Lord Cobham, I observed his manner of speaking, I protest before the living God I am persuaded he spoke nothing but the truth! You wrote that he should not in any case confess anything to a preacher, telling him an example of My Lord of Essex, that noble earl that is gone. Who, if he had not been carried away with others, had lived in honour to this day among us. He confessed his offences, and obtained mercy of the Lord; for I am verily persuaded in my heart he died a worthy servant of God. Your conceit of not confessing anything is very inhuman and wicked. In this world is the the day of judg time of confessing, that we may be absolved at ment. You have shewed a fearful fign of denying God, in advising a man not to confess the truth. It now comes in my mind, why you may not have your accuser come face to face; for such an one is easily brought to retract, when he seeth there is no hope of his own life. It is dangerous that any traitors should have access to, or conference with, one another. When they see themselves must die, they will think it best to have their fellow live, that he may commit the like treason again, and so in some sort seek revenge. Now it resteth to pronounce the judgment, which I wish you had not been this day to have received of me. For if the fear of God in you had been answerable to your other great parts, you might have lived to have been a singular good subject. I never saw the like trial, and hope I shall never see the like again. The JUDGMENT. But fince you have been found guilty of these horrible treasons, the judgment of this court is; that you shall be had from hence to the place whence you came, there to remain until the day of execution; and from thence you shall be drawn upon a hurdle through the open streets to the place of execution, there to be hanged and cut down alive; and your body shall be opened, your heart and bowels plucked-out, and your privy-members cut-off, and thrown into the fire before your eyes; then your head to be stricken-off from your VOL. II. I body, 1 body, and your body shall be divided into four quarters, to be disposed-of at the king's pleasure; and God have mercy upon your soul !" Sir Walter Ralegh besought the Earl of Devonshire and the lords to be suitors on his behalf to the king, that in regard of places of estimation he did bear in His Majesty's time, the rigour of his judgment might be qualified, and his death be honourable and not ignomiWherein after they had promised him to do their utmost endeavours, the court rose and the prisoner was carried-up again to the ous. castle 30 30 Sec Hargrave's State Trials, I. 211. CHAP. CHAP. VIII. THERE Lord CECIL, Secretary of State, to Sir THOMAS PARRY, Ambassador in FRANCE. " SIR, to Parry. From the Court at WILTON, this 1st of Dec. 1603. "It is not unlikely but many reports will be made, accord- Cecil's letter ing to the diversity of men's humours, of the course of the proceedings about the prisoners, of which I have heretofore summarily written unto you; and therefore, because you may know what is true and what is false, I have thought good particularly to relate thus much unto you. The 15th of last month were publicly arraigned at Winchester Castle Mr. George Brooke, Mr. Griffin Markham, Sir Edward Parham, Bartholomew Brookesby, and Anthony Copley, Esqs.; William Watson, and Willam Clarke, priests. They were all convicted 'On account of the plague in London, the king retired to the Earl of Pembroke's scat at Wilton. by their own confessions, and found guilty of high treason, for having practised to surprise His Majesty's person, with the court and as many counsellors as they could find about him. Beside, to have taken the Tower of London, or the castle of Dover, and to have conveyed the king thither under pretence of safety, and then to have persuaded him to assent to these three points. I. To a general pardon for all those that were interested in the surprise. II. To II. To grant a toleration of popish religion. And, III. To alter divers principal officers of state, in whose places they had already designed some of their complices. As, namely, Watson the priest, to have been chancellor of England; Mr. George Brooke, to have been lordtreasurer, Sir Griffin Markham, principal secretary; the Lord Grey, earl-marshal of England, and master of the horse. They also intended, after the king should have been brought to the Tower, to have sent for the lord mayor and aldermen of London, and to have imprisoned them in case they should have shewed the least disgust of these proceedings. This was the general project agreed upon among themselves; in the executing whereof it was found that there were great varieties of opinions, some imagining three hundred men to suffice for this design, some more, some less; and it was confessed that Watson fed the rest with an assurance, if any resistance should be made against them, that he was able to bring forth great numbers among the papists, his friends and acquaintance. At their arraignment, after the principal points were debated, and most of them proved at the bar, all joining in exclamation upon the priests, and especially upon Watson, as the first contriver and mover of it, wherein how perversely he hath carried himself you may easily judge by this sequel: after that, by means of Mr. Brooke and Markham, the Lord Grey was drawn into this plot; being of a contrary religion to these priests, they made cunningly this use of that poor nobleman, and gave out, to draw the greater number of papists unto them, that the Lord Grey with the puritans having a purpose to surprise the king, it was now time for the catholics to stand stand with the king, and to rescue him if any such attempt should be offered; not doubting but by this their good merit toward the king, to obtain a toleration of their religion. To this purpose they exhorted them to be in readiness, and to draw up toward the court, exacting an oath of them to be secret. Under this pretence the priests had drawn sundry gentlemen on their party, and, no doubt, had put the state to great hazard, if their practice had not been in time discovered. Sir Edward Parham being arraigned among the rest, was quitted by the jury, because the evidences brought in against him seemed not so strong as against the rest that had been the first plotters, and misleaders of others. What will become of them now that they stand in His Majesty's mercy, I cannot yet advertise you; but that order was given yesterday that both the priests should be executed at Winchester. Concerning Sir Walter Ralegh, he was brought to his trial the 17th day, at the place aforesaid. He was indicted for joining with the Lord Cobham in entertaining of another practice, to dispossess His Majesty and his royal issue of this crown, and to have set up the Lady Arbella Stuart. For better accomplishing whereof, it was said they intended to have craved the assistance of the King of Spain, and the Archduke Albert, for borrowing of 5 or 600,000 crowns, to be bestowed here upon discontented persons, and such as should otherwise seem fit to be entertained for this purpose. And the Lord Cobham took upon him the rather to induce the King of Spain to the loan of this money, (under colour of a licence which he had obtained of the king to travel beyond the seas,) to have gone personally to the Archduke, and into Spain to the king, and to have procured letters from the Lady Arbella unto them both, and to the Duke of Savoy; by which she should have promised, Ist, to establish a perfect peace and confederacy with them; next, to grant a toleration of popish religion; and, 3dly, to promise not to marry herself but with the consent and good-liking of them three. Farthermore, Sir Walter was accused |