Tower of London

William Harrison Ainsworth, born at Manchester, England, Feb.

4, 1805, was a popular rather than a great writer. A

solicitor's son, he was himself trained in the law, but some

adventures in journalism led him finally to the literary life,

his first success as a writer of romance being scored with

"Rookwood" in 1834. "Tower of London" was the fourth work of

the novelist, and, according to Ainsworth himself, it was

written chiefly with the aim of interesting his

fellow-countrymen in the historical associations of the Tower.

From the popularity of the romance it is reasonable to suppose

that it fulfilled its author's hopes in this respect, though

it must be confessed its history leaves a good deal to be

desired. Here is not the place to discuss the rights and

wrongs of Ainsworth's bold liberties in respect to the

historical personages he introduces; but there is no doubt

that the romance is told with vigour and dramatic movement,

and it is an excellent example of the novelist's spirited

style of narrative, though, judged on purely literary merits,

like his other works, the "Tower of London" will not bear

comparison with the masterpieces of Sir Walter Scott in the

field of historical romance. Ainsworth died at Reigate on

January 3, 1882.

_I.--Prisoners in the Tower_

Edward VI. was dead, poisoned, it was rumoured, by the Duke of

Northumberland, Grandmaster of the Realm. For three days had an attempt

been made to keep his death secret, so that the proud and ambitious duke

might seize the persons of the Princess Mary and the Princess Elizabeth.

But the former, warned in time, had escaped the snare; and the Duke of

Northumberland, finding further dissimulation useless, boldly proclaimed

his daughter-in-law, Lady Jane Grey, queen.

On July 10, 1553, Queen Jane, the wisest and most beautiful woman in the

kingdom, though only sixteen years of age, was conducted in state to the

Tower, where it was the custom for the monarchs of England to spend the

first few days of their reign.

But the crowds who watched her departure from Durham House, in the

Strand, were silent and sullen. Her youthful beauty and grace might win

an involuntary cry of admiration, but the heart of the people was not

hers. They recognised that she was but the tool of her father-in-law,

whom, because of his overweening ambition, they hated.

All the pride and pomp of silken banners and cloth of gold could not

mask the gloomy presage of the young queen's reign. The very heavens

thundered; and owing to the press of boats that surrounded the

procession, many small craft were overturned and their occupants thrown

into the water. And if further signs of portending evil were wanted,

they could be discerned in the uneasy whisperings of those lords of the

Privy Council who were present, or in the sinister face of the Spaniard,

Simon Renard, ambassador to the Emperor Charles V.

"This farce will not last long," he said to De Noailles, the French

ambassador. "The Privy Council are the duke's secret enemies, and

through them I shall strike the scepter from Jane's grasp and place it

in the hand of Mary."

Elsewhere in the procession, Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury, uttered

in a low voice to Ridley, Bishop of London, his fears for the future;

while certain lords of the Privy Council, who had planned the

assassination of the Duke of Northumberland, and were aware that their

plot had been discovered, approached the portals of the Tower in fear

and trembling.

But there was one man at least who did not share the general depression

and uneasiness. Cuthbert Cholmondeley, esquire to Lord Guildford Dudley,

husband of Queen Jane, found much to interest him in the scene. The

reception of her Majesty by Og, Gog, and Magog had already driven away

the sense of portending evil from his mind when he caught sight of a

girl's face in the crowd. It was only for a moment that he had sight of

it; but it left such a deep impression on his mind that for the rest of

the day he burned with impatience to discover who the girl might be.

Much had to happen before he could satisfy his curiosity. Once in the

Tower, plots against Queen Jane and the Duke of Northumberland began to

thicken. At a meeting of the Privy Council the duke compelled the lords,

under threat of imprisonment, to sign a proclamation declaring Princess

Mary illegitimate. Renard lost no time in turning to his own advantage

the bad impression created by these tactics.

"Do you consent to Northumberland's assassination?" he whispered to

Pembroke.

"I do," replied the Earl of Pembroke. "But who will strike the blow?"

"I will find the man."

This sinister fragment of conversation fell upon the ears of Cuthbert.

