these reasons, finely instilled by such as the French King (who spared for no rewards or promises) had made on his side; and allured likewise by the present glory and greatness of King Charles (being also a young king and a bachelor); and loth to make her country the seat of a long and miserable war; secretly yielded to accept of King Charles. But during this secret treaty with the lady, the better to save it from blasts of opposition and interruption, King Charles resorting to his wonted arts, and thinking to carry the marriage as he had carried the wars, by entertaining the King of England in vain belief, sent a solemn ambassage1 by Francis Lord of Luxemburgh, Charles

at

1 I have not succeeded in absolutely fixing the date of this embassy. But the circumstance which Polydore Vergil is least likely to have been mistaken in relating, and of which the date can be fixed with the nearest approach to certainty, appears to be this; that the ambassadors whom Henry despatched with the answer to this embassy, met on their way, Calais, a legate of the Pope, who was on his way to England. And though Polydore says that the legate came from Pope Alexander VI. who had just succeeded Pope Innocent (in which case it must have been at least as late as August, 1492, after Charles and Anne were married and while England and France were at war)—yet I suppose it was more likely that he should have made a mistake as to the date of Pope Innocent's death than as to the circumstance of an accidental meeting at Calais between the ambassadors and a legate from the Pope.

Taking this then as a fixed point, the date of the "solemn ambassage here mentioned may be set with some confidence in November or December, 1489. We know from the Herald's journal (Jul. xii. fo. 61. b) that during Christmas in that year there was in England a great ambassade of France, that is to say Francois Mons. de Luxembourgh, Viscount of Geneve, and the General of the order of the Trinity in France; which on St. John's Day dined at the King's board:"- that "anon after" Candlemas Day (i. e. Feb. 2nd, 1489-90) “... the ambassadors of France had soon their answer, were right greatly and largely rewarded, and well conduct to the sea side by the King's almoner and Sir John Rysley, Knt.:" - that "soon after the King sent a great ambassage into France" (probably that of which the commission bears date 27th February; see Rymer), "that is to say, the Lord Privy Seal, Bishop of Exeter, the Earl of Ormond, the Queen's chamberlain, and the Prior of Christ Church of Can

Marignian, and Robert Gagvien, general of the order of the bons-hommes of the Trinity, to treat a peace and league with the King; accoupling it with an article in the nature of a request, that the French King might with the King's good will (according unto his right of seigniory and tutelage) dispose of the marriage of the young Duchess of Brittaine as he should think good, offering by a judicial proceeding to make void the marriage of Maximilian by proxy. Also all this while the better to amuse the world, he did continue in his court and custody the daughter of Maximilian, who formerly had been sent unto him to be bred and educated in France, not dismissing or renvoying her, but contrariwise professing and giving out strongly that he meant to proceed with that match; and that for the Duchess of Brittaine, he desired only to preserve his right of seigniory, and to give her in marriage to some such ally as might depend upon him.

When the three commissioners came to the court of England, they delivered their ambassage unto the King, who remitted them to his counsel; where some days after they had audience, and made their proposition by the Prior of the Trinity (who though he were third in place, yet was held the best speaker of them) to this effect: 2

terbury: and that "after Mid-Lent ensuing" (Mid-Lent Sunday in 1490 fell on the 21st of March) "there came to the King divers and many ambassadors, that is to say, a Legate from the Pope," &c. Under these circumstances, the ambassadors on their way to Paris and the Pope's legate on his way to England would very likely meet at Calais.

It is true, on the other hand, that there is in Rymer a safe conduct for the three persons named by Bacon, dated the 10th of December, and entered as belonging to Henry's sixth year; which would be 1490; a date probable enough in itself.

