WAR Abp. Cant. Cotton. b. 11. However, that the brief was no forgery, or at least, that the HAM, English court suspected the contrary, is pretty plain from the instructions sent to the king's agents to dissuade the pope Libr. Vitel. from sending to Spain for the original. It may possibly be thought these instructions might be given to hinder the avocation of the cause: but this conjecture is not so likely; for if the brief could have been proved a forgery, the king must have carried his point, and by consequence would not have been so averse against a hearing at Rome. 35. April 5, 1529. About this time the bishop of Worcester and doctor Lee, The emperor the king's ambassadors in Spain, opened the divorce to the avocation of emperor: upon which his imperial majesty returned the king the cause to this answer: "that he was sorry, his majesty had any thoughts solicits an Rome. of parting with the queen; and conjured him by the sacrament of marriage to proceed no farther." But in case he was resolved to go on, his imperial majesty insisted, that the case should not be tried in England, but either referred to the pope, or brought before a general council: adding withal, that he was satisfied, the right lay on the queen's side, and was Ld. Herbert, resolved to abet her interest. p. 225. The two legates' letter to the pope. The legates perceiving the queen incompliant, and that the emperor would embarrass the affair, joined in a letter to the pope for a decretal bull: which, by the way, must be of a more comprehensive form, than that which Campegio brought with him for otherwise, what occasion had there been for requesting another? And if the draught of this instrument could not quickly be settled, the pope was to use his interest with the queen in the mean time. They desire him "to endeavour to remove her from her resolution by all means possible: to try, if he could bring her inclination to the cloister: to suggest to her, that this was the only expedient to make her easy, and secure her interest. And here they press the dispatch of the divorce, and the danger of losing the king by delays. That both the nobility and commons were much disturbed at the spinning out the cause: that they declared their minds with great liberty, and seemed almost ready to renounce his holiness. That amongst other instances of satire, they called those people most stupidly ridiculous, that pretended the popes They suggest could dispense with divine laws, and yet had no power to of not satis cancel the writings, or melt a little wax or lead of their prefying the king. decessors. That they found it very difficult to keep on the the danger measures for the VIII. Libr. Vitel. themselves king's patience, and prevent things from running to extremity. HENRY In this letter, they acquaint the pope, they were concerting trial, and that the queen had exhibited a copy of the brief. From whence we may infer it was written Cotton. some time before the cause came on at Blackfriars." This b. 11. letter was followed by another from Wolsey to the king's And deliver agents; in which he lets them know "the emperor's ambassa- with great freedom. dors were busy in soliciting a revocation of his commission and Campegio's that if his imperial majesty should gain this point, the king would be wholly disappointed. They were therefore to do their utmost to prevent the passing of any such thing. They were to remonstrate to the pope and cardinals upon this head: they were to acquaint them, that a compliance with the emperor, in this particular, would be a flaming injury to the king and kingdom. That by yielding in a point, so contumelious to his legates, and by such an open breach of good faith, his holiness would certainly give the highest provocation imaginable to the king and nobility. That upon such a notorious violation of his promise, they would undoubtedly renounce their obedience, and desert the apostolic see: and that when other countries found, there was neither justice nor truth to be met with there, they would, in all likelihood, follow the example of the English." This dispatch is dated May the twenty-first, this year. Ibid. 1529. excuse to The pope, who had taken new measures, and was patching up May 31, matters with the emperor, wrote an excusing letter to Wolsey. He pretends himself "very sorry that he could not make a The pope's return to the king and cardinal for their good offices to his Wolsey. see. That he desired nothing more, than to shew his inclination this way; but that at present, the regards of justice checked his motion, and put him to a stand: that he had a great many weighty reasons, which hindered him from giving satisfaction in this point; and that he had endeavoured to convince the king's ambassadors of the cogency of them." And for the particulars, he refers Wolsey to Campegio. The measures being now adjusted for the hearing of the b. 11. cause, the legate's court was prepared at Blackfriars. And 4 hearing the king having, by a warrant under the great seal, given the divorce them leave to execute their commission, they sat on the last friars. of May. The commission exhibited by Longland, bishop of Lincoln, was read in court. And now the clerks of the court Cotton. A concerning at Black WAR- took the usual oaths: and the king and queen were cited by Abp. Cant. the legates to appear on the eighteenth of June, which was all the business of that day. The king's proxies were doctor Sampson, doctor Hall, doctor Petre, and doctor Tregonnell. The queen's council were Fisher, bishop of Rochester; Standish, bishop of St. Asaph; and doctor Ridley. Upon the eighteenth of June the court sat again: the king sent his proxies; but the queen, appearing in person, protested against the legates, as incompetent judges: she alleged the pope had ordered the cause should be tried at Rome, and desired time might be allowed to prove the allegation. The legates gave Cavend. p. 106. Godwin, Annal. Ld. Herbert, her highness three days, and adjourned the court. P. 235. Bp. Burnet, 72. queen ap On the twenty-first of June there was another session: and The king and now the king and the queen being present, Campegio opened the business in a long speech: and both this legate and Wolsey made solemn protestations of their impartiality; and that they intended to proceed without any bias of favour or affection. pear in court. The queen's speech. 