He at once sent a warning missive to his master, telling him of the plot

against the duke's life. Then, this duty performed, he set out to try

and find the girl whose face had so impressed him. From the giant

warders he learnt that she was the adopted daughter of Dame Potentia

Trusbut, wife of Peter, the pantler of the Tower. A mystery surrounded

her birth. Her mother had been imprisoned in the Tower by Henry VIII.,

and in her dungeon had given birth to Cicely--such was the name of the

girl.

Magog, seeing Cuthbert's interest, good-naturedly carried him off with

him to the pantler's quarters. Here a gargantuan feast was in progress,

to which the three giants did full justice, devouring whole joints and

pasties and quaffing vast flagons of wine, to the great delight of the

pantler and his wife. But Cuthbert had no eyes except for Cicely. He was

not content until he was by her side and was able to hear her voice. The

attraction between them was mutual, and it was not long before they were

whispering the first words of love into one another's ears.

While all was merriment, Renard and Pembroke made their appearance

unobserved. They had intercepted Cuthbert's letter, and were anxious to

satisfy themselves as to the identity of the rash youth who had dared to

cross their path.

"Though we have intercepted his missive to Lord Dudley," whispered

Renard, "he may yet betray us. He must not return to the palace."

"He shall never return, my lords," said a tall, dark man, advancing

towards them, "if you will entrust his detention to me."

"Who are you?" demanded Renard, eyeing him suspiciously.

"Lawrence Nightgall, the chief gaoler."

"What is your motive for this offer?"

"Look there!" returned Nightgall. "I love that damsel. He has supplanted

me, but he shall not profit by his good fortune."

"You are the very man I want!" cried Renard, rubbing his hands

gleefully. "Lead me where we can speak more freely."

The three withdrew unobserved. Half an hour later Cuthbert dragged

himself unwillingly from Cicely's side and passed into the open air. As

he did so he received a blow on the back of his head which stretched him

unconscious on the ground.

When he came to his senses he found himself bound by a chain in a gloomy

dungeon, a ghastly, dreadful place, but a few feet in height. His first

instinct was to try to loosen his bonds, but after vainly lacerating his

hands he sank down exhausted.

Terrible recollections flashed upon his mind of the pitiless sufferings

he had heard that the miserable wretches immured in these dungeons

endured before death.

For a time these mental tortures were acute; but at last nature asserted

herself, and he sank exhausted into sleep. He was awakened by a cry, and

perceived the tall, skeleton figure of a woman standing by him. She

placed a thin and bony hand upon his shoulder. He shrank back as far as

his chain would permit, horror-stricken. The figure pursued him,

shrieking, "My child! My child! You have taken my child!"

Suddenly she stopped and stood erect. A distant footstep was heard.

"He comes! He comes!" she cried, and with a loud shriek dashed from the

dungeon and disappeared.

In another second Nightgall stood before him. The gaoler made no attempt

to disguise the motives which prompted him to imprison the young

esquire. No threats that Cuthbert could use had the least effect on him.

He quailed before the charge that Cuthbert made at random--that he had

murdered the child of the unfortunate wretch who had disappeared at his

coming, but on the question of his release he was obdurate. If Cuthbert

would agree to give up Cicely he should be released; otherwise he should

meet with a secret death at the hands of Mauger, the executioner.

At this juncture, Cicely, who had been directed by the dwarf, Xit,

appeared. To save the man she loved she boldly declared that she would

wed Nightgall, provided that he would conduct his prisoner outside the

walls of the Tower.

"Bring me back some token that you have done so, and I am yours," she

said.

Nightgall consented, and agreed to withdraw while Cuthbert and Cicely

arranged privately what the token should be.

Hurriedly Cuthbert gave her a ring to send to Lord Dudley, who, he knew,

would at once effect his release. Then, accompanied by Nightgall, Cicely

withdrew from the gloomy dungeon.

Unable to deliver the ring herself to Lord Dudley, Cicely entrusted that

task to Xit. But the vanity of the dwarf prevented the execution of the

plan. As he was exhibiting the ring to Og, Nightgall suddenly

approached, and snatched it from him, and, without taking any notice of

the little man's threats, made his way to Cicely. When he displayed the

ring as the token that her lover had been set free, Cicely, shrieking

"Lost! Lost!" fell senseless on the floor.

