116 HISTORY OF KING HENRY VII. 



be thought to be rather a matter of dignity, after 

 the imitation of that he had known abroad, than 

 any matter of diffidence appropriate to his own case, 

 he made it to be understood for an ordinance not 

 temporary, but to hold in succession for ever after. 



The seventh of November the king held his par 

 liament at Westminster, which he had summoned 

 immediately after his coming to London. His ends 

 in calling a parliament, and that so speedily, were 

 chiefly three : first to procure the crown to be en 

 tailed upon himself. Next, to have the attainders 

 of all of his party, which were in no small number, 

 reversed, and all acts of hostility by them done in his 

 quarrel remitted and discharged ; and on the other 

 side, to attaint by parliament the heads and princi 

 pals of his enemies. The third, to calm and quiet 

 the fears of the rest of that party by a general par 

 don ; not being ignorant in how great danger a king 

 stands from his subjects, when most of his subjects 

 are conscious in themselves that they stand in his 

 danger. Unto these three special motives of a par 

 liament was added, that he, as a prudent and mode 

 rate prince, made this judgement, that it was fit for 

 him to hasten to let his people see, that he meant to 

 govern by law, howsoever he came in by the sword ; 

 and fit also to reclaim them to know him for their 

 king, whom they had so lately talked of as an enemy 

 or banished man. For that which concerned the 

 entailing of the crown, more than that he was true to 

 his own will, that he would not endure any mention 

 of the lady Elizabeth, no not in the nature of special 

 entail, he carried it otherwise with great wisdom and 



