The Early History of the Scottish Union Question Part 2

Nor must you believe those who call us rebels. We maintain the queen's right. We study to preserve the liberty of her realm at the hazard of our lives. If, during the absence and minority of our sovereign, we tamely allow strangers to plant themselves in our strongholds, to seize the reins of government, and alter our laws at their pleasure, may she not hereafter call us to account, and may not the people esteem the n.o.bles of Scotland unworthy of the place of councillors? All we desire is to defend the freedom of our country and the independence of the Crown.[24]

Finally, do not lightly reject the friendship of Scotland. England is separated from every other nation by the sea; and if she unites with Scotland, her defences will be complete. Study the advice which Demosthenes gave to the Athenians, and you will learn what a wise man should do when his neighbour's house is on fire.[25]

It was to press these views upon the statesmen of England that Maitland had been sent to London; and he was empowered to make an offer which shows that the Lords of the Congregation were in deadly earnest. Let everything, they said, which is past and gone be forgotten--Edward the First and Wallace, Bruce and Bannockburn, Flodden and Pinkie, all the long roll of victories and defeats on one side or another; let the words England and Scotland be obliterated; and let the two nations become one under the name of Great Britain, with Elizabeth as ruler of the United Kingdoms. It is impossible to say what would have followed if the English Council had entertained this proposal. But it implied war with France, not only on the Scottish border, but at every vulnerable point upon the coast of England. Even on the question of sending troops to Scotland, Elizabeth hesitated for a long time. But at last Cecil persuaded her to make up her mind. A fleet, under the command of Winter, sailed for the Firth of Forth; and an army of eight thousand men, under the command of Lord Grey, Warden of the Eastern Marches, was mustered at Berwick.

Then, after all these months of irresolution, the effect of a firm policy was seen. The French amba.s.sador at London apologised for the conduct of Mary and the Dauphin in a.s.suming the arms of England, and threw the blame upon the late king; and an offer was made to restore Calais if England would refrain from interfering in Scotland. But to this offer Elizabeth is said to have returned the haughty answer that "she did not value that fisher town so much as to hazard for it the state of Britain."[26]

And now, for the first time, English soldiers were to enter Scotland as friends. But before the decisive movement was made, Norfolk, Lieutenant of the North of England, went to Berwick and made a convention with the Lords of the Congregation. Scotland was put under the protection of Elizabeth during the subsistence of the marriage of the Queen of Scots and the King of France. For the preservation of the liberties of Scotland, and to expel the French, an English army was to cross the border.[27] England became bound never to permit Scotland to be conquered, or united to France, otherwise than it already was by the marriage of Mary and Francis. Scotland became bound to send an army of four thousand men to a.s.sist England, if, at any time, she was invaded by France. Argyll, as Lord Justice of Scotland, was, if required by the Queen of England, to act with the Lord Lieutenant in reducing the north of Ireland to obedience. England was to receive hostages for the due performance of these stipulations on the part of Scotland.[28]

The Treaty of Berwick was signed on the 27th of February; but so unwilling was Elizabeth to take the final step that nearly a month had pa.s.sed away before the troops were allowed to advance. At the end of the month the greater portion of the army crossed the Tweed.[29] They were well received by the country people; and on the 4th of April the English and Scottish leaders held a council of war at Pinkie House. In the operations of the next three months everything centred round the siege of Leith. In spite of the gallantry of the French, the garrison was reduced to desperate straits. The French fleet, with reinforcements on board, was scattered by a storm. The Queen Regent died during the night of the 10th of June 1560; and four days later the preliminary articles of a treaty were signed at Berwick.[30]

Peace was finally concluded at Edinburgh on the 6th of July. Mary and the Dauphin were to give up using the arms or the royal t.i.tle of England. The fortifications of Leith were to be demolished. All the French soldiers, except one hundred and twenty men, were to leave Scotland at once. The affairs of Scotland were to be administered entirely by Scotsmen; and the executive government was, during the absence of Mary, to consist of twelve persons, of whom the queen was to choose seven from a list of names drawn up by the Estates. On the question of religion, it was agreed that when the Scottish Parliament next met, a deputation should be sent to France to lay the wishes of the country before the queen.[31]

