Early in the morning the queen had sent Lady Jane permission to have an interview with her husband, but she, thinking that this would be too trying for them both, declined the favour, saying she would meet him within a few hours in heaven.
As she stood at a window looking out, however, she saw Lord Guildford Dudley going to execution, and an hour afterwards beheld men bearing his corpse back to its last resting-place in St. Peter's Chapel.
Immediately after that terrible sight she wrote down in a book three short sentences in Greek, Latin and English.
The first, roughly translated, was—
'If his slain body shall give testimony against me, his blessed soul shall render an eternal proof of my innocence in the presence of God.'
The second said—
'The justice of men took away his body, but the Divine mercy has preserved his soul.'
The English sentence ran as follows—
'If my fault deserved punishment, my youth, at least, and my imprudence were worthy of excuse. God and posterity will show me favour.'
Dr. Feckenham came from the queen to attend her to the scaffold, and I was afraid that he would trouble her; but I noticed as I followed them, with Mistress Ellen, that my lady was not attending to his words, but kept her eyes fixed upon a book of prayers in her hand.