ENGLAND, 
Lord ITuntley began the onfet, charging the divifion of 
lord Howard with fuch fury, that it was foon routed. 
But this divilion was fo feafonably fupported by lord 
Dacres, that the men rallied, and the battle became gene¬ 
ral. Both Tides fought with incredible valour, until the 
Highlanders, being galled by the Englilh artillery, broke 
in, fword in hand, upon the line commanded by the earl 
of Surrey ; and at their head king James fought with the 
mod forwardof the nobility. The rear divifion, how¬ 
ever, could not advance in time to fupport the advanced 
troops,'fo that a body of Englilh intercepted their retreat. 
James, though almolt furrounded, refufed to quit the 
field; but, alighting from his horfe, formed his little troop 
into an orb, and in this polture fought with fuch defpe- 
rate courage, as reftored the battle. The Englilh there¬ 
fore were again obliged to have recourfe to their artillery 
and arrows, which made a terrible havock ; but night 
feparating the combatants, it was not before the morning 
that lord Howard perceived he had gained a great and 
glorious victory. The Englilh had loft no perfons of 
note; but almolt the flower of the Scots’nobility fell in 
the battle. Ten thoufand of the common men were cut 
off; and a body, fuppofed to be that of king James, was 
fent to London, where it remained unburied, becaufe a 
femejtce of excommunication'*dill exifted againll James, 
for having leagued with France againft the Holy See. 
But upon Henry’s ardent application to the pope, abfolu- 
tion was granted, and the body interred. However, the 
populace of Scotland Hill continued to think their king 
alive ; and it was given out among them that he had fe- 
cretly departed on a pilgrimage to Jerufalem. 
Thele fucceffes only ferved/to intoxicate Henry with 
pride and felf-importance ; and while his idle pleafures 
engroffed his time, the preparations for repeated expedi¬ 
tions exhaufled his treafures. As it was natural to fup- 
pofe the old minifters, who were appointed to direct him 
by his father, would not concur in thefe projects, Henry 
had for fome time difcontinued their advice, and chiefly 
confided in the counfels of Thomas, afterwards cardinal 
Wolfey, who countenanced and applauded all his fa¬ 
vourite purfuits. Wolfey was the Ton of a private gen¬ 
tleman, and not of a butcher, as is commonly reported, 
of Ipfwich. He was fent to Oxford fo early, that he was 
a bachelor at fourteen, and at that time was called the boy 
bachelor. He rofe by degrees from one preferment to ano¬ 
ther, till he was made reCtor of Lymington in Hants, by 
the marquis of Dorfet, to whofe children he had been 
preceptor. He had not long redded on that living, when 
one of the judices of the peace put him in the (locks for 
being drunk, and railing difturbances at a neighbouring 
fair. This difgrace, however, did not retard his promo¬ 
tion ; for he was recommended as chaplain to Henry VII. 
and being employed by that monarch in a fecret negocia- 
tion refpedting his intended marriage with Margaret of 
Savoy, he acquitted himfelf with equal diligence and 
dexterity. That prince having given him a commiflion 
to Maximilian, then at Bruffels, was furprifed, in lefs 
than three weeks, to fee Wolfey prefent himfelf, with an 
affurance that he had fuccefsfully fulfilled all his majefty’s 
commands. His dexterity on that occafion procured him 
the deanery of Lincoln ; and under that preferment, he 
was introduced by Fox, bilhop of Winchelter, to Henry 
VIII. in hopes that he would have talents to fupplant 
the earl of Surrey, the favourite at that time; and in this 
Fox was not miflaken. Wolfey ufed every art to fuit 
himfelf to the royal temper ; he fung, laughed, and danc¬ 
ed with all the libertines of the court; neither his years, 
nor his difcretion, nor his dignity as an elevated clergy¬ 
man, were any check upon the vicious habits of the king, 
or his government. His character thus coming into a 
confpicuous point of view, began to manifeft itfelf the 
•more. He was infatiable in his acquifitions, but dill 
more magnificent in his expence ; of extenfive capacity, 
but dill more unbounded in enterprife; ambitious of 
power, but dill more delirous of ,glory; infinuating, en- 
Vol. VI. No. 378. 
