whole time of his execution, he remained impenitent and obstinate, rejoicing that he had slaine the prince.

Vpon the 16. day of Iuly, the Prince was very royally buryed, in the new churche at Delph, being lapped in seare cloth and leade, according to the manner of other princes in time past.

The cittizenes of Antwerp are many times driuen to shut up theyr gates, by reason of theyr enemies, who wold gladly take the city at some aduauntage: the enemie hath built a forte vpon the banke, between Antwerp and Lullo, so that they doo what they may to stop the pas sage of the riuer from them.

There is not as yet any gouernour chosen for the Lowe Countries: but they are in hope that some order will be taken for them very

shortly.

God for his mercy sake sende quietnes in those partes, that the people may enjoy theyr owne, to the health, wealth, and comfort of them all now distressed, Amen,

A

TRUE AND PERFECT DECLARATION

OF THE

TREASONS

PRACTISED AND ATTEMPTED BY

FRANCIS THROCKMORTON,

Late of London,

AGAINST THE QUEENES MAIESTIE AND THE REALME.

WHE

HEREAS there haue bene very lewde and slaunderous bruites and reportes given out, of the due and orderly proceedings held with Francis Throckmorton, lately arraigned and condemned of high treason at the Guild-hall in London the xxi. day of May last, whereby such as are euill affected toward her Maiestie, and the present gouernment, haue indeuoured falsely and iniuriously to charge her Maiestie and her faithfull ministers with crueltie and iniustice vsed against the said Throckmorton, by extorting from him by torture such confessions as he hath made against himselfe, and by inforcing the same to make them lawful euidence to conuict him of the treasons therein specified: albeit her Maiesties subiects in general, calling to mind the milde and temperate course she hath helde all the time of

her most happie reigne, might rather impute her clemencie and lenitie vsed towards all sortes of offenders to a kinde of fault, then tax her with the contrarie; yet such, as allowe of practises and treasons against her Maiestie, do alwayes interprete both of the one and of the other, according to the particular affections that doe possesse them, that is, to the worst. And forasmuch as the case of Throckmorton, at this time, hath bene subiect to their sinister constructions, and considering that lies and false bruites cast abroad are most commonly beleeued, vntil they be controlled by the trueth; it hath bene thought expedient, in this short discourse, to deliuer vnto your view and consideration a true and perfect declaration of the treasons practised and attempted by the said Throckmorton against her Maiestie and the realme, by him confessed before his arraignement, whereby her Maiestie was iustly and in reason perswaded to put him to his triall. You shall likewise perceiue what course hath bene helde with him by her commissioners to bring him to confesse the trueth; with what impudencie, and how falsely he hath denied his sayings and confessions: and lastly, how, by a new submission and confession of his said treasons, sithens his condemnation, he endeuoureth to satisfie her Maiestie, and to shew the reasons that mooued him to denie the first, which he affirmeth and confirmeth by the last; which may in reason satisfie, though not all, yet such as are not forestalled, or rather forepoysoned and infected with the lies and vntruths alreadie spred and deliuered, in fauour of the traitor and his treasons. You shall therefore vnderstand, that the cause of his apprehension grewe first vpon secret intelligence giuen to the Queenes Maiestie, that he was a priuie conueiour and receiuour of letters, to, and from the Scottish Queene*, vpon which information neuerthelesse diuers moneths were suffered to passe on, before he was called to answere the matter, to the end there might some proofe inore apparant be had to charge him therewith directly; which shortly after fell out, and thereupon there were sent vnto his houses in London, and at Leusham, in Kent, to search and apprehend him, certain gentlemen of no meane credite and reputation; of whom, two were sent to his house by Poules-wharfe, where he was apprehended, and so by one of them conveyed presently away, the other remaining in the chamber to make search for papers, writings, &c. which might give proofe of his suspected practises.

In that search, there were found the two papers containing the names of certain Catholique Noblemen and Gentlemen, expressing the hauens for landing of forraine forces, with other particularities in the said papers mentioned; the one written in the secretarie hand, which he at the barre confessed to be his owne hand writing; and the other in the Romane hand, which he denied to be his, and would not shewe how the same came vnto his hands: howbeit in his examinations he hath confessed them both to be his owne hand writing, and so they are in tructh. There were also found, among other of his papers, twelve pedigrees of the discent of the crowne of England, printed and published by the Bishop of Rosse, in the defence of the pretended title of the

Mary.

