[Illustration: 1-30-henry8.jpg HENRY VIII.]
HENRY VIII.
{1515.} The numerous enemies whom Wolsey’s sudden elevation, his
aspiring character, and his haughty deportment had raised him, served
only to rivet him faster in Henry’s confidence; who valued himself
on supporting the choice which he had made, and who was incapable of
yielding either to the murmurs of the people or to the discontents
of the great. That artful prelate, likewise, well acquainted with the
king’s imperious temper, concealed from him the absolute ascendant which
he had acquired; and while he secretly directed all public councils,
he ever pretended a blind submission to the will and authority of
his master. By entering into the king’s pleasures, he preserved his
affection; by conducting his business, he gratified his indolence; and
by his unlimited complaisance in both capacities, he prevented all
that jealousy to which his exorbitant acquisitions and his splendid
ostentatious train of life should naturally have given birth. The
archbishopric of York falling vacant by the death of Bambridge, Wolsey
was promoted to that see, and resigned the bishopric of Lincoln. Besides
enjoying the administration of Tournay, he got possession, on easy
leases, of the revenues of Bath, Worcester, and Hereford, bishoprics
filled by Italians, who were allowed to reside abroad, and who were glad
to compound for this indulgence, by yielding a considerable share of
their income. He held “in commendam” the abbey of St. Albans, and many
other church preferments. He was even allowed to unite with the see of
York, first that of Durham, next that of Winchester; and there seemed to
be no end of his acquisitions. His further advancement in ecclesiastical
dignity served him as a pretence for engrossing still more revenues:
the pope, observing his great influence over the king, was desirous of
engaging him in his interests, and created him a cardinal. No churchman,
under color of exacting respect to religion, ever carried to a greater
height the state and dignity of that character. His train consisted of
eight hundred servants, of whom many were knights and gentlemen; some
even of the nobility put their children into his family as a place of
education; and in order to gain them favor with their patron, allowed
them to bear offices as his servants. Whoever was distinguished by any
art or science paid court to the cardinal; and none paid court in vain.
Literature, which was then in its infancy, found in him a generous
patron; and both by his public institutions and private bounty, he gave
encouragement to every branch of erudition.[*] Not content with this
munificence, which gained him the approbation of the wise, he strove
to dazzle the eyes of the populace by the splendor of his equipage and
furniture, the costly embroidery of his liveries, the lustre of his
apparel. He was the first clergyman in England that wore silk and gold,
not only on his habit, but also on his saddles and the trappings of his
horses.[**] He caused his cardinal’s hat to be borne aloft by a person
of rank; and when he came to the king’s chapel, would permit it to be
laid on no place but the altar. A priest, the tallest and most comely
he could find, carried before him a pillar of silver, on whose top was
placed a cross: but not satisfied with this parade, to which he thought
himself entitled as cardinal, he provided another priest of equal
stature and beauty, who marched along, bearing the cross of York, even
in the diocese of Canterbury; contrary to the ancient rule and the
agreement between the prelates of these rival sees.[***] The people made
merry with the cardinal’s ostentation; and said, they were now sensible
that one crucifix alone was not sufficient for the expiation of his sins
and offences.
* Erasm. Epist. lib. ii. epist. i.; lib. xvi. epist. 3.
** Polyd. Virg. lib. xxvii. Stowe, p, 501. Hollingshed, p.
847.
*** Polyd. Virg. lib. xxvii.
Warham, chancellor and archbishop of Canterbury, a man of a moderate
temper, averse to all disputes, chose rather to retire from public
employment, than maintain an unequal contest with the haughty cardinal.
He resigned his office of chancellor; and the great seal was immediately
delivered to Wolsey. If this new accumulation of dignity increased his
enemies, it also served to exalt his personal character, and prove the
extent of his capacity. A strict administration of justice took
place during his enjoyment of this high office and no chancellor ever
discovered greater impartiality in his decisions, deeper penetration of
judgment, or more enlarged knowledge of law and equity.[*]
The duke of Norfolk, finding the king’s money almost entirely exhausted
by projects and pleasures, while his inclination for expense still
continued, was glad to resign his office of treasurer and retire from
court. His rival, Fox, bishop of Winchester reaped no advantage from his
absence; but partly overcome by years and infirmities, partly disgusted
at the ascendant acquired by Wolsey, withdrew himself wholly to the care
of his diocese. The duke of Suffolk had also taken offence, that the
king, by the cardinal’s persuasion, had refused to pay a debt which
he had contracted during his residence in France; and he thenceforth
affected to live in privacy. These incidents left Wolsey to enjoy
without a rival the whole power and favor of the king; and they put
into his hands every kind of authority. In vain did Fox, before his
retirement, warn the king “not to suffer the servant to be greater than
his master.” Henry replied, “that he well knew how to retain all his
subjects in obedience;” but he continued still an unlimited deference in
every thing to the directions and counsels of the cardinal.
