eng 
his royal bride ; ilie had fent to him in Flanders a prefent 
of 100,000 crowns, the matrimonial articles were fettled 
to her mind, and a fumptuous embaffy was lent from 
France to aflift at the wedding: Anjou himfelf arrived 
now in England, and was received by the queen with vifi- 
ble pleafure. She placed on his finger a valuable ring as 
a pledge of her love, and took up the pen to fign the mar¬ 
riage deeds, but (he proceeded no further. The duke 
dallied the ring on the floor; and-loudly curling the ca¬ 
price of Elizabeth and the ruggednefs of her people, he 
took his way foon afterwards to Flanders, where his ill- 
concerted plans of defpotifm rendered him odious to the 
people who had invited his coming. It is Hill a myftery 
why the Englilh queen (houLd-liave worn the ufelefs 
inalk of affeftion fo long, and have put this wanton infult 
on a fuitor fo refpeftable in his connedlions. Many are 
of opinion, that an uncontroulable paflion for Anjou car¬ 
ried her to fuch ablurd lengths, in fpite of that policy 
which would have made her break off the negociation by 
degrees. Had France been freed from civil broils, the 
queen might have drawn a cruel war on her fubjefts 
by this worfe than fantaftical conduct. Her mod favour¬ 
ed courtiers had, it is true, wearied her with arguments 
againft the union, and (he herfelf, when (he dropt the pen, 
afked her council hardily, ‘ If they were not confcious 
that this marriage would be her death ?’ An odd queftion, 
which has given rife to as odd conjectures. 
In 1584, Elizabeth, alarmed at the general cry againft 
her feverity, openly queftioned her judges as to their 
treatment of Roman catholics and others, charged with 
treafonable proceedings, and they anfwered very ingenu- 
oufly, “ Campion had indeed been (tretched (the term ufed 
for racking) but with fuch moderation, that he could 
walk immediately afterwards. Another criminal, Bryan, 
had been kept without nourifhment until he gave a (am¬ 
ple of his writing, which had been in vain demanded.” 
Elizabeth abfolved the judges, but ordered the rack to 
be ufed no more in England, and releafed fe'venty priefts 
who had been imprifoned on fufpicion. 
The fituation of Elizabeth was now extremely critical; 
many of her own fubjefts, led by miftaken motives of re¬ 
ligion, and excited by the artful miflionaries of tire Flemifh 
univerlities, were exciting confpiracies againft her; un¬ 
aided by any ally, (lie was on the point of engaging in a 
conteft with the mod potent and fubtle prince which Eu¬ 
rope had ever known. Philip could at this period com¬ 
mand the afliftance of the German empire ; he poireffed 
{befides Spain and the Indies) Portugal and. her impor¬ 
tant colonies : his naval ftrength was fuperior to that of 
all the reft of Europe; the Netherlands (whofe gallant 
defender the prince of Orange had been juft then affafli- 
nated) feemed to be proftrate at his feet; and France, his 
old and dreaded enemy, from the impolitic fuggeftions of 
narrow bigotry, rather favoured than oppofed the ambiti¬ 
ous plans of the Spanilh tyrant. In that country the 
Guiles, whofe power, grounded on popular fanaticifni, 
was unbounded, had formed, or rather renewed, a formal 
covenant, ftyled ‘ The League ;’ by which Henry of Na¬ 
varre, the next heir, on failure of the houfe of Valois, 
was excluded from the throne, if he fhould continue to 
profefs the reformed religion. 
It was at this awful crifis that Elizabeth, convinced of' 
the king of Spain’s inveterate enmity, and determined to 
fhew herfelf as vigorous in purfuing, as (he had been cau¬ 
tious in adopting meafures of hoftility, began inftantly 
to attack Philip in his mod vulnerable ports. The en- 
terprizing fpirit of Drake was now called into action. 
With twenty (tout veffels he failed to the Weft Indies, 
reduced St. Jago, the capital of the Cape Verd Iflands ; on 
his paffage took the town of St. Domingo in Hifpaniola, 
and Cathagena on the continent of South America; then, 
after ravaging the coaft of Florida, returned to England 
with the lofs of 700 men by difeafe, but enriched by vaft 
sreafures, and accompanied by the poor remains of a colo. 