These events not only proved that England was strong enough to set the arms of France at defiance, and to reject the councils of Spain, but they established, for all time to come, a close and real connection between England and Scotland. In the hour of danger the best men in Scotland had turned to England for help. Cecil, and those who thought with him, had persuaded Elizabeth to disregard all interference and the remonstrances of foreign Courts. She had done so with reluctance. Slowly and through many a tortuous path she had sent help to Scotland; but, in the end, the deliverance was complete. The war and the treaty of July 1560 destroyed the French influence in the northern portion of the island, taught the Scots that it was only by an Union with Protestant England instead of Catholic France that their liberties could be maintained, and opened the way for the Scottish Reformation. For the Lords of the Congregation were now supreme; and before the end of August, without waiting for the queen's consent, the Estates had met and pa.s.sed the statute by which they disowned the authority of the Pope.[32]

But although so much had been done, the marriage of Elizabeth and Arran was as far off as ever. In their policy of binding the nations together by a closer tie, Cecil in England and Maitland in Scotland had a great ma.s.s of public opinion to support them, especially on the Protestant side.[33] The Scottish Estates were so eager for the Union of the Crowns that they would not listen to Maitland, who, though strongly in favour of the marriage, foresaw difficulties which could be only overcome by waiting; and it was resolved that commissioners should at once be sent to lay the wishes of the Estates before Elizabeth.[34]

If Mary of Scotland died without issue, Arran was, after his father, the next heir to the Crown; but it can scarcely be doubted that the Lords of the Congregation did not contemplate waiting for the extinction of the Stuart line. Mary had not been in Scotland since her childhood. She was Queen of France; and, in all probability, she would remain in France for the rest of her life. So long as Mary of Guise was Regent, so long as Frenchmen governed Scotland, so long as Scotland, like France, adhered to the Catholic Faith, the power of the house of Stuart was hardly, if at all, impaired by the absence of the queen. But now all this was at an end. Mary of Guise was dead. An English army had expelled the soldiers of France. The government of Scotland was in the hands of Scotsmen. The Scottish nation was no longer Catholic. To celebrate the ma.s.s was an offence against the law; and the Scottish clergy were using the Prayer-book of Edward the Sixth. Thus it was a mere form of words to call Mary Stuart Queen of Scotland as well as of France. Of real power she no longer possessed a vestige; and it is easy to see that in the first bloom of the Scottish Reformation, with Knox in full vigour, and with the whole country in revolt against the Romish priesthood, the marriage of Arran would very likely have been followed by the triumph of the Protestant Hamiltons over the Catholic Stuarts, and the union of the two nations, with one crown, and probably with one form of Church government.

Perhaps in the history of great events we too seldom remember that kings and queens are, after all, merely men and women. Here was a crisis at which the Protestants of England and Scotland were unanimous in wishing the Defender of their Faith to enter upon a contract, by means of which she would accomplish what had been one of the great ends of English policy from the days of Edward the First to those of Henry the Eighth.

But that contract was one which concerned her as a woman rather than as a queen; and she knew that the ceremony which might put the Crown of Scotland within reach of the Queen of England would, while uniting the kingdoms, separate Elizabeth Tudor from Robert Dudley. The Protestants of England knew this, and dread of the Dudley marriage, as well as their anxiety to cement the alliance with Scotland, made them support the pretensions of Arran.

But suddenly, before Elizabeth had made up her mind, the death of Francis the Second saved her from the necessity of giving a definite answer to the Scottish commissioners. This event, by which the Crowns of France and Scotland were once more separated, opened a new scene in the drama of international politics, and enabled her to escape from the dilemma in which she found herself. She thanked the Scottish Estates for the goodwill which they had displayed towards her; and she a.s.sured them that she regarded the offer of marriage as a token of their wish "to knit both theis kingdomes presently in Amytye, and hereafter to remaine in a perpetual Amytye." But in the meantime, though she had a high opinion of the Lord Arran, she was not disposed to take a husband, and she thought that the friendship of the nations could be maintained without a marriage. With this unsatisfactory answer the commissioners were obliged to be content.[35]

Then came the return of Mary to Scotland, her stubborn refusal to ratify that clause of the Treaty of Edinburgh by which she was to give up using the t.i.tle of Queen of England, her quarrels with the reformers, and the long series of misfortunes and misdeeds which ended only with the tragedy of Fotheringay.