The public tranquillity was so well established in England, the
obedience of the people so entire, the general administration of
justice, by the cardinal’s means,[**] so exact, that no domestic
occurrence happened considerable enough to disturb the repose of the
king and his minister: they might even have dispensed with giving any
strict attention to foreign affairs, were it possible for men to enjoy
any situation in absolute tranquillity, or abstain from projects and
enterprises however fruitless and unnecessary.
The will of the late king of Scotland, who left his widow regent of the
kingdom, and the vote of the convention of states, which confirmed that
destination, had expressly limited her authority to the condition of her
remaining unmarried;[***] but, notwithstanding this limitation, a few
months after her husband’s death, she espoused the earl of Angus, of the
name of Douglas, a young nobleman of great family and promising hopes.
Some of the nobility now proposed the electing of Angus to the regency,
and recommended this choice as the most likely means of preserving peace
with England; but the jealousy of the great families, and the fear of
exalting the Douglases, begat opposition to this measure.
* Sir Thomas More. Stowe, p. 504.
** Erasm. lib. ii. epist. i. Cavendish. Hall.
*** Buchanar, lib. xiv. Drummond. Herbert.
Lord Hume in particular, the most powerful chieftain in the kingdom,
insisted on recalling the duke of Albany, son to a brother of James III.
who had been banished into France, and who, having there married, had
left posterity that were the next heirs to the crown, and the nearest
relations to their young sovereign. Albany, though first prince of the
blood, had never been in Scotland, was totally unacquainted with the
manners of the people, ignorant of their situation, unpractised in their
language; yet such was the favor attending the French alliance, and so
great the authority of Hume, that this prince was invited to accept the
reins of government. Francis, careful not to give offence to the king
of England, detained Albany some time in France; but at length, sensible
how important it was to keep Scotland in his interests, he permitted
him to go over and take possession of the regency: he even renewed
the ancient league with that kingdom, though it implied such a close
connection as might be thought somewhat to intrench on his alliance with
England.
When the regent arrived in Scotland, he made inquiries concerning the
state of the country, and character of the people; and he discovered a
scene with which he was hitherto but little acquainted. That turbulent
kingdom, he found, was rather to be considered as a Confederacy, and
that not a close one, of petty princes, than a regular system of civil
polity; and even the king, much more a regent, possessed an authority
very uncertain and precarious. Arms, more than laws, prevailed; and
courage, preferably to equity or justice, was the virtue most valued
and respected. The nobility, in whom the whole power resided, were so
connected by hereditary alliances, or so divided by inveterate enmities,
that it was impossible, without employing an armed force, either to
punish the most flagrant guilt, or give security to the most entire
innocence. Rapine and violence, when exercised on a hostile tribe,
instead of making a person odious among his own clan, rather recommended
him to their esteem and approbation; and by rendering him useful to the
chieftain, entitled him to a preference above his fellows. And though
the necessity of mutual support served as a close cement of amity among
those of the same kindred, the spirit of revenge against enemies, and
the desire of prosecuting the deadly feuds, (so they were called,) still
appeared to be passions the most predominant among that uncultivated
people.
The persons to whom Albany, on his arrival, first Applied for
information with regard to the state of the country, happened to be
inveterate enemies of Hume;[*] and they represented that powerful
nobleman as the chief source of public disorders, and the great obstacle
to the execution of the law; and the administration of justice. Before
the authority of the magistrate could be established, it was necessary,
they said, to make an example of this great offender; and, by the terror
of his punishment, teach all lesser criminals to pay respect to the
power of their sovereign. Albany, moved by these reasons, was induced
to forget Hume’s past services, to which he had in a great measure
been indebted for the regency; and he no longer bore towards him that
favorable countenance with which he was wont to receive him. Hume
perceived the alteration, and was incited, both by regard to his own
safety and from motives of revenge, to take measures in opposition
to the regent. He applied himself to Angus and the queen dowager, and
represented to them the danger to which the infant prince was exposed
from the ambition of Albany, next heir to the crown, to whom the states
had imprudently intrusted the whole authority of government. By his
persuasion Margaret formed the design of carrying off the young king,
and putting him under the protection of her brother; and when that
conspiracy was detected, she herself, attended by Hume and Angus,
withdrew into England, where she was soon after delivered of a daughter.
* Buchanan, lib. xiv. Drummond.
Henry, in order to check the authority of Albany and the French party,
gave encouragement to these malecontents, and assured them of his
support. Matters being afterwards in appearance accommodated between
Hume and the regent, that nobleman returned into his own country; but
mutual suspicions and jealousies still prevailed. He was committed to
custody, under the care of the earl of Arran, his brother-in-law; and
was for some time detained prisoner in his castle. But having persuaded
Arran to enter into the conspiracy with him, he was allowed to make his
escape; and he openly levied war upon the regent. A new accommodation
ensued, not more sincere than the foregoing; and Hume was so imprudent
as to intrust himself, together with his brother, into the hands of that
prince. They were immediately seized, committed to custody, brought to
trial, condemned and executed. No legal crime was proved against these
brothers: it was only alleged, that at the battle of Flouder they had
not done their duty in supporting the king; and as this backwardness
could not, from the course of their past life, be ascribed to cowardice,
it was commonly imputed to a more criminal motive. The evidence,
however, of guilt produced against them was far from being valid or
convincing; and the people, who hated them while living, were much
dissatisfied with their execution.
