ELIZABETH AND MARY

Evening Post, Volume CXV, Issue 129, 3 June 1933, Page 17

ELIZABETH AND MARY

MORE LIGHT FROM THE FUGCER LETTERS

/'' ;'/r:- (By^Ajax.") Tiic Fugger News-Letters: Firat Series. filing >a Selection of Unpublished *■• -Letiersffont "the Correspondents of the House of Fugger during the years 1568-1605. Edited by Vie* tor yon Klarvrill. 2nd English. Edition. London: John Laric, Tho Bodley Head, Ltd. Published price, 3s 6d. [Second Notice.] Two points recorded by Froude but omitted front the eye-witness's account of the execution of Mary Queen of Scots ■which is included in this book were crowded out of last Saturday's article. Froude's narrative closes with the Sentence: Silence settled down ton Fotheringay, and th« 1 la«t scene of the life of Mary SttitM^ IK > #hicli * tragedy -andy melodrama w«rS so' strangely intermingled, was over. reference ;to melodrama surprised ibiejvjfitidbnUobking again at Fr6Ude's a&iniifi t" • F '<%$& ; find: only; one: episode that might 'be; considered t6 justify it. '■■■'>■ V. tt ?:;>' Vl ■.■■■:"■■■ ■' ■"■> She laid her crucifix on the chair, he writes.' Tbe chief executioner took it as a perquisitey but wa!s ordered instantly to Iky .■■■it down. The lawn veil was lifted carefully off, iiot to disturb the hair, and was hung Upon the riil. The black robewas next removed. Below it was a. petticoat of critnsbn velvet. The black jacket. followed, and under the jacket Was a body of crimson satin; One of her Jrtdies handed het a pair, of crimson sledVes, with Which.she hastily covered her arms; and thus /die' stood on the black' scaffold .with blffek figures; nil around her, blood-red from head to foot. - Froude wisely declines to attempt an espianationof this astonishing display. Her reasons for adopting so fextvaordffidr'y a costume must be left to conjecture, he: says. ;It is only certain that it^ihust have beftn' carefully studied, and that the picttftiat;,Effect tnusfc have, been appalling. The problem would form a good sub^ ject £<xi a prize competition. - ■ ■ • •--,.\'".y;.:y. * * '" * . . ,ThS) other incident to which i have i^errSd relates to tho presence on the s6a&ofd of a little friend who had apliSrejitljf made his >iJay, there ;unpereeiytd. Froude tells the story well, tylj^l prefer the old-time flavour of the contemporary account included in Ellfe's "Original letters Illustrative of British History." ' Afte* tailing of the ea&cutiott and the c*hibitioii t>f the Mad to the crowdj this account ■ concluded «9 follows:-*, . »■": Then one of the executioners off her g*rtert espied Keif ilittlo dog which Sva* £r*pt wider heriVjlothes, Which coujd not fee gotten forth but W forefeet afte^v ward- troald.not depart from the-(stead corpse, biit-'came, and lay between her head and'hejr s)i6ulders> which being imbrued with.nefrbloScl, was carried away and Wfiahed, a*l«tt; .things else were that had any blood wluH' either .btirjied or clean Washedj and the' «s^cuti6neria sent aWay with money for their fees, not having any one thing thj»t belonged unto her.., ; ' « a * , :i:, ' -'■ The Fugger report explains that the plaiiks of the dais, the black cloth, and BlLtb«-Quean'*- raiment and othef-be^ loggings Were "thrown into the fire at pflCer'BO'tlliit'ttO' Superstitious practices could be carried on therewith;" The conclusion of tho report follows:—----i After this exeoution had taken place, th* portals of the castle remained shut until Henry TaJbot^son of the'Karl of Shrewsbury, had-rbeen dispatched to the English Cotirt. iWhen, the other day, he brought tlib Minis'to London, the citizens of this :fewii"Jt bonfires on alt sides and fane the' bells' Because they were rid o|'thai:linger ih which .they had lived d# longA It looks as if the1 populace be* lieved that* aow era had begun in which they hope Wat all Will remain at peace. ■,;. & * #■-■■.. unfortunate Mary's prayer* on. tlk scaffold