<XJ3 
perfuafive, and at other times lofty, elevated, 
and commanding; haughty to his equals, but affable to 
his dependents; oppreltive to the people, but liberal to 
his friends ; more generous than grateful ; formed to 
take the afcendant in every intercourfe, but vain enough 
not to cover the defignsof his real fuperiority. 
He had been advanced from the deanery to the bi- 
fiiopric of Lincoln; but this he religned, on being pro¬ 
moted to the archbifhopric of York. Upon the capture 
of Tournay, he had been promoted to the fee of that 
place ; but befides, he got poffeflion, at very low leafes, 
of the revenues of Bath, Worcefler, and Hereford, bi- 
fhoprics then filled by Italians, who were allowed to re- 
fide abroad, and who were glad to compound for this 
indulgence, by parting with a confiderable (hare of their 
profits. Befides many other church-preferments, he was 
allowed to unite with the fee of York, firft that of Dur¬ 
ham, next that of Winchefler ; and his appetite feemed 
to fharpen by the means that were taken to fatisfy it. 
The pope, obferving his great influence over the king, 
was defirous of engaging him in his interefls, and created 
him a cardinal. His houfehold confided of eight hun¬ 
dred fervants, of whom many were knights and gentle¬ 
men. Some even of the nobility put their children into 
his family, as a place of education ; and whoever were 
diflinguilhed by any art or fcience, paid court to the car¬ 
dinal, and were often liberally rewarded, tie was the 
fil'd clergyman in England who wore filk and gold, not 
only on his habit, but alfo on his faddles, and the trappings 
of his horfes. Befides thefe various diflindtions, the pope 
conferred upon him that of legate, with a defign to make 
Him indrumental in draining the kingdom of money, upon 
pretence of employing it in a holy war againd the Turks, 
but in reality to fill his own coffers. In this he fo well 
ferved the court of Rome, that the pod of legate was 
conferred upon him for life ; and he united in his perfon 
the dignified offices of legate, cardinal, archbiffiop, and 
prime minider. 
It was now that Warham, lord chancellor, and arch- 
bilhop of Canterbury, a man of a moderate temper, chofe 
rather to retire from public employment, than maintain 
an unequal conted with this haughty cardinal. Wolfey 
inflantly feized on the chancellorfhip, and is faid to have 
exercifed the duties of that employment with great im¬ 
partiality. The duke of Norfolk, finding the king’s trea¬ 
fures exhaufled, and his fade for expence increafing, was 
glad to relign his office of treafurer, and retire from 
court. Fox, biffiop of Winchefler, who had been the 
indrument of Wolfey’s elevation, withdrew himfelf in 
difgufl ; the duke of Suftolk alfo went home with a re- 
folution to remain private; whilft Wolfey availed him¬ 
felf of their falaries, and filled up their places by his 
creatures, or his perfonal affiduity. Thefe were vafl 
dretches of power ; and yet the churchman was dill in¬ 
fatiable. He procured a bull from the pope, empower¬ 
ing him to make knights and counts, to legitimate baf- 
tards, to give degrees in arts, law, phyfic, and divinity, 
and to grant all forts of difpenfations. So much pride 
and power could not avoid giving high offence to the no¬ 
bility ; yet none dared to vent their indignation. 
In order to divert the public attention, he entered into 
a correfpondence with Francis I. of France, who had 
taken various methods to work upon his vanity, and at 
lad fucceeded. In confequence of that monarch’s wifltes, 
Henry was perfuaded by the cardinal to deliver up Tour- 
nay to the French ; and he alfo agreed to an interview 
with that monarch. This fplendid congrefs was held 
A. D. 1520, between Guifnes and Ardres, near Calais, 
within the Englilh pale, in compliment to Henry for 
eroding the fea. The two monarchs faluted each other 
in the mod cordial manner, and retired into a tent eredted 
for the purpofe, where Henry produced the articles of 
their intended alliance. As he began to read the firfl 
words of it, “I, Henry, king,” he flopped a moment, and 
then fubjoined only “ of England,” without adding France , 
? Y the 
