of France.

so long as he professed Protestant opinions he would never become King When Elizabeth heard that he was preparing his abjuration she sent off a strong remonstrance—it was the composition of Burleigh— but before it arrived the deed was done.

The ceremony of abjuration took place at St. Denis, in the month of July, 1593; the king placing his hands between those of the Archbishop of Bourges, promised to live and die in the bosom of the Romish church, and to defend it against all men. The Te Deum was sung, but loud above the strains of the choristers rose the shouts of the jubilant people-Vive le Roi ! There were many old veterans of the Huguenot army with bent brows that day; but the majority saw that the king-never a very stoutlaced monarch-was acting more from policy than conviction, and were unwilling to forsake him, even though he were a renegade. They had followed his white plume too long to desert him.

On hearing the news Elizabeth burst into one of her violent passions, heaping on her old ally her cherished flowers of abusive rhetoric. She allowed several weeks to elapse before she wrote to him, even then it was in no measured terms that she referred to what he had done. "Ah, what grief!" said she, "ah, what regret! ah, what pangs have seized my heart at the news which has been communicated to me! My God! is it possible that any worldly considerations could render you regardless of the divine displeasure? Can we reasonably expect any good result can follow such an iniquity? How could you imagine that He whose hand has supported and upheld your cause so long, would fail you at your need? It is a perilous thing to do ill that good may come of it. Nevertheless, I yet hope that your better feelings may return, and in the meantime I promise to give you the first place in my prayers-Esau's hands may not defile the blessing of Jacob," and so on to the same purpose. Very proper reflections these-and much to be commended, but they would have fallen better from the lips of a princess who had never allowed state policy to interfere with her own religious sentiments. Poor Queen Elizabeth is said to have been so troubled in mind about the spiritual declensions of Henry, that she could find no peace, but in entering on a course of systematic divinity and translating Boethius' "Consolations of Philosophy."

In the meanwhile Henry applied himself-under the advice and by the assistance of his sagacious minister Sully-to the removal of all cause of discontent among his Huguenot subjects. At Nantes he received deputa

tions from the Protestants, and consulted them as to their wants and the guarantee which they required. Acting on their advice, tempered by his own prudence and the advice of his counsellor, Henry drew up and issued the famous Edict of Nantes. By this the Protestants were to enjoy freedom of worship in all the towns where their creed then prevailed. They were allowed to have meetings of their representatives as well as to raise sums for their clergy, paying at the same time the tithes due to the established Church. In suits of law their judges were to be half Catholic and half Protestant; and several terms of surety were left to them for a certain time. The Parliament offered considerable opposition to the passing of this edict, and the king was obliged to use menaces as well as persuasions to overcome their obstinacy.

Queen Elizabeth having completed five books of translation of Boethius, and derived, it is to be hoped, as much consolation from philosophy as philosophy can give, found it convenient to renew her friendly relations with Henry of France. With him she concluded a treaty, offensive and defensive, against Philip of Spain-for the withered white-haired man was still formidable, and the dread occasioned by the Armada had not yet faded from the public mind. In consequence of the alliance thus formed the Spaniards poured into France from the Netherlands. In France they proposed to themselves an easier victory than they had ever competed for in Holland, the Dutchmen being of the English turn of mind-years afterwards so strongly condemned by the great Napoleon-namely, not knowing when they were beaten. Velasco, the constable of Castille, penetrated into Champagne and directed his attention against Franche Comté. Fuentes marched into Picardy, defeated Henry's army, took Dourleno and Cambury, and threw the King of France into great alarm. At once he sent to Elizabeth, but Elizabeth herself was far too much alarmed to further the aid he sought. These terrible Spaniards, though their great duke was dead, were still bent on the conquest of England. Nothing could be easier-so the whole affair presented itself to the mind of Philip land an army-defeat the English forces, march on London, sack the city, erase the armourial bearings of the queen, substitute those of Spain-everything might be done-if-but there is so much assumed in that postulate. Still the dread of invasion so far influenced the councils of the English queen that so far from assisting Henry with men and money she withdrew her troops from Brittany.

"In March, 1596, the Archduke Albert, who had been appointed

Spanish governor of the Netherlands, suddenly marched on Calais, pretending that his object was to raise the siege of La Fere. By this ruse he was already under the walls of Calais with fifteen thousand men. The outstanding forts were soon won, and as Elizabeth was one Sunday at church at Greenwich the distant report of the Archduke's cannonade on the walls of Calais were plainly heard. Elizabeth sprung up in the midst of the service and vowed that she would rescue that ancient town. She sent off, post haste, to order the Lord Mayor of London to immediately impress a thousand men and send them to Calais; but this fit of enthusiasm was soon over and the next morning she countermanded the order. When Henry's ambassador urged her for assistance she coolly proffered it on condition that she should garrison Calais with an English army. When the proposal was made to Henry he was so incensed that he actually turned his back on her ambassador, Sir Robert Sidney, saying he would rather receive a box on the ear from a man than a fillip from a woman."

