K. Henry VIII. the King of Caftile and the Duke of Guelderland, the King's Ally, was to be confidered. And, laftly, an Account, tranflated into English, was read by the Mafter of the Rolls, concerning the • Diffentions, which were then on Foot between our holy Father the Pope and Lewis King of France; containing a Recital of all the Contumelies, Mifchiefs, and Injuries which had been • done to the Holy See, by the faid French King." And, afterwards, the faid Lord Chancellor, with the Lord Treasurer and other Peers, went down to the Lower Houfe, to acquaint the Commons with thefe Matters.

Which is approved by Parlia

fidy granted thereupon,

It hath been feveral Times obferved, in the ment, and a Sub Course of these Inquiries, that a Propofal of a War with France was always well entertained by an English Parliament. Accordingly this laft, tho' on no extraordinary Grounds, was no fooner propounded to the Houfes than accepted of. The Lords ordered in a Bill and paffed it, containing certain great Privileges granted to the Marquis of Dorset, and other great Men, that would go beyond Sea with the King. And the Commons voted a large Supply, of two Tenths and two Fifteenths, with Tonnage and Poundage, to carry on the War".

Acts paffed.

The most remarkable Acts that were paffed, in the firft Seffion of this Parliament were thefe :

First, Every Perfon that is or fhall be in the King's Wars, beyond the Sea, or upon the Sea, fhall have a Protection of Profecturus, or Moraturus, cum Claufula, volumus; and he may alienate his Lands, holden in Capite, without Licence; and if he die in that Service, his Heir within Age and in Ward, his Executors, Feoffees, or Affigns, fhall have the Wardship and Marriage, towards the Performance of his Will.' Alfo, by another Act, Penalties were ordained for Captains that abridged the Number of their Soldiers, or detained their Wages; alfo, for Soldiers departing without Licence.'

• That

m Hall writes, that it was two Fifteenths of the Temporality, and of the Clergy two Difmes. Hall's Chronicle, Henry VIII. Fol. xvie

That because Money, Plate, and Jewels, &c. K. Henry VIII, being carried out of the Kingdom, impoverished it, it was enacted, That every Offender that Way fhould forfeit double Value "."

An Ordinance formerly made againft Efcheators, Commiffioners, and finding and turning of Offices, was also confirmed: This, it feems, had ftill Relation to Empfon and Dudley's Proceedings. Because feveral unlawful Games kept Men from fhooting in the Long-Bow, they were put down, and Archery cominanded: For the better underftanding of which Act another paffed, whereby the Ufe of the Cross-Bow was alfo forbidden P.

We find by the Journal-Book, that, in this Par- The Attainder liament, the King reverfed the Attainder against against Sir Edm. the late Sir Edmund Dudley, and restored his Son Dudley reverfed, John to all his Lands and Poffeffions. This John Dudley, towards the latter End of this Reign, was conftituted Lord High-Admiral of England, and was in the highest Esteem.

March 30. The Parliament, by the King's Command, was prorogued to the 4th of November following.

Great Levies and Preparations were now made An Embarkation for the French War; and, being all ready, the Mar- against France, quis of Dorfet, with a large Retinue of other Noblemen, and a Body of 10,000 choice English Soldiers, were fent into Spain, to join with the Duke D'Alva, the Spanish General, and carry Destruction into France from that Quarter: But, meeting with fome unforeseen Accidents and Disappointments, the General returned home the next Winter,

in the Scots to

Re infecta. And now the French, according to Cuf- The French draw tom, having drawn in the King of Scots, by Treaty, their Party.

Statutes at large, Henry VIII. cap. i. iv. v.

• Lord Herbert in Kennet, p. 8.

P Ibid. and Statutes at large, 3 Henry VIII. cap. iii. xiii.

to

During the Sitting of this Parliament one Nervbolt, Yeoman of the King's Guard, and highly favoured by him, wilfully flew a Servant of the Lord Willoughby, in the Palace at Westminster; but the King refented this fo much, that, fetting afide all Affection, he caufed him to be hanged in the Palace-yard; where he hung two Days, as an Example to others, Hall's Henry VIII. Fol, xvi,

K. Henry VIII. to make a Diversion into England in their Favour Lewis thought himself above a Match for Henry.

A Parliament at Westminster. Anno Regni 4,

1512.

A Subfidy granted.

A Poll-Tax.

On November the 4th, this Year, the fame Parliament met again, by Prorogation; tho' our Statute-Books, and all our Hiftorians, call it a new one. But tho' the Journals exprefly mention this Prorogation, and add, that the Proceedings of this fecond Seffion are contained in a Book of the 4th of this King, yet that Book, by Negligence, is loft; fo that what we can find must be taken from the Authorities above-mentioned.

