for that end, there being no other competitors with him for them, and thus he hath served a many in divers places of Italy. But though he has enhanced the price of those pictures he shall not have his end, for albeit I am but indifferently addicted to them, yet whatsoever they cost I shall not want them." He mentions, in his next letter, that he has engaged himself to procure them for the King, who he thinks FOREIGN AFFAIRS 133 at last will have a collection to satisfy him. Ten days later he grows very nervous lest his offer should have come too late, the pictures be sold, and the King's money be advanced to no purpose ; so he begs Feilding, if he cannot get those particular ones, to get him some others. A thousand ducats more or less is not to be considered. Basil is to send a note or inventory of them, as the King " lacks several masters and would be pleased to find them in his gallery." But above all he is not, on any account, to be disappointed, as the King would be very displeased if they did not come. Then, after a long disquisition on various artists and their pictures and styles, comes this postscript : " I must add this one word. I am now much more desirous of rare and curious pieces, though there be but a few of them, than a multitude of ordinary ones, for of the latter 1 have already many, and could have more in this kingdom, but, of the former, there is none to be had for money, nor have I any." A little later Hamilton thanks Basil for having " ended for the pictures so much desired by me. Now it is done, I must tell you I would not have missed them for triple what it has cost." When at length they reached England the King insisted on being the first to see them, which gave rise to fears that he meant to take away the best before Hamilton arrived in London. Hamilton's friends therefore proposed to secretly remove the best before the King saw them, but Basil's friends persuaded them to the contrary, urging that should the King see only the less good ones he would very naturally have but a poor opinion of Feild- ing's taste, and cease to employ him in future. So all the pictures were shown to the King. Reeve, at the same time, reports to Basil that Walter Montagu was 134 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON sending home a consignment of pictures which were due to arrive about the same time, should they escape " the casting away at sea," which the Hghtening of cargo often necessitated in stormy weather. In Hamilton's letters we obtain glimpses of the King's life, of his lying so late abed that there was no time to approach him before his setting forth, or of his spending the greater part of the day hunting, " after our accus- tomed manner," when at " Lindhurst in the New Forest." From other letters it is evident that Hamilton was closely watching Feilding's interests at home. On November 3, 1638, the King resolved to send an extraordinary ambassador to the Court of Savoy. Hamilton wrote off at once to Venice that : " The man whom most of the Junto pitched upon was the Lord Conway, and he best liked by His Majesty from whom the motion of sending an ambassador came. All this was in a manner concluded before I came to the know- ledge of it. Master Secretary Windebank was the first that told me of this resolution. I was struck with it, and inquired the reason that another was made choice of than yourself, seeing that not only by your commis- sion you was sent to that prince but your employment extended to all the princes of Italy." He further ex- plains how he was then told that it was thought an ambassador not then in Italy would appear of more importance. " Notwithstanding of what I had heard, I resolved to speak to His Majesty myself which im- mediately 1 did and so far I prevailed that he acknow- ledged there was reason for what I said, but would not at that time alter his resolution. . . . That same day the business was agitated at the Junto, and they concluded FOREIGN AFFAIRS 135 that, if His Majesty so thought fit, you should be there employed. His Majesty told me that was his opinion, and that there was no doubt to be made but that his wife would be of the same mind, which indeed proved so, for upon my offering of your service to her and expressing the desire of your friends that she would be a means that no other might be employed to her sister but yourself, her answer was full of respect to your own person and to your family, joying much that there was an occasion offered she might show her affection to you, which has been royally performed on her part. So, not to trouble you further with the relation of the business, with the unanimous consent of the Junto, the earnest suit of the Queen and His Majesty's oivn in- clination, you are nominated for that embassy. I will not enter into the particulars of your new instructions to that court, or how you are to leave with the state you are now in, but remit that to the Secretary ; only this much for the present I will urge, sending an express with the procuring of as much money as I can for your transporting, and, when you are there. His Majesty has promised you the despatch of his business in that court. It shall be in your option if you will return there, or come home for England and, in the interim during your absence from that state, your assistant is appointed one of your secretaries, or whom else you think fit to remain there. I would have written more particularly concern- ing this, but that Coke the Secretary has promised to do it to the full." There came a letter from Windebank, by the same messenger, in which he announces that the King has chosen Feilding to be ambassador extraordinary to the Duchess of Savoy, adding by way of gossip that the 136 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON noise of Feilding's cousin, the Lady Newport's render- ing herself a Roman Catholic is not yet quieted, nor the distaste the King and State have taken at it passed over, but it is probable it will awaken the State to take some strict course with those of that party for the prevention of like scandal for the future. On its heels came a more official letter from Winde- bank saying he is sorry to find " matter of new dis- tastes," the nature of which he does not mention, between Lord Feilding and the Venetian Government, and that " they are so rigid in their ways as not to distinguish between accident and design but to punish both alike. . . . But your Lordship's moderation appears the more, and I hope this shall be the last encounter you shall have with a Republic. You know your instructions for Turin, which I have mentioned in some of my later despatches, are coming to you by an express . . . for your Lordship's coming away absolutely from Venice is now clearly resolved by His Majesty." And, a little later, came the letter alluded to, signed by Charles and dated November 14th, giving Feilding orders to go to the Court of Savoy — the Duke, the King's brother-in-law, being lately dead — to condole with the King's sister-in-law the Princess of Savoy and the young Duke, her son, and while thanking them for past favours, ask their protection for British traders at Venice, as heretofore. The following January Reeves wrote to Feilding : "I hope my proceedings will be satisfactory to your Lord- ship, since my discovery of Secretary Coke's evil inten- tions towards you hath produced, by my Lord Marquis his power and complaints to the King, so notable a redress and reparation in obtaining you new credential FOREIGN AFFAIRS 137 letters with the title of Legatum Extraordinarium, which your Lordship will receive by this post from Mr. Secre- tary Windebank, without the knowledge of Mr. Secre- tary Coke ; whom my Lord Marquis did so reproach before the King (as I am informed) as I know not how Mr. Secretary will digest it. Some have told me that it will be well if he doth not come to know that 1 was the discourser, though Mr. Weckerlin (with whom I keep a fair correspondence) hath told me since (though contrary to his first relation) that it had been decreed at the Council table that you should have no other title than Legatum only. I have tried to get a copy of your credentials from him for Secretary Windebank, from whom all forms of this nature are kept, as much as can be, by the said Weckerlin to render himself the mone necessary, but could not do it without giving some jealousy ; however Mr. Read assures me they will be as advantageously written as possible, so great a care and love hath Secretary Windebank of you and to your honour." In after days Feilding had cause to remember this trait of a King who for the second time acted without consulting his ministers. To the Court of Savoy, at Turin, Feilding went in 1638. The political situation there was complicated. In 1629 a French army, under Louis XIII, had forced the passes of the Alps, and the reigning Duke, Charles Emmanuel I, was made to sue for peace. The follow- ing year he died and was succeeded by his son Victor Amadeus I, who, in 1619, had married Marie Christine of France, eldest daughter of Henry IV, and sister of Queen Henrietta Maria of England. By this alliance the Duke managed to regain most of his territory. 138 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Upon him, in 1631, Richelieu imposed the treaty of Cherasco, whereby the fortress of Pinerolo, and with it the entrance to Piedmont, was secured to France. Richelieu looked upon this as a triumph. Savoy as a national humiliation which must at all cost be removed. In 1637 Victor Amadeus died, leaving a son, Charles Emmanuel II, a child of three. His widow became Regent under the title of Madame Reale. She naturally inclined towards France, and for many years French influence dominated the Court of Turin. It was there- fore a post requiring some tact to which Feilding was appointed. Hardly had he arrived than Winde- bank wrote him of a possible promotion, saying he believed the employment in France might shortly become void, perhaps before Feilding's time at Turin would be ended, and asking if he had any inclination to continue in His Majesty's service in foreign parts, " that place being the most eminent and of nearest consideration to His Majesty of any abroad, may not perhaps be dis- agreeable to your lordship, as I am sure your monarchical and noble spirit is most fit for it." But nothing further came of the idea, and .Winde- bank, in his next letter, carefully makes no allusion to it and merely remarks : "I wish your lordship more contentment in the employment you are now entering upon than you have had in the Republic, which I no way doubt, knowing it more noble and monarchical than the other and consequently more suitable to your disposition and spirit. His Majesty likes your notion very well of taking the Duchess of Mantua on your way to Turin, and performing those offices and professions of friend- ship to her in His Majesty's name . . . therefore by Her Majesty's commands your lordship is to make that FOREIGN AFFAIRS 139 visit in your passage accordingly. I am exceedingtly glad your lordship is quit of that republic with so much satisfaction." Though Basil hoped to be sent to France, and he and others believed the King was willing to grant his desire, he was doomed to disappointment. The reason, never clearly given, is hinted at in a letter which George Vernon wrote to him from London in May : "1 have told your lordship in my former letters of the ill offices done you here by that Coimt who was the cause of the King's altering his first determination to settle you in France. . . . Mr. Church and I have been this morn- ing soliciting Secretary Coke once more to get your lordship's bill of extraordinaries allowed of. He promises to give them despatch, but 1 much doubt we shall not get the whole. My Lord Marquis [Hamilton] is suddenly to repair to Scotland, but promises to see your affairs finished before he goes. My Lady Marquis your sister's death has delayed them. Signor Rittano writes asking an absolute order from the Marquis [Hamilton] how he should dispose of his pictures, who immediately went to the King to ask if they should be sent upon the currant ships. To this the King would not consent, but commands me to desire Rittano to keep them till they can be sent upon some other ship coming direct to England." The story of the Marchioness of Hamilton — Basil's sister alluded to above — is a sad one ; she was in early childhood the victim of the customs of her times and of Villiers's passion for marrying his relations to members of the old nobility. When she was but seven years old a marriage was agreed upon by the King, Buckingham, and the Marquis of Hamilton, between the latter's son 140 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON James, aged fourteen, and Buckingham's niece, Mary Feilding. The boy was therefore br-ought to Court, thus interrupting his studies, a loss he bitterly regretted in after-life. The King and Denbigh in due course desired that the young couple should live together. James Hamilton objected, saying he did not care for the lady, and that she was much too young. The King, however, insisted, and Hamilton " was forced to it, not without great aversion," and in consequence " he lived with his lady for some years on no good terms." His father died when he was but eighteen. Finding the estates in great disorder, by reason of his father's "magnificent nobleness" in the manner of his life at Court, young Hamilton retired with his wife into Scotland, where he devoted himself to his own " private concernments." There it was that " her excellent; qualities did overcome his aversions into as much affec- tion as he was capable of ; land it was no wonder, for she was a lady of great and singular worth and her person was noble and graceful like the handsome race of the Villiers " ; a description which her portrait by Vandyke at Newnham fully bears out. Indeed her charm is denied by none, and she is always described as most amiable. She was lady of the bedchamber to the Queen, treated with every confidence, and beloved by all. She was brought up at Court, and, despite its none too strict morals, not a word of scandal was ever breathed against her. A devoted wife, she used to say " she had the greatest reason to bless God for having given her such a husband whom, as she loved perfectly, she was not ashamed to obey." At the end of four years Charles I, whosfe chosen friend and playmate Hamilton had been from MARY FEILDING, MARCHIONESS OF HAMILTON FROM THE PAINTING BY VANDYKE FOREIGN AFFAIES 141 childhood, refused to tolerate his absence any longer. Denbigh was therefore despatched, with a personal letter from the King, to offer him the post, fallen vacant by the death of Buckingham, of Master of the Horse, and to insist on his return to Court. This " earnest and noble message," brought and enforced by such a bearer, could not be refused. It is observed of Hamilton's reception that, then and after, " the King used him with so much tender kindness that his carriage spoke more of the affection of a friend, than of the power of a master, and that none had more of the King's heart than he possessed." A year before she died Lady Hamilton fell into consumption. Sending for her children when she knew her end was near, she bade them farewell and denied herself the pleasure of again seeing them " lest it should distract her thoughts from heaven." She died at Wallingford House, Charing Cross, May lo, 1638, and was buried at Westminster Abbey in the same vault as her grandmother, Mary Countess of Buckingham. She " left her lord a most sad and afflicted person." It was well for her that she died when she did, rather than live through the troublous times which lay before her husband. A year before his wife's death Hamilton wrote to his brother-in-law, that the King was quite determined no one else was to have the appointment to Turin. \^^en the Ambassador was " put to extraordinary pains in writing his despatches " by reason of the death of one of his secretaries and the absence in England of the other, his parents and Hamilton sought for a suitable secretary to send abroad. One Rowlandson, hearing of this, approached the King, hoping not only to be 142 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON appointed secretary, but to obtain Basil's place in Venice during his absence in Turin. Ha:milton, however, reported that he had most effectually prevented this, by making known Rowlandson's ordinary boast " that he wore St. George on the one shoulder and St. Mark on the other, which certainly will make him an unfit man for the employment." The following year Basil fell ill. On his recovery he was bombarded by Hamilton with further letters about the pictures. In April 1638 Hamilton reported to Basil that the Duke of Savoy had sent a letter to the King and Queen complaining of the English Ambas- sador's carriage since his arrival. As far as the writer could gather from the Queen, the chief points, or " par- ticulars, was manie," but the chief she could remember were that Basil did ever show a discontent since coming into that territory, that he misliked his entertainment and lodging, and did not consider himself respected as became the ambassador of so great a king : that what troubled the Duchess most was that Basil refused to treat with the person whom she had appointed for that purpose, and that the reason given had been " his being too frynsh." Hamilton had begged the King and Queen to suspend their decision till such time as would bring them Basil's own version of the affair. To this they had consented, and Hamilton begged his brother- in-law to be careful, lest he lose not only the Queen's favour, but also the King's, who might be led to con- sider his ambassador " a man too much addicted to making mistakes with those to whom he is accredited." He points out that it is a woman to whom Basil is sent, even though the Duke, her husband, be the one mentioned in his credentials ; since the King really has FOREIGN AFFAIRS 143 not sent an ambassador there for reasons of State but rather to honour his sister-in-law, " therefore certainly no punctilios are to be strictly stood on." The way to rectify all this, Hamilton continues, is easy ; Basil has but to shun mistakes, to show interest in the affairs of the Duchess and, " in place of recriminations, quiet all that is past," thus showing the Queen that he wishes to serve her sister. Thereby he will not only be con- tinued in their Majesties' favour, but their likings be increased towards him. To which is added a postscript that nothing can be done in the matter of preferment till all this is smoothed over, and a request that pardon be given " for my freedom in writing this, for love is the cause thereof." This advice seems not to have reached Basil in time, for, a month after, there is another letter from Hamilton mentioning that the King is infinitely displeased to learn that his " ambassad " has advised the Duchess to con- tinue her neutrality, arid that it had been resolved at the Junto to recall him. On Hamilton's representing how much this would prejudice Feilding, the King had consented to allow him to return to Venice after a little longer stay at Turin. This solicitude Hamilton acknowledges is largely due to his feeling, in his recent and irreparable loss, that had his wife, Feilding's sister, been alive he could have done nothing more likely to please her. He ends by praying " to God, that sorrow may never come so near your heart as it is for the present to your most affectionate brother." Basil's endeavours to straighten out the tangle in the affairs of Savoy does not seem to have met with great success, for, in May, Windebank tells him that his carriage towards the French and his propositions 144 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON made to the Duchess of Savoy concerning neutrality have been ill-taken, especially by the French, and aggravated by others, as great disservice to the King. The King, however, has been appeased, "and you are to tell the Duchess of Savoy that what [you] formerly delivered concerning the neutrality was but a private advice of your own without commission from the King." Seeing the difficulty of explaining matters from such a distance, Basil despatched John Reeve to lay his case before the King and the Secretaries of State. John Reeve arrived in London in June, and wrote to Basil that he had gone very early to Greenwich one morning, where he understood the King was. He learnt there from Mr. Church that Hamilton and Denbigh were in Scotland and that Su Denbigh " knew nothing of what had passed of the King and Queen's displeasure." Basil had entrusted him with a letter to the Queen. This was to be given first to Su Denbigh to read, so that she might determine whether it were too long to give the Queen, in which case Windebank was to be asked to read it to her Majesty. Remembering this. Reeve felt " freed of any error " he might now commit in showing the letter to Windebank. So forthwith he sought the Secretary of State, and after having " passed such cere- monies with him as were convenient for the time and conjuncture," he acquainted him with his mission, and laid before him the Ambassador's case. Reeve relates that Windebank received him " with a great deal of civility, more than I should expect, assuring me that my arrival was most joyful unto him, and most season- able for your honour's affairs." Then, taking him on one side, the Secretary of State told him all that had passed concerning the King and Queen's displeasure FOREIGN AFFAIRS 145 against Basil, and of the resolution the King had taken to recall him, till, upon Hamilton's entreaties, " which were incessant," he had consented to overlook the episode. Moreover, that since the arrival of a courier from the Duchess the King and Queen had been quite satisfied with Feilding, " and the Duchess had writ very nobly of you to them both " and that the despatches had come most seasonably. The letter to Susan Denbigh would not meanwhile be delivered. Another interview with Windebank followed soon afterwards in which Reeve related the difficulties which his chief had had to contend with. Windebank owned that Feilding "had had a hard pull and: a difficult employment," but thought he should have passed over, rather than have complained of, " some neglects in your entertainment and reception which concerned only your own person." Reeve promptly replied that his master complained of nothing but of " that which concerned the King's honour, of which you were so jealous, as you would not pass by any neglect which should be committed to the prejudice of it." Windebank replied that " something of that also might be winked at rather than incur and bring upon you the displeasure of the Prince you reside with. Which answer struck me dumb and left me without a reply." Reeve >vas assured, however, by the Secretary that the King remained very well satisfied with Feilding, and that all were convinced he was restored to the royal favour. So successfully did Feilding and his friend^ play his cards in this matter, that, far from being sent back to Venice as a failure, there is proof to the contrary in the family papers in the copy of a letter sent by Charles I, in June, to the Duchess of Savoy, sympathizing with 146 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON her in the new difKculties into which she is plunged by her enemies, praising her generous resolution for the defence of her children and estates, and assuring her of his friendship. He further adds that his ambassador, " the Baron Feilding " (who, as she wishes it, is to continue with her) will more fully signify his desire to serve her. At the same time Windebank wrote to Basil further explaining the matter. Their Majesties, he said, in consequence of a message from the Duchess delivered to them by the representative of Savoy in London, fully realized that she and the Ambassador had arrived at a better understanding, and that she desired Feilding should continue at Turin. In England, added the Secretary of State, all were very well satisfied with him — especially the Queen, who had given it as her opinion that matters had been aggravated and misunderstood by the Duchess and her ministers, and that she, the Queen, was more than ever confident of Basil's good affections towards her sister and her sister's affairs. This letter was accompanied by one from Secretary Coke saying the King desired Lord Feilding to continue at Turin, though he had at one time resolved to send him back to Venice. But Basil, though he remained on for awhile, seems to have determined to leave. In September he wrote to Windebank : " The complaints the French ambassador has made against me, shall not divert me from seeking what, if known, might give him new cause of distaste, if His Majesty can gain any advantage from my endeavours, my opinion being firm that when we shall have made use of all our allowances for the restitution of the Palatine, we must still have recourse to the easiest and surest way of recovery. I FOREIGN AFFAIRS 147 mean the King of Spain. . . . >Wherefore my zeal and devotion to His Majesty's service would not suffer me to let pass a fair occasion which was offered >pie to entertain a secret correspondence with the Marquis Leganes, who is very ambitious to crown all his actions which have been very prosperous for such a glorious work." A little later he writes to Windebank that he is glad to find he concurs with him in the unfitness of his stay in Turin, which he is every day more confirmed in, by the ill proceedings of the ministers. The other night his coachman was " clapt up in prison by the spirt^j" merely for being without' a light, and he only got him out "after great contestation." He explains that he does not wonder at the insolence of the under officer when he is told, from a very good hand, that Count Philips has written to a friend " that if His Majesty did not shortly remove me from hence, I should receive in my usage such distaste, as 1 should not be able to stay out till the last and certainly, were it not in obedience to His Majesty's commands I could not this long have seen with patience the disrespects done me, as these here are glad to assure the French of the Duchess's undervaluing any other protection but theirs. ... It may be doubted that this comedy, by the violence and indiscretion of the actors, may be drawn out into a tragedy, wherein I have so ill and dangerous a part to play as I heartily wish, if 1 may not be thought fit for the employment of France, that I might return to serve His Majesty in those quiet and calm seas at Venice, till a more favourable wind shall carry me to more active service." There are other letters less serious, and less political 148 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON in tone. Amongst them one, from Percy Church, relat- ing the visit of Marie de' Medici to England. The King travelled in state to meet Marie de' Medici at Harwich, and escorted her to London with as much cere- mony as if she had been of great account in her own country. Yet, if the truth be told, she was but a fugitive in distress, hunted from country to country by Richelieu, who originally owed all to her favour. Church's account has it: "The Queen-Mother is hourly expected. My Lord Admiral, my Lord Goring and the Controller, being already gone to expect the landing. The King and Queen intend to meet her at Rochester. Upon Monday last the King, waited on by the lords and the rest of his court, went from hence to Chelmsford, and next day to Marlsham to Sir Henry Mildmay's where the Queen-Mother had been lodged the night before. She met him below stairs in the hall, near the screen, led by my Lord Goring, where, after that the King had bowed towards the heta of her gar- ment, then rising towards her hand he kissed her, who held him a great while upon her neck without speaking to him. At last she told him that had not they told her that he had been the King she should have known him, the picture she had of him was so like him. The King answered her that notwithstanding her many afflictions, which might much impair her health, she looked better than any of those pictures had been made for her these many years. She replied that all those afflictions were nothing, now since she had the happiness to see him. She then asked him to go up to her chamber, but he answered that he was come to wait of her to her lodging and that therefore, if she was ready, she might taJke coach, which she then did, and so the King brought FOREIGN AFFAIRS 149 her that night to Ceddes Hall, and retired himself that night to Chelmsford. The next day being Wednesday, he went again to her to bring her to London, his rich coach being there ready, into which entered first the Queen-Mother and placed herself at the end of the coach next the horses. The King sat in the boote, the Duke of Lenox in the other boote with his hat off, and two French ladies at the other end of the coach whose names I cannot tell. Then waited on His Majesty all the lords with the officers and gentlemen of the Court, the pensioners and guard, all the messengers and trumpeters. At Aldgate my Lord Mayor met her, and the Recorder in his and the city's name made a speech to her, and, as I hear, she was then presented with a gold cup (or gilt over) fuU of gold. Then was placed, from Whitechapel to St. James's, men in arms standing on one side whilst on the other, betwixt Aldgate and Temple Bar, were placed all the companies of the city. At St. James's in the yard the Queen, the Prince, and the rest of the King's children met her, to whom, she, as soon as she was out of the coach, the Queen humbled herself to the ground, but before she was jret on her knees the Queen-Mother took her in her arms and kissed her often, in which action her hood fell off, which she taking up, returned again to kiss her daughter who could not speak for very joy, her colour going and coming very often. So after she had many times saluted the Prince and Princess and the rest of the Children they went up to her lodgings where the Queen by the actions of her hands seemed to make great expressions to her mother of joy for her arrival. She received our great ladies who came to kiss her garment with great reservedness, as the Queen had foresaid that 150 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON she knew she would ; and after that the King and Queen had stayed an hour with her they, returned to Whitehall, leaving her with her own company at St. James' which are reckoned in all to be about 300, all of them in very great wants. This morning the Queen sent early to invite her, and what allowance she, hath from the King I cannot hear as yet. . . . Sir John North and Sir Henry Knollys are now deadi, and Sir .William Cornwallis possesses the former place, for whose death the King is very sorry in that he wants a good chess player to keep him company at the sport." The same writer mentions that Basil's mother had but indifferently overcome her grief for the death of her daughter. Lady Hamilton, and is again in fresh trouble, as Lord Hamilton's eldest son lies dangerously ill of a malignant fever. He urges Basil in his "next lines " to give her some good consolations concerning the " mortality of those children," they all being both weak and sickly. "My Lord Marquis arrived at Oak- lands on Saturday last, and is, notwithstanding his grief for his boy, suddenly to go back again for Scotland, where your lordship's father now is." While Feilding was at the Court of Turin he left the Embassy at Venice in charge of Sir Gilbert Talbot, who kept him posted in all the local doings. Early in Janviary 1639 Talbot notified tio his chief that he had acquainted " the Prince " with the news of Lord Feilding's intended return to Venice, the Doge having expressed much pleasure at the information. A little later Talbot reports that the College has expressed its pleasure at the same news, and adds : " It is very generally believed that you are in the town already, incognito. The French Ambassador is much busied to FOREIGN AFFAIRS 151 discover it. I answer doubtfully, to all that ask me, to confirm them in the opinion. Here is a she masquera very like you, and that it is which deceiveth aU men. I intend to bring her into your lordship's palco [his box at the theatre] to make their error the more complete." Feilding meantime was evidently taking to heart the exhortations of Hamilton and seriously thinking of a second wife. Percy Church had urged Basil to make him his agent towards a certain Mrs. Wutton, as he presumed he might be able to give some satisfaction in the matter, adding, " If affections differ not 1 consider her most fitting for your lordship, her estate of £150 a year being considered, and her mother's darling, who as I am informed may make her £500 per annum better than her sister Stanhope who is sunburnt." John Reeve had written to him, before the poor husband was even buried, that : " Two days since my Lord Bayning died and hath left behind' him a rich and handsome lady. For other particulars of that nature I shall have something to say unto your lordship at my return." The desirability of this match was, we may take it, laid more fully before Basil in the following January, when Reeve further reports: "Mr. Church will tell you what has been done in your behalf by your mother and sister with my Lady Bayning. You have for rivals Mr. Russell, whom his father offers to estate in £4,000 a year and get him made an earl; my Lord Grandison, and my Lord Herbert my Lord of Worcester's [error for Pembroke's] son, with many others, but these are the chief. But the general dis- course is of my Lord Marquis [Hamilton], though he 152 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON doth absolutely abjure it and hath proffered all assist- ance in your behalf, but hath not yet performed any- thing, which augments that suspicion. I did hope long ere this to have been with you to have brought you home to have tried your fortune amongst the rest," adding that if he cannot come he will do his best for him in London. We may suppose that the widow was already known to Basil since Lord Baynham was a friend of his so long ago as 1636, when he wrote to him in terms of friendliness. However, finding that he had failed to secure Lady Baynham, and attributing it possibly to the handicap of his absence, Basil must have decided to come home and do his own wooing, for he made but a short stay in Venice. Leaving Sir Gilbert Talbot in charge, he came to England in May. He seems next to have had thoughts of approaching Lady Carlisle to beg the hand of her niece. His sister Elizabeth writes to tell him how " my Lady," their mother, had met with a letter Feilding had sent to Elizabeth, " and, seeing there was more than one [letter enclosed] opened it thinking she had had one, but find- ing none, read mine, where she found that which you would have had me conceal, and would not let me give the letter." She goes on to relate that they had reason to praise their " mother's wisdom for the preventing a very great affront " which he would have received in making a proposal to Lady Carlisle for her niece's hand, since the lady was to be married shortly to Lord Spencer, a very rich man. Elizabeth owns she would have been very sorry the lady or her friends should have known of Basil's intention to her, " being certain that no merit in parents' eyes can balance with riches," and hopes the wounds inflicted on her brother's heart FOREIGN AFFAIRS 153 were not so desperate as he describes, adding that, if they were, " they were so suddenly made it is their nature to be as suddenly cured." His choice eventually fell upon Barbara, the daughter of Sir John Lamb, the Dean of Arches. She was a young lady who had many suitors. But her father does not seem to have thought they sought her for herself alone. He had his own ideas as to the disposal of her hand. In 1633 Sir Thomas Windebank wrote to him that he knew no woman on earth he admired more and presumes the honour Sir John did him in vouch- safing him the sight of his daughter was to this end. Neither this project, nor that of a union with " Lady Duncourt's son," came to anything, since the young lady had plans of her own. She had fallen in love with Lord Wentworth, the eldest son of the Earl of Cleveland, whom her father in 1637 describes as a fool, and with whom she owns she corresponded with- out first showing her letter to her father. Sir John goes on to comment on what he terms her more serious business, an offer from a young nobleman whose estate was much encumbered. This is possibly Lord Feilding, whose father had not yet been repaid the large sum he had advanced for the expenses of King James's funeral. Sir John complains that, in an interview which Barbara had with this suitor, her conduct had not been according to her father's previous instructions. The subsequent progress of the matter remained in doubt. Sir John being only anxious that if it came to an end it should seem, not as if the lady had been rejected, but as if she and her father had "found it not fit to go on." Negotiations in the case of Lord Wientworth got as far, however, as the drafting of suggestions for marriage 154 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON settlements, but do not seem to have got much further. Sir John began to favour Feilding's suit more strongly, while Wentworth's ardour grew cooler. In June 1639 her father urged Feilding's case upon Barbara in ^this very characteristic letter : " I perceive my Lord Feilding has been with you ; he is a noble worthy gentleman whom Lord Wharton has told you of before, so that he came not altogether unexpected to you ; but to like or dislike 1 leave to your own choice which ypu will do. Well not to defer too long, lest you stay to be refused and the scorn of those who now desire you. For Lord Wentworth, you know it is broken off, with your own privity, and I shall account you lost if you have him. 1 hear that my lady his mother said that he had no great liking of you himself, but to give his father content. And my Lord of Suffolk said this to me, that Lord Wentworth, as was avouched by a noble lady, had a letter or message from you, or perhaps from your comrade, to come down to marry you ; but he swore he would not do it, and slighted you, as was said, with scorn enough. And indeed the common talk now is of your forwardness, 1 do not say fondness, and his backwardness and refusal. Consider well of it ; it is not fit you bear both scath and scorn : my heart will not endure it I Let no man fool you with hope of altering of my mind for that shall not be, 1 am used to keep my word ; nor with expectation of my death, for that is worse. Those that lay their devices to be performed upon my death, I may perhaps see them dtead while I live ; and it will ill befit you my daughter to lay your groundwork upon any such foundation, for 1 can soon settle my estate otherwise and so deceive the deceivers. Cunning ways are but to cozen yourself. FOREIGN AFFAIRS 155 Your best reliance, I believe, will be upon me ; other trusts will fail and you be exposed to the scorn of the world, and before you think of it. I have borne much so long as you deal plainly and truly with me ; but underhand letters and secret devices 1 cannot like. I am too old to be gulled at this age ; you may cozen your- self, me you shall not. ... A word more, touching upon your marriage, time wears away with you. Assure yourself the greatest part of the respect had of you is in relation to me and my estate. If that were to be settled otherwise, you will find a present alteration, do not fool yourself to think otherwise. Take time while you may. Lord Wentworth must acknowledge your exceeding love and constancy to him, beyond measure, beyond reason, even to the near hazard of your utter ruin by the dis- pleasure of your father. It breaks not off now on your part, nor your father's but by most unreasonable terms on their part. . . . What can be expected more of you than what you have done and endured for him? . . . if you will follow your own way you shall soon find that I will follow mine. . . . God send you His grace and me more comfort. Your loving Father." However, some passages of rather more than ordinary intercourse seem to have passed between Barbara and Lord Wentworth, for Barbara replied to this letter of her father : "I have no extreme desire to stay on for many causes, and I am so troubled that I shall not be