Volume I Part 2 (1/2)

In the following year, one of the first outrages which the Reforh On occasion of the annual procession through the city, in honour of the tutelar Saint--St Giles, the iht to have been carried by so, beforehand, according to John Knox, first drowned the idol in the North Loch, and then burned it It was therefore necessary to borrow a sreat soleht proceed Upon the day appointed, priests, friars, canons, and ”rotten Papists,” assepipes

At this sight, the hearts of the brethren ondrously inflaon should suffer the fate of the first They broke in upon the procession; and though the Catholics ed to surrender the i it by the heels, and knocking, or, as the refor_ its head upon the pave, that ”the young St Giles” had not been so difficult to kill as his father The priests, alarht shelter as quickly as possible, and gave Knox an opportunity of indulging in some of that austere n to his general style

”Then ht have been seen,” says he, ”so sudden a fray as seldo that sort of o the surplices, round caps, and cornets with the crowns The Gray-Friars gaped, the Black-Friars blew, and the priests panted and fled, and happy was he that first got the house; for such a sudden fray caeneration of Antichrist within this real upon the mob to disperse, after they had kept possession of the streets for several hours; and the rioters escaped without punishment; for ”the brethren asse psal God, that the proudest of the enemies were astounded”[4]

The Commissioners who, about this time, were sent into France, and the motives of their embassy, will be spoken of afterwards But the remarkable circumstance, that four of them died when about to return home,--one at Paris, and three at Dieppe,--had a considerable influence in exciting the populace to still greater hatred against the French party,--it being commonly suspected that they had coation now rose in their des, insisted that ”the wicked and scandalous lives” of church to the rules contained in the New Testas of the ancient fathers, and the laws of Justinian the E it impossible to preserve the favour of both parties, she yielded at length to the solicitations of the Archbishop of St Andrews, and deterorously In 1559, she suation, to appear before her at Stirling This citation was complied with, but not exactly in the manner that the Queen wished; for the ministers came not as culprits, but as men proud of their principles, and accompanied by a vastThe Queen, as at Stirling, did not venture to proceed to Perth; and the request she made, that the nu theirbeen refused, she proceeded to the harsh and decisivethem all rebels

The consternation which this direct announce thereat champion of the Scottish Reformation, John Knox, arrived at Perth This celebrated divine had already suffered h his zeal and devotion to it ell known, it was not till latterly that he had entertained much hope of its final triureater part of his life in ione many privations, and submitted to many trials But these were the daily food of the Reforthen them in the obduracy of their belief, they had the additional effect of infusing a morose acerbity into dispositions not naturally of the softest kind Knox had returned only a few days before fro and publishi+ng that celebrated work, which he was pleased to entitle, ”The first blast of the truiainst Mary of England, not forgetting Mary Queen of Scots and herthe Reformer into disrepute with Elizabeth, who came to the crown soon after its appearance To pacify that Queen, for it appears even Knox could teinal intention of blowing his trumpet thrice, and his first blast was his last[5]

The day after the ministers and their friends, had been declared rebels, Knox delivered at Perth what Keith terainst Idolatry” The tumult which ensued at the conclusion of this discourse, has been attributed by some historians to accident; but Keith's suspicion, that Knox had a direct intention to excite it, seems well founded, e consider the ferment in which the minds of his audience were at the time, and the peculiar style in which he addressed theh he would naturally have leant to the other conclusion He says that Knox, ”in that ticklish posture of affairs, athered together, that he set their minds, which were already fired, all in a flame” If, in addition to this, the usual manner of Knox's eloquence be considered, it will hardly be questioned but that the outrage of that day was of his doing His vehemence in the pulpit was at all times tremendous; indeed, in so far as the effect he produced upon his hearers was concerned, he seems to have trusted almost as ies Many years after the period now alluded to, when he was in his old age, and very weak, Melville tells us, that he saw hio slowly and feebly, with fur about his neck, a staff in his hand, and a servant supporting him, from his own house, to the parish church in St Andrews There, after being lifted into the pulpit, his limbs for some time were so feeble, that they could hardly support him; but ere he had done with his serorous, that he was like ”to ding the pulpit in blads, and flie out of it”[6] What he must have been, therefore, in his best days, ined than described

On the present occasion, after Knox had preached, and soation had retired, it appears that some ”Godly men” remained in the church A priest had the iman called out that such idolatry was intolerable, upon which it is said that the priest struck hi a stone, which injured one of the pictures The affair soon becaes, and in a short ti was left undemolished but the bare walls of the church The Refors, speedily collected, and attacking thewith the costly edifice of the Carthusian Monks, left not a vestige of what they considered idolatrous and profane worshi+p in any of them The example thus set at Perth was speedily followed alreatly incensed the Queen Regent, and were looked upon with horror by the Catholics in general To this day, the loss of h the zeal of the early Reforret and complaint It is to be remembered, however, that no revolution can be effected without paying a price for it If the Reformation was a benefit, how could the Catholic superstition be eous temples, which were of themselves sufficient to render invincible the pride and inveterate bigotry of its votaries? The saying of John Knox, though a homely, was a true one,--”Pull down their nests, and the rooks will fly away” It is not is been allowed to reht have long continued to indulge hopes, and to make efforts, to be restored to them Victories over an ene the thousands of our fellow-countrymen who may have fallen in the contest Why should the farheld in thraldom the human mind, be robbed of its due praise, because soled, some pictures torn, and some venerable towers overthrown?[7]

