his magnanimity, fortitude, humanity and compassion, were eminently conspicuous. He endured as severe hardships as the meanest soldier; he exposed his own person to whatever danger appeared; he encouraged the desponding, visited the sick and wounded, and animated all by his words and example24. He paid dearly for his obstinacy and presumption; but he made mankind sensible, that he possessed many valuable qualities, which an almost uninterrupted flow of prosperity had hitherto afforded him little opportunity of shewing. The loss which the emperor suffered in this calamitous enterprize encouraged the king of France to begin hostilities, on which he had been for some time resolved; an action dishonourable to civil society having furnished him with too good a pretext for taking arms. The marquis del Gu asto, governor of the duchy of Milan, had got intelligence of the motions and destination of two ambassadors, Rincon and Fergoso, whom Francis had dispatched, the one to the Ottoman Porte, the other to the republic of Venice; and knowing how much his master wished to discover the intentions of the French monarch, and of what consequence it was to retard the execution of his measures, he employed some soldiers belonging to the garrison of Pavia, to lie in wait for these ambassadors as they sailed down the Po. The ambassadors and most of their attendants were murdered, and their papers seized25. Francis immediately demanded reparation for that barbarous violence; and as Charles endeavoured to put him off with an evasive answer, he appealed to all the courts of Europe, setting forth the heinousness of the injury, the iniquity of the emperor in disregarding his just request, and the necessity of vengeance. But Charles, who was a more profound negociator, defeated, in a great measure, the effects of these spirited representations. He secured the fide25. Mem. de Bellay. 24. Id. Ibid. lity of the Protestant princes in Germany, by granting them new concessions; and he engaged the king of England to espouse his cause, under pretence of defending Europe against the Infidels; while Francis was only able to form an alliance with the kings of Denmark and Sweden, (who, for the first time, interested themselves in the quarrels of the sovereigns of the South) and to renew his treaty with Solyman, which drew on him the indignation of Christendom. But the activity of Francis supplied all the defects in his negociation. Five armies were soon ready A. D. 1542. to take the field, under different generals, and with different destinations. Nor was Charles wanting in his preparations. He and Henry, a second time, made an ideal division of the kingdom of France. But as the hostilities that ensued were followed by no important consequence, nor distinguished by any memorable event, except the battle of Cerisoles, gained by count d'Enguien over the Imperialists, and in which ten thousand of the emperor's best troops fell, I shall not enter into particulars. It will be sufficient to observe, that, after France, Spain, Piedmont, and the Low Countries, had been alternately, or at once, the scene of war; after the Turkish fleet, under Barbarossa, had ravaged the coasts of Italy, and the lilies of France and the crescent of Mahomet had appeared in conjunction before Nice, where the cross of Savoy was displayed, Francis and Charles, mutually tired of harassing each other, concluded at Crespy a treaty of peace, in which the king of England was not mentioned; and, from being implacable enemies, became once more, in appearance, cordial friends, and even allies by the ties of blood 26. A. D. 1544. The chief articles in this treaty were, that all the conquests which either party had made since the truce of Nice should be restored; that the emperor should give in mar 26. Mem. de Moullin. Mem. de Bellay. riage to the duke of Orleans, either his own eldest daughter, with the Low Countries, or the second daughter of his brother Ferdinand, with the investiture of the duchy of Milan; that Francis should renounce all pretensions to the kingdom of Naples, as well as to the sovereignty of Flanders and Artois, and Charles gave up his claim to the duchy of Burgundy; and that both should unite in making war against the Turks77. The emperor was chiefly induced to grand conditions so advantageous to France, by a desire of humbling the Protestant princes in Germany. With the papal jurisdiction, he foresaw they would endeavour to throw off the imperial authority; and he had determined to make his zeal for the former a pretence for enforcing and extending the latter. But before I speak of the wars in which that resolution involved him, I must carry forward the domestic history of England, the knowledge of which will throw light on many foreign transactions. Meanwhile I shall observe, for the sake of perspicuity, that the death of the duke of Orleans, before the A. D. 1545. consummation of his marriage, disentangled the emperor from the most troublesome stipulation in the treaty of Crespy; and that the French monarch, being still engaged in hostilities with England, was unable to obtain any reparation for the loss which he suffered by this unforeseen event. These hostilities, like those between Charles and Francis, terminated in nothing decisive. Equally tired of a struggle, attended with no glory or advantage to either, the contending princes concluded at Campe, near Ardres, a treaty of peace, in which it was stipulated, A. D. 1546. that France should pay the arrears due by former treaties to England. But these arrears did not amount to more than one-third of the sum expended by Henry on his military operations; and Francis being in no condition to discharge them, Boulogne (a chargeable pledge) was left 27. Recueil des Traitez, tom. i. in the hands of the English monarch as a security for the debt28. Such was the result of a war which had wasted the wealth and strength of both kingdoms, and threatened the final ruin of one of them! LETTER LX. THE DOMESTIC HISTORY OF ENGLAND DURING THE REIGN OF HENRY VIII. WITH SOME ACCOUNT OF THE AFFAIRS OF BOTH KINGDOMS. No prince had ever ascended the throne of Eng A. D. 1509. land with more advantages than Henry VIII. You have already had occasion, my dear Philip, to observe his fortunate situation with respect to the great powers on the continent: he was no less happy in regard to the internal state of his kingdom, and other domestic circumstances. His title to the crown was undisputed; his treasury was full; his subjects were in tranquillity; and the vigour and comeliness of his person, his freedom of manners, his love of shew, and his dexterity in every manly exercise, rendered his accession highly popular, while his proficiency in literature, and his reputation for talents, made his character respectable. Every thing seemed to prognosticate a happy and prosperous reign. The first act of Henry's administration confirmed the public hopes; it was the prosecution of Empson and Dudley, the two unfeeling ministers whom his father had employed in his extortions. They insisted, and perhaps justly, that they had acted solely by royal authority; but the jury was so far moved by popular prejudices as to give a verdict against 28. Herbert. Stowe. them; them; and Henry, at the earnest desire of the people, granted a warrant for their execution'. Having punished the instruments of past oppression, the king's next concern was to fulfil his former engagements. He had been affianced during his father's lifetime to the Infanta Catharine, his brother's widow; and notwithstand-> ing some scruples on that step, he now agreed that their nuptials should be celebrated. We shall afterwards have occasion to observe the extraordinary effects of this marriage, and of the king's remorse, either real or pretended. Some princes have been their own ministers, but almost every one has either had a minister or a favourite: Wolsey, whose character has already been delineated, was both to Henry. Being admitted to the youthful monarch's pleasures, he took the lead in every jovial conversation, and promoted, notwithstanding his religious habit, all that frolic and gaiety, which he found to be agreeable to the age and inclinations of the king. During the intervals of amusement, he introduced business and state affairs, and insinuated those maxims of conduct, which he was desirous his master should pursue2. By these means he insensibly acquired that absolute ascendant over Henry, which distinguished his administration; and the people saw with concern every day new instances of his uncontrouled authority. The duke of Buckingham, lord high constable of England, the first nobleman in the kingdom, both in family and fortune, having wantonly given disgust to Wolsey, soon found reason to repent his imprudence. He was descended by a female from the duke of Gloucester, youngest son of Edward III. and being infatuated with judicial astrology, he consulted with a Carthusian friar, named Hopkins, who flattered him with the hope of ascending one day the English throne. He had even been so unguarded as to utter some expressions against the king's life. The cardinal made 1. Hollingshed. 2. Cavendish. these |