well until I am with you. There have been many pro- fessions and promises passed betwixt Lord Wentworth and myself, which I beseech you to forgive me, that I would gain, if I could come off quietly and honestly from, before I enter into treaty with any other ; but I would not have Lord Feilding know so much. For 156 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Lord Wentworth, being at Chelmsford, I cannot answer, because I am not certain. But for the other, if all the lords and ladies in England say it, yet will I assure you, out of my duty to you, I do not intend to marry him. I beseech you that you would not be distrustful of me, for then I shall be afraid ever to marry for fear my husband learn of you to be jealous of me. ... I do not doubt but you have heard tales enough, which, when I come to town, 1 shall show you to be false." Yet the lady's aversion and indecision seem to have been easily overcome, for it is reported on August 19th of the same year : " Lord Feilding was married' this day sen'night to the sole daughter of Sir John Lamb and will have by her in land and money at least £50,000." Having found the wife he had come home to seek, one would expect to see Basil returning with her to Venice. Such, however, was not the case. Perhaps he had found, while at the Court of Savoy, that Sir Gilbert Talbot could manage Venetian affaiils as well as himself, or perhaps matters at home were too engrossing to be left. Be the reasons what they may, Basil never returned to Venice, though he remained its English Ambassador till 1643. From this time for- ward, the news thence was duly transmitted to the absent Ambassador by Sir Gilbert Talbot. Extracts are given here from amongst these papers of Basil's, since they illustrate the times, and contain allusions to many things relating to Venetian and other affairs. We realize the sufferings of prisoners, as we read the account of a Dr. Turner's son-in-law, who was brought upon a galley to Venice and of whom Talbot says : " I petitioned the Prince for the performance of his FOREIGN AFFAIRS 157 promise for the poor man's release, and lest he should be shifted upon some other galley as formerly, I desired that he might be put in the school galley at St. Mark's till the debts pretended were proved due, which I undertook should be punctually discharged. The Prince told me that as soon as the copy of the dacale should be found, the slave should be sent me. ... In the meantime the Secretary assures me that he is seques- trated by the Signori dell'armamento, that he may no more be sent out in curso; but as yet we cannot find the copy of the ducale, on which his life depends." Some months later we are informed of the poor man's release, thanks to the help and importunity of the British Ambassador's representative. At the beginning of 1640, Talbot relates a curious prophecy, sent to Cardinal Barberini, that in that year Rome shall be without a Pope, Savoy without a Duke, Bavaria without an Elector, and Constantinople without an Ottoman. The Pope had become very much indisposed, and his " chiefest disease is melancholy," increased, it is thought, by the above prophecy. " The Grand Signor may easily verify his part of the prophecy by reason of his sudden and severe change of diet, for, having not long since fallen into a dangerous surfeit by excess of wine, he hath made a solemn vow never to drink more, and hath caused all his vessels of that use to be broken." The Sultan did die during the year, whether by reason of his excess or his sudden temperance history does not relate. The fulfilment of the remainder of the prophecy never came about. At the same time P. Morton reports from Turin, that matters there are not very satisfactory, nor peaceful, and that the city and citadel seem weary of the fruitless 158 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON expense of their cannon and fireworks, and^ appear to use them "only to publish that there is no peace," and he believes that there is a tacit truce for the bomboU, which have not by many degrees answered the expecta- tions roused by them. They produce strange effects in the houses where they break aright, yet he hears not of three persons killed by them, which in so crowded a city " seems to have in it more than of heedless fortune or humane providence." The shrewd comments of Giustiniano, now Venetian Ambassador in London, in his letters to the Republic upon English affairs are well known. Talbot, by some means, saw one of these letters at the time when the Little Parliament had assembled at Westminster, and remarks on it in a letter of his in April : " The Venetian ambassador hath sent him hither, in this week's letters, a prognostique of the disagreement betwixt His Majesty and the Parliament House, which he buildeth upon the power which the Puritans have already showed in swaying the common votes in the election of knights and burgesses, and withall he addeth that not any one who accompanied the King into Scotland ai'e made choice of for their delegates." In the next letter the Chargd d'AflEaires writes that " Sir George Pierro was with me this week to desire a favour as from himself, but told me in confidence that it was the request of the Republic. The business was that the Duco de Parma was expected daily at Chiozza and the Republic employed him to borrow some fair silver plate to entertain him, whereupon he desired your lordship's. I answered him that your lordship had locked up most of your plate at your departure ; and that howsoever it would not stand with the reputa- FOREIGN AFFAIRS 159 tion of the Republic, or your lordship, that your arms should be seen there, but that it would be thought that the Republic had borrowed or that you had sold." The writer speaks frequently of the impatience of the Republic at Lord Feilding's prolonged absence, and more frequently still of the pecuniary embarrassments of the English Embassy at Venice through the failure of remittances from the Government. " Those of the Monte in Padua (where your chain lies engaged) give me notice that if I do not redeem it within the allotted time they shall sell it. Your lordship will have time to redeem it if you send a supply upon sight of this, but if the least delay is used, I cannot prevent their proceedings. There are many expenses which fall on me in your service which I cannot defray ; I pray you to consider me and your own honour here, which I am not otherwise able to support. The patron of your ^palca [at St. Luca] has seized it and will not deliver it up till he be paid the last two years' rent. I told him you are upon departure, and that he shall suddenly be satisfied, but, in the meantime, it will be a dishonour to you if he dispose of it to any other. He exclaims publicly of the wrongs done to him, and will hearken to no reason except money. The same man has disposed of the French palco to the resident of Florence, without giving any notice thereof to the French King's Secretary, which he understanding, entered the palco the two first nights of action, with a full company well-armed, and keepeth ever since possession of it. I hear the College hath examined the matter, and given it to the secretary." Lord Feilding having, in England, rescued the Venetian Ambassador to the Court of St. James from 160 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON some position of danger, Gilbert Talbot writes that he has seized the opportunity to fill the town with the fame thereof. The good fortune is wonderfully well taken by all men, and indeed it was not proper for any man but his lordship's self, the writer being confident that it will " endear this state very much to you if you return." Gilbert also relates how English vessels have been captured, as spies, by the French, and released, by his ofifices, through the English Consul. He harps again and again upon the chain which he has no money to redeem. On another occasion the subject of hjs letter is the case of the master of an English merchant ship who has detained from his crew more months' wages than was ordinarily permitted for securing their ser- vices on board ship. Again, the vessel Reformation has lately come from Spain, " where, by his [the captain's] tyrannical usage of his men and refusal to give them their due pay, sixteen of them forsook them at once, and are all turned catholics, so that besides the loss of so many souls His Majesty loses so many subjects which are (missed when there is any occasion of sending a ^eet to sea, and in the meantime these men enter into other princes' pay, who, when they have occasion, want not guides to bring them into any of our own ports." There is a newsletter in which Sir Gilbert says he hears the following from England through the Duke of Savoy : " That the King arms more for fear of the Parliament than for anything else." Lord Feilding had warned the writer to take heed how he communicated with Secretary Wiadebank, who was of late gained by the Queen, and not to trust Mr. FOREIGN AFFAIRS 161 Morton. In another letter Talbot owns that Lord Feilding is not in the good opinion of the Queen (although his mother be near Her Majesty, yet hitherto she hath not had the credit to bring her son in favour, but in the end it is likely he wiU be gotten to do what the Queen pleaseth). That the Queen's party is very strong, and although the King should take a resolu- tion to declare war against France for the just resent- ments he may have and the wrongs received from the French King, yet the Queen's power is such that if she condescends not to it, her opposition is such as to annul all His Majesty's designs. From these letters we also glean that the King is of nature so inclined to peace and so given to ease, drowsi- ness, and slothfulness that for what wrong soever he may receive from France and Holland, yet His Majesty is not like to take any notice thereof in manner to seek revenge. In July Sir Gilbert reports that the " Venetian Ambassador in England wrote to the Senate, the last week, that the Parliament has set a guard upon His Majesty that he should not stir out of London. My Lord, it is a pity to hear how His Majesty's honour is torn by every mouth, those that most favour him' compare him to a Duke of Venice. I could wish the Parliaiment were rightly informed hereof if it might happily work any good." And in August: "The Venetian Ambassador hath written hither this week that England was an absolute republic, that both their Majesties had guards set upon their persons, and much more to this purpose." In November Sir Gilbert complains of the in- subordination of Lord Feilding's servants at the 162 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Embassy, especially of one Dick Middleton, " whose boldness is begot by some letters which he receiveth out of England, as himself professeth . . . that our Government [i.e. the King's] will not last long, which maketh me think I am grown to a very low competition." CHAPTER VIII ENGLISH AFFAIRS WHILE matters were pursuing their leisurely, if impecunious, course in Venice, events were hurrying in England to a tragic end. We cannot wonder if Basil's thoughts were more occu- pied with them than with the ambassadorial duties waiting his return to Venice. The Short Parliament, called in 1640 by King Charles, in the hopes that, by playing off the English against the Scots, he might gain popularity for him- self, had failed in its object by reason of Pym's having pointed out that it were better to settle English grievances first. Charles dismissed the Parliament he had siHnmoned, and determined to carry on the war with Scotland without its aid. But here again he was doomed to disappointment. He could not wage war without money or troops, and his subjects were more hostile to himself than to the Scots. So he hastily made a truce with the enemy and summoned the Long Parliament in Novem.ber 1640. This Parliament was bitterly indignant with the King, but, as was the custom, threw all the blame on his ministers. Went- worth — now Lord Strafford — and Laud were impeached and sent to the Tower. Though Charles had given his word to Strafford that not a hair of his head should 163 164 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON be touched, he deliberately sacrificed his minister to save himself, and Strafiford was beheaded the following year. Meantime Parliament, while agreeing on lines of general poHcy, always quarrelled over matters of religion. Consequently, feeling through the country ran very high, and differences of opinion were many. Nothing remains to show the time at which Basil first began to find his convictions pointing towards the Parliamentary party. We have seen how, though he was first sent from' the Republic of Venice to Turin on account of his " monarchical " sympathies, he soon gladly came back to the Republic. Perhaps it was the latter which proved to him all unconsciously that he was more democratic than his friends thought or he had hitherto realized. After his return to England he seems gradually to have drifted towards the Parlia- mentary party. This attitude of his was a source of great anxiety and distress to his mother, whose s)Tiipathy, affection, and gratittjde all tied Tier to the King's party. We may guess at the arguments and discussions which must have passed between mother and son by the tone and substance of the following letter : — "My dear Son, — 1 was very glad to receive a letter from you, but when I found how little my persuasions had wrought upon you I was much afflidted. Methinks you spoke Mr. Pym's language, and I do long to hear my dear son Feilding speak once again to me in the duty he owes to his Master and dread sovereign, the master of your poor afflicted mother, banished from the sight of you I do so dearly love. Let me entreat you look back upon me and on yourself whose ruin surely ENGLISH AFFAIRS 165 I see before my eyes. All that is here does more wonder at you than at all the rest, your fortune being but weak, and the many obligations you and your best friends have to the King and Queen. I hear my Lord Paget and many other lords are going to York. Oh that I might be so happy as to hear you were gone too. Let my pen beg that which, if I were with you, I would do upon my knees with tears. If you will come hither I know the Queen will make your peace with the King, but that I leave to you, though I do not think it would be a very good way. You will, I do believe, be left [a word illegible here] all, and were it not better to do it in some reasonable time to my comfort and your own good. The King is now in a very good condition, and doth daily grow better, his people being every day more and more his. Do not deceive yourself, he shall not want men nor money to do him service. All good men begin to see how he hath been abused, and none are imdeceived, and 1 hope you will be amongst them. I want language to persuade with you, though I do not love and reason. There- fore for the Great God of Heaven's sake let me prevail with you. Do not let me be made unhappy by you, my dear son. I have suffered grief and sorrow enough already, let me reap comfort from you in this action. Remember it is a loving mother that begs for the preservation of her eldest son. I hear my Lord of Holland is gone to the King. I hope the next news it will be you, and so with my blessings to you, and my daughter, I take my leave." The year before Lady Denbigh and Lady Killigrew had pressed upon the Queen a plan for raising money 166 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON for the King's war chest. Henrietta sent to all the great ladies, " as well wives as widows," asking them to contribute out of their allowances toward the charge of the King's army. All the Court countesses were expected to give £ioo apiece towards the £10,000 hoped for. The Queen undertook to give largely to augment this sum. Of the amount raised no record remains. The quarrel between King and Parliament still dragged on. The King in 1642 accused Pym of treason, since he had published the Grand Remon- strance, in which were recounted all Charles's mis- deeds since the beginning of his reign. Charles went down to the House of Commons at the beginning of the New Year to arrest Pym and five of his friends for treason. They were warned, and escaped. Charles, to avoid seeing the five members brought back in triumph to Parliament, left London .at once. Both sides began to prepare for the war which seemed inevitable. In February the Queen went from Dover to Holland, taking with her her own and the Crown jewels with which to buy munitions of war. This journey had originally been planned for the previous year, Henrietta announcing as its reason that her health needed the benefit of the Spa waters. She had arranged, as we learn from a letter of the Queen of Bohemia, to visit The Hague in company with her mother, Marie de' Medici, taking with her only the Duchess of Lennox, Lady Denbigh, Lady Savage, no maid of honour, and " no lord but Dorset." The visit, however, never took place, since Parliament rightly guessed that some other motive than health lay at the root of this journey. ENGLISH AFFAIRS 167 In 1642, however, the difficulties seem to have been less, for the Queen went over, as already related, to Holland, nominally for the purpose of escort- ing thither her daughter Mary, the bride-elect of the young Prince of Orange, and of paying her deferred visit to the Spa waters. Her real object being, as we have seen, to raise money amongst the rich mer- chants of Holland on the security of the jewels she took with her. The Crossing was no easy task in those days. Many were the royal adventures. To crown all, the baggage ship sprung a leak and sank, the royal serving-maids losing therein all their apparel and the Queen her church plate. Nor were Henrietta's experiences on landing such as to efface the memory of these troubles. A resident at The Hague, a gentle- man in the service of the Queen of Bohemia, relates that Henrietta's reception was more royal than loyal, the Dutch liberality being soon at an end. The citizens even hinted to the Queen the day on which they expected to be rid of her, and watched her movements with the utmost suspicion. This refusal of theirs to allow her to go to Brussels, and their hampering of her plans by every means in their power, was looked upon in England as a proof of their desire to please and gratify Parliament. Weary and anxious indeed must these days have been both to the Queen, striving to help her husband, and to Su Denbigh, who, sym- pathizing to the full with her royal mistress, was also torn in two by the thought that her own husband and son were drifting daily farther and farther apart. How full her thoughts were of them is shown by her letters at this time. From The Hague she wrote to her son : "Dear 168 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Son, — There is none in the world should be more joyed at an accommodation of the King and Parliament than myself so that they would humble themselves to the King, and acknowledge their errors, which now we hear the best of his subjects begin to be undeceived and come in to serve him, it is no time to delay for any that loves themselves, for I do assure you the game is changed, and I hope the catastrophe will be the King's. I dare not speak to the Queen of any such business as you wrote to me of, because I am sure I should be denied, and be thought to want wit. I hope we stand upon other terms now, and if you will believe me as I am a tender and loving mother, it is time for you to run to the King upon your knees and crave his pardon. I dare not write to you what I would, and I really tell you that I do believe your party does not deal fairly with you, to tell you the truth, for they know they are not so well as they have been, but you think that I shall be the last that shall know of the disorder they are in at this time, believe me this is true. Mr. Greffen came to Rotterdam and sent a challenge to Mr. Germane to meet him at Ceften sands at ten of the clock, but came not till twelve. Master Germane was there at the hour appointed with Master Onell, but a gentleman of the Marquis Viennells by chance was there to suit, and hinder them from fighting. So, they parting, Master Grefifen told Master Germane that he would go to Vienna and there he might meet him if he pleased. Onell told him he was a rogue, and that he should send a footman to beat him, so dear son, not forgetting my old suit, I take my leave. Our Lord bless you, your loving mother." All this while Susan was also anxious about his SUSAN VILLIERS, COUNTESS OF DENBIGH FROM THE PAINTING BY MYTENS ENGLISH AFFAIRS 169 business affairs, and there occur many such cautions and advice as in the letter in which she warns him against one Woodford, saying : " If you please you may hear his smooth tongue, but do not trust him with your estate if you love yourself or me." Nor was it his mother alone who endeavoured to win him back to the King. Basil's sister Elizabeth, Lady Kynahneaky, also begged him to re1:urn to his allegi- ance, saying she hoped his honour was not dead though it had slept a great while. She tells him that it must be " a strange mist before his eyes " which makes him say he and his party " are the only creatures " for the King. She trusts " the intention of a war against him, which is daily spoke of in London, will remove the mist," and asks him if he does not " think the King knows what is good for him " better than he, her brother, can. She rejoices to hear he is going into the country, for, " next to serving the King the best is to retire from the doing of those actions that are against him,/' and hopes it will be in none of their powers to hurt him. It must have been no easy matter to hold to his convictions in the face of such pleadings, which still continued, Elizabeth again writing : — " Dear Brother, — Accept of my will to serve which is set on by so passionate an affection that the not being able to do it is so gre,at a grief to me that it cannot be expressed. My mother . . . says that she saw, since she came hither, your name among those that were at the siege of the Burse, that she liked well and wished she had never a seen it at less advantage. God is with us and prospers the^good King, pray Brother leave the way you are in for your name is grown odious in print." 170 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Yet another letter she begins : " Dear Brother,— I can yet call you, since, it hath not been in your power to hinder the King from being in a probability of getting what you would so fain have wrested from him. Your harsh proceedings will be a means to hurt yourselves and advance the King's cause, which I infinitely rejoice at, for, seeing you have so willingly thrown away at once, your honour, gratitude and all that's good, the bare name of brother serves to make me observe the more the losing those qualities which [make] you dearer to me than that title. Can no con- sideration move you to become true to the King, neither fear of God, the punishment of what will follow nor the desire of gaining your lost honour, if none of these can, remember the hazard you run both of life and fortune, though these last considerations ought to be despised in comparison of the others, yet, when the best will not serve, these may be made use of, when a firm resolution is taken of a perfect change which I hope you will do. The King hath presents made him of twenty thousand pounds a timie. I hope he will be able to reward his true servants that help him now, and to make his enemies tremble." Lewis Viscount Kynalmeaky, the husband of Eliza- beth Feilding, was born, like her, in 1619. He was the second son of the Earl of Cork. The negotiations for this marriage began in 1639, when Lord Cork, as he himself relates in his diary, was the host in London, on November ist, of the Marquis of Hamilton and the Earl and Countess of Denbigh, who " invited themselves to supper." There they treated with him for a marriage between Lewis and Elizabeth. But Lord Cork was very cautious, for, " until the King's ENGLISH AFFAIRS 171 Majesty had expressed himself to the Lor'd Marquis and the Countess, what marriage portion or prefer- ment he would give me with the lady [my consent] was deferred ; and I bestowed a good feast upon them." The King's generosity seems fully to have answered his expectations, for, on the 12th of the same month, he records that he sent his son Kynakneaky one hundred pounds to " provide him apparel fitting for his marriage . . . and lent him my son Frank's wedding shoes." In December the marriage took place in the King's Chapel at Whitehall. Elizabeth was a lady of the Queen's privy chamber, and Cork relates that : " The King was pleased to honour their marriage with his own presence and to give the lady to my son to be his wife : at which nuptials there was much revelling, dancing and feasting, and the King and Queen brought the bride to her bedchamber in Court, where Her Majesty and all the ladies of honour did help to undress her, and put her into her bed," where " the King aind Queen kissed her. The Queen's Majesty presented the bride with a rich necklace of pearls valued at £1,500 which the King's Majesty put about her neck." Lord Cork increased Kynakneaky's yearly allowance "from £500 to £666 13s. 4d. every half year." Elizabeth seems to have won the hearts of her husband's relations. She and her father had a very narrow escape from being drowned in the Thames. The boat in which they were, caught against one of the piers of London Bridge and capsized. Mrs. Kirke, who was one of the party, was' lost, and the others saved with difficulty. Lord Cork on learning of the accident wrote : " My dear dear daughter, through God's great providence and mercy . . . was miraculously pre- 172 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON served." And later, on her leaving Ireland for England in 1 641, while her husband went north, Cork chronicles his " great great grief " at the departure of " the good virtuous lady of Kynalmeaky," adding that her husband " borrowed of her £5 Which I repaid." It must have sorely puzzled his relations, who were so intimately bound up with the domestic life of the Court, why Basil took the line that he did. His subordinates in Venice were equally puzzled : for he could at this time give but scant attention to his ambas- sadorial duties ; indeed he was now only nominally the King's representative at that Republic. In January 1642 Sir Gilbert Talbot was much harassed over the position of affairs there in conse- quence of his chief's absence, and begged Lord Feilding to contradict a report, given by the Venetian Ambas- sador at the Court of St. James to the Senate, that his " lordship hath fallen into the King's disfavour which I hope will prove as false as many other of his reports." In answer Lord Feilding replies that he much hopes to return to Venice, despite the fact that his successor as ambassador has been nominated, and adds, in a postscript, " Whatever the Venetian ambassador' may have advised, the King did ever most gratiously assure me of his intention to send me back to Venice." Whether this were really so, or only a bit of diplomatic " bluff " on Basil's part, it is difficult to decide. But we know that by the following June Charles had removed Basil from his office as ambas- sador. The latter can hardly have been surprised at any breach of loyalty on the part of his sovereign, remembering, as he must 'have, how Charles not so long before had given him private instructions to go behind ENGLISH AFFAIRS 173 Secretary Coke's back ; an action typical of a character none too trustworthy or reliable. By June the pecuniary embarrassments at the Em- bassy had reached such a crisis that poor Talbot writes, so desperate is his case, that he must, although against his nature, " justify the dissolution of your family " by retiring himself into some private and cheap lodgings. For, since Feilding's discharge from the Embassy, those left behind, far from finding new creditors, are daily torn in pieces with the importunity of the old, inso- much that their poverty has become the common dis- course, and he cannot for shame show himself in the town. He hopes that, long before this can come to hand, his lordship will have considered his " family " here in Venice, which holdeth together but by a shred, so miserably are they put to shifts, since the disorder of England and the report of his lordship's discharge hath lessened that little credit which he had amongst the merchants. Talbot further relates that he is ashamed to acquaint his lordship with the ways he is forced to use to provide a dinner. The noise of the creditors terrifies all moneyed men from having anything to do with him, and it is not without, a miracle that they subsist. He will do what is in his power, but God knows how little that is. The "man that made her ladyship's tomb " and others would likewise trouble with letters, but he has dissuaded them, assuring them they shall have satisfaction when money cometh. Basil does not seem to have told Talbot the part he was taking in politics even so near the battle of Edgehill as October 5, 1642, nor Sir Gilbert to have heard it from any one else, otherwise he would hardly have written in November to acknowledge a letter from 174 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Basil at Worcester, adding : " The same ordinary hath likewise brought me the happy success of His Majesty's arms in Warwickshire which as it is the chief subject of my prayers (and I doubt not but they will be heard) so I must needs confess the joy which 1 have con- ceived from it hath been somewhat interrupted by a printed gazette sent from Holland wherein your lord- ship is reported to be slain in that encounter. I hope better, because there is no mention of it in our English letter, and, in that confidence, I make bold to recom- mend to you the miserable condition of your family, and of myself engaged for them beyond all possibility of redemption without your sudden assistance, and so, praying God to preserve you for better occasions, 1 kiss your lordship's hands." By December Talbot had begun to discover that his chief's thoughts were far too engrossed with alarms and excursions at home to give much attention, still less help, to his dependents in Venice. A note of despair appears when he remarks that he is sorry to hear that the distractions of England are likely to continue, as by those means his lordship will, in all likelihood, be unable to relieve his " poor family " which is as miserable as can be described, having " neither bread nor wine but what they are glad to run upon the score for," and " so far have we run that our legs will carry us no further, for your creditors entreat no longer ; they now threaten that they will be paid, and, had I not used strong means of prevention, some of them would have sequestred your pictures. If your lordship could spare but £ioo till the main sum be procured it would much refresh your servants." Various were the subterfuges resorted to to hide ENGLISH AFFAIRS 175 poverty. Across one letter is written a postscript that the express who brought a packet to the Embassy from England " looked for a gratuity till I told him he would dishonour His Majesty who sent him " by accepting such a thing ; certainly a diplomatic way out of the diffi- culty. But help was at hand, for in January 1 643 comes the joyful acknowledgment of £200 wherewith Sir Gilbert Talbot says he will be able to stop many mouths. Nor did Talbot seem at all certain of his ambassador's choice of a new profession and a new commander, for in February he remarks they have news of his lordship's successor for Venice, but if it be so, hopes it is a better employment maketh him forsake them. As the news of the troubles in England filtered through to Venice one can imagine what Talbot must have gone through with the various rumours and reports, one of which was that the Venetian Ambassador in London " writeth to all his friends tha,t His Majesty is no longer King." Things financial went from bad to worse, and Talbot's letters next tell how seventy-five pictures had to be impawned, and, if not redeemed soon, will be sold to pay debtors who " are great and clamourous," while the " family, naked and penniless," is commanded out of the house ; and since he can get no money from the King, the diamond chain has been impawned still deeper. If the pictures and chain were his, he remarks, he would sell the chain and redeem the pictures, adding that if something is not soon done " for my own part I shall be enforced to quit the service and betake myself to some army for 4s. a week," an action which he thinks would necessarily make Basil's creditors cry the louder. Up to March 1643 Talbot continues to beg Lord Feilding for " God's sake to consider our plight." 176 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Then silence — and the letters end. We have anticipated somewhat in all this, and must return to an earlier date in the affairs of England. In February 1642 Basil had been appointed Lord- Lieutenant of the counties of Denbigh and Flint. That he was also taJking a very prominent and interested part in affairs round Newnham is shown by a letter of his, written from Leicester, in March of the same year, to the Committee of Safety. This Committee was a body created by Parliament as its administrative organ ; of which Hampden, Pym, and Holies were the guiding spirits. In this letter Feilding mentions the " several competitions and mixtures of power and authority, which rather beget distractions amongst us than help to carry on the business," and adds that the Roundheads, instead of resisting the enemy, spend their time in useless and harmful recriminations. Parliament had, at this juncture, hit upon the plan of taking from the King the rig'ht of naming the lord- lieutenants of counties, who nominated the officers of the militia, and of placing all fortresses in the hands of governors named by Parliament. Charles naturally refused to give the royal consent to this. Parliament promptly declared the Bill passed without it, and pro- ceeded to nominate lord-lieutenants and governors. Hotham, one of its members, was despatched to guard the magazine of the North at Hull and put in command of its garrison. When Charles, who needed both arms and ammunition, suddenly appeared before Hull demanding entrance, Hotham refused to open the gates. From that moment war became inevitable. Poor Su, seeing the trend of these events, wrote ENGLISH AFFAIRS 177 again beseeching her son to declare himself, for the King. As all her letters are undated it is difficult from their contents to place them, but there are some which undoubtedly belong to the days of 1641 and 1642 and are written mostly from Holland in attendance on the Queen. Among the earliest we read : "I cannot but refrain from writing to you and withal to beg of you to have a care of yourself and of your honour, and as you have ever professed to me and all your friends that you would not be against the person of the King, and now it is plainly declared what is intended to him and his royal authority, so now is the time to make yourself and me happy by letting all the world see who have been deluded all this time by them that pretend to be [a word here illegible] of the commonwealth. It is now seen what their aim is, but I hope you will leave them and go to the King to gain the reputation you have lost. Being with them you shall be well received by the King, only let it be in time for I do believe the King will have the better of his enemies." And again :"...! am informed that the bishops will be inquisitioned at the beginning of the next week for their votes in the House, therefore I would entreat you to absent yourself at this time, that you may make not the last error worse than the first, to the perpetual grief of the heart of your poor mother." " My Dear Son, — I fear 1 am forgot of you, or else I believe I should have heard from you in all this time which is no small grief to me. I have lost all my goods which is and hath been both to me and all that belongs to me a sorrow beyond expression and I do not find this place agrees so well with me and the perpetual fear I am in of hearing worse and worse news of my N 178 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON poor Majesty makes me abound with sorrow, and I hope you will not be against him for now it is plainly seen what is aimed at and be you sure that the Great God of Heaven will not let the just to suffer long and for your part I know more than I did when 1 saw you last, they do not trust you, take my word. I have no miore time. Commend me to my dear daughter, so our Lord bless you my dear son." " Though you give me but little hopes of your being persuaded by me, yet I will never fail in the pursuit of my request to you, I dare not say my commands. Believe me you are deceived, your party will have the worst. I know you are abused, as you shall find before it be long. I dare not write what I know. The King is in much better condition than you beUeve he is. My love puts me to great pain for you, so, dear son, I take my leave." Her letters, at this period of her absence from her family, are fuU of tender solicitude for her children and grandchildren, and we learn from them that Basil, in the midst of his public interests and engagements, found time to supply her place. Little Su, the child of his dead sister Mary Hamilton, was especially cared for : she afterwards married John Kennedy, Earl of Cassilis ; her elder sister Nan being at this time married to Lord Carey, afterwards first Earl of Selkirk. " Dear Son " (she wrote in another letter), — " Have a care of my poor little Su and send for her some- times. I shall never fail to give you the best counsel I can, and I do believe that you will find that your mother hath dealt more really with you than any other, and I am sure has suffered more than any other. I hope you will never take arms against the King, for ENGLISH AFFAIRS 179 that would be too heavy a burden for me to bear." This letter is addressed : " For the Lord Feilding, my dear son, in the Common Garden." And again: "I find by your last letter that my persuasions are not so powerful as I desired they should, but 1 hope you will never take up arms against your master the King. I hear your party is divided, so 1 hope it will not con- tinue long, but humble themselves to their suffering sovereign. I fear you are made a stranger to your own ruin, to their desires and will not believe me till it is too late. I hear my little Nan [Anne Carey] is gone into Scotland to my great grief. I pray make much of my poor Su and send for her sometimes and take care of her and so with my blessings to yqu I take my leave." The following July the Parliamentary party an- nounced to the coimtry that it was obliged to make a stand against the King's various misdoing's, amongst which they instanced his removal of Basil and certain others peers " from their several places and employ- ments, as ample and sufficient evidence " of its right to beg the assistance of the people. On August 25, 1642, Charles, after leaving Stone- leigh, near .Warwick, where he had been the guest of Sir Thomas Leigh, raised his standard at Nottingham, " to which place," says Clarendon, " came very good recruits of foot from Leicestershire and Staffordshire," where Lichfield had declared for the King. The close was strongly garrisoned by the inhabitants under the Earl of Chesterfield. Tutbury, Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Tamworth, Dudley and Stafford Castles were likewise garrisoned for the King. While Burton-on -Trent, Cavershall Castle, Rushall Hall, and Coventry were held 180 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON by the Parliament, Birmingham was thoroughly dis- affected, and Walsall was at this period strongly for the King. Yet close by Walsall at this same Rushall Hall, Edward Leigh, having attached himself to the Parliamentary side, assumed the rank of colonel in the army, strengthened the defences of his house and gar- risoned it against the King. Around it the tide of battle ebbed and flowed for many years. Such, at the outbreak of the war, was the general aspect of the Midlands, which for the next few years were the scene of continued warfare and bloodshed. Contributions in the form of weekly payments were levied by each party in turn upon the unfortunate