BL La 102, 59

BL MSS Lansdowne 102, 59
Wright: Queen Elizabeth and her Times Vol 1, 1838, No. 91 Page 181
Cecil to Sir Thomas Smith, Dec. 30, 1564

Transcribed by Thomas Wright

Sir, Accordyng to my promise I do send to you Barloo your servant.
Yesterday being Sonday, the Spanish ambassador presented to her Majesty a wryting, signed with the hand of the Duchess of Parma, wherof I do send you the copy, and this day he shall receave the lyke from her Majesty, so as by calculation the intercourse shall be made oppen on New Yere's Day, and our commissioners must be redy at the sea syde about the 26th of January. I thynk my Lord of Sussex shall be chieff, Dr. Wotton the second, and Mr. Haddon the third. Great sute is made by them of Brudges [Bruges] to have our merchants to kepe their fayres there. The Comte of Egmond hath sent and wrytten hyther for that purpose, and our merchants uppon a stomack agaynst Antwarp, are well disposed to Bruges. The haven is also now made and will serve very well. What will follow I know not. The trade to Emden shall not be forsaken, but continued, ni forte Romani, &c.
On Saturday the French ambassador was here with the Queen's Majesty, who delt in two principall matters, the one to know her pleasur for the offers made by the King his master to choose my Lord of Leicester and any other to be named by her Majesty to be of his order. Wherunto her Majesty did resolve to have my Lord of Leicester to be chosen ; but for the second place she wold hereafter advise to the King her pleasure.
The second matter was to know her pleasure in his former sutes made, that the French King's subjects might resort with commodities from the King of Spayne's Low Contries hither. Wherin above ten dayes past he had a long debate with the counsell, and wold not be therin satisfied, although we shewed hym what you had wrytten, and you found the King and his counsell satisfied with your answers made. But now we had a very ready answer for hym, that was because we had not prohibited the French but for a season, duryng these differences with Flanders, we being now at an accord with them, he should see that liberty should be gyven shortly to all persons, and then the French might use theire pleasure. This knowledg given hym of our accord, semed to answer hym fully, and he sayd that he was therof fully gladd.
Now whylest I am wrytyng, I understand that meanes is made that Sir Nicholas Throkmorton might go to the French ambassador with report that uppon instance made by my Lord of Leicester her Majesty will name my Lord of Sussex for the second person, and so untyll I heare more I do forbeare wrytyng therof. In Scotland there hath bene a parlement, wherin nothyng is done unto the restitution of the Erle of Lennox ; as for my Ladye's clayme to Angush, by reason of the greatnes of the Erle Morton, being chancellor, nothyng is attempted. The Erle of Lennox' frends wish that the Lord of Darly might marry with the Scottish Queen, and I see some devise to bryng the Queen's Majesty not only to allow therof, but also to move it to the Queen her sister. But I see no disposition therto in her Majesty, but she rather contynueth her desyre to have my Lord of Leicester preferred that waye, for which purpose there was this last month a metying at Barwyke with my Lord of Murray and the Lord of Ledington, but yet covered with some other matters. And now of late it is from thence renewed, to know with what conditions the Queen's Majesty will prefer hym, wherin at this present no full answer is yet gyven ; but to saye the truth of my knowledg in these fyckle matters, I can affirm nothyng that I can assure to contynue.
I see the Queen's Majesty very desyrous to have my Lord of Leicester placed in this high degree to be the Scottish Queen's husband; but when it cometh to the conditions which are demanded, I see her then remiss of her ernestnes (1).
This also I see in the Queen's Majesty, a sufficient contentation to be moved to marry abroad, and if it so may please Almighty God, to leade by the hand some mete person to come and lay hand on her to her contentation, I could then wish myself more helth to endure my yeres somewhat longer to enjoye such a world here, as I trust will follow, otherwise I assure you, as now thynges hang in desperation, I have no comfort to lyve. I thought to have heard somewhat from you, uppon the watchword you gave me in your letter, that I should heare more by another waye. To-morrow the proclamation shall be made for the oppening of the intercourse, but I feare this frost will so shut it upp, as no shipp shall pass or repass.
This daye (2) the proclamation is made. The Queen's Majesty is now fully recovered of her cold, and cometh abrode, and will sign the letters long ago made to you, and the letter to the French King, which hath bene also altered, but as it is now I send the copy of it to you.
To-morrow the Spanish ambassador meaneth to feast us here, who hath bene long in begynning so to do, having example sufficient by the French ambassador, who hath very often of late invited my Lord of Leicester, and such as have accompanyed hym. It is strange to see what great amity is now betwixt the French ambassador and Mr. Throkmorton, consideryng the hate that Mr. Throkmorton hath born hym.
Th'ambassador looketh to be revoqued in March next, and to be afterward sent into Spayne.
My Lord of Bedford wryteth that he is moved indirectly to recompence the Erle of Murray with goyng to Edenburgh, and so I thynk he shall be licensed. Such toyes may breed jelousies herafter.
The Queen's displesure contynueth still towards my Lord of Hertford and the Lady Catharyne, and my Lord Keper remayneth yet as he did, absent from court. My Lord of Arundell is now at liberty to go and to be visited by whom lie will, but yet he cannot come to her Majesty's presence, although lie is in some hope so to do shortly. John Hales remayneth still in prison.
Sir Thomas Challoner's servant is newly come hyther, with no matter of moment, but to procure his coming home, which was accorded twelve months past. But the same hath bene prolonged hytherto uppon the differences rysen from the staye of intercourse, and now those being come to some calm, he shall be called home, and leave a secretary behind hym untill one may be procured to go thyther, which we fynd hard to do, pryncipally for the difference of religion, or els Mr. H. Knolles should go ; but I thynk we shall send Mr. John Hastyngs, or some such lyke, if we cannot fynd out a person of better estate. (3)
If we might, we could be content to have our ambassador resident in the Low Gentries, and none in Spayn, for there nothyng is negociated at all.
Mr. Challoner wryteth strangely of the rynging of a bell in Mellila in Aragon, without knowledg by whom, but of itself : I dowt not but you here of it by Monsieur de Meru.
The rest of thynges that I do not wryte I will communicate to your servant, and so take my leave for this yere, meaning to do my uttermost in the entry of this next yere, to procure your return, as reason is.
The 30th of December, 1564. Yours assured for ever,

W. Cecill

(1) By the letters which I have examined, I cannot but think that in this negotiation about the Earl of Leicester, the Scottish Queen acted with great duplicity, and that, although she let the negotiation run on for a long time, she was resolved from the first not to have him. Her conduct seems to have been intended as a cover for her proceedings with respect to Darnley, who was obnoxious to almost every body.
(2) The letter was written at twice - what precedes this sentence on the 19th of December.
(3) Sir Thomas Chaloner did not live many months after his recall. He died on the 15th of October, 1565. Sir Thomas was one of Cecil's oldest and most esteemed friends, arid was distinguished equally as a soldier, a statesman, and a scholar. "He obtained his recall by an elegy to Elizabeth, after the manner of Ovid, and towards the end of 1564, published the first five books of his ‘Right Ordering of the English Republic;’ a work which he had written to occupy and amuse the dull hours of his Spanish ministry, and which he dedicated to his old and good friend Sir William Cecil." Nares.