Such violent remedies often produce for some time a deceitful
tranquillity; but as they destroy mutual confidence, and beget the most
inveterate animosities, their consequences are commonly fatal, both to
the public and to those who have recourse to them. The regent, however,
took advantage of the present calm which prevailed; and being invited
over by the French king, who was at that time willing to gratify Henry
he went into France, and was engaged to remain there for some years.
During the absence of the regent, such confusions prevailed in Scotland,
and such mutual enmity, rapine, and violence among the great families,
that that kingdom was for a long time utterly disabled both from
offending its enemies and assisting its friends. We have carried on the
Scottish history some years beyond the present period; that, as that
country had little connection with the general system of Europe, we
might be the less interrupted in the narration of those more memorable
events which were transacted in the other kingdoms.
It was foreseen, that a young, active prince, like Francis, and of so
martial a disposition, would soon employ the great preparations which
his predecessor before his death had made for the conquest of Milan. He
had been observed even to weep at the recital of the military exploits
of Gaston de Foix; and these tears of emulation were held to be sure
presages of his future valor. He renewed the treaty which Lewis had made
with Henry; and having left every thing secure behind him, he marched
his armies towards the south of France; pretending that his sole purpose
was to defend his kingdom against the incursions of the Swiss. This
formidable people still retained their animosity against France; and
having taken Maximilian, duke of Milan, under their protection, and in
reality reduced him to absolute dependence,--they were determined,
from views both of honor and of interest, to defend him against the
invader.[*] They fortified themselves in all those valleys of the Alps
through which they thought the French must necessarily pass; and when
Francis, with great secrecy, industry, and perseverance, made his
entrance into Piedmont by another passage, they were not dismayed, but
descended into the plain, though unprovided with cavalry, and opposed
themselves to the progress of the French arms. At Marignan, near Milan,
they fought with Francis one of the most furious and best contested
battles that is to be met with in the history of these later ages; and
it required all the heroic valor of this prince to inspire his troops
with courage sufficient to resist the desperate assault of those
mountaineers. After a bloody action in the evening, night and darkness
parted the combatants; but next morning the Swiss renewed the attack
with unabated ardor; and it was not till they had lost all their bravest
troops that they could be prevailed on to retire. The field was strewed
with twenty thousand slain on both sides; and the mareschal Trivulzio,
who had been present at eighteen pitched battles, declared that every
engagement which he had yet seen was only the play of children; the
action of Marignan was a combat of heroes.[**] After this great victory,
the conquest of the Milanese was easy and open to Francis.
The success and glory of the French monarch began to excite jealousy in
Henry; and his rapid progress, though in so distant a country, was
not regarded without apprehensions by the English ministry. Italy was,
during that age, the seat of religion, of literature, and of commerce;
and as it possessed alone that lustre which has since been shared out
among other nations, it attracted the attention of all Europe, and every
acquisition which was made there appeared more important than its weight
in the balance of power was, strictly speaking, entitled to. Henry also
thought that he had reason to complain of Francis for sending the duke
of Albany into Scotland, and undermining the power and credit of his
sister the queen dowager.[***] The repairing of the fortifications of
Terouenne was likewise regarded as a breach of treaty. But, above all,
what tended to alienate the court of England, was the disgust which
Wolsey had entertained against the French monarch.
* Mémoires du Bellai, lib. i. Guicciard. lib. xii.
** Histoire de la Ligue de Cambray.
*** Père Daniel, vol. iii. p. 31.
Henry, on the conquest of Tournay had refused to admit Lewis Gaillart,
the bishop elect, to the possession of the temporalities, because that
prelate declined taking the oath of allegiance to his new sovereign; and
Wolsey was appointed as above related, administrator of the bishopric.
As the cardinal wished to obtain the free and undisturbed enjoyment
of this revenue, he applied to Francis, and desired him to bestow
on Gaillart some see of equal value in France, and to obtain his
resignation of Tournay. Francis, who still hoped to recover possession
of that city, and who feared that the full establishment of Wolsey
in the bishopric would prove an obstacle to his purpose, had hitherto
neglected to gratify the haughty prelate; and the bishop of Tournay, by
applying to the court of Rome, had obtained a bull for his settlement in
the see. Wolsey, who expected to be indulged in every request, and who
exacted respect from the greatest princes, resented the slight put upon
him by Francis and he pushed his master to seek an occasion of quarrel
with that monarch.[*]
Maximilian, the emperor, was ready to embrace every overture for a new
enterprise; especially if attended with an offer of money, of which
he was very greedy, very prodigal, and very indigent. Richard Pace,
formerly secretary to Cardinal Bambridge, and now secretary of state,
was despatched to the court of Vienna, and had a commission to propose
some considerable payments to Maximilian:[**] he thence made a journey
into Switzerland; and by like motives engaged some of the cantons
to furnish troops to the emperor. That prince invaded Italy with a
considerable army; but being repulsed from before Milan, he retreated
with his army into Germany, made peace with France and Venice, ceded
Verona to that republic for a sum of money, and thus excluded himself
in some measure from all future access into Italy. And Henry found, that
after expending five or six hundred thousand ducats, in order to gratify
his own and the cardinal’s humor, he had only weakened his alliance with
Francis, without diminishing the power of that prince.