country folk, who were unwillingly made to support both Royalist and Parliamentary forces. It is easy to imagine the distress which prevailed, and how impoverished and uncultivated the land became. When Charles raised the Royal Standard at Notting- ham the Royalists withdrew from Parliament, and Lord Essex, the son of Queen Elizabeth's favourite, was placed in command of the Parliamentary forces. Since London was in the hands of the rebels, its possession became the objective of the King's policy. Had he but captured it then the war would have been decidted at once. Basil by now had definitely declared himself, and had been given an appointment in the army of the Parliament. The King began by marching from Shrewsbury along the Watling Street Road. Clarendon relates that within two days of this march : " The Earl of Essex moved from Worcester with an army far superior in numbers to the King's." Essex had with him Lord Feilding, who ENGLISH AFFAIRS 181 commanded a regiment of horse which he had himself raised. His father, appointed to the Council of War, was at the same moment volunteer in the King's Guard of Horse. " The two armies, though they were but twenty miles asunder, and both marched the same way, gave not the least disquiet in ten days' march to each other, and in truth as it appeared afterwards, neither army knew where the other was." Finding that he had thus passed Essex's troops, the King turned back, when near Banbury, and offered battle at Edgehill on October 23rd. Essex refused to attack. The Royalists, thinking he was afraid, made certain of victory, and marched down the hill to attack him. The right wing of the King's Horse, in which Lord Denbigh was serving, was successful, but, unfortu- nately for the King, " the left wing had not the same success, but was broken, and routed by the right wing of the Parliamentary Horse commanded by Sir William Balfour, Sir Philip Stapleton, and Lord Feilding." The battle, as a matter of fact, was drawn. Father and son, though present on opposite sides, did not meet in it, yet each was successful in his own attack. Herein lay the tragedy of Su Denbigh's life. Painful enough is it for mother or wife to stand helpless by whilst husband or son is at the front. What agony then must it not have been to this wife and mother to know that the two she loved best were, not only in danger, but in arms against each other. One more appeal she made to her son in July. It was written from Holland, and would have reached him a short while before the battle of Edgehill : — " My dear Son, — I have so often written to you to 182 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON alter your course that I am out of all hope of per- suading, yet my tender and motherly care cannot abstain from soliciting of you to go to the King" before it be too late. All that party will be able to make their peace, when you will be left out to your ruin and my sorrow. I have not language to express my grief that daily comes more and more into my thoughts, your overthrow presents itself so apparently before my eyes, have pity upon me your poor mother. I have so great part in you that you are cruel to deny me any longer. Look up to Heaven, the Great God of Heaven commands you obey me, this my first desire and command's. You cannot be so void of reason but to see the imjust and valiant actions of that part of the Parliament which are against the King. All the world sees it plainly, the mask is taken off their faces. They can no longer coseh the world with their pretensions of making the King happy ( ?) for none there are with the sword in their hand ready to fly in his face, an example that Christian people never had before, but I hope they shall never have their ends. 1 hope you will never appear in any such action, if you will make me thus unhappy still yet I hope you will never have arms against my master the King, but go to Newnham and go not with them in any of their actions. I cannot forget what a son I had once and I hope to see him so again and with that hope I take my leave. Our Lord bless you and my daughter, your loving mother, Su Denbigh " On the news of the battle of Edgehill reaching her, she wrote him this further letter, which, at the risk of wearying the reader, is given in full : — " I am much troubled to hear the King lay any marks ENGLISH AFFAIRS 183 of his disfavour upon you, for I do desire you should prosper in all things, but at this time I do more travel with sorrow for the grief I suffer for the ways you take that the King doth believe you as against him than ever I did to bring you into this world, for I do believe it will be unfortunate, and now give me leave to tell you you have broke promises for you ever did assure Jne that you would never be against the King. Look up to Heaven and then to your own heart and see if they do not do that that is against him and the right of the crown. Oh, my dear son, that you would turn to the King, I will undertake that you shall be as well as you can desire and that aU shall be forgot that is passed, but this would be too great blessing for me, but though I do not desire it from God yet my affections may claim it from you. I will not despair neither can I when I do remember the goodness of your disposition and I hope it will not fail in this. I give you many thanks for your kindness to your sister Harriet for you have shown yourself a most kind brother to her and it shall never be forgot by me that doth pray for you and bless you." On September 3rd, a few weeks before the battle of Edgehill, Elizabeth Kynahneaky had lost her hus- band. He was killed on horseback " with a musket- shot " at the battle of Liscarrol fighting in the King's forces against "the Lords and Rebels of Munster." His three brothers were engaged in the same action. " Six of the rebels' ensigns were carried to the widow." It is interesting to note that in attendance upon the King, at the battle of Edgehill, where he withdrew under a hedge with the Prince of Wales and the Duke of York, then boys of ten and twelve years of age, was the royal physician, Wiilliam Harvey, who " took out 184 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON his pocket book and read." But he had not read very long before a bullet of a great gun grazed on the ground near him, which made him, as he himself related, remove his station. He is spoken of by the other side as having " withdrawn himself from his charge [at Barts] and returned to the party in arm's against the Parliaraent." Each side claimed the victory of Edgehill. Charles at first was the nearer London, but he lost time instead of pushing his advantage, and, when he drew near to the capital, he found Essex there before him. Declining to fight, he returned to Oxford. Essex posted his men across the road and waited for the King's next move. Charles's plan, however, was to remain himself at Oxford, and wait for the return of the Queen, while his generals in the North and West would, he hoped', defeat the Parliamentarians in those parts ; after which he designed to make a general a'dVance and capture London. Nor was the task of the Parliamentarians much easier. It is evident that they were driven to great straits for money at this time. The City of London was willing to make a further subscription if the members of Parliament would set a good example. Both Houses were therefore called upon to assist, and responded. A subscription for the further maintenance of the army was warmly promoted in the House of Lords. Various peers subscribed sums of £200 and £300, Basil and Warwick each giving £500. Towards the end of January 1643 the Queen set sail for England from Shefling in an English vessel, the Princess Royal, accompanied by eleven transports filled with arms and ammunition. So severe a north- ENGLISH AFFAIRS 185 east gale arose that, after nine days at sea, the royal party was driven back to Shefling. The Queen never once lost her presence of mind, and comforted her weep- ing ladies with the assurance that " Queens of England are never drowned." A letter Su Denbigh wrote to Basil on this occasion describes her sufferings : — " I hope I have not lost some good place in your heart, that does encourage me to bemoan myself to you and to relate to you the danger 1 have been in. The Queen embarked at Skeflen, and the next day the wind turned contrary and the greatest storm that has been seen this many a year rose and continued four days atid five nights with violence. We lay eight nights and nine days at sea, and then we were forced to return to Skeflen. We set to sea again with all speed that may be made. I was very sick and weary and am weak, but 1 thank our Lord I am better. 1 did often remember the cruelty of that Parliament with regret that my dear son should be one of them, but I hope when I shall see you to prevail with you to leave them that brought you to this dishonour. You may be happy yet if you please, and 1 do encourage myself with that hope in this my extremity." We cannot but admire the courage and determination shown by the Queen and her ladies in starting again for England after their terrible experience. Their con- dition was a deplorable one. They were so exhausted on landing on the coast of Holland that they could scarcely stand, and one of the chaplains, a Capuchin father, needed the support of two men to enable him to say Mass. No wonder that Bossuet, many years after, in his funeral oration on the Queen, alluded to 186 EOYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Henrietta with the words : " They that are delivered from shipwreck bid an eternal adieu to the sea, and to ships ; nay they are not able to endure the sight thereof. These are TertuUian's words. Yet^ within eleven days after, O admirable resolution I the Queen, being scarce yet escaped from a dreadful storm, spurred on by the desire of seeing the King and coming to his aid, adventures again to trust herself to the fury of the ocean and to the winter's rigour." So, bidding a long farewell to Walter Montagu, who in great anxiety had waited for her during the storm, Henrietta left Holland. She intended to land at New- castle, as Su had told Basil, but a change in the wind, as they neared England, drove the vessel into Burling- ton Bay, in Yorkshire, on February 22nd. The Queen at once sent to inform the Earl of Newcastle, who was in command of the Royalist forces in those parts. He promptly despatched a body of cavalry. Under their protection, and that of a thousand old soldiers from the Low Countries, she was enabled to land. But her troubles were by no means over. At four o'clock, on that dark February morning, she and her ladies were roused from rest by the sound of firing. Four of the Parliament ships, having heard of her arrival, had appeared in the Bay. They commenced shelling the Queen's quarters. She jumped up hastily and was about to make good her flight when she remembered that, asleep on her bed, she had left Metta, her pet dog, "an ugly beast," say|s Madame de Motteville, who adds that, " notwithstanding the entreaties of her friends," back to her room went Henrietta. Gathering the dog into her arms she hurried, with all the speed she could, into the shelter of a friendly ditch, where, in ENGLISH AFFAIRS 187 the company of Su and her other ladies, she spent an anxious two hours, the enemy's balls frequently flying over their heads. At length the Dutch Admiral sent word to the Parliamentarians that unless they desisted he would fire on them in return. This had the desired effect ; though, as Henrietta remarked, it was " done a little late." To prevent their having "the vanity to say they made me quit," she went back to the village next morning. Setting herself at the head of her army, she started to march thence towards Oxford, where Charles was holding his Court. She was escorted from Burlington to York by a body of troops imder the command of Lord Newcastle. Her arrival served to dispel some of the stagnation which had settled upon both parties in that district ; Royalists and Catholics flocked to her Court and offered their services, swelling the ranks of Newcastle's forces. His army was called " the army of the Papists and the Queen." But he was in too great need of men to pay attention to such taunts. Hamilton and Montrose came from Scotland to join their royal mistress ; and, from Ireland, Antrim, the husband of Buckingham's widow, offered a body of Irish Catholics. The Queen accepted all these offers, and, by her untiring energy, gave to her cause a vigour which it had not hitherto possessed. She, more- over, spared no pains to win to her side some of the Parliamentary leaders. iWhen the news of these events reached London, it naturally made some little stir. The friends of peace in Parliament endeavoured to obtain the renewal of negotiations with the King, but were defeated by a small majority of three. These, however, on recon- sidering the matter, gave way, and five Commissioners 188 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON were sent to Oxford to treat with the King, first on the question of disbanding both armies, and secondly on the terms of a treaty. The King's wish for peace, however, no longer pre- vailed. The Queen continually urged him against vacil- lation, writing : "I hope you are more constant in your resolutions : you have already learned to your cost, that want of pjerseverance in your designs has ruined you." It is not surprising, therefore, that the nego- tiations ended fruitlessly, the Committee being abruptly recalled to London on April 1 5th. Simultaneously Essex took the field and opened the real campaign of the year. On April 25th Reading surrendered to Waller. Essex failed to follow up this success, thus losing precious time in which he might have done much for his party. Meantime the arms and ammunition brought by the Queen encouraged the Royalists to push their scouts across the Trent and threaten the enemy. Prince Rupert and Lord Denbigh, who with his horse had again volunteered, after being several weeks quartered near the banks of the Severn, marched northwards along the coast, hoping to meet and escort southwards the Queen and, with her, Denbigh's wife. They attacked and seized Birmingham, which for the first time achieved notoriety. Clarendon speaks of it as " of as great fame for hearty, wilful, affected disloyalty to the King, as any place in England ... a town generally . . . declaring a more peremptory malice to His Majesty than any other place." The town had already met the demand for ship-money with only a mild remonstrance and a plea to be let off after pay- ment, on account of a recent visitation of the plague. ENGLISH AFFAIRS 189 It now espoused the cause of the Parliament with a zest that never slackened. It seized the King's baggage and plate as he left Aston on his way to Edgehill. It cut off every body of the King's troops that came within its power, and sent its prisoners to Coventry. In April 1643 occurred the only instance of actual warfare known to have taken place within the boundaries of Birmingham. Prince Rupert, with his 2,000 men, desired passage through the town. Accord- ing to the Royalist party he asked for this, and promised that no harm should be done by his troops if they were not interfered with. The point is doubtful ; there seems no actual reason why he should have marched through at all, and, considering the reputation his troops had already acquired, the people of Birmingham might well have doubted his specific intentions. At any rate, they decided on armed resistance, and desperately contested his entry. Ultimately the much superior forces of Rupert gained the day. The town was pillaged and set on fire, eighty houses being burnt and a number of the inhabitants put to the sword. The loss on the King's side was probably greater than that on the towns- people's. On neither was it heavy. Of this fight there are two conflicting accounts. One published soon after says : " The Cavaliers rode through the streets like so many furies or bedlams. Lord Denbigh in the front, singing as he rode ; they shot at every door and window where they could espy any looking out ; they hacked, hewed or pistolled all they met with, blaspheming, cursing, and damning themselves most hideously." There is much more in the same strain. In the other account, written by a gentleman of Walsall to a friend in 1648, after "a narrow enquiry " on the spot, we are 190 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON told that, on the arrival of Prince Rupert's force, the inhabitants of Birmingham hailed them as " cursed dogs," " devilish cavaliers," and " Papist traitors." Prince Rupert, there is no doubt, on his side gave express orders that as little harm as possible should be done, and forbade any attempt being maide to fire the town. Nevertheless, as soon as he had departed, sonie soldiers fired it in several places, news of which being carried to him he sent back word to the inhabitants that it was not done by his orders. In men of note, however, Rupert suffered heavily, and we read in Clarendon that : "In the entrance of this town ancj in the too eager pursuit of that loose troop of horse that wafe in it, the. Earl of Denbigh, who from the beginning of the war, with imwraj-ied pains, and exact submission to discipline and order, had been a volunteer in Prince Rupert's troop, and been engaged with singular courage in all enterprises of danger, was unfortunately wounded with many hurts on the head and the body with swords and poleaxes, of which within two or three days he died. Had it not been for this ill accident, I should not have mentioned an action of so little moment as was this of Bromicham." That his own friends rescued the wounded man we gather from the fact that Basil was sent for, under flag of truce, to see his dying father. He arrived too late to find him alive. One cannot but wonder what thoughts passed through the mind of this son as he gazed upon the wounded and mutilated remains of his father — a father who, though unfortunate in his career as an admiral under his brother-in-law, the Duke of Buckingham, had throughout his life always shown the most determined bravery. His loyal and hearty WILLIAM FEILDING, 1st EARL OF DENBIGH FROM THE PAINTING BY BALTHAZAR GKRBIER ENGLISH AFFAIRS 191 aflfection served two sovereigns well. On hearing of his death Charles wrote to Prince Rupert : " Even now I received yours of the 8 th [May] : as for Denbigh's place [in the household], for whose loss I am very sorry, I will not dispose of it, nor engage myself concerning it, imtil I shall speak with you." Here, indeed, was tragedy upon tragedy for Su Denbigh, but newly returned from her perilous adven- tures in Holland; looking forward to the meeting with her husband, whom she knew to be mardhing towards her to protect her and her royal mistress, yet torn in two between her anxiety for him and her sorrow over what could but have seemed to her the headstrong rebellion of her beloved son. We wonder if in those last two or three days of Denbigh's life she was able to reach his side and soothe his last hours, or if absence and the horrors of imagination, which are more painful even than reality, were added to her trials. We know that in her grief her royal master and mistress comforted her to the best of their power, and th^t her son strove to do likewise by an affectionate letter. That the thought of his being still among the King^'s enemies, and still friendly with the slayers of his father, added much poignancy to her grief is shown by the piteous and pathetic letter she sent in answer to his words of sorrow over their common loss — a letter so full of the anguish which must have been echoed in many a breast during those sad days, and which has few equals as an expression of the tragedy and grief which the wars of angry men bring to the homes of their womenkind. " My dear Son, — I am much comforted with re- 192 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON ceiving of your kind letter in this time of my great sorrow for the loss of my clra.r husband, your dear father, whose memory I shall ever keep with sorrow and a most tender affection, as he did deserve from me and all the whole world, which he did declare till his last hour, leaving so much to his memory as was possible to be merited. God make me able to overcome this my affliction. I beg of you my first born to give me the comfort of that son I do so dearly love, that satisfaction which you owe me now, which is to leave those that murdered your dear father, for what can it be called, but so? which when he received his death wounds but with the saying he was for the King, there was no mercy to his grey hairs but wounds and shots, a horror to me to think of. O my dear Jesus, put it into my dear son's heart to leave that merciless way that was the death of his father, for now I think of it with horror, before with sorrow. Now is the time that God and nature claims it from you. Before you were carried away with error, but now it is hideous and monstrous. The last words your dear father spoke of you was to desire God to forgive you and to touch your heart. Let your dying father and unfortunate mother make your heart relent ; let my great sorrow receive some comfort. If I receive joy you shall receive blessing and honour. Never can you take so good a time as this. You may allege you carmot sleep in quiet as long as you stay with them, and sure it is true. I do believe that you are not so much respected by that party as you think you are, for they do many things and make many offers to save themselves. I believe it is so, but you know nothing of it, I think. If I may be so happy to obtain this my desire of you, ENGLISH AFFAIRS 193 let me know, and I shall make your way to your best advantage. I do know you shall be welcome. I give you many thanks for the care you took in payijig the last rites to your father. I have a longing desire to see you, and if I had any means I would venture far to do it. The Queen hath been very kind to me in this time of my grief and hath sent to the King to stay the placte [the royal wardrobe] that it be not given to any but that my Lord's debts may be paid out of it. Besides, the Queen did send me money, or I should not know what I should have done, I was in so great want. 1 thank you for the message you sent me by John Grime. So with my blessing, 1 take my leiave, your loving mother, Su Denbigh " But Basil could not, or would not, turn back now. Perhaps the weak and foolish policy of the Royalists made him realize that things could never be again as they had been ; that the days of autocratic kings in England were passed ; and that he could help his country as much amongst reformers as amongst the short-sighted friends of his father. Whatever the reason, he refused to be moved by the heartrending appeal of his widowed mother as firmly as he had before refused to be moved by her argimients and persuasions. Nevertheless he took to heart one other part of her letter, and determined, while the King's mood was softened towards him on account of his father's death, to save what he could of the family fortune. In August, therefore, he presented to Charles a statement of the amount of salary due to his late father as Master of the Wardrobe, and set forth the total sum due at his 194 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON father's death as £13,157 6s. 8d., whereas the amount he had as yet received was only £1,500. He men- tioned further that though Charles was graciously pleased to look upon his royal honour as engaged by these debts of his father to Basil's father, still Basil, considering the present conjunction of aflfairs wherein His Majesty may better bestow his revenues, offered that the King should, instead of paying these debts, redeem all the plate and pictures left in pawn in Venice. Of these articles he begged that the King would receive the pictures as a humble present, they being of such condition that they would not in any sort disgraoe his galleries if he should think fit to place them there. The plate, the late Ambassador continued, was all his own, and he did but desire to retain such small pardel of it as belonged to his grandmother, the Countess of Buckingham. He begged the King to make knowh in Venice and elsewhere that His Majesty was taking over his debts. As to the remainder of his arrears, he hiraibly offered them to the King, the same as he had done the pictures. There is no record of any answer to this appeal, probably because the King's affairs were in an equally embarrassed condition, or, more probably still, because Charles was aware that when he had appointed Lord Essex Chamberlain of the royal household in the hopes of winning him to the Royalist cause, that nobleman had not only continued to discharge vigorously the trust placed in him by Parliament, but had been followed by many members of both Houses, Feilding amongst the number. This appeal is also interesting on another account. It proves that at that time Basil had no idea events ENGLISH AFFAIRS 195 would hurry the King to the pass they did. He evi- dently considered they would merely force Charles to meet the demands of Parliament, and that the royal state with its galleries and other magnificences would continue as of old. CHAPTER IX A ROUNDHEAD'S WIFE BEFORE following Basil upon the course of the arduous days which lay before him as successor to the earldom, let us pause for a moment and . look at the domestic side of his life. In 1 64 1 he had lost his second wife, Barbara. Their married life had not been a long one. Married in August 1639 she "fell sick on Sunday night, being the 2 1 St of March 1641 and departed this life the first of April following, half of a quarter of an hour before nine at night." So much we learn from Dr. Bardesy, the divine who attended her and who wrote an account of those last hours. He further relates that when her medical adviser gave up all hope of her recovery her husband brought her " some of ye Lady Kenbe's [Denbigh] powder" which he had procured, and also a cordial. " Neather of them caused any change in her." Having called all her household into her room and begged their pardon for any faults of which they might hold her guilty, she spent her time in " praising God for her creation, redemption and preservation." She " went to prayers . . . after this she only spoke to my Lord." Basil did not mourn her long, for in the following year he married Elizabeth Bourchier, daughter of the Earl of Bath. Of her letters there are several. Just as 196 A ROUNDHEAD'S WIFE 197 his mother's move and charm us as those of a mother to a well-beloved son, so do Elizabeth's delight us by the abandon of their wifely devotion and adoring affec- tion. There must have been something very attractive in Basil for him to have had poured forth upon him the unselfish devotion of these two women. Elizabeth, like Su, was made anxious and miserable by the dangers surrounding Basil, for in one of her letters, the first intimation we get of his father's opinion of his politics, she writes : — " My Dear heart, my dear life, my sweet joy^ I wrote to you yesterday wherein I gave you many thanks for your letter of the i8th. I hope God will preserve you from your father's or anybody's hurting you. 1 am sorry it lies not in my power to serve you otherways than in praying for you, but I am confident prayers will do you more good than anything ; and be con- fident that my prayers shall never cease for your happi- ness. So assuring you of that which I am competent to know, which is that none loves you so well as your most obedient and dutiful wife and humble servant, E. Feilding " P.S. : A hundred thousand, thousand kisses 1 give thee, an I might be so happy as this paper. I long much to see you." And again : " Here is a book in print, about the Duke your uncle. It troubles me and I believe will do the like to you. Oh, without doubt God will let just judgments fall on them that publish it, for it wrongs the dead and the innocent. It says both the Duke and the King poisoned King James. The Parliament is 198 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON said to defend it, and though they deny the putting of it forth yet they defend it. Your good grandmother is in the book. So God bless you and send you all happi- ness, and, for your sake, their army, else they do not deserve my prayers nor nobody else's. If my letter be broken open at the Committee I care not, for your friends' honours is equal with my own, and it is a damnable book. Would it had been in print before you went. The King may have faults, but not like the publishing this villainous pamphlet." Here we see again the shadow of that wonderful and harmless, if revolting, poultice made by Basil's grand- mother and uncle for James I, through the agency of which they were so frequently accused of having poisoned their sovereign. Poor Betty I she too, in her turn, went through the anxieties which the war brought to so many homes, and implored her husband : " Dear Sweet Joy, — Here comes many frightful news to town. I hear the King has taken Coventry and that Sir John Hoptone has Plymouth and that he has 70,000 men, and that the King has store of forces in Yorkshire. Sir John Bowsier is taken prisoner in York. I hear the King will come to town and will do strange cruelties as burning the town. Oh, my heart, so you were safe I did not care if I were dead. It is a grief to me you would leave me. Oh, dear God, what would I give to see you. For God's sake write to me and come as soon as may be. Stay not from your dutiful and obedient wife and humble servant, E. Feilding" Across her letters are many postscripts ; perhaps the most naive and charming is the one in the corner of this last letter, which runs: "Dear! how thy Betty A ROUNDHEAD'S WIFE 199 loves thee ! " One almost seems, as one looks at it, to hear the sigh of the lonely wife as she wrote it. Once, when she had waited expectantly, comes: "My Lord, I have been much troubled I have not seen you all this afternoon." The petulance and impatience of the next letter is atoned for by its postscript : " Dear Hart, — I cannot but be still confirmed in the opinion that you do not really affect [ion] me, or else after my ernest desire you would have come home before this ; and you are a little unjust in repaying my affection with so much neglect, the which I am inforced patiently to endure till it be God's will to rid you of this trouble who as long as she lives will, notwithstanding your little love, be Your obedient affectionate wife, E. Feilding " P.S. : I am transported with grief. I know not what I write, and if I do trouble you with my importu- nate desires of your company you ought to think they proceed from extreme affection and so you ought to yield to my suit as much as may be." " My dear Joy, — 1 did think that before this I should have had the happiness to have heard from you, but I can hear no certainty how you do, nor where you are, which troubles me very much, and the more because I fear you are to go through great dangers which I beseech God protect you in and keep you safe. My prayers shall always be with you. I have not been very well this two or three days, my heart is in so much dis- quiet for you. I wish myself with you, and it would make me well and happy, yet I am your dutiful wife and humble servant. My lady Su [Hamilton] is very well, she presents her humble services to you, we all 200 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON think it a long time since we saw you, and the time appears longest to me. Your colt is very well, it is at grass at Muswell Lees. As soon as I can hear of one that can teach it to pull, I will have it learn, but I would have it learn well, or anything else you leave in my charge shall be carefully looked to by me." "My Dear Heart, — I should be glad to hear of your safe arrival at Stafford for none prays more for your safety than I do, and it is a great grief to me to have you put yourself into those great hazards you do, and to think you are to be so long from me whose only comfort you are. God, in His mercy, look upon all my afflictions, and bring you to leave these employ- ments and to come to live at home with me, yet I hope if you continue long where you are you will send for me to you for you are not sensible of my grief now in your absence. I hope if you think it fit and con- venient that you will contrive to some way that I may come to you. I have much ado to forbear comingl, but I will do nothing without your consent dear heart. Let me be with you as often as you can for in your company lies the happiness of your obedient wife and servant, E. Denbigh" "My dearest Hart, — I am in so much perplexity I know not what to do, to think you have run yourself into so much hazard as to go to Rushall. God in his mercy protect defend and keep my dear life. Write me word how you doest, for I am in terrible fear till I hear from you sweet joy if thou canst let me come to thee as soon as thou canst ; or come to her that will live and die your dutiful wife and most humble servant, E. Denbigh A ROUNDHEAD'S WIFE 201 " I beseech Almighty God keep you safe from danger." " My dear Hart, — I received your letter for which I give you many thanks. My fear was not so great for myself as you were informed, but truly they were very great for you. Had I thought that my stay could have served you in anything I would though I had lost my life, but I know if I had stayed I should not have been regarded by you neither could 1 have hindered you from exposing myself to those dangers you ordinarily used to do, and besides there was another reason made me go as much as any which was to hear you say how angry you should be if I were taken, and truly it made me make great haste, though I did not believe any would have made me imhappy as to take me prisoner knowing how poor an advantage they would gain by it. I am glad with all my soul you are safe and that God preserved you from those dangers that are incident to war. God I confess had been infinite merciful to me in it, and I shall always acknowledge ' it at any time. My lord I shall venture my life to be with you when you please to^ive me leave for I long to see you, and am happy in nothing but your company, so 1 rest your dutiful wife and servant, E. Denbigh " " My Dear, — I am in a thousand fears for you, there- fore for charity's sake send to me. I see but little love expressed to you. Oh, that you should trust to such people. God I hope will protect, defend, and keep you." Basil must have valiied as highly, in their way, these other letters, so carefully preserved by him, from Betty 202 E0YALI8T FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON still pining to see him once more, and wishing to cele- brate their wedding-day. Her pretty conceit of having his cherry-pie at table even if he were absent is a charming touch of affection. " Dear Heart, — I am resolved not to miss any occasion that I can have to present my humble duty to your lordship. I hope you will favour me with your dear letters as often as you can, for truly my Lord you put yourself upon so many hazards, yet I can never be satisfied with hearing from you, as 1 am in perpetual fear of you. Dear joy, have a care of thyself, for in thee lies all my happiness, and nothing is so great grief to me as to be barred from seeing you and having your company." And on July 2nd : " Dear Joy, — I long extremely to see you, for 1 love you with an intense affection. I should have been glad to have been with you on the 8th July, because it is our wedding day, but if it be not my good fortune to obtain that happiness my la : Su Hambleton [Hamilton] and 1 will have three cherry pies and drink your health and I will think of you all day long and wish myself with you. If God blesses me with life 1 intend to do this, and I desire to live chiefly because 1 love thee and to enjoy thy dear company. Else this world is so miserable yet I should not care to live in it. Dear life make what haste you can to me, for it is a great grief to me to think that you should go into those dangers that 1 hear you do, for, to my great grief, I hear that your side was hurt with a stone at Oswestry, but I hope to God you are well and it was no dangerous blow. And I hope your A ROUNDHEAD'S WIFE 203 person will ever be safe, yet I beseech you if you love me do not put your life into danger for in you lies all my joy and comfort. I have sent you a pair of boots with tops. I beseech you accept them and of the duty of me that am your obedient wife and humble servant." That he was still in the field when the 8 th arrived is only too certain, since on the i6th she wrote : — " My dear Heart, — 1 received your letter dated the 1 6th Aug. [1644]. It brought me much comfort in respect it gave me hopes of my enjoying your company which is much desired by me. I shall send for Gpodmane Bosworth and get what money 1 can of him. I know he will do his endeavour to get as much as he can for me. I hope want of money shall not keep me from seeing you, for I would rather live with you with bread and water than from you with all the plenty in the world. Dear heart send to me as soon as you can, and while you are away write often to me. I will not offer to borrow any money here in Coventry, and I hope I shall have no need, but if I had never so much I would not because you command the contrary." Eight days later she sent him another letter, the last in that batch, so one hopes he came himself soon after : — "August 24 [1644]. . . . Thus having no more to say I take leave desiring you to believe that I will always approve myself to be yours ever to command as far as it may stand with God's glory and your good. My name I need not tell you. Farewell, my dear heart. 204 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON You may send to me by my friend that brings you this. If I had but your name on a bit of paper from your own hand with the assurance of your health, it would be welcome to me. Good night, my dear." Nor did she forget his creature comforts, for, in her next, she rejoices at the hope he holds out of speedily being with her and tells him she has sent him "some cakes and some flowers candied, they are borage and marygolds of my own doing, I wish they were better for your sake, and I have sent you a pair of gloves, this town affords no better. My cousin Dorothy Ardent has sent you a fairing. If you cannot come to me send for me, I would venture my life to come to you such is my love to you and I am not able to express the high affection I have for you by writing, but, if I had the happiness to see you, I should not fail to tell you how fully I love you and what a grief I am in to be from you." When he wrote to her from Whitchurch that he hoped soon to be with her, great were her rejoicings and her asseverations that she would " run thro' many dangers " to be with him. Nor was life all tragedy in those days, or Betty's vanity dormant. To her husband in London she wrote : " Pray, Sweetheart, do me the favour if musk millions be in season, as I hear they are, and send me some, for I have a great mind to eat some. And pray, my lord, give Harry Hill orders to buy me some combs, box and ivory ones, for I want some extremely. And pray get somebody, if it be too much trouble to you, for I know it must needs, to buy me a tafaty hood and a curie one, and two masks for me and two for my la A ROUNDHEAD'S WIFE 205 Susan Hambleton, and each of us a black scarf either laced or plain as you please, and either of us a dozen of gloves, my pattern and hers." She tells him on another occasion : "I have now taken my physic-drink twelve days and intend, if God bless me with life, not to omit any of the twenty. I desire you would please to add to the other things you know I want some hoods and scarves, garters and ribbon ; gloves dark coloured and white ; pens and laces, some combs, a roll for my head and a thimble. I hope you will pardon this rudeness." CHAPTER X COMMANDEK-IN-CHIEF OF THE MIDLANDS DESPITE all her entreaties to her husband to return to his home, Elizabeth Denbigh well knew him to be of far too much use to his party to be spared to even the most devoted and lonely of wives. Indeed, his succession to the title had in- creased his importance in the Parliamentary Army, and when Lord Brooke died Basil received promotion. Brooke had been Commander-in-Chief of the Midlands for some little while, had taken Stratford-on-Avon by assault the previous February, and completely secured Warwickshire for the Parliament. In March 1643 he forced his way to Lichfield, compelling the Governor to retire into the Minster Close. While directing the attack there he was struck by a bullet in the eye and died on the spot. By an Ordinance of Parliament dated June 1 9, 1 643, of which there is a copy at Newnham, the authorities, after mature deliberation of the condition of Shropshire, Cheshire, and Warwickshire, associated these three counties, nominating Lord Denbigh to the supreme command, with his headquarters at Coventry, thus strengthening the arm of Sir William Brereton, who was commanding in Cheshire. A strong Committee was appointed for Shropshire, of which Thomas Mytton of Halston was the Ufe and soul. 306 Bafil Fielding- Earl of Denbigh. ^^:^%.e/^^ -zj.