152 Wulfhall and the Seymours. 
No. ix., Letter 2.) But in this she was over-ruled. Queen Elizabeth, 
however, on coming to the throne, raised him to that Earldom, and 
restored to him certain lands, viz., those (and only those) which his 
father had been in possession of in the year 1537, by inheritance. 
This included Wulfhall, Savernake, &. The rest (namely lands 
acquired by the Protector, by purchase, &c.) were lost. (Appendia, 
No. x.) 
The young Earl made his condition worse by an indiscreet clandes- 
tine marriage with a young lady of the most important political 
position, the Lady Katharine Grey, sister of the unfortunate Lady 
Jane Grey. Under the Will of Henry VIII., the Greys, though 
descended from a younger sister of the King’s, were preferred, in 
the Succession, to the descendants from:an elder sister. Such a 
will was, of course, the cause of infinite perplexity to the Statesmen 
of the day. It was set aside; but Queen Elizabeth was exposed to 
continual plots and conspiracies arising from it; and not being over- 
partial to successors of any kind, she more particularly disliked Lady 
Katharine Grey, the representative of the youngest branch. So 
that, when young Edward Seymour, without the leave and even the 
knowledge of the Queen, had the audacity to marry Lady Katharine, 
the result may be easily anticipated. 
Here might be introduced a long and lamentable story, but a very 
few words must suffice. 
Upon the Queen’s discovery of the marriage (but not until several _ 
months after the event), the young couple were committed to the 
Tower, in 1561, with strict order to be kept apart. But Her 
Majesty’s precautions against the appearance of any issue in this line 
of succession came too late. The first son, Edward Lord Beauchamp, 
was born a few days after their committal, and in course of time, in 
February, 1563, a second son, Thomas Seymour; both within the 
Tower walls. On the birth of the second, the case became very — 
serious. The Earl was summoned before the Star Chamber, and 
fined in the very large sum of £15,000, and both were condemned 
to remain in prison. Owing to the plague breaking out, they were 
removed elsewhere for a time, but on returning to the Tower, and 
her health beginning to give way, they were again transferred to 
