James I. to his son Prince Henry, on his leaving Scotland to take possession of the English Crown. 1603. My Son,-That I see you not before my parting, impute it to this great occasion, wherein time is so precious; but that shall by God's grace be recompensed by your coming to me shortly, and continual residence with me ever after. Let not this news make you proud, or insolent, for a King's son and heir was ye before, and no more are ye yet. The augmentation that is hereby like to fall unto you, is but in cares and heavy burthens. Be, therefore, merry, but not insolent; keep a greatness, but sine fastu; be resolute, but not wilful. Keep your kindness, but in honourable sort; choose none to be your playfellows but them that are well born; and above all things, never give good countenance to any but according as ye shall be informed that they are in estimation with me. Look upon all Englishmen that shall come to visit you as your loving subjects, not with that ceremony as towards strangers, and yet with such heartiness as at this time they deserve. This gentleman whom this bearer accompanies is worthy, and of good rank, and now my familiar servitor; use him, therefore, in a more homely, loving sort nor other. I send you herewith my book lately printed; study and profit in it as ye would deserve my blessing; and as there can nothing happen unto you whereof ye will not find the general ground therein, if not the very particular point touched, so must ye level every man's opinions or advices unto you as ye find them agree or discord with the rules there set down, allowing and following their advices that agree with the same, mistrusting and frowning upon them that advise you to the contrary. Be diligent and earnest in your studies, that at your meeting with me I may praise you for your progress in learning. Be obedient to your master, for your own weal, and to procure my thanks; for in reverencing him ye obey me, and honour yourself. Farewell, Your loving father, JAMES R. XXXIII. Accompanied by that accomplished trifler, the Duke of Buckingham, Prince Charles of England, the spoilt child of an indulgent and affectionate father, had reached the end of what is called a romantic journey to Madrid in quest of a wife. The romancers had passed in disguise through France under the undignified names of Jack and Tom Smith, and at the time this letter was written they were endeavouring to negotiate among the wily Spaniards a marriage-treaty with the Infanta. The only excuse James I. had for seeking a wife for his dear baby' from a house hostile to the Protestant faith was that there was no Protestant princess of immediate royal extraction to be found; at least, there was no king's daughter; and rather than abandon a project that would contribute so much to his desire for a political alliance with Spain-an alliance openly deprecated by the English nation-he consented to demands which, rising as they did at every fresh stage of the contract, overtaxed the patience of Charles himself, who neutralised the pliant disposition of his father by adopting the rôle of an injured suitor, and returning to London. Unfortunately, he went from the smoke to the smother,' and married Henrietta Maria of France. James I. to Prince Charles and the Duke of Buckingham. Theobalds: May 9, 1623. My Sweet Boys,-If the Dutch post had not been robbed and sore beaten in Kent, three days ago, ye had sooner received the duplicate of the power I put in my sweet babies' hands, which I send you for the more security, seeing the expedition of your return depends upon it; but it rejoiceth my heart that your opinion anent the three conditions annexed to the dispensation agreeth fully with mine, as ye will find by one of my letters, dated Theobalds, which Gresley will deliver unto you. Carlisle came yesterday morning to Dos Castellanos, and a devoted servant to the Condé d'Olivares; but my sweet Steenie Gossip, I heartily thank thee for thy kind, droll letter. I do herewith send thee a kind letter of thanks to that King for the elephant, as thou desired, wherein I likewise thank for him, for a letter of his which Carlisle delivered unto me, which is indeed the kindest and courtesest letter ever I received from any King. I have likewise received from Carlisle the list of the jewels which ye have already received, and which of them my baby means to present to his mistress; I pray you, sweet baby, if ye think not fit to present her the collar of great ballest rubies and knots of pearls, bring it home again, and the like I say of the head-dressing of the great pear pearls, which ye have, and other three head-dressings which Frank Stewart is to deliver unto you, for they are not presents fit for subjects; but if ye please, ye may present one of them to the queen of Spain. Carlisle thinks my baby will bestow a rich jewel upon the Condé D'Olivares; but, in my opinion, horses, dogs, hawks, and such like stuff to be sent him out of England by you both, will be a far more noble, acceptable present to him. And now, my sweet Steenie gossip, that the poor fool, Kate, hath also sent thee her pearl chain, which, by accident, I saw in a box in Frank Stewart's; I hope I need not conjure thee not to give any of her jewels away there, for thou knowest what necessary use she will have of them at your return here, besides that it is not lucky to give away that I have given her. Now, as for mails, the more strong mails for carriage that ye