Mary Queen of Scots 1542-1587 Part 16

[This letter is printed in the Appendix to vol. ii. of Hosack's "Mary Queen of Scots, and her Accusers," from Cott. MS. Cal. c. i.

fol. 198. The words or letters within brackets, {}, have been burnt, the margin being singed. "The words printed in italics,"

says Mr. Hosack, "are very carefully erased with the pen, and, in some instances, are disguised with head and tail loops, to prevent their being read, the alterations being written between the lines."

Without the alterations, the letter is printed in Goodall, vol. ii.

p. 139, and elsewhere.]

_THE PROOFS ARE SHOWN PRIVATELY_

_THE COMMISSIONERS' LETTER_

And so they {Moray and his colleagues} sent unto us the Lord of Lethington, James Macgill, Mr. George Buchanan, and one other being a Lord of the Session, which in private and secret conference with us, not as Commissioners, as they protested, but for our better instruction, afte{r} declaration of such circ.u.mstances as led and induced them to vehement presumptio{n} to judge her guilty of the said murder, shewed unto us a copy of a bond bear{ing} date the 19th of April 1567, to the which the most part of the Lords and coun{cil} of Scotland have put to their hands; and, as they say, more for fear, than any liking they had of the same. Which bond contained two special points, the one {a} declaration of Bothwell's purgation of the murder of the Lord Darnley ... and the othe{r} a general consent to his marriage with the Queen....

And yet, in proof that they did it not willingly, they procured a warrant, which was now shewed unto us, bearing date the 19th {of} April, signed with the Queen's hand, whereby she gave them licence to agree to the same.... There was also a contract shewed unto us, signed with the Queen's hand, and also with Bothwell's, bearing date the fifth of April.... There was also a contract shewed unto us, of the Queen's own hand, of the marriage to be had between her and Bothwell, bearing no date, which had not _verba de praesenti_, as the other had, bearing date the 5th of April. It appeared also unto us by two letters of her own hand, that it was by her own practice and consent that Bothwell should take her and carry her to Dunbar.... After the device of the murder was determined, as it seemed by the sequel, they inferred upon a letter of her own hand, that there was another mean of a more cleanly conveyance devised to kill the King; for there was a quarrel made betwixt him and the Lord Robert of Holyrood-house, by carrying of false tales betwixt them, the Queen being the instrument, as they said, to bring it to pa.s.s.... Afterwards they shewed unto us one horrible and long letter of her own hand, as they say, containing foul matter, and abominable to be either thought of, or to be written by a Prince, with divers fond ballads, and other writings before specified, were closed in a little coffer of silver and gilt heretofore given by her to Bothwell.... And these men here do constantly affirm the said letters and other writings, which they produce of her own hand, to be of her own hand in deed; and do offer to swear and take their oath thereupon, _as in deed_ the matter contained in them being such as could hardly be invented or devised by any other than by herself; for that the discourse of some things which were unknown to any other, than to herself, and Bothwell, _doth the rather persuade us to believe that they be in deed of her own handwriting_. And as it is hard to counterfeit so many, _and so long letters_, so the matter of them, and the manner how these men came by them, is such, as it seemeth that G.o.d (in whose sight murder and bloodshed of the innocent is abominable) would not permit the same to be hid or concealed. In a paper here inclosed we have noted to your Majesty the chief and special points of the said letters, written (as they say) with her own hand, to the intent it may please your Majesty to consider of them, and so to judge whether the same be sufficient to convince her of the detestable crime of the murder of her husband; which in our opinions and consciences, if the said letters be written with her own hand, _as we believe_

_they be_, {is very hard to be avoided.

{_is plain and manifest_....

T. NORFOLK.

T. SUSs.e.x.

R. SADLER.

Abstract of Matters showed to the Queen's Majesty's Commissioners by the Scots, sent the 11th of October.

_Goodall_, pp. 148-153.

... She wrote to Bothwell, that according to her commission, she would bring the man with her; praying him to work wisely, or else the whole burden would lie on her shoulders; and specially to make good watch, that the bird escaped not out of the cage. {Letter iv., see pp.