The failure of the marriage negotiations was taken as an insult by the Scots; and doubtless this accounts, to some extent, for the cordial way in which Mary, in spite of her adherence to the Church of Rome, was welcomed on her return from France. The project of uniting the kingdoms by a royal marriage was not again renewed in so definite a form; but during the numerous intrigues spread over so many years, the purpose of which was to find a husband for the Queen of Scots, the effect which her marriage would have upon the relations of England and Scotland was never lost sight of. If the suitor for her hand was a Protestant, he was favoured by those who desired to see peace between the two nations; if he was a Catholic, by those who desired a renewal of the French alliance, or at least a rupture with England.[36] Protestant or Catholic? that was the great question for England and Scotland then, as for the rest of Europe. Everything turned upon that. During Mary's short sojourn at Holyrood, and during the long years of her captivity in England, everything--conspiracies against Elizabeth; the rise and fall of Regents in Scotland; the civil wars with all their treachery and bloodshed; the a.s.sa.s.sinations; the beheadings--every episode and every scheme, however disguised, was a part of the contest between the old faith and the new.

During these years of trouble the Protestants of the two countries drew gradually together; and in the year 1586 the kingdoms entered into a compact which lasted until the death of Elizabeth and the accession of James to the throne of England.

The Duke of Guise asked James of Scotland to join the Holy League. But to this invitation he returned no answer; and Sir Edward Wotton, who was sent as amba.s.sador to the Court of Holyrood, found that James was ready to form an alliance with Elizabeth and Henry of Navarre in defence of the Protestant religion. A Scottish Parliament, which met at St. Andrews in July 1585, authorised the king and his Council to enter upon a league, more strict and firm than any previous league, between England and Scotland, which, the Estates said, were naturally allies, and were alike exposed to the a.s.saults of the common enemy.[37] In the following year commissioners for both kingdoms met, and signed the League. It was agreed that the sovereigns of England and Scotland should defend the Protestant religion against all comers. There was to be an alliance, offensive and defensive, between the countries. If England was invaded at a point at a distance from Scotland, an army of seven thousand Scotsmen was to march to a.s.sist her. If Scotland was invaded at any place distant from England, twelve thousand Englishmen were to help her.

If the invasion took place near the Borders, James was to send as many troops as he could muster to the spot. If any trouble arose in Ireland, none of the inhabitants of Scotland were to be permitted to go thither.

Neither kingdom was to shelter rebels fleeing across the Border. All former treaties of friendship between the countries were to remain in force; and James bound himself to see, when he reached the age of twenty-five, that these terms were ratified by the Scottish Parliament.[38]

Nothing was said about Mary of Scotland during these negotiations. She was entirely ignored; and it is impossible to say how far this may have helped to remove any scruples which she might have felt about the objects of the Babington Conspiracy.[39] Her execution, however, endangered the new alliance when it had existed for only nine months.

The Scottish clergy had, indeed, with scarcely an exception, refused to pray for her; and if she had been tried and sentenced by the Privy Council of Scotland or by the Scottish Parliament, the Catholic laity alone would have attempted to save her. But the manner of her trial and condemnation was regarded as a national affront; and when the Estates met in July 1587 the peers offered to give their lives and fortunes to avenge the fate of the Scottish queen, who, after eighteen years of captivity in England, had perished at the hands of Englishmen. During the autumn and winter the Borders were in a state of dangerous excitement. An invasion from Scotland was expected. Preparations were made for raising ten thousand men to repel it; and there appears to have been some idea of rebuilding the old Roman wall.[40]