^o^-^^^^J COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE MIDLANDS 207 The Earl of Essex was next directed to notify to Basil, Earl of Denbigh, that he was appointed Com- mander-in-Chief and General of all the forces raised, or to be raised, within the associated counties of Warwick, Worcester, Stafford, and Salop, and the cities and counties of Coventry and Lichfield and the parts adjacent, with powers to exercise martial law within the said counties, to appoint all officers and com- manders, and to be Lord-Lieutenant in the county of Warwick. He received his commission from Essex, and was ordered £6,000 for the equipment of his troops. Ordering was one thing, and receiving another. Immediate funds being necessary, he raised the sum himself. Later we shall find its repayment constantly deferred. So hard-up was he for money to meet his needs that it was only in consequence of pressing representations by him and his officers of their necessi- ties that a sum of £1,000, found by accident in Par- porle Lane, Holbom, was given to Sir Thomas Middleton, of Denbigh's command, for present needs. Parliament having ruled that the amount should be repaid, with interest, on the appearance of its lawful owner. A further sum of £2,000 was voted out of the sequestered estate of Lady Shelley, just deceased. Sir Thomas was also empowered to sequester the estates of Royalists and to levy money for the support of his troops. Basil seems to have found it uphill work organizing his district. In fact it was not till some time after his appointment that he was able to set out from London for Coventry, where he proposed to establish his headquarters. Many circumstances con- spired to delay him, especially the slow progress of recruiting in London and the difficulty of obtaining 208 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON the money promised him for his equipment. He per- sonally raised troops in Warwickshire and in London. So great was his hurry to get to work that he left London, without permission, with such troops as he had collected, despite an injunction to the contrary from Parliament. This action drew upon him the censure of the Committee of Safety, who sent for him to return that he might explain his conduct. From the report of their proceedings, ordered to be printed and pub- lished, we gather that : " Upon full examination and consideration of the proceeding, in the business con- cerning the $tay of the Earl of Denbigh, the Committee conceived they had just cause to send for the said Earl for not obeying of the order of the Committee made in his lordship's presence, with his consent as they apprehend. But His Lordship upon his return affirming upon his honour, that he did mistake the order of the Committee and that if he had understood it to have restrained his going out of town with his forces and provisions he would have obeyed it, the Committee thought good to declare that there was nothing appeared to them that did any way diminish their opinion of his innocency and faithfulness to the Parliament and State, but he remained in their appre- hensions untainted in his honour, and so they desired he might be esteemed by others." Amongst Basil's papers is a statement " sometime before harvest " of what it was customary to allow to a commander-in-chief. He should have a regiment of foot and a troop of horse, and the cost of raising them, together with allowances of pistols, saddles, powder, etc. These, being allowances, were to be defrayed by the State. The writer goes on to say COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE MIDLANDS 209 that the people are now willing to rise, both in respect of the rebels landing in Wales and in consequence of the confluence of the Papists thither, and will, for the present, offer themselves willingly, but if the oppor- tunity be not taken they will probably return to their former coldness. Lord Denbigh, on receiving their message of welcome, wrote to thank the inhabitants of Coventry for their good opinion of him, promising in return that he on his part would administer justice without respect of persons, recommending those who doubted the just authority of the proceedings of Parliament to consult some pious and able divine, at the same time desiring those who had taken the national Covenant to inform him of the names and qualities of any maUgnants. He further begged them to maintain a mutual and constant confidence in one another, and to help him by every means in their power to advance the cause into which they had covenanted. He ended with this exhortation : " Let us be faithful and cordial in so good a cause [as] we have in hand : my life and fortunes shall be at stake for the public service and for you." Other interesting papers are forms of appointments of " fireworker and petardier and gentleman of the ordinance " ; ^ letter to head constables directing them to send a proportionate number of horses for Lord Denbigh's army, with saddles and bridles and able riders, j and a petition to Parliament of the gentry, freeholders, and inhabitants of the county of Warwick praying that the weekly payment for the garrisons, ofiScers, and soldiers may be fixed at a certain sum, and other measures adopted to lessen the burden of the inhabitants. 210 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON A " Declaration of Protestation " was issued by Basil ; it is dated November 26, 1643. First, all his officers and soldiers were to repair to the church of St. Michael in Coventry, and take the Covenant lately published by Parliament, " being resolved that none shall serve under me but those who take the Covenant " ; and secondly, that whatever charge is expended for the lodgings and diet of his troops shall be justly discharged according to the usual rates of the city. He undertakes to maintain truth and justice, suppress vice, and, at the hazard of his life and for- tune, defend these parts from the violence of any assailant. On the opposite page is a Ust of orders and directions from Lord Denbigh to his officers and soldiers, which is appointed to be read after the taking of the Covenant. He further enjoined them to refraih from swearing and excessive drunkenness, and to do nothing which was offensive to God, since they were now employed in a service that tends to God's glory, and were carrying on a work of reformation. There are also many petitions, a few of which it may be of interest to mention as giving a picture of the condition of the country. One is a petition from William Wardle to obtain from Lord Denbigh a protection to enable him to keep a couple of nags or mares of small value, each of them about some ten or twelve pound price, " for myself and man to ride about my occasions. I have not received my rent this three quarters of this year, and I am not able to subsist ; I have allowed £50 a year out of £100 for the weekly tax, and now my land is thrown up into my own hands, and nobody will take it off me. I must be forced to stock it myself, which land lies seven COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE MIDLANDS 211 miles beyond Warwick, and I must go very often thither myself, which I cannot do without my lord's protection." Marghery Davis of Dudley, haberdasher, is given " full power and authority to carry, sell and vent all such hats as she shall make to Coventry, Mr. Binkes, [as formerly she has done] provided she carries with her nothing prejudicial to the State, or does not convey any of her hats to the enemy's garrison." Colonel Lewis Chadwick, Stafford, asks for a " court of warre " to be set up in Stafford, " as the impunity of offenders causeth an increase of the slackness of duty and perpetration of many insufferable offences." During the summer of 1643 the fortunes of the Parliamentary side were very depressed. Fairfax was defeated in the North by Newcastle ; Hotham was only just prevented from surrendering the strong garrison of Hull to the Queen ; while Taunton, Bridgwater, Bath, and Bristol all gave in before the end of July. On September 1 1 th Parliament seized Wem, in Shropshire, and settled a garrison there under Mytton. The little town, after being fortified, remained for some time his headquarters. In March 1644 Basil was at Coventry with his troops and was ordered to go to the relief of Wem, then besieged in a somewhat casual manner by the Royalists. He was, however, hindered by difficulties raised by the local committees, and by mutinies among his troops, which caused him to see wasted weeks go by. He was engaged most of his period of command in bitter quarrels with the Com- mittees of Warwickshire and Shropshire. He was accused of allowing his soldiers to plunder, of en- couraging them to protect Royalists while discouraging the well-affected, and of carrying on suspicious com- 212 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON munications with the enemy. As these quarrels will be dealt with later it is unnecessary to dwell further upon them here, where they are only mentioned to show the distractions which rendered Basil's manoeuvres the more difficult. He wrote at this time to the Committee of Safety in London, pointing out the necessity of keep- ing the lines of communication between Warwick and Stafford open, urging that this could not be done unless Tamworth was in his possession. He begged the Com- mittee to remember his honour, and enable him to serve Parliament by giving him sufficient forces, lest, at the beginning of his employment, he be exposed to mucjh hazard and disgrace. The letter ends by assuring them that no care should be wanting on his part towards the execution of his charge. A month later he reported his gratitude for some small additional help, adding that, despite all the dis- couragement he receives, he thinks himself happy in the trust reposed in him, and that as long as he has life or anything else that may be made use of for the public service, neither Wi«n nor any other part of his care shall suffer for want of timely prevention. Basil soon gained the reputation of being one of the best commanders in the army, as well as the most humane, by reason of his kindly treatment of those under him— a quality rare in those days. The other side also seemed to regard him as one of the ablest generals their enemy possessed, and there can be no doubt but that he contributed largely to the success of the Parliament Army in the early days. He was, nevertheless, again delayed by a mutiny in Sir T. Middleton's horse and foot. This being at length " well composed," he reported his troops " both COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE MIDLANDS 213 forward and affectionate to the service," mentioning that he had taken up some money " upon public faith," but, all the same, was sadly hampered for want of wherewithal to pay his men. Notwithstanding, he expressed himself resolved to try his fortune and leave the rest to God, being willing to be a sufferer for the public service and to expose himself to all hazards for the advancement thereof. The Committee replied that he was to move on and follow the doings of Princle Rupert, and that as soon as they conveniently could they would take his other requests into consideration. He thereupon announced his intention of marching to Stafford, to do what he could even though his troops consisted of but half-armed, raw and inexperienced soldiers. At the end of April the local committee in Wem sent an urgent appeal to Colonel Mytton, of which there is a copy at Newnham Paddox endorsed by Basil, saying they had hoped for relief ere now, and were conse- quently very straitened since they can fetch no pro- visions, " the enemy lying so near us round about and plundering almost every day almost to the very walls of our town," a condition which made them fear lest Lord Denbigh thought their position much better than it was. They added sarcastically : " We desire you not to trouble yourself with a governor of the place . . . the Prince will place one here before ten days axe ended. . . . We hope you will do us that right to vindicate our honour to the world in case we perish . . . and what blood shall be lost we doubt not but it will be required of those who have neglected us so long. . . . If no relief can come . . . send us speedy notice whereby the shedding of much blood shall be 214 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON prevented. If we may expect any we desire to know how soon, that we may stand it out unto the last, if our men will stand firm to us. Sir, next under God, our lives are in your hands." As a matter of fact Prince Rupert was not at that moment in the least thinking of attacking Wem. He had been appointed President of Wales the previous month by the King, and had been despatched to Shrews- bury, Chester, and North Wales to look into the security of those places and, that done, to attempt to relieve Newark, which was surrounded by the troops of the Parliament. The retention of Newark was most im- portant to the Royalists. Situated between Oxford and York, its loss would have given the possession of that district to the Parliamentarians. It was besieged by Sir John Meldrum, and matters looked very serious for the garrison. But Prince Rupert pressed his army thither from Shrewsbury and Chester with such haste that he completely surprised and dispersed the Round- heads, who believed him to be at a safe distance. They retired, leaving arms and ammunition behind. Denbigh summoned all the reinforcements he could muster, and, taking Colonel Purefoy's regiment of 500 foot along with him, marched with 1,500 horse and some drakes to Leicester in the hope of joining up with the Earl of Manchester's Derbyshire and Leicester- shire forces. But the news of Prince Rupert's relief of Newark arrived before a sufficiently strong force could be collected, and, as the Prince was advancing with his whole army and was within ten miles of Leicester, Lord Denbigh returned again to Coventry, whence he wrote to Sir Thomas Fairfax, that the late mischance at Newark had obliged him to march, with COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE MIDLANDS 215 all his Warwickshire forces, to the relief of their friends there — a fact which delayed his going into Shropshire, where the garrison at Wem remained in much danger. He prayed God to give him success and further their mutual interests. Here he received fresh instructions to relieve Wem — the only town in Shropshire still held by Parliament — and, on that being accomplished, to join the Lancashire and Cheshire forces in imjjeding Prince Rupert's march to the relief of York. The Lancashire and Cheshire troops were, however, otherwise engaged, so Lord Denbigh marched to Tam- worth with his own two regiments and another of horse, consisting of three hundred belonging to Sir Thomas Middleton's force. Sir Thomas Middleton quitted London and rapidly marched to Coventry to effect a junction with Denbigh. Meanwhile word was brought to Colonel Mytton, in Cheshire, that pweparations were being made for the conveyance of a considerable quantity of ammunition from Oswestry to Prince Rupert. A messenger was sent to Denbigh to inform him of this in order that, by their common action, they might intercept the convoy. The messenger found him at Tamworth. Here he at once formed up with 500 horse and foot and an artillery train of eight pieces from Stafford. He thereupon advanced to Stafford and sent ammunition and provisions into Wem, notwithstanding that Prince Rupert marched with his whole army within sight of that town. The Stafford Committee then begged him to besiege Rushall Hall, a very strong garrison between Dudley Castle and Lichfield, both towns then belonging to the Royalists. In March 1643, Rushall Castle, or House, belonging 216 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON to Colonel Leigh, had been attacked by Prince Rupert, and captured by him. Shortly after, the command of the garrison was given by the Prince to Colonel Lane of Bentley, who was kept busy with raids on, and counter-attacks by, the Parliaipentary forces. Indeed the Cavaliers boasted that they kept their " holy brethren from dulling their spirits with over much sleep, in giving them several alarlms, no rest or respite night or day, with some particularized skirmisheis." That Rushall was a very strong position is testified to by a postern gate and the great archway — ^assigned to the reign of Stephen — which remain to this day. The walls completely enclosed an area of 6,438 square yards, or rather more than an acre and a quarter, they varied in height from fifteen to eighteen feet, and were four feet in thickness. The walls stand to this day ; the massive gateway is fairly complete, having the remains of two rooms with fireplaces over it. Even the pld well remains. Of this journey of Denbigh's to Stafford on his way to Rushall there is a quaint contemporary Parlia- mentary Tract of the time, by an unnamed author, giving an accoimt of how Prince Rupert's forces were " discovered." It tells how Basil " led up his men with great courage," and speaks of the van as being " led by the truly noble and valiant Earl of Denbigh," who ordered the manner of their march so that " our army is formidable and in the esteem of the Country and Enemy we passed for five thousand. We marched thus by Lichfield ; after we had passed three mUes we had an alarm in the rear. The noble Earl was so valiant and vigilant that he went himself into the utmost of the rear with twenty of us and did set all past doubt ere COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE MIDLANDS 217 he moved. Then into the van again, then by that time we had an alarum in the van of two hundred horse appearing in the wood, the Earle led on himself which gave great encouragement and we marched resolutely to fight, but they vanished away." Yet another alarm was received from Stafford reporting the enemy to be near. *' The truly valiant Earl was resolved to fight it out, and we prepared a^ain, but in great disad- vantage, by reason of the narrow passage, and our ordnance could not be managed." By break of day they marched into Stafford, where they were " entertained cheerfully about tenne o'clock. . . . It is thought a great mercy we are here, in regard Prince Rupert threatened to crush us in the shell, and had he done it these counties had been undone which we hope will now take courage." The remainder of the march is described in a des- patch by Basil, who, in less grandiloquent terms, relates how on May 25th he marched from Stafford and took with him, besides horse and foot, two drakes, two sacres and the Stafford great piece, together with "ammunition proportionable." Sir Thomas Middleton's regiment of four hvuidred foot should have met him six miles out, but the men mutinied and refused to obey their officers. He had therefore to march without them to within a mile of Rushall. Here he sent out all his horse to surround the house, the grounds of which were examined for the best artillery position. The next day being Sunday, they " spent their time according to the duty of the day," Lord Denbigh quartering himself in Walsall, about one mile distant. The next day scouts captured a woman who had been despatched to beg Colonel Bagot to send General Hastings for men to 218 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON relieve Rushall ; and the day was spent in making preparations for their possible arrival, whilst the infantry continued firing small shot with all their mig'ht upon the garrison. Preparations for an assault were made, scaling ladders procured, also planking upon which the battery was established during the night under the direction of Captain Arundell. This Oifficer being shot in the foot during these preparations. Lord Denbigh himself spent the night in the trenches in order to hasten completion. Next day came news that Lord Loughborough, with 250 horse and some foot, were coming out of Lichfield. A party having been sent to reconnoitre, succeeded in raiding some horses at grass. This brought out the Royalists in force, and some sharp skirmishing took place between them and a " forlorn hope " of forty sent out by Lord Denbigh. Eight of the King's men were killed and many wounded, whilst the other side lost but two or three. Sir Thomas Middleton's horse appear- ing, the Lichfield force retired. We are given a full account of how, next day, on the completion of the battery, fire was opened and continued until 9 a.m., when a parley was sounded and a sumttions to sur- render sent in to the besieged in order to prevent more bloodshed. The Governor, Colonel Lane, answered that he had orders to maintain the place for His sacred Majesty, and if Lord Denbigh wanted to avoid the shedding of blood, he, as the attacker, had better depart. The cannonade was therefore resumed, and by four o'clock a great breach was made in the works, whilst fire was also kept up on the Royalist garrison in the church. It was resolved to storm the breach that night, COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OP THE MIDLANDS 219 and parties had already been told off when the garrison sounded a parley. Terms, however, could not be agreed upon, but the attackers had had an opportunity of see- ing how strong the works were, and realized that a gteat loss of life would be necessary to take them. Lord Denbigh thereupon offered much more favourable terms, and when the common soldiers among the gar- rison found that they would be granted their liberty, they laid down their arms and surrendered. The same night Lord Denbigh marched in and took possession. The Governor and officers, being allowed to depart with arms, horses and baggage, went to Lichfield. There, it seems, they had a warm reception from their friends, for Basil remarks of Colonel Lane, " I suppose by this time he wished himself with us, for we hear by some of their soldiers that, when he came to Lichfield, he was reviled, and, had Bagot's pistol gone off, he had killed him — yet he is his own cousin german." A providential misfire for Lane. As it was, Colonel Lane was tried by a Council of War for surrendering. Rushall was, as we have seen, a very strong position, and was surrounded by water with four forts at each end of the house. There was a second wall within and a very strong drawbridge. Many galleries had been made and great stones placed handy which, in the event of an assault, would have been more deadly than the muskets. Among the list of things taken at Rushall, we find "113 rolls of tobacco, i barrel of cut tobacco, 2 great bags of dried and cut tobacco, in both 2 bushels, and the house sufficiently victualled for a quarter of a year." The " True Informer " of June i, 1644, relates that " the Earl of Denbigh behaved himself very gallantly " 220 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON in the taking of Rushall, and that he " took in the house about ten thousand pounds worth of goods and wares that had been plundered from the carriers coming from London and other parts ; . . . that [Rushall] being observed to be one of the most thieving garrisons of the Cavaliers in all that county, in that they have some- times taken seven score packs at a time from the carriers ; so that this service will much advantage the country both in regard they may have more free passage for the time to come, and also that a great part of the goods will be returned to their owners." It is further recorded that, on Jime 14th, "those townships, which were warned to bring in carriages to convey the General [Denbigh] to Rushall and Walsall, shall, for their contempt and neglect, pay the charges and losses those men have suffered and been at, that were forced to send their arms to convey the said Earl thither." Lord Denbigh then having a strong force and plenty of ammunition, was invited by the Committee to attack Dudley Castle, the whole of Warwickshire being held by the King. Leaving Colonel Edward Leigh in com- mand at Rushall, Denbigh set forth. On approaching the castle he summoned the cotmtrymen to come to his assistance, and on Blackmore Heath the people made a great appearance. They were unwilling, however, to take up arms, though promising some colliers and labourers to assist in undermining the castle, whereupon Lord Denbigh, undaunted, laid siege to the place, raised his batteries, and planted his cannon within pistol-shot of the enemy's works. Sir Thomas Middleton, however, pressed his lordship for two or three days' delay, in order to allow his horse COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE MIDLANDS 221 and foot to go away on other more important service. Lord Denbigh at length, by the advice of his Council of .War, gave his consent to this, more especially since it was found that insufficient colliers and labourers had turned up to dig the mines, a labour which without them would take up too much valuable time. Before this programme could be effected news was brought of the enemy, consisting of 3,500 horse and foot, com- manded by Lord Willmott, Lord Cleveland, and others, being within four miles of Dudley. The King, who was at Shrewsbury, hearing of the danger which threatened the castle, had despatched Lord Wiknott and others with a brigade of horse and 1,000 foot soldiers to raise the siege. Basil thereupon ordered all the ordnance and trains of artillery to be drawn off to Tipton Green, which was done with the exception of the drake, the carriage of which was broken. Lord Denbigh, we are told, was resolved, however, rather to hazard his person than leave so small a piece of his honour behind. He would not stir from the place till he saw the drake taken off with great difficulty, a feat only completed when the enemy, with their battalions, was within sight, drawn up not a quarter of a mile from the Parliamentary forces on the side of the hill near Dudley. The enemy lost about a hundred of their men, besides many officers and soldiers taken prisoner, whereas Denbigh lost but seventeen of his men. From the account given by a Parliamentarian, and dated June 12th, we learn that the fight commenced about nine in the morning, and that the Parliament forces advanced from Tipton Green. The Royalists ambuscaded the hedges and the approaches to the castle, but the Roundheads, charging furiously, put 222 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON them to flight, leaving sixty of their number on the field. Lord Denbigh " deported himself with much gallantry " leading the foot, and remarking' that " he had rather lose ten lives than one piece of his artillery." The fight lasted from two to five, the Roundheads losing about eight men and twenty woimded. " We are now, blessed be God," continues this account, " at Walsall where we are in expectation of another touch this night." About the middle of June, Colonel Mytton being at Oswestry, which is spoken of as " a place of great con- cernment," suddenly received news, "a quarter of an hour after he had gone to bed," that carriages had been summoned to take ammunition from Oswestry to Prince Rupert, who was much in need of it. Mytton collected all his small available forces, and marched towards Chirk, to surprise the convoy. Lord Denbigh, being advised of the same, promptly sent reinforcements. The first information was to the effect that the convoy had not yet passed : but, on the 19th, Colonel Mytton captured two of Major Sacheverell's troopers, who con- fessed that a lieutenant of foot and twenty musketeers were a mile ahead, going towards Bangor. These Denbigh followed, as far as possible, with twenty-five horse and as many dragoons, and coming in sight of them unperceived, made ready to charge them in the rear, the country being enclosed, full of woods, and very uneven. Instead of twenty they found fifty-four, and one of the troopers carelessly gave the alarm by firing his pistol. The Royalists were then charged and defeated, twenty-seven being taken prisoners, Welsh- men all, to judge by their names, of which a full list is given. Colonel Mytton, in two pamphlets from which this account is drawn, attributed his victory to Heaven, COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE MIDLANDS 223 and thanked God he has not had one man slain since he parted from the main force. A writer, whose name is not mentioned, reports that Lord Denbigh had, meantime, again marched out of Stafford, horse and foot, to try and intercept the ammu- nition going to Prince Rupert. Heavy rain prevented a long march the first nigiht, but next day Lord Denbigh seems to have pushed on with his horse, and joined up with the men under Colonel Mytton, so would have been present at the skirmish. The two commanders appear to have then decided to attack Oswestry, a walled town, where they got, as we shall see, a warm reception. Various officers were told off to watch certain points of the town, to place guards and send scouts out into the country. These reported the advance of Colonel Marrowes with a body of horse, but they never came up. Lord Denbigh's horse, commanded by Major Frazer, watched the Shrewsbury road, while his foot attacked the church, and, in half an hour's fighting, forced the defenders into the steeple of the church (which appears to have been outside the wallst), whence they were " fetched down with a powder " and twenty-seven taken prisoners. A sacre was then brought up to fire at the town gate, and one of the shots killing a woman and wounding two or three men, " put the rest into a feare," and they retired to the castle. The town gates were next forced, and " my lord himself entered the town with the horse, neglecting thoughts of his own safety." Not waiting to plunder, the force pressed on to the castle with the " greatest sacre," the shots from which, however, took little effect. Some " timorous men " got over the walls, but were captured by Captain Keene's horse. 224 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON A Council of War then followed, at which a party of men was told off to try and fire the castle gates with pitch ; but the men, " wearied out, slipped the opportunity," and so did nothing. Next morning " my Lord " sent Captain Keene to go and do this job, but, on his way, he met a party of women, who threw them- selves on their knees, " confounding him with their Welsh howlings " to such an extent that he had to get an interpreter. It was found that they wanted permission before the castle was blown up to speak to their husbands' and children, and plead with the officers. This being agreed to. Captain Keene accom- panied them, and at the same time, on behalf of Lord Denbigh, offered the garrison mercy if they would surrender. The garrison shortly after threw down a paper signed by six officers " propounding propositions for surrender- ing," on condition that they should all march away with their arms, bag, and baggage ; that they be given safe -conduct to Mountford Bridge, and permission to march over the bridge " with muskets charged, light matches and balls in our mouthes." These conditions were refused, but, their lives promised them, the garri- son marched out, and, to the number of two hundred, were taken prisoners. As it was Sunday Lord Denbigh called all his men away at once to church, after which they buried their dead. Of these there were only two. At a Council of War which followed Colonel Mytton was appointed Governor of Oswestry and a " greate designe was resolved on " to join up with Sir Thomas Middleton at Nantwich and march into Lancashire against Prince Rupert. The town of Oswestry then arranged to distribute £500 among the COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE MIDLANDS 225 victorious soldiers, and so avert the evils and abuses incidental to plundering. Denbigh immediately afterwards drew off his forces and set forth on the " great designe," he, as Com- mander-in-Chief, having been again instructed by the Committee of Both Houses to relieve Wem. The Committees at Coventry and Stafford had, in their turn, received orders to give him all speedy and possible help. This was probably in consequence of a petition which Colonel Edward Leigh, of the Rushall garrison, laid before Parliament on July 5, 1644. It was signed by four thousand Staffordshire men, and prayed " that the differences, between the Earl of Denbigh their general and some of the country, might be reconciled and the Earl sent down again amongst them." Upon delivery thereof the Colonel made a long harangue to the Commons, and all was referred to a Committee. An old contemporary narrative relates that " the Earl of Denbigh, it is hoped, will now suddenly be dispatched : and it is well, for he is so active and noble a general that the country under his association longs for his return." No sooner had Denbigh departed than the Royalists sent 1,500 horse and 3,500 foot of the King's forces, under Colonel Marrowes, to again besiege Oswestry ; but Sir Thomas Middleton collected some of the men that were to have marched north and returned to relieve Oswestry. When three miles from the town Sir Thomas was attacked, but, drawing off the Royalists by a ruse, he eventually defeated them, and drove them back to Shrewsbury, remaining with his forces at Felton Heath to ,hold them in check. He took several prisoners, amongst them Lord Newport's eldest son. Bread, Q 226 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON cheese, bacon and other food provisions were also captured in quantities that were most useful for the troops. After this Sir Thomas Middleton himself joined up with Lord Denbigh. From Shrewsbury they marched, upon advice of the Council of War, to relieve Wem. Moving upon Whitchurch they spent Sunday there, and " my Lord had Captain Keene to preach." We often' find this officer engaged in a like task at funerals. The next account of their doings we get in a letter from an eminent commander in the Earl of Denbigh's quarters, dated Nantwich, July 9, 1644, in which the writer relates that, since his last letter, they have been in very hot and sharp' service, having made the enemy fly and taken a bridge at Shrewsbury, to the neigh- bourhood of which town they seem to have returned. " My Lord himself lead on gallantly, in the forlorn hope, having not patience till the bridge could be let down, so crowded through the river, but finding them- selves too few to besiege the town." Another report of the same date relates : " My general hates idleness. I must tell you he lets us not rest day nor night, but is ever up and on, and by his own energy in action causes his men to stir bravely, being in the midst of them on most occasions." So important were these victories, as opening up the road from Shrewsbury to London to the PaJ-lia- mentarians, that letters of thanks were sent from both Houses to Denbigh " for the great and good services done by him." Lord Willoughby, writing to con- gratulate Basil, says : " You are the only white boy I know, for I must confeiss till I saw this day the noble expressions of you so unanimously given by both Houses COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE MIDLANDS 227 and their free concurrence in writing a letter to you of thanks I thought it a crime to be a nobleman, but you have gone far beyond them in returning so much good overweight for so much evil." The inhabitants of Wiem do not seem to have been so pleased with Basil's victories as the Houses of Parliament and thte people of Stafford, for, on July 20th, the Committee of that town sent a letter to the Speaker of the House of Commons telling how, when the whole country was in the power of the enemy and all the people either against the Parliament or durst not show themselves for it, the writers lost all their estates and have even been proclaimed traitors by the King. All this did not, they continued, discourage them from doing their duty, for they raised both horse and foot. When the Earl of Denbigh was appointed Commander-in-Chief they expected much, but for twelve months they have only been fed on fair promises, and, though care was taken to hasten the Earl's march, " Wem is as yet unrelieved and Oswestry, though taken, is left unrelieved." The writers are now threatened to be pulled out of the country by their ears by one of his lordship's officers, and divers of them are vilified by others under his lordship's command and with his knowledge and for no other cause than their desire to protect their county from plunder. The rudeness and disorders of these troopers are so great that no discipline or justice is being observed. Far from their being the deliverers of the county of Shropshire, the writers expect but to fall from one bondage into another, and beg to have other officers sent to command them. Only a month later we find the gentry, freeholders, and inhabitants of the county of Warwick thanking 228 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON the Lords and Commons for having appointed Lord Denbigh their Lord-Lieutenant, and asking that money may not be levied on them but on the county of Stafford, and applied to the Earl of Denbigh and his "forces. Major Frazer and the other officers of Denbigh's regi- ment of horse were so distressed at the rumour of their being disbanded that they sent him a letter in which " your lordship's poor officers," knowing what a prejudice it would be to the Parliament that such a regiment should be disbanded, have engaged their horses and clothes, every one according to his ability, for money to give the soldiers some satisfaction " so that thereby we hope to keep together." Meantime on the very same day the commanders and others in the county of Stafford sent a petition to ask that Lord Denbigh may not be retarded but speedily despatched to their relief. Greatly as he was appreciated there, things grew no better nearer home, for, in September, the Commons were again besought by the Warwickshire men to pro- tect them from assessments, and from the Earl of Denbigh's men, who, drawing pay from Worcestershire, expect free quarters in Warwickshire, adding that with it all the county is ill protected. In September Staffordshire begs again that Lord Denbigh may be sent to them', saying they want but a head to guide their forces, while in Octobter thte gentlemen of the county of Warwick complain they are like to be further "pillaged if the Earl of Denbigh be not soon sent down to them, and yet others claim that if he come great evils will ensue, as he threatens to take revenge if he cannot get satisfaction to his own mind. The Earl of Northumberland was, in conse- COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE MIDLANDS 229 quence, sent down to inquire into the matter. He apparently smoothed things but little, for in October Colonel Rugely writes from Stafford that the sufferings of the county, in consequence of Lord Denbigh's absence, are unspeakable, " the enemy taking advan- tage of our distractions, draw down their forces, and daily infest these parts. ... I desire nothing more than to hear that ygur enemies be vanished and that your honour is making ready to return to us, in whose presence consists our being and the well-being of our country." Little notice, however, seems to have been taken by any one of this appeal. Events were happen- ing too quickly elsewhere. Waller and Essex had endeavoured to besiege Charles at Oxford, but he slipped through them, and sent Rupert to York, where he raised the siege. In Cornwall disaster had befallen Essex, but the Royalists in their turn, after being routed at Marston Moor in July, were defeated at Newbury in October. On November 9th the names were presented to the Commons of those who were chosen to carry the pro- positions for peace to the King. The Earl of Denbigh, Lord Maynard, four members of the Commons and three others were appointed. The name of the first of these Commissioners had been questioned by the Parliament owing to complaints made against him for his misconduct as an officer in their army. Before the Commons would allow him to be a Commissioner they debated all these complaints in their House. These were chiefly prompted by jealousies against him for favouring delinquents. This discussion occasioned no less than four divisions of that House in one day, in 230 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON one of which the question being put " WJiether the Earl of Denbigh stood clear of any disaffection to the public service or breach of trust reposed in him by Parlia- ment," the votes recorded were " 48 against 33, so that this question passing in the negative it was first resolved, that the Earl of Denbigh should not be sent down to his command in the associated army ; but next that he was deservedly employed upon the service of going with the Proposition for Peace to the King." This means of evading a difficult position can hardly have been a gratifying one for Basil. The Commission, being now duly appointed, left London on November 20th with instructions to bring back the King's answer as soon as possible. The Com- missioners went to Reading to inquire where the King was, and found him gone to Wdlllingford. They ex- perienced bad weather and poor accommodation on the way, but "were very merry amongst themselves." Arrived outside Wallingford, they sent a letter to Colonel Blake, the Governor, to acquaint him with their desire to obtain entrance into the town by virtue of their safe-conduct from the King, and their business. Blake sent to ask for the safe -conduct. They refused to part with it, saying it was their security for their passage. They showed it, however, to the messenger, and gave him a copy of it, with which he returned to the Governor, who, after some two hours' delay, sent a troop of horse to convey them into the town. The Commissioners went at once to the Governor's quarters. He, having received them " not rudely but with height enough," gave them wine, and said he believed the King was at Oxford. " Amongst other discourses he and the Earl of COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE MIDLANDS 231 Denbigh fell into relation of some passages of war, wherein both the Earl and Colonel Blake had been actors. Both of them being high spirits, could not brook any diminution to the honour of each other, or of their parties. They differed upon some matters of fact and grew into very high words, insomuch as the Lord Maitland looked very pale, and he and others thought that they should have their throats cut by the garrison ; and Blake looked very big upon them, and his words were answerable. AU the company held it fit to remove from this garrison, seeing the carriage of Blake so full of insolence and incivility and with much difficulty at last got into their coaches and took leave of the proud Governor." Arrived outside Oxford they waited some hours in the wet and cold of an open field while sending their messenger into the town. They were allowed to enter, but as they drove through the streets dirt was throAvn at them and they were called evil names. Even when established in their quarters the Royalists' servants began quarrelling with the Commissioners' servants, so that interference became necessary to keep the peace. The following day the Commissioners were received in the garden at Christchurch by the King, who gave them his hand to kiss. Lord Denbigh read the pro- positions to the King, " who heard them with much patience," and, when they were all read, said he would consider his answer. When the Commissioners later on sent in their report to Parliament they related " that at the reading of the excepted persons' names, which the Earl of Denbigh read with great courage and temper. Prince Rupert and Prince Maurice being present when their names were read, they fell into a laughter. 