King, instead of being displeased, commended the Anfwer, at once changed his Suit, made her his Wife, caufed her to be crowned Queen, and created her Son Marquefs of Dorfet. Soon after fhe founded Queen's College in Cambridge, which will perpetuate her Name to late Pofterity. Notwithstanding her fudden Rife, after her Royal Hufband's Demife, fhe lived to fee her Brother beheaded, her two Sons defeated of the Crown, and cruelly murdered; but, with the Wheel, fhe rofe again; her Daughter married a King, and herself became a Grandmother to the renowned Prince Arthur: But at laft fhe was banished the World, being commanded into a Nunnery; (and it was even at that Time looked upon as a Crime to vifit her) where fhe ended her Life in Confinement, and was buried near her Husband at Windfor*. The Treatment fhe met with from the King was feverely cenfured by the People; yet, as Henry was to get confiderably by the Confifcation of her Eftates, he little heeded the Murmurs of his Subjects.

The first and last Resolutions of Council being performed, the King caused the true Earl of Warwick to be fhewn in publick, led through the Streets of London, and conducted in folemn Proceffion to St. Paul's, where Multitudes were affembled to fee him; and he talked with many that knew him, particularly with those who were known to be well affected to the House of York; after which he was again conveyed to the Tower: Yet this did not convince the People of Ireland,

land, who ftill maintained, that the Earl of Warwick fhewed at London was an Impoftor, and that theirs at Dublin was the true Earl.

Henry, in the Interim, affembled two Armies, one of them he commanded in Perfon, having under him the Earl of Shrewsbury, and other experienced Generals, which he posted on the Coasts of Suffolk and Norfolk, with a Design to defend those Counties against an Invafion from Flanders. The Command of the other he gave to the Duke of Bedford, and the Earl of Oxford, who marched to the West of England, in order to oppose a Defcent from Ireland. The King, having thus difpofed of his Armies, returned for London, and took Norwich in his Way, where he kept his Christmas; from whence he went in Pilgrimage to Walfingham, where he visited our Lady's Church, famous for Miracles, and made his Prayers and Vows for Help and Deliverance : And with thefe Transactions ended the Year 1486.

The Beginning of the next Year the King 1487. again vifited the Sea-coafts, and the great Towns in Suffolk and Norfolk, to fee that they were put into a Condition to resist the Enemy.

While Henry was taking Measures for the Defence of England, the Earl of Lincoln caufed Simnell, the pretended King, to be crowned in Chrift-church at Dublin; from thence they carried him upon tall Men's Shoulders to the Caftle, amidst the Acclamations of the People; and the Crown, made use of on this Occafion, was taken from one of the Images of the Virgin Mary: The Bishop of Meath actually preached the Coronation Sermon; and the Lord Deputy, Lord Chancellor, Earl of Lincoln, Lord Lovell, and many other Perfons of Quality were prefent to countenance the Ceremony.

It is to be observed, that though Lambert was actually crowned, yet he met with a Check from Octavianus, Archbishop of Armagh, who fent the Pope

Word

Word of his being an Impoftor, endeavoured to draw the Earl of Kildare from his Intereft, and refused to appear at his Coronation.

But this Attempt did not deter Simnell's Friends from continuing to affift him; for, notwithstanding Henry's Precaution, the Earl of Lincoln, with his Forces (foon after Simnell's Coronation) embarked for England, and landed in Lancashire without Oppofition, where he was joined by Sir Robert Broughton. He then advanced towards York, expecting to be joined by the Country as he marched on ; but, contrary to his Expectation, he met with no Reinforce

ment.

Lincoln, feeing that his Army was rather like to diminish than encrease, altered his firft Design of going to York, and determined to give the King Battle, who was advanced as far as Nottingham: Accordingly he ordered a Detachment of his Forces to take Poffeffion of Newark, that he might command a Paffage over the Trent; but the King prevented him, by encamping between the Rebels and that Town. And the Earl, finding the King's Army to be 15 or 16,000 ftrong, and his own not above half that Number, made choice of a Spot of Ground to engage in, where he could not be furrounded, which was fo narrow, that the King could not extend the Front of his Army beyond that of the Earl's. But Henry, relying on the Superiority of his Troops, having drawn up his Army in three Lines, on the 6th of June, near the Village of Stoke in Nottinghamshire, he attacked the Enemy.

