DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.61904#0184
172
HOLYROOD ABBEY AND PALACE.
armies of Elizabeth of England; and, ftill worfe, the whole of
the Scotch nobles being bought up by her money. Henry
VIII. had commenced this fyftem when he had failed, by his
arbitrary impatience, to fecure the young queen for his fon. He
had invaded and ravaged the country to feize her, and afterwards
to avenge himfelf for his failure. He then fent commiflioners
to Berwick to bribe the nobles, and inftigated them to murder
the cardinal Beaton, in order to put down the Catholic party,
who were vehemently oppofed to him as the great enemy of
their church. The documents of his reign and of the fucceed-
ing reigns of his fon and two daughters, which have been
printed in our time by order of Parliament, have laid open to
the world the whole of this fyftem of murder and bribery by
the Tudors; and furely there is in hiftory fcarcely any other
fuch revelation of horror and wickednefs recorded by the
hands of the acftors themfelves. We have the correfpondence
for the murder of Beaton with the nobles, who refufed to do
that deteftable a<ft, but only becaufe they could not obtain a
written order from the King for the commiffion of it; Sir
Ralph Saddler, Henry’s commiflioner of murder at Berwick,
informing them that the king’s honour muft be faved. He
then employed Norman Leflie, who executed it, and we have
his letter informing Saddler that it was done, and afking what
he fhould do next. Elizabeth maintained this fyftem, and the
whole of her dark tranfacftions remain under the hands of her
minifters Walfingham, Cecil, Randolph, Saddler, and others.
Never furely had fo wicked a queen a knot of fuch cold-
blooded and defperately wicked minifters I And yet how little
could they be aware of the intenfe infamy of their conduct; or
they would have deftroyed thofe proofs of it which have been
brought forth from our national archives, and publiflied by
authority of government in our day.
HOLYROOD ABBEY AND PALACE.
armies of Elizabeth of England; and, ftill worfe, the whole of
the Scotch nobles being bought up by her money. Henry
VIII. had commenced this fyftem when he had failed, by his
arbitrary impatience, to fecure the young queen for his fon. He
had invaded and ravaged the country to feize her, and afterwards
to avenge himfelf for his failure. He then fent commiflioners
to Berwick to bribe the nobles, and inftigated them to murder
the cardinal Beaton, in order to put down the Catholic party,
who were vehemently oppofed to him as the great enemy of
their church. The documents of his reign and of the fucceed-
ing reigns of his fon and two daughters, which have been
printed in our time by order of Parliament, have laid open to
the world the whole of this fyftem of murder and bribery by
the Tudors; and furely there is in hiftory fcarcely any other
fuch revelation of horror and wickednefs recorded by the
hands of the acftors themfelves. We have the correfpondence
for the murder of Beaton with the nobles, who refufed to do
that deteftable a<ft, but only becaufe they could not obtain a
written order from the King for the commiffion of it; Sir
Ralph Saddler, Henry’s commiflioner of murder at Berwick,
informing them that the king’s honour muft be faved. He
then employed Norman Leflie, who executed it, and we have
his letter informing Saddler that it was done, and afking what
he fhould do next. Elizabeth maintained this fyftem, and the
whole of her dark tranfacftions remain under the hands of her
minifters Walfingham, Cecil, Randolph, Saddler, and others.
Never furely had fo wicked a queen a knot of fuch cold-
blooded and defperately wicked minifters I And yet how little
could they be aware of the intenfe infamy of their conduct; or
they would have deftroyed thofe proofs of it which have been
brought forth from our national archives, and publiflied by
authority of government in our day.