68 THE HISTOEY OF THE EOYAL BUCKHOUNDS. 



that his chief obstacle was the influence which Leicester 

 possessed over the Queen, he made it his first object to wean 

 her from her afiection for that nobleman, by disclosing to her 

 the secrets of his amours, and informing her of his recent 

 marriage with the relict of the late Earl of Essex, a marriage 

 hitherto concealed from her knowledge. The Queen was 

 mortified and irritated. Leicester added to her displeasure by 

 his indiscretion and impatience. He attributed the influence 

 of the envoy to philters and witchcraft, and occasionally let 

 fall threats of personal vengeance. But the Queen ordered 

 him to be confined at Greenwich, and by proclamation took 

 under her special protection all the members of the Duke of 

 Anjou's embassy, and subsequently invited Anjou to plead his 

 own case, which he promptly accepted. He was favourably 

 received, apparently prospered in his suit, but eventually, in 

 deference to the wishes of her subjects and her council, 

 Elizabeth declined his offer, in the determination to sacrifice 

 her own happiness to the tranquillity and welfare of her 

 kingdom. 



Before the Duke of Anjou returned to Antwerp the Earl of 

 Leicester was restored to favour. In the meantime he acquired 

 the manor of Wanstead and other large tracts of land in Wood- 

 ford, Walthamstowe, Leyton, and Ilford, in the county of Essex. 

 These properties were soon after augmented by further grants 

 of land in Staff'ord, Wilts, and Herts, besides several rich 

 wardships that had fallen to the Crown during this interval. 

 He was appointed custodian of the New Forest and all the 

 Crown lands in the county Southampton for life, by patent 

 dated June 25, 1580. The following year he obtained various 

 grants in England and Wales, including a lease for twenty-one 

 years of the demesne lands of Grafton, county Northampton- 

 At the same time he alienated some portion of his estates, 

 including the manor of Gravesend, county Kent, This will 

 not cause surprise, for the establishments he kept up were 

 various and vast, and everything he did necessitated an 

 enormous expenditure of money; and with this Master of the 

 Royal Buckhounds it was " easy come, easy go." 



