A HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX 



for the hand of Mary. Norfolk, with good reason, 

 did not trust the Regent. ' Earl Murray,' he said, 

 as they parted at the postern gate, ' thou hast Nor- 

 folk's life in thy hands.' 406 In less than a year 

 Murray had betrayed to Elizabeth all that Norfolk 

 had said to him. 



The queen continued to visit Hampton Court 

 annually, and to spend some time there, but her 

 visits were usually only occasions for rest or amuse- 

 ment. In the autumn of 1569, when Norfolk's 

 rebellion in the north was at its height, she was at 

 the palace, 40 ' and also in July 1571 and Sep- 

 tember I572. 408 On the last occasion she again 

 suffered from smallpox, and was so ill that ' my 

 lord of Leicester did watch with her all night," but 

 the illness lasted a very short time, and she was 

 soon able to go to Windsor. 409 At Christmas she 

 returned to Hampton Court, and kept the season 

 gaily with a long series of the revels in which she 

 rejoiced as much as her father before her.' 10 

 Masques and plays were presented before the 

 court almost every evening in the Great Hall. 

 The Accounts of the Revels at Court tn contain many 

 details of such performances, and show that the 

 stage scenery of those days was not really so primi- 

 tive as is generally thought. There are entries for 

 ' painting seven cities, one village, and one country 

 house,' and for bringing in trees to represent a 

 wilderness. 411 The method of illumination by 

 stretching wires across the open roof of the hall and 

 hanging on them small oil lamps is also described 

 in the accounts. 413 In 1576 and 1577 414 she again 

 spent Christmas with great cheer at Hampton 

 Court, and in 1576 six plays were presented before 

 her by 'the Earl of Warwick's servants,' 'the Lord 

 Howard's servants,' 'the Earl of Leicester's men.' 

 The most interesting of these is 'The historic of 

 Error showen at Hampton Court on New Year's 

 Day at night, enacted by the children of Powles.' 416 

 It has been conjectured that this play was the 

 foundation of Shakespeare's ' Comedy of Errors.' 

 There is a little picture of Elizabeth at the palace 

 in 1576, which shows a less pleasant side of her 

 character, contained in a letter from Eleanor 

 Bridges to the Earl of Rutland : ' The Queen hath 

 used Mary Shelton very ill for her marriage. She 

 hath telt liberal! bothe with bloes and yevellwordes 

 and hath not yet graunted her consent. . . . The 

 Court is as full of malice and spite as when you 

 left.' 4 " 



The queen's hospitality was practically bound- 

 less. The sum total of the charges for the upkeep 

 of her household amounted to 80,000 in one 

 year, but this very enormous sum for the period 

 was exclusive of charges for Christmas and other 

 feasts. 4 " In January 1579 John Casimir, Count 

 Palatine of Rhene and Duke of Bavaria, hunted in 

 the park while he was staying with the queen. 4 " 

 She was also at the palace during 1580, and again 

 in 1582."' In 1592 the Duke of Wurtemberg 

 came to shoot and hunt in the parks, and described 

 his sport as ' glorious and royal.' He also described 

 the palace as ' the most splendid and magnificent 

 to be seen in England, or indeed in any other 

 kingdom.' 4W In Shirley's Deer and Deer Parks are 

 some interesting accounts of Elizabeth's own love 

 of hunting and of turning every occasion into a 

 scene of pageantry. 4 " For Christmas 1592 4 " and 

 I 593 m s ^e was again at Hampton Court. In 

 February 1593 a considerable robbery of plate and 

 jewels took place, which is thus described by a 

 gentleman of the court : ' Bryan Annesley, Francis 

 Hervey, James Crofts, and John Parker, all four 

 gentlemen pensioners, three days agone were 

 robbed, and in their absences at six o'clock at 

 night their chamber door, which is in one of the 

 five towers of the Tilt Yard, 424 was broken open, 

 and all their trunks likewise, out of all of which 

 the thieves took and carried away of jewels and 

 ready money, from these four, to the value of 

 400, and no news heard of them since.' 4 " The 

 chief perpetrator, John Randall, was afterwards 

 discovered and hanged. 426 



At about the same time a plot was discovered 

 to murder the queen, her Spanish Jew physician, 

 Dr. Lopez, having been bribed by the Governor of 

 the Netherlands to put poison in her medicine. 

 The plot was discovered by Essex ; some of the 

 investigations were carried on at Hampton Court, 

 and at first Elizabeth, who was still at the palace, 

 was very angry with Essex for bringing such an 

 accusation against an apparently innocent man. 

 Essex retaliated by shutting himself up in his own 

 room for several days, until Lopez's guilt having 

 become more evident, the queen sent repeated 

 apologies and affectionate messages to her offended 

 favourite. Lopez was afterwards found guilty and 

 executed. 4 " 



In 1599 Elizabeth paid her last visit to Hamp- 

 ton Court, 4 ' 9 as determined as ever to be young 



<ue The interview did take place, and 

 this remark may have been made. If 

 true it would be interesting if the 

 ' postern gate ' could be identified. 

 Hosack, op. cit. i, 480, c. 



<o~ Hiit. AfSS. Com. Rtf. iv, App. zio. 



(06 Digges, Comfleat Ambassador, 

 111-15. 



Life of Sir Thomas Smith, ' Let- 

 ters from Sir T. Smith to Walsingham.' 

 Elizabeth herself wrote that it was not 

 smallpox, though there were symptoms 

 resembling it ; Progresses of Queen /. 

 i, 322. 



110 Digges, Comfleat Ambassador, 310; 

 Life of Sir Thomas Smith, 239. 



411 Published by the Shakespeare 

 Soc. (ed. P. Cunningham). 



412 For many interesting details sec 

 Law, op. cit. i, 318-20. 418 Ibid. 



414 Acts of P.C. 1575-7, P- '*! 

 Warrants for payments for ' bringing a 

 game before Her Majesty,' and for pre- 

 senting two plays before her in 1575-6. 

 At the end of 1575 she entertained the 

 ambassadors of France and of the 

 Netherlands. The embassy from the 

 Netherlands came to offer her the 

 sovereignty of the Low Countries ; 

 Nichols, Progresses of Queen Eliz. ii, 3. 



414 Cunningham, Accounts of Revels 

 at Court, 101. The 'children of 

 Powles' were the choir of St. Paul's 

 Cathedral. 



414 Hist. MSS. Com. Ref. xii, App. iv, 

 107. 



346 



tl ' Nichols, Progresses of Queen Elix. 



''. 47- 



118 Ibid, ii, 277. Ibid, ii, 392. 



480 Rye, Engl. as seen by Foreigners, 

 cit. Law, op cit. i, 326. 



421 Shirley, Deer and Deer Parks, 40; 

 Gascoyne, Book of Hunting ; Nichols, 

 Progresses of Queen Eliz. i, passim, 



4M Memoirs of Robert Carey, Earl of 

 Monmouth, 6 1 (ed. 1808), cit. Law, op. 

 cit. i, 330. 



4 * Nichols, Progresses of Queen Eli*. 

 iii, 216-32. 424 See p. 334. 



425 S.P. Dom. Eliz. ccl, 2 j ccli, 50. 



426 Ibid. 



** Birch, Memoirs of Queen Eli*, i, 

 150-5. 



4i8 S.P. Dom. Eliz. cclxxii, 94. 