232 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON at which the King seemed displeased, and bid them be quiet." The Committee next answered the King that they had no commission to treat, but were there to receive His Majesty's answer in writing. The King replied, " Then a letter-carrier might have done as much as you ; " to which the Earl of Denbigh said, " I suppose your Majesty looks upon us as persons of another condition than letter-carriers." The King said again, " I know your condition ; but I say that your commission gives you power to do not more than a letter-carrier might have done." "And so we came away from the King with a little kind of dissatisfaction, but some of his lords excused to us afterwards those hasty words." The demands of the proposition were to bid him pass, by the royal assent, four Acts of Parliament, by one of which he was to confess the war as raised by himself against Parliament, and, by another, to sacrifice all those who had served him to the mercy of the Parlia- ment. He, in his answer, declined thus to surrender himself, his country, and his friends. Apparently, when the answer was ready it was sent to the Commissioners sealed up. This they objected to, saying it was not fit for them to receive an answer without being acquainted with the contents, so they desired to be excused. The King replied, " What is that to you, who are but to carry what I send, and if I will send the song of Robin Hood and Little John you must carry it." To which the Commissioners only said that the business about which they came, and from which they were to return with His Majesty's answer, was of somewhat more consequence than that song. After more passages and a show of " no good humour " COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE MIDLANDS 233 by the King, matters were smoothed over and a copy of the answer was delivered, but without being addressed. The Commissioners again protested, but " could not get it otherwise," though they felt such conduct to be a slight upon their mission and the Parhament which sent them. On November 29th they returned to the Parliament. The following day a conference of both Houses was held and the King's answer apparently accepted, after which the House ordered : " That upon consideration of the faithful service done by the Committee that went to His Majesty, and their discreet carriage of the busi- ness, the thanks of the House should be returned to them for the same; and everyone of them severally in their order stood up in their places and the Speaker solemnly pronounced the thanks of the House to them." It was after this, as wie learn from a message to the Commons, that Denbigh went with some Cheshire gentlemen, at their request, to attack Chohnondeley House, though it lay out of his association. After some ineffectual battering at the walls, he gave orders for some Cheshire foot to storm the house. This they re- fused to do " though in other places they showed them- selves men of valour," and whilst Roper was trying to urge them on the Earl came up, and told the Cheshire men that, though it was their work, and they had brought him thither, he would rather lay his bones there than not take the house, and then he with some troopers of his own carried the house." This victory is elsewhere described as being thp capture of " a place, if you see it, miraculously gained by God's love with loss but of five men." Besides these commissions and military excursions 234 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Basil seems to have had his hands pretty full of other matters, judging by the pile of petitions, letters, etc., filed among his papers. A few selections from these will serve to throw some light upon this side of his life and upon the condition of the country. Alexander Noel acquaints him with an old debt " which your noble father deceased did owe to a dis- tressed sister of mine, the Lady Castlehaven," and Denbigh replies : " Noble Sir, — I should be glad that either the times or my present condition could enable me to satisfy that debt which I hold myself more engaged in, by the tie of honour, than if myself or estate had been responsible by any other obligation. Not long before my father's death it pleased the King to promise the payment of his debts and to that pur- pose has assigned to my mother the disposition of the office of the wardrobe. I shall a^k leave of the Parliament to acquaint my mother with this business which I am sure she will have a great care of, as I shall when God shall enable me, out of a particular respect of my father's memory and honour, and no small regard to the continuance of that love and friend- ship that ever passed betwixt our families. In the meantime I shall take it for a favour if the prosecution extended against Sir Thomas Brookes [who was co- security in the bond with the first Lord Denbigh] may be forborne as conducing little to the perfecting that accompt by reason of the unhappy condition that gentle- man is fallen into, especially in these times of distraction. As soon as my mother shall have returned me her answer I shall impa,rt it to you and be ready in this and all other occasions to express myself your affectionate kinsman and servant, B. Denbigh" COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE MIDLANDS 235 Margery Royston, widow, petitions for payment of money due to her that she may recover " a young child of the age of nine years taken and carried on board of a ship to be transported for Virginia." Lawrence Birds of Rowington, in the county of Warwick, complains that Captain Morris " hath lately taken and plundered from your petitioner one horse, 4 silver spoons, £6 14s. od. in money, boots, stockings, linens, and divers other goods, and did beat your petitioner, his wife, and children, and commit great outrage," and prays that his horse, money, etc., may be restored to him. To all Basil sent courteous replies. While these events were happening to Basil let us see what befell his mother. The King had taken Queen Henrietta to Oxford after her arrival from Holland, and, with her, remained in faithful attendance the widowed Countess of Denbigh. The siege of Oxford appearing imminent, the Queen, on April 17, 1644, fled to Exeter. There her child was born in the midst of privations and discomforts almost unbearable. She could neither rest nor grow strong, for when the infant princess was but seventeen days old her royal mother had to leave her and fly into Cornwall. So miserable was the Queen's plight there that Francis Basset wrote to his wife : " Here is the woefuUest spectacle my eyes yet ever looked on, the most worn and weak pitiful creature in the world, the poor Queen shifting for an hour's life longer." From Pendennis she put to sea. Here again she was pursued by her enemies, and not only chased, but fired upon ; receiving " no other courtesy from England but cannon balls to convey her into France." After a long tossing in the Channel in a fishing-boat, she landed near Brest. 236 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON The country people soon flocked round to give a welcome to the ill-fated daughter of Henry of Navarre, the sorrov/ful sister of their late King. It was a melancholy home-coming. Her mother and brother were no more. Anne of Austria was Queen- regent, with Mazarin at her right hand. Henrietta thought to enlist the Cajdinal's help for Charles, but soon found that, though full of respectful sympathy, the minister had no intention of embroiling France with England. Susan Denbigh presimiably accompanied the Queen on her perilous voyage to France, and it must have been with a heavy heart that she bade farewell to England and her eldest son, whom she was never to see again. Great was the kindness otherwise shown to the Queen. She was assigned a pension of 10,000 crowns a month, which enabled her to keep up a fitting estab- lishment. With her were Jermyn, Su Denbigh, and Elizabeth Kynakneaky. Susan's sorrows bound her all the more closely to the Queen, that royal mistress who had shown such tender sympathy to her in the days of her bereavement and widowhood. CHAPTER XI THE CAPTIVE KING ONE of the results of the battle of Newbury gained, as we have seen, by the Parliament in 1 644, was to bring to a head a matter, partly military, partly religious, which had long been exercising men's minds. Cromwell and his partisans thought that some of the Parliamentary leaders, such as Essex, Manchester, and Denbigh, did not really want to con- quer the King, but only to prolong the war till some compromise could be arrived a,t by means of the raid- less negotiations always being carried on between the two parties. Cromwell also saw that most of the military commands were under county or local land- owners, and were served by local men who disliked the idea of being moved into other districts. His plan, therefore, was to raise instead an army which would obey central orders and go anywhere. The religious difference lay between those who wished to replace the Episcopalian Church by a Presbyterian Church of England, and those who wished each body of Christians to regulate its own affairs as it pleased. The latter called themselves Independents, in contra- distinction to the Presbyterians. The elder officers and the majority of the members of Parliament were Presbyterians ; the younger officers and most of the 23T 238 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON soldiers were usually Independents. After some diffi- culty an Act called the Self-denying Ordinance was brought before Parliament. By it every member of Parliament holding commission in the Army was obliged to resign. Nevertheless these measures failed to satisfy many members, who spoke against the Self-denying Ordinance as a perilous and uncalled-for novelty. iWhitlock, for example, who did not see into the future, objected on the grounds that it would lay aside as brave men, and as wise, and as faithful, as ever served their country. " Our noble general, Essex," he argued, " the Earls of Denbigh, Warwick, Manchester, and Lords Roberts, Willoughby, and other lords in your armies, besides those in civil offices ; and your own members, must be laid aside if you pass this ordinance." There is no doubt that Cromwell's chief aim in bringing in this Act was to overthrow the peerage, whose prestige and influence in the country met him at every turn. Lord Holies relates how Cromwell once told the Earl of Manchester that so great was his hatred of the nobility and the House of Peers that he wished there was never a lord in England ; and that he loved those who hated them. A majority of the House of Commons passed the Ordinance on the 19th of December, 1644, and on the 2 1st it was sent up to the Lords. There the Bill met with many delays and much opposition, for their lordships would not enter upon the subject until the 30th of December. They then committed the con- sideration of it to a Committee of eight lords, four of whom were persons naturally much interested in opposing the Ordinance, namely, the Earls of Essex, Manchester, Warwick, and Denbigh. This Committee THE CAPTIVE KING 239 drew up a paper representing that the Bill would deprive the peers of that honour which in all ages had been given to thetti, since they had ever more been active, to the effusion of their blood and the hazard of their estates and fortunes, in regaining and maintaining the fundamental laws of the land, and the rights and liberties of the subject ; nor was there ever any battle fought for these ends wherein the nobility were not employed in the chief places of trust and command. They added, what was perfectly true, and what was of vital importance to their whole caste, that the Self- denying Ordinance was by no means equal in its operation towards Lords and Commons, since, though some of the gentry and commons were comprehended in it as sitting members of Parliament, yet the rest were left free to serve either in civil offices or in the field, whereas the Ordinance would act as a dis- qualification of the whole hereditary nobility of England. Upon this the Commons, who had twice before sent up urgent messages representing that any delay would be dangerous and might be destructive to the country's liberties, appointed a Committee to pre- pare reasons to satisfy their lordships ; and on the 13th of January, 1645, the whole House, with the Speaker at their head, went up to the Lords about the same business. But the Lords, that same day, finished debating, and rejected the Ordinance, only to have it eventually sent up again on the 31st of March. On the and of April the Lord-General Essex, the Earl of Manchester, and the Earl of Denbigh, in the House of Peers, voluntarily offered to surrender their com- missions. This offer was accepted and apprpved of by the House, and, a conference being desired with the 240 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Commons, their lordships there read a letter written by Essex, who, with all modesty, stated therein that he had been employed, for almost three years, as Lord- General of all the Parliament forces " raised for the defence of the King, Parliament, and Kingdom," that he had " endeavoured to perform his duty with all fidelity and sedulity " ; yet considering, by reason of the Ordinance lately brought up to the House of Peers, that it would be advantageous to the public, he now desired to lay down his commission and freely to render it into the hands of those from whom he received it. Similar declarations were read by Manchester and by Denbigh. The House replied that they " looked upon this action of these Lords in this conjunction of time as a fit testimony of their duty to the Houses of Parliament under whom they have so long served in so eminent employment," and expressed the " acceptance and value both Houses have of their faithfulness and industry taken for the Public Good of the Kingdom and the safety of Parliament." On the following day, the 3rd of April, the Self- denying Ordinance was freely passed by the Peers. There still remained the local or territorial difficulty. To get rid of it the Army was remodelled. This, of course, entailed the inclusion of a good many pressed men, but the result was an Army willing to go anywhere and obey any one. Thus was Basil's military career brought to an end. Sir H. Verney, writing on April 3rd, relates: " My Lord General, Lord Manchester, and Lord Denbigh this morning hath of a certainty laid down their com- missions. One thing more this day is agreed to by THE CAPTIVE KING 241 an ordinance of both Houses, that no member, of what condition or quality whatever, shall continue in any command or charge belonging to a soldier but return and attend the Houses. A little time will produce much alteration." This forecast was justified, for time proved that the new regulation gave to Army and Parliament two very separate ideas and sympathies. The mass of the Army was composed of Independents ; that of Parliament of Presbyterians. This reorganiza- tion of the Army was called the New Model. Charles despised it; and Whitlock relates of it: "This giving up of their commissions at this time was declared by both Houses to be an acceptable Service and a testi- mony of the Fidelity and care those three Lords had of the public ; and the Commons appointed a committee to consider of gratifying the Lord General and the Earls of Manchester and Denbigh, for their faithful services and hazarding their lives and fortunes for the public." And so it was that Essex and many gallant men laying down their arms and retiring, the King's party spoke of the new Army with its new officers and organization, not as the New Model, but as the " New Noddle." The Royalists, despising it, ventured later on to engage it at Naseby, though it greatly outnumbered them. Their over -confidence was punished by a com- plete rout. Nevertheless, matters military were none too easy for the Parliamentary generals. The difficulty of obtaining men was great. Neither religious enthusiasm, nor love of freedom, nor the promise of regular pay, proved sufficient to raise the total of 22,000 men required by Parliament. No less than 8,000 had to be " pressed," and the Army which has been called " the finest 242 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON force in Europe at that time " was not recruited by the voluntary system at all, but by " the most unjust form of compulsion that can be conceived." The result was raw and undisciplined men, in most cases " arch knaves," as they are described by Sir Jacob Astley. Yet it has been calculated that during the Civil War only 2^ per cent of thp population were in arms. We have seen in the expeditions to Rochelle and Cadiz how worthless this system of pressing was. Only the severe discipline observed in the New Model saved it now from a like fate. The Commander-in-Chief of the new Army was now Sir Thomas Fairfax. He had begged, and obtained, that Oliver Cromwell, despite his being a member of Parlia- ment, might be allowed jfor a time to stay with the Army and lead the cavalry. The King, by the advice of his Council, consented to discuss a treaty of peace early in 1645. The drawing- up of the treaty was limited to a term of twenty days' duration. At Uxbridge the Commissioners from the two parties met within the Parliamentary quarters. Den- bigh was appointed one of the Parliament Commis- sioners. When the King asked Parliament for a safe- conduct for his representatives the request raised a question which much exercised Parliament, since it was necessary to describe the persons to whom such passes were to be given. Parliament did not wish to recog- nize the Royalists by the styles and titles which the King gave them, yet knew no other alternative. The diffi- culty was overcome by a final decision to mention neither honours nor offices in the safe -conducts. The town was so exceedingly full of company, Whit- lock tells us, that it was hard to get quarters except THE CAPTIVE KING 243 for the Commissionjers and their retinue. Some of the Commissioners were forced to lie two of them in a chamber together in field beds, only upon a quilt, " in that cold weather not coming into a bed during all the treaty." If beds were scarce the food seems to have been plentiful. All were accommodated on one side of the town. " Each party eat always together, there being two great inns which served very well for that purpose." The Parliamentary party visited the King's Com- mission "within an hour of their arrival," each pro- fessing great desire and hope that the treaty would produce a good peace. The former were of the more moderate party. Men who had been united in the first days of the Long Parliament, but had since become political enemies, now met in a common hope that once more they might become friends. Pembroke and Denbigh had private interviews with Hyde and others, in which they discussed their mutual hopes and fears. Clarendon's view is, naturally, that of the Royalists, who, he says, used their accustomed freedom, while the other side were very reserved and jealous of each other, so that no one of them would ever be seen with one of the Royalists unless accompanied by another Parliamentarian, and that generally the one whom they least trusted. For many days the discussion lasted, little satisfaction being gained by either party. During the sitting Shrewsbury was captured by the Parliament — a great blow to the Royalists, and one deeply felt by the King, who wrote at this time to Prince Charles, who, it may be noted, though declared 244 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON was never created Prince of Wales : " It is very fit for me to prepare for the worst." Clarendon relates that the peers amongst the Parlia- ment Comtaission now began to get uneasy as to the trend of affairs, seeing that probably much of their power and property would be taken from them, but " The Earl of Denbigh had much greater parts and saw further before him into the desperate designs of that party that had then the power . . . and detested those designs as much as any of them ; yet the pride of his nature, not inferior to the proudest, and the consequence of his ingratitude to the King, in some respects superior to theirs who had been most obliged, kept him from being willing to quit the company with whom he had conversed too long, though he had re- ceived from them most grievous affronts and indigni- ties, and well knew he should never more be employed by them, yet he thought the King's condition to be utterly desperate and that he would at last be compelled to yield to worse conditions than were now offered to him. He conferred with so much freedom with one of the King's Commissioners and spent so much time with him in the vacant hours, there having been formerly a great friendship between them, that he drew some jealousy upon himself from some of his companions. With him he lamented his own condition, and acknow- ledged his disloyalty to the King with expressions of great compunction ; and protested that he would most willingly redeem his transgressions by any attempt that might serve the King signally, though he were sure to lose his life in it ; but that to lose himself without any benefit to the King would expose him to all misery ; which he would decline by not separating from his THE CAPTIVE KING 245 party. He informed him more fully of the wicked purposes of those who then governed the Parliament, than others apprehended or imagined ; and had a full prospect of the vile condition himself and all the nobility should be reduced to ; yet thought it impossible to prevent it by any authority of their own ; and con- cluded " that if any conjimction fell out, in which by losing his life he might preserve the King's, he would embrace the occasion j otherwise he would shift the best he could for himself." The hopes of concession which the King had held out were suddenly withdrawn, and the Royalists departed. Clarendon tells us that their time had been so strenuous " that if the treaty had continued much longer it is very probable many of the Com- missioners must have fallen sick for want of sleep." In May 1645 Charles opened his campaign by a march to the North. All went well at first, but on June 14th the two armies met at Naseby. Charles was beaten, and fled from the field. His papers were seized, and in them were found proofs of intrigues and counter-intrigues with enemies and friends, which proved, once more, how little worthy this shifty monarch was of the loyalty of his devoted adherents. Basil seems to have felt all along that, although a monarchy might be good, this monarch was its worst enemy ; and to have agreed with Cromwell that : " The King is a man of great parts and great imderstanding, but so great a dissembler and so false a man that he is not to be trusted." The war was now over, as far as any decisive action was concerned. Charles, broken and defeated^ was hunted from place to place. When Oxford surrendered 246 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON to Fairfax in April 1646 the King was sorely pressed, and in May made his appearance in the camp of the Scots, trusting to create dissension between them and the English. He hoped that by thus throwing himself upon their mercy he would reawake their loyalty to a king of Scottish blood. His hopes were doomed to disappointment. The Scots carried him about with them from' camp to camp, while the place of his captivity, for he was no better than a prisoner, was exercising the thoughts of the Executive. The Commons wished to send him to Warwick Castle, but the Lords rejected the resolution. Regarding this debate, it is interesting to find that on two questions which arose during it Basil and some other peers desired that their dissent might be recorded, together with their reasons, a custom very rarely practised in the House of Lords at this time. The reason being that they were of opinion that the King was safer and better guarded by the Army than he would have been at Warwick, or elsewhere, under a Parliamentary Commission — an opinion justified by subsequent events. The two Houses next laid their conditions of peace before the King. These were that Parliament should have command of the Army and Navy for twenty years ; the power of exclusion of all riialignants or Royalists who had taken part in the war, from civil or military offices, the abolition of Episcopacy, and the establish- ment of a Presbyterian Church. The Scots, who had, vnth their royal prisoner, fallen back upon Newcastle, pressed these terms upon Charles by a deputation sent to him from Parliament. He refused the terms. On this Parliament proposed to the Scots that Charles should be entrusted to its care, THE CAPTIVE KING 247 and that the Scottish Army, on receipt of £400,000, should depart the country. The Scots agreed. Things being thus settled, Charles was marched back over the border to be duly placed in the custody of the Parliament. On January 6, 1647, the House of Lords " named Lords Pembroke, Denbigh, and Montague unto the commission appointed by both Houses to receive the King's person, and, with such guards as they should think fit, bring him to Holmby House." A sum of £2,500 was allowed by the Commons for the necessary expenses of the journey. On the way a report was brought of the King's intention to escape to France. That Charles was scheming for a way out of his difficulties is shown by the fact of his having asked if he might see the members of the Commission individually and severally. They replied that if he then spoke anything of moment to them they would be bound to acquaint their colleagues, as otherwise they could not faithfully discharge their trust. The matter was pressed no further. With the Commissioners already named went six members of Parliament and " some private gentlemen to attend his Majesty." Sir Thomas Herbert, Groom of the Chambers, tells us of their progress. " On the 1 2th January the Commission set forth from London — the Lords in their coaches — ^arriving at Newcastle on the ninth day. In all two hundred miles which, with bad ways and short days made the travel less pleasant." Next day they had audience of the King, who seemed very pleased to see them, all of them being already known to him. So cheerful was his air that he gave them the impression of being as willing to leave the Scots as they to give him up. The Commissioners 248 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON asked him when he would be ready to accompany them. He answered as soon as they were rested. At the end of four days he announced his intention of starting with them for Hohnby. On February 9th the King and his attendants arrived at Leeds, where " a little before dinner many deseased persons came bringing with them ribbons and gold, and were only touched without any other ceremony." The same thing happened at Durham. We cannot wonder that the Commissioners then sent a declaration to Parliament begging that this custom might be stopped, as so many of the people were suffering from maladies which made them unfit to come into His Majesty's presence. Charles and his escort arrived at Holmby after eight days' travelling, the people, much to his gratification, flocking to behold him as he passed. Nor were the Northamptonshire folk less anxious to welcome him. The leading Royalists of the county greeted him, and his spirits were observed to rise in consequence. At Holmby he was comfortably lodged and treated with as much deference as was allowed. At meal- times the Commissioners never failed to wait upon the King with all due observance. As he objected to the chaplains appointed, he always said grace him- self. His principal recreations were chess and a walk in the garden with one or other of the Commissioners. He frequently played bowls at Lord Vaux's at Harrow- den and sometimes at Althorp. One day on his way to Harrowden he passed over a bridge where a Major Bosvile, a Royalist, disguised as a labouring man, stood and gave him a packet from the Queen. The King explaining to the Commissioners that the missive THE CAPTIVE KING 249 was but to ask his leave for Prince Charles to serve in the French Army, the disguised person was excused. The matter was, however, duly reported to the House. The Commissioners when walking with the King had some difficulty in keeping up with him, " he being quick and lively in his motion. He never had above one of them in company, the rest keeping at a becoming distance," and as they were always very respectful to him, " so the King was very affable to them all the time they attended him." Holmby, which had belonged in Queen Elizabeth's reign to Sir Christopher Hatton till he gave it to the Crown, was really Charles's own house, and is de- scribed as "a place he had taken much delight in." Here he seemed to have had much liberty, but was unable to surround himself with such persons and ser- vants as he desired and trusted. That which most displeased him was the presence of Presbyterian ministers appointed to attend him for Divine Service in lieu of his own chaplains. By way of protest he said his prayers in his bedchamber till, driven desperate, he wrote a letter to the House of Peers asking for the attendance of one of his thirteen chaplains. The request was ignored, and clergymen of the English Church, " men of mean parts and of most impertinent and troublesome confidence and importunity," were sent instead. Parliament again spoke of laying proposals before the King, and a document endorsed " Copy of my letter to Lord Northumberland," in Lord Denbigh's hand- writing, and dated May 13, 1647, reports : " Yester- day morning the King sent for the Commissioners here to wait upon him to know of us when we did expect 250 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON the propositions, I told him we were in daily hopes of them. His Majesty replied that he was not well pleased with his present condition which gave him once a resolution to give no answer at all when they should come, but upon better consideration he had now altered his mind, but because they were not yet come, though the Scots commissioners had been three weeks at London, he could not but wonder much at the delay still used in giving expedition to that business. The propositions, he said, he was well acquainted with, having been once offered to him at Newcastle, but never given any answer which now he was resolved to do, and to send it by us as we had done other of his letters to the Parliament. He desired further that we should assign him a fit person to write what he should dictate, because of his custom to the Houses in a third person otherwise it would put him to more trouble, and he would take the pains himself. We took time to consider of what we were to give him answer, which was to this effect: that the papers which His Majesty now intended to send by us to the Parliament did contain matter of a different nature to what he formerly sent and was of that great concernment that we desired further time till the morrow after to give him our full resolution. He replied he did not expect any advice from us, but desired only to know whether he might be allowed an assistant to help him to write ; as for the letter, he knew we durst not refuse the sending of it. Howsoever he would be ready to offer it to us the same night and would be glad to be refused. We answered that His Majesty taking notice of what we formerly offered to him, he might, if he pleased^ make use of Mr. Herbert to write for him. His Majesty expressed THE CAPTIVE KING 251 himself further, that if we should refuse to send his letter to the Parliament the condition he was in should not hinder him from finding out a way to make it known to the whole kingdom. The afternoon was most spent in debate amongst ourselves whether we should convey His Majesty's intentions, which were only made known to us in the general, to the Parliament. Great were the inconveniences that represented them- selves to us on both sides, but what turned the balance was, that we could not make ourselves fit judges of what was proper for the King to send to the two Houses, and the precedent already given of former addresses sent under our conveyance put us of a capacity of refusing this, having often solicited for instructions how to behave ourselves from accidents of the like nature but could never yet receive any directions in that particular which we would take to be no other than at least a tacit consent and allowance of what we had done and a rule for us to go by for. the future till further order. The vote being put, it was the consent of the Committee that the letter should be received and sent, according to the directions which His Majesty that night, a little before supper, offering to us was [sic'] received. We have taken care that his letter may arrive at London at such a time as the Houses shall not sit, to the end your lordship and other persons of honour and quality in both Houses might be made acquainted with the subject of that letter, as far as His Majesty thought fit to communicate himself in it to us, that when it should come to be read publicly there might not be a general surprisal upon [some words here lost] of what might be so little expected from henc«." 252 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Seeing the hopelessness of the Stuart cause, realizing that the King's power had passed from hiin, and being very greatly in need of the money which his frequent appeals had failed to extract from Charles, Basil now pressed Parliament to audit his account of the money due to him for State services " since the speedy finish- ing of them concerns him dearly." In September 1647 is recorded the first certificate from the Commissioners for taking the accounts of the whole kingdom before both Houses. In it is made mention that Basil had, on July 2nd, delivered on oath his account of all money received and disbursed by him for the use of the State between June 20, 1643, and April 3, 1645, whereby it appears that he had taken up, upon his own and his friends' security, to be repaid with interest by the State, £2,410, and many other sums which he had borrowed, amounting in all to £5,320. He had, however, raised by levies £4,354, leaving a balance due of £974. He demanded nothing for his personal pay, but nevferthe- less submitted the same to the honour and justice of both Houses. At the end of these accounts it was further stated that there was also due, and unpaid, to wagoners and carters £116 12s., and to the town of Kensington, for quartering Denbigh's own troops, £274 9s. lod. Hereafter occur constant recommenda- tions from the House of Commons for payment of these claims, the only help Basil obtained meantime being an order of the House of Commons, at the end of September, that he should have the pay and entertain- ment of £10 per diem as Sergeant -Major^General. Early in the following year, however, a Committee was appointed to take Basil's services into consideration and instructed to find some way to free him from his THE CAPTIVE KING 253 engagements for the State, and from the debt due to him, and to present the same to the House with all con- venient speed. The Committee, taking the same at once into consideration, ordered that out of the £5,557 due to the Earl's arrears of pay, he should " forthwith receive £3,000, the one moiety out of Goldsmith's Hall, in course, and the other out of the Excise^ in course. That the remainder of his pay being £2,577 shall be paid out of some Papists' and delinquents' estates." An undated letter to her son from Susan Countess of Denbigh, who was at this time in France with the Queen, and shared her anxiety as to the King's welfare, seems to belong here : — " I pray you thank my dear daughter for her kind- ness to Mall. 1 have no news to send you, an I had I durst not send it, for the Queen hath some that doth send so many untruths that for my part I will be silent for fear of harm. I do entreat you to be kind to the King, for by this time you see how much he is wronged. 