The indignation expressed by James at the treatment which his mother had received was doubtless not altogether feigned. But the great aim of his life now was to secure his own succession to the throne of England; and Walsingham adroitly availed himself of this circ.u.mstance for the purpose of preventing war. Sir John Maitland, a younger brother of Maitland of Lethington, was the Scottish Secretary, and to him Walsingham wrote a letter, which he knew would be read by James, and in which, with consummate art, he proved that if the youthful King of Scots wished to reach the object of his ambition, he must maintain his friendship with England.[41]

The resentment of James died speedily away. On various occasions, during the remainder of Elizabeth's reign, the relations of the two countries were strained, and there was bad blood between the sovereigns. But there was no open rupture; and at last the house of Stuart entered peaceably, and without opposition, on the rich heritage of the English Crown.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] "De Regnis Angliae et Scotiae conjunctis. Quia Regna Angliae et Scotiae, ratione Superioris Dominii, quod in eodem Regno optinemus benedicto altissimo, sunt conjuncta, Mandatum est Justiciariis de Banco, quod Brevia Regis, coram eis porrecta vel retornata, de data dierum et locorum, infra idem Regnum Scotiae, mentionem facientia, de caetero admittant; exceptiones, si quas, de hujusmodi datis et locis, proponi contigerit coram eis, nullatenus allocantes, Teste Rege apud Berewic.u.m super Twedam, 3 die Julii." (_Fdera_, ii. 533.)

[2] These were the Bishops of St. Andrews and Dunkeld, the Abbots of Cupar and Melrose, the Earls of Buchan and March, Sir John de Mowbray, Sir Robert de Kethe, Sir Adam de Gurdon, and Sir John de Inchmartyn.

[3] The name, so hated in Scotland, of "Mons. Joh. de Meneteth" appears as one of the Council appointed to a.s.sist John de Bretaigne.

[4] Ordonnance faite par Edouard Roi d'Angleterre sur le Gouvernement de la terre d'Escosse, Act. Parl. Scot. i. 119; Sir Francis Palgrave's _Doc.u.ments and Records ill.u.s.trating the History of Scotland_, 292, 295; _Calendar of Doc.u.ments relating to Scotland_, ii. 457.

[5] Mr. Patrick Fraser Tytler very justly remarks how absurd was the idea "that a free country was to be compelled into a pacific matrimonial alliance, amid the groans of its dying citizens and the flames of its seaports" (_History of Scotland_, vi. 42). See also, on the Scottish policy of Henry VIII., the instructions given to the army in Scotland in April 1544 (vol. v. p. 473, and the _Hamilton Papers_, vol. ii. p. 325).

They were to "burn Edinburgh town, and to rase and deface it when you have sacked it"; and all over the country "man, woman, and child" were to be put to the sword "without exception."

[6] Holinshed, iii. 998.

[7] "Terra variabilis communi utriusque gentis vocabulo dicta The Debateable Ground."

[8] _Fdera_, xv. 265.

[9] "Notwithstanding the ancient alliance of France and Scotland, and the long intercourse of good offices between the two nations, an aversion for the French took its rise, at this time, among the Scots; the effects whereof were deeply felt, and operated powerfully through the subsequent period" (Robertson, i. 110).

[10] The Queen of Scots was to "aggre and obleis hir self and hir successouris, that scho, hir Airis and Successouris, sall observe and keip the Fredomes, Liberteis, and Privelegeis of this Realme, and Lawis of the samyn, sicklike and in the samyn maner as hes bene keipit and observit in all Kingis Tymes of Scotland of before" (Keith, App. 14; Act. Parl. Scot. ii. 504).

[11] "Le servir, obeyr et honnorer, durant et constant ledit mariage, ensemble l'hoir issu et procree d'iceluy mariage auquel adviendra le Royaume d'Escosse, tout ainsy comme nous et nos Predecesseurs aut loyauement servy et honnore les n.o.bles progeniteurs et antecesseurs de la ditte Dame Reyne d'Escosse nostre Souveraine" (Keith, App. 20). On the occasion of the marriage, Henry of France issued letters of naturalisation conferring all the privileges of French citizenship on Scotsmen living in his dominions; and the Scottish Parliament returned the compliment by pa.s.sing an Act which naturalised Frenchmen in Scotland. (Act. Parl. Scot. ii. 507, 515.)