note furnished by- Froudd ■with a deadly'commentary. .' ,' She pftytd for the. Church which she had been ready to betray; for her son, whom she had disinherited; for the Cjueen whom she had endeavoured to murder. She prayed God 40 avert His wrath from England, that England which she had sent a last' message to Philip to W&eecli him tit invade. She forgave hey cfemies, whom she had invited Philip not to-forget. '■■■■;■■ I'll the following year tho Fiigger corre'sponddnts supply some vivid particulars of the progress that Philip is making with the building of the great Armada (May 18,15S8), a.nd of the help tliat ho is receiving from Eome ; (J»ly 14, 1S88), and fihally tho ultimate disHhUt Is dCßerlbc&. & s. 'fßcpor'tjftbflt Erigland about the, Spanish ;Armadas; revived in Augsburg from Hamburg oh' November 19, 1588.'* :;■ ■. * ■« ■•'■• '■' " 'y . The Bloit intftresting of tliosfe imports Whifh deals with tho exedmmunicatiott of Queen Elizabeth and is dispatched I'rpm Sakbufg apparently because the Archbishop of Salzburg had "been proBent in the Chapel of the Vatican when th ft Bull Was publicly read and had in* forfiied Fugger'« agent on his teturn. Therein the Queen of England is declared to b6 dispossessed of her kingdom, hit kuds, and her subjects, being long since a condehined heretic. Her subj6Hs, of whatever rank they be, are ioicftß^d frfta the vow whereby heretofore they had sworn het allegiance. But Pius V. in 1570 had directed a Bull against "Elisabeth tho pretended Queen of England and those Heretics adhering to her,"' whereby .sho ' was •'deprived.of the-'right Which she protends to th 6 foresaid kingdom" and her subjects were "freed from their oath and from all manner of duty, fidelity,' and obedience." Why then was it nedesiaty fo* Sixtus V to do it again in 1588? Apparently this obstinate Queen who,had been put down in 2570 had refused to stay put, There was, at any rate, an abundance of new matter In this second Bull of dep/6«ition';- Tho Salzbuj'g report proceeds:— The Pane also deprives hbt 6f all the titles she had held up to now, divests her of all honours and transfers thorn all to the King of Spain. On this account the latter is now to declare himself to be rightfully chosen and appointed King of England and Ireland, and Protector of the Catholic Faith in that country. He Is to wage war upon the Queen and to endeavour to bring her lands and her people ■under his sway. His Holiness has publicly proclaimed his Majesty King of Spain, England, and Ireland, and will bestoW this-title upon him for all time, on condition, however, th&t his Majesty whea he obtain possession. of -these provinces pay tribute, to the Holy Roman t*!ee with a certain1 yearly pension, as is done on behalf of the Kingdom of Naples. •«■ : # * Philip already proclaimed "King of Spain, England, and Ireland)" and in duo course to have the British Dominions beyond the Seas' added, and "for all time "-—how queer it sounds!. There waa more at stake in that enterprise than in. the alleged race

for Akaroa! Another interesting point is tho financial help offered by the Pope.. .:: • . ; In order that his Majesty should be able to do this With the greater ease, his Holiness is granting him a million crowns for his assistance: half of it for the present putting to sea of the Armada, and the other half whenever his Majesty's forces have set foot iii England and captured an important harbour. « •* » But the Pope Was spared that second half-million. Philip II of Spain Was unable to set foot in his English Dominion or «yen to 'capture an insignificant harbour. Nor could Napoleon tlio Great or'Wilhelm the Little do any better. "Saxon or-Dane or Norman we," said Tennyson, but he could not say. that we were Spanish or French of German.. Let. Us bo grateful to the merciful Providence by Which our temptations to; belong to these other nations have been over-ruled.