_II.--The Twelfth Day Queen_

While Renard's intrigues were maturing, and the Duke of Northumberland

had left the Tower on a campaign against the Princess Mary, Cuthbert

Cholmondeley was kept languishing in his terrible dungeon.

At long intervals Nightgall visited him, and once the wretched prisoner,

whom the gaoler called Alexia, came to him, entreating his help against

Nightgall.

At last Cuthbert decided upon a daring plan of escape. After several

days' imprisonment he feigned to be dead. Nightgall, seeing him

stretched on the ground, apparently lifeless, chuckled with delight,

and, releasing the chain that bound his leg, bent over him with the

intention of carrying his body into the burial vault near the moat. But

a suspicion crossed his mind, and he drew his dagger, determined to make

sure that his prisoner had passed away. As he did so, the young esquire

sprang to his feet, and wrested the poniard from his grasp. In another

second Nightgall was lying chained to the floor, where his prisoner had

been a moment before.

Despite the gaoler's threats, Cuthbert set out, determined to liberate

Alexia and made good his own escape. He wandered through the terrible

torture chambers, released an old man confined in a cell called Little

Ease, a cell so low and so contrived that the wretched inmate could not

stand, walk, sit, or lie at full length within, and then, unable to

discover the whereabouts of the ill-fated Alexia, returned to the

gaoler, and, possessing himself of his keys and cloak, started forth

once more. After wandering for a long time, chance at last brought him

to a secret door, which led into St. John's Chapel in the White Tower.

While these events were in progress Cicely, despairing of her lover's

safety, sought an audience of Queen Jane, and poured out her story.

Moved by compassion, the queen gave directions for a search to be made,

and, delighted by the grace and charm of Cicely, appointed her one of

her attendants. Lord Guildford Dudley, procuring the assistance of

Magog, burst open the door leading to the subterranean dungeons beneath

the Devilin Tower, and eventually discovered Nightgall, who made a full

confession of his crime as the price of his release.

Cholmondeley's arrival in St. John's Chapel was opportune. Renard, with

Pembroke by his side, had just demanded the resignation of the crown by

Queen Jane, and the queen, helpless but courageous, had ordered Lord

Pembroke to arrest the Spaniard. Pembroke had refused to move, and at

this juncture Cholmondeley stepped forward, and, advancing towards the

ambassador, said, "M. Simon Renard, you are the queen's prisoner."

The Spaniard drew his sword, and, with the assistance of the Earl of

Pembroke, kept Cuthbert at bay until they were both able to slip through

the secret door.

Next day, Queen Jane was forced by the Privy Council to resign her

crown, and that same night, accompanied by Cuthbert and Cicely, she

escaped by a secret passage from the Tower, and, taking a boat, made her

way to Sion House. Here, the following day, she and her husband were

arrested, and learnt the news that the Duke of Northumberland was in

captivity, and that Queen Mary had ascended the throne. Once more Lady

Jane was led back to the Tower, and as she entered by the Traitors' Gate

she saw Renard standing hard by, with a smile of bitter mockery in his

face.

"So," he said, "Epiphany is over. The Twelfth Day Queen has played her

part."

_III.--The Price of Pardon_

Simon Renard's influence was now for the time supreme. At his

instigation the Duke of Northumberland was tricked into a confession of

the Roman Catholic faith on the scaffold, and then executed. Ambitious

that Mary should marry Philip of Spain, he contrived by intrigue to kill

her affection for Courtenay, the young Earl of Devon, and succeeded so

successfully that Courtenay was placed under arrest, and the Princess

Elizabeth, with whom the earl had fallen in love, became the victim of

her sister's jealousy. Cuthbert, though not confined in a cell, was kept

prisoner in the Tower, and occupied quarters in the pantler's house.

Cicely had disappeared, and nothing had been heard of her since the

arrest of Lady Jane Grey at Sion House.

Consumed with anxiety for the safety of the girl he loved, the esquire

began to suspect that she had been kidnapped by Nightgall. He determined

to find her at all cost, and getting Xit to steal the gaoler's keys, he

once more made his way to the subterranean dungeons.