With as little delay as possible, the Queen Regent appeared with an army before Perth, and made herself mistress of the town The Reforth having, by this tient not to push reed to disband their forces, and to refer the controversy to the next Parliament As was to be expected, this te duration Incessant ression, soon induced both sides to concentrate their forces once more Perth was re-taken by the Reforh After re there for some time, they were surprised by a sudden march which the Queen made upon the

A belief was at this time prevalent at the court of France, that the Prior of St Andreas the principal ation, had views of a treasonable nature even upon the crown itself, and that he hoped the flaw in his legitiotten, in consideration of his Godly exertions in support of the true faith A new reinforcement of French soldiers arrived at Leith, which they fortified; and the French a, his master, would rather spend the crown of France, than not be revenged of the seditious persons in Scotland

The civil war now raged with increased bitterness, and with various success, but without any decisive advantage on either side for some time

The Reformers applied for assistance to Queen Elizabeth, who favoured their cause for various reasons, and would, no doubt, much rather have seen Murray in possession of the Scottish crown, than her own personal rival, Mary The Congregation having found it impossible, by their own efforts, to drive the French out of Leith, Elizabeth, in the beginning of the year 1560, fitted out a powerful fleet, which, to the astonishent and her French allies, sailed up the Firth of Forth, and anchored in the Roads, before even the purpose for which it had come was known A treaty was soon afterwards concluded at Berwick between the Lords of the Congregation and Elizabeth's Coreed, on the part of the former, that no alliance should ever be entered into by thelish ar, for the purpose of aiding in the expulsion of the French troops

This army came at the time appointed, and was soon joined by the forces of the Reformers The allies marched directly for Leith, which they invested without loss of tireat spirit, but the toas very resolutely defended by the French So much determination was displayed upon both sides, that it is difficult to say how the ent, which took place at this juncture, changed materially the whole aspect of affairs She had been ill for so her sickness resided in the Castle of Edinburgh Perceiving that her end was approaching, she requested an intervieith soation The Duke of Chatelherault, the Prior of St Andrews, or the Lord James, as he was commonly called, and others, waited upon her in her sick-charief for the troubles which existed in the country, and advised that both the English and French troops should be sent home She entreated that they would reverence and obey their native and lawful sovereign, her daughter Mary She told them how deeply attached she was to Scotland and its interests, although by birth a Frenchwo the nobles one by one, and asking pardon of all whom she had in any way offended The day after this interview, Mary of Guise died Herremembered in Scotland; for even those who could not love, respected her In private life, if this ter of a Queen, she appears to have been most deservedly esteemed She set an example to all her ravity of deportly charitable to the poor; and had she fallen upon better days, her life would have been a happier one for herself, and her enerally prized by posterity Her body was carried over to France, and buried in the Benedictine Monastery at Rheient, Coland, with full powers to conclude a treaty of peace between the three countries By the loss of their sister, the Princes of Lorraine had been deprived of their chief support in Scotland, and, being actively engaged in schemes of ambition nearer home, they found it necessary to conciliate, as they best could, the predoh, which will be mentioned frequently hereafter, was concluded on the 14th of June 1560 It was signed on the part of France by the two plenipotentiaries, Monluc, Bishop of Valence, and the Sieur Derandon, reckoned two of the best diploland, by Wotton, Dean of Canterbury, and Elizabeth's prie The interests of the Congregation were intrusted principally to the Lord James In consequence of this treaty, the French troops were immediately withdrawn The fortifications of Leith and Dunbar were destroyed, and a Parliament was held, whose acts were to be considered as valid as if it had been called by the express commands of the Queen In that Parliareatly to out-number their adversaries An act of oblivion and indemnity was passed for all that had taken place within the two preceding years; and, for the first ti which the Reformers proposed A new Confession of Faith was sanctioned; the jurisdiction of the Ecclesiastical Courts was abolished; and the exercise of worshi+p, according to the rites of the Romish Church, was prohibited under severe penalties--a third act of disobedience being declared capital

Thus, the Reforh as yet only in its infancy, and still exposed to many perils, it was nevertheless established on a comparatively firm and constitutional basis The Catholics, it is true, aware of the school in which Mary had been educated, were far fro their circumstances; and they waited for her return with the utht to have known, that whatever n was over in Scotland A Sovereign may coerce the bodies, but he can never possess a despotic sway over the un to think for themselves; and a belief in the mere mummeries of a fantastic system of Christianity, and of the efficacy of ain to form a portion of their faith A brief account of one of the last, and not least ludicrous atte cause, will form a not improper conclusion to this chapter