185-189.}

_QUOTATIONS FROM THE LETTERS_

Notes drawn forth of the Queen's Letters sent to the Earl Bothwell.

... _Item._ ... We are coupled with twa fals racis; the devill syndere us, and G.o.d mot knit us togidder for ever for the maist faithful cupple that ever he unit.i.t. This is my faith, I will die in it.

... _Item._ ... Wareit {cursed} mocht this pokishe man be, that causes me haif sa meikill pane, for without hym I wald haif ane far mair plesant subject to discourse upoun. He is not oer meikle spilt, bot he has gottin verray mekill; he has almaist slane me with his braith; it is war nor your unclis, and zeit {yet} I c.u.m na neirar bot sat in ane cheir at the bedfute, and he beand {being} at the uther end thairof.

... _Item._ ... Send me advertis.e.m.e.nt quhat I sall do, and quhatsumever sall c.u.m thairof I sall obey you; advys to with yourself. Yf ye can fynd out any mair secreit inventioun be medecein, and the baith in Craigmillar.

... _Item._ ... "For certaintie he suspectis that thing ye know, and of his lyif: bot as to the last, how sone I speak twa or thrie guid wordis unto hym, he rejois and is out of doubt."

... _Item._ ... Sie not his quhas fenzeit tearis suld not be sa mekill praysit, nor estemyt, as the trew and faythfull travaillis quhilk I sustene to merit hir place, for obteyning of quhilk, againis my naturall. I betray thame that may impesche me. G.o.d forgive me, and G.o.d gif you, my onlie luif, the hope and prosperitie that your humble and faythfull luif desyris unto yow, quha hoipis schortlie to be ane uther thing unto yow. {Letter, ii. pp. 167-182.}

... _Item._ ... As to me, howbeit I heir no farther newes from yow.

According to my commission, I bring the man with me to Craigmillar upon Munday, quhair he will be all Wednisday. {Letter i., pp. 165-6.}

... _Item._ ... In ane uther lettre, "I pray you, according to your promeis, to discharge your hart to me, utherwayis I will think that my malheure, and the guid composing of thame, that hes not the third part of the faythfull and willing obedience unto yow that I beyre, has wyne, againis my will, that advantage over me quhilk the secund luif of Jason wan; not that I wolde compair yow to ane soe unhappie as he was, nor yit myself to ane soe unpetifull a woman as she...." {Letter iv., p. 185.}

_COMMISSION REMOVED TO WESTMINSTER_

The Conference at Westminster.

[At the beginning of the Westminster Conference, Mary found herself "ever straiter and straiter kept from liberty," and demanded to be allowed to appear in person. Her request and Elizabeth's reply will be found on pp. 145, 148. On the 26th November, Murray made his "eik" or additional charge. For the relevant portions of this doc.u.ment, and of the reply of Mary's Commissioners, see pp. 146-7.

On December 6th, Mary's representatives protested that they would withdraw from the Conference if their mistress's demand were not granted. Cecil declined, on a formal point, to receive the protest.

On the 6th, 7th, and 8th, Murray produced his proofs. On the 9th, the protest was accepted, and Mary's Commissioners withdrew. After their retirement further evidence was received. It may be of use to enumerate the doc.u.ments produced at Westminster:--

_PRODUCTIONS AT WESTMINSTER_

The Book of Articles.

Acts of Parliament ratifying the proceedings of the insurgent Lords.

Two contracts of marriage, and record of Bothwell's trial and divorce.

Five of the six letters produced at York, three additional letters, and the sonnets (pp. 162-201).

Recognition of the Regent's Government by Huntly, Argyll, and Herries (pp. 154-5).

Depositions and confessions of Hay, Hepburn, Powrie, Dalgleish, Nelson, and Crawford.

Murray's "Journal or Diary of Events."

