About this time, Mary and Elizabeth had removed to Eltham, and Anne Boleyn again paid her daughter a visit. In The Life of Jane Dormer, Duchess of Feria, it is recorded of this visit[135] that the Princess Mary, and the Lady Anne Boleyn “heard Mass together in one room. At the end of Mass, the Lady Mary made a low curtsy, and went to her lodging; so did the Lady Anne, then called queen. When she came to her quarter, one of her maids told her that the Lady Mary at parting made reverence to her, she answered that she did not observe it, and said: ‘If we had seen it, we would have done as much to her,’ and presently sent a lady of honour to her to excuse it; adding, that the love of none should be dearer nor more respected than hers, and she would embrace it with the kindness of a true friend. The lady that carried the message came when the Lady Mary was sat down at dinner. When admitted, she said: ‘The queen salutes your grace with much affection, and craves pardon, understanding that at your parting from the oratory, you made a curtsy to her, which, if she had seen, she would have answered you with the like; and she desires that this may be an entrance of friendly correspondence which your grace shall find completely to be embraced on her part’. ‘It is not possible,’ answered the Lady Mary, ‘that the queen can send me such a message; nor is it fit she should, nor can it be so sudden, her majesty being so far from this place. You would have said the Lady Anne Boleyne, for I can acknowledge no other queen but my mother, nor esteem them my friends who are not hers. And for the reverence that I made, it was to the altar, to her Maker and mine; and so, they are deceived, and deceive her who tell her otherwise.’ The Lady Anne was maddened with this answer, replying that one day she would pull down this high spirit.”
In 1534, Mary’s position was momentarily alleviated by the influence of a friend at court, a young lady, who had for the time being taken the King’s roving fancy,[136] and who sent the Princess word to be of good cheer, and that her troubles would sooner come to an end than she supposed, and that when the opportunity occurred, she would show herself Mary’s true and devoted servant.[137] Anne was furiously jealous, and intrigued with her sister-in-law, Lady Rochford, to have the young woman removed from court. But Henry discovered the plot, and banished Lady Rochford. The new favourite’s influence was remarked to increase daily, while Anne’s diminished, “which,” said Chapuys, “has already abated a good deal of her insolence”. Cromwell told him that he had received a charge from the King, that Mary should be well treated, and that if he found those about her did not do their duty, he was to have them punished, and that henceforth he should not have much difficulty in getting due respect paid to her, considering Henry’s paternal affection.
However, Anne’s influence although diminished still had periods of revival, and Mary was made to suffer for every sign of returning affection which her father manifested towards her in his moments of reaction.
“As to the King being dissatisfied with the Lady,” said Chapuys, “it is true he sometimes shows it, but as I have written before, they are lovers’ quarrels, and not much weight is to be attached to them, unless the love of the King for the young lady of whom I wrote to you should grow warm, and continue some time; of which it is impossible to form a judgment, considering the changeableness of this King. I have learned from the Master of the Horse, that when the Lady began to complain of the said young lady, because she did not do, either in word or deed, the reverence she expected, the King went away from her very angry, complaining of her importunity.”
Describing an interview with Cromwell, Chapuys again wrote to the Emperor on the 17th April. He continues:—
“He (Cromwell) then replied to me, as he had several times told me, that it was the Princess, who created the difficulty, and troubled matters, and that if it pleased God—he did not dare to say more, but it was quite clear what he wished. I again spoke about placing her with the Queen, her mother, but it was of no use; and on my saying that if any illness overtook her, where she is, evil might befall, before she received succour, he only answered that it was no question of illness, and that she was not likely to fall into it. But he was a bad prophet; and yesterday morning I sent him two of my servants, booted and spurred, who had just returned from the Princess in great haste (they had seen her the day before yesterday) to inform him that she had had a relapse, and desire that he would notify the King, to send thither the physician and servants he might think necessary. This he promised to do; but I fear he will not do it, or that even if he does, the King will make no account of it. Ill as the Princess is, she does not cease to think if there be any means of escaping; and on this subject she had a long conversation with one of my men, begging me most urgently to think over the matter, otherwise she considered herself lost, knowing that they wanted only to kill her. She has not had leisure to visit the neighbourhood, nor to devise means how she could get away, night or day. And because I see the thing is difficult, I keep her in hope of a speedy remedy by some other means, and endeavour to remove her suspicion that foul play is intended against her. Cromwell has always given me to understand that he is much devoted to the Princess; nevertheless, I have found no evidence of it except words.... Your Majesty may consider how the good Princess is placed.”[138]
Soon afterwards the scheme was abandoned, on account of the difficulties in the way, and on the 25th April, Chapuys was able to report that Mary was well again:—
“The Princess, thank God, has recovered. The King at my request sent her his physician, lending his own horses, for want of which, among other reasons the said physician had excused himself. But when the King told him that it concerned his honour, especially, seeing that he had promised to send him whenever the Queen’s physician should be there, all excuses ceased. He had only made them indeed, not for want of good will to serve the Princess, but to avoid the suspicion, in which he was held by the King and his lady, of too much devotion to her, and also to give occasion for the Princess being near the Queen, and under the care of her physician; and the said physician is of the King’s Chamber with the great people and those of the Council. He understands many things. He told the Queen’s physician that there were only two ways to remedy the affairs of the Queen and the Princess, and of all the realm. The first was, if God should visit this King with some little illness. Then besides that of himself he might come to a better mind, he would also take patiently the remonstrances made to him. The other way would be to try force, of which he says, the King and those about him are wonderfully afraid.”
Chapuys then informed the Emperor that “the said physician” had told him, that if the Emperor would make war, the right time had come, and that he knew for certain “of a score of the principal lords of England, and more than a hundred knights, who were quite ready to employ their persons, goods, friends and dependants, if they had the smallest assistance from your Majesty, and that as aforesaid, the time is most favourable, because the people are every day more dissatisfied at the taxation, for the levying of which, they are beginning to depute commissioners to enquire the value of every one’s goods, and assess them accordingly”.[139] All over the country prevailed a discontent, which not daring to break out into open rebellion took refuge in seditious words, and a sullen, almost threatening attitude. People were constantly arrested for speeches, such as: “It was a pity that the King was not buried in his swaddling clothes,” and “It was to be hoped that the Lady Anne would be brought full low,” and “We shall have no merry world till we have a new change,” etc.[140] But in spite of these mutterings, Henry inspired more terror even than hatred. The butchery of the Carthusian monks for refusing the oath of supremacy was followed quickly by the trial and execution of More and Fisher. Katharine and Mary were in a desperate position. Cromwell asked Chapuys what evil or danger would arise from the death of the Princess, even if it did excite the indignation of the people, and what cause the Emperor would have to be offended by it.[141]