ENGLAND. 
profecute a war which had been declared between him 
and the French king. He there behaved, as in all his 
former expeditions, with ineffectual oftentation. Inftead 
of marching his troops into the heart of the country, he 
fat down before Boulogne, which was obliged to capitu¬ 
late ; while his ally, the emperor of Germany, made a 
fepayate peace. Henry was thus* obliged to return to 
England, where he found his fubjedts ready to offer him 
their accuftomed adulation, for an enterprile which had 
only betrayed his weaknefs and folly. Upon his return 
from this fruitlefs and expenfive expedition, his obfe r 
quious parliament granted him a fubfidy equal to his de¬ 
mands, and added to it a gift, which will make their 
memory for ever odious to poflerity. By one vote they 
bellowed upon him all the revenues of the two univerfi- 
ties, and of all places of education and public worlhip. 
But rapacious as this monarch was, he refrained from de- 
fpoiling thofe venerable feats of learning of their ancient 
endowments ; however, they owed their fafety to his 
lenity, and not to the protection of this bafe and degene¬ 
rate parliament. Nor was he lefs juft with regard to the 
fuggeftionsof his council, who had long conceived an ha¬ 
tred againft Cranmer, and laboured todeftroyhim; and 
alfo againft the queen, whofe redfitude and fidelity they 
endeavoured to impeach. Henry, in thofe two inftances, 
fhewed himfelf fuperior to the machinations of wicked 
and defigning men. 
Still, however, the king’s feverity on the fcore of re¬ 
ligion, continued as violent as ever. For fome time he 
had been afllidted with an ulcer in his leg ; the pain of 
which, added to his great corpulency, and other infirmi¬ 
ties, increafed his natural irafcibility, fo that none could 
approach him without terror. It was not to be expected,. 
therefore, that any who differed from him in religious 
opinions, could hope for pardon. Among the many, 
whofe unmerited fufferings excite pity and indignation, 
the fate of Anne Afkew will ever be remembered. This 
lady was a woman of merit as well as beauty ; and for 
her attachment to the reformation, was condemned to be 
burnt.alive. With her fuffered in the fame caufe, Ni¬ 
cholas Belehian, a prieft ; John Lafcelles, of the king’s 
houfehold ; and John Adams, a tailor; who, upon being 
tied to the ftake, were informed, that upon recanting, 
they would be granted their lives. But they refufed, and 
faw with tranquillity the executioner kindle the flames 
which confumed them. 
Though the king’s health was now rapidly declining, 
yet his implacable cruelties were not the lefs frequent or 
violent. His refentments W'ere diffufed indifcriminately to 
all; at onetime a proteftant, and at another a catholic, 
were the objedts of his feverity. The duke of Norfolk, 
and his fon the earl of Surrey, were the laft that felt the 
injuftice of this tyrant’s perfecution. The duke was a 
nobleman who had ferved the king with great fidelity ; 
his fon was a young man of the mod promiling hopes, who 
excelled in every accomplifhment that became a fcholar, 
a gentleman, and a foldier. He excelled in all the mi¬ 
litary exercifes, and was the firft who brought our lan¬ 
guage, in his poetical pieces, to any degree of refinement. 
Thefe qualifications, however, were no fafeguard againft 
Henry’s implacable malevolence. The earl of Surrey had 
dropt fome expreflions of refentment againft the king’s 
minifters, upon being difplaced from the government of 
Boulogne ; and the whole family were become obnoxious 
by the fate of Catharine Howard, the late queen. From 
thefe motives, therefore, orders were given to arreft the 
father and fon ; and they were both committed to the 
Tower. Surrey being a commoner, his trial was the 
more expeditious; and there were many informers bafe 
enough to betray the intimacies of private converfation, 
and all the connections of blood. The duchefs dowager 
of Richmond, Surrey’s own filter, appeared among the 
number of his accufers; and fir Richard Southwell alfo, 
his moll intimate friend, charged him with infidelity to 
the king. He was therefore condemned for high trea- 
fon, and executed on Tower-hill, January 19, 1547. In 
Vol. VI. No. 379. 
