March 7, 1585.
LETTER XLVIII.
The English Ambassador left on the fourteenth of this month, after a visit of twenty days, during which he was treated with high honours, and received every mark of respect. On leaving he was presented with plate of the value of 4,000 crowns, and the chief gentlemen in his train had also the honour of receiving presents. A little later the Netherland ambassadors took their leave, when each of them was presented with a gold chain of the value of 200 crowns; their visit has produced little or no result; at any rate, if any arrangement has been made, it is a complete secret. The King’s public answer was that he did not intend to break the peace which subsisted between himself and the King of Spain; the Queen Mother said, she was deeply concerned for their preservation, but was prevented by the King’s wishes from giving them assistance. Whether any secret understanding is implied in these ambiguous phrases, I cannot say. The ambassadors have done their utmost to draw the King into open war; this appears also to have been the object of the English Ambassador, but he does not seem to have had much success. Some people think the King has undertaken to give them considerable succours as soon as his present troubles shall have blown over, and meanwhile to furnish them with some little assistance. As regards the troubles of which the King spoke, fresh storms are without doubt brewing in his kingdom. The Guises are levying war; the popular account is that they are angry[228] with the King for not recognising their own [238]and their family’s services, while a couple of young fellows, distinguished for nothing save impudence and conceit, are loaded with high offices and honours. But this is not all; they wish to have a Catholic successor appointed in case of the King’s death, and they are again putting forward the Holy League and Confederacy against heretics, in which they claim the leadership. The meaning of all this is, that knowing there will be no room for them in France, should Navarre, on the death of the King, ascend the throne, they wish betimes to grapple with this danger, and thus consult their own interests, regardless of the great troubles they must bring on the country. And, to be fair, there is everywhere in France a feeling of great anxiety, as people cannot tell what the position of the Church will be after the King’s death. Many believe that their ancient ritual, services, and sacraments will be profaned and put down by Navarre, and that the Catholics will be in the same position as the Protestants have hitherto been, if indeed they be not in a worse case. These fears give an excellent handle to those who are desirous of a revolution, and men who have been true to the old religion are in a peculiarly good position to take advantage of it. Among these stand the Guises, who are most popular in France, so much so that one may hear them spoken of with greater deference than the King himself. The family of Guise, they say, can trace its descent in an unbroken line from Charlemagne,[229] has ever been the bulwark of the Church, ever loyal to King and country, in spite of the neglect with which it has been treated, and the bestowal on others of the honours it has earned, and now is justified in [239]unsheathing the sword, exercising the Royal prerogatives, and undertaking the defence of the Church.[230]
The Cardinal de Bourbon also has deserted his family and takes part with the Guises. The King has warned them by letters and messengers to have a care of whither the road leads on which they are travelling; to which they replied, they had no designs against him, they had never swerved from the paths of loyalty and duty, so that he ought not to believe the calumnies of their enemies.
In spite of these protestations, reports are gaining ground of German reiters being brought to France; they say they are already on the borders of Lorraine, and Guise will shortly have some 20,000 men under arms.
If one inquires whence the money will be forthcoming for the campaign, everybody has an answer ready to the effect that, with the Pope and the King of Spain[231] at their back, funds cannot be lacking, and that there is an understanding between them and the Guises is a matter beyond all doubt. Indeed, if one considers who is to profit by these disturbances, it is difficult to fix on any save the Pope and the King of Spain; for the pacification of the latter’s provinces in the Low Countries, and the successful accomplishment of his plans are impossible so long as France is quiet and united. The King of Navarre is quite alive to what is going on, and completely on his guard; indeed he also is making ready to defend himself against any murderous attack; he likewise offered the King his services against the enemy. The King tells him not to be uneasy; he is to make no movement, but simply to keep his towns in readiness to repel any sudden assault, and leave the rest to him.
I cannot say how far Navarre believes the King, for some are disposed to suspect him of knowing and approving of all the plans of the Guises; others again hold that, while hitherto he has not been privy to their schemes, he will in no long time adopt their ideas and join their party; not that he loves them, but because he hates Navarre still more, on account of their old quarrels and the difference of their religious views. For my own part, I have no doubt that the King would sooner have anyone than Navarre as successor to his throne, since he can have no confidence that after his accession his policy will not be reversed, the position of his connections and relations be impaired, and his friends cast down from their high estate; lastly, it is most annoying to feel that after one’s death people will be exalted, whom during one’s life one has desired to keep down. However, it is not easy to trace the workings of the heart, and so it is better to suspend our judgment till time makes all things clear.
Not long ago the rumour was very general that a fresh attempt against the life of the Queen of England had been discovered.