There was a chapel in the neighbourhood of Musselburgh, dedicated to the Lady of Loretto, which, from the character of superior sanctity it had acquired, had long been the favourite resort of religious devotees In this chapel, a body of the Catholic priests undertook to put their religion to the test, by perfor ar, in the streets of Edinburgh, and engaged to restore to him, in the presence of the asseht A day was naht depend on this wonderful interposition of divine power in their behalf Froreat croas attracted at the appointed time to the chapel The blind man made his appearance on a scaffold, erected for the occasion The priests approached the altar, and, after praying very devoutly, and perforious ceremonies, he who had previously been stone blind, opened his eyes, and declared he saw all things plainly Having huratefully thanked his benefactors, the priests, he was per the astonished people, and receive their charity

Unfortunately, however, for the success of this deception, a gentleman from Fife, of the name of Colville, determined to penetrate, if possible, a little further into the mystery He prevailed upon the subject of the recent experih As soon as they were alone, he locked the chamber-door, and either by bribes or threats, contrived to win from him the whole secret It turned out, that in his boyhood, this tool, in the hands of the designing, had been employed as a herd by the nuns of the Convent of Sciennes, then in the neighbourhood of Edinburgh It was remarked by the sisterhood, that he had an extraordinary facility in ”flyping up the lid of his eyes, and casting up the white” So accidentally of this talent, iood account They accordingly took hih, where they kept him till he hadblindness, and till his personal appearance was so ed, that the feho had been acquainted with hinise hi publicly, and make himself familiarly known to the inhabitants, as a coone sht have had effect on the ar, had Colville's activity not discovered the gross iation, instantly took the most effectual means to make known the deceit He insisted upon the blind h, where the latter repeated all he had previously told Colville, and confessed the iniquity of his own conduct, as well as that of the priests To shelter hie, Colville immediately afterwards carried hi speedily dissey to more contempt than ever[9]

CHAPTER III

MARY'S BIRTH, AND SUBSEQUENT RESIDENCE AT THE FRENCH COURT, WITH A SKETCH OF THE STATE OF SOCIETY AND MANNERS IN FRANCE, DURING THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY

Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots, was the third child of James V and his wife, Mary of Guise That lady had born him previously two sons, both of whom died in infancy Mary came into the world on the 7th of Deceow[10] She was only seven days old when she lost her father, who at the time of her birth lay sick in the Palace of Falkland Jaallant spirit

In the language of Pitscottie, he turned him upon his back, and looked and beheld all his nobles and lords about hihter, kissed his hand, and offered it to them When they had pressed it to their lips for the last time, he tossed up his arms, and yielded his spirit to God James was considered one of the most handsome men of his day He was above the middle stature; his hair flowed luxuriantly over his shoulders in natural ringlets, and was of a dark yellow or auburn colour; his eyes were gray, and very penetrating; his voice eet toned; and the general expression of his countenance uncoorous constitution, and kept it sound and healthy by constant exercise, and by refraining fro He was buried in the Royal Vault in the Chapel of Holyrood House, where his embalmed body, in a state of entire preservation, was still to be seen in the ti Queen was crowned by Cardinal Beaton at Stirling, on the 9th of September 1543 Her mother, atched over her with the most careful anxiety, had been told a report prevailed that the infant was sickly, and not likely to live To disprove this calumny, she desired Janet Sinclair, Mary's nurse, to unswaddle her in the presence of the English Aoodly a child as he had seen of her age

Soon after her birth, the Parliae of the Queen's person, leaving all her other interests to the care of her mother The two first years of her life, Mary spent at Linlithgohere it appears she had the small-pox, a point of soraphy of a beauty and a queen[11] The diseaseleft behind no visible traces During the greater part of the years 1545, 46 and 47, she resided at Stirling Castle, in the keeping of Lords Erskine and Livingstone Here she received the first rudiments of education from two ecclesiastics, ere appointed her preceptors, more, however, as matter of fore When the internal disturbances of the country rendered even Stirling Castle a soerous residence, Mary was removed to Inchmahome, a sequestered island in the Lake of Monteith

That she enerous eht present her with an additional er selected four young ladies of rank as her coe, and either from chance, or because the conceit seemed natural, they all bore the same surname The four Maries were, Mary Beaton, a niece of Cardinal Beaton, Mary Flestone, whose father was one of the young Queen's guardians, and Mary Seaton, daughter of Lord Seaton

Mary having remained upwards of two years in this island, those who had, at the tiht it expedient, for reasons which have been already explained, that she should be rely, in the fifth year of her age, taken to Dumbarton, where she was delivered to the French Ad to receive her, and attended by the Lords Erskine and Livingstone, her three natural brothers, and her four Maries, she left Scotland