Volume II Part 1 (2/2)

The Earl of Bothas now irrevocably resolved to push his fortunes to the utmost He acted, for the tih independently of hithen his own influence, but co to the scarcely less aht disclose with safety Bothas probably the only Scottish baron of the age over whom Murray does not appear ever to have had any control His character, indeed, was not one which would have brooked control On Mary's return home, so soon as he perceived the ascendancy which her brother possessed over her, he entered into a conspiracy with Huntly and others, to redorace; and though the Earl was subsequently pardoned, he never regained that superiority in Mary's councils he had once enjoyed But Bothwell hoped to secure the distinction for hiht not lose it as Murray had done, after it was once gained, he daringly ai The historians, therefore, (a whom are to be included many of Mary's most zealous defenders), who speak of Bothwell as only a ”cat's-paw” in the hands of Murray and his party, evidently mistake both the character of the men, and the positions they relatively held Murray and Bothwell had both considerable influence at Court; but there was no yielding on the part of either to the higher authority of the other, and the Queen herself endeavoured, upon all occasions, to act i the requests of Murray in opposition to the advice of Bothwell; and there is no reason to suppose, that, when she saw cause, she h Admiral, in preference to that of her brother

A circumstance which occurred only a few days after the baptisly illustrates the justice of these observations It is theof attention, as the spirit of partiality, which has been unfortunately so busy in giving an erroneous colouring even to Mary's otten to misrepresent that to whichrefer

Darnley's death being resolved, Bothwell began to consider hoas to act after it had taken place He probably encies, and trusted to the chapter of accidents, or his own ingenuity, to assist hi certain, that he could never beco as he continued united to his oife, the Lady Jane Gordon Anticipating, therefore, the necessity of a divorce, and aware that the e for all the ordinary forms of law, he used his interest with the Queen at a time when his real motives were little suspected, to revive the ancient jurisdiction of the Catholic Consistorial Courts, which had been abolished by the Refores of Commissary Courts established in their place In accordance with his request, Mary restored the Archbishop of St Andrews, the Priranted hied the Commissaries from the further exercise of their offices Thus, Bothwell not only won the friendshi+p of the Archbishop, but secured for hiht be advanced,--the only plausible pretext he could , however, in favour of the Archbishop and the old faith, gave great offence to the Reformed party; and when the Pri of January, for the purpose of holding his court, his authority was very strenuously resisted

The Earl of Murray took up the subject, and represented to Mary the injury she had done to the true religion Bothwell, of course, used every effort to counteract the force of such a representation; but he was unsuccessful

By a letter which the Earl of Bedford wrote to Cecil from Berwick, on the 9th of January 1567, we learn that the Archbishop was not allowed to proceed to the hearing of cases, and that ”because it was found to be contrary to the religion, and therefore not liked of by the townsmen; _at the suit of my Lord of Murray_, the Queen was pleased to revoke that which she had before granted to the said bishop” Probably the grant of jurisdiction was not ”revoked,” but only suspended, as Bothwell subsequently availed himself of it; but even its suspension sufficiently testifies, that Mary, at this period, listened implicitly and exclusively neither to one nor other of her counsellors[19]

In thefor Glasgow on the 24th of Deceood deal concerning the nature of his illness, which is by some confidently asserted to have been occasioned by poison, ad, or on the road, by servants, who had been bribed by Bothwell; and by others is as confidently affirmed to have been the sow On the whole, the latter opinion seems to be the best supported, as it is confirlish ambassador, and of the cotemporary historians, Lesley and Blackwood Knox, Buchanan, Melville, Crawford, Birrell and others, mention, on the other hand, that the belief was prevalent, that the King's sickness was the effect of poison But as the only evidence offered in support of this popular rumour is, that ”blisters broke out of a bluish colour over every part of his body,” and as this may have been the symptoms of small-pox as well as of poison, the story does not seem well authenticated Besides, in the letter which Mary is alleged to have written a week or two afterwards to Bothwell froow, she is made to say that Darnley told her he was ill of the sraph would not have been introduced, unless it had contained as then known to be the fact