Cell after cell he searched, but nowhere could he find a trace of his

beloved Cicely. All that he discovered was the dead body of Alexia. He

made haste to return to his quarters, and had almost reached them when

Nightgall appeared, and at once placed him under arrest for stealing his

keys.

His enemy was now at his mercy, and Nightgall, after burying the body of

Alexia, sought out Cicely, whom be had kept for several weeks a close

prisoner in the Salt Tower. He told her that he was about to remove her

to another prison in the Tower leading to the Iron Gate.

"I will never go thither of my own accord," replied Cicely, shrinking

terrified from him. "Release me, villain; I will die sooner than become

your bride."

"We shall see that," growled the gaoler, seizing hold of her. "You shall

never be set free unless you consent to be mine."

He carried her, shrieking and struggling in his arms, out of the room,

and dragged her by main force down the secret staircase. She continued

her screams, until her head, striking against the stones, she was

stunned by the blow and became insensible. Nightgall raised her, and

carried her quickly to the dark cell he had already prepared. Here she

would have languished for months without seeing anybody save Nightgall,

except for a curious chain of circumstances.

Renard's plan of marrying Mary to Philip of Spain, to which end he had

had Courtenay and the Princess Elizabeth imprisoned in the Tower, was

bitterly opposed by De Noailles. The French ambassador determined to

prevent the Spaniard's plans, and, by means of Xit, sent a communication

to the princess just as she was leaving her prison for Ashbridge.

Further, the little mannikin managed to creep, by way of the chimney,

into the chamber where Courtenay was confined, and arrange a plan by

which the Earl was able to escape. His share in these events, however,

was discovered, and, much to his amazement, he was arrested and taken to

the torture chamber. Though none of the instruments were small enough to

inflict much pain upon him, he was so terrified that he answered every

question that Renard asked him, giving those answers that he thought the

Spaniard would approve. The examination over he was placed in a cell.

Here he was visited by Nightgall, from whose girdle he managed to cut,

unobserved, the bunch of keys.

Unlocking his own door, he hurried out into the labyrinth of passages

and cells, and in his wanderings in search of an exit lighted upon the

cell in which Cicely was confined. He was not able to effect her escape,

for as they were setting out Nightgall appeared, and put an end to their

hopes.

Cuthbert had meanwhile been released, together with Lady Jane and her

husband. For a time they lived together quietly in Sion House, but De

Noailles' plan to prevent the Spanish marriage at all costs dragged them

once more into the whirlpool.

Under the leadership of Sir Thomas Wyatt, an insurrection took place,

having for its nominal object the prevention of Mary's marriage with

Philip of Spain; but it was joined by all the forces opposed to the

crown. Courtenay shared in it because he hoped to wed Elizabeth, who

would be made Queen on the deposition of Mary. Lord Guildford Dudley

joined in it in the anticipation that his wife might once more mount the

throne.

At first Wyatt carried everything before him. Mary was actually besieged

in the Tower, which it was attempted to carry by force. Supported by

Cuthbert, Lord Guildford led the assault, shouting, "Long live Queen

Jane! Down with Renard and the See of Rome!" The attack had almost

succeeded, when Dudley was struck from behind by Renard and taken

prisoner.

Cuthbert only escaped by forcing himself through an aperture, and

dropping into the moat, from where he managed to swim ashore. He made

his way at once to Lady Jane, and related to her how the insurrection

had collapsed, and how her husband had been taken prisoner. For her own

safety Jane had no thought. She at once determined to seek out the

queen, and beseech her to spare her husband.

Accompanied by Cuthbert, she presented herself at the Tower, and,

obtaining an audience with Mary, flung herself at her feet.

"I am come to submit myself to your highness's mercy," she said, as soon

as she could find utterance.

"Mercy?" exclaimed Mary scornfully. "You shall receive justice, but no

mercy."

"I do not sue for myself," rejoined Jane, "but for my husband. I have

come to offer myself for him. If your highness has any pity for me,

extend it to him, and heap his faults on my head."

Queen Mary was deeply moved. Had not Gardiner intervened, she would

undoubtedly have granted the request; but Gardiner suggested that the

price of the pardon should be the public reconciliation of Lady Jane and

her husband with the Church of Rome.