LAND. 60 5 
ny which fir W. Raleigh had endeavoured to fettle in 
Virginia. See the article Drake, p. 64 of this volume. 
The Hugonots, hard prelfed in France, were not neg¬ 
lected by Elizabeth. She fupplied the prince de Conde 
with a large fum of money, and lent him ten (hips of war, 
with which he effected the relief of Rochelle, the ftrong 
hold of the French proteftants. In the mean while 
Wootton, a man of the mod infinuating turn, entertain¬ 
ing in converfation, and (killed in drefs and falconry, 
was fent by the Engtifli queen to refide at the court of 
James VI. of Scotland, to gain his favour, and infpeft 
his conduit. It is even faid, that he was to-endeavour 
at feizing the perfon of the Scottifti monarch, with a 
view to convey him to England; if fo, James (hewed 
great fenfe in fo"rgiving the unjuft machination, and in 
entering very foon afterwards (in fpite of the remon- 
ftrances of France) into the mod rational and political 
treaty ever made between the After nations. It was an 
alliance offenfive and defenfive, and may be faid to have 
fecured to the king of Scots the affeftions of the Englilh, 
and the fucceflion to their fovereignty. The regard cf 
James was affuredly much conciliated by an annual pen- 
lion of 5000I. equivalent to the Lenox eftate, and granted 
at this period. 
The extenfive enterprizes of Elizabeth in foreign 
lands, fhould feent to imply that all was peace at home. 
It was not fo. Parry, a member of the commons, being 
convicted of an intention to aflaffinate the queen, fullered 
the death of a traitor; Arundel, fon to the unfortunate 
duke of Norfolk, feekingto fly the realm, was fent to the 
Tower, where Henry Percy earl of Northumberland had 
juft (hot himfelf, either confcious of guilt, or dreading 
the prejudices of his judges. Other circumftauces of a 
melancholy nature now alfo took place. Anthony Ba- 
bington, a young gentleman of Derbyfhire, infpired with 
fanatical zeal to eft eft a change in the religion and govern¬ 
ment of his country, had joined with feveral men of fami¬ 
ly and fortune in a plot to affaftinate Elizabeth. They 
had been excited to this confpiracy by the exhortations 
of Dr. Gifford, and others of the Rhemifli feminary. 
An eccentric fpecies of ambition te-mpted (even of the 
chief plotters to have their portraits taken in one pic¬ 
ture, with a myfterious motto, QuorJ'um alio properantilna ? 
This pifture was (hewn to Elizabeth, who knew Barn¬ 
well, one of the group, as he had been with her in bulinefs 
from lord Kildare. Soon after this view of his portrait, 
(lie met him, and ftedfaftly viewing him, faid fternly to 
the captain of her guard, “ Am I not well taken care of, 
that have not a man in my company who wears a fword ?” 
The vigilant fubtlety of Walfingham, fecretary of 
(late, detefted the whole contrivance; in confequence, 
Babington, with thirteen of his • affociates, fuffered as 
traitors. This led to the final cataftrophe of Mary queen 
of Scots. Though all England was acquainted with the 
event of Babington’s confpiracy, every avenue to the un¬ 
fortunate Mary was fo ftriftly guarded, that (he remained 
in utter ignorance of the matter. But her aftoniflmicnt 
could only be equalled by her anguiih, when fir Thomas 
Gorges, by Elizabeth’s order, informed her of the fate of 
thofe who were called her confederates. She was at that 
moment mounted on horfeback, going a-hunting ; and 
was not even permitted to return to her former place of 
abode, but condufted from one nobleman’s houfe to ano¬ 
ther, till (lie was lodged in Fotheringay-caftle, in North 
amp.ton(hire, where the laft feene of her deep tragedy was 
to conclude. 
The council of England was divided in opinion about 
the meafures to be taken againft this illuftrious (late pri¬ 
soner. Some members propoled, that as her health was- 
infirm, her life might be (hortened by clofe confinement 
therefore to avoid any imputation of violence or cruelty, 
Elizabeth’s favourite, Leicefter, propofed that (lie (hould 
be difpatched by poifon ; but the majority infifted on her 
being put to death by what was termed legal procefs. 
Accordingly 