Scottish Queene, his mistresse, with certaine infamous libelles against her Maiestie, printed and published beyond the seas; which being found in the hands of a man so evil affected, comparing the same with his doings and practises against her Maiestie, you wil iudge the purpose wherefore he kept them.

Shortly after his apprehension, hee was examined by some of her Maiesties priuic-counsell, how he came by the said two papers of the hauens, and he most impudently denied, with many protestations, that he ever sawe them, affirming they were none of his, but were foisted in (as he termed it) among his papers, by the gentleman, that searched his house: notwithstanding being more earnestly pressed to Confesse the trueth, he sayd they had been left (he knew not how) in his chamber by a man of his, who long before was departed out of the realme, named Edward Rogers, alias Nuttebie, by whome they were written. And, to make this deuice to carie some colour of trueth, after his committing to the Tower, he found the meanes to get three cards, on the backside of which cardes he wrote to his brother George Throckmorton, to this effect: I have bene examined, by whom the two papers, conteining the names of certaine noblemen and gentlemen, and of hauens, &c. were written; and I haue alleaged them to haue bene written by Edward Nuttebie my man, of whose hand-writing you knowe them to be:' Meaning by this deuice to have had his brother confirme his falsehode. These cardes were intercepted, and thereby the suspition before concciued of his practises increased, whereupon, as vpon other iust cause and matter against him, hauing bin sundrie times brought before some of the principall personages of her Maiesties most honorable privie-counsell, and by them with all industrie examined, and perswaded in very milde and charitable maner, to confesse the trueth, promising to procure pardon for him, in case he would bewray the depth of his practises; but, no persuasion preuailing, her Maiestie thought it agreeable with good pollicie, and the safetie of her royal person and state, to commit him ouer to the hands of some of her learned counsel, and others her faithfull seruants and ministers, with commission to them, to assay by torture to drawe from him the trueth of the matters appearing so waightie as to concerne the inuading of the realme, &c. These men, by vertue of that commission, proceeded with him, first as the counsell had formerly done, by way of persuasion, to induce him to confesse; but, finding that course not to preuaile, they were constrained to commit him to such as are vsually appointed in the Towre to handle the racke, by whom he was layd vpon the same, and somewhat pinched, although not much; for, at the end of three doys following, he had recouered himselfe, and was in as good plight as before the time of his racking, which if it had then or any other time bene ministred vnto him with that violence, that hee and his favourers haue indeuoured slaunderously to giue out, the signes thereof would have appeared vpon his limmes for many yeeres. At this first time of torture, he would confesse nothing, but continued in his former obstinacie and deniall of the trueth. The second time that he was put to the racke, before hee was strayned vp to any purpose, hee yeelded to confesse any thing, he knewe, in the matters obiected against him; whereupon he was loosed,

and then the commissioners proceeded with him according to such interrogatories as had bene deliuered vnto them, which for the more breuitie shall here bee omitted, the intent of this declaration tending onely to discouer vnto you the treasons, and treacherous dealings of the said Francis Throckmorton, aswell before as sithens his imprisonment, for your better knowledge of the man, and manifestation of the due and just proceedings held with him by her Maiesties commissioners, appointed to that seruice. And here you are to note, that when hee was first pressed to discouer by whome the plottes of the hauens were sette downe, and to what purpose, he began (without any further interrogation ministred) by way of an historicall narration, to declare that, at his being at Spaw in the countrie of Leige certaine yeres past, he entred into conference with one Ienney, a notorious knowen traitor, touching the altering of the state of the realme here, and how the same might be attempted by forraine inuasion, and to the like effect had sundrie conferences with Sir Francis Englefield*, in the Low-Countreys, who daily solicited the Spanish King in Spaine, and his gouernours in the said countreyes, to attempt the inuading of the realme, continued a course of practising against her Maiestie and the state, by letters betweene Sir Francis Englefield and himselfe, vntil within these two yeres Tast past, and that he did, from time to time, acquaint Sir John Throckmorton †, his late father, with his traiterous practises, who, as he said, seeing no probabilitie of successe in them, dissuaded him from any further medling with those practises.

