“Your assured bounden loving friend during my life,
“Marye.”
Cromwell’s draft, which the Princess copied “word for word” ran:—
“In my most humble and lowly manner, beseeching your Graces dayly blessing. Forasmuch as sithens it pleased your most gracious mercy upon mine hearty repentance for mine offences and trespasses to your Majestie, and mine humble and simple submission to the same, of my life, state and condition, to be gladly received at your Highness hand and appointment, whatsoever the same shall think convenient for me, without the remainder of any will in myself, but such as shall be instilled from the most noble mouth of your excellent Majestie, to grant me licence to write unto you: albeit I have written twice unto your highness, trusting to have, by some gracious letters, token or message, perceived sensibly the mercy, clemency and pity of your Grace, and upon the operation of the same, at the last also to have attained the fruition of your most noble presence, which above all worldly things I desire: yet I have not obtained my said fervent and hearty desire, ne any peice of the same to my great and intolerable discomfort I am enforced, by the compulsion of nature, eftsones to cry unto your mercifull eares, and most humbly prostrate before your feet, to beseech your Grace to have pity and compassion of me, and in such wise to put apart your displeasure, justly conceived against me, as I may feel some piece of your most abundant grace, that hath never wanted to them that have inwardly repented their offences, not committed by malice, but by yonghe frailty and ignorance. For yet I remain almost void of all hope, saving the confidence I have in your blessed nature recomforteth me. And therefore eftsones, prostrate at your noble feet I beseech your Majestie to countervail my transgressions with my repentance for the same, and thereupon to grant some little spark of my most humble suit and desire, which (God is my judge) I desire for no worldly respect, trusting in Almighty God, to use myself so from henceforth as your Grace shall have cause to think your mercy and pity well extended unto me. To whom I shall daily pray (as I am most bounden) to preserve your Highness, with the Queen, and shortly to send you issue, which shall be gladder tidings to me than I can express in writing.
“From Hunsdon the xiii day of June.
“Your most humble and obedient daughter and handmaid,
“Marye.“[185]
It was clearly anticipated that Mary’s progress, by almost imperceptible degrees, from vague expressions of repentance to a definite surrender of her will for the future, would have prepared the victim for the final coup. Immediately after receiving the above transcript of Cromwell’s draft, Henry sent commissioners to Hunsdon, summoning her to accept the new statute, and to affix her signature to a statement, declaring her own illegitimacy, which had been drawn up with the most ruthless and humiliating detail.
To Henry’s fury and Cromwell’s consternation Mary refused to sign. The Chief Secretary had pledged himself to reduce her to submission, and he knew by experience, that with his master, failure spelt treason, and he trembled accordingly. His answer to Mary’s appeals was brutal in the extreme, yet knowing as we do by the light of after events, that he was not only arrested, but condemned and executed for far less than complicity in Mary’s disobedience, we can scarcely wonder at his tone towards her. None, with the single exception perhaps of Cranmer, knew Henry so well as his chief minister, and to know him was with all time-servers to fear exceedingly.
“Madam [he wrote],