pro XII. 1558. lip, on the other hand, unwilling to lose his connexion with B O O K England, the importance of which, during a rupture with France, he had so recently experienced, not only vied with Henry in declarations of esteem for Elizabeth, and in fessions of his resolution to cultivate the strictest amity with her, but, in order to confirm and perpetuate their union, he offered himself to her in marriage, and undertook to procure a dispensation from the Pope for that purpose. delibera conduct. ELIZABETH weighed the proposals of the two Monarchs Elizabeth's attentively, and with that provident discernment of her true tion coninterest, which was conspicuous in all her deliberations. She cerning her gave some encouragement to Henry's overture of a separate negociation, because it opened a channel of correspondence with France, which she might find to be of great advantage, if Philip should not discover sufficient zeal and solicitude for securing to her proper terms in the joint treaty. But she ventured on this step with the most cautious reserve, that she might not alarm Philip's suspicious temper; and lose an ally in attempting to gain an enemy". Henry himself, by an unpardonable act of indiscretion, prevented her from carrying her intercouse with him to such a length as might have offended or alienated Philip. At the very time when he was courting Elizabeth's friendship with the greatest assiduity, he yielded with an inconsiderable facility to the solicitations of the Princess of Lorrain, and allowed his daughter-in-law, the Queen of Scots, to assume the title and arms of Queen of England. This ill-timed pretension, the source of many calamities to the unfortunate Queen of Scots, extinguished at once all the confidence that might have grown between Henry and Elizabeth, and left in its place distrust, resentment, and antipathy. Elizabeth soon found that she must unite her interests closely with Philip's, and expect peace only from negociations carried on in conjunction with him 2. As she had granted a commission, immediately after her She emaccession, to the same plenipotentiaries whom her sister had powers her z Forbes, i. p. 4. ambassadors to a Strype's Annals of the Reformation, i. 11. treat of Carte's Hist. of England, vol. iii. p. 375. peace. XII. 1558. BOOK employed, she now instructed them to act in every point in concert with the plenipotentiaries of Spain, and to take no step until they had previously consulted with them. But though she deemed it prudent to assume this appearance of confidence in the Spanish monarch, she knew precisely how far to carry it; and discovered no inclination to accept of that extraordinary proposal of marriage which Philip had made to her. The English had expressed so openly their detestation of her sister's choice of him, that it would have been highly imprudent to have exasperated them by renewing that odious alliance. She was too well acquainted with Philip's harsh imperious temper, to think of him for a husband. Nor could she admit a dispensation from the Pope to be sufficient to authorize her marrying him, without condemning her father's divorce from Catherine of Aragon, and acknowledging of consequence that her mother's marriage was null, and her own birth illegitimate. But though she determined not to yield to Philip's addresses, the situation of her affairs rendered it dangerous to reject them; she returned her answer, therefore, in terms which were evasive, but so tempered with respect, that though they gave him no reason to be secure of success, they did not altogether extinguish his hopes. Negociations at Cateau 1559. Feb. 6. By this artifice, as well as by the prudence with which she concealed her sentiments and intentions concerning religion, Cambresis. for some time after her accession, she so far gained upon Philip, that he warmly espoused her interest in the conferences which were renewed at Cercamp, and afterwards removed to Cateau-Cambresis. A definitive treaty, which was to adjust the claims and pretensions of so many Princes, required the examination of such a variety of intricate points, and led to such infinite and minute details, as drew out the negociations to a great length. But the Constable Montmorency exerted himself with such indefatigable zeal and industry, repairing alternately to the courts of Paris and Brussels, in order to obviate or remove every difficulty, that all points in dispute were adjusted at length in such a manner, b Forbes's full View, i. p. 37. 40. 7 XII. as to give entire satisfaction in every particular to Henry and B O O K Philip; and the last hand was ready to be put to the treaty between them. 1559. gard to the claims of England. THE claims of England remained as the only obstacle to Difficulties retard it. Elizabeth demanded the restitution of Calais in with rethe most peremptory tone, as an essential condition of her consenting to peace: Henry refused to give up that important conquest; and both seemed to have taken their resolution with unalterable firmness. Philip warmly supported Elizabeth's pretensions to Calais, not merely from a principle of equity towards the English nation, that he might appear to have contributed to their recovering what they had lost by espousing his cause; nor solely with a view of soothing Elizabeth by this manifestation of zeal for her interest; but in order to render France less formidable, by securing to her ancient enemy this easy access into the heart of the kingdom. The earnestness, however, with which he seconded the arguments of the English plenipotentiaries, soon began to relax. During the course of the