1 am very weary of this place, the air is not good, and to be deprived of your company and the rest of my children is very troublesome to me, and the more that I do not know when I shall return. Our Lord of his mercy send an end to these dissensions of these trouble- some times, and so with my blessing I take my leave." To understand subsequent events it may be well to mention that rumours were everywhere rife that the King was to be removed to London, a new army raised, and a new civil war begun. These fears moved the soldiers to madness. The Army at this time was an army composed of a class different to any the world had yet seen. These soldiers were mostly young 254 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON farmers and young tradesmen, maintaining themselves at their own cost, since their pay was uncertain and always in arrear. Having been particularly picked as religious men, they looked upon themselves as the Lord's anointed and specially chosen by the God of Victories. It was this feeling of the Army's being in- spired by Heaven to carry out a mission that led to the next episode in the King's life. One evening in June 1647 while he was at bowls at Althorp, Charles's attendants noticed a party of horse marching towards Holmby. The King, being told, immediately left his game and went back to Holmby, where every precaution was taken to protect him, but, about midnight, arrived that same party of horse. Its officer, placing guards at various points round the house, alighted and demanded entrance. Being asked his business, he replied his name was Joyce and his busi- ness to speak with the King. Eventually he was persuaded to wait till the morning. He agreed, yet first set sentinels upon the King's doors. Next morning he, with scant ceremony, demanded to see the King, and, being admitted, told him he had come to remove him. Charles asked his authority. Joyce, pointing a pistol at him, said that was his authority. The King desired that the Committee might be sent for and his orders communicated to them. The Cornet replied that his orders were to return back unto the Parlia- ment. " By whose appointment? " said the King. To that the Cornet had no answer. The King then said, " By your favour, sir, let them have their liberty and give me a sight of your instructions." "That," said Joyce, " you shall see presently," and forthwith drew up his troop into the irmer court as near as he could THE CAPTIVE KING 255 to the King. " These, sir," he said, " are my instruc- tions." The King took a good view of them, and finding them proper men, well mounted and armed, smilingly told the Cornet his instructions were in fair characters, and legible without spelling. The Cornet then pressing the King to go alone with him, no pre- judice being intended but rather satisfaction, the King told him he would not stir unless the Commissioners went too. The Comet replied that for his part he was indifferent. However, the Commissioners in the interval had, by an express, acquainted Parliament with this violence, and so soon as they perceived His Majesty was inclined to go with Joyce and that it was the King's pleasure they should follow him, they knew not whither, they inomediately made themselves ready. The Com- missioners then " seeing reason was of no force to dissuade, nor menaces to affright " were willing to attend the King. Though exceedingly troubled at this episode they knew not how to help it, and decided to submit to the inevitable. The King, being then in his coach, called the Earls of Pembroke and Denbigh, as also the Lord Montague, . into it. The other Commissioners, being well mounted, followed. The cavalcade stayed three days at Cambridge, where fellows, undergraduates, and others came and kissed the King's hands. With them came also Sir Thomas Fairfax, General of the Parliament Army, Lieut. -General Cromwell, and General Ireton, Fairfax even apologizing voluntarily, and disavowing Joyce's discourteous behaviour. The King stayed some weeks at Newmarket the prisoner of the Army, which was now beginning to assert its authority. The Committee likewise continued their 256 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON waiting on the King, who appeared very cheerful. Denbigh does not at this period seem to have been obliged, as a Commissioner, to be always with the King, for he is frequently mentioned as taking part in the proceedings of the House of Lords. After the first shock of terror at the news of the seizure of the King by the Army, Parliament fell furi- ously upon, and blamed, Cromwell, in that he had relinquished his command and quitted the Army before the close of the war ajid had ever since been employed as a mediator between the parties. The Army marched upon London that same June, and expressed its demands in a " Humble Representa- tion," which it addressed to both Houses, desiring " a settlement of the peace " of the country, and a reform of the House of Commons. With a view to such a settlement it demanded the expulsion from the Commons of the eleven members, with Holies at their head, whom the soldiers accused of stirring up strife between them and Parliament. After fruitless negotiations, the terror of the Londoners forced the eleven to withdraw, and the Houses named Commissioners to treat with Charles on the questions at issue. Denbigh joined with Fairfax, Cromwell, and Ireton in pressing these desires of the Army upon the King. But Charles would not listen to this wise plan of settle- ment. He said to Ireton : " You cannot do without me. You are lost if 1 do not support you. You have an intention to be the arbitrator between me and the Parliament." Ireton quietly replied : " And we mean to be so between the Parliament and your Majesty." From this remark of the King's we may gather that he knew the capital was with him, and counted on the mob rising, as it subsequently did. THE CAPTIVE KING 257 Led by several dismissed and disaffected officers, a multitude of " apprentices and rabble " broke into the House of Commons and forced the members to recall the eleven. Fourteen peers, amongst them Denbigh, and one hundred members of the Commons left London and joined the Army. They saw the object of the mob was either to capture or destroy them. The members who remained at Westminster mean- time privately begged the King to return to London. Their plans were however frustrated, for Sir Thomas Fairfax fixing his headquarters at Colnebrook, the King was forced to remove to Stoke Poges, near Windsor. Fairfax arranged for a grand rendezvous of the Army at Hounslow Heath on August 3rd, and drew up all his force there. The line extended for a mile and a half, numbering 20,000 horse and foot with a train of artillery. It must have been a fine sight, and " when the General appeared at the end of the line about noon a deafening cheer resoimded over the Heath." His staff consisted of such a body as no general has ever, before or since, been surrounded by ; for he was attended by the Lords and Commons of England with the Speaker at their head. Amongst them we still find Basil. That afternoon the Army moved to quarters in and about Brentford and Hammersmith. On the 6th Fairfax again met the Lords and Commons at Holland House, where they expressed approval of his march to London. A double line of soldiers was formed from Holland House to the line of defences at Hyde Park, and about midday the procession started. First came the foot, then the horse and Cromwell's Ironsidesj next 258 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON the General on horseback followed by his life-guards. After them came the Lords and Commons on horseback or in coaches, a regiment of horse bringing' up the rear. Every soldier wore a branch of laurel in his hat. So the procession passed by Hyde Park and Charing Cross and New Palace Yard while the Lords and Commons proceeded to their respective Houses. There they passed an Ordinance appointing Fairfax Governor of the Tower and again expelling the eleven. Later in the day Fairfax was sent for to receive the thanks of both Houses, where he, being seated, was addressed. On the same day the Lords ordered a thanksgiving for " God's mercy in bringing the members of both Houses back again to their seats and preserving them from tumults without bloodshed," while the Com- missioners who had been appointed to care for the King chose the occasion to give the late tumult as the reason why they had not given in any recent reports. The citizens of London, as is the way of mobs, reversed all their proceedings against the Army and the members of both Houses who had absented them- selves and gone to the Army, " by reason of the force and violence offered by a tumultuous multitude," and further drew up a formal engagement of their deter- mination " to live and die with Sir Thomas Fairfax and the Army in vindication of the honour and freedom of Parliament." About the middle of August the King was removed to Hampton Court, the Commissioners accompanying him. Parliament, on September 3rd, instructed them to present fresh propositions of peace to the King, and on the 14th they reported that they had done so, and asked for a speedy answer. The King replied he would THE CAPTIVE KING 259 give his answer as soon as he could, and on September 7th the Committee received his reply, in which he stated that he had, in as short a time as he could, prepared some other propositions which he thought far more conducive to peace than those of the Parliament. Having read the royal answer among themselves, the Commissioners repaired to the King and desired his positive answer and consent to the propositions which they had brought. The King re- plied that what he had delivered was his answer, and that he could give no other, which he conceived was a positive answer. So unsatisfactory was Charles's reply that Parlia- ment in October drew up some new propositions. Cromwell was anxious to renew negotiations, seeing the difficulties which would follow on the abolition of royalty, but the King continued to intrigue with all parties ; Parliament, the rioters and those who favoured a fresh invasion of Scotland being each approached in turn. But a further surprise was in store for the Government. Half-way through November 1 647 the King, dis- guised and accompanied only by two grooms of the bedchamber, passed through a private dOor into the park where no sentinel was placed, and at Thames Ditton crossed the river. The Commissioners were amazed. They had not the least suspicion or appre- hension of the King's intentions, and great was their trouble of mind until Lord Montague opened a letter directed to him, which His Majesty had left, giving a hint of what had induced him to hasten thence in such a manner. Charles spoke of the necessity of self- preservation, yet kindly acknowledged their civility to 260 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON his person, and alluded to his good acceptance of their loyalty and service. The King being thus gone from Hampton Court, the Earls of Pembroke and Denbigh and the rest of the Commissioners acquamted the Parliament with the royal departure and the contents of the letter Charles had been pleased to leave behind him. They immediately received an invitation from both Houses to return to Westminster, and left for London. The King's flight caused such an excitement in the Army that Cromwell with difficulty controlled it. Meantime, on November 13, 1647,, Charles crossed the sea and arrived in the Isle of Wight at Carisbrooke Castle, whence he, hoping either to retire to the Continent or to take advantage of any favourable turn in English affairs, did but again fall into the hands of his enemies. Here Basil found him again in Decem- ber, on being appointed to the head of a fresh Com- mission. In order to deprive whatever concessions the King might make to this Committee of any appearance of undue pressure, should the proposed treaty ultimately be signed. Parliament enlarged Charles on parole from Carisbrooke Castle. He moved to the house of Sir William Hodges at Newport, where his Court was to be and where the Commissioners were to do business with him. Later on these actual meetings were held in the Town Hall. On Friday, December 24th, Denbigh and the other Commissioners reached the Isle of Wight, and delivered to the King the four Bills embodying the propositions "absolutely necessary for present security." Next day arrived the Scottish Commissioners with a protest against the four English Bills. THE CAPTIVE KING 261 Ludlow relates how one day, when both sets of Commissioners were walking with the King in the garden of Carisbrooke Castle, they noticed him throw a bone between two spaniels, whom he watched with amusement struggling and wrangling over the dainty morsel. The Commissioners, either by reason of their consciences or because the parable was so very obvious, took this to be the King's method of showing them that he realized he was himself the bone of contention flung before them. On this occasion Charles saw more of the Scots than of the English, which led the English to expect fresh intrigues. Before he delivered his answer, the King demanded of Denbigh and the Commissioners whether they had power to alter any of the substantial or circumstantial parts of the message. They replying that they had not, he delivered his message sealed up into the hands of Denbigh. The Commissioners then withdrew for a little time. On their return Denbigh seemed to be offended that the reply had been delivered sealed, and alleged that their instructions were to bring the King's answer, and that, unless they saw the contents of the letter, it was impossible for them to know whether it contained the answer or no. Denbigh further added that he had himself been the King's Ambassador, and, in that employment, would never have delivered any letter with- out previously having bad a sight of it. The King retorted that he had employed twenty ambassadors and that none of them had ever dared to open his letters. We can see Denbigh's sinile at this little outburst. The King, on second thoughts, requested that the rest of the Commission would tell him if what their spokesman had said was the demand of all. Finding 262 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON it was, he answered that he would show them the letter on condition that they would promise not to let any one know its contents before delivering it to Parlia- ment. They consented. He then desired the rest of the company to withdraw. The Commissioners asked that Colonel Hammond, the Governor, should be allowed to remain. The King reluctantly consented. He then showed them the letter, wherein they learned that he had " waived the interests both of the Parlia- ment and the Army to close with the Scots . . . and gave an absolute refusal of his consent to the four Bills presented to him." So disconcerted was the Governor on discovering this that, before leaving Carisbropke to escort the Commissioners to Newport, he put extra guards over the King, and, on his return, sat up with them all night, thus frustrating a plan the King had made to escape. The King's letter was read in the House of Commons on December 27, 1647, and entered in the Journals. On December 28th we find the entry therein of another letter from the Earl of Denbigh enclosing a copy of a paper which the Scots Commissioners had pre- sented to the King. This statement is all that is entered in the Journals relating to this affair, but two days later another entry explains the reason why the copy is missing. It records that it was " resolved that the letter of the Earl of Denbigh from the Isle of Wight and the paper enclosed shall be put out of the Journal entered on Tuesday." We may therefore con- clude that the " enclosed paper " contained some proposition from the Scots Commissioners which the Lords would not honour with a place in their Journal. A copy of this paper, however, has been THE CAPTIVE KING 263 preserved in the Rushworth collection. It contains a statement that the Parliament's propositions are so prejudicial to Religion, the Crown, and the Union, that the Scots Commissioners cannot concur therein. On December 31st a third letter came from Denbigh to the Lords and was read in the House. In it he announces that the Commissioners are returning, and will give an account of their employment. It is dated from Bagshot, the same day, at five o'clock in the morning — an effort in early rising which Denbigh seems to have thought would specially appeal to "their lordships." No time seems to have been wasted, for the Commission handed in their report in person that afternoon, and, with it, Denbigh delivered the King's letter and one from Colonel Hammond to the House. The King, in it, as we have seen, declined to subscribe to the propositions of peace, stating himself to be " very much at ease within himself for having thereby fulfilled the offices both of a christian and of a King and will patiently wait the good pleasure of Almighty God to incline the hearts of his two Houses to consider their King and to com- passionate their fellow-subjects' miseries." Colonel Hammond in his letter asked the authority of the House to take further steps for securing the King's person. The Lords, after reading these messages, ordered that " the Earl of Denbigh should have thanks given him for his prudence and faithfulness in the carriage of his business." On January 3, 1648, the Commons resolved, by a majority of 141 to 92, that no further address should be made to the King by that House, and that any such communications should be made under penalty 264 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON of high treason. On the isth this resolution was accepted by the Lords. The King's residence in the Isle of Wight was not altogether distasteful to him. At first he even tried to persuade himself and .those round him that this hold- ing of his Court at Carisbrooke was a voluntary act. At the beginning of 1648, however, Colonel Hammond was, as he had desired, instructed to take better pre- cautions for the securing of his royal prisoner. Even under the altered circumstances, which necessarily followed, we find that " His Majesty is as merry as formerly," and took usually before dinner some six or eight circuits about the castle wall and the like in the afternoon, inquired the news of those round, and spent much time every day in private. He took daily rides without a guard, and enjoyed much liberty. Nor was his table neglected. The allowance for his diet was £10 a day, a sum equal to £50 of our monjey. He usually had ten dishes at a meal. The Commons having thus voted that no further addresses or applications should be sent by Parliament to the King, sent a message to the Lords asking than to do likewise. On January 14th the Lords appointed the Earls of Northumberland, Denbigh, and five others to consider the matter. These advised, and their House decided, to join issue with the Commons since the King would not accept their propositions, and thus " speedily settle the present Government in such a way as may bring the greatest security to this Kingdom." The Lords had at this time appointed Lord Denbigh a Commissioner to go into Scotland to negotiate as to the removal of obstructions in the Presbyterian Government there. But for some reason, possibly THE CAPTIVE KING 265 relating to his connection with Hamilton, he begged to be excused, and the Earl of Nottingham was sent in his stead. The Committee of both Houses of Parliament, sitting at Derby House, which had hitherto dealt with affairs of State, was no longer the influence in shaping the course of events which it had been. As the Army gradually gained the ascendancy, the power of Parlia- ment, either as a directing or a restraining force, grew less, and with it the authority of its Committee waned. Frequent attempts were made by Parliament to strengthen the Committee, generally by appointing to it persons who had served in the Army. Amongst these Denbigh was chosen in June 1648. We find him chairman of a Committee sent that month to the Lord Mayor to inquire what forces could be raised there for the security of the City and the Parliament. Denbigh reported that the City authorities answered, " They would send to the militia about it," and that, meantime, it was their desire that those aldermen com- mitted to the Tower might be released, "as it would be a means for the better raising of forces " for the purpose desired. A hint that the first material advances must come from the Parliament, not from the City. Meantime the King intrigued in the Isle of Wig'ht with all parties in turn, the result being that the Royalists rose in South Wales and Kent, while those Scottish Presbyterians who were still loyal to Charles invaded England in April 1 648 under the Duke of Hamilton. The Army, however, acted with great decision : Fairfax beat the Kentishmen, Cromwell attacked the Scottish army, at the head of which the Duke of Hamilton, reinforced by three thousand 266 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Royalists from the North, had, by August, advanced as far as Preston. With an army now numbering ten thousand men Cromwell poured down upon the Duke's long line of stragglers, attacked them, and cut their rearguard to pieces at Wigan and at Warrington, at which latter place they made a last desperate stand till Cromwell forced their foot to surrender. Hamilton escaped, but was soon after forced to surrender to the Parliamentary General. When the news of Hamilton's capture was carried to the Isle of Wight the King said it wajs " the worst news that ever came to England." The Governor answered that he wondered the King was of that opinion, since if Hamilton had been victorious he would have possessed himself of the thrones of England and Scotland. To which the King replied, " You are mistaken. I could have commanded him back with the motion of my hand." Hamilton was conveyed a prisoner to Windsor. There he had the Inelancholy satisfaction of seeing his King for the last time. Charles was being led a prisoner through the town. Hamilton knelt on the road and, as the King passed, kissed his hand, exclaim- ing, " Oh, my dear Master." " I have indeed been so to you," said the dethroned monarch, and embraced him affectionately, till they were separated by the guard. The number of persons taken at the defeat of the Duke of Hamilton being more than the country could possibly maintain, a Committee of the House of Commons was appointed to consider some method by which these common soldiers could be disposed. The Committee advised their being transported. It was THE CAPTIVE KING 267 decided accordingly that the English plantations should have the first choice, the remainder being disposed of to Venice, the contractors binding themselves to remove them in fourteen days. One wonders if Basil, knowing how glad the Venetian Republic was to obtain gadley slaves, approved this cruel course. The rising in Scotland, which so painfully revealed his double-dealing, sealed Charles's fate. On the 30th of the November preceding the meet- ing of the King and Hamilton at Windsor, to which reference has already been made, Charles had been again seized by a troop of horse at Carisbrooke and carried off to Hurst Castle. The Independents who remained in possession of Parliament passed a resolution on January i, 1649, " that by the fundamental laws of this kingdom it is treason in the King of England for the time being, to levy war against the Parliament and the Kingdom of England." This ordinance passed, the members at once voted that Charles should be brought to trial, and appointed a special High Court of Justice to con- sist of about 150 persons named as Committee and Judges. Bradshaw was named as its President, the Earls of Kent, Nottingham, Pembroke, Denbigh, and Mulgrave being the five peers nominated, while Fairfax and Cromwell followed on the list. On January 2, 1649, the resolution and ordinance having been sent up to the Lords for their consent, there was " a scene of agony " in that House. As many as twelve peers had mustered for the occasion, including four of the five whom the Commons had named on the Committee. The Lords debated on the ordinance for a long time. The Earl of Northumber- 268 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON land said people were not yet agreed as to whether the King levied war against the Houses or the Houses against the King. The Earl of Pembroke declared he loved not to meddle with businesses of Life and Death, and, for his part, he would neither speak against thp ordinance nor to it. Denbigh declared, with passionate emotion, " that, whereas the Commons were pleased to put his name into the ordinance, as one of the Com- mittee for trying His Majesty, he would choose to be torn in pieces rather than have any share in so, infamous a business." At length the question being put, whether the said ordinance should be cast out, it was unanimously rejected, and the Lords, having defied the Commons, adjourned for a week. The other nine peers who bad the courage in this dangerous time to meet when the aforesaid declarations and resolutions were made were Mulgrave, Rutland, Kent, Manchester, North, Hewsdon, Maynard, Dacres, and Berkeley. Denbigh was Speaker of the House on this occasion. Rushworth and Whitlock relate that the House of Lords was much fuller on this occasion than it had been of late, sixteen being present, but there are no more than these twelve set down in the Journals. The first thing the Commons did next day was to send two of their members to the Clerk of the Lords' House to inspect their Journals and see what exactly had happened. These messengers being returned, re- ported first the names of all the Lords who sat in the House that day, and then the other particulars as given above. Some members of the House of Commons so much resented the rejection by the House of Lords of the ordinance for the trial of the King that they insisted THE CAPTIVE KING 269 upon impeaching such of them as were present on that occasion of high treason, as being favourers of the " Grand Delinquent of England," and enemies to public justice and the liberty of the people. But they were overruled. The Commons, however, resolved that their said several Committees should stand as appointed, notwithstanding that the Lords would not join with them. After this a Committee was appointed to draw up another ordinance for erecting a High Court of Justice for the trial of the King, in which the names of the five peers and the three judges, Rolle, St. John, and Wylde, were left out. A letter from ■ Fairfax announced the march of his army upon London. The terror of the Army overrode the timorous loyalty of the Commons, and Fairfax, on his arrival in London, sent Colonel Pride, on January 6th, to turn out the Presbyterians, as traitors, from Parliament. Cromwell arrived and gave his approval, and on the 8th the Commons adjourned for a few days. But the tradition of loyalty and of rever- ence for the Crown was still strong, even amongst men who had fought hardest against Charles. They knew that the nation would not approve of the King's punish- ment, whatever it might think of his guilt, and that many of their own friends wished to spare his life. They made a last overture through Denbigh, but the King would not even grant him an interview. So ended the long series of negotiations between Charles and his conquerors. On January gth the peers reassembled, to the number of seven, including Denbigh, and drew up an ordinance declaring that any King who should in future declare war against Parliament should be guilty of high 270 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON treason. With this they endeavoured to renew com- munication with the Commons, some of whom seemed willing to treat. Yet, while a majority among them favoured this motion, orders were given, on the report of a Special Committee, for the engraving of a new Great Seal, to have inscribed on it: "In the first year of freedom by God's blessing restored 1648," and no other answer given to the peers than the rejection of their ordinance. This amounted to a resolution for the King's trial. To it was coupled a fresh resolution : " That the people are, under God, the original of all just power, that the Commons of England in Parliament assem- bled — being chosen by and representing the people — have the supreme power in this nation ; and that what- soever is enacted . . . hath the force of law, . . . although the consent and concurrence of the King or House of Peers be not had thereunto." Indeed, so bitter was the feeling in the Lower House, that when a letter from the Queen, begging she might be near the King in I'his utmost extremity, was brought forward, it was laid aside by the Commons without a reading. Evidence having been taken before this High Court of Justice that Charles had levied war against the Parliament, he was found guilty, condemned to death, and beheaded at Whitehall on January 30, 1649. A few hours after the King's execution Hamilton escaped by night from Windsor, but was retaken next morning at Southwark. " Knocking at a door " he was noticed by three troopers, who questioned him, and, becoming suspicious, brought him to the Parliamentary authorities, earning thereby forty shillings apiece as their reward. CHAPTER XII THE COMMONWEALTH THE death of the King placed the Royalist cause in the hands of his son Charles, aged eighteen, too young as yet to take any active part in its proceedings. A few days after the death of the King, the House of Lords was abolished and the duty of carrying on the Ck)verninent was placed by the Commons in the hands of a Council of State. While England proclaimed herself a Commonwealth, Scotland proclaimed Charles II King. ■ During these events the Duke of Hamilton had remained in prison. In March, despairing alike of justice or mercy from his captors, he again attempted to escape, but was recaptured, put through a mock trial, and, in defiance of a clause in the articles of surrender by which his life was expressly guaranteed, he, together with Lord Holland and the gallant Lord Capel, was condemned to death. At his trial Hamilton pleaded that he could not be tried for treason since he entered England as an enemy, being of another nation and having been born before the Union. This plea was set aside on the ground that he was being tried not as the Scotch Duke of 271 272 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Hamilton but as Earl of Cambridge, in which capacity he had sat as a peer of England, and of which country he thereby proved himself a subject. So, upon fuU evidence, after his case had been debated in more than ten sittings of the court before the notorious Bradshaw who had condemned the King, he was sentenced by the court to have his head struck off for high treason in levying war against the Parliament of England. Nor would Parliament consent to listen to Lord Denbigh, who proposed, on behalf of his brother-in-law, " to give them a blank form signed by the said Duke, to answer faithfully to such questions as should be there inserted." Hamilton was beheaded in the New Palace Yard on March 9, 1649. Whitlock and others, in relating his end, tell us of his execution, that Hamilton, being first, seemed to have some hopes of a reprieve, and made some stay in the hall, till Lord Denbigh came to him and, after a short whisper in which he found no hope of reprieve, he calmly remarked, " There's no remedy, then," and ascending the scaffold, laid his head upon the block. Hamilton has been severely criticized by Clarendon and others. But the worst that can be said against him is that, as a hot partisan, he not infrequently sacrificed the exactness of honour and truth to his own personal affection for the King and his zeal for the royal cause. It may help us to judge him less harshly if we remember that years before when his enemies, by means of forged documents, endeavoured to per- suade the King that Hamilton had plotted his murder in order to make himself King of Scotland, Charles refused to listen to any such accusation. When the JAMES, 1st duke OF HAMILTON FROM THE PAINTING BY VANDYKE THE COMMONWEALTH 273 Marquis subsequently came to Court the King welcomed him with an air of kindness beyond what he ordinarily gave, and, with a truly royal generosity, commanded him to lie in the royal bedchamber that night, express- ing his confidence and affection in such a strain that Hamilton frequently said, " never were his resent- ments for any usage he afterwards received so great, but that the remembrance of that night stifled them quite." What became of his beloved pictures it is hard to say. There is a list of them amongst Basil's papers at Newnham, and a copy of a petition from the Parliament of Scotland sitting in Edinburgh, March 20, 1648, to the Lords and Commons of England, praying that certain pictures and other property of the Duke of Hamilton, which, by the order of the House of Commons, were committed to the custody of Lord Denbigh, " about the beginning of these troubles," may be redelivered to his Grace in consideration of " the great suffering of the said Duke both in his person and fortune since the beginning of these commotions, and that he has never been in opposition to the honour- able Houses of Parhament of England, and that in all other his just occasions, he may receive such favour from the honourable Houses as a person eminent in this kingdom does deserve." So we may suppose that after his death they were collected and restored to his family. There are many instances related of the traits which so charmed all with whom Hamilton came in contact, and which are said to have made him scarce able to punish people for their faults. On one occasion when a woman had stolen some of his plate and been caught 274 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON red-handed he was asked what he wished done with her. He replied, since she seemed in much want of mon,ey, she should be " given a piece " and sent away. Another woman threw a stone at him in 1648, upon which he merely wondered " what the woman ailed, for he was never an enemy to her sex," and on her being sentenced to lose her hand he procured her pardon, sayiag, the " stone had missed him, therefore they were to take care the sentence missed her." Queen Henrietta, on hearing of Hamilton's death, wrote to his brother to " express the concern I have for his death ; and, though my own inexpressible loss hath made me incapable of feeling anything else that can befall me in this world, yet it hath not made me in- sensible of your brother's death. For consolation it is not possible for me to offer any, being incapable of it myself. Wie must turn us to God and receive it of Him." Hamilton's eldest daughter Anne, at the death of her uncle William, the second Duke, who was killed at the battle of Wjorcester, 1651, and to whom the Queen addressed the above letter, succeedted to the title of Duchess of Hamilton in her own right. We have, noted that immediately after the King's death a Council of State for the Commonwealth of England was appointed on February 13, 1649. The Earls of Denbigh, Mulgrave, Pembroke, and Salisbury and others, making forty-one in all, were nominated upon it. Of the four peers appointed, Denbigh and Salisbury becaStne members of the House of Commons. They, with Fairfax atid the judges, declared they were ready to serve their country, as represented by the new Government, with their lives and fortunes, but they THE COMMONWEALTH 275 declined to approve of the acts which had led to the establishment of the Commonwealth. On this occasion Denbigh said : " He took it as a great honour to be named by the House of Commons for this service. That he had formerly had the honour to be employed by the late King to the State of Venice and other States, and served therein faithfully. That he was since employed by both Houses, in arms, and was also faithful in that. That now there is no other power in England but that of the House of Commons, in whom the liberty and freedom of the people is involved, he is resolved to live and die with them, and doth acknow- ledge them the supreme power of this nation ; and that what government they shall set up and appoint he will faithfully serve, to the best of his power, with his life and fortune ; but that, in this engagement, there are some particulars that look backward which he con- ceives he cannot, with honour, subscribe ; as being contrary to what he, as a peer in the House of Lords, then acknowledged the third estate of this kingdom, and to which he was subordinate as a member of that House, by a particular relation of duty and obedience ; but saith, as before, that he will for the future serve them with the best of his power." Much the same answers, as to the general matter, were given by Pembroke, Salisbury, and Mulgrave, as also by General Fairfax. Their objections were allowed, and the four peers took their seats without signing the declaration, which was presented to and signed by all other Councillors on taking office. It was a declaration which, had they signed it, would have made them express approbation of the abolition of the kingship and of the House of Lords. 