6ft 
the mean time the duke endeavoured to mollify the king 
by letters and fubmiffions; but the monlter’s heart was 
callous to tender impreflions. The parliament found a 
bill of attainder againft the duke of Norfolk, though the 
only crime his accufers could allege againft him was, 
“ that he had faid the king was fickly, and could not hold 
out long ; and that the kingdom was likely to be torn be¬ 
tween contending parties of different perfuafions.” Cran¬ 
mer, though engaged for many years in an oppofite party 
to Norfolk, would have no hand in fo unjuft a profecu- 
tion ; but retired to his feat at Croydon. However, the 
death-warrant was made out, and immediately fent to the 
lieutenant of the Tower. The duke prepared to meet his 
fate, and the following morning was to be his laft ; but 
an event of greater confequence to the kingdom inter¬ 
vened, and prevented his execution. 
The king had been for fome time apprbaching towards 
his end ; and for feveral days all thofe about his perfon 
plainly faw that his fpeedy diffolution Was inevitable. 
His anguilh and remorfe were at this time greater than care 
be expreffed ; he defired that Cranmer might be fent for j 
but before that prelate could arrive, he was fpeechlefs. 
Cranmer defiring him to give fome fign of his dying in 
the Chriftian faith, he fqueezed his hand, and immedi¬ 
ately expired, on Friday the 28th of January, 1547, after 
a reign of thirty-feven years and nine months, in the fifty- 
lixth year of his age. 
Henry was fix times married: tw r o of his queens were 
beheaded ; two of them divorced ; one of them died foon 
after her marriage; the laft, after narrowly efcaping the 
block, furvived him. By his firft queen, Catharine of 
Spain, he had two fons, who died in their infancy, and 
one daughter named Mary, afterwards queen of England. 
By his fecond queen, Anna Boleyn, he had one daughter, 
named Elizabeth, who fucceeded her lifter in the throne. 
By his third queen, Jane Seymour, he had one fon, named 
Edward, his immediate fuccelfor. By his laft three queens 
he had no iffue. By Elizabeth Blount, daughter of fir 
John Blount, he had a natural fon, named Henry, of 
whom he was exceedingly fond, but who died when he 
was only about feventeen years old. 
By his laft will, for fettling the fucceftion, Henry be¬ 
queathed his crown and dominions to his fon prince Eda 
ward, and the heirs of his body lawfully begotten; fail¬ 
ing fuch heirs, to his daughter the princefs Mary, and 
her heirs; failing thefe, to his daughter the princefs Eli¬ 
zabeth, and her heirs; failing thefe, to the lady Frances, 
eldeft daughter of his late lifter the French queen, and 
her heirs ; failing thefe, to lady Eleanor, youngeft daugh¬ 
ter of the French queen, and her heirs; and failing thefe, 
to his next lawful heir. His two daughters, Mary and 
Elizabeth, being unmarried, it was declared, that if they 
married without the confent of his executors, or the ma¬ 
jor part of them, they ihould lofe their right to the fuc- 
ceffion, and be conlidered as being dead without lawful 
heirs. To each of thefe two daughters lie gave io,oool, 
in plate, jewels, and furniture, as a marriage portion, 
and an annuity of 3000I. to live upon while they were 
unmarried. To fliew the faith in which he died, he did 
not forget to appoint a great number of maffes to be faid 
for the health of his foul. 
Very different charadters have been drawn of Henry VIII. 
by different authors. Some have reprefented him as a 
brave, wife, juft, and merciful, prince, with few vices 
or imperfections; while others have painted him in the 
blacked colours, as a cruel unrelenting tyrant, with few 
or no virtues or good qualities. Thole, however, who 
have delineated his character with the greateft care and 
candour, have purfued a middle courle, by doing juftice 
to his good actions and commendable qualifications, while 
they have not overlooked his criminal paffions and his 
vices. The following (liort defcription of the tnoft ftriking 
features in the character of this prince may, it is imagined, 
be jultified by authentic monuments, and the real tranf- 
adtions of his reign. He was very tall, and in his youth 
handfome, ftrong, and adtive. He delighted and excelled 
8 A iq 