The town was carried

A few days sufficed to settle the fate of Calais. by storm on the 14th April, and the Spaniards took possession of a place eminently adapted for the purposes of invasion, should Philip determine on another attempt of that kind. No doubt was entertained of the intentions of Spain. The dockyards were ringing out with the sound of active preparations. The veterans who had served under Farnese were confident of success, only regretting that the great duke could not lead them to victory; perhaps they were thinking of leaving a vacant space in their hosts, just as the Greeks were wont to leave room for the ghost of Ajax-at all events they felt that his spirit inspired them, and all the humiliations received from England were now to be amply repaid.

Lord Howard of Effingham, who had so bravely and successfully commanded the English fleet at the critical period when the invincible Armada was off our shores, urged on the government the necessity of immediate preparations, not only for defence but for attack, pointing out that a blow struck against Spain before she had completed her preparations would be worth a score of blows afterwards; his council was that the menacing fleet should be attacked and destroyed before it left the ports of Spain.

A fleet of one hundred and thirty sail was fitted out, and an army of fourteen thousand men put on board. The fleet was confided to the care of Lord Howard, the army to Essex. The fiery enthusiasm of Essex,

however, made him a rather dangerous commander, and in order to put some check upon him it was decided that on all great occasions he should be guided by a council of war. The council consisted of Lord Thomas Howard, Sir Walter Raleigh, Sir Francis Vere, Sir George Carew, and Sir Conier Clifford. The queen composed two prayers for the occasion, one to be daily used in the fleet during the expedition, the other to be used by herself. Sir Robert Cecil forwarded the instructions to Essex and added a piece of impious flattery which he was tolerably certain would reach her Majesty's ears-"No prayer," said he, "is so fruitful as that which proceedeth from those who nearest in nature and power approach the Almighty. None so near approach his place and essence as a celestial mind in a princely body. Put forth, therefore, my lord, with comfort and confidence, having your sails filled with her heavenly breath for forewind."

your

If this unconscionable courtesy was ever repeated to the queen, no doubt she felt flattered. The language of adulation was welcome incense, and no homage, however great, appeared to excite any suspicion of insincerity. Raleigh-whose cloak adventure is so well known to everybody-never hesitated to utter compliments that would have been offensive to most ladies of sixty-three, but they were well received by Elizabeth. On one occasion when she was setting forth on one of her royal processions, Raleigh-who was left behind-broke out into loud lamentations. "How Ican I live alone whilst she is far off? I who was wont to behold her riding like Alexander, hunting like Diana, walking like Venus, the gentle wind blowing her fair hair about her pure cheeks like a nymph, sometimes sitting in the shade like a goddess, sometimes playing like Orpheus, sometimes singing like an angel." Henry of France also, when he found it necessary to the security of his crown to obtain assistance from England, had won over Elizabeth by adopting the language of her courtiers. Unton, the English ambassador, duly reported to the queen the language of the French monarch. "He asked me one day," wrote Unton, "what I thought of his mistress, the fair Gabrielle, and was so impatient for my opinion that he took me into a private corner. I answered very sparingly in her praise, and told him that if without offence I might speak it, I had a picture of a far more excellent mistress, and yet did her picture come far short of her perfection of beauty. 'As you love me,' said Henry, 'show it me, if you have it about you.'" The ambassador showed him the portrait of Queen Bess, aged sixty-three-and "Henry beheld it with

passion and admiration-saying, I had reason, Je me rends-protesting that he had never seen the like. He kissed it, took it from me, vowing that he would not forego it for any treasure, and that to possess the favour of the original of that lovely picture he would forsake all the world. . . . I found that the dumb picture did draw out more speech and affection from him than all my compliments and eloquence." The upshot of it was that the help Henry needed was sent, and that Boulogne and Montreuil were saved from the Spaniards.

But to return to the fleet ready to sail with the queen's "heavenly breath for its forewind."

"On the 1st of June," says a popular historian, "the fleet issued' from Plymouth water, and being joined by twenty-two ships from Holland, it amounted to a hundred and fifty sail, carrying fourteen thousand men.

On the 20th the fleet cast anchor at the mouth of the harbour of Cadiz, and there discovered fifteen men-of-war, and about forty merchantmen. The next morning a fierce battle took place which lasted from seven in the morning till one o'clock at noon. The English sailed right into the harbour, spite of the fire from the ships and the forts, and the Spaniards finding the contest going against them, attempted to run their vessels ashore and burn them. The galleons got out to sea; the merchantmen, having reached Puerto Real, discharged their cargo, and were burnt by order of the Duke of Medina. Two large ships with an argosy were taken, and much booty fell to the captors. The Earl of Essex displayed the utmost gallantry. Instead of remaining with the army, he went on board and fought in the thick of the danger. The sea-fight over he landed three thousand men and marched upon Cadiz. A body of horse and foot