276 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON The duties of the Council were defined in sixteen articles. The principal of these were to oppose the pretensions of Charles Stuart, eldest son of the late King, to direct the militia, advance trade and foreign plantations, and appoint ambassadors. Basil was placed upon several committees ; one to examine the wrong done the Levant merchants by the French ; another to inquire into the forests of England, for we find the officers appointed by the Earl of Denbigh reporting the great decay of timber in England as very prejudicial to the State, and the Council consequently ordering the Governor of Stafford to assist the officers in preventing this waste. A third Committee was appointed to consider what alli- ances this Crown had had with foreign States, and whether to continue the same, and, if so, on what terms. Basil had to examine prisoners accused of going over to Charles Stuart ; and to supervise the proceedings of the prisons ; "to consider how the treasury of the Commonwealth may run in one channel " ; to confer with the chief officers of the Army concerning the state of the forces ; to view the late King's plate and also the hangings at Somerset House ; to reconcile quarrels, this last qualified with the wise proviso : " If they can." He was also added to the Navy Committee, whose duty it was to read the Admiralty records and prepare instructions. We find him signing the commissions of the commanders of the fleet, and nominating those whom he thought fit to assist in a matter requiring secrecy and despatch. This Committee was instructed to give minute attention to the quality and quantity of the food supplied to the seamen on board their ships. THE COMMONWEALTH 277 Profiting by his early experiences of bis struggles to equip his uncle's and father's fleets, Basil was doubt- less a useful member of this Committee, of which he was frequently president. In view of his experiences as an Ambassador, he was also chosen amongst those appointed to deal with matters of foreign policy. One of their first duties was " to speak with Mr. Milton and know if he will be employed as Secretary for the Foreign tongues." The interview must have taken place the day after this resolution, and Basil was probably one of those present at it. What happened we can but guess at. We only know from Milton himself that the proposal took him quite by surprise. He was setthng down again to his literary work, hoping that the Commonwealth, to which he had given his adhesion, would allow him undisturbed leisure. Already too he was feeling a dimness of sight. He, however, gave his consent, and on March 20th was inducted into his office, Cromwell, as also Denbigh, being present. Most of the members of the Council of State being also members of the Commons, the Council sat as little as possible during the sittings of the House, but were accustomed to meet at 7 or 8 a.m. for business, and then to adjourn the House. They sat more frequently than the Parliament. During 232 sittings of Parlia- ment the Council of State sat 319 times. When the Council were unanimous and attended in force, they commanded a working majority in the House. There- fore their frequent references to Parliament really meant, not an appeal to an independent governing power, but an appeal from thanselves, as the Council, 278 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON to themselves and al few others bearing together the imposing name of Parliament. If Parliament seemed to disagree with the Council of State, nothing was easier than to refer the matter back to the Council of State, where the question was quietly settled as best pleased that body. The Council of State first met at Derby House, which had been the meeting-place of the Committee of both Kingdoms — commonly called the Derby House Committee — which they superseded. An oath of secrecy was taken by the members. Towards the end of May the Council removed to Whitehall, where they voted to their own use not only the palace but £10,000 worth of the late King's furni- ture, tapestry, etc., to fit it for their sittings. The furniture reserved for them consisted of hangings, carpets, chairs, stools, beds, curtains, fire-irons, and other objects. They were also provided with fuel at the expense of the State. Their private apartments were here, as also their two chaplains. A list of attend- ances was kept. The highest number recorded in the first year is 288. Basil's attendances numbered 114. , While he held these offices Basil's help seems to have been frequently sought by his relations in their various difficulties. The most notable amongst these were George Buckingham, the second Duke, and his brother Francis, who, after the assassination of their father, grew to boyhood sharing the studies and instructors of the Prince of Wales and the Duke of York, having been removed from their mother's care on her return- ing to the Catholic faith. When the standard of the King was raised at Nottingham in 1642 they were at Trinity College, Cambridge. Contriving to evade the THE COMMONWEALTH 279 college authorities, they joined the King at Oxford. They elected Prince Rupert and Lord Gerard to initiate them into the art of war, and saw some very sharp service in the storming of the Close at Lichfield. Their mother was naturally none too pleased at their prema- ture campaigning, and very pertinently asked Lord Gerard why " he tempted her sons into such great danger." He replied, " The more danger, the more honour," a maxim which would hardly commend itself as a consolation to an anxious mother. Charles seems to have been more sympathetic, and to have considered the boys too young for such experiences, for they were promptly sent abroad. We may take it that on this occasion the harassed mother appealed to Basil, for we find that Parliament, which had confiscated their property, seems at this time to have relented, and generously restored their possessions. We may also suppose that Basil busied himself in the method and reports of their journey, for at Newnham is a letter dated 1646 from Will Aylesbury about them. Ayles- bury was brother-in-law of Sir Edward Hyde, and appointed by their guardian, the Earl of Northumber- land, to accompany them in their travels. He had been secretary to their father in Madrid. With him they wandered through France and Italy, " where they lived in as great state as some of these sovereign princes." In May Aylesbury reported : " We have this day begun our journey, so you may the better compute how long it will be before my Lords can wait upon you in London. My unhappy infirmity makes them move the more slowly and I confess I have a great desire to see them safe at home. . . . My next will be from 280 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Venice." From thence in June he complains, " Your messenger has not come or remitted me either money or credit." In August from Geneva: "My Lords on Saturday last arrived at Geneva, and this morning go for Lyons, where they must stay till they have some money. I am sure you virill not let them lie longer than is necessary, nor yet to be detained at Paris, especially now the Prince is there. I speak it in confidence to your lordship that 1 fear nothing more than that ; and therefore pray you and all their friends to hasten their return home." His fears, however, were realized, for in Paris the two young men met their former play- fellow, the Prince of Wales, who had gone from Jersey to France at the end of June. Bishop Burnet, however, assures us that the danger was rather for Charles II than for George and Francis Villiers, as he declares George, " having already got into all the impieties and vices of the age," laid himself out to corrupt the future monarch — ^an assertion too sweeping to be wholly credible. In 1 649 young Buckingham had had his entire property again confiscated by the Parliament, and was reduced to the same straits as most of the followers of the Stuart party. At length, finding himself in great difficulty for means, his thoughts turned to making his peace with the Government, particularly as Charles IPs attempts on Ireland had proved un- successful. In May he threw himself on the kindness of Basil, remembering how this uncle had been brought up to worship his mother's beloved brother " Steenie." To Denbigh, therefore, Ceorge Buckingham addressed himself : — THE COMMONWEALTH 281 " My Lord, — I should not venture to write to your lordship for fear of doing you prejudice, being an excepted person, unless the matter I am to solicit you about, on my present resolutions were such as would not be displeasing to the place where you are. I am now, my lord, endeavouring all I can to make my composition, and knowing no man that I can rely upon in this business but your lordship, I have taken the boldness to trouble you about it, and to desire you to employ all the interest you have in England, to bring this to pass. I cannot think myself a fit judge at this distance to know what is to be done about it. How- ever I should much prefer your opinion before my own, wherefore I do wholly resign the entire conduct of it to your lordship, desiring you to act for me in this business all that you think is fit to be done, assuring you, my lord, that you cannot oblige anybody in the world that shall express more thankfulness and grati- tude for the favours you shall lay upon him than myself. There is one thing more I must needs enquire of your lordship, whether it be possible to transport money over out of England, in case I should take conditions here or somewhere else abroad, being resolved not to go into Ireland. If that could be done, I could perhaps provide for myself till my composition were made, which would be no small advantage to me in this my present conditions. 1 hope you have so good an opinion of me to believe without much pains that I am truly, my lord, your lordship's most humble and most faithful servant, " G. Buckingham " Paris, 19th May." 282 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Determined to leave no stone unturned, he also be- sought his aunt, Su Denbigh, to plead his cause, for we find the following letter from Basil to his mother ; " Madame, — I esteem the greatest of my misfortunes to be divided at this distance from the more frequent occasions of expressing my duty to your ladyship. It will be no difficult matter to awaken in your ladyship a belief of my hearty endeavours to compose my lord of Buckingham's differences here, but the stream runs so high against him that the issue is much to be doubted, and if the Parliament will incline at all to receive him his composition will be raised to a great sum. The enclosed to my Lord Duke will give him some further accompt to that business. In the meantime I shall humbly recommend to your care, as your ladyship tenders the happiness of being of the family, that the only true branch that is left of my dear un,cle be not further exposed to the unnecessary disadvantage of future engagements, which will only serve to render his condition here altogether despairable. You will give me leave to beg the favour of your blessing upon your ladyship's most dutiful and obedient son, " Basil Denbigh " Brook House, 25th July, 1649." In December Basil writes to an agent in Venice ask- ing that an inquiry may be made as to the fate of his pictures left there, " whether in safe hands or embezzled, which, if I may redeem upon good terms I would willingly do it, knowing well that by the law of that place there should be no further interest demanded for things that are impawned there for one year. I would further engage you if it be not prejudicial to THE COMMONWEALTH 283 you, that you would give me some accoimt of the State. I desire this not only out of curiosity but out of a dis- position to serve that State, in what I am able, from which I have received so much honour and esteem. ... I retain a very great sense of their noble usage of me." What result there was to this request we do not know, nor amongst the pictures at Newnham is there anything to show that Basil received any of his Italian pictures. The condition of his finances again began to trouble him, and he sought to obtain the arrears due to him, for we find amongst his papers a document entitled " An accompt of the arrears due to the Earl of Denbigh as well upon his Embassy to Italy as upon a pension of one thousand marks per annum granted to him by the late King." The amount due is stated at £13,157 6s. 8d. There is also a list of manors and lands sold by Lord Denbigh's family chiefly to pay those funeral debts of King James I, for which they had had no return. And on June 23, 1650, Whitlock relates that the desire of the Earl of Denbigh touching his arrears for his Embassy into Italy and other arrears was referre(d to the Committee of the Revenue. This petition was again referred to yet another Committee. In September £1,700 was allowed 'to him for above arrears, and instructions were given that some accommodation be provided for him near Derby House, in satisfaction of his " right to the wardrobe." The enemies of Basil, who had quarrelled so fre- quently with him before he took the Self-denying Ordinance, again came to the front in December 1649, 284 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON while the events just related were taking place. The Committee of Coventry presented a petition to the Council of State against Lord Denbigh and his officers, saying they had during the late war used very ill- language to the Committee, and had in divers ways acted without the sanction of the Committee. There was much jealousy shown by the latter, who declared that in 1 643 a letter had been intercepted from Basil's mother to him. From this charge Denbigh easily cleared himself ; but another was at once brought against him of conspiring during the war to go over to the King, that " his lady denied she knew or heard that he would ever have gone to the King," which action was said to be suspicious, the accuser, we gather, evidently thinking she protested too much. Basil was further accused of having tried to raise a third party in the country, and of endeavouring to put his fellow - conspirators as governors into Dudley and Lichfield after these towns surrendered to him ; also with raising forces for this purpose, and with siding on every Com- mittee with those he found opposed to the Parliament's best friends. These accusations do not seem to have seriously damaged Denbigh's reputation in the minds of the Council of State or of Parliament, for in February 1650 he was reappointed to that body. But the fact of the complaints against him re-occurring on the lists seems to have given later historians a wrong impression, and it may be as well here to correct the error. Mts. Everett Green, in her preface to the " Calendar of Domestic State Papers," writes that Denbigh was not continued upon the Second Council. " The reason for this expulsion," she adds, " will be found in the papers THE COMMONWEALTH 285 of December 19, 1649-50, showing him in his true character of cowardly trimmer rather than a con- scientious partisan on either side." Gardiner, however, in his " History of the Commonwealth," points out her mistake, and remarks that " the charges against him cannot be accepted as evidence." A man who could act as Denbigh acted when placed among the proposed judges of Charles 1, or speak as he spoke to the Council of State when he refused to sign its " engag'e- ment " regarding the murder of the King, thus risk- ing his life on both occasions, can hardly be termed a " cowardly trimmer." At the first meeting of the Second Council the members took the oath of secrecy enjoined by the House, each standing up in turn and reading it with " an audible voice," the rest of the members sitting and being uncovered. But the rumours against Basil were not entirely, silenced, for it is recorded in two papers concerning correspondences and intelligences in 1 6 5 i that the Earl of Denbigh and the Lord Howard were looked upon at Court as friends to the King's interests and adverse to the present way of settlem«it. But the writer did not know of any particular correspondences kept by either of them with any at Court. He could only hear that the Earl of Denbigh kept correspondence with his mother at the Queen's Court in France. One result of the Commission to establish the militia, to which we have seen that Basil was appointed in 1648, is shown by a certificate, dated August 2, 1650 — which he filed with other papers and chronicles — that he is assessed, for his demesnes in Monk's Kirby parish, five horses and ten foot, being his proportional 286 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON share of 500 horse and 1,200 foot to be levied in the said county of Warwick for the militia. When the third Council of State came to be appointed early in 1651, Denbigh's name was not amongst its members. Nor is it clear why he ceased to serve. Fairfax had resigned the previous year, since he objected to command an army against the Scots, though he owned himself willing to repel them should they attack England. It may have been for some such reason that Denbigh's attitude brought him into opposi- tion with his colleagues. There was a change too in their demeanour towards him. They grew suspicious of possible intrigues between him and the exiled Queen, for in April the records relate that the Council, having received in- formation of the designs of Denzil HoUis, the Countess Dowager of Denbigh, and Walter Montagu against the Government, advise that their real and personal estates be forthwith secured for preventing embezzlement and " misconversion." If they appear and render themselves capable of the justice which their several cases require, or when their properties were ripe for sequestration, the Council was to be notified that it might receive further evidence. It was decreed some months after that, as the Countess Dowager of Denbigh heretofore deserted the Parliament quarters and went to Oxford with the late King's wife, and afterwards went with her to France, where the Countess had of late turned Papist, and professed herself such, and had some estate in England, the rent of which was sent to her, the officers of the Council are to inform themselves of the true state of the case, and proceed against her estate according to their power. THE COMMONWEALTH 287 The following year the Council of State gave per- mission to Lord Denbigh to send to his mother in France a letter on private business which was produced before the Council, provided he sent it to sea by the common passage and not by an express messenger. This letter could have been despatched only a short while before her death, for it was in 1652 that Susan Denbigh died an exile in Paris — died without seeing again her beloved son. She had been a Catholic for several years, her name, together with that of her daughter Lady Kynal- meaky and her niece Mistress Bridget Feilding, appear- ing in a list of recusants some time before. In the records of the Capuchin Missions in England the following passage occurs : " Madame, the Countess of Danneby, sister to the late Duke of Buckingham, and first Lady of Honour to the Queen of England, who had gone to France, followed the religion of her most dear and honoured Mistress, and lived there in much innocence and purity. She died with all the marks of a predestined soul, and was buried in the Church of St. Eustache." Wotton says of her that " she was a very accom- plished lady, adorned with every virtue ornamental to her sex." She was a patron and friend of the poet Crashaw, who, soon after 1644, became a Catholic and retired to France, where he was secretary to Lord Jermyn, who rescued him from great poverty. Here he must have again met Su, to whom he had years 'before dedicated his " Carmen Deo Nostro," " persuading her to resolution in religion, and to render herself without further delay into the com- 288 EOYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON munion of the Catholic Church," in the verses beginning : — What Heaven-entreated heart is this, Stands trembling at the gate of bliss ? Holds fast the door, yet dares not venture Fairly to open it, and enter ; Whose definition is a doubt 'Twixt life and death, 'twixt in and out. Yield quickly, lest perhaps you prove Death's prey before the prize of Love. This fort of your fair self, if't be not won, He is repulsed indeed, but you're undone. A few years later Basil lost an old friend, for in the year 1657 died William Harvey, whom we last saw at the battle of Edgehill. He had soon after moved to London, where in 1650 a friend visited him and asked him if all were well with him. " How can that be," the great physician replied, " when the State is so agitated with storms that I myself am yet in the open sea? " On another occasion he remarked : " This obscure life and vacation from public cares, which would disgust other minds, is the medicine of mine." He devoted his time to the deeply interesting study of genetics. In his eightieth year, after having furnished the library of his beloved college with " samples and rarities," he was attacked with paralysis and died. Aubrey tells us that " in person he was not tall but of the lowest stature ; round faced ; olive as to com- plexion ; little eyes, round and very black ; full of spirits ; his hair black as a raven but quite white twenty years before he died." Harvey himself and all his contemppraries were well SUSAN VILLIERS, COUNTESS OF DENBIGH FROM THE PAINTING BY BALTHAZAR GERBIER THE COMMONWEALTH 289 aware of the novelty and importance of his theory, and in the dedication of his treatise to Charles I he mentions that he should not dare to set forth this book had he not for more than nine years preached it in his college lectures. During a controversy with Professor Hoffman, Harvey wrote : "I accept your censure in the candid and friendly spirit in which you say you wrote it ; but db you do the same by me, now that I have answered you in the same spirit." But the Professor reanained un- believing even after a personal discussion. Of Harvey as a practising physician little is known. Aubrey tells us that " he paid his visits on horseback with a footcloth ; his man following on foot, as the fashion then was," and, " though all of his profession would allow him to be an excellent anatomist I never heard any that admired his therapeutic way." This is hardly surprising when we are also told by the same authority, that it was Harvey's custom, since he was much troubled by the gout, to sit, as a cure, with bare legs in a pail of water in frosty weather upon the leads of Cockaine House till he was almost dead. Then, descending, he would " betake himself to his stove and so 'twas gone." His remedy for sleeplessness was on somewhat the same lines. " His thoughts working would many times keep him from sleep." Then rising from his bed he would pace his room in his shirt " tiU he was pretty cool, i.e. till he began to have an horror," when, on returning to bed, he would fall into a most comfortable slumber. CHAPTER XIII THE BESTOEATION AFTER the battle of Worcester, in 1651, Basil seems to have gradually withdrawn himself from the Parliamentary, party and to have taken little part in politics. This may have been owing to his disappointment at the trend of affairs which widened, instead of healing, the gulf between the Government and the Army. The Army demanded reform and a dissolution, but the Commons put off the evil day and finally brought in a Bill which provided that all sitting members should retain their seats, and even have the power to reject such newly elected members as they did not like. This proposal made the Army furious, and in 1653 Cromwell, acting for the Council of Officers, marched down to the House, turned out the members, locked the door, aild put the key in his pocket. Thus ended the Rump Parliament which had sat since Pride's Purge. The new Parliament, called the Barebones Parlia- ment, after one of its members named Praise-God Bare- bones, was formed, of earnest men, who, bent on reform', yet had no experience of government. It was soon obliged to resign. Cromwell being app;ointed Lord Pro- tector then ruled for some time without a Parliament. In 1657 he was offered the title of King, but was not 290 THE RESTORATION 291 allowed by the Army to accept it, though he continued to be King in all but name till his death in 1658. He had chosen as his heir his eldest son Richard. He, proving an unsuitable^ leader, soon retired into private life. In 1659 George Monk, the commander of the Army in Scotland, marched into England and insisted that a free Parliament should be called. As it was not summoned by a King this new Parliament was called a Convention. On April 25th both Houses met. There was not only the " full and free " House of Commons, for which writs had been issued, but a House of Lords also, assembled by its own will and motion. On this first day there were only ten peers present, Denbigh being one of them. In the two Houses an overwhelming majority composed of Royalists or of Independents strove to bring about the restoration of the monarchy. So eager were they to get the King back, that they forgot to make any stipulations as to the form of government to be followed on his being replaced in power. Charles, acting on their proposal, returned, landing at Dover on his birthday, May 29, 1660. The new King was a man who had travelled much, had had much experience of men and matters, and knew how to make events serve his purpose. Many were the memorials presented to him from those who had served on the Parliamentary side during the Civil War, and innumerable were the reasons given why these persons should be restored to favour. Lord Denbigh was among the first to ask to be reconciled. The document he presented is a lengthy one, and relates that, as Lord Feilding, he was brought to the late King by his uncle the Duke of Buckingham, and on his return from the wars in Holland had had a pension 292 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON of one thousand marks per annum conferred upon him by the same monarch. After recounting the fact of his employment as Ambassador in Italy he narrates that, on his return, the King, at the Queen's request, appointed him first a servant, then a gentleman of the bedchamber, to his son, now King Charles II. The " most unhappie warrs " then beginning, the King, by discharging Basil from his " employments, pensions, and relations to His Majesty's person and service " gave him a " latitude to act beyond his own thoughts and intentions," the following of which had "produced the effects of a general and particular sad repentance." The petitioner goes on to recall the fact that his father, William Earl of Denbigh, had engaged his estate and fortune for the funeral of King James, and •" other occasions of his son King Charles " which the Supreme Government took advantage of and charged Basil's estate with £16,000 debt, freeing the estate of entail for this purpose. At the time of Basil's discharge from His late Majesty's service as Ambassador there remained an arrear of £13,000 on account of his embassy and pension. He now begs that, in consideration of the debts due to him by the Crown, his estate may be , freed. He further begs that the misfortunes and dis- orders of the times may not so far obliterate' the memory of his past services, in the prime of his years, as to cancel all former engagements made to him from the King and Queen in the way of his preferment, and begs therefore to be differentiated frorii others who have unhappily fallen under the heavy burdens of His Majesty's displeasure, and that "the beams of the royal grace and favour may likewise reflect upon the said THE RESTORATION 293 Earl." He endeavours to make out as good a case as possible under the circumstances, insinuating that he opposed as long as possible thq Self-denying Ordinance and that his desire and effort during the late war; were to advance the King's interests with the Parliamentary party. " These, with other truths of the same nature, can testify to his good intention. As the late Earl his father lost his life fighting in the late King's quarrel and defence of the Crown, as others of his ancestors have done before him, so will his son now joy, in nothing so much as following in the same steps." In a second memorial he argues, as good reason for his reinstatement, that when the late King, then at Oxford, sent a messenger to him offering to raise him to the degree of a Marquis if he would give up, his Parliamentary command, he made answer, that he could not with honour desert that causfe and the persons with whom he stood engaged. Moreover, that had he accepted the honour, it would have caused much jealousy amongst the King's followers, a state of affairs which would really have been a great disservice to that sovereign. Should an honourable occasion now call him to attend his Majesty he would ask no further reward for exposing his life and fortunes than the opportunity of thus setting forth his duty and allegiance. He also narrates to the King what His late Majesty was pleased to say to one Firebrace, who, having been Denbigh's secretary, was by him recommended to the King, whose faithful servant he proved. iWhen Firebrace had been discharged by the Parliament, upon a jealousy they had that he was faithful to the King, His Majesty on bidding him farewell thus expressed himself : " Com- mend me to your old master, and tell him I wish I had 294 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON taken his advice when time was " — the petitioner arguing therefrom that when on the Parliamentary Committees at Uxbridge, Hohnby, and Windsor he had done all he could to persuade the King to meet some of the demands of Parliament, lest, in refusing to bend, he should be the easier broken. Denbigh concludes by stating that he had already offered to risk his fortune in pressing His Majesty's cause on that sove- reign's visit to England before the battle of Worcester. He hopes that " intermediate accidents," which may bear a fair construction as the performance of a trust once undertaken, may not be urged against him. It may be interesting to note here that the Henry Firebrace alluded to above was originally Denbigh's secretary, and passed from his service to that of Charles I, some time during one of the occasions on which Denbigh was a Commissioner from Parliament to the King. Firebrace was one of the most faithful and devoted of the captive monarch's personal atten- dants. He was mainly instrumental in planning the escape of the King from Carisbrooke Castle, which only failed on account of the narrowness of the window through which Charles was to have made his exit. The Parliamentary leaders, mistrustful of his devo- tion to his royal master, removed him from his post about the King, and he returned to Denbigh, whom he appears to have served as secretary for many years. It was probably on his taking leave of the King that Charles presented Firebrace with a ring and gave him the message to his "old master," quoted by Denbigh. This ring, containing the King's portrait set in diamonds, came into the Feilding family in 1695, when Hester Firebrace, the granddaughter of Henry Firebrace, THE RESTORATION 295 married Basil, fourth Earl of Denbigh, the great-nephew of the Basil of this memoir. The ring is still at Newnham. One tradition speaks of it as being givfiin by the King on the scaffold, but it seems not only more likely, but almost certain, that it was given at the parting which Denbigh recounts. Basil's statement of his case was accepted and his request granted. On June 20, 1660, Charles II signed an order to the Attorney-General to prepare a Bill containing a pardon to BasU. " for all treasons, mis- prisions of treasons, felonies; or any other crimes what- ever, committed between ye second day of November 1640 and this date, together with a grant to restitute all his lands, tenements, goods and chattels forfeited . . . with such exceptions as are usually inserted in pardons of the like nature." This pardon is still pre- served at Newnham and sets forth that King Charles II forgives Basil all crimes, misdemeanours, etc., up to June 10, 1660, restores his lands and tenements, remits his offences individually, " any other acts or deeds not- withstanding." To it is affixed the royal signature and seal. The Restoration seems to have been used by many Royalists as an opportunity of revenge, and LudloW terms Basil " a generous man and lover of his country " in that he refused to nominate a victim to be executed in satisfaction for the death of his brother-in-law the late Duke of Hamilton. Denbigh's return to royal favour appears to have been unreserved. Indeed the memory of his mother's devotion to the Queen-Mother seems to have been stronger than any recollections of his own suspected loyalty. The position of his sister Elizabeth, who had 296 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON married Viscount Boyle of Kynalmeaky, second son of Richard Earl of Cork, and who, in 1660, was created Countess of Guildford for life, by Charles II, Went far to bring about this reconciliation. In October the .Queen-Mother left France, and, retracing again the route which she had travelled on her wedding journey, reached England after an absence of sixteen years. She was received with all kindness and even with enthusiasm by the populace, who seemed to have for- gotten their recent hatred of her. Her dowry was restored to her and her faithful servants were rewarded by the King. Jermyn was made Earl of St. Albans, and Montagu would have been recompensed for his fidelity had he not decided to remain in France. Elizabeth Kynalmeaky was not only honoured as we have seen, but was given a grant for twenty-one years of the office of Chief Housekeeper of Somerset House, " except the Earl of St. Albans' house." To this grant was added a " free gift from the King of £2,000, and many other valuable presents." pueen Henrietta took up her residence at Somerset House and there gathered round her many of the witty and accomplished persons of the time. But her stay in England was not a long one, and she soon returned to France. Before she left there is a record of her attitude towards Lord Denbigh, in a letter written to him in March 1663 by Sir Kenehn Digby, who, after remarking that Lady Guildford will have told him " how dear and kind the Queen-Mother is to you," narrates that he had had the honour to " receive from her particular expressions of the great value she hath for your lordship." Digby, " without reviving the memory of any past unkindnesses," had endeavoured to THE RESTORATION 297 strengthen Basil's position with the Queen-Mother, only to find that she was " already in such a settled temper of friendliness and kindness " towards him that it could not have been desired " better nor warmer," the Queen speaking of herself as his " true friend " and assuring Digby that she would never listen to anything to the prejudice of the son of her devoted friend and com- panion. Lord St. Albans also professed himself Denbigh's good friend, as he had been that of Su Denbigh through the long days of exile in France. The King in 1664 still further expressed his amity by creating Basil Baron St. Liz, with remainder to the heirs male of his father, in commemoration of his descent from the noble family of St. Liz, Earls of Northampton and Huntingdon. tWe do not find Basil, after this, coming forward in political life. Rather he seems to have settled at Newnham and given himself over to the care of his estates. Their condition must have been such as to make him glad to lay aside the sword for the plough. Nor were the new taxes always easy to be met. Among his papers at this time is a notification from the Earl of Northampton to him to make a return of the annual value of his estate, in order to facilitate its assessment by the Militia Commissioners, as Lord Northampton desires to obtain it direct rather " than learn it by enquiry from others." Nor was his life necessarily dull or devoid of interest because much of it was passed in the country. Newnham seems to have been the centre of many con- vivial gatherings, and on one occasion the border-line of tragedy seems to have been reached, and a duel to have been either averted or to have taken place. 298 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON In consequence of this episode, the details of which are not traceable, Basil was summoned to give evidence at the assizes of Warwick in 1663-4. Indignant at such a summons he wrote a letter of remonstrance to " Mr. Sergeant Newdigate " of Arbury, which is worth quoting, as showing that much of the old spirit we have so often encountered in its writer still remained. "Sir," it runs,—" Mr. iWalter Devereux hath informed me, upon my refusal of appearance at the assizes of Warwick, to give testimony in his cause, that you advised him to serve me with a subpoena. Some such thing, was found near my hall, and brought to me, that rude part acted by some mean fellow to draw me publicly upon the stage to give in personal evidence of what happened accidentally in my house: contrary to the rules of honour and hospitality, which, though others, for private interest, may. attempt to break, will not become me to imitate so pernicious an example. The subpoena is directed to Basilic Domino Denbigh. I know no Lord of Denbigh but the King, to whom the manor and royalty belongs, though I enjoy the title of Earl of that Castle and County, with twenty pound annual fee in lieu of the thirds arising out of the profits thereof : but suppose that formality carries no weight. Yet cer- tainly, the Peers of England enjoying the privilege in the Chancery of being cited to appear by letter, and not by an ordinary subpoena, I may well lay cl9,im to the same civility in other Courts of Justice ; and there- fore shall desire the favour that you will excuse me from waiting at this time upon the judges, upon this occasion, before I have acquainted my Lords the Peers, now sitting in Parliament, with the case, to receive their judgment and order therein ; lest, by my condescen- THE RESTORATION 299 sion, I may prejudice others in their hereditary rights and privileges, as well as myself. The rather in that His Majesty and the House of Peers have given me leave to retire into the fresh air but for a short time to recover my health, which hath been much impaired by a great cold taken at London, so that my stay here [Newnham] depends upon uncertainties and will not suffer me to engage in other men's occasions upon a business acted in my own house, in the way of a frolic and humour of divertisment, not usual with me ; which must end in forgetfulness, in order to a fair composure of this unhappy difference. This is all I can say if I were upon the case, besides the assurance I might give you in person of what is now offered in this way, the respect and service of your most affectionate kins- man and faithful servant, Basil Denbigh " Mr. Newdigate hastened to reply that he was " so far from desiring or advising any subpoena " that he had " never heard of it " and would mention the same to Mr. Devereux. At the same time he expressed his great regret for the " unhappy accident " which had been the cause of the whole affair. The welfare and concerns of his family were also much under Basil's consideration. His brother, George Earl of Desmond, died in January 1666, and was buried at Euston, Suffolk, leaving a widow, the daughter and co-heir of Sir Michael Stanhope, and several children. The eldest son, William, succeeded to his father's title and was heir to his uncle Lord Denbigh. The following letter, written by Basil to his nephew, about this time, severely reprimands the young man for the tactlessness of his behaviour. What exactly had happened we can again only guess at. Basil 300 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON evidently thought William was presuming too far, and addressed him : — "Good Nephew, — It is not my custom to give denial to gentlemen when it is not in my power to serve them, which was the reason of my silence to your former letters, and might well be understood from an answer and implication of my sense, but your misapprehension of my sister Guildford's kindness to \ you upon the > ill- success of your leaving Ireland upon her advice may well discourage me from interposing in your affairs — since my interest at Court cannot equal hersr^to enable me to serve you, which is really as much in my desires and inclinations as in any person's now living in the world, I will not in this [be] except. " kWhat I have done for my family will not suit with modesty to proclaim and in my own praise to sound my own trumpet. The King hath been very gracious to you and it will become you in honour to use personal diligence in that noble employment His Majesty, has preferred you unto. The incivilities [ ?] of my tenants the charge of buildings and burden of debt have much oppressed me this year, so that I can only for the present wish you a speedy and a happy return to your troops in Ireland and that so fair a beginning may lay a solid foundation to raise you to better fortune, which will be a great contentment imto your most affectionate uncle." The young man's mother, the widowed Lady Desmond, seems to have also called down upon herself her brother-in-law's censure on account of the false construction she put upon a letter he wrote her. His THE RESTORATION 301 reply is interesting as showing the relationship which! existed between Basil and the other members of his family. It is written from Newnham, in March 1666, and runs : — i " Dear Sister, — What to offer to you is past my, understanding, since my representing your sufferings by the sale of your lands, with intention of , only stirring up your care of preserving better what is left, bears with you the character of rashness : the truth is, nothing can be esteemed so rash as to be put upon [to] the necessity of selling land to redeem former excesses : it is not unknown to the world, that your estate was once better than mine, yet, by a review of that letter you so much complain of, you will not find any expression, that can be strained so far, as to lay the least blemish upon your management of that estate : I have been better bred than to commit so gross an error [as ] in so unseasonable a time to lay. affliction upon affliction, and, if I had been transported by my affection in some words beyond the just limits of moderation, your good- ness might easily pardon a fault that takes its origin from love and my good wishes for your happiness and of those that came from you. If I am not mistaken, I did lay the burden upon the misfortune of the times, to which I may add my brother's unskilfulness to thrive in this world, having never had a genius tending that way, and who knows not that ill-husbandry must fall upon the reputation of the husband?, not of the wife?, which you have not been wanting heretofore to complain of to me. You must give me leave to justify my former assertion that I never consented to the sale of youn land neither implicitly, nor explicitly. My incapacity 302 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON of settling a jointure upon the lady intended for your, son's wife carrying no such inference, and makes the case just the same as if my friend should send me word that if 1 did not presently lop off one of my arms he would make himself away, the putting whereof into act can no way involve me in the sin. But to what purpose should this be insisted upon, when my consent was in no way necessary to that business, beyond the indulgence of your favour and civility in looking upon me, as I am, the chief of my family. Your commands of having your daughter restored to you I have punctually obeyed, but am sorry this last year's .sick- ness hath given interruption to her progress in those virtuous and noble exercises and diversions wherein her own good and inclinations and natural ■ endowments have far exceeded the art and skill of those I could procure here for her instruction'. I have been diligent to inquire after those who might have conduced to h'ei better education, but could not find them. You have now taken that care upon yourself, wherein, and in all your other concernments, none can wish unto you better success than your most affectionate brother." There are only a few other letters addressed to Basil at this period ; but there is an undated one from poor Kate Buckingham, his aunt, Villiers's widow, who had married the Earl of Antrim, which, though probably of an earlier date, serves to show that she at least bore him no ill-will for his plain-speaking. " I am not of so pettish a disposition as to take excep- tions at my friends without just cause, , and especially at your hands, whom I have ever so much esteemed, as I am tided to do for your own sake, but if I had THE RESTORATION 303 not that obligation, yet for the aflfection that my dea,r, Lord bore you I must ever own it, for whilst I breathe I shall ever show my true love to him and ever continue to deserve the title of your constant, loving but most unfortunate servant and axmt." In 1670 Basil lost his wife : that loving Betty, whose letters have already been quoted. There is no record of her life during the Commonwealth nor under the restored sovereign. She died on September 22nd at her husband's house at Mastrop in the county of Rutland. Basil mourned her loss very deeply, and was anxious to render her remains every possible honour. With regard to her obsequies there is a lengthy correspondence amongst Denbigh's papers between him and Sir William Dugdale and other authorities, which is of interest as giving a picture of the times. It opens by a reply from Sir William Dugdale, to a letter brought by a messenger from the widower ; Dugdale understands " that the corpse is put in cere cloth already and that the Earl purposes to remove it to Newnham." He advises that the body should not be laid to rest in the oratory there. This building he considered to be a very improper place, though he owns that Lord Denbigh has a right of burial there, because " since it is a timber house, and not a chapel standing of itself, it is most liable to ruin," for " I make a doubt whether those who shall succeed your lordship, will make the use of it which your lordship now doth ; " from which we may gather that Dugdale did not consider the religious fervour of the Roundheads would last now that the Royalists were in power. As to the funeral rites. Sir William proceeds to tell Lord Denbigh that if he intends to have them according 304 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON to her degree and dignity, and to be public, he must communicate with Sir Edward Walker, the Garter, since the funerals of all members of the nobility " come within his province. He will punctually appoint how everything is to be prepared both in hanging of the house and otherwise, and to take care to have all such, escutcheons and trophies as are of right due to her, made and sent down and will likewise inform how many officers at arms are to be made use of for performance of the solemnity. The greatest charge will be in blacks, to such as your lordship shall think fit to give mourning unto, of kindred and friends with their servants, for the honour and state of this proceeding. " Besides yourself and six persons of honour who are to be your assistants (as you are to be ye chief mourner) all in close mourning with gowns and hoods, there must be others in the like close mourn- ing, with the bearer of the great banner and of the eight banner-rolls. And, for the better state of the proceeding, it will be requisite to have as many poor, women in coarse black gowns and white kerchiefs as she was years of age at the time of her death. .Velvet cloth and baize such and so much as shall be requisite may be hired in London by some trusty servant, whom you shall think fit to employ. " But if your lordship resolve of a private burial, my opinion is that it be performed with all possible speed, and in the night time by torches, not divulging the time, in regard of concourse of people, for in so doing you will prevent many inconveniences." Dugdale ends by notifying that there is a post ffom Coventry to Coleshill twice a week, which accounts for the delay over the proceedings. Lord Denbigh THE RESTORATION 305 therefore wrote to Sir Edward Walker on Septem- ber 2 1st asking help towards " ordering the funeral of my wife, whom it has pleased God to take to him, to my infinite sorrow." He had, by then, apparently given up the idea of the oratory and had given orders for a vault to be made in Monk's Kirby Church. " I may add to every banner a led horse, caparisoned with velvet, with all the achievements of her noble ancestors, if that ceremony might not be thought more fit for the sons of Mars than for ladies. The costume of white kerchiefs and black gowns is obsolete, it being the custom of my family, upon their decease, to leave twenty pounds to the poor of the parish. For six of my quaUty to bear me company in mourning robes, the country will not afford [i.e. will not produce them], and for blacks to other families I never had that respect paid for me." Sir Edward Walker, together with his reply, enclosed a list of the elaborate and exact procedure which should be followed. On considering the matter further, Denbigh decided in favour of a private funeral, though " not without regard had, as the time and place will permit, to the honour of a lady whose memory is so dear to me." But even then matters did not proceed apace, for not till October i6th did Denbigh write to Elias Ashmole, Dugdale's son-in-law, that the inscription had come safe with the velvet for the pall, out of which is also made a cushion upon which to place his coronet. His chapel and closet are ordered to be hung with cloth, so that the decency of mourning may accompany his wife's hearse till the vault of Monk's Kirby is finished. He objects to imitation ermine, having noticed " in the greatest 306 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Courts that I have been conversant in, that in public ceremonies and solemnities, such things as are used must be real and entire as the French are wont to say." These directions and desires seem to have puzzled both Walker and Dugdale, for the former wrote to the latter : " I have thought of a middle course for his lordship's satisfaction, viz., to omit the great banner and to have the body set out in state, in a room hung with velvet or cloth, . . . the chariot covered with velvet and the horses." The bill for the preparation for the funeral alone came to £441 los. In Elizabeth's funeral certificate it is stated that she died at Mastrop in Rutlandshire the 22nd of September 1670, was embalmed, wrapped in a cere cloth, and thence taken to Newnham, where her husband upon " mature consideration, how a public funeral might be solemnized for her, according to her state and dignity, finding in respect to the remote distance of her relations and other persons of honour, that the solemnity could not be done in such a noble manner and regularity as it ought, was necessitated to cause the office of burial to be performed at the chapel within his house at Newnham, whence in a fair vault prepared in the North side of the chancel at Monk's Kirkby it was translated thither upon the 8th day of December 1670." This correspondence seems to have led to another with both Sir William Dugdale and Elias Ashmole on many subjects, especially on that of Basil's family pedigree. Dugdale drew this up for him with the assistance of Wanly from papers, letters, old parch- ments, ancestral swords, and other sources of informa- tion. It is from the evidence of these records that the THE RESTORATION 307 family of Feilding claimed their descent from the Hapsburgs. In connection with this, one of Basil's letters to Ashmole may be of interest. It is dated June 26, 1670: "The other day visiting the church of Bitteswell in Leicestershire I did not only find my arms in the window were ancient, for my ancestors were possessed of land there in Edward the Third's time, but a window in the chancel curiously wrought in flower work, and in the middle the two triangles the Feildings' knot or device, the colours— or, argent and sable. You may imagine I was not displeased at the discovery, having sent for a painter to draw a copy from the original. The other day ransacking amongst my papers I found three letters from Prince Thomas of Savoy ; one of them I send you enclosed, to be restored at our next meeting, wherein he styles me his cousin. This put me in mind of the curious search Duke ,Vittorio Amadeo, the eldest prince of that family, made after my arms and descent both in my private travels and when I was the late King's amb"^ of glorious memory with his high- ness, who asking me which were the christian names of my ancestors, I replied Geffrey, John, Everard, Basil, and he presently declared by my arms, surname, and those christian names, I must descend from the house of Hapsburg with whom, especially the Earls Geffry and Everard, his ancestors had been engaged against in the wars and at other times in treaties of correspon- dence, upon which occasion, joined to the dignity of a viscount in England, he treated me ever in his letters with the style of his cousin, an honor not given to any, as I was told, under the degree of a duke and peer of France. That Prince's letters I cannot yet find, but I am certain they are amongst my papers. Upon the 308 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON same account Monsieur Bernegiger of Strasbiurg, a great historian and antiquary of Germany, gave me those lights which before were not so clearly discovered to me, nor indeed were my studies and inclinations at that time taken up with notions of this Mnd. For that reason did the city of Basil treat me with great honour, and respect in my private travels, and my brother-in- law, Duke of Hamilton, being entered into Germany with a great army, (1631) to second the King of Sweden's attempts and designs, the Emperor, then Ferdinand the Second at Ratisbone thought my honour a sufficient tie to separate me from all other interests but his own if I would have accepted of those great advantageous offers he made to me by his confessor Father Lammerman to draw me to his service, which were civilly waived by me as being then a subject, servant, and pensioner to the late King." A careful search has failed to prove that Ashmole returned these papers. They may yet come to light when certain Italian newsletters and despatches are translated. A visit to the restored church at Bitteswell proves the destruction of the window alluded to, nor is there any trace of the copy made by the artist. Basil had great belief in occult science and astrologers. We are told by Burnet that when the Earl of Montrose was " beyond sea " and travelled with the Earl of Denbigh, they consulted all the astrblogers they could hear of. "I could plainly see the Earl of Denbigh relied on what had been told him to his dying day : and the rather because the Earl of Montrose was promised a glorious fortune for some tiitie but all was to be overthrown in conclusion." A prediction which came only too true when Montrose, after a THE RESTORATION 309 brilliant military career, was taken prisoner and hanged in 1649. Harrington, the author of " Oceana," tells us that when Basil was Ambassador in Venice he frequently consulted a crystal-gazer who showed him " several times in a glass things past and to come." If to marry again be, as some hold, the greatest proof a widower can give of the sense of his loneliness and grief, then Basil paid his departed Betty a compli- ment in taking a fourth wife. He married Dorothie Lane, of Glendon, Northamptonshire, not long after he had laid her predecessor to rest with all the ceremony related above. Of this, his fourth wife, we can glean nothing. We only know that she survived him, married Sir John James, and, dying in 1709, was buried at St. Giles -in-the -Fields. Basil died in 1675, s-t Dunstable, on his journey from London, and is buried at Monk's Kirby, where lie many of his ancestors. His honours and titles and estates reverted to his nephew, William Feilding, second Earl of Desmond and third Earl of Denbigh. The life and deeds of Basil Lord Denbigh have here been fully set forth from his papers and letters. After making an exhaustive study of them for a Parliamentary Commission, Mr. R. B. Knowles summed up their impression in words which make a fit ending to these family records. There is nothing in these manuscripts to raise a doubt that Basil second Earl of Denbigh sided with the Parlia- ment on any other ground than the condition that its cause " was just." " Of personal ambition there is no trace. On the other hand there are frequent evidences that in the administration of his command he studied 310 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON to alleviate the miseries of the war and that he inspired the feeling that his justice could be relied upon for the redress of injuries. . . . Unresting energy, the in- trepidity he inherited from his father, and the power of attracting the devotion of those under his command marked him a leader of men in such warfare as that in which he was engaged. . . . The Royalists saw in Lord Denbigh only his 'ingratitude' to the King. The other side regarded him as one of the ablest of their generals. The events of the Civil War subsequent to his resignation of his command have somewhat eclipsed the part he took in it. But there cannot be a doubt that he largely contributed at a critical period to the success which the Parliament ultimately achieved." INDEX Admiralty, Court of, 78 Aldgate, 149 Althorp, 248, 254 Ambassador, French, 150 Ambassador, Venetian, 68, 160, 161, 17s Amiens, 35 Andover, Lord, 24, 25 Anglesey, Earl of, 11, 80 Anglicans, 124 Anne of Austria, 23, 29, 30, 35, 236 Antrim, Earl of, 187 Ardent, Dorothy, 204 Army, Parliamentary, 206, 212, 254, 256, 257, 258, 262, 276, 290, 291 Arundel, Earl of, 109, 11 1, 112, 113, 122, 132 Arundell, Captain, 218 Ashburnham, John, 94 Ashby de la Zouch, 179 Ashmole, Elias, 305, 306, 307 Astley, Sir Jacob, 242 Aston, 189 Aylesbury, Will, 279 Bacon, Francis, iii Baden, 113 Bagg, Sir James, 14 Bagot, General, 217, 219 Bagshot, 263' Banbury, 181 Bangor, 223 Barberino, 107, 157 Bardesy, 196 Barebones, 290 Bashford, Mr., 100 Bastille, 29 Bath, 211 Bath, Earl of, 197 Bayning, Lady, 151, 152 Bayning, Lord, 151, 152 Berkeley, Lord, 268 Bernegger, Monsieur, 308 Birmingham, 180, 188, 189, 190 Bitteswell, 307, 308 Blackmore Heath, 220 Blake, Colonel, 230, 231 Bohemia, 166 Bohemia, Queen of, 84 Bois-le-duc, 281, 284 Bossuet, 185 Bosvile, Major, 248 Boswell, 123 Bourchier, Elizabeth, see Feilding Bowsier, 198 Bradshaw, John, 267, 272 Brentford, John, 257 Brereton, Sir William, 206 Brest, 23s Bridgwater, 211 Bristol, 211 Bristol, Lord, 21, 23 Brooke, Lord, 206 Buckingham, see Villiers 311 312 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Burlington Bay, i86 Burnet, Bishop, 280 Cadiz, 42, 45, 46, 47, 52, 242 Calais, 35 Callan, Viscount, 77 Cambridge, 255 Cambridge, Earl of, see Hamilton Canterbury, 37 Capel, Lord, 271 Carey, Lady Anne, 78, 178, 179 Carisbrooke Castle, 260, 26 1 , 264, 267 Carlisle, Countess of, 49, 152 Carlisle, Earl of, 28, 29, 30, 31, 82 Cassilis, Earl of, 178 Catholics, 25, 30, 34, 37, 52, 74, 124, 187, 253 Cavershall Castle, 179 Cecil, Sir Edward, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 83, 84, 85, 226, 238 Ceddes Hall, 149 Chad wick. Colonel Lewis, 211 Chalais, 92 Charing Cross, 258 Charles I, 13, 14 ; Spanish match, 16, 17, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 31, 33, 34. 35. 37, 38 ; Corona- tion, 39 ; prorogues Parliament, 60 ; interferes in duel, 93 ; private letter to Basil, 126; other allusions to, 40, 47, 62, 63, 69, 70. 71. 72. 84, 94. 105. 108, 112, 122, 124, 127, 130, 131, 132, 133. 134. 13s, 136, 137. 138. 139. 140, 141, 142, 143, 144, 14s. 146. 147, 148, 149, 150, 158, 160, 161, 163, 164, 165, 166, 168, 169, 170, 171, 172, 17s, 176, 177, 178, 179, 180, 184, 188, 191, 192, 193, 195, 198, 214, 218, 221, 228, 229, 230, 231, 232, 233, 237, 240, 242, 243, 244, 245, 246, 247, 248, 249, 250, 251, 252, 253, 254, 256, 258, 259, 260, 261-78, 286, 289, 292 Charles 11, 243, 249, 276, 278, 291 Chateauroux, 99 Cheapside, 109, no Chelmsford, 148, 149, 150 Cherasco, 138 Cheshire, 206, 215 Chester, 214 Chesterfield, Earl of, 179 Chiozza, 158 Cholmondeley House, 233 Christchurch College, 231 Church, Percy, 139, 144, 147, 151 City of London, 109, 265 Clarendon, Lord, Hyde, 242 Clark, 25 Clarke, Ned, 64, 65 Cleveland, Earl of, 153, 221 Coke, Secretary, 60, 64, 66, 67, 107, 124, 126, 127, 129, 13s, 136, 137, 139. 144. 173 Colegio, 97, 150 Coleshill, 304 Colnebrook, 257 Commissioners, French, 30 Commissioners, Scottish, 260, 261, 262, 263 Committee of Revenue, 283 Committee of Safety, 176, 208, 212 Commons, 42 Commonwealth, 271 Compiegne, 28, 31 Compton, Sir Thomas, 9 Conway, Sir Edward, 94, 134 Cope, 7 Cork, Earl of, 70, 71 Cornwall, 229, 235 Cornwallis, Mrs., 79 Cornwallis, Sir William, 150 Cottington, Sir Francis, 22, 23, 124, 127 Council at Cadiz, 43 Council of State, 271, 274, 276, 277, 284, 287 Covenant, 209 INDEX 313 Coventry, 127, 177, 189, 198, 206, 207, 209, 211, 215, 225, 304 Craig, 33 Crashaw, Robert, 287, 288 Craven, Lord, 83 Cremona, 90 Crofts, William, 95 Cromwell, Oliver, 237, 242, 245, 255, 256, 257, 259, 260, 265, 266, 267, 269, 277, 290 Cromwell, Richard, 291 Dacres, Lord, 268 Daemont, Monsieur, 89 Davis, Marghery, 211 Denbigh, 170 Denbigh, see Feilding Denmark, 84 Denny, Lord, 17 Derby House, 265, 278, 283 Desmond, daughter of last Earl of, 77 Desmond, see Feilding Desmond, Lady, 80 Devereux, Walter, 298, 299 Devonshire, Countess of, 78 Devonshire, Earl of, 95 Dieppe, 40 Digby, Sir Kenelm, 296 Dobigny, Lord, 95 Doge, I2S, 128, 150 Doncaster, Lord, 83 Dorchester, 124 Dorset, Earl of, 166 Dover, 37, 291 Dudley, 221, 284, 179 Dudley Castle, 211, 215, 220 Dugdale, Sir William, 300 Duncourt, Lady, 153 Dunluse, Lord, 105 Durham, 248 Edgehill, Battle of, 173, 181, 182 183, 184 Elector Palatine, Frederick, 20 Elizabeth, Princess, 20, 21 Elizabeth, Queen, 249 Essex, Earl of, 47 Euston, Lord, 299 Exeter, 235 Fairfax, Sir Thomas, 214, 242, 246, 255, 256, 257, 258, 265, 267, 269, 274, 286 Feilding, Ann Weston, Vis- countess, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 100, loi, 102, 104 Feilding, Barbara Lamb, Vis- countess Feilding, 153, 154, 155, 156 Feilding, Basil, 2nd Earl of Denbigh : goes to Paris, 28 ; in Paris, 29 ; created Viscount, 39 ; offers to disguise himself as Duke of Buckingham, 58 ; appointed Official Victualler to Fleet, 62 ; has ships ready, 65 ; mentioned in despatches, 82 ; appointed Master of the Robes and Gentleman of the Bed- chamber, 83 ; goes to war in Holland, 83 ; returns, 84 ; made Knight of the Bath, 85 ; mar- riage with Lord Wotton's daughter discussed, 85 ; sent on mission to France and Geneva, 86 ; passes through Strasbourg, 86 ; Lord Weston challenges him to duel, 93 ; appointed Ambassador to Venice, 94 ; marries Lady Ann Weston, 94 ; leaves England, 95 ; reception in Paris, 95 ; letter to his father- in-law, 96 ; Lady Feilding dies, 96 ; her funeral, 97 ; her jewels, 100 ; letter to Mrs. Poulter, 103 ; home affairs, 105 ; Hamilton's letter to him, 122 ; arrest of 314 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON persons to whom he had given sanctuary, 125 ; private letter from Charles I on subject, 125 ; sends home a horse to the King, 128; art collections, 131, 133 ; letters from Hamilton, see Hamilton ; appointed Am- bassador Extraordinary to Savoy, 135 ; rumour of his being appointed to France, 138 ; gives dissatisfaction to Savoy, 142, 143 ; despatches Reeve to Eng- land to explain his case, 144 ; Duke of Savoy's subsequent satisfaction with him, 145, 146 : determines to leave Turin for Venice, 146; his indignation at his coachman's being put in prison, 147 ; suggested mar- riages, 151 ; leaves Venice for England, 152 ; approaches Sir John Lamb for his daughter's hand, 153 ; marries Barbara Lamb, 156 ; his chain is pawned, 159 ; begins to side with Parlia- mentary Party, 164 ; removed from ambassadorial office, 172 ; pecuniary embarrassments at Venice, 173 ; subterfuges caused thereby, 174 ; appointed Lord Lieutenant of Flint and Denbigh, Parliament taking right of appointment of Lord Lieutenants from King, 176 ; his mother begs him to adhere to King, 177-9 >■ Parliament draws attention to his removal from Venice, 179 ; given ap- pointment in Parliamentary Army, 180 ; fights at Battle of Edgehill, 181 ; subscribes ^£500 to Parliamentary Army, 184 ; sent for to see his dying fathet, 190 ; presents statement of pay- ment due to him, 193 ; King takes over his debts, 194; marries Elizabeth Bourchier, 196; appointed -Commander-in- Chief of the Midlands, 206; receives his commission from Essex, 207 ; sent for by Com- mittee of Safety, 208 ; petitions to him, 210 ; marches to Tam- worth, 215 ; leaves for Rushall, 215 ; his march, 216 ; attacks and captures Rushall, 218 ; besieges Dudley Castle, 220 ; victory at Tipton Green, 221 ; besieges Oswestry, 223 ; sets off for Wem, 225 ; accounts of his gallant conduct, 226; both Houses thank him, 226 ; petition from Wem, 227 ; chosen to carry propositions to King, 229 ; complaints against him debated in House, 229; Commons' de- cision, 230 ; starts for Oxford and has high words with Blake at Reading, 231 ; received by King at Oxford, 23 1 ; thanks of House for his conduct of this affair, 232 ; attacks Cholmonde- ley House, 233 ; petitions sent to him, 234; opposes Self- Denying Ordinance, 238; sur- renders his commission, 239 ; military career ends, 240 ; ap- pointed a Peace Commissioner to King at Uxbridge, 242 ; Clarendon's opinion of him, 244 ; Conference breaks up, 245 ; appointed to Commission to receive the captive King, 247 ; progress from Scotland with King, and arrival at Holmby, 248 ; his letter to Lord Northumberland, 249 ; presses Parliament for his arrears, 252 ; INDEX 315 leaves Holmby for Newmarket with the King, 255; leaves London and joins army, 257 ; with army and Fairfax at Hounslow Heath, 257 ; accom- panies King to Hampton Court, 258 ; acquaints Parliament of King's escape from Commis- si&ners, 260 ; appointed to fresh Commission in charge of King at Carisbrooke Castle, 260; insists on seeing contents of King's letter, 261 ; his letter read in House, 263 ; Parliament again thanks him, 263 ; asked for, and gives, advice to House, 264 ; named as member of a Com- mittee of judges to try King, 267 ; refuses to serve on it, 268 ; Speaker of House of Lords, 268 ; Commons make last over- ture to King through him, 269 ; endeavours to get Hamilton reprieved, 272 ; Hamilton's pictures put in his care, 273 ; appointed to Council of State, 274 ; refuses to subscribe approval of King's death, 275 ; on several committees, 276 ; his relations seek his help, 278 ; letter to his mother, 282 ; petitions Parliament for arrears, 283 ; Committee of Coventry present petition and charges against him, of which he clears himself, 284 ; reappointed to Council of State, 284 ; his character as a " trimmer " aspersed, and cleared, 285 ; not appointed on third Council of State, 286; suspicions against him, 286; permission to send letter to his mother, 287 ; his memorial petition to Charles H for pardon, 291 ; his pardon, 295 ; Queen Henrietta's feelings towards him, 297 ; created Baron St. Liz, 297 ; he rebukes his nephew, his heir, 299 ; writes to Lady Desmond, 301 ; letter from Buckingham's widow, 302; death of Elizabeth Denbigh, and her funeral, 303 ; his belief in occult science, 309 ; marries Dorothie Lane, 309 ; dies at Dunstable, 309 ; other allusions, 64. 73. 79. 80, 82, 91, 99, III, 112, 125, 128, 136, 137, 138, 139, 141, 142, 143, 14s, 151, 153, 154, 155, 156, 161, 163, 164, 165, 171, 172, 173, 175, 176, 179, 180, 186, 191. 193. 292 Feilding, Dorothie Lane, fourth wife of Basil Feilding, second Earl of Denbigh, 309 Feilding, Elizabeth Bourchier, third wife of Basil Feilding, second Earl of Denbigh, 196 ; her letters to him, 197-205 ; her death and funeral, 303 Feilding, Geoffrey, Sir, 6 Feilding, George, first Earl of Desmond, 77, 78, 300, 301, 309 Feilding, Harriet, Lady, 183 Feilding, Roger, Sir, son of William, first Earl of Denbigh, 80 Feilding, Susan Villiers, first Countess of Denbigh, marries Sir William Feilding, 1607, 7, 8 ; hunts with James 1,^25 ; sups with King, 25 ; meets Queen Henrietta, 37 ; her letter to Charles I, 50 ; misses Bucking- ham, S3 ; premonition of Buckingham's death, 69 ; suggests plan to Queen, 165 ; accompanies Queen to The 316 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Hague, i66 ; vicissitudes at sea, 167; negotiations for her daughter Elizabeth's marriage, 170 ; sets sail for England, 185 ; lands at Burlington, 186 ; her husband's death, 191 ; at Oxford and Exeter with Queen, 235 1 in France with Queen, 236 ; letter from her son Basil, 282 ; becomes a Catholic, 286 ; dies in Paris, 287 ; poems to her by Crashaw, 287 ; her letters, 31, 35. 36, SO. 57. 69. 78, 79. 86, 87, 91, 164, 165, 167, 168, 169, 176, 177, 178, 179, 181, 182, 183, 185, 191, 192, 193, 253; other allusions to her, 7, 8, 178, 81, 82, 108, 144, 171, 176, i88, 196, 253, 285, 287 Feilding, William, first Earl of Denbigh, 7, 8 ; offices at Court and created Baron and Viscount, II ; created Earl of Denbigh, 17 ; Master of Royal Household, 17; Lady Mary Wroth's appeal, 18 ; goes to Spain with Prince of Wales, 22 ; in Spain, 24 ; goes to sea, 40 ; goes to Plymouth with King, 40 ; expedition to Cadiz, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47 ; expedition to Rochelle, 51 ; sails from Portsmouth, 52 ; returns from Rochelle for reinforcements, 54; bringing prisoners, 57; fresh expedition to Rochelle and its failure, 59 ; at Plymouth, 60 ; his difficulties, 60, 61 ; mu- tinies, 61 ; defective ships, 66 ; Parliament asks that he may be again sent to Rochelle, 67 ; advances money for funeral of James I, 73; given command of third expedition to Rochelle, 73 ; returns to England, 74 ; given permission to leave for Persia, 74 ; his credentials, 74 ; his letter to Basil, 76 ; his picture, 77 ; leaves for Persia, 77 ; in Scotland, 144 ; becomes volunteer in King's Guard of Horse and appointed to Council of War, 181 ; Battle of Edgehill, l8i; quartered near banks of Severn, 188 ; pillages Birming- ham, 189 ; his death near Birm- ingham, 190 ; Charles I on hear- ing of his death, 191 ; other allusions, 28, 39, 40, 41, 68, 73, 81, 88, 170 Feilding, William, third Earl of Denbigh, 299, 230, 309 Felton, 69 Felton Heath, 225 Ferdinand II, 87, 88 Finet, Sir John, 96, 123 Finsbury, 109 Firebrace, Henry, 293, 294 Firebrace, Hester, 294 Fitzherbert, Sir Anthony, 7 Fontene, Mr., 129 Fosse Road, 5 France, 106, 108, 138, 139 France, King of, see Louis Frazer, 223, 228 Gerard, Lord, 279 Gerbier, 27 Germane, Mr., 168 Gibson, Mrs., 72 Giustiniano, 123, 158 Goldsmith's Hall, 253 Gondomar, 21 Goring, George, Lord, 93, 94, 98, 148 Grandison, Lord, 151 Grand Remonstrance, 166 Great James, the, 81 INDEX 317 Greffin, Mr., i68 Grime, 193 Guiche, Comte de, 95 Guildford, Countess of, see Feild- ing Guise, Duke of, 59 Gustavus Adolphus, 130 Hadon, Sir William, 82 Hague, 123, 166, 167 Hales, Anthony, 91 Hamilton, Anne, Duchess of Hamilton in her own right, eldest daughter of James, first Duke, 274 Hamilton, James, Marquis of Hamilton, 139, 140 Hamilton, James, first Duke of Hamilton, goes to Hague, 48; sent by King to Sweden, 78, 79 ; his letters to Basil Feilding, 122, 129, 130, 131, 133, 134, 135 ; his dancing in Paris, 95 ; affianced to Mary Feilding, 139 ; succeeds his father, 140 ; returns to Court, 141 ; letters to Basil, 141, 142, 143 ; invades England, 265 ; advances on Preston, 266 ; attacked by Cromwell, escapes, but is captured and taken prisoner to Windsor, where he meets King, 266 ; escapes but is recaptured, 270 ; brought to trial, 271 ; condemned and be- headed, 272 ; anecdotes of, 273 ; his pictures, 273 ; Queen Henrietta on his death, 274 ; other allusions to, 86, 109, 136, 265, 29s Hamilton, Mary Feilding, Mar- chioness of, meets Queen Henrietta, 37 ; appointed to Queen's Bedchamber, 49 ; her story, 139, 140 ; her death, 141 ; other allusions to, 143, 150, 178 Hamilton, Susan, daughter of first Duke of, 178, 179 Hammersmith, 257 Hammond, General, 262, 263, 266 Hampton Court, 109, 258, 260 Harrowden, 248 Harvey, Dr. William, educated at Padua and returns to England, hi; goes to Germany, 112; goes to Vienna, 113; arrives at Treviso, 1 13 ; his letters to Basil Feilding, 113, 115, etc. ; arrives in London, 121 ; at Battle of Edgehill, 183, 184 ; his death, 288 ; his quaint nos- trums, 289 Harwich, 148 Hastings, General, 217 Hatfield House, 10 Hatton, Sir Christopher, 249 Henry IV of France, 137 Henrietta Maria, Queen, first meets Charles I, 23 ; her por- trait at Newnham, 28 ; her marriage spoken of, 33 ; Buckingham fetches her from France, 35 ; lands at Dover, 37 ; takes her dogs to interrupt prayers, 37 ; refuses to be crowned, 39; her, French attendants dismissed, 49; her letter intercepted, 92 ; at Oxford and Exeter, 235 ; flees to France, 236 ; returns to England, 296 ; goes back to France, 296 ; other allusions, 105, 106, 107, 108, 135, i37> 138, 140, 142, 236, etc. Herbert, Lord, 70, 151 Herbert, Sir Thomas, 247, 250 Hewsdon, Lord, 268 Hingate, Sir Henry, 64 Hodges, Sir William, 260 318 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Hoffman, Dr., 112 Holland, 83, 108, 123, 177, 181, 185, 191 Holland House, 257 Holland, Lady, 77 Holland, Lord, see Kensington Hollis, Denzil, 176 Holmby, 248, 249, 254 Honourable Artillery Company, 109 Hoptone (Hopetown), 198 Hospital, St. Bartholomew's, in Hotham, Sir John, 176, 211 Hounslow Heath, 257 Howard, Lord, 285 Huguenots, 33, 52 Hull, 176 Hungary, Queen of, 113 Huntingdon, Earl of, 297 Hurst Castle, 267 Hyde Park, 257, 258 Independents, 237, 267 Infanta Maria Ana of Spain, 20, 23, 24, 25, 27 Ipswich, 48 Ireton, 255, 256 Italy, 133, 283 James 1,9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 31, 33. III. 153 James II, 183 James, Sir John, 309 Jarre, Chevalier de, 93 Jefferies, dwarf, 39 Jermyn, 236 Joyce, 254, 2SS Junto, 134 Keene, Captain, 223, 224, 226 Kensington, 252 Kensington, Lord, 28, 29, 30, 31, 40. 59. 92. 93. 94. 165, 271 Kent, 265 Kent, Earl of, 267, 268 Killigrew, Lady, 165 Kirke, Mrs., 171 Knollys, Sir Henry, 150 Kynalmeaky, Elizabeth Feilding, ViscounteSs, 169, 172, 183, 236, 29s, 296, 300 ; letters to Basil, 169, 170 Kynalmeaky, Lewis, Viscount, marries Elizabeth Feilding, 170, 171 ; his death, 183 Lake, Mr., 103 Lake, Sir Thomas, 1 1 Lamb, Sir John, 153, 154, 155, 196 Lamb, Barbara, see Feilding Lambeth, 71 Lammermann, 87, 308 Lancashire, 215, 224 Lane, Colonel, 216, 218, 219 Lane, Dorothie, 309 Laud, Archbishop, 163 Lecaghe, Baron Feilding of, 77 Lee, Sir John, 11 Leeds, 248 Leganes, 147 Legatum, 137 Leicester, 214 Leicester, Dudley, Earl of, 17 Leicester, Sydney, Earl of, 18 Leicestershire, 179 Leigh, Colonel Edward, 180, 220, 225 Leigh, Sir Thomas, 179 Leitzen, 130 Lennox, Duchess of, necklace, 13 Lennox, Mary Villiers, Duchess of, see Richmond Lentz, 112 Lering, Thomas, 80 Lichfield, 179, 206, 207, 215, 216, 217, 218, 219, 279, 284 INDEX 319 Lincoln, 128 Lindhurst, 134 Lindsay, Lord, 52 Liscarrol, 183 Lombardy, 89, 90 London, 37, 180, 184, 207, 208 Lord Mayor, 265 Loughborough, Lord, 218 Louis XIII, 28, 33, 35, 51, S3, 137 Madrid, 23, 24, 26 Magdeburg, 79 Maitland, Lord, 231 Manchester, 237 Manchester, Earl of, 214, 238, 239, 240, 241, 268 Mansfield, Count, 31 Mantua, 138 Marlsham, 148 Marquin, Sir Thomas, 9 Marrowes, Colonel, 223, 225 Marston Moor, 229 Mason, Mr., 88 Mastrop, 303 Maurice, Prince, 231 Maynard, Lord, 229, 268 Mazarin, Cardinal, 91, 92, 107, 236 Medici, Marie de', 29, 30, 148, 149, 166 Meldrum, Sir John, 214 Metta, 186 Middlesex, Earl of, 24 Middleton, Sir Thomas, 127, 207, 212, 215, 216, 217, 220, 224, 225, 226 Milan, 90, 113 Mildmay, Sir Henry, 148 Milton, John, 109, 277 Monk's Kirby, 285, 305, 306 Montagu, Walter, 106, 107, 108, 133, 186, 286 Montague, Lord, 247, 255, 259 Montrose, Earl of, 187, 308 Morocco, King of, 129 Morton, Philip, 106, 107, 108, 157 161 Motteville, Madame de, 180 Mountford Bridge, 224 Mulgrave, Earl of, 267, 268, 274, 27s Munster, 183 Muswell Lees, 200 Mytton, Sir Thomas, 206, 213, 215, 222, 223, 224 Nantwich, 224, 226 Naples, 129 Naseby, 241, 255 Nassau, Henry of, 84 Nave, Le, 132 Newark, 214 Newbury, 229, 237 Newcastle, 247, 250 Newcastle, Earl of, 186, 187, 211 Newdigate, Mr., 298, 299 New Forest, 37, 134 Newmarket, 91, 255 New Model, 241, 242 Newnham Paddox, 82, 89, in, 125, 129, 140, 176, 182, 213, 273, 279, 283 Newport, 260 Newport, Lady, 136 Newport, Lord, 225 Nicholas, Edward, 91 Niz, Daniel, 108, 109 Noodam, Van, 108 North, Lord, 268 North, Sir John, 150 Northampton, Earl of, 297 Northumberland, Earl of, 34, 228, 264, 267, 279 Nottingham, 179, 180 Nottingham, Earl of, 265, 267 Nuremberg, 112 320 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Onell, Master, i68 Orange, Prince of, 83, 84, 86, 167 Ornano, Colonel, 29 Oswestry, 215, 222, 224, 225 Oxford, 184, 187, 188, 229, 230, 231, 245, 2:79, 286, 293- Padua, 88, 89, 98, iii, 119 Paget, Lord, 165 Palace Yard, 258 Palatine, 146 Palma, Duke of, 158 Paris, 95 Parliament, 28, 39, 42, 158, 160, 164, 166, 168, 176, 182, 184, 185, 187, 189, 208, 240, 241, 242, 246, 248, 252, 256, 258, 259, 260, 265, 267, 269, 270, 277, 280, 283 Parliament, Long, 163 Parliament, Short, 163 Pauluzzi, Giovanni, 97 Pavia, 90 Pelegrini, 106 Pembroke, Earl of, 70, 71, 247, 25s, 260, 267, 268, 274, 27s Pendennis, 235 Pennington, 40, 41, 81, 86 Pettie, 132 Physicians, College of, in, H2 Piedmont, 138 Pierro, Sir George, 158 Piloran, Monsieur de, 95 Pinerolo, 138 Plague on Continent, 86 Plague in England, 37 Plymouth, 37, 42, 64, 198 Pope, 157 Porter, George, 71 Portland, Duke of, 92, 104, 105, 124 Portland, Lady, 97, 100 Portsmouth, 62, 64, 68 Poulter, Elizabeth, 100 Prague, 94 Presbyterians, 237, 241, 246, 249, 265, 269 Pressgangs, 241 Preston, 266 Pride, Colonel, 269 Pride's Purge, 290 Purbeck, Viscount, 1 1 Purefoy, Colonel, 214 Puritans, 158 Pym, Mr., 164, 166 Raphael, 132 Ratisbon, 88, 113 Read, Mr., 137 Reading, 188, 230 Reeves, John, 99, 128, 133, 136, 144, 14s, 151 Reynolds, John, 28, 29, 30 Rhe, Isle of, 53, 54, 57, 69, 73, 79 Rice, Captain Anthony, 65 Richelieu, Cardinal, 34, 35, 51, 59, 104, 105, 138, 148 Richmond, Duchess of, Mary Villiers : King James calls her his grandchild, 25 ; solemnly espoused to Lord Herbert, 70 ; his death, 70 ; she returns to Court and has adventure in King's garden, 70 ; marries Lennox, 71 ; becomes Duchess of Richmond, 72 ; her husband dies, 72 ; their portraits, 72 ; alluded to, 253 Richmond, Duke of, 71, 112 Rinaldo, Signor, 99 Roberts, Lord, 238 Rochelle, 33, 40, 52, 55, 57, 61, 62, 63, 65, 66, 67, 68, 74, 82, 83, 243 Rochester, 148 Rochfort, Lord, 24 Rolle, Judge, 269 Rome, 107 Roper, Sir Anthony, 106 Rowlandson, 96, 141, 142 INDEX 321 Royston, 26 Rugely, Colonel, 229 Rupert, Prince, 109, 188, 189, 190, 191, 213, 214, 215, 216, 222, 223, 224, 231, 279 Rushall Hall, 179, 200, 215, 216, 217, 218, 219, 220, 225 Russell, Mr., 151 Rutland, Duke of, 268 Sacheverell, 222 Saint Helens, 65 Saint James, 149, 150 Saint Liz, 297 Saint Mark, 98, 157 Saint Martin, 54 Salisbury, Earl of, 274, 275 Salvetti, 49 Savoy, 92, 107, 136 Savoy, Court of, 134, 138, 156, 157 Savoy, Duchess of, 107, 135, 136, 142, 143, 144, 145, 146 Savoy, Duke of, 9, 100, 136, 137, 142, 14s, 160, 307 Scotland, 259, 264 Scots, 246, 247 Self-denying Ordinance, 238, 283 Selkirk, Earl of, 178 Seymour, Jane, 86 Shefling, 184, 185 Shelley, Lady, 207 Ship-money, 123 Shrewsbury, 180, 214, 221, 223, 225, 226, 243 Shropshire, 179, 207, 215, 227 Somerset House, 276 Sophi of Persia, 74 Southampton, 62 Southwark, 270 Spa, 167 Spain, war with, 28, 29 Spain, io8, 160, 147 Spanish match, see Vilhers Spencer, Lord, 152 y Spindler, 83 Spring Garden, 93 Stafford, 17, 23, 25, 27, 28, 179, 200, 207, 212, 213, 215, 2l6 Stanhope, 151 Stanhope, Sir Michael, 299 Star Chamber, 127, 128 Steward, Sir Francis, 44 Stoke Poges, 257 Stoneleigh, 179 Strafford, Wentworth, Lord, see Wentworth Stratford-on-Avon, 206 Strasbourg, 86, 88, 308 Suffolk, Countess of, 10 Suffolk, Earl of, 34, 154 Sultan, 157 Sweden, 130 Talbot, Sir Gilbert, 150, 156, 157, 158, 159, 160, 161, 172, 173, 174, 17s Tamworth, 179, 215 Taunton, 211 Temple Bar, 27 Tertullian, 186 Thames Ditton, 259 Thirty Years War, 83 Tipton Green, 221 Toras, 79 Tower of London, 265 Trent, 188 Treviso, 113, 120 Trinity College, Cambridge, 278 Turin, 91, 92, 106, 108, 136, 137, 142, 143, 146, 157, 164 Turner, Dr., 150 Tutbury, 179 Tyburn, 2^ Uxbridge, 242 Valencia, 43 Vallet, 95 322 ROYALIST FATHER AND ROUNDHEAD SON Vandyke) 140 Vautelet, Madame de, 50 Vaux, Lord, 248 Venetian Government, 136 Venice, go, 92, 96, 97, 98, 108, 123, 134, 136, 142, 143, 147, 150, 152, 156, 163, 164, 173, 175, 194, 267, 27s. 280 Verney, Sir Henry, 240 Vernon, George, 139 Vienna, 88, 107, i68 Vieuville, Marquis de, 30 Villanclair, Madame de, 30 VUliers, Lord Francis, 80, 278, 279 Villiers, George, first Duke , of Buckingham : his parentage, 8 ; goes to France, 9 ; meets James I, 9 ; King and Queen nickname him, 10 ; appointed cupbearer, and other offices, 10; marries Katherine Manners, 12 ; created Duke, 17 ; Spanish match, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27 ; leaves Madrid, 26 ; met by James I, 26 ; his portrait by Gerbier, 27 ; the King's plaster, 31 ; his ward- robe, 34 ; goes to Hague, 48 ; expedition to Rochelle, 51, 52 ; attacks French, 54; defeat at Rhe, 57 ; his courage and return, 58 ; plot against him, 58 ; his assassination, 69 ; King pays his debts, 70 ; his letters, 16, 17, S3 ; James I's letters to him, 25 ; letters from' his sister Susan Denbigh, 35, 57 ; letters to his mother, 16, 17, 55, 56 ; from his mother, 52, 53, 55 ; other allu- sions, 40, 46, 49, 50, 59, 62, 64, 66, 72, 78, 80, 81, 84, 94, 95, 123, 190, 194, 197, 280, 291 Villiers, George, second Duke of Buckingham, 70, 79, 139, 278, 279, 280, 281 Villiers, Katherine Manners, Duchess of Buckingham, 12, 13, 49. 52, 78, 187, 279, 302 Villiers, Mary Beaumont, Countess of Buckingham, as serving maid, 7; marries Sir George Villiers, 8 ; marries Sir Thomas Marquin, 9 ; marries Sir Thomas Compton, 9 ; at Court, 10 ; created Countess, 11 ; her sons, 10 ; makes marriages for her poor kindred, n ; becomesa Catholic, and King's opposition thereto, 12 ; her reclamation, and re- lapse, 13 ; banished the Court, 13; episode of the necklace to the Duchess of Lennox, 14 ; banished the Court, 15 ; con- forms, 15 ; the King's plaster, 31 ; meets Queen Henrietta, 37 ; her death and funeral in West- minster Abbey, 80; her letters to George Villiers, 52, 53, 55 ; letters from George Villiers, 16, 17. 55) 56; to her grandson Basil Feilding, 87, 88, 89 ; allu- sion to, 80 Vlop, Van, 108 Waldon, 85 Wales, 209, 214, 265 Walker, Sir Edvward, 304, 305, 306 Waller, General, 188, 299 Wallingford, 229 Wallingford House, 141 Walsall, 180, 189, 217, 220, 222 Wanly, 305 Wardle, William, 210 Ware, 26 Warrington, 266 Warwick, 184, 238 Warwick, Earl of, 207, 210, 211, 212, 227, 228, 246 Watling Street Road, 6, 180 INDEX 323 Weckerlin, 137 Wedall, Captain, 79 Welldon, Anthony, 73 Wem, 211, 225, 227 Wentworth, Strafford, Lord, 21, 163, 164 Wentworth, Lord, 153, 154, 155, 156 West Indies, 46 Westminster, 257 Westminster Abbey, 70, 80, 141 Weston, Ann, see Feilding Weston, Lord, 78, 92, 93, 95 Whaden, 77, 80 Wharton, Lord, 154 Whitechapel, 149 Whitehall, 27, 171, 270 Wigan, 266 Wight, Isle of, 260, 264, 265, 266 Willoughby, Sir Edward Cecil, Lord, see Cecil Wilmott, Lord, 221 Windebank, Secretary, 106, 108, 112, 124, 125, 126, 134. 13s. 136, 137, 138, 143, 144, 14s, 146, 147, 158, 160 Windsor, 266, 267 Woodford, Mr., 30, 169 Worcester, 207 Worcester, Battle of, 174, 180, 207, 274, 290 Worcestershire, 228 Wotton, Sir Henry, 85 Wroth, Lady Mary, 17 Wutton, Mrs., 151 Wylde, 269 York, 165, 187, 198 York House, 71 Zeeland, 68 Zuazo, 46 PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN BY UNWIN BROTHERS, LIMITED PRINTERS, WOKING AND LONDON A SELECTION OF BOOKS PUBLISHED BY METHUEN AND CO. 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