* Polyd. Virg. lib. xxvii.
** Petrus de Angleria, epist. 568.
There were many reasons which engaged the king not to proceed further at
present in his enmity against France: he could hope for assistance from
no power in Europe. Ferdinand, his father-in-law, who had often deceived
him, was declining through age and infirmities; and a speedy period
was looked for to the long and prosperous reign of that great monarch.
Charles, prince of Spain, sovereign of the Low Countries, desired
nothing but peace with Francis, who had it so much in his power, if
provoked, to obstruct his peaceable accession to that rich inheritance
which was awaiting him. The pope was overawed by the power of France,
and Venice was engaged in a close alliance with that monarchy.[*] Henry,
therefore, was constrained to remain in tranquillity during some time;
and seemed to give himself no concern with regard to the affairs of
the continent. In vain did Maximilian endeavor to allure him into some
expense, by offering to make a resignation of the imperial crown in
his favor. The artifice was too gross to succeed, even with a prince
so little politic as Henry; and Pace, his envoy, who was perfectly well
acquainted with the emperor’s motives and character, gave him warning
that the sole view of that prince, in making him so liberal an offer,
was to draw money from him.
* Guicciard. lib. xii.
{1516.} While a universal peace prevailed in Europe, that event happened
which had so long been looked for, and from which such important
consequences were expected--the death of Ferdinand the Catholic, and the
succession of his grandson Charles to his extensive dominions. The more
Charles advanced in power and authority, the more was Francis sensible
of the necessity he himself lay under of gaining the confidence and
friendship of Henry; and he took at last the only method by which he
could obtain success, the paying of court, by presents and flattery, to
the haughty cardinal.
{1518.} Bonnivet, admiral of France, was despatched to London, and he
was directed to employ all his insinuation and address, (qualities in
which he excelled,) to procure himself a place in Wolsey’s good
graces. After the ambassador had succeeded in his purpose, he took an
opportunity of expressing his master’s regret that, by mistakes and
misapprehensions, he had been so unfortunate as to lose a friendship
which he so much valued as that of his eminence. Wolsey was not deaf to
these honorable advances from so great a monarch and he was thenceforth
observed to express himself, on all occasions, in favor of the French
alliance. The more to engage him in his interests, Francis entered into
such confidence with him, that he asked his advice even in his most
secret affairs; and had recourse to him in all difficult emergencies, as
to an oracle of wisdom and profound policy. The cardinal made no
secret to the king of this private correspondence; and Henry was so
prepossessed in favor of the great capacity of his minister, that he
said he verily believed he would govern Francis as well as himself.[*]
When matters seemed sufficiently prepared, Bonnivet opened to the
cardinal his master’s desire of recovering Tournay; and Wolsey
immediately, without hesitation, engaged to effect his purpose. He took
an opportunity of representing to the king and council, that Tournay
lay so remote from Calais, that it would be very difficult, if not
impossible, in case of war, to keep the communication open between these
two places; that as it was situated on the frontiers both of France and
the Netherlands, it was exposed to attacks from both these countries,
and must necessarily, either by force or famine, fall into the hands
of the first assailant; that even in time of peace it could not be
preserved without a large garrison, to restrain the numerous and
mutinous inhabitants, ever discontented with the English government; and
that the possession of Tournay, as it was thus precarious and expensive,
so was it entirely useless, and afforded little or no means of annoying,
on occasion, the dominions either of Charles or of Francis.
These reasons were of themselves convincing, and were sure of meeting
with no opposition when they came from the mouth of the cardinal. A
treaty therefore was catered into for the ceding of Tournay; and in
order to give to that measure a more graceful appearance, it was agreed,
that the dauphin and the princess Mary, both of them infants, should be
betrothed, and that this city should be considered as the dowry of the
princess. Such kinds of agreement were then common among sovereigns;
though it was very rare that the interests and views of the parties
continued so steady as to render the intended marriages effectual.
But as Henry had been at considerable expense in building a citadel at
Tournay, Francis agreed to pay him six hundred thousand crowns at twelve
annual payments, and to put into his hands eight hostages, all of them
men of quality, for the performance of the article.[**] And lest the
cardinal should think himself neglected in these stipulations,
Francis promised him a yearly pension of twelve thousand livres, as an
equivalent for his administration of the bishopric of Tournay.
* Polyd. Virg. lib. xxvii.