[12] Address to the Council, in Mr. Froude's _History of England_, vol.

vi. p. 111 (ed. 1870).

[13] The plenipotentiaries for Scotland at Cambray were the Cardinal of Lorraine; the Duke of Montmorency; Jacques d'Albon, Marshal of France; Morvillier, Bishop of Orleans; and Claude de l'Aubespine, Secretary of State.

[14] "A pleasant country village on the north side of the river Tweed, within the borders of Scotland, five miles west from Berwick" (Keith, 108).

[15] "This treaty was finished and drawn up at the Church of Our Lady of Upsalinton the 31st of May (1559), and duplicates thereof were delivered and exchanged in the Parish Church of Norham, just opposite, on the English side of the Tweed, that same day" (_Ibid._).

[16] They told her, "That, by her tolerance, their religion had taken such a root, and the number of the Protestants so increased, that it was a vain hope to believe that they could be put from their religion, seeing they were resolved as soon to part with their lives as to recant"

(_Sir James Melvil's Memoirs_, p. 25).

[17] His father, the second Earl of Arran, and first Duke of Chatelherault, was, it will be remembered, Regent of Scotland from the death of James the Fifth, in 1542, until 1554, when he was succeeded by Mary of Guise. He was a Lord of the Congregation.

[18] Mr. Froude's _History of England_, vol. vi. pp. 236, 237: "You,"

said an emissary of the Congregation at Paris to Sir Nicholas Throgmorton, "have a queen, and we our prince the Earl of Arran, marriageable both, and chief upholders of G.o.d's religion. This may be the means to unite England and Scotland together, and there is no foundation nor league durable nor available but in G.o.d's cause."

[19] "If the Queen shall be unwilling to this, as it is likely she will, in respect of the greedy and tyrannous Affliction of France; then is it apparent that Almighty G.o.d is pleased to transfer from her the Rule of the Kingdom for the weal of it; and in this time great Circ.u.mspection is to be used, to avoid the deceits and trumperies of the French. And then may the Realm of Scotland consider, being once made free, what means may be devised through G.o.d's goodness to accord the two Realms, to endure for time to come at the Pleasure of Almighty G.o.d, in whose Hands the Hearts of all Princes be" (Memorial of Certain Points meet for the Restoring of the Realm of Scotland to the Ancient Weale, written by my Lord Treasurer, with his own Hand, 5 August 1559, Cotton MSS., Keith, App. 23).

[20] A Short Discussion of the Weighty Matter of Scotland, August 1559.

Cotton MSS., Keith, App. 24.

[21] "But now hes G.o.d's providence sa altered the case, zea, changed it to the plat contrary, that now hes the Frensche taken zour place, and we, off very jugement, bec.u.m disyrous to have zow in theyr rowme. Our eyes are opened, we espy how uncareful they have been of our weile at all tymes, how they made ws ever to serve theyr turne, drew ws in maist dangerous weys for theyr commodite, and, nevertheless, wad not styck, ofttymes, against the natowr of the ligue, to contrak peace, leaving ws in weyr. We see that their support, off late zeres, wes not grant.i.t for any affection they bare to ws, for pytie they had of our estate, for recompense of the lyke friendship schawin to theym in tyme of theyr afflictiones, but for ambition, and insatiable cupidite to reygne, and to mak Scotland ane accessory to the Crown of France."

[22] "I wald ze should not esteme ws sa barayne of jugement, that we cannot forese our awne perril; nor sa foolische, that we will not study by all gude means to entertayne that thing may be our safetye; quhilk consistes all in the relaying of zour friendships."

[23] "Tak hede ze say not hereafter, 'Had I wist'; ane uncomely sentence to procede off a wyse man's mouth."

[24] "We seke nathing but that Scotland may remane, as of before, a fre realme, rewlit by hir hyenes and hir ministeres borne men of the sam; and that the succession of the Crowne may remane with the lawful blode."

[25] Letter of Maitland of Lethington, "from the original in his own hand" (Cotton MSS., Roberston, App. No. II.).

[26] Spotswood, 146. It is needless to say that though Elizabeth may have used these words, she was bent on recovering Calais.