Spottiswoode Society > History of the affairs of the Church and State of Scotland from the beginning of the reformation to the year 1568 > Volume 1

1542.] OF CHURCH AND STATE IN SCOTLAND. 65
entertained suitably to their rank and quality; which was
immediately done, and they were lodged with the principal
persons and officebearers of England, such as the Arch-
bishop of Canterbury, Lord Chancellor, 1 Dukes of Norfolk,
Suffolk, &c. Now, as King Henry was well known not to
be over mild in his nature, this management of his makes it
appear how earnest he was to gain the friendship of the
kingdom of Scotland, which, as we have already shewn, he
had had of a long time much at heart ; and the truth is, he
was very lucky in his late civility to his prisoners, for on the
morrow, news was brought him of his nephew the King of
Scotland's death, 2 and of the birth of his daughter a few days
before. This begot a new scheme in the mind of King
Henry, who gave orders for the Scottish Lords to attend
him at Court, on the 2Gth of the same month, where they
were nobly entertained, and then he discovered 3 to them his
inclination to have the kingdoms of Scotland and England
united, by a marriage betwixt his only son Prince Edward,
a child little above five years old, and Mary their infant
sovereign; nor did his Majesty leave any proper means 4 un-
essayed, to gain the assistance and good offices of the Noble-
men, to second his design. And it is certain that some of
them did very cordially enter into his measures, promising
upon oath, and binding themselves to labour all they could,
not only to bring about the projected match, but likewise to
bring the young Queen immediately into England, and to get
the government of the kingdom of Scotland devolved upon his
Majesty, and the strongholds thereof delivered into his hands.
Hereupon King Henry released them all, under obligation,
nevertheless, to give their sons or nearest relations as pledges
for entering themselves prisoners again, if they should not be
able to accomplish what they had undertaken, against a cer-
tain day prescribed them by that King. Under these en-
gagements, they began their journey homeward on the first
1 [Thomas Goodrich, Bishop of Ely, Lord Chancellor from 1534 to
1545.— E.]
2 It may, however, be a question whether King Henry might not have
had private intelligence of all this, even before he caused the Scottish
Lords to be brought from the Tower, our King having been dead a full
week before that time.
3 Some English writers say that the Lords of Scotland first proposed
the match.
4 It is plain, from Mr Sadler and other English historians, that King
Henry kept them in pension to forward his designs.
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