Be this matter as it may, it is of more importance to correct a arding the neglect and indifference hich hethe earlier part of his sickness We learn, in the first place, by Bedford's letter to Cecil, already mentioned, that as soon as Mary heard of Darnley's illness, she sent her own physician to attend him[20] And, in the second place, it appears, that it was some time before Darnley's complaint assumed a serious complexion; but that, whenever Mary understood he was considered in danger, she immediately set out to visit him ”The Queen,” says Crawford, ”was no sooner inforer, than she hasted after hith,” says Turner (or Barnestaple), ”the Queen flew to hi er which she herself incurred”--”Being advertised,” observes Lesley, ”that Darnley was repentant and sorrowful, she without delay, thereby to renew, quicken, and refresh his spirits, and to co of his health, lately by sickness sore iht, to see and visit hiow”

Thus, Robertson's insinuation falls innocuous to the ground

It was on the 13th of January 1567 that Mary returned fro spent the inter visits to Sir William Murray, the Comptroller of her household, at Tullibardin, and to Lord Drummond at Druins to be critical, and every minuteness and specific caution becoainst slander” The probability is, that Bothas not with Mary either at Tullibardin or Drus of her Privy Council were held by her on the 2d and 10th of January; and it appears by the Register, that Bothas not present at any of the the early part of January he ing a h on the 13th, she lodged her son, whoht with her, in Holyroodhouse A few days afterwards, she set out for Glasgow to see her husband Her calumniators, on the supposition that she had previously quarrelled with Darnley, affect to discover so very forced and unnatural in this visit But _Mary had never quarrelled with Darnley_ He had quarrelled with her ed at the failure of his own scheainst his wife he had himself frequently declared he had no cause of corieved by Darnley's ardness than angry at it Only a day or two before going to Glasgow, she said solemnly, in a letter she wrote to her a, our husband, God knoays our part towards his shall be always such as none shall have occasion to be offended with them, or to report of us any way but honourably”[21] So far, therefore, fro unco could be more natural, or er,” observes Dr Gilbert Stuart, with the sientleness of her nature, and she forgot the wrongs she had endured Time had abated the vivacity of her resentment, and after its paroxysm was past, she was e herself in revenge The softness of grief prepared her for a returning tenderness His distresses effected it

Her memory shut itself to his errors and imperfections, and was only open to his better qualities and accomplishments He hiht, with sorrow, of the injuries he had coainst her The news of his repentance was sent to her She recollected the ardour of that affection he had lighted up in her bosom, and the happiness hich she had surrendered herself to him in the blooe of their love, being continually in her sight, inspirited her sensibilities The plan of lenity which she had previously adopted with regard to hin to excite even the approbation of her enemies by the propriety of her conduct; the advices of Elizabeth by the Earl of Bedford to entertain hiht suffer any diminution by the universal distaste hich he was beheld by her subjects, and her certainty and knowledge of the angry passions which her chief counsellors had fostered against him--all concurred to divest her heart of every sentiment of bitterness, and toto tender and anxious emotions, she left her capital and her palace, in the severest season of the year, to wait upon him Her assiduities and kindnesses co solaceered about his person with a fond solicitude, and a delicate attention, he felt that the sickness of his mind and the virulence of his disease were diow, Mary found her husband convalescent, though weak and ed in the sa considered infectious, they had separate apart that his recent approach to the very brink of the grave had exercised a salutary influence over his ain his entire confidence, by carefully and affectionately nursing hiladly acceded to the proposal made by Darnley, that she should take hiested that he should reside at Craigmillar Castle, as the situation was open and salubrious; but for some reason or other, which does not appear, he objected to Craigmillar, and the Queen therefore wrote to Secretary Maitland to procure convenient accoh[22] Darnley disliked the Lords of the Privy Council tooat Holyrood; and besides, it was the opinion of the physicians, that the young Prince, even though he should not be brought into his father's presence, ht catch the infection from the servants ould be about the persons of both But when Mary wrote to Maitland, she little knew that she was addressing an accomplice of her husband's future murderer The Secretary showed her letter to Bothwell, and theyto Darnley the house of the Kirk-of-Field, which stood on an airy and healthy situation to the south of the town, and which, therefore, appeared well suited for an invalid, although _they_ preferred it because it stood by itself, in a comparatively solitary part of the town[23] On Monday, January 27th, Mary and Darnley left Glasgow They appear to have travelled in a wheeled carriage, and cah They slept on Monday night at Callander They caohere they reh on Thursday