36. When the king was called, he answered "Here:" but the queen, being called, made no answer; but rising from her chair, came up to the king, and kneeling to him, made a moving and significant speech. She told him, "what disadvantages she lay under, in being a woman, and of a foreign nation that her counsel were the king's subjects; and that she had little expectation either of friendship or equity: she desired to know, how she had disobliged his highness, and why this usage was put upon her? She solemnly protested, she had always made it her business to live agreeably to his majesty, and comply with his humour: and that her favour and fancy to other people was always governed by his choice and direction. She suggested, she had been his wife twenty years; and had several children by him: and that the marriage between prince Arthur and herself was unconsummated, she appealed to God and the king's conscience. And if his highness could charge her with any breach of faith or blemish in her honour, she was willing to be dismissed with infamy: but if nothing of this could be proved, she desired to have justice at his hands. The king's father and hers," she said, "had the character of very wise princes; and without question, consulted persons well qualified for advice, when they settled this marriage. In short, she durst not trust her cause with this VIII. court for, her counsel being his highness's subjects, and as- HENRY signed by him, she was afraid, would either be prepossessed or overawed. She therefore humbly entreats the king to let the matter rest till she could hear from her friends in Spain." Upon this, she rose up, made the king a low reverence, and went out of the court. The king ordered the crier to call her in again, but she refused to return. When she was gone, the king began a discourse in her commendation, much to the same effect with his speech to the lords already mentioned: adding withal, that he had formerly mentioned his scruples to Longland, bishop of Lincoln, in confession. And here, cardinal Wolsey desiring the king to declare to the court, whether he had been the person, who first suggested the debating this matter, his Highness cleared the cardinal from this imputa- The king tion, and declared he had never injected any such thoughts, sey from but rather advised the contrary. clears Wol first suggesting the di June 25. The court adjourned to the twenty-fifth, ordering letters vorce. monitory to be issued for citing the queen to appear; but she refusing, was declared contumax. Three days after, she was cited a second time, and, for not appearing, pronounced again contumax. Ld. Herbert. letter to his Notwithstanding the queen's absence, the dispensing bull The king's and brief were called for, and witnesses examined to prove the ambassadors marriage consummated between prince Arthur and the present June 28, queen. at Rome. 1529. Cotton. b. 11. against the On the other side, the queen's counsel urged, that supposing Libr. Vitel. the marriage consummated, which was more than was proved, The queen's yet the forbidding the marrying the brother's relict was no counse largue moral law: that it was only a judicial regulation of the Mosaic divorce. institution that none but the Jews were bound by it; and that after the coming of our Saviour, it was abrogated of course. It is true, the Christian Church was governed by this restraint: but then, as it stood only on ecclesiastical authority, the same power might dispense with it. : Godwin, Annal emperor to avocation. The queen was not negligent in preventing the legates' sen- The queen tence she sent the lady Margaret, regent of the Low Countries, solicits the a detail of the whole process: from hence the account was insist on an transmitted to the emperor Charles and his brother Ferdinand, with entreaties to assist their aunt. These princes immediately dispatched their ambassadors to the pope, to solicit the matter. These agents were the queen's proxies at Rome; and had a WAR HAM, commission to give his holiness a copy of the bull and brief of Abp. Cant. Julius II. together with her declaration, that the marriage between prince Arthur and herself was not consummated. A protesta tion against the proceed ings of the legates. July. The pope grants an avocation. July 3. And con treaty with The king, suspecting the matter would be worked this way, and that the emperor would do his utmost, had lately sent instructions to his ambassadors to prevent the avocation of the cause; and to remind the pope, that by consenting to such an expedient, his holiness would put a great disgrace upon his legates, contradict his late bull and commission, break through his pollicitation, aud disoblige the king and kingdom in a very remarkable manner. But all this remonstrance signified nothing: the posture of affairs in Italy was changed, and the pope fell into new measures. In fine, the ambassadors of the house of Austria made a protestation in the queen's name, against the proceedings of the legates in England: every page of this instrument was subscribed by the queen's hand. The purport of it was, to entreat the pope to null the proceedings in England, to admonish the king to stop the process, or consent to a trial of the cause at Rome. The ambassadors added, that in case they were refused in these particulars, their masters would apply to other remedies. By the way, the pressing for an avocation was agreeable to the course of law, founded in general upon motives of equity: and if the pope had not bound himself up by his pollicitation and decretal bull, could scarce fairly have been denied. However, these considerations were all overweighed; for a treaty cludes a was lately concluded between the emperor and him at Barcethe emperor. lona. By virtue of this treaty the pope's nephew, Alexander di Medici, was to be restored to the government of Florence: the emperor was likewise to hold the kingdom of Naples of his holiness, to assist him, in the recovery of Cervia and Ravenna, of Modena and Reggio, taken from him by the Venetians and the duke of Ferrara. The pope had some articles of advantage, which I shall forbear to mention. In short, the power of the emperor, and interest of the pope's family, prevailed, in all appearance, with him so far as to forget his former promises, and venture the breaking with the king. Thus he signed an avocation of the cause, and forbid all farther proceedings in England under great penalties. F. Paul, the Trent. July 15. Ld. Herbert, p. 254. He was sensible, how deeply this usage would be resented by the king and therefore to shew he was dragged into this : |