1 So ed. 1622. The MS. omits "her."

2 Is locutus esse perhibetur in hunc modum. There is nothing in Polydore

"My lords, the King our master, the greatest and mightiest King that reigned in France since Charles the great whose name he beareth, hath nevertheless thought it no disparagement to his greatness at this time to propound a peace, yea and to pray a peace, with the King of England. For which purpose he hath sent us his commissioners, instructed and enabled with full and ample power to treat and conclude; giving us further in charge to open in some other business the secrets of his own intentions. These be indeed the precious love tokens between great Kings, to communicate one with another the true state of their affairs, and to pass by nice points of honour, which ought not to give law unto affection. This I do assure your lordships; it is not possible for you to imagine the true and cordial love that the King our master beareth to your sovereign, except you were near him as we are. He useth his name with so great respect, he remembereth their first acquaintance at Paris with so great contentment, nay he never speaks of him, but that presently he falls into discourse of the miseries of great Kings, in that they cannot converse with their equals, but with their 2 servants. This affection to your King's person and virtues God hath put into the heart

or Speed, nor I think in any of the English chroniclers who preceded Bacon, from which it can be gathered that the Prior was the spokesman. It may indeed be reasonably conjectured from the account which Bernard Andrè gives of the matter (Cott. Domit. A. xviii. 193.) that it was so, and several of the particulars that follow may have been taken from this source. But there are several others which could not have been extracted either from Polydore or André, and which show that Bacon had some source of information independent of them. How much of what follows is derived from such a source, and how much is Bacon's own, it is impossible to know.

1 Quæ affectui alicui insigni postponi debent.

2 So MS. Ed. 1622 omits "their."

of our master, no doubt for the good of Christendom, and for purposes yet unknown to us all; for other root it cannot. have, since it was the same to the Earl of Richmond that it is now to the King of England. This is therefore the first motive that makes our King to desire peace and league with your sovereign; good affection, and somewhat that he finds in his own heart. This affection is also armed with reason of estate. For our King doth in all candour and frankness of dealing open himself unto you, that having an honourable, yea and holy1 purpose, to make a voyage and war in remote parts, he considereth that it will be of no small effect in point of reputation to his enterprise, if it be known abroad that he is in good peace with all his neighbour princes, and specially with the King of England, whom for good causes he esteemeth

most.

"But now my lords give me leave to use a few words, to remove all scruples and misunderstandings between your sovereign and ours, concerning some late actions; which if they be not cleared, may perhaps hinder this peace; to the end that for matters past neither King may conceive unkindness of other, nor think the other conceiveth unkindness of him. The late actions are two; that of Brittaine, and that of Flanders. In both which it is true that the subjects' swords of both Kings have encountered and stricken, and the ways and inclinations also of the two Kings in respect of their confederates and allies have severed.

"For that of Brittaine; the King your sovereign knoweth best what hath passed. It was a war of necessity on our master's part. And though the motives 1 So MS. Ed. 1622 has "a holy."

of it were sharp and piquant as could be, yet did he make that war rather with an olive-branch than a laurel-branch in his hand; more desiring peace than victory. Besides from time to time he sent as it were blank papers to your King to write the conditions of peace. For though both his honour and safety went upon it, yet he thought neither of them too precious to put into the King of England's hands. Neither doth our King on the other side make any unfriendly interpretation of your King's sending of succours to the Duke of Brittaine; for the King knoweth well that many things must be done of Kings for satisfaction of their people; and it is not hard to discern what is a King's own. But this matter of Brittaine is now by the act of God ended and passed; and, as the King hopeth, like the way of a ship in the sea, without leaving any impression in either of the Kings' minds; as he is sure for his part it hath not done in his.

"For the action of Flanders; as the former of Brittaine was a war of necessity, so this was a war of justice; which with a good King is of equal necessity with danger of estate; for else he should leave to be a King: The subjects of Burgundy 2 are subjects in chief to the crown of France, and their Duke the homager and vassal of France. They had wont to be good subjects, howsoever Maximilian hath of late distempered them. They fled to the King for justice and deliverance from oppression. Justice he could not

1 This clause is omitted in the translation.

2 Subditi Burgundiæ: meaning (it would seem) the Flemings. through his marriage with the heiress of Burgundy that they beca Maximilian's subjects; and it was as subjects of Burgundy that the King of France claimed to be their lord in chief. In p. 222. the word "Flemings" in the English is rendered by Burgundos in the Latin.