Elizabeth: September 1577

274. Shrewsbury to Walsingham. [Sept. 2.] C.P., vol. X.

After my very hearty thanks for your friendly letters and Flemish news; I have thought good, upon those bruits of this lady's escape from me, to advertise her majesty that my vigilant care for her safety shall never diminish, but always increase, if it were possible, and that is all the gain I hope that ever the inventors are like to reap by them. I have not as yet removed with my charge. I am loth to trouble you any further, having no other matter of moment to impart, but heartily to desire you to excuse my evil favoured writing to the Queen's majesty, for by reason of a great ache which has vexed me in the wrist of my right hand a long time, I am able to write no better. Sheffield. Signed: G. Shrewsbury.

½ p. Addressed. Indorsed by Walsingham.

275. Elizabeth to Shrewsbury. [Sept. 3.] C.P., vol. X.

Whereas we are advertised from sundry places beyond the seas of bruits sown there that the Queen, your charge, shall be escaped and at her liberty, and thereby great stirs and troubles fallen out, we thought meet to advertise you thereof to the end that you may carry a more heedful eye towards her. And forasmuch as both our cousin of Leicester and the Lord Treasurer have declared to us how that at their late being in those parts with you, conferring with them of your charge of the said Queen, you told them that you might a great deal better warrant her safe keeping if the manner of her keeping and usage towards her were remitted to your own direction, to do therein as you should see cause, either in restraining of her own person more or less, or removing from her such as you suspect to be evil in servants about her of her own family, we let you wit that as we cannot but much commend the care you well declare to have about this your charge—and likewise thank you for the same, so our pleasure is, and we authorise you henceforth to use your own discretion therein, as well as in restraining of the said Queen, as you shall see cause and think meet and expedient, as also in the removing altogether or of such restraining for a time from her all such persons that be about her as you find or suspect to be practisers and instruments for her to do evil offices; assuring ourself that as hitherto you have most carefully used yourself in this your charge, etc., you will, having this further authority given you, use the same in such sort that these bruits given out abroad shall prove vain, and we and our whole realm acknowledge this benefit to proceed of your great and provident care.

1²/3 pp. Draft. Indorsed: "1577. 3 September. Mynute from the Q. majeste to therle of Sherewsbury."

Cott. Calig., C. V., fol. 109.

Copy of the same.

276. Richard Bannatyne to [Thomas Randolph]. Elizabeth. [Sept. 6. 1577.]

A little after the death of that notable man of God, my good master, Mr. Knox, of good memory, I wrote you a letter declaring the effect of his death and manner thereof, which I delivered together with a little book which he wrote against one Tyrie, a Jesuit, to a servant of yours, called Pinkintoun or Pilstoun, but whether your worship received the same or not I never heard. And albeit that the death of that man of God was so notoriously known to all men that it was no small comfort to all who heard thereof, nevertheless there is one Mr. Archibald Hamilton, sometime a regent in the new college of St. Andrews, and also was a preacher to my Lord Duke [Chatelherault] when he was in France, and ministered to him the Lord's Table, has set forth a book entituled "De confusione Calvinianæ sectæ apud Scotos, ecclesiæ nomen ridicule usurpantis, dialogus," which is "repleit full" of such shameful impudent lies, especially of belying the death of sundry ministers, but, most of all, of that man of God, my master, that it is a wonder how Satan should have so bewitched the mind of any to have set forth in print such false lies. The title of his book sufficiently declares his apostasy, wherein he calls himself "Misoplanus ad catholicæ ecclesiæ gremium reversus"; and because I doubt whether the said blasphemous book be come to your hands, I have given to the bearer in writing so much thereof as the aspostate writes of my said master, beseeching your worship to "confer" the one with the other, whereby you will know the better his shameful lies; and if you have not my former letter, if you please, I shall send you the contents thereof, which I have yet reserved with other memorials of his, which, I doubt not, when they shall come to light, shall be sufficient to make that apostate's lies known to all men. If you have my said letter I would pray your worship, for such service as I were able to do you, to send me a copy thereof, because it is more perfect than the minute I have. The said book being declared to the King's grace, he marvelled that such a work should have been put forth by a Scotsman. One said, "quhat rekes, sir, it is ane Hammilton's work." His grace answered saying, "I luife him not so evill becaus he is an Hamiltoun as that I do becaus he is ane apostate." A greater praise to Mr. Knox and a more shame to himself and that surname he could not have done than the setting forth of that lying book, which is called but the work of a Hamilton, who before was "staynit" with treason, and now with aspostasy. It is no new thing to the children to follow the father's footsteps, for as Satan is a liar so his children cannot but lie, thinking thereby to deface the truth, but nothing sets forth truth more than lies, when they are "onis cum to knawledge"; and if ever I had thought that men had been so impudent as to have put forth such shameless untruths—for I suspect it is not done without the advice of others of that faction—the truth of that man of God's death should not now "to have bene to be opinlie knawin." But I trust God has done it to let the shameful doings of liars be known to their greater dishonour, and to the greater praise of him who is falsely belied, whose name otherwise would have come into greater oblivion, and therefore I doubt not God has done all for the best to His glory. Edinburgh. Signed: Richard Bannatyne, presently servant to my Lord Clerk of Register.

Postscript.—"It will pleis zow sir," if Mr. Gudman be any time there, to make my hearty commendations to him, for I have not heard from him these three years now almost, albeit I have written ofttimes to him.

1⅓ pp. Holograph. No flyleaf or address. Indorsed by Randolph: "Rycharde Banatin, servant to the Clerke of Register, who served M^r Knox at the tyme of his deathe."

277. Earldom of Lennox. [Sept.]

"For the douer of the Countesse of Lennox in Scotlande."

"To be entered in the booke of Scotland."

King Henry VIII. by his letters patent dated the 27th of June in the 36th year of his reign, gave commission to Sir Thomas Wryothsley, knight, Lord Chancellor, Charles, Duke of Suffolk, and Sir William Paget, Principal Secretary, to deal with the Earl of Lennox for the marriage of the Lady Margaret, now Countess of Lennox, as also for the assurance of certain the Earl's lands, in Scotland, for her dower.

The Earl of Lennox by his deed of covenant between him and the said commissioners bound himself to endow her of these parcels of land in Scotland, viz.—Glenforune, Ballorth, Arthinturleys, Crwkis, Inchenan, Craignelson, and Tarbolton, and bound himself and his heirs to do all such things from time to time as should be required by the King's majesty, his heirs and successors. By force of which covenants the heirs of the said Earl having the same lands are bound to perform the covenants by the law of Scotland, and if the said lands descend to the King, by their law the King is bound to perform the same covenants. The Countess of Lennox demanding her dower of the Regent of Scotland, he denies the same.

"The title of the inheritantes of the Earledome of Lennox to the Ladie Arbell, daughter to the Lorde Charles late Earle of Lennox."

After the death of Matthew, Earl of Lennox, the earldom descended to the King who now is; who, 8th April 1572, as well by the Earl of Mar, then Regent, as also by the consent of the State of Scotland, by an Act of Parliament, gave the same to the Lord Charles, late Earl of Lennox, and to his heirs for ever. After whose death the said earldom, by reason of the said gift, descended to the Lady Arbell, daughter and heir of the said Earl late deceased. The Regent [Morton] being requested to grant the wardship of the lands to her grace, not only denied the same, but also denied to allow the lady as heir to the earldom; so that the Regent will not permit her grace to deal with the earldom either in her own right as for her dower, or in right of the young lady, as tutrix or guardian to her.

1¼ pp. Copy.