** Mémoires du Bellal, lib. i.
The French monarch, having succeeded so well in this negotiation, began
to enlarge his views, and to hope for more considerable advantages by
practising on the vanity and self-conceit of the favorite. He redoubled
his flatteries to the cardinal, consulted him more frequently in every
doubt or difficulty, called him in each letter “father,” “tutor,”
“governor,” and professed the most unbounded deference to his advice and
opinion. All these caresses were preparatives to a negotiation for the
delivery of Calais, in consideration of a sum of money to be paid
for it; and if we may credit Polydore Virgil, who bears a particular
ill-will to Wolsey, on account of his being dispossessed of his
employment and thrown into prison by that minister, so extraordinary a
proposal met with a favorable reception from the cardinal. He ventured
not, however, to lay the matter before the council: he was content to
sound privately the opinion of the other ministers, by dropping hints
in conversation, as if he thought Calais a useless burden to the
kingdom:[*] but when he found that all men were strongly riveted in a
contrary persuasion, he thought it dangerous to proceed any further in
his purpose; and as he fell soon after into new connections with the
king of Spain, the great friendship between Francis and him began
gradually to decline.
* Polyd. Virg. lib. xxvii.
The pride of Wolsey was now further increased by a great accession
of power and dignity. Cardinal Campeggio had been sent as legate into
England, in order to procure a lithe from the clergy, for enabling the
pope to oppose the progress of the Turks; a danger which was become
real, and was formidable to all Christendom, but on which the politics
of the court of Rome had built so many interested projects that it had
lost all influence on the minds of men. The clergy refused to comply
with Leo’s demands: Campeggio was recalled; and the king desired of the
pope that Wolsey, who had been joined in this commission, might alone
be invested with the legatine power, together with the right of visiting
all the clergy and monasteries, and even with suspending all the laws
of the church during a twelvemonth. Wolsey, having obtained this new
dignity, made a new display of that state and parade to which he was so
much addicted. On solemn feast-days, he was not content without saying
mass after the manner of the pope himself: not only he had bishops and
abbots to serve him; he even engaged the first nobility to give him
water and the towel. He affected a rank superior to what had ever been
claimed by any churchman in England. Warham, the primate, having written
him a letter in which he subscribed himself “your loving brother,”
Wolsey complained of his presumption in thus challenging an equality
with him. When Warham was told what offence he had given, he made light
of the matter. “Know ye not,” said he, “that this man is drunk with too
much prosperity?”
But Wolsey carried the matter much further than vain pomp and
ostentation. He erected an office which he called the legatine court;
and as he was now, by means of the pope’s commission and the king’s
favor, invested with all power, both ecclesiastical and civil, no man
knew what bounds were to be set to the authority of his new tribunal. He
conferred on it a kind of inquisitorial and censorial powers even over
the laity, and directed it to inquire into all matters of conscience;
into all conduct which had given scandal; into all actions which, though
they escaped the law, might appear contrary to good morals. Offence was
taken at this commission, which was really unbounded; and the people
were the more disgusted, when they saw a man who indulged himself in
pomp and pleasure, so severe in repressing the least appearance of
licentiousness in others. But to render his court more obnoxious, Wolsey
made one John Allen judge in it, a person of scandalous life,[*] whom he
himself, as chancellor, had, it is said, condemned for perjury: and as
it is pretended, that this man either extorted fines from every one whom
he was pleased to find guilty, or took bribes to drop prosecutions, men
concluded, and with some appearance of reason, that he shared with the
cardinal those wages of iniquity.
* Strype’s Memorials, vol. i. p. 125.
The clergy, and in particular the monks, were exposed to this tyranny;
and as the libertinism of their lives often gave a just handle against
them, they were obliged to purchase an indemnity by paying large sums
of money to the legate or his judge. Not content with this authority,
Wolsey pretended, by virtue of his commission, to assume the
jurisdiction of all the bishops’ courts, particularly that of judging of
wills and testaments; and his decisions in those important points were
deemed not a little arbitrary. As if he himself were pope, and as if
the pope could absolutely dispose of every ecclesiastical preferment, he
presented to whatever priories or benefices he pleased, without regard
to the right of election in the monks, or of patronage in the nobility
and gentry.[*]
* Polyd. Virg. lib. xxvii.
No one durst carry to the king any complaint against these usurpations
of Wolsey, till Warham ventured to inform him of the discontents of his
people. Henry professed his ignorance of the whole matter. “A man,” said
he, “is not so blind any where as in his own house: but do you, father,”
added he to the primate, “go to Wolsey, and tell him, if any thing be
amiss, that he amend it.” A reproof of this kind was not likely to be
effectual: it only served to augment Wolsey’s enmity to Warham: but one
London having prosecuted Allen, the legate’s judge, in a court of law,
and having convicted him of malversation and iniquity, the clamor at
last reached the king’s ears; and he expressed such displeasure to
the cardinal, as made him ever after more cautious in exerting his
authority.
{1519.} While Henry, indulging himself in pleasure and amusement,
intrusted the government of his kingdom to this imperious minister, an
incident happened abroad which excited his attention. Maximilian, the
emperor, died; a man who, of himself, was indeed of little consequence;
but as his death left vacant the first station among Christian princes,
it set the passions of men in agitation, and proved a kind of era in
the general system of Europe. The kings of France and Spain immediately
declared themselves candidates for the imperial crown, and employed
every expedient of money or intrigue, which promised them success in
so great a point of ambition. Henry also was encouraged to advance his
pretensions; but his minister Pace, who was despatched to the electors,
found that he began to solicit too late, and that the votes of all these
princes were already preëngaged either on one side or the other.