The Book of Articles is a doc.u.ment of considerable length. It is a summary of the charges against the Queen of Scots, but contains no important charge which is not to be found elsewhere. The reader is already in possession of its essential allegations. It formed the material for Buchanan's "Detectio," with which it is, at times, almost identical. It is printed, from the Hopetoun MS., in Hosack's "Mary," I. App. B. For the depositions of Nelson and Crawford, see pp. 207-213. The depositions of Hay, Hepburn, Powrie, and Dalgleish do not directly accuse the Queen of the murder, beyond stating that the powder was placed in her room, and they have therefore been omitted. The question of the position of the powder is discussed in Hosack, vol. i. pp. 247-8, and the reader is referred to the authorities there quoted, and to Mr. Hay Fleming's "Mary Queen of Scots," pp. 435-6 (_cf._ also pp. 219-220). The confession of Hepburn (English edition of Buchanan's "Detection") contains the following sentence:--"He said, let no man do evil for counsel of great men ... for surely I thought that night that the deed was done, that although knowledge should be gotten, no man durst have said it was evil done, seeing the handwriting and acknowledging the Queen's mind thereto." No question was put to Dalgleish regarding the casket found in his possession.

A quotation from Murray's "Diary," so far as it bears on the murder, will be found on pp. 213-215.]

_The Earl of Suss.e.x to Sir William Cecil_, October 22, 1568.

_Lodge: Ill.u.s.trations of British History._

This matter must at length take end, either by finding the Scotch Queen guilty of the crimes that are objected against her, or by some manner of composition with a show of saving her honour. The first, I think, will hardly be attempted, for two causes, the one, for that if her adverse party accuse her of the murder by producing of her letters, she will deny them, and accuse the most of them of manifest consent to the murder, hardly to be denied; so as, upon the trial on both sides, her proofs will judicially fall best out, as it is thought. The other, for that their young King is of tender and weak years and state of body; and if G.o.d should call him, and their Queen were judicially defaced ...

Hamilton, upon his death, should succeed; which Murray's faction utterly detest.

_MARY'S REQUEST_

1568.--November 22. Mary to her Commissioners.

_Goodall_, vol. ii. p. 185, _from Queen Mary's Register_, Cott. Lib., t.i.tius C. 12.

Ye shall afore our sister, her n.o.bility, and the whole amba.s.sadors of strange countries, desire, in our name, that we may be licensed to come in proper person afore them all, to answer to that which may or can be proposed and alleged against us by the calumnies of our rebels, since they have free access to accuse us.... And now the said Earl of Murray being permitted to come into her presence, which if the like be not granted us, as is reasonable, and yet our sister will condemn us in our absence, not having place to answer for ourselves, as justice requires; in consideration of the premisses ye shall break off your conference, and proceed no further therein, but take your leave and come away.

_THE REGENT'S "EIK"_

1568.--November 26. Murray's "Eik" or Additional Charge.

_Goodall_, vol. ii. p. 206, from Cott. Lib. Calig., C. i. 230.

Whereas in our former answer, upon good respects mentioned in our protestation, we kept back the chiefest causes and grounds, whereupon our actions and whole proceedings were founded, wherewithal seeing our adversaries will not content themselves; but by their obstinate and earnest pressing we are compelled, for justifying of our cause, to manifest the naked truth. It is certain, and we boldly and constantly affirm, that as James, sometime Earl of Bothwell, was the chief executor of the horrible and unworthy murder, perpetrated in the person of umquhile King Henry of good memory, father to our sovereign Lord, and the Queen's lawful husband, so was she of the foreknowledge, counsel, device, persuader and commander of the said murder to be done, maintainer and fortifier of the executors thereof, by impeding and stopping of the inquisition and punishment due for the same, according to the laws of the realm, and, consequently, by marriage with the said James, sometime Earl Bothwell, delated and universally esteemed chief author of the above-named murder. Where through they began to use and exercise an uncouth and cruel tyranny in the whole state of the commonwealth, and with the first (as well appeared by their proceedings) intended to cause the innocent Prince, now our Sovereign Lord, shortly follow his father, and so to transfer the crown from the right line to a b.l.o.o.d.y murderer and G.o.dless tyrant. In which respect the estates of the realm of Scotland finding her unworthy to reign, decreed her demission of the Crown, with the coronation of our sovereign Lord, and establishing of the regiment of that realm, in the person of me, the Earl of Murray....