"I cannot," said Jane. "I will die for him, but I cannot destroy my soul

alive."

_IV.--The Torture Chamber and the Block_

After a week's imprisonment, Cuthbert was closely questioned, and his

answers being deemed unsatisfactory, he was ordered to be examined under

torture. With fiendish delight Nightgall took him to the horrible

chamber. There, the first thing that he saw was the tortured, mangled

figure of Lord Dudley, covered from head to foot by a blood-coloured

cloth.

"You here?" cried the ghastly, distorted figure. "Where is Jane? Has she

fled? Has she escaped?"

"She has surrendered herself," replied Cholmondeley, "in the hope of

obtaining your pardon."

"False hope! Delusive expectation!" exclaimed Dudley, in tones of

anguish, as he was carried from the room. "She will share my fate. Oh

God! I am her destroyer!"

Cholmondeley, as soon as his master had been borne away, was seized by

the torturers and placed on the rack. He determined that not a sound

should escape him, and though his whole frame seemed rent asunder, he

bravely kept his resolve.

"Go on," cried Nightgall, as the torturers paused. "Turn the roller

again."

Even as he spoke Cholmondeley fainted, and, finding that no answers

could be extracted from him, he was taken back to his cell and flung

upon a heap of straw. As he lay there, Nightgall, with diabolical

cruelty, brought Cicely to his side, and bade her look on his nerveless

arms and crippled limbs, and mockingly offered to set him free if Cicely

would marry him of her own free will. When at Cuthbert's instigation she

refused, he forced her away, shrieking for help.

Cuthbert sank once more into insensibility. He came to his senses again

to find that men were chafing his limbs and bathing his temples, and

that Renard was in his cell. At the Spaniard's order he was given a cup

of wine, and the rest having withdrawn, Renard questioned him further.

While this examination was going on the cell door opened softly, and a

masked figure appeared. It was Nightgall, who, bribed by De Noailles,

had come to assassinate Renard. He flung himself on his intended victim,

and was about to dispatch him with his poniard, when Cuthbert, summoning

up all his strength, intervened.

Finding that he had two men to deal with instead of one, the gaoler

sprang to his feet, and rushed from the dungeon. Renard followed him,

furious with rage, and Cuthbert at once took advantage of the

opportunity to escape.

After some search he discovered the whereabouts of Cicely, and together

the lovers, happy once more at being united, if only for a short time,

succeeded in finding their way out of the dungeons. As soon as they

emerged into the open air they were arrested by the warders, and taken

to the guard-room in the White Tower, where Cicely received a warm

welcome from the three giants. There was no time to relate their

adventures before Renard appeared, walking before a litter upon which

was borne the mangled body of Nightgall, who, in his attempt to escape

the Spaniard's sword, had been forced to jump from an embrasure of the

White Tower.

The wretch was dying; but with his last breath he attempted to make some

amends for all the evil he had done in his life. Bidding Cicely come to

his side, he told her that she was the daughter of Alexia, whose real

name was Lady Mountjoy, and he gave her papers, proving her right to the

estates of her father, Sir Alberic Mountjoy, who had incurred the

vengeance of Henry VIII.

Renard, grateful to Cholmondeley for saving his life, secured his

pardon.

Cicely also returned to the side of Lady Jane Grey, and watched the

splendid fortitude and unswerving courage with which her unfortunate

mistress prepared for the scaffold. The day before her death her wish

that Cicely and Cuthbert should be united was granted, and they were

married in her presence by Master John Bradford, Prebendary of St.

Paul's.

At last Monday, the twelfth of February, 1544, dawned, and Lady Jane

Grey was led out to the scaffold. On the way she passed the headless

corpse of Lord Guildford, being borne to the grave. Cicely accompanied

the beautiful girl to the last. It was her hands that helped her to

remove her attire and that tied the handkerchief over those eyes which

were never to look on the world again.

Blindfolded, Jane groped for the block, crying, "What shall I do? Where

is it?"

She was guided to the place, and, laying her head on the block, cried,

"Lord--into Thy hands I commend my spirit!"

The axe then fell, and one of the fairest and wisest heads that ever sat

on human shoulders fell also.

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