Francis and Charlea made profession from the beginning of carrying on
this rivalship with emulation, but without enmity.
This whole narrative has been copied by all the historians from
the author here cited: there are many circumstances, however, very
suspicious, both because of the obvious partiality of the historian, and
because the parliament, when they afterwards examined Wolsey’s conduct,
could find no proof of any material offence he had ever committed, and
Francis in particular declared, that his brother Charles and he were,
fairly and openly, suitors to the same mistress; the more fortunate,
added he, will carry her; the other must rest contented.[*]
* Belcario, lib. xvi. Guicciard. lib. xiii.
But all men apprehended that this extreme moderation, however
reasonable, would not be of long duration; and that incidents would
certainly occur to sharpen the minds of the candidates against each
other. It was Charles who at length prevailed, to the great disgust of
the French monarch, who still continued to the last in the belief that
the majority of the electoral college was engaged in his favor. And as
he was some years superior in age to his rival, and, after his victory
at Marignan and conquest of the Milanese, much superior in renown, he
could not suppress his indignation at being thus, in the face of the
world, after long and anxious expectation, disappointed in so important
a pretension. From this competition, as much as from opposition of
interests, arose that emulation between those two great monarchs, which,
while it kept their whole age in movement, sets them in so remarkable
a contrast to each other: both of them princes endowed with talents and
abilities; brave, aspiring, active warlike; beloved by their servants
and subjects, dreaded by their enemies, and respected by all the world:
Francis, open, frank, liberal, munificent, carrying these virtues to an
excess which prejudiced his affairs: Charles, political, close, artful,
frugal; better qualified to obtain success in wars and in negotiations,
especially the latter. The one the more amiable man; the other the
greater monarch. The king, from his oversights and indiscretions,
naturally exposed to misfortunes; but qualified, by his spirit and
magnanimity, to extricate himself from them with honor: the emperor, by
his designing, interested character, fitted, in his greatest successes,
to excite jealousy and opposition even among his allies, and to rouse up
a multitude of enemies in the place of one whom he had subdued. And as
the personal qualities of these princes thus counterpoised each other,
so did the advantages and disadvantages of their dominions. Fortune
alone, without the concurrence of prudence or valor, never reared up of
a sudden so great a power as that which centred in the emperor Charles.
He reaped the succession of Castile, of Arragon, of Austria, of the
Netherlands: he inherited the conquest of Naples, of Grenada: election
entitled him to the empire: even the bounds of the globe seemed to
be enlarged a little before his time, that he might possess the whole
treasure, as yet entire and unrifled, of the new world. But though the
concurrence of all these advantages formed an empire greater and more
extensive than any known in Europe since that of the Romans, the kingdom
of France alone, being close, compact, united, rich, populous, and being
interposed between the provinces of the emperor’s dominions, was able
to make a vigorous opposition to his progress, and maintain the contest
against him.
Henry possessed the felicity of being able, both by the native force
of his kingdom and its situation, to hold the balance between those two
powers; and had he known to improve by policy and prudence this singular
and inestimable advantage, he was really, by means of it, a greater
potentate than either of those mighty monarchs, who seemed to strive for
the dominion of Europe. But this prince was in his character heedless,
inconsiderate, capricious, impolitic; guided by his passions or his
favorite; vain, imperious, haughty; sometimes actuated by friendship for
foreign powers, oftener by resentment, seldom by his true interest.
And thus, though he exulted in that superiority which his situation in
Europe gave him, he never employed it to his own essential and durable
advantage, or to that of his kingdom.
{1520.} Francis was well acquainted with Henry’s character, and
endeavored to accommodate his conduct to it. He solicited an interview
near Calais; in expectation of being able by familiar conversation to
gain upon his friendship and confidence. Wolsey earnestly seconded this
proposal; and hoped, in the presence of both courts, to make parade of
his riches, his splendor, and his influence over both monarchs.[*]
* Polyd. Virg. lib. xxvii.
And as Henry himself loved show and magnificence, and had entertained
a curiosity of being personally acquainted with the French king,
he cheerfully adjusted all the preliminaries of this interview. The
nobility of both nations vied with each other in pomp and expense: many
of them involved themselves in great debts, and were not able, by the
penury of their whole lives, to repair the vain splendor of a few days.
The duke of Buckingham, who, though very rich, was somewhat addicted to
frugality, finding his preparations for this festival amount to immense
sums, threw out some expressions of displeasure against the cardinal,
whom he believed the author of that measure;[*] an imprudence which was
not forgotten by this minister.
* Polyd. Vii·g. lib. xxvii. Herbert. Holingshed, p. 855.
While Henry was preparing to depart for Calais, he heard that the
emperor was arrived at Dover; and he immediately hastened thither with
the queen, in order to give a suitable reception to his royal guest.
