NOTE 4 C. 



dishonourable to her majestic, for him that sustained her royall person, to cou- 

 ferre in equall sort wilh the basest and vilest tray tor that ever lived, a bush 

 kerne, and base sonne of a blacksmith ; suspicious also, in that it was private 

 and secret, no man suffered to approach, but especially no Englishman ; the 

 end of the conference most shamefull, that the wretched traytor should prescribe 

 conditions to his soveraigne : abominable and odious conditions, a publike 

 tolleration of idolatrous religion, pardon for himselfe, and all the traytors in 

 Ireland, and full restitution of lands and possessions to all the sort of them. It 

 was added, that before this parley, a messenger went secretly from the earles 

 campe to the traytor, viz. Captaine Thomas Leigh, if not sent by the earle, at 

 least by his connivency, at least by the connivencie of the marshal 1, whom the 

 earle did not punish. Lastly, the fifth point was urged to be intollerably pre 

 sumptuous, contrary to her maiesties expresse commandement in writing, under 

 the scale of her privy signet, charging him upon his dutie not to return until he 

 heard further from her ; that this his returne was also exceeding dangerous, in 

 that he left the army divided unto two divers men, the Earle of Ormond and the 

 Lord Chancellor, men whom himselfe had excepted against, as unfit for such a 

 trust, and that he so left this army, as that if God his providence had not been 

 the greater, the ruine and losse of the whole kingdome had ensued thereupon. 

 This was the summe of the accusation, every part interlaced with most sharpe 

 and bitter rhetoricall amplifications, which I touch not, nor am fit to write, but 

 the conclusion was (whereby a taste of the same may be had) that the ingresse 

 was proud and ambitious, the progresse disobedient and contemptuous, the 

 regresse notorious and dangerous. Among other things, the Lady Rich her 

 letter to the Queene was pressed with very bitter and hard termes : my Lady 

 Rich her letter he termed an insolent, saucy, malipert action. He proposed 

 also in the end a president for the earles punishment (saying, he was faine to 

 seeke farre for one gentle enough): one William of Britten, Earle of Richmond, 

 who refusing to come home out of France upon the king s letter, was adjudged 

 to loose all his goods, lands, and chattels, and to indure perpetuall imprison 

 ment. Master Attorney particularly said the following- words, whereas the earle 

 in his letter exclameth O tempora, O mores ! (for so I thinke he construed these 

 words of his, O hard destiny of mine, that I cannot serve the Queene and please 

 her too.) Let me also say with the orator concerning him ; Haec regina intel- 

 ligit, haec senatus yidet, hie tamen vivit. In the end of his speech, Now (saith 

 he) nothing remaineth but that wee inquire quo animo ; all this was done. 

 Before my lord went into Ireland, he vaunted and boasted that hee would 

 fight with none but the traytor himselfe, he would pull him by the eares out of 

 his den, hee would make the earle tremble under him, &c. But when he came 

 thither, then no such matter, hee goes another way ; it appeareth plainely he 

 meant nothing lesse than to fight with Tyrone. This was the effect of Master 

 Attorney s part. Master Solliciter his speech followed, which contained the 

 unhappy successe, which ensued in Ireland after the earles departure, whereby 

 appeared how little good the earle had done, in that the traitor was growne much 

 more confident, more insolent, and stronger than ever he was before, as appeared 

 principally by his declaration, which he hath given out since the earles depar 

 ture, vaunting that he is the upholder of the Catholike faith and religion ; that 

 whereas it was given out by some that he would follow the Earle of Essex into 

 England, hee would perhaps shortly appeare in England, little to Englands 

 good : many things he added to that purpose. 



After him Sir Francis Bacon concluded the accusation with a very eloquent 

 speech. First, by way of preface, signifying, that he hoped both the earle him 

 selfe, and all that heard hirn, would consider that the particular bond of duty, 

 which he then did and ever would acknowledge to owe unto the earle, was now 

 to be sequestred, and laied aside. Then did he notably extoll her maiesties sin 

 gular grace and mercy, whereof he said the earle was a singular work, in that 

 upon his humble sute, shee was content not to prosecute him in her court of jus 

 tice, the Starre-chamber, but according to his owne earnest desire, to remove 

 that cup from him (those, he said, were the earles own words in his letter), and 

 now to suffer his cause to be heard, Inter privates parietes, by way of mercy and 