can provide me with, I will be the better secured in my journeys, and the better cheap. If ye can get the deer handsomely here, they shall be welcome. I hope the elephant, camels, and asses, are already by the way. And so God bless you both, and after a happy success there, send you speedy and comfortable home in the arms of your dear dad. JAMES R. XXXIV. James I. to Prince Charles and the Duke of Buckingham. March 25, 1623. My Sweet Boys,-God bless you both, and reward you for the comfortable news I received from you yesterday (which was my coronation day), in place of tilting; and God bless thee, my sweet gossip, for thy little letter, all full of comfort, I have written a letter to the Condé d' Olivares, as both of you desired me, as full of thanks and kindness as can be devised, and indeed he well deserves; but in the end of your letter ye put in a cooling card, anent the nuncio's averseness to this business, and that thereby ye collect that the pope will likewise be averse; but first ye must remember that in Spain they never put doubt of the granting of the dispensation—that themselves did set down the spiritual conditions. These things may justly be laid before them; but I know not what ye mean by my acknowledging the pope's spiritual supremacy. I am sure ye would not have mo renounce my religion for all the world; but all that I can guess at your meaning is, that it may [be] ye have an allusion to a passage in my book against Bellarmine, where I offer, if the pope would quit his godhead, and usurping over Kings, to acknowledge him for the chief bishop, to which all appeals of churchmen ought to lie en dernier resort, the very words I send you here inclosed, and that is the farthest my conscience will permit me to go upon this point; for I am not a monsieur that can shift his religion as easily as he can shift his shirt, when he cometh from tennis. I have no more to say in this; but God bless you, my sweet Baby, and send him good fortune in his wooing to the comfort of his old father, who cannot be happy but in him. My ship is ready to make sail, and only stays for a fair wind. God send it her: but I have, for the honour of England, curtailed the train that goes by sea of a number of rascals. And, my sweet Steenie gossip, I must tell thee that Kate was a little sick within these four or five days of a headache, and the next morning, after a little casting, was well again. I hope it is a good sign that I shall shortly be a gossip over again, for I must be thy perpetual gossip; but the poor fool Kate hath, by importunity, gotten leave of me to send thee both her rich chains; and this is now the eighth etter I have written for my two boys, and six to Kate. God send me still more and more comfortable news of you both, till I may have a joyful, comfortable, and happy meeting with you; and that my Baby may bring home a fair lady with him, as this is written upon our Lady-day, 25th of March, 1623. JAMES R. XXXV. Robert Devereux, second Earl of Essex, the impetuous favourite of the Court of Queen Elizabeth, who' never learned to disguise a feeling or conceal a thought,' reached the zenith of royal partiality before he attained his thirtieth year. The idol of the people and of the army, the Queen was as jealous of his popularity as she was fond of him personally. The two following letters are among a series written to the Queen during his outward journey in command of the expedition against Spain, 1597. They indicate his position as the successor of the courtly Earl of Leicester. The Earl of Essex to Queen Elizabeth. Sandwich: June 23, 1597. Your spirit I do invoke, my most dear and admired sovereign, to assist me, that I may express that humblest and most due thankfulness, and that high and true joy which upon the reading of your Majesty's letter my poor heart hath conceived. Upon your spirit, I say, I call, as only powerful over me, and by his infinite virtue only able to express infinite things. Or if I be too weak an instrument to be inspired with such a gift, or that words be not able to interpret for me, then to your royal dear heart I appeal, which, without my words, can fully and justly understand me. Heavens and earth shall witness for me. I will strive to be worthy of so high a grace and so blessed a happiness. Be pleased therefore, most dear Queen, to be ever thus gracious, if not for my merit yet for your own constancy. And so you shall bestow all those happinesses which in the end of your letter you are pleased to wish; and then, if I may hear your Majesty is well and well-pleased nothing can be ill with your Majesty's humblest and most affectionate vassal, ESSEX. XXXVI. The Earl of Essex to Queen Elizabeth. Portland Roads: July 6, 1597. Most dear and most excellent Sovereign,-I received your gracious letter full of princely care, of sweetness, and of power to enable your poor vassal to all duties and services that flesh and blood can perform. I received this dear letter, I say, as I was under sail, coming with your Majesty's fleet into the road of Portland. And because I think it will be welcome news to your Majesty that we are all with safety thus far advanced, I send the gentleman whom your Majesty dispatched to me forthwith back again. By whom, if I could express my soul's humble, infinite and perfect thankfulness for so high favours as your Majesty's five dear tokens, both the watch, the thorn and above all the angel1 which 1 Probably a portrait. |