negociation, Elizabeth, who now felt herself firmly seated on her throne, began to take such open and vigorous measures not only for overturning all that her sister had done in favour of popery, but for establishing the protestant church on a firm foundation, as convinced Philip that his hopes of an union with her had been from the beginning vain, and were now desperate. From that period his interpositions in her favour became more cold and formal, flowing merely from a regard to decorum, or from the consideration of remote political interests. Elizabeth, having reason to expect such an alteration in his conduct, quickly perceived it. But as nothing would have been of greater detriment to her people, or more inconsistent with her schemes of domestic administration, than the continuance of war, she saw the necessity of submitting to such conditions as the situation of her affairs imposed, and that she must reckon upon being deserted by an ally who was now united to her by a very feeble tie, if she did not speedily reduce her demands to what was moderate and attainable. She accordingly gave new instructions to her ambassadors; and Philip's plenipotentiaries acting as mediators 1559. BOOK between the French and them, an expedient was fallen upXII. on, which, in some degree, justified Elizabeth's departing from the rigour of her first demand with regard to Calais. All the lesser articles were settled without much discussion or delay. Philip, that he might not appear to have abandoned the English, insisted that the treaty between Henry and Elizabeth should be concluded in form, before that between the French monarch and himself. The one was signed on the second day of April, the other on the day following. Articles of peace France and The views of both parties with respect to these. THE treaty of peace between France and England contained no articles of real importance, but that which respected Calais. It was stipulated, That the King of France should retain possession of that town, with all its dependencies, dur ing eight years; That, at the expiration of that term, he should restore it to England; That in case of non-performance, he should forfeit five hundred thousand crowns, for the payment of which sum, seven or eight wealthy merchants, who were not his subjects, should grant security; That five persons of distinction should be given as hostages until that security were provided; That, although the forfeit of five hundred thousand crowns should be paid, the right of England to Calais should still remain entire, in the same manner as if the term of eight years were expired; That the King and Queen of Scotland should be included in the treaty; That if they, or the French King, should violate the peace by any hostile action, Henry should be obliged instantly to restore Calais; That on the other hand, if any breach of the treaty proceeded from Elizabeth, then Henry and the King and Queen of Scots were absolved from all the engagements which they had come under by this treaty. NOTWITHSTANDING the studied attention with which so many precautions were taken, it is evident that Henry did not intend the restitution of Calais, nor is it probable that Elizabeth expected it. It was hardly possible that she could maintain, during the course of eight years, such perfect concord both with France and Scotland, as not to afford Henry c Forbes, i. 59. XII. 1559. some pretext for alleging that she had violated the treaty. BOOK But even if that term should elapse without any ground for complaint, Henry might then choose to pay the sum stipulated, and Elizabeth had no method of asserting her right but by force of arms. However, by throwing the articles in the treaty with regard to Calais into this form, Elizabeth satisfied her subjects of every denomination; she gave men of discernment a striking proof of her address, in palliating what she could not prevent; and amused the multitude, to whom the cession of such an important place would have appeared altogether infamous, with the prospect of recovering in a short time that favourite possession. ent which tween THE expedient which Montmorency employed, in order An expedito facilitate the conclusion of peace between France and promotes Spain, was the negociating two treaties of marriage, one be- peace between Elizabeth, Henry's eldest daughter, and Philip, who France and supplanted his son, the unfortunate Don Carlos, to whom Spain. that Princess had been promised in the former conferences at Cercamp; the other between Margaret, Henry's only sister, and the Duke of Savoy. For however feeble the ties of blood may often be among Princes, or how little soever they may regard them when pushed on to act by motives of ambition, they assume on other occasions the appearance of being so far influenced by these domestic affections, as to employ them to justify measures and concessions which they find to be necessary, but know to be impolitic or dishonourable. Such was the use Henry made of the two marriages to which he gave his consent. Having secured an honourable establishment for his sister and his daughter, he, in consideration of these, granted terms both to Philip and the Duke of Savoy, of which he would not, on any other account, have ventured to approve. tion; THE principal articles in the treaty between France and The terms Spain were, That sincere and perpetual amity should be es- of pacificatablished between the two crowns and their respective allies; That the two monarchs should labour in concert to procure the convocation of a general council, in order to check the progress of heresy, and restore unity and concord to the |