CHAP 1572 June She had made her sure of her, still The despatches of known, for it never became law, and Elizabeth never The Bill, in compliance with Elizabeth's seeming wishes, was laboured over by Lords and Commons, forming almost the entire business of the remainder of the session. At length it was passed. On the 30th of June the Queen came down to the House of Lords to give her consent, but, instead of consenting, she said she would think over it during the summer, and prorogued the Parliament till October. We made a law,' Burghley wrote to Walsingham, to make the Scottish Queen unable and unworthy of succession to the crown. It was by her Majesty neither assented to nor rejected, but deferred to All Saints. What all other good and wise men think thereof you may guess. 1 Walsingham to Burghley, June 28.-DIGGES. Some here have, as it seems, abused their favour about her Majesty to make herself her worst enemy. God amend them. I will not write to you who are suspected.'1 And now what answer was to be given to Montmorency and to the offer of the Duc d'Alençon? More tremendous issues were hanging upon Elizabeth's decision than she knew of. But she did know that France was looking to her reply-was looking to her general conduct, to ascertain whether she would or would not be a safe ally in a war with Spain, and that on her depended at that moment whether the French Government would take its place once for all on the side of the Reformation. An event which had just taken place on the coast of Holland had increased the gravity of the situation, and made the Queen's decision more than ever mo mentous. It was seen that the expulsion of Don Guerau was a signal for the refugees to make fresh efforts to rouse Philip. The language of Reginald Pole was revived by the ultramontane faction, whose own desire was to see Don John of Austria come northward with the squadron of Lepanto, and commence another crusade against the Turks of their own country. As the Catholic party 1 Burghley to Walsingham, July. him, together with the great aid he -DIGGES. shall have as well with us as with Sir Francis Englefield writes in CHAP XXII 1572 June CHAP XXII 1572 June was losing its national character and passing into vulgar conspiracy, the conduct of it fell more and more to the brood of English clergy at Louvaine. They were men whose all in all in earth or heaven was the faith of the Church; and one among them especially, Nicholas Sanders, once an Oxford student, who had kindled his piety at the flames which burnt Cranmer, was sent for to Rome, to Pope Pius, to consult on the best means of setting the rebellion on its feet again.1 In England, meanwhile, there remained to represent Spain, when Don Guerau was gone, the two Commissioners, Antonio de Guaras and M. Schwegenhem, who had been employed by Alva to negotiate the commercial quarrel. With the Ambassadors on both sides dismissed, and the privateers which infested the Channel, Elizabeth and Philip were at war in all but the name; but the conspiracy having come to nothing, both they and Alva had their reasons for wishing to avoid an open rupture. Alva was beginning his great scheme of taxation, by which the Netherlands were to pay the cost of their conquest. His ability in the field was rivalled by his incapacity as an administrator, and the manufacturers and artisans of Bruges and Ghent and Antwerp, who had learnt to endure the Inquisition, were threatening to resist in arms the confiscation of their property. The Prince of Orange was watching his opportunity to turn the mutiny to Don John de Austria revocetur et in rum multitudo permittatur se in novos Turcas convertere; dum incertâ spe insistatur veteri ex Turcâ novos Christianos effici posse.'-Sir F. Englefield to .-MSS. Simancas. 1 N. Sanders to the Earl of Northumberland, Jan. 23.-MSS. Flanders. account, and Alva was well aware of the intentions. with which France and England had drawn together. His object was, if possible, to divide them, and when the Spanish Ambassador was dismissed, he bore the insult and did not recall the Commissioners, and Elizabeth, for her own purposes, was willing that they should remain. The reopening of the Flanders trade was of great importance to London, and the Queen was glad to keep in play with Spain as a means of escape, should all else fail, from the embraces of Alençon. She began, therefore, at last, to interfere seriously to put down the privateers: their prizes were occasionally taken from them and restored to the owners; and although De la Mark, the admiral, complained that he was but making war against the common enemy, the Duke of Alva,' he was told that if he remained any longer on the English coast, he would be treated as a pirate.1 The officers of the ports were forbidden to furnish him with supplies, and the English sailors on board his ships received orders to leave them. It had been argued in the Admiralty Courts that 'the Prince of Orange, having his principality of his title in France, might make lawful war against the Duke of Alva;' and that the Queen would violate the rules of neutrality if she closed her ports against his cruisers.2 Schwegenhem was informed, however, that this objection 1 De la Mark to the Council, Jan. 1572. 2Aliquâ ratione injuriosum videri potest immiscere se actibus et litibus exterorum principum qualis est iste Princeps Orengianus, quem constat liberum esse Principem Imperii; et, ut apparet, eum ipsi Imperatori et Statubus Imperii acceptum tum etiam Galliarum Regi, in quo regno possessiones multas ob- 'Sum of the answer made to M. CHAP XXII 1572 July СНАР XXII 1572 July would no longer be maintained; the privateers should be obliged to withdraw; and her Majesty trusted that the Duke of Alva would recognise the good faith with which she was acting. English noblemen, English priests, and others engaged in levying war against their native country, were notoriously entertained and assisted in the dominions of the King of Spain; the Queen expected that the King would follow her example, and in return for the expulsion of the Prince of Orange's fleet, would send these persons about their business. Deep treachery on both sides lay concealed beneath these hollow courtesies; yet both Elizabeth and Alva desired to leave a loophole for reconciliation in case of a rupture with France. The outstanding differences were not settled; the captured money was not restored; but a temporary commercial treaty was drawn up, to last for two years, and trade between England and the Low Countries was reopened by proclamation on the 30th of April. The secret conspiracies, meanwhile, were not relaxed on either side. The refugees still remained at Louvaine, as busily employed as ever, and Alva continued to aim through Scotland at Elizabeth's unguarded side; while the private meaning of the expulsion of De la Mark was revealed in an exploit which had been long concerted, and which formed a notable comment upon the good faith with which the English Government pretended to be acting. The order to leave England was sent down to De la Mark the last week of February. He lingered at Dover, with the connivance of the officers of the harbour, till the end of March, when a convoy of Spanish traders on their way to Antwerp appearing in |