The Kirk-of-Field, in which, says Melville, ”the King was lodged, as a place of good air, where he ed to Robert Balfour, the Provost or head prebendary of the collegiate church of St Mary-in-the-Field, so called because it was beyond the city hen first built When the as afterwards extended, it enclosed the Kirk-of-Field, as well as the house of the Provost and Prebendaries The Kirk-of-Field with the grounds pertaining to it, occupied the site of the present College, and of those buildings which stand between Infirmary and Drummond Street In the extended line of wall, as afterwards called the Potter-row Port, was at first denominated the Kirk-of-Field Port, from its vicinity to the church of that na the south side of the present College, and the north side of Drummond Street, where a part of it is still to be seen in its original state The house stood at some distance from the Kirk, and the latter, from the period of the Reformation, had fallen into decay The city had not yet stretched in this direction ate Between that street and the toall, were the Dominican Convent of the Blackfriars, with its al the site of the present High School and Royal Infirmary,--and the Kirk-of-Field and its Provost's residence The house nearest to it of any note was Haed to the Duke of Chatelherault, and soe Wynd[24] It was at first supposed, that Darnley would have taken up his abode there; but the families of Lennox and Hamilton were never on such terms as would have elicited thisThe Kirk-of-Field House stood very nearly on the site of the present north-west corner of Druavel so close upon the toall, that a little postern door entered ih the wall into the kitchen It contained only four apartreat care Below, a sh froht hand of which was the kitchen, and upon the left, a room furnished as a bedrooht Passing out at the back-door, there was a turnpike stair behind, which, after the old fashi+on of Scottish houses, led up to the second story Above, there were two roo with those below Darnley's chamber was immediately over Mary's; and on the other side of the lobby, above the kitchen, a ”garde-robe” or ”little-gallery,” which was used as a servant's rooh the toall, and corresponding with the postern door below Immediately beyond this wall, was a lane shut in by another wall, to the south of which were extensive gardens[25]

During the ten days which Darnley spent in his new residence, Mary was a great deal with hihts in the rooreeable to her, than returning at a late hour to Holyrood Palace Darnley was still much of an invalid, and his constitution had received so severe a shock, that every attention was necessary during his convalescence A bath was put up for him, in his own roo extre the nobles; but following the exaet their forree others, Hah about this tied hard by in Ha for hours in her husband's sick-chaardens of the Doht up fro to her and Darnley Thus, every thing went on so smoothly, that neither the victim nor his friends could in the least suspect that they were all treading the brink of a precipice

Bothwell had taken advantage of Mary's visit to Glasgow, to proceed to Whittinghahbourhood of Dunbar, where he met the Earl of Morton, and obtained his consent to Darnley's ave out at Edinburgh, that he was going on a journey to Liddesdale; but, accompanied by Secretary Maitland, whons, and the notorious Archibald Douglas, a creature of his own, and a relation of Morton, he went direct to Whittingham There, the trio land, and opened to him their plot Morton heard of the intended murder without any desire to prevent its perpetration; but before he would agree to take an active share in it, he insisted upon being satisfied that the Queen, as Bothwell had the audacity to assert, illing that Darnley should be removed ”I desired the Earl Bothwell,” says Morton in his subsequent confession, ”to bring me the Queen's hand write of this ive him an answer; otherwise, I would not mell (intermeddle) therewith;--which warrant he never purchased (procured) unto h Morton, refused to risk an active, he had no objections to take a passive part in this conspiracy Bothwell, Maitland, and Douglas, returned to Edinburgh, and he proceeded to St Andreith the understanding, that Bothas to coress of the plot Accordingly, a day or two before the las was sent to St Andrews, to let Morton know that the affair was near its conclusion Bothwell, however, ell aware that what he had told the Earl regarding the wishes of the Queen, was equally false and calumnious Of all persons in existence, it was fron; and as for a written approval of it, he knew that he las was, therefore, commanded to say to Morton, evasively, ”that the Queen would bear no speech of the matter appointed to hihbourhood of St Andrews till the deed was done[27]

