another chamber, where he told me, that it was hoped and looked for that I should do some service for God and his church. I answered him I would do it, if it were to kill the greatest subject in England; whom I named, and in truth then hated.* "No, no," said he, "let him live to his greater fall and ruin of his house. It is the Queen I mean.' 99 I told him, "it were soon done if it might be lawfully done, and warranted in the opinion of some learned divines." And so the doubt once resolved (though, as you have heard, I was before reasonably well satisfied), I vowed to undertake the enterprise, for the restitution of England to the ancient obedience of the See Apostolic. Divers divines were named; Dr Allen I desired; Parsons I refused; and by chance came Master Wattes, a learned priest, with whom I conferred, and was overruled; for he plainly pronounced that it was utterly unlawful; with whom many English priests did agree, as I have heard, if it be not altered since the book made in answer to "The Execution of the English Justice" was published, which I must confess hath taken hard hold on me, and I fear will do on others, if it be not prevented by more gracious handling of the quiet and obedient Catholic subjects, whereof there is good and great store in England. Well, notwithstanding all these doubts, I was gone so far by letters and conference in Italy, that I could not go back, but promised faithfully to perform the enterprise, if his Holiness, upon my offer and letters, would allow it, and grant me full remission of my sins. I wrote my letters the 1st January, 1584, by their computation; took advice upon them in confession of Father Anibal à Codreto, a learned Jesuit in Paris; was lovingly embraced, commended, confessed, and communicated at the Jesuit's, at one altar with the Cardinal's of Vandosmi and Narbone, whereof I prayed certificate, and inclosed the same in my letter to his Holiness, to lead him the rather to absolve me; which I required by my letters, in consideration of so great an enterprise, undertaken without promise or reward. I went with Morgan to the Nuncio Ragazzoni, to

*The Earl of Leicester is probably here alluded to.

VOL. XVI.

22**

whom I read the letter and certificate inclosed, sealed it, and left it with him to send to Rome. He promised great care of it, and to procure answer; and so lovingly embraced me, wished me good speed, and promised that I should be remembered at the altar. This being done, Morgan assured me that shortly after my departure the Lord Fernihurst (then in Paris) should go into Scotland, and be ready, upon the first news of the Queen's fall, to enter into England with twenty or thirty thousand men, to defend the Queen of Scotland; whom, and the King her son, I do in my conscience acquit of any privity, liking, or consent to this or any other bad action, for anything that I ever did know. I shortly departed for England, and arrived at Rye in January, 1583-4, from whence I wrote to the Court, and advertised some that I had a special service to discover to the Queen's Majesty. Which I did more to prepare access and credit, than for any care I had of her person, though I were fully resolved never to touch her, if by any device, persuasion, or policy, she might be wrought to deal more graciously with the Catholics than she doth, or by our manner of proceeding in Parliament meaneth to do. I came to the Court (then at Whitehall), prayed audience, had it at large, and very privately discovered to her Majesty this conspiracy, much to this effect, though covered with all the skill I had. She took it doubtfully; I departed with fear. And, amongst other things, I cannot forget her Majesty's gracious speech then uttered touching the Catholics, which of late, after a sort I avowed in Parliament, she said to me, 66 that never a Catholic should be troubled for religion or supremacy, so long as they lived like good subjects."

'In March last, while I was at Greenwich (as I remember) suing for St Katharine's, came letters to me from Cardinal Como, dated at Rome the last of January before; whereby I found the enterprise commended and allowed, and myself absolved in his Holiness's name of all my sins, and willed to go forward in the name of God. That letter I showed to some in Court, who imparted it to the Queen; what it wrought, or may work in her Majesty, God know

eth; only this I know, that it confirmed my resolution to kill her, and made it clear in my conscience that it was lawful and meritorious; and yet was I determined never to do, if either policy, practice, persuasion, or motion in Parliament could prevail. I feared to be tempted, and therefore always, when I came near her, I left my dagger at home.