Lord Herbert writes, That the King being now refolved to go abroad in Perfon, in order to fecure his own Dominions from the Scots, he fent the Earl of Surrey with an Army into Yorkjhire, to protect thofe Northern Parts of the Kingdom. Whilft this was doing he called a Parliament to meet at Westminster; where, befides enacting feveral good Laws, he had a Grant of two more Tenths and Fifteenths, as a Subfidy. Befides this he had a Poll-Tax granted him; which was, of every Duke 10 Marks; of every Earl, 57. a Lord, 47. a Knight, 4 Marks; of every Man worth 800l. in Goods, the fame; of each Man who had 40s. in Wages, 12 d. and of all who were at, or above, fifteen Years of Age, 4 d.

Thefe were heavy Taxes, but the Nation being at that Time threatened with a double Invafion, both from France and Scotland, the prefent Danger took off any Refentment from it. We find that the very first Act that was paffed this Seffion, was, in order to fecure the Sea-Coafts, by erecting of Bulwarks, Brays, and Walls, in Cornwall, and elsewhere, and fortifying the Caftles on these Coafts. Nor was this Precaution without Reason, The French land for the very next Summer the French landed a in England. Number of Men in Suffer; but they were foon beat back again to their Ships.

On

Stowe writes, two Fifteenths and four Demies; and that it was refolved in this Parliament, that the King should go to the Wars in Perfon. Stowe's Chron. p. 49.

On the Authority of Lord Herbert we venture K. Henry VIII. to say, that, after paffing the above-mentioned Act, and fome others of lefs Concern, this Parliament Anno Regni 5. was again prorogued to January 23, which was in the Year 1513, or the 5th of this King.

In the mean Time Henry had headed an English Army in Perfon in France, had won the Battle of

1513.

the Spurs, and had taken Terwin and the City of Henry takes Tournay; the Citizens of which, to the Number Tournay. of 80,000, took Oaths to become true Subjects to Henry. James IV. King of Scotland, had brought

a puiffant Army into England alfo, in Henry's Ab

fence; but was met in Northumberland by the Earl The Scots routed of Surrey, when the fatal Battle of Flodden-Field at Flodden Field. was fought, in which the Scots King was killed, and about 10,000 of his Followers left dead upon the Spot.

very

After Henry's Return to England the Parliament met as before-mention'd; but, as far as we can find, little was done in it. The Title of the firft Act paffed, in the Statute-Books, is to ordain How the King's new Subjects of Tournay and Terwin, in France, may have Affurance and Recovery of their Debts due to them by Englishmen ; and how Englishmen of them.' It was alfo enacted, That every Man that would fue for the King's Pardon, granted on certain Articles, should have it $.'

t

Our Noble Hiftorian mentions another Thing, remarkable enough, done in this Seffion of Parliament; which was, That Margaret, Daughter · to George Duke of Clarence, late Wife to Sir • Richard de la Pole, Knight, petitioned the King, That fince Edward Earl of Warwick, her Brother, had been attainted in a Parliament held the 19th of Henry VII. and all his Lands confifcated, it would please the King to reftore her to Blood and Inheritance, and that he might be filed Countess of Salisbury;' which was granted, and confirmed by Parliament.'

Statutes at large 5 Henry VIII. cap. i. viii.

* Lord Herbert in Kennet, p. 19.

Not

K. Henry VIII.

France,

Not long after this Lewis the French King, having first reconciled himself to the Pope and Holy A Peace with Church, concluded a Peace alfo with Henry; and, tho' he was far advanced in Years, propofed hinifelf as a Match, and actually married the Princess Mary, Henry's Sifter, one of the faireft Ladies of her Time: But, dying within little more than a Month after this, without Iffue, the Crown of France defcended to the next Heir, Francis de Valois, his Coufin-German.But to purfue the Thread of our own History.

Anno Regni 6. 1514.

At Weminfler.

Henry, in the 6th Year of his Reign, thought proper to call another Parliament; and Writs were accordingly iffued out, dated November 23, to meet at Westminster on the 5th Day of February following.

Being all affembled, as ufual, before the King, in the Painted Chamber of the Palace at Weftminfter, William Archbishop of Canterbury, and ChanThe Chancellor's cellor, made an Oration to them on thefe Words: Speech to the Nunc Reges intelligete, erudimini qui judicatis Ter

Parliament,

ram.

On which Words he obferved, That the An⚫tients with great Care, Study, and Love, nourish'd ⚫ the Commonwealth, and that it was their greatest Glory and Comfort when they faw it flourish ⚫ under their Aufpices. But our Republic fickens and decays; because, adds he, the Moderns pre'fer their own private Affairs to the Public. In order, therefore, to reftore the Commonwealth to its priftine Sanity, the ableft Phyficians are, first, a wife King, which is the Standard of the People; and a Multitude of wife Counfellors, which give Health to the whole World. Afterwards he told them that the ruling Rod of a Kingdom was what all Kings ought chiefly to ❝ understand, fince it went by a triple Direction. • The firft was, That Kings fhould carry them⚫ felves towards God, both in loving, fearing, and ferving him. In the next Place, that they fhould "know how to govern themselves, by Knowledge, 6 Judgment, and Reformation. Lastly, that every

6

6

• King