The Earl of Murray was another powerful nobleedy was about to be performed, withdrew to a careful distance from the scene It is i acquainted with Bothwell's intention; there is certainly no direct evidence that he was; but there are very considerable probabilities When a divorce was proposed to Mary at Craigers at it; and this design being frustrated, by the Queen's refusal to agree to it, there is every likelihood that Bothould not conceal from the cabal he had then formed, his subsequent determination That he disclosed it to Morton and Maitland, is beyond a doubt; and that Murray again consented ”to look through his fingers,” is all but proved It is true he was far too cautious and wily a politician, to plunge recklessly, like Bothwell, into such a sea of dangers and difficulties; but he was no friend to Darnley,--having lost through him much of his former power; and however the matter now ended, if he reain much benefit If Bothwell prospered, they would unite their interests,--if he failed, then Murray would rise upon his ruin Only three days before theheard, as Buchanan affirainst Darnley's life,Darnley immediately informed Mary, who sent for Lord Robert, and in the presence of her husband and the Earl of Murray, questioned hi hier, retracted what he had formerly said, and denied that he had ever repeated to Darnley any such report High words ensued in consequence; and even supposing that Murray had before been ignorant of Bothwell's sche that the ht to a crisis, he left town abruptly upon Sunday, the very last day of Darnley's life, alleging his wife's illness at St Andrews, as the cause of his departure The fact mentioned by Lesley, in his ”Defence of Queen Mary's Honour,” that on the evening of this day, Murray said, when riding through Fife, to one of his , the Lord Darnley shall lose his life,” is a strong corroboration of the supposition that he ell informed upon the subject[28]

There were others, as has been said, whom Bothwell either won over to assist him, or persuaded to remain quiet One of his inferior accomplices afterwards declared, that the Earl showed hiyle, Maitland, and Sir James Balfour, and that the words of the bond were to this effect:--”That for as ht expedient and most profitable for the commonwealth, by the whole nobility and Lords undersubscribed, that such a young fool and proud tyrant should not reign, nor bear rule over them, for diverse causes, therefore, these all had concluded, that he should be put off by one way or other, and who-soever should take the deed in hand, or do it, they should defend and fortify it as themselves, for it should be every one of their own, reckoned and holden done by themselves”[29] To another of his accoyle, Huntly, Morton, Maitland, Ruthven, and Lindsay, had promised to support him; and when he was asked what part the Earl of Murray would take, his ansas,--”He does not wish to intermeddle with it; he does not mean either to aid or hinder us”[30]

But whoever his assistants were, it was Bothwell's oless a, and whose daring hand was to strike the final and decisive blow Everything was now arranged His retainers were collected round him;--four or five of the n, and did not disapprove of it;--the nobles then at court were disposed to befriend him, from motives either of political interest or personal apprehension;--Darnley and the Queen were unsuspicious and unprotected A kingly crown glittered alrasp; he had only to venture across the Rubicon of guilt, to place it on his brow

CHAPTER III

THE DEATH OF DARNLEY

It was on Sunday, the 9th of February 1567, that the final preparations for the uilty deed, Bothas obliged to avail himself of the assistance of those ready ministers of crime, who are always to be found at the beck of a wealthy and depraved patron There were eight unfortunate men whom he thus used as tools hich to work his purpose Four of these were leish, Wilson, Powrie, and Nicolas Haubert, more commonly known by the sobriquet of French Paris He was a native of France, and had been a long while in the service of the Earl of Bothwell; but on his ht reap froe, he was taken into the Queen's service shortly before her husband's death Bothas thus able to obtain the keys of some of the doors of the Kirk-of-Field house, of which he caused counterfeit impressions to be taken[31] The other four ere at the ”deed-doing,” were persons of somewhat more consequence They were small landed proprietors or _lairds_, who had squandered their patri to run the chance of retrieving their ruined fortunes at any risk They were the Laird of Ormiston, Hob Ormiston his uncle, ”or father's brother,” as he is called, John Hepburn of Bolton, and John Hay of Tallo Bothished Maitland, Morton, and one or two others, to send some of their servants also to assist in the enterprise; but if they ever promised to do so, it does not appear that they kept their word Archibald Douglas, however, who had linked hihbourhood with two servants, when the crime was perpetrated[32]

Till within two days of thewas to be killed He held various secret s with his four principal accomplices, at which the plan first proposed was to attack Darnley alking in the gardens adjoining the Kirk-of-Field, which his returning health enabled him to visit occasionally when the weather was favourable But the success of this scheme was uncertain, and there was every probability that the assassins would be discovered[33] It was next suggested that the housestabbed in bed But a servant commonly lay in the same apartment with hi rooht have resisted or escaped, and afterwards have been able to identify the criunpowder ht be used with effect; and that, if the whole premises were blown up, they were likely to bury in their ruins every thing that could fix the suspicion on the parties concerned Poas therefore secretly brought into Edinburgh from the Castle of Dunbar, of which Bothwell had the lordshi+p, and was carried to his own lodgings in the immediate vicinity of Holyrood Palace[34] It then becaht the house could be blown up, without endangering the safety of the Queen, whom Bothwell had no desire should share the fate of her husband She frequently slept at the Kirk-of-Field; and it was difficult to ascertain precisely when she would pass the night at Holyrood[35] In his confession, Hay mentions, that ”the purpose should have been put in execution upon the Saturday night; but the s were not in readiness” It is not in the least unlikely that this delay ing to Mary's re

On Sunday, Bothwell learned that the Queen intended honouring with her presence a iven in the Palace, at a late hour, on the occasion of the aret Carwood, one of her waiting-maids He knew therefore that she could not sleep at the Kirk-of-Field that night, and took his ly

At dusk he assembled his accomplices, and told them that the time was come when he should have occasion for their services[36] He was hiiven to the Queen by the Bishop of Argyle, but he desired them to be in readiness as soon as the company should break up, when he promised to join them[37] The Queen dined at Holyrood, and went from thence to the house of Mr John Balfour, where the Bishop lodged She rose from the supper-table about nine o'clock, and, accoyle, Huntly, and Cassils, she went to visit her husband at the Kirk-of-Field Bothwell, on the contrary, having called Paris aside, as in waiting on the Queen, took his of the Laird of Ormiston[38] There he met Hay and Hepburn, and they passed down the Blackfriars Wynd together The hich surrounded the gardens of the Dominican monastery ran near the foot of this wynd

They passed through a gate in the wall, which Bothwell had contrived to open by stealth, and, crossing the gardens, came to another wall ileish and Wilson had, in theup, froed there

It had been divided into bags, and the bags were put into trunks, which they carried upon horses Not being able to take it all at once, they were obliged to go twice between the Kirk-of-Field and the Palace They were not allowed to coate at the foot of Blackfriars Wynd, where the poas taken from them by Ormiston, Hepburn, and Hay, who carried it up to the house When they had conveyed the whole, they were ordered to return home; and as they passed up the Blackfriars' Wynd, Powrie, as if suddenly conscience-struck, said to Wilson, ”Jesu! whatna a gait is this we are ganging? I trow it be not good”[40] Neither of theseup and down the Cowgate, until the others received and deposited the powder A large empty barrel had been concealed, by his orders, in the Convent gardens, and into it they intended to have put all the bags; and the barrel was then to have been carried in at the lower back door of Darnley's house, and placed in the Queen's bedroom, which, it will be re Paris, as the Queen's valet-de-chambre, kept the keys of the lower flat, and was now in Mary's apartment ready to receive the powder But so out to be so large that it could not be taken in by the back door; and it becas one by one into the bedroom, where they e anxiously to and fro, was alarmed at this delay, and came to inquire if all was ready He was afraid that the co as the Queen, with several of her nobility and ladies in waiting, ht cos ”_He bade them haste_,” says Hepburn, ”_before the Queen ca's house; for if she came forth before they were ready, they would not find such co put into the state they wished, they all left the under part of the house, with the exception of Hepburn and Hay, ere locked into the roounpowder, and left to keep watch there till the others should return[42]