That great prince, politic though young, being informed of the
intended interview between Francis and Henry, was apprehensive of the
consequences; and was resolved to take the opportunity, in his passage
from Spain to the Low Countries, to make the king still a higher
compliment, by paying him a visit in his own dominions. Besides the
marks of regard and attachment which he gave to Henry, he strove by
every testimony of friendship, by flattery, protestations, promises, and
presents, to gain on the vanity, the avarice, and the ambition of the
cardinal. He here instilled into this aspiring prelate the hope of
attaining the papacy; and as that was the sole point of elevation beyond
his present greatness, it was sure to attract his wishes with the same
ardor as if Fortune had never yet favored him with any of her presents.
In confidence of reaching this dignity by the emperor’s assistance, he
secretly devoted himself to that monarch’s interests; and Charles was
perhaps the more liberal of his promises, because Leo was a very young
man; and it was not likely that for many years he should be called upon
to fulfil his engagements. Henry easily observed this courtship paid
to his minister; but instead of taking umbrage at it, he only made it
a subject of vanity; and believed that, as his favor was Wolsey’s sole
support, the obeisance of such mighty monarchs to his servant was, in
reality, a more conspicuous homage to his own grandeur.
The day of Charles’s departure, Henry went over to Calais with the queen
and his whole court; and thence proceeded to Guisnes, a small town near
the frontiers. Francis, attended in like manner, came to Ardres, a few
miles distant; and the two monarchs met, for the first time, in the
fields, at a place situated between these two towns, but still within
the English pale; for Francis agreed to pay this compliment to Henry, in
consideration of that prince’s passing the sea that he might be
present at the interview. Wolsey, to whom both kings had intrusted the
regulation of the ceremonial, contrived this circumstance, in order to
do honor to his master. The nobility both of France and England here
displayed their magnificence with such emulation and profuse expense, as
procured to the place of interview the name of “the field of the cloth
of gold.”
The two monarchs, after saluting each other in the most cordial manner,
retired into a tent which had been erected on purpose, and they held a
secret conference together. Henry here proposed to make some amendments
on the articles of their former alliance; and he began to read the
treaty, “I Henry, king:” these were the first words; and he stopped
a moment. He subjoined only the words “of England,” without adding
“France,” the usual style of the English monarchs.[*] Francis remarked
this delicacy, and expressed by a smile his approbation of it.
He took an opportunity soon after of paying a compliment to Henry of a
more flattering nature. That generous prince, full of honor himself,
and incapable of distrusting others, was shocked at all the precautions
which were observed whenever he had an interview with the English
monarch: the number of their guards and attendants was carefully
reckoned on both sides: every step was scrupulously measured and
adjusted: and if the two kings intended to pay a visit to the queens,
they departed from their respective quarters at the same instant, which
was marked by the firing of a culverin; they passed each other in the
middle point between the places; and the moment that Henry entered
Ardres, Francis put himself into the hands of the English at Guisnes.
In order to break off this tedious ceremonial, which contained so many
dishonorable implications, Francis one day took with him two gentlemen
and a page, and rode directly into Guisnes. The guards were surprised at
the presence of the monarch, who called aloud to them, “You are all my
prisoners: carry me to your master.” Henry was equally astonished at the
appearance of Francis; and taking him in his arms, “My brother,” said
he, “you have here played me the most agreeable trick in the world,
and have showed me the full confidence I may place in you: I surrender
myself your prisoner from this moment.” He took from his neck a collar
of pearls, worth fifteen thousand angels;[**] and putting it about
Francis’s, begged him to wear it for the sake of his prisoner.
* Mémoires de Fleuranges.
** An angel was then estimated at seven shillings,* or near
twelve of our present money.
Francis agreed, but on condition that Henry should wear a bracelet
of which he made him a present, and which was double in value to
the collar.[*] The king went next day to Ardres without guards or
attendants; and confidence being now fully established between the
monarchs, they employed the rest of the time entirely in tournaments and
festivals.
A defiance had been sent by the two kings to each other’s court, and
through all the chief cities in Europe, importing, that Henry and
Francis, with fourteen aids, would be ready, in the plains of Picardy,
to answer all comers that were gentlemen, at tilt, tournament, and
barriers. The monarchs, in order to fulfil this challenge, advanced
into the field on horseback, Francis surrounded with Henry’s guards, and
Henry with those of Francis. They were gorgeously apparelled; and were
both of them the most comely personages of their age, as well as the
most expert in every military exercise. They carried away the prize at
all trials in those rough and dangerous pastimes; and several horses and
riders were overthrown by their vigor and dexterity. The ladies were
the judges in these feats of chivalry, and put an end to the rencounter
whenever they judged it expedient. Henry erected a spacious house of
wood and canvas, which had been framed in London; and he there feasted
the French monarch. He had placed a motto on this fabric, under the
figure of an English archer embroidered on it, “Cui adhæreo præest,” He
prevails whom I favor;[**] expressing his own situation, as holding in
his hands the balance of power among the potentates of Europe. In these
entertainments, more than in any serious business, did the two kings
pass their time, till their departure.