'When I looked upon her Majesty, and remembered her many excellencies, I was greatly troubled; and yet I saw no remedy; for my vows were in Heaven, my letters and promises in earth; and the case of the Catholic recusants and others little bettered. Sometimes I said to myself, "Why should I care for her? What hath she done for me? Have I not spent ten thousand marks since I knew her service, and never had penny by her? It may be said, She gave me my life; but I say (as my case stood), it had been tyranny to take it."* And now, to come to an end of this tragical discourse, in July I left the Court, utterly dejected, discontented; and, as her Majesty might perceive, by my passionate letters, careless of myself; I came to London, where Dr Allen's book was sent me out of France. It redoubled my former conceits; every word in it was a warrant to a prepared mind: it taught that kings may be excommunicated, deprived, and violently handled; it proveth that all wars, civil or foreign, undertaken for religion, are honourable. Her Majesty may do well to read it, and to be out of doubt (if things be not amended) that it is a warning, and a doctrine full dangerous. This is the book I showed, in some places read, and lent it to my cousin Nevil (the accuser), who came often to mine house, put his finger in my dish, his hand in my purse; and the night wherein he accused me, was wrapped in my gown. This was done six months at least after we had entered into this conspiracy; in which space her Majesty, and ten princes, in several provinces, might have been killed. God bless her Majesty from him; for, before Almighty God, I joy, and am glad in my soul, that it was

* He here alludes to his pardon for the attempted robbery of Hare.

his hap to discover me in time, though there were no danger near.

'And now to the manner of our meetings. He came to me in the beginning of August, and spake to me in this or like sort. "Cousin, let us do somewhat, since we can have nothing." I offered to join with him, and gladly heard him, hoping, because I knew him to be a Catholic, that he would hit upon that I had in my head; but it fell not out so. He thought the delivery of the Queen of Scotland easy, presuming upon his credit and kindred in the North: I thought it dangerous to her, and impossible to men of our fortunes: he fell from that to the taking of Berwick. I spake of Cuinborough and the Navy, rather to entertain him with discourse, than that I cared for those motions, my head being full of a greater matter. I told him that I had another manner of enterprise, more honourable and profitable to us, and the Catholics' commonwealth, than all these, if he would join in it with me, as he presently vowed to do: he pressed to know it; I willed him to sleep upon the motion: he did so, and (belike overtaken) came to me the next morning to my lodging in London, offered to join with me, and took his oath upon a bible, to conceal and constantly to pursue the enterprise for the advancement of religion; which I also did, and meant to perform: the killing of the Queen was the matter: the manner and place, to be on horseback, with eight or ten horses, when she should ride abroad about St James's, or some other like place. It was once thought fit in a garden, and that the escape would be easiest by water into Sheppey, or some other part; but we resolved upon the first.

"This continued as agreed upon many months, until he heard of the death of Westmoreland, whose land and dignity (whereof he assured himself) bred belike this conscience in him to discover a treason in February contrived and agreed upon in August. If it cost him not an ambitious head at last, let him never trust me. He brought a tall gentleman (whom he commended for an excellent pistolier) to me to Chanon Row, to make one in the match: but I refused to deal with him, being loth to lay my head upon so many hands.

'Master Nevil hath, I think, forgotten, that he did swear to me at divers times, that all the advancement she could give, should serve but for her scourge, if ever time and occasion should serve; and that though he would not lay hand upon her in a corner, his heart served him to strike off her head in the field. Now leaving him to himself, this much I must confess of myself, I did mean to try what might be done in Parliament, to do my best to hinder all hard courses, to have prayed hearing of the Queen's Majesty to move her (if I could) to take compassion upon her Catholic subjects; and when all had failed, to do as I intended. If her Majesty by this course would have eased them, though she had never preferred me, I had with all comfort and patience borne it. But if she had preferred me without ease or care of them, the enterprise had held. WILLIAM PARRY.'

After which, for the better manifesting of his treasons, there was read a Letter written by him to her Majesty, very voluntarily, all of his own hand, without any motion made to him: the tenor whereof, for that which concerneth these his traitorous dealings, is as followeth:

'Your Majesty may see, by my voluntary Confession, the dangerous fruits of a discontented mind; and how constantly I pursued my first conceived purpose in Venice, for the relief of the afflicted Catholics; continued it in Lyons, and resolved in Paris to put it in adventure for the restitution of England to the ancient obedience of the See Apostolic. You may see withal, how it is commended, allowed, and warranted in conscience, divinity, and policy, by the Pope and some great divines; though it be true or likely, that most of our English divines less practised in matters of this weight do utterly mislike and condemn it.

'That enterprise is prevented, and conspiracy discovered by an honourable gentleman of great descent, my kinsman* and late familiar friend, Master Edmund Nevil, privy and by solemn oath (taken upon the

* It does not appear how Parry was related to Nevill; if, in fact, they were kinsmen by blood, the tales circulated by the Government respecting the meanness of Parry's origin must have been without foundation, as Nevill was nearly allied to