The Germans and Irish defended themselves bravely for three Hours against the King's firft Line; but the Earl of Lincoln and Colonel Swart being killed, with most of the Germans and Irish, the reft fled. The Lord Lovell 'alfo is fuppofed to have died in the Field, or to have been drowned in the Trent,

as

as he was endeavouring to cross the River, for he was never heard of after the Battle.

Among the Prifoners taken in this Battle was Lambert Simnell, together with his crafty Priest, who was committed clofe Prifoner; but it was never known whether he died a natural Death, or by the Hands of the Executioner. Simnell fared better, for he was confidered as fet on by the Dutchefs of Burgundy; the King, finding him ingenuous in his Confeffions, was pleafed to pardon him, made him Turnfpit in his Kitchen, and afterwards his Falconer, in which Station he died *.

* Lord Bacon fpeaks of this Battle to the following Effect, • Concerning the Battle the Re⚫lations that are left unto us are

fo naked and negligent, (tho' it be an Action of fo recent Memory) as they rather declared the Succefs of the Day, ⚫ than the Manner of the Fight; they fay that the King divided his Army into three Battailes, ⚫ whereof the Vant-guard only, ⚫ well ftrengthened with Wings, came to fight: That the Fight was fo fierce and obftinate, and lafted three Hours ⚫ before the Victory inclined either Way; fave that Judgment might be made, by that the King's Vant-guard of itfelf maintained Fight against the whole Power of the Enemies, (the other two Battailes remaining out of Action) what the Succefs was like to be in the End: That Martin Swart with his Germans performed bravely, and fo did thofe few English that were on that Side; neither did the Irifh fail in Courage or Fiercenefs; but,

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being almost naked Men, only armed with Darts and Skeines, it was rather an Exe'cution than a Fight upon them, infomuch as the furious Slaughter of them was a great Difcouragement and Appalement to the reft: That there died upon the Place all the Chieftains, that is, the Earl of Lincoln, the Earl of Kildare, 'Francis Lord Lovell, Martin • Swart, and Sir Thomas Brough

ton, all making good the Fight without any Ground given. 'Only of the Lord Lovell there 'went a Report, that he fled,

and fwam over Trent on Horseback, but could not recover the further Side by reafon of the Steepness of the Bank, and fo was drowned in the River : But another Report leaves him not there, but that he lived long after in a Cave or Vault. The Number that was flain in the Field, was of the Enemy's Part 4000 at the least, and of the King's Part one Half of his Vant-guard, befides many huft, but none of Name.'

Lambert Simnell was no fooner defeated, but the Pope granted the King a Bull, by which thofe concerned with him in his Rebellion were declared excommunicated; and the Archbishop of Canterbury caufed it to be folemnly published throughout his Province before the King returned to London.

After the Battle was over the King proceeded first to Lincoln, and then to York, where he caused several Perfons to be apprehended and fined, for spreading a Report fome time before the Battle, that his Army was beat.

On the second of November he came to London, where he made a triumphant Entry; the next Day he went in Proceffion to St. Paul's, and had Te Deum fung for his Victory over the Rebels, being glad to render it as confpicuous as poffible, in order to ftrike Terror into his Enemies.

The Rebellion being thus happily put an End to, the King had Time more feriously to confider the Caufe of his Subjects Uneafinefs, and being at laft convinced, that his treating the Queen fo ingloriously, both by delaying the Marriage and her Coronation, was one main Spring of the People's Difcontent, he immediately determined on the Performance of the latter, which was compleated before the End of November: This was extremely pleafing to the People; and his Grace of Bedford acted as High Steward, by fpecial Commiffion, on that folemn Occafion.

Soon after the Queen's Coronation, the King releafed the Marquefs of Dorfet without Examination, probably to give the People fome Satisfaction, and to leave the Marquefs in Fear of being still called to an Account. But it may be prefumed, that, fince he was fo little inclined to fhew Mercy to the Yorkists, he would not have discharged him fo eafily, had there been Proofs to convict him.

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