He hath further confessed, that he vsed his fathers aduise and opnion in setting downe the names of the Catholique noblemen and gen tlemen, and did acquaint him with the description of the hauens for the landing of forces, which he conceiued, and put in writing, onely by view of the mappe, and not by particular sight or suruey of the said hauens.

Item, he hath also confessed, that vpon the intermission of writing of letters, and the accustomed intelligences passed betweene Sir Francis Englefield and him, he was made acquainted by his brother Thomas Throckmorton, by letters and conference, and by Thomas Morgan, by letters (two of the principall confederates and workers of these treasons residing in France) with a resolute determination agreed on by the Scottish Queene and her confederates in France, and in other forreine partes, and also in Englande, for the inuading of the realme. That the Duke of Guyse should be the principal leader and executer of that inuasion.

pre

..That the pretention, which shoulde be publiquely notified, should be to deliuer the Scottish Queene to libertie, and to procure, euen by force, from the Queenes Maiestie a tolerance in religion, for the tended Catholiques: but the intention, the bottome whereof should not at the first be made knowen to all men, shoulde be, vpon the Queenes Maiesties resistance, to remooue her Maiestie from her crowne and state.

Who had been of Queen Mary's privy-council.

Chief jutsice of Chester; but lately put out of the commission; Camden. p. 497.

That the Duke of Guyse had prepared the forces, but there wanted two things, money, and the assistance of a conuenient partie in England, to ioyne with the forraine forces, and a third thing, how to set the Scottish Queene at libertie without perill of her person.

For, the first thing wanting, viz. money, messengers were sent from forraine parts both to Rome and Spaine, and their returne daily expected to their liking and the Spanish ambassador*, to encourage the English to ioyne both in purse and person, did giue out, that the King his master would not onely make some notable attempt against Englande, but also would bear halfe the charge of the enterprise. For the seconde thing, viz. the preparing of a sufficient partie in England, to receiue and to ioyne with the forraine forces, one especiall messenger was sent ouer into England in August last, vnder a counterfaite name, from the confederates in France, to signifie the plotte and preparation there, and to sollicite the same here.

That Thomas Throckmorton, his brother, made him priuie to his negotiation, at his last being here in England, and that thereupon Frauncis Throckmorton tooke vpon him to be a follower, and meane for the effectuating thereof among the confederates in England, with the help of the Spanish ambassadour, whom he instructed howe, and with whome to deale, for the preparing of a conuenient partie heere within the realme, for that himselfe woulde not be seene to be a sounder of men, lest hee might be discouered, and so endanger himselfe and the enterprise, knowing that the ambassadour, being a publique person, might safelie deale therein without perill.

That the Duke of Guyse, and other heads of the enterprise, had refused some landing places, and made speciall choice of Sussex, and about Arundel in Sussex, both for the neere cutte from the partes of Fraunce, where the duke did, or best could assemble his force, and for the opportunitie of assured persons to giue assistance, &c.

That hee, taking vpon him the pursuite of this course, shewed the whole plotte and deuise of the hauens for landing to the Spanish ambassadour, who did incourage him therein, he promising, that, if hee might haue respite vntill the next spring, the same should be done more exactly.

That, at the time of Thomas Throckmortons being here, lest the negotiation of the enterprise, by some casualtie, might taile in the only hand of one man, Thomas Throckmorton, there was also, from the confederates, sent ouer into Sussex, Charles Paget, vnder the name of Mope, alias Spring; and thereof an aduertisement couertly sent to Thomas Throckmorton, both that Thomas might understande it, and not be offended that another was ioined with him in his labour.

That the Spanish ambassadour, by aduertisements from the confede rates, was made priuie to this coming of Charles Paget, vnder the name of Mope, and yet knowen to him to be Charles Paget.

That the sayde ambassadour did, according to his sayde aduertisements, knowe and affirme, that Charles Paget was come ouer to view

•Mendoza, who upon this information was desired to come to the council, where, not being able to gainsay what Throgmorton had deposed, he behaved very insolently by way of recrimination, and was in a few days after ordered to depart the kingdom. Camden.