"to do I think he will be very glad, as knoweth "God, who preferve your Grace in his bleffed ten"der Tuition. Written at Tylynganger, the 2d Day " of July. "Your bumble Servant, 66 J. RUSSEL." It is not to be doubted, that after this Letter Matters were settled to Sir John and his Lady's Satisfaction; for that, it fully appears, even after the Cardinal's Difgrace, that Sir John retained to the laft his Affection for Wolfey. The Cardinal's his Fellow fubfurther Care of jects. The Cardinal's Regard for the Safety and Profperity of Individuals in private Families, and the publick Affairs both at Home and Abroad, did not engross his whole Attention, but he readily liftened to the Representations from the Chiefs of the Religious Houses, in respect to any Misdeeds there committed; and where the Grievances complained of were notorious, and in his Power, he caused them to be redreffed, as many Letters now in being fully fhew. He also very readily attended to fuch Applications that were made to him from any of the Cities and Corporations in the Kingdom, tending to preferve or renew any of their antient Rights and Privileges, or to the encouraging or retrieving their Trade and Manufactures; the former he interceded with his Majefty to grant and protect, and the latter he encouraged to the utmost of his Power, as appears in many other Letters; and, as a further Inftance of the Cardinal's Refpect for the City of York, take their own Acknowledgment, from an original Letter now in the Record-office. "Moft Reverend Father in God, our most special, fingular, good, and gracious Lord, 66 N our most humble Manner, with due Reve IN verence, we recommend us unto your Grace, "thank 66 thanking your Grace, in our most humble Man"ner, for the great Pains and Goodness that your "Grace hath oftentimes taken for the Preferment "and maintaining your poor City of York, whereby "we truft now, by GoD's Grace and your most gra"cious Help, that it fhall continue a City to our great Comforts; and that it may ftand with your gracious Pleasure, that we may conclude with the “Earl of Rutland, by Writing, of the Certainty that "we fhall pay to his Lordship yearly for the Fee"farm Rent of the faid City: And moreover, we "beseech your Grace to be good and gracious unto us, touching the Grant for fhipping Wool and "Fell; and we fhall daily pray to the Bleffed Trinity to preferve your faid Grace in Honour long to con❝tinue. At the faid City of York, under the Seal "of the Office of the Mayoralty of the fame, the 27th Day of January, 66 By your Grace's most humble and daily Beadf men, the Mayor, and his Brethren, with the "whole Commonalty of the City of YORK." Here we must obferve, that, though Rapin and other Authors have been full of their malicious Reflections against Wolfey, none of them have charged him with any Attempt to corrupt or influence Perfons to fend Representatives to Parliament of his Recommendation; though it is plain, if he had been minded, he could have caufed his own Friends and thofe depending on him, to have been elected in many Places; on the contrary, he left them to chufe fuch Gentlemen as they thought proper, which we think is highly to his Honour. But, when Cromwell came into the Miniftry, the Case was quite otherwife, for there are several Letters now in the Exchequer RecordOffice, that fhew he actually directed many Places to elect for their Members fuch Perfons that he recommended to them. See our IId Vol. p. 261. Now To her Grace SARAH DUTCHESS of RICHMONDE QUEEN CATHARINE is humbly Inscribed by her Graces most obed Serv.* Joseph Grove Parr Sculp Now we come on to fpeak of the Proceedings relating to the King's Divorce from Queen Catharine, the oppofing of which affected our Cardinal fo much. Proceedings relating to the Divorce. The Writer of the Church History, after he has opened the Matter relating to the Divorce, fays, "The Game being thus ftarted, it was hotly pur"fued by various Perfons, upon various Motives: "The French, the Spaniards, the Germans, the Ita"lians, one way or other, found themfelves concern"ed in the Controverfy, as well as the English; " and they made their Attack with the joint Force "of Politicks, under the various Shapes of Intereft, "Revenge, Confcience, and Paffion." The Bishop of Rochester early declared for the Validity of the Marriage, as appears from the following Letter. Bishop FISHER to Cardinal WOLSEY. "Health to your Highness, AVING now confulted all thofe called mute H Mafters, which have reached my Hands, and diligently difcuffed the feveral Opinions and Reafon❝ings, I find, as I lately wrote to your Sublimity, "that they disagree very much on the Point in "Question; many afferting it to be contrary to di"vine Writ, while others confidently affirm it to be 66 no ways repugnant to the Laws of God. And, "having impartially weighed the Reasonings of both "Parties, the Sollution appears eafy to me; for all "the Arguments, advanced by those who infift on "its being unlawful by divine Right, may foon "be fet afide, while the Reafons of the other Side, "who hold the Negative of the Prohibition, are not "so easy, by any folid Arguing, to be exploded. "If this be true, of which I have not the least Doubt, "who then, confidering the Fulnefs of the Power 66 con |