* Mémoires de Fleuranges.
** Mezeray.
Henry paid then a visit to the emperor and Margaret of Savoy at
Gravelines, and engaged them to go along with him to Calais, and
pass some days in that fortress. The artful and politic Charles here
completed the impression which he had begun to make on Henry and his
favorite, and effaced all the friendship to which the frank and generous
nature of Francis had given birth. As the house of Austria began
sensibly to take the ascendant over the French monarchy, the interests
of England required that some support should be given to the latter,
and, above all, that any important wars should be prevented which might
bestow on either of them a decisive superiority over the other. But the
jealousy of the English against France has usually prevented a cordial
union between those nations; and Charles, sensible of this hereditary
animosity, and desirous further to flatter Henry’s vanity, had made him
an offer, (an offer in which Francis was afterwards obliged to concur,)
that he should be entirely arbiter in any dispute or difference that
might arise between the monarchs. But the masterpiece of Charles’s
politics was the securing of Wolsey in his interests, by very important
services, and still higher promises. He renewed assurances of assisting
him in obtaining the papacy; and he put him in present possession of the
revenues belonging to the sees of Badajoz and Paleneia in Castile. The
acquisitions of Wolsey were now become so exorbitant, that, joined to
the pensions from foreign powers which Henry allowed him to possess, his
revenues were computed nearly to equal those which belonged to the crown
itself; and he spent them with a magnificence; or rather an ostentation,
which gave general offence to the people; and even lessened his master
in the eyes of all foreign nations.[*]
* Polyd. Virg. Hall.
The violent personal emulation and political jealousy which had taken
place between the emperor and the French king, soon broke out in
hostilities. But while these ambitious and warlike princes were acting
against each other in almost every part of Europe, they still made
professions of the strongest desire of peace; and both of them
incessantly carried their complaints to Henry, as to the umpire between
them. The king, who pretended to be neutral, engaged them to send their
ambassadors to Calais, there to negotiate a peace under the mediation
of Wolsey and the pope’s nuncio. The emperor was well apprised of the
partiality of these mediators; and his demands in the conference were
so unreasonable as plainly proved him conscious of the advantage. He
required the restitution of Burgundy, a province which many years before
had been ceded to France by treaty, and which, if in his possession,
would have given him entrance into the heart of that kingdom: and he
demanded to be freed from the homage which his ancestors had always done
for Flanders and Artois, and which he himself had by the treaty of Noyon
engaged to renew.
{1521.} On Francis’s rejecting these terms, the congress of Calais broke
up; and Wolsey soon after took a journey to Bruges, where he met with
the emperor. He was received with the same state, magnificence,
and respect, as if he had been the king of England himself; and he
concluded, in his master’s name, an offensive alliance with the pope
and the emperor against France. He stipulated that England should next
summer invade that kingdom with forty thousand men; and he betrothed
to Charles the princess Mary, the king’s only child, who had now some
prospect of inheriting the crown. This extravagant alliance, which was
prejudicial to the interests, and might have proved fatal to the liberty
and independence, of the kingdom, was the result of the humors and
prejudices of the king, and the private views and expectations of the
cardinal.
The people saw every day new instances of the uncontrolled authority of
this minister. The duke of Buckingham, constable of England, the first
nobleman both for family and fortune in the kingdom, had imprudently
given disgust to the cardinal; and it was not long before he found
reason to repent of his indiscretion. He seems to have been a man
full of levity and rash projects; and being infatuated with judicial
astrology, he entertained a commerce with one Hopkins, a Carthusian
friar, who encouraged him in the notion of his mounting one day the
throne of England. He was descended by a female from the duke of
Glocester, youngest son of Edward III.; and though his claim to the
crown was thereby very remote, he had been so unguarded as to let fall
some expressions, as if he thought himself best entitled, in case the
king should die without issue, to possess the royal dignity. He had not
even abstained from threats against the king’s life; and had provided
himself with arms, which he intended to employ, in case a favorable
opportunity should offer. He was brought to a trial; and the duke
of Norfolk, whose son, the earl of Surrey, had married Buckingham’s
daughter, was created lord steward, in order to preside at this solemn
procedure. The jury consisted of a duke, a marquis, seven earls, and
twelve barons; and they gave their verdict against Buckingham, which
was soon after carried into execution. There is no reason to think the
sentence unjust;[*] but as Buckingham’s crimes seemed to proceed more
from indiscretion than deliberate malice, the people, who loved him,
expected that the king would grant him a pardon, and imputed their
disappointment to the animosity and revenge of the cardinal.
* Herbert. Hall. Stowe, p. 513. Holingshed, p. 862.
The king’s own jealousy, however, of all persons allied to the crown,
was, notwithstanding his undoubted title, very remarkable during the
whole course of his reign; and was alone sufficient to render him
implacable against Buckingham. The office of constable, which this
nobleman inherited from the Bohuns, earls